Category: 2022

Earlier this year, I introduced you to five young and bright people from Artsakh. The positive feedback motivated me to continue highlighting the youth and share the stories of more inspiring young people from Artsakh. They are smart. They know what they want. They are hard workers, and they are making Artsakh better and brighter today. 

Here they are: Narek, a young photographer who knows how to make you smile and capture the best photos; Anush, a young lady planting microgreens and encouraging the people of Artsakh to eat healthy to feel better; Angelina, the sweetest student who has her own brand despite her young age; Christina, an optimistic and energetic young woman who will make your event unforgettable with her amazing balloons and party decorations; Diana, a talented dancer and owner of ‘’Nakshun’’ handmade bracelets; Grigori, a young and experienced hairstylist; Lusine, a certificated international etiquette consultant who will teach you how to eat and drink properly; and Inna and Narine, the young women who help Artsakh small businesses export their goods around the world. 

Narek Sargsyan – 22 years old, photographer and public relations manager from Stepanakert

Narek Sargsyan

“After the 2020 Artsakh War, I realized that there is nothing impossible in this life. You just need to work hard and achieve all your goals. If you have peace and your people around, everything is possible.

I started my career as a photographer three years ago. Ten months ago, I launched ‘Artsakh Promotion,’ which aims to document the people of Artsakh and promote their businesses. The name says it all. We do photo shoots, video and drone videography. We also create cartoons, animations, web pages, graphic designs and take on PR and marketing. 

The people I work with are the main motivation and inspiration of my job. I’m fortunate that I am able to stay in touch with clients even after the work is done. We are trying to support each other whenever it’s needed. This is so important and precious to me. 

I like catching the happiest moments on photoshoots. I like to follow people’s facial expressions and see what makes them happy. I think this helps me to know them well and widen my horizons. I also like working with bright and bold people. When my subjects can pose and do everything to get good photos, when they have no complex, I really enjoy working with them, as well as couples. I don’t look at the time, and I don’t count minutes. I truly enjoy the whole process and the love in the air. 

I don’t know whether I will do this for the rest of my life. Several years ago, if you told me that I would become a photographer, I would laugh at you. Everything changes too fast, and I should just live in the moment. 

This job has one more perk. I started discovering Artsakh and its hidden gems. There is never enough time. Twenty-four hours isn’t enough for me. 

I want to remember the funniest moments from my photo shoots and realize that they are plenty. I work with different people, and something awkward happens often. I was once taking photos of a couple at the Stepanakert cathedral, and there was a child praying and asking God for high grades on his exams.

One of the difficulties in my job is that most Artsakh people/couples are not used to showing their emotions, especially next to other people. When you ask them to show some emotions, they say that they never do that. The younger generation is more open-minded, and I never have such problems with them. I can say that there is a hope for a more open and more free society in the future. 

It may sound paradoxical, but there is no difficult job if you do it with love. At the same time, all jobs are difficult if you want to do them perfectly and always seek perfection in every detail. I do my job with love. I’m thankful to my team: Diana, our photographer; Karen, our IT specialist and director; Mark, our computer animation specialist; and Erna who is helping us create logos.     

I would suggest that young people not waste the time given to them today and use it with maximum profit to themselves and their homeland.”

Anush Yesayan – 24 years old, Greench Microgreens co-founder from Stepanakert

Anush Yesayan

“After the war…I realized that there is no time to wait, and you just need to live right here, right now.

It’s been about five months since I started my small business Greench Microgreens in Artsakh. My friend Tigran Andryan and I came up with the idea together. The main goal was to be useful in everyday life. I like planting greens. Initial feedback from our customers was positive. Then, we started getting more and more orders which meant we were starting to get popular and that people liked our greens. I was inspired by the idea of having my own business and bringing something new to Artsakh life. While thinking of the name, we wanted to make it simple and memorable. That’s how we came up with Greench Microgreens. 

Our microgreens are healthy. Our customers say they saw improvements in their digestion, sleep and mood. They have so many vitamins that can compete with medicines. Moreover they are aesthetic and look great while decorating dishes. At this moment there are several restaurants who are taking orders from us, people who want to eat healthy and stay fit, also those who appreciate aesthetics even in food. 

We have many followers from Armenia as well who are waiting for us. Unfortunately, there are no delivery options at the moment from Artsakh to Armenia, and we can’t make it. But hopefully in the near future, we will solve this problem and will appear in the Armenian market as well. 

It’s interesting how the older generation views this. As you know Artsakh is the motherland of greens and seeing this ‘fancy’ green in their kitchen seems to be unacceptable, but no. There are those who understand the importance and use of our product, and they also started ordering it. 

I would say that it’s easy to start a new business in Artsakh. There are many fields which should be filled. The internet is full of new amazing ideas, and when you have funds to start the business, it will take just your time and efforts to succeed. 

We are planning to broaden our farm and in the future have our shop and our branches not only in Artsakh, but in Armenia and abroad. With God’s help, we will have not only microgreens, but other products to keep healthy and fit.”

Angelina Grigoryan – 15 years old, founder of Morpho from Stepanakert 

Angelina Grigoryan

“After the war, I became more determined, and now I know that every day is a chance to become better and stronger. Life is a game, and the winner is the one who knows its weakness. You just need to know the rules of the game and enjoy it.

The idea of creating my own brand came during the war. I was working hard over a year to open my own brand which I named Morpho, a freedom-loving butterfly that flies on the highest peaks of the trees. Morpho produces tote bags and T-shirts mostly with Artsakh ornaments. While creating Morpho, I was inspired by the women who create their own businesses and never stop learning and being useful to the world.  

I like mixing Artsakh ornaments with modern details and getting something unique. 

In the beginning, I was getting orders mostly from Artsakh, but then when I became more experienced, I started delivering them abroad as well. Customers in Artsakh would buy Morpho and send them to their friends and relatives living abroad. 

My customers mostly order bags and tee-shirts with Artsakh themes. The most favorites are Tatik-Papik and Ghazanchechots Cathedral patterns or something written in Artsakh dialect. We also have our customized tee-shirt called ‘Hayuhi’ for our incredible and beautiful Armenian women. 

In the future, I plan to expand our geography and open a Morpho shop in Artsakh. For me, it’s easier to live and work in Artsakh as our soil gives me strength and motivation to create something beautiful. 

I like to use J.K. Rowling as an example, who received 14 rejections when she was trying to publish Harry Potter. I’m sure that with hard work and with the help of God everything is possible.”

Christina Verdyan – 26 years old, owner of Verdyan’s Art Shop, Stepanakert

Christina Verdyan

“After the war, I started to love Artsakh even more. I was thinking about going abroad to start a new life, but now I can’t imagine even a day without Artsakh. Even when I’m in Yerevan, I’m counting the days to come back to Stepanakert. I’m much more needed here than in other places on earth.

Verdyan’s Art Shop specializes in balloons and other decorations for birthdays, weddings and other celebrations. I’ve been doing this job for five years. I previously worked at a café where parents always asked me to help them decorate birthday parties. This is how I discovered this talent and started my small business.

I feel confident and strong here in Artsakh, and I think that we have only a lack of strong leaders to overcome this shameful situation and live our decent lives. 

In the future, I plan to open my own bridal salon because I don’t like that our brides have to travel to Yerevan to get their wedding dresses. I want to make them beautiful and shine on their special day.  

I advise everyone, especially young people living in the Diaspora, to come to Artsakh at least once to get to know us, as reading news or posts on social media is totally different from our real life here in Artsakh. We are fighting for our life. We are struggling to have things which our peers get for free in other countries where they don’t even know the price of freedom and peace. Here you will understand that and will appreciate everything you have in your life.”

Diana Hambardzumyan – 27 years old, professional dancer and founder of Nakhshun Art, Stepanakert

Diana Hambardzumyan

“After the war, I became a more easygoing person. I just want to live and enjoy my life here in Artsakh.

I’ve been dancing for six years. I’ve been working at Artsakh State Dance Ensemble for over 10 years. When I was dancing ‘Nakhshun Baji,’ my colleagues started calling me Nakhshun. This is what inspired the name of the handmade bracelet brand ‘Nakhshun’ that launched one year ago. In the beginning, it was something like art therapy for me. Afterwards, my friends convinced me to create my own brand, and it became popular. I have always liked handmade jewelry; I appreciate everything handmade. Even in my childhood, I liked making bracelets from the beads. Macramé was also interesting to me. I mostly knit with schemes, but sometimes I want to make something crazy and just improvise.  

How do I combine dancing with knitting? The answer is simple. I knit after work. It’s healing and a way to relax. 

In general, you can do anything if you have a wish. You can achieve anything by hard work.”  

Grigori Danielyan – 18 years old, hair stylist, Stepanakert 

Grigori Danielyan

“After the war, I started to appreciate life even more. I want to enjoy each second given to me and make people around me happier.

I had other plans for my future, but after the war I decided to learn a new craft, and this was the first thing that came to my mind. I took classes with a well-known hair stylist and colorist in Armenia and Russia. Then one of my coaches invited me to Yerevan to work at his beauty salon. This is how everything started.

Of course, people are surprised when they see me for the first time, but as soon as my work is finished, we become good friends and they visit me again and again. There are stereotypes among our people that if you are young and you are male, you can’t be a good specialist. But I’m doing my best to break all those stereotypes, and the range of women coming to cut or color their hair proves that I’m doing everything right. 

There is also another problem when older generations or hair stylists with 15 to 20 years of experience look at me with doubt in their eyes; they seem like they don’t believe that someone young is capable of doing this work. But I strongly believe that it doesn’t matter how long you are occupying a particular job, if you don’t work on yourself daily you will not be able to become a good professional.

In the future, I plan to become famous not only in Artsakh and Armenia, but around the world. I’m planning to have my own studio and host masterclasses. 

One piece of advice which I will give to young people is to never give up and use every failure as a new chance for great achievements.”

Lusine Hambardzumyan – 26 years old, certificated international etiquette consultant, Stepanakert 

Lusine Hambardzumyan

“After the war, my love toward Artsakh became even bigger. I’m proud of being from Artsakh, and I feel the commitment while walking on this sacred soil.

I always dreamed of doing work outside the public and private sectors. This is how I found myself studying etiquette. I studied French, Russian and British etiquette. I realized that I want to share all the knowledge gained during these years. So I created an Instagram account and decided to host etiquette classes. I just launched my dining etiquette classes. I teach the proper etiquette of eating and behavior at the table based on British and French etiquettes. The course will be online and will last two weeks. These are my first steps in this field, so I’m starting with only one course. But I’m planning to also have an offline (tête-à-tête) course where I will also teach business etiquette. 

I like observing people at restaurants. Unfortunately, most people are guilty of making common mistakes such as putting phones or purses on the table, applying make-up or discussing unacceptable issues (politics, religion, gossip). 

In Artsakh, it’s interesting to learn more about our manners. While there is no such thing as Artsakh etiquette, we do need to take into account our culture. For instance, while eating our famous Jingalov hats you should always remember that Artsakh people don’t eat it with knife and fork, so you just take it and eat it with your hands. This is the same as Georgian khinkali, which you can’t eat with a knife and fork. You should always follow the traditions of a particular country.

Living and working in Artsakh has both its advantages and disadvantages. There are many new business opportunities. Having zero competition is good, but at the same time, it can be less motivating to become better. There are many who live in uncertainty. This is very demotivating, and it’s painful to see my people in despair. On the other hand, the youth are motivated to learn something new. They bring everything into balance, and I’m happy seeing our young people creating all the time. 

It’s difficult to have long-term plans for the future in this disadvantageous political and geopolitical situation for Artsakh, but I’m sure my life’s work will be dedicated to Artsakh.

I will suggest to young people around the world to learn and fail, to fail until they will make it. Don’t pay attention to the marks which you get at the schools or universities. What’s most important is who you are inside and what you are doing to become better every day.”

Inna Baghiryan and Narine Hovhannisyan, founders of Buy4Artsakh and Verelk entrepreneurs. Baghiryan, 22 years old, is from Stepanakert. Hovhannisyan, 22 years old, is from Kolkhozashen village in Martuni region. 

Inna Baghiryan and Narine Hovhannisyan

“After the war, we both started to appreciate Artsakh even more and put all our efforts to make Artsakh loud and visible to the world. We are here; we want to live and create on our land.

It’s been four months since we started our microbusiness in Artsakh. The 2020 Artsakh War damaged our economy, so we decided to create a platform where small businesses will be able to realize their products out of Artsakh and Armenia. To make it easier and faster, we decided to put all those products in one box. We had been working on this idea for seven months. We have created special boxes which symbolize Artsakh. Then we started to promote our business through Facebook and Instagram pages. Buy4Artsakh was welcomed warmly by our Diaspora. We sent our boxes to five different countries only in the first month. Our customers can choose what they want to see in the box, but mostly they let us decide. We work with more than 17 local businesses in Artsakh and help them export their products abroad. Diasporan Armenians are discovering Artsakh through our boxes. Many of them even decided to come visit Artsakh after receiving their boxes. Everyone is welcome to buy our boxes and experience different offerings from Artsakh. The main target is the Diaspora, and we are doing our best to make them feel closer to Artsakh.

In the last four months, we shipped over 100 Buy4Artsakh boxes abroad. We select seasonal items, and we pay attention to those products which are well-packed as people living abroad are paying attention to the branding. 

We are planning to become an internationally recognized brand, and we wish to get orders not only from Armenians, but from foreigners as well. 

We advise young people to be free in their dreams, learn more, work hard and put all the efforts toward the recognition of Artsakh. The future is in our hands.”

In the wake of its aggression against Artsakh and its victory against Armenians therein, Azerbaijan is more than ever engaged in attempts to justify its actual occupation of large territorial fractions of this country and an alleged sovereignty over it and its Armenian inhabitants. To say it otherwise, Ilham Aliyev duly endorses the famous apocryphal statement assigned to Bismarck according to which “Macht geht über Recht.”

This situation is facilitated by the great political weakness of Armenia, which so far is the main ally of the Republic of Artsakh. Such a weakness of course results from the military defeat, which weakens the current Armenian government, now strongly contested by a reinvigorated opposition supported by broad, if not dominant, segments of the population. Indeed, the defeat again made Artsakh the key contentious issue on Armenia’s political scene. This evolution is certainly logical, as the loss of Artsakh is rightfully perceived as an existential threat for Armenia itself. As a matter of confirmation, Azerbaijani troops started encroaching on strategic heights of Syunik, Armenia’s southern province, while the regime of Baku makes regular claims, not only over this region but also over Lake Sevan and Yerevan itself, i.e., over three quarters of the tiny Armenian territory. The current political conditions are so critical that Armenia is unable to guarantee the security of Artsakh, hardly its own security and that Russia, through its peacekeepers, is now the only guarantor of the security of the Republic of Artsakh.

In such a context, Kamal Makili-Aliyev, associate professor of human rights at the University of Gothenburg, recently advocated for reintegration of Artsakh (so-called “Nagorno-Karabakh”) in Azerbaijan following the model of the Åland islands. Prof. Makili-Aliyev’s article contains some disputable affirmations, but, more critically, it is putting forward a model which can certainly not apply to Artsakh.

Åland Islands (Photo: Creative Commons/Helgi Þorsteinsson/norden.org)

For instance, it claims: “International law does not envision the right to self-determination for minorities per se.” This affirmation obliterates the fact that, likewise, international law does not forbid or prevent the right to self-determination for minorities per se. Indeed, international law is mostly silent on that point. However, what international law indirectly says in essence is that the territorial integrity of states must be based on the self-determination of people living in the territorial limits claimed by the considered state and that such a territorial integrity is certainly not equating a license to kill. In this regard, self-determination may be justified twice for Artsakh: on the one hand, because it has never been part of any independent Azerbaijan (and with good reason – such an entity never existed in history up to 1918), and on the other hand, because each colonization phase of Artsakh by Azerbaijan led to massive slaughters of its indigenous inhabitants, i.e., ethnic Armenians.

Actually, the territorial limit between Armenian and Tatar statehoods has never been set by any treaty. In the 19th century, the whole area was under Persian sovereignty when it was incorporated in the Russian Empire to further the Tsarist expansion southward, and then sovietized later on. In both the Russian Empire and USSR, administrative limits have never been deemed as international borders. Interestingly, during the brief period of independence (1918-1920) of these countries, Armenia was provisionally entitled to access the League of Nations on a territorial basis, which included Artsakh, whereas Azerbaijan was dismissed as it was not able to determine its Western border.

Therefore, at the fall of the USSR, the inhabitants of Artsakh voted to be attached again to Armenia and this was refused by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the USSR. Then, when Azerbaijan seceded from the USSR, Armenians from Artsakh lawfully declared their independence from Azerbaijan to which they were forcefully associated only since and through sovietization. Those who, for some reason, do not accept this regular declaration of independence should at least consider that remedial secession of Artsakh from Azerbaijan is legitimate with respect to the long record of mass murders, war crimes and destruction of cultural heritage performed by Azerbaijan against these people, prior to the last war and even more during and after it.

In this respect, illustrating the Artsakh case with the Åland islands is at best a bitter joke. As explained by Prof. Makili-Aliyev, these islands are populated by Swedes but are under Finland’s sovereignty. They enjoy a certain level of autonomy. They are demilitarized. They enjoy their own parliament. They have their own flag and police forces, and they are guaranteed a representation in the Finnish parliament.

But, Azerbaijan is certainly neither Finland, nor Sweden. These privileges granted by Finland to the Åland islands are inconceivable in Azerbaijan. Scandinavian countries are ranked among the most democratic states worldwide – with stringent respect for human rights and scrupulous respect of the rule of law – whereas Azerbaijan stagnates for years in the limbos of such rankings. In 2022 for instance, Reporters without Borders ranked Sweden and Finland at the third and fifth positions of its yearly ranking and Azerbaijan at the 154th position just between Belarus and Russia. This same organization considers Ilham Aliyev a “press freedom predator.”

Average citizens have basically no rights in Azerbaijan. Unless they flee, any dissident voice has been jailed and tortured. Arif and Leyla Yunus fled in 2016, and Emin Milli in 2015, for instance. Even in exile, they are not safe. In 2017, Afgan Mukhtarli was abducted in nearby Georgia to be imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Mahammad Mirzali – a blogger who recently took refuge in France – escaped twice from murder attempts by Baku’s probable henchmen operating on the French territory. Trials are ongoing.

If ethnic Tatars are not safe in Azerbaijan, how can it be possible for ethnic Armenians against whom the regime and Aliyev himself are proudly and openly engaged in a decade-long campaign of inciting hatred? During the last war, Aliyev repeated about Artsakh Armenians, “We are chasing them out like dogs.” Indeed, his army performed numerous war crimes. Even now, nearly two years after the war, captured Armenian soldiers and civilians are jailed and tortured in Azerbaijan.

If there is one point that everyone should clearly understand, it is that Artsakh Armenians are not claiming independence for pleasure or pride, but to stay alive on their ancestral lands. To come back to the Åland example, we may affirm that it has been already tested by some previously Armenian-populated territories: Nakhichevan which was predominantly Armenian before 1923, the Shahumyan district which declared its independence with the other regions of Artsakh in 1988 and also the territories occupied by Azerbaijan after the 2020 war. These examples were quite conclusive as the ethnic cleansing is completely achieved and the exact number of Armenians therein is now zero.

To conclude the joke on the Åland islands, I cannot miss mentioning the exchange between the third President of Artsakh Arkady Ghukasyan and European Parliament member Per Gahrton. This conversation occurred in the early 2000s when Gahrton was the EP rapporteur on South Caucasus. As a Swede, Gahrton precisely used this example of the Åland islands to try convincing Ghukasyan that being under foreign sovereignty was possible and acceptable. After some talks, Ghukasyan said in essence, “Okay, you convinced me! I accept.” A little bit destabilized, Gahrton replied by asking again, “You accept?” Ghukasyan confirmed, “Yes! I accept to place Artsakh under Finland’s sovereignty.”

Avetik Chalabyan

The fifth installment of a multi-part series, this article was originally published in Armenian by Mediamax on June 26, 2022.

Avetik Chalabyan’s legal representatives have published the co-founder of ARAR Foundation’s article penned at the Armavir Penitentiary Institution, where he is currently being held under trumped up charges.

I have presented the existential choice facing Armenia if it wants to bid farewell to Nikolism and the national catastrophe that it has brought upon the nation. I separately addressed the three main pillars of that election: the Armenian Regathering, Modernization and Militarization and presented why they are necessary in the region’s existing geopolitical conditions. After reading these pieces, an attentive reader will naturally ask two fair questions. Are these possible given our condition? Can we take such a heavy burden on ourselves and carry it successfully?

The answer to these questions is not unequivocal. The good news is that there are examples in modern world history that can serve as a real source of inspiration for us. For example, at the time of the declaration of independence in 1947, Israel was inferior to Soviet Armenia in terms of population and economy and had about half of its territory. Seventy-five years later, Israel has increased its territory by about 50 percent, has increased its population by eight times, and its gross economic output exceeds 12 times that of Armenia. The Jews are unique; they have a strong national ideology, and we Armenians are not able to repeat their miraculous achievements. But the example of Israel is not the only one. During the same period in the Far East, beginning with the devastation of extreme poverty and catastrophic war, South Korea and Singapore also made a dramatic leap in 70 years, multiplying their populations, modernizing their economies and strongly militarizing their countries (these two countries and Israel rank in the top 10 most militarized nations in the world). The latter deserves special attention, as traditional European political and economic thought opposes militarization toward economic prosperity, and at least before the start of the war in Ukraine, they argued that states should reduce their military spending in order to direct those funds towards peaceful purposes.

In that case, what allowed these three countries (as well as Switzerland and Japan before them) to break the traditional logic and make such an impressive leap? What can we learn from their experience, and how relevant is it to us?

I once wrote an article about South Korea that analyzed the stages of its post-war development and drew parallels with today’s Armenia. I would like to mention a few factors that played a significant role there.

• Regardless of the change of government, there was a clear national consensus on modernization, progressive economic development and integration into the world economic value chains, done so consistently and aggressively.
• Militarization was seen as an absolute necessity to protect against the threat posed by North Korea and Communist China. At the same time, it became a key impetus for the technological development of the country.
• The state focused its budget on education and social mobility, not on social equalization. In doing so, it created a highly competitive environment within the society and incentives to learn and work.
• The society’s aspiration to overcome the severe psychological trauma received during the Japanese occupation also played an important role in this process.

In the same way, if we study the histories of Israel and Singapore, we will see many similar factors (although in the case of Israel the issue of the restoration of the spiritual homeland was very important). There are certain patterns that are universal in nature and have allowed these countries, in significant dissonance with conventional logic, to take a leap forward, leading them to both population growth and improvements in citizen welfare and security. 

One of the most important issues to consider is that societies living in conditions of external military danger are mobilized, and its members are ready to do much more than those in peaceful conditions: work longer hours, solve more complex problems, consume less and instead invest their resources in the development of the state. When this goes on for decades, the results can be astounding.

The average economic growth rate in the world is about four percent, and in the last 50 years it has led to an eight-fold growth in the world’s gross economic output.

However, the countries that managed to ensure seven-percent growth instead of the average annual growth of four percent, have already grown 32 times in the same period. That is, they are four times ahead of the world average. Consider Singapore, where the per capita GDP is now 10 times higher than the world average and more than twice as high as the US average.

However, in order for a country to develop at such a high and stable pace, it must have a long-term, clear and flexible national strategy and national leadership capable of turning that strategy into reality. In this sense, Singapore is truly a classic example, as its “miracle” is connected with the long-term leadership of one genius politician, Lee Kuan Yew.

However, South Korea, Israel and other countries that performed economic miracles after World War II did not have such long-term leadership alone. Instead, they had a general consensus among the political forces on what is a priority in the long run and is not subject to radical revision as a result of political cycles and change of government, and have consistently moved forward in that direction.

For example, in the case of Israel, the key was that it is the Jewish nation-state and its existence is called to ensure the security of the Jewish people in its historical homeland, and all other issues are subordinated to that goal and addressed as much as possible.

In the case of South Korea, similarly, it was a priority to resist the communist threat coming from the north, and in the long run, to unite the divided homeland.

In this sense, it is crucial for today’s Armenia to form its own “National Pact,” that is, the clear, understandable and universal strategic goals that the Armenian state must serve in the coming decades and which are not subject to radical revision in the event of a replacement of political forces. The first step in that direction was taken on June 3 when the Resistance Movement submitted a draft statement consisting of seven points. Although the ruling majority did not accept it, it is very important that a number of extra-parliamentary political structures signed the statement; and this is the first necessary step on the way to forming a national consensus. The next step is not only to expand the scope of the structures joining the “National Pact,” but also to significantly deepen its content, replacing the logic of the “red lines” with long-term national goals and their worldview. Such a “National Pact” must, finally, answer an important question: what is the mission of the Armenian nation state in the historical homeland or for what higher goals should an Armenian be ready to suffer hardships and endure in his historical homeland?

Such a process can be undertaken right now, leaving the door open for all political and public structures and having a wide public discussion around the proposed “National Pact.” By the way, the Declaration of Independence is also an example of such a “National Pact,” but it obviously needs to be updated today. This entire process can be built by the logic of modernizing the Declaration of Independence and forming an updated national vision document for the next few decades.

Next, if we are to formulate and consistently communicate to our entire people the renewed Declaration of Independence, we must form a national leadership capable of implementing it over the coming decades. In our reality, most people think in terms of a person, regularly asking who will come “after Nikol.” In fact, this is a consequence of a fundamental institutional deficit, which we have not been able to overcome during the three decades of independence, continuing to see the solution of our complex problems in the arrival of the mythical “savior,” instead of strengthening the institutional foundations of our state.

They have never been strong, but now they have been radically undermined during Pashinyan’s rule, whose activities are aimed at subjugating the entire state apparatus to his own will, resulting in unprecedented simplification and loss of professional qualities (especially in the security system – Armenian Armed Forces, the Foreign Ministry and the National Security Service).

The future Armenian state must be able to restore its own institutional depth and raise the capacity of the state apparatus to a qualitatively new level. This is not possible, however, under the current Constitution, which gives dictatorial powers to one person (regardless of his or her governing qualities). This person, having been elected by the relatively poor and less educated segment of the population and having no real political counterbalances, will always be interested in reproducing his own phenotype by all possible means. As a result, the less educated segment of the society will dominate the educated and progressive one, blocking the development of the country and maintaining the country in the same crisis mode that we are in today. If we aim to exit this vicious circle, we must change the Constitution and balance the seemingly democratic mechanisms of power with strong institutional counterbalances, which are formed on the basis of meritocratic principles.

The modern world — the United States, Great Britain, the European Union — has long understood the need for mechanisms to balance the will of the popular majority with the deep knowledge of the educated and experienced minority. It has been a key stabilizing factor in the development of these countries. We must follow the same logic, trying to form solid institutions in the conditions of our national reality, which will represent the professional groups of public administration (military generals, diplomats, intelligence professionals, judges or other professional civil servants).

This can be done through the restoration of the institution of the President, who is elected by the Constitution and endowed with greater powers, by expanding the powers of the General Staff, strengthening the guarantees of judges, strengthening public control over laws adopted by the National Assembly or even creating an upper chamber. Today, however, it is important to realize that without such changes and constitutional reforms, Armenia in the foreseeable future will not have a leadership capable of effectively governing the country, and today by heroically removing Pashinyan from power, sooner or later we will return to the same broken state.

Finally, if we can regulate the constitutional foundations of our state and create a competitive political environment and legal guarantees for effective governance, we must take another important step to ensure the sustainable development of our state.

During the 30 years of independence, the cancer of our state organism has been materialism at all levels. From the laborer who despises his own country to state leaders, we are deeply rooted in materialism, the preference of our own narrow material interests over the public interest, our own homeland, and consequently the consumerist attitude toward our own life. It has penetrated and corrupted most of the state elite.

General Karekin Nejdeh wisely said that there is no greater evil for the nation than the materialistic leader. If we aim to get our state out of the closed circle of erosion and loss of sovereignty, we must finally be able to overcome the materialism rooted in us and replace it with a value system that puts professional and public achievements, good reputation and its contribution to the country’s development, above material wealth or continuous charitable work. In developed western societies, this is a widespread phenomenon. In this way, the accumulation of capital by the individual is balanced by adequate mechanisms of public benefit by him. If we want this to become a reality in our country, we must start by discussing the need for such a value system and how we can spread its elements with our actions.

If we create structures, be they entrepreneurial, public or educational, such values must be the foundation, and we must follow them in our daily activities as well.

The political elite of our country must be formed on the same principle. Initially, those who have strong ideological aspirations and subordinate material well-being to their own political ambitions should be involved in political activities. For this to happen, the public must make strong demands on future politicians, examine their activities, analyze their past and naturally filter out those who prefer their own material interests and personal well-being, pushing them out of politics into areas of human life, where the pursuit of material gain is more natural and less harmful. The natural mechanism of this can also be the enlargement of the parties and the increase of their institutional transparency, as a result of which leaders with corresponding values will appear in the leading roles.

This is a daily work that we all must undertake. Instead of waiting for the “savior,” this is a real way to consistently form a national leadership that is able to ensure the survival of our state and lead it to the future with a firm hand.

This concludes this series of articles. As I have written these pieces from the penitentiary, the content turned out to be a bit raw, and the form a bit less polished. However, I hope that many of you have at least thought about them, and the ideas expressed in this series of articles will be discussed and then implemented. In the meantime, I would like to thank you for communicating with each other through articles. It has given me great strength and added confidence to continue our journey together.

Humanitarian aid for Artsakh sent by ARS of Greece arrives in Armenia, December 2020 (Photo: Twitter/Armenian Relief Society)

Just when you think you have come across every oddity in Armenia, someone will surprise you with a brand new one. Let me warn you that this problem has nothing to do with internal politics. It has to do with incompetent, careless, and sometimes, corrupt officials whose unacceptable conduct has been going on for over 30 years in Armenia.

Last week, I received an email from Kevork Yazedjian, a scholar and activist in Armenia. He described his frustration and anger at an objectionable incident that he had just experienced. He addressed his email to PM Nikol Pashinyan, the head of the State Income Committee and the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs of Armenia. Yazedjian sent copies of his email to hundreds of Armenians in and out of Armenia to alert them and seek their intervention.

The problem started on June 27 when Yazedjian, along with his sister and her husband, went to the State Income Committee’s office to pick up Armenian books sent from the United States by Vahakn Kupelian who had shipped 78 copies of his mother’s, Siran Seza’s (1903-1973), two novels: Shattered Lives (2015) and Book of Genesis (2019). Kupelian had asked Yazedjian to donate the books to libraries throughout Armenia and Artsakh. When the government official Mr. Sahakyan noticed multiple copies of the two books, he became suspicious that Yazedjian was going to sell them. Sahakyan wrote a memo to the customs officers at the Yerevan airport, asking them to evaluate the price of these books and charge Yazedjian the corresponding import duty.

At the customs office, Yazedjian was shocked when five officials, after consulting with each other, told him that copies of the two novels will be sent to the National Security Service (NSS) to inspect their contents! Yazedjian wondered if censorship of books was part of the duties of the NSS. He was concerned that by the time NSS employees finished reading the two novels, he could be asked to pay a large amount for storage fees. Disgusted by this violation of free speech in a “democratic country,” Yazedjian told the customs officials that they can have the books.

After he sent several letters of protest to various officials, Yazedjian received on June 30 an unexpected phone call from Sahakyan, who asked him to come over so he could give him the books. When he arrived at the office the next day, Sahakyan was not there, but his boss received Yazedjian with utmost courtesy, saying that he had received many complaints about this case which had embarrassed him in front of the whole world. The chief customs officer also claimed that his office had sent several pages of the novels to the NSS, asking them to review them urgently. The NSS had supposedly replied that there are no national security issues in the two novels. 

Given this frustrating experience and his serious interest in Armenian literature, Yazedjian has come up with a new proposal, asking the government to facilitate the transfer of Armenian books and periodicals to Armenia through diplomatic pouch by Armenia’s embassies and consulates overseas.

There is a second more shocking example of gross negligence by Armenian officials which had serious medical and diplomatic repercussions.

After the Artsakh War of 2020, on Dec. 12, 2020 and January 9, 2021, the Armenian Relief Society (ARS) of Greece collected urgently needed humanitarian aid which was flown to Armenia by two Greek military planes. A small part of the cargo was released shortly after its arrival and distributed by the ARS. More than a year later, however, it was discovered that the bulk of the aid was still at the customs’ warehouse at the Yerevan Airport. After several letters of complaint which had remained unanswered, Armenia’s recently-appointed Ambassador to Greece, Tigran Mkrtchyan, responded on June 28, 2022, with troubling news: while the ARS humanitarian aid was finally cleared from customs, “due to the expiration of the items [medicines], part of the cargo had to be destroyed.”

Amb. Mkrtchyan was answering the Greek Armenian community’s letters sent to Pashinyan and other officials on December 14, 2020 and February 7, 2022.

The urgently dispatched medicines were supposed to save the lives of Armenian soldiers wounded during the 2020 war. Who will be held responsible for the loss of the lives of the soldiers who were deprived of these medicines? Furthermore, has the Armenian government sent a letter of apology to the Greek government for the lengthy delay in releasing and destroying urgently flown medicines to Armenia? Greece may not be as responsive next time there is a medical emergency in Armenia. Besides Armenia’s utter negligence in clearing the cargo, the ARS did not even get a reply to its two letters until 18 months later!

This is a prime example of gross negligence. Regrettably, no Armenian official was held responsible for this scandalous behavior, and no one was dismissed! No good deed goes unpunished in Armenia!