On Tuesday, people displaced from Artsakh were protesting in front of the government building. The Armenian government stopped providing 68 and 30 AMD a month, which infuriated the people of Artsakh. The participants of the protests are people from Hadrut whose homes are under the control of Azerbaijan.
Levon Hayriyan, chairman of the executive body of the For Hadrut NGO, told reporters that the Armenian government had assured them that they planned to provide 25,000 drams a month to each family member, but the residents of Artsakh said it was impossible to live on that money, as rent starts at 100,000 AMD per month.
Housing is under construction in Artsakh. There are plans for the residents of Artsakh who lost their homes to relocate to other settlements in Artsakh, but Mr. Hayriyan and the protesters said that if an Azeri sniper shoots and kills a civilian, if there is no security there, how can they return? “If they want to take the population to Artsakh, let them create an attraction there, as in 1992. Although there were no conditions, they created something. Now let them explain to us where they are taking us and why. I asked the government if we get any money. They said yes. I say, if it is ours, why are you managing the money if we’re building your house here? If they do not create attractiveness in the area, they will not be able to take people by force. What is happening today is similar to what happened thirty years ago. The people of Shahumyan did not stand up, and they went to Russia. I say, do not make the For Hadrut non-governmental organization become the For Hadrut terrorist organization,” said Levon Hayriyan.
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“After the announcement of the ceasefire on November 9, there were more casualties in Artsakh. We must take this into account. Now they say that they give different support. They want to interest people in that way, take them, and build a living barrier there. I am not going to live there. Whoever wants to, let them go. Let Arayik Harutyunyan go and live with his family in Mkhtarashen,” said one of the people from Artsakh.
The protesters went from the government building to the UN office, but there, as near the government, no official approached them. They announced at the UN office that a month ago, they had written a letter to the UN and the French Embassy in Armenia asking for a solution to their problem, but have not yet received a response. “We are raising the issue of status, they have pledged to at least pay the rent, they have not given money for three months, now we demand either give us refugee status or provide money so that the government can take care of our issues,” the people of Artsakh stated.
They also announced that they intend to hold a sit-in strike near the UN office. They moved from the UN office to the French embassy. The embassy informed the people of Artsakh that the ambassador was not there, but gave hope that the ambassador would meet with the participants of the demonstration. The people of Artsakh moved from the French embassy to the Russian embassy.
“The Russian Federation should demand from Azerbaijan that the Azerbaijani troops withdraw at least 3-5 km from the Armenian settlements. The main demand and request is our goal to come here today,” the protesters said. One of the participants of the demonstration, Miguel Samsonyan, said, “We have gathered in front of the Russian embassy to be heard by Putin, as he is in charge of the trilateral agreement. He has left these people who are in Armenia today homeless, and the government of the Artsakh Republic has left these people helpless.”
Nelly Babayan
