Gyumri has been hosting people forcibly displaced from Artsakh since yesterday. Although this city lacks housing stock, it has a big problem of homelessness, but all the municipality officials are committed to finding accommodation for them. It was noticeable that they do not allow queues to form in the corridor of the municipality; they work promptly.
Nevertheless, the scene is tragic. With tears in their eyes, children in their arms, and small bundles of things by their sides, waiting, some older adults were so exhausted that they fell asleep sitting up. The Mayor of Gyumri, Vardges Samsonyan, is also mainly on the first floor, studying the documents of our Artsakh compatriots, sometimes approaching those sitting, talking, calming them down.
The municipality employees also came to them, offering sweets and coffee. The Mayor of Gyumri told Aravot.am that more than 600 families have been accommodated, and another 200 people will be accommodated.
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According to the mayor’s presentation, people are constantly coming; they have set 24-hour duty and given hotline numbers so they can contact them immediately in case of need. Vardges Samsonyan mentioned that he is making a parallel tour of municipal and state-owned structures, studying the possibilities. Cosmetic repairs will be made, and our compatriots will be welcomed.
Sports schools and former hospital buildings are also considered as shelters. The former building of the Gyumri oncology dispensary will also be inhabited by families forcibly displaced from Artsakh. The building of the infectious disease hospital is already settled; it has been serving as a shelter since yesterday.
“We have about 2,000 hotels and guest houses in our city, but most of them are occupied; we have reached an agreement, the guests are gradually leaving, and we are trying to accommodate them there as well,” said Vardges Samsonyan.
The mayor of Gyumri notes that after passing this stage, they will move on to the following steps: meetings with business people and job offers. For example, a professional lawyer was offered a job a little while ago; he will work in the Gyumri municipality from tomorrow.
“There are great difficulties, but thanks to God, we overcome them; they come, there is no place, we think, we search and we get one. We work operatively until midnight; we are ready not to sleep day and night, but we accommodate our forcibly displaced people; we will do everything to make them feel good in our city”, says the mayor.
While the mayor and the municipality employees were asking the elderly brother and sister from Stepanakert to pack their things because they had gotten a place for them, they had to accompany them. The elderly woman, with tears in her eyes, smiled for a moment, saying: “I know it will be fine; we will return to Artsakh just as we came.”
Nune AREVSHATYAN
