“For several days Nikol Pashinyan has been preparing the people in Syunik for the process of handing over territories from the Syunik “corridor”, from the sovereign territory of Armenia to Azerbaijan. Then he will go to Vardenis and prepare the people there because Aliyev has announced that more than 10 villages of Vardenis also belong to Azerbaijan. After that, he will go to Ararat region and prepare the residents of Tigranashen (formerly Kyarki). I don’t know how reliable it is, but yesterday there was information in the press that the residents of Tigranashen (Kyarki) are being offered money to prepare to leave their homes,” said Naira Zohrabyan, president of the “Security and Democracy” human rights NGO, at the “Mirror” club.
“I have asked our colleagues to verify the information, but it is obvious that Tigranashen is also in line for handover. Nikol Pashinyan announced during a meeting with the residents of Nerkin Hand (if I) that the issue of the referendum is on the agenda. He mentioned an exchange of territories: Azerbaijanis will give this, we will give that. I think it’s a manipulative lie. From May 12, 2021, Ararat Mirzoyan and Nikol Pashinyan announced that Azerbaijan occupied the Black Lake area, Jermuk’s termination areas, and the Shorzha area, and will withdraw. However, Aliyev declared that their troops are where they should be and the Azerbaijani military will not withdraw even one millimeter. Moreover, we will not get back one millimeter of Armenian land, including Artsvashen. Nikol was able to expedite the handover of the villages of Tavush by presenting them as allegedly non-Armenian, which is why he handed them over without a referendum,” added Naira Zohrabyan.
“It is clear that Pashinyan will not be able to hand over settlements from Gegharkunik, Syunik, Ararat, and claim that they are not the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia. To hand over even one millimeter of the Republic of Armenia, a referendum must be held, as stipulated in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, which states that changing the boundaries of the Republic of Armenia can only take place through a referendum,” she explained.
Naira Zohrabyan noted that, according to information, the referendum is planned to be held at the beginning of autumn, in September.
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“According to our Constitution, about 650 thousand citizens need to approve handing over their homeland. Even if Nikol Pashinyan mobilizes all his supporters, all his “backpacks”, he will not be able to gather more than 150-200 thousand votes. Aliyev demands a referendum because only through a referendum is it possible to remove the Declaration of Independence from the preamble of the RA constitution, which means putting an end to the Third Republic of Armenia. Additionally, only through the Constitution can Mount Ararat be removed from our coat of arms, which also requires a referendum,” concluded Naira Zohrabyan.
Gohar Hakobyan
