Original article translated from ARFD.am
On December 10, the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh held hearings on this topic. The hearings were convened on the occasion of the adoption day of Artsakh’s Constitution and were attended by public figures from Artsakh and Armenia as well as opposition members of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia.
On the agenda were the preservation of Artsakh’s institutions, the realization of the right to return to Artsakh, and the issue of Armenian captives unlawfully held in Baku’s prisons.
The hearings began with the Lord’s Prayer. Those present honored the memory of the victims of the Artsakh wars with a one-minute silence, after which the national anthems of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh were performed.
“With these hearings we are opening a new page in the struggle,” declared Ashot Danielyan, who is performing the duties of President of Artsakh and serves as Speaker of Artsakh’s National Assembly. “The forcible seizure of Artsakh by Azerbaijan in no way means that the Republic of Artsakh has ceased to exist. Our struggle for our rights and our memories continue to convince us that there can be no solution other than return,” Ashot Danielyan said.
More than 5,000 historical and cultural monuments have remained in Artsakh and are being systematically destroyed and eradicated, stated former Minister of Culture, Youth Affairs and Tourism of Artsakh Sergey Shahverdyan.
“I usually do not present figures on damaged monuments of Artsakh’s cultural heritage, because those numbers change every second. Cultural heritage is not only historical and cultural monuments. In Stepanakert, for example, almost no monument of monumental art has been preserved. Azerbaijan is systematically erasing our Armenian trace,” Shahverdyan said.
According to him, Azerbaijan’s policy toward Armenian cultural heritage has three branches. The first is total destruction: three churches have already been completely destroyed. The second is the distortion of history, and the third is appropriation, that is, changing the national belonging. Along these three lines, the entire cultural heritage of the Republic of Artsakh is in danger. In Stepanakert all statues and monuments of monumental art have been destroyed. The same situation prevails throughout the territory of Artsakh.
In his speech, Gegham Manukyan, a deputy of the “Hayastan” faction of the RA National Assembly, said: “The greatest danger to making the idea of return to Artsakh a reality is our internal enemy, which is called the authorities of Armenia.”
He emphasized that the right of return will not become something recorded by the international community if, first and foremost, all Armenians of Artsakh themselves do not have the conviction of return.
“There will be no return if it does not become a way of life. In this respect, the preservation of Artsakh’s state institutions is extremely important. The preservation of Artsakh’s state institutions must be a matter of dignity for everyone, not only for the Armenians of Artsakh, but for all our compatriots, both in Armenia and outside Armenia,” Gegham Manukyan said.
Kiro Manoyan, head of the Armenian Cause and Political Affairs Office of the ARF Bureau, believes that in order to preserve the legitimacy of Artsakh’s authorities, it is necessary to organize online elections and ensure the unassailability of Artsakh’s authorities. However, nothing can be done with the current authorities of Armenia. According to Kiro Manoyan, the RA authorities not only do not wish to do this, but do the opposite: if you speak about the right of return to Artsakh, then you are deemed a threat to Armenia’s national security.
“There is only one way to achieve this goal, and that is to change this government,” Kiro Manoyan said, adding, “whoever comes to power will be better than these authorities.”
