Is It Inadvertent that the Civil Contract Regime’s Plans Lead to the Complete Destruction of the National Character of the Armenian People and Homeland? Armenian Democratic Liberal Party Coordinated Press
It is with deep awareness of the seriousness of this supposition as well as concern that we pose the question of the above headline.
About three months have passed since the regular elections of the Armenian National Assembly on June 7. Despite the fact that before the elections, the country was initially transformed into a total theater in various ways, then obvious violations were allowed on election day, and finally, despite the well-documented complaints submitted to the Constitutional Court about these irregularities, which were argued at length, the latter gave its laconic one-sentence answer that “everything is in order.” We preferred not to engage in a series of fruitless debates in connection with the elections in those days. We preferred instead to allow the newly-elected National Assembly to be formed and, although the Civil Contract majority was weakened, to begin to formulate its plans for governance over the next five years, with the slim hope that they would include reformed programs, subject to counterbalance.
We had some hope that the Civil Contract majority, headed by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has already led the country to defeat in war once, would perhaps this time seriously consider all the fundamental national concerns that were repeatedly expressed during the pre-election period. Actually, this is what is expected of any worthy political group with a sense of responsibility and a claim to national leadership.
Taking all of this into account and carefully following the direction given to the sessions of the newly elected National Assembly, and the steps initiated, statements made, and programs published by the government which has remained practically unchanged, and the prime minister, we now feel the need to sound a national alarm with the abovementioned disturbing title.
Indeed, after three months, today’s government and its head, Prime Minister Pashinyan, are clearly and more emphatically than ever, with their dangerous statements about the direction of their future activities, and by continuing, in particular, to “wave the carrot of ensuring peace in the country before the people,” planning to lead the Armenian people and their homeland to the unacceptable sad state of complete disintegration and destruction of their national identity.
Now, let us briefly consider the objective data justifying this weighty accusation.
Let’s start with the unbelievable. We are now hearing the unbelievable statement “The Armenian diaspora must weaken so that Armenia can become strong.”
It is difficult to believe our ears when we hear this heartbreaking expression of the Civil Contract deputy Arman Yeghoyan, or to believe our eyes when we read that he expressed this thought recently in the National Assembly. It is even more serious that none of his party members, or even the prime minister himself, have in any way immediately denied such a fundamental and dangerous anti-national expression.
Unfortunately, this statement by the current government is not at all unexpected.
Indeed, starting from the very first days of his assumption of power, one of Prime Minister Pashinyan’s first steps was to abolish the Ministry of Diaspora, which was created by the previous government. Furthermore, in recent years, without yet daring to express it so openly, we have all felt the gradual but decided weakening of Armenia’s ties with the diaspora. This is notwithstanding the occasional superficial and practically inconsequential statements of High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs Zareh Sinanyan, the latest of which is his recently announced “Armenia 2026” global summit, which will once again simply provide an opportunity for hundreds of well-meaning and patriotic individuals from the diaspora to make largely inconsequential speeches and enjoy a pleasant touristic visit.
Here we specifically point out to readers the comprehensive, respectful, but strongly condemnatory article by the Armenian Institutions of the Argentine Republic (IARA) published in the newspaper Sardarabad, a dynamic member of our press group, about the nationally damaging idea expressed by Arman Yeghoyan and the initiative of Zareh Sinanyan. Its title summarizes the whole idea: “A Strong Armenia Needs a Strong Diaspora.”
This article, which has been widely reprinted in our press, deserves to be highlighted once again. Indeed, in that article it is emphasized that “Armenia and the Diaspora do not compete for the same space. They are two inseparable dimensions of one and the same nation.” Likewise, “The extensive network of Armenian institutions, professionals, entrepreneurs, academics, leaders, and citizens around the world constitutes human, institutional, cultural, and relational capital of enormous value to the nation.”
Considering the aforementioned indisputable realities, apart from Armenia’s inexorable Turkic neighbors, there is no one who might ever advocate the weakening of the Diaspora.
The Civil Contract members must ask for forgiveness for this unbelievable anti-national, destructive idea, alongside their other current openly pro-Turkic statements.
Let’s move on to the next element. Undoubtedly, another component of the current government’s policy aimed at weakening the strong national identity of the Armenians is the policy of attacks unleashed against the Armenian Apostolic Church and its clergy, especially the Catholicos of All Armenians.
The prime minister of Armenia, by occasionally reciting psalms and sometimes attending the holy liturgy, cannot distract the attention of alert Armenians from this shameful and destructive struggle he has unleashed against the Church and the clergy.
It is gratuitous to use the weaknesses of the personal lives of some clergy, though we would never condone them, as an excuse for this destructive struggle.
Indeed, the prime minister does not reveal anything new by calling public attention to these weaknesses with outraged concern, because every informed person is well aware that for thousands of years, as in the case of many other churches, the Armenian cleric has not ceased to be a man with human weaknesses.
It is also worth reminding the prime minister of this circumstance, as his own personal life became a subject of public attention when it was revealed that until months ago he felt free to have a life partner and many children, without having assumed the obligations of legal marriage expected by civil society and especially those required by the Armenian Apostolic Church. Under such circumstances, it would have been best if he had simply remained silent about this.
On the other hand, it is a reality known especially by the Armenian people that the Armenian Apostolic Church, especially in the absence of statehood, has contributed for many centuries to the mission of preserving the national identity of the Armenian people.
It continues to fulfill this centuries-old invaluable and undeniable role, not only in Armenia in recent decades, but especially for all Armenians worldwide.
By the way, it is appropriate to recall that the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin are not the property of the Republic of Armenia, but it and its administration belong to the entire Armenian people.
Together with all this, at this point, we especially wish to call attention to two main condemnable circumstances created by the authorities in recent months.
The first is the unlawful and unconstitutional judicial actions, whereby the Catholicos of All Armenians and high-ranking clergymen are summoned before civil courts in connection with purely internal church administrative matters, in which neither the prime minister nor the court has any authority to intervene.
The authorities and the prime minister himself should be severely condemned for this unprecedented shameful act.
The second concerns the so-called “five-year government program” put forward by the authorities in recent days, in which, among the many worrying anti-national provisions presented, we especially point out the section of the proposed constitutional amendments where the authorities want to reserve for themselves the right to intervene in the internal administrative decisions of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
On this fundamental issue, we would like to clearly declare once again to the Armenian authorities and especially to the prime minister that the Armenian Apostolic Church does belong to the entire Armenian people throughout the world and is accountable only to them, in accordance with its national statutes.
Any encroachment by the authorities into its internal administrative and spiritual affairs will be subject to the strictest condemnation of the Armenian people throughout the world.
These anti-national aspirations of the authorities to subjugate our church are simply an obviously futile effort to please the Turks and Azeris.
There are also other, perhaps less publicized but more dangerous components of the Civil Contract authorities’ pro-Turkic policy that undermine the Armenian national identity.
Not so long ago, it would have seemed unimaginable for the Armenian authorities to have the audacity to state without shame that the globally recognized Armenian Genocide should be forgotten so as not to disturb our implacable neighbors.
Similarly, they have the audacity to state without shame that Mount Ararat, an indelible symbol of the Armenian people confirmed by the Bible which inspired generations, should ultimately be erased from our political, educational, and literary references, because it also disturbs our relentless neighbors.
Finally, let us not forget another fawning concession of the Civil Contract to hostile neighbors, openly declaring that the centuries-old Artsakh of the Armenians, an inseparable part of the Armenian world, is no longer Armenia, but Azerbaijan.
All of these are the unilateral concessions conducted until today by the Civil Contract, in return for which it tells the Armenian people that it has been able to secure only the promise of a piece of paper called a “peace agreement.” We note with regret that the authorities at the same time pretend not to see Azerbaijan’s arrogant attitude of calling even Sevan and Yerevan by Azerbaijani names and calling all of Armenia Western Azerbaijan.
Finally, the efforts of the government to put itself and the Armenian people into a deep sleep with numerous other pro-Turkic gestures is crowned by the attempt to bury thousands of years of Armenian history into oblivion when Mr. Pashinyan calls “Real Armenia” the greatly and permanently diminished territory of 29,754 square kilometers (which is itself subject to division in two, thanks to the implementation of the “Zangezur Corridor” eagerly awaited by the newly created relentless “friends” of Armenia).
In the face of all these facts, however, it is necessary to realize that there is also a well-meaning, and, forgive us for saying, irresponsible segment of the Armenian people, living in Armenia or living in the Diaspora, which is happy to see that finally wonderful and pleasant opportunities for work and leisure have been created in Armenia today. The nightlife rivals well-known European centers with its dazzling variety. Likewise, we often hear news of important international businesses opening branches in Armenia, which otherwise might arouse the envy of larger countries.
Such people ask, as criticism, what more those who express dissatisfaction with today’s authorities expect.
First, let us state definitely that for every Armenian, without exception, it is undoubtedly a delight to enjoy all the opportunities for pleasure, entertainment, and fun in Armenia. However, every aware Armenian has the responsibility and need to penetrate that surface level and think more profoundly.
One of the main goals of this article, which raises such alarming points, is to point out that the obvious goal of our unyielding neighbors is first to extinguish all awareness of national principles and traditions in the Armenian people, erasing all the ideals that have nourished its centuries-old longevity. It is obvious that in this way, the goal is to simply make it natural for forthcoming generations in the newly-created so-called “Real Armenia” to live in a state devoid of Armenian character and to make the national character of its territory of 29,754 sq. km. unrecognizable so that it can easily and “naturally” become a part of their ultimate goal, the Pan-Turanic great territory they dream of extending from Europe to Asia without a break. They may certainly “nobly” write “sahi Ermenistan” (Real Armenia) in Turkish on geographical maps.
Let us conclude by referring again to the title of this article that the supreme duty of today’s conscientious Armenian is to not allow the Civil Contract Party government, consciously or unconsciously, to lead the Armenian people and the Armenian homeland towards the destruction of their national identity.
