By Harut Sassounian

I read the heartbreaking experience of an Armenian soldier who was wounded in the recent Artsakh War and repeatedly denied medical treatment in Armenia. This is so shameful. The Armenian government should see to it that young men, who risked their lives to defend the homeland, have their wounds treated without any bureaucratic hassles and rude refusals.

Simon Hovhannisian, a soldier wounded in the 2020 Artsakh War, wrote an open letter in Armenian, published by Hetq (an investigative journal in Armenia) on April 3, 2021, describing how he was turned away from numerous medical facilities when he sought treatment. Regrettably, his nightmarish experience is not unique. Many other wounded soldiers have faced similar inexcusable difficulties when seeking treatment.

Hovhannisian wrote that on October 3, 2020 he went to the military center in Yerevan and volunteered to fight in the war. On Oct. 25, having received the proper authorization, he was transferred to the Mardakert military unit in Artsakh and served on the frontline from Oct. 27 to November 18.

On Nov. 10, shortly before the ceasefire, he was hit by missile shrapnel. During the next eight days, he tried to contact military officials seeking medical assistance for him and other soldiers. Facing indifference, he tried on his own to go to the military regiment. On the way, he encountered an ambulance and convinced the driver to take him and two others to a medical facility to get help. They were referred to the temporary hospital in Drmbon village, where he was told that he suffered a contusion. However, since there was nothing they could do for him, they suggested that he go to Yerevan.

Hovhannisian finally arrived in Yerevan after paying 45,000 drams (around $90) from his own pocket. He went to the military unit there, explained his situation, presented the documents and sought assistance to be admitted to a hospital. The military unit told him: “You are no longer registered with us. It is not our job. Go to the Military Commissariat.” The Commissariat in turn told him: “You are no longer in the service. You have to go to a civilian clinic.”

At the civilian clinic, he was told: “We do not have the appropriate specialist for your ailment. The ear, nose and throat specialist will return from his vacation in a month. Come back, he will check you. We don’t even know where else to refer you to.”

At the Commissariat, he was told: “My boy, I am already telling you for the second time, you are not on our list. Go to a civilian hospital.”

At the privately-owned Asdghig hospital, he was told: “You need to be seen by several specialists. If you need the state to cover your medical bills, then bring a document that you have government insurance. We will then serve you.”

He then went to the Kanaz hospital where he was told: “Your document from the Commissariat is old. Go get a new document, so we can give you fresh papers.”

At the Commissariat he was told: “Come back in two days to pick up your new document.” When he went back, the hospital told him: “You are already discharged from the military. We can’t give you such a document and can’t examine you.”

Tired of the run-around, the wounded soldier went to the Nayiri private hospital. After the examination, he learned that he had a contusion, loss of hearing, and concussion.

He paid for the medicines and the examination. He then found out that he was eligible for several government programs that could have offered him free medicines and medical care. He was also told that he could have applied for free military care for the handicapped.

So he applied to the Ministry of Social Services which promptly rejected his application. They said: “You are not on the list of the Defense Ministry.” He then phoned the Ministry of Social Services, explaining his problem. He was told to call another phone number. After two days of no one answering the hotline, he was given a third phone number. He called that number the whole day. Finally, in the evening, someone answered, and rudely said: “Why are you calling me? I do not deal with such matters.”

He called back the hotline. They told him: “Call the Defense Ministry.” No one answered there. He called the Defense Ministry’s Treatment Center. No answer. He sent an email. Again, no answer!

He then called the Military Commissariat. They told him: “Brother, why haven’t we received your papers from Artsakh until now confirming where you were?” He told them his whole story all over again. They replied: “We will inquire and call you.” They never called back!

He called again the Defense Ministry’s Treatment Center. He was told: “Give us the hospital’s medical evaluation, so we can add you on our list.” He responded that he could not provide that document since the hospital had refused to treat him. They told him to go to the Military Commissariat. He applied there one last time and asked for their assistance. He was told: “We have received no papers, all questions remain unanswered. If you want to solve your problem, go to Mardakert, pick up your documents and come back.”

The wounded soldier then wrote a letter to Antranig Kocharian, Chairman of the Parliament’s Defense and Security Committee, explaining his whole story. He received two ‘absurd’ phone calls saying: “Why did you write a letter? What is the problem?” He told them his story. They told him: “We need you medical evaluation.” He said he did not have it because they did not treat him. They told him: “We will call you,” but he never heard from them again.

The wounded soldier ended his sad saga with the following powerful words: “Now what? What’s next? Where are you, officials? Wake up! It has been more than six months. There are thousands of other soldiers like me…. Whichever office you go to, sitting with legs crossed, they are drinking coffee, writing posts on social media, saying how patriotic we are, and expressing their regret: ‘Sorry boys, you died for us.’ How did it happen that you got blinded in the last day of the war and you don’t give a damn about anyone’s pain and problems? You are suggesting that this wounded soldier go to Mardakert and bring back documents. In addition to psychological and security problems, I ask you, don’t you see the degree of your cynicism? Are you telling the same things to the parents and relatives of lost soldiers or a badly handicapped volunteer with no documents? Please solve not only my problem, but those of all of us without any delay. Otherwise, we are the ones that will send you to hell and I hope that the public is with us on this issue.”

This is very shameful. I am surprised that not a single Armenian official has apologized to this wounded soldier and others like him and arrange for their immediate medical care. Otherwise, when the next war happens, no young man will volunteer or want to serve in the army. Regardless of any partisan political issues, these wounded soldiers are the sons of our nation and they deserve the utmost care. They paid their dues to the homeland and now it’s the Armenian government’s turn to take care of them.

From: Global Affairs Canada,

Statement

April 12, 2021 – Ottawa, Ontario – Global Affairs Canada 

The Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Foreign Affairs today issued the following statement:​

“Last fall, in line with our robust export control regime, the Government of Canada suspended export permits for military goods and technology to Turkey pending the results of an investigation into allegations that Canadian technology was being used by Azerbaijan in the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Those suspensions followed the decision to suspend the issuance of new export permits to Turkey in the fall of 2019, following its military incursion into northeastern Syria.

“Global Affairs Canada, in consultation with the Department of National Defence, has since conducted a thorough review of all suspended and valid export permits for all military goods and technology destined to Turkey. 

“Following this review, which found credible evidence that Canadian technology exported to Turkey was used in Nagorno-Karabakh, today I am announcing the cancellation of permits that were suspended in the fall of 2020.

“This use was not consistent with Canadian foreign policy, nor end-use assurances given by Turkey.

“This morning, I spoke with Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Turkey’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, to reiterate Canada’s concern and to initiate a dialogue mechanism between Canadian and Turkish officials to build mutual confidence and greater cooperation on export permits to ensure consistency with end-use assurances before any further permits for military goods and technology (Group 2) are issued.

“Turkey is an important NATO ally and applications related to NATO cooperation programs will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.“

Associated link

• Final Report – Review of Export Permits to Turkey

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2021/04/statement-fromminister-garneauto-announce-the-cancellation-of-export-permits-to-turkey.html

Rita and Maxim Babayan left their village home in Garni, in Armenia, and resettled in the Kashatagh District of Artsakh twenty-five years ago.

Last year’s war in Karabakh forced them to return, emptyhanded and with no home awaiting them.

“We brought with us a long credit history, a suitcase of clothes and our parrots,” says Rita Babayan, trying to dispel the sadness in her eyes.

She says it never occurred to her that they’d be leaving Artsakh for good.

“We went with a family of five and came back with three families,” said Maxim, Babayan.

Their three children grew up in Kashatagh and started families of their own.

The sixteen people forced to flee Artsakh were scattered here and there in the homes of relatives.

Rita and Maxim have found a rented apartment in the village of Jrvezh and moved there with the family of one of the sons. Their only property are the colorful parrots they take with them from house to house.

Mrs. Babayan recalls with admiration the village of Ghochants in Kashatagh, which was their first destination in Artsakh.

“We lived a fairytale life in Ghochants. It was an interesting, adventurous life. It is a typical Armenian village, covered with greenery all year round. It has wonderful nature, surrounded by lush forests. There are wonderful churches in the village. It was quiet there. The air was clean, the crops were spotless, and on our way back from Berdzor we would collect walnuts and hazelnuts in sacks.”

“We had a 2,000-square-meter apple orchard, I did not use any medicine,” said Maxim.

The couple was the seventh Armenian family to settle in Ghochants. 

Mrs. Babayan says they were well received, otherwise no one could have endured the difficult financial situation and living conditions.

“We slightly improved the house allotted to us and made it livable. For the first four years there was no electricity in the village. We lived by candlelight. A thin wire was then installed in everyone’s house with a light bulb,” says Mrs. Babayan, who worked as a teacher.

Ghochants had 27 families, a large number for the area. The village had just been formed after the 1990s Artsakh War and families from all over Armenia moved there. Some wanted to escape their past lives, seeking a new start. Some wanted to be a part of the new Artsakh experiment.

“We lived a full community life. The houses were far from each other. To communicate you either had to cross a gorge or climb a mountain. But the distance did not stop us having good neighborly relations,” Ms. Babayan says.

She says that when they moved to Kashatagh, their little boy was four. Their eldest son left for military service a month later. Mrs. Babayan recalls that the villagers gathered for a farewell celebration. One neighbor killed a wild boar, another caught some fish. They all brought flour from their homes, baked lavash and gata, and said goodbye to their son.

Ghochants lies twenty-one kilometers from Berdzor. The road twists and turns through gorges and valleys.

Once a week, a truck would make the trip. Those wishing to go to Berdzor, the nearest town, would hitch a ride.

Mrs. Babayan says she and the other villagers pitched in, renovated a building, and turned it into a school.

“One brought the door, the other the window, another bought paint, and so on. The number of students was growing. We had up to 27 students in the school. Any of the residents who had some type of education could teach something. We agreed on who would teach what. We went to Berdzor, introduced ourselves to the person in charge of regional education and returned with our positions confirmed. That’s how we set up our school,” she says.

Mrs. Babayan worked as a teacher for 23 years, her husband Maxim taught military training at the same school for 21 years. 

In 2014, Rita and Maxim Babayan moved to Pakahan, another village in the Kashatagh. She says that the number of students in Ghochants had decreased again, forcing her to look for a new job. Upon learning that there was a teaching vacancy in the south of Kashatagh, in Pakahan, they moved there.

The school weas housed in a large, well-maintained building, where more than fifty students studied.

 The family decided to finally settle in Pakahan. They got a bank loan to repair and expand their dilapidated house.

“Last year we grew 2.5 hectares of cucumbers. We hoped to repay the loan with that amount. We already had to harvest the cucumbers, and we were almost finishing the construction work when the war started,” says Maxim.

“It was October 3. I was making preserves and my husband, wine, when we were ordered to leave the village. We could see fire and smoke from our village and heard gunshots. But the fighting did not reach our area. We left the food on the table and left because we thought we would return,” says Mrs. Babayan.

“We only took our passports, a suitcase of clothes, the parrots and left the village in a neighbor’s car. My neighbor also took a suitcase with her little cat,” Babayan.

They went to the village of Melikashen in Berdzor, where their daughter’s family lived, and stayed there until October 27, hoping to return.

They returned empty-handed to Armenia.

“We were not allowed to go and get our furniture. We left behind what we had created for 25 years: a house, newly bought furniture, cars, even family photos and documents,” says Mrs. Babayan.

Despite their own predicament, the couple mainly regrets the loss of so many young people.

The displaced Babayan couple, who lost their belongings, emphasize that they only regret the lives of young people, nothing else comes to mind.

The family spent the best years of their lives, 25 years, in Kashatagh. When asked what she misses the most, Mrs. Babayan replies, “I only miss the memories.”

“The first wedding in Ghochants was at my house. The first child was born at my house. All my joys and sorrows are linked to that village,” says Maxim Babayan. “We love the village very much, but no matter what happens, I will not return there. People left their graves there.”

Source: https://hetq.am/en/article/129572

Chief of the General Staff of the Armenia’s Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Artak Davtyan received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Armenia Abbas Badakhshan Zohouri and Military Attaché of the Embassy, Colonel Bahman Sadeghin.

During the meeting, issues related to the Armenian-Iranian cooperation in the defense sphere were discussed. reference was made to maintenance and development of friendly relations between the two countries.

The interlocutors also referred to regional issues.

People who picture the reality and look with a clear-head should have realized that there is nothing surprising because about five months have passed since the signing of this disgraceful capitulation, and to this day, the leaders of our two Armenian states are traitorous authorities who handed over the country, and naturally, they would not change the path they have chosen and continue. Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) MP Metakse Hakobyan told this to Armenian News-NEWS.am.

“Now their working style has changed to the extent that the internal tension is getting stronger. First, the plane, which returned [to Yerevan] empty; that is, without any [Armenian] captives [from Azerbaijan], and everyone was saying that the a group would return. (…). And the Armenian government showed the whole world that we have leaders who flee from their own people by helicopter, by all possible means; that is, our army, military leadership is weak; that is, with this they showed something else to their masters,” Hakobyan added in particular.

According to the lawmaker, the respective reaction of Rustam Muradov—commander of the Russian peacekeeping contingent that is stationed in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone to monitor the ceasefire there—was very normal, and there were even notes of anger in his voice. “This was the first case that he made a political analysis, although he never interferes in the political life of Artsakh, too. With that one sentence of his, he made it clear that the [Armenian] authorities were very well informed [that there were no POWs on board the aforesaid plane] and once again misled the nation,” she said.
According to Hakobyan, all this means that the Armenian authorities are engaged in dealings with the Azerbaijani side. “In order for the captives to return without any conditions, these very conditions were posited  by our authorities before our nation, as this time they definitely showed more clearly that they are collaborating with the enemy, showing the nation that the enemy wants something: the road to Karmir Shuka [village of Artsakh], Meghri [town of Armenia]. “
The Artsakh lawmaker added that the Armenian authorities keep silent about these reports, but the President of Artsakh [Arayik Harutyunyan] has become his spokesman and the slanders of the adversary are voiced through his lips. “Naturally, these calls are not addressed to the people of Artsakh because the people of Artsakh live here and, naturally, see the reality. He tells these lies for those living outside Artsakh and he does it as an order, too. Everything now depends on how the issue of the traitorous authorities will be resolved,” Metakse Hakobyan stressed.

By FAISAL J. ABBAS,

There has been widespread uproar at what was seen as misogynistic and insulting treatment meted out by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

At a meeting in Ankara last week, hosted by Erdogan for von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel, the European Commission chief was left without a chair. She was visibly taken aback when the two men sat on the only two chairs available, relegating her to an adjacent sofa. Video footage of the incident has elicited thousands of anti-Erdogan comments on social media, where it has been dubbed “SofaGate.”

No woman, let alone the European Commission’s first female president, should be on the receiving end of such thoughtless, shameful and disgraceful behavior.

Turkey’s defense? Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu argued that the seating arrangements had been discussed and agreed with the EU ambassador in Ankara — who, like von der Leyen, is German. Nevertheless, the incident is a symptom of a deeply rooted disrespect for women within the Turkish establishment, regardless of whether the foreign minister’s claims are true.

Frankly, what has shocked me is that anyone was shocked in the first place. With all due respect to feminists and human rights activist in Brussels and across Europe, what did you expect from the Erdogan regime?

The discourtesy toward von der Lyen came less than a month after Erdogan pulled Turkey out of a key European convention aimed at combating violence against women — a convention signed, of all ironies, in Istanbul, and which Turkey was the first to ratify in 2012. If that withdrawal wasn’t a hint of what to expect, what would be?

For his part, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi was livid at the “mistreatment” of von der Leyen, and went so far as to call Erdogan a dictator. “With these dictators, let’s call them what they are…” he said. “I absolutely do not agree with Erdogan’s behavior toward President von der Leyen … I think it was not appropriate behavior and I was very sorry for the humiliation von der Leyen had to suffer.”

My issue with the Italian prime minister’s statement is, has he only just discovered that the Erdogan regime has transformed Turkey into a dictatorship? Was the arrest or suspension of nearly 45,000 military officials, judges, civil servants and school teachers in 2016 not enough of an indicator?

The discourtesy toward von der Lyen came less than a month after Erdogan pulled out of a European convention aimed at combating violence against women. If that wasn’t a hint of what to expect, what would be?

According to the Turkish justice ministry, a total of 128,872 investigations were launched in the past six years over “insulting the president,” of which 27,717 led to criminal prosecutions, and 9,556 to sentences of imprisonment. In this period, 903 young people between the ages of 12 and 17 were put on trial on the same “charge.”

As for suggestions that what happened with von der Lyen was “insulting to Europe” — I wonder if critics have noticed Turkey’s continued intimidation of Cyprus and Greece in the eastern Mediterranean.

Only on Saturday, Ankara accused Athens of supporting terrorist cells — another irony of ironies. This comes from a country that is often accused of harbouring, patronising and using extremists of all stripes, ready to use in theaters of war from Libya to Somalia and Syria to Iraq.

Then there is Erdogan’s tactic of resorting to blackmail, which he has honed almost to perfection. Every time Europe vows to bring him to heel for another indiscretion, whether it is illegally campaigning for votes among Turkish expatriates in Germany or encroaching on Greek territorial waters in the hunt for oil and gas deposits, the Turkish president threatens to open the floodgates of refugees into Europe. This is even greater cause for action to be taken against Turkey. Waves of refugees are a threat not just to European security and stability, and not just to European economies, but to the European Union’s core values.

What happened to Ursula von der Leyen will not be the end of such disrespectful behavior, and what is happening to the Turkish opposition and to all those who dare to differ from Erdogan is only the thin end of the wedge. It will continue to happen until Europe and the world resolve to call him out for what he is.

When you invite a monster to the table, the least of your problems is a missing chair.

Source: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1840926

According to him, Arman Navasardyan was hospitalized in St. Gregory the Illuminator Hospital. Arman Navasardyan was born on April 6, 1939. 1956-1960 studied after Valery Brusov at the State Linguistic University, 1974-1976 և 1988-1989 at the Diplomatic Academy of the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and 2015-2018 He was a candidate for the Chair of International Relations, Institute of Law, and Policy at the Armenian-Russian University. 1991-1993 He held the post of Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Armenia, held various diplomatic positions in Algeria, Senegal, Austria, Hungary and Lebanon. Arman Navasardyan had the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

Hirair Hovnanian, the renowned American Armenian entrepreneur, philanthropist, and member of the Board of Trustees of the Hayastan All Armenian Fund, has died at the age of 91.

Do not believe the results of sociological polls in Armenia; they are all manipulative. Political scientist Armen Badalyan told this to Armenian News-NEWS.am.

“That is, there is no institute of independent sociological polls in Armenia; we cannot know whose [popularity] rating is rising and whose is falling,” he added.

According to the political scientist, in order for the snap parliamentary elections to take place on June 20, PM Nikol Pashinyan must resign in late April or early May, and after that—under the Constitution—, he should not hold office. “Constitutionalists explain that if he resigns, he should not continue in office. But as we understand it, at the moment, the incumbent prime minister will resign and will not leave [office], holding the June 20 elections as acting [PM]—as in the case of the previous snap elections,” he said.

As per Badalyan, Pashinyan may use administrative resources in the June 20 elections, but not in full. “You can get 2-3% of votes with administrative resources, but you need to get 50+%. It is almost impossible to commit such degree of [electoral] fraud without distributing money; that is, in this case the ruling force does not have the network to distribute money, which its rivals have. But, also, it will prevent—through the police force—them from getting votes by distributing money,” he said in particular.

And assessing the chances of Pashinyan’s political force in the forthcoming elections, Badalyan said that everything depends on the election campaign of the other forces. “If all the forces running in the elections be completely ignorant, of course the ruling political force can get even 100%. But if they conduct a successful election campaign, the ruling force has no chance not only to win, but also to become an influential force,” he added.