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POVERTY, EDUCATION, ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION MAIN CONCERNS FOR ARMENIA'S YEZIDIS: YOVANOVITCH
ArmeniaDiaspora.com
http://www.armeniadiaspora.com/news/4609-poverty-education-ethnic-identification-main-concerns-for-armenias-yezidis-yovanovitch.html
Sept 5 2011
Epress.am -- In Sept. and Oct. 2009, Embassy officers met with members
of the ethnic Yezidi community, Armenia's largest minority group,
to discuss key issues the community faces in Armenia, according to
a confidential cable dated Dec. 3, 2009, released by WikiLeaks.
The cable, written by then US Ambassador to Armenia Marie
L. Yovanovitch, notes that ethnic identity, education and
endemic poverty are the main issues that confront the Yezidis in
Armenia. Yerevan State University (YSU) Professor of Oriental Studies
Garnik Asatryan told an embassy official that "Yezidis occupied the
lowest category of Armenian society in terms of income and education
levels" but attributed these problems more to their sociocultural
norms and "Armenia's clan economic system" rather than racial or
religious discrimination.
In a Sept. 22 meeting, head of Yezidi public radio Hasan Tamoyan also
identified education and poor economy as key issues, though noting
that the difficulties his community faces were not unique to his ethnic
group. "In fact, he believed that Yezidis in Armenia were afforded more
recognition and special status from the government than in other FSU
[former Soviet Union] countries. According to Tamoyan, many Yezidis
simply choose not to go to school and women marry very young."
On Oct. 14, the US Ambassador met with local Yezidi leaders from
the villages of Algyaz, Sipan, and Jamshlu in Aragatsotn region,
including Mayor of Algyaz Aziz Mhoyan, Tengiz Mamoyan of Sipan,
and Tital Aloyan of Jamshlu.
"The discussion focused on the economic hardships caused by decaying
or non-existent infrastructure and services, as well as on the
out-migration of young people due to limited employment opportunities.
In addition, the cattle-breeding and sheep-herding on which these
villages depend have been adversely affected by harsh weather and
limited pasture land.
"Aziz Mhoyan pointed to gasification of his village as a key challenge,
which was due to be finished by 2010, but had stalled due to budget
shortfalls associated with the global economic crisis. He expressed
frustration that the main gas pipeline was less than one mile
away. Similarly, Tengiz Mamoyan identified the paramount problems for
his community as inadequate heating and insufficient access to clean
water. Meanwhile, Tital Aloyan cited the lack of medical facilities
or a functioning school as the primary problems his village faced.
"All three leaders acknowledged the critical role that foreign
remittances played in the survival of their communities: In Alagyaz,
Sipan, and Jamshlu, 80-90 percent of families rely on remittance from
abroad. The need for foreign remittances is directly connected to the
emigration of youth since 1991, which the communities heads cited as
another threat to Yezidi society in Armenia," reads the cable.
In a section titled "Are the Yezidis Really Kurds?", Yovanovitch
notes that Tamoyan, the head of Yezidi public radio, named cultural
misidentification of Yezidis as Kurds as a major problem for the
community; however, when the ambassador visited Aragatsotn marz,
"the local Yezidi leaders were adamant that they are Kurds, ethically,
culturally, and linguistically. The only point of difference between
the groups is religion, they declared." As Yovanovitch observes, "The
fact that ottoman Kurds played a significant role in the exile and
massacres of Armenians in the late Ottoman Empire may also be a factor
in Armenian Yezidis' reluctance to identify themselves as Kurds."
When the ambassador asked whether an umbrella organization representing
the needs of the community exists, the Aragatsotn Yezidi leaders said
though there were several organizations, the Yezidis did not speak
with one voice:
"Rather many of the Yezidi organizations and NGOs in Armenia were
personality driven and concerned primarily with the interests of
their leaders. Nonetheless, all three leaders agreed that an umbrella
organization would be more effective in securing economic assistance
from the Yezidi expatriates and wealthy communities in Russia's far
east. (COMMENT: We were left with the impression that the divisions
in the community caused by the Yezidi versus Kurd debate hampers
the establishment of an effective and unified organization that can
represent the interests of the Yezidi.)"
The cable concludes with an opinion by Garnik Asatryan, the YSU
professor, who believed that the Armenia-Turkey border opening could
radicalize the Yezidi and Kurdish communities in Armenia as it would
allow for more direct contact with elements of Turkey's Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK/KGK). However, the US ambassador brushed off
this view, calling it "alarmist" and noting that though "Armenia's
Yezidis/Kurds may feel solidarity with Kurds asserting their ethnic
identity in other countries in the region, there is no evidence that
they have actively supported broader Kurdish political movements."
Photo: The tomb of Sheikh Adi, the most holy Yezidi religious shrine,
located in Lalish, Iraq (Wikimedia Commons).
Article source: http://bit.ly/quAFKt
ArmeniaDiaspora.com
http://www.armeniadiaspora.com/news/4609-poverty-education-ethnic-identification-main-concerns-for-armenias-yezidis-yovanovitch.html
Sept 5 2011
Epress.am -- In Sept. and Oct. 2009, Embassy officers met with members
of the ethnic Yezidi community, Armenia's largest minority group,
to discuss key issues the community faces in Armenia, according to
a confidential cable dated Dec. 3, 2009, released by WikiLeaks.
The cable, written by then US Ambassador to Armenia Marie
L. Yovanovitch, notes that ethnic identity, education and
endemic poverty are the main issues that confront the Yezidis in
Armenia. Yerevan State University (YSU) Professor of Oriental Studies
Garnik Asatryan told an embassy official that "Yezidis occupied the
lowest category of Armenian society in terms of income and education
levels" but attributed these problems more to their sociocultural
norms and "Armenia's clan economic system" rather than racial or
religious discrimination.
In a Sept. 22 meeting, head of Yezidi public radio Hasan Tamoyan also
identified education and poor economy as key issues, though noting
that the difficulties his community faces were not unique to his ethnic
group. "In fact, he believed that Yezidis in Armenia were afforded more
recognition and special status from the government than in other FSU
[former Soviet Union] countries. According to Tamoyan, many Yezidis
simply choose not to go to school and women marry very young."
On Oct. 14, the US Ambassador met with local Yezidi leaders from
the villages of Algyaz, Sipan, and Jamshlu in Aragatsotn region,
including Mayor of Algyaz Aziz Mhoyan, Tengiz Mamoyan of Sipan,
and Tital Aloyan of Jamshlu.
"The discussion focused on the economic hardships caused by decaying
or non-existent infrastructure and services, as well as on the
out-migration of young people due to limited employment opportunities.
In addition, the cattle-breeding and sheep-herding on which these
villages depend have been adversely affected by harsh weather and
limited pasture land.
"Aziz Mhoyan pointed to gasification of his village as a key challenge,
which was due to be finished by 2010, but had stalled due to budget
shortfalls associated with the global economic crisis. He expressed
frustration that the main gas pipeline was less than one mile
away. Similarly, Tengiz Mamoyan identified the paramount problems for
his community as inadequate heating and insufficient access to clean
water. Meanwhile, Tital Aloyan cited the lack of medical facilities
or a functioning school as the primary problems his village faced.
"All three leaders acknowledged the critical role that foreign
remittances played in the survival of their communities: In Alagyaz,
Sipan, and Jamshlu, 80-90 percent of families rely on remittance from
abroad. The need for foreign remittances is directly connected to the
emigration of youth since 1991, which the communities heads cited as
another threat to Yezidi society in Armenia," reads the cable.
In a section titled "Are the Yezidis Really Kurds?", Yovanovitch
notes that Tamoyan, the head of Yezidi public radio, named cultural
misidentification of Yezidis as Kurds as a major problem for the
community; however, when the ambassador visited Aragatsotn marz,
"the local Yezidi leaders were adamant that they are Kurds, ethically,
culturally, and linguistically. The only point of difference between
the groups is religion, they declared." As Yovanovitch observes, "The
fact that ottoman Kurds played a significant role in the exile and
massacres of Armenians in the late Ottoman Empire may also be a factor
in Armenian Yezidis' reluctance to identify themselves as Kurds."
When the ambassador asked whether an umbrella organization representing
the needs of the community exists, the Aragatsotn Yezidi leaders said
though there were several organizations, the Yezidis did not speak
with one voice:
"Rather many of the Yezidi organizations and NGOs in Armenia were
personality driven and concerned primarily with the interests of
their leaders. Nonetheless, all three leaders agreed that an umbrella
organization would be more effective in securing economic assistance
from the Yezidi expatriates and wealthy communities in Russia's far
east. (COMMENT: We were left with the impression that the divisions
in the community caused by the Yezidi versus Kurd debate hampers
the establishment of an effective and unified organization that can
represent the interests of the Yezidi.)"
The cable concludes with an opinion by Garnik Asatryan, the YSU
professor, who believed that the Armenia-Turkey border opening could
radicalize the Yezidi and Kurdish communities in Armenia as it would
allow for more direct contact with elements of Turkey's Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK/KGK). However, the US ambassador brushed off
this view, calling it "alarmist" and noting that though "Armenia's
Yezidis/Kurds may feel solidarity with Kurds asserting their ethnic
identity in other countries in the region, there is no evidence that
they have actively supported broader Kurdish political movements."
Photo: The tomb of Sheikh Adi, the most holy Yezidi religious shrine,
located in Lalish, Iraq (Wikimedia Commons).
Article source: http://bit.ly/quAFKt