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Suffering To Fill The Demographic Gap: "we Have Children To Be Proud Of Them, Not To Feel Sorry For Having Had Them."
By Julia Hakobyan
ArmeniaNow
26.10.12 | 11:29
Photo: Srapion Gevorgyan
Margarita Hakobyan (left) and Armenuhi Manukyan (far right) during
the protest action in front of the president's residence
Armenian mothers having large families have decided to pass from
words to deeds and demand from authorities a review of attitude
toward their families and pay them appropriate allowances. Otherwise,
say some of the mothers, they will leave for countries that offer
better conditions.
A group of women who bring up from five to twelve children gathered
earlier this week in front of the president' s residence on Baghramyan
avenue, demanding meeting with the president and putting forward a
number of social and economic demands.
Women who say they considered themselves "heroines" say they don't
want to be considered "beggars" only because they are forced to accept
a scant welfare from the government.
"No session in the Parliament during the 21 years of independence was
ever devoted to such issue, as 'families with many children'. No MPs
have ever suggested to give us a status of 'large family' to let us
enjoy some privileges," Armenuhi Manukyan, a 40 year old mother of
11 children told ArmeniaNow.
"We often hear 'Why did you ever bother to give birth to so many
children?' But I believe this is what we had to do -- to give birth to
children and to educate them. We wished to be proud before our nation,
not to be condemned by it," she says.
The issue of large families (usually considered 3 or more children) is
controversial in Armenia as such families are hardest hit by poverty.
As Emil Sahakyan, a spokesman for UNICEF Armenia says over 70 percent
of large families live in poverty and most of the children, living
in boarding schools, are from such families. Conditions in Armenia
have created a 'Catch-22' in that declining population demands an
increase in births, yet social hardship makes it very difficult for
families to support even one child.
Like in Manukyan's case, parents of large families are often being
criticized for giving birth to many children, given the background
of social insecurity.
In their turn, mothers having many children believe that families
like theirs can improve the demographic situation in the country.
Yet in April, a group of women wrote a letter to the president,
demanding a law on large families, issue certificates to them, which
will guarantee free medical care, free education for children, reduce
or free them from utility fees, plus provide pensions and apartments.
Mothers emphasized in the letter that large families make up a "tiny
percentage" of the population.
The exact number of "tiny percentage" is not in fact known as there
is no official statistic on the number of large families in Armenia.
Roughly, families with more than 3 children make less than 10 percent
of the population. Despite the alarming demographic situation in
the country, plus ongoing migration, the legislation says nothing on
large families and does not provide allowances for them - except a
"bonus" when a child is born. One-time monetary aid of about $125 is
provided for the birth of the first or second child and $1,100 for
the third child, an amount, which will be doubled by 2014.
The government pays about $18 allowances per month for each (under-age)
child, based not on the fact they are from large families, but on
the family's hard social-economic conditions.
But even with such amount of welfare, families can hardly survive.
Manukyan says seven of her children are under-age and she gets 68,000
dram ($170) allowance, an amount that hardly covers food staples for
her family of 13. Manukyan's family living wage makes daily less that
$1 per person.
"My husband gets disability pension of 78,000 ($195) as a Karabakh
war veteran. None of us work. How is it possible to raise 11 children
with only $365 per month?," Manukyan says, adding, that they owe more
than $2,000 in overdue electricity bills.
Meanwhile, "The Support to large families" non- governmental
organization, led by Margarita Hakobyan, (the initiator of the protest
action in front of the president's office) is going to apply again
to the president, asking, why the letter they send yet last April
remained unanswered.
"If the country's president does not respond to us, who else can we
turn to?", says Hakobyan, 45, a mother of five children.
Hakobyan says she decided to set up the non- governmental organization
because she herself realized that no other body would protect their
rights. (The organization now has 200 members.)
"It is ridiculous, but the mothers of many children do not have
a single document, proving it. Information on family and children
must be submitted to some state body, and women every time must go
through many steps, making copies of documents, spending money on
transportation and paying state fees."
Hakobyan, a businesswoman who is heading a law office, says that apart
from increased allowance, she wants society to change their attitude
to women with large families.
"It's shameful how authorities and society treat women. After all,
these children will serve the state interests. Two of my sons served
in the army, others will soon. We have children to be proud of them,
not to feel sorry for having had them."
Meanwhile, officials say that a positive dynamic is observed in
Armenia's demography. In 2002 there were 32,300 births in the country,
while in 2011 the number reached 43,400.
By Julia Hakobyan
ArmeniaNow
26.10.12 | 11:29
Photo: Srapion Gevorgyan
Margarita Hakobyan (left) and Armenuhi Manukyan (far right) during
the protest action in front of the president's residence
Armenian mothers having large families have decided to pass from
words to deeds and demand from authorities a review of attitude
toward their families and pay them appropriate allowances. Otherwise,
say some of the mothers, they will leave for countries that offer
better conditions.
A group of women who bring up from five to twelve children gathered
earlier this week in front of the president' s residence on Baghramyan
avenue, demanding meeting with the president and putting forward a
number of social and economic demands.
Women who say they considered themselves "heroines" say they don't
want to be considered "beggars" only because they are forced to accept
a scant welfare from the government.
"No session in the Parliament during the 21 years of independence was
ever devoted to such issue, as 'families with many children'. No MPs
have ever suggested to give us a status of 'large family' to let us
enjoy some privileges," Armenuhi Manukyan, a 40 year old mother of
11 children told ArmeniaNow.
"We often hear 'Why did you ever bother to give birth to so many
children?' But I believe this is what we had to do -- to give birth to
children and to educate them. We wished to be proud before our nation,
not to be condemned by it," she says.
The issue of large families (usually considered 3 or more children) is
controversial in Armenia as such families are hardest hit by poverty.
As Emil Sahakyan, a spokesman for UNICEF Armenia says over 70 percent
of large families live in poverty and most of the children, living
in boarding schools, are from such families. Conditions in Armenia
have created a 'Catch-22' in that declining population demands an
increase in births, yet social hardship makes it very difficult for
families to support even one child.
Like in Manukyan's case, parents of large families are often being
criticized for giving birth to many children, given the background
of social insecurity.
In their turn, mothers having many children believe that families
like theirs can improve the demographic situation in the country.
Yet in April, a group of women wrote a letter to the president,
demanding a law on large families, issue certificates to them, which
will guarantee free medical care, free education for children, reduce
or free them from utility fees, plus provide pensions and apartments.
Mothers emphasized in the letter that large families make up a "tiny
percentage" of the population.
The exact number of "tiny percentage" is not in fact known as there
is no official statistic on the number of large families in Armenia.
Roughly, families with more than 3 children make less than 10 percent
of the population. Despite the alarming demographic situation in
the country, plus ongoing migration, the legislation says nothing on
large families and does not provide allowances for them - except a
"bonus" when a child is born. One-time monetary aid of about $125 is
provided for the birth of the first or second child and $1,100 for
the third child, an amount, which will be doubled by 2014.
The government pays about $18 allowances per month for each (under-age)
child, based not on the fact they are from large families, but on
the family's hard social-economic conditions.
But even with such amount of welfare, families can hardly survive.
Manukyan says seven of her children are under-age and she gets 68,000
dram ($170) allowance, an amount that hardly covers food staples for
her family of 13. Manukyan's family living wage makes daily less that
$1 per person.
"My husband gets disability pension of 78,000 ($195) as a Karabakh
war veteran. None of us work. How is it possible to raise 11 children
with only $365 per month?," Manukyan says, adding, that they owe more
than $2,000 in overdue electricity bills.
Meanwhile, "The Support to large families" non- governmental
organization, led by Margarita Hakobyan, (the initiator of the protest
action in front of the president's office) is going to apply again
to the president, asking, why the letter they send yet last April
remained unanswered.
"If the country's president does not respond to us, who else can we
turn to?", says Hakobyan, 45, a mother of five children.
Hakobyan says she decided to set up the non- governmental organization
because she herself realized that no other body would protect their
rights. (The organization now has 200 members.)
"It is ridiculous, but the mothers of many children do not have
a single document, proving it. Information on family and children
must be submitted to some state body, and women every time must go
through many steps, making copies of documents, spending money on
transportation and paying state fees."
Hakobyan, a businesswoman who is heading a law office, says that apart
from increased allowance, she wants society to change their attitude
to women with large families.
"It's shameful how authorities and society treat women. After all,
these children will serve the state interests. Two of my sons served
in the army, others will soon. We have children to be proud of them,
not to feel sorry for having had them."
Meanwhile, officials say that a positive dynamic is observed in
Armenia's demography. In 2002 there were 32,300 births in the country,
while in 2011 the number reached 43,400.