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EDITORIAL: In Solidarity with the People
http://asbarez.com/109244/editorial-in-solidarity-with-the-people/
Friday, April 5th, 2013
by Ara Khachatourian
The wave of protests has not wanes since the February 18 prsidential vote
The February 18 presidential elections this year coincided with an
important milestone for the Armenian nation. Twenty five years
earlier, almost to the day, hundreds of thousands Armenians took to
the streets in Yerevan and Stepanakert to demand the reunification of
Artsakh with Armenia and set in motion a series of events that can be
attributed to the ultimate collapse of the Soviet Union and the
emergence of our modern-day Republic of Armenia.
It was that will - unwavering and committed - that marshaled all Armenians
around the world to rise up and envelop the people of Armenia to
advance what eventually became the victorious Karabakh liberation
movement and saw the birth of the independent Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic. The people's right to self -determination prevailed.
The same cannot be said 25 years later. A popular movement that was
sparked as a result of wide-spread voter fraud during the presidential
elections became the rallying cry for the formerly silent majority of
Armenia's dwindling population who came out in droves to demand that
their voice be heard - their will to determine the future of our nation
prevail.
The 2013 popular movement can be deemed as the people of Armenia
fearlessly shedding the heavy iron curtain of Soviet society and
claiming their rights and demanding a better future for our nation.
The people of Armenia have spoken. Never in the past 20 years has
there been a decisive voice of dissent and dissatisfaction from the
people of Armenia. That voice cannot fall on deaf ears. That voice is
the spark of true - and democratic - regime change. That voice is the free
expression of the aspirations of the people. That voice must become a
call to arms to all Armenians, in the homeland and the Diaspora, to
join, nurture and advance this movement until Armenia is liberated
from the chains of oppression that have been strangling its citizens.
The same Armenian nation that galvanized against 75-years of
oppressive Soviet rule and WON, can-and must be able to-overcome a
group of criminals that have, through intimidation, threats and
fabrications forced themselves upon our people and wreaked havoc on
our homeland.
As Armenians prepare to enter a new phase of this struggle for
democracy, social justice and freedom, all community organizations in
the Diaspora must rally around the people of Armenia and their just
aspirations. At the same time, opposition forces in Armenia to must
come together to embrace the will of the Armenian people and to work
collectively toward concrete reforms.
From: Baghdasarian
http://asbarez.com/109244/editorial-in-solidarity-with-the-people/
Friday, April 5th, 2013
by Ara Khachatourian
The wave of protests has not wanes since the February 18 prsidential vote
The February 18 presidential elections this year coincided with an
important milestone for the Armenian nation. Twenty five years
earlier, almost to the day, hundreds of thousands Armenians took to
the streets in Yerevan and Stepanakert to demand the reunification of
Artsakh with Armenia and set in motion a series of events that can be
attributed to the ultimate collapse of the Soviet Union and the
emergence of our modern-day Republic of Armenia.
It was that will - unwavering and committed - that marshaled all Armenians
around the world to rise up and envelop the people of Armenia to
advance what eventually became the victorious Karabakh liberation
movement and saw the birth of the independent Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic. The people's right to self -determination prevailed.
The same cannot be said 25 years later. A popular movement that was
sparked as a result of wide-spread voter fraud during the presidential
elections became the rallying cry for the formerly silent majority of
Armenia's dwindling population who came out in droves to demand that
their voice be heard - their will to determine the future of our nation
prevail.
The 2013 popular movement can be deemed as the people of Armenia
fearlessly shedding the heavy iron curtain of Soviet society and
claiming their rights and demanding a better future for our nation.
The people of Armenia have spoken. Never in the past 20 years has
there been a decisive voice of dissent and dissatisfaction from the
people of Armenia. That voice cannot fall on deaf ears. That voice is
the spark of true - and democratic - regime change. That voice is the free
expression of the aspirations of the people. That voice must become a
call to arms to all Armenians, in the homeland and the Diaspora, to
join, nurture and advance this movement until Armenia is liberated
from the chains of oppression that have been strangling its citizens.
The same Armenian nation that galvanized against 75-years of
oppressive Soviet rule and WON, can-and must be able to-overcome a
group of criminals that have, through intimidation, threats and
fabrications forced themselves upon our people and wreaked havoc on
our homeland.
As Armenians prepare to enter a new phase of this struggle for
democracy, social justice and freedom, all community organizations in
the Diaspora must rally around the people of Armenia and their just
aspirations. At the same time, opposition forces in Armenia to must
come together to embrace the will of the Armenian people and to work
collectively toward concrete reforms.
From: Baghdasarian