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KARABAKH STILL MOVING A NATION
http://asbarez.com/108401/karabakh-still-moving-a-nation/
Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
The marches that sparked a movement
BY ARA KHACHATOURIAN
When hundreds of thousands of Armenians took to the streets on
February 20, 1988 to demand the reunification of Karabakh with
Armenia, a modern-day Armenian liberation struggle was born~Wa movement
that still unites and mobilizes the Armenian Nation.
This movement was a direct challenge to then Soviet leader Mikhail
Gorbachev~Rs policies of openness~WGlasnost and Perestroika~Wand
effectively began the collapse of the Soviet Union.
More importantly, however, it became a true struggle for the universal
right to self-determination, which 25 years later is still at the
center of the Karabakh question.
This simple call for self-determination, freedom and justice, however,
was met with the most brutal of responses when not even a week after
the spark of the movement Azeri OMON forces, aided by the Soviet Red
Army began a systematic massacre and deportation of
Armenians~Wpogroms~Win the industrial city of Sumgait outside Baku.
These brutal killings would continue in Kirovabad and Baku, and, like
the Armenian Genocide they remain crimes that have gone unpunished and
ignored by the international community.
The Armenian people~Rs expression of free will and their exercise of
democratic norms also unleashed indiscriminate attacks on the civilian
population of Karabakh that soon escalated into a full-fledged war.
The heroism of the people of Artsakh inspired an entire nation and won a war.
Today, Artsakh~Wthe Nagorno-Karabakh Republic~Wstands tall and
victorious and has become a model for democracy and through the
arduous process of rebuilding it is a jewel in the Caucasus.
One of the most significant aspects of the Karabakh liberation
movement is that at a time of political uncertainty during the latter
days of the Soviet Union, this movement brought together the Armenian
nation, which was dispersed around the world as a result of the
Armenian Genocide and divided by the iron curtain. It became a
rallying call for all Armenians to unite behind a banner of liberty
and justice and the preservation and perseverance of our nation,
bringing renewed impetus to the Armenian liberation struggle.
Karabakh remains at the center of our national reality. The Azeris
continue their aggressive campaign of military intimidation and
threats against civilian life through their continued violation of the
cease fire and relentless sniper attacks, casting a pall over
residents of the Artsakh and destabilizing the region.
The most recent victim, 20-year-old Gor Ghazarian, was shot and killed
by Azeri snipers at the Karabakh-Azerbaijan border on Wednesday, the
day of the 25th anniversary of the Karabakh movement. The Karabakh
Defense Ministry reported ~Sunprecedented activity~T by Azeri forces in
recent days.
Yet a generation that was born during the war is committed and
determined to protect its nation, be that on the ground in Artsakh or
elsewhere in the Armenian World.
Today~Rs conscripts in the Karabakh National Armed Forces were children
when their parents bore arms to protect their historic homeland. Their
brethren in the Diaspora were too young to understand the wrath of
war, but today through different efforts, such as the AYF Youth Corps
and With Our Soldiers campaign, are ensuring that the liberation
movement that began a quarter of a century ago continues until justice
prevails.
Today, as we reflect on the enormous importance and impact of February
20, 1988, we must bow our heads in remembrance and respect to all the
heroes who gave their lives on the road to freedom, and recognize that
we, as a nation, are still guided by roots of the Karabakh movement.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
http://asbarez.com/108401/karabakh-still-moving-a-nation/
Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
The marches that sparked a movement
BY ARA KHACHATOURIAN
When hundreds of thousands of Armenians took to the streets on
February 20, 1988 to demand the reunification of Karabakh with
Armenia, a modern-day Armenian liberation struggle was born~Wa movement
that still unites and mobilizes the Armenian Nation.
This movement was a direct challenge to then Soviet leader Mikhail
Gorbachev~Rs policies of openness~WGlasnost and Perestroika~Wand
effectively began the collapse of the Soviet Union.
More importantly, however, it became a true struggle for the universal
right to self-determination, which 25 years later is still at the
center of the Karabakh question.
This simple call for self-determination, freedom and justice, however,
was met with the most brutal of responses when not even a week after
the spark of the movement Azeri OMON forces, aided by the Soviet Red
Army began a systematic massacre and deportation of
Armenians~Wpogroms~Win the industrial city of Sumgait outside Baku.
These brutal killings would continue in Kirovabad and Baku, and, like
the Armenian Genocide they remain crimes that have gone unpunished and
ignored by the international community.
The Armenian people~Rs expression of free will and their exercise of
democratic norms also unleashed indiscriminate attacks on the civilian
population of Karabakh that soon escalated into a full-fledged war.
The heroism of the people of Artsakh inspired an entire nation and won a war.
Today, Artsakh~Wthe Nagorno-Karabakh Republic~Wstands tall and
victorious and has become a model for democracy and through the
arduous process of rebuilding it is a jewel in the Caucasus.
One of the most significant aspects of the Karabakh liberation
movement is that at a time of political uncertainty during the latter
days of the Soviet Union, this movement brought together the Armenian
nation, which was dispersed around the world as a result of the
Armenian Genocide and divided by the iron curtain. It became a
rallying call for all Armenians to unite behind a banner of liberty
and justice and the preservation and perseverance of our nation,
bringing renewed impetus to the Armenian liberation struggle.
Karabakh remains at the center of our national reality. The Azeris
continue their aggressive campaign of military intimidation and
threats against civilian life through their continued violation of the
cease fire and relentless sniper attacks, casting a pall over
residents of the Artsakh and destabilizing the region.
The most recent victim, 20-year-old Gor Ghazarian, was shot and killed
by Azeri snipers at the Karabakh-Azerbaijan border on Wednesday, the
day of the 25th anniversary of the Karabakh movement. The Karabakh
Defense Ministry reported ~Sunprecedented activity~T by Azeri forces in
recent days.
Yet a generation that was born during the war is committed and
determined to protect its nation, be that on the ground in Artsakh or
elsewhere in the Armenian World.
Today~Rs conscripts in the Karabakh National Armed Forces were children
when their parents bore arms to protect their historic homeland. Their
brethren in the Diaspora were too young to understand the wrath of
war, but today through different efforts, such as the AYF Youth Corps
and With Our Soldiers campaign, are ensuring that the liberation
movement that began a quarter of a century ago continues until justice
prevails.
Today, as we reflect on the enormous importance and impact of February
20, 1988, we must bow our heads in remembrance and respect to all the
heroes who gave their lives on the road to freedom, and recognize that
we, as a nation, are still guided by roots of the Karabakh movement.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress