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SYRIANS TAKE ONE-WAY TICKETS TO ARMENIA?
EurasiaNet.org, NY
July 1 2013
July 1, 2013 - 10:42am, by Giorgi Lomsadze
The exodus of Syria's ethnic Armenian community to Armenia was seen,
at least in part, as a temporary phenomenon. But it appears that
the thousands of Syrian war migrants have come to Armenia to stay,
Armenian officials say.
"If . . . last year, some 80-90 percent of Syrian Armenians were saying
that they planned on going back to Syria, now they are thinking of
making their home here," Firdus Zakaryan, a representative of the
Diaspora ministry told the Panorama news site.
Extending a helping hand to ethnic Armenian communities in trouble is
a matter of national honor for the Armenian state, which maintains
close ties with the far-flung Armenian Diaspora. Over the past few
years, Yerevan has been carrying in and making room for thousands of
ethnic Armenians caught in the crossfire between the Syrian government
and rebels.
Yerevan says it is happy to have Armenia's Syrian relatives over
for as long as they want. But the extended hospitality is a major
humanitarian burden. The Armenian government needs to find housing,
jobs and schools for the endless stream of arrivals, who have spent
generations apart from Armenia, and speak Arabic and/or Western
Armenian, not the official Eastern Armenian of the motherland.
But with the country still struggling to cope with massive labor
migration -- disputed government data claims 49,660 citizens emigrated
for good in 2012, EurasiaNet.org's Marianna Grigoryan has reported --
dealing with an influx of newcomers is a task Armenia is more than
willing to take on, however.
The Yerevan authorities plan to offer instruction in Arabic in one
of the capital city's schools and are supporting plans to build an
all-Syrian-Armenian residential high-rise. Outside the capital city,
several residential projects are planned to house the arrivals.
Will it be enough to attract still more Syrian-Armenians? With one eye
on Armenia's allegedly shrinking population -- estimated at just under
or over 3 million people -- officials may well be hoping that it will.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67197
EurasiaNet.org, NY
July 1 2013
July 1, 2013 - 10:42am, by Giorgi Lomsadze
The exodus of Syria's ethnic Armenian community to Armenia was seen,
at least in part, as a temporary phenomenon. But it appears that
the thousands of Syrian war migrants have come to Armenia to stay,
Armenian officials say.
"If . . . last year, some 80-90 percent of Syrian Armenians were saying
that they planned on going back to Syria, now they are thinking of
making their home here," Firdus Zakaryan, a representative of the
Diaspora ministry told the Panorama news site.
Extending a helping hand to ethnic Armenian communities in trouble is
a matter of national honor for the Armenian state, which maintains
close ties with the far-flung Armenian Diaspora. Over the past few
years, Yerevan has been carrying in and making room for thousands of
ethnic Armenians caught in the crossfire between the Syrian government
and rebels.
Yerevan says it is happy to have Armenia's Syrian relatives over
for as long as they want. But the extended hospitality is a major
humanitarian burden. The Armenian government needs to find housing,
jobs and schools for the endless stream of arrivals, who have spent
generations apart from Armenia, and speak Arabic and/or Western
Armenian, not the official Eastern Armenian of the motherland.
But with the country still struggling to cope with massive labor
migration -- disputed government data claims 49,660 citizens emigrated
for good in 2012, EurasiaNet.org's Marianna Grigoryan has reported --
dealing with an influx of newcomers is a task Armenia is more than
willing to take on, however.
The Yerevan authorities plan to offer instruction in Arabic in one
of the capital city's schools and are supporting plans to build an
all-Syrian-Armenian residential high-rise. Outside the capital city,
several residential projects are planned to house the arrivals.
Will it be enough to attract still more Syrian-Armenians? With one eye
on Armenia's allegedly shrinking population -- estimated at just under
or over 3 million people -- officials may well be hoping that it will.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67197