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ARTAK ZAQARYAN'S SPEECH ON 23RD ANNIVERSARY OF INDEPENDENCE OF ARTSAKH IN BELGIUM
Lragir.am
Country - 16 October 2014, 10:27
This evening, I am not speaking as the chairman of the foreign
relations Committee of the Armenian Parliament, nor as head of the
Armenian delegation to the EURONEST parliamentary assembly, not even
as member of the political assembly of the EPP.
This evening I would like to speak as what I am as a person, from the
Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, a habitant, unfortunately often absent,
from my beloved village of Hadrut in the Southern region.
Some people say that Karabakh is the Eastern end of Europe, others say
it is the beginning of Europe, Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Europe,
furthermore I think it is somehow the soul of Europe, the voice of
Europe's conscience, often light, but very truthful, sometimes ignored
resulting in fatalities, and I am going to try and explain you why.
Artsakh belongs to the European community of values, throughout our
3000 years history, together with Armenians we were the first to
adopt Christianism as official religion in the world, since then our
land enjoyed quite a high level of independency sometimes associated
to different empires, also fully independent, as in the form of
federation with other kingdoms. Those were the times when our noble
families were marrying European royalty and our people were hand in
hand with all European endeavours in order to preserve Christianity.
Just like most of you we have also experienced the face of the most
atrocious totalitarian regimes. The origin of the problem we are still
suffering was an arbitrary decision of Lenin implemented by Stalin,
when back in 1920 they decided to put Nagorno-Karabakh under the
recently created Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan.Over 60 years of
repression followed, which combined with our self-sufficient vocation
and determination were not enough to neutralise our European values.
As a result in 1988 the 1st pacific democratic movement against Soviet
rule broke up in Karabakh, which as you know, would be followed by our
European friends. Fully in line with the legal framework in force, the
Soviet Constitution, and international law, the 1st self-determination
referendum in Europe took place on the 10th of December of 1991 when
the people of Nagorno-Karabakh peacefully opted for their independency
with a participation of 82% and 99.99% of votes supporting this option.
Unfortunately this democratic and peaceful expression was followed by
a large scale military aggression launched by Azerbaijan, resulting in
40.000 victims and a cease fire signed by Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh
and the Republic of Armenia.
Since then, our population continues to be militarily harassed in
the only self-regulated cease-fire in the world. However we have
managed to implement by ourselves a European based democratic
model of development, where Presidents change through elections,
parties alternate in power and people are proud of their democratic
institutions.
Karabakhis, we will continue standing for our right to decide our own
future. We all know what is Azerbaijan today, a totalitarian country
with the record of political prisoners in all Eastern Partnership. An
elite profiting from oil revenues while the population can't even
develop any political project confronting the regimes main lines,
while electoral processes are just a charade.
How can anybody conceive that our country should pass under the
control of the most corrupted and totalitarian regime in the Eastern
partnership? Would any acountry like to be part of Azerbaijan against
their people's will?
This is what I understand by being the voice of Europe's conscience,
and I am confident that the renewed European Parliament, our European
Parliament friends will act as loudspeakers of the voice of Europe's
conscience, of Nagorno-Karabakh, not only in this House but also in
all EU Institutions.
Because in the end, history proofs that what is good for
Nagorno-Karabakh is good for Europe and when we do not stick to our
values, when we do not listen our conscience we lose our real freedom.
Thank you my European friends, and of course all participants for
taking this important challenge.
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/country/view/33107#sthash.LJajlvDq.dpuf
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Lragir.am
Country - 16 October 2014, 10:27
This evening, I am not speaking as the chairman of the foreign
relations Committee of the Armenian Parliament, nor as head of the
Armenian delegation to the EURONEST parliamentary assembly, not even
as member of the political assembly of the EPP.
This evening I would like to speak as what I am as a person, from the
Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, a habitant, unfortunately often absent,
from my beloved village of Hadrut in the Southern region.
Some people say that Karabakh is the Eastern end of Europe, others say
it is the beginning of Europe, Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Europe,
furthermore I think it is somehow the soul of Europe, the voice of
Europe's conscience, often light, but very truthful, sometimes ignored
resulting in fatalities, and I am going to try and explain you why.
Artsakh belongs to the European community of values, throughout our
3000 years history, together with Armenians we were the first to
adopt Christianism as official religion in the world, since then our
land enjoyed quite a high level of independency sometimes associated
to different empires, also fully independent, as in the form of
federation with other kingdoms. Those were the times when our noble
families were marrying European royalty and our people were hand in
hand with all European endeavours in order to preserve Christianity.
Just like most of you we have also experienced the face of the most
atrocious totalitarian regimes. The origin of the problem we are still
suffering was an arbitrary decision of Lenin implemented by Stalin,
when back in 1920 they decided to put Nagorno-Karabakh under the
recently created Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan.Over 60 years of
repression followed, which combined with our self-sufficient vocation
and determination were not enough to neutralise our European values.
As a result in 1988 the 1st pacific democratic movement against Soviet
rule broke up in Karabakh, which as you know, would be followed by our
European friends. Fully in line with the legal framework in force, the
Soviet Constitution, and international law, the 1st self-determination
referendum in Europe took place on the 10th of December of 1991 when
the people of Nagorno-Karabakh peacefully opted for their independency
with a participation of 82% and 99.99% of votes supporting this option.
Unfortunately this democratic and peaceful expression was followed by
a large scale military aggression launched by Azerbaijan, resulting in
40.000 victims and a cease fire signed by Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh
and the Republic of Armenia.
Since then, our population continues to be militarily harassed in
the only self-regulated cease-fire in the world. However we have
managed to implement by ourselves a European based democratic
model of development, where Presidents change through elections,
parties alternate in power and people are proud of their democratic
institutions.
Karabakhis, we will continue standing for our right to decide our own
future. We all know what is Azerbaijan today, a totalitarian country
with the record of political prisoners in all Eastern Partnership. An
elite profiting from oil revenues while the population can't even
develop any political project confronting the regimes main lines,
while electoral processes are just a charade.
How can anybody conceive that our country should pass under the
control of the most corrupted and totalitarian regime in the Eastern
partnership? Would any acountry like to be part of Azerbaijan against
their people's will?
This is what I understand by being the voice of Europe's conscience,
and I am confident that the renewed European Parliament, our European
Parliament friends will act as loudspeakers of the voice of Europe's
conscience, of Nagorno-Karabakh, not only in this House but also in
all EU Institutions.
Because in the end, history proofs that what is good for
Nagorno-Karabakh is good for Europe and when we do not stick to our
values, when we do not listen our conscience we lose our real freedom.
Thank you my European friends, and of course all participants for
taking this important challenge.
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/country/view/33107#sthash.LJajlvDq.dpuf
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress