STATE DOOMS ITS CITIZENS TO HUNGER OR SUICIDE
By Ara Martirosian
AZG Armenian Daily
29/03/2006
81-Years Old Pensioner Is Deprived of Her Family Benefit.
Seda Ohanian, a 81 years old lonely pensioner, was returning home
from the Social Security Department of Malatia-Sebastia borough, when
she felt she was about to faint. Fortunately, her neighbors rushed to
help her, called the emergency and rendered her with first aid. But,
certainly they couldn’t ease the pain of the old woman and solve
her problem.
Mrs. Ohanian became another victim of the recent rise in
pensions. Having received a pension that grew by AMD 1000, she was
deprived of her family benefit that totaled to AMD 7000. She learnt
about this news at “Paros” office. But the most terrible though for her
was that she is doomed to survive on AMD 10.800 monthly pension. How
she will manage to pay her utilities, to buy food or medicine on that
sum, she wonders. Even AMD 16.000 she used to receive before didn’t
cover all her expenses.
There occur urgent questions that require the answers of the Labor
and Social Security Ministry officials.
How do they define the degree of poverty? Who they consider poor, if
an 81 years old pensioner is not included in the list of the socially
insecure people?
Is it their right concept of family benefits? Or how can the same
pensioner survive on AMD 10800, when the poverty limit totals to AMD
19.000, according to RA National Statistic Service? Even if we add
AMD 7 000 of family benefit to her AMD 10.800 of pension, it will
not keep in line with the poverty limit. Thus, we can state, that
in this given case, the state officials doom a citizen to hunger or
suicide. If one of the officials just tries to deny this statement,
we offer him to try to survive on AMD 10.800.