HRANUSH HAKOBIAN: EQUAL CONDITIONS SHOULD BE ENSURED FOR ARMENIANS BORN IN ARMENIA AND DIASPORAN ARMENIANS

Noyan Tapan

Dec 18, 2008

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 18, NOYAN TAPAN. Reports on the problems of the
1946-1948 repatriation, georgaphy and demography, Stalin’s geopolitical
ambitions in those years, and the historiography of repatriation
were given during the first sitting of the first working day of the
conference "The 1946-1948 Repatriation and Its lessons. The Problem of
Repatriation Today" held in Tsakhkadzor on December 13-14. The complete
study of these problems is still ahead, and the files of repatriates
of that period, which are kept in the RA National Archive and were
removed from the secret list in early 1990s, are an important source
for throwing light on these problems. The director of the National
Archive Amatuni Virabian said that the reports of Soviet emmissaries
who visited Diasporan colonies are also kept in the Archive.

According to him, Hovik Meliksetian’s work "Homeland-Diaspora Relations
and Repatriation: 1920-1980" published in 1985 could not present
the whole truth, and it is the time to create a complete work on
repatriation problems. A. Virabian added that some steps have already
been taken in this direction by the RA National Academy of Sciences.

During the December 13 sittings, participants discussed the
role of traditional Armenian parties and organizations in the
1946-1948 repatriation process, the recollections of repatriates,
the Stalin dictatorship’s oppression of repatriates, as well as the
legal problem of current repatriation. The results of the day were
summarized by the Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobian who stated
that both the Western and Eastern Armenian languages are a national
value and should be preserved, while Western Armenian should also
be used in citizen-state relations. As regards the legal problems
of repatriation, she expressed an opinion that legislatively, equal
conditions should be ensured in Armenia for both Armenians born in
Armenia and Diasporan Armenians. In particular, the matter concerns
health care, general and higher education. Besides, according to the
minister, it is not ruled out that new political shocks may happen
in the region adjacent to Armenia where Armenian colonies of many
thousands exists so the country must be prepared to accept repatriates.

The subjects of the reports made on the second working day of
the conference were on the repatriation-related moods in various
colonies of the Diaspora, their reflection in the Diasporan press,
Israel’s experience of repatriation. The issue of assessment of
national identity of an Armenian was also a subject of discussion. In
response to NT correspondent’s question, Tiran Lokmagyozian, a public
figure from Turkey, said: "I consider as Armenians all those who
are Armenians by birth, that is, who belong to the Armenian nation
from the racial point of view". In the opinion of Gevorg Yazchian, a
journalist from Lebanon, "those who have national self-consciousness
and separate themselves from other nations as a independent nation
are Armenians. This a necessary but not sufficient condition. To me,
the sufficient condition is assumption of mandatory obligations with
respect to his/her nation and homeland by the given person".

The conference "The 1946-1948 Repatriation and Its Lessons. The
Problem of Repatriation Today" is perhaps one of the first attempts
to determine what national and geopolitical factors influenced
the repatriation of that period, and what impact it left on the
consciousness of the Armenian people who survived the genocide. As
for further steps, the dean of the Law Department of the American
University of Armenia Tom Samuelian believes that we "should
be consistent as there are quite difficult problems and we must
solve them. No one will solve these problems instead of us. Some
circumstances or conditions may solve these problems, but not in a
way advantageous for our nation and country".

The reports made at the conference will be summed up in publications.

Scientists and experts from Armenia, Iran, Canada, Syria, the U.S,
Argentina, Turkey, Russia, Lebanon and other countries took part
in the conference organized by the RA Ministry of Diaspora, the RA
National Academy of Sciences, Yerevan State University, and "Noravank"
Scientific and Educational Foundation.