Lyudmila Sargsyan: Hunchakian Party will form part of ANC as before
09.01.2010 16:20 GMT+04:0
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Yerevan hosted Saturday the 7th session of
Social-Democrat Hunchakian party. Members of all parties belonging to
Armenian National Congress (ANC), as well as actors Yervand Manaryan,
Ashot Adamyan and Armenia’s ex-President Levon Ter-Petrossian.
Discussion was also attended by 50 delegates representing the local
cells of Hunchakian party, who will elect a party leader and a central
management body.
Hunchakian party leader Lyudmila Sargsyan delivered a speech,
expressing conviction that certain members’ recent attempts to split
the party were not crowned with success. `Hunchakian Party will form
part of ANC as before, thus contributing to the reinstatement of
constitutional order and democracy in the country,’ she noted.
According to her, Armenia has lost its sovereignty and is now
`governed by a police regime’.
The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party is one of the oldest political
parties in Armenia and the first Socialist party in the Ottoman Empire
and in Persia in the 1880s. It was founded in 1887 by Avetis
Nazarbekian, Mariam Vardanian, Ruben Khan-Azat and others, who studied
in Geneva, Switzerland, with the goal to gain Armenia’s independence
from the Ottoman Empire, which is part of Armenian national liberation
movement Its name, taken from its newspaper Hunchak, means "Bell" in
English, and is taken by party members to represent "awakening,
enlightenment, and freedom."
Hunchak party fought many battles against the Ottoman Empire, to free
the Armenian people from Turkish rule. One of Armenia’s famous
national heroes Andranik Ozanian, at first, joined the Hunchak party,
but disagreement with party policies led Andranik to leave the Hunchak
ranks and join the Dashnak party.
The party also played role in establishment of Democratic Republic of
Armenia, as party members took part in the Battle of Sardarapat,
during the World War I at Caucasus Campaign, which defended the
Armenian capital of Yerevan from Army of Islam of Ottoman Empire.
In the early 1990s, it took part in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.
This party is operates branches in United States, Lebanon, Syria,
Kuwait, Armenia, Egypt, Argentina, Uruguay, Canada, Australia,
Britain, France, Cyprus etc.
It was also active in Lebanon, where it competes for the six National
Assembly seats reserved for ethnic Armenians.
In Armenia it forms part of opposition bloc. Party member Yeghia
Jerjerian is a member of Lebanese parliament.
The Hunchakian party has established affiliate organizations such as
the AEBU which is an organization that helps with educational, health
and social care, the Armenian Dkhrouhi Youth Association and HMM
(Homenmen) which is a sporting organization (not to be confused with
Homenetmen).