MOST IMPORTANT BUT NOT VALUED VICTORY

168 Zham
May 8 2010
Armenia

Tomorrow [9 May] marks the 18th anniversary of liberation [of Karabakh
town of ] Susa in Armenia and Artsakh [Karabakh] apart from the 65th
anniversary of the victory in the World War II. Probably, this is
the most important victory in the newest history of Armenia and the
Armenian people.

However, as in past years, the liberation of Susa is marked simply
"for the sake of a procedure". Officials, various political figures
as always will make exaggerated addresses and will lay wreaths at
monuments to the victims, and TV companies will air some programmes
on the victory day and that’s it. That is to say, the victory day
has not become a pan-national holiday yet.

This is mainly for the reason that the victory gained in the Karabakh
war was continuously inhibited by the authorities in the past years,
as a result, state-organized anti-propaganda against heroes who
participated in Susa’s liberation after [former Armenian President ]
Robert Kocharyan came to power in 1998.

The imprisonment of many of the Karabakh war veterans in the past two
years made the attitude of the authorities towards the victory more
expressive. Regardless of anything and the authorities, the victory
is everyone’s and the public should take pride in and live with this
victory in a way so that any authority or a political figure does
not use it only for political reasons. A happy Victory Day.