Sunday,
Armenian Government Eases Economic Shutdown
Armenia -- Roadworks are underway in Lori province, September 25, 2019.
The government has decided to extend a coronavirus-related state of emergency
but at the same reopen some sectors of Armenia’s economy.
The government ordered the temporary closure of most nonessential businesses,
including cafes and restaurants, on March 24 amid an accelerating spread of
coronavirus in the country. The order did not apply to agriculture, food
retailers, public utilities and services, banks as well as food-processing,
mining and cargo firms.
Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinian, who heads a government task force
enforcing the state of emergency, said on Sunday that companies that are engaged
in open-air construction or manufacture cigarettes, cement and other
construction materials will be able to resume their work on Monday. He said the
temporary ban on engineering and scientific research will also be lifted.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian announced the impending easing of the economic
shutdown on Saturday.
“We can’t shut [the economy] down completely,” he said. “That is why we have
decided that amid the extension of the state of emergency some types of economic
activity will be fully permitted starting from Monday.”
In a video address livestreamed on Facebook, Pashinian also said that the
government may allow “after April 20” the reopening of textile factories
employing thousands of people.
“For us the riskiest sector here is textile manufacturing because, as you know,
it has been the main driving force of about 1,000 coronavirus cases that we have
now,” he said. “But we also realize that people need to work, and we will hold
more detailed discussions with textile industry entrepreneurs … so that they can
organize manufacturing as safely as possible.”
The government made the decision after the rate of new coronavirus infections
recorded by the Armenian health authorities dropped significantly in the course
of the past week.
The authorities said on Sunday morning that the total number of coronavirus
cases rose by 46 to 1,013 in the past 24 hours. It was higher than the daily
numbers reported in previous days.
According to Health Minister Arsen Torosian, they carried out a record-high 680
coronavirus tests on Friday. The daily number of such tests cited by Torosian’s
ministry varied between 200 and 300 until then.
Pashinian warned that the government will restore the initial restrictions on
economic activity in case of a renewed upsurge in the disease. “The fact that we
have a relatively small number of infections and are reopening more areas of
economic activity doesn’t mean that our epidemiological situation has improved,”
he said. “No, our epidemiological situation has stabilized but not improved.”
Pashinian also made clear that the government will maintain serious restrictions
on other people’s movements and will not lift its ban on public transport
imposed in late March.
The state of emergency is due to expire on April 14. The government wants to
extend it by one month and will convene an extraordinary session of the Armenian
parliament for that purpose by Tuesday.
Easter Marked In Armenia’s Empty Churches
Armenia -- Catholicos Garegin II holds an Easter Mass at St. Gregory the
Illuminator's Cathedral, Yerevan, .
Armenians celebrated Easter on Sunday while being barred, due to the coronavirus
pandemic, from attending services held in churches across Armenia on the
occasion.
Catholicos Garegin (Karekin) II, the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic
Church, urged them to display “national unity” and help their government contain
the spread of the virus as he led a mass at an empty Saint Gregory the
Illuminator’s Cathedral of Yerevan.
In a sermon read out during the liturgy, Garegin also said that the world must
unite to defeat not only the pandemic but what he described as even greater
evils such as “materialism,” poverty and armed conflicts.
The Easter mass held in Armenia’s largest cathedral was attended by only two
dozen clergymen and a smaller-than-usual choir.
Sunday services in all churches have been held behind the closed doors ever
since the Armenian government declared on March 16 a state of emergency to fight
against coronavirus. The Armenian Church, to which the vast majority of the
country’s population nominally belongs, instructed parish churches to
livestream, if possible, liturgies online.
The ancient church’s Mother See headed by Garegin also restricted church
attendance on weekdays and cancelled pre-Easter ceremonies involving large
numbers of people. It urged its faithful to abide by serious restrictions on
people’s movements imposed by the authorities.
Armenia -- Catholicos Garegin II (C) holds an Easter Mass at St. Gregory the
Illuminator's Cathedral, Yerevan, .
In his Easter message Garegin said: “We once again call on the sons and
daughters of our nation in the homeland and in the diaspora to give a helping
hand to our government authorities in their efforts to overcome the difficult
situation created by the pandemic, in caring for the patients, and the welfare
of those sons and daughters of our nation who are in great distress by making
your contributions to a special account opened for this cause.”
“Let us keep national unity and solidarity strong, as people … faithful to
Christ,” he said. “Let us live with the faith of the Resurrection, with the zeal
to fulfill the commandments of Christ.”
Garegin had a similar message to Christians around the world. “We believe that
humanity will overcome this challenging situation of the pandemic and all the
difficulties caused by it in the social, economic, educational, and public
spheres,” he said. “However, it is of more importance that a permanent victory
is achieved against all inhumane manifestations such as materialism, poverty,
inequality, militarism, wars and other evils.”
“Humanity must realize that the guarantee of prosperity and happiness is the
life lived by God, which turns into a blessing, power and source of strength,”
he added.
Armenia -- Catholicos Garegin II blesses believers after holding an Easter Mass
at St. Gregory the Illuminator's Cathedral, Yerevan, .
After the service broadcast live on national television, Garegin blessed a small
group of believers, some of them wearing face masks, who gathered outside the
cathedral. None of them was allowed to kiss a cross held by him.
On Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinian, who coordinates government
measures against coronavirus, urged Armenians to stay at home and avoid trying
to attend church ceremonies on Sunday.
“In any case, the police will prevent any gatherings,” Avinian warned on
Facebook. “Let us demonstrate discipline and responsibility. Let us prevent the
spread of the virus.”
The warning came amid an apparent Easter Eve shopping spree at food supermarkets
in Yerevan. Photographs shared on social media showed scores of shoppers
ignoring social distancing rules.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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