INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS ARE MERE PAPERS
Lragir.am
19 April 06
The demolition of Armenian khachkars in Nakhidjevan is cultural
genocide, announced MP Heghineh Bisharyan April 19, during the meeting
of the Commission on EU-Armenia Partnership. She mentioned that the
Armenian khachkars are part of the world cultural heritage. At the
same time Heghineh Bisharyan highly appreciated the role of the EU
and the European Parliament in the preservation of cultural values,
emphasizing the decision to send a fact-finding group of European
parliamentarians to the region. During the same meeting another
member of parliament Hranush Hakobyan announced that the European
parliamentarians should severely condemn the demolition of Armenian
cultural monuments and impose sanctions against Azerbaijan. Hranush
Hakobyan said doing nothing would inflict other similar crimes. Hranush
Hakobyan thinks that including the khachkars in the list of monuments
protected by Unesco would hardly prove effective. “The town of Ani is
one of these monuments, but the stones of the local Armenian churches
are freely removed,” stated Hranush Hakobyan. She finds that it is
impossible to return the lost monuments, and all Armenia can do is to
state facts, which means the international conventions and covenants
are mere papers, says Hranush Hakobyan.