Today, May 28, the Day of the First Republic of Armenia, “Mother Armenia” people’s movement was created. The movement is cross-party, in which representatives of different layers of society are involved: political scientists, economists, diplomats, sociologists, famous intellectuals, lawyers, doctors, teachers, professors, IT specialists, journalists, bloggers, students, representatives of small and medium businesses.
The goal is to ensure broad consolidation and protection of national and state interests of Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian people by removing the current regime.
The members of the initiative group of the people’s movement “Mother Armenia” adopted a Declaration today, which we present below:
“Declaration
Initiative Group of the People’s Movement “Mother Armenia”,
– taking as a basis the Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Armenia, the invariable articles of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia,
– realizing the value of the achievements of the [Artsakh] Karabakh movement in 1988,
– stating that as a result of the policy of the current RA authorities, the Constitution of our country, the decision of the RA Central Committee of July 8, 1992, are being violated, serious threats are being created for the existence of Armenia and Artsakh, and for the sovereign, safe existence and development of the Armenian people in their own homeland,
– highly valuing the spiritual and cultural heritage of the Armenian people and emphasizing the importance of a thorough reform of the educational sphere on a national basis and the implementation of cultural policy,
– considering it necessary to establish Armenia as a state of law through a judicial and legal system independent of the executive branch and consisting of people with high professional and moral qualities,
we declare:
The change of power in 2018 did not justify the fair aspirations of our people to build a prosperous, secure, more democratic state based on the rule of law. On the contrary, all we got as a result of the “velvet revolution” was war, thousands of victims, disappointment, a deceived and split society. The foundations for catastrophic developments in the Artsakh issue were laid.
The vicious phenomena of 1991-2018 have not been eradicated, and the vast majority of our citizens have become victims of populism.
The dependence of the judiciary power on the executive only deepened. The judicial and legal system has become a baton used against all opponents of the government. Political opponents of the authorities – well-known military, opposition figures – are illegally arrested. All this is accompanied by obvious and unpunished acts of disrespect, violence and killings of people by those close to power.
The promised fight against corruption, the merging of business and government, and other vicious phenomena have failed. Moreover, the “velvet revolution” gave rise to dollar millionaires. In the context of rising prices, vulnerable groups of citizens have become even more insecure – pensioners, beneficiaries, and those living on low wages. More than 40% of the country’s citizens are on the verge of poverty.
The shadow revenue has increased. An unprecedented increase in drug addiction, gambling and crime has been recorded, especially among young people. Armenia has become a participant in the international drug trade. A small part of this chain was recently uncovered in the form of cocaine for more than 1 billion euros.
The enemy appeared on the territory of Armenia, threatening the sovereignty and international subjectivity of the Republic of Armenia. Artsakh is on the verge of total annihilation. The war resulted in thousands of victims, missing people, more than 11 thousand wounded and disabled. Prisoners and other detainees continue to remain in the prisons of Baku.
The government has retracted its pre-election promise made during the snap parliamentary elections in 2021. Instead of a “peace agenda” and a policy of realizing Artsakh’s right to self-determination, we got a new war, new victims and territorial losses. The government treacherously recognizes Artsakh as a part of Azerbaijan and is ready to cede the territory of the Republic of Armenia. With its similar position, the country completely found itself in the field of political and legal illegitimacy.
As a result of the disastrous foreign policy pursued by the authorities, Armenia has become an arena for a clash of geopolitical forces. The current government has destroyed the security architecture of the state, jeopardizing relations with our strategic and natural allies.
By recognizing Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan on October 6, 2022 in Prague, the RA authorities de facto became accomplices in the liquidation of the November 9 agreements. This gave Azerbaijan the opportunity to blockade Artsakh and claim the territory of Armenia. The Berdzor corridor was closed as a result of the agreements reached in Prague.
The security systems of Armenia and Artsakh are inseparable, and their separation is fraught with tragic consequences. The thesis about the existence of one of them at the cost of sacrificing the other is not only immoral, but also false and dangerous.
The authorities are consistently splitting the Diaspora and alienating it from Mother Armenia.
Based on the foregoing, realizing the urgency of the moment, guided by high responsibility, we, the undersigned, initiate a people’s movement with the aim of consolidating wide circles of society around the following goals:
First, to form a nationwide unity in the country around the suppression of the deadly policy of the current government, preventing the destruction of Artsakh and the collapse of the Armenian security system.
Second, the movement, in its form and content, is supra-partisan. The goal of the movement is not to come to power. The primary task is to protect the national and state interests of Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian people by removing the current regime. The government of like-minded people formed after the change of power should organize early parliamentary elections within 1 year.
Thirdly, the new prime minister must publicly declare that they will not be nominated by any party or party alliance in the upcoming parliamentary elections during their term as prime minister. Its main task should be to ensure the security environment of our country and to organize free, fair and transparent elections.
We urge to put aside party and group interests and to remove the anti-state regime through broad popular consolidation. In the current situation, a peaceful change of power is the only chance to make a historical change.
The movement is open to membership and cooperation with individuals and organizations pursuing similar goals.
Armenia, Yerevan
May 28, 2023
Members of the initiative group of the people’s movement “Mother Armenia” are:
Naira Melikyan,
Davit Sahakyants,
Avetik Ishkhanyan,
Artur Khachikyan,
Hovhannes Harutyunyan,
Dzyunik Aghajanyan,
Stepan Danielyan,
Artak Hovhannisyan,
Manuk Sukiasyan,
Boris Murazi,
Hovhannes Khudoyan,
Yervand Bozoyan,
Andranik Tevanyan
