«Mruitsner jan, erexek jan, vaghvanc gnaqeq dasi». Pashinyan to students on strike for more than 10 days

The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, visited Charentsavan this morning to meet with teachers, parents, and the acting principal of the school, Lusine Karapetyan, as well as the newly elected principal Anna Balyan and members of the governing council, who have been on strike for over two weeks. The meeting revolved around N 3 primary school, where parents demand that the former principal, Lusine Karapetyan, remains in her position.

A consultation was held at the school with the participation of all parties involved to discuss the issue. After listening to the parties, the Prime Minister stated that legally, nothing could be changed, and thus, Anna Balyan must be appointed by the governor of Kotayk Province. On the other hand, Pashinyan has requested that law enforcement authorities investigate and understand whether there were indeed pressures on the council members.

Emerging from the school yard, the Prime Minister addressed the gathered crowd, stating that there is no basis for annulling the election results, and if there have been pressures, the law enforcement agencies should investigate. He added that this evening, the governor would appoint the newly elected principal, because there is no other legal option. As Prime Minister, I have no authority to change anything outside the law, as I do not appoint the principal,” he stated.

Following Pashinyan's statement, there were chants of “Balayan, leave!” The Prime Minister then addressed the students: “Mruitsner jan, erexek jan, from tomorrow on, attend classes regularly, because the school is not the principal, just as the country is not the Prime Minister, and the province is not the governor. The order of the school is maintained by the principal appointed by the state, not by their name or surname, but by their status.”

According to NEWS.am, more than ten teachers are submitting resignation letters. The gathered parents expressed that they did not expect such a resolution, and they are preparing to withdraw their children from school.