Mikayel Minasyan: "Revolution in Armenia is Still Inevitable"

After my last post about heroes, my friends accused me of not speaking about the main topic - the "revolution" that took place in April-May 2018, why it happened and how to relate to it, what assessment to give. Former Armenian Ambassador to the Vatican Mikayel Minasyan made a post on Facebook about this. He wrote: "In short, my answer is this: the revolution had objectively matured, instead of a revolution, there was a change of power, and now the most dangerous can begin - a deep public disappointment with very sad consequences. This can only be avoided by implementing a real revolution. That's all, if very briefly. If more elaborately, then the revolution was inevitable in Armenia; all the reasons were present and matured for it. The revolution was a direct consequence of the public illness we have been infected with since the 1990s. Because only in unhealthy social relations is it possible to have a level of polarization in society where mutual intolerance and hatred turn into a chronic illness. Only in such unhealthy relationships is it possible to boast of the talent of Armenians but never find a model of social solidarity and distribution of capital and income that would ensure public unity and exclude any manifestation of envy and hatred on the ground of social justice.

Only in deeply unhealthy social relations can one win a war, but perceive that victory as a burden, be proud of national values while always targeting Armenian identity. All this is not the consequence of one person and one authority. This is a much deeper, universal, lasting, and systemic symptom. And precisely for that reason, in the context of this burden, stereotypes, qualities, and public layers, the revolution was viewed as the only and last lifeline, the last chance of fate. And a "revolution" occurred in Armenia. The change itself was so important that no one recalled the content of the change.

After April 23, the new government had a real opportunity to unite, to create, to utilize the unprecedented support it received in favor of the state and the people, in favor of progress. They had an exceptional path without being prisoners of the past, free from unwritten obligations, open to involve the best, to form a 'dream team' and achieve incredible results. After April 23, the runway was open for Armenia, the weather was favorable. Unfortunately, a different path was chosen, a different handwriting, which inevitably led to an entirely different domain of political reckonings and vendettas. And then began the closed cycle. It is clear that no serious professional will join or tie their life to a vengeful authority, understanding that revenge begets revenge. And any government suffocating from the lack of professionals has no alternative but to resort to new repressions to maintain power. And we entered precisely this vicious cycle with our eyes wide open. Instead of the desired revolution, we obtained merely a meaningless change of power.

As a result, both internally and externally, there has not been a single visible success story in the past 1.5 years. And there could not be: those stuck knee-deep in the swamp of the past can never soar. And repressions cannot continue indefinitely; moreover, even if they do, the majority will respond to them with deep indifference, because the time comes when one must speak of tangible, substantive results, not boast about the number of arrested former presidents or other officials.

This government, instead of making real changes, chose to maintain a constant presence on social networks instead of a New Armenia, turning it into Facebook Armenia, aggressive and emotional outbursts instead of programmatic speeches, and stirring up enmity instead of uniting society. This is extremely dangerous for the country's statehood. It is impossible to maintain a society for a long time in a state of negative energy, nervous processes, and frayed expectations. It is impossible to fabricate a half-open criminal case against every more or less significant figure and demand a developmental discourse from society. Destroying and disgracing authoritative individuals, thriving at their expense is not a sign of strength. These are textbook truths. The greatest theorists of revolutions once said, "People who were proud to have made a revolution always found out the next day that they really did not know what they participated in and that the executed revolution was not at all what they wanted to accomplish."

Within months, society will record that the 'revolution' did not become a lifebuoy for solving problems, for truly living well. It has not become. And society's ultimate disappointment may become a larger trap, falling into universal indifference and ceasing to dream forever. A new opportunity may be no more. That is the most dangerous thing. We still have the chance to emerge from the mire of the past, to have substantive revolutionary aims, to manifest will and determination. People need to believe that they did not err in demanding changes and that they are not to blame for not becoming beneficiaries of the 'revolution' and will not, until the goal of the revolution is fully completed with content and a vision of the future. People must believe they have the right to continue dreaming. They must believe without fail.

The revolution in Armenia is still inevitable.

P.S. Today my senior friend Vahan Hovhannisyan would have turned 63 years old. His words on one occasion, "You cannot build a state with revenge," are more relevant today than ever. My tribute to his bright memory.