I Am Forced to Appeal to the Court: Rector of Anania Shiraz University to the Prime Minister

Rector of Anania Shiraz University, Vagarshak Madoyan, has sent an open letter to the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan. Below is the full text of the letter.

Your Excellency, Prime Minister,
My friends and I were among the first to welcome your coming to power, and to this day we hope that we have not been deceived. Our main goal was to ensure that the levers of governance are in the hands of knowledgeable, patriotic individuals who understand that the people are tired of living based on the opinions of the president, ministers, deputy ministers, and other officials; the people want to live by the law.

I am writing to you because I find myself in a difficult situation. According to the laws of the Republic of Armenia on Education and Licensing, as well as several other favorable regulations, I have applied three times to the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport for a license to operate in the field of medical sciences. I have purchased new furnishings, modern equipment, and tools, spending about $50,000. We have prepared to work jointly with the Republican Hospital ('Armenia' Medical Center), however, as I mentioned, I receive rejections with abstract responses stating, 'the educational staff, curriculum, occupied areas, and the requirements set for the application do not comply,' while everything fully meets the requirements.

What should we do? I, a naive person, believed in the law. If some universities can receive a license for that profession (according to the rector's connections), while others cannot, please accept a relevant law so that our situation becomes clear. The previous authorities maintained the monopoly of large private universities with a strange shading: 'Let's see if they can work, then we'll think about you.'

Your government representatives continue to maintain their monopoly with a different commentary: 'They have committed violations. Let's check, resolve their issues, and then we'll think about you.' What does the violation of one university have to do with the licensing of another, especially since those violations will never be discovered, and there will be no punishment. Doesn't the director of this theater understand that we, powerless spectators, unfortunately see further than he does?

Private universities have become large and small because some have been given everything—legally and illegally—such as buildings leased for free for a hundred years, while several million-dollar buildings have been sold for a few thousand, and others have been asked to wait. In a free country, as far as I know, working hands are not slapped.

The main goal in the education sector, especially higher education, should be to increase progress (in reality). Everything should be directed towards that. Private education creates an uncomfortable atmosphere of competition for public universities, without requiring effort from the state, while education (like the entire country) develops in conditions of competition.

It is known that the state should not obstruct but support entrepreneurship. Licensing bodies should be not restrictive but stimulating. If private institutions perform poorly, the reason should be sought not primarily within the institution but in the activities of the licensing body. A license has been issued to a private company with absolute freedom, saying 'do whatever you want,' and they do whatever they want.

The issue must be resolved by regulating the activities of licensing bodies. The latter must transform from controlling bodies into organizing and regulating bodies. In this case, they should continuously monitor the work of universities, point out shortcomings as necessary, give them the opportunity and time to address these, and in some cases even assist. In such a situation, not only the universities but the entire republic will begin to function.

We have become accustomed to the idea that a state institution should regulate, that state officials are wiser than everyone and are always right, etc. These are authoritarian approaches. Now it is important for the state to cooperate with the entrepreneur. Today, we would be very satisfied if we reach the level where officials at least do not hinder entrepreneurial activities.

Now I am forced to appeal to the court, but I am warned by various sources that if I insist too much, the university could be closed altogether. Is authoritarianism immortal in Armenia?

If the rejection is due to the lack of professionalism of the university rector, then (forgive my immodesty) I graduated from Moscow State University named after MV Lomonosov with honors in 1976, speak five languages, work in Armenian and Russian, am a doctor of philological sciences in the USSR, a professor (since I was thirty-four), an associate professor of law, member of several international journals abroad, and the author of about 200 scientific works, included in encyclopedias of the world’s leading linguists published abroad. The list could go on.

But all my achievements have been consistently disregarded in my homeland. Perhaps the reason is that I have worked for 42 years in one of the most corrupt sectors of the republic—the higher education system—but I have never engaged in bribery, for which I hoped at least to hear a word of gratitude from the new authorities. Should scientific merit and integrity never be valued in our country (doesn't it seem like we are fighting against corruption)? It is very difficult to fully dedicate yourself to your homeland and constantly be recognized by the authorities as a second-class individual. Of course, I am writing this letter seeking your help in hoping for justice. I assure you that I am not the only one in such a situation in our republic today.