Yerevan State University Students to Strike Against Ministry's Draft Law

According to the "Hraparak" newspaper, today, students from the Faculty of Armenian Language and Literature at Yerevan State University (YSU) will hold a strike against the decision to make the courses "Armenian Language" and "Armenian History" non-mandatory in higher education programs.

YSU officials did not rule out the possibility that faculty members may also join the strike, with some professors being among the organizers of the protest. It should be noted that the Ministry of Education has decided that the teachings of "Armenian Language," "Armenian Literature," and "Armenian History" in universities will no longer be mandatory.

This is stipulated in the new draft law on "Higher Education and Science" prepared by the Ministry, which will soon be presented for public discussion. The initial discussions of the draft have already sparked significant resistance in universities, and it remains unclear what will happen when public discussions begin.

There is considerable dissatisfaction, particularly in non-specialized universities, concerning the Armenian Language and History departments, which are likely to be closed, leaving many unemployed. Their anger has been particularly fueled by the Minister's statement that the matter concerns only about 300 individuals.

For more details, refer to today's issue of the newspaper.