Where is my newborn? Protest at the Ministry of Health demands the closure of the Republican Maternity Hospital

A group of women is currently staging a protest in front of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia. They demand the closure of the Republican Maternity Hospital. The organizer of the protest is Haykuhi Khachatryan, the mother of a newborn who went missing on September 24; she has been joined by several other mothers who have faced similar issues at the same hospital over the years.

One of the protesting mothers, Shogik Mikayelyan, told us that she has been fighting for 21 years to uncover what happened to her child in that maternity hospital. The incident occurred in 1998 when her child was born without any issues, and on the second day, her husband saw the baby, but the following day they were told that the child had died. Shogik Mikayelyan is adamant that her child could not have been deceased; she never saw her baby’s body.

The gathered group consists of mothers who have lost their children at the maternity hospital under unclear circumstances. Haykahui Khachatryan informed us that the protest is based on 500 complaints, all from mothers who have been victims of the same hospital.

The women gathered in front of the ministry hold banners, with Haykuhi Khachatryan displaying one that reads, “I seek justice, where is my newborn Hayk?” They are now preparing to enter the office of Health Minister Arsen Torosyan to request his intervention in resolving this issue.