At the Time of Dismantling, 3 Out of 5 Book Stalls Contained 5,000,000 AMD Worth of Books and Computers, Says Manuk Nigoyan

At the time of dismantling, 3 out of 5 book stalls already contained books and computers with a total value of 5,000,000 AMD, equipped with the appropriate software for book sales. This was stated by Manuk Nigoyan, the president of the "Cultural Foundation of Armenia," on his Facebook page.

In particular, Nigoyan wrote: "Since I have played a pivotal role, willingly or unwillingly, in the dismantling of the book stalls and have tried to provide the media with all the information that I considered reliable and necessary for publication and public awareness, I would like to summarize the story as follows: The book stalls in Yerevan were a beautiful and intellectual presence. While I am grateful to my friend Nuri for creating a small book presence in this city that has turned into an uninspired and outdoor market, I also cannot deny the risks highlighted by the city authorities regarding the locations and traffic regulations, although I cannot confirm them either. Yes, the book stalls have long deviated from their fundamental mission and served as stands for phones and accessories, thus offending both the people living in this city and the writers and publishers whose dozens of books were humiliatingly thrown into the only upper, invisible shelves, as well as Nuri, who spared no effort or imagination to create a booth that would practically make it impossible to sell anything other than books.

HOWEVER, I want to highlight an important fact: Weeks before the dismantling of the book stalls, the company owned by my friend signed a lease agreement with the organization that owns the book stalls and was returning them to their original mission, and at the time of dismantling, 3 out of 5 stalls already contained books and computers valued at a total of 5,000,000 AMD, equipped with the appropriate software for book sales.

Therefore, due to the actions of the book stalls, the city authorities, and presumably also my insufficient efforts, the last attempt to restore the content of the book stalls and organize the sale of books within them was thwarted. Thus, despite my long phone conversations, discussions, proposals with the city authorities at the time of dismantling, and the willingness of representatives of the city authority, unfortunately, it was not possible to prevent the fragmentation of the book stalls and to ensure at least their complete transfer to the provincial centers of Armenia, most of which do not have bookstores."