Mayor of Meghri: Araik Harutyunyan Was Taken to the Frontlines, Asked 'Where Have You Brought Me and Why?'

The mayors of seven communities in the Syunik region, including Kapan, Goris, Kajaran, Meghri, Sisian, Tegh and Tatev, did not attend a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan. This was stated by the Mayor of Meghri, Mkhitar Zakaryan, in a conversation with NEWS.am. He remarked, “To be honest, we initially decided to participate, it was scheduled for the 11th, and a written notice had been sent from the region's administration. However, then the time was changed, and considering that we had no expectations, we did not change our schedule and did not attend the meeting. The issues in Syunik are already known throughout the republic; it’s not that they need to meet with the mayors to understand the problems. Please, they can implement their programs, and we will give our assessment based on the results we see.”

According to the Meghri mayor, the current government is not capable of solving the existing issues in Syunik, and they have no expectations. “Unfortunately, I have no expectations or hopes from this government. If we manage to restore and strengthen ourselves, there may be changes,” he said.

The Meghri mayor recounted that before this, Araik Harutyunyan, the Prime Minister's advisor, had visited Syunik, and he had been taken to the frontlines, where he expressed significant dissatisfaction. “Araik Harutyunyan was taken to the frontlines, and he expressed a lot of dissatisfaction. He asked, 'Where have you brought me, and why have you brought me here?' The military personnel, taking advantage of the opportunity, requested a caterpillar tractor for the newly opened positions. They had promised assistance, but according to the military, they couldn’t establish contact to inquire about the tractor’s fate,” Zakaryan noted.

Referring to the compensation for citizens who have lost their homes, the Meghri mayor stated that in his opinion, the compensation provided is not adequate. “We understand that the budget situation is not good, but due to the state's failure to ensure protection, people have lost their homes, even with property certificates in hand. Their ownership is constitutionally guaranteed as inviolable, and if the state has failed to provide this, the compensation should also be commensurate—meaning they should receive equivalent property for their lost property. But the most painful part is that our residents learn about these painful concessions from Azerbaijani military personnel, while the state should inform them. This already speaks to the absence of the state. Instead of ensuring citizens' safety, they talk about a proud citizen, that is, about the citizen's state of mind—what proud citizen, when that citizen's physical safety is not ensured?” he said.

It is worth noting that after the visit, Avinyan announced that every family member from families who have lost their homes will receive a one-time amount of 300,000 drams, and each family member will receive 68,000 drams monthly for at least six months until the construction of new homes is completed.