This Year I'm Saying, I Won't Give You a Penny': Armavir Resident Blocks Road to Water Official

The concerns raised by the residents are indeed justified; we have had no water for two days. This was stated by Aram Sargsyan, the executive director of the Ejmiadzin water users' association, during a conversation with journalists as he met with the villagers blocking the Armavir-Yerevan highway. They noted that they have been deprived of irrigation water for a week now, preventing them from watering their gardens and vegetable crops.

They demand the Governor of Armavir to come to the protest site and address their pressing questions, emphasizing that they will not leave until the governor arrives. One of the villagers expressed frustration, saying, 'Let the governor come, let Minister Suren Papikyan come; why send a police officer as if I'm going to start a fight? Why send a police officer? Minister, come, it's your people; we elected you, so why send a police officer? I don’t want to fight with a police officer; I’ve fought with the Turks.'

The reason for this protest is an incident that occurred three days prior involving flooding in residential areas, including a kindergarten, due to problems with the canal. 'Construction work has been ongoing for the second day now; I just came from there, and it will be completed by the end of the day, and the water will be connected again. The only issue at the moment is that the canal is not operable; the incoming water cannot reach its destination because it floods residential areas in the Malatia section. We can go right now, and I’ll show you,' he added.

Another villager, outraged, questioned who would compensate for their losses, to which the official replied that no one was insured against issues arising in the channel. 'You owe me 12 thousand drams; this year I'm saying I won't give you a single penny; I'm saying it right in front of the cameras, have pity on me,' said one of the participants in the protest.

It is noteworthy that since morning, residents from 13 villages in the Armavir region have blocked the Armavir-Yerevan highway and are demanding a solution to the irrigation water issue. According to them, they have been without irrigation water in their communities for a week.