On the day of the 20th anniversary France gave a great present and now the monument Jules Bastien-Lepage by A. Rodien is in the center of Yerevan. One day before that a less desirable present was sent to Armenia by Charles Aznavour, whose words more look like another creation of Rodien the thought statue.
In his interview given to the Nouvelles d’Armenie the Ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland gave his information concerning the population in Armenia. It differs from the official statistics with 1,3 million only. “How many people have remained in Armenia? They say 2,3 million, but the authorities say that the number of the population is 3,6 million. But it is not true, This number will go down to 1,8 million, and then to one million,” said Aznavour. It turns out that the Ambassador knows the reasons of migration too. “Nothing is being done to help people there, in Armenia. It is the vice versa; I know horrible stories about the mafia people. They do everything in a manner that the villagers stay hungry on their own land. Such members of the mafia should be shot down. This cannot continue. Do you want to be mafia? You can go and create your mafia in another country. But you should not do it in your country and against your people,” urged Aznavour.
When in May 2009 the information on suggesting the 85 years old chansonnier to become Armenia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in Switzerland (Aznavur is also the permanent Ambasador of Armenia in UNESCO), many people in Armenia were surprised. There were people who thought that this was not a professional decision on part of the authorities. However, as the years pass it is more evident that Aznavour is much younger than the other officials and Ambassadors of Armenia and despite his age and visual problems he can see the reality better and deeper than the others. Even more, the square named after his name, the monuments in many regions of Armenia and residence that looks at Ararat do not make him play a role of a man who is peaceful and does not see anything.
It is hard to imagine that the head of the state may ignore this statement or even think that the Ambassador does not see the reality because everything has been said sharp and straight. Aznavour’s words will be forgotten as they will not dare to answer. However, instead of him if any other diplomat managed to say such think, he would be fired with all negative consequences.
The Armenian reality is clearly seen not only in France but the US as well. Recently Serzh Tankian from the System of a down was in Armenia and he did not disappoint his fans with sweet compliments. The rock musician objectively estimated the situation and what we have: “Now in Armenia the chair of the business and government is the same, and one of them should step down of the chair”. Tankian also expressed his support to the environmental protection group against the exploitation of Teghut. “When I came to Armenia for the first time, I saw disappointment on people’s faces. It is even worse than poverty. We should develop rule of law here.”
Armenians from Armenia have a wrong opinion about the Armenians living in other countries. We think that Diaspora Armenians do not understand anything about the life and processes here. This opinion is even so naïve that in the Diaspora ministry they think that if they give a sentimental name to an initiative (such as “Come home”, etc.) the Diaspora Armenians will put their hands into their pockets.
It is even evident if we look at the marathons of the Pan-Armenia foundation as every year the number of donors is going down.
Only the first contact with the homeland is sentimental, and in a while after cleaning the tears they are faced with the reality, which is not so romantic already. Corruption, unfair treatment, etc. Let’s remember Aznavour after establishing a benevolent foundation in Armenia after the earthquake in 88 and now; they are totally different people.
Those who are really the bearers of our culture but have gone from their homeland due to certain reasons do not agree to return to their homeland anymore. Let’s take singer Arax Mansuryan. She was going to give a concert in Yerevan dedicated to the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, but her concert was failed. The singer had to confess that in other countries she has more respect than in Armenia. In Armenia families give names to their children such as Natalie, Elen, Monica, Alen, etc. In Austria singer Hasmik Papyan named her daughter Siranush. But even her endless love to the fatherland is not enough to live in Armenia.
For Diaspora Armenians there are words in the speeches of the president that attracts them; such words are “the homeland is proud with its children living abroad”, “Armenia is home for all of us, including you”, etc.
But it is very difficult to persuade people. This fact is even better proven by the rates and figures published by the Ambassador in Switzerland.