ArmInfo. Former residents of Artsvashen village (the territory of Armenia seized by Azerbaijani forces in August 1992 - Ed.note), who now live in the Gegharkunik region of the Republic of Armenia, gathered in front of the government and demand compensation of 6 billion drams from the government.
Earlier today, at a government meeting, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that he has information that refugees from the village of Artsvashen are going to hold a protest outside the government building. Meanwhile, as Pashinyan pointed out, de jure it was recorded that the state had fulfilled all its obligations to refugees. "They say that yes, at one time the government forced them to sign some documents and thereby close the issue. We understand this, but what is the reason for the situation that we have today? We simply decided to allocate 1.2 billion drams for solving specific problems of refugees (the decision to provide housing certificates to about 112 families forcibly deported from Azerbaijan in 1988-1992 - Ed.note), "Pashinyan said.
Meanwhile, residents of Artsvashen claim that they did not receive compensation for material losses. The chairman of the "Artsvashen and Sons" Union, Yura Gulyan, recalled that in 2009 the government decided to compensate for the damage, promised to allocate six billion drams, in 2011, 708 million were given out, which were used by 2,000 people, each got about 360 thousand drams.
The protesters met with the head of the Department for Reception of Citizens and Discussion of Petitions Alexander Ghazaryan. Later they said they were unhappy with the results of the meeting. "As a matter of fact, it was said that the problem of residents of Artsvashen village is not a priority, however, it is in the queue. The Prime Minister is aware of our problem and asked to convey that over time the problem will be resolved," Yura Gulyan said.
To recall, on September 20, 2018, about 500 residents of Artsvashen village held a protest in front of the government building demanding to allocate funds for them to restore the housing stock of the settlement, which, they said, was in a deplorable state. On the same day, Pashinyan went to the protesters and agreed to meet on October 2. As the Prime Minister's press service reported then, the protesters told Pashinyan that since 1992, in order to improve their living conditions, they have been compensated three times. - 2 times 50 mln drams each and once - 708 mln drams. In general, as they noted, by the decisions of the government of previous years, compensation was provided in the amount of 1 million drams to each family, part of which has already been paid. Today, internally displaced persons wish to discuss with the new government the amount of further financial assistance.
It should be noted that on August 8, 1992, after stubborn battles it was decided to surrender the village of Artsvashen, blocked by Azerbaijani forces, to the enemy. Artsvashen people were given shelter mainly in the town of Chambarak (former Molokan Krasnoselsk - Ed. note) where once the Molokans lived. Today, most residents of Artsvashen have serious housing problems - their houses rot and collapse.