Displaced Artsakh residents protest outside Armenian government
People displaced from their homes in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) during the 2020 war rallied outside the main government building in Yerevan on Friday.
The demand that the Armenian authorities recognize Artsakh as an integral part of Armenia or at least recognize its independence.
"If Artsakh’s Armenian status is not retained, there will be no Armenians left there. If there are no Armenians left in Artsakh, no Armenians will remain here either,” For Hadrut NGO leader Levon Hayriyan told reporters at the protest, accusing the authorities of renouncing Armenian control of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The protesters also accused the government of neglecting their requests to be granted a refugee status in Armenia for two and a half years.
One of them claimed the Armenian government was indifferent to the Artsakh people’s problems and left them without protection, totally ignoring their proposals and requests.
"We moved here because of the war and were forgotten," he said.