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Crisis abroad ignites passionate response from Armenian students

Maral Matig (right) proudly wrapped in Armenian flag protesting the ongoing crisis in Artsakh, where ethnic Armenians are forced to leave their homes. Photo by Matthew Daldalian / The Concordian

There is a war to be fought in the hearts of Montreal Armenians as ancestral land falls to neighboring forces.

As the evening cold sets on Sept. 23, an ancient tune reaches the ears of Montrealers near the McGill campus on Sherbrooke street.

Its trail leads to the university’s Roddick Gates, in front of which a handful of people stand tall alongside a pair of speakers, large banners raised above their heads and dressed in muted colours. Some are adorned in flags flushed of red, blue and orange, wrapped and held tight to their person. 

As the melody carries further into the city, a young woman walks forward to the edge of the sidewalk. Slowly, she pours a dirt-red viscous liquid onto her dress. 

Passersby halt, their gaze locking on her as she stands on a white sheet that absorbs the residual liquid.

Their eyes eventually fall upon the words scribbled amateurishly across the banners: ‘Protect indigenous Armenians in Artsakh’ can be read on one of them. And the message becomes just a little clearer.

The protest was in response to Azerbaijan’s initial offensive on the capital of the Republic of Artsakh, recognized internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh. The breakaway region is located in Azerbaijan but is governed by its indigenous Armenian inhabitants.

“It feels like I have so much to lose now and something to protect,” said Maral Matig, one of the protesters and a Concordia student in design. “It’s a deep pain that I haven’t always felt.”

The attack was seen as a violation of the ceasefire brokered in 2020 between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the aftermath of the second major conflict for the region. 

“It was always in the background,” Matig said, referring to the 2020 war. “I was suppressing my emotions. It’s the first time in my life I’ve taken any type of concrete action.”

Since the early 20th century, Nagorno-Karabakh has long been disputed between its two Caucus neighbours. Although recognized internationally as a part of Azerbaijan, de facto control lay in the hands of its ethnic Armenian inhabitants since the 1990s—until now at least. 

More than half of the Nagorno-Karabakh population has fled due to Azerbaijan’s current control over the region. This outpour was a result of a cessation of conflict a mere day after the peace was broken again.



“They are trying to completely erase the Armenians’ identity in the region and they won’t stop,” Matig said. “We just want to live, we just want peace. And that’s it.” 

Back in March, Azerbaijan launched an unprecedented blockade on the path used to establish connection between Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh, known as the Lachin Corridor. This created a humanitarian crisis in the region, with the population having to ration food and medicine among other issues.

Matig considered the blockade prelude to the on-going situation as news of rising tensions appeared on her online feed.

Now, armed only with her passion, Matig took to the streets with fellow Armenians art students to raise awareness for last week’s events.

However, Matig explained her efforts are left unheard, as the international community offered little to no support to Karabakh’s former inhabitants. She feared this lack of support or condemnation to certain actors may lead to future escalation onto the country of Armenia itself. This fear is shared by many Armenians due to their contentious history with local powers since the 1915 genocide, perpetrated by the Ottoman empire.


“We just want peace, we just want to live. It’s about survival, the continuation of our culture,” Matig explained. “Because we’ve been through way too much for this to keep happening.” 

Mesrob Arsenian, president of the Concordia Armenian Students Union, shared similar feelings. “It’s a struggle—you have to fight as long as you want to keep your identity,” Arsenian said. “It’s a part of being Armenian.”

Arsenian felt strongly about the ongoing development. However, his faithful pride was sullied as he could only watch events unfold online, halfway across the world. 

Arsenian was not surprised by the news, as little was done since 2020 to prevent any kind of attack in Karabakh. Russia, for example, an ally to Armenia, has mostly taken a diplomatic role between the two nations, brokering cease fires or keeping the peace on the ground post-war, a responsibility inherited from the Soviet Union. 

This diplomatic approach taken by nations at large was something Arsenian criticised heavily. “I know nothing is going to change but please do something because this [inaction] is getting ridiculous,” Arsenian said. “You can’t choose which human rights to care for and which not to.”

Many in positions of power or expertise, have condemned the Azeri government’s actions.  

Kyle Matthews, the Executive Director of the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies at Concordia University, has done the same. 

Matthews previously served as a United Nations official in the Southern Caucasus region and highlighted the severity of the crisis, calling for immediate action to assist the Armenians fleeing the region.

“What we’re seeing happen today is a grave violation of international norms and standards,” Matthews said.

Describing the current situation as “potential ethnic cleansing,” Matthews stressed that international law prohibits such actions, no matter what may be classified as after the fact. 

Matthews explained Azerbaijan has long found an ally in Turkey, from whom they receive support both politically and militarily. For a time, the south caucasian power received aid indirectly from Canada in the form of drones. Otherwise, Matthews said Canada as a nation has no interests in the region.

If nations were to choose harsher condemnation, Matthews suggested issuing economic sanctions against Azerbaijan or stopping trade relations.

“Rhetorical condemnation to a government who’s looking to displace a people is not enough,” he added. “Something more robust has to happen and putting a statement of concern on Twitter is not going to do that today.”

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Three months after fighting ends in Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenian and Azerbaijani communities are still recovering

Armenians and Azerbaijani share different perspectives, post ceasefire

On Nov. 9, 2020 a ceasefire agreement was signed between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The deal was brokered by Russia and ended 44 days of warfare in Nagorno-Karabakh (known to Armenians as Artsakh). Now, both Armenian and Azerbaijani communities across the globe are dealing with the conflict’s fallout.

The capitulation by the Armenian government determined a complete victory for Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan will hold on to the land it took during the conflict and Armenia agreed to withdraw from several other adjacent areas.

Ismayil Alakbarov is a political analyst and one of the board members of the Network of Azerbaijani Canadians.

“We feel honoured and we feel very happy that justice is restored. We feel a responsibility on our shoulders to help this region to bring peace and stability,” said Alakbarov.

“We as Canadians want to help the region,” Alkabarov continued. “We as the Azerbaijani community and the Armenian community living in Canada need to prove that it’s here in terms of reconciliation we need to build inter-community here and bring this model to the region.”

While the Azerbaijani people are celebrating a victory, Armenians are disappointed.

Sevag Belian is the executive director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada.

“Armenians feel absolutely betrayed by the international community … Most countries did not lift a finger, or simply they kept it within the boundaries of some empathetic statements by saying, you know, they’re concerned and they would like for peace to reign,” said Belian.

Belian says many Armenians are feeling betrayed by their own government as well.

“They weren’t being transparent enough, and they weren’t being open enough in terms of how the negotiations were ongoing … But we can’t vent our fury at the Armenian government. As Canadians, we can only share that with our government here,” Belian continued.

Fighting being brought to an end is a good thing. But at the moment it seems like both sides —  both in their home countries and here in Canada —  have issues with the agreement.

“There was a very lopsided announcement, a lot of the grievances of the Armenian people and regions, the indigenous population of the land has not been addressed in the announcement … There are many prisoners of war that are still being held captive by Azerbaijan,” Belian said.

For the Azerbaijani people, the issues come from the new Russian military presence in Nagorno-Karabakh. The ceasefire agreement will bring nearly 2,000 Russian peacekeepers into the area.

“Of course, we don’t feel good about it, honestly Azerbaijani people are not happy with having Russian peacekeepers and military presence inside of Azerbaijan … It’s not welcome. We don’t want any other country’s military presence in our home country, but on the other hand, it is good for the security of the people living there,” said Alakbarov.

It’s difficult to tell if the ceasefire will lead to lasting peace within the region. At the time the deal was signed, Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh were under intense pressure, having just lost Shusha (known as Shushi in Armenian) the second-largest city in Nagorno-Karabakh.

While the situation remains delicate neither side wants a war to continue.

“Let’s sit down let’s talk, let’s bring forward our issues. What is wrong with coexistence together,” said Alakbarov.

Armenians also want peace talks to be revisited.

“We want peace to hold but whether lasting peace can be achieved based on the provisions that are included in the Nov. 9 ceasefire announcement is hard to tell because a lot of issues in the region were not addressed,” said Belian.

But Azerbaijani people feel hesitant to give up anything they won in November.

“If Armenians do not want war, if they want to have peace and stability they should forget about putting forward territorial claims. They should accept Azerbaijan citizenship and integrate into Azerbaijani society,” said Alakbarov.

“The president of Azerbaijan declared the highest level of guarantee to their security as citizens.” Alakbarov continued.

Despite tensions remaining high, a meeting was held on Jan. 11 between the leaders of  Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladamir Putin met for the first time since the ceasefire agreement. The three parties discussed reopening transit routes between the regions in an effort to return stability to the region.

“Now having achieved this peace deal there is a good and excellent opportunity for this region to reconcile … This could be a good opportunity for the region to integrate economically,” said Alakbarov.

For Armenians however, this is not the primary issue.

“I think it’s pointless to speak about opening back trade routes and transportation links … The issue of our cultural heritage, and all the issues that are related to that none of these were discussed,” said Belian

Click here for more information on the recent conflict and history.

 

Graphic by @ihooqstudio

Intimidation, violence and fines: The struggles of being a journalist in 2020

At a time where the world needs them the most, reporters face strong impediments to their job

Over a month ago, The Concordian published an article covering pro-Armenia student protesters who called on Montreal city mayor, Valérie Plante, to support Armenians in the ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh territorial dispute. It’s the kind of beat story that’s perfect for young reporters who want to get their feet wet in news coverage: a conflict being covered worldwide, with a local connection to grassroots support among fellow students.

Unfortunately, this reporting attracted the wrong sort of attention, prompting a stern letter from the Montreal Consul General of Turkey, sent not to The Concordian, but Concordia University. Key to their concerns was the inclusion of two photos, each featuring a woman holding a sign stating “Turkey = Terrorist,” no doubt a response by the protester to the cluster bombing in the region, often aided by Canadian drone technology.

Politicos in office or at the dinner table have long opined how journalists are vital to a democracy and the need to protect them and their work. After all, public discourse from news coverage is often the only way we educate ourselves once we leave school. Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel’s book, The Elements of Journalism, found in almost every journalist’s bookshelf, describes this urgency as news reporting’s chief commitment, “to provide citizens with the information they need to be free and self-governing.”

But that goal is challenging and getting harder. Reporters are working with less time, less money, and fewer resources than those who would seek to influence their coverage. Young, freelance and student journalists are especially vulnerable, as they have nowhere near the same security as employed reporters. And even those privileged few still face trials, as diminishing advertising revenue has seen their budgets evaporate. Adding to the issue, journalists have a long history of dealing with intimidation, and you can see why it’s becoming tougher to inform people of what’s going on.

It was only a few years ago when I was an undergrad, and the Maple Spring was raging. Red squares adorned almost every student coat, and pots and pans protests took place every night. While the demonstrations garnered international attention, eventually leading to the fall of that administration’s time in government, student journalists’ treatment was less covered. Being kettled, heavily fined for photographing and documenting, or straight assault were standard plays inflicted on young reporters by the Montreal police department, that saw anyone under 30 as a threat. As a student journalist struggling to pay your rent and tuition, how do you have the time to fight huge fines, fees, and court dates, on top of all the regular challenges life flings in your direction?

This past summer, a few reporters over at The Link were intimidated by police following a Black Lives Matter protest. Non-lethal guns were drawn on them and medics who were also present, as they pleaded with officers while kneeling on the ground at Place des Arts.

And when we aren’t scared of power-tripping cops, journalists can be threatened by the public. In 2018, far-right activists (read: fascists) stormed Vice Montreal’s offices after they published on the rise of attacks perpetrated against anti-fascist protestors. And this year, a TVA reporter was assaulted by two anti-maskers, who bear-hugged her while she covered their protest live on television. And let’s not even open the can of worms that is reporter harassment on social media.

Was the Turkish Consul’s response intimidation? Probably not directly. But it’s telling that a student newspaper in Montreal, thousands of kilometres from the conflict, caused such concern that they not only wrote a letter but sent it to the school where these same reporters were learning their craft. The editorial staff’s emails are publicly available on The Concordian’s website, so it’s unlikely this was an oversight.

Student, freelance, or full-time, a journalist commits to journalism. I say commits because we are committed to accuracy, fairness, and representative work and because we commit to this vocation. We pledge to this despite being routinely demonized, so much so that our safety isn’t a priority.

But let’s remember — without good journalists, you have nothing but marketers and merchants influencing you to buy and believe what is on their agenda this minute. We need better protection, but it can’t only be through legislation. It has to come from you. So the next time you see a journalist intimidated, please speak up. Whether it’s at your dinner table, in your Zoom call, or on social media, defend those who defend your right to know. Because without us, you won’t be ready when the intimidators come for you next.

 

Feature graphic by @the.beta.lab

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“We need more action”: Canadian-Armenians demand bold measures on Nagorno-Karabakh

In an unprecedented show of force, Armenians from all across Canada poured into the capital on Friday

Gathered in front of Parliament, nearly 5,000 demonstrators were joined in solidarity by current and former MPs. Their objective? Compel the government to condemn Turkey and Azerbaijan as the aggressors in the Karabakh conflict, permanently halt the export of weapons to those countries, and recognize the Republic of Artsakh as an independent state.

Hrag Koubelian, president of the Concordia Armenian Students’ Union and a participant in Friday’s demonstrations, believes this is a fitting opportunity for Canada to show what it’s made of.

“Given Canada’s great record in defending human rights, we hope that it officially condemns Azeri and Turkish aggression against Artsakh and Armenia. We hope to see recognition of the Armenian people’s will to peacefully live on their lands.”

Sevag Belian, executive director of the ANCC, speaks to protestors at Parliament Hill. (Credits: Shoghig Tehinian)

However, with clashes intensifying and casualties mounting by the day, some, like Tamar Panossian, are worried that the government may be dragging its feet.

Panossian says, “Time is already being wasted because we have so many soldiers already dying, already so many people who have been displaced, and they’re taking a lot of time to take action.

Such concerns have been growing among the Canadian-Armenian community ever since open war broke out on Sept. 27 between Armenian and Azeri forces over Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Artsakh.

While sporadic fighting has occurred along the line of contact (LOC) in the past, the latest round has been the deadliest to date. Recent estimates place the number of casualties in the thousands.

The Armenian community is particularly worried that active Turkish interventionism has made Azerbaijan more belligerent. In response, Sevag Belian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada, says the government needs to take some strong measures.

“Canada cannot afford doing business with a genocidal state such as Turkey that has absolutely no intention to adhere to international law. Let it be clear: this is a red line for our community,” says Belian.

Some current and former MPs are trying to bring this issue to the attention of the government. Alexandre Boulerice, New Democratic Party MP for Rosemont – La Petite-Patrie, and a long-time supporter of Armenian causes, says this is a matter of human rights and national self-determination.

Canadian-Armenian man looks over a demonstration sign calling for Turkey’s expulsion from NATO. (Credits: Shoghig Tehinian)

“You can count on us and the NDP to continue putting pressure on the Liberal government to do more.” He agrees the suspension of weapons exports to Turkey must be made permanent.

The Conservatives, for their part, are stressing the importance of an open and transparent investigation into weapons exports, as well as the right to self-determination.

Harold Albrecht, former Conservative MP for Kitchener—Conestoga, who also attended the demonstration, believes Canada ultimately must stand up for Armenians. He said, “I’m hoping I can influence my colleagues [in the Conservative Party] to put pressure on the government.”

Some of that pressure is even coming from within the Liberal party itself. In a statement that was read out on Friday, Fayçal El-Khoury, Liberal MP for Laval—Les Îles, expressed his full support for the demonstrators.

“We will never stop until we reach the recognition of the free and independent Republic of Artsakh. I have been with you, I am with you, and always will be with you,” he said.

Earlier this month, Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne told his Turkish counterpart that “external parties should stay out [of the conflict].” Additionally, Global Affairs Canada temporarily suspended some weapons export permits to Turkey, pending an investigation into their use in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Mher Karakashian, chairman of the Armenian National Committee of Canada, says Armenians are definitely encouraged by these steps. However, he awaits what the government will do next. “We will have to see what happens in the coming days. Our hope is that Canada takes up a leadership role, together with its allies, mobilizing the international community to bring a peaceful resolution to this crisis.”

 

Photographs by Shoghig Tehinian

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