“Return to Kashatagh” NGO applied to the President of the Republic of Armenia, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund Armen Sarkissian for financial support for the implementation of the project submitted by the NGO. The objective of the project is to strengthen the social integration of people, including children, forcibly displaced from Kashatagh following the Artsakh war of 2020.

In a conversation with Iravaban.net, Ms Karine Movsesyan from Berdzor, who is the executive director of the “Return to Kashatagh” non-governmental organization, mentioned that they had applied to the President about 2 months ago for financial support from the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund.

On 1 April, the NGO representatives were informed by the President’s staff that they could not finance any component of the project.

“At first we wanted to meet with the President to present the programs, but we were informed from the President’s Staff that Armen Sarkissian was ill, and he could not receive us, but we could submit the projects. It was made clear in advance that the educational program will not be funded for various reasons. It envisaged the implementation of additional professional non-formal educational programs for the pupils in grades 5-9 of the secondary school, aimed at meeting the preferences and educational needs of children. The component for the children of the program had a subcomponent of Armenological-engineering education as well. There are a large number of children from Artsakh living in Armenia. It is difficult for them to attend the same circles and have extracurricular activities. In addition, children born in Artsakh have now been forcibly displaced.

The program also provides psychological counseling to children, which will help to overcome post-war traumatic problems.

The other component of the program envisages strengthening the economic capacity and social integration of women and men of families forcibly displaced from the Kashatagh region to the Republic of Armenia due to the Artsakh war in 2020. Within the framework of the program, 10 families will be selected from the beneficiaries of the organization. From each of the families  based on the principle of one woman or one man will be selected for participation in the social incubator with a 10-person social entrepreneurship incentive to provide them with social entrepreneurial capacity building and small business start-ups. The organization believes that at this stage it is possible to develop the economic capacity of the displaced persons, to support them in opening and developing their own business, which will provide employment for 10 displaced families.

The refusal was not justified by the President’s office in any way.

Ms Anahit Kosakyan, principal of Berdzor Secondary School No. 1 after Vahan Tekeyan, who is also a member of the board of the “Return to Kashatagh” NGO, says the program has undergone many changes to be accepted by the president’s staff. “We so not want to be made used to receiving rice and oil, we want a job. We have brought up a generation for which I can keep my head high. We have nothing to lose; we have lost everything, so we will fight.”

Ms Karine Movsesyan mentioned that she was going to send to the President the names of 8000 Kashatagh residents who need help, as well as to demand a report that the money collected by the Armenians of the world for Artsakh and the people of Artsakh is not provided to the needy Artsakh people. If it is not provided to the people of Artsakh, in this case the people of Kashatagh forcibly displaced from the Kashatagh region of Artsakh, then to whom is it provided?

The leading members of the “Return to Kashatagh” NGO mentioned that they will be consistent in raising the issues of efficiency, accountability and transparency of the use of the money donated to Artsakh of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund Board of Trustees and ask for its from all members of the Board. They are also sure that there will be real benefactors and organizations that will definitely finance the program.

On 27 September, the Azerbaijani side launched hostilities in Nagorno Karabakh, occupying most of it, including the city of Shushi.

On 9 November, Russian President Vladimir Putin, RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a joint statement on the cessation of hostilities that started on 27 September.

The trilateral statement states in particular that Kelbajar will be returned to Azerbaijan by 15 November (later that period was extended by 10 days), Aghdam region by 20 November, and Lachin region by 1 December, leaving a corridor of 5 km wide, which will ensure Armenia’s connection, but will not touch Shushi.

In addition, along with the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin corridor, Russian peacekeeping forces of 1960 troops with firearms, 90 armored vehicles and 380 vehicles and special equipment are deployed. The peacekeepers remain for five years with the possibility of automatic extension, unless the parties announce the termination of this provision six months before the expiration of the next five years.

It is also mentioned that internally displaced persons and refugees are returning to Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas, exchanging prisoners of war and exchanging other detainees, and unblocking all economic and transport ties in the region is carried out.