Political analyst Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan has shared a deeply personal reflection on a day filled with sorrow and remembrance. He attended the inauguration of the Artsakh Memorial, an event that left a profound emotional impact and stirred difficult memories.
The day was marked by poignant words from speaker Arthur Vanetsyan, who observed that the people “do not have a grave.” This statement powerfully captures the pain of hundreds of thousands of compatriots who are unable to visit the burial sites of their loved ones, leaving them without a physical place to mourn or lay flowers.
The atmosphere was further charged as the observer looked upon the faces at Yerablur, mentally transporting them back to their homeland. This created a jarring contrast between two separate realities—one of memory and one of the present.
Reports indicate that state authorities had requested the memorial’s opening be postponed to a less conspicuous date. On the day itself, further obstacles emerged, including a lack of electricity at the Yerablur pantheon and a ban on loudspeakers for the ceremony. These actions have raised serious questions about whom the authorities are opposing—the displaced families of Artsakh or their enduring cause.
Amidst these heavy emotions, the analyst recalls the phrase, “This big holiday is longing my heart.” Yet, a thread of conviction runs through the despair. He recalls that on this date in 1991, the situation was also dire, but it was met with clear purpose and collective will, which ultimately led to victory. He expresses a firm belief that this path must be, and will be, taken again.
The day’s gathering in Freedom Square is seen not as an end, but as a step on the journey—a journey that, sooner or later, is destined to reach its goal.
