Karine Ionesyan, ArmeniaNow
Armenia’s former and current first ladies made environmentalists happy by effectively joining their longstanding campaign against a major industry project that conservationists say has a damaging environmental effect. Only several days later they realized they had put their signatures to a document they did not quite understand the essence of.
Several days ago the signatures of ex-first lady Bella Kocharyan and current first lady Rita Sargsyan appeared next to the signatures of 5,000 supporters collected by activists of the Teghut Protection Group in favor of the struggle against the destruction of the Teghut forest and establishment of a copper-molybdenum mine there, one of the most controversial environmental issue of recent years in Armenia.
In putting their first-lady hands to the petition, they inadvertently opposed the signatures of their husbands who, as heads of state signed orders paving the way for development of the mine.
Assistant to the current first lady Vika Voskanyan confirmed that the ladies had signed the documents but insisted that they did not fully know what they were signing.
“They were simply asked whether they join their campaign of protection of green areas. And they singed as citizens and not as wives of the presidents,” Voskanyan said.
However one of the environmental campaigners, Mariam Sukhudyan, insists the ladies were aware what they were signing, moreover, Rita Sargsyan, as she says, made a clarification: “You mean the problem of Teghut mines?” And she got an affirmative reply, according to Sukhadyan.
Under Decree 1278-N of the Government (in 2007), during the whole period of the Teghut mine (Lori Province) exploitation works the logging of an area of 357 hectares was allowed in accordance with the Armenian legislation. Already, an area of 21 hectares has already been cleared of vegetation. ACP Company, the same ‘Vallex Group’, has the license for Teghut mines operation.
The young activist, who used to protest in front of the buildings of different state administrative institutions, met the first ladies of Armenia in Victory Park where under their aegis Armenian showbiz celebrities were selling ice-cream for charity purposes. Before signing the petition, according to the activist, they attentively read it and it was mentioned that they demand to immediately cancel the project of exploitation of the Teghut copper-molybdenum mine in the northern Lori province, and to suspend all the preparatory works.
It was mentioned in the petition the toxic wastes (sulfur, lead, arsenic, etc.) which appear as a consequence of the mine exploitation will penetrate into the soil, air and water. The existence of heavy metals in them causes cancer, sterility, birth of both mentally and physically handicapped children. And these cases are already registered in populated areas (Kajaran, Kapan in Syunik Province, and Alaverdi in Lori Province, etc.) near other mines.
“So they (the first ladies) were against the program, which is implemented thanks to their husbands. And seeing their act Armenian showbiz celebrities – Shushan Petrosyan, Leyla Saribekyan joined them,” says environmentalist Sukhudyan.
The representatives of the Teghut Protection Group do not know how much this petition may help, because up to now they received many promises from state departments, which remain unrealized. For example, last year they were received by Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan. They say he tasked the Armenian Ministry of Nature Protection to carry out an investigation for a 25-year-program for the usage of the territory, and only then to exploit the mine.
Sona Ayvazyan, representative of Transparency International, says that they suggested the Armenian Government should turn to the Netherlands’ Independent Expert Commission, which could carry out the works even free of charge. But it was not done either. So they decided to take another step.
“Taking into consideration the fact that many administrative acts have been adopted by different competent government bodies since 2001 and many violations were made in their adoption, such as violations of our intergovernmental laws, the Armenian Constitution, as well as different international laws, and no one takes it into consideration, we have decided to turn to the administrative court,” lawyer Hayk Alumyan, who is in charge of the case, told ArmeniaNow.
Vahram Sahakyan, representative of ‘Vallex Group’ Company, says that he is not aware of the accusations that the protectors of the forest are planning to submit. So, he says he cannot provide any comments. Sahakyan also discards environmental threats mentioned by activists, such as further pollution of air and water, extinction of many animals that are in the so-called Red Book of endangered species.
“We do not do anything illegal, we said that from the very beginning, we cannot exclude all environmental threats. We plan to plant trees in 714 hectares in different parts of Armenia instead of the deforested 357 hectares. Besides, deforestation of a slight part will be made daily, so we cannot do animals any harm,” Sahakyan asserts.
As for the pollution of waters, he entirely denies this, saying that they are going to use a closed system of circulation, and there will be no flowing off.
Nevertheless, Teghut protectors reject all the reasoning, saying that they will present their viewpoint with proven facts in court. And meanwhile, on Friday, the day of Environment Protection, they planned a procession not only to Teghut, but also to other places having environmental problems, and trying to raise awareness about them once again.
They plan to send the collected signatures to President Serzh Sargsyan, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, Parliament Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan. Parliament member Zaruhi Postanjyan also plans to raise this issue in the Council of Europe in June.
June 09, 2009