Mass repatriation to Armenia turns out to be fake
By Abdul Kerimkhanov
A year ago, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced about beginning the repatriation policy in the country.
Recently, Artsrun Hovhannisyan, Spokesperson of the Armenian Defense Ministry, informed that more citizens than was expected for this year’s conscription were drafted into compulsory military service. He tried to link this with the “mass repatriation” that is allegedly observed in Armenia.
Sadly for Hovhannisyan, this is not true. Starting his rule, Pashinyan promised Armenians mass repatriation and a sharp increase in the country's population. However, a small increase in demography, which was observed during the April coup, very soon disappeared, when foreign Armenians who arrived to participate in the unrest began to return to their homes abroad.
Zare Sinanian, Chief Commissioner for Armenian Diaspora Affairs, refuted Hovhannisyan’s positive statement. He said that after the velvet revolution, there was no influx of repatriates into the country. Sinanian acknowledged that Armenia does not yet have the corresponding development dynamics, appropriate programs for receiving tens of thousands of repatriates.
Meanwhile, emigration to different countries continues in Armenia, mainly to Russia. The reason for this is the lack of new jobs and a low level of socio-economic development in Armenia.
The poor population in the country amounts to about one million people, and these people are ready to leave Armenia at the first opportunity.
Sinanian admitted that Armenia will not be able to accept a large number of repatriates in the coming decades until it provides a decent life for the citizens so that they would not want to leave the country. For this, Armenia needs a strong economic basis.
So, the opinion that prosperous Armenians living abroad would leave their business, work, property and return to Armenia is absolute false.
Armenia is on the verge of a demographic crisis. Armenians are considered an aging nation, and against this background, it is necessary to develop a clear multi-million dollar strategy to correct the demographic situation. Sociologists, demographers, economists should work on this program, this should be a multi-layered comprehensive document.
However, the Armenian government is only limited to invitations to move back to Armenia.
The country becomes older, which leads to shortage of young and promising personnel in almost all spheres of activity, which also has a negative effect on the replenishment of Armenia's armed forces, as well as on the formation of the budget through the taxpayers.
Apparently, the current Armenian government is not going to solve such a depressing problem, rather preferring to eliminate its political competitors and entertain the local public with various PR shows.
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Abdul Kerimkhanov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AbdulKerim94
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