1990_10 Hye Sharzhoom Newspaper October 1990

              Hye Sharzhoom... Now in it's Twelfth Year
The Newspaper of the California State University, Fresno
Armenian Students Organization and Armenian Studies Program
Fresno, CA 93740
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Hye Sharzhoom
October 1990
Volume 12, No. 1
Supplement to the Daily Collegian
Armenians Elect New President
By Jeff Ahronian
Editor
Indeed, t'is the dawning of a new
era.
The Berlin Wall has come a-
tumbling down. The dictatorships in
Romania and Checkoslavia have been
ousted. And amazingly for the first
time, countries all over this world are
finally learning how it feels to elect
their leaders in a democratic process.
History was made in Armenia not
too long ago as the first ever non-
Communist was elected President of
the Soviet Republic. It marked the
first time in the republic's history that
its citizens were able to democratically
elect  their  president  by   way   of a
popularly chosen parliament
Levon Der Bedrosian, who was
born in Aleppo, Syria in 1946, was
elected by the Armenian Parliament to
become the President of the Presidium
of the Armenian Supreme Soviet,
defeating the Communist Party Chief
Vladimir Movsisyan. Der Bedrosian
captured 140 votes against Mov-
sisyan's 80 on the fourth ballot
For the first time in nearly 70
years, Armenians were able to freely
elect their representatives to the
republic's highest legislative body.
The Armenian Parliament which
consists of 260 total members (20%
still pending election), is made up of
35% representation from the Armenian
National Movement, 31% representation from the Communist Party,
and  14% representation from various
other Armenian political groups.
Der Bedrosian was one of the
leaders of the Armenian National
Movement, which started as the
Karabagh Committe in 1988, and
which later turned into an all-Armenian
national movement His political
activities were launched in the 1960's.
While a student at Yerevan University,,
he participated in student movements,
ran a campaign for the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide, and was jailed
in 1966 for ten days. In early 1989,
while a member of the Karabagh
Committee, he was again imprisoned
with other members of the movement
In May of 1989, Der Bedrosian
was elected as a deputy to the Supreme
Soviet of Armenia, as a member of its
Presidium in February of this year, and
was re-elected to the Armenian
Parliament in May.
Der Bedrosian has also served as a
member of the governing body of the
Armenian National Movement since
November 1989 and later also as
president of the organization.
What remains to be seen is if Der
Bedrosian can finally settle all of the
turmoil within Armenia. As the
number of different political parties
continues to grow, the citizens of
Armenia begin to face yet another
string of mounting problems. Der
Bedrosian is faced with the mighty
task of reuniting a country erupting
with internal disorder and hereafter
working towards the universal goal of
national independence.
Students Visit Historic Homeland
By Hye Sharzhoom Staff	
Four students; Armen Devejian, Phil
Garo, Matthew Jendian, and Robert
Vartabedian accompanied Barlow Der
Mugrdechian of the CSU Fresno
Armenian Studies Program on a twenty-
five day educational trip to Armenia.
This was the third such overseas visit
organized by Der Mugrdechian, including a trip to Jerusalem in 1986 and a
trip to Yerevan in June ofl988. This
year's group was the guest of Yerevan
State University and the Committee for
Cultural Relations with Armenians
abroad.
YSU Vice-Rector for International
Relations Dr. Raffi Matevossian was the
host for the group's stay in Armenia
which included educational excursions
throughout the length and breadth of
Armenia. There also was the
opportunity to meet with local students
from the university.
As guests of the university the
students were housed in the graduate
dormitory which is used for foreign
students, including Americans, on 52
Lenin Prospect, across the street from
the Madenataran (State Manuscript
Library). The dorm's central location
was ideal and in addition, we had the
opportunity to meet other Armenian
students from different countries.
Excursions were taken to Leninakan,
Lake Sevan, Khor Virap, Mt. Arakadz,
Geghard, Garni, and an overnight visit
to the Zangezur region where the group
stayed in Goris, the regional capital.
Arriving just after the May 27
shooting of Armenians at the central
train station of Yerevan the students
were eyewitness to the destructive
remnants of that battle as they visited
both the train hall where the killing
took place and also the square in front of
Erebuni museum which has been transformed into a vast memorial of flowers
and photos of the dead.
The biggest obstacle to overcome was
the chronic gasoline shortage which
plagued the country throughout the stay,
depending on the whims of the central
government in Moscow, or on the
conditions of the blockade. The shortage
was critical and lines were common
sights at the few functioning gasoline
stations in the city.
While bread was plentiful in June,
beef was in short supply and available
only for the right price. Many staples
such as sugar and butter were rationed.
There were private cooperative
restaurants where the students ate the
majority of their meals.
A visit to the Martyr's Monument for
the Genocide of the Armenians brought
into focus the harsh realities of both
past and present in Armenia. The freshly
dug graves of Armenian fedayees
(freedom-fighters) lined the long
promenade which leads to the entrance of
the Monument. It was not difficult to
feel the intensity with which the nation
mourns its dead.
An overnight trip to Goris and the
Monastery of Datev was one of the
highlights of the trip. Traveling through
the rugged hills and mountains of
Zangezur was a vivid reminder of the
dangers facing Armenia as special
permission was needed from the Interior
Ministry and from the Committee on
Cultural Relations to travel to the area
because it was a military zone. Soviet
Army checkpoints were common on the
road, with tanks and machine gun
batteries trained on passing cars. (The
(Left to right)Phil Garo,Armen Devejian,Alex (tour guide),
Mischa(driver), Barlow Der Mugrdechian. Matthew Jendian
in front of the old city of Goris.
checkpoints had been established in order
to enforce a Moscow directive for
popular militias to disarm.)
Goris itself, nestled in a small valley,
was a picturesque town, filled with
proud Armenians who related how they
took turns protecting their families and
town.
Goris is in southeastern Armenia, not
far away from the Monastery of Datev, a
monument to Armenian faith and
ingenuity. The monastery was a
religious center and also a medieval
university, later serving as a defensive
bulwark against the intrusion of the
Mongols and Turks. The Monastery
towers over the entire area and is the site
See Armenia, Pg. 8
s-~———— : ———>v
For the students
reaction to their trip
to Armenia ...
please see page 5      j