Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online

Garo (AKA Christian Garbis) has just posted what I think is probably the first ever video blog from Armenia over at Notes from Hairenik. In light of recent video shot showing Azeri soldiers destroying khachkars (stone crosses) in Nakhichevan, it’s kind of ironic that it shows the destruction of historic parts of the Armenian capital by state officials and the country’s notorious oligarchs. Garo also wrote about the destruction for Hetq Online.

As in areas throughout the city’s center in response to the ongoing Northern Boulevard construction project, dozens of historical buildings are being raised, some dating as far back as the first Armenian republic—or over 80 years ago, when present-day Yerevan was just beginning to take form.

The reason why this hamlet stayed protected from the public eye is its location, situated directly behind the National History Museum and Art Gallery, and on the right side flanked by a five-floor Stalin-era apartment building sitting at the foot of Nalbandyan Street. Countless families were once living here, not all with modern comforts as some houses erected as temporary shelters decades ago lacked indoor plumbing, with their inhabitants resorting to sharing a public water tap that is never turned off during the winter to prevent the pipes from freezing.

The issue is of course complicated, but it is enough to say that the (now departed) Human Rights Ombudsperson Larissa Alaverdian has already documented the violation of the rights of residents, and last year the former KGB arrested human rights lawyer Vahe Grigoryan allegedly on trumped up charges. His supporters say that the state targetted Grigoryan because he stood in the way of their latest money making scheme.

At the same time, A1 Plus reports that there are very real concerns that Yerevan is turning into a desert.

When Alexander Tamanyan was processing the main plan of Yerevan in 1924, he foresaw it for not more than 400 000 people in the capital. The great architect planned the green areas necessary for the city for that amount of people.

In 1940-1950 the authorities started to create green areas in Yerevan using about 200 sorts of trees and bushes. These data have been announced by the coalition SOS-Yerevan. The coalition organized a seminar titled “Dialogue between ecologists and parties” with the assistance of the National Demographic Institute.

According to the head of the NGO “For Stable Human Development” Karine Danielyan, “Taking into account the urban development norms, there must be about 16-24 square meters of green area for a person”. In 1986, when there were more than a million people in the capital, there was only 12.2 square meters of green are for a person. According to the specialists, in the new plan of Yerevan the number has been reduced to 9.8.

The ecologists announce that the green areas of Yerevan have been reduced more than tree times – 540 hectares instead of the 1817 in 1986.

When I was in Tbilisi recently I was struck by how new construction projects there appear to be largely taking place on already derelict land. The same kind of thing happens in England, but in Yerevan, where most of the city’s infrastructure continues to crumble, no such logic is applied. They say that most of the new buildings that will be constructed are destined to become luxury apartments for Diasporan Armenians but many doubt that all will be sold. There are also concerns with the quality of construction in a region prone to earthquakes.

Meanwhile I just have to scratch my head in wonder at the stupidity of those foreign born Armenians that would want to live in a concrete apartment block in a city fast becoming devoid of greenery. Build these monstrosities in areas where real rejuvination and urban development could take place and it would be another matter. Moreover, as the view of Ararat is better from such locations, the Diaspora could still romanticize about a homeland that doesn’t exist in reality, and probably never will given the direction the country is currently heading.

Anyway, Garo’s video blog can be viewed online here.