After students called off their sit-in on Yerevan’s Republic Square, Tuesdays’s meeting between Indian students and Yerevan State Medical University’s Rector was meant to be open to the media. However, although only journalists from Hetq Online, Haykakan Zhamanak and Aravot were present, we were eventually requested to leave the hall and later used as reason for YSMU to call off the meeting in our absence.

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Hetq Online is currently trying to investigate the circumstances of the death of Prashant Anchalia, an Indian student from studying in Yerevan, Republic of Armenia. In particular, Hetq Online would like to contact people who knew Anchalia in Siliguri and any students who witnessed the events following his fall.

Hetq Online would also like to contact members of Anchalia’s family in India. Please email papermoonmic@yahoo.com if you have any information to share or can provide any other assistance. All correspondence will be treated in the strictest confidentiality.

After the appalling manner in which the highest levels of authority at Yerevan State Medical University (YSMU) treated its Indian as well as other foreign students after last week’s protests, I’m glad to see what might be one of the best examples of using blogs effectively in Armenia. Now that talks between Indian students and YSMU have broken down, Nanyaar? has set up a blog for students to write about the University.

Fantastic stuff, especially when you consider how the institution is run, and it probably comes as no surprise to discover that the aftermath of the recent protests takes center stage.

We were not sure of what’s happening, whether the decisions that are being taken, are they one voice or not. We saw us united on the first day, second day but from 3rd day we started dividing. It was the point we got weakened. How can we let all the efforts go in vain? I believe if now we cannot do anything, we can never because it was the first and the only time we all were together Death is the ultimate thing as well as the worse thing that can happen to anyone and his family. How can we forget that the person was alive for 45 min. How can we forget that he could be saved but was not? How can we take orders from the person due to whose mistake we lost our friend, and who is none other but our dean , a doctor. How can we forget that when we went to rector to listen clarifications we listened nothing but abusive words. How can we forget all this?

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State Medical University, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

Nayaar? has posted an update on yesterday’s meeting held at Yerevan’s State Medical University (YSMU). The meeting was agreed upon by six representatives of Indian students in Armenia and YSMU’s Rector.

The attendance in the meeting turned out to be approximately 350 students. The students spoke among themselves first clarifying all what had been discussed with the rector earlier that day and on April 23rd.The dean arrived later, along with the pro-rector only to blame us of playing with her honesty. She spoke of what she did at that moment, telling us that she was stunned and could do nothing because the boy’s state was already out of reach. All I still want to ask her is why at that moement, didnot even stoop down for a second to check his pulse and ensure us standing around that he was alive.

It was meant to be attended by representatives of the mass media in Armenia, but only myself and two journalists from Haykakan Zhamanak and Aravot newspapers were there. However, I had to fight to be allowed in after YSMU showed no interest in recognizing my Hetq press pass. I rang Edik Baghdasarian and spoke loudly so I could be overheard about lodging a complaint with the Yerevan Press Club for refusing to allow me into what was agreed to be a press conference. This worked and I was finally allowed in.

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Nanyaar? has posted excerpts from an Indian news report now that the body of Prashant Anchalia, the Indian student who died last week in Yerevan, has arrived back home. It’s a relatively short piece so I’m including it in full.

Body arrives from Armenia

Statesman News Service

SILIGURI, April 23: Shell-shocked family members received the body of Prashant Anchalia, who died on Thursday after apparently falling from the sixth floor of the Yerevan State Medical University’s hostel in Armenia, at Bagdogra airport around 1.30 pm today.

A pall of gloom descended on the town as Prashant’s body reached his residence at Church Road here from Bagdogra airport. A large number of people had gathered outside the residence of the Anchalias to bid adieu to Prashant, whom they used to know as a brilliant student, who he died in mysterious circumstances in Armenia.

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Indian Student, Tsitsernakaberd (Genocide Memorial), Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

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Republic Square, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

By LoonyMoony

Just a quick note on the Indians protest still going on. On Saturday the students walked to Republic square to hold a peaceful demonstration there. The Police and Red Berets were again there and looked pretty much tired. They were really surprised by the persistence of the Indians and other international students in attendance.

The Indian students said that they will stay here until evening, and if necessary would be back tomorrow, the day after that and every day until the rector resigns although they seemed less confident than two days ago, as well as slightly confused and disorganized. Now, on the question of what they will do then if it doesn’t work,” their response is that they don’t know. “We’ll see,” is the most frequent reply.

However, many students prefered to stay in their rooms instead of coming out to protest. Perhaps they had lost hope.

Media

Around two hundred people gathered on the Republic Square in the center of Yerevan and yet no representatives of the mass media were interested in what was going on there. Some expressed the opinion they were absent because didn’t know about the event. However, they were very well informed. They just didn’t care.

Well, in fact some journalists were there. There’s probably no need to mention Onnik as he came to the demonstration even earlier than most of the Indians, but there was a a journalist from Armenian National TV’s Haylur who was just passing by with a cameraman and stopped for five minutes.

A freelance photographer was there for some time as well, along with a Turkish journalist from “Zaman.” He had already interviewed the Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian and found himself on the Square by chance.

Zaman journalist, Republic Square, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

Of course, he did not miss the opportunity to get another story for his newspaper. Ridiculous. The article will probably come out on Monday, April 24. Meanwhile, some of the Indians believe that as soon as the body will reach India (at 3 am on Sunday) all the main Indian media outlets will report on it and that hopefully it will reach their government who will push the Indian Embassy in Armenia to care more about Indian student issues.

Republic Square, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

The students are disappointed with their embassy as much as with the University Administration. In fact, an Indian newspaper writes that the parents of Prashant Anchali, the dead guy, have written to the Indian President and Prime Minister asking them to intervene.

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Abovian Street, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

By Nessuna

It is 4:00 at night, but I cannot sleep. It has been a long day too; I was participating at the demonstration organized by foreign students of the medical university of Armenia. Onnik, Zarchka, Hasmik and maybe a couple of more people were the only other Armenians who were there. However there was a large crowd of about 200-250 foreign students sitting in the middle of Republican square for seven solid hours.

Of course the police was there too. They actually sounded a bit too sympathetic convincing us to go home because it was cold.

State Medical University, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

It was raining heavily, but it seemed as though nothing could stop those young people to get their message to public – they wanted people guilty of medical negligence to be punished and for the rector of the university Gohar Khalyan resigned. At the end of the day at around 10:00 p.m. we had a letter from the rector expressing her condolences and her promise to give a press-conference on Tuesday, April 25.

If you ask me, that was not enough, and I really think the rector has got to go. The students did not look very happy too, but let’s see what is going to happen on Tuesday.

When I showed up at the back-yard of the Medical University today at 12:00, the crowd was just forming. The students agreed to gather there to decide on the further plan of action. The day when a student at the Medical University Prashant Anchalia died they wanted an explanation from the rector, Gohar Khalyan, as to why medical treatment was not provided to their friend.

That’s when she literally showed them a finger and called Indian girls prostitutes.

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State Medical University, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

Yesterday at 12 noon, Indian students gathered at Yerevan State Medical University to consider their plan of action after the death of a fellow coursemate and alleged racism from YSMU’s rector. What started as a trickle soon turned into a few hundred although by their own admission some Indian students did not attend. Afew foreign students were also in attendance, but not many. Insignificant in the larger group of Indian students, in fact.

The Vice-Rector (pictured below), however, did materialize and tried to forbid me from taking photographs. He also accused me of provoking the Indian Students, and asked me what country I was from. Probably he thought I was from the Middle East or something because he threatened to make a complaint to my Embassy. He soon shut up after I told him I was from England, but what was most evident was how a lack of media attention made guys such as him feel powerful and arrogant.

Interestingly, the Indian students said that they would support me in my work, especially as Hasmik and I were the only journalists properly covering this story. It was obvious that those in positions of authority rely on a weak media and civil society to get away with their own misconduct.

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State Medical University, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

Nanyaar? has posted an open letter from Indian students in Armenia detailing the events that led up to last week’s protest outside of Parliament and yesterday’s sit-in at Yerevan’s Republic Square.

This is to hereby inform that a tragic incidence of an Indian national’s death has taken place on April 20, 2006 at 1:00 pm in Yerevan Armenia .Which to eyewitnesses appears to be due to medical negligence. There were 4 eyewitnesses of Indian nationality and six witnesses of Armenian nationality and three witnesses of Syrian nationality. According to all Indian and Syrian national witnesses, the demised was alive and communicating, requesting help for at least 45 minutes and breathing his last. All the witnesses affirm that the ambulatory service arrived too late to help him in any form whatsoever. Following this unfortunate incident all Indian students demanded clarification for the Rector (equivalent to Vice Chancellor) but were given no satisfactory explanation.

Nayaar? also posts a list of demands from Indian students to the Armenian authorities. To be honest, I don’t think anyone can take exception to them, and if they are granted it can only be good for democracy in Armenia. It’s also nice to see that the students are also calling to account the representatives of their own government.

1. All explanations and clarifications should be given in written form

2. Satisfactory action to be taken against the responsible people

3. Apology by rector in written form for her misconduct

4. Explanations by embassy in written form for their misconduct

5. Provision for a medical store, dispensary with a qualified doctor & well equipped ambulatory service for 24hrs

If only Armenian youth, and citizens in general, could learn from this.

Indian Students Protesting outside Parliament, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006

When Hetq Online contributor Hasmik Hovhannisyan and I met to discuss a first collaboration on a project of interest to both of us — Indians in Armenia — I don’t think that neither of us supposed that we’d be at a demonstration outside the Armenian National Assembly a month later. Indeed, it was probably as much a shock to Hasmik when she demonstration as is it was to me upon returning from Berd to find Garo (AKA Christian Garbis) from Notes from Hairenik icq-ing me the news.

The Artyom Reader has more on the circumstances behind the students death, as does RFE/RL. However, what has prompted this protest is the inefficiency of the Armenian emergency services, the beahviour of the police, and the attitude of Yerevan State Medical University’s Rector to all of these events. As a result, Hetq Online today published Hasmik’s report on yesterday’s demonstration by Indian students three days ahead of deadline.

I happened upon a huge crowd of Indian students walking up the Baghramyan Street. I thought it was one of their national holidays; they are always accompanied by processions and music. Well, I thought, the procession would be a great part of a new project, Indians in Armenia, that Hetq photographer Onnik Krikorian and I have launched recently.

But as soon as I approached, it became clear that the crowd gathering at the National Assembly building was not celebrating a festival at all; it looked more like a demonstration.

“What’s the gathering about?” I asked one of the students, expecting to hear some common Armenian university problem. ]

[…]

[…] a third year student at the Medical University, 21- year-old Prashant Anchalia fell out of a sixth floor window in Building #7 of the Zeytun Student Dormitory. How and why he fell are not yet clear. The students who rushed to him found him lying on the ground covered with blood, screaming in pain. They called an ambulance and their dean’s office.

Dean Anna Sarkisyan arrived fifteen minutes later. Although she is a doctor, she made no attempt to provide emergency aid to the student, and even forbade the other students to touch him or take him to hospital in a taxi, rather than wait for the ambulance, which was slow to arrive. Instead, she ordered them to wait for the police to get there.

The Police arrived and took some witnesses to the Kanaker Police Station for questioning.

The ambulance arrived some 45-50 minutes after the call. According to the students, it was in very poor condition and had no medical equipment, not even an oxygen mask.

On the way to the hospital, Prashant Anchalia died.

The students went to the Medical University and asked to meet with the rector, seeking an explanation for why their friend had been treated so negligently. The response of the newly- appointed rector, Gohar Kialyan, came as a shock. Out of the blue, she referred to Indian girls as prostitutes, and showed the students the middle fingers of both her hands, a gesture whose meaning is well known to even five-year old kids.

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