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ARF-Dashnaktsutyun: Public Rally and Declaration on the 17th

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  • ARF-Dashnaktsutyun: Public Rally and Declaration on the 17th

    ARMENIAN REVOLUTIONARY FEDERATION-DASHNAKTSUTYUN BUREAU

    Mher Lazarian 12/1, Yerevan, Armenia
    Mailing Address: P.O.Box 123 - Yerevan, Armenia 0010
    Tel.: (37410) 52-18-90, 52-19-66 - Fax: (37410) 52-14-53
    E-mail: [email protected]   Website: http://www.arf.am



    Public Rally Marks the 17th Anniversary of the Republic of Mountainous
    Karabakh

    INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION GUARANTEES SECURITY

    AZERBAIJAN SHOULD SIGN A LEGAL DOCUMENT NOT TO USE FORCE OR THE THREAT OF
    FORCE

    YEREVAN, 2 Sept. 2008, ARF Press Office -- The Armenian
    Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun rallied several thousand supporters
    in Yerevan on today to mark the 17th anniversary of the establishment of the
    Republic of Mountainous Karabakh.
    The MC was Hrayr Karapetyan, member of the ARF-Dashnaktsutyun
    Supreme Body of Armenia and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of
    Armenia.
    The first speaker was Arthur Aghabekyan, Chairman of the
    parliament's Standing Committee on Defense, National Security and Internal
    Affairs.
    ARF-Dashnaktsutyun Bureau member and Leader of the ARF Parliamentary
    Faction Vahan Hovhannesyan spoke next.
    He was followed by ARF-Dashnaktsutyun Bureau members Levon Lazarian
    and Aghvan Vardanyan.
    The concluding remarks were delivered by Armen Rustamyan,
    ARF-Dashnaktsutyun Supreme Body of Armenia Representative and Chairman of
    the parliament's Standing Committee on Foreign Relations.
    With the backdrop of the recent war and subsequent events in the
    South Caucasus, the speakers focused on the regional developments, Artsakh's
    right to self-determination, Turkish-Armenian relations and Armenia's
    internal situation.
    At the end, the rally adopted a declaration (see below).
    The rally was held at the footsteps of Yerevan's Matenadaran (museum of
    ancient Armenian manuscripts), in scorching weather.


    DECLARATION

    On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Artsakh movement and on the
    17th anniversary of the establishment of the Republic of Mountainous
    Karabakh, we, the participants of the public rally organized by the
    ARF-Dashnaktsutyun and held in Yerevan on 2 September 2008, assert:

    - The recent war and developments in the South Caucasus have created a
    new situation in our region;
    - It is evident that if from now on the international community is not
    able to prevent the use of force, then the unforeseen developments could be
    calamitous. What happened also demonstrated that how dangerous it is to
    apply double standards.
    - The OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries by recognizing, together or
    alone, the independence of Kosovo, Abkhazia and South Ossetia have
    underlined the primacy of the principle of peoples' right to
    self-determination in international law;
    - The international community's respect of the right of the people of
    Artsakh to self-determination and freedom has no alternative. The people of
    Artsakh have repeatedly expressed their will to live independent of
    Azerbaijan. The people of Artsakh have exercised their right to
    self-determination based on the principles of international law and the
    Constitution of the Soviet Union. Mountainous Karabakh has never been part
    of independent Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani domination over Mountainous Karabakh
    ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union.
    - In the Karabakh-Azerbaijan war, Azerbaijan was the aggressor.
    Artsakh defended its right to live securely and was successful; Azerbaijan
    is responsible for launching the war and for its consequences;
    - For seventeen years, the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh exists as
    a democratic state, with its relevant state structures and local
    self-government bodies;
    - Azerbaijani ambitions to re-conquer Artsakh by force are doomed to
    failure and will lead the region to more unforeseen upheavals;
    - Having de facto recognized the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh and
    having signed with it economic and other cooperation agreements, Armenia has
    refrained from de jure recognizing the RMK solely because of its stand to
    remain true to the spirit of resolving the conflict peacefully through
    negotiations;
    - Escalation of EU-RF-USA relations to a confrontational level cannot
    be beneficial for the region; it is imperative to find ways to resolve all
    outstanding problems through dialogue. Armenia can and should contribute to
    these efforts.

    Furthermore, we assert that:

    1) The negotiations to resolve the Artsakh conflict can bear results
    and promote peace only when Azerbaijan signs a legal document with the
    Republics of Armenia and Mountainous Karabakh not to use force or the threat
    of force;
    2) The Republic of Armenia should sign a treaty with the Republic of
    Mountainous Karabakh undertaking to act as the guarantor of the independence
    and security of the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh;
    3) The authorities of the Republic of Armenia should anticipate the
    official recognition of the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh if Azerbaijan
    continues to consider the military route as an acceptable means to resolve
    the issue, or if through its actions endangers the negotiation process.

    We declare:

    a) Armenia and Artsakh shall not relinquish their security guarantees;
    b) Regarding the security of Armenia and Artsakh, the Armenian people
    is unified and united; no internal political issue should threaten the
    existence and security of our statehood;
    c) The best guarantee to consolidate the Armenians and to be defended
    from external dangers is the irreversibility of internal reforms, the
    advancement of democracy and the establishment of justice.

    Participants of the Rally of
    2 September 2008
    Yerevan, Armenia
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