Athens Armenians rally against Azeri destruction of Old Jugha cemetery

June 11, 2014 - 19:29 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Athens Armenian youth staged a protest action against the Azeri destruction of Armenian cemetery in Old Jugha (Nakhijevan).

On June 6, the young people distributed awareness leaflets ahead of a classical music concert, organized by the Azerbaijani embassy in Greece, to be attended by diplomats, entrepreneurs and public figures.

The action was organized by the youth wing of ARF Dashnaktsutyun, with over 1000 leaflets distributed. Concert organizers called police, and though the young people explained the action to be a peaceful one, several were detained.

According to ARFD representatives, the action served its purpose in showing the true face of Azerbaijan, with Baku trying to present itself as a cultural country while destructing historical monuments.

The ARF Dashnaktsutyun

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Dashnaktsutyun is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis (Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia) in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian The ARF has the largest number of members from the political parties present in the Armenian Diaspora, having established affiliates in more than 200 countries.

The ARF Dashnaktsutyun led the effort toward the establishment of the first Armenian Republic in 1918 and was the party in power for the duration of its existence. Following the Sovietization of Armenia in 1920, the ARF-Dashnaktsutyun was banned by the Communists and its leadership exiled.

In the Diaspora, the ARF Dashnaktsutyun fought Soviet rule over Armenia and championed the cause of Armenian rights and independence; it played a leading role in organizing a social and cultural framework aimed at preserving the Armenian identity.

The ARF Dashnaktsutyun officially re-emerged in Armenia during the dissolution of the USSR, in 1990.

On December 28, 1994, the activities of the ARF-Dashnaktsutyun were "temporarily suspended" by the Armenian authorities. In view of the political nature of the anti-ARF interdictions by the Armenian authorities, the ARF continued to operate in Armenia. On February 9, 1998, less than a week after the resignation of the then president Ter-Petrossian, the Justice Ministry lifted the ban on the ARF Dashnaktsutyun.

Prior to Serzh Sargsyan's election as president of Armenia and for a short time thereafter, the ARF was a member of the governing coalition, even though it nominated its own candidate in the presidential elections.