Thursday, May 14, 2009

A Hayastantsi construction worker who had worked for one of the wealthy Armenians in Russia told about his experiences and the different nationalities he had come in contact with:

“I must say, the best people of all there were the Tajiks. They were honest, hardworking people. If they saw something sitting there that wasn’t theirs, a tool, money, you name it, they wouldn’t take it. They figured, ‘this isn’t mine, why would I take it?’ They were the best of the Central Asians, without a doubt. The only way the Turks got to them in the past was converting them to Islam, otherwise, they have no tie to the Turks, like the other Asians I worked with. The Azeris, Uzbeks, Turkmens…all of them would stab someone in the back, literally, if they thought they had something to gain.

“But the way the Armenians stole things embarrassed me, made me ashamed to be Armenian. At the end of the day, they’d check the Armenians’ tool boxes to see what they had stolen. It’s like it’s in our blood.”

My friend then told his opinion about Turks and the possible opening of the border:

“It’s the worst mistake we could make, agreeing to open the border. First of all, Turks would buy homes here. Not that they’d live here…they know better than that. Their country is much better organized, a better place to live.

“And what are we talking about in the first place? Turkey occupies Cyprus, but tells us to leave Karabagh, then they’ll agree to open the border. And we’re listening. Do regular Armenians agree? Very few. Just businessmen, and the naïve.

“Our government has agreed to this so-called commission to study the Genocide, at a time the whole world is recognizing it. This sets back everything Diaspora Armenians have accomplished; it’s a slap in their faces.

“We should not only be demanding Shahumian, the Plains of Karabagh, and Nakhichevan, but Western Armenia. Our leaders are demanding nothing, just hoping the border is opened so they can make money. I wonder, are our leaders Armenians, or Turks?”

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Exactly! The naivity of the armenians to politicians lies I can only put down to Soviet brainwashing. Thankfully the Young should be free of this. And Now we have LTP Stopping Yerevan like the Govt expects a coup!

Sometimes I think the only sane Armenians are the ones I have as friends! Unfortunately, they are not enough to populate the pews of a church!
At least I know of one other....the construction worker!

Andranik Michaelian said...

In spite of all the positive aspects of Soviet times in Armenia (culture, science, etc.), a legacy likely left behind from those times was what the construction worker told about, the stealing now so prevalent with Armenians from Armenia. A friend just back from Europe told how a group of Armenian women (from Armenia) were talking and mocking another Armenian woman for actually paying for produce at grocery stores, not hiding it in her coat or clothes or however other Armenian women were doing. But I assure that not all are like that, and that there are many sane Armenians here, unaffected by Soviet brainwashing, especially in the realm of politics. I didn't talk with one Hayastantsi who believed that Obama was going to use the 'genocide' word, although many in the Diaspora believed Obama until his infamous April 24 speech.