Boston Protesters: ‘We are all Gurgen’

medium 4 — A scene from the protest in Boston. (Photo by Nanore Barsoumian)

BOSTON, Mass. (A.W.)—Around 100 protesters assembled at the Boston Common on Sept. 17 to protest the extradition of Ramil Safarov, the Azerbaijani axe murderer, from Hungary, and his subsequent pardon by Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev.

medium 2 — Protesters walk through Boston Common. (Photo by Nanore Barsoumian)

Protesters standing opposite the Massachusetts State House waived the Armenian flag and held signs criticizing both Azerbaijan and Hungary. One protester’s sign read, “Axe murderer on the loose… Thank Hungary for your safety concern.” Another held a poster with the words, “We are all Gurgen!” One woman held a small sign, “Humanity over politics.”

“Baku honors murderers!” and “Hungary has blood on its hands!” chanted the protesters.

“We are here today as Armenian-Americans to show the world our nation is united under our tri-color flag… We ask Hungary to stand by our side in this crucial time and recognize Artsakh [Karabagh] as a sovereign nation, and wipe its hands clean of the smeared blood,” said Antranig Avedissian, the president of the AYF-YOARF Greater Boston “Nejdeh” chapter, through a megaphone.

“We stand united with Armenians from all over the world, for Gurgen Margaryan,” he continued. “Today, I am Gurgen Margaryan; and today we are all Gurgen Margaryan.”

Medium 5 — One protester’s sign read, ‘Axe murderer on the loose… Thank Hungary for your safety concern.’ (Photo by Nanore Barsoumian)

“This is wrong! How can you kill a person and return to your country as a hero! This is a big slap in the face of Armenia,” Lilith Kibarian, the treasurer of the AGBU Young Professionals steering committee and one of the organizers of the protest, told the Armenian Weekly.

medium pic — ‘Baku honors murderers!’ and ‘Hungary has blood on its hands!’ chanted the protesters. (Photo by Nanore Barsoumian)

Protesters held a candlelight vigil and a moment of silence for Margaryan, the Armenian lieutenant who was axed to death during his sleep by Safarov. The protest ended with a prayer, the “Hayr Mer” (Our Father).

Bio
Twitter
Latest Posts

Nanore Barsoumian

Nanore Barsoumian was the editor of the Armenian Weekly from 2014 to 2016. She served as assistant editor of the Armenian Weekly from 2010 to 2014. Her writings focus on human rights, politics, poverty, and environmental and gender issues. She has reported from Armenia, Nagorno-Karabagh, Javakhk and Turkey. She earned her B.A. degree in Political Science and English and her M.A. in Conflict Resolution from the University of Massachusetts (Boston).