Villagers in Armavir Demand School Repairs

Residents of Jrarbi village in Armenia’s Armavir province blocked a road that passes through their community as a demonstration to protest poor conditions of the community’s local elementary school. The school serves 260 students, but it lacks a proper heating system, it has broken windows and cracked walls, and there are no functioning toilets.

Residents of Jrarbi village blocking the road in protest (Photo: RFE/RL)

Angry parents, many of whom have decided to boycott sending their children to the school until repairs are made, demanded a meeting with Armavir Governor Ashot Ghahramanian to discuss the matter. They claim that their children frequently get sick in winter because the classrooms are heated only with kerosene burners and become too cold during winters.

“We just want them [the local government] to replace the old windows and install a proper heating system, that’s not something big for them,” one of the angry parents told RFE/RL’s Armenian service.

Governor Ghahramanian arrived in Jrarbi to meet with the protesters later in the day and promised that changes would be made within 10 days, stating, “We will try to install a heating system that will heat both the corridors and the classrooms.” The newly appointed headmaster of the school, Narek Zakarian, who is a member of the ruling Republican Party, said he still had no idea about how the problems of the school will be solved.

4 Comments

  1. Just another example of the sorry state of affairs in Armenia. The only noteworthy change has been the rebirth of the Yerevan economy with high end shopping etc. It’s about time the Parliament is held accountable for the other half of the citizens who choose stay on because they love Armenia. As a long time supporter of Armenia I’m finding it more and more difficult to to explain away the inhumane living conditions which have prevailed for so long amot!

  2. I don’t think people have enough money to fix it themselves and the mentality is still paternal toward the state. Bathrooms are one of the biggest issues in Armenia’s schools. Even if there is running water in the villlage, the bathrooms in the schools are often unusable.

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