Politicians and intellectuals sum up 2010

Several politicians and intellectuals convened Monday a press conference to sum up the positive achievements and drawbacks of 2010.

As a serious challenges faced by the country, they particularly focused on emigration.

Highlighting the seriousness of the problem, literary critic and Doctor of Philology David Gasparyan said emigration had assumed large scales in 2010, with the moral atmosphere becoming degraded.

"The year 2010 was a tense period, with emigration assuming larger and larger scales," he said.

Arguing with his colleague, Vardan Devrikyan, Deputy Director of the National Academy's Institute of Literature, spoke of some positive changes.

"The recent developments [dismissals of some officials] marked a turning point for the country," he said.

"Emigration which devastates the country remains a major problem," he continued, expressing concerns over young people's flow from Armenia.

Speaking further, Devrikyan said emigration and the Nagorno Karabakh conflict are Armenia's most serious challenges demanding an urgent solution.

Secretary of the Writers' Union Hovhannes Grigoryan focused on the recent cabinet reshufflings, saying that the primary cause for dismissing officials should be the improper performance of duties. "I would like ministers to be dismissed for bad work and not for beating others," he said.

Ruzan Arakelyan of ARF-D faction in parliament said dismissals should not be seen as an end- goal. She also spoke of the country's socio-economic situation, stressing the need of paying more attention to the regions and villages.

Suren Abrahamyan of Republic party did not share the positive views on dismissals, saying that President Sargsyan will unlikely change the country's situation by firing officials. "Serzh Sargsyan is a hostage to the criminal regime. He can't change anything," he said.

Abrahamyan also wished a happy New Year to all the political prisoners, expressing hope for a better future. "The sun will shine upon our country too," he said.

"I would like each of us to take pride in our country in the coming year, and avoid to identify the state with the authorities, or the idea of motherland with the ruling regime," Larisa Alaverdyan of the Heritage faction in parliament stressed.

She characterized 2010 as a politically "sad" year which ended in dismissals. She also said lots of funds and resources had been wasted, with the government being unable to provide a solution to the existing problems.