Three questions to the female candidates in Goris

Three forces, the Arush Arushanyan Bloc, the Armenian National Congress Party and the Civil Contract Party, have applied to run in the October 17 elections in the Goris consolidated community. A total of 101 candidates are included in the party lists, 33 of whom are women (33%).

WomenNet.am spoke with women at the top of the list of political forces running in the local elections in Goris, offering them to answer to three questions: motivations for running in the elections, priorities of the community, and difficulties during the campaign. By the way, during the conversations with the candidates, it turned out that all three are non-party and equally concerned about the security of their community, considering it a top priority…

Ani Galstyan. “The main reason for running is the difficult situation we are all concerned about”

Ani Galstyan is the first woman candidate on the list of the “Civil Contract” party. She is a chemist by profession, hse also has a pedagogical qualification. Since 2004 she has been working at Goris State University (GSU) as a lecturer at the Department of Biology and Chemistry.

– Why did you decide to run in the elections with the Civil Contract list?

– I am non-party, I have never been a representative of any party, I am not going to. Of course, maybe something will change later, I do not know, but right now I think that I am more independent and can express my opinion more freely.

-Why did I make a decision? As for many, the main reason is this difficult situation, which we are all concerned about. But I realized that we all criticize and talk, so why not do something ourselves? I asked myself that question: why not me, maybe I can be useful to my country in some way?

-What are the priority issues you are going to address if elected?

– The first priority is to ensure our security. Of course, this is an issue to be resolved at the state level, but our community, like any community, must have its share in this. That is the first question.

Secondly, I use the atmosphere of freedom of speech that has been present in Goris for three years now, while I will not reveal a secret if I say that in recent decades the people of Goris have always been careful not to express their will, thoughts and opinions, because the consequences are painful. been: And now it is not so, but in some cases freedom of speech is not always properly perceived by our society, freedom is a good thing, but it must be in moderation, that is my opinion. I think it is a priority for us, the community, to be able to use freedom of speech more appropriately.

What obstacles did you face in entering politics?

-From the beginning, when I received the offer to run in the elections, I refused. I thought, it will not happen, my husband, I have a family, they will not leave, etc. But that hesitation was very short. When I saw the positive reaction from my husband, my father, I realized that my ideas were not right, I can, why not? And now I see that it is an advantage, I am very glad that I got that opportunity to run, including due to the requirement of the Electoral Code. I think that the participation of women restrains men to some extent… I am definitely in favor of involving as many women as possible in the political process.

Hermine Dilanchyan. “After the war, I realized how much indifference there is towards people”

Hermine Dilanchyan, an English teacher at Nerkin Khndzoresk School, is the third female candidate on the electoral list of the opposition Arush Arushanyan bloc. She is non-party. Dilanchyan has been active in public life for the last four years. In 2011, she studied in the United States as an exchange teacher.

-Why did you decide to run in the local elections with the list of “Arush Arushanyan” bloc?

– I have never thought about entering politics or participating in the mentoring component of the “Women in Politics” program organized by the UN Development Program. After the war, I realized how much indifference there was to people. And now I see that the “Arush Arushanyan” bloc is a compassionate force, a patriot – that is the reason why I made the decision to join that team. The fact that Arush Arushanyan made a great contribution to the life of Goris during his tenure played a big role in making a decision.

– What are the priority issues that need to be addressed in the life of the community?

-The most important thing is security. This is a global issue and the authorities of the community are too small to guarantee it, but it is necessary for the community to finally get out of this uncertainty.

The second problem is employment. Because of the war, people today can no longer be engaged in, for example, animal husbandry, which means that jobs must be created in the community, the issue of employment must be resolved one day.

Another important issue is the development of the cultural life of the community, which is completely absent today. This is also due to the lack of building conditions, we do not have any other building in the community except the school, but it is very important to have a center that would solve the problem of entertainment for people in different directions – sports, culture, etc.

– What obstacles did you face on entering politics?

– There are always obstacles, they are due to stereotypes. When presenting your ideas and plans, you feel that people are still in the grip of stereotypes and that is why they often do not even come to the meeting.

Nare Hovhannisyan. “The main task is to restore solidarity and unity in the community”

Nare Hovhannisyan is the first woman candidate on the list of the Armenian National Congress. She is a philologist in the first profession, a lawyer in the second profession. The main activity is in the public sphere, and since 2017 has established and headed the Center for Legal Initiatives, which is mainly focused on the problems of prisoners. She is non-party.

– Why did you decide to run in the local elections on the ANC list?

– I accepted the offer to run in the elections because it is about the future of my community. After the events of the war, I realized that something had to be done, because Goris was in a very difficult situation. I accepted the ANC’s offer to run because I saw that my concerns were equally expressed in the ANC program, as I am convinced that my participation can be effective in resolving these issues.

– What are the priorities that need to be addressed in the community?

– The main problem is that solidarity and unity must be restored in the community. The second priority for me is security, which is a challenge not only for the community, but also for Armenia. This is a problem that can be solved in a global, not so community context, but it is exacerbated when it is obvious that local authorities are busy clarifying interpersonal issues or scolding each other.

It is also important for me to implement programs aimed at improving the life of the community. We communicate with the residents, we see that the young people are leaving the community, and the rest of the people do not have conditions for cattle breeding, agriculture, employment issues, etc. In this series, I would especially mention the issue of women’s employment, ie there are no minimum living conditions for people in the community.

– What obstacles did you face in getting involved in politics?

– In fact, I do not consider my candidacy as an attempt to enter the political field, for me this is a step that gives an opportunity to solve the problems of the community. I did not have any obstacles because I have the independence, the ability to make decisions. I hope I can use all this for the benefit of the community if elected.

Full text in Armenian