The 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists, titled Armenian Statehood: The Axis of Unity, marked the launch on October 20. Nearly 140 journalists from 31 countries participated in this Pan-Armenian forum, which held in Yerevan on 20-22 October and in Stepanakert on 23-24 October. The organizers of the forum were All Armenian Media Association and the Union of Journalists of Armenia, in association with the RA Ministry of Diaspora. 

The goal of this forum was to expand the Pan-Armenian field of information and make it better, consolidate the potential of Armenian journalists and use that potential effectively for the development of Armenia, increase the international reputation of the Republic of Armenia and help to solve the issues related to the preservation of the Armenian identity and pan-national issues.

What is symbolic is that this forum is dedicated to the 25th anniversary of Independence of the two Armenian republics and is being held in a period when structural and fundamental reforms are being implemented in Armenia. 

 During the opening ceremony of the Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the President Alexan Harutyunyan introduced the message of Serj Sargsyan which particularly read as follows: “I cordially welcome the participants, organizers and guests of the 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists. I am glad that Armenian journalists have convened another forum in the homeland”. After this, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan gave her opening remarks in which she expressed gratitude to the 140 journalists who have traveled from 31 countries to participate in the forum. “During the war in April, we witnessed the unified and consolidated efforts of all Armenian media outlets. The goals of this forum are to expand and improve the pan-Armenian field of information, consolidate the potential of Armenian media outlets and use it effectively for Armenia’s advancement, increase of the international reputation of the Republic of Armenia, the preservation of the Armenian identity in the Diaspora and the solution to pan-Armenian issues,” the RA Minister of Diaspora emphasized.

After the solemn opening ceremony launched the first session of the forum, the topic of which was: “Mechanisms for the Establishment of a Unified Pan-Armenian Information Network and the Paths for Cooperation between Media outlets in Crises”. The session was moderated by President of the Union of Journalists of Armenia AstghikGevorgyan, Editor-in-Chief of Horizon Weekly VahagnKarakashian (Canada), Editor-in-Chief of Zartonk Daily SevagHagopian (Lebanon) and editor of Hairenik Weekly Ararat Ghukasyan (Spain). During the first session a number of media representatives made speeches about different tophics related to the modern media. The reporters were the Director of Noyan Tapan Media Holding Tigran Harutyunyan, Editor-in-Chief of Lebanon’s Aztag Daily Shahan Kandaharian, correspondent of Orer magazine of the Czech Republic Anna Karapetyan, Press and information correspondent of the Armenian Youth Association of Lebanon Aharon Shkhrdmian , the Director of “Armenpress” Armenian News Agency Aram Ananyan. 

The forum continued with a panel session entitled “Paths for cooperation between diplomatic representations of the Republic of Armenia and Diaspora Armenian structures and organizations”, which was moderated by RA Deputy Minister of Diaspora Serzh Srapionyan, journalist and publicist BaidzigGalajian and Director of Radio Voice of Van Avedis Kitanian. The speeches were delievered by Editor-in-Chie f of “Israyelahayer” newspaper Artyom Chernamoryan, Correspondent for the Armenian Information Center website, President of the International Association of Hamshen-Armenian Women Saida Ohanyan, Lebanese-Armenian journalist and publicist Hagop Balian, President of the “Armenian PR Association” Scientific-Informational NGO Astghik Avetisyan, Representative of Lebanon’s Ararat Daily Ani Toranian.

After the sessions, the participants of the forum met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandyan, during which Edward Nalbandyan attached importance to these kinds of meetings in the sense that they help directly inform Diaspora Armenians about Armenia’s foreign policy.

The Minister resented the priorities in Armenia’s diplomacy, particularly Armenia’s guiding role in condemning the Armenian Genocide and in preventing new crimes against humanity, touched upon the process of settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the developments unfolding in the Near East, the Syrian crisis in detail and, in that context, the assistance that is being provided to Syrian-Armenians. 

After this RA Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan received the participants of the Forum. During the meeting Karen Karapetyan ensured the journalists that he is willing to participate in the process of nation-building and expecting the return of well-educated people who have shown leadership skills and have a dream and vision of the country so that they can participate in the nation-building and move mountains.

On the second day of the forum, the participants of the 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists, under the leadership of RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan, visited Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex where they laid flowers near the monument to the victims of the Armenian Genocide and toured the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute. 

On the afternoon, the forum continued under the headline “Engagement of the Diaspora’s potential in Armenia’s nation-building” and moderated by RA Deputy Minister of Diaspora Serzh Srapionyan, Editor-in-Chief of Aztag Daily Shahan Kandaharian, Director of Noyan Tapan Media Holding Tigran Harutyunyan and media and information correspondent of the Armenian Youth Association of Lebanon Aharon Shkhrdmian. The speeches delivered by Editor-in-chief of Horizon Weekly of Canada Vahakn Karakashian,  Editor-in-Chief of Russia’s Zham magazine Anna Givargizyan , Correspondent for Iran’s Hamaynq media network Roobik Sardarian, Correspondent for the Armenian Information Center website of Russia Sayida Ohanyan, Correspondent for Lebanon’s Aztag Daily Doing Donabedian, Correspondent for France’s LusavorAvetis website Tigran Pashabezian.

The session continued with an interactive discussion entitled “Issues of information security in states of emergency” and held with the participation of the top experts in the field.

The discussion was moderated by media expert SamvelMartirosyan.  Director of the Public Radio of Armenia Arman Saghatelyan, “Razminfo” military website’s facilitator Karen Vrtanesyan, Media expert Mikael Yalanuzyan, Expert in Azerbaijani media Angela Elibekova delivered speeches related to the media industry and media security.

This was followed by the fourth session entitled “Perspectives of cooperation between television, radio and electronic media outlets” and moderated by Editor-in-Chief of Khosnag magazine Hampig Mardirossian (Lebanon), Editor-in-Chief of Yerkramas newspaper TigranTavadyan (Russian Federation), correspondent for Orer magazine Anna Karapetyan (Czech Republic) and Editor-in-Chief of Ardzagank Weekly ArtoDavtian (Greece). During these session a lot of media representatives delivered speeches, among them: Editor-in-Chief of Nor Ashkharh newspaper Zaven Grigoryan, Foreign affairs correspondent for Armenian Public Television Eric Antaranyan, Correspondent for Lebanon’s Aztag Daily Silva Garavardanian, Editor-in-Chief of Orient news portal Sago Arian,Editor-in-Chief of Argentina’s Nor Darashrjan newspaper Eduardo Nestro Balian,  journalist for “HayernAysor” (Armenians Today) electronic newspaper of the RA Ministry of Diaspora Karine Avagyan.

Summing up the part of the forum held in Armenia, the moderator, Hampig Mardirossian expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Diaspora and particularly Minister Hranush Hakobyan for showing attention to Diaspora Armenian media outlets, working closely with them and holding such forums, each of which serves as a new milestone for improving the pan-Armenian field of information and consolidating the Armenian journalistic community.

It is worth mentioning, that all the forum broadcast live on the Internet by Noyan Tapan Information and Analitical center(Yerevan), Azdak daily (Beyrut) and ConnectTo.tv (Los Angeles).

The two-day sessions of the 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists in Yerevan ended with interesting discussions, after which the participants departed to historic Artsakh to continue the Forum. 

On October 22, President of the Artsakh Republic Bako Sahakyan received the participants of the 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists. Greeting the guests from abroad, Bako Sahakyan stated that the topics of the forum are very important, interesting and pressing and viewed the field of information the field that is of strategic significance for the Armenian state. “Currently, alongside the conventional issues in the field of information, there are new tasks and actions. All this requires the implementation of an appropriate policy in the field of information and close collaboration between the journalists and media sectors of Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian Diaspora,”,-mentioned the head of the NKR adding that today Artsakh is in a state of war. War has a military, diplomatic, economic and journalistic nature and journalists are the soldiers who have been “enlisted” to the real and virtual spheres and are fighting in that area and beyond these borders. 

At the end of the meeting, President Bako Sahakyan answered various questions from the journalists that were related to the field of information, the settlement of the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict, as well as the domestic and foreign policy of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

On October 23, the Charles Aznavour Cultural Center of Stepanakert hosted the fifth and sixth sessions of the 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists.

The forum, which is entitled “Armenian Statehood: Axis of Unity”, continued with panel sessions entitled “Support of the Armenian Diaspora to the international recognition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic” and “Coverage of problems with the defense systems of the Republic of Armenia and the Artsakh Republic by mass media outlets” in Artsakh.

The speeches were followed by discussions aimed at promoting the solution to the current issues in the Republic of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora through cooperation between media outlets.

During the sessions, the participants viewed TV journalist Nayiri Hokhikyan’s documentary “You Can’t Cover the Sun with Mud”, which presents the crime that the Ottoman Empire perpetrated in 1915 and the over 4.5 million Armenians who have preserved their national identity in Turkey.

The last day of the Forum President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan received the representatives of the Forum. The President of Armenia saluted the Conference, stating that noting that in journalism it is impossible to achieve success by denying small lies with larger ones or establishing legitimacy through illegal means, he underscored that the sharper the pen of the one who speaks the truth, more useful he will be and will do no harm, while the same pen or journalistic abilities, the influence of the media, if used carelessly can cause huge problems. After the welcoming remarks, the President proposed to conduct the meeting in the Q and A format so that he can answer all questions raised by the journalists.

The journalists and heads of journalistic agencies were interested in the approaches and position of the Armenian side regarding the NK peace process, reforms to be conducted in Armenia in accordance with Armenia’s new Constitution, strengthening and existing potential in the Armenia-Spyurk relations, including the opportunities for the full utilization of the capacities of the journalistic community, state policy related to the attraction to Armenia of foreign investments, and other issues.

After the meeting with the president of Armenia, the 4 day lasting 8th Pan-Armenian Forum of Journalists came to its logical end. The Journalists came from nearly 31 states departed from Armenia full of new expectations and professional attainments. 

 

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