Your Namak for Friday, March 18
Gas shutdown continues in Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan announces proposal for peace treaty and smoking ban takes effect in Armenia.
Hi there, here’s your weekly briefing of Armenian news in English, curated, reported and fact-checked by journalists Astrig Agopian and Maral Tavitian.
Nagorno-Karabakh Still Left in the Cold as Azerbaijan Begins Repairs on Gas Pipeline
On March 16, the Azerbaijani authorities began repairs on a damaged gas pipeline in Nagorno-Karabakh that has deprived the region of heating and warm water for more than a week. Since March 8, the entire Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh has lacked access to gas, setting off a humanitarian crisis as schools and hospitals have struggled to maintain operations amid freezing weather conditions. According to a statement by the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Information Center, the restoration work is ongoing and gas has not yet been restored.
Bodies of Armenian Soldiers Found at Military Posts
In different incidents, two Armenian servicemen were found dead at their posts from gunshot wounds. According to separate statements by the Armenian Ministry of Defense, the young conscripts bodies were recovered from military positions in the southern region of the country. An investigation is underway to understand the circumstances that caused their deaths.
Nagorno-Karabakh Human Rights Defender Demands that International Community Speak Up
In a video address to the international community, the Human Rights Ombudsman of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Gegham Stepanyan accused powerful institutions of harboring a “double standard” with regard to human rights violations in different parts of the world. Stepanyan described the grave humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, saying, “Thousands of Armenians living in Artsakh are regularly subjected to terrorist and genocidal acts carried out by Azerbaijan every day.”
Stepanyan accused international actors of failing to respond to Azerbaijani aggression in Nagorno-Karabakh and drawing a false equivalence between unequal parties to the conflict. He continued, “Azerbaijan is implementing a policy of ethnic cleansing with its genocidal behavior, and all the people, all the institutions, who really care about human rights must not remain indifferent. Human rights are universal, therefore they should be free of double standards and differentiated approaches.”
Azerbaijan Announces Conditions for Peace Treaty with Armenia
On March 14, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry published a set of five requirements to reach a peace treaty with Armenia. The demands include mutual recognition of each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and “mutual confirmation of the absence of territorial claims against each other and acceptance of legally binding obligations not to raise such a claim in the future.” Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan responded to the proposals, saying that any peace process must guarantee the rights of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh and clarify the region’s political status. “For us, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not a territorial issue, but a matter of rights,” Mirzoyan said.
Smoking Ban Takes Effect in Armenia
On March 14, an indoor and outdoor smoking ban took effect in bars and eateries throughout Armenia. According to a statement by the Armenian Ministry of Health, the law applies to cigarettes and tobacco substitutes, and fines for violators range from $100 to $400. Armenia has long been known for its high smoking rate, with 50 percent of the male population identifying as smokers, according to a 2012 World Health Organization survey.
Amber Balakian: Meet a fourth-generation farmer bringing a fresh perspective to her family business
“Agriculture is so much a part of Armenian culture and tradition so I definitely wanted to continue it but continue it in a different way, in a more modern way, in the way that I see it.”
Throughout Amber Balakian’s childhood, irrigated rows were her playground and fruit trees her jungle gym. She was born and raised in the town of Reedley in California’s Central Valley, where like many residents of this agricultural region, she grew up on a farm.
“I’m an only child so I kind of had to entertain myself,” Amber says. “It was easy to do on the farm because we had a bunch of old tractors, so I’d pretend they were my little houses. There was always so much to do outside, so much to see.”
Amber’s great grandparents immigrated to the Central Valley during the Armenian Genocide, drawn to the area for its arid climate that reminded them of the old country. They founded Balakian Farms in 1925, and began planting grapes to produce raisins. The eldest of six children, Amber’s grandfather John Balakian took initiative to support the family business, selling produce in town while he was not in school.
Also the daughter of genocide survivors, Amber’s grandmother Stella Krikorian grew up on the opposite side of the United States, in the historic Armenian-American community of Watertown, Massachusetts. Stella’s family moved to the Central Valley when she was a teenager, where she met John and as a married couple they began farming a variety of fruits and vegetables.
Balakian Farms has remained a family affair, with each generation adding its unique flair to the farm’s operations and product offerings. In the 1990s, Amber’s mother Ginger Balakian embraced a practice that would later transform the agriculture industry.
“In the 90s we transitioned everything to organic which at that time nobody was doing,” Amber says. “We were one of the first in the Central Valley to do that.”
Amber left Reedley to study economics at the University of California, San Diego and continued her education at Harvard Extension School, where she received a master’s degree in management and operations.
“The more that I was there, the more I started realizing I wanted to go back home,” Amber says. “My family has a business so why not try to go and see if I can work on managing it and making it more efficient.”
Equipped with entrepreneurial expertise, Amber returned to Reedley in 2009 with the goal of expanding the farm’s “value added” products. But it was not until a trip to Haiti the following year that several ideas came together to fuel the development of her Organic Blended Heirloom Tomatoes.
After witnessing food shortages in the Caribbean nation following the 2010 earthquake, the 36-year-old sought to incorporate sustainability into the farm’s practices and culture. Using her grandmother’s tomato sauce recipe and heirloom tomatoes that could not be sold to retailers because of slight imperfections, Amber’s signature product line was born.
“Here in the United States we have more than we need in terms of food, so I wanted to see if I could somehow utilize the heirloom tomatoes,” Amber says. “My grandma never bought tomato sauce from the store. She would just can tomatoes and it always tasted so much better. So I used her recipe to develop the product.”
Balakian Farms grows more than 40 varieties of heirloom tomatoes, along with tree fruits such as nectarines, peaches and plums. Even as the farm’s product repertoire has expanded, retaining the ethos and practices of a small enterprise is an integral part of its mission.
“My parents’ house and grandma’s house are on our farm,” Amber says. “We don’t have a big packing shed. It's small and everything is within the proximity of our house. It’s more of a family atmosphere.”
The family spirit extends to the farm’s employees, many of whom have been with the business for decades. For Amber, honoring this long history while infusing it with innovation is at the heart of her business approach –– and who she is as a person.
“There aren’t a ton of people of my generation and younger who are like ‘Yeah I want to take over the farm,’” Amber says. “Agriculture is so much a part of Armenian culture and tradition so I definitely wanted to continue it but continue it in a different way, in a more modern way, in the way that I see it.”
To listen: Ukraine, Armenia and War: What is Seen in Armenia, the first installment of a podcast mini-series exploring the complex ramifications of the war in Ukraine on Armenia. In this episode, Karen Harutyunyan, editor-in-chief of the Armenian media outlet CivilNet, discusses perspectives on the war in Armenian society and security consequences for Nagorno-Karabakh.
To watch: A New Wave of Russian Migrants in Armenia, a video featuring interviews with Russian migrants who have fled to Armenia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The newcomers share their experience relocating to Yerevan and describe the warm welcome they have received from locals.
To listen: Garden Girl (Այգեպան Աղջիկ), a favorite feel-good tune by Jerusalem-born musician Apo Sahagian. It is impossible not to smile while listening to this sweet rendition of an Armenian folk song about one man yearning for his love to return home.
That’s it for today, Namak will take a break next Friday. See you in two weeks!
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