Congratulatory message by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Armenia
Distinguished President of the Republic of Armenia,
Distinguished President of the National Assembly,
Distinguished President of the Constitutional Court,
Distinguished President of the Supreme Judicial Council,
Esteemed representatives of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches and of local self-government bodies,
Your Excellencies Ambassadors,
Beloved people,
Dear citizens of the Republic of Armenia,
Today, we mark the 35th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Armenia. Thirty-five years ago, on September 21, 1991, an independence referendum took place in Armenia, during which citizens were asked to answer the following question: "Do you agree that the Republic of Armenia should be an independent, democratic state outside the USSR?" 95.4 percent of Armenia's citizens participated in the referendum, and 94.3 percent of the participants voted "Yes" to the question put to the vote.
Why did the citizens of Armenia vote "Yes" to independence with near-unanimity? Perhaps for one reason: they wanted to live in a free, secure, democratic, developed, prosperous, and sovereign country, as sovereign citizens.
These visions, however, were partially or entirely dashed, because only thirty years after independence, we were confronted with the fact that freedom, security, democracy, prosperity, and sovereignty either cannot exist or cannot be fully realized amidst a seemingly endless conflict and wars that flare up from time to time.
We are marking the 35th anniversary of the Republic of Armenia’s independence in an atmosphere of peace; yet, we attained this peace, and the consciousness of peace, at the cost of the lives of thousands of our brothers and sisters. First, let us honor the memory of all our brothers and sisters who sacrificed their lives for the defense of the homeland with a minute of silence.
Thank you. And yes, if you wish to applaud our brothers and sisters, feel free to do that.
With this applause, let us firmly affirm that our martyrs fell so that Armenia might rise; they sacrificed themselves so that Armenia might live. Today, the Republic of Armenia is a living state—a state of life—and the ascent of our state is the greatest tribute to the memory of our martyrs.
Beloved people,
Beloved citizens of the Republic of Armenia,
On the occasion of this epoch-making celebration of independence, we must acknowledge that independence—that is, the state—is the most important thing we possess together. For it is our state that can guarantee the preservation and development of our identity and culture; it is our state that can guarantee the continuity of our history; it is the state that makes us masters of our own destiny, making us the architects and guarantors of our freedom and security.
And we must continue along this path of taking ownership of our state; we must be guided by the vision of our state’s enduring existence. The state—an independent state—must no longer be merely a dream for us, but rather the realization of our dreams.
For nearly 500 years, we have dreamed of an independent state; today, we celebrate the realization of that dream and acknowledge that we no longer need to dream of a homeland, for the Republic of Armenia is the homeland of our dreams—yes, the Republic of Armenia is the homeland of our dreams. We must pass it on from generation to generation, making this homeland to flourish and develop, making it more independent, stronger, fairer, freer, more prosperous, more democratic, more peaceful, more secure, more united, and more sovereign.
Never again should there be a period of 500 years, or five years, or even one year, when we have to dream of independence and statehood; instead, every year and every day, we must better learn what it means and what it entails to possess a state—we must better understand the meaning of a state and the meaning of being a citizen. We must make our efforts aimed at having an enduring state increasingly effective through education.
The Republic of Armenia is visibly developing today; yet, admittedly, there are numerous unresolved issues within the country. This cannot serve as grounds for loving our state any less, for there is no state in the world, nor has there ever been or will there ever be one, that is free of numerous unresolved problems.
On the contrary, any solved problem brings with it new problems, and this movement has no end. It is this movement that brings development and progress, that brings rise, and the rise of the state, and having a state of new quality, the permanence of the state is the key issue that we solve together every day.
And today we will record here that we have an unshakable and determined will to be the owner and citizen of the state, that our state is our motherland, the motherland is the state, and we love our state, we love our motherland.
A citizen of the Republic of Armenia must love his state as he loves himself, the Republic of Armenia must love its citizen and realize that the citizen created the state to ensure his safety, well-being, freedom and happiness.
The state, the Republic of Armenia, from now on serves this purpose, guided by the awareness that the state must strengthen the citizen, the citizen must strengthen the state.
The policies of the Government of the Republic of Armenia, from education to housing construction, from universal health insurance to the implementation of the "Defender of the Homeland" program in the army, all kinds of social, political and economic programs are aimed at strengthening the citizen.
Strengthen your state with education, work, paid taxes, and your state will strengthen you even more.
Love your country because your country loves you.
And today your state tells you clearly and unequivocally:
Citizen of the Republic of Armenia, you are the state, you are the Republic of Armenia.
Happy Independence Day, Republic of Armenia, Happy Independence Day, citizen of the Republic of Armenia.
Glory to the martyrs and long live the Republic of Armenia.
