YEREVAN—Artsakh Hero Hratch Mouradian, the mayor of the village of Proshian who was gunned down in front of his office on Tuesday, was laid to rest on Friday, with hundreds of mourners gathered at the funeral.
Armenian police announced Thursday that two people were arrested in connection with Tuesday’s murder.
A spokesman for the Armenian police told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) that the suspects are brothers identified as Artak Petrosian and Arayik Petrosian. They both are residents of Proshian, a big village just west of Yerevan.
A written statement issued by the police said investigators have questioned several dozen witnesses and conducted “complex” forensic tests in their efforts to identify those responsible for Muradian’s death.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation said Wednesday that the shooting death of one its members and the mayor of the village of Proshian Hratch Mouradian was politically motivated, citing years of harassment.
Mouradian, a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation and an Artsakh War hero was reportedly gunned down as he was headed to his office Tuesday and suffered injuries to his right temple.
Mouradian had an exemplary career from the onset of the Karabakh liberation movement until its end. He was awarded the Military Cross and several medals for his service to his country and heroism on the battlefield in Artsakh.
“There was definitely a political subtext,” ARF Supreme Council of Armenia representative Armen Rustamian told RFE/RL’s Armenian service. “The authorities are doing everything to hide that subtext.”
“We have long brought to the authorities’ attention the fact that there is constant tension around Hratch for a very simple reason: some people were not interested in the popularity enjoyed by Hratch. The existence of a mayor not belonging to their party and running a large community so close to Yerevan kept many people restless,” said Rustamian.
Rustamian said that Mouradian was at odds with local activists of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia and other government loyalists throughout his eight-year tenure. He said the Proshian mayor received threats from unknown individuals and faced frequent financial audits by other higher-level authorities.
“They realized that they can’t do that through elections and switched to the well-known methods,” claimed the head of ARF’s governing body in Armenia.
Indeed it is a sad day for Armenia to bury this hero , Armenian court MUST deal very swiftly with these 2 internal snakes (2 brothers), and prove to all the NATIONS watching that despite internal and external difficulties ARMENIA wil deal promptly and succesfully to every problems. GOD BLESS THIS HERO”S SOUL.
A leader with such backing and popularity could have promoted better relationship and closer ties with the Republican Party. Diplomacy with such leaders and people occupying key posts is very important to create a stable status. It is unfortunate that the late Mouradian was not endowed with these powers. Even if the opposition ‘rightfully’ succeeds, there is no guarantee that the country will remain stable. Raffi Hovhannessian is not Ghandi. With the present state of matters there is little chance that the opposition can bring stability. One of the major reasons for emigration from Armenia bears heavily on the opposition, as it has not found ways to create stability. It is next to impossible to change existing status without diplomacy and patience. The opposition is not acting diplomatically.
Why was there not government reps? This Republican controlled gov is the worst enemy of the people. They are no different than the Turks that once suppressed, bullied, treated us inhuman. Our people need to learn from our past and the books or Raffi. Stop turning and offering the other cheek, an eye for an eye
Dear Hratch Mouradian family and friends,
My condolences to all of you. He truly was a real hero. May GOD bless his soul.
Losing any Armenian is sad. Even a single person.
Every single Armenian, regardless of party affiliation, is valuable to us and we should love all of them.
If our government was involved in this horrible crime. SHAME ON OUR GOVERMENT. This is unforgivable.
Regards,
Georgek
A bunch of criminals ruling Armenia.
Armenia is not ready for a bloody revolution. One has to try to learn to deal with issues diplomatically. Learning from the Armenian past history leads to failure, simply because the Armenian ruling regimes have failed in the the past in judicious governing our kingdoms amidst our tough neighbors. The next door neighbor is far more important than the far-fetched ‘brother’. The present regime has many positive aspects that the opposition would have dreamt to be the author of. One has to be flexible in dealing and managing at least two thirds of the population. Opposition should be constructive. The Soviet regime was a ‘constructive’ school for our infrastructure as an autonomous independent government despite many flaws in the system. Had we been smart politicians we would have suffered far less historically. Our present state of existence is the result of our faith and perseverence which spelled with proper diplomacy would have become less unstable.