In the late 1980�s and early 1990�s, the region became a focal point in a war between the republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan. By the end of 1993, Armenians had won control of most of the region; more than a million people were made refugees by the fighting. An unofficial cease-fire was reached in 1994 with the help of Russian negotiation.
Nagorno-Karabakh's parliament declared the region independent in 1996. The years of fighting claimed the lives of more than 35,000 people before a tenuous cease-fire took hold. The conflict remains unresolved.
Every Sunday, Asia Chatoyan makes the trip to Etchmiadzin to attend services. Dressed in army fatigues and leaning on wooden crutches she stands out in the crowd. She is one of a unique group of women volunteers who fought in Nagorno- Karabakh. Ms. Chatoyan lost a leg, yet she considers herself lucky as others lost their lives.
Emotions around Etchmiadzin run high. It is a place where tears of joy are freely shed and worshipers overcome with the spirit break through the groups of black-hooded monks to touch the Catholicos.
The women at the gift shop tell the story of a young Armenian-American woman who came into the shop in tears. �We thought something terrible happened to her and asked why she was crying. She said she was crying because this was her last day here.�
According to the staff, one of the biggest sellers among the visiting Armenians are the packets of soil collected from Armenian religious sites. These strong emotional ties to the soil are a result of centuries of invaders who dispersed the Armenian people and the 1915-23 genocide, during which ancient lands were invaded and confiscated by the Ottoman Empire.
On 24 April, Armenians around the world commemorate the genocide during a day of remembrance. This is the date on which the massacre began in 1915. By 1923, western Armenia was incorporated into the newly formed Turkish Republic. What was left of the Armenian nation became one of the founding members of the Soviet Union.
The Communists quickly closed the seminaries. Monasteries were shut down. Hundreds of churches were demolished to make way for new roads and public housing. In 1934, the purges of Stalin began and religious leaders and intellectuals were taken away and never heard from again including the father of Karekin II. No one and no place was safe, not even Etchmiadzin. In 1938, Catholicos Khoren I was assassinated inside his residence.
For the 4,000-year-old nation, the 20th century was marked by repression, wars and mass killings. Independence came in 1991, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today, the economy remains depressed and only cold water flows through the country�s faucets just five hours of the day, people are optimistic about a free and better future.
�It can�t get any worse for us!� a young seminarian hollered over his shoulder as he rushed off to class.
Chuck Todaro writes for CNEWA WORLD about the peoples of Asia Minor.