On April 29, 2020, the regular meeting of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute Foundation’s Board of Trustees took place in an online format. The board members Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, Vahram Ter-Matevosyan, Ashot Melkonyan, Ruben Melkonyan, Vasken Yacoubian, Hranush Kharatyan, Ruben Safrastyan, Vladimir Vardanyan and Ani Avagyan participated in the meeting chaired by Raymond Kevorkian. The AGMI Director Harutyun Marutyan also attended the meeting. By the invitation of the chair Raymond Kevorkian the AGMI Deputy Scientific Director Edita Gzoyan and the AGMI Academic Secretary Narine Margaryan were also present.
Harutyun Marutyan presented the results as well as the financial report of 2019, which was positively voted by the board members. The issues related to 2020, current programs, as well as some changes in 2020 plans due to the state of emergency caused by the epidemic were discussed.
It was mentioned that the international conferences “Cilicia and Cilician Armenians during the Armenian Genocide” and “Children and Nation: Forcible Child Transfer and the Genocide Convention through Historical and Contemporary Lenses” which were planned to be held in April and June, have been postponed due to the epidemics. The temporary exhibition “Self-Defense in Cilicia during the Armenian Genocide, Dedicated to the Centennial of the Self-Defense Battles of Marash Hadjin, Aintab” which was planned to be opened ahead of April 24 is being presented online.
It was suggested that in this emergency situation, the AGMI should continue to prioritize more activity in the online platform and effectively use the opportunities of the Internet. The Board of Trustees also discussed the latest developments connected with the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Park. Taking into account that this issue was considered during the previous session and some proposals have already been made, the need to replenish the package of conceptual and structural proposals was stressed. The Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Park project is a pan-Armenian project with alleys and paths named after the Western Armenia, Cilicia and other Armenian-populated regions of the Ottoman Empire with unique historical and cultural exhibits of those regions. It was decided to continue the discussions on this issue in the future, and inform the public about the work being carried out through regular announcements.
The issue of the separation of the collection and the library of the Museum-Institute and the works carried out in this direction were also discussed. It was noted that the Foundation has consulted with the relevant professionals of the similar institutions in Armenia for the effective solution and a Museum Collection Evaluation Commission has been set up, while the whole process would be carried out with the latter’s consent and under the supervision of the RA Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports. It was emphasized that the change in the status of the library does not mean it will become a public library. It will continue to operate as a professional library for researchers. Researchers can use the items from the Museum collection only in the conservation room in the presence of the registrar and according to the acting rules and regulations.
During the online meeting the AGMI Board of Trustees also discussed other issues related to the AGMI activities.
