Wishes of the French Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations for the 20th anniversary of the Independence of Armenia

For the Armenians, all around the world, these 20 years of independence of Armenia are a source of joy and pride. Within the history of our nation, this State is not only as a kind of culmination of an ideal of sovereignty, never attained in the past, but also as a starting point for a better future. In that, we see the result of the struggle for survival of Armenians and a privileged area for their safety and identity so many times threatened. With hope, we see it as a spring for their political, economic, cultural and social development, as a springboard for the future.

However, whereas nation-state is a revenge over history for Armenians, more than for any other people, it is not in itself any more an end than it is for any other people. Being the expression of our existence on the stage of the world, Armenia would thwart its calling by not being an instrument for its citizens' emancipation, freed at last from centuries of domination and oppression.

We know that a state, as such, regardless of its power, does not have all the cards in hands for the full control of its destiny. Its sovereignty depends of a number of external factors which are beyond its control, as for example its neighborhood which can be a source of war or peace, an added value or a threat. It is also dependent on economical data linked to its natural wealth, to its resources.But beyond all these elements, this found freedom is bound up to our own capacity to manage ourselves, to create among
ourselves, with all our components, Diaspora included, a fair and united social order, to create honest institutions, specially through the separation of powers, able to protect human dignity, written on pediments of all struggles that have shaped our collective identity. This ambition requires valorization of democracy and shaping a real rule of law, which are essential to put at an end the current demographic bleeding and reverse the trend.
May this plan, in line with our millennial history, liven up our old idea lying in the heart of the attachment to their country of all Armenians wherever they are : primacy of everybody's interest over personal interest, defense of common good as a condition of the individual well-being, and respect of individuals as a factor to cohesion of the group. Armenia is a wonderful country. We do not know how lucky we are, having preserved these lands from the genocide and having them freed from totalitarianism. It is up
to us to make it a breeding ground for our national genius that allowed us to survive so many sufferings and made it the best place in the world for the Armenians.

National Council of The CCAF

Jean Eckian / Paris