{"id":693,"date":"2019-09-27T01:28:25","date_gmt":"2019-09-27T01:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.new.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/?p=693"},"modified":"2019-09-27T01:28:39","modified_gmt":"2019-09-27T01:28:39","slug":"pm-pashinyan-draws-thousands-in-los-angeles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/pm-pashinyan-draws-thousands-in-los-angeles\/","title":{"rendered":"PM Pashinyan Draws Thousands in Los Angeles"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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LOS ANGELES \u2013 Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan visited Los \nAngeles on September 22nd, drawing massive crowds of community leaders, \nactivists and Armenian-Americans from all throughout southern \nCalifornia, in his first visit as Prime Minister to the largest Armenian\n Diaspora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trip was highlighted by a rally held in Grand Park \nin Downtown Los Angeles, during which LA Mayor Eric Garcetti invited the\n Prime Minister to speak in front of the thousands in attendance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior\n to the rally, Pashinyan met with the Armenian news media outlets and \nvarious leaders of political, cultural and philanthropic organizations \nin the Armenian-American community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A point of emphasis from the Prime Minister throughout the day was the need to unite Armenians from the Diaspora and in Armenia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis\n is one of the most important issues of our Third Republic,\u201d Pashinyan \nsaid about Armenians in the Diaspora participating in the country\u2019s \npolitics. \u201cI\u2019ve previously said that the most important issue is, in a \nconceptual and ideological sense, to do away with the Diaspora-Armenia \nborders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pashinyan went on to say, and repeat for the adoring \ncrowd in front of LA City Hall, that Armenians should spend at least one\n or two months a year living in Armenia. The emphasis was clearly on \n\u201cliving\u201d as he spoke to the Diaspora about establishing businesses, \nbuilding homes and growing both economically and in spirit with Armenia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\n would make this more easily feasible is his desire for every Armenian \nto be a citizen of Armenia, which led him to the question of Armenians \nvoting in the Diaspora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf we are giving Armenians in the \nDiaspora the right to vote, we must uphold the same conditions as they \nexist for Armenians living in Armenia,\u201d said Pashinyan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means\n that the Prime Minister does not see establishing polling places in the\n Diaspora as a net-positive, and every Armenian would have to be in \nArmenia in order to cast a ballot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have to secure the possibility, in all voting districts, for a candidate to run an election campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One\n issue that was unavoidable was the status of the Amulsar gold mine \nproject. With demonstrators outside vying against the project being \ngreen-lit, Pashinyan painted a picture of two extremes and placed \nhimself in the middle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s most unfortunate for me [regarding \nAmulsar] is that everyone has their viewpoint regardless of everything \nelse,\u201d said Pashinyan. \u201cI disagree with the notion that a government \nshould make decisions based on [which side] applies the most pressure\u2026 \non this issue we must be honest and follow the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Appealing \nto the Armenian-American youth, Pashinyan emphasized the importance of \nbeing proud of one\u2019s culture and encouraged the youth to invest in \nArmenia\u2019s future, in terms of tech startups and other means of promoting\n the country through their respective fields of study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But despite\n some political disagreements, a large portion of the Los Angeles \nArmenian community was brought together by a leader that inspires them, \nand seemed to have left with a greater sense of pride, enthusiasm and \ndesire to reconnect with Armenia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n