The Mayor of Sochi vowed to install a monument to legendary military commander Andranik in the village of Nor Luys, the vice-president of the Union of the Armenians of Russia said.
According to German Ananyants, with the authorities’ consent procured and formalities observed, to install a monument, only a written agreement is to be provided. As he further noted, though the exact date is unavailable, the monument will be unveiled in the near future.
Ananyants further cited non-observation of Russian legislation behind the scandal that occurred back in 2011, when the authorities of Sochi district’s Volokonka ordered to take down a statue to Andranik, scheduled to be unveiled soon, LifeArmenia.com reported.
In 2011, what was to bring together 5,000 to 6,000 Armenians from around the Krasnodar region of Russia and Abkhazia for a community-wide May 28 celebration turned sour when local authorities ordered the Armenian community to bring down a statue of General Andranik, which was to be unveiled for the event.
According to members of the Armenian community in Sochi, local authorities said that the statue must come down, or it will be demolished.
The authorities explained their decision saying that the unveiling of the statue might anger Turkey, which could refuse to take part in the construction of facilities for the Sochi Winter Olympic Games in 2014.
