* Baydzig Kalaydjian*
Over the past weeks, driven by the unsubdued aspiration of their spirit and not by the salvos of the guns, the youth of the country of Cedars stood up at Martyrs’ Square in Beirut to raze to the ground the outdated and stereotyped Lebanese political mentality and build a new, humane and just way of thinking on its ruins. From north to south, conceptual Lebanon was filled with the liberation spirit of the revolution.
Willy-nilly, today the pages of Lebanese history recorded the huge passion and grandeur of the long awaited Lebanese youth revolution. And it marked the ideological turning-point of the modern history of Lebanon. The world history has seen symbolistic images of mythological characters represent revolution, while the modern history of Lebanon saw real people surrounding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Republic Square of capital Beirut. These young people were not only enlightened by the ideas of the true revolution but also realized with all their essence the historic concept of their struggle and their national goals. Fully realizing what they were doing and without any hesitation they had hurried to join the “insane crowd” and the honorable outburst of the Lebanese.
This article does not aim to seek criteria for the outburst of the demonstrations believing it’s yet too early to give a score to the first steps. However, I personally have highly appreciated the courage of the young and conscious generation that became the forerunner to give a name to the agonizing Lebanese crisis and to take to the square.
They once again came to prove my views on that the young and educated are the ones to fix the things. As Lebanese and as Armenians we need these people to morally revolutionize our national existence, to reconstruct it and to remain unshakeable against the political storms.
It was both interesting and pleasant to see Armenian youth among the demonstrators. These Armenians had gathered at the square of their own volition without giving any coloring or essence to their national identity, in order to fulfill their civilized civic duty. “To keep the national identity alive among the Armenian youth and develop the spirit of the Public service.” This is the goal on which the upbringing of our younger generation should be based. I feel so proud to have had the opportunity to teach in foreign environments where I was expected to get acquainted and employ an education system different from that of Lebanon and where the global, the human, conformity and eventually, humility were accurately underlined – without them it will be impossible to get organized as a conscious nation capable of being useful for and serving its motherland and its goals.
Today more than ever Armenian nation needs smart educators with loving hearts and far-seeing leaders for its dark political life.
-Why does the expression of collective national will at least on issues that are closely related to our existence appear to be rare among Armenians? Months ago huge efforts were being committed to commemorate the greatest tragedy of our history, the Armenian Genocide. Isn’t it high time that we as a nation, addressed our petition of condemnation with regard to the Syrian and Iraqi little angels and their parents found on the Turkish shores. Would we feel compelled to present our petition only if there were Armenians among them? Didn’t the sons of our nation get killed on exactly those shores a century ago? Our blood kins were also drowned in those waters when heading for the same purpose – to find a brighter and promising future in other countries. Many people condemned the UN and European countries, and even Canada. But shouldn’t the Arab League be blamed when the sons of its own nation are sacrificed in front of its eyes every day?
-Why do our public figures, speakers and “intellectuals” have the morbid ambitions to do everything? It’s something people all over the world are afflicted with… However when a universal tragedy occurs and when the international mainstream media gets flooded with the calamitous news reports, they remain being observers in their “nap” of deep apathy and listeners.
-Why do our views not have a robust and direct criteria to tell the human personality, character and merits from someone else’s morbid personality, disrepute character and deplorable unworthiness? Is it why we often witness such mediocre people, unaware of their history and far from the reality of their motherland, spare no effort to discredit domestic institutions? The good and the kind remain being marginal, while the low populism is led forward to the depth of ignorance.
We believe these undetermined, inconstant and erratic “vibrations” are the outcome of distorted national backbone and principles.
We can think of a remedy only after realizing the core of the evil and challenges and boldly analyzing the causes of its miserable birth. It sometimes seems impossible to restore the crushed human backbone, but it is possible to fix the nation’s moral and physical backbone. A person of convictions and courage won’t quit when facing threats, while a nation aware and conscious of the righteousness of its human rights won’t give up when facing violence. Nationwide and universal crises remain birth pangs that will keep being the moral character of our nation; in a nutshell, they bring to light the backbone.
They say as long as there is life, there is hope. What significance can that hope have when there are no actions? Many people will say they lived and will continue to live as a nation but the images are no longer a delirium. As a nation, we feel proud of Free and Independent Armenia, which flourishes at each dawn under the shadow of the two summits of Masis.
It’s high time that our nation awoke with self-consciousness. Let our nation open its eyes and see its wounds, know its flaws, feel the need for living, and only then we will be confident that our nation will live forever.
In order to comprehend the great and historic mission of its enlightener and to keep alive the traditions of an ancient nation, Armenians should be once again completely “overhauled,” be cleaned of the slave’s distress and get reborn.
We need a new generation.
Our hope lies in our kindergartens and schools.
We want to see the rebirth of brave Haig Nahabed with relatively balanced moral, physical and responsible consciousness and healthy and viable upbringing, who will dare say “No” to everything trampling on the interests of our nation.
Only then we will win the struggle for our existence and will be the enlightening knight of our hopes.
This is what we have faith in. This is our faith.
