“Mom, dad, I love you, forgive me:” these are the words written by soldier Narek Grigoryan on a small piece of paper from a cigarette pack before his alleged suicide. His mother, Varsik Hovhannisyan, told Forrights.am. The last words written by the boy are still in the investigation; they have not been handed over to his parents.
The Ministry of Defense announced Narek Grigoryan’s death on November 13, noting that the incident took place in the disciplinary battalion of the Military Police.
“That morning, they had their breakfast and were supposed to line up to go to the military unit. Narek and the others were told to go, gather their things to go to the military unit. They went to gather and saw Narek was missing, they went into the kitchen, saw that… on the last day day. It is a question for me: why on the last day, after enduring for 20 days,” said the mother.
“We think that someone pushed him to do that, because, for ten months, he was one of the best soldiers, there were no problems, he was not in any conflicts. On September 3, we went to the military unit and they praised my son. He went to the disciplinary unit for his mistake, and the disciplinary unit was fatal for my son,” said the mother, explaining why the boy was transferred to the disciplinary battalion.
“My son went up to the positions in October. There were eight of them. They ordered food at the positions, one of their fellow soldiers reported that the boys had ordered pizza and barbecue. An argument broke out between that boy and seven people. The military police arrived, and it was decided that all seven boys should be transferred to the disciplinary battalion,” said Varsik Hovhannisyan.
The mother has some information about who Narek Grigoryan had problems with in the disciplinary battalion and on what topic, and presents a conflict situation between the boy and another serviceman. However, before that, she reports another noteworthy piece of information: the boy was beaten by a high-ranking military officer in the military unit.
“It was a topic both in the disciplinary unit and in the military unit after leaving the positions. The commander beat the boys in the lineup; this is unacceptable. There is a boy in the disciplinary unit; the problem was with him. The problem is related to a book. One of the soldiers tore a book, and Narek said that it was his comrade’s book, given by the later’s mother; he gave it to Narek to read in the disciplinary unit. He [the other boy] took it to the toilet and tore it up, saying that there was no paper in the toilet. I do not believe that this conflict would lead to my son’s death. Now those who went to the disciplinary unit with him are detained,” the mother said.
Narek Grigoryan is from the village of Abovyan in the Ararat region, Armenia. He was drafted into the army on January 15. After serving five months in Yerevan, he was transferred to Berd. He managed to serve four months, and was the squad leader. “He had commendations as the best soldier. He shouldn’t have been in the positions since he was a signalman,” the mother said, noting that the boy called them once a week from the disciplinary unit, according to the established procedure.
“The first time he talked to his father, asked for cigarettes. And, the second time, he said, ‘when you come here, you can make me come home on leave?’ which means my son had plans, he couldn’t have taken such a step,” the mother said, demanding that they reveal who is to blame for the boy’s death.
Varsik Hovhannisyan appeals to Nikol Pashinyan and Suren Papikyan, demanding that they stand up for the soldiers.
“Let the Minister of Defense go and see what is happening. Those boys were the lights of their home. If they take our only children from our hands to defend the homeland, let them stand up for them, not kill them and return them [their bodies] to their parents. We do not give you phsychos; you examine them before taking to the army. Our children defend the homeland. No rich man’s child defends it. At least give us our children back. Why should my son not be alive? Go and see yourselves: it is not only a question of food and clothing in the army. Go and see what is happening there. How officers are insulting the honor of soldiers, cursing them, and insulting the mothers of soldiers. I do not know who to ask for an answer from. I want the government, Pashinyan to listen. I have written to him, but there is no answer. It’s enough for them to kill the soldiers and give them to their parents,” says the mother, recounting how years ago, when her son developed serious health problems at the age of five, she struggled and overcame them. “We were happy that we were able to fight against that evil, but, at the age of 18, see what happened.”
Narek Kirakosyan

Narek Kirakosyan
Narek Kirakosyan is a journalist, works on the principle of "a person is an absolute value".