Nver Mirzoyan is from the village of Khndzristan in Askeran region, NK. He and his family have founded a small business next to the Kapan [Armenia] school. They rented a small area, called it “Artsakh in Syunik,” and the women of the family have begun to spread the taste and aroma of Artsakh cuisine in Kapan. The baklava made by his wife, Anna, has already become famous in the city.
“After the eviction, we first lived in Sovkhoz (in a village in Syunik – ed.), near Kapan. The landlord welcomed us warmly, said, ‘If the state gives the rent, you will pay it for the house, if it doesn’t, you won’t pay.’ After five months of living there, the house was sold, and we moved to Kapan. We decided to stay here, because we haverelatives, and besides, it is very similar to Artsakh,” says Nver.
Complementing her husband, Mrs. Anna details how Kapan is similar to Artsakh:
“The nature is similar, and the people are similar, and the language is similar. People are very humane, it’s like Stepanakert: people don’t lock their doors, they are good neighbors, you know when the neighbor will come, you will drink coffee with each other, they can have dinner with each other, etc. At first, we used to bake at home, we took orders, then we decided to take it out. The locals love our food very much, they know that we are from Artsakh, they come to support us. Artsakh residents also use our baked goods. There are people who come and see the sign: “Artsakh in Syunik,” and they cry.”
Speaking about the fact that the Government plans to stop allocating the 40+10 AMD amount to Artsakh residents from April, Nver says, “Many people haven’t even found stable jobs yet, they go from place to place and use the money provided to cover their minimal needs. Before cutting that money, people need to be provided with housing.”
The Mizoyans are satisfied with their small business: each of the 7 family members has their job to do in the business and, in addition to working in the bakery, Nver has also started another job.
One of the Mizoyans’ sons is studying in college, the other is studying physics and mathematics branch of the school, and the daughter will soon be attending kindergarten.
Now they live in a rented house, waiting for the certificate. The Mizoyans are sure that if they have the opportunity to buy a house with a certificate issued by the state, they will buy it right in Kapan. “There are seven of us in the family, so with a certificate issued to seven people, we should be able to buy a house here, but the problem is that we don’t believe that it will come to that. So much time has passed, we haven’t heard that any Artsakh resident has been able to buy a house through that program. That’s why we don’t believe in anything anymore,” says Mrs. Anna.
Ani Gevorgyan