Vazgen Sargsyan
| Vazgen Sargsyan Վազգեն Սարգսյան |
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| 7th Prime Minister of Armenia | |
| In office 11 June 1999 – 27 October 1999 |
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| Preceded by | Armen Darbinyan |
| Succeeded by | Aram Sargsyan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 5, 1959 Ararat, Armenian SSR, Soviet Union (Now Ararat, Armenia) |
| Died | October 27, 1999 (age 40) Armenian parliament, Yerevan, Armenia |
| Nationality | Armenian |
| Political party | Republican Party |
Vazgen Sargsyan (Armenian: Վազգեն Սարգսյան, March 5, 1959 – October 27, 1999;[1] also written Vasgen Sarkisyan, Sarkissian or Sarkisyan) was Prime Minister of Armenia for the Republican Party of Armenia from June 11, 1999 to October 27, 1999 until his assassination in what is known as the Armenian parliament shooting. He was well known as a military leader, the first Minister of Defense of Armenia, awarded by Artsakh hero and National Hero of Armenia (posthumously) titles. In 1992 he organized and led the "Mahaparts" special battalion.[2]
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[edit] Early life
Vazgen Sargsyan was born in Ararat, Armenian SSR. He graduated from Armenian State Institute of Physical Culture in 1979 before working as a physical instruction teacher in a village school in Ararat.[3] From 1983 to 1986 he was the Communist Youth League leader at the cement factory in Ararat. An amateur writer, Sargsyan then moved into literary life. From 1986 to 1989 he headed the publicity department of the Garun (Spring) literary monthly in Yerevan. But the Armenian national ferment of the late 1980s saw him abandon this role as he flung himself headlong into political life.
[edit] Political career
Sargsyan's rise to the top started when, as a former Communist Youth league organiser, he joined the growing movement for the mainly-Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh to be transferred from Azerbaijani to Armenian jurisdiction. He was elected to the Armenian parliament in the 1990 elections, the first semi-free elections Armenia had held, where he became a member of the Internal Affairs and State Defence Committee. In 1990–1992 he stayed in Nagorno-Karabakh, commanding irregular troops that defended the peaceful population of Karabakh towns and villages from the Azerbaijani military attack that followed the declaration of indendence of Karabakh from Azerbaijani rule.
[edit] Defense minister
From 1992–1993 he was defence minister of Armenia, while from 1993–1995 he was state minister in charge of defence. In 1995, during the restructuring of government ministries, he once again became defence minister. In these various capacities he laid the groundwork for building Armenia's army, a cause dear to his heart. He controlled the fledgling armed forces during the height of the fighting in Karabakh, in which Armenia's forces were heavily involved.
[edit] Prime minister
Despite ensuring that President Ter-Petrosyan's side won the disputed 1995 election, and crushing street protests against the manipulated results, Sargsyan abandoned him in late 1997 and switched his support to prime minister Robert Kocharyan, who soon took over as president.
After serving as defense minister, he was appointed prime minister on June 11 by President Kocharyan.[3] Sargsyan was killed, however, along with parliament speaker and former communist leader Karen Demirchyan and several other politicians when gunmen, headed by journalist Nairi Hunanyan, took over the parliament building. The other parliament members were held as hostages until the next day. A week later, Vazgen's brother, Aram Sargsyan became prime minister until May 2000. He was buried at Yerablur military cemetery.[4]
[edit] Legacy
Following his death, Sargsyan was posthumously awarded with the title of hero.[3] Numerous streets and schools in Karabakh were also named after him.[3] The song "Sparapet" ("Commander") by Alla Levonyan is dedicated to his memory.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Anon. Timeline: Recent killings of politicians. CNN. Retrieved July 17, 2008.
- ^ Mahaparts celebrate the 15th anniversary of establishment, ArmeniaTV, 2007-10-23
- ^ a b c d Armenian Ministry of Defence. Vazgen Sargsyan. Armenian Ministry of Defence. Accessed July 17, 2008.
- ^ "The best, most devoted, most honest guys were in the vanguard and they were killed."
[edit] External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Vazgen Sargsyan |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vazgen Sargsyan |
| Preceded by Armen Darbinyan |
Prime Minister of Armenia 1999 |
Succeeded by Aram Sargsyan |
| Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict | ||||
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| History | Locations | Political leaders | Military leaders | Foreign involvement |
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Origins Soviet era
Recent developments
1 Republic of Armenia's involvement is partial |
Nagorno-Karabakh, North Nagorno-Karabakh, Central Nagorno-Karabakh, South |
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Military aid to Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Military aid to Azerbaijan Conflict mediation
International documents |
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, Vazgen Sargsyan
Վազգեն
- 1959 births
- 1999 deaths
- Deaths by firearm in Armenia
- Nagorno-Karabakh
- Members of the National Assembly of Armenia
- Assassinated Armenian politicians
- Prime Ministers of Armenia
- People murdered in Armenia
- Assassinated heads of government
- Armenian State Institute of Physical Culture alumni
- People from Ararat, Armenia
- Republican Party of Armenia politicians
- Armenian people of the Nagorno-Karabakh War
- National Hero of Armenia
