At February 28 sitting, the RA NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs moderated by Vladimir Vardanyan debated in the first reading the bill on Making Addendum to the law on Holidays and Memorial Days of the Republic of Armenia, which proposed to set April 10 Memorial Day of the victims of the peaceful population massacre of Maragha village.

It has been noted that Maragha is an urban settlement which is in the NKR Martakert Region, on the border of the Azerbaijani Terteri (Mirbashir) region. According to the population census of 1989, 4660 people lived in the settlement. From April 1992 until now the settlement is under control of Azerbaijan.

On April 10, 1992 after the lasting shelling the Azerbaijani armed sub-units invaded Maragha, where though the detachment of small number of Armenian war veterans succeeded evacuating from Maragha the great majority of the residents, but about 118 persons, mainly the elderly, the disabled, women and children were still left in the settlement. Most of them were brutally tortured, then killed by the soldiers of the Azerbaijani Army. More than 50 people, including 30 women became victims of that military crime.

The organizers of Maragha massacres were not punished.

The co-rapporteur, Arpine Davoyan proposed her colleagues to vote against the draft law. It was noted that not every tragic case could be set as a Memorial Day. “We have similar numerous cases in our history, she said.

Aghvan Vardanyan proposed to set April 10 day of all tragic events and cases happened in Artsakh.

The Committee Chair also documented that the issue should be solved completely and comprehensively. Vladimir Vardanyan proposed to postpone the debate of the issue.

The key rapporteur did not agree. The Committee members did not endorse the draft law.