Articles by Onnik Krikorian

Post-COVID-19 in Tbilisi: towards a more sustainable future?

03/07/2020 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

Georgia has been a success story with its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic - not just regionally, but also globally. As of 29 June, there have been just 924 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and 15 deaths. But can Georgia build on that success and use the opportunity to resolve some of the problems that have long plagued the country, and especially in the capital Tbilisi?

Alternative Child Protection Services and Deinstitutionalisation in Armenia

22/07/2016 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

With over 2,500 institutionalised children, Armenia needs to promote alternative care mechanisms. The Child Protection Network advocates for de-institutionalisation

Georgia: Leaving Care

23/06/2016 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

In Georgia there are many care services for beneficiaries below the age of 18, but problems really emerge once they become adults. Georgia’s ChildPact members address this issue, working with the authorities to find long-term solutions

Georgia’s Syria Problem

16/11/2015 -  Onnik Krikorian* Tbilisi

Up to 100 Georgian citizens, mostly from the Pankisi Valley, have allegedly left their homes to join the Islamic State in Syria. With no effective counter-radicalisation policies, the situation could become even worse

Concerns Linger About Sexual Minority Rights in Georgia

30/05/2014 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

Following last year’s rampage by conservatives targeting LGBT activists intent on marking 17 May as the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT), the Georgian Orthodox Church this year instead declared the day as one celebrating family unity. And while civil society did not take the attempt to hijack IDAHOT lying down, some are concerned that this is just the start

Georgia’s European Integration Still On Track, But Stumbling Blocks Remain

22/04/2014 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

In Georgia the majority of the population is in favor of closer ties with the European Union. However this will depend on progress made in terms of human rights protection and it is in these issues that stumbling blocks might frustrate Georgian ambitions

Children of the South Caucasus

24/01/2014 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

Georgia's deinstitutionalisation policy has proved successful in addressing the needs of children deprived of parental care, but some concerns remain. In neighbouring Armenia and Azerbaijan, thousands of kids are still living in Soviet-era institutions

Armenian homophobia

14/08/2013 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Proposed anti-gay propaganda legislation raises human rights concerns in Armenia, where violence against sexual minorities is supported by representatives of the institutions

Musical Dialects of the South Caucasus

19/06/2013 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

Funded by a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, three students from the United States and Gibraltar are researching and recording traditional music in the South Caucasus to make it available online

Elva, crowd-sourcing conflict in the South Caucasus

15/05/2013 -  Onnik Krikorian Tbilisi

Elva is a platform developed in Georgia that allows to easily receive feedback from local communities via SMS. Successfully used to map local needs along the ABL with South Ossetia, it could soon be used elsewhere

Social Media in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict

17/04/2013 -  Onnik Krikorian

Social media have become one of the few places where young people from Armenia and Azerbaijan can meet. Yet, not without risks

Armenia-Azerbaijan peacebuilding kicks off in Tekali

07/04/2011 -  Onnik Krikorian Tekali, Yerevan

Events held in rural Georgia hope to demonstrate how grassroots peacebuilding activities can not only contribute to discussion and debate, but also have some more immediate and practical dividends as well

As tensions mount, plans for an Armenian-Azerbaijan Peace Building Center in Georgia

22/02/2011 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

The project of an Armenian theatrical director and actor turned peace activist to open a peace center in Tekalo, a small village in Georgia a few kilometers from the border with Armenia and Azerbaijan. “Communication is not betrayal, it is a natural human need.”

Budgetary cuts cast shadow over landmine clearance in Nagorno Karabakh

01/02/2011 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a war over Nagorno Karabakh in the early 1990s. Around 25,000 were killed and nearly a million from both sides forced to flee their homes. Although hostilities were put on hold by a 1994 ceasefire agreement, in addition to skirmishes on the frontline, landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) continue to pose a threat to life

High level political changes in Yerevan as New Year approaches

23/12/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Gagik Beglaryan, the first elected Mayor of Yerevan, has resigned after reportedly assaulting a member of the presidential administration’s protocol department. At the same time, a number of other high level officials have been changed in a rare cabinet reshuffle

Concerns raised over extension of Russian military presence in Armenia

03/09/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

The reactions to the signing of the August 20 deal between Russian president Dimitry Medvedev and his Armenian counterpart, Serge Sargsyan, extending Moscow's military presence in its former satellite by more than two decades. The internal and regional scenario, the consequences for the Karabakh conflict

Armenia rocked by army shootings

20/08/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

As panic turned to anger following the last front line clash between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in Nagorno Karabakh, more deaths reported in July rocked the nation. This time, however, Armenian soldiers were apparently killed by their fellow countrymen

Nagorno Karabakh: talk of peace, but also of war

02/07/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Panic reportedly began to spread last week in Yerevan as news of the worst major skirmish between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces on the line of contact in two years was reported by the local media. Ironically, the ceasefire violation occurred just one day after the Armenian president and his Azerbaijani counterpart met in St. Petersburg for talks convened by Russia

The Caucasian Eurovision

07/06/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Oil money and ethnic voting lose out to simplicity in Eurovision

Frantic development in Yerevan

09/04/2010 -  Onnik Krikorian Yerevan

Urban development concerns over church territory restoration in Yerevan. After the destruction of city parks and controversial projects such as Northern Avenue, the reaction of residents against the planned demolition of historical Cinema Moscow Open-Air Hall