Interview with Henry

Mr. Ayrapetyan, a 66-year old father of three, is the father in-law of my cousin. He currently resides in Beverly Hills. Born in Yerevan, Armenia, he spent most of his life working to support his family. He earned his degree in engineering and worked in an Armenian company for 26 years. The company closed when Armenia became and independent country after the fall of Communism in the late 1980s. Mr. Ayrapetyan came to the United States in 1990 and after working for 5 years, he is now retired, enjoying the pay for his hard work over the years. While sitting in my living room, he told me how fall of Communism affected his life in many ways.

When communism was in power, life was very good. Universities fees were paid by the government, so were the hospital fees, factories were open and almost everybody had a job that paid enough to support their family. The economy was high and everybody was leading a good life.

The education in the USSR was very good. A student was taught many subjects like geography, history, chemistry, physics and many more. A student was familiar with every subject.

Students from India, African countries, and other eastern countries would come to Armenia to get the proper education needed because USSR was highly anticipated for its schools. Many learned in the Petakan University and the Jartarapetakan University. (On the right is a picture of the Petakan University.)

Then, they went back to their countries to help their country by educating others.

There were many countries that were in bond with the USSR. They were trading many goods. These countries were socialistic countries. After the fall of communism, some were still trading and communicating with Russia and other countries that once were part of USSR. Others, however, did not like the idea and stopped the bond between them. Years passed, and now countries that once were in bond and new countries, are starting new relationships with Russia, Armenia, and other parts of former USSR.

After the fall of communism, everything changed. Countries became independent and their economy was low. The free education stopped along with the free treatments in the hospitals. The factories closed and the unemployment rate rose rapidly. Armenia, especially, had a very hard time being an independent country. Other countries also had a hard time with their independence. The economy in every country was almost zero.

In the early years, I am talking about Armenia, art was very advanced. We have very big and well-known actors, singers, and pianists. After the fall of communism, these artists were no longer looked up to and people did not worry about art anymore. So, these artists are now residing in various parts of the world. They are performing to earn a living and not performing for people because they want to. At this minute, there are many well-known artists in the United States that do not perform because they are trying to earn enough for their needs. There was no art to enjoy. However, now, people are being discovered, who have talents and are trying to bring back the art that was lost, because we cannot be without art. People’s mirror is their art.

Sports also were very advanced in the years when communism was in power. I remember when I was young, the USSR hockey team became world champions ten years in a row. However, in Armenia, soccer, wrestling, and track and field were the main sports. One good example is Ararat 73, a soccer team that won the USSR championship in 1973. However, like everything else sports too took a dive when communism ended. Because of bad conditions, the sports committee did not get any funding to help them, but now, financial support is being offered to the sports committee and the sport is regaining its position in the country.

Before, the communists were controlling the country. The Communist party was the highest party in USSR. Everything, including the Supreme Court was formed of communists. Everything was controlled by communists. When Brejnev was in power, he was not called the president, but the First Secretary of Genkom. There was no rank higher than that. When the communists were controlling everything was good for the people. Almost everybody had jobs; senior citizens were getting retirement funds to support their needs. Everything was good for seniors and children. The government was supporting everyone, but after the fall of communism, everything stopped. The economy took a dive.

After the fall of communism, the countries adapted new laws and omitted the old ones set by the communists. However, Armenia did not adapt new laws and stayed with the communist laws for the next ten years. In 2000, Armenia started to set new laws, replacing the old ones. Some of the countries followed Armenia’s path and some are still using the laws that were set by the communist government.

The end of communism came from the above. They ended communism. Mostly it was dome by Garbachov. However, besides Garbachov, there was a group called the Group of Three. It was run by Yeltsin and mainly it was the reason the broke the strong USSR into pieces.

It was Yeltsin, Shushkevich, and I cannot remember the third person.

Interviewed by Sergey Ohanjanyan