Villagers have to ask permission to till their lands
The Armenian village Ranchpar situated 150 meters away from the Turkish border is wakened by the voice of a Turkish mullah. Over 230 families settled in the village after the Baku massacres. Residents of the village have to ask permission from the frontier military unit to enter their lots.
The village head, Manuk Ohanyan, works in the same room with the small staff during the winter months. He says the village will soon be gasified; they have already made all arrangements.
"I worked as a policeman and I like to keep everything in order," says Manuk Ohanyan. He told us about the 1500 inhabitants of Ranchpar and led us to the rundown building of the municipal council. We were shown the computer room and the local library.
During our talk the village librarian, 23-year-old Marina, pointed to an Armenian-Azerbaijani dictionary beside the huge volumes of books. She says the dictionary was once of great demand as most immigrant villagers have Russian education. Unlike my parent who moved here from Baku, I speak and think in Armenian," she says.
Doctor Maya Pavlova is well aware of the inhabitants' illnesses. She receives and consults her patients in a cold outpatient reception.
"I get offended when they call each other a refugee," says Yerevan resident Maya Pavlova who hurried to answer a house call. "The clinic hasn't got a car, and we have to walk through the whole village every time we get a house call," says the doctor.
Mrs. Larisa has a sick mother and two children under her care. She doesn't have a dwelling place. "Please, add in your article that the village encounters many difficulties but we are optimistic," says Gayane.
