By Lilit Ovsepyan
Street artists from Armenia and Russia have created graffiti and stickers with the symbol of Artsakh the monument We Are Our Mountains, accompanied by the slogan Free Artsakh. The purpose of the action is to draw public attention to the blockade of Artsakh by Azerbaijan and the need to open a humanitarian air corridor. Cities such as Yerevan, Dilijan, Vanadzor, Krasnodar joined the initiative, which began the week of December 19. The designs are by the street art artist GaReggin (see his Instagram page, https://www.instagram.com/gareggin_/).
Since December 12, the Stepanakert-Goris highway, which is the only route linking Artsakh with Armenia, has been completely closed by a group of several hundred Azerbaijani citizens who call themselves environmental activists. As a result, 120,000 residents of Artsakh, including 30,000 children, found themselves under a blockade. 1,100 citizens, including 270 minors, are deprived of the opportunity to return to their homes. Elective surgeries were suspended in medical institutions. The entire population of Artsakh is in a state of a humanitarian crisis, having lost the supply of food, medicine and fuel.
The artists call on the world art community not to be silent and share the #FreeArtsakh slogan in order to draw attention to the situation and stop the blockade of Artsakh.
