Let’s save little Allen form his own family
The article of our newspaper released in our previous issue titled “Today is really an election day?” was about Anahit Harutyunyan’s family living at the address of 62 Dro St. in Kanaker-Zeitun community.
Let’s remember that during our visit we have found her two-year-old grandchild in a terrible plight. The child was frozen and motionless. The mother of the child was not home. Although we waited long for him on that day we still weren’t able to see him. We have witnessed a scene when the kid, Allen, was stuck to the bed because of the cold for about an hour. And although it was late in the evening the child hasn’t eaten anything. We didn’t succeed to meet Allen’s mother on that day and as a response to our phone calls she would say that she’s cleaning somebody’s house and wouldn’t be able to come home.
We also photographed the empty alcohol bottles cast under the table. To our question whether anybody drinks in the house we received the answer that the bottles were collected from the streets to later give them out for money. As usual, many kind people have contacted our newspaper to help this family after the release of this article. Although the article was about a child who was living in destitute conditions nonetheless none of the relevant bodies or organizations dealing with child issues have ever reacted. On that day they were extremely busy with an important matter – the presidential elections. The community structures and childcare organizations haven’t responded to this article either. In our publication we have brought up concrete facts that most of his time the child spends with a grandmother who suffers from epilepsy. Nonetheless, many of our citizens have contacted us and offered their help to this child.
The Facebook group titled “Let’s help Allen” helped Allen by providing food, clothes, furniture, renovating the bathroom and the house. The members of this Facebook group have been visiting Allen for the past week and would feed him and even bathe him. The most terrible thing is that our young people find the mother of this kid drunk. Let’s also mention that it was found out that the hands of the child were frozen. Allen, two years old, doesn’t speak at all. Instead he only screams and cries. The visitors of this group have also found the mother in the house with a few other alcoholics getting drunk in the house. Even then the kid was still in wet clothes and in a helpless situation. During one of the visits we conducted a brief interview and disclosed inexplicable facts. The residents living nearby not only insisted but also insured that this house is a lair for alcoholics and immoral people and that the child needs to be taken care of urgently.
They also told us that the mother of Allen, Narine and the grandmother, Anahit don’t look after their child. The same was told us by the employees of the nearby store by telling us that in the past Narine would always borrow vodkas. Yesterday we had to wait for Narine for a long time. Although her mother would tell us that she went to a dentist but it was almost impossible to find Narine. We also have grounds to assume that Narine and Anahit also beat the child. At any rate, there was a scar on the cheek of the child and the grandma would try to connect the red marks on Allen’s hands as his attempts to touch the furnace. We were also told that the grandmother of the child is also an alcoholic. And no one can assure that the adults don’t give alcohol to Allen to calm him down. We think that the police should be in charge of this case and try to investigate into the matter. It is very hard to describe what development we have witnessed yesterday. After many hours of waiting Narine finally showed up literally swinging. This drunk and immoral woman would tell us that she didn’t buy the alcohol and that she was treated that.
After a conversation with her we realized that it’s necessary to take the child away from these two women. It is not ruled out that they might be having all kinds of STDs. After a 5-minute talk with this woman we didn’t have any other option but to call the police precinct of Kanaker-Zeitun and the relevant department of the social and labor ministry. The operative group of the police immediately responded to our call. After being notified that the kid should be sent to an orphanage the woman threatened to kill herself. By the time the police got in their house the hands of the child were bleeding. The mother said that it was an accident and that the tin can cut the hand but judging from the inadequate state of the woman we could expect everything. At any rate, after some explanations the police crew escorted Allen and the mother to a medical institution to examine them. We also found out that the police was in the same house months ago but then it was a case with a knife stabbing. The head of the criminal division of the police told us that they’d carefully watch this house by mentioning that they were not authorized to take the child to an orphanage. Although Allen and his mother were taken to hospital but the representative of the social affairs ministry told us that at 11 am the child custody center of Kanaker-Zeitun convened a session to discuss Allen’s matter. She told us that the mother was not intoxicated and was merely drunk.
She refused to give the child to the orphanage by threatening to arson herself. We cannot deprive the child of the mother without the latter’s consent. As long as I know they have social issues and the local council has always been supporting them. Of course, everything should be done to raise the child in the family but it shouldn’t be done by only providing one or two kilos of rice to the family.
The only problem is that the mother and grandmother of Allen don’t inspire us with the belief that they can take a proper care of Allen. And the representatives of relevant bodies should have been aware of this. The two-year-old Allen is unprotected in his own family and by the state. There are numerous NGO’s in Armenia that have been receiving grants from numerous organizations but they squander the funds on bureaucratic activities and for showoff. We leave the future of this child to the conscience of all people, who have witnessed this terrible situation.
By Lusine Stepanyan
