From Armenia in brief: Billboards for “Buy Armenian” campaign cause controversy

by M. T.

Published: Friday November 20, 2009

In a photo from ArmProdExpo, earlier this month, the "Buy Armenian" campaign poster shows a map of Armenia and the former NKAO.

Yerevan - The Armenian government, the Yerevan Brandy Company, and the Millennium Challenge Account - Armenia (MCA) Foundation have teamed up to start a "Buy Armenian" campaign across the country.

According to Artak Harutyunyan, deputy head of MCA-Armenia's Water to Market program, the goal of the campaign is to encourage the purchase of Armenian products by the Armenian consumer. Mr. Harutyunyan believes that this will help increase the sale of Armenian products both locally and internationally.

Large "Buy Armenian" campaign billboards had been placed around the city. They included a map of Armenia and the Soviet-era Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (NKAO) - instead of the significantly larger Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. In other words, the Lachin corridor and the other liberated territories were not shown.

The Yerevan Brandy Company on November 18 was asked about the choice. A company spokesperson said they had engaged in self-censorship, thinking that since MCA-Armenia was sponsored by the U.S. government, they may object to a depiction of the de facto borders of Karabakh.

The next morning, November 18, the Armenian Reporter sent out a photographer to take a photo of one of the billboards, but they have been removed.