Defense, Education Sectors are Columns of National Security: Minister

RA Minister of Education and Science Armen Ashotyan congratulated teachers on the occasion of Teachers’ Day today.

Note that for years, Teachers’ Day in Armenia was a simply a day marked by those in the profession; however, based on a proposal by member of parliament Samvel Nikoyan and with the support of the government, Teachers’ Day, specifically Oct. 5, henceforth will be considered a state holiday. 

Ashotyan said that the “army of 45,000 teachers,” not counting teachers on pension and students currently in teachers’ college, this dense crowd, is worthy of the day connected with its profession to be marked as a state holiday. 

“It’s not a coincidence that the defense and education sectors lately are viewed as two foreign and domestic columns, respectively, of national security,” said the minister.

In his remarks, Ashotyan attempted to broach the subject of media reports on the education sector’s activities, assuring that the incidents that have been reported are “unique.”

“Regretfully, sometimes media reports on this or that unpleasant incident: fundraising [that is, accepting bribes], violations of the law. All of that, of course, casts a shadow on our system. But we often forget that along those unique cases are thousands of people unknown to the public, through whose hands pass future scientists, doctors, members of parliament, ministers, the president and prime minister,” said Ashotyan. 

The education minister awarded a number of teachers medals; while handing out the medals, Ashotyan said that he doesn’t want to ruin the teachers’ beautiful clothes and so he simply handed the medals to them.