On October 4, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan received a group of Brazilian journalists, including Vagner Caldeira, Ricardo Carvalo, Juliana Albukrek and Tatian Boffi.

The Minister cordially greeted the guests and expressed gratitude for visiting Armenia to provide coverage of the events dedicated to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide in 2015 and for properly presenting the events in Brazil. The Minister of Diaspora highly appreciated the Brazilian government’s generous attitude towards the Armenian community and expressed her gratitude for the opportunities that the government has provided to the Armenians to integrate, grow, participate in the development of Brazil and establish Armenian structures and organizations.

Vagner Caldeira expressed gratitude for the cordial reception and stated that he and the journalists are visiting Armenia for the second time to write a book devoted to the notable Burmayan family of businessmen. “I think our visit in 2015 was effective since we made our small contribution to the recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide and the elimination of the consequences by disseminating objective information,” the Brazilian journalist stated.

The journalists asked about the activities of the Ministry of Diaspora, the programs under implementation, as well as the methods and directions through which the Ministry is able to enhance the Armenia-Diaspora partnership.

The Minister talked about the activities that are carried out with the Armenian communities established in 118 countries and stated that migration processes are raising a wave in the world, every 34^th resident of which is a migrant, while 70,000,000 people in Europe and 86,000,00 in the United States of America don’t live in their respective homelands. The Minister mentioned that the Armenian Diaspora was primarily formed in the wake of the Armenian Genocide and that the outflow of Armenians from the Middle East and Armenia has helped preserve the communities on the verge of assimilation.

The Minister touched upon the strategic directions for the partnership between Armenia and the Diaspora and attached importance to the efforts for preservation of the Armenian identity, particularly the Ministry’s programs and initiatives aimed at helping young Diaspora Armenians get to know the homeland and communicating Armenian culture to them. The Minister mentioned that there are over 600 Armenian cultural centers and hundreds of choirs, dance groups, theater clubs and youth organizations around the world.

Hranush Hakobyan presented the pan-Armenian issues that consolidate Armenians and touched upon popular diplomacy, as well as the Armenians making contributions to world civilization and their pro-national efforts.

The sides touched upon the problems and achievements of the Armenian community of Brazil and attached importance to the role of the Burmayan family in organizing the community, preserving the Armenian identity and solving the problems of the community.

The Minister highly appreciated the efforts of Honorary Consul of the Republic of Armenia in Brazil Hilda-Tiruhi Burmayan and her late husband, Varujan Burmayan aimed at contributing to the homeland’s development, strengthening Armenian-Brazilian ties and consolidating the Armenians of Brazil, as well as the programs that they have carried out. “It is not by chance that Hilda-Tiruhi Burmayan has been awarded with the Movses  Khorenatsi Medal and the Commemorative Gold Medal of the Ministry of Diaspora,” the Minister of Diaspora stated and added the following: “I have been to Brazil three times and am extremely impressed. You Brazilians are as sentimental and hot-tempered as the Armenians. What attracted me was your architecture, music, dance and the unique multicultural atmosphere. I take pride in the fact that the Armenian community of Sao Paulo is consolidated around the Burmayans and that it is very dedicated to solving the issues of the community. This wonderful family is a family we Armenians can rely on in Brazil, and Varujan Burmayan has become a legend in terms of benevolence. I think their pro-national activities deserve to be documented, and I hope your book is released soon.”

At the end, Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan addressed the Armenian community of Brazil with a video message.