Emma was born on January 13 of this year on Byuzand Street, in a part of Old Yerevan. She is not officially registered. "You live in the Red Zone, we cannot register her," the girl's grandfather, Sashik Safyan, was told by an official at the local Residents' Registrar. By "Red Zone," she meant that the government has chosen to appropriate the area where the Safyans live, "in its own interests" planning a lucrative construction project. The sale of this stretch of Byuzand Street and adjacent properties, constituting a total area of 345,000 square meters, was finalized on August 1, 2002 by Government Decision 1151-N, "Regarding the measures taken for the realization of construction on the administrative border of the Central Municipality of Yerevan."

Sashik Safyan is an artist - he has a studio next to his house, where he used to paint to put food on his family's table. He was not aware of this government decision until a committee set up to assess the value of the property came to his house. "The committee didn't tell us anything specific, we didn't understand what was going on," he said. "A few days went by, and we received a letter from an organization called Glendale Hills."

Glendale Hills is one of the construction companies chosen to rebuild this zone, once the process of appropriation is complete. These companies work in the name of the Republic of Armenia; they have been authorized to do so by a contract signed with Mayor Yervand Zakharyan.

Glendale Hills gave the residents of Byuzand Street five days to decide whether or not to vacate their homes voluntarily and receive compensation. When the Safyans went to the firm's office, they were told that everything had already been decided a long time ago. If they were to refuse to hand over their property to the state, the state would take them to court to obtain it.

That is exactly what happened. When the state failed to obtain agreements from the homeowners, it filed suit against them. They were ordered by the lower courts of justice in the Central and Nork-Marash Districts of Yerevan to sign over their property and be compensated.

But no amount of money could convince the Safyans to leave their home. In an attempt to defend their constitutional right to property, they filed a counter-suit, demanding that Decision 1151-N be overturned.

The Safyans are still in court, and they are not alone. Glendale Hills has filed suit against eight different property owners in the so-called Red Zone. "We already have thirty-nine contracts," said the company's executive director, Edward Melikyan. "But the rest refuse to leave their homes for absurd or unclear reasons, without consideration for the greater good, or the importance of the work undertaken. We are ready to offer more incentives, if they agree to sign contracts with us."

"They have convinced a lot of people," acknowledged Suren Sisakyan, who lives down the block from the Safyans. "There are some who have already signed contracts with them. Maybe it's all the same to them where they live, but I value our house and our courtyard, and I feel like we are losing something." He believes that the blocks that make up the older part of the capital, and the people living in them, preserve the spirit of Old Yerevan.

"Everyone who lives on our block is somehow connected to the world of art - painters, sculptors, poets, the Chmshkyans, who are famous opera singers... and, naturally, all this creates a different kind of atmosphere," Sisakyan explained.

Art critic Ashot Harutyunyan has agreed to the proposed contract. His is one of fifteen families that Glendale Hills has offered apartments to in the former kindergarten the company is now renovating. "Agreeing to this proposal is just a way to avoid a legal headache, " Harutyunyan said. "They're leading us down a blind alley anyway. In my opinion, the government is implementing a well thought-out displacement plan."

Older residents of the block recall signs on some of the buildings in the area during Soviet times that read 'Under the protection of the government'. Now those signs are gone. Of all the buildings in the Red Zone under the control of Glendale Hills, only 9 Byuzand Street is on the list of historical architectural monuments, subject to be transported and rebuilt elsewhere.

People who live on Byuzand Street have nothing against plans to improve the city's architecture, but they are not clear as to what program is being implemented and what exactly is to be built on their property. "Let them preserve the architectural facade of the city, propose projects and discuss them, so that we can see them, too and say 'Wow, great job, that's a wonderful idea.' But they've said that it is 'in the state's own interests'. What interests? Aren't we the state?" argued Suren Sisakyan.

According to Edward Melikyan, the projects are being developed and agreed upon with the other construction companies and will be ready, in all likelihood, by the beginning of summer. Meanwhile, people in the Red Zone are convinced that the demands put to them are un-constitutional. According to Article 28 of the Constitution, "Alienation of property in the interests of Society and the State is possible only in exceptional cases, based on the law, following prior compensation." But this particular case does not appear to be exceptional, the interests of society are not clear, and the corresponding laws have not been passed.

May 31 st is the deadline set for implementing the project, the Glendale Hills director says. If they haven't succeeded in evicting the residents by then, all they need to do is provide valid documents regarding the delayed legal process, and the deadline will be postponed.

Lusine Grigoryan
Department of Journalism, Yerevan State University