On August 23, 1990, the “Declaration on the Independence
of Armenia” approved by the Supreme Council (former Supreme Soviet) of the
Republic of Armenia initiated the process of independence according to the legal
framework established by the Soviet Constitution, which was assumed to last up
to five years.
Mikhail Gorbachev, the last First Secretary of the
Soviet Union, organized a referendum to preserve the Soviet Union, held on March
17, 1991, to ask whether the constituents considered “necessary the preservation
of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as a renewed federation of equal
sovereign republics.” Six republics, including Armenia, boycotted the
referendum, which nevertheless had almost 70% of approval in the remaining nine
republics. On March 1, the Supreme Council had issued a resolution to organize a
referendum to allow Armenia to legally secede from the USSR.
The preparations in the spring and summer were not only
on a legal and organization level, but also took the form of an ideological
struggle. The new democratic authorities led by the Armenian National Movement
(ANM), which had come to power in August 1990, struggled both against those
forces that considered independence a dangerous and meaningless movement, or
pushed for a declaration of independence without referendum. The legalist
position of the Armenian authorities and the steps taken towards the
establishment of democracy were heavily praised by the international press,
since they did not leave room for any opposition from Moscow and ensured an
orderly transition.
 The month prior to the referendum was heavy in changes
that impacted on the public reception: the successful resistance of democratic
forces against the failed putsch of August 1991 in Russian that tried to
re-establish the old Soviet order; the recognition of the independence of the
three Baltic states; the proclamation of independence by the Supreme Councils of
various republics, et cetera.
The campaign for the “Yes” multiplied its efforts in the
first twenty days of September, and the declarations by public figures and
organizations from Catholicos Vazken I to the Writers Union had a cascade effect
that countered the anti-propaganda of Moscow agents and anti-independence
forces. Levon Ter Petrosian, president of the Supreme Council, issued a
declaration on the evening of September 19: “… We are taking a decisive step,
which must be followed with the proclamation of the independence of Armenia by
the Supreme Council. But we are all aware that independence is not a goal in
itself for us. Independence is just a means to reach Freedom, because the
supreme goal is freedom. Only the independent statehood of the nation may ensure
freedom for each individual and people. We do not go towards independence with
sentimentalism; we go with awareness, rationality, and true political
calculation . . .”
The organization of the referendum fell upon the Central
Electoral Committee headed by the vice-president of the Supreme Council, Babken
Ararktsian. The referendum was orderly held and in a festive environment. On the
third Saturday in September 1991, people across Armenia left their homes to do
something they had never done before: vote in a referendum. Old and young alike
crowded voting stations, determined to make their voices heard. Even newly
married couples, still attired in wedding garb, set aside time to cast their
vote. The 117 observers invited from more than two dozen countries and
international organizations did not report any irregularity and noted that
Armenia was the only country holding a legally binding
referendum.
The participation in the referendum of September 21 was
95.4 per cent of legally registered voters (2,163,967 people), and 94.39 per cent
of them (2,042,627 people or 99.51% of the actual voters) voted “Yes” to the
question posed to them: “Do you agree that the Republic of Armenia becomes an
independent, democratic state out of the U.S.S.R.?”
Armenia had become independent by the will of its
citizens. On Monday, September 23, the results of the referendum were introduced
to the session of the Supreme Council, which passed the historical
decision:
“Faithful to the declaration on the independence of
Armenia, based on the norms of human rights and free determination of nations,
with the goal of creating a democratic, juridical society, on the grounds of the
results of the referendum held about coming out of the U.S.S.R. on September 21,
1991, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia proclaims the Republic of
Armenia an independent state.”
September 21 became, rightfully, a holiday. The Supreme
Council addressed the population in the following terms, which were an
anticipation of what Armenia would see in the next twenty-five
years:
“The return to identity will not be easy. We are just
starting to walk on the road of freedom. The path crossed by civilized humankind
shows that this is not a matter of one day and, especially, it is not an easy
road. Therefore, prudently incorporating the experience of progressive states,
we must be able to maintain and enrich ours. Yes, we are going towards the
family of the entire humanity, but under our own flag, with our independent
statehood and our own profile. New trials wait for us on the road of freedom.
This will be a daily test for us. Let’s keep our enthusiasm, but let’s also be
filled with realism; let’s be dreamers, but with alert
judgment.”
The Soviet Union collapsed barely three months later, on
December 25, 1991, and the Republic of Armenia was accepted as a full member of
the international community as a sovereign state, joining the United Nations on
March 2, 1992. Meanwhile, as a result of the referendum held on December 10,
1991, the Republic of Mountainous Gharabagh had also proclaimed its independence
as a second Armenian state, yet unrecognized to this day.
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