A Follow Up In Gohar’s Case

A1 Plus published a follow-up article–this time both in Armenian and English– about the case of Gohar Martirosyan, who tragically committed suicide on June 4 after she discovered she had flunked an impossible university entrance exam testing knowledge of the Armenian language and literature.

Below is the full text, with my minor copy edits in brackets.

The [Armenian] Assessment and Testing Centre (ATC) today published the results of a joint examination in Armenian Language and Literature held on June 4 across the republic.

Interestingly, posters appeared on the walls of Yerevan buildings today with [strong statements addressed] to the [ATC].

“The [Armenian language exam] sows hatred towards the language,” “Check our knowledge and not the contents of our parents’ pocket,” “You are responsible for Gohar’s death,” read the posters.

The [ATC] declined to comment on the accusations.

“The messages convey public accusations. The ATC is not a political body to answer the accusations,” said ATC spokeswoman Gayane Manukyan.

“The [ATC] will invite specialists to discuss the exam results after receiving the appeals which are to be submitted [to] examination centers within 24 hours,” she added.

[We remind readers] that the exam was marred by an incident in which a teenage girl committed suicide soon after learning that she had scored an unsatisfactory mark (7.5 points [out of a possible 20]) for Armenian language and literature.

Gohar Martirosyan, 17, who studied at Viktor Hambartsumyan Secondary School #12 in Yerevan’s Shengavit community, jumped from a seventh-floor balcony after learning the result of the exam.

Today, the ATC spokeswoman refused to comment on the consequences of the death saying the police probe into the case is ongoing.

I hope to continue posting more updates about this tragic situation, specifically on the ATC’s unacceptably delayed reaction.

There’s another very interesting article on Tert.am that claims 1,171 students have failed the Armenian language and literature examination thus far this year.