Director of the Zvartnots Historical-Cultural Museum- Reserve V. Grigoryan has been fired over carelessness, with Head of the Service for Protection of the Historical-Cultural Museum-Reserves in Armenia Vardan Poghosyan being roundly rebuked. Ministry of Culture told Armenia a private company organized a corporate party in the area of the Reserve, but failed to fulfill all the provisions in the appropriate agreements.
These days a similar incident happened at the Garni Cultural - Historical Reserve. Tourists had not been allowed to visit the popular sight for several days, as the Central Bank of Armenia planned a corporate party in the areas of the Garni Temple and held organizations for the event.
Earlier, Vardan Poghosyan, the Head of the Service for Protection of the Historical-Cultural Museum- Reserves in Armenia, told ArmInfo that the law does not prohibit organizing events in the area of the Garni Temple. According to him, the Ministry of Culture has a right to lease the historical monuments under its jurisdiction. "Moreover, the event was, inherently, advertising the ancient historical monument," Poghosyan said and added that even a historical monument can be closed for tourists at least for a day in a month. He said that the Central Bank paid 1,120,000 drams for organization of the corporate party in the area of the temple. -m-