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The Huffington Post: Armenia Migration Exodus Creates Women-Only Villages

11 August 2011 09:05 (UTC +04:00)

â€œWhile many men are leaving the former Soviet nation to go to Russia to earn enough money to support their families, women and children are usually left behind to work in the fields, the BBC is reporting. One mother-of-two said that many women fear their husbands will set up second families in Russia, which has happened often. As Milena Kazaryan, a resident of Dzoragyugh, tells the BBC: â€œAll of the women are really scared. We phone every morning and every evening, to find out what our husbands are up to. It’s always really stressful wondering whether he’ll come back or not. A lot of the women here worry because they think that in Russia all the girls are beautiful. And the problem is that the men work very hard so of course they also want to relax. That’s why they’re scared. It’s really tough because the whole family is just waiting and waiting for the men to come back. All we want is jobs in Armenia so that our families can stay together and so that fathers can see their children grow up. A family is more than just the mum. We need the dads here too."

As one human rights activist writes, the lack of men is starting to be felt throughout Armenian society, and the birthrate is already starting to be affected. Meanwhile, Armenia’s prime minister recently tried to downplay speculations about the mass exodus, and said the government has had success in promoting the nation’s birthrate. But the society and other organizations are seriously concerned about the current situation.