Prof. Simon Payaslian to Lecture at NAASR on “The Political Economy of Human Rights in Armenia”

BELMONT, MA — Prof. Simon Payaslian, the Charles K. and Elisabeth M. Kenosian Chair in Modern Armenian History and Literature at Boston University, will give a lecture entitled “The Political Economy of Human Rights in Armenia,” on Thursday, May 10, 2012, at 8:00 p.m., at the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) Center, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA. The lecture is co-sponsored by the Zoryan Institute for Contemporary Armenian Research and Documentation and NAASR.
Since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Armenia has experienced a reversal from its earlier efforts to establish a democratic system to an authoritarian regime, continuing the Soviet repressive approaches to human rights. Payaslian will juxtapose Armenian history with the evolution of international human rights standards and survey Armenian history from the nineteenth century under Ottoman and Russian rule to the current situation in the post-Soviet republic. He will examine political, civil, social, and economic rights while highlighting the clash between sovereignty and human rights.
Simon Payaslian has held the Kenosian Chair in Modern Armenian History and Literature at Boston University since 2007. His most recent book is The Political Economy of Human Rights in Armenia: Authoritarianism and Democracy in a Former Soviet Republic (I.B. Tauris, 2011). Earlier publications include The History of Armenia: From the Origins to the Present (2007); United States Policy toward the Armenian Question and the Armenian Genocide (2005); The Armenian Genocide, 1915-1923: A Handbook for Students and Teachers (2001); International Political Economy: Conflict and Cooperation in the Global System (co-authored with Frederic S. Pearson) (1999); and U.S. Foreign Economic and Military Aid: The Reagan and Bush Administrations (1996). He has co-edited (with Richard G. Hovannisian) two volumes, Armenian Constantinople (2010) and Armenian Cilicia (2008).
The Political Economy of Human Rights in Armenia will be available for purchase and signing the night of the lecture.
Admission to the event is free (donations appreciated). The NAASR Center is located opposite the First Armenian Church and next to the U.S. Post Office. Ample parking is available around the building and in adjacent areas. The lecture will begin promptly at 8:00 p.m.
More information about the lecture is available by calling 617-489-1610, faxing 617-484-1759, e-mailing hq@naasr.org, or writing to NAASR, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA 02478.