YEREVAN. – A museum to the victims of the Stalin-era mass repression will be opened in Armenia, Minister of Culture Armen Amiryan told reporters after Cabinet’s meeting on Thursday.

According to him, the Armenian government has never shied away from discussing the topic

The exhibition in the memory of Stalin's repression was opened in the courtyard of the Hovhannes Tumanyan House Museum in Yerevan. The exhibition has been recently closed. Museum director Narine Tukhikyan said that she was forced to close the exhibition under a threat, while deputy minister of culture Arev Samuelyan, commenting on the situation, stated that the issue should not be politicized.

The minister said that no one has the right to threaten anyone. If this really happened, the perpetrators will be held accountable. The Armenian authorities are not silencing the theme of repressions, while the claims that the government covers or justifies them is a political speculation, Amiryan added.

“The exhibition was closed exclusively for technical reasons. The exhibition was spontaneous, it was not coordinated with the Ministry of Culture. This should be done not because of cultural censorship, but because of control over spending the budget. There are thousands of our compatriots among the victims of repression. A few of my relatives as well,” said Amiryan.