Hunger Strike Backs Cause of Armenian Dissident

Three Armenian natives from the Los Angeles area are entering the 11th day of a hunger strike outside the Soviet Embassy here, but they have made no apparent progress in persuading Soviet officials to allow an Armenian pro-democracy dissident to return home.

The men are camped outside the embassy in support of Parour Hayrikyan, now in Los Angeles, who leads the National Democratic Movement and wants to address a November conference of the Alliance for Self-Determination in Soviet Armenia.

“If they don’t give Hayrikyan a visa to return to Armenia, we’ll continue our hunger strike,” said Armen Zatikyan of Glendale.

Embassy spokesman Boris Malakhov had no comment on the hunger strike.

Zatikyan, an economist in Armenia before he immigrated to the United States with his family 10 years ago, said other Armenians will travel from Los Angeles to relieve the three men if no headway is made.

Hollywood residents Seyran Badalian and Sarkis Revazian, who are striking with Zatikyan, continue to wear hospital identification tags on their wrists from visits to George Washington University Hospital for malnourishment-related illnesses.

The trio started their round-the-clock demonstration across the street from the embassy Oct. 16.

“They pitched a tent on private property, refused to leave (and) were arrested for trespassing,” said Lt. J. Acosta of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s special operations division.

Zatikyan said the charges were dropped the same night.

When the men later met with Soviet officials outside the embassy to deliver a list of demands, Zatikyan said, they were told they could return. But Wednesday, they waited at the embassy gate for an hour, prompting Zatikyan to joke: “They’re calling Moscow.”

Minutes later a muffled voice sounded out of an intercom on the embassy gate: “Perhaps you should wait across the street.”

“We’ll be back tomorrow,” said Zatikyan before crossing the street to sit in his folding lawn chair.

Later, the Armenians said they have an appointment this morning with Soviet spokesman Garnik Nanagouralian.