'Keep the Saddle and the Horse,' An Armenian Metaphor Shared at the United Nations
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, July 25, 2026
GENEVA -- Sharing a metaphor of the horse, salt and saddle, the Armenian Association told the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples that Indigenous Peoples are an irreplaceable part of human heritage."They are the gatekeepers of languages, knowledge, and ancestral relations with land, which enrich cultural diversity for all of humankind," said the Armenian delegation whose people have survived genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Over the centuries, many peoples have handed down deep but simple knowledge, the delegation said during the week-long session.
"The survival of a community does not depend on its physical presence on the territory, but also on its ability to transmit its memory and forge its future."
"This is best expressed through a symbolic metaphor, which is to keep the saddle and the horse."
"The saddle refers to the tradition, the language, the customs and the values that make it possible for people to preserve its identity throughout time. Since antiquity, the saddle has been associated with the preservation— or salt, rather, has been associated with preservation. And the horse represents continuity transmission."
"In many civilizations, the horse is the companion to journeys and hope and movement. Symbolizes the ability of a people to maintain its institutions and look towards the future and continue its right to self-determination in accordance with international law."
"Salt without the horse preserves the memory but does not prepare for the future."
"The horse without the salt moves forward without knowing where it comes from."
"Indigenous peoples need both of them, and they need to preserve their memory while also ensuring that their memory and culture and links to their ancestral lands are all preserved. The protection of Indigenous peoples are therefore not only about protecting the past, but also about protecting and guaranteeing the future."
"It is about ensuring that the salt of the earth of their memory is preserved and that the horse helps to be strengthened through their participation in the Human Rights Council."
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