He joined the Armenian national liberation movement through the ranks of the Armenakans in 1888.

In 1896, during the defense of Van, he obtaining weapons from Persia to organize self-defense in the city.

He was imprisoned with 40 of his comrades and then released at the end of the conflict.

After the deposition of the Sultan by the Young Turk Revolution, he returned to Van in 1908.

Aram Manoukian, Armenak Yekarian and others tried to give a national-civil character to the exclusively militarized administration.