Constitutional Referendum in Armenia: general compliance marred by incidents of serious abuse

28 Nov 2005
Relief Web
Source: Council of Europe (COE)

Yerevan, 28.11.2005 - The Council of Europe observers to the Constitutional Referendum held on 27 November 2005 in Armenia regret the decision taken by the authorities which precluded the attendance of any other international observers. The transparency of the referendum was further hampered by the decision of the parliamentary opposition to call on their members to withdraw from the electoral commissions. It is also regrettable that political pluralism inside polling stations was not better assisted by a greater number of domestic observers.

The 14-member delegation from the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities noted that the Referendum generally reflected the free will of those who voted. However, on voting day the observers witnessed serious abuse in several polling stations which cast a shadow over the credibility of the officially announced turn-out.
[...]
In conclusion, the delegation considers that the abuses that marred the referendum were against the intent and interest of the Armenian people. It expects that the Central Electoral Commission investigate thoroughly all the allegations brought to its attention and that all the necessary measures will be taken against those responsible for fraud.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

RA President Signed Decree on Instituting Prize for Contribution to Armenian Genocide Recognition

28.11.2005
PanARMENIAN.Net

Armenian President Robert Kocharian signed a decree on instituting a prize for the contribution to the Armenian Genocide recognition, reported RA leader's press service. The prize will be annual and will consist of a certificate, order and money award. The prize was instituted due to the agreement concluded with the members of Rober Poghosian & Sons Foundation and Hayastan Pan-Armenian Foundation.

Reproduction in full or in part is prohibited without reference to «PanARMENIAN.Net».

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Europe on Watch as Armenia Goes to Referendum

November 27, 2005
zaman.com
By Emre Demir, Cihan News Agency

Europe as well awaits the outcome of the constitutional referendum in Armenia. The positive public response bears great importance for the Council of Europe (CE).
[...]
[...]. Joining the CE requires the acceptance of the principle of the supremacy of the law and the guaranteeing of the basic human rights and the freedoms of the citizens. CE had launched a process of reform in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, which were accepted as members in 2000.

The referendum in Armenia received a noticeably low level of international observer participation. The European Union and the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) did not send any observers to the referendum and CE sent a team of 18 observers. The elections held on November 6 in Azerbaijan however were followed by 1,500 observers from various international organizations.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

If Armenians say “Yes”, Fanatic Diaspora will Empower

November 27, 2005
zaman.com
By Foreign News Desk

The Armenian Society heads towards voting ballots in order to vote for the Constitutional change package, which will determine the power balance between the Parliament and the President.

Ankara is concerned about the package, covering 107 of the 119 articles in the Armenian Constitution. The reform package enables the fanatic Armenian Diaspora, which has a negative attitude towards Turkey, to have double citizenships.[...].
[...]
Opposition Opposes Immunity and Right to Dissolve

The opposition, however, refuses to approve the reforms. Eighteen parties united against the idea of making constitutional amendments. Those opposing the reforms package are split into two groups of “no” voters and “boycotters”.
[...]
‘Orange Revolution Far Away from Yerevan’

Political observers, on the other hand, regard the positive outcome of the referendum as being important for the political advancement of Armenia. The opposition parties may receive enough support from the public, asserted the experts, not crediting the possibility of a revolution of the kind that was experienced in Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. The opposition does not have the resources to have a revolution and there is no basis for the eruption of a possible rebellion, say the experts. Most of the people are confused about the constitutional amendments; however, they will vote for these amendments anyway partly because European experts have worked out such amendments.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Noon: 1 410 555 people voted for amendments

28.11.2005
PanARMENIAN.Net

According to the data provided by the Central Electoral Commission, 1 511 934 (65,3%) out of 2 313 999 voted in the constitutional referendum in 1964 constituencies in Armenia and abroad. 1 410 555 (93,3%) voted for the amendments and 81 869 (5,4%) against. 20 326 ballots were declared invalid. To note, earlier CEC Chairman Garegin Azaryan informed no complaints have been received. [...].
[...]
{Earlier stories:
Assembly President calls on Armenians to vote in Constitutional referendum
Opposition Set For Fresh Campaign Of Rallies In Yerevan
Armenia: Both Sides Gear Up For Constitutional Referendum }

Reproduction in full or in part is prohibited without reference to «PanARMENIAN.Net».

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Purchasers urged to look beyond China and India

28 November 2005
Supply Management
By Geraint John

Buyers must look further than obvious low-cost countries to source goods, according to François Xavier-Terny, co-founder of the cost consultancy Masai.28 Nov 2005.

Addressing delegates at the ProcureCon event held in Brussels last week, he said: “It's not all about China, China, China, although that’s what many CEOs seem to expect.”
[...]
Xavier-Terny said astute buyers were already looking at countries such as Morocco and Senegal for call centres, Romania for pharmaceutical contract R&D, and Armenia for software development – despite the greater risks.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity

November 27, 2005
ArtDaily.com

PARIS, FRANCE.-The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today proclaimed 43 new Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritages of Humanity. [...]. This is UNESCO’s third proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage, an international distinction destined to raise public awareness of the value of this heritage, which includes popular and traditional oral forms of expression, music and dance, rituals and mythologies, knowledge and practices concerning the universe, know-how linked to traditional crafts, as well as cultural spaces. Often vulnerable, this heritage, a repository of cultural diversity, is essential to the identity of communities and peoples.

The 43 masterpieces proclaimed this year are:

[...]
- Duduk Music (Armenia)
[...]

The 43 new masterpieces were proposed to the Director-General by an 18-member jury chaired by Princess Basma Bint Talal of Jordan. The jury met from 20 to 24 November to examine 64 national and multinational candidatures. A total of 47 masterpieces were proclaimed in 2001 and 2003. Twenty-seven of them have already benefited from UNESCO’s support, particularly from safeguarding operations which received financial assistance from Japan.

This third proclamation will probably be the last. [...].
[...]

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The Perception Gap

24 November 2005
TOL
by Haroutiun Khachatrian

A recent comparative study shows that residents of the three South Caucasus republics have low levels of tolerance for other ethnic groups and people, with a limited understanding of the role of democracy in resolving conflicts.

The study, “Tolerance and Regional Peace Building,” written by Anahit Mkrtchian, a Yerevan-based independent scholar, examined perceptions of democracy and tolerance levels in Baku, Tbilisi and Yerevan, based on data culled by public opinion pollsters in 2004. The findings, released in Yerevan on 20 September, showed that only 14.6 percent of the Armenian capital’s inhabitants and 9.7 percent of Tbilisi’s and Baku’s residents considered democracy-building to be important for their countries. [...].
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Correspondingly, trust in parliaments, courts, and political parties ranked below 50 percent in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. Of all three cases, Yerevan was distinctive as the city with the lowest trust toward official structures. Only 16 percent of the 1,500 Yerevan respondents reported trusting the courts, while in Tbilisi and Baku, the Georgian and Azeri capitals, respectively, the percent recorded was twice that number. Belief in the police’s ability to protect city residents was also low: less than 20 percent of Yerevan and Tbilisi respondents said that they trusted law-enforcement agents, while in Baku that number reached a mere 41 percent.
[...]
Military and executive leaders enjoy the greatest degree of trust in all three Caucasian capitals, the study found. Over 70 percent of respondents in Baku, Tbilisi and Yerevan expressed trust in the army. Similarly, 84.8 percent of Baku and 86.4 percent of Tbilisi inhabitants expressed belief in their countries’ presidents. By March 2005, those ratings had dipped to 62 percent for Azeri President Ilham Aliev and 76 percent for Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.

In Yerevan, by contrast, only 30.3 percent of the capital’s population trusted President Robert Kocharian. That number had increased by more than 15 percentage points by March 2005, when 45 percent of respondents said they trusted the Armenian leader.
[...]
At the same time, while trust in executive leaders was high in Baku and Tbilisi, considerable skepticism existed in all three capitals about the role of non-governmental organizations and other civil society groups and media. Again, Yerevan stood out with comparatively lower trust in media and NGOs. [...] NGOs, in particular, are often seen as a source of additional income for current government officials, while NGOs and media are seen as a safety net for unemployed intelligentsia.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Oskanian: Karabakh Talks Underwent «Drastic Changes» during 10 Years

25.11.2005
PanARMENIAN.Net

During the past 10 years the talks over settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict underwent «drastic changes», Armenian FM Vartan Oskanian stated in Los Angeles. [...].

[...] «After the conflict began international developments and processes of self-determination in various parts of the world radically changed the international community's attitude towards the issue in question. We witnessed declaration of independence of East Timor via referendum, signing of an agreement in Sudan, which ended a long-term conflict owing to an agreement over a referendum,» the Armenian FM said. [...].

«Politics and law experts increasingly recognize the opportunity and the actuality of exercising the right for self-determination if certain circumstances are available,» the Armenian FM added. [...] the NK conflict essence lies in the territorial issue. «When the conflict began, there were no territories controlled by Armenians outside NK. These territories were taken under control of Armenia not only due to the differences over the NK status, but due to Azerbaijan trying to suppress the yearning to self-determination by force,» V. Oskanian summed up.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

GEORGIA: Religious minorities still second-class faiths?

25 November 2005
Forum 18, Oslo, Norway
By Felix Corley, Forum 18 News Service

Only two in-country non-Orthodox religious communities in Georgia – the Mormons and the Muslims - have received state registration, Forum 18 News Service has found. [...].
[...]
Without legal status, religious communities cannot own property communally, run communal bank accounts, or go to court as a community. This leads to some strange anomalies. "It is completely unacceptable that the Armenian Apostolic cathedral in Tbilisi is owned personally by the archbishop," a priest of the Armenian Church told Forum 18 from the church headquarters at Echmiadzin in Armenia on 21 November. "We want legal status as a fully-fledged religious community. It is only right and proper."

Registration of religious organisations became possible – for the first time in 15 years - after parliament on 6 April 2005 approved amendments to the Civil Code, allowing religious communities to register with the Ministry of Justice.[...].
[...]
These communities want to have status as public legal personalities, a status granted only to the Georgian Orthodox Patriarchate in a controversial 2002 Concordat between the Orthodox Church and the state. The Concordat not only granted the Orthodox Patriarchate legal status, but also numerous privileges denied to all other religious communities. [...].
[...]
Mindiashvili of the Ombudsperson's Office [...] said that while he has detected little discontent with the new registration terms from Protestants and other minorities, the Catholics and Armenians have been public about their objections.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Turkish delegation vote on Gyumri-Kars railroad

November 26, 2005
Hurriyet

Turkey is said to have voted for a resolution this week at the Black Sea Economic Council calling for reopening of the Gyumri-Kars railroad, currently closed due to the Turkish blockade. The resolution was passed by the council reported the Regnum agency. The railroad has been closed since the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh. Currently, Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan plan to build a new railroad line that will exclude the Armenian town of Gyumri – Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku.

The Regnum agency reported: "On November 24, a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) in Tirana (Albania) supported a proposition of the Armenian delegation to start of railroad line Kars (Turkey) – Gyumri (Armenia) – Tbilisi (Georgia) – Baku (Azerbaijan). Armenia is motivated by the fact, that the railroad, which is currently idle because of Turkey’s position, could connect four countries of the region – Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Turkey."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Israeli chief rabbi in historic Armenia visit

24/Nov/2005
European Jewish Press
By David Dahan

Israel’s Ashkenazi chief rabbi Yona Metzger said the Jewish community recognizes the 1915 Turkish massacre of Armenians as a genocide, during an historic visit to Armenia on Tuesday. {see Israel’s Chief Rabbi Remembers Armenian Genocide Victims }
[...]
Turkish ’shocked’

Deniz Saporta, the press officer for Turkey’s chief rabbi Itzak Haleva, told EJP that Turkey’s Jewish community did not want to interfere on the national debate of the genocide.

"We only heard about it today, and we are a little shocked," Saporta said. "Let the historians do their job and then we will se," she added. No official statement from the rabbinate was released so far.

"It is rather a surprise, In my personal opinion, to see a Jewish religious leader accepting Armenian allegations of genocide," Selcuk Gultasli, Zaman publications Brussels Representative, told EJP.

"The Chief Rabbi should have read one of the most respected Ottoman history scholars, American professor of Jewish origin Bernard Lewis who calls the claims unfounded."

"It is ironical that it was the Ottoman Empire that saved Spanish Jews from another genocide in Spain in the 1492 by shipping them to Turkey," Gultasli concluded.
[...]
Denying genocide

Marc Knobel, a charge d’affaire for the CRIF Jewish umbrella organization in France stressed that there was not a single view on the debate in Israel; some scholars and politicians do not believe it was a genocide, but many in Israel disagreed.

"The declarations of the Israeli Chief rabbi are honorable. It is totally respectuous of the Armenian tragedy to qualify these events as a genocide," he stressed.
[...]
"The CRIF has a moderate and reasonable view on the matter," Knobel added, alluding to the organization engaged dialogue with Armenian groups. "Without comparing and equalizing each genocide, we can say that the mass extermination of Armenians, Jews, Cambodians and Tutsis in Rwanda are genocides," he said. "without omitting the specificity of the Shoah."

"It is just shameful that many people, and among them Jews, deny the Armenian genocide for despicable reasons," Knobel concluded.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Arnold Schwartzeneger Greets Telethon 2005

24 November 2005
Armenia Diaspora

Yerevan, November 24, Armenpress: The governor of the US State of California Arnold Schwartzeneger greeted today the Telethon 2005 charity initiative organized by the "Hayastan" Pan-Armenian Foundation.

The governor said he is happy that people serve their compatriots and help them. "I greet the American Armenians who are putting their efforts towards the strengthening of Nagorno Karabagh. This initiative will promote the development of Karabagh transport infrastructure, health and education spheres as well as will promote the prosperity in the country," said the Californian governor.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Georgia Loses Its Function in the World

November 24,2005
Daily Georgian Times
By Levan Pirveli from Austria, exclusively for The Georgian Times

[...]
Austrian energy giant OMV has developed a gas pipeline project called Nabuko, which would run across Armenia-Turkey-Bulgaria (Serbia Chernogoria)-Romania-Hungary-Austria. The gas pipelines operating in Armenia may deliver Azeri, Iranian and Russian gas (through the gas pipeline operating in Azerbaijan). Latest research in the Caspian region has shown that the Caspian oil resources are less than previously predicted, while reserves in the Shah-Deniz deposit exceeded expectations.

[...] gas will be the focal point of interests in the region. For the same reason, Armenia is likely to turn into a critical junction for gas distribution. Given that Armenia remains a military and political ally of Russia and its energy sector is under Russian control, the new project will run under Russian surveillance.
[...]
At a glance, the weak point of this pipeline is the relationships between Armenia and Azerbaijan and between Armenia and Turkey.

Today Russia prefers to search for a solution to these intractable problems rather than run a political risk and let natural gas flow via US-controlled Georgia. Detente and rapprochement between Tbilisi and Moscow seems less plausible than peacemaking between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Kocharian did not Rule out Armenia Officially Recognizing NKR

24.11.2005
PanARMENIAN.Net

«I do not rule out Yerevan recognizing the Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR) or joining the NKR to Armenia in case the talks are exhausted without any outcomes,» stated Armenian President Robert Kocharian.

In his words, the de facto recognition of the NKR by Armenia has taken place long ago. R. Kocharian reminded that the NKR uses Armenian currency – dram, and there is a common customs zone, etc.

«At the moment a serious integration process is under way, the relations between Armenia and the NKR can be considered as a disproportionate confederation,» the Armenian leader stated in an interview with the Delo Slovenian newspaper, reported Mediamax.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

TURKEY: NEW CODE PENALISES FREE EXPRESSION

IFEX

Turkey's bid to join the European Union has come under renewed criticism following reports that legal reforms aimed at satisfying EU standards on human rights are failing to safeguard freedom of expression and press freedom.

International PEN's Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) says Turkey's amended Penal Code, enacted in June 2005, has not led to fewer court cases brought against writers, publishers and journalists. In fact, the opposite seems to be true. Growing numbers of individuals are being sued under Article 301, which penalises those who insult the military and the State.

The Article states, "A person who explicitly insults being a Turk, the Republic or the Turkish Grand National Assembly, shall be imposed a penalty of imprisonment for a term of six months to three years."
[...]
WiPC says there are about 60 individuals who are facing court proceedings in Turkey because of what they wrote or published.

They include publisher Ragip Zarakolu, newspaper editor Ersen Korkmaz, Rahmi Yildirim, Emin Karaca and Sehmus Ülek, vice-president of the human rights group Mazlum-Der.

In its latest report on Turkey's progress toward meeting EU membership criteria, the EU says the Penal Code will have to be amended if prosecutors continue to open new cases against individuals who express their opinions peacefully.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Transeuro Energy-Armenia-Update

NOVEMBER 23, 2005
CCNMatthews

[...]
The Company has designed and completed a data room with the goal to collect information to prepare for drilling exploration wells on two known plays, the Oktemberian gas and Shorakpour oil prospects. [...].

Transeuro has identified 10 drilling targets in the Kamir (formerly known as Oktemberian) region 65 kilometers south-west of Yerevan and 2 drilling targets in Shorakhpur region 15 kilometers east of Yerevan. The Company will pursue farm-in opportunities for participation in drilling these targets.

[...] The Company has [...] determined the amount of possible hydrocarbon pay in each well, examined the potential to re-enter and work over some of the old wells. A preliminary [...] report confirms the presence of gas pay in the Kamir wells and oil pay in the Shorakhpur wells.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Apply for summer program in Armenia

November 24, 2005
Belmont Citizen Herald

The Cambridge-Yerevan Sister City Association is recruiting students to apply for its summer program in partnership with School No. 190 in the Southwest District of Yerevan, Armenia.

CYSCA has been sponsoring youth exchange programs to Armenia since 1994 and Belmont High School students and teachers have enjoyed this partnership relationship since 2000. Former Belmont teachers in residence in Armenia, funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, have been Luke Bruffee, Cheryl Shushan, Alison Thalmann, and Nancy Aykanian.
[...]
The program offers a realistic introduction to teenage life in Armenia and the political, social, educational and economic challenges of a landlocked country in the Caucuses, with a 98 percent literacy rate. Armenia was the former site of the Soviet Olympic national training grounds and the largest Soviet telescope and observatory, was the seat of mathematics, science and physics for the former Soviet Union; and held the highest production rate of semi-finished goods during communism.
[...]
Programming includes: attending a political science class at Yerevan State University; visiting the World Bank office; and students interested in medicine will be invited to tour a city hospital and observe surgery in the operating room. In addition they will visit the U.S. Embassy, United Nations Building and Peace Corps office, volunteer at an orphanage, ride amusements at Victory Park, attend an open air concert, go to the opera, shop in Armenia's outdoor craft markets, travel through four seasons in one day, dance at a disco, make lavash bread in an Armenian village, visit 3,000-year-old historical sights, walk among ancient ruins, visit orphanages, go to museums, swim in the "Caribbean" of Armenia, enjoy an ice cream by the singing fountains in Republic Square, work on joint projects, and volunteer side by side with Armenian students to make a difference in the country.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Town twinners look to Armenia

24 November 2005
Bucks Free Press
By Sam Clements

THE Mayor of High Wycombe has visited two towns in Armenia which have been nominated for twinning with High Wycombe.

Idjevan and Dilidjan, in the north-east province of Tavoosh, have been put forward by members of the Chilterns Armenian Society (CAS), chaired by Odette Bazil.
[...]
Mayor Ali said: "It was an excellent five-day visit and we had a wonderful reception from the people and mayors of each town.

"The Town Twinning Association is now considering the proposal and the potential for developing cultural, trade and education links between the two countries."

The tour was met by the third secretary of the Armenian Ambassador to London and the British Council in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. They generated huge interest from locals and the media, visited attractions in each town and a small concert in honour of Mayor Ali at the Idjevan Academy of Music.

[...] Mrs Bazil hopes the proposal will introduce Armenian culture to British people.

She added: "We want to portray an accurate and meaningful picture of Armenian origins, culture, craft and music to a society that already understands cultural diversity."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

ATP 'Enters the Forest' With Large-Scale Reforestation Program

22 Nov 2005
Groong
ATP Press Release

YEREVAN--Nearly 120,000 tree seedlings for reforestation were purchasedthis Fall by Armenia Tree Project (ATP) from backyard nurseries owned by residents of the rural villages of Aghavnavank, Dzoravank, and Aygut. These rural communities are inhabited by Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan and are located in the Getik River Valley near Lake Sevan.
[...]
In 2004, as part of its 10th anniversary, ATP announced the beginningof its first large scale reforestation initiative, which was strongly encouraged by its many generous donors. This phase of the project was made possible through a leadership gift of $100,000 from Mr. and Mrs. Augustus Barber of Maine, who have been enthusiastic supporters since 1995.

In the early 1990s, Gus Barber visited Armenia and witnessed people with no work, food, or prospects for improvement. "Trees were being cut down everywhere, and people cannot live without trees," he told ATP. Gus was so struck by the unfortunate plight of Armenia that he made a commitment to improving the situation.

Gus' personal experiences as the son of Armenian immigrants gave him a particular appreciation for the hardships of others. In 1955, he started a small business with just three employees. Today, as President of Barber Foods, he employs over 850 workers. Over 40 percent of his staff are immigrants, and each year he pays college tuition for 25 employees. The company celebrated its 50th anniversary in September.

Gus takes great pride in his own flourishing orchard of walnut, apple, and other fruit trees, plus a large stand of wild Maine blueberries. In recent years, the Barber Family supported the planting of over 5,000 walnut and almond trees at pilgrimage sites and in rural villages throughout Armenia. Gus was instrumental in assisting ATP with thebackyard fruit tree renewal project in Aygut, which was completed inFall 2004.

ATP established a unique backyard nursery pilot project in 2003 in Aygut. Working closely with communities and local officials, ATP entered into agreements with families interested in growing tree seedlings to be sold to ATP for reforestation of the mountainssurrounding their village.
[...]
In early 2005, ATP was planning to plant 90,000 trees in observance ofthe 90th anniversary of the Genocide. However, due to the expansionand success of this rural economic development program, the backyardnurseries produced 120,000 seedlings ready for planting. This, incombination with ATP's Community Tree Planting program, will resultin the planting of over 170,000 trees, far exceeding the number oftrees ever planted by ATP in a single year.

After signing contracts with ATP, each backyard nursery owner was provided with a variety of seeds from nearby forests as well as the necessary tools and equipment. In addition, ATP agro-specialists regularly visited the nurseries to provide technical assistance andtraining to the farmers. Participants were taught how to maintainsoil and properly nurture their seedlings, which needed to achieve a threshold height of 30 cm before being eligible for purchase by ATP.

According to a household survey conducted by ATP in 2003, theaverage annual income of rural villagers in Aygut was only $280,so the money earned by the families and workers involved in thisproject has provided a desperately needed source of income.
[...]
ATP was founded in 1994 with the vision of securing Armenia's futureby protecting its environment and advancing Armenia's socio-economicdevelopment by mobilizing resources to fund reforestation and communitytree planting. ATP uses trees to improve the standard of living ofArmenians, promoting self-sufficiency and aiding those with fewestresources first.

In just over 10 years, ATP has planted and rejuvenated nearly 750,000trees at more than 500 sites in 11 regions of Armenia and Artsakh. Withthe establishment of the new Mirak Family Reforestation nursery inMargahovit and expansion of the Backyard Nursery program, ATP hopesto soon be planting over one million trees per year in Armenia. Foradditional information, visit www.armeniatree.org or call toll-free(866) 965-TREE.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Kocharian: Armenia was Never against Turkey Accession to EU

23.11.2005 00:10

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ «Armenia has never been against Turkey's accession to the EU,» stated Armenian President Robert Kocharian in Ljubljana during today's joint news conference with Slovenian President Janez Drnovsek.

“We only said that the process of accession and conditions put forward by the EU should be unified for all candidates. There should be no beneficial terms, conditioned by the strategic position of any country, its size or population number,” the Armenian leader said.

Countries working for EU membership should establish good relations with all their neighbors and recognize their past, he also said.

«As for the process of Turkey's accession to the EU itself, it will be favorable to us, as we will have a more predictable neighbor, and Armenia's border with Turkey will be our border with the EU,» Kocharian stated, reported Mediamax.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Israel’s Chief Rabbi Remembers Armenian Genocide Victims

22, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Anna Saghabalian

Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger referred to the 1915-1918 massacres of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey as genocide and prayed for its estimated 1.5 million victims at the end of a two-day visit to Armenia on Tuesday.
[...]
“I would definitely use the term genocide,” he told reporters at the Tsitsernakabert memorial. “The photographs and documents that we saw at the Genocide Museum say it all. And the tears that we barely held back as walked through the museum were not contrived.”

“Nobody can feel the pain of the Armenians more deeply than we Jews,” he added.
[...]
Metzger stressed at Tsitsernakabert that religion is strictly separated from the state in Israel, implying that his view on the Armenian genocide should not be associated with the Israeli government’s position on the subject. The Jewish state refuses to recognize the 1915 mass killings as genocide, anxious not to alienate Turkey with which it maintains close political and security ties.

But a growing number of Israeli politicians and especially scholars are calling for a change in this policy. Among them is Yuri Stern, a member of the Israeli parliament who accompanied Metzger on the Armenia trip. He drew parallels between the Armenian genocide and the Jewish Holocaust.

“Hitler’s remark that the world didn’t care about the Armenian tragedy was not accidental,” Stern said. “For those assassins who exterminated one third of our people, the fact that the world was silent when Armenians were being killed was a sort of license to kill Jews. We know this and must not place political expediency above everything else.”

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Assembly President calls on Armenians to vote in Constitutional referendum

23 de noviembre de 2005
Council of Europe

The President of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, René van der Linden, has appealed to all Armenian citizens to participate in the forthcoming Constitutional referendum on 27 November.

“The revision of the Constitution is a major political event that will affect the daily lives of all Armenian citizens. It is therefore important that everyone expresses their opinion,” he said.

“Failure of this referendum due to a too low turnout, a repetition of what happened during the first Constitutional referendum on 25 May 2003, would be a major setback for Armenia’s progress in fulfilling some of the most important commitments the country made when joining the Council of Europe.”

The President concluded: “This is an opportunity for Armenians to show their commitment to Europe.”

Two Council of Europe bodies, the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, will observe the referendum. The Consitutional reform was also the subject of an opinion by the Council’s group of experts in constitutional law, the Venice Commission.

Link to President’s comments following his visit to Armenia

Link to Venice Commission’s final opinion

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Opposition Set For Fresh Campaign Of Rallies In Yerevan

21, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Emil Danielyan

The Armenian opposition shed more light on its plans to use Sunday’s constitutional referendum for another attempt at regime change, announcing over the weekend that its campaign of street protests in Yerevan will begin on voting day.
[...]
Sarkisian and other leaders of the opposition coalition have been campaigning across the country in motorcades made up of dozens of cars. On Saturday they drove through villages in the wine-growing area south of Yerevan, dropping leaflets and making brief stops in some of them before holding rallies in Artashat and the nearby town of Ararat. [...].
[...]
Meanwhile, officials at the regional branch of the pre-referendum “Yes” campaign sounded upbeat about their chances of winning popular support for Kocharian’s Western-backed constitutional changes. “I have no doubt that 70-75 percent of local voters will take part in the referendum,” its deputy head, Volodya Mazmanian, told RFE/RL, predicting a record-high turnout in Armenia’s post-Soviet history.
[...]
There is visibly less public interest in the referendum than in the 2003 elections. Attendance at opposition meetings is now significantly lower, and the “Yes” campaign holds similarly small indoors gatherings mostly attended by public sector employees.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia: Both Sides Gear Up For Constitutional Referendum

21 November 2005
RFE/RL
By Liz Fuller

Armenia's estimated 2.4 million registered voters will be called upon to vote on 27 November in a referendum on a package of draft constitutional amendments. Passage will require that a minimum of one-third of those voters approve the amendments -- which the United States, European Union, and Council of Europe have described as "vital" for the ongoing reform process.

But most opposition parties reject the amendments, arguing that the Armenian authorities themselves lack legitimacy, and therefore do not have the right to reform the country's basic law. The opposition is therefore urging voters to boycott the referendum, the outcome of which they accuse the leadership of planning to falsify.
[...]
In a 28 October address to students at Yerevan State University [...], Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian sought to demolish the opposition's arguments against the proposed changes and the "myths" that he said have grown up around some of them. Oskanian dismissed as "excuses with no underpinnings" the argument that the present Armenian leadership does not have the right to reform the constitution because it was not legitimately elected and has repeatedly violated it. He further dismissed as "myths" claims that the revised constitution would make it possible for the parliament to endorse changes in the country's borders, without the issue being put to a nationwide referendum; would give non-citizens the chance to buy unlimited quantities of land in Armenia; would make it possible, by removing the existing ban on dual citizenship, for Diaspora Armenians to play the decisive role in running the country; and would grant the incumbent president immunity from prosecution and lift the existing ban on a president serving more than two consecutive terms.
[...]
According to an opinion poll conducted by the Vox Populi center in Yerevan in early November and summarized on 18 November by Noyan Tapan, 54 percent of respondents intend to participate in the referendum, of whom 46.6 percent said they will vote "yes." Whether that comparatively low level of support is due to deep-rooted discontent with the present leadership remains unclear.

Equally unclear is what percentage of voters have a clear understanding of the changes they are being asked to approve, especially as voters are required to say "yes" or "no" to the entire package rather than to vote on individual changes or, as was the case in the 2002 Azerbaijani constitutional referendum, on groups of proposed amendments.[...].

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Fridtjof Nansen -- Son of Norway

News of Norway, issue 7, 1999

Fridtjof Nansen went where no man had gone before - both as an explorer and a humanitarian. For these achievements, the readers of Norway's second largest newspaper Aftenposten voted him the most prominent Norwegian of the century.
[...].
Humanitarian achievements

Fridtjof Nansen's humanitarian achievements were fueled by his simple creed: Charity means practical politics.

Nansen got involved in the relocation of 450,000 refugees of war from 26 countries in 1920. The famous Nansen Passport saved an innumerable amount of people in 1921, when 30 million Russians were saved from starvation. During the Greek-Turkish war, Nansen helped many minority groups return to their native countries. In 1924, he helped bring peace to the region. The Armenian tragedy, in which approximately 900,000 people were killed by the Turks, was an emotional and poignant event for Nansen. For his efforts, he was named the first ever UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and in 1922 he received the Nobel Peace Prize. Nansen is remembered not only in Norway. In 1995, he was celebrated in Russia on a 50 ruble gold coin, and in 1996, Armenia put Nansen's picture on a stamp.

Fridtjof Nansen died on May 13, 1930 at 68 years of age.

[...]
"Kindness achieves more than cruelty"

In his Nobel address, Nansen did not spare those he held responsible for the famine in Russia in 1921. "In all probability their motives were political. They epitomize sterile self-importance and the lack of will to understand people who think differently...They call us romantics, weak, stupid, sentimental idealists, perhaps because we have some faith in the good which exists even in our opponents and because we believe that kindness achieves more than cruelty."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Jon Huntsman and Armenia

NOVEMBER 19, 2005
Business Week
By Bremen Leak

Until his family business went public this year, Jon Huntsman sat at the top of the world's largest privately held chemical company, Huntsman Corp. (HUN ) Nearing bankruptcy just a few years ago, Huntsman staged a remarkable comeback. Now it's paying off pledges and thanking supporters with new gifts.

A cancer survivor, the University of Pennsylvania graduate continually funds his cancer institute and the Wharton School at his alma mater. [...]. I mentioned in my book that my father was a rural schoolteacher, and I'm not Jewish, but a wonderful Jewish family gave me a scholarship to the Wharton school.
[...]
How has your philanthropy evolved with the global expansion of your business?

We have the need of food and shelter in many countries, but we're getting more into medical care and particularly cancer care in different parts of the world. It started strictly with the earthquake of 1988 in Armenia, and that evolved into a lot of apartments-- 40-unit apartment buildings. We've been building those for probably 15 years. We've brought in trainloads of food -- 75 railcars at a time -- during harsh winters of '93 and '94.

We opened a beautiful new school, one of the largest in Armenia, about a year and a half ago, and we continuously provide medical equipment and supplies.

It's always been a labor of love, and it's been a great source of joy to be able to do this, particularly in areas where we have facilities and where people really appreciate the private sector getting involved.

I'm not Armenian or from any of those areas, but it doesn't matter. When it comes to charity and humanitarian focus, one is totally color-blind.

How do you make sure that your charitable dollars are doing the most work?

I have people here in my office who are just focused on our charitable giving, and what they focus on, under my direction, is to see that our dollars go directly to the people involved and not into administration. We're very, very careful when we give these large sums of money, for instance, to Armenia. We do it through our own warehouses. We distribute food through our own warehouses -- and fuel, eyeglasses, concrete panels that we build to construct buildings. We do all the distribution ourselves in countries where we're large enough, so that we can have total accountability with our own people. In areas where we can't, we ensure that the overhead is as minimal as possible. [...].

How should charity-minded companies respond during economic downturns?

Corporations, in my opinion, have as much of an obligation to putting back into society as they do to enhancing shareholders' wealth. You won't hear that from many people, but I believe that firmly. During the difficult years of Huntsman, in 2001, 2002, and 2003, when energy costs were extremely high and the company was not profitable because of recession and energy costs spiraling out of control, I simply had to borrow money from banks to keep the cancer institute going, to keep my obligations at Wharton and to universities and Armenia. You can't just give money during good years, because during good years most charitable causes are flush with funds anyway. The time they need them is during the difficult times when most people say: "I can't afford to give anymore." That's the exact time when you have to honor your commitments and to stand up and let your character and your integrity be more than your pocketbook.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Chief Rabbi of Israel Meets Catholicos of All Armenians

14:02:21 22-11-2005 Official
A1Plus

SUPREME SPIRITUAL LEADERS MET

By invitation of Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II the delegation led by the Chief Rabbi of Israel Yona Metzger arrived in Yerevan November 21. This is the first in the history visit of the Chief Rabbi to Armenia.

Catholicos of All Armenians, His Holiness Garegin II received Yona Metzger in Holy Echmiadzin.

Welcoming the guest His Holiness presented him the history and mission of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

For his part Yona Metzger thanked for the wonderful reception and noted the warm relationships between the Armenian and Jewish people. The interlocutors also stressed that historical processes drew together the two nations strengthening mutual respect between them.

The delegation headed by the Chief Rabbi is as well expected to visit the National Academy of Sciences and Matenadaran.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

IWPR Photojournalism - ARMENIA’S YEZIDIS

IWPR
Photographs by Andrei Liankevich
Text by Zhanna Alexanian and Andrei Liankevich, Aug 2005

A glimpse into the life of Armenia’s biggest minority community as it struggles to survive in the 21st century.

The Yezidis, also known as Yezidi Kurds, are Armenia’s largest minority community. Life is hard but generally they do not blame Armenians and have good relations with them. Their main complaints are against the Armenian government.

Many Yezidis began to settle in Armenia during the Russian-Turkish wars of the 19th century and more fled with Armenians during the massacres of 1915.

Neither Christian nor Muslim, practicing their own ancient rites, the Yezidis stayed when Azerbaijanis and Muslim Kurds fled Armenia at the beginning of the Nagorny Karabakh dispute in 1988-90.

They keep an ancient nomadic lifestyle and live by breeding cattle and sheep.

According to Armenia’s 2003 census, there are more than 40,000 Yezidis in the country and they comprise three per cent of the population. The head of the Union of Yezidis, Aziz Tamoyan, puts the figure at around 30,000.

Difficult social conditions have caused many to emigrate, especially to Russia, over the last few years. Around fifty families have left the village of Zovuni in the Kotaik region alone.

During land privatisation in 2002 many Yezidis lost their pastures and were unable to press their case with the authorities. They also complain that they have lost irrigation water for their orchards, while nearby Armenian villages have water.

The Yezidis have no representatives in the government or parliament.

[...]“It is the nomadic life. I myself am disappointed with this life.”“You cannot keep a family on 100 to 150 sheep, you can just exist on that. You can’t save any money, we buy all of our animal feed. The agriculture ministry doesn’t help us at all. I am tired of living this life.” {said 42 year old Suren Tamoyan}

[...] The photographs shown here by Andrei Liankevich trace the nomadic life of the Yezidis, which is closely intertwined with the seasons. They are always ready to move on so there is nothing superfluous. Everything is connected to the animals – the wool, cheese for sale, yarn, blocs of dung dried by the houses just by the entrance. They have very little furniture and you rarely see photos of relatives on the walls.
[...]
The future of Armenia’s Yezidis depends crucially on the next children keeping the culture and language. Currently Armenia has no Yezidi schools or textbooks and all education is done in Armenian. But the Armenian education ministry has promised that there will soon be Yezidi text books and classes taught in their language twice a week.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Ancient Armenian province shows war scars

November 20, 2005
THE FLINT JOURNAL
By Carol Azizian
cazizian@flintjournal.com • 810.766.6245

[...]
The Nagorno Karabagh Republic (also known as Artsakh), with a population under 200,000, is a lush, mountainous region with fast-flowing rivers, deep canyons and picturesque valleys.[...].

[...] Karabagh was the center of a military conflict between Armenians and Azeris in the late 1980s and early 1990s. [...].

Karabagh is rising from the ashes with a beautiful, white stone church (built in the mid-1800s) in the heart of Shushi; a spartan, but modern hotel with hot water and a restaurant that serves tasty fare such as stuffed grape leaves; Internet cafes and a Western-style supermarket in the nearby capital city of Stepanakert.
[...]
A museum dedicated to the "martyrs" of the war houses garments that belonged to a bride and groom who went off to fight before their wedding day and never returned.
[...]
In Stepanakert's Artsakh State Museum, there's an assortment of artifacts, geological specimens and modern relics from World War II as well as from the past decade, including a handmade wooden gun used in the recent war.

In a small carpet factory, you can watch women working on large looms, making rugs that are shipped to the United States and elsewhere.

A bus trip to the Gandzasar (meaning treasure mountain) Monastery feels like a journey to the end of the Earth. Situated at the top of a mountain, it overlooks a sea of green forests.

Built in the early 13th century, the monastery reputedly is the location of a shrine that contained the skull of St. John the Baptist, which had been brought here from Palestine during the Crusades.

The monastery was bombarded by the Azeris during the war and you still can see holes in the exterior walls. The priest here is a good storyteller who relates the trials and miracles he experienced during those years.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Visit to Armenian Jerusalem

11.20.05
YnetNews
By Ron Peled

The Armenian and Jewish peoples have several things in common: Both have a defined religion and nationality, both have a past of continuous pogroms and persecutions, and both have been subjected to genocide – the Armenians during the first World War and the Jews during the second. Both peoples have realized their age-old dreams of national independence in the modern period, we in 1948, and the Armenians in 1991.

To our happiness, both Jews and Armenians have quarters in the Old City of Jerusalem – and this time we will visit the pearl of the Armenian Quarter, The Saint James Church.

The uniqueness of the Armenian Quarter is its being placed within its own walls, in addition to the walls of the Old City. The Quarter, sort of its own enclosed ghetto, takes up around a sixth of the territory of the Old City, and is home to around 2,000 Armenian, both secular and religious (another point in common with the Jewish people). Most earn a livelihood from local businesses, artwork (like the famous ceramics), printing and academe.
[...]
James, known in Hebrew as Yaakov, the brother of Johannan, was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus of Nazareth. According to Christian tradition his head was chopped off by Herod Agrippas in the year 44 CE. His head is buried here, in a small room off the Church, and the rest of his body is scattered in burial sites around the Church.
[...]
In the center of the church is the central Capella, called in Christianity "Opsis". Here, the altar another Yaakov is buried, the brother of Jesus and the first Bishop of Jerusalem. His body was brought here from Nahal Kidron.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Nalbandian "shocks world" at Masters Cup

Nov 20, 2005
Reuters
By Alastair Himmer

SHANGHAI, Nov 20 (Reuters) -

[...]
Nalbandian was the first Argentine to reach the final since Guillermo Vilas won the title in 1974 but an exhausted Federer refused to lie down.

The Swiss, out on his feet and barely able to run, bravely dragged himself back from 4-0 down in the fifth set to serve for the match at 6-5.
[...]
Nalbandian, who was beaten by Australia's Lleyton Hewitt in the 2002 Wimbledon final, said his Masters Cup victory would give him a psychological boost.
[...]
Federer had won his previous 35 matches and his last 24 tournament finals before falling to Nalbandian -- a fact not lost on the Argentine.

"He didn't lose many matches during the year and he never loses in finals," smiled Nalbandian, who picked up $1.4 million and a new Mercedes for his week's work.

"It's really important for me. I really surprised everybody with this victory."

Nalbandian remembered to thank Andy Roddick, whose back injury allowed him to enter the elite eight-man tournament in Shanghai.

"I need to thank him," he said. "If it wasn't for him I wouldn't be here."

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Sister City plan runs into snag

11/20/2005
San Gabriel Valley Tribune
By Pam Wight Staff Writer

MONTEBELLO - Montebello's newest Sister City program has come under fire from an ambassador for the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The conflict surfaced after Montebello city officials inaugurated the city of Stepanakert for the program Sept. 25.

Stepanakert is a capital city of a disputed region of Azerbaijan.

Now, Azerbaijan Ambassador Hafiz Pashayev has written to both Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Montebello Mayor Bill Molinari, warning that sensitive peace negotiations with Armenia could be disrupted by Montebello's move to create a sister-city relationship with Stepanakert.

Schwarzenegger's office responded by telling Pashayev that it was a local issue and referred his concerns to Molinari.

Molinari answered Pashayev in writing, saying the city would continue with its Sister City plans.

Telephone calls to Pashayev were not returned.
[...]
The Sister City idea was created in the hopes of sharing resources with Nagorno Karabakh and encouraging investment by Americans, Serge Samoniantz, {chairman of the San Gabriel Valley Armenian National Committee and an organizer of the Sister City program in Montebello,} said.
[...]
On Saturday, the president of Nagorno Karabakh visited the Montebello-based Armenian Center as part of an international fund-raising effort to help pay for infrastructure building in the region.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

27 MILLION AMD AS A RESULT OF THE TELEPHONE-MARATHON

18-11-2005
A1Plus

On November 16-18 the Pan-Armenian Fund «Armenia» organized the annual telephone-marathon during which about 1500 small and medium organizations were phoned. The result exceeded last year's index of 15 million AMD.

About 27 million AMD (some $60 thousand in USD)was gathered which proves that the Armenian telephone-marathons become more and more effective year by year. The sum gathered will be spent on the program «Renaissance of Artsakh», the first phase of which is the reconstruction of the Martakert region of NKR.

Suchlike events will also be organized abroad. November 17-20 French local body of the fund holds the traditional «phonethon». During the first day more than 300 thousand Euros have been gathered.

Another marathon organized in Argentina resulted in gathering 50 thousand USD.

The Fund continues to get donations from different people and organizations the names of which will be announced during the chief event – «TV marathon-2005».

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Letter To the Hellenic Parliament:

The Hellenic news of America
By Paskalini Savopoulos

[...]
The Turkish state's elimination of its Armenian, Greek and Assyrian populations was part and parcel of the same effort to obliterate Turkey's Christian minorities. All were perpetrated during the same time frame, by the same governments, and using the same methods - namely, massacres, labor camps and death marches under the guise of deportations.
[...]
Now Greece, which has wrestled with its own turbulent history to evolve into a champion of democratic ideals, human rights and the rule of law, is poised to betray these very principles by denying the historical reality of a genocide that was perpetrated against its own people.
[...]
Ironically, in 1996 the Greek Parliament designated April 24th as a day of remembrance for the Armenian Genocide. Yet while Armenians have assumed their responsibility to memorialize their own near-extermination, those in the Greek government opposed to the recognition of the Greek Genocide of Asia Minor have instead looked backwards to a shameful pattern of acquiescence to the erasing of historical memory.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR EU INTEGRATION SEEMS TO SLIP IN TURKEY

11/18/05
Eurasianet.org
Igor Torbakov (Freelance journalist and researcher who specializes in CIS political affairs. He is now based in Istanbul, Turkey.)

[...]
Recent opinion polls register an increase of nationalist sentiment in Turkey – a mood generally at odds with EU membership. [...]. Many Turks perceive the EU stance toward Turkey to be unfair and full of double standards.

[...]. The legal and social changes required by the EU as a prerequisite for membership undermines some of the bedrock principles upon which the Turkish Republic was founded in 1923, Turkey’s Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leaders contend.
[...]
Increasingly, Western diplomats and Western-oriented Turkish analysts see the concept of nationalism, along with the role of a nation-state in modern life, as a potential stumbling block for the accession process. The concept tends to be interpreted differently in Brussels and Ankara, stemming from the dissimilar historical circumstances in which the European Community and modern Turkey emerged. The EU’s founders in the 1950s desired to build an alliance that would help overcome the divisive and, often bellicose nationalism that fueled two world wars that devastated the continent during the first half of the 20th century. Nationalism, meanwhile, played a vital role in galvanizing the modern Turkish state. The country’s founding father, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, forged the new nation and the Turkish national identity amid chaotic circumstances arising from the War of Independence. It was in the early 1920s that Turkish nationalist myth was born, and from that time on nationalism has continued to play an important role in buttressing the Turkish Republic.
[...]
EU leaders have exerted considerable pressure on Ankara to expand minority rights, recognize Greek-controlled portion of Cyprus and normalize relations with neighboring Armenia. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Pressing Turkey on such "national issues," especially on Cyprus and the killings of Ottoman Armenians, risks causing a backlash in a country where nationalist sentiment traditionally runs high, even some Turkish analysts who support European integration say.
[...]
Discussions at a major historical conference on Ottoman Armenians held at an Istanbul university in September demonstrate that official attitudes on the concepts of nation-state and national minorities hinders discussion of Turkey’s controversial pre-republican past, and thus hampers a rapprochement with Armenia.
[...]
[...] Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul indicated that the government wasn’t going to radically change its position and accept Turkey’s responsibility for the 1915-1923 atrocities. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Instead, in a letter to the conference’s organizing committee, Gul spoke about European "imperialist-colonial powers" which "ruthlessly exploited [Ottoman Empire’s] peoples’ ethno-religious sensitivities in their own interests."

"The Turkish people are at peace with themselves and with their history," Gul’s letter concluded. This stance will hardly find an understanding in Europe. Accordingly, some Turkish commentators are predicting tough times ahead for Turkish-EU relations. For example, while welcoming the beginning of the membership talks, Yusuf Kanli, the editor-in-chief of the Turkish Daily News, predicted that the "future path is full of mines."

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Greek American Organizations’ Policy Statement on Armenia

WASHINGTON, DC-- The American Hellenic Institute announced today that the major Greek American membership organizations endorsed the policy statement on Armenia prepared by the American Hellenic Institute. These are: the Order of AHEPA, the Hellenic American National Council, the Cyprus Federation of America, the Panepirotic Federation of America, the Pan-Macedonian Association of America, the Evrytanian Association of America and the American Hellenic Institute. The endorsed statement, which is part of the 2005 Greek American Policy Statements, follows:

Armenia

We support the Armenian American community's efforts to secure full recognition, proper commemoration, and a just resolution of the Armenian Genocide.

In 2005, the 90th anniversary of the Genocide, the Administration should, for the sake of U.S. interests and American values, finally bring an end to all forms of U.S. complicity in Turkey's denial of this crime against all humanity. The President, in his annual April 24th remarks, should properly recognize the Armenian Genocide as a clear instance of genocide, as defined by the United Nations Genocide Convention.

The U.S. Congress should adopt legislation both recognizing the Armenian Genocide and urging the American people to apply the lessons of this tragedy to the cause of preventing future genocides.

Finally, Turkey must be pressured to acknowledge its genocidal crime against the Armenian nation, to come to terms with this chapter in its history, and, consistent with the Genocide Convention and other relevant international legal instruments, to make full reparations to the Armenian people.

We also support efforts to press Turkey to lift its illegal blockade of Armenia and to end the mistreatment of the Armenian population in Turkey.

We refer readers to Professor Peter Balakian's recent book The Burning Tigris, a remarkable history of the Armenian Genocide by the Young Turk government in Turkey. Professor Balakian includes the details of the humanitarian movement of leading American public citizens and ordinary citizens to save the Armenians.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

NOBODY NEEDS SIXTY YEARS OLD BEGGAR WOMAN

AZG Armenian Daily #211, 19/11/2005
By Susana Margarian

[...]
Her name is Oksanna. She is Russian. She came from Moscow. She has been living in Armenia for [...] 37 years. Her husband was an Armenian. He died long ago. Oksanna still remembers her past, the house she was living in. "I lived a good life. I used to work in a canteen as a cook in Leninakan, also at the Italians," Oksanna recollected. But after her husband died, she had to rent a room for living and soon appeared in the street. "Nobody wants to give me a job. They say I am too old. I receive neither pension nor any aid, as I am not registered in Yerevan.[...]. Oksanna seems to love Armenians more than Russians. "The Armenian help you no matter they have money or not. I am the only Russian who begs in the streets. Neither the Russians nor the Russian Embassy notice me.[...].

She asks me to help her to enter the Russian Embassy. "If you come with me, they will accept me and listen to my story," she said. [...] I would sweep the streets and earn living. While I need at least 8000 drams per month to rent a room. [...]. I asked her not to drink, at least. She said in response, that she has to drink, as it’s too cold, while she sleeps on papers. Oksanna kept thanking the passers by who gave her coins, while she was talking to me. "I am too tired of this life. If this dirty life continues a week more, I swear, I will jump out of the Kievian Bridge. Let the people feel shame for my death," Oksanna said, looking at me with sad blue eyes.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Alcatel To Open Center In Armenia

November 18, 2005
Armenia Diaspora
Armenpress

Tunis, November 18, Armenpress: Alcatel, the world's leading telecom equipment supplier, headed by an ethnic Armenian Serge Tchuruk, pledged to open its regional center in Armenia. Alcatel and the Armenian Enterprise Incubator Foundation (EIF) signed a memorandum to that end in Tunis on November 16 on the sidelines of the UN-held World Summit of Information Society (WSIS).

The memorandum was signed by Tchuruk and Armenian deputy trade and economic development minister Tigran Davtian.

Serge Tchuruk, who has managed the French group for the past decade, met last week in Yerevan with President Robert Kocharian and Prime Minister Andranik Margarian. He was quoted by official sources as saying that he was ready to help launch "certain programs on the research and introduction of innovative technologies" in Armenia.

EIF chairman Bagrat Yengibarian told Armenpress that Alcatel center will promote further development of information technology and help prepare high-level professionals. He said Alcatel will furnish the center with state-of-the art equipment.Alcatel was the largest supplier of equipment to ArmenTel telephone operator and also to its recently established mobile phone competitor, VivaCell.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Erdem: We Reiterated Our Calls To Armenia For Compromise

11/16/2005
TurkishPress.com

COPENHAGEN - ''We reiterated our calls to Armenia for compromise,'' NATO Parliamentary Assembly Vice-President Vahit Erdem said on Wednesday.

NATO Parliamentary Assembly meetings in Copenhagen, Denmark, ended.

''Turkey expressed its wish and will to improve bilateral relations with Armenia. However, Armenia should abide by international rules, change some articles in its constitution, give up showing Eastern Anatolia Region as Armenian territory, and recognize the Kars Treaty,'' Erdem said following the meetings.

Calling on the other member countries to put pressure on Armenia which has occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories and forced nearly 1 million people to leave their homes and become refugees, Erdem indicated that it was Armenia which benefit most from a normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

HRANUSH HAKOBYAN’S STRUGGLE IN NATO SUCCESSFUL

17-11-2005
A1Plus

“Armenia is not going to make concessions”, National Assembly deputy Hranush Hakobyan said in answer to NATO Parliamentary Assembly deputy chair, Turk in origin Vahid Erdem, who said that Armenia should change some articles of its constitution, not to present Western Anatolia as a part of Armenia and recognize the Kars agreement.

The Armenian delegation headed by Hranush Hakobyan took part in the NATO PA session held November 11-15.

A draft resolution titled “Protection and Integration of Minorities as Contribution to Stability in the South Caucasus” was presented at the session. As it turned out the report contained items unfavorable for Armenia. One of the items says, for example, that Nagorno Karabakh occupied 13.4% of the Azerbaijani territory. Hranush Hakobyan grounded her disagreement with the fact that the people expressed their position via referendum and have lived in accord with democratic principles. 4 presidential, 4 parliamentary as well as elections to the local self-government were held.

The draft resolution noted that Azeris being evicted could not participate in the privatization process. However Armenians could not participate in the process either.

The Armenian delegation also raised the fact that Nagorno Karabakh was included in the minorities of the South Caucasus. “NKR cannot be considered to be a minority. How can a people that lived independently of the Azerbaijani authority for 17 years be considered a minority,” Hranush Hakobyan said.

The Armenian delegation also noted the existence of the OSCE Minsk Group dealing with the settlement of the conflict. She also reminded that international structures never connected the Karabakh conflict with other South Caucasian conflicts.

[...] . All 4 proposals submitted [...] were adopted unanimously.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

U.K. FOREIGN OFFICE REJECTS TURKISH PARLIAMENT'S BID TO UNDERMINE HISTORICAL DOCUMENTATION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

AZG Armenian Daily #210, 18/11/2005
Press release
EUROPEAN ARMENIAN FEDERATION for Justice & Democracy

The U.K. Ambassador to Ankara Dismisses Turkish Appeal to Reconsider the "Blue Book" on the Armenian Genocide

The British Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its Ambassador to Turkey Sir Peter Westmacott, refused to consider the request made by the Turkish Parliament last April to reconsider the "Blue Book" a 1916 parliamentary report, formally titled, "Treatment of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire 1915-16," that documents the systematic, deliberate and politically motivated nature of the Armenian Genocide.

In a letter dated from July 8th, Sir Westmacott officially explained that the Blue Book was drafted by the Parliament, not the government. He emphasized however, that – contrarily to the insinuations of the Turkish parliamentarians – "none of the individual reports [presented in the document] has been refuted" and that the moral and intellectual probity of the authors, Lord Bryce and the prominent historian Arnold J. Toynbee – may not be questioned.

This reply, revealed by the Gomidas Institute, is coming to light at the same time as the judicial finding, in a Brussels court, that Emir Kir is a certifiable denier of the Armenian Genocide. Taken together, these two actions represent a setback to the Turkish campaign in Europe to spread its doctrine of denial. They also stand in stark contrast to the misguided and historically inaccurate declaration made in 2004 by Mrs. Abott-Watt, the British Ambassador in Armenia, in which she questioned the Armenian Genocide.

The European Armenian Federation considers this letter by a senior representative of the United Kingdom a confirmation that its government acknowledges the Armenian Genocide as an incontestable and thoroughly documented historical fact.

Additional information can be obtained by visiting: http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg129069.html or by sending an email to the Gomidas Institute: info@gomidas.org.uk

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Banquet to benefit sister city's hospital

November 17, 2005
Glendale News-Press
By Fred Ortega, News-Press and Leader

The Glendale-Ghapan Sister City Assn. has already raised $150,000 to revitalize the impoverished Armenian city's hospital, even though the group's main fund-raising banquet is still about two weeks away.

Most of the funds came from two private donors, Don Owen of Ventura and Guy Devorris of Los Angeles, who each contributed $50,000 during a kick-off for the association's Ghapan Hospital Revitalization Project on Nov. 9, association President Artin Manoukian said.[...].
[...]
Ghapan, a city of 48,000 about 137 miles southeast of the Armenian capital, Yerevan, became Glendale's sister city by a resolution of the City Council in December 2002. It joined Glendale's other sister cities, Tlaquepaque and Rosarito in Mexico and Higashiosaka, Japan.
[...]
During an October 2003 trip led by then-Mayor Frank Quintero, current Mayor Rafi Manoukian, City Manager Jim Starbird and numerous city, school and community representatives, the Glendale-Ghapan Sister City Assn. identified three areas of concern to target its efforts on: schools, healthcare and community infrastructure.
[...]
Students from the Glendale Unified School District and Glendale Community College have raised funds for renovation of Ghapan's schools, including the upgrading of the library in the engineering department of the city's university.

In addition, the Glendale Fire Department donated a paramedic truck in April, which has already gone into service in Ghapan.

The next step is sending a medical delegation from Glendale Adventist Hospital in spring 2006 to further assess the situation at Ghapan's hospital and identify critical areas that need improvement, Artin Manoukian said.

"Ghapan is the capital of the Syunik region of Armenia, so its hospital not only serves the city but various surrounding villages," he said.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Erdogan in Denmark Stands Firm Against Terror

11.17.2005
Zaman.com
By Hasan Cucuk, Servet Yanatma

[...]
An official visit of Erdogan to Denmark transformed into the “Roj TV crisis” after he met with the Danish prime minister Tuesday.

The broadcasting organization of the PKK, Roj TV, correspondent was among the reporters attending the joint news conference. Erdogan requested that the reporter not to be allowed access to the hall where the press conference was taking place. When Rasmussen turned down his request, Erdogan made his decision and left the country. The Danish prime minister met the journalists alone and he said that he could not ask reporters to be escorted out as long as they were doing their jobs. Rasmussen also said that he was surprised by Erdogan’s attitude. [...].

The Danish Prime Minister said they have broader definition of freedom of expression and that membership talks with the European Union depends on the fulfillment of all political criteria including these freedoms. Turkey should meet these criteria as well, he defended.
[...]
Upon his return from Denmark, Erdogan responded to questions and revealed his reaction to Rasmussens’s defense of “freedom of expression”. “A country cannot approve an understanding providing support to terror, this cannot be freedom. Turkey is able to pay the price of my attitude.”

His reaction found a widespread audience in the Turkish capital, Ankara. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said every Turk should do exactly what the prime minister had done and General Buyukanit found Erdogan’s challenge normal. “The prime minister of a country fighting against the PKK cannot tolerate the presence of a PKK owned television station,” the general said.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

ERDOGAN HAS MADE A ROW IN DENMARK

2005-11-16
DeFacto

[...]
[...] a row was kicked up during Turkish PM’s visit to Denmark. Rejep Tayip Erdogan refused to conduct a joint press conference with Head of Denmark’s government Anders Rasmussen. By means of such a demarche Turkish leader voiced his protest against the country’s stand on Roj – TV Company reflecting the Kurds’ interests. Having learned journalists from Roj TV were present at the press conference Turkish PM demanded that they should leave the conference hall. When Anders Rasmussen retorted saying the kingdom’s government did not interfere with private mass media’s activity Erdogan refused to conduct a press conference and left for the airport, CNN – Turk reports. Head of Denmark’s government had to hold a briefing alone and said he regretted the incident.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Iran's Ahmadinejad Seek Ties With Armenia

Iran News Nov 16th, 2005

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad here Tuesday voiced Iran's readiness to participate in Armenia's electricity and gas projects. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said that his recently installed government intends to deepen the Islamic Republic's ties with Armenia "in all areas," it was reported on Wednesday.

Making the remark in a meeting with Head of the Armenian presidential administration, Artashes Tumanian, Ahmadinejad said Iran is also ready to exchange experiences in all economic fields with Armenia.

Referring to Tehran-Yerevan profound relations, the Iranian president underlined the need for progress and development of the Caspian Sea littoral states through expansion of peace and friendship in the region.

He praised efforts made by the two countries joint commissions and called for promotion of Iran-Armenia cooperation. Tehran fully supports expansion of bilateral relations in all areas, the president stressed.

Tumanian, for his part, appreciated Iran's all-out support for his country and called for boost in economic and political ties between the two countries.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

PM ERDOGAN TO CHALLENGE ARMENIA

AZG Armenian Daily #209, 17/11/2005
By Hakob Chakrian

At the annual session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Dane capital of Copenhagen on November 15 Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a speech before 300 parliamentarians, NTV and Turkish press informed on November 16. {see Erdogan at NATO Parliamentary Assembly }
[...]
No matter how unacceptable PM Erdogan's approach is, we should agree that his challenge has a hue of an offer. Regardless motivations, it's a step forward for Turkey because all previous prime ministers not only were reluctant to hear anything about the Genocide but also accused Armenians of perpetuating genocide against Turks.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

WSU boasts professor of the year

11/17/2005
The Salt Lake Tribune
By Shinika A. Sykes

Having spent her childhood helping her father sterilize his dental instruments and practicing giving shots to oranges, Yasmen "Yas" Simonian was destined for a career in the medical field.

Born in Armenia and raised in Iran, Simonian arrived in the United States in 1967 as a teenager unable to speak English. Not only did she master the English language, she also took advantage of the opportunities America offers.

Today, the professor and chairwoman of clinical laboratory sciences at Weber State University will receive national recognition in Washington, D.C., as the 2005 Utah professor of the year.
[...]
Simonian, 53, credits her mother with giving her the support and encouragement to excel in her studies and have a career - if that was what she wanted. In recognition of that support, Simonian took her mother, Maro, with her to Washington.

"My mother always made me feel I could do anything," says Simonian, who was selected from among faculty members nominated by colleges and universities. "I thank her for that."
[...]
Shelley Conroy, dean of WSU's Dumke College of Health Professions, said Simonian is a "joy" to have as a faculty member. "She works hard, and she goes the extra mile to help students be successful, not just in academics but also in their personal development."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

The forgotten people of Baku

17 November 2005
Aljazeera.net
By Jonathan Gorvett in Baku, Azerbaijan

For the last 12 years, 72-year old Mammadova Pari has had to call the dank and decrepit basement corridor of an old student dorm in Baku home. It is a cold space she shares with some 3000 others, crammed into half a dozen crumbling and derelict buildings.

She is one of around a million Azerbaijanis who are refugees in their own country, victims of a war now largely forgotten.
[...]
She lives in a refugee camp with no name.

Although most of its residents have been here for more than a decade, officials have been wary of giving it a title for fear it would suggest they are here to stay.
[...]
The office of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Baku says the problem dates back to 1988 when refugees first started escaping the inter-ethnic violence in neighbouring Armenia.

Many thousands of ethnic Azerbaijanis who had lived in Armenia fled the violence - as did many thousands of ethnic Armenians who had lived in Azerbaijan.

Before 1989, Baku itself had an ethnic Armenian population of some 200,000. Now, few remain.
[...]
But as the Soviet Union further disintegrated, the next wave of Azerbaijani refugees came to Baku from Nagorno Kharabakh, a majority ethnic Armenian enclave inside Azerbaijani territory.

Many Azerbaijanis living there were forced to flee as the Armenians took control of the region.
[...]
Many of last wave ended up here, in the camp with no name - and here they have stayed.
[...]
Pari herself is a native of Aghdam, 340km west of Baku. Today, Aghdam is considered a buffer zone between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces.
[...]
She says that she only seeks to return home so that she can visit the graves of her relatives and offer prayers to Allah. [...].

The chances of that happening, however, are slim to none.
[...]
Average incomes in Azerbaijan are low, with 40% of the population officially estimated to be below the local poverty line of $40 a month.

The people here — officially known as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) — survive on a monthly government hand out of $6 'bread money', plus 30 litres of kerosene during the winter. The latter is their only source of fuel for heating and cooking.
[...]
Azerbaijan is now a major oil producer and over the next 20 years, some $150 billion in oil revenues are expected to be heading Baku's way.

Some of those funds are already finding their way to the IDPs and the government is moving to improve living conditions for its people.
[...]
Yet, city camps like Pari's have lagged behind. Tall told Aljazeera.net that it might be "several years" before the camp got a refurbishment.
[...]
"In any case, there will be no real benefit to Azerbaijan from the oil revenues until 2008 or 2009, when pay backs on the initial investments will be finished."

Which may mean many more years in the camp for Pari and her fellow IDPs.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Gul Addressing a parliamentary committee on his ministry's 2006 budget

11/15/2005
TurkishPress.com

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said on Tuesday addressing a parliamentary committee during a review of his ministry's 2006 budget
[...]
''we are targeting to create a zone of peace and cooperation in southern Caucasus. However, Armenia is the weakest link of the region. Armenian leadership has not reciprocated our initiatives to improve bilateral relations. Nevertheless, Turkey maintains its efforts to this end and keeps the doors open to dialogue. We wish that the Armenian government display the necessary political will to resolve existing problems with its neighbors. In that case, we will be able to take further steps to normalize bilateral relations.''

Reiterating Turkey's support to efforts to resolve the Upper Karabakh dispute in order to put an end to Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani territories, Gul said that the Minsk Group recently made certain progress to this end.

Referring to the issue of so-called Armenian genocide, Gul said, ''the Armenian side has been trying to defame our history with baseless allegations. In an effort to enlighten the facts, Turkey proposed Armenia to form a joint commission. However, the Armenian government did not respond in the affirmative.''

Gul called on all relevant countries to support Turkey's proposal instead of making irresponsible decisions on the basis of groundless allegations.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Samantha Power addresses U.S. policy on genocide

Nov. 16, 2005
ELON
By Brian Grady student

Samantha Power, who won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction for her book, “A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide,” discussed U.S. policy toward genocide during a lecture Nov. 14 [...].

[...] Power explored several cases of genocide that occurred during the 20th century, and explained the similarity in U.S. response during events such as the Holocaust and in places as diverse as Armenia, [...] has varied from such strategies as simply denouncing genocide up to and including use of military force. Power argued that the factor that has most often determined the level of U.S. response has been U.S. strategic and economic interest.
[...]
“When people are dying, the best reason, and sometimes the only reason, to deal with these cases is because they’re dying.”
[...]
Power said that many in the U.S. learned from its failures in the past, and believes that grassroots organizations and churches have been especially effective in bringing attention to more recent instances of human rights abuses. However, she said that the war in Iraq and the Bush administration’s aggressive foreign policy and mishandling of domestic situations like Hurricane Katrina are ultimately detrimental to U.S. prestige and power in the world.

“We’re in a moment now where U.S. influence is greatly reduced, not just because of Iraq, but because of a number of other factors,” she said. “Without U.S. leadership, it is not clear who will step up and ensure that genocide is left in the 20th century.”
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia ‘Leads In CIS Transition To Free Market’

15, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Emil Danielyan

[...]
The EBRD’s latest Transition Report released late Monday rates Eastern European and former Soviet states on nine indicators of economic reform, including privatization, enterprise restructuring and price liberalization. Of all the CIS countries Armenia was assigned the highest indicator scores.

The report says the reform process in Armenia has gained fresh momentum since 2004. “Among the reforming countries in the CIS, Armenia led the way with three [indicator] upgrades – for large-scale privatization, competition regulation and banking reform,” it says.
[...]
The report also notes that the Armenian government’s tax revenues continue to make up a very modest share of GDP and that local businesses “continue to perceive the business environment as weak.”

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Erdogan at NATO Parliamentary Assembly

11/15/2005
The Anatolian Times

[...]
Addressing the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, PM Erdogan said,[...] ''Psychological walls were destroyed after the Cold War came to an end. Despite some negative side-effects, globalization has also brought forth new opportunities. People in a huge geography realized values of the modern and free world. Consequently, the concept of 'democratic control' emerged in this new period. Pluralism and transparency will be the two basic principles in this period. Democratic control will help us to create a more prosperous and free world,''
[...]
Upon a question about Turkey-Armenia relations, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''we have opened our air space to Armenian aircraft. Also, we have initiated cargo transportation from Yerevan to Istanbul. Also, our government has begun restoration efforts in the Armenian church in eastern city of Van. On the other hand, we have opened our archives to enlighten historical facts. We expect Armenia to display the same attitude. Genocide has never been a part of our history. It is a serious mistake to accuse a government, which had to relocate some of its people due to uprisings, of genocide.''
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Aussie lifter faces ban

16 November 2005
Sportal.com

Australia's hopes of bagging a medal in the weightlifting at the Commonwealth Games next March have been dealt a blow with Sergo Chakhoyan facing a life ban following a positive drugs test.

The Armenian-born Australian tested positive to the amphetamine benzyl piperzine (BPZ) in a sample taken at the Oceania and South Pacific weightlifting championships in Melbourne last month.He has requested the B-sample be tested to confirm the drug was in his system during the competition.

If the second sample also returns positive for BPZ, Chakhoyan, who was considered the favourite to take gold in the 85kg division at the Games in March, will receive an automatic life ban for a second positive test.
[...]
Chakhoyan is currently in Armenia after pulling out of the world championships in Qatar after he learnt of the positive test.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

IMF Completes First Review Under PRGF for the Republic of Armenia and Approves US$4.7 Million Disbursement

November 14, 2005
International Monetary Fund
Press Release No. 05/252

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the first review of the Republic of Armenia's economic performance under a three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement. The completion of the review enables Armenia to draw an amount equivalent to SDR 3.28 million (about US$4.7 million), which will bring total disbursement under the arrangement to SDR 6.56 million (about US$9.4 million).

The Executive Board approved the three-year arrangement on May 25, 2005, (see Press Release No. 05/123) for a total amount equivalent to SDR 23 million (about US$32.8 million) to support the government's economic program through 2008.

[...] Agustín Carstens, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, said:
"Armenia's economy continues to perform strongly. Prudent fiscal and monetary policies, strong external inflows, and ongoing structural reforms have contributed to double-digit growth, low inflation, and declining poverty in 2005. The outlook is for continued robust growth in 2006, underpinned by buoyant investment and remittance inflows.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Call to reopen state trade missions abroad

November 15, 2005
San Francisco Chronicle
Robert Collier, Chronicle Staff Writer

[...]
The state's formerly grand network of 12 trade offices, shuttered in 2003 amid a budget crisis, is reduced to a small outpost -- an office in Yerevan, capital of the former Soviet republic of Armenia, that is funded by California's politically powerful Armenian American community.
[...]
Augustine testified that Schwarzenegger supports creation of two offices in East Asia and one in Mexico -- with the exact locations to be determined -- but funded primarily by private firms rather than by the state. He called the Armenia office "a model for what we support."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

ARMENIA ADOPTS LANDMARK BUDGET FOR 2006

November 14, 2005
Eurasia Daily
By Emil Danielyan

On November 11 Armenia's parliament approved the national budget for next year. The budget volume is due to exceed $1 billion for the first time in the country's post-Soviet history. [...].
[...]
Civil servants, schoolteachers, and other public sector employees will be key beneficiaries of the increased spending targets. Their still-modest salaries are expected to rise by 15-30% in 2006. The government plans a similar increase in pensions and poverty benefits. Also, for the first time since independence Armenia will cover most of its budget deficit from domestic sources, as opposed to low-interest loans provided by the World Bank.
[...]
However, the picture becomes less rosy on closer inspection. The Armenian budget, though record-high, will still be quite modest in both absolute and relative terms. The government's tax revenues may be set for another increase in 2006, but they will make up less than 16% of the anticipated GDP. This proportion is low even by ex-Soviet standards, reflecting the scale of tax evasion in Armenia.
[...]
[...]. The experience of neighboring Georgia, which has more than doubled its state budget since the 2003 Rose Revolution, suggests that the problem can not be addressed without more radical measures such as a genuine fight against government corruption. Kocharian's regime is clearly unwilling to take such measures.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

French Telecom Boss Pledges Support For Armenian IT Sector

14, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Emil Danielyan

The ethnic Armenian chairman of Alcatel, the world’s leading telecom equipment supplier, pledged to assist in the development of information technology in Armenia on Saturday as he was honored by the country’s government.
[...]
Tchuruk was received [...] an honorary doctor’s degree from the Armenian National Academy of Sciences. Its president, Fadey Sargsian, praised his “great contribution” to Armenia’s telecommunications and information technology (IT) sectors.

Kocharian and Markarian also heaped praise on the French citizen of Armenian extraction. [...].

However, the Alcatel boss appears to have fallen short of making specific investment pledges. [...].
[...]
A prominent member of France’s influential Armenian community, Tchuruk has developed a reputation of one of the world’s most efficient business executives. He is widely credited with minimizing Alcatel’s losses resulting from recent years’ slump in the global telecom industry. Alcatel is currently the world's largest seller of telecom gear.

Tchuruk had previously managed France’s Total oil group and Orkem chemical giant.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

EBRD to credit Armenian banks for 40 million euros in two years

11/14/2005
Regnum

In order to develop crediting of small and medium business in Armenia, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will credit Armenian banks for 40 million euros in 2006-2007, EBRD Representative in Armenia Michael Weinstein said.

According to Weinstein, the Armenian economy has been developing dynamically and the entrepreneurs need credit money at the current stage. Weinstein reported that in the recent 2-3 years the EBRD gave credits to the Armenian “Anelik”, “Armeconom”, “Ineko” and ACBA-Bank in the sum of 10 million euros. In the two following years the number of the EBRD partners will increase, [...].
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

NATO to deploy peacemakers in Caucasus to oust Russia and encircle Iran

11/11/2005
Pravda
By Ivan Shmelev

NATO is trying to intensify its activities in Russia's Caucasus. NATO officials have recently released two important statements. They particularly expressed their readiness to deploy NATO peacemakers in the conflict area of Nagorno Karabakh and render assistance in the cessation of long-standing hostility between Armenia and Turkey.

NATO officer in charge of communication with South Caucasus, Romualds Razhuks, stated that NATO could deploy its peacemaking contingent in Nagorno Karabakh. The officer specified that such a measure could be possible upon the agreement of all parts involved in the conflict. Razhuks stressed out that NATO would conduct close cooperation with the OCSE, since this organization plays the leading role in the conflict zone.

None of the sides of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict has supported the suggestion from the top NATO official yet. State officials from Armenia, Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan withheld comments on the matter.
[...]
Pravda.Ru asked the chairman of the Caucasus Department of the CIS Institute, Mikhail Alexandrov, to comment on NATO's intention to interfere in political affairs on the post-Soviet space.
[...]
"If the feuding parties of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict agree upon the deployment of NATO peacemakers in the area, the alliance will definitely consider the issue. It was a rather diplomatic suggestion on the part of the alliance, which will continue offering its services in the future too. NATO has two major objectives in the Caucasus: to oust Russia and encircle Iran. The alliance would also like to affect Central Asia and threaten China afterwards.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia: The comeback country

November 11, 2005
The Dallas Morning News
By JANE WAMPLER / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

YEREVAN – On a clear autumn day, the smell of fresh cement and the sound of hammers swirl through the capital city of Armenia.

Sidewalk cafes overflow with suited businessmen and couples talk over demitasse cups of strong boiled coffee. Women in rimless sunglasses and stiletto heels walk arm in arm, sidestepping wheelbarrows, and several new luxury hotels are nearly booked to capacity.

Armenia is making a comeback. Again. After surviving 70 years of Soviet domination, a devastating earthquake and millenniums of foreign marauders, this Eurasian country is assuming its role of perennial phoenix.
[...]
[...] in a region more associated with terror than tourism, this predominantly Christian nation is politically stable and welcoming to tourists.
[...]
The capital city, population 1.3 million, is staggeringly old, older than Rome by 29 years.
[...]
[...]. I visited Old Erivan Restaurant, our bill was less than $15 for a basket of lavash (thin pan-fried bread), a platter of cheese, a ripe tomato and cucumber salad, lamb stew, a shish kebab of meat and vegetables, and a few strong Armenian beers to wash it all down.
[...]
[...] Armenia's 4,000-year-old past is its main draw.

Many consider this country the cradle of civilization. The biblical rivers Tigris and Euphrates originate in the original Armenia. [...].
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Using Holocaust to define evil weakens its memory

November 11, 2005
Jewish News Weekly of Northern California
by emanuele ottolenghi

Even while the Holocaust is finally becoming the quintessential reincarnation of evil in Europe, Europeans are busy trivializing it.
[...]
Intellectuals should be able to tell the difference: That all evil becomes the same is a testimony to their intellectual failure, not a reflection of a new truth about good and evil in the world.
[...]
Among those who manipulate the Holocaust to belittle it or to void it of its Jewish component are pro-Palestinian apologists. The effort to equate the Palestinians’ plight with the Holocaust is part of the ongoing pro-Palestinian propaganda effort against Israel to deny Israel any legitimacy. By elevating the Palestinian predicament to genocide, not only is Israel demonized as the latest reincarnation of Nazism — hence, evil — but the Palestinians also become the new archetypal underdog — “the Jews of the 21st century” — deserving protection from the new Hitlers.
[...]
[...]Last January, representatives of Islamic organizations refused to attend official Holocaust Memorial Day commemorations. [...] the head of the Muslim Council of Britain, Iqbal Sacranie, argued that Holocaust Memorial Day was not inclusive and therefore not worthy of their presence.

Objecting to the uniqueness of the Jewish genocide, Sacranie supported instead a Genocide Memorial Day, when all victims of genocides, past and present, would be commemorated, and when “peace with justice” would be promoted for those continuing to suffer in the world, especially in Palestine, Kashmir and Chechnya.

This argument is disingenuous: Sacranie mentioned only the emotional issues feeding into a strong sense of pan-Islamic grievance within Europe and across the Islamic world. As genocides past and present he quoted Bosnia, Kosovo and Rwanda but omitted Armenia and Sudan. His agenda thus was clear both in its sins of omission. (These omissions shrouded in silence those tragedies in which the murderers were — and still are — Muslim armies and Muslim governments.)
[...].

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

A Light Sentence for Selling a Human Being

11.11.2005
Vanadzor.net
by Samvel Poghosyan

[...]
On July 20 th Yerevan’s Court of First Instance of the Kentron and Nork Marash Districts, Judge Zhora Vardanyan presiding, sentenced Marine Poghosyan to one year and six months in prison [...].
[...]
In 2001, with the aim of providing for her young daughter, Marine Poghosyan went to Dubai to work for her cousin Armine Poghosyan, a prostitute there. Afterwards, she decided to lure good-looking Armenian girls to Dubai with the promise of non-existent jobs {maid or nanny}, force them into prostitution, and make a lot of money off them. [...] Maro’s daughter A. agreed to go to Dubai. “I was divorced from my husband and had a daughter to take care of. [...].Marine took A.’s passport, explaining that she had to show it to the hotel administrator. She never returned it. Instead she demanded that A. work as a prostitute until she could pay back the $7,000 that Marine had spent to get her to Dubai.
[...]
[...] In July 2005, when Marine was out of the hotel A. called her mother and told her what had happened. A’s mother [...] demanded the immediate return of her daughter. [...] .
[...]
In April 2005, when Marine Poghosyan was in Armenia, A’s mother persuaded her daughter to go to police. Although A. claims she earned around $5,000 in Dubai, she never demanded any of that money back during the trial.
[...]
The court, taking into account that Marine Poghosyan had confessed and expressed remorse, had no prior convictions, and was the mother of a young child, sentenced her to one year and six months.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Russia Wins World Chess Team Championship

11 November, 2005
Herald News Daily

BEERSHEBA, Israel - Russia captured the world chess team championship Thursday with a last-minute, come-from-behind victory over the surprised Chinese team.
[...]
China was seeking its first championship ever, but the team‘s coach, Ye Tiangchuan, said the second-place finish was still considered an astounding achievement.
[...]
Armenia finished in third place, followed by Ukraine, the United States, Israel, Georgia, Cuba and the Chinese women‘s team [...].

Team points
1 Russia 22
2 China Men 21.5
3 Armenia 18.5
4 Ukraine 17.5
5 USA 16.5
6 Israel 14.5
7 Georgia 13.5
8 Cuba 13
9 China Women 7

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Karabakh’s Election Conundrum

09-Nov-05
Institute of War and Peace
By Rufat Abbasov in Baku

Refugees from the capital of the disputed territory of Nagorny Karabakh had a chance to pick their own representative to the Azerbaijani parliament for the first time in the 14 years since Azerbaijan became independent.
[...]
More than 3,000 former residents of the regional capital Khankendi – called Stepanakert by the Armenians – cast their ballots on November 6 to elect a deputy to the Milli Mejlis or national assembly.

Collecting the votes was a complex affair, as the people listed on the electoral roll now live scattered across Azerbaijan. To cope with the situation, election officials established nine polling stations for Khankendi voters and arranged buses to bring them in. None of the sites was actually in Nagorny Karabakh.
[...]
The Azerbaijani refugees, or more accurately “internally displaced persons”, IDPs, who left as a result of the conflict had to try to build new lives in often squalid camps, although many have since moved into more permanent housing or left to work as migrant labour in Russia. The government says three quarters of a million Azerbaijanis became forced migrants, although this figure also includes those who moved from Armenia itself.
[...]
Prolonged negotiations overseen by the OSCE have so far failed to reach a final resolution of the dispute, and an uneasy truce holds on the frontline.

To underscore its position, Azerbaijan’s Central Election Commission, CEC, treated the disputed lands no differently from anywhere else in the country when it drew up a map of constituencies for the November election.

Three constituencies including Khankendi – and thus three Milli Mejlis seats – were set aside for areas lying inside the old boundaries of the prewar Nagorny Karabakh Autonomous Region. There are at least seven other constituency whose boundaries include Armenian-controlled areas lying outside Karabakh proper.

The demarcation clearly had a political intent, to reassert Azerbaijan’s claim to govern the disputed region by giving representation to some of its people.
[...].
Azerbaijani officials insisted that the Armenian section of the electorate would be welcome to vote. The CEC even asked the OSCE and Council of Europe, CoE, to help draw up accurate voter lists for Armenians living in Stepanakert/Khankendi. Mats Lindberg, head of the CoE’s mission in Azerbaijan, said the request was received too late to do anything about it.

However, given the total lack of contact between the two communities across the front line that divides them, it currently seems unlikely that either group would either want or be able to take part in the other’s political institutions.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Bishop Vicken Aykazian nominated National Council of Churches President Elect

Nov. 9, 2005
National Council of Churches

Hunt Valley, Md., Nov. 9, 2005 – Bishop Vicken Aykazian, a Turkish-born priest who represents the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern) in Washington, has been nominated President Elect of the National Council of Churches USA at the NCC’s annual General Assembly.

If elected Thursday, Aykazian will assume office in January when the current President Elect, the Rev. Michael E. Livingston, assumes the presidency and succeeds Bishop Thomas L. Hoyt Jr. in that office. The President Elect automatically assumes the council’s presidency after serving a two-year term.

Vicken Aykazian was born in Siirt, Turkey, in 1951. He studied theology at the Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem and was ordained a deacon in 1968 and later a celibate priest in 1971. In 1992, His Holiness Vasken I, Catholicos of All Armenians at Holy Echmiadzin in Armenia, ordained him a bishop.

Bishop Aykazian, who holds a Ph.D in history and is working on a second Ph.D in theology at Catholic University in Washington, is an active ecumenist. In addition to his contributions to the NCC as a member of the Governing Board, he has been active in the World Council of Churches as a member of the Mission and Evangelism Unit, the Orthodox Task Force and the Central Committee.
[...]
Bishop Aykazian is fluent in English, Armenian, French and Turkish.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia Gives Chance to Russia

10.11.2005
PanARMENIAN.Net

In the 8th round of the team World Chess Championship held in Beer Sheva, Armenian team beat the championship leader, China male team, 2.5:1.5. It was the first defeat of the latter team. Thus, our team did not lose the third position and gave a chance to the Russian team to compete for the gold with the Chinese.
[...]
To win the gold Russia has to defeat the Chinese team with a maximal score 4:0 or 3.5:0.5. Armenia will compete with the Cuban team. [...].

The tournament table for the 8th tour: 1. China (male) – 21, 2. Russia – 18.5, 3. Armenia – 16.5, 4. Ukraine – 15, 5. US – 14, 6. Israel – 13.7, 7. Georgia – 12, 8. Cuba – 11, 9. China (female) – 7.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Archaeologists unearth ancient burial mounds

November 10 2005
IOL

Yerevan, Armenia - Archaeologists said on Wednesday they have unearthed burial mounds dating back to the third millennium BC which they believe contain remains and trinkets from ancient Aryan nomads.

Historian Hakob Simonian said on Wednesday that the four mounds were among 30 discovered about 56 km west of the Armenian capital, Yerevan, containing beads made of agate and carnelian as well as the remains of what appears to be a man, aged between 50 and 55.

Also found were remains of domesticated horses and glazed pottery appearing to show chariots, Simonian said.

The Aryans, who later became known as Persians, were largely grassland nomads who settled in what is today Iran and eventually in parts of India. - Sapa-AP


Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Next US Ambassador to Turkey on Armenia

10 November 2005
NTV MSNBC

WASHINGTON - It was important not to create problems in relations between Ankara and Washington, the US diplomat nominated to be the next American ambassador to Turkey said Wednesday.
[...]
Speaking at a hearing of the US Senate Foreign Relation Committee to ratify his appointment to the Ankara posting, Ross Wilson said that facilitating smooth relations between Turkey and the US was vital. He also said that it was important that the terrorist group the PKK be combated.
[...]
In reference to the so-called Armenian genocide Wilson said that it was important that both countries were moving towards reconciliation on what occurred in history. He added that Turkey would be encouraged to open its border with Armenia.
[...]
The European Union negotiation process was a historic step for Turkey concerning the issue of freedoms, Wilson said, adding that as far as he knew the US had not warned Turkey concerning the forthcoming trial of prominent writer Orhan Pamuk on charges of insulting Turkish identity. However, he said that many people criticised the court case and added that it was important to protect the freedom of expression in Turkey.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenian Community of France did not Suffer from Riot in Paris

November 8, 2005
Armenia Diaspora

Yerevan, November 8, PanArmenian.Net; Riot in Paris did not harm the Armenian community of France. Armenians are mainly concentrated in three Paris suburbs where there are no disorders, the situation is calm, reported RFE/RL.

Meanwhile, the French Government has approved application of a law of 1955 on emergency situation. The legislation allows local authorities introducing curfew, on which heads of municipalities, seized by mass disorders, insist. Pogroms and burning in Paris suburbs have continued for almost a fortnight already. Some French media describe the disorders in the country as a «civil war.»

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Western Watchdog Slams Armenian Anti-Corruption Official

8, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Emil Danielyan

Transparency International criticized on Tuesday an aide to President Robert Kocharian for questioning the Berlin-based anti-graft watchdog’s latest global report which suggests that government corruption in Armenia has increased in recent years.

Armenia ranks 88th out of 146 nations that are covered by Transparency International’s 2005 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released last month. The previous survey, released a year ago, put it in 82nd place.
[...]
Bagrat Yesayan, who advises Kocharian on anti-corruption initiatives, cast doubt on the credibility of those studies last week, saying that measuring the scale of corrupt practices is a bad idea in the first place. “Corruption is a phenomenon which is impossible to measure, just as it is impossible to measure love and other phenomena,” he said.

In a letter to Yesayan obtained by RFE/RL, Transparency’s director for Europe and Central Asia, Miklos Marschall, insisted that the situation with corruption in Armenia “does not seem to be improving.” [...].

Marschall defended the methodology of Transparency’s rankings which take account of at least three studies conducted by other Western organizations in a particular country. [...].

The latest Transparency report came almost two years after the Armenian government publicized a plan of mainly legislative actions that are meant to reduce the scale of bribery, nepotism and other corrupt practices.[...]. [...]official statistics [...] show{s} a 15 percent rise in the number of corruption-related crimes identified and solved by the authorities in the first half of 2005. But [...] {does not} identify any of the individuals purportedly punished for corruption.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

U.S. Aid Agency Names 23 Countries Eligible for FY 2006 Funding

08 November 2005
US Department of State
Washington File

Washington -- The United States' Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) has named 23 countries eligible to apply for funding during the fiscal year that began October 1 (fiscal year 2006).

The selected countries from the “low income” category are: Armenia, Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, East Timor, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Honduras, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mali, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Vanuatu.
[...]
The announcement followed a November 8 meeting of the MCC board of directors in Washington, according to an MCC press release.
[...]
The secretary of state chairs the MCC board, an independent U.S. agency. The board includes the secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and representatives of the private sector.

The countries selected met or exceeded national governance performance measures, developed using data supplied by the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), the research organization Freedom House and other internationally recognized groups. The measures -- indicators -- demonstrate a county's commitment to ruling justly, investing in people and encouraging economic freedom.
[...]
The House of Representatives November 4 passed the final version of a $20.9 billion foreign spending bill that would provide $1.8 billion for the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) for FY06.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenian Traffic Police To Introduce Surveillance Cameras

7, November 2005
Armenia Liberty
By Karine Kalantarian

The Armenian police pledged Monday to reverse a growing number of road accidents with an “automated system of traffic control” that will result in first-ever surveillance cameras in Yerevan and other parts of the country.
[...]
The first stage of the program envisages the installation of 214 cameras and speed radars on just about every busy square and street intersection in Yerevan. The process is due to be completed by the end of next year and extended to the rest of Armenia by 2010. The Armenian government will spend $1.5 million for that purpose, said Hunanian {the deputy chief of the national Police Service, said the new system of road policing}.

[...] about 13,600 cars were imported into Armenia during the first nine months of this year, raising the nationwide total to above 300,000.

Police officials estimate that Armenia now boasts more vehicles than it did in Soviet times. They attribute this to an almost 10 percent rise in the number of accidents registered by the traffic police from January through September.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Concerto for Trumpet/ Alexander Arutunian (b. 1920)

November 5, 2005
Harmonious Puddles
class blog for DePauw University's
First Year Seminar:
Understanding Music - Writing About Music

Alexander Arutunian, born on September 23, 1920 in Yerevan, Armenia, attended the Komitas Conservatory in Yerevan. Since his graduation from the Komitas Conservatory, he has established himself as a world renowned composer. One of his most high-rated works is his Concerto for Trumpet, which ranks among Franz Joseph Haydn and Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Trumpet Concerto and Paul Hindemith's Sonata for Trumpet as the most played trumpet pieces in the world. The idea for this concerto, like many of Arutunian's other pieces, came to him while he was asleep. His fondness for brass instruments, established by his memories of brass ensembles in Armenian cities from his childhood, could explain why he chose the trumpet to go along with this romantic piece of work. This concerto features four sections: Andante, Allegro energico, Meno mosso, and Allegro. Completed in 1950, this piece was originally written for the principal trumpet player of the Yerevan Opera Orchestra, Zolak Vartasarian. Instead, it was premiered by Timofei Dokshizer, a virtuoso trumpet player from Moscow.


Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Outstanding Foundation Award

November 07, 2005
CRAINSdetroit
By Laura Bommarito

The Mardigians have been lifelong members of the Armenian General Benevolent Union and have supported educational, cultural and religious institutions, including St. John’s Armenian Church in Southfield, the Edward and Helen Mardigian Museum in the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem and the museum in the Armenian monastery in Geghard, Armenia.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Commission Avoids Use of the Word Genocide

November 05, 2005
Zaman
By Selcuk Gultasli

The European Union (EU) Commission has avoided including the word ‘genocide’ in the progress report scheduled for publication on November 9.

The draft of the progress report that Zaman gained access [...] confined Turkish-Armenian relations to a single paragraph.[...]

The Commission preferred to use the expression of tragic incidents on two occasions to describe the 1915 events. The border regulations do not allow the interaction between the two countries, it is argued in the draft. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested that the 1915 events should be dealt with by impartial experts. Some mention of this suggestion is also made in the draft. On the other hand, the draft contains some references to the suggestion of Robert Kocaryan, Armenian President, that it is highly important to re-build diplomatic relationships between the two countries and there is a further need for the formation of a commission that will devote itself to dealing with many questions such as the prevention of access through the border gates. The fact that the two leaders avoided meeting during the Summit of European Council that was held in Warsaw was also included in the draft. “Turkish academicians attended the conferences in Armenia during the 90th anniversary of the 1915 tragic incident. Armenian officials paid visits to Turkey for formal reasons. In September, a conference was organized concerning the Ottoman Armenians,” it was stated in the progress report as well.


Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Nagorno-Karabakh: The Crisis in the Caucasus

November 3, 2005
Council on Foreign Relations
By Lionel Beehner

[...]
Overall, time is not on Armenia’s side, given that Azerbaijan’s economy, due to its surge in oil exports, has outpaced Armenia’s, says Svante Cornell, deputy director of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies. “[The Armenians] are realizing they may have to settle and sue for peace,” he says. “The fact is they do occupy this territory.” Because of Azerbaijan’s influx of petrodollars, it will soon be able to double the size of its military, Fuller says. “The question is: How good are [Azerbaijan’s] armed forces? Armenia’s is a very professional force,” she says.

Eventually, Cornell envisions that Nagorno-Karabakh will remain, at least on the map, a sovereign part of Azerbaijan but will retain de facto independence. He says the outcome of Azerbaijan’s parliamentary elections should have little effect on negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh. Bilateral talks are set to resume in December but no one expects a solution to the crisis anytime soon.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

World Team Championships – the Chinese are coming

05.11.2005
ChessBase.com

2005 World Chess Team Championship
Beer Sheva, Israel, October 31 to November 11, 2005

The Russians have relinquished their lead. After playing only four of the first five rounds the Chinese men's team has overtaken them and looks poised for victory in Beer Sheva, Israel. Host Israel is in third place, followed by Armenia and Ukraine. [...].

[...] The world's strongest teams are participating, headed by Ukraine, Russia, Armenia and the USA. Israel, the host, is ranked fifth worldwide.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

REPUBBLICA DI ARMENIA RESISTANCE THROUGH ART

6 novembre 2005
Exibart
By David Kareyan - Curator

[...]
Participating artists of “Resistance Through Art” have had very active role in all of the activities which have taken place in Armenia in the nineties, outside the sphere of institutions inherited from the Soviet era.

The Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (“NPAK” in Armenian acronym) became the venue where artists gathered and freely exhibited the hidden, unconformable, and oppressed layers of socio-cultural and psychological conflicts. In particular exhibitions entitled “Crisis”, “Collapse of Illusions”, “Civic Commotion”, “Anoush”, and their culmination: “Politics Under 180 Degree” should be noted, where the hysteric and crazed outbursts of “revolutionary reconstruction” of farmer-breeder culture, and industrial modernization were acutely displayed. These are conflicts which we witness when the ideology tending towards the singular center collides with reality.

[...] Is it possible to live without violence? Which is the natural environment of man? Why is it that culture, which is supposed to be the mechanism of sublimation, is unable to manifest the boundaries within which we would feel in our natural environment? Why is man trying to escape from the world of his own creation? Why does he think that his natural environment is the sea and the jungle?

Diana Hagopian in her “Logic of Power” triptych video, by displaying the roles assigned to women together with statistics of opinion polls is directly asking the question of whether it is possible to reconcile with the violence prevalent in the world? Is it possible to create a society, where self-admiration and authority do not appear as “desirable play”?
[...]
Sona Abgarian's “Tomorrow at the Same Time” video-installation is another example of inhibition of woman's identity and her ability of free expression in society. It seems like the woman, by manipulating a monster's mask is studying her past face, which she was wearing during some unknown festivity. Lonely and abandoned by guests she tries to show her today's face to her yesterday's mask. [...].
[...]
Tigran Khachatrian's video of “Todis” as the artist puts it belongs to his “Corner of the Room Productions” or “Garage Films” series. Beginning from 2000 Tigran Khachatrian has produced a series of video-films: “Color of Eggplant”, “Stalker”, “Romeo”, “J-L Godard”, etc. Under the name of “Corner of the Room Productions” the artist adopts a unique method of re-mixes, whereby internationally famed, basically “left” cinematographers' famous films are re-valued. As the artist insists this reenactment returns the original humanity and simplicity to the idolized films. [...].
[...]
Vahram Aghassian in his “Factories in the Sky” double screen video-installation presents a dilapidated factory from the era of “the glorious industrial achievement” of the one-time Soviet Armenia. He tries to break free from the prejudiced stare of the viewer who in post-soviet artists' works searches for documentary description of financial cataclysms. In the passage between very closely placed projection screens the artist spreads artificial “stage smoke” which is the only tangible reality. More precisely it is the only reality encompassing us. If the history was first written and later tried to make what was written to happen, then the world has been turned into smoke.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

OSCE Office supports small and medium-size enterprise development in Armenia

5 November 2005
noticias.info
By Gohar Avagyan OSCE Office in Yerevan

Creating a better economic climate for entrepreneurs and small and medium-size enterprises in Armenia is the aim of a two-day international conference which started today in Yerevan.
[...]
Participants, including about 70 representatives of governmental institutions, business associations, non-governmental organizations (NGO) and academia, as well as international experts from Switzerland, Norway, Germany, United States, Ukraine, Georgia and other countries, will discuss policies for developing institutional economic infrastructure and best practices in business incubation.

A feasibility study project for the establishment of business incubators in two Armenian districts, supported by the OSCE Office in co-operation with UNDP and GTZ/ProSME, will also be introduced at the conference.
[...]
In its economic dimension activities, the OSCE Office particularly concentrates on assisting Armenia in coping with the process of economic transition and counter-acting economic threats to security and stability.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia is leading the world chess showcase

Nov 4 , 2005
Prensa Latina

[...]
Armenia is leading the world chess showcase with 9.5, ahead of Russia, the favorite (8.5), and China men (7.5). The US and Israel share the fourth position with six points.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

A watchful eye on world's next Saudi Arabia, Kuwait

Nov. 4, 2005
HoustonChronicle.com
By JACKSON DIEHL

In the past two weeks the Bush administration has launched a concerted attempt to translate its pro-democracy rhetoric into action in two little-known Eurasian countries whose importance is about to soar. [...].

The test comes in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, two former republics of the Soviet Union that hold all of the early 21st century's big cards: huge unexploited oil riches;[...], both are about to become very, very rich. In a few years their names will be as familiar to Western energy consumers as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Both are also ruled by autocrats who would like to follow the Persian Gulf states' example and forge a strategic partnership with the United States. And both of those strongmen have scheduled elections: Azerbaijan for parliament on Sunday and Kazakhstan for president on Dec. 4. [...].

[...]. Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan got a letter from the president and a visit from a senior State Department official last month. Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan was visited by Condoleezza Rice. The messages to them were almost exactly the same: Hold a free and fair election, and you can "elevate our countries' relations to a new strategic level." [...]closer military ties, help in solving problems (such as an unresolved war between Azerbaijan and Armenia), and status as primary U.S. partners in the Caucasus and Central Asia. [...].

[...].The Bush administration has told the two presidents that the arbiter of whether their elections are fair will be the observer missions of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. And the OSCE reps in both countries have warned that the governments are failing the test.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

U.S. UNVEILS $6 MILLION PLAN TO FOSTER FREE ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA

November 3, 2005
Eurasia Daily Monitor
By Emil Danielyan

The United States has unveiled a $6 million plan to facilitate the conduct of free and fair elections in Armenia. The program, outlined by the U.S. ambassador in Yerevan, John Evans, on October 27, has a logistical emphasis and does not seem to address the political root cause of the country's chronic vote rigging.
[...]
The U.S. initiative will begin to be implemented at the beginning of next year. According to Evans, it involves a set of largely technical measures such as training election officials and candidate proxies, publishing Armenian election laws and other relevant documents, and voter education. The U.S. Agency for International Development, which is in charge of its implementation, will also allocate grants to local non-governmental organizations dealing with the electoral process.

[...] Armenia's rulers are simply unwilling to step down just because the majority of voters want them gone. And it is highly doubtful that election officials handpicked by them will display greater respect for law after undergoing U.S. training.

The U.S. government itself strongly criticized Kocharian's hotly disputed reelection in March 2003, saying that Armenia has missed an important chance to become a democratic state. It reacted similarly to the previous Armenian presidential ballots. So did other Western governments and organizations. However, such moves never entailed any tangible negative consequences for the authorities in Yerevan.
[...]
There are different theories about why the U.S. administration is clearly supportive of the Armenian authorities. Some observers believe that it is less-than-impressed with leaders of the Armenian opposition and finds Kocharian more credible and predictable. Others say the Americans will not undercut Kocharian and Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev now that they appear close to reaching a long-awaited agreement to resolve the Karabakh conflict, a key U.S. objective in the region.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia's remarkable alphabet

November 03, 2005
Harvard University Gazette
By Ken Gewertz
Harvard News Office

[...]
According to James Russell, the Mashtots Professor of Armenian Studies at Harvard, the fifth-century saint gave Armenia much more than an efficient system for rendering its language into written form. By means of his invention, Mashtots gave Armenians a cultural and religious identity as well as the means to survive as a people despite the efforts of larger and more powerful neighbors to subsume or destroy them.
[...]
"Mashtots' principal purpose in inventing the alphabet was to change Armenia's cultural orientation from the Iranian East to the Mediterranean West," Russell said. "He gave Armenia the means and the incentive to remain Christian."
[...]
"Within a century, Armenians had a library of classical and Christian learning and were able to build their own literary tradition. As a result, they became independent and almost self-sufficient, and they became impervious to attempts by Rome to Hellenize them or attempts by the Sassanian empire to re-impose Persian culture on them."

On Oct. 28 and 29, Harvard hosted an international conference to consider the achievement of Mashtots, its historical background, and its wider influence. [...]. It was held under the patronage of His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia.
[...]
One measure of the alphabet's success is the fact that there have been few changes in the letters or in the spelling of words since Mashtots created it in the fifth century.

"This is a very striking circumstance," Russell said, "especially when you compare it with English where spelling has changed a great deal in just the last 500 years. It shows that the Armenian alphabet was already so perfect that there was little reason for it to change."

Perhaps an even more convincing argument for the importance of Mashtots' achievement is the survival of the Armenian people through a long and often trying history.

"Mashtots' real achievement was to create a culture that became a repository for both Eastern and Western traditions, that was cosmopolitan, but had a strong anchor of its own. He made Armenia a culture of the book, a 'bibliocracy,' and that has been their key to survival, because you can carry a book into exile, but you can't carry mountains and trees."

ken_gewertz@harvard.edu

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

New historical book causes big scandal among Azeri scientists

04 November 2005
Today.AZ

Deputy Director of the {associates of the History} Institute Jabi Bahramov told APA that the maps described in the book {"Caucasian Albania and Albans" by Doctor of historical sciences Farida Mammadova } contradict the state interests of Azerbaijani people: "The maps state that "Great Armenia" state existed".

J.Bahramov underlined that, besides, the maps, the texts drew attention to the history of Armenians, " The Great Armenia". [...].

[...] Farida Mamammadova told APA the book is the result of the 20 years of researches and said that the administration of the History Institute applies pressures on her.

[...] Jabi Bahramov said to me: "You have no right to live in this land". However, I proved wrong the claims of Armenians on the existence of "Great Armenia" from IV millennium B.C. till the Middle Ages of A.D and I proved that this state existed from late 1st century BC and early 1st century A.D, for 30 years by historical facts. Do you think it is a high treason?" told Mamammadova.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

US Admin. Gives no Support to Armenian Drafts

November 02, 2005
zaman.com
By Anadolu News Agency

The US Department of State has noted that the American administration does not support the Armenian genocide drafts sent to Congress by sending a letter to Assembly of Turkish-American Associations (ATAA) President Vural Cengiz.

The US State Department South Europe Relations Department Director Buxter Hunt said in his letter that the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has asked Hunt to write a letter to the ATAA president and note that the administration does not support these drafts.

Hunt has indicated that the US will support the debates in academic, diplomatic and civil societies, and through economic and political dialogue between Turkey and Armenia.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Los Angeles Armenians Advertise The Idea Of Elected Body

November 2, 2005
www.armeniadiaspora.com

Los Angeles, November 2, Armenpress: The idea of establishing an elected body of Armenians in Los Angeles, USA, is being floated among local Armenians. An initiating group issued a statement saying the elected body is to represent the Armenian community's interests.

"The strong potential of the Diaspora Armenians is neglected. Some people even call it derogatively 'colony' and even 'a ghetto,' and now it is time to make the voice of 'the ghetto' heard,' the statement says. It says that all Diaspora Armenians, regardless of their political affiliations, religious and social belonging can be elected to the proposed body. It also calls on Armenians in Los Angeles area to rally around this idea.

Some Armenians are enthusiastic about the idea, others, though, believe if materialized there will be one more Armenian organization.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Concerto showcases trumpeter's talent

Thursday, November 03, 2005
The Patriot News
BY DAVID N. DUNKLE

Phil Snedecor got hooked on the trumpet as a boy when he heard a live rendition of the theme from "Hawaii Five-O" during an elementary school talent show.
[...]
Now 46, the Texas native is the principal trumpet player for the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra. This weekend he will take center stage as soloist in Alexander Arutiunian's lively Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra.
[...]
Arutiunian's masterwork, which he composed in 1949 specifically for virtuoso Russian trumpeter Timofei Dokschitzer. It features gypsyish folk rhythms and melodies from Arutiunian's homeland of Armenia, which at that time was part of the Soviet Union.
[...]
Arutiunian, born in 1920, was a talented if not particularly prolific composer. His trumpet concerto has become one of classical music's standards for trumpet, along with works by Haydn and Hummel.

The one-movement concerto features an opening trumpet solo, a sinewy middle featuring clarinet and muted trumpet, then a closing cadenza that will showcase Snedecor's skills.

"It draws on Armenian folk melodies for compositional technique," Snedecor said.

[...] Snedecor said the piece gives the trumpeter a chance to show not just virtuosity, but musical personality.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Corruption in Armenia caused $5 mln in damages in January - June

3/11/2005
RIA Novosti

YEREVAN, November 3 (RIA Novosti, Gamlet Matevosyan) - Material damages due to corruption-related crimes in the first half of 2005 in Armenia totaled $5 million, an Armenian presidential advisor said at an anti-corruption strategy meeting Thursday.

"In total during the first half of 2005, 227 crimes linked with corruption were registered, compared to 198 during the same period of 2004," Bagrat Yesayan said.

He listed the main forms of crime linked with corruption as abuse of government funds, illegal business operations, deceptive business operations, tax evasion, abuse of authority, taking bribes and human trafficking.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh have confederate relations - Kocharian

Nov 3 2005 3:03PM
Interfax

YEREVAN. Nov 3 (Interfax) - Armenia and the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno-Karabakh have formed confederation-type relations, said Armenian President Robert Kocharian.

"Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia are integrating and relations of a confederate nature have formed between Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic," Kocharian said at a meeting with students from the law department of Yerevan State University on Thursday.

"We definitely consider Nagorno-Karabakh an independent state," he said.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Pamuk stands by Armenian massacre remarks

22/10/2005
News.Telegraph

Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk said today that he stood by remarks he made about the massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks and about the deaths of Kurds in Turkey even though they could land him in jail for three years.
[...]
"I repeat, I said loud and clear that 1 million Armenians and 30,000 Kurds were killed in Turkey, and I stand by that," Pamuk told a news conference in Frankfurt, where he is due to receive a major literary award on Sunday.

Turkey's most prominent writer said he had not used the word "genocide" to describe the mass killings of Armenians in 1915. "Whether it should be called 'genocide' or 'mass murder'… or something else, has to be decided by experts."
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Dutch Violinist Wins Long-Thibaud Competition

01 Nov 2005
The Julliard School
By Emily Quinn

Dutch violinist Frederieke Saeijs won first prize in the Long-Thibaud International Violin Competition this past weekend.
[...]
The 26-year-old Saeijs, who studied at the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague and currently studies at the Indiana University School of Music, also won awards for best interpretation of a contemporary work and best concerto interpretation, as well as a prize from students of Parisian music schools.

The competition’s top prize comes with an award of 45,000 euros. Second prize (15,200 euros) went to Shion Manami of Japan, and third prize (6,100 euros) to Haik Kazazyan of Armenia.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

Teachers, Student Sue Mass. DOE

November 01, 2005
The Harvard Crimson
By LAURENCE H. M. HOLLAND
Contributing Writer

Arguing that new state curriculum guidelines on the Armenian genocide deprive students of the complete historical picture, two local teachers and a high school student have signed on as plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit against the Massachusetts Department of Education.
[...]
The Massachusetts curriculum used to include some materials that depicted the events in Armenia as genocide and some that did not characterize it as such. However, the latter documents have been removed from the curriculum.

The lawsuit filed last Wednesday maintains that the Massachusetts Department of Education, and its commissioner, David P. Driscoll, violated students’ First Amendment rights when it removed the materials arguing that the deportations did not constitute genocide.

Officials at the Department of Education could not be reached for comment.
[...]
In the spring of 1999, the Massachusetts Department of Education released “The Massachusetts Guide to Choosing and Using Curricular Materials on Genocide and Human Rights Issues.” According to the lawsuit, the Guide “stated that materials related to genocide and human rights issues should provide ‘differing points of view on controversial issues.'"

Under that policy, materials contending that the deaths of Armenians during World War I did not qualify as genocide were originally included in the curriculum. However, the Department of Education removed those documents at the request of State Senator Steven A. Tolman, D-Brighton.

According to Silverglate, Tolman argued that since the Massachusetts legislature had used the phrase “Armenian genocide” in its curriculum guide, it had in effect made a decision that the events did constitute genocide, and any materials questioning that decision should be removed from the curriculum.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.

75 MILLION FOR ARMENIA AND 3 MILLION FOR NAGORNO KARABAKH

02-11-2005
A1Plus.am

Senate and House Foreign Aid Committee members agreed to appropriate $75 million in assistance to Armenia and $3 million for Nagorno Karabakh, earlier today, during a conference held to iron out differences between the Senate and House versions of the foreign aid bills [...].
[...]
The Senate and House Conferees also agreed to maintain military assistance parity between Armenia and Azerbaijan, approving $5 million in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and $750,000 in International Military Education and Training (IMET) for both countries.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.