ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
08/09/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP://

1) Karabagh Holds Local Elections
2) ARF Central Committee of Mountainous Karabagh Statement on Municipal
Elections
3) MKR Leadership Perplexed By CE Secretary General’s Statement
4) Pan-Diaspora Educational Conference Comes to a Successful Close
5) Georgia Asks Russia To Drop Support For Separatists

1) Karabagh Holds Local Elections

STEPANAKERT (RFE-RL)On Monday, officials in Mountainous Karabagh were
tabulating the results of weekend municipal elections angrily denounced by
Azerbaijan but touted by the leadership of the Armenian-populated territory as
a manifestation of its commitment to democracy.
According to the Central Election Commission (CEC) of the Mountainous
Karabagh
Republic, 61 percent of some 85,000 eligible voters cast their ballots on
Sunday to choose the heads of administrations and legislative councils in
about
200 local towns and villages.
The lowest voter turnout was registered in the Stepanakert mayoral
electionthe
most closely watched race. Preliminary figures showed Pavel Najarian in the
lead with 42.8 percent of the vote.
His main challenger, Eduard Aghabekian, received 34.5 percent of votes cast
and is expected to receive the support by the three other, defeated
candidates
during the run-off scheduled for August 22. Aghabekian is also backed by the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation. Some local observers believe that this puts
Aghabekian in a strong position to become the next mayor of Stepanakert.
A former military medic, Aghabekian heads the social affairs committee of the
MKR parliament and stands in opposition to President Arkady Ghoukasian.
Najarian, on the other hand, enjoys the backing of Ghoukasian’s Democratic
Artsakh Union (ZhAM) party.
The CEC is due to release vote results for the whole of the MKR later this
week. Its chairman, Sergei Davtian, said the elections can already be
considered a success.
“The Central Election Commission has achieved its goal,” Dadtian said. “These
elections were better organized and more interesting than the previous ones.”
Davtian added that the CEC did not receive any reports of irregularities from
candidates as of late afternoon. However, it is expected that some candidates
will complain about material and moral government support given to their
pro-establishment rivals during the election campaign.
Sunday’s vote provoked an angry reaction from Azerbaijan which insists
that no
elections held in Karabagh that are not under its supervision can be
considered
legitimate. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev on Thursday again vowed to bring
Karabagh back under Baku’s control.
The outgoing secretary general of the Council of Europe, Walter Schwimmer,
similarly criticized the holding of the polls last week, saying that such
“one-sided actions are counter-productive” before the resolution of the
Karabagh conflict.
The criticisms were brushed off by the Karabagh Armenians. “We don’t think
that the international community and the European organizations in particular
would be interested in the absence of government in Mountainous Karabakh,”
they
said in a statement on Friday.
Armenia, for its part, lashed out at Azerbaijan, accusing it of exploiting
the
polls as well as the ongoing military exercise by Karabagh Armenian forces to
“divert attention from its unwillingness to negotiate a lasting peace.”
Official Stepanakert has said that the ten-day exercise, which began last
Tuesday, will test the combat-readiness of the MKR Defense Army in “defensive
and counter-offensive operations.”
In a separate development, the Karabagh authorities announced on Sunday the
capture of an Azerbaijani soldier who reportedly tried to cross into
Armenian-controlled territory through the heavily militarized frontline
east of
Karabagh. They said they informed the International Committee of the Red Cross
and the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe about the detention
of the soldier identified as Anad Samedov. No further circumstances of
Samedov’s capture were reported.

2) ARF Central Committee of Mountainous Karabagh Statement on Municipal
Elections

On August 8, 2004, municipal elections in the Mountainous Karabagh Republic
took place. An official announcement concerning the results of the elections
has not yet been made by the MKR Central Electoral Commission. According to
early election returns, the winner of the Stepanakert mayoral election will be
determined through a runoff. The runoff will be between Pavel Najarian and
Eduard Aghabekian. The ARF supported Aghabekian’s candidacy and did not
introduce its own candidate.
Candidates representing the ARF did participate in MKR regional elections.
Twelve of the ARF’s 13 candidates were victorious in the Hatrut region; both
candidates in the Askeran region were elected, while the mayoral candidate was
defeated; two of three candidates in Mardouni were elected; in the Kachataghi
region, 8 of the ARF’s 11 candidates were elected, and two advanced to the
second round of elections; 3 of the 8 candidates in Martakert were elected and
two advanced to the runoffs; in the Nor Shahoumian region, 7 of the 9
candidates were elected; the ARF candidate in Shushi was not elected.
The second round of elections will take place on August 22.

Armenian Revolutionary Federation Central Committee of Mountainous Karabagh

3) MKR Leadership Perplexed By CE Secretary General’s Statement

STEPANAKERT (Combined Sources)–Reacting to recent remarks by the outgoing
secretary general of the Council of Europe Walter Schwimmer, who criticized
Sunday’s local elections in the Mountainous Karabagh Republic (MKR) saying
they
cannot be deemed legitimate before an international agreement on the disputed
territory’s status, MKR’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement
expressing concern and confusion. “The MKR leadership thinks that the election
of government bodies on all levels based on the principles of democracy is an
important step to the construction of the free democratic society,” the
statement read.
“One-sided actions are counter-productive. The future of Karabagh must be
decided through negotiations,” Schwimmer had said in a statement from
Strasbourg. He pointed to his criticism of elections held in Karabagh in the
past.
The foreign ministry statement made it apparent that it was perplexed by
Schwimmer’s remarks, as it was not clear on how the elections may negatively
influence the process of settling the Karabagh conflict. “Only the legitimate
power may bear the responsibility for the entrusted territories and has
necessary authorities for carrying on peaceful negotiations on the settlement
of the conflict,” it read.
Karabagh’s ethnic Armenian leadership has hels several presidential,
parliamentary, and local elections over the past decade. Official Stepanakert
backed by Armenia proper has argued that only elected officials can represent
the people of Karabagh in the peace talks sponsored by France, Russia, and the
United States.”
“MKR for over 10 years has lived as a sovereign state, which bears no
relation
to Azerbaijan and independently organizes its life in the territory that
historically belongs to the Armenians of Karabakh. All international
structures
that come up with such statements render political support to the regime which
unleashed the large-scale war against Karabakh and does not refuse from
attempts to apply force against the MKR,” concludes the statement.
MKR President Arkady Ghukasian said on Sunday that the local government
elections are an expression of democracy and that the people had an
opportunity
to elect their leaders, Armenpress reported.
“By holding such civil actions, we create more possibilities to be recognized
by the international community,” Ghukasian said.
“We are just electing heads of towns and villages,” Ghukasian said. “The
alternative to the elections is dictatorship. It is strange that European
politicians make such statements that undermine democratic values.”

4) Pan-Diaspora Educational Conference Comes to a Successful Close

ANTELIAS–Initiated by His Holiness Catholicos Aram I and organized by the
Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, an International Conference on Armenian
education, held in the Armenian Theological Seminary in Bikfaya, Lebanon from
August 5-7, came to a close. The conference, whose theme was “The Armenian
Education in the Diaspora,” succeeded in bringing together nearly one hundred
participants from various diaspora communities worldwide, with different
political, cultural, and religious perspectives, to focus on issues pertaining
to the Armenian-Christian formation in today’s world.
In his opening address, His Holiness Aram I identified the concerns and
challenges facing Armenian-Christian education in the context of pluralistic
societies. Regarding the issue of defining today’s Armenian Christian and how
to shape the Armenian-Christian identity for tomorrow, His Holiness stressed
the crucial importance of re-evaluating and renewing educational
methodologies,
strategies, and programs by making them more relevant and reliable. In
order to
achieve this goal, His Holiness proposed that Armenia and the diaspora must
together engage in a process of developing a Pan-Armenian educational policy,
with particular attention on the worldwide Armenian diaspora.
On the agenda of the conference were topics including: the actual state of
education in different continents where Armenian communities live; the
implications of globalization on education; the role of the church in Armenian
Christian formation; the family as an important educational instrument; the
impact of pluralistic societies on Armenian Education; the use and misuse of
technology in education; the role of the textbooks and the extra curricular
activities; human resources: formation and training; the contribution of the
Saturday schools, Sunday schools, and children’s camps to education; the
importance of new community schools for the Armenian communities
established in
the West.
These and a number of related matters were discussed through papers, panel
discussions, and hearings. The active participation of young educators and
women provided new perspectives and dynamism to the discussion as they
challenged the traditional views and approaches and constantly reminded
that in
a new world context, a renewed perception and vision of education are
imperative. They echoed the challenge of His Holiness that in the present
world
of globalization and communication, Armenian Christian education must become
more responsive.
His Holiness personally attended all the sessions, highlighting the emerging
views and concerns at the end of each session.
The conference, an unprecedented event in contemporary Armenian history,
summarized its findings in a declaration, stressing the importance of putting
words and thoughts into action.
In his closing remarks, His Holiness Aram I identified three words which he
said must occupy a central place in Armenian diaspora educational work:
relevance, coherence, and integrity. “We are living in different contexts. We
must, therefore, develop different educational procedures and strategies. We
are citizens of different countries, yet we are Armenians and part of the
globalized world. We have our own convictions, values and norms, but we are
living in a new environment. Hence, it is vitally important that we develop
the
kind of educational policy that provides integrity, relevance and coherence to
our educational work, at the same time preserving our distinct Armenian
Christian identity. This is a great challenge before us and we must take it
seriously and responsibly,” said His Holiness.

5) Georgia Asks Russia To Drop Support For Separatists

MOSCOW (Reuters)–Georgia urged Russia on Monday not to ruin mutual relations
by supporting separatists in the provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and
called for dialogue. Georgia’s suspicions that Moscow is backing
separatists in
the Black Sea region of Abkhazia and mountainous South Ossetia have soured
relations between the two ex-Soviet states ever since the provinces broke away
after bloody wars in 1992-93.
Tension escalated earlier this year when Georgia’s President Mikhail
Saakashvili, who came to power in a bloodless coup last November, launched a
concerted campaign to restore the territorial integrity of his Caucasus
nation.

Last week Moscow, which has peacekeepers in both regions bordering Russia,
issued a series of angry statements accusing Tbilisi of preparing to seize
back
South Ossetia by force and threatening the safety of Russian tourists in
Abkhazia.
“Abkhazia and South Ossetia are not worth Russia ruining its relations with
Georgia forever,” Interfax news agency quoted Georgian Defense Minister Georgy
Baramidze, dispatched to Moscow to negotiate a compromise, as saying.
Russia has accused Georgia of building up military force in South Ossetia in
violation of a 1992 peace deal and provoking violence in the region, where
more
than half of the non-Georgian majority have Russian passports.
Moscow was outraged when Saakashvili vowed last week to shoot at boats
ferrying Russian tourists along the Black Sea coast to Abkhazian resorts. More
than 80 percent of Abkhazians also have Russian passports.
Georgia in turn accuses Russian peacekeepers of siding with separatists and
wants their mandate changed. Top Georgian officials have accused Moscow of
using separatism as a card in a political game to retain influence over
West-leaning Georgia.
Last week Saakashvili, a US-trained lawyer, flew to Washington to seek for
support in his confrontation with Moscow. But Secretary of State Colin Powell
advised him to continue dialogue with Russia and promised to help with “good
offices.”
In May, Moscow cooperated with Saakashvili when he seized control over the
independent-minded Black Sea region of Ajaria, whose leaders had close ties
with Russia. Ajaria, populated by ethnic Georgians, had never claimed full
independence.
Baramidze made clear that Tbilisi could be looking for similar deals on
Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
“The problem of conflicts in these regions can be solved in the interests of
Georgia and Russia,” he told Interfax. “If one looks pragmatically at the
situation, our countries have common interests.”

All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier
and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and
subscription requests.
(c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved.

ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for
academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through
mass media outlets.