Azg Armenian Daily
Sept 6 2004
GROUP OF SPECIALISTS FROM EQUATORIAL GUINEA IN ARMENIA TO FIND TRACES
OF ARMENIAN INVOLVEMENT IN THE COUP
PRESIDENT OF ARMENIA TO VISIT POLAND
TWO CIVILIZATIONS MEET
AZERBAIJAN’S “FREE” MASS MEDIA TO BE ALIYEV’S HOSTAGE OF
ANTI-ARMENIAN POLICY
SCIENTISTS TIRED OF GOVERNMENT’S PROMISES
“IF THE SCIENTISTS UNITED THE ISSUE OF OUR BUILDING WOULD HAVE OTHER
SOLUTION”
PETER BALAKIAN VISITS YEREVAN STATE UNIVERSITY
ANOTHER FESTIVAL IN ARMENIA
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GROUP OF SPECIALISTS FROM EQUATORIAL GUINEA IN ARMENIA TO FIND
TRACES OF ARMENIAN INVOLVEMENT IN THE COUP
The Prosecutor’s Office of Equatorial Guinea sent a group of
specialists to Armenia to examine the implication of Armenian pilots
in a coup against the president of the country Teodoro Obiang Nguema,
France-Presse informs.
Hamlet Gasparian, press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
told Azg Daily that the information is unknown to him. Gasparian said
that the Armenian ambassador to Egypt together with an official from
State Ceremony Department of Armenia returned to Yerevan on Sunday.
They visited the Armenian pilots in the Black Beach prison in Malabo
for the second time.
The France-Presse notes that another group of specialists left for
the South African Republic to question Margaret Thatcher’s son Mark
Thatcher. The later is accused of financing the coup against the
president Nguema and was released on bail of 300 thousand dollars.
The six Armenian pilots and the Russian “Antonov” plane were hired by
a German company. The company’s representative in Malabo Gerhard
Eugen Herz was among the arrested and died in prison apparently of
tortures.
The France-Presse reminds that the Armenian pilots arrived in
Equatorial Guinea in January and had one flight on behalf of a South
African company. The owner of the company Nick du Toit confessed at
the court to a coup that was sponsored by Mark Thatcher.
The trail over the organizers of an assumed coup will continue in
October.
By Tatoul Hakobian
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PRESIDENT OF ARMENIA TO VISIT POLAND
The 7-th of September is the last day of Robert Kocharian’s official
visit to Poland, on invitation of Alexander Kvashnevski, president of
Poland.
President Kocharian was to meet with the president of Poland, the
prime minister and the heads of Seym and the Senate.
The main purpose of the visit was to stimulate development of
intergovernmental ties, outline the economical issues that the two
countries need to consider and also speak of urgent international
issues.
History of Armenian-Polish Relations
Armenia established diplomatic relations with Poland on February 26
of 1992. Today Armenian-Polish relations are dynamically developing.
Armenia considers Poland a strategic partner in the Eastern Europe.
Poland became a EU member on May 1. Poland, with its rich experience
of democratic reforms and European integration, may play an important
role for Armenia on his way to the EU. From this perspective
Armenian-Polish relations need to be developed not only in the
political and economical spheres but also in the sphere of culture.
Official visits of representative of both countries became regular in
the course of time.
1998 – embassy of Armenian opened in Warsaw.
1999 July 13-15 – official visit of Robert Kocharian to Poland. A
business forum was held during the visit. President Kocharian made a
speech in the Center of Eastern Researches in Warsaw.
2001 January 27 – embassy of Poland opened in Yerevan.
2001 November 13-16 – Alexander Kvashnevski’s official visit to
Armenia. Another business forum held in Armenia.
Taking into consideration Poland’s achievements in attracting
overseas investments, Armenia needs learn from Polish experience.
Though the Armenian-Polish relations are not on a very high level
today, the two states have enough potential for partnership.
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TWO CIVILIZATIONS MEET
A new page in the relations of two great and neighboring
civilizations is going to open on September 8, 2004. The president of
Iran Islamic Republic Mohammad Khatami will visit Armenia on
invitation of the president of Armenia Robert Kocharian. The
president’s visit besides being important for Armenian-Iranian
relations has also a regional and international importance.
The Armenian-Iranian gas pipeline building, hydro-electric powers,
the Qadjaran tunnel construction and many other issues of great
mutual importance will top the agenda.
Who is Mohammad Khatami?
Mohammad Khatami is the 7-th president of Iran Islamic Republic. He
was elected president 8 years ago. Though the enemies of Iran are
constantly declaring that Iranian regime doesn’t protect the
country’s population, 20 million Iranians voted for the follower and
defender of Imam Khomeini’s ideas, Mohammad Khatami.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has turned a new page in many spheres
due to president Khatami’s religious democracy and the policy of
dialogue and tolerance.
While taking political decisions Khatami considers peoples’ rights,
views and demands within the Islamic principles. On the international
arena the president leads the policy of stopping confrontations and
conflicts.
The idea of a dialogue between civilizations drawn forward by Khatami
at the General Assembly of the UN gained an international support.
That’s why the year of 2001 was declared a year of dialogue by the
UN. Khatami’s idea of dialogue is perhaps the best alternate against
the so-called theory of clash of the civilizations.
Mohammad Khatami was elected for the second term receiving the great
majority of the vote. He is one of the great thinkers of his time, an
eminent theorist and author of many books on Islamic philosophy. The
Armenian nation is looking forward to the visit of friendly Iran’s
president.
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AZERBAIJAN’S “FREE” MASS MEDIA TO BE ALIYEV’S HOSTAGE OF
ANTI-ARMENIAN POLICY
The Azeri mass media protests against the participation of Armenian
officers in the NATO’s “Cooperative Best Effort” exercises taking
place on September 12, 2004, in Baku. The Azeri authorities, i.e.
president Aliyev are backing the protest. The latter is taking every
step to reduce contacts with Armenians to minimum after his father’s
death. One year ago when Ilham Aliyev was the prime minister of
Azerbaijan he urged the Azeri NGOs to put an end to any contact with
Armenians. Anti-Armenian moods gained governmental support during the
last year.
This is not the first anti-Armenian rally of the Azeri government. In
his April visit to Ankara Ilham Aliyev drew forward two main issues:
Turkish-Azeri relations and the Karabakh issue. Here Aliyev appealed
to Turkish authorities not to open the Turkish-Armenian border-gate,
as it will bring the Karabakh issue to a deadlock.
The Azeri mass media was always anti-Armenian after the Karabakh war.
But in 1998-2001 due to Armenian and Azeri NGOs mass media workers
had the chance to visit each other’s countries, a kind of “thaw”
began.
Ilham Aliyev’s appearance as a president of Azerbaijan changed
everything. President Aliyev soon understood that the world community
doesn’t approve of his belligerent statements and fell silent letting
the mass media talk. But the official mass media is still keeping
silent as though everything said and published has nothing to do with
official Baku’s position.
The Armenian servicemen are to leave for Baku on September 12.
Armenian officers were not permitted on board the plane leaving from
Istanbul to Baku in January. The organizer of the exercises, NATO,
didn’t publicly condemn Azeri authorities but hinted that steps like
this are not allowed within its frameworks.
A month later in Budapest during the NATO-organized English classes
an Azeri officer Ramil Safarov murdered his Armenian classmate. The
NATO condemned the heinous deed whereas Azerbaijan made Safarov a
national hero.
The second NATO conference took place in Baku. Two Armenian officers
managed to reach the Azeri capital. The so-called Organization of
Karabakh Liberation tried to penetrate the conference hall and kill
Armenians. Five activists of this organization were sentenced to 2
years imprisonment for making troubles recently.
The mass media aroused a new wave of anti-Armenian hysteria: how can
you arrest the potential Karabakh warriors? Ilham Aliyev noted that
though he finds the sentence too heavy he can do nothing about it as
the court in Azerbaijan is free.
Meanwhile the Armenian officers are getting ready to leave for Baku
to participate in the exercises taking place from September 13 to 26.
The time will show how will the Azeri mass media react to this event.
To conclude, we should say that Azerbaijan declined its participation
in the NATO exercises of 2003 in Yerevan justifying it by the
unsolved Karabakh issue and the occupied territories.
By Tatoul Hakobian
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SCIENTISTS TIRED OF GOVERNMENT’S PROMISES
“We have to register that this budget is not meant for preservation
of the science, as the authorities declare, but it is slowly killing
the science. This policy can make fatal harm to the Armenian Studies
that should be one of the priority directions of the national policy.
We demand that our authorities should meet the requirements of the
law on science and keep their promises given to the scientists, i.e.
to secure at least minimal conditions for scientific researches,”
says the open letter of the directors of the Institutes of the
Armenian and Social Studies attached to Ra National Academy of
Sciences. The letter is addressed to RA President, Ra National
Assembly and RA Government.
The scientists disappointed from the obvious ignoring attitude of our
statesmen to the Armenian studies gathered at RA Academy to put
forward the issues they are constantly discussing. The meeting was
led by Vladimir Barkhudarian, Deputy Chairman of the Academy.
He explained their decision to take urgent measures by the fact that
our authorities discharge the importance of the Armenian Studies. The
Government raised the average salaries of the scientists from 16
thousand to only 22 thousand AMD, though they promised to raise the
salaries for tenfold.
Academician Vladimir Khojabekian believes that it is not the fault of
RA Education and Science Ministry, they were instructed to liquidate
the Academy of Sciences with time. This instruction was made by
former RA President Levon Ter-Petrosian. While the authorities of the
country, particularly, the country’s president should care for the
science and be responsible for its development.
Ashot Melkonian, director of the History Institute, emphasized that
they complain not only about poor salaries but also about the state
policy concerning the Armenian Studies and the science. “Armenian
Studies are important not only for the scientists but it is a
national issue, and we alarm against the lack of the special position
of the states concerning the matter,” he said.
Nikolai Hovhannisian, Director of the Institute of the Oriental
Studies, emphasized that they are aimed to create a progressive and
developed Armenian state. “It is already out of question that we
can’t create such a state, having conducting such a policy and
approach to the science, that exists in Armenia today. Sometimes we
are blamed that we can’t secure grants for our researches. There is
no country in the world that develops its science based on the
grants, solely. The Armenian Studies isn’t an international science,
but a national one and the state should be responsible for that.”
Aram Kalantarian, Director of the Institutes for the Ancient and
Ethnic Studies, Azat Eghiazarian, Director of the Literature and Arts
Institute, Lavrenti Hovhannisian, deputy Director of the Institute of
Linguistics, also held speeches, expressing their indignation about
the position of the authorities to the Armenian Studies.
By the end of their speeches, Mr. Barkhudarian said that RA
Government decided to raise the salaries of the scientists by 5000
AMD for the candidates of science and 10000 AMD for the Doctors.
RA Government tried to take the first step to sooth the anger of the
scientists, but that wasn’t the key one.
By Ruzan Poghosian
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“IF THE SCIENTISTS UNITED THE ISSUE OF OUR BUILDING WOULD HAVE OTHER
SOLUTION”
Lavrenti Hovhannisian, Director of the Institute of Linguistics, said
that their complaints and protests against handing the edifice of the
Institutes of Economy and Linguistics attached to RA National
Assembly to Holy See of St. Etchmiadzin yielded no good results. “We
expect that one beautiful day we will be withdrawn from the building.
If we, the scientists united in the issue of our building, it would
have other solution. “He assured as a warning that in future all the
other buildings of RA National Academy of Science will be taken away,
as this practice is likely to grow in future.” He offered the
scientists clear out whether this approach of the authorities is
caused from their ignorance or this is a special approach. “If the
authorities don’t understand this state is based on the Armenian
Studies, we should make them understand. In the first way this
approach can be corrected, but the second case is much more
dangerous,” he said.
By Ruzan Poghosian
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PETER BALAKIAN VISITS YEREVAN STATE UNIVERSITY
Peter Balakian, American-Armenian writer, was invited to visit the
students of Yerevan State University on September 3. Press Service of
the University informed that Levon Ananian, Chairman of RA Union of
Writers, represented the creative life of Peter Balakian, talked of
his pieces. Afterwards, Peter Balakian held a speech. He emphasized
that that was a great pleasure for him to meet with the students. He
thanked the Armenian General Benevolence Union, RA Union of Writers,
as they invited him to Armenia. He was also grateful to the Yerevan
State University for the meeting with the students. Then he
represented his book “Black Dog of Fate”. He touched upon the
generations’ gap occurred after the Genocide.
Radik Martirosian, Rector of Yerevan State University, emphasized the
importance of such meetings and awarded Mr. Balakian YSU Golden
Medal, supreme order of the Yerevan State University. By the end of
the meeting a number of students represented several poems by
Balakian.
By Tamar Minasian
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ANOTHER FESTIVAL IN ARMENIA
Three festivals were held in Armenia in three months, another 2
international festivals are envisaged to be held in coming two
months. Razmik Abrahamian, head of Art and Folk Art Department of RA
Ministry of Culture, believes that we still need more festivals.
“Golden Apricot”, “One Nation, One Culture,” and “Pomegranate Seed”
festivals can be considered established. At present, we are aimed to
support “Armmono” and “Haifest” international festivals, Razmik
Abrahamian said.
Over 100 artists participated in “Golden Apricot” festival, over 1000
artists were invited to take part in “One Nation, One Culture”.
Though this year only local artists participated “Pomegranate Seed”
youth festival, the organizers assure that next year foreign artists
will be invited to Armenia.
If “One Nation, One Culture” contributed to strengthening the
relations between Armenia and Diaspora, “Armmono” and “Haifest” can
easily become international festivals. Both festivals are carried out
for the second time. “Armmono” will be held on September 14-20 and 30
actors from 14 countries will represent 29 mono-performances. Mariam
Ghazarian, organizer of the festival, assured that the actors were
chosen according to stricter criteria. “Haifest” will be carried out
in October.
“These festivals contribute to the development of theatre and cinema,
as well as to the establishment of mutual acquaintances,” Razmik
Abrahamian said.
By Arevik Badalian