CENN – DECEMBER 20, 2004 DAILY DIGEST
Table of Contents:
1. Evaluation of CENN activities During the period of 2004-2005
2. “The Public Eye Awards – “26/27 January 2005, Davos/Switzerland
3. Training Sessions in International Human Rights
4. BP and British Council Announce Successful Scholarship Candidates
5. AUA Promotes Anti-Smoking Movement
6. Human Rights and Environment
1. EVALUATION OF CENN ACTIVITIES DURING THE PERIOD OF 2004-2005
CENN – Caucasus Environmental NGO Network is conducting evaluation of
its activities for the period of 2004-2005 and would like to ask you to
participate in the study by answering this checklist as accurately as
possible. The information will help us assess the CENN activities and
improve our work in the future. We ask you to answer the checklist and
return it via e-mail till December 27, 2004.
We appreciate your cooperation! Thank you!
The English and Russian verisons of the cheklists is availble on the
following adress:
2. “THE PUBLIC EYE AWARDS – “26/27 JANUARY 2005, DAVOS/SWITZERLAND
Dear friends,
Every year in January, the World Economic Forum (WEF) gathers its
business leaders and the world’s political and media elite in Davos.
Current global political issues are discussed and trends in the future
development of global business are set. For the sixth time, the
international NGO coalition “The Public Eye on Davos” will be present in
Davos with an alternative event at the same time and place as the WEF.
The highlight of next year’s “Public Eye” will be an Awards Ceremony.
Candidates for the awards are WEF corporate members and other companies
that have excelled in socially and environmentally irresponsible
behavior. The “Public Eye Awards” are given in the categories human
rights, environment, labor law and taxes.
In the meantime, we received numerous nominations (the deadline was 31
October 2004). They can be viewed from January 11, 2005 (date of the
press conference) onwards at:
<;. The award winners will be presented
at the Awards Ceremony to be held on 26 January 2005 in Davos. The Swiss
actor and cabaret artist Patrick Frey will present the event.
For the full program of the “Public Eye” event please go to:
<;archive=none>
With kind regards,
Matthias Herfeldt
Coordinator “The Public Eye on Davos”
Berne Declaration
3. TRAINING SESSIONS IN INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS
Dear Sir / Madam,
Please allow me to introduce myself: My name is Kamala Laghate and I
work for the Netherlands Helsinki Committee as project organizer.
In May we will hold the fifth of a series of five Practical Training
sessions in International Human Rights Litigation. This training will
take place in the Netherlands from 9th to 20th of May 2005. The emphasis
is on non-discrimination and minority rights.
It is meant for lawyers and judges from the Caucasus region who deal
with human rights issues (especially non-discrimination and minority
rights) professionally, who litigate in court and could be placed in the
position to bring a case to Strasbourg.
Please find additional info on the programme in the attachments as well
as the application form.
The deadline for submitting the application is January 15th, 2005.
I kindly request you to distribute the information on the training to
other relevant organisations (such as bar / judiciary associations,
human rights organisations, courts) and individuals whom you think would
be interested in participating. The training will be taught in English,
so the applicant should be fluent in this language.
As we are based in the Netherlands and have not established many
contacts in your country yet I would really appreciate it if you would
help me in finding participants for
this course.
Thank you very much in advance!
Should you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely,
Kamala Laghate
Netherlands Helsinki Committee
P.O. Box 93132
2509 AC The Hague, the Netherlands
T: +31 70 392 6700
F: +31 70 392 6550
4. BP AND BRITISH COUNCIL ANNOUNCE SUCCESSFUL SCHOLARSHIP CANDIDATES
Source: The Messenger, December 17, 2004
On December 16, 2004 BP Georgia and the British Council announced the
selection of their candidates for a new international scholarship
program, targeting leaders in a wide range of study fields from
businesses to media.
The BP-funded program, launched in October, will send 10 students to
study Masters level courses in the UK for a period of 12 months. The
British Council will manage this program that received more than 250
applications alongside the UK government’s Chevening scholarships
program.
The announcement follows BP’s recent commitment to a new social
investment program for Georgia, through which – in consultation with the
Georgian government – it will invest US $10 million in arrange of
projects covering areas such as education and healthcare.
Head of BP Georgia, Wref Digings says: “This scholarship program is part
of our commitment to successful, long term relationship with Georgia. It
is the first step in our education program that is set to expand to
include other long distance learning opportunities for Georgians. It
also fits well with BP’s global emphasis on the role of education in the
development of enterprise and civil society.”
Jo Bakowski, Director of the British Council in Georgia, adds: “WE have
been managing scholarship programs for the more than 10 years and they
are one of our most important activities, clearly demonstrated by the
achievements of our alumni. The candidates selected fort the BP program
are of similarly high standard and have shown how their studies could
contribute to positive change in Georgia.”
The fields covered by the scholarship are: banking, finance and
economics (including insurance); business studies; management
(agriculture, education, energy, health and transport); human rights;
law; media; social and political studies; built environment (includes
architecture, urban planning and design); and international relations
and diplomatic studies.
For further information on program, please visit the British Council
website at:
5. AUA PROMOTES ANTI-SMOKING MOVEMENT
PRESS RELEASE
December 16, 2004
American University of Armenia Corporation
300 Lakeside Drive, 4th Floor
Oakland, CA 94612
Telephone: (510) 987-9452
Fax: (510) 208-3576
Contact: Gohar Momjian
E-mail: gohar@auac.net
Yerevan – On Friday, December 10, 2004, the Association of
Caricaturists, the Armenian Public Health Alliance, the Coalition for
Tobacco Free Armenia and the American University of Armenia hosted a
public exhibition “Artists Against Smoking,” as part of its approach to
combat smoking in Armenia.
The exhibition took place in the newly opened AUA Center Restaurant,
which has a healthy working, non-smoking environment policy.
With support from the Open Society institute, the Armenian Public Health
Alliance, formed by the Armenian Public Health Association, the Armenian
Public Health Union and the American University of Armenia, started an
ambitious multi-pronged project to combat smoking in Armenia, including
establishing the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Armenia (CTFA), which now
includes 18 NGOs representing over eight hundred people committed to
preventing the health consequences of tobacco smoke.
Earlier in the year, on October 12, the American University of Armenia
(AUA) hosted the first ever-national meeting of NGOs involved in
fighting smoking in Armenia. At the conference, AUA President Haroutune
Armenian emphasized that the Coalition for Tobacco Free Armenia (CTFA)
demonstrates that Armenians can and will unite to protect the public’s
health.
According to global tobacco expert, Dr. Richard Peto, the average
Armenian male smoker loses 17 years of productive life due to smoking.
Despite this shocking finding, smoking is not perceived as a problem by
Armenian society, where 67% of adult males are estimated to smoke and 3%
of females.
Moreover, many wrongly believe that cigarette manufacturing is a benefit
to the country’s economy, looking only at the jobs and tax revenue
created by the industry, without accounting for health and other costs
paid by the government and by society at large. This false image of
tobacco industry is maintained by sophisticated advertisements and other
misleading practices seen throughout the world.
Empowering people and building public support for tough tobacco control
policy measures was and remains the focus of the initiative.
Established in June 2004, the Coalition for Tobacco Free Armenia became
a member of the international Framework Convention Alliance, which
unites about 200 organizations around the world in support of the WHO
Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. In June, CTFA Coordinator
Narine Movsisyan, MD, MPH participated as an invited observer at the
open-ended intergovernmental meeting on tobacco control in Geneva. In
her words, it was “a great experience to learn from international
tobacco control activists. Lobbying was a bad word in the soviet times.
I would never have imagined that lobbying could be pro-human,
pro-health. Like the smokers we are trying to educate, we have to open
our minds and re-think many concepts.”
In a country in transition like Armenia, economic arguments can be very
powerful. Thus, demonstrating the long-term effects of tobacco control
as opposed to short-term economic benefits of tobacco growing and
manufacturing is of critical importance. Armenian Public Health Alliance
experts developed a comprehensive informational package for Armenian
policy and decision makers. The infopack called “Contemporary Issues on
Tobacco Control in Armenia” examined health, social and economic aspects
of the situation in Armenia and suggested appropriate solutions in light
of international experience. The Armenian Public Health Alliance’s
infopack was a critical reference at the November 17 Parliamentary
hearings on tobacco control.
The CTFA successfully lobbied Parliament to adopt the Framework
Convention on Tobacco Control and is now lobbying for similarly strict
supporting legislation, in coordination with the Ministry of Health
National Tobacco Control Program led by Dr. Alexander Bazarchyan and
Chair of Parliamentary Committee on Science, Education, Culture, and
Youth, Mrs. Hranush Hakobyan.
As Armenian Public Health Alliance member Hovhannes Margaryants,
President of the Armenian Public Health Union, noted, “We intend to
stimulate a dialogue within our society and build a new non-smoking
culture. We are looking for allies and partners among journalists,
medical, cultural, business and political elite as well as parents and
other “ordinary” citizens. Everyone concerned with building a healthier
and safer homeland for all Armenians is welcomed.”
The “Artists Against Smoking” exhibition was organized within the
framework of the tobacco control project with support from the Open
Society Institute Assistance Foundation. The Association of
Caricaturists presented approximately 40 antismoking drawings. AUA
members along with guests and representatives from Ministry of Culture,
Youth Affaires and Sport, Academy of Art, international organizations
and local agencies expressed their appreciation and noted that both the
exhibition and non-smoking Restaurant are a novelty for Armenia.
CTFA Coordinator Narine Movsisyan stated, “It’s a challenge to change
people’s unhealthy behavior. Today’s exhibition is an attempt to talk to
people on a language of humor and satire. We believe that laugh can be
curative.” The opening was followed by light reception and broad local
media coverage. The Exhibition will be open for public at large through
December 17th in the AUA Club Restaurant.
6. HUMAN RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENT
Source: Yerevan Press Club Weekly Newsletter, December 10-16, 2004
On December 10, 2004 on the International Day of Human Rights in Yerevan
the ceremony of awarding monetary prizes to the winners of competition
“Human Rights and Environment” was held. The competition was
administrated by the OSCE Office in Yerevan jointly with the Public
(Airbus) Center of Environmental Information.
In the nomination “Print media” the first prize was awarded to Susanna
Shakhnazarian (“Ban ev Gorts”, Syunik region), the second – to Karineh
Danielian (“Azg”, Yerevan), the third – to Arthur Sakunts and Narineh
Bulghadarian (“Civil Initiative”, Vanadzor). Encouraging prizes in this
nomination were conferred on Anush Sargsian (“Loru Marz”, Lori region)
and Sarah Petrosian (“Investigative Journalists” public organization).
In the nomination “TV Journalism” the first prize was granted to Edik
Baghdasarian (“Versus” studio, Yerevan), the second – to Satenik
Kaghzvantsian (free-lance journalist, Shirak region), the third – to
Valery Gasparian (Armenian branch of “Mir” Interstate TV and Radio
Company). Encouraging prizes were also conferred on Nelly Danielian
(“Yerkir-Media”, Yerevan) and Stella Martirosian (“Shoghakat”, Yerevan).
Special prize was awarded to the film of Hrachia Papinian (“Ankyun+3”,
Lori region).
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CENN INFO
Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN)
Tel: ++995 32 92 39 46
Fax: ++995 32 92 39 47
E-mail: info@cenn.org
URL:
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