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01/12/2005
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1) Oskanian Holds Press Conference after Meeting with Azeri Counterpart
2) Schwarz Joins Congressional Armenian Caucus
3) Turkey Criticized by Europe’s Rights Court over Treatment of Journalist
4) Kocharian, Vardanian Prioritize Social Sector

1) Oskanian Holds Press Conference after Meeting with Azeri Counterpart

YEREVAN (Armenpress/RFE-RL)–Foreign Affairs Minister Vartan Oskanian revealed
during a press conference on Wednesday that 2005 could prove to be decisive
for
the resolution of the Mountainous Karabagh conflict.
“The second phase of the Prague process will be qualitatively different from
the previous phases,” he said, referring to his face-to-face meeting with
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov on Tuesday.
“A serious political will and consistency must be displayed here. The year
will be quite intensive,” he told a news conference Yerevan.
Without divulging details about his meeting with Mammadyarov and separate
talks with international mediators also held in Prague on Tuesday, Oskanian
said that the conflicting parties have yet to reach a full agreement on “the
framework of issues” that have been the main subject of their discussions
since
last spring.
Noting that the Azeri press very often releases inaccurate information,
Oskanian stressed, “We have entered a more serious round in the negotiation
process and in order not to put the other side in a difficult position we must
be careful in our statements.”
Mammadyarov was similarly reserved in publicly commenting about the meeting.
“We are happy with the current level of discussions,” Azeri media quoted
him as
saying. “The main result of the meeting is that the parties agreed to continue
negotiations in a positive spirit.”

2) Schwarz Joins Congressional Armenian Caucus

Detroit, MI (ANCA)–Newly elected Rep. John “Joe” Schwarz has become the
newest
member of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues. Schwarz’s entrance into
the Caucus brings its membership to over 140.
During Schwarz’s campaign for Congress last year, the ANC of Michigan
played a
key role in supporting the candidate by introducing him to members of the
local
Armenian-American community, as well as co-sponsoring a fundraiser with
Armen-PAC and AAPAC of Michigan last June before Michigan’s August primary
election. Schwarz’s 7th Congressional District stretches from Western
Washtenaw
County near Ann Arbor to Coldwater, near the Indiana border.
With Schwarz’s Caucus membership, Michigan’s 15-member Congressional
delegation will now have 13 Caucus members. “I am very appreciative for the
superb support given to my candidacy for Congress by the Michigan
Armenian-American Community, and I look forward to being an active Member on
the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues,” said Schwarz. “As a student of
history, I have always been fascinated by the history, the great trials and
tribulations, and the pride in heritage of the Armenian People.”
“We welcome Joe’s membership in the Armenian Issues Caucus and look
forward to
working with him on a number of issues of special concern to his
Armenian-American constituents,” said Georgi-Ann Oshagan, ANC of Michigan
chairwoman. “Joe promised us here in southeastern Michigan that he would
immediately join the Caucus if elected, and he kept that promise.”
Schwarz is a practicing physician and served in Vietnam in the US Navy. He
also worked for the Central Intelligence Agency. Schwarz was most recently a
state senator from Battle Creek, and is a former city commissioner and
mayor of
Battle Creek.
Founded in 1995, the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues is a bipartisan
forum for the discussion of policies to foster increased cooperation between
the United States and Armenian governments and to strengthen the enduring
bonds
between the American and Armenian peoples. It was founded by Congressmen Frank
Pallone (D-NJ) and John Porter (R-IL) and is currently co-chaired by Rep.
Pallone and Michigan Republican Joe Knollenberg.

3) Turkey Criticized by Europe’s Rights Court over Treatment of Journalist

STRASBOURG (AFP)–Turkey was criticized by the European Court of Human Rights
on Tuesday over its treatment of a journalist who reviewed books about the
sensitive Kurdish southeast of the country.
One of the books reviewed by Attila Halis in January 1994 was written by
convicted Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan, who for many years was
Turkey’s
most wanted man. Ocalan was captured by Turkish undercover agents in Kenya in
1999, brought back to Turkey, and sentenced to death. His sentence was later
changed to life in prison.
Rebels from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have been held responsible by
Ankara for a 15-year civil conflict that claimed more than 30,000 lives in
southeast Turkey.
Halis was given a one-year jail sentence and a heavy fine in March 1995 for
disseminating propaganda after a trial presided over by a Turkish military
judge.
After losing an appeal, Halis went on the run, but the Turkish police caught
up with him in March 2002. His sentence was finally suspended in July the same
year.
The European court declared that Ankara had violated the European Convention
on Human Rights in two areas: the right to freedom of expression and the right
to a free and fair trial.
“The applicants conviction was disproportionate to the aims pursued and,
accordingly, not necessary in a democratic society,” the court declared.
The article was never actually published, as the January 2, 1994 edition of
the paper, Ozgur Gundem, was seized before it was distributed.
At a historic summit in Brussels in December, Turkey was invited by the
European Union to begin membership talks in October; however, the country was
advised that it must ensure that recent legislation adopted to improve human
rights was applied at all levels.
The president of the European Court of Human Rights Luzius Wildhaber recently
declared that Turkey’s once widely faulted legal practices were approaching
European standards.

4) Kocharian, Vardanian Prioritize Social Sector

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–President Robert Kocharian and Labor and Social Affairs
Minister Aghvan Vardanian discussed social sector reforms on Tuesday, and
announced that their 2005 priorities include reforming the pension system.
They
proposed the introduction of a mixed system that combines public and private
sources to finance pensions.
Vardanian said the two also discussed the introduction of Social Security
cards to the country, noting that 2.2 million people have applied, and 1.6
million have already been issued cards.
The Social Security Foundation was also reviewed at the meeting, the minister
said, adding that beginning this year, the social security tax will be
collected by the Tax Inspectorate.

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