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10/13/2005
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1) Tension Runs High in Akhalkalak
2) His Holiness Aram I Presides over Holy High Mass at St. Mary’s Church in
Glendale with Over 1,000 People in Attendance
3) US Says Turkey Exerts Excessive Control over Religious Activity
4) Councilman Eric Garcetti Visits Armenia
5) AYF Eastern Region Members Gather for Annual Seminar

1) Tension Runs High in Akhalkalak

AKHALKALAK (Armenpress)–Around 1,000 anti-Armenian Russian-language posters
carrying the state emblem of Turkey were found pasted to buildings in
Akhalkalak in southern Georgia on Tuesday morning.
Signed `The Akhaltsikhe Liberation Army,’ the posters ordered local Armenians
to move out of the region, to Armenia, USA and elsewhere, otherwise `be
slaughtered as your grandparents were in 1915.’
Local Armenian organizations and many residents of the town say this is
another
attempt to terrorize local Armenians and destabilize the mostly Armenian
populated region. The local administration convened an extraordinary session
with law-enforcement bodies urging them to track down and punish the
perpetrators.
Akhalkalak, the main town in the predominantly Armenian-populated Javakhk
region of Georgia, which borders Armenia, was the site of a protest rally on
October 5, after tax officials from Tbilisi closed ten shops for alleged
financial irregularities.
The shop owners, mostly ethnic Armenians, and about 300 supporters, gathered
outside the Akhalkalak’s administration building to protest the violation of
their rights.
Local police dispersed the rally using rubber truncheons and firing shots in
the air. The clash between the authorities and the protesters left several
people injured. Police efforts to break up the rally prompted more
residents of
Akhalkalak and nearby villages to join the protest, making the situation even
more tense.
Giorgi Khachidze, the governor of the region appointed by Geornia’s President,
managed to calm the angry crowd through negotiations. Khachidze criticized the
police for excessive use of force and promised to hold some of them
accountable.
`In my opinion, they had no right to fire shots, even in the air,’ he was
quoted by Rustavi-2 TV as saying on October 6. Meanwhile, President Mikhail
Saakashvili hailed police actions, saying, `there is no serious problem’ and
emphasized that law-enforcement officials were merely maintaining order in a
region that had been poorly controlled in recent years.
Saakashvili and other Georgian officials have tried to downplay the latest
events in Akhalkalak, claming that the radical organizations advocating
autonomy for the region do not enjoy serious popular support.

2) His Holiness Aram I Presides over Holy High Mass at St. Mary’s Church in
Glendale with Over 1,000 People in Attendance

Catholicos Blesses Stone for New Glendale Community Center

LOS ANGELES–Over 1,000 people attended Holy High Mass conducted by His
Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, at St. Mary’s
Church
in Glendale on October 9. The Homenetmen scouts marching band welcomed the
Catholicos on his arrival as they played the national anthems of the United
States and Armenia. Hundreds of people welcomed His Holiness outside while the
church was filled to capacity inside with people eagerly awaiting his arrival.
Immediately after his arrival, His Holiness, accompanied by both Archbishop
Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate of the Western United States and Archbishop
Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Eastern United States, proceeded to prepare
for the day’s mass. The procession into the church began when the Pontiff and
the surrounding clergy reemerged wearing their special robes and dress for the
mass. With the Homenetmen scouts lining both sides, when the procession
reached
the front church steps, His Holiness conducted a special blessing after which
white doves were released and the Catholicos and the procession entered St.
Mary’s.
In addition to the community at large, present were public officials including
Glendale Mayor Rafi Manoukian, Glendale Police Chief Randy Adams and
representatives from Western Prelacy committees and councils. Also present
were
representatives from many other community organizations.
After services, His Holiness conducted a special service at the property
adjacent to St. Mary’s Church where there are plans to build a new, modern
community center. Nazaret Apanian, representative of the Armenian
Revolutionary
Federation Aharonian Gomideh stated that the community center plans have been
in development during the last few years and that it will house the activities
of the various community organizations, especially those serving the youth as
well as a Saturday and Sunday school. After brief remarks introducing the
project, the Catholicos blessed the soil on which the center will be built as
well as the cornerstone that will be used in the building.
`Any community center that stands in the diaspora for the purpose of serving
the people is a little piece of Armenia,’ said His Holiness Aram I. `It is a
part of our homeland with the mission of preserving and spreading our Armenian
values.’

Fresno Mayor Pledges Monument for Armenian Genocide Victims

FRESNO–The Mayor of Fresno, California expressed readiness to undertake the
building of a Genocide monument in the near future to honor the victims of the
Armenian genocide. Mayor Alan Autry made the announcement on the occasion of a
visit to the city by His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of
Cilicia, and as a response to a request by His Holiness. Mayor Autry said that
the first step would be to target an appropriate location for the memorial.
Fresno Armenian community members embraced the announcement, saying that it is
a step in right direction in establishing justice.

3) US Says Turkey Exerts Excessive Control over Religious Activity

ARMENPRESS–A recent report by the United States Mission to the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) criticized Turkey for exerting
excessive state control over minority religions, saying the Muslim country
risks eroding the centuries-old Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul, as
well as
the historic Syriac and Armenian Orthodox churches.
The report, which was delivered to the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation
Meeting in Warsaw on September 28, also called on Turkey to clarify the legal
status of 55 Protestant Churches that have been unable to register in Turkey
and are vulnerable to closure and harassment.
`We regret that authorities continue to inhibit the opening of places of
worship outside the Sunni Muslim mainstream and systematically disregard the
OSCE’s 1990 Bonn Document by expropriating the properties of religious groups
without compensation,’ the US statement said.
Concurrently, the European Court of Human Rights is weighing a decision on the
property rights of two minority foundations in Turkey. The Soorp Purgich
Armenian Hospital Foundation and the Fener Greek Boys High School Foundation
filed cases against Turkey arguing that they are in compliance with the
provisions of the Treaty of Lausanne. The 1923 Treaty affords protection to
foundations that provide public services for religious minorities.
In both cases, property gifted to the Armenian and Greek foundations were
seized as the Turkish courts upheld orders declaring that the bequest violated
a decree disallowing non-Muslims from donating real estate. If the court rules
in favor of the foundations, hundreds of buildings seized in the past may be
returned.

4) Councilman Eric Garcetti Visits Armenia

Councilmember Visits Armenian Heartland in an Attempt to Create Sister City
Relationship with Yerevan

LOS ANGELES–As a part of an official delegation of the Armenian National
Committee of America-Western Region (ANCA-WR), Los Angeles City Councilmember
Eric Garcetti recently returned from a nearly week and a half long trip
Armenia, where he met Armenian local and national political leadership. The
delegation included Garcetti’s staff members Baydsar Thomasian and Lynette
Amerian with husband Bruce Bogstad, and ANCA-WR Board members Leonard
Manoukian
and Vahagn Thomasian.
On their arrival, Councilmember Garcetti and the delegation were greeted
with a
warm welcome by the Armenian officials as well as American expatriates. Local
television crews who waited until three in the morning to interview
Councilmember Garcetti were also on hand.
The following day, the delegation met with several Parliamentary leaders
including Levon Mkrtchian, Armen Rustamian and the Mayor of Yerevan, Yervand
Zakharian. During these meetings, Garcetti and the Armenian officials
discussed
creating a Sister City relationship between Los Angeles and Yerevan, and
issues
that are of concern to both the diasporan and native Armenian communities.
`The meetings were all very encouraging about establishing a Sister City
agreement with Yerevan and using the Sister City relationship to promote
economic, cultural, and political interaction between the two municipalities,’
said Councilmember Eric Garcetti. `We looked at cooperation on the issues of
law enforcement and we explored possible cooperation around seismic standards
for buildings, considering we both live with fault lines in and around our
cities.’
Throughout the remainder of their trip, as Garcetti and the delegation
traveled
through the highlands of Armenia, they met with US Ambassador to Armenia, John
Marshall Evans, and the Deputy Minister on Foreign Affairs, Arman Kirakossian.
During these meetings, they discussed the possibilities for development and
success of both cities, if a Sister City relationship were to be established.
Ambassador Evans spoke of his thoughts on creating a program in which the
police and fire departments of the City of Los Angeles and Yerevan would work
with one another in an exchange of knowledge and ideas in order to promote the
capabilities of each.
`I am very hopeful of the outcome Councilmember Garcetti’s trip to Armenia
will
have for both the residents of Los Angeles and Yerevan. It will undoubtedly
create a relationship in which both cities will benefit from one another,’
said
delegation member and ANCA-WR Board member Vahagn Thomasian.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean joined Garcetti and his
delegation on their visit to the Armenian Genocide Memorial. Together, they
planted trees in a grove where elected officials from around the world have
done the same in remembrance of the 1.5 million Armenians who were killed by
the Ottoman Turkish government.
`The truth is that the Armenian genocide took place 90 years ago,’ said DNC
Chairman Howard Dean.’Over a million people were killed. There is no question
that the United States should recognize this.’
Dean’s visit to Armenia was spurred by an invitation by the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation (ARF). During his short trip, which lasted a few
days,
he stressed his support of the Armenian American community’s efforts to gain
recognition for the Armenian Genocide. He also went on to express his support
for the congressional resolutions that urges President Bush to `accurately
characterize the systematic and deliberate annihilation of 1,500,000 Armenians
as genocide’ in his annual message to the US-Armenian community.
Garcetti was first elected in 2001, becoming one of the youngest
Councilmembers
elected in the city’s history. He represents the 13th district, which is known
as the heart of Los Angeles, and stretches between Hollywood and Downtown and
includes the area known as `Little Armenia.’

5) AYF Eastern Region Members Gather for Annual Seminar

WATERTOWN–On October 8, members of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF)
Eastern
Region gathered in Paramus, NJ, for the organization’s annual Senior Seminar.
Participants from Providence, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit, New Jersey, New
York and Washington, DC, attended the seminar, which included lectures on the
current status of the organization; an overview of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (ARF); and a discussion on what it means to be Armenian.
Lead by AYF regional advisor Zorab Khaligian from Racine, Wisconsin, the group
talked about the dimensions of what it means to be Armenian and what types of
activities are included in its definition. Khaligian asked the group to put
the
discussion into perspective. “We have all of this commitment, socialization,
but what are we doing with it? Going with the flow and being at events is
great, but what about taking the next step? If you remain stagnant, then there
will be no AYF,” said Khaligian.
“We have our monthly meetings to discuss chapter dynamics and the successes or
failures that occur within our own cities. It is important for us, however, to
take time out to meet with the leaders and active members of other chapters to
discuss our organization as a whole,” said Philadelphia AYF chapter president
Anglela Deese, who attended the seminar. “This year’s event was a chance
for us
to discuss those issues, such as the ways in which we can run the AYF most
efficiently and successfully. I believe that a weekend like this helps us take
ownership of the AYF; this is easy to do within our own communities back home.
But we must remember that we are part of a group of youth striving for the
same
goal, and as a part of ARF youth, we strive for this goal not only in our own
cities, but with the rest of our ungers all over the world,” she said.
“I believe that this meeting was a successful event for two reasons. First, it
addressed important issues that our organization faces and presented
solutions.
And secondly, the lectures and discussions were different than the usual take
on the subjects,” said New Jersey AYF attendee Razmig Tchaghlasian.

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