Massis Weekly Online
MassisWeekly.com
VOLUME 26, NO. 50 (1300)
SATURDAY, JANUARY 20, 2007

— Breaking News —

-The assassination of Istanbul Armenian journalist and intellectual
Hrant Dink has shocked the Armenian nation all over the world.
-Social Democrat Hunchakian Party Central Committee has issued a
statement condemning Hrant Dinks assassination and calling it a
terrorist act. ?The Turkish government has its share of responsibility
in this brutal crime.? Declares the statement by the SDHP Central
Committee.
-Jointly organized by Armenian Assembly of America, Armenian Council
of America and SDHP GAIDZ Youth Organization, Los Angeles community
members held a candlelight vigil in front of the Turkish Consulate
Friday night, January 19th.
-On Friday hundreds of community members attended a requiem service
held at the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church headquarters for
the soul of Hrant Dink.
-SDHP ?Sarkis Dkhrouni? Student association has called for a protest
rally in Yerevan on Tuesday January 23th condemning Hrant Dinks
assassination and commemorating the 17th anniversary of Baku pogroms.

———————

– Armenia’s Leadership Has Limited Respect for Political Rights and
Civil Liberties
– Upcoming Elections Should Mark ?a Turning Point? in Armenia?s
Transition to Democracy
– Joint Announcement
– Senator Robert Menendez Again Blocks Hoagland Nomination
– Former US Envoy to Turkey Predicts Armenian Genocide Resolution Will Pass
– ARPA Institute Hosts Jan 25 Lecture by Harut Sassounian
– Left Coast Galleries Presents Acclaimed International Artist Samvel
Hambardzumyan

– Armenia’s Leadership Has Limited Respect for Political Rights and
Civil Liberties

NEW YORK — Armenia remains a ?partly free? country because of its
leadership?s ?limited respect for political rights and civil
liberties,? a renowned U.S. watchdog said on Wednesday.
In an annual survey of freedom around the world, Freedom House ranked
Armenia among 58 nations which its believes are rife with corruption,
lack free elections and rule of law, and are often dominated by a
single political party.
The Washington-based group again evaluated the state of political
rights and civil liberties in each of the 193 countries surveyed on a
7-point negative scale. It found no changes in these areas in Armenia
over the past year, giving it 5 and 4 points in the two respective categories.
?Armenia?s scores are right on the border between a partly free and a
not free country,? Christopher Walker, Freedom House?s director of
studies, told RFE/RL. ?So it?s actually one of the weaker Partly Free
countries in the global review.?
?This is a reflection of a weak performance in a number of key areas,
including in the media and citizens? ability to express their
participation in the political process in a meaningful way,? Walker
said. He expressed concern about what he described as an ongoing
?oligarchization of politics in the country? and increased instances
of violence against Armenian journalists reported in 2006.
Freedom House underlined these concerns in a statement last November
that urged the United States to withhold $235.6 million in promised
economic assistance to Yerevan. It accused the administration of
President Robert Kocharian of ?backsliding on promised reforms? and
using ?multiple anti-democratic methods? to cling to power.
The statement drew on two detailed country reports that were released
by Freedom House earlier in 2006 and painted a bleak picture of
democracy and rule of law in Armenia. The findings of those reports
were dismissed by the Armenian authorities.
U.S. officials say Washington will take into account Freedom House?s
opinion in deciding whether to disburse the promised aid. But they
indicated that its release is primarily conditional on the freedom and
fairness of the upcoming Armenian parliamentary elections.

– Upcoming Elections Should Mark ?a Turning Point? in Armenia?s
Transition to Democracy

YEREVAN — The head of the election-monitoring arm of the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe wound up on Tuesday a two-day
visit to Armenia that focused on its unfolding preparations for
crucial parliamentary elections due in May.
Christian Strohal, director of the OSCE?s Warsaw-based Office for
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), discussed the issue
in meetings with Armenian officials. Speaking to RFE/RL after a
meeting with the chairman of the Central Election Commission, Strohal
said Armenia is ?ready? to hold its first-ever national election
judged free and fair by the international community. ?But we shall see
after the elections themselves,? he said.
The Armenian parliament?s press service quoted the Austrian diplomat
as telling Torosian later in the day that there are ?good
prerequisites? for making sure that the forthcoming vote meets
democratic standards. Torosian was quoted as saying that it should
mark a ?turning point? in Armenia?s transition to democracy and
European integration.
OSCE/ODIHR observers described as undemocratic the previous
presidential and parliamentary elections in Armenia, giving weight to
opposition allegations of massive vote rigging. The United States and
the European Union have warned that a repeat of serious fraud would
jeopardize Yerevan?s efforts to build closer ties with the West.
Kocharian and other Armenian leaders have assured Western powers that
they will do their best to ensure proper conduct of the next polls.
Strohal?s talks in Yerevan specifically centered on their monitoring
by the OSCE. Visiting the Armenian capital last fall, the U.S.
ambassador at the OSCE headquarters in Vienna, Julie Finley, expressed
concern about the Kocharian administration?s failure so far to
formally invite the ODIHR to send long-term and short-term observer
missions.
Both Torosian and other leaders of the parliament majority assured the
ODIHR chief that such an invitation will be extended immediately after
Kocharian sets an official election date. According to the Armenian
speaker, a corresponding presidential decree will be signed early next
month.
?There will be invitations for both short-term and long-term
monitoring missions,? Samvel Nikoyan, a senior lawmaker from the
governing Republican Party, told RFE/RL. He said the OSCE will send a
?needs assessment team? to Yerevan later in February before beginning
to deploy observers.
?This means long-term monitoring will last for approximately two
months,? said Grigor Harutiunian of the opposition Artarutyun
alliance. ?Given the political situation in the country, this is
certainly not enough.? OSCE monitoring should have begun last month,
he added.
Strohal insisted, however, that European observers will have enough
time to monitor the entire electoral process. ?I understand these
elections might be in May, and it?s now January,? he said.

– Joint Announcement

The regional executive boards of the three Armenian political parties?
the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, the Armenian Democratic League
(Ramkavar Party) and Social Democratic Hunchak party?met in Altadena
on January 9.
During this consultative meeting the party representatives discussed
issues of mutual interest to the community, especially the unfolding
developments surround the Armenian Genocide issue, as well as the
importance of presenting a united front on efforts to garner
recognition of the Genocide.
Similar meetings have occasionally taken place and have always served
as a guide for our national aspirations and interests. We believe that
such meetings will also benefit the strengthening of our independent
homeland.

SDHP Western US Executive Committee
ARF Western US Central Committee
ADL Western US Executive Board

– Senator Robert Menendez Again Blocks Hoagland Nomination

WASHINGTON, DC ? Senator Robert Menendez again blocked the
congressional confirmation of President George W. Bush?s nominee to be
the next U.S. ambassador to Armenia, citing the latter?s failure to
publicly recognize the Armenian genocide.
In a statement posted on his website, Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat,
said he placed a second ?hold? on the nomination of career diplomat
Richard Hoagland two days after it was reaffirmed by Bush. ?Given the
circumstances and controversy surrounding Mr. Hoagland?s nomination, I
believe that the best way to move forward would be for the president
to nominate a new candidate for this ambassadorship,? he said.
Menendez went on to attack the Bush administration for its refusal to
use the term ?genocide? with regard to the slaughter of some 1.5
million Armenians during the dying years of the Ottoman Empire. ?If
there is any sincerity behind the Bush administration?s rhetoric about
?liberty on the march?? then American diplomacy should consist of
nothing less than unvarnished honesty with our friends and enemies
alike. And we must call genocide by its name,? he said.
The previous U.S. ambassador in Yerevan, John Evans, is believed to
have been recalled by the White House last year over his public
description of the mass killings as genocide.
Hoagland?s failure to do so during confirmation hearings in the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee last summer angered the influential
Armenian community in the United States. Senator Diane Feinstein of
California has also expressed her concerns regarding the dismissal of
former Ambassador Evans. The Senator is closely looking into the
nomination of Richard Hoagland .

– Former US Envoy to Turkey Predicts Armenian Genocide Resolution Will Pass

Mark Parris, former U.S. ambassador to Turkey, said a resolution
classifying the killings of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman
Empire as genocide is likely to pass in the U.S. Congress.
?It will be brought to the agenda 100 percent. The resolution is
likely to pass in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Turkey traditionally relied on the support of political actors in
Washington but this support might weaken for some reasons.
…Democrats are sensitive about the Armenian question,? Parris,
director of the 2007 Turkey program at the Brookings Institution, said
in an interview published in daily newspaper Milliyet.
In a nationwide congressional election in November, Armenians?
Democratic allies won a landslide victory, taking over control of both
the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Both new Democratic congressional leaderships favor the Armenian
position. ?Will the genocide resolution pass? Yes. Everyone sees that
resolution will harden relations even more but this does not mean U.S.
policy will change. The U.S. policy is not ready yet to use a certain
terminology. No matter whether a draft resolution passes, it will not
have a legal character because [U.S. President George W.] Bush
strongly supports Turkey,? he added.
Asked whether Washington would voice support for Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan in the presidential elections slated for May, Parris
said he personally believed that the Bush administration would not
give a signal for Cankaya.
?If it does so, it would be a surprise for me. Erdogan was at the Oval
Office a couple of months ago.
The U.S. president officially supporting Erdogan?s candidacy [for
presidency] would surprise me,? he said. In comments on the U.S.
approach in the event of a possible cross-border operation by Turkey to
crack down on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers? Party (PKK) camps in
northern Iraq, Parris said: ?This is an assumption. A crossborder
operation is not an easy decision for Turkey. It will not be easy
for the Bush administration to decide on how to approach [toward a
possible Turkish decision on a cross border operation].?

– ARPA Institute Hosts Jan 25 Lecture by Harut Sassounian

SHERMAN OAKS, CA ? The ARPA Institute will present a Lecture/Seminar:
?Genocide Recognition, Turkey- Armenia Relations and the Role of the
Diaspora,? by Harut Sassounian,
on January 25, at the Merdinian School auditorium, 13330 Riverside
Dr., Sherman Oaks.
Sassounian?s lecture will cover several topics, followed by an
exchange of views with the audience:
? Genocide recognition, is it really necessary?
? Should Armenians support or oppose the application of Turkey for EU
Membership?
? Turkey-Armenia relations
? Diaspora-Armenia relations
? How best to organize the Diaspora?
? The firing of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia John Evans
? The hold on the nomination of Ambassador-designate Richard Hoagland
? UAF?s assistance to Armenia and Lebanon
? Lincy Foundation?s infrastructure projects in Armenia and Artsakh
Sassounian, the publisher of The California Courier newspaper, is the
President of the United Armenian Fund which has shipped $460 million
worth of humanitarian assistance to Armenia
since 1989. He is also the Vice Chairman of The Lincy Foundation which
has funded $230 million worth of infrastructure projects in Armenia
and Artsakh.
He worked for Procter and Gamble in Geneva, Switzerland, as an
international marketing executive from 1978 to 1982. He served for 10
years as a non-governmental delegate on human rights at the United
Nations in Geneva, playing a key role in the UN recognition of the
Armenian Genocide
in 1985. He has a Master?s degree in International Affairs from
Columbia University (NY) and an MBA from Pepperdine University.
His book, `The Armenian Genocide: The World Speaks Out, 1915-2005,
Documents and Declarations,? published in 2005, was republished in
Arabic translation in Lebanon in 2006. He has been awarded the ?Anania
Shiragatsi? medal of honor by the President of Armenia and has
received numerous other awards for his leadership and community
activities.
For more information, call Dr. Hagop Panossian at (818)586-9660

– Left Coast Galleries Presents Acclaimed International Artist Samvel
Hambardzumyan

STUDIO CITY, CA — Left Coast Galleries will premier international
award winning Armenian artist Samvel Hambardzumyan in his first solo
show in three years, featuring never before seen masterpieces, along
with a stunning collection of oils, etchings and monotypes. A
reception for the artist will be held on Thursday, February 8, 2007
from 6 to 9pm at 11324 Ventura Boulevard, Studio City, CA 91607.
With a prestigious career, spanning over 30 years, complete with
impressive biennial, triennial, and auction records, Samvel
Hambardzumyan is a living master. An Armenian treasure, Samvel?s
accomplished skill and talent encompass many of the visual art genres.
He creates both bold and intimate works through his own unique sense
of irony and romance, using integral composition to portray characters
which seem both otherworldly and instinctively primal. Featured in the
permanent collections of over 15 museums and galleries worldwide,
Samvel has gained the respect and notice of the global art community.
From the early 1980?s Samvel was leaving his indelible mark on the
art scene in Europe, collecting medals and awards, among them ?Best
Young Artist? in Armenia (1985), medals from the Lithuania
International Art Conference (1984), and ?Best Art Work of the Year?
in Armenia, an honor which Samvel repeatedly earned four times
throughout the 1980?s to 2000. The late eighties began a long and
distinguished run in 9 different Biennales and Triennales, where most
recently in 2005; Samvel earned the award of the Lorenzo il Magnifico
Medici medal at the Florence Biennale.
2005 brought additional honors as Samvel?s work was auctioned and sold
through ?Bonhams & Butterfields?. With pieces in the permanent
collections of museums like the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow
to the National Art Gallery of Armenia, and private and national
collections spanning the globe, Samvel is an artist of enormous
proportion. Despite these honors, the artist continues to plunge into
the depths of his heart, soul and experience and create work which
speaks to the senses through story woven thoughtfully and with
deliberate composition.

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