The California Courier Online, August 13, 2020
1 - Diaspora Commissioner Welcomes
Non-Armenian Migrants to Armenia
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- Armenian Community Reeling as Thousands Left Homeless, Injured
as Lebanon Devastated by Massive Explosion in Heart of Beirut
3 - Armenia Plans Proactive Testing,
Again Extends Coronavirus State Of Emergency
4- Lucy Boyadjian Solimon Appointed as Judge in New Mexico
5- UFC Fires Employee, Fines Shahbazyan For Entering Ring With
Artsakh Flag
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1 - Diaspora Commissioner Welcomes
Non-Armenian Migrants to Armenia
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
On the top of all the other disputes among Armenians, a new
controversy was added last week by Zareh Sinanyan, the Armenian
Republic’s High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs.
A few days before Sinanyan’s visit to Lebanon over the weekend,
accompanying a plane-load of humanitarian aid from Armenia, he spoke
on a teleconference with a group of Armenian officials and others and
made some unexpected statements. Here are excerpts from Sinanyan’s
statement:
“…We should create such a reality in Armenia that not in the distant
future we can think about not only the repatriation of Armenians, but
also making Armenia the homeland of, how do I say this, for
nationalities like us. I am talking about Christian Arabs, Assyrians,
those nationalities that do not represent a national security danger
to Armenia and can be easily integrated in Armenia. Because in such an
intelligent, thoughtful and civilized manner, we can change the
demographic situation in Armenia. We should not be embarrassed by
that. That is a correct step. That will be a success. Imagine that we
can make Armenia a country that is attractive also to non-Armenians….”
Sinanyan’s above statement created a major controversy in Armenian
circles worldwide. The vast majority of Armenian comments on Facebook
pages were highly critical, turning this issue, like many others, into
a partisan political dispute.
I also watched another one of Sinanyan’s interviews with the Civilnet
website prior to his visit to Lebanon. In that interview, Sinanyan
again spoke about Christian Arabs, Assyrians and other nationalities
immigrating to Armenia. However, this time, Sinanyan stated that the
idea came from Shahan Kandaharian, the edtor of Aztag newspaper in
Lebanon, the official organ of the local Armenian Revolutionary Party
(ARF). Sinanyan implied that the ARF supported this idea, repeating
twice that Kandaharian is an ARF member. In fact, the ARF leaders have
publicly announced that they prefer Lebanese Armenians not abandon the
well-established community of that country. Naturally, no one can
constrain any Lebanese Armenian from immigrating to Armenia, which is
much more preferable than immigrating to other foreign lands.
Kandaharian’s words were somewhat misconstrued by Sinanyan. In the
video, Kandaharian was speaking about the immigration to Armenia of
Lebanese who had Armenian roots, not Christian Arabs nor Assyrians.
Sinanyan also alleged that those who criticized him on Facebook are
ARF members and an “army of fakes.” While there may be a few fakes,
but it is clear that the overwhelming majority of the critics are
Armenians who do not wish non-Armenians to immigrate to Armenia.
Nevertheless, there are several important issues that need to be raised:
First of all, the immigration of non-Armenians to Armenia is a very
sensitive issue for most Armenians with serious national consequences
which go far beyond Sinanyan’s authority and responsibilities. The
genocide of 1915 which decimated 1.5 million Armenians makes all
Armenians extra protective of the remnants of their people and the
diminished homeland.
Furthermore, while Sinanyan is responsible for implementing the
Armenian government’s policy of repatriating Diaspora Armenians, the
immigration of non-Armenians to Armenia has nothing to do with the
office of the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs.
The immigration of non-Armenians is a matter of governmental policy.
Since independence, there has been a small number of non-Armenians who
have settled in Armenia as businessmen or family members of Armenian
citizens. There have been also some refugees who have asked for asylum
in Armenia. Anyway, it is doubtful that a large number of
non-Armenians would be interested in moving permanently to Armenia in
the near future.
To be clear, we are not talking about the various minority
nationalities that live in Armenia, such as Yezidis, Assyrians, Greeks
and Russians. These minorities have been residing in Armenia for
centuries. There is no question about their continued residence in
Armenia.
In terms of changing the demographics of Armenia and increasing its
population, the first thing the Armenian government has to do is to
establish policies that would discourage the native population of
Armenia from leaving the homeland. This would mean creating jobs and
providing housing. After that, the Armenian government should try to
attract Diaspora Armenians, particularly those in the near abroad,
such as the recent emigrants to Russia, to return to Armenia. To do
that, Armenia needs to facilitate their move to Armenia by having a
simple procedure for their resettlement, and providing them housing
and employment. Otherwise, the Russian Armenians either will not
return to Armenia or will turn around and go back after a short stay.
This is exactly what happened to Syrian-Armenians who moved to
Armenia, fleeing from the civil war in Syria. Many of them left for
Western Europe, Canada or the United States due to lack of jobs and
housing in Armenia.
The priority right now for Sinanyan’s office is to attract Armenians
from the Diaspora to move to Armenia. If by a miracle, a large number
of Diaspora Armenians resettle in Armenia, only then the Armenian
government can raise the issue of allowing a large number of other
nationalities to immigrate to Armenia. There needs to be a major
national consensus for allowing a large number of non-Armenians moving
to Armenia. This is not a one man’s or one group’s decision.
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2- Armenian Community Reeling as Thousands Left Homeless, Injured
as Lebanon Devastated by Massive Explosion in Heart of Beirut
By Raffi Elliott
YEREVAN (The Armenian Weekly)—The Armenian government mobilized to
provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Lebanon less than a day
after a massive explosion devastated large parts of central Beirut.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held a telephone conversation
with Lebanese President Michel Aoun on August 5 to offer condolences
to the families of the victims and discuss the scope of the
assistance.
A plane carrying emergency relief supplies, including food, medicine,
medical equipment and other urgently-needed materials departed Yerevan
for Beirut on Saturday, August 8, Pashinyan’s press office announced.
Boarding the flight to Beirut was Armenia’s High Commissioner for
Diaspora Affairs Zareh Sinanyan, who will meet community and religious
leaders there and assess the needs of the Armenian community in
Lebanon to prepare for further assistance to the beleaguered country.
For his part, President Armen Sarkissian has also been in contact with
the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I who is based in
Antelias—a northern borough of Beirut—in order to assess the situation
and determine how to provide tailored assistance to the country’s
substantial and influential Armenian community. Artsakh’s President
Arayik Harutyunyan also spoke with Aram I and said Artsakh is ready to
receive 150 Lebanese-Armenian families.
The explosion on August 4 was reportedly caused by a large stockpile
of 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate catching fire in a warehouse in the
port of Beirut. The historic Armenian neighborhood of Bourj Hammoud
which lies less than three kilometers (1.8 miles) from the city’s
major cargo terminal has been heavily damaged by the blast. According
to reports, one of the main Armenian cathedrals has suffered major
damage, and photos uploaded to social media sites depict devastation
on some of the neighborhood’s main commercial thoroughfares.
Additionally, the heavily-Armenian populated areas of Achrafieh and
Nor Hadjin were scenes of widespread destruction, while Mar
Mikhail—which lies directly adjacent to the port itself—was reportedly
“snuffed out” by the blast. “These four Armenian districts suffered
heavy damage, with some buildings having all their windows shattered,
and other buildings being completely destroyed,” said Yeghia Tashjian,
a Beirut-based policy analyst and Armenian Weekly contributor.
The number of Armenian dead has been estimated at 13, according to
Lebanese parliamentarian and Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF)
Central Committee Lebanon member Hagop Pakradouni. Among the
casualties is prominent Lebanese-Armenian politician Nazar Najarian
who had recently returned to the city from Montreal to take up the
post of secretary-general of Lebanon’s prominent Maronite-dominated
Kataeb (Falange) Party.
Jessica Bezdjian, Sophie Khosrovian, Shant Hagopian, Alice Balaian,
Jacques Paramakian, Delia Papazian, and Varoujan Tossounian were also
among the Armenians who died, whose names have been released to the
media.
Sinanyan had announced in a statement on the day of the explosion that
he had consulted with Armenian community leaders on the ground in
Beirut to assess the situation and determine a course of action to
assist the city’s sizable Armenian population. Sinanyan’s office says
the community’s most urgent needs include medication for chronically
ill patients, food and water and financial aid for rebuilding homes,
shops, schools, churches and community centers. The statement also
mentioned efforts to streamline the repatriation process to Armenia,
as well as psychological support.
Just hours before the explosion, the Diaspora Ministry and the Repat
Armenia Foundation welcomed a group of 90 repatriates from Lebanon to
help them settle into a new life in Armenia. “No one would imagine
that two hours later…” read a post on Repat Armenia’s Instagram page.
The explosion is expected to accelerate the rate of repatriation with
many in Armenia calling on the government to further facilitate the
application process for ethnic-Armenians.
Armenian churches, community centers, schools and businesses dot the
skyline of Beirut’s eastern neighborhoods—a lasting reminder of the
city’s importance to Lebanon’s 150 thousand-strong Armenian community.
Armenians of Beirut—most of whom are descendants of refugees from the
1915 Genocide—have made important contributions to Lebanon’s social,
commercial and political life. Due to Lebanon’s sectarian
constitution, Armenians hold some seven seats in the Lebanese
Parliament, while many have held important cabinet positions. At least
one Lebanese president, Emile Lahoud, is of Armenian descent.
While the Lebanese Civil War forced many to relocate to France, Canada
and the United States, Beirut remains an important cultural hub for
Armenian Diaspora life and a major publishing center for Western
Armenian publications. Many Beirut-born Armenians have chosen to
repatriate to Armenia, bringing with them unique tropes of Western
Armenian culture, business acumen and Lebanese cuisine, which is now
ubiquitous across the Armenian capital.
Lebanese Armenians have also played a very prominent role in the
traditionally warm relations between their respective countries.
Lebanon was among the first countries in the world—and the first Arab
nation—to recognize the Armenian Genocide in 2000. Armenia, in turn,
sent humanitarian aid to Beirut once before, during the 2006 invasion
of the country by Israel. At the time, Armenia hosted almost one
thousand mainly-ethnic Armenian refugees who were evacuated from the
beleaguered city to escape daily aerial bombings. Since then, a 32-man
strong Armenian peacekeeping detachment has been stationed in Lebanon
as part of the UN-led mission. According to the Defense Ministry,
however, none of them were injured by the blast, and they continue to
fulfill their duty.
The latest shipment of humanitarian assistance will reportedly include
medicine, medical equipment, food and other supplies. The explosion in
Beirut comes in the wake of the worst economic crisis in Lebanon since
the 1975-2000 Civil War which devastated much of the country. In
addition, the Lebanese people have been dealing with a political
crisis since the dissolution of the previous government in 2019 in the
wake of mass demonstrations over entrenched corruption and gross
mismanagement. To make matters worse, the country’s resources have
already been stretched thin due to the influx of refugees from the
raging civil war in neighboring Syria and the ongoing global COVID-19
pandemic. Just days before the explosion, the humanitarian
organization Save the Children estimated that half a million children
are hungry in Beirut alone. As much as 60-percent of Lebanon’s
population might drop below the poverty line as this latest crisis
adds to chronic stagflation. The explosion at the city’s main port
will also likely disrupt the importation of vital food supplies to the
country where basic staples are already increasingly scarce on
shelves.
Armenia’s pledge for humanitarian assistance succeeds similar offers
from France, the Gulf countries, Turkey, the European Union and the
United States among others.
Immediately after the explosion, His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of
All Armenians toured Bourj Hammoud to assess the damage, but more
important, to meet with community members. According to Aztag Daily
Newspaper, he began his walk through the neighborhood from the Lebanon
Prelacy building, and one-by-one visited community centers, businesses
and residences. He brought with him urgent economic assistance.
The Armenian Catholicosate in Antelias suffered itself great material
damage as a result of the explosion. The doors, chandeliers, windows
of the Mother Cathedral were damaged. Damaged was also caused to the
Patriarchal residence, the Armenological and pedagogical centers, as
well as the Cilicia Museum.
The office of the Armenian National Committee of The Middle East was
also impacted. “Our office suffered great damages, property, windows,
doors,” Director of Armenian National Committee of the Middle East
Office Vera Yacoubian told Armenpress. “The blast was so powerful that
if someone were to be inside our office at the moment of the
explosion, we would definitely have a fatality,” she said, adding that
the office is mostly closed due to the coronavirus. “Fortunately, we
only have material damages.”
Yacoubian said all Lebanese-Armenian structures are currently working
to understand and clarify the volume of the damage for considering the
possibilities of assistance. Nevertheless, she said that even to the
naked eye it is clear that the Armenian community has sustained huge
damages. She said some families have been left homeless as the blast
destroyed their homes.
“The situation is difficult, there is economic panic. Unfortunately,
the Armenian community of Lebanon needs a lot right now,” she said.
The Lebanon office of Aircompany Armenia, the only Armenian airline
that has an office in the country, suffered heavy damage following
Tuesday’s powerful explosion in the port of Beirut.
In a conversation with Armenian News, an employee Nazo Der Sarkissian,
said that no one was in the office at the time of the explosion. “The
windows of the office were completely shattered, the property was
damaged,” said Der Sarkissian.
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3 - Armenia Plans Proactive Testing,
Again Extends Coronavirus State Of Emergency
(Combined Sources)—The Armenian government said on Thursday, August 6
that it hopes to further curb the spread of the coronavirus in the
country through more targeted and proactive testing.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Health Minister Arsen Torosyan
noted that new coronavirus cases have decreased considerably in recent
weeks not only in absolute terms but also as a proportion of
nationwide coronavirus tests.
As of Monday, August 10, Armenia has recorded a total of 40,433
COVID-19 cases. A total of 32,616 of these patients have since
recovered while 7,021 remain active. The death toll as a direct result
of complications from COVID-19 stands at 796.
Pashinyan said around 15 percent of daily tests carried out over the
past week came back positive, compared with 25-30 percent registered
in June and the first half of July.
“While the influx [of infected people] was previously strong and we
basically waited for people to apply [to hospitals and policlinics,]
we are changing our tactic and the Ministry of Health will now be more
proactive and we will carry out testing in some high-risk places at
our own initiative,” he told a weekly cabinet meeting.
Torosyan specified that the health authorities will target people
working in the same government agencies, supermarkets, factories,
banks or other businesses as well as patients of various medical and
elderly care institutions.
“That is, if one of them tests positive we no longer wait for others
to show symptoms. We test everyone and quickly detect [infections,]”
explained the minister. He said this should help the health
authorities to cut the proportion of positive test results to below 10
percent.
The authorities have carried out roughly 2,000 tests a day since the
end of May. Critics have for months urged them to significantly expand
COVID-19 testing, saying that is vital for tackling the pandemic in
the virtual absence of lockdown restrictions in the country of about 3
million.
Pashinyan’s government has put the emphasis of getting Armenians to
practice social distancing, wear face masks in public and follow other
anti-epidemic rules. Government officials say that this strategy is
working. They point to the significant drop in daily infections
registered by the Ministry of Health.
Pashinyan cautioned on August 6 that Armenia’s infection rates are
still “high.” He said that people’s and businesses’ continued
compliance with the safety rules will be critical for reducing them
further. The premier again stressed the importance of wearing face
masks in all public and enclosed spaces.
The government announced on Wednesday, August 5 that it will extend a
state of emergency by another month next week to continue containing
the spread of the coronavirus in Armenia.
Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan said the government will at the
same time fully or partly lift its ban on public gatherings and make
it easier for foreign nationals to enter the country. He also
reaffirmed its plans to reopen all schools and universities in time
for the start of the new academic year.
“We have already devised various models of how to reopen public
education institutions depending on the epidemiological situation,”
Avinyan told a joint news briefing with Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinyan. “We will present a final program by August 10.”
“Such program-based models have also been devised for other spheres,”
he added in an apparent reference to libraries, museums and theaters
which were also shut down in March.
The decision to again prolong the state of emergency comes despite a
major decrease in coronavirus infections reported by the health
authorities for the last two weeks. Pashinyan said that that the
epidemiological situation in Armenia is improving but remains
“serious.”
Pashinyan said he is worried that the falling daily number of new
cases may be making Armenians more complacent about COVID-19. The
authorities should therefore continue strictly enforcing social
distancing and other rules aimed at containing the epidemic, he said.
Pashinyan’s government declared the state of emergency on March 16
shortly after registering the first coronavirus cases. Emergency rule
has been extended on a monthly basis since April. It allows the
authorities to ban all rallies, enforce social distancing and hygiene
rules, ban or restrict some types of business activity and impose
local or nationwide lockdowns. The government kept the state of
emergency in place even after lifting lockdown restrictions and
reopening virtually all sectors of the Armenian economy in early May.
The monthly extensions of the state of emergency are increasingly
criticized by opposition groups. Some of them claim that Pashinyan is
exploiting the coronavirus crisis to ward off anti-government street
protests.
Edmon Marukian, the leader of the opposition Bright Armenia Party, was
quick to condemn the latest extension announced by Avinyan. He said
that the government does not need emergency powers to enforce its
anti-epidemic rules.
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4- Lucy Boyadjian Solimon Appointed as Judge in New Mexico
By Armen K. Hovannisian, Esq.
It is rare enough for Armenian-Americans to become judges in states
with sizable and long-established Armenian communities stretching from
California to Illinois to New York. It is another, altogether
eye-opening blessing to welcome the judicial appointment of a
deserving Armenian-American in places where our tracks are more fresh
and our communities less dense.
Try New Mexico on for size.
On July 2, 2020, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed
Lucy Boyadjian Solimon as Judge of the Second Judicial District Court,
serving Bernalillo County. Judge Boyadjian Solimon, a recent member of
the Armenian Bar Association, was born and spent her early years in
Lebanon, was raised and educated through college in California, and
graduated from law school and entered the legal profession in New
Mexico nearly thirteen years ago.
For the past two years, Boyadjian Solimon had been Enforcement Bureau
Chief for the New Mexico Workers Compensation Administration. Boasting
a broad criminal law experience for both the prosecution and the
defense, Boyadjian Solimon has also held the posts of Special
Assistant U.S. Attorney for Laguna Pueblo, Assistant Public Defender
in the Public Defender’s Office, and a private practitioner in defense
law firms, including her own firm. She is married to Justin Solimon
who practices Federal Indian Law in Albuquerque.
In June 2020, the Armenian Bar’s Judicial Evaluation Committee (JEC),
which comprises the organization’s most experienced lawyers across the
profession’s broad spectrum, met and conferred with Boyadjian Solimon
in a rigorous vetting process. The JEC concluded that she embodied the
unique, sought-after qualities that make her highly qualified to serve
as a judge with honor and distinction. Following the Armenian Bar’s
in-depth interview protocol, the JEC Co-Chairs, Lucy Varpetian and
Garo Ghazarian, addressed a letter of unqualified support for
Boyadjian Solimon’s appointment to Governor Lujan Grisham.
Varpetian and Ghazarian encapsulated the findings of the evaluation
committee, writing, “We believe that Ms. Boyadjian Solimon will
maintain an excellent judicial temperament as we have found her to be
an active listener, measured in her responses, and even-keeled in her
demeanor. We also took note of and appreciate her engagement in
community and civic affairs, ranging from her provision of pro bono
legal services to participation in New Mexico bar associations to her
involvement with Native American and Armenian organizations, as well
as her support of various non-profit organizations. These activities
reflect Ms. Boyadjian Solimon’s deep roots in her community and
commitment to its well-being.”
In explaining her own reasons to Governor Lujan Grisham for wanting to
become a judge, Boyadjian Solimon explained, “For several generations,
my family has constantly been forced to flee and relocate due to
threats of war, violence, and instability in the rule of law. My
grandfather lost most of his family in the Armenian Genocide of 1915,
and was forced to start a new family in Syria and Lebanon. When I was
a six-year-old child, my family emigrated from Beirut, Lebanon to Los
Angeles, California to escape the war. This direct family history has
instilled in me a deep respect for the judicial system, both as a
means to prevent and deter crime and to promote fairness and
protections offered under the Constitution.”
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5- UFC Fires Employee, Fines Shahbazyan For Entering Ring With
Artsakh Flag
(Zartonk)—A 20-year-old UFC employee was fired for allowing Edmen
Shahbazyan to enter the octagon with the Artsakh flag, and the team
was fined. “Turkish and Azerbaijani embassies in different countries
got what they wanted,” Edmond Tarverdyan, the UFC fighter’s trainer,
manager and head of the Glendale Fighting Club told NEWS.am Sport.
Shahbazyan, who entered the octagon with the Artsakh flag at the UFC
Fight Night 173 in Las Vegas on August 2, was slammed by the Turkish
and Azerbaijani embassies in some countries.
European freestyle wrestling champion Shahbazyan’s wrestling coach
Martin Berberyan told NEWS.am Sport that the embassies of several
countries, particularly Turkey, had complained about the Armenian
fighter entering the octagon with the Artsakh flag.
According to Tarverdyan, he got a call from the UFC on August 4.
“Last year the UFC was sold to big Chinese companies and everything
changed there…There are changes in the management of the organization,
people with big names are in charge of this organization. I was called
and informed that the Turkish embassy in Russia and Turkey had
complained about the Artsakh flag and said that the Armenians were
‘terrorists’ and had no right to go to the octagon with the Artsakh
flag. There were also complaints from the Azerbaijani embassies in
Turkey and Russia,” he noted.
“During the phone call, I said that we are trying to show that we
stand by our country, we represent Armenia, in this way we present our
complaint about the recent tense situation in Tavush and that Artsakh
is our country, Armenians live there. And we must defend our nation.
The goal of our team in the United States is to represent the
Armenians, the Armenian nation, our country in all major tournaments,”
he added. “Edmen’s coming out of the octagon with the flag of Artsakh
had exactly that mission.”
According to UFC head Dana White, the UFC has decided to fire its
employee, who was responsible for the athletes’ uniforms and the flags
they would carry.
“The big fights in the UFC are sponsored by Reebok. Athletes are
required to enter the Octagon only with the Reebok brand and logo,”
Tarverdyan noted.
“We were deprived of Reebok funding as a penalty,” he said. “It is a
pity, but the Azerbaijani and Turkish embassies achieved their goal. I
want everyone to know about this. I’m sorry the UFC staff suffered
because of us. There was no such thing as harming the UFC. I do not
feel bad about the financial penalty, I feel even worse that someone
else suffered because of us.”
“I apologized to the head of the UFC, we were not careful, we did not
know and did not want to create any problems for them, we did not have
a personal problem with anyone.”
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