1- Armenian Officials Discourage Diasporans
From Sending Aid to Armenia
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- AAF Delivers $16.5M of Medicines, Medical Supplies
to Armenia, Artsakh in Last Six Months
3- At Least 53 People Still Missing after Arstakh War
4- Western Diocese Holds 46th Annual Debutante Ball
5- Armenia Continues Fight Against COVID-19
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1- Armenian Officials Discourage Diasporans
From Sending Aid to Armenia
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
Just when you think you have come across every oddity in Armenia,
someone will surprise you with a brand new one. Let we warn you that
this problem has nothing to do with internal politics. It has to do
with incompetent, careless, and sometimes, corrupt officials whose
unacceptable conduct has been going on for over 30 years in Armenia.
I received last week an email from Kevork Yazedjian, a scholar and
activist in Armenia. He described his frustration and anger at an
objectionable incident that he had just experienced. He addressed his
email to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the Head of the State Income
Committee, and the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs of Armenia.
Kevork sent copies of his email to hundreds of Armenians in and out of
Armenia to alert them and seek their intervention.
The problem started on June 27 when Kevork along with his sister and
her husband went to the State Income Committee’s office to pick up
Armenian books sent from the United States by Vahakn Kupelian who had
shipped 78 copies of his mother’s, Siran Seza’s (1903-1973), two
novels. Kupelian had asked Kevork to donate the books to libraries
throughout Armenia and Artsakh. When the government official, Mr.
Sahakyan, saw multiple copies of the two books, he became suspicious
that Kevork was going to sell them. Sahakyan wrote a memo to the
Customs Officers at the Yerevan airport, asking them to evaluate the
price of these books and charge Kevork the corresponding import duty.
Once at the Customs Office, Kevork was shocked when five officials,
after consulting with each other, told him that copies of the two
novels will be sent to the National Security Service (NSS) to inspect
their contents! Kevork wondered whether censorship of books was part
of NSS duties. He was concerned that by the time NSS employees
finished reading the two novels, he could be asked to pay a large
amount for storage fees. Disgusted by this violation of free speech in
a “democratic country,” Kevork told the Customs officials that they
can have the books.
After he sent several letters of protest to various officials, Kevork
received on June 30 an unexpected phone call from Sahakyan, who asked
him to come over so he can give him the books. When he arrived at the
office the next day, Sahakyan was not there, but his boss received
Kevork with utmost courtesy, saying that he had gotten many complaints
about this case which had embarrassed him in front of the whole world.
The Chief Customs Officer also claimed that his office had sent
several pages of the novels to the National Security Service, asking
them to review them urgently. The NSS had supposedly replied that
there are no national security issues in the two novels. The first
book, “Shattered Lives,” was published in 2015 and the second one,
“Book of Genesis,” in 2019.
Given this frustrating experience and his serious interest in Armenian
literature, Kevork has come up with a new proposal, asking the
government to facilitate the transfer of Armenian books and
periodicals to Armenia through diplomatic pouch by Armenia’s Embassies
and Consulates overseas.
There is a second more shocking example of Armenian officials’ gross
negligence which had serious medical and diplomatic repercussions.
After the Artsakh War of 2020, on Dec. 12, 2020 and January 9, 2021,
the Armenian Relief Society (ARS) of Greece collected urgently needed
humanitarian aid which was flown to Armenia by two Greek military
planes. A small part of the cargo was released shortly after its
arrival and distributed by the ARS. More than a year later, however,
it was discovered that the bulk of the aid was still at the Customs’
warehouse at the Yerevan Airport. After several letters of complaints
which had remained unanswered, Armenia’s recently-appointed Ambassador
to Greece, Tigran Mkrtchyan, responded on June 28, 2022, with
troubling news: While the ARS humanitarian aid was finally cleared
from Customs, “due to the expiration of the items [medicines], part of
the cargo had to be destroyed.”
Amb. Mkrtchyan was answering the Greek Armenian community’s letters
sent to Prime Minister Pashinyan and other officials on Dec. 14, 2020
and February 7, 2022.
The urgently dispatched medicines were supposed to save the lives of
Armenian soldiers wounded during the 2020 war. Who will be held
responsible for the loss of the lives of the soldiers who were
deprived of these medicines? Furthermore, has the Armenian government
sent a letter of apology to the Greek government for the lengthy delay
in releasing and destroying a part of the urgently flown medicines to
Armenia? Greece may not be as responsive next time there is a medical
emergency in Armenia. Besides Armenia’s utter negligence in clearing
the cargo, the ARS did not even get a reply to its two letters until
18 months later!
This is a prime example of gross negligence. Regrettably, no Armenian
official was held responsible for this scandalous behavior and no one
was fired!
No good deed goes unpunished in Armenia!
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2- AAF Delivers $16.5M of Medicines, Medical Supplies
to Armenia, Artsakh in Last Six Months
The Armenia Artsakh Fund (AAF) delivered $16.5 million of humanitarian
assistance to Armenia and Artsakh during January to June 2022. Of this
amount, the AAF collected $16 million of medicines and other supplies
donated by Americares ($12.9 million) and Direct Relief ($3.5
million).
Other organizations which contributed valuable goods during this
period were the Howard Karagheusian Commemorative Corp. ($78,700), the
Armenian Missionary Association of America ($50,700), Dr. Albert
Phillips ($15,700), and Dr. Hrair Garabedian of Medical Outreach for
Armenia ($10,000).
The medicines and medical supplies donated during this period were
sent to the AGBU Claudia Nazarian Medical Center for Syrian Armenian
Refugees in Yerevan, Arabkir United Children’s Foundation, Kanaker
Zeytoun Medical Center, Muratsan Children’s Endocrinology Center,
National Hematology Center, St. Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center, and
the health ministries of Armenia and Artsakh.
During the first six months of 2022, AAF delivered much needed
medicines and medical supplies for oncology, hematology,
cardiovascular and gastrointestinal patients.
In the past 33 years, including the shipments under its predecessor,
the United Armenian Fund, the AAF has delivered to Armenia and Artsakh
$962 million in relief supplies on board 158 airlifts and 2,530 sea
containers. “The AAF is regularly offered free of charge millions of
dollars of life-saving medicines and medical supplies. We simply pay
for the shipping expenses. We welcome generous donations to be able to
continue delivering this valuable assistance to all medical centers in
Armenia and Artsakh,” said AAF President Harut Sassounian.
For information, call AAF: (818) 241-8900; sassoun@pacbell.net.
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3- At Least 53 People Still Missing after Arstakh War
(PanArmenian)—At least 53 people, including 33 servicemen and 20
civilians, are still missing one a half years after the end of the
44-day war in Artsakh, according to the country’s Commission on
Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons, dedicated to the Day
of Remembrance of Missing Freedom Fighters
The Commission met on Wednesday, June 29 and said that 1711 remains
and bodies were recovered from November 13, 2020 to the first half of
2022.
The chairman of the commission, Minister of Internal Affairs of
Artsakh Karen Sargsyan noted that negotiations are underway with the
Russian and Azerbaijani sides to resume the search for the bodies and
remains of soldiers killed in action. The members of the commission
stressed that Azerbaijan maintains a non-constructive approach to
ensuring the return of Armenian captives from Azerbaijan.
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4- Western Diocese Holds 46th Annual Debutante Ball
LOS ANGELES—The night of June 12 was a celebration with approximately
350 guests attending the 46th Annual Debutante Ball hosted at the
Beverly Wilshire Hotel by the Ladies Auxiliary of the Western Diocese
of the Armenian Church. The festivities began with a reception at 5
p.m., affording the families and friends the opportunity for a reunion
before the presentation.
The Presentation began at 6 p.m. with Diocesan Ladies Chair Cindy
Norian welcoming the guests. “It is so wonderful to be finally able to
present our 46th Debutante Ball. We are especially thankful to the
families who have waited through delay after delay due to the Covid
pandemic,” said Norian. “The Debutante Ball has become a memorial and
wonderful tradition. Year after year it brings together our youth from
all our churches to celebrate the sacred institution of family, our
shared Armenian heritage, and the Christian values that we hold in
reverence.”
Mistress of Ceremonies Lory Tatoulian—noted comedian, actress and
writer, and the daughter of Archpriest Der Datev and Yeretzgeen Araxy
Tatoulian—presented the sixteen debutantes to His Eminence Archbishop
Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese. Tatoulian then
invited the fathers to dance with their daughters and then to dance
with their escorts.
After the presentation, guests enjoyed dinner followed by an evening
of socializing and dancing. Everyone received a keepsake booklet which
contained pictures and biographies of the debutantes, escorts and the
cross bearers, and also contained congratulatory messages from
families and friends.
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5- Armenia Continues Fight Against COVID-19
More than 2.2 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been
administered in Armenia since commencing the vaccination program a
year ago, authorities said on Monday, July 4. For the third week, no
new deaths were reported. Armenia has recorded 423,243 coronavirus
cases. Armenia has recorded 8,629 deaths; 412,661 have recovered.
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