Author: Arsine Chaltikian

Rockers System Of A Down are to receive a special award for raising awareness of the Armenian Genocide, reports. 

The Armenian-American musicians are the recipients of the 2015 Parajanov-Vartanov Institute Award, a prize named after groundbreaking filmmakers Sergei Parajanov and Mikhail Vartanov, who fought persecution for their work in the Soviet Union.

Serj Tankian’s band launched the Wake Up The Souls Tour earlier this year  to mark 100 years since the Armenian Genocide, in which up to 1.5 million citizens were systematically murdered by the nation’s government.

The tour culminated with the group’s first ever show in the country on the anniversary of the start of the atrocity on 24 April.

“(The) 2015 Parajanov-Vartanov Institute Award will honor the Grammy-winning rock band System Of A Down for their virtuous commitment to justice exemplified by their historic 2015 Wake Up the Souls tour,” a statement from the Parajanov-Vartanov Institute reads.

The prize will be handed to the band at a ceremony in Los Angeles on 21 October.

Previous recipients of the award include Hollywood director Martin Scorsese, who accepted the honour in 2014 for his work with The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project on the restoration of Parajanov’s 1969 film The Color of Pomegranates.

France hopes that Azerbaijan and Armenia will spare no effort to ease tension on the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Pascal Meunier told APA on Sept.16.

The escalation of tension is leading to the death of both Azerbaijani and Armenian civilians, the ambassador said. “Recently, I have met with civilians in Azerbaijan, and they told me that Azerbaijanis and Armenians have lived in peace for hundreds of years. Many people hope these times will return. It also depends on external factors,” he noted.

The ambassador also commented on the possibility of holding a meeting between Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers. “I read about it. I am aware that the co-chairs are working on arranging a meeting of foreign ministers in New York. The main objective of this is to assist Azerbaijan and Armenia in finding a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Six men are facing charges of “battery and other violence” after they allegedly broke into a dolphin aquarium, got into a brawl with security guards and demanded the mammals be set free in Georgia’s Black Sea coastal city Batumi, reports.

Batumi Dolphinarium’s Public Relations manager Berdia Kutubidze said the men forcefully reached the area only meant for staff and obstructed the working process earlier last night.

The men claimed the dolphins were “locked in prison” and they needed to be released.

Kutubidze told journalists the “offenders” also used tear gas against the security guards.

Head of the Georgian Society for the Protection and Safety of Animals, Temur Lachkepiani, said he and nine other animal rights defenders from different countries were protesting against the imprisonment of animals when they were “beaten by security guards”.

Lachkepiani also said one of the activists had pepper spray for “self-defence” purposes only.

He said the activists were from different countries including Georgia, Belarus, Turkey, Russia and Iran.

The Dolphinarium Administration said several visitors including minors, were frightened and “stressed” following the aggression from the “vandals”.

Georgia’s Interior Ministry said an investigation has been launched into the case.

Within the framework of consultations with political forces on the constitutional reforms, President Serzh Sargsyan today held a meeting with the representatives of Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) party – Armen Rostamyan, Aghvan Vardanyan and Arsen Hambardzumyan.

The parties discussed the overall process of constitutional reforms. They touched upon approaches embedded in the Draft Constitutional Reforms elaborated by the Specialised Commission on Constitutional Reforms adjunct to the RA President as well as certain provisions of the draft.

The ARF representatives expressed readiness to continue active and comprehensive discussions on the Draft Constitutional Reforms, elaborated by the Specialised Commission, in the RA National Assembly. According to them, the main highlights, ensuring the development of the country, that are of importance to them and the ARF approaches are embedded in the draft.

Representatives of have claimed victory in the first squash tournament between media representatives held at “Grand Sport” sports complex.

Aram Manukyan, sportscaster at Public Radio of Armenia, won the men’s competition. Journalist at armfootball.com website Rafael Khalatyan came second. Representative of Aravot daily Ashot Hakobyan was third.

Another representative of Public Radio of Armenia Sona Ghukasyan defeated Marina Karapetyan of Yerkir Media in the final round and claimed victory in the women’s competition. Araks Simonyan from the press service of the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs came third in the competition.

Next month Armenia will host an international squash tournament.

Former US President George HW Bush has been admitted to hospital after breaking a bone in his neck in a fall at his home in Maine, the BBC reports.

His spokesman said he was in a stable condition and his hospital stay was expected to be brief.

Mr Bush, who has Parkinson’s disease and cannot use his legs, celebrated his 90th birthday last year with a sky dive.

He had to go to hospital at the end of last year with shortness of breath.

Spokesman Jim McGrath said Mr Bush, the oldest of the four living former US presidents, would need to wear a neck brace following his fall on Wednesday morning in Kennebunkport.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan arrived in Ufa today to participate in the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Armenia has bid for an observer’s status in the organization.

July 8-10 Ufa hosts the summits of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS. This year Russia presides over both.

Wu Tang Clan’s RZA has released a collaborative album with System Of A Down bassist Shavo Odadjian, reports.

The duo had first announced their project Achozen (pronounced “a chosen”) in the mid-2000s, around when the bassist was hyping an ill-fated online music community called urSession. But other than the release a few tracks (“Deuces,” “Salute/Sacrifice”), the group seemed to fall by the wayside. Now eight tracks of the act’s spacey, lushly textured hip-hop are available with the purchase of a limited-edition portable speaker, the Boombotix Boombot Pro.

“We both come from struggle. We come from oppression. I didn’t know Armenia was the first country to accept Christianity as its national religion. And I didn’t know about the Armenian genocide. I knew about the black man’s struggle in America from slavery to civil rights to whatever we still go through, but you think that that struggle is just personal. You don’t realize, “Oh, wow, the Asian brothers went through a struggle. The Armenian brothers went through a struggle. Now the Pakistani and the brothers in the Middle East is going through a lot of struggle based on situations.” Right? So, I became aware and that helped connect us,” RZA told the Rolling Stone.

“That led to our second song, which is called “Fabricated Lies” and is about the Armenian genocide. He gave me a couple of books as well, but I was moved by the struggle enough that I wrote a verse,” he said.

Speaking about the first-ever concert of the System of A Down in Armenia on the ove of the 100th anniversray of the Armenian Genocide, Shavo Odadjian said: “We played two-and-a-half hours, 37 songs. We played outside to 100,000 people; there was not spot for people to even pit. It was pouring rain, lightning going on. I cried onstage a few times. It was emotional to think that I was that age, that they were like little me’s, my little kids. And we’re in our country, but it’s their country because they live there and we are giving them what they’ve only see on the internet, live. From grandparents to three-year-olds were there, standing in the rain watching this crazy band. But it was just amazing and I don’t think that it can ever be duplicated unless it was a 200th anniversary. It was perfect. Everything perfectly fell into place.”

Woman who abandoned Down Syndrome baby in Armenia has reunited with the child, the reports.

The wife of a New Zealand father who abandoned him and their newborn baby in Armenia after discovering the baby had Down Syndrome has denied she is now back living with them both because of the huge amount of cash raised for their cause.

Samuel Forrest, from New Zealand, made international headlines in February when he started a fundraising campaign to help raise baby Leo after his Armenian wife Ruzan Badalyan abandoned them in Armenia where he ran his own business. 

More than $600,000 was raised. But since then Ms Badalyan has returned to her husband and child despite filing for divorce a week after Leo was born in her home country.

The fact Mr Forrest is now $600,000 richer thanks to the money that was raised for Leo, is not the reason why Ms Badalyan changed her mind, she told 3News. She is just delighted to be reunited wither her son.

‘It was the happiest day,’ she says. ‘He was so small, so cute. I remember I hugged him. He started making some noises. He was so cute. I was very happy.

‘I undressed him and skin to skin, he did that noise. He’d do it a bit for me, but in his sleep he did it for a whole hour like a little kitten. He knew he’d found his mummy.

‘I was afraid he wouldn’t remember me. It was very scary but hopefully he did. At that moment I realised I could never let him go.

‘I’m not an ideal mother; I’m simply a mother. But I’m doing my best.’

She has asked not to be judged by New Zealanders – it has not been revealed exactly where in the country they are living – but that they can just be left alone to get on happily as a family.

 

 

 

“Armenia is a full member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization and has the right to get assistance from allies in case of negative developments on its territory. Armenia will get support from partners if necessary,” CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha said at the Yerevan-Moscow-Astana space bridge.

Asked by an Armenian journalist whether he ever sent an invitation to Azerbaijan to join the CSTO, Bordyuzha said: “I don’t remember having sent an invitation to Azerbaijan, although I think all countries should participate in the works of a security system.”

“The CSTO is ready to discuss the membership of any country – be it Iran, Georgia or Azerbaijan. Should Azerbaijan file an application to join the CSTO, we’ll discuss it, but will discuss with all member states, including Armenia,” Bordyuzha stated.

Asked by a Moscow-based Azerbaijani journalist what the CSTO is doing regarding the Karabakh conflict, the CSTO Secretary General said: “International mechanisms, including the Minsk Group, have been created to seek ways for the settlement of the conflict and find solutions acceptable to both parties. I’m more than assured that no other institutions should interfere.”

“We are well aware of the situation at the line of contact, we are aware of the ceasefire violations and the number of victims, but we have no right to interfere with the settlement process,” he added.

At the same time, the Secretary General added that “Armenia is a full member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization and has the right to get assistance from allies in case of negative developments on its territory. Armenia will get support from partners if necessary.”