Author: Badalian Vardan

DENIALIST HISTORIANS DENY THE GENOCIDE BECAUSE THEY DON’T KNOW THE LAW: GEOFFREY ROBERTSON

18:59, 16 March, 2015

YEREVAN, 16 MARCH, ARMENPRESS. In the heart of Manhattan in Times
Square’s Marriot Marquis Hotel, a long-awaited international conference
marking the centennial of the Armenian Genocide opened last Friday
with a presentation by UK human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson,
counsel in a case referring to the Armenian Genocide that went to
the European Court of Human Rights in January.

In his opening presentation, entitled “Responsibility: 100 years of
Human Rights Violations,” Robertson called on Turkey to recognise
the crimes carried out against the Armenians under Ottoman rule as
genocide, in other words intended to target the continuing existence
of the Armenians.

In his book “An Inconvenient Genocide: Who now Remembers the
Armenians,” Robertson argued that the crimes by which more than a
million Armenians lost their lives under Ottoman rule in 1915 be
defined as genocide.

“As historians don’t know the law, it’s quite clear that a number of
denialist historians deny the Genocide. They don’t understand what
genocide means, and they profess no understanding of the law or have
no experience in applying it, so they are not qualified to answer
the legal question” of whether or not these crimes were genocide,
Robertson commented to the Weekly.

He added that denialist historians think that genocide requires proof
of a written order from the central government at the time such crimes
take place to eliminate all members of a particular group or people
professing a particular religion. They may think there must always
be an intention to kill everyone in the group, rather than part of
the group or to create conditions where such killing is inevitable,
he said.

Robertson noted that annihilating a racial or religious group becomes
a matter of international concern if a country like Turkey seeks to
cover up such crimes by blotting them out of school textbooks or by
prosecuting those who allege them, or, worse, if denial takes the
form of an insistence that they were justified in the first place.

“There can never be justification for genocide, even on the
shoulder-shrugging grounds that it occurred during World War I when
life was cheap and ‘military necessity’ or ‘national security’ required
it. Any state that takes the lives of hundreds of thousands of women,
of old men and young children, on the grounds of their race must,
in the absence at least of confession and apology, pay a price,
as long as a century later,” Robertson said.

The Conference includes panels on Armenian Genocide Scholarship,
Building Solidarity, Armenian Genocide in US Policy Circles, Attitudes
in Turkey, Individual and Group Reparations, Islamised Armenians,
Denial, Gender and Genocide, and Genocide and Education.

Among the speakers are well-known figures such as Bilgin Ayata,
David Barsamian, David Gaunt, Guillaume Perrier, Israel Charny, Nancy
Krikorian, Richard Hovannissian, Sarah Leah Whitson, Ruken Sengul,
Khatchig Mouradian and others.

The closing panel, on Art and Expression, will include Alexander
Dinelaris, co-writer and winner of an Academy Award for Best Original
Screenplay for the filmBirdman, Chris Bohjalian, author of 17 books
including ten New York Times bestsellers, Eric Boghossian, author
and actor, and Scout Tufankjian, a photojournalist whose work has
been featured inNewsweek, Le Monde, theNew York Times and other
publications.

It had earlier been announced that British writer and Middle East
correspondent for theIndependent newspaper Robert Fisk would be
among the speakers at the Conference. But Fisk, known for his strong
support for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, had cancelled
his previously scheduled appearance as a speaker at a luncheon only
a day before the Conference started, citing unforeseen circumstances
according to Conference organisers.

However, some said that Fisk had cancelled his participation owing to
objections to the Dashnak Party, the Lebanese chapter of the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation, which is a member of the March 8 Coalition
led by the Shiite Hizbullah Party.

The Conference was organised by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Eastern US Centennial Committee. “It is about the responsibility of
everybody, whether it’s the Turkish state, whether it’s Armenia, or
whether it’s the international community, to acknowledge past crimes
and to intervene when current crimes are still being committed by the
Islamic State, for example, and to prevent future crimes,” commented
Khatchig Mouradian, head of the Conference organising committee and
editor of The Armenian Weekly.

Committee co-chair Haig Oshagan said that “responsibility extends
to individuals and nations to know their past and their history
and how to understand the present and figure out the future, so the
historical work is a responsibility to explain the Genocide to the
current generation. It’s our duty to understand what happened to our
ancestors and pass it on to the new generations.”

“Our demands for reparations are based on the notion of responsibility;
a nation cannot claim impunity for a criminal, and the opposite of
impunity is accountability or responsibility. This has to do with
everything from recognition to reparations, and the foundation is that
Turkey is responsible for these crimes and we will demand reparations
for them.”

WHAT IS BEHIND THE CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM IN ARMENIA?

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
March 16 2015

16 March 2015 – 4:40pm

Last week, the Special Committee presented the concept of reform
of the country’s constitution to the President of Armenia, Serzh
Sargsyan. Its main innovation is the transition from a presidential
to a parliamentary republic.

The transformation project was approved by the president, who
designated members of the Commission to hold consultations with
political parties on the implementation of the concept enshrined in
the approaches and to compile suggestions and comments. “Undoubtedly,
the concept is a progressive document, the implementation of which may
provide new opportunities for the further democratic development of
Armenia. Therefore, I should note that in this regard you made serious
work of a giant volume, for which I thank you,” Serzh Sargsyan said
at a meeting with them.

The director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the National
Academy of Sciences of Armenia, Ruben Safrastyan, in an interview
with Vestnik Kavkaza expressed doubt that a decision has already been
taken. “Based on the millennial experience of our history, I think a
parliamentary republic is more suitable for Armenia. In the current
environment it will provide greater flexibility in the management of
the country,” he said.

Apart from the fact that it could be an attempt by Serzh Sargsyan to
retain power, outflanking the ban to hold the presidency for more than
two consecutive terms, the expert noted that he has no facts about it.

“As far as I know, Sargsyan is not a supporter of a parliamentary
republic,” Safrastyan stressed, adding that it is too early to say
that Armenia is a parliamentary republic.

The director of Caucasus Institute, Alexander Iskandaryan said that the
issue is discussed in the political circles of Armenia for a long time.

“There is general agreement that, at least in Europe, the parliamentary
control system work better than presidential ones. There is a
trend in the former Soviet Union, according to which, countries,
where are elements of public policy and democracy, the transition to
parliamentary control methods. This happened with Moldova, Georgia,
Ukraine and Georgia,” he said.

The expert also not inclined to consider this project as an attempt
by the incumbent president to retain power at the end of his second
term, because the head of state said earlier that he would not be
elected for the third time.

Speaking about the possible reaction of the population on this reform,
he expressed the opinion that people will perceive it apathetic. “The
political leadership now has the opportunity to hold a referendum
in the version, which will suit them,” the director of the Caucasus
Institute summed up.

The secretary of the ANC party, Aram Manukyan, in his turn, said that
the constitutional reform, which provides transformation of Armenia
into a parliamentary republic, is a common desire of President Serzh
Sargsyan to continue its power to remain number one in the country.

According to him, the Armenian population’s react on this reform
will be indifferent. “They do not believe the authorities, they do
not believe in any of the constitutional reform,” Manukyan said.

OGNI REALPOLITIK HA UN LIMITE. MICA SI PUÃ’ SNOBBARE IL GENOCIDIO ARMENO PER NON DISTURBARE LA TURCHIA, VERO RENZI?

Tempi, Italia
16 marzo 2015

marzo 16, 2015 Renato Farina

All’inaugurazione della mostra sul “popolo dell’Arca” non c’era il
governo. Perche? L’alleanza con Erdogan in chiave anti-Isis è una
ragione seria. Ma sufficiente?

Giovedì scorso si è inaugurata una mostra importante. Per la bellezza,
la forza, ma anche per il dolore che vi è raccolto e trasformato in
oro e in fiori. Si chiama “Armenia. Il popolo dell’Arca”. La sede è
il Vittoriano (fino al 3 maggio, bisogna andarci), dunque il cuore
della memoria patria, se è concesso questo aggettivo solenne in tempi
di disincanto. C’erano le autorita della Repubblica d’Armenia, la
ministra della Cultura di Yerevan, signora Hasmik Poghosyan. Nes-su-no
del governo italiano. Perche?

Quest’anno si celebra il centenario del genocidio del popolo armeno
a opera dei turchi-ottomani. La Turchia ha esercitato una fortissima
pressione perche l’Italia non desse segno di accorgersene: vittoria
turca. Gia nei mesi scorsi una risoluzione per consentire nelle
scuole italiane il ricordo di questo eccidio e l’inserimento nei
libri di testo scolastici di questa persecuzione iniziata sotto il
Sultano gia nel 1895 era stata frenata dal Partito democratico ma
non solo. Si diceva: la Turchia è troppo importante nella guerra allo
Stato islamico per inimicarcela.

Ragioni molto serie. Io mi domando però: se uno nega l’evidenza di
una immane strage di massa riguardante cristiani propri concittadini
(tali erano gli armeni d’Anatolia), al punto da inibirne la memoria
pubblica a uno Stato indipendente e in fondo ancora a maggioranza
cristiana, come si fa a credere che possa lottare con mano ferma con
chi persegue oggi gli stessi scopi del Califfo di allora e anzi li
moltiplica per esibita crudelta?

Mi piacerebbe rispondesse Renzi.

L’anno scorso ho assistito alla Camera a un dibattito in cui un
diplomatico turco, in un convegno dedicato ai genocidi del secolo
scorso, ha tranquillamente teorizzato il negazionismo per quello
armeno, e il giornalista che moderava il dibattito, un inviato
glorioso del Corriere della Sera, ha detto che era un’opinione
rispettabile. Sara perche sono nervoso sulla sorte dei cristiani in
Medio Oriente, ma questa ipocrisia è per me diventata insostenibile.

Lo dico da uno che ama la Turchia, e in passato ha sostenuto la
necessita dell’adesione di questo grande paese all’Europa. Ma non si
può accettare chi nega attivamente la verita sul sangue versato. Non
si può accettare di far torto alle vittime per ragioni di convenienza.

Esistono dei limiti alla realpolitik. Furono un milione e mezzo coloro
che restarono vittime del genocidio, condotto con determinazione
tanto più crudele perche lenta, inesorabile.

Oggi esistono prove gravi del coinvolgimento della Turchia nel
finanziamento del Califfato. Il petrolio di contrabbando arriva in
Turchia a prezzi scontati, con condotte artigianali che attraversano
il confine. Maurizio Molinari nel suo Il califfato del terrore,
scrive:

ARMENIA’S PRESIDENT APPROVES TRANSITION TO PARLIAMENTARY GOVERNMENT SYSTEM

ITAR-TASS, Russia
March 15, 2015 Sunday 12:03 AM GMT+4

YEREVAN March 15.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsian approved on Saturday a concept of
the constitutional reform that envisages transition to a parliamentary
government system

Sargsian instructed the special commission of lawyers, which he
established on September 4 and which presented the document to him, to
hold discussions on the concept with the country’s political parties.

Armenia’s president told the lawyers he “has the same substantiated
opinion that constitutional reforms are crucial for the country as
they can be carried out only under the condition of broad political
consolidation.”

“This concept is a programme document which implementation will
actually provide new opportunities for Armenia’s growth,” Sargsian
said.

“The legal commission’s reasons and grounds are substantial taking into
regard the transition to the parliamentary government system,” he said
adding that the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe “agrees that
the parliamentary government system may entrench democracy in Armenia.”

“The consultations with political parties showed that straightforward
and coinciding approaches cannot be applied to the issue,” he said
expressing his concern over “the lawyers’ approaches to amending the
current system of presidential government.”

Sargsian said that “he has no clear comprehension yet how the offered
parliamentary government system will unequivocally guarantee two
constituents – the country’s foreign and domestic security and
stability of the system of the state governance which the current
government system ensures.”

Besides, Armenia’s president said that “it is not by chance that
the lawyers expressed their doubt in stability of the parliamentary
government system and proposed preliminary options for transition to
it.” -0-mil/

HAYQ – ARMENIAN APPLICATION

India Gazette
March 16 2015

ZDNet Monday 16th March, 2015

The application HAYQ – ARMENIAN APPLICATION is created for the
Armenians all over the world, and it aims to bring together the
Armenian people to its historical roots and traditions, as well as
for everyone interested in the Armenians to obtain initial information.

The application is created in Armenian, English and Russian
languages and includes the following sections:~interactive Armenian
alphabet,~sights of Armenia,~Lords prayer, ~remind-me calendar
(significant dates and events),~prominent Armenians,~chronology of
Armenian history,~Armenian genocide of 1915,~Diaspora,~Armenian
music.Open access resources and materials have been used for the
creation of this application. The authors would like to express
their sincere appreciation to all Armenians providing the necessary
information and supporting this i-product promotion.Funds received
from the sale of the application will be partially used for charity
in Armenia, and the application users will be notified about it.

REPORT: ARMENIA’S ARMS IMPORTS EQUAL TO ONLY 4 PERCENT OF AZERBAIJAN’S

APA, Azerbaijan
March 16 2015

[ 16 March 2015 13:20 ]

Azerbaijan ranks second for arms imports among European countries

Baku. Agha Jafarli – APA. Arms imports have increased by 16 percent
from 2010 to 2014 compared to 2005-2009, according to the report of the
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), APA reports.

According to the report, the United States, Russia, China, Germany
and France are the top arms exporters worldwide – 74 percent of the
world’s weapons sales.

The US and Russia make 58 percent of weapons imports worldwide.

The United States sells arms to 94 countries.

Azerbaijan is mentioned in the “arms imports” section of the report.

Azerbaijan is a country in conflict with Armenia, and the tension
between the two countries escalated in 2014. Compared to 2005-2009,
Azerbaijan increased weapons imports by 249 percent in 2010-2014. The
UK was the largest weapons importer in Europe (receiving 14 percent of
deliveries), followed by Azerbaijan (13 percent). Azerbaijan imports
85 percent of the arms from Russia. Armenia’s arms imports makes 4
percent of Azerbaijan’s.

The report says that it remains unclear when and from where de facto
armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh have acquired their weapons. It is
likely that Armenia has supplied some of the weapons.

JAVAKHK ‘DESERTERS’ CALL ON THE YOUTH TO RETURN AND ENRICH THE REGION

Kristine Aghalaryan

09:01, March 16, 2015

Students enrolled in Armenian private schools in Los Angeles have
been dropping 20cents every day into little collection boxes.

The coins, collected on a weekly basis, are then sent to a Javakhk
assistance committee launched by the Armenian Relief Society. The
student donations are finally forwarded to Javakhk.

Ashot Melkonyan, Director of the Institute of History of the Armenian
Academy of Sciences, recently visited Los Angeles and spoke to students
and faculty at twelve Los Angeles Armenian schools. He saw what was
taking place regarding Javakhk.

Melkonyan was overjoyed to hear that 6th-12th grade students were
learning about Javakhk and especially about those villages that,
over the ages, have produced prominent Armenian thinkers and activists.

Melkonyan brought news of this development back to the youth committee
initiated by the Javakhk Assistance Foundation (JAF), encouraging
them to get involved in the work being done in Javakhk.

“I regard myself as a deserter since I do not live in Javakhk. I
was born there but live a good life in Yerevan. All of us should be
in Javakhk. We must understand that being patriotic is a practical
matter and starts with living on the land and working there. Those
of you who go to the villages of Javakhk with a diploma in your hand
are the real patriots. The patriot isn’t the one who can only make
speeches from this podium,” Melkonyan told the Javakhk youth committee.

Ashot MelkonyanKarineh KhodikyanGagik Ginosyan

Melkonyan added that while the JAF doesn’t operate in opposition
to the Georgian government, many officials, especially in Javakhk,
view its activities with suspicion.

The dramatist Karineh Khodikyan, another founder of the JAF, called on
the youth to remain steadfast and courageous alongside the experience
and wisdom of their elders. “Any activity has real prospects when the
youth take their rightful place alongside their elders,” Khodikyan
said.

Gagik Ginosyan, founder of the Garin Folk Dance Ensemble, called
on the youth not to lose the traditional Javakhk stubbornness and
determination. “We will return and the prerequisite for this is in
the hands of the Javakhk youth,” he said.

Young Javakhk residents spoke about the various sector challenges
facing the region.

Javakhk native Karen Hakobyan, a maxillofacial surgeon who heads
the staff at the Yerevan State Medical University, believes that in
order to solve the health problems in Javakhk one must start with
the professionals. Hakobyan suggests that a plan be drafted whereby
medical students get tuition reimbursement in exchange for working
in Javakhk for a stated period after graduating.

Dentist Artur Manukyan states that Javakhk hospitals lack up to date
equipment and that there are no dental clinics in the region. He
describes the ones that exist as quite primitive in terms of
technology. Manukyan proposes training sessions and conferences
in Javakhk so that health professionals are brought up to current
standards.

Attorney Davit Mkoyan said that Javakhk residents faced legal problems
when it comes to protecting their property and singled out the right
of private property. Mkoyan points to the lack of information by
Javakhk residents, the speed of legal changes and, of course, the
political context as reasons for this problem. He suggests that
legal awareness seminars be conducted in Javakhk and, if needed,
legislative initiatives be made at the Georgian parliament.

Karen HakobyanDavit MkoyanMavr Lazarian

“Many of my peers in the current situation live as romantic pioneers.

The remaining minority lives according to the dictates of the day,”
says singer Mavr Lazarian, adding that there is no cultural life in
Javakhk. The reason, he says, is because there are no cultural centers
in the region. He adds that there aren’t any renovated concert halls
in Javakhk.

“In December 2012 we gave concerts in Akhalkalak, Ninotzminda and
Soukhlis. You can’t imagine the conditions. A thousand people showed
up in halls accommodating 600. There was no room left to stand. We
were seated near the electric heaters and drinking cognac just to
warm our hands. It makes no sense to hold any type of cultural event
in Javakhk from November to April.”

The singer would like to see cultural centers built in the rural
areas; one for several villages. He says that cultural life, to the
extent that it exists, is centered in the towns. He also wants to
see professionals receive training in Yerevan

His greatest wish is to organize a cultural festival in Javakhk that
will assemble local talent and create conditions to provide the best
with an education.

JAF Council President Sos Sahakyan said that this year has been
declared the year of Javakhk cultural centers and that renovations
will begin at such sites.

The first center scheduled for renovation is the center in the village
of Tamala in Akhaltskha.

To spur the development of sports in Javakhk, Street Workout and
Street Lifting NGO President Artur Harutyunyan and his partners have
proposed to create mini playgrounds in backyards as was the case in
the Soviet period.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT CONDOLES WITH PUTIN OVER DEADLY KAZAN FIRE

NEWS | 16.03.15 | 10:08

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan extended his condolences to his
Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in connection with the recent fire
at a shopping center in Kazan, Tatarstan, that claimed human lives.

According to the presidential press service, on Saturday, President
Sargsyan conveyed condolences to the families and friends of the
victims and wished a speedy recovery to those injured in the accident.

The death toll in the Kazan blaze reached 16. The search operation
continued as of the weekend.

Earlier, on March 12, President Sargsyan, according to his press
service, had a telephone conversation with Putin that focused on
bilateral relations between the two countries as well as integration
as part of the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union.

The Kremlin press service also reported about this conversation
that made international news due to the circumstance that Putin
had apparently not been seen in public since March 5. Earlier, the
Russian leader also postponed his trip to Astana where he was due to
meet with the presidents of Kazakhstan and Belarus.

This circumstance had caused various rumors on the Internet, including
those about the state of health of the 62-year-old Russian leader. But
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told media that the Russian president
was in good health and was regularly holding meetings and working
with documents. The Kremlin also announced that Putin will have a
meeting with his Kyrgyz counterpart on Monday.

DEMONSTRATION IN BAKU AGAINST MANAT DEVALUATION; PROTESTERS DEMANDED AUTHORITIES TO COMPENSATE FOR FINANCIAL LOSSES

13:17 16/03/2015 >> SOCIETY

An Azerbaijani opposition rally was held at the city stadium of the
sport club Mehsul in Baku under police surveillance. The participants
demanded to compensate the population for their losses which had been
caused by manat devaluation. The main slogan of the demonstration
agreed upon with Baku City Hall was “No to looting and deceptions!”

The demonstrators interrupted the speakers, chanting “Freedom!” and
“Resign!” Caucasian Knot reports.

According to the article, Ali Karimli, the chairman of the Azerbaijani
Popular Front Party (APFP), during his speech called on the government
of the country to compensate the population for their losses which
had been caused by manat devaluation. Deputy chairman of APFP Fuad
Gahramanli spoke up for the immediate release of the Azerbaijani
political prisoners. In his turn, the head of the National Council
of Democratic Forces Jamil Hasanli criticized allocating funds for
hosting the European Games in Baku.

“The Heydar Aliyev Foundation covers the expenses of building parks
and establishing monuments in foreign countries, while seriously ill
children’s parents turn to the people in the social networks asking
for help to pay for their babies’ treatment,” Hasanli protested.

The BBC Russian Service also turned to the topic highlighting
that thousands of people took part in the demonstration organized
by the Azerbaijani opposition in Baku, and that it is one of the
largest demonstrations of the Azerbaijani opposition for the recent
years. The next one is appointed on 5 April. In its turn, the magazine
Korrespondent.net adds that “oil-and-gas rich Azerbaijan” faces
dramatic financial problems because of the decline of the oil prices.

The website of RFE/RL reminds that during the demonstration Jamil
Hasanli declared that his Facebook account had been hacked ahead
of the protest in an apparent attempt by authorities to prevent
him from calling on people to join the rally. RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani
Service highlights that the day before the rally the Press Council
of Azerbaijan informed the site Qafqazinfo that a monitoring of the
journalists carrying out their duties was to be held during the rally.

However, Ogtay Gulaliyev, the National Council representative, said
he was not aware of that.

Azerbaijani information agency Turan reports that 4-5 thousand people
took part in the rally in Baku. In its turn, the Main Police Department
in Baku stated that there were around 600 demonstrators in the rally.

According to the agency, Gezal Bayramli, the deputy chairman of
APFP and member of National Council, noted in her speech that the
current situation in Azerbaijan comes as a logical result of the
“inconsiderate, robbing policy” carried out by the authorities of the
country. The head of the National Council Jamil Hasanli condemned the
lack of economical strategy of the authorities noting that the policy
of the authorities in Azerbaijan has a “spontaneous and inconsiderate
character.” He said that one of the forms of corruption in Azerbaijan
is the tax authorities’ tactics of extortion, as they – apart from
the official taxes – take cash of 10-15 thousands from the businessmen
explaining that by the lack of money for the European Games.

Turan also writes that Rovshan Ahmedov, Karabakh war veteran and a
member of the National Council, spoke up at the meeting stressing
that despite the fact that the war refugees and veterans cannot get
compensation in Azerbaijan for already 20 years, the authorities of the
country are ready to invite and pay the expenses of the representatives
of Armenia in the European Games.

ARMENIA HAILS COOPERATION WITH EU – FM NALBANDIAN

16:23 * 16.03.15

Armenia’s foreign minister on Monday highly praised the country’s
comprehensive and multi-sectoral cooperation with EU, reiterating
plans for furthering the partnership in future.

In his speech at the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly’s fourth plenary
session in Yerevan, Edward Nalbandian said that Armenia highly
values the joint efforts especially in the spheres of democracy,
human rights, rule of law, protection of fundamental freedoms and
effective governance.

“As stated in the Armenia-EU joint statement, adopted on the
sidelines of the Vilnius Summit, the sides agreed on the importance
of establishing new grounds to regulate the relations,” Armenpress
quotes him as telling the meeting’s participants.

Nalbandian reaffirmed Armenia’s intention to develop mutual cooperation
with the EU to promote human rights and develop democracy while
simultaneously continuing the judicial reforms, fight against
corruption, and the civil society strengthening. The minister also
highlighted the importance of expanding the enhancing trade and
investment and expanding mobility.

“We are now in the final round of negotiations with the EU partners
to decide the frameworks of cooperation based on the progress observed.

Armenia is ready to continue the comprehensive cooperation with the
EU in all formats and all possible sectors, having in mind also our
obligations in other integration processes,” he added.