Author: Chakhmakhchian Vatche

Le Monde, France
25 janvier 2005

De la barbarie hitlérienne est née la notion de « crime contre l’humanité »
1945 – 2005

par Nathalie Guibert,

À QUELLES valeurs renvoie la notion d’humanité ? Parce que la
question est immense, les juristes peinent encore à définir les
crimes contre l’humanité.

Cette incrimination pénale a émergé, en 1945, de la barbarie
hitlérienne. Depuis, elle n’a cessé d’évoluer. Récemment, le
terrorisme, le clonage humain, sont venus à nouveau la bousculer. «
On essaie, avec cette notion, de définir des valeurs, que l’on a du
mal à écrire dans des mots de juristes », résume Michel Massé,
professeur de droit à l’université de Poitiers.

Avant la seconde guerre mondiale, les actes inhumains, commis
collectivement contre des populations civiles au nom d’un projet
politique, étaient sanctionnés sous l’incrimination de « crimes de
guerre ». Seuls quelques diplomates avaient utilisé l’expression de «
crime contre l’humanité » après le génocide des Arméniens de 1915.

Les crimes contre l’humanité sont inscrits le 8 août 1945 dans
l’accord de Londres instaurant le tribunal militaire international
siégeant à Nuremberg. Ils sont alors définis comme « l’assassinat,
l’extermination, la réduction en esclavage, la déportation, et tout
autre acte inhumain commis contre toute population civile, avant ou
pendant la guerre, ou bien les persécutions pour des motifs
politiques, raciaux ou religieux ».

Mais, en 1945, la priorité est de punir les crimes contre la paix et
les crimes de guerre ; les victimes civiles sont négligées. Au procès
de Nuremberg, « les crimes contre l’humanité, que l’on vient pourtant
de créer, sont absents », rappelle Denis Salas, secrétaire général de
l’Association pour l’histoire de la justice. Dans le jugement des
responsables nazis, ces crimes « ne sont retenus que comme une
catégorie interstitielle destinée à combler les manques des autres
infractions, explique M. Salas. Les acteurs du procès de Nuremberg
ont du mal à penser un mal radical qui excède les bornes du droit ».

En 1948, l’ONU ajoute le génocide au crime contre l’humanité. En
1973, c’est le cas de l’apartheid. Des criminels sont jugés sous la
nouvelle qualification, par des tribunaux nationaux, comme ce fut le
cas pour Adolf Eichmann en Israël, ou des juridictions
internationales ad hoc, tel le tribunal pénal pour l’ex-Yougoslavie.

En France, il faut attendre le code pénal de 1994 pour voir ces
crimes sortir du contexte de la seconde guerre mondiale et s’inscrire
dans le droit national. Mais le texte de 1994 n’a jamais servi. Paul
Touvier, Klaus Barbie et Maurice Papon ont été condamnés en référence
au texte de Nuremberg et au nom de l’imprescriptibilité de ces
crimes, reconnue par la France en 1964.

Des plaintes ont certes été déposées contre des criminels étrangers
recherchés en France, tel Augusto Pinochet. Mais les juges ont retenu
la qualification de « torture », plus efficace pour les poursuivre
bien que ce crime ne soit pas imprescriptible. En la matière, la
Convention de l’ONU autorise, en effet, la compétence universelle. En
outre, les deux lois de 2001 relatives à la reconnaissance du
génocide arménien et à l’esclavage ne peuvent être utilisées pour
poursuivre des responsables, en raison du principe de
non-rétroactivité.

Mais « le plus important, c’est que le droit français a été
verrouillé par la Cour de cassation pour que le crime contre
l’humanité ne puisse pas s’appliquer à la guerre d’Algérie, souligne
M. Massé. La France reconnaît ce crime pour des faits anciens, et
pour les actes nouveaux, à partir de 1994. Entre les deux, il y a un
trou, dans la mémoire et dans le droit ».

Les attentats du 11 septembre 2001 à New York ont, de nouveau,
bousculé l’incrimination née il y a cinquante ans. Pour Robert
Badinter, il convient d’assimiler ces actes aux crimes contre
l’humanité. « Des actes semant la terreur, visant aveuglément des
populations civiles, et commis au nom d’un projet et de motivations
idéologiques entrent tout à fait dans le cadre des crimes contre
l’humanité », estime l’ancien ministre de la justice.

Et ce d’autant que les statuts de la Cour pénale internationale,
installée en 2002, définissent les crimes contre l’humanité comme les
actes de meurtre, d’extermination, de persécution ou de déportation «
commis dans le cadre d’une attaque généralisée ou systématique lancée
contre toute population civile ».

Mais la question divise les juristes. Jusqu’à présent, ces deux
droits ont évolué parallèlement, explique M. Massé, car « la nature
du terrorisme est différente : il s’en prend à n’importe qui, et non
à un groupe précis ; ses auteurs n’ont pas, à la différence des
autres criminels, le contrôle d’un territoire ; enfin, ils subissent
une réprobation morale relative : des années après les faits,
certains terroristes ont acquis une légitimité, un pouvoir ».

Les biotechnologies provoquent également des interrogations. En
France, la loi du 6 août 2004 a ainsi modifié le code pénal, plaçant
en tête du chapitre consacré aux crimes contre les personnes, les «
crimes contre l’humanité et contre l’espèce humaine ». Ces derniers
venus recouvrent l’eugénisme et le clonage humain, punis de trente
ans de réclusion. « Le crime contre l’humanité peut se définir comme
le fait d’avoir éliminé massivement des personnes qu’on estime
différentes. Le clonage pourrait être l’inverse, le fait de créer des
personnes en maîtrisant leurs caractéristiques. D’où ce rapprochement
des deux notions, même si le droit, ttonnant, ne les assimile pas
encore », indique M. Massé.

L’installation de la CPI rend désormais possible le jugement de tous
les « crimes les plus graves touchant l’ensemble de la communauté
internationale ». « C’est un progrès, souligne M. Badinter, mais
toutes les leçons d’Auschwitz n’ont pas été tirées par la justice. De
longs silences pèsent sur les génocides ultérieurs, comme celui du
Cambodge. »

RA PRESIDENT DISCUSSES DETAILS OF UPCOMING OFFICIAL VISIT TO ITALY
WITH AMBASSADOR MARCO KLEMENTE

YEREVAN, January 20 (Noyan Tapan). RA President Robert Kocharian
discussed the details of the upcoming official visit of the RA
President to Italy with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
of Italy to Armenia Marco Klemente during the January 20 meeting.

According to the RA presidential press service, Robert Kocharian
stressed the importance of this visit and mentioned that the
traditional friendly relations have been established between Italy and
Armenia, and good prospective is evident in the sphere of economic
cooperation, in particular, in the sphere of the small and medium
enterprises.

Dunya Gazetesi, Turkey
Jan 19 2005

VAT meetin cancelled, Russia wants to act as a mediator between
Turkey and Armenia

19/01/2005 10:47:58 Geri dön gönder yazýcý

The Viennese Armenian-Turkish Platform (VAT) yesterday announced that
it would not carry through its starting initiative “The First
Viennese Armenian-Turkish Round Table” originally planned for spring
2005.
The reason is that the Armenian side has failed to provide the
platform with the necessary confirmation as agreed in August 2004.
The Turkish side accepted to participate in the dialogue, in which
each part was supposed to present 180 documents on the year 1915
showing their understanding of the so-called Armenian genocide. In
July 2004, the first 100 documents each from the Armenian and Turkish
side were exchanged to get the dialogue started.

The VAT was founded by four Austrian historians as a neutral platform
serving as an intermediary for Turkish and Armenian researchers
scientifically investigating the Armenian-Turkish Question. In
related news, the Moscow radio yesterday announced that the Russian
Federation is ready to act as a mediator between Turkey and Armenia
as well as the guarantor of any possible agreement to be signed
between the two countries.

Glendale News Press
LATimes.com
Jan 20 2005

Bridging cultures at Edison

Elementary school students, staff learn about each other’s heritages
during Culture Week.

By Darleene Barrientos, News-Press and Leader

SOUTHWEST GLENDALE – Studying a vibrant red “han bok,” or traditional
Korean dress, 5-year-old Rebeca Olmedo pointed it out and gestured to
a pendant on it.

“I like the color and that thing right here,” Rebeca said, referring
to the black “norigae,” or Korean knot pendant hanging down the
center of the dress.

The dress was one of dozens of items from several countries and
cultures displayed Wednesday in a classroom at Edison Elementary
School. The room was the school’s makeshift Culture Museum this week,
housing dolls, fabrics, flags, clothes, knick knacks, currency,
pictures and other items from countries like Korea, Armenia, Iran,
Mexico, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Laos. The school is
celebrating Culture Week, a celebration of the diversity among the
school’s staff and students.

Culture Week at Edison began last year and was a success, Principal
Linda Conover said. It allowed the student body and the teachers to
celebrate and embrace their cultures. The student population at
Edison is about 47% Armenian descent, 35% Latino with the remainder
made up of students of Russian, El Salvadoran, Filipino, Korean, Thai
and East Indian ancestry.

“I’d say we’re diverse, and I think our staff is pretty diverse,
too,” Conover said.

The events at Edison began Tuesday with an opening ceremony,
featuring parents, teachers and students dressed in traditional
clothing that represents their culture or background.

Sixth-grade student Ashini Patel, 11, who is of Indian descent,
wanted to wear a pair of bright yellow pants that flare out and a top
designed with embroidery.

“But I missed my chance,” Ashini said. “I thought I could wear it any
day this week.”

The school is also learning about different cultures through
workshops, including arts and crafts, luncheons and parent
presentations.

Culture Week is an event that has made an impression on the student
body, Conover said.

“I saw the effects of the one last year,” she said. “Students would
come up and talk about the activities they were involved in during
culture week and would make sure we knew how much they enjoyed it. It
was wonderful for them to see their parents come in and talk to their
class or share food from their cultures. It gave students a sense of
pride about where they came from.”

Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Jan 19 2005

ARMENIA BUSINESSMAN DIGS FOR PROFIT

All eyes are on a diaspora investor who is trying his luck with
investing in Armenia’s unpredictable agriculture.

By Naira Melkumian in Yerevan

For the first time, a major investor is putting his money into
Armenia’s undeveloped agriculture sector – an experiment in an
unpredictable area, which both farmers and economists are watching
with keen interest.

Up until now, agriculture – which employs around 40 per cent of the
working population of Armenia but makes a much more modest
contribution to the national budget – has had to rely solely on
government and international grants and loans for financing.

Eduardo Ernekian, an Argentinean-based entrepreneur of Armenian
extraction who manages Armenia’s Zvartnots airport, has signed an
agreement with the local Max Group, pledging to invest 25 million US
dollars in fruit orchard and grapevine plantings on an area of 3,000
hectares. The project also envisages a processing plant, an advanced
irrigation system, supply of modern agricultural machinery and
equipment and a quality control laboratory.

Ernekian, who is a major landowner in southern Argentina, plans to
plant apricot, peach and plum orchards and vineyards in the Bagramian
district of the Armavir Region of western Armenia over the next five
years.

Parliamentary deputy Hachik Manukian, who is chairman of the board of
Max Group, told IWPR the project would build the capacity to process
up to 50,000 tons of high quality fruit. “The fruit will be sorted by
look, size and colour according to a set of standards, and then
exported,” he said.

While some see Ernekian’s investment as a harbinger of growth in
Armenia’s agriculture, others say that is a risky venture to put
money into something as unpredictable and undeveloped as fruit
farming.

Samvel Avetisian, Armenia’s deputy agriculture minister, said the
project was practical and promising, because it relied on new
technology and promoted higher competition among fruit processors.

In 2004, the agriculture ministry reported a 12 per cent growth in
agriculture production from the previous two years, when the sector
grew at no more than four per cent annually. Avetisian said he
expected other foreign investors to follow Ernekian’s lead.

He also believes Ernekian is doing the right thing by starting an
agricultural business to set up export flows and keep his airport
busy. “He went into agriculture out of practical necessity, and
that’s a good thing,” the deputy minister said.

But Grachia Berberian, chairman of the Agrarian Union of Farmers, is
not so optimistic and says that Armenia’s agriculture is developing
very slowly despite its huge potential. “If the state treated and
managed agriculture right, the sector could start generating a profit
in two to three years,” he said.

Berberian believes investing directly in farming cooperatives would
be a better idea. “As matters stand, entrepreneurs exploit farmers to
maximize their own profits, while the processing plants stifle
farmers by imposing their own prices,” he said.

According to official figures, agriculture accounts for one fifth of
Armenia’s GDP, but employs half a million people or 40 per cent of
the workforce. Lise Grande, representative for the United Nations
Development Programme in Armenia, points to these figures as proof of
the low productivity of Armenian agriculture.

“Armenia’s agriculture needs intellectual, legislative and financial
investment to make it less dependent on external factors and more
stable in the long term,” Grande said.

External factors can all too often be disastrous. Berberian listed
the problems that farmers face, saying, “These include water
shortages, bad roads and lack of other infrastructure, but the main
challenge is to give farmers a firm guarantee of good harvest and
income.”

Avetisian added that the country’s agriculture loses some 30 million
dollars annually due to the weather. Last year, he said, 90 per cent
of Armenia’s apricot harvest, 30 per cent of the peaches and a tenth
of its vineyards were damaged by the weather.

But Manukian, the head of Max Group, argues that agriculture’s low
investor appeal is due to long payback periods because the majority
of Armenian businessmen want quick profits, and engage in businesses
that pay off immediately.

“As a farming country, we are still in our infancy, and nowhere near
to being an exporter,” Manukian said.

“Armenia exports only two types of agricultural product – apricots
and tomatoes – and all the other potentially exportable products are
yet to find their markets,” Manukian added, blaming this state of
affairs on the lack of a consistent government policy for
agriculture.

“Every farmer is his own manager,” he said. “No one really knows what
the market needs, and how much of it. Grapes sell well at the moment,
so everyone is planting vineyards. Pretty soon we may end up with
more grapes than we know what to do with.”

The agriculture ministry reports that 1,500 ha of new vineyards and a
thousand ha of new fruit orchards had been planted in 2004.

Garik Sardarian, marketing manager for the Marketing Assistance
Programme of the US Department of Agriculture, believes Armenia’s
agricultural products are marketed well enough. In his opinion, what
Armenian farmers lack is a practice of producing quality and assuring
the high sanitary level and safety of their products, which make them
attractive to overseas buyers.

Economic analyst Armen Grigorian said that the vast majority of
Armenian agriculture’s gross output comes from family farms – around
335,000 of which are in the country – and pointed out that improving
access to affordable credit resources might solve many problems for
such outfits.

Ashot Voskanian, head of the Republican Centre for Assistance to
Agriculture, said banks charge a prohibitive 15 – 18 per cent
interest rates on their loans, which are only issued on a short-term
basis. “Armenia’s agriculture financing system needs to be entirely
reformed – we need better laws and regulations in the field,” he told
IWPR.

In addition, farmers complain that the last piece of legislation
passed to defend their rights was back in 1990, leaving them all the
more unprotected against the daily challenges that everyday life in
Armenia throws them.

Naira Melkumian is an independent journalist in Yerevan

Annual economic balance

By Mher Ohanian

Yerkir/arm
January 14, 2005

The economic index of 2004 was almost similar to the previous year. It
was again composed of double digits – 10 (previous – 13). The passed
year also had 3 per cent of inflation and an approximately same size
of investments, which is noteworthy, given that the year 2004 did not
get significant funding from Lincy foundation.

Industry, energy, communications

In a way, the year was unfavorable for industrial development, namely
in jewelry and gold spheres. Nevertheless, the overall export of
Armenia increased by 25 per cent.

An evident success of 2004 was the start of the Iran-Armenia gas pipe
construction. This will on the one hand raise the energetic
independence ofthe country and will create competitive prices on gas
(in competition with Russian gas). In addition, it will also become
possible to import cheap gas from Turkmenistan.

Another milestone of 2004 was the eventual agreement with ArmenTel,
which yielded at least one sphere of monopoly – cell phone
communication.A new operator is expected to enter the market. It is
Kharabagh-originated company called K-Telecom. We shall witness its
activities in the coming six months.

Investment balance

The main progress in this respect was the sale of control package of
shares of the Zangezur factory of copper-molybdenum to the German
Chronimed company.

The overall cost of the deal peaks 132 million dollars. In fact, there
are 4 shareholders of the factory: Chronimed (60% shares), `Clean
iron’ factory of Yerevan (15% shares), `Armenian Molybdenum
Production’ cjsc(12.5% shares) and `Zangezur mining’ cjsc (12.5%
shares). During 5 primaryyears, there will be 150 million dollars
invested in the branch.

Note that the copper-molybdenum factory was sold during the world
crisis of copper and molybdenum, which probably accounts for the high
price of the sale.

In addition, the success of the deal is about the investment prospects
and creation of jobs, which are expected to rise from current 3000 to
4500.

Another successful investment during 2004 was the purchase of 100 per
cent share of the Armenian Leda Systems and Arsed companies by the
famous international Sinopsys company, involved in high-tech. It shows
the big potential of Armenia in this field.

Preliminary estimations show 300 million dollars of total private
investments in Armenia during 2004. However, given the size of shadow
economy, the real number is likely to be way bigger.

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
January 18, 2005 Tuesday 4:34 AM Eastern Time

Russia among countries vulnerable to earthquakes – UN report

By Sergei Mingazhev

KOBE (Japan), January 18 – Russia is among countries with a high
relative vulnerability to earthquakes, said the UN’s report “Disaster
Risk Reduction: A Development Task” that was circulated at an
international conference on disaster reduction opening the Japanese
city of Kobe on Tuesday.

About 6.5 thousand people died in a strong earthquake in Kobe ten
years ago.

The report cites results of different studies that had been conducted
under the UN’s programmes on the basis of information about natural
disasters over the past two decades.

One of the studies sought to develop models of risk for different
categories of countries with consideration for their geographic
peculiarities and economic factors.

The countries with a middle level of development and a significant
percent of the urban population such as Turkey and Russia have been
categorised as group with a high relative vulnerability, along with
the countries like Armenia and Guinea, in which earthquakes of an
exceptional magnitude occurred during the study period, the report
says.

Iran, Afghanistan and India have been put in this category too.

The term high relative vulnerability means not so much a high seismic
danger in some area of a country as poor preparedness for
earthquakes, because of which relatively mild tremors can cause
numerous victims and large-scale destruction.

Russia’s most dangers place for life in terms of seaquakes and
tsunamis are the whole Kurile Range and Kamchatka, said deputy
director of the Russian Hydrometeorology Centre Alexander Frolov, who
attends the conference in Kobe.

He told Itar-Tass that if the epicentre of December’s 9-magnitude
seaquake was located not near Sumatra but offshore of Kamchatka, the
height of the tsunami would have reached 20 meters, or two times more
than in Indonesia, because of the configuration pattern of its
coasts.

“If it is taken into account that our warning system works within
10-15 minutes after an earthquake, 30-35 minutes would have been left
for the evacuation of people,” Frolov said.

He stressed the need for additional measures in the field of rapid
reaction to catastrophic events.

Pundit urges Azeri government to demand permanent withdrawal of US aid ban

Yeni Musavat
17 Jan 05

Text of report by Anar in Azerbaijani newspaper Yeni Musavat on 17
January headlined “Section 907 was again not abandoned”, subheaded
“Hikmat Hacizada connected this with the strength of the Armenian
lobby and the government’s negligence”

US President George Bush has signed a decree prolonging for one more
year the suspension of Section 907 to the Freedom Support Act. To
recap, the section banning US aid to the Azerbaijani government was
adopted in the US Congress a few years ago. It is interesting why the
document running counter to the interests of Azerbaijan – which is
cooperating with the USA in the fight against international terrorism
– has not been withdrawn once and for all.

Answering our question, political scientist Hikmat Hacizada connected
this with the strength of the American [as published, presumably
Armenian] lobby.

“This means that the Armenian diaspora is still enjoying its power of
influence. The US government is reckoning with the Congress because it
needs to be mindful of the Congress. Azerbaijan is not such an
important country for the USA that it would fight with Congress
because of us.

“There are some notes of insincerity as well. Because Azerbaijan is
the US ally in the fight against international terrorism. They use our
aerodromes and fly to Afghanistan via our territory. From this
standpoint, the Azerbaijani authorities have the opportunity to demand
the withdrawal of the document once and for all and it should do so,”
Hacizada said.

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Jan 14 2005

PREMIER OF AZERBAIJAN RECEIVES SENIOR VICE-FOREIGN MINISTER OF JAPAN
[January 14, 2005, 20:18:57]

Azerbaijan is interested in creation by Japan in the production
capacities with full or joint capital of Japan, Prime Minister of
Azerbaijan Artur Rasizade stated at the meeting with the Japanese
delegation headed by the senior vice-foreign minister of this country
Mr. Ichiro Aisava.

Head of the Azerbaijan Government welcoming the guests, have high
assessment to the Azerbaijani-Japanese relations, dynamically
developing in all fields. Current visit of such authoritative
delegation of Japan will be another element in development of
bilateral links. Mr. Rasizade expressed gratitude to the Japanese
government for all-round financial assistance rendered to Azerbaijan.

Dwelling on the socio-political stability established thanks to the
farsighted policy of the nationwide leader of Azerbaijan Heydar
Aliyev in the country, the Premier of Azerbaijan spoke of the
accomplishments in the economic sphere, growing foreign investment
flow, the measures undertaken by the leadership of Country in the
social policy.

Mr. Artur Rasizade updated the Japanese delegation on the painful
problem of Azerbaijan – Armenian-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh
conflict that led to occupation of the Azerbaijan lands by Armenia,
and presence of over one million of refugees and IDPs in Azerbaijan,
on the efforts the Azerbaijan state makes for peaceful settlement of
the conflict.

Head of the Japanese delegation, senior vice-foreign minister Ichiro
Aisava stressed necessity of deepening of bilateral cooperation in
all fields, including in the non-oil sector, and assured the Premier
of Azerbaijan that his country would further render assistance to
Azerbaijan.

Ambassador of Japan in Baku Tadahiro Abe took part at the meeting.

ArmenPress
Jan 5 2005

RUSSIAN PARLIAMENT MEMBER’S STATEMENT ENRAGES AZERIS

BAKU, JANUARY 5, ARMENPRESS: A statement by Dmitry Rogozin, a
Russian parliament member, that Moscow must develop a mechanism that
would allow to join breakaway regions of Georgia-South Ossetia,
Abkhazia and Transdniester of Moldova to Russia has infuriated
Azerbaijani politicians.
The Baku-based daily Ekho recalls that similar announcements were
made by some Russian political figures concerning Nagorno Karabagh.
The Azeri daily quotes a Moldavian reintegration minister Vasily
Shovay as saying that it is difficult to imagine a statement that
would harm Russia more than the one made by Rogozin.
The daily also quotes a former foreign minister Tofik Zulfugarov
as saying that Rogozin’s statement is creating serious problems for
Russia regarding its international image, as it runs counter to its
officially declared foreign policy principles.