ARMENIAN JUDOISTS START WORLD STUDENT GAMES WITH DEFEAT
Noyan Tapan
July 10, 2009
YEREVAN, JULY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. On July 8, judoists also performed in
the World Student Games in Belgrade. Among the delegates of Armenia,
Hakob Arakelian (90 kg, Yerevan) won one fight, had two defeats and
won no prizes.
ISRAEL ‘WILL NOT WITHDRAW FROM GOLAN HEIGHTS’
press tv
Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:56:55 GMT
Netanyahu’s top policy adviser Uzi Arad ? The Israeli government has
said it will not withdraw from the entire strategic Golan Heights
even in return for a peace deal with Syria.
The remark was made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s
top policy adviser Uzi Arad in an interview published in the Israeli
daily Haaretz on Friday.
Israel must remain on the Golan Heights to a depth of several miles
"for strategic, military and settlement reasons", Arad said.
Netanyahu’s national security adviser further urged the Syrians to
resume peace talks with Israel with no preconditions but "with each
side aware of the other’s position."
Israel and Syria have officially been at war since 1967 when Tel Aviv
occupied the strategic plateau during the Six-Day War.
Syria wants a full Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 border, but
Israeli officials say the plateau is too strategically important
to be returned. The Golan Heights gives Israel access to the Sea of
Galilee — Israel’s main source of fresh water.
GOVERNMENT’S STRENGTH IS IN THE TRUST OF ITS PEOPLE
Analysis / Armenia
Vartan Oskanian’s interview to Lragir.am
The Civilitas Foundation
Monday, 06 July 2009 18:00
Mr. Oskanian, it’s been a while since the Armenian leadership declared
that foreign policy should be pro-active and enterprising. In your
opinion, can we assess, albeit preliminarily, the results of that
approach, and generally what differences do you see between the
pro-active approach and the foreign policy that came before?
About being enterprising, I want to say two things. First, before
‘initiating’ something in foreign relations, we must be able to
calculate all steps from beginning to end, otherwise the initiative
may work against the initiator. Second, being enterprising must
be correctly understood. International relations are not static,
and at different times, a country is under pressure to take or not
take a step, to implement steps or counter other steps being taken
in the immediate environment. In such a situation, deciding not to
act requires as much initiative as deciding to act. For example,
if the April 22 joint statement by the Armenian and Turkish foreign
ministries was the product of a pro-active policy, then deciding
not to take such a step could also be called being pro-active. If
participating in NATO exercises is the result of a decision to be
pro-active, the decision not to participate is equally pro-active. It
is important to understand the nature of the initiative. The point
I want to make is if we think that it is only by initiating ever-new
steps that a policy or a country is pro-active, then, in the process
of reaching for that next step, we risk going down the wrong road,
as we’ve recently witnessed.
If we try to understand the situation through a specific example,
then the recent meeting between the Armenian and Georgian presidents
was quite telling. The meeting between Serzh Sargsyan and Mikheil
Saakashvili took place in such a friendly environment, with
announcements that sounded more like dinner toasts, and for a moment
it seemed that we are not talking about an Armenia and a Georgia
that in recent months have had political, cultural and religious
issues, rather that this was a meeting between the mayors of two
sister cities. In your opinion, does such a high-level meeting,
and one that is burdened with the all of the conditions surrounding
Armenia-Georgia relations, fit within the framework of Armenia’s
enterprising and pro-active policy?
My impression is that it was quite a formal meeting. I would have
wanted to see as an outcome of this meeting a more concrete agreement
on projects of strategic importance and a serious exploration of
the problematic issues still pending. For example, documents that
preliminarily formalize the construction of a highway leading to
Batumi, or a decision on simplifying20border-crossing processes.
One cannot deny the importance of Georgia to Armenia. We’ve had a
big agenda and that must be deepened by the day. Each meeting must
contribute to the further deepening and institutionalization of
relations. The Russian-Georgian war demonstrated that Armenia, too,
has strategic importance for Georgia. There are more things that we
have in common today, than there are things that separate us. We must
focus on identifying those commonalities and through specific programs,
start work on areas of common interest. But at the same time, to have
the audacity, to explore the serious issues remaining between us and
find solutions to them.
Taking into consideration the existing problems and episodes in
Armenia-Georgia relations, what do you think about the award given
Mikhail Saakashvili, and the reactions from Russia?
This was, after all, Armenia’s sovereign decision. Even if it was the
wrong decision, that’s our internal matter. But the fact that there
indeed are such public and negative reactions from other countries is
unfortunate. In fact, this is not the first time that we find ourselves
in such a situation. The issue of participating or not participating
in NATO exercises in Georgia also put Armenia in such a, shall we say,
undesirable situation. I am convinced that the fundamental reason here
is that Armenia seems to have put aside the policy of complementarity
– we donE2t seem to believe that we should and that we can indeed
maintain complementary relations with all our neighbors and interested
countries. So, if we have retreated from complementarity, then other
countries’ expectations of Armenia will change. That is why our actions
are met by very open and direct criticism from one or another side.
There are expert opinions that given the geopolitical changes that
took place in our region in 2008, a more careful and thought-through
foreign policy would be more appropriate for Armenia. What do you say?
It is indeed possible to summarize what I’ve said in that way, and so,
I agree with the assessment. After the Russian-Georgian war, after the
change of American administration, the situation is quite fluid. On the
one hand, we notice a certain rapprochement between the US and Russia,
on the other hand, these countries are to some extent consolidating
their positions in our region. In such an ever-changing environment,
Armenia’s policies must remain very flexible in order to allow all
kinds of adjustments.
In your opinion, what triggered Russian President Dimitri Medvedev’s
visit to Baku, especially if we note that it took place just days after
Saakashvili’s visit to Yerevan, a visit during which he made several
serious anti-Russian statements. Plus, Medvedev made that visit days
before the G8 Summit, and before his meeting with US President Barack
Obama?20Why did he go to Baku?
Naturally, the main reason is Russia’s own general interests. Russia
is engaged in consolidating its position in the region, especially in
the run-up to the Summit with Obama. Today, the situation is such that
a rapprochement between Russia and Azerbaijan may come at Armenia’s
expense. This is one of the fundamental changes that has taken place
in our region.
How should we interpret the statement Medvedev made in Baku on Nagorno
Karabakh, on "imminent" resolution, a resolution within the framework
of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, one that can be seen on the
basis of decisions of the UN and other international organizations,
especially if we remember that those decisions are not beneficial
to Armenia. Aliev and Medvedev cited the Meindorf Declaration which
mentions those decisions and which Armenia has signed.
I had said months ago that Armenia ought to have done everything
to avoid signing that declaration last fall. That was a serious
diplomatic blunder.
That declaration has made it easier for Russia and other countries in
their relations with Azerbaijan, by making it possible for them to make
pro-Azerbaijani statements on the issue of Nagorno Karabakh. Armenia
must do everything to neutralize that declaration and diminish
its impact.
Armenia’s position on Nagorno Karabakh has always been conditional on
Armenia’s domestic situation. How do you assess that situation today?
There are always three factors that impact a country’s political
positions: the interests of those countries who are active in the
region; the trends in international organizations at that point in
time; and a country’s internal political and economic situation. In
all three of these directions, today there are changes. First, there
is a new Russian-American rapprochement, there is Turkey’s greater
role in the Nagorno Karabakh issue, as a result of the Armenia-Turkey
public dialogue.
Second, trends in international organizations are not so favorable to
us following Kosovo, S. Ossetia and Abkhazia. And third, of course,
our internal political and economic situation is quite complicated. The
economic decline continues, we still don’t see the end of it. Plus, the
unhealthy domestic political scene, the absence of checks and balances
in the country, the ever-deepening frustration and hopelessness in
our population, to put it mildly, don’t help our active engagement
on the international stage. For a country to speak from a position
of strength internationally, its leaders must command a position of
strength internally. Controlling all the political and administrative
tools at its disposal does not translate to strength. A government’s
strength is derived from the trust of its people, and that is most
important internationally as well.
How do you assess the Council of Europe Parliamentary A ssembly
Resolution 1667 which was just passed?
Aside from its content, so long as Armenia remains on the agenda of
PACE, we all lose. The recent PACE events, the internal skirmishes
that we’ve all witnessed simply come to reinforce my response to your
earlier question.
Our domestic problems don’t allow us to be effective in the outside
world.
As you said, Armenia remains under OSCE monitoring. In your opinion,
does that serve Armenia’s purposes or Europe’s?
European structures should not be viewed as the solution to our
problems.
Neither opposition nor government should see them that way. The
European structures won’t solve our problems, they will simply give
us the opportunity to bring the European experience to Armenia to
support democratization processes. If we don’t want to take advantage
of that opportunity, no one will force us to do so. If European values
continue to be merely theoretical, Europe will do nothing to put them
into practice.
That’s our task. Armenia has been a CoE member for eight years,
and it’s shameful that we remain subject to monitoring.
Mr. Oskanian, in Armenia there is the impression that often we
confuse the primary and the secondary, and that perhaps that’s done
intentionally.
Today, do you think there is the need to present the situation
thoroughly and clearly to the public, or is everything already obvious
to everyone?
Is20there a need to define, to articulate the problems between the
governed and the government, or does everyone already know what they
are, but no one’s really interested?
In Armenia, political and public processes lack transparency. The
consistent distortion of reality, the absence of honesty both on
the part of the authorities and on the part of the opposition
in fact, has brought us to deep polarization and equally deep
indifference. Nevertheless, the significant segment of society which is
usually a majority, is disenchanted, and is passive between elections,
can see and accurately analyze what is going on, independently of
the efforts of the authorities or the opposition to veil it.
In your opinion, what steps must be taken to overcome that polarization
and indifference? What can serve as a unifying idea for the public to
rally around? What or who can prevail over the public’s disenchantment?
There is no other way to create a healthy state than through a
political system that has at least two poles and is based on political
checks and balances. Today, in Armenia, we really have just one, the
ruling pole, which despite the existence of an opposition, really has
no countermeasure. We are speaking about not just about alternative
levers of influence, but also alternative ideology.
Especially now, after the Yerevan Council elections during which the
authorities’ total control was so acutely manifested,=2 0it is time
for the establishment of such pole. The purpose of this must not be to
be rid of the authorities at all cost. Experience has shown that this
results in the authorities more tightly consolidating their resources
to hang on to power. The purpose must be to forge a strong second
pole which can create appropriate checks and balances mechanisms
within the branches of government. Such a second pole will become
an alternative to the existing power coalition. The authorities will
see that grabbing power will be more costly than sharing power.
PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
THE YOUTH DEPARTMENT OF THE CATHOLICOSATE HONOURS THE ARMENIAN GRADUATES OF
ALL SCHOOLS IN LEBANON
On the evening of 1 July 2009, more than sixty young women and men gathered
at the Cilicia Museum to take part in a celebration organized in their
honour. The event was jointly organized by the Youth Department, the
Armenian Church University Students’ Association (ACUSA), and their
spiritual advisors the young priests Sahak and Mesrob.
The President of the Youth Committee welcomed the graduates and said that
His Holiness Aram I’s declaration of 2009 as the Youth Year gave the
gathering a special meaning. Recalling the words of the Catholicos, he
continued: "Our Church is committed to empowering the youth so that we build
sustainable communities in Lebanon, in Armenia and in the Diaspora."
After the welcome, those present watched a DVD, telling the story of the
Armenian youth participation in the ecumenical movement. At the end of the
show, His Holiness Aram I concluded the evening with the following message:
"Our church headquarters in Antelias belongs to our people. It is through
the dynamic presence of our youth that our church will be revitalized
locally and globally. We are actively present on the international scene
through the ecumenical movement and other fora. We could achieve all these
because we believed that the Church is not an institution but a mission. A
mission to be carried out by every member of the Church especially the youth
The active presence of our youth in the church will further strengthen our
contribution to the ecumenical movement whether in Geneva or in North
America."
After the blessings, the graduates received books and DVDs on the faith and
spirituality of the Armenian Church as gifts.
##
View the photos here:
tos/Photos389.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the youth
activities of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.
KYIV TO BUILD ARMENIAN CHURCH
NRCU – Ukrainian Radio
08-07-2009 15:05
Kyiv’s authorities have decided to allot a land plot in Kharkiv housing
estate of Kyiv to build there an Armenian church. This was agreed at
a meeting of Kyiv Mayor Leonid Chernovetsky and Armenia’s Ambassador
to Ukraine Armen Khachatryan. The Armenian ambassador also asked
to consider a proposal on buying a building, where this country’s
embassy is located, Volodymyrska Str., Kyiv’s downtown. Presently,
the Armenian diplomats are renting this house. The building is planned
to be purchased at Armenia’s cost.
AL PACINO WILL PLAY THE ROLE OF JACK KEVORKIAN
Ruzan Khachatryan
"Radiolur"
08.07.2009 15:21
Al Pacino will play the role of Jack Kevorkian, the enigmatic
pathologist known as "Dr. Death" and "Jack the Dripper," who assisted
in more than 130 suicides with his "mercy machine," ABC News reports.
The flamboyant doctor, who served eight years in prison on a
second-degree murder charge, was released from a Michigan maximum
security prison in 2007 with a parole pledge that he never kill again.
There is no clear answer whether what he has done is a murder or not.
Doctors and lawyers have been in constant struggle. Some say helping
an incurable patient commit suicide is a humanitarian impulse, while
others view it as a crime.
To put it in a medical language, it’s called euthanasia, and became
known to the public, at large, due to the scandals around Jack
Kevorkian.
Kevorkian became the face of the assisted suicide movement, which
had its roots in the United States in the 1930s and gathered steam
in the 1990s.
Today, Oregon, Washington and Montana are the only states that
allow terminally ill patients to ask a doctor for a lethal amount of
medication after a medical and psychological evaluation.
In Armenia euthanasia is illegal. The law says that the doctor, who
incites the patient to euthanasia or does it himself, will be called
to account. The Armenian Church also stands agai nst euthanasia,
saying that no one has the right to control the God-given life.
The made-for-television movie, "You Don’t Know Jack," directed by
Barry Levinson ("Rain Main") with a script by Adam Maser ("Breach"),
won’t air on HBO until the spring of 2010.
But the project – five years in the making – is already inflaming
leaders in the assisted death community, which for decades has eyed
Kevorkian with suspicion and disdain.
The film’s producer, Steve Jones, who is also making a documentary of
Kevorkian’s failed 2008 bid for Congress, said the HBO project is not
about euthanasia but "a look at a passionate man who spent his entire
life fighting for rights he believes that every human should have."
Kevorkian was unwilling to talk to ABCNews.com, but his longtime
lawyer said the 81-year-old doctor was "enthused about helping with
the film." "He thinks Al Pacino will be great," said Mayer Morganroth.
Kevorkian lives in Royal Oaks, Mich., and is writing a book. His
artwork is on permanent display in an Armenian museum in Boston.
AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383, x118
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:
PRESS RELEASE
Monday, July 6, 2009
Berdj Svajian’s Lecture on the Centennial of the Adana Massacres at AGBU
Montreal
On April 29, 2009, Berdj Svajian delivered a lecture about the Adana
Massacres to an audience of over one hundred people at the AGBU
Demirdjian Hall in Montreal, Canada. The event was organized by the AGBU
Montreal Cultural Committee and the Manuel Keoseyan Armenian Studies
Course on the centennial of this historic event and included a
presentation of documentary evidence and 200 slides.
The lecturer was introduced by Shahe Tanashian, director of the Manuel
Keoseyan Armenian Studies Course. Svajian began his presentation by
dedicating the event to the memory of his grandparents, who were forced
to leave their native Adana during the massacres of 1909. Starting with
general information about the geography and history of the city, he
included a detailed description of local customs and practices that
defined the place.
He projected slides depicting the massacre, torture of intellectuals,
destruction of churches and transformation of schools into stables. The
first massacre took place on April 1, 1909 and was followed by a second,
and even more horrible event, which aimed to eliminate the whole
Armenian population. Svajian’s slides also included scenes of the Ayn
Toura orphanage in Lebanon, which had been established to house and
Turkify Armenian orphans. This insidious operation was under the
supervision of Turkish parliamentarian Halide Edib Hanim, who was also
one of the planners of the Armenian Genocide several years later, and
Jemal Pasha, who later served as the Turkish Marine Minister.
The final slides showed the documents and photos of the signed property
deeds belonging to Svajian’s grandparents, which were rescued from the
1909 massacre. At the end of the program, Svajian invited Garbis
Dekmezian, an Adana native, to light candles in memory of the victims of
1909.
Words of appreciation and thanks were spoken by Arsine Attarian, chair
of AGBU Montreal’s Cultural Committee, and Arshavir Gundjian, AGBU vice
president and founding president of the Alex Manoogian School.
The program came to a close with a prayer by Rev. Mher Khachigian and
the blessings of Bishop Bagrat Galstian, Primate of the Diocese of
Canada.
Established in 1906, AGBU () is the world’s largest
non-profit Armenian organization. Headquartered in New York City, AGBU
preserves and promotes the Armenian identity and heritage through
educational, cultural and humanitarian programs, annually serving some
400,000 Armenians on six continents
NKR President congratulated Barack Obama on US Independence Day
04.07.2009 15:54 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On 4 July, NKR President Bako Sahakyan sent a
congratulatory letter to US President Barack Obama in connection with
US Independence Day.
NKR President said in his letter, `On behalf of the people and
Government of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, Artsakh, I am writing to
congratulate you and the American people on occasion of the United
States’ Independence Day.
Your nation saw many ordeals on the path to independence. Outstanding
persistence and patriotism allowed the American people overcome the
severe challenges and become a great democracy in the world.
The formidable American spirit of freedom has motivated many nations,
including Artsakh, to achieve its long-dreamed objectives of national
liberation and prosperity. We defended our right to live in freedom,
under the government of our own choosing, against Azerbaijan’s attempt
to undermine our basic right to exist.
The people of Artsakh are thankful to the American nation for the
ongoing humanitarian assistance, which helps to rebuild our lives and
restore our economy shattered by a devastating conflict. Further, we
appreciate the ongoing efforts of your Administration to promote a
durable peace and stability in the South Caucasus and to bring about a
fair and viable settlement to the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict.
As we celebrate the spirit of freedom on this Day, I am confident that
our shared values of peace and prosperity will lead to mutually
beneficial, expanded and enriched relations between our two nations,’
Central Information Department of NKR President’s Office reported.
BSANNA NEWS
2009-07-03
UKRINFORM
President orders PGO, SBU to open case on forced deportation of
Crimea’s nations in 1944
KYIV, July 3 /UKRINFORM/. President Viktor Yushchenko has instructed
the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) and the Security Service of
Ukraine (SBU) to institute proceedings on the fact of illegal eviction
of the Crimean Tartar people and other nations in 1944, who lived in
Crimea those times (South Ukraine).
`The Head of State believes that the fact of the illegal forced
large-scale eviction of the Crimean Tatar people in 1944 is
unquestionable. A fact of deportation of other nations lived in Crimea
was also established, these are mainly Armenians, Greeks, Bulgarians
and others,’ presidential press secretary Iryna Vannykova said.
According to her, the President is confident that there are signs of
genocide in the actions of then-leadership of the Communist regime led
by Joseph Stalin and officials of the USSR punitive agencies.
The deportation of the Crimean Tatars started on May 18, 1944 to last
till May 20. A major part of people were evicted to Uzbekistan
(151,136 persons) and adjacent districts of Kazakhstan (4,286) and
Tajikistan. The largest groups were sent to the Soviet Mari El
Republic (8,597), Ural and Kostroma region.
A major part of the resettlers died of starvation and illnesses in the
places of deportation in 1944-45. The number of the deceased strongly
varies: from 15-25% according to various Soviet official bodies to 46%
according to the estimates of the Crimean Tatar activists. Unlike
other deported nations that had returned home in late 1950s, the
Crimean Tatars were deprived of this right formally until 1974, and
actually – until 1989. A large-scale return started only in late
Perestroika in 1989.
POLAD BULBULOGLU "KNOWS NO BORDERS" BETWEEN AZERBAIJAN AND KARABAKH
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
03.07.2009 13:22 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Currently in Stepanakert, Armenian Ambassador
to Russia Armen Smbatyan, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Russia Polad
Bulbuloglu and head of Russian federal agency of culture and
cinematography Mikhail Shvydkoy held a brief meeting with journalists.
"The goal of our arrival to Stepanakert is not resolution of state
or political issues but creation of atmosphere of trust between the
nations," said the Azerbaijani Ambassador to Russia. "Generations grew
up in Azerbaijan and Armenia knowing nothing about each other. To
raise awareness, we, two former Ministers of Culture, exercised an
initiative which proved successful last year."
He said the Azeri delegation has more programs under discussion which
may be implemented later.
"We have numerously stated that our peoples can live together on a
small spot of land," Ambassador Bulbuloglu said.
He also accused media of creating an image of enemy, what hamper the
negotiation process.
As to the fact of arrival in NKR territory through Mardakert, the
Ambassador said "there are no borders" between Azerbaijan and Karabakh
for him.