Author: Chatinian Lara

INTERPOL CIS NATIONAL BUREAUS CLOSELY COLLABORATING

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.11.2009 22:23 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Yerevan hosts the fourth annual meeting of the
heads of Interpol CIS national bureaus, which brought together
representatives from Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Russia and Armenia.

Opening the event, RA Police chief, major general Armen Yeritsyan
said it’s impossible to combat terrorism, transnational crimes,
trafficking and corruption without cooperating with the similar
structures in other countries.

The participants discussed a wide scope of issues regarding
international investigation and the problems law enforcers face when
wanting a man on a foreign territory, RA Police press unit said.

U.S. SENATE LEADER WRITES TO CLINTON ON ARMENIAN-TURKISH PROTOCOLS

AZG DAILY
04-11-2009

Armenia-Turkey

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has formally shared the
reservations of the Silver State’s Armenian community regarding the
dangers of the recently signed Turkey-Armenia Protocols with Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton, reported the Armenian National Committee
of America (ANCA).

In an October 30, 2009 letter to ANCA-Nevada activist Razmig Libarian,
the Senate leader reported that he had recently written to Secretary
Clinton to pass along the concerns of his state’s citizens of Armenian
heritage, and to encourage her to meet directly with the national
leadership of the Armenian American community regarding the state of
Turkey-Armenia relations.

In his letter to Secretary Clinton, dated October 30, 2009, Senator
Reid wrote: "I am sure you are aware that this agreement has raised
concerns in the Armenian community inside the United States. I have
received many letters from Nevadans who do not support the creation
of an international commission to examine the historical record
on the genocide and who believe that the agreements are unfair to
Armenia. (I have included a sample letter below). Given the serious
nature of the community’s concerns, I felt it was important to raise
them directly with you. The commission is particularly sensitive to
the Armenian-American community since the Armenian genocide has never
been recognized by Turkey."

Despite the high profile of Armenia-Turkey ties in the Obama-Biden
Administration’s foreign policy agenda, neither President Obama
nor Secretary Clinton has met with the Armenian-American community
leadership, tert.am reports.

THANK YOU, JAPAN, FOR ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE TO ARMENIA: NALBANDIAN

Tert
Nov 2 2009
Armenia

On November 2, Armenia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandian
welcomed newly appointed Ambassador of Japan to Armenia (the seat
is in Moscow) Masaharu Kohno on the occasion of submitting copies of
his credentials.

Minister Nalbandian said that Armenia places importance to the
development of comprehensive relations with Japan expressing hope
that the new ambassador will make a significant contribution to
the strengthening of the relations between the two countries and to
promoting bilateral cooperation in various sectors.

Ambssador Kohno thanked Nalbandian for the well wishes and said he
will do his best for the further development of bilateral relations.

During the meeting, the parties referred to moving the political
dialogue forward, promoting trade-economic and cultural cooperation,
and the possibilities of implementing joint investment programs.

Minister Nalbandian thanked Ambassador Kohno for the assistance Japan
provided toward Armenia’s economic development since independence.

The parties also exchanged thoughts on Armenian-Turkish relations,
informs Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

TBILISI: ARMENIA AND GEORGIA NEGOTIATE OVER UPPER LARS CHECKPOINT

Tert
Nov 2 2009
Armenia

Tbilisi accuses Moscow for circulating disinformation on opening
Upper Lars checkpoint between Georgia and Russia, reports Georgian
news agency GHN.

"Russia circulated information that allegedly Georgia and Russia are
negotiating over the Lars checkpoint. That is disinformation. No
negotiations are being held with Russia," Deputy Georgian Foreign
Minister Nino Kalandadze told journalists today.

According to Kalandadze, "the Georgian side may make concessions,"
but only after Russia meets the terms which Tbilisi sets to Moscow
concerning the checkpoint.

At the same time, Kalandadze stated that at the present moment
negotiations over the issue are held not with Russia but with Armenia.

"We made arrangements with Armenia that we would begin technical
negotiations on Lars, and we have begun, though Russia is creating
certain problems," Kalandadze stated.

Communication through Upper Lars had come to a halt in the summer of
2006. At that time, Moscow had officially explained closing of the
checkpoint by the fact that it didn’t correspond to international
requirements and needed reconstruction.

LEADERSHIPS MAKE CHANGES TO RA LAW ON NGOS: NGOS SOUND ALARM

Tert
Oct 30 2009
Armenia

On September 23, the Armenian government adopted a decision to make
changes to the Law on Non-Governmental Organizations. President
of Protection of Consumers’ Rights NGO Abgar Eghoyan, Internews NGO
attorney Movses Hakobyan and Transparency International Anti-Corruption
Centre board member Sona Ayvazayan referred to this topic during
their meeting with journalists today.

According to Ayvazyan, the decision was once again adopted secretly,
while the changes are threatening for non-governmental organizations.

She thinks that the changes in the law don’t ensure transparency of
organizations’ activities, but "simply create financial difficulties,
add administrative work once again and ensure state bodies’
intervention in NGOs’ activities."

During the press conference, the other participants stated that the
whole process was carried out in an unprofessional and not transparent
way. They also stated the importance of NGOs’ roles in the process
of developing legal acts.

The participants also stated that the decision to make changes to
the law was explained by the fact that "certain NGOs" requested the
changes. Rights defenders state they "would like to know which are
those NGOs."

POLICEMEN PREVENTED HOLDING OF PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATION AND TORE MAP OF ARMENIA AND ARTSAKH, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY DEPUTY SAYS

Noyan Tapan
Oct 30, 2009

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 30, NOYAN TAPAN. The member of "Heritage"
parliamentary faction Ms. Zarhui Postanjian sent official letters about
the October 29 crime to the Chief of the RA Police Alik Sargsyan,
RA Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepian, and the RA Ombudsman Armen
Harutyunian.

The letter reads:

"On 29 October 2009, I, Zaruhi Postanjian, and some other Armenian
citizens staged a protest against ratification of the Armenia-Turkey
protocols, outside the government building. We also intended to show
our disagreement with the idea that "the interests of the Armenian
World are different" expressed by Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan at
the National Assembly the day before.

Unlike the other protest organized in the same place a week ago,
this time the illegal action of policemen consisted only in the
forming of a wall of policemen before us with the aim of preventing
the passers-by from seeing our placards. We failed to hold the second
part of the protest action which we planned to stage in front of the
presidential residence.

When the peaceful procession of about twenty demonstrators reached the
crossroads of Baghramian and Demirchian Streets, some 25 persons in
police uniform, who were led by a policeman who introduced himself as
a captain of Yerevan’s Arabkir district police unit, blocked our way.

The policemen did not know themselves under which law they were
impeding our movement. The only explanation they could provide was
that the president was holding an event and that they did consider
our movement as expedient.

We, the demonstrators, made an attempt to continue our protest action
in that place – on Baghramian Street. While we we were singing and
chanting, with placards in our hands, the policemen started pushing
us back and tore the map of Armenia and Artsakh.

I inform the officials of RA police that we just exercise our
constitutional rights. The above mentioned actions of policemen are
in violation of the respective articles of the RA Constitution and
the RA Criminal Code. One should not get into a panic because of
peaceful demonstrators and their placards and commit penal actions".

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Karine Abalyan
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

October 30, 2009

___________________________________________

ACYOA AND COLLEGE MINISTRY SPONSOR HOME-BUILDING TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS:
BUILDING HOMES, BUILDING FAITH, BUILDING LIVES

>From August 2 to 8, ACYOA and the Diocesan College Ministry Department
co-sponsored an all-expenses-paid Ecumenical Work Week in New Orleans, La.,
to help rebuild homes devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

A total of 12 Armenian young adults, ages 18 to 24, took part in the
program, spending a week painting and performing exterior repairs to two
homes in New Orleans. The trip was led by the Diocese’s College Ministry
Facilitator Julie Hoplamazian.

The group was also visited by the Rev. Fr. Nersess Jebejian – a member of
the Special Commission for the Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast, which
organized the work week – and Vasken Kaltakjian, parish council chair of St.
Garabed Armenian Church in Baton Rouge, La. Participants engaged in prayer,
explored New Orleans, and shared fellowship with other Christians.

Erika Belezarian, a college student from St. Mark Armenian Church in
Springfield, Mass., and a member of her local ACYOA executive board,
participated in the effort. Below is her reflection of the weeklong project.

The New Orleans work week is the latest in a series of "alternative"
programs meant to give an outlet for Armenian youth to perform hands-on
ministry, and to contribute to the community at large. Each year, the
Diocesan College Ministry program sponsors three "Alternative Spring Break"
trips in the month of March, during which students work with Habitat for
Humanity and are hosted by a local Armenian church.

Also in 2010, College Ministry and ACYOA will team up to sponsor the third
annual "4 Days 4 Life" program for the week following Sports Weekend in
Watertown, Mass. In addition, plans are underway for another Ecumenical Work
Week in New Orleans, from August 1 to 7, 2010. For details, contact Julie
Hoplamazian at [email protected].

***

The Alternative Summer Vacation
by Erika Belezarian

Mardi Gras. Crawfish. Bourbon Street. The birth of Jazz.

Devastation and destruction. A city in shambles.

Four years after the wrath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, New Orleans is
still in the process of recovering. I, along with eleven other Armenian
youths from across the country, was able to witness first-hand one of the
most widespread devastations in the history of the United States, and lend
my hand to the effort to repair the city.

Traveling from all parts of the country-Texas, Michigan, Maryland, South
Carolina, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts-many of us had never met before.
One week in the hot New Orleans sun was all we spent, and although painting
a house seemed like a menial task, when the project was realized, we saw
what a big impact we had made on others’ lives.

>From the very first night we were together, many of us stayed up late
getting to know one another despite the fact that we had to be up at 6:30
a.m. for breakfast. Within hours, it was as if we had all known each other
for years. We became like a family.

The next day, the group was split into two smaller groups to work on
separate houses. The house my group worked on is owned by Roosevelt Emery, a
disabled survivor of the hurricane who had fled to his children’s home in
St. Francis when Katrina hit. With him lives Alyce, a survivor of domestic
violence, who was homeless near the time of the storm. Roosevelt met Alyce
at church one Sunday and the two have shared the house since. Roosevelt and
Alyce spoke to us about their experiences of surviving the hurricane,
telling stories about neighbors who refused to leave their lives’ work and
their homes behind.

In addition to painting homes, we participated in fellowship and worship
with the group from the Presbytery of South Florida-which was staying at the
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Volunteer Village Olive Tree-as well as
with groups staying at Camp Restore, another facility a couple blocks away.
We also took part in Bible studies, conducted by our group leader Julie
Hoplamazian.

One evening we attended an ecumenical service, where our group sang the
"Hayr Mer," and a couple of our participants contributed Bible readings.
Attending the ecumenical service was a unique opportunity to see how other
faiths celebrate Christ.

At the end of the week, we witnessed a house dedication-a ceremony in which
the house keys and gifts are presented to the owner of a house that has been
rebuilt.

Throughout the week, we were able to experience the nightlife and culture of
New Orleans. We also had the opportunity to enjoy some local fare, including
crawfish and beignets.

Overall, the program was great and I highly recommend it. It was a fantastic
trip and an experience I’ll never forget.

###

Photos attached.

Photo 1: Participants in the Ecumenical Work Week paint a home in New
Orleans, La.

Photo 2: The Rev. Fr. Jebejian – a member of the Special Commission for the
Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast, which organized the Ecumenical Work Week
– with group leader Julie Hoplamazian and participants.

Photo 3: Participants at a prayer service during the Ecumenical Work Week
paint a home in New Orleans, La.

CAMPAIGN HELD IN TURKEY TO COLLECT SIGNATURES UNDER TITLE "WE APOLOGIZE TO AZERBAIJAN"

Trend
Oct 27 2009
Azerbaijan

In Istanbul, Turkey, on the initiative of the opposition Nationalist
Movement Party, a campaign is held to collect signatures under the
title "We apologize to Azerbaijan", the Istanbul office of the party
told Trend News.

Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu and Edward
Nalbandian signed the protocols Ankara-Yerevan in Zurich on October
10.Diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey have been broken
due to Armenia’s claims of an alleged genocide, and its occupation of
Azerbaijani lands. The border between them has been broken since 1993.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan
lost all of Nagorno-Karabakh except for Shusha and Khojali in December
1991. In 1992-93, Armenian armed forces occupied Shusha, Khojali and 7
districts surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed
a ceasefire in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia,
France, and the U.S. – are currently holding the peace negotiations.

The report also notes that in the center of Istanbul stands were
established displaying the negative attitude of the Nationalist
Movement Party towards the Turkish-Armenian cooperation.

The campaign will continue for ten days.

YEREVAN SHOULD TOUGHEN POSITION ON KARABAKH

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.10.2009 13:23 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkish parliament will not ratify Protocols
unless Armenia compromises over Karabakh, according to Director of
the Political Economy center.

"Earlier, Turkey was the center of international pressure. Now,
attention is focused on Karabakh. Ankara offered to resolve all
regional conflicts in a package. The idea was welcomed by the EU, U.S.

and Russia," he said, adding that Armenia should toughen position
on Karabakh.

Statement by the Armenian Community & Church Council of Great Britain

The Armenian Community & Church Council of Great Britain (ACCC) has
followed with deep concern the developments which have on the 10th of
October 2009 culminated in the signing of the Protocols for the
establishment of Diplomatic relations between the Republic of Armenia
and the Republic of Turkey.

The ACCC respects the absolute right of the Government of Armenia, as
a Sovereign State, to enter into Agreements which they consider would
benefit in one way or another the State and population of the Republic
of Armenia and we hope and pray that Agreements between Armenia and
Turkey, as with all other States, result in the establishment of good
neighbourly and Diplomatic relations, peaceful co-existence, and the
improvement of the economic status of Armenia and its population.

The ACCC unreservedly reaffirms its support of the Independent
Republic of Armenia, and would under all circumstances do all within
its abilities to make certain that Armenia flourishes as an
independent State and maintains a position in the World as a
respected, honourable and peaceful State, enjoying good neighbourly
relations with all its neighbours.

However, the ACCC wishes to express its strong reservations at the
wisdom of entering into the Agreements defined by the Protocols as it
considers that there are certain provisions within them which would be
detrimental to the interests of the Armenian Nation.

The Agreements involve the concession of historical Armenian heritage,
human and legal rights, and the recognition of – and reparation for –
the crime of Genocide committed against Armenians in Ottoman Turkey
between 1915 and 1921 by introducing an element of doubt to the
veracity of the Genocide.

We therefore sincerely hope that the Government and National Assembly
of the Republic of Armenia will take into consideration the serious
concerns expressed by communities and organisations within Armenia as
well as the Diaspora and will act accordingly during their
deliberations for the ratification of the Agreements.