Author: Chavushian

Closer business co-operation with Armenia

The Messenger, Georgia
26 Oct. 2004

The Chambers of Commerce of Georgia and Armenia signed a cooperation
agreement at the end of the Georgian-Armenian business forum, which
was held within the framework of the official visit to Georgia of
the president of Armenia Robert Kocharyan.

The Chairman of the Commerce and Industrial Chamber of Georgia Jemal
Inaishvili declared that despite being neighbors, commodity trade
between Georgia and Armenia does not correspond to its real potential.
“The sides agreed to increase bilateral communications and to intensify
mutually advantageous cooperation,” he said. The Armenian companies
displayed foodstuffs, alcohol drinks and industrial goods at the
business-forum.

The Minister of Economy Kakha Bendukidze told Prime News that Armenian
investments in Georgia are very important for the country.

The Globe and Mail , Canada
Oct 21 2004

Confessions of a form freak

By GARY MICHAEL DAULT

Although he is known only by his first name, Rupen has two names just
like everyone else: Rupen Kunugus. Born 44 years ago in Istanbul,
he’s Armenian, grew up speaking both Armenian and Turkish, and came
to Canada when he was 9.

Rupen is an artist and director of a gallery space (one of the
smallest in the city) consisting of the two storefront windows of his
house at 506 Adelaide St. W. This mini-conservatory, in which Rupen
installs new exhibitions every month, is efficiently and accurately
called Natural Light Window.

Each of the two window spaces is about three feet deep, giving him,
according to his dependably precise calculations, 72 cubic feet of
exhibition space.

Exact calculation comes naturally to Rupen, whose professional
background is in carpentry and cabinetmaking. He began making art, he
says, because “carpentry didn’t feel like enough. You were always
doing what you were told to do.”

Not with art. But because of his former life, the personal,
passionate objects that constitute Rupen’s art are all exceedingly
well-crafted, which is not at all common in the world of contemporary
art.

“I am a form freak,” he says, as well as being particularly devoted
to monochromatic works, where the colour is a constant and the form
of the object carries the colour wherever it has to. Rupen makes
objects, usually in series, that compress, into deceptively simple
forms, a lot of rumination. One series of wooden wall works (one
hesitates to call them paintings or pictures) was developed from maps
of the railway tracks leading in and out of what Rupen describes as
“the great art cities” — New York, Paris and so forth. Rupen first
projected the patterns on beige-painted squares, routed them out so
that they became line-like fissures in the wood’s surface, and then
filled the fissures with red body filler, after which the surfaces of
the wood panels were sanded flat.

The result? Beautifully clean beige panels with red lines running
this way and that. Now, would you necessarily know these were track
maps? Probably not. But what you’d have instead are abstract pictures
of considerable physical beauty that somehow seem imbued with some
value-added meaning greater than just the pleasures of design or
décor. A lot of conceptual art of this sort is, admittedly, willfully
mute and archly inaccessible. But not Rupen’s.

Take his music-related pieces. Music means a great deal to Rupen and
although he doesn’t play an instrument himself, he is a passionate
listener and has been an avid collector of LPs, 45s and CDs since he
was 16. “I used to visit the Goodwill stores all the time,” he says.
“I’d take the records home and play them all, and then file them
alphabetically, weeding out the ones I wanted to keep and the ones I
didn’t.”

His newest work, called Two Sets of Three and now on exhibit at
Gallery 1313 in Parkdale, consists of two series of wall works, each
made up of three carefully cut-out shapes derived from those little
plastic spindles you had to snap into a 45 in order to play it.

One set, consisting of three, creamy-beige spindle forms — they are
made of primed and painted MDF — is called Instant Coffee With Milk,
for that is the colour they are. The other series is Rock ‘n’ Blue,
after their innocent shade of sky blue. (There is a third series in
his studio, painted a strange Pepto-Bismol pink.)

Some of the spindle shapes, Rupen says, are real; that is, derived
from the authentic shapes of the 45 centres, enlarged so that they
are 50 centimetres in diameter. Others, as in the second and third of
the blue series, are just fanciful, pure forms that simply resemble
the real thing. It is remarkable, in the end, how satisfying they are
as profoundly examinable shapes. Record doohickeys writ large? Yes.
Unforgettable sculptural artifacts hanging eloquently in space?
Again, yes, certainly.

Rupen’s Two Sets of Three is on sale for $800 for three pieces. On
view at Gallery 1313, 1313 Queen St. W., to Oct. 31. 416-536-6778.

() _www.sfgate.com_ ()
San Francisco

_Armenia reveals ancient treasures, new life
Mountains, monasteries and modern capital_
()

– Jane Wampler, Special to The Chronicle
Sunday, October 17, 2004

Yerevan, — Armenia

On a clear autumn day, the smell of fresh cement and the sound of
chisels and hammers permeates the capital city of Armenia. Sidewalk
cafes overflow with suited businessmen and couples talk over demitasse
cups of strong, boiled coffee. Fashionable women in rimless sunglasses
and stiletto heels walk armin arm, sidestepping wheelbarrows and loose
paving stones, and several new luxury hotels are nearly booked to
capacity.

It’s clear that Armenia is making a comeback. Again.

After surviving genocide, 70 years of Soviet domination, a devastating
earthquake in 1988 and millennia of foreign marauders who whittled
this once-massive kingdom to one-tenth of its size, this Eurasian
country of 3 million inhabitants is reassuming its role of phoenix.

Because it was cloaked behind the Iron Curtain for most of the 20th
century, few Westerners, until recently, have glimpsed of this
culturally rich, mountain republic tucked between the Caspian and the
Black seas. What onlythe privileged have known, until this past
decade, is that this is an astonishingly beautiful country of high
mountain lakes, snow-capped peaks, ancient monasteries, cascading
rivers and archeological ruins so impressive they ought to be behind
the velvet ropes of a museum.

Perhaps more significantly, for a region of the world more associated
with terror than tourism, many Westerners are surprised to hear that
this predominantly Christian nation — bordered by Iran, Turkey,
Georgia and Azerbaijan — is politically stable and welcoming to
tourists.

Try to buy a single peach from a roadside fruit stand and the old
woman will wave your money away. Ask a farmer if you may take a photo
of him with his crop of newly harvested red peppers, and he will press
a bag of 20 of theminto your hand, refusing payment.

The prices are particularly tourist-friendly. At Old Erivan
Restaurant, one of Yerevan’s dozens of eateries that serve quality
Armenian fare , my husband and I enjoy a meal of lavash, tomato and
cucumber salad, a cheese platter, lamb stew and khorovatz (a meat and
vegetable shish kebab) — washed down with several strong Armenian
beers — for under $15.

Drawing on the past

The rebirth of Armenia after the end of the Soviet Union in the early
1990s has had financial help from the approximately 8 million members
of the Armenian Diaspora, 1.4 million of whom live in the United
States (1 million in the Los Angeles area alone). Many are descendants
of those who perished or fled during the 1915-25 Turkish genocide.

While those who visited shortly after Armenia regained independent
statehood found gutted factories and streets stripped of trees for
fuel, today they find fountains spraying and flowers blooming along
boulevards lined with Russian olive and locust trees. Crowds of
stylishly dressed mothers and children walk down Khanjian Street to
buy roasted coffee beans, potatoes, onions, ice-cream and fried sweet
cakes from street vendors.

But despite Armenia’s forays into modernism and self-sufficiency, the
rich and tragic past hasn’t dimmed. Nor does anyone want it to:
Armenia’s 4,000-year-old history is its main draw.

Many consider this country the cradle of civilization. The biblical
rivers of Tigris and Euphrates originate in the original Armenia, the
16,945-foot-high snow-capped Mount Ararat (now inside Turkey’s
borders) holds what many believe to be the remnants of Noah’s Ark in
its crevasses, and there even is reference in the Bible to Ararat, the
name of the former Armenian kingdom.

In 301 A.D., Armenia became the first nation to embrace Christianity
as a state religion (a dozen years before Rome) — another factor that
shapes this tiny republic’s past and present tourist appeal.

A common sight from spring through fall are “monastery tours”:
busloads of people on weeklong organized sightseeing excursions that
shuttle from such Hellenistic pagan temples as the 1st century Garni,
to the 3rd century Echmiadzin (ETCH-me-OTT-sin) Cathedral, home to the
Supreme Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox faith. At
Echmiadzin (think: Vatican but smaller) nonbelievers mingle with
pilgrims to view ancient silver chalices, bejeweled crosses and
religious relics such as a metal spearhead believed to have pierced
the side of Christ.

Travels with Boris

Group tours are plentiful, but if you want to strike out solo,
consider hiring a driver who speaks English to ferry you through the
countryside, oreven to the main sites of the capital city. That’s what
we did during a one-week visit in late September. We found our driver,
Boris (a former Soviet-system mathematician now struggling, like many
of the highly educated, to reinvent himself), through the Armenian
Tourism Development Agency, which was happy to supply us with a list
of recommended English-speaking guides.

We chose several sites, all southeast of Yerevan, for a 2- 1/2 day
excursion.

They included the famous dungeon of Khor Virap; Noravank monastery;
the historically and spiritually significant Tatev Monastery; the
Bronze Age celestial observatory, the Zorats Stones; and a natural
wonder, Devil’s Bridge.

Boris was more than willing to pack an overnight bag and accompany us.

Something to keep in mind: Although the map shows Armenia to be a
small country, getting from point A to point B can take longer than
you anticipate.

There are no super highways here. And it takes time to wait out cattle
crossings, to dodge potholes and to wind up narrow mountain roads.

On the first morning of our excursion, we emerged, bleary-eyed from
the Congress Hotel in Yerevan. Boris was waiting for us, polishing the
windshield of his red Niva, a Soviet-made SUV. Within an hour we were
watching Mount Ararat turn an orangey pink and by 10:30 a.m. Boris
announced what would become a comforting ritual: a coffee break. He
pulled the car over to the side of the road and removed from his trunk
a small propane stove, a bag of powdered coffee, sugar and three small
china cups.

While we took in the views, Boris set out the coffee with sweet cakes
(kizgiel, baked early that morning by his wife, Jana) and jam for a
makeshift picnic on the roadside rocks. We drank our coffee in the
squat position, like Boris, and poured the remaining hot water over
our jam-stained, sticky fingers.

Khor Virap is an eerie place with two claims to fame: The church
complex was built atop the well where St. Gregory the Illuminator had
been imprisoned (depending on who is telling the story) for 12 to 17
years only to emerge and baptize the King and Queen of Armenia and
herald the introduction of Armenia as the first Christian
nation. Climb down into the narrow pit on a ladder and when you’re
through imagining Gregory’s claustrophobia, climb back out to the
blazing sun and get the closest view of Mount Ararat in all of Armenia
— the Turkish border is within walking distance from here.

Noravank, perched on a forested cliff top, high above a river gorge
and surrounded by caves, is a 13th century monastery surrounded by
dramatic redrock outcroppings. On a bright afternoon, there was nobody
else wandering the compound. A hawk circled overhead in the clear
sky. We wandered the church grounds and tracde khatchkars (“cross
stones” — unique and elaborate crosses carved on tufa or basalt
tablets found primarily in Armenia) with our fingertips.

There was no shortage of natural beauty on this journey. We hikde
along the verdant banks of a stream below the monastery and, on the
drive out of the gorge, noticed many caverns tucked into the
outcroppings. In one of them, an enterprising man has converted the
cave into a clean and comfortable restaurant.

We weren’t the only sightseers who found him: As we ventured into the
cozy grotto, we saw him shuttling pitchers of red wine, hard-boiled
eggs, barbecued pork and grilled vegetables to a table of raucous
Russians, the largest of whom was wearing a drunken grin, a
traditional sheepherder’s cloak and crooked hat.

About this time we discovered that Boris perceived his job as more
than driver. We were his charges, and it was a role he assumed
gravely. He was protector, wrinkling his brow in concern as the
sheepherder and his friends loudly insisedt that we share a mug of
wine, and negotiator, finagling the best price for our hotel room in
Sisian later that evening.

Shades of Stonehenge

The next morning, we left our cold and dank hotel shortly after dawn
because we were eager to see the Zorats stones — or Zorakar — in the
day’s first light. This circular arrangement of stones, thought to be
a celestial observatory, is similar to England’s Stonehenge, but
older. The Bronze Age phenomenon lies on a barren rolling plain just
outside of Sisian, and, like most other natural and manmade wonders in
Armenia, is startlingly unprotected and un-commercialized. Only the
snowcapped mountains, which loom over the windy field, stand guard. We
wandered through the deserted site of lichen-covered stones and peered
through holes that the ancient cosmographers might have drilledto
better view the heavens.

The road to Tatev is bumpy, but it soon opens to reveal a lushly
wooded canyon — the monastery perched on top like a crown. Indeed,
this 9th century complex was viewed as something of a prize to
invaders who attacked the site in numerous bloody waves. Other than a
caretaker (an old woman who appeared periodically to gather pears that
have fallen beneath a courtyard tree) we were once again practically
alone, free to explore the faded frescoes in dark rooms; to consider
the grisly remnants of a fairly recent chicken sacrifice; to climb the
lurchy heights of the fortified walls, and to imagine the 13th century
Mongols who, historians say, pushed Christians into the gorge.

Our only disappointment was Devil’s Bridge, which we passed on the way
to Tatev. The rock formation and hot springs might be beautiful, but
the site is trashed by beer bottles, cigarette wrappers and other
remnants of partying.It would have been better to stay longer at Tatev
sipping a cup of Boris’ ubiquitous coffee or just soaking in the sun
on one of the precipices before the long drive back to Yerevan.

‘New Armenia’ in the city

Back in Yerevan — with its rich history and plethora of significant
museums and fun restaurants — we find no shortage of things to do.

This city of 1.3 million is culturally vibrant and staggeringly old,
older than Rome — by 29 years. To put that in perspective, when
construction workers happened to ram into a 700-year-old stone
aqueduct, as they did last summer, it hardly registered a blip on
their archaeological radar screen.

The National Museum on bustling Republic Square — formerly called
Lenin Square — is as good of a starting place as any to get a flavor
for the country.

Also known as the State Museum of Armenian History, it has an
English-speaking guide who can show you Uratian cuneiform inscriptions
dating back to the 8th century B.C. and 3,000-year-old silver rhytons
(drinking vessels), wine vats and horse carriages uncovered in Lake
Sevan.

>From there, you can branch out to other not-to-be-missed sites (the
streets are arranged in a compact, easy-to-navigate pattern, and
anything too hard to reach by foot is a cheap cab ride away.) Stroll
through the Vernissage, a festive outdoor market that operates each
weekend near Republic Square. Here you’ll find accordions, old
toasters, Russian nesting dolls, obscure car parts, jewelry and
strolling musicians. The “closed bazaar,” a football stadium-sized
indoor market on West Mashtots Avenue, brims with fresh fruits and
vegetables displayed like gleaming jewels, and brightly colored spices
measured with a one-ounce shot glass.

The Matenadaran rare document museum (at 53 Mesrop Mashtots St.)
houses an extraordinary collection of ancient manuscripts, some dating
to the 9th century. An English tour guide — just $2.50 above the
regular $4 admission fee — will heighten the experience. The
highlight is a huge 15th century book of Armenian history. It was
ripped in half and smuggled out of the country bytwo peasant women, at
great peril, during the 1915 genocide. Both women, and both halves of
the book, survived.

This museum pays homage to Mesrop Mashtots, the founder of the
Armenian alphabet, unchanged since its inception in 405 A.D. That the
alphabet and the Armenian language are still intact after nearly 2,000
years is evidence of a country that has fiercely resisted
assimilation.

Echoing Saroyan

Armenians are fond of naming streets after, and quoting, their heroes,
from playwrights to poets to war generals. But it is novelist William
Saroyan who is most often quoted when Armenians talk about their
country coming perilously close to, then back from, the brink of
extinction more times than they can count. His most famous quote
speaks to the resilience of his people:

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this
small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and
lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is
unheard and prayers are no more answered. . . . Burn their homes and
churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For
when two of them meet anywhere inthe world, see if they will not
create a new Armenia.”

Saroyan’s words have never been more relevant, according to the editor
of Armenian International Magazine in Yerevan, which caters to
English-speaking Armenians.

“We only had two choices: a downward spiral after Soviet
totalitarianism or to blossom,” said Laura Gononian. “And we’re
blossoming. We’re undergoing a renaissance in art, music and in
building. We’re like the phoenix — we keep getting pounded and we
keep coming back.”

____________________________________

If you go

Spring and autumn are the best times to visit, with moderate
temperatures and dry weather. The official currency is the Armenian
dram, but U.S. dollars are widely used. At press time $1 equals 585
dram. Yerevan has a cash economy, so credit cards aren’t helpful
here. All prices below are given in U.S.

dollars; all locations are in Yerevan.

Getting there

A passport and visa are required. Three-week tourist visas are
relatively easy to obtain through the Armenian consulate in Los
Angeles (for details, click on “Consular Affairs” at
_www.armeniaemb.org_ () or call
310-657-6102), or at Zvarnots Airport upon arrival. British Airways is
the leading carrier serving Armenia, with flights from London to
Yerevan three times a week. Upon arrival at Zvarnots, the 20-minute
cab ride to the city center should cost about $15.

What to do

In Yerevan, your first stop should be the Armenian Tourism Development
Agency at 3 Nalbandyan St., not far from Republic Square (look for the
red pomegranate sign above their doorway). The staff is
bend-over-backwards helpful and can provide you with maps, books on
Armenian history, hotel information, and phone numbers of reputable
guides and drivers. Phone: (011) 374-1-54-23- 03 or 54-47-91.

Sightseeing tour operators: Menua Tours (_www.menuatours.com_
() ), Sati (_www.satiglobal.com_
() ) and Princess Maneh ([email protected]_
(mailto:[email protected]) ) are just three of the many travel agencies
that offer sightseeing tours in Armenia. If you plan to hike Mount
Aragat (not Ararat, which is in Turkey), note that mosttour operators
stop leading trips up the peak after Sept. 30.

Where to stay

Congress Hotel, 1 Italia Street (just south of Republic Square).

011-374-1-58-00-95; fax 011-374-1-52-22-24; e-mail
[email protected]_ (mailto:[email protected]) . A clean and
modern four-star facility, it has small rooms with private baths and
air conditioning, plus a pool, fitness center, restaurant and
bar. Doubles, $100.

Armenia Marriott Hotel Yerevan, 1 Amirian Street, at Republic Square.

011-374-1-59-90-00; e-mail: [email protected]_
(mailto:[email protected]) .

Formerly the Hotel Armenia, it’s considered by many to be the city’s
flagship hotel The rooms are on the small side but they are nice, with
private baths, air conditioning, satellite television and
phones. Facilities include two restaurants, cafe, bar, health club and
business services. Doubles, $140.

Includes breakfast buffet.

PLACES TO EAT

Dolmama, 10 Pushkin St., 011-374-1-56-8921. Owner Jarair Avanian has
created an upscale but cozy continental eatery centrally located in
downtown Yerevan.

Entrees range from $13 to $18.

Old Erivan, 2 Northern Ave., 011-374-1-54-05-75). This four-story
eatery is actually several restaurants under one roof, with dining
rooms ranging from elegant European to rooftop al fresco dining with
traditional Armenian foodand live folk music. The ambitious décor and
lively entertainment is belied by the moderate prices. Entrees range
from $5 to $7.

For more information
The Armenian embassy Web site _www.armeniaemb.org_
() has sightseeing tips and lodging informationunder its “Discover Armenia”
link. Other helpful Web sites include _www.armeniadiaspora.com_
() and _www.armeniainfo.am_ () .

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PanArmenian News
Oct 20 2004

CYPRUS READY TO ASSIST ARMENIA WITHIN ENLARGED EUROPE: NEW NEIGHBORS
PROGRAM

YEREVAN, 20.10.04. Armenian President Robert Kocharian received the
Cypriot parliamentary delegation headed by the President of the House
of Representatives Demetris Christofias. As reported by the press
service of the Armenian leader, R. Kocharian congratulated the
Republic of Cyprus with the entry to the European Union, noting that
eurointegration is one of the political priorities for Armenia. D.
Christofias in his turn said Cyprus is ready to assist Armenia within
the frames of `Wider Europe: New Neighbors` program. The parties
highly appreciated the Armenian-Cypriot relationships attaching
importance of cooperation within the framework of various
international structures. In the course of the meeting Turkey`s
membership in the EU was also considered. In this view the
interlocutors expressed their concern and underscored that Turkey
should fulfill all its commitments.

La Croix
19 octobre 2004

La cathédrale arménienne rassemble la communauté. Anniversaire.
Depuis cent ans, la cathédrale arménienne est un lieu central pour la
communauté de Paris.

SENEZE Nicolas

Silencieuse et lumineuse dans les volutes d’encens, la très belle
cathédrale arménienne de Paris, dans le 8e arrondissement, n’est
malheureusement pas ouverte au public. Nos églises ne sont que des
lieux de culte , souligne Kégham Torossian, président du conseil de
laïcs qui gère la paroisse. Dommage : il s’agit sans doute de la plus
belle de la diaspora arménienne. Mais pour les Arméniens de Paris,
l’édifice, qui a fêté au début du mois son centenaire, est bien autre
chose qu’un monument, c’est le lieu central de leur foi.

C’est en 1904 que la cathédrale a été inaugurée. Un btiment financé
par un richissime arménien de Tiflis (l’actuelle Tbilissi, capitale
de la Géorgie), un roi du pétrole séjournant régulièrement à Paris et
regrettant de ne pas y trouver d’église arménienne. Dès le XVe
siècle, il y a eu des Arméniens à Paris, raconte Kégham Torossian.
Mais c’est surtout dans le courant du XIXe siècle, avec les
persécutions turques, que beaucoup d’Arméniens ont commencé à
arriver. Et plus encore après le génocide de 1915. Aujourd’hui, 400
000 à 450 000 Arméniens vivent en France, principalement fidèles de
l’Eglise apostolique arménienne (lire ci-contre). Si 150 000 d’entre
eux vivent en région parisienne, une grande partie est présente dans
le couloir rhodanien (ainsi, 10 % des habitants de Valence sont-ils
d’origine arménienne !). Dans la mesure où nous étions chrétiens,
notre intégration a été facile. D’autant plus que l’Eglise arménienne
a toujours dit à ses fidèles que s’ils n’avaient pas d’église
arménienne près de chez eux, ils pouvaient aller dans une église
catholique ou orthodoxe , souligne Kégham Torossian, lui-même élevé
dans une école catholique. J’ai appris la messe en latin avant de
l’apprendre en arménien , sourit-il.

Mais cette intégration facile est peut-être aussi le point faible de
la communauté. Aujourd’hui, la plupart des Arméniens nés en France ne
pratiquent plus la langue. De même pour la lecture et l’écriture ,
regrette Kégham Torossian, qui craint une dissolution de la
communauté . Résultat : un seul des 40 prêtres arméniens présents en
France y est né ! Toutes les diasporas disparaissent, constate encore
avec lucidité Kégham Torossian. Combien d’Italiens, de Polonais ou
d’Espagnols d’origine parlent encore leur langue ?

NICOLAS SENÔZE

L’Eglise arménienne.

Premier pays officiellement chrétien, en 301, l’Arménie rejette en
505 les conclusions du concile de Chalcédoine (451). Se constitue
alors l’Eglise apostolique arménienne dont le siège est aujourd’hui à
Etchmiadzine.

Aujourd’hui, elle compte cinq millions de fidèles dans le monde. Son
chef est le catholicos Karékine II.

Depuis 1742, il existe également une Eglise arménienne catholique qui
compte 200 000 fidèles dans le monde, dont 30 000 en France. Son
patriarche, Jean-Pierre XVIII Kasparian, siège à Beyrouth.

Local voters closing in on choice

MLive.com, MI
Oct 17 2004

As he pulls his 2-year-old daughter in a wagon down a quiet Portage
street after dinner, Michael Bank hardly looks like someone who can
predict the winner of the U.S. presidential race.

Neither does Joan Eaton, out walking her golden retriever Abby a
couple of blocks away.

But the voters in Bank’s and Eaton’s neighborhood have picked the top
vote-getter four presidential races in a row, ever since George Bush
“the first” beat Michael Dukakis in 1988.

Now, with the national race in a dead heat just two weeks before the
election, it’s President Bush and U.S. Sen. John Kerry neck-and-neck
at the finish line among a sampling of decided voters in this small
slice of America.

“Definitely Bush and Cheney,” said Bank, 37, an applications engineer
who lives on Sussex Street in an area of new homes.

“Kerry and Edwards,” said Eaton, 75, a retired registered nurse who
lives in an older part of the neighborhood on Date Street.

In the Kalamazoo Gazette’s unscientific door-to-door survey of 106
residents in the neighborhood, 56 in late September and another 50 this
month, Bush gained ground on Kerry between September and October. The
number of undecided voters this month was less than last.

Gazette reporters plan to return to the neighborhood one more time
to gauge the mood just before the election.

Last week, on a cluster of streets that wind behind Southland Mall
between Oakland Drive and Westnedge Avenue, 23 residents said they
planned to vote for Bush, 18 for Kerry. Nine were undecided.

Last month, 21 were for Kerry, 17 for Bush and 18 were undecided.

Its past voting record isn’t the only thing that make this a
representative neighborhood. The issues people say they care about
mirror the country’s as well.

“Bush is doing a good job with the war,” Bank said. “And I definitely
believe we would have gone into deeper recession without Bush.”

“Bush is really for the rich people,” Eaton said. “Economically,
he hasn’t done a good job.”

The race is close enough that currently undecided voters will likely
decide the outcome. In the Portage neighborhood, more of the undecided
voters this month than last said they were beginning to move toward
one candidate.

But there’s not a lot of enthusiasm behind that movement.

“I’m leaning toward Kerry, but I’m not convinced his policies will
work in the real world,” said Kevin Blair, 46.

He’s seen his share lately of that world. A neuroscientist with a
doctorate who lost his job with the former Pharmacia Corp., he tried
to run his own small manufacturing business, only to be swept out by
competition from China and lose money. Now Blair, who lives with his
family on Avon Street, is looking for work.

Worries about the economy shadow supporters of both candidates.

“We’re pretty much Republicans,” said Scott Broberg, 33. He expects
to vote for Bush. But as an information-technology specialist, he
worries about jobs going to India and other countries.

“Whoever wins, he’s going to have to do something about outsourcing,”
said Broberg, who lives on Southland Avenue.

At a house across the street, though, the votes will go to Kerry.

“That other guy is a crook,” said retired Motors Corp. worker Ralph
Van Der Bos, 80, where a wooden sign on the walkway points the way
“To Grandpa and Grandma’s.”

“And I’ll tell you something else,” he said, “I think he’s behind
those gas prices going up.”

But the deepest passion about the election came from a new American.

Nune Ghazarian, 36, will be voting for the first time in November.
She is a native of Armenia whose Armenian-American husband went back to
his homeland to pick her as his wife. She became a citizen last month.

She will be voting for Bush, she said, beaming as she discussed
her choice.

“He’s done a good job with the terrorists,” said Ghazarian, who pushed
her 2-month-old baby girl in a stroller while her 4-year-old daughter
walked alongside on Sussex.

Ghazarian is excited about voting.

“I feel I am blessed,” Ghazarian said. “This is a wonderful country.”

THERE ARE MANY SMALL AND MEDIUM BUSINESSMEN WHILE THERE IS NO BUSINESS

A1 Plus
15-10-2004

“Procedures of Government and lack of information are the main
obstacles in the way of development of small and medium business in
Armenia”, USA Ambassador to Armenia John Evans said at presentation of
“How to Register Your Business?” book in “Yerevan” Hotel.

After the speech Ambassador refused to answer the questions of
journalists. Instead Chrisantos Miliaras, head of “Micro Enterprises
Development Initiative” program said that the new hand-book
independent from corruptibility of Armenian officials will help all
those initiating a small business to save their time.

As to our observation that business initiators spend not only time
while registering the organizations but also pay great sums for
the services rendered by the officials, irrespective of knowing
the procedures well or badly, Mr. Miliaras said: “In any case,
intimate knowledge of law and awareness help people to overcome
many difficulties. I can’t assess how much the officials of Armenia
purposely complicate the procedures for business registration but I
know that they are rather simple in Armenia. The artificial intricacy
exists in many states.”

“How to Register Your Business?” is a quite successful reference
book. The ways of registering an organization, obtaining a seal,
registration in tax and customs instances are described in a simple way
there. According to the organizers, the hand-book will be advertised
in the districts of Armenia. Those wishing to purchase can buy it
in all the branches of “National Centre for Development of Small and
Medium Business Undertakings.”

Presidential Councillor Seyran Avagyan, who is the supporter of forming
a middle stratum and development of small and medium business, was
present for presentation of the book. We asked him about Parliament
standpoint: is there a favourable field for development of small
and medium business in Armenia, so that a businessman has bases for
setting up in business without registering an organization in vain?

“Institutional systems, which create a favourable field for development
of medium business, were formed during 10 recent years”, he said.

And what about 1 recent year? “During 1 recent year important
instruments such as leasing and hypothec became the subjects for
discussion”, Mr. Avagyan answered.

Le consul général de Turquie et le soi-disant génocide arménien

La Croix
13 octobre 2004

Le soi-disant génocide . Cette expression et la négation présumée du
massacre du peuple arménien par les Turcs sur le site Internet du
consulat de Turquie à Paris a valu au consul général, Aydin Sezgin,
un procès lundi devant le tribunal de grande instance de Paris.

Le Comité de défense de la cause arménienne (CDCA) qui réclame 1 Euro
de dommages et intérêts est à l’origine des poursuites contre Aydin
Sezgin, absent lundi, et la société Wanadoo qui héberge le site
Internet du consulat où sont publiés les textes incriminés sous le
titre Allégations arméniennes et faits historiques . La défense
d’Aydin Sezgin a invoqué l’immunité consulaire dont bénéficie son
client. Et le jugement a été mis en délibéré au 15 novembre.

Production Report
“In a Nutshell: A Portrait of Elizabeth Tashjian”

Indiewire.com
October 13, 2004
by Jason Guerrasio

While making a documentary about strange roadside museums, Don Bernier came
across Elizabeth Tashjian’s 18-room Victorian home in Old Lyme, Connecticut.
>>From the outside it looked like the other homes in the neighborhood, but
once inside Bernier realized it was anything but normal. “It was filled with
paintings of nuts. Nut masks. Elizabeth would basically educate you on nuts
and where they were from,” he says.

Elizabeth Tashjian is better known in up-state Connecticut as “The Nut
Lady.” For years she’s given guided tours of her home, which is filled with
a wide array of nut artwork. Intrigued by Tashjian’s obsessive hobby,
Bernier ditched the roadside museum doc and began one on her. But before he
could start she collapsed in her home and was in a coma for close to two
months. She awoke to learn that the government had taken over her home and
destroyed most of her art (the work that survived is currently at
Connecticut College). “When she came out of the coma, essentially she was
pissed,” says Bernier. “So the state threw a lot of physiatrists and
therapists to declare she was mentally incapable [to live on her own] and
now she’s been moved to a nursing home. Everything got taken away from her.”
Bernier’s documentary follows Tashjian, who’s still wacky about nuts, as she
tries to pick up the pieces of her Nut Lady legacy.

Shooting on and off since 2001, Bernier is currently finishing post with
hopes to have a final cut by the end of the year. Budgeted at under $200,000
and shot on DV, he has recently received a Jerome Foundation grant to finish
it. Though he will submit it into festivals, Bernier believes the ideal
outlet for the doc is television.

[ For more information, please visit: ]

BRAZILIAN WRITER OPENS FOR HIMSELF CHARM OF ARMENIAN CULTURE

YEREVAN, October 11 (Noyan Tapan). Paolo Coelio has been the most
readable writer for twenty years now, and his novels, though in
Russian, were available to the Armenian reader. RA Minister of
Culture and Youth Affairs Hovik Hoveyan said about it during the
October 8 meeting with the world-famed writer. P. Coelio said that
there are a few translated works of Armenian writers, that’s why he
is acquainted with the Armenian literature poorly. But during his
visit to Yerevan he had time to visit the House-Museum of Parajanov,
walk along the streets of Yerevan and this, according to him, opens
for himself the charm of the Armenian culture.