Author: Chavushian

TURKISH AMBASSADOR TO RUSSIA: "TURKEY CANNOT AGREE TO THE DECISION THAT WILL NOT SATISFY AZERBAIJAN IN THE SETTLEMENT OF NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT"

APA
May 15 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku. Lachin Sultanova – APA. "Turkey will not support the decision
that will not satisfy Azerbaijan in the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict," Turkish ambassador to Russia Halil Akinci said in his
interview to ITAR-TASS agency, APA reports.

The diplomat mentioned that Turkey was the member of OSCE Minsk
Group and said Turkey supported any effort towards the solution to
the conflict.

"It should not be forgotten that we are one nation with
Azerbaijanis. We will support any decision that will be made by the
conflicting parties. There should be no problem between our neighbors
– this is the basic principle of our international policy. But taking
into account close relations between Turkish and Azerbaijani people,
we can not agree to the decision not satisfying Azerbaijan. Meanwhile,
we are taking some steps towards Armenia. I think historians should
study the history of our countries. Modern Turkey-Armenia relations
should be established for the sake of present people. For this our
countries should cooperate more closely.

NOBEL-WINNER PAMUK BACK IN COURT FOR CONTEMPT
by Furio Morroni

ANSAmed
12.WAM50268.html
May 15 2009
Italy

(ANSAmed) – ANKARA – The notorious article 301 of the Turkish Penal
Code regarding freedom of expression was amended a year ago, but it
doesn’t seem to have done much good. Nobel Prize-winning Turkish writer
Orhan Pamuk is back under the hammer for "contempt of the Turkish
national identity" over his statement about the massacres of Armenians
during the age of the Ottoman Empire. The news was reported today by
newspaper Hurriyet, which told of the sentence handed down yesterday
by Turkey’s Supreme Court which, for the second time in a year,
has thrown out the judgement of an Istanbul court which had rejected
the accusations levelled at Pamuk and closed the trial. According to
Supreme Court the charges brought against Pamuk for having offended
the Turkish nation were valid and the initial court made a mistake
in their initial dismissal of the suit, which they threw out because
the plaintiffs could not speak for the entire country. The initial
offence regards Pamuk telling a Swiss magazine that "we Turkish have
killed 30,000 Kurds and a million Armenians and nobody, apart from
me, dares to speak about it in Turkey". This statement, which Many
Turkish people claim is "Pamuk’s self-candidacy for the Nobel Prize
and the real reason why he won it", unleashed great controversy
in Turkey and offended the sensibilities of many. For example, the
relatives of the more than 30,000 killed by the Kurdistan Workers’
Party (PKK – considered a terrorist organisation by the USA and EU)
in the armed struggle against the Turkish State, who were not only
Kurdish, but soldiers and Turkish citizens. Six Turkish citizens,
relatives of soldiers killed by PKK rebels, have pressed charges
against Pamuk for moral damages, requesting compensation of around
30,000 dollars. However, in June 2006 a civil tribunal in Istanbul
judged that "the plaintiffs cannot be considered the representatives
of an entire nation" and as such |’cannot say that they are personally
offended" by the writer’s statements. The Supreme Court overturned this
sentence for the first time on January 22 2008, claiming that |’the
feeling of belonging to a nation is a right that must be protected
and a statement which harms the entire nation gives the individual
the right to launch legal action against this". Yesterday’s sentence
saw the Supreme Court re-state its position and send the trial back
to court which will have to look in detail at the issue. If found
guilty, Pamuk will have to pay damages to the plaintiffs, which have
gone up in the meantime and could in theory run to millions in that
the Supreme Court’s ruling gives each Turkish citizen the right to
sue for any defamatory remark about Turkey. (ANSAmed).

THE TROUBLES OF THE ARAMAEANS IN TURKEY
Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis

American Chronicle
2430
May 14 2009

Although they consist in one of the most significant pillars of
Turkey’s diachronic contribution to World History, historical identity,
and cultural integrity, the Aramaeans have been greatly disregarded
and disrespected – mainly to the detriment of Turkey itself.

Here I republish two brief but insightful reports published in the
Aramaean portal Aram Nahrin, whereas in forthcoming articles I will
present further documentation on the Mor Gabriel issue.

Arameans of Turkey, the Aramean monastery St. Gabriel

s_of%20Turkey_TurAbdin_7_5_2009.htm

Source:
http: // y&link=174393&bolum=101

Arameans send letter to president, PM demanding rights

The Turabdin Solidarity Committee (Solidaritattsgruppe), an umbrella
organization for the diaspora Arameans from Turkey, sent a letter
to President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
about the situation of Arameans in Turkey and asked to be treated in
accordance with the Lausanne Treaty and auspices of the state.

In the letter, the Arameans also noted that the Prophet Jesus spoke
in Aramaic and the state should give the permission and financial
support for Aramaic language courses. The letter also underlined the
concerns of the Arameans regarding the ongoing trial over the Mor
Gabriel Monastery, which was constructed in A.D. 397.

The row began when the Turkish government land officials redrew the
boundaries around Mor Gabriel and the surrounding villages in 2008
in order to update the national land registry as part of a cadastre
modernization project in compliance with EU instructions. The monks
say the new boundaries have turned over large plots of land that the
monastery has owned for centuries to the villages, and it designates
the monastery’s land as a public forest. Christian groups believe
the officials want to ultimately stamp out the Aramean Orthodox
monastery. Their allegations come as the EU has demanded that the
ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government do more
to promote religious freedom along with its liberal economic and
political reforms.

Meanwhile, three neighboring villages — Candarlı, Yayvantepe and
Eglence — have complained that the monks have engaged in "anti-Turkish
activities" and alleged that they are illegally converting children
to Christianity, that the Mor Gabriel Community Foundation settles
wherever it chooses –without having the requisite permits — and that
it violates the Unity of Education Law. The villagers also have accused
the monastery of taking the land the villagers need for cattle. The
hearings in the dispute will be held this month.

The letter reiterated the importance of the Mor Gabriel Monastery for
Christian history and claimed that the cases against the monastery were
directly linked with the basic rights and problems of the Christians
in Turkey.

"Accordingly, these problems were raised because most of the Aramean
villages in Turabdin [Aramaic name for a part of the Mardin and
Å~^ırnak] are facing similar problems and struggling against them. In
short, the status and the minority rights of Arameans is the issue,"
the letter said.

The Turabdin Solidarity Committee also claimed that the number
of Arameans still living in the area is around 2,000, but "their
existence is in danger due to the growing hostility against them."

The letter suggested that since the establishment of the republic,
the Arameans were not recognized as a religious nor ethnic minority
and were not able to enjoy the rights granted by the Lausanne Treaty,
which was signed in 1923 and served as the founding agreement for the
Turkish Republic. The treaty organizes the rights of the non-Muslim
citizens of Turkey — without indicating specific group names — but,
practically, these rights are applied only to the Jewish, Greek and
Armenian minorities of Turkey, according to a recent report of the
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV).

The letter underlined that within this framework, the Arameans demand
the recognition of their culturally rich existence and want the special
auspices of the state. The letter also demands: "the monasteries and
churches that belong to the Arameans should be preserved by the state
without taking them away from their owners, religious freedom, not
only the permission to open religious schools, but financial support
for them and permission to teach language courses."

The letter claimed that if these demands were met, then the Arameans
of Turkey will be able to plan their future freely and contribute to
the development of Turkey.

Questions in the EU Parliament on the Aramean Monastery in Turkey

_of%20Turkey_Questions_EU_Parliament_11_5_2009.htm

Source:
oc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+WQ+P-2009-3137+0+DOC+XML+ V0//EN

Parliamentary questions

27 April 2009

Written Question by Georg Jarzembowski (PPE DE) to the Commission

Subject: Mor Gabriel monastery — recognition of the Aramaeans as a
religious minority in Turkey

The Mor Gabriel monastery in Midyat, Mardin province, which was built
in AD 397, is the spiritual centre for Syriac Orthodox Christians,
the Aramaeans, in Turkey. Around 70 monks and nuns live in the
monastery. It is visited by thousands of Aramaeans every year.

Since 2008, this over 1 600 year old monastery has been the subject
of a flood of court cases, in which the monastery stands accused
of, among other things, ´unlawful settlement´. Certain of these
proceedings have been brought by neighbouring villages represented
by leading AKP politicians. If these proceedings are successful,
there is a danger that the Aramaean monks and nuns will be forced
out of the Mor Gabriel monastery, bringing to an end a 1 600 year
old non Muslim tradition in south eastern Turkey.

The Aramaean faith community is not recognised as a religious minority
in Turkey. Communities not recognised as religious minorities in
Turkey do not enjoy minority rights and are not allowed to train
young people or to teach, and thereby pass on to the next generation,
their faith or their language. Since 6 October 1997, the teaching of
Aramaic, the language of Jesus used in the Syriac Orthodox Church,
has been officially prohibited in the Republic of Turkey.

In the light of the above, I ask the Commission the following
questions.

1. Is the Commission monitoring the proceedings against the Mor
Gabriel monastery?

2. How does the Commission assess the proceedings against the Mor
Gabriel monastery?

3. In the Commission´s view, what status do the Christian Aramaean
people have in Turkey?

4. Against this background, is religious freedom guaranteed in the
Republic of Turkey?

5. Does the Commission view the facts that the teaching of Aramaic is
prohibited and that the Aramaeans are not recognised as a religious
minority as being a hindrance to the accession negotiations with
Turkey?

6. Does the Commission intend to ensure, in the context of
the accession negotiations with Turkey, that religious (but not
officially recognised) minorities in Turkey obtain more rights and
better protection?

ARMENIA AND IRAN SEAL GAS-FOR-POWER DEAL

Upstream Online
ece
May 14 2009

Iran has begun exporting gas to Armenia in exchange for electricity,
a senior Iranian oil official has said.

"Ceremonies marking the start of Iran’s gas exports to Armenia were
held on Wednesday… at Nordouz border point," Reuters quoted Reza
Kasaizadeh, head of the National Iranian Gas Export Company, as saying
in the daily newspaper Iran.

"Consequently, the contract of the gas-for-electricity swap between
Iran and Armenia went officially into effect," Kasaizadeh said.

He said Iran will export a total of 1.3 billion cubic metres of gas
by the end of 2010 in a 20-year contract signed in 2004.

A 113 kilometre pipeline is being used for the exports.

The volume of gas exports will increase by 2011 to 1.5 Bcm per year,
he said, adding that Iran hopes to gradually raise this to 2.3 Bcm
per year.

Armenia will use the gas imported from Iran to generate electricity,
part of which will be exported to the Islamic state to cover the cost
of imports.

NAIRIT PRESS SERVICE REPORTED 2 PEOPLE DEAD

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.05.2009 00:45 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Nairit CJSC Press Service officially declined reports
on the death of 3 as a result of explosion at chemical factory. The
accident is localized, fire extinguishing works continue. According
to preliminary data, 2 are dead, 8 injured. Disaster territory is 80
sq.km. One seat of fire is aflame at present. The situation is under
firemen’s control, the Press Service reported. According to earlier
reports, 4 of 8 injured were the firemen.

Meanwhile, Head Doctor of emergency service, Elmira Gevorgyan
informed PanARMENIAN.Net reporter on the death of 3. According to
her, emergency service brigade took the dead bodies to mortuary. The
fate of 20 people, who couldn’t be evacuated from fire zone, still
remains unknown.

Today, around 6.40 p.m. two explosions occurred at caoutchouc
manufacturing Nairit Factory; later the fire erupted. The fire is
localized at the moment.

RA Ministry of Emergency Situation recommends residents of Nairi-
adjusted territories to keep their windows shut. No danger of infection
from combustion products is reported; still the windows should be
shut to keep the smoke out.

ARMENIAN AIRLINE TO RECEIVE FIRST SUKHOI SUPERJET 100

domain-B.com
o_mfg/20090512_sukhoi_superjet_100.html
Aviation & Aerospace
May 13 2009

Komsomolsk-on-Amur: The first Sukhoi Superjet 100 passenger airplane
will be delivered to Armenia’s national airline Armavia, according
to an announcement made by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft on Monday.

Sukhoi Civil Aircraft’s public relations director Olga Kayukova said
Armavia would be the first recipient of a Superjet 100 because it
had ordered a plane with a basic configuration. She said the airliner
was in the final stages of assembly and would be delivered soon.

"Configuration is determined by the customer," she said. "The simpler
the configuration, the simpler it is to make the aircraft."

Though the list price of a Superjet 100 was $28 million, Kayukova said
each aircraft was priced differently depending on the configuration.

So far 98 orders for the aircraft had been received, including 30
from Russian flagship carrier Aeroflot and 10 from Italian companies.

Sukhoi director general, Mikhail Pogosyan, admitted that financing
was a problem in the construction of the planes.

"We cannot resolve this without government support," he said Monday. He
pointed out that with global the financial crisis "airlines do not
possess the necessary financial stability to invest in the production
of aircraft."

Meanwhile, during his visit to the Superjet assembly line in
Komsomolsk-on-Amur on Monday, Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin
said the Russian government had allocated 6.8 billion rubles ($210
million) to Sukhoi Civil Aircraft to fund the Superjet project.

"The increase in financing is connected with some rises in the price
of production and accessories," Putin told workers.

The Superjet 100 project is a medium-haul passenger aircraft developed
by Sukhoi in cooperation with US and European aviation corporations,
including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace
and Honeywell.

GEVORG PETROSYAN APPOINTED NEW MINISTER OF LABOR AND SOCIAL ISSUES OF ARMENIA

ArmInfo
2009-05-12 18:48:00

ArmInfo. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan signed a decree on
dismissing Armenian Minister of Labor and Social Issues Arsen
Hambardzumyan, Tuesday.

The Armenian presidential press-service told ArmInfo that by another
decree of the president, Gevorg Petrosyan, a member of the Prosperous
Armenia Party, is appointed to this position.

ARMENIA, TURKEY: ECONOMIC CRISIS WARMS TURKS TO OPENING OF BORDER

Monday Morning
&CategoryID=6
May 12 2009
Lebanon

The border’s closure in 1993 — ordered by Turkey to back Azerbaijan
in a territorial conflict with Armenia — has had heavy economic
consequences not only for Armenia but also the Turkish city of 80,000.

The border crossing, some 70 kilometers away, was once massively used
to export cattle — Kars’ main wealth — to the Caucasus and Russia
through the only railway linking Turkey to its northern neighbors.

The halt of trade has cost the province of Kars nearly one-twelfth
of its population, which dropped from 356,000 to 326,000 between 1990
and 2000.

The prospect of re-opening the border, boosted by ongoing talks
between Ankara and Yerevan, has become even more important now that
the global economic turmoil is biting Turkey, sending unemployment
up and slowing down the economy.

"Of the 300 members of the chamber of commerce, 280 believe the border
should be opened immediately", said Fuat Doganay, owner of the largest
restaurant in Kars.

"Business has gone down… I have to save my business and pay my
debts. The government has to understand that", he said.

Many there believe Turkey’s embargo is hurting Kars more than Armenia
as Armenians can fly to Istanbul to work and shop, and Turkish products
end up in Armenia via Georgia.

Kaan Soyak, co-chairman of a Turkish-Armenian business group, said
the annual volume of bilateral trade — mostly via Georgia — stood
at around 100 million dollars.

With the expected re-opening of the border "we expect the exchanges
to immediately reach four to five billion dollars per year", Soyak
explained, buoyed by the announcement on April 28 that Ankara and
Yerevan had agreed a "road map" on normalizing ties.

Kars businessman Alican Alibeyoglu complained that Turkish
entrepreneurs were worst affected by the entangled political problems
in the region.

"I have been to Georgia and Armenia many times. In both countries
I saw hundreds of joint businesses between Armenians and Azeris,
but when it comes to Turkey, it is not possible", he grumbled,
adding that 50,000 people in Kars signed a petition in 2004 for the
re-opening of the border.

The sealed frontier however is not the only problem: Yerevan claims
that up to 1.5 million of Armenians were victims of "genocide" at
the hands of Ottoman Turks during World War I.

Ankara, which categorically rejects the accusation, has refused to
establish diplomatic ties with Yerevan until it drops its international
campaign to have the killings recognized as "genocide".

During a visit to Turkey in early April, US President Barack Obama
encouraged the dialogue between the two neighbors and called for a
swift normalization of ties.

Obama said reckoning with the past was the best way for the Turkish
and Armenian peoples to work through their "painful history" in a
"way that is honest, open and constructive".

But such appeals fail to impress many in Kars, which is home to
several thousand Turks of Azeri origin.

"The Armenians have to solve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem", said Ali
Guvensoy, head of the Kars Chamber of Commerce, referring to the
Armenian-majority enclave which broke away from Azerbaijan in the
early 1990s.

"They also have to stop putting allegations of genocide on the table",
he added, summarizing Ankara’s official line on the dispute.

But Soyak, who has for years campaigned for Turkish-Armenian
reconciliation, was optimistic.

"We expect a happy ending soon… We expect a settlement within three
or four months," he predicted.

The businessman stressed Azerbaijan’s inclusion into the fence-mending
process was essential "if we want a full economic development" in
the region.

"I think it is going to be step by step: first normalization of
relations between Turkey and Armenia… The next step will be to
include Azerbaijan".

esctoday.com
May 7 2009

Inga & Anush speak to esctoday.com

Inga and Anush Arshakyan, the sisters who will represent Armenia in
the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, spoke to esctoday.com. Both are
trained musicians and they have been performing together as a duo all
over Europe and in the United States since 2000.

Inga & Anush turned up in full costumes for the interview to speak
about the rehearsals and the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest in
general. They will represent Armenia at number six in the first semi
final on 12th May with the song Nor par. Armenia takes part for the
fourth time and has always reached the top ten during its first three
participations. Last year, Sirusho achieved the country’s best result
so far finishing second in the first semi final and fourth in the
final with Qele qele.

Watch the interview below:

GLOBAL TRAFFICKING PROFITS REACH $32 BILLION ANNUALLY: ILO

ARKA
May 8, 2009

YEREVAN, May 8. /ARKA/. Global annual profit form human trafficking
is worth US$32bln, said OSCE Special Representative, Coordinator for
Combating Human Trafficking Eva Biaudet cited today the International
Labor Organization (ILO) at the Novosti International Press Centre
in Yerevan. She said ILO is planning to issue an updated report where
global trafficking profits estimate to US$82bln.

Citing global trafficking statistics, Biaudet said the most commonly
occurring type of human trafficking is sexual abuse, with 80% of
victims of forced labor and sexual slavery being women.

According to the OSCE special representative, 50% of trafficking
victims are people under 18 and minors.