Author: Chilingarian Babken

SERZH SARGSYAN: WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO PREVENT DEEPENING OF INTOLERANCE WITH JOINT FORCES

Noyan Tapan
May 15, 2009

YEREVAN, MAY 15, NOYAN TAPAN. Today the South Caucasian region
is considered important as a plane of democratic development,
international security and cooperation, as well as an important way
of export and transition of energy supplies, which under current
circumstances has a military-political and economic significance. RA
President Serzh Sargsyan said in his address to the participants of
the two-day international conference Security and Cooperation in the
Caucasus and Around It being held on May 15-16 in Yerevan. "This is a
look from outside, for us, the Caucasus is the geographic environment
where we live, where in spite of current contradictions and variety
of opinions the regional states face the common dictate of building
more peaceful and secure region," the address read.

According to S. Sargsyan, the South Caucasus has problems seeming
insuperable, fragile stability, and reestablishment of peace and
security requires joint work.

"We are convinced that the future way of the Caucasus and neighbor
states is combination of current military-political, economic,
and cultural interests, cooperation of the East and the West, the
North and the South, which will make our region a zone of peace
and cooperation. For the Republic of Armenia, democracy, peace,
regional security and cooperation are not purely slogans, they are
the values our statehood is based on, our citizens’ vision of living
in a peaceful and secure world, our country’s foreign policy," the RA
President said in his speech. In his words, the way of conflict and
intolerance will not lead to anything and are fraught with new dangers
and undesirable losses. S. Sargsyan considers that we should be able
together, with joint forces to prevent deepening of intolerance, exert
maximum efforts in the direction of peaceful settlement of conflicts
and ensure an atmosphere of mutual understanding and cooperation.

S. Sargsyan considered symbolic and praiseworthy that 50 delegates
from more than 30 countries take part in the conference, which is
evidence that many countries are interested in providing security
and stability in the region.

He expressed confidence that the international conference Security and
Cooperation in the Caucasus and Around It will become a plane of free,
fearless and new viewpoints and analyses related to regional security
and cooperation.

VOTES UP FOR GRABS IN ‘ANYTHING GOES’ LEBANON
by Rita Daou

Agence France Presse
May 14 2009

Natasha Tavoukdjian couldn’t care less about politics but will
be more than happy to vote in Lebanon’s election thanks to the
all-expenses-paid trip offered by one of the parties.

"I haven’t been home in 10 years and I am so looking forward to coming
back to Lebanon and the friends that I miss," said the 35-year-old
Lebanese who lives in Europe.

She said the Tashnak Armenian party in the Hezbollah-led opposition
had contacted her six months ago to secure her vote.

"They’ve asked me to vote for their candidate, whose name I don’t even
know," Tavoukdjian told AFP by telephone. "I don’t care about politics
but I’ll do it because I just want to see my family and friends."

School tuition, medical aid, fuel, airline tickets and cash: it’s
all fair game in Lebanon when it comes to winning votes for the June
7 parliamentary election.

"Money is a key factor in this country because the rule of law does
not exist," said Charles Chartouni, political science professor at
the Lebanese University.

"In the West, such practices would automatically invalidate the entire
election process."

A Western diplomat, on condition of anonymity, told AFP he had received
reports that 5,000 Lebanese living in Australia were being flown in
to take part in the vote.

The election pits the Western-backed parliamentary majority against
a Hezbollah-led alliance backed by Syria and Iran.

Many Lebanese expats are also flying in from other countries as
legislation bars them from casting absentee ballots.

Although political parties categorically deny doling out money and
services in exchange for votes, the practice of hiring middle men to
win over voters is well-rooted in Lebanon and rampant at each election.

Regulatory laws are also loosely drafted allowing for such practices.

"I have no reason to believe that this long-standing tradition has
changed this year," said Information Minister Tarek Mitri.

"These people are active and visible, and realistically I would
not expect radical change in the behaviour of both candidates and
electors."

Boulos, a 42-year-old voter in the northern district of Akkar, told
AFP he was grateful for leaders such as parliamentary majority head
Saad Hariri, son and political heir of slain billionaire ex-premier
Rafiq Hariri.

"Thank God for Hariri!" said Boulos, who did not want his last name
used. "One of his MPs sends us a monthly allowance for food."

Mark Daher, 37, said he also felt compelled to vote for the candidate
backed by Hariri’s coalition. "I have to do it," he told AFP. "They
found my wife a job this year."

Imad, a contractor who also did not want his full name revealed,
said he intended to vote for Hezbollah’s candidates as the party had
invested 50,000 dollars in development projects in his hometown.

Vote-buying can also take the form of the payment of school fees,
distribution of medicines and even the organisation of health
campaigns, said Yara Nassar of the Lebanese Association for Democratic
Elections (LADE), which is monitoring the polls.

"A candidate offered my school 2,000 litres of fuel oil for heating
this winter," said Tarek Nassif, a 40-year-old teacher. "It was very
generous but why didn’t he do that last year?"

Experts said regional powers had also contributed handsomely to the
vote-buying spree in a bid to boost their political allies in Lebanon.

"Some countries such as Saudi Arabia or Iran finance election
campaigns," said Chartouni, the university professor.

Mitri, however, was hopeful that tighter regulations and more public
awareness would gradually lead to more transparent elections in
Lebanon.

"I think the more we document and talk about this, the more we open
the eyes of public opinion and the more chance we have of combating
this ill," Mitri said.

55TH ANNUAL NAASR ASSEMBLY SCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY

Belmont Citizen-Herald
news/news_calendar/x529241970/55th-Annual-NAASR-as sembly-scheduled-for-Saturday
May 15 2009
MA

Belmont, Mass. – Prof. Erik Goldstein, Chairman of Boston University’s
Department of International Relations, will give a talk entitled "Great
Britain and the Re-Emergence of Armenian Statehood," at the luncheon
program preceding the 55th Annual Assembly of Members of the National
Association for Armenian Studies and Research on Saturday, May 16,
at the NAASR Headquarters, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA. The Assembly
will be convened at noon and lunch will be served at 12:15 p.m.

Britain as Great Power and the Armenians As one of the "Great Powers"
that exerted its influence around the world throughout the 19th and
into the 20th centuries, Great Britain had a major impact on political
developments affecting the Armenians, including the Armenian Question
of the late 19th century, the Armenian Genocide, and the Armenian
Republic established in 1918. There was great interest in Armenia
in Britain and sympathy for the Armenians among the British people,
but to what extent did this have an impact on British policies and
projections of its power?

Prof. Goldstein’s research interests include diplomacy, formulation
of national diplomatic strategies, the origins and resolution of
armed conflict, and negotiation. He is the author of Winning the
Peace: British Diplomatic Strategy, Peace Planning, and the Paris
Peace Conference, 1916-1920 (1991); Wars and Peace Treaties (1992);
The First World War’s Peace Settlements: International Relations,
1918 – 1925 (2002); and Power and Stability: British Foreign Policy,
1865-1965 (2003). He has edited and co-edited numerous volumes and
is also the founder-editor of the journal Diplomacy & Statecraft and
he serves on the editorial board of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies.

Reports on NAASR Programs and Goals Following the luncheon, those
attending the 55th Assembly of Members will be informed about
NAASR’s ongoing efforts to further Armenian studies, research, and
publication. Reports will be presented by the Board of Directors
on organizational, informational, academic, and financial matters;
and the election of Directors will be held. In addition, there will
be reports by the Assembly’s special committees on Nominations,
Constitution and Rules, New Business and Resolutions, and Auditing.

The chairmen of the special committees are Stephen Kurkjian of Manomet,
Nominating; Aram Karakashian of Waltham, Constitution and Rules;
Roxanne Etmekjian of West Newton, New Business

and Resolutions; and Edward Der Kazarian of Watertown, Auditing. The
Assembly will be chaired by NAASR Board Chairman Nancy R. Kolligian
of Watertown, and Van M. Aroian of Worcester will serve as Secretary
of the Assembly.

The Assembly sessions are open to all NAASR members in good standing
(with dues paid for the current calendar year), who "have the right
to attend, be heard, and vote." Non-members may attend as observers.

The luncheon and subsequent program are open to the general
public. However, luncheon reservations should be made by May 9 at
$15.00 per person by calling 617-489-1610, by fax at 617-484-1759,
or e-mail to [email protected]. There is ample parking available around
the NAASR Center and in adjoining areas.

AZERBAIJAN ASKS ICRC FOR HELP IN RELEASING ARMENIA-HELD SERGEANT

APA
May 12 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku, 12 May: The State Commission for POWs, missing people and
hostages has asked the International Committee of the Red Cross for
help in releasing Azerbaijani army sergeant Anar Xanbaba oglu Haciyev
who was taken captive by the Armenian armed forces on 10 May.

The commission head, Sahin Sailov, told APA that they had confirmed
the fact that Haciyev was taken captive and that they would do
everything necessary to get him released. "A written appeal was sent
to the International Committee of the Red Cross today [12 May]. We
are waiting for their response," he said.

Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry confirmed the fact that Haciyev was
taken captive by the Armenian armed forces. It is not clear in what
circumstance he was taken captive. The ministry is investigating
the issue.

Anar Haciyev, born in 1990, was enlisted into the army by the Goranboy
District military commissar’s office. It is reported that he was taken
captive by the Armenian armed forces at 0945 [0445 gmt] on 10 May.

RETAIL PRICES OF OIL PRODUCTS IN ARMENIA UP BY 20 AMD OVER MONTH

ArmInfo
2009-05-15 12:54:00

ArmInfo. Retail prices of oil products in Armenia were up by 20 AMD
over the month. At present prices are stable and unlikely to rise till
the end of the month. Deputy Director of Flash Company, the largest
oil trader in Armenia, Mushegh Elchyan told ArmInfio world prices of
petroleum products are growing which cannot but affect the domestic
market of Armenia where fuel is fully imported. In March a barrel
was imported for $43-44 now for $57. ‘We had fully kept prices down
in the domestic market for certain period of time.

However, starting May 10 we were reluctant to increase them by 20
drams’, M. Elchyan said.

As of May 15, petrol Super AI 98 in Armenia cost 360 drams/liter,
petrol Premium AI 95 – 330 drams. Regular AI 91 – 310 drams. Diesel
prices in Armenia totaled 270 drams/liter.

THE MAGARAVANK PILGRIMAGE: THE PRESERVATION OF THE PAST AND THE DETERMINATION OF THE FUTURE
Hrayr Jebedjian

Gibrahayer e-magazine
11 May, 2009

The notice on a small paper at the entrance of the Turkish occupied
Magara Vank caught my attention. It was written in English, and
it described the history of the Monastery which was built in 1000AD
by the Coptic Church. In 1425AD, it was handed over to the Armenian
Church. It has been an important center for research and study for
Armenian and non Armenian pilgrims who made a stopover at the Monastery
on their way to the Holy Lands. The writing on the paper did not end
here. It continued by saying something about today: The picturesque
and idyllic view of both the sea and the mountains makes this place a
"touristic" spot where one can enjoy the splendid nature in a relaxed
atmosphere and drink a cup of coffee…!

I moved around the "remaining" parts of the Monastery, trying to
catch up with every cornerstone and ruin and absorb history in its
fullness. I lived the history of the many clergy, pilgrims, students,
historians and intellectuals who spent a lifetime building the lives
of mankind in the spirit of the Christian ethics of love, peace and
reconciliation. Many intellectuals had devoted years to preserve
the Armenian culture. I started looking through an empty space in
one of the ruined buildings which was=2 0once a window. I started
tracing the historical path of the Monastery by looking through this
window. I could see the Light that Magara Vank had spread: the path
of civilisation throughout the ages within the Armenian community
and others.

The church service inside the small madour was overwhelming. The
sharagans touched the heart of each and every one of the 200 pilgrims
present on this pilgrimage. The singing seemed to echo that of the
past, bringing the ruins and the remaining of the Monastery back to
life and changing the "touristic" spot back to its original Mission.

The pilgrimage on Sunday, May 10, 2009, was organised by the Office of
the Armenian Representative in the Cyprus parliament in cooperation
with the Armenian Prelature of Cyprus. I joined the group together
with many of my Armenian-Cypriot friends who told me many things
about life at the Monastery before 1974. How can a centre of light
and civilisation be turned into a ruin in only thirty-five years?

The answer to my question came through Archbishop Varoujan Hergelian’s
message during the service that day. It was a call for determination,
"The determination to rebuild that which was destroyed," he said. This
is the challenge of our survival in today’s world: The preservation
of our legacy and the determination to rebuild and carry it forward to
the future; the l egacy of the past with its Identity, Faith, Culture
and the Struggle for a Just Cause. This legacy, in its fullness,
needs to be rebuilt but, most of all, carried forward to the future.

I went back to the front gate and re-read the notice on the small
piece of paper. Magara Vank can never be a touristic spot. It is the
spot to preserve the past and rebuild the future.

There are many challenges to rebuilding the future, though: The future
with the many unknowns and uncertainties that impact our lives in the
present circumstances. Nevertheless, there is one "road map" through
which we can navigate on our journey of the many unknowns. There is
one road map that will help us tackle the many Pan-Armenian concerns
that we face today: The road map that creates the Pan-Armenian mind
and effort in spite of all our differences. This is the road map
that can lead us to the safe shore even when "we walk in the valley
of the shadow of death".

The Magara Vank pilgrimage was a confirmation of the preservation of
the past and the determination to rebuild the future.

MORE THAN A MAYORALTY
by Marianna Grigoryan

Transitions On Line
uage=1&IdPublication=4&NrIssue=321&NrS ection=1&NrArticle=20571
May 13 2009
Czech Republic

The campaign to run Yerevan City Hall is being waged in the long
shadow of last year’s violent election season. From EurasiaNet.

YEREVAN | Rarely has a city council election attracted such
notice. Yerevan’s 31 May municipal election marks not only the first
time voters can play a role in choosing their own mayor, but, for
Armenia’s largest opposition movement, a chance to make up for the
loss of last year’s presidential election.

The vote’s national implications can be seen in the banners
promoting ex-President Levon Ter-Petrosian as a candidate for the
city council. "Let’s change Armenia. Let’s start with Yerevan!" they
read. If Ter-Petrosian’s Armenian National Congress wins one vote
over 40 percent of the council’s 65 seats, the 64-year-old former
Armenian leader would be named Yerevan’s new mayor. The president
previously appointed the four-year post.

At a 1 May rally, Ter-Petrosian embraced claims that his candidacy
has politicized the city council race.

Voters should "only be grateful to the Armenian National Congress for
politicizing the . . .election," he told onlookers. " For [the ANC]
will try to prevent the criminalization of the election by doing so."

Six parties aside from the Armenian National Congress alliance
have registered for the race, according to the Central Election
Commission. Some 771,353 registered voters are eligible to take part.

Former Armenian President and mayoral candidate Levon Ter-Petrosian.

Ter-Petrosian supporters affirm that the vote is a chance to get back
their own after the 2008 presidential vote, an election they assert
was rigged against the ex-president.

"We will win!" proclaimed one voter, using Ter-Petrosian’s presidential
campaign slogan while dancing at a 4 May rally in Yerevan’s Arabkir
district. "And there are hopes for justice!"

But many voters just want a return to calm. Recollections of the brutal
1 March 2008 police crackdown on opposition activists protesting the
presidential election results still linger.

"We are sick and tired of shocks and want stability," said 57-year-old
Mariam Galstian, who supports Yerevan’s incumbent pro-government mayor,
Gagik Beglarian. "It’s not the time for radical changes. It’s only
the people who suffer the consequences. Let it stay as it is."

One candidate has already capitalized on that need for nurture. At a
6 May meeting with voters in Yerevan’s Davitashen district, Heghine
Bisharian, the lead candidate for the Country of Law Party, a member
of Armenia’s ruling coalition, declared that the Armenian capital
is in need of a woman’s care. Greater displays of kindness should be
among voters’ chief concerns, Bisharian affirmed.

Amid a downpour, Bisharian took that theme one step further and
compared herself to the Biblical character Noah, who saved the earth’s
animals from a flood. (Legend names the alleged great-great-grandson
of Noah, Hayk, as the founder of Armenia.)

"Noah today is Heghine Bisharian," Bisharian proclaimed.

Other candidates are wheeling out more conventional themes to win
voters’ support.

Health Minister Harutiun Kushkian, who heads the list of candidates
for the Prosperous Armenia Party, another government coalition member,
relies on "We keep our promises!" A touch of celebrity is added,
too. Prosperous Armenia Party leader Gagik Tsarukian, a flamboyant
oligarch and one-time world arm wrestling champion, has promised to
attend Kushkian’s meetings with voters.

Incumbent Mayor Beglarian, a member of the ruling Republican Party of
Armenia, tries to cast himself as a man of action who will accomplish
what was not done in Yerevan during Soviet times – improving
streets and water lines, among other tasks. "I say no high-flown
words!" he pledged, in an apparent allusion to the emotional oratory
of Ter-Petrosian.

Independent political analyst Yervand Bozoian commented that the 27-day
campaign "will be quite intense," but, so far, there is little sign
that that intensity will mark candidates’ campaign platforms. Routine
problems of garbage collection, improved roads, water supplies,
and social welfare services are the focus.

The lack of detailed proposals, however, does not appear to have
deterred Yerevan voters. A recent survey run by the Sociometer center
found that only 30 percent of 1,650 voting-age respondents said that
they would stay away from the polls on May 31.

"Two factors can affect the conduct and the result of the election –
its politicization and the economic crisis," said the center’s head,
Aharon Adibekian. Both factors are likely to spark interest in the
vote, he added.

Party campaign staff interviewed by EurasiaNet indicated no problems to
date with intimidation, ad restrictions, or other forms of interference
with their campaigns. The Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and
Regional Authorities, however, has a different take.

"The Congress delegation understood that there were threats to the
proper conduct of these elections, in particular with respect to
the registration and mobilization of voters, the counting of votes,
and media objectivity in the campaign," read a statement released by
the Council of Europe’s information office in Yerevan.

The "real needs of the citizens of Yerevan could be brushed aside
because of … confrontation" between the opposition and governing
coalition in the city council vote, said delegation member Fabio
Pellegrini.

While Ter-Petrosian insists that such political jostling is a plus,
Republican Party spokesman Eduard Sharmazanov vows that politics will
not botch the election.

"All the necessary conditions for democratic elections have been
created," Sharmazanov said.

TIGRAN SARGSYAN RECEIVES OUTGOING BRAZILIAN AMBASSADOR

ARMENPRESS
May 13, 2009

YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
received today outgoing Brazilian ambassador to Armenia Renate Stille
who has ended her mission in Armenia.

Governmental press service told Armenpress that during the meeting
the prime minister thanked the ambassador for her activity during the
diplomatic mission, for the efforts exerted towards consolidation of
Armenian-Brazilian ties and expressed hope that Renate Stille will
continue her mission directed towards development relations between
the two countries.

DASHNAK MINISTERS REPLACED BY FORMER COALITION PARTNERS

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
12.05.2009 20:00 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA President Serzh Sargsyan has today signed decree
on removing Agriculture Minister Aramayis Grigoryan, Minister of Labor
and Social Issues Arsen Hambardzumyan and Minister of Education and
Science Spartak Seyranyan.

Under another decree issued by President, Gevorg Petrosyan (Prosperous
Armenia) was appointed Minister of Labor and Social Issues, Armen
Ashotyan (Republican parliamentary faction) – Minister of Education
and Science and Gerasim Alaverdyan ("Orinats Yerkir") – Minister
of Agriculture.

KAREN OHANJANYAN: CEASE-FIRE REGIME AGREEMENT IS UNIQUE IN THE HISTORY OF THE CONFLICT

ArmInfo
2009-05-13 14:02:00

ArmInfo. On 12 May the Nagornyy Karabakh committee of ‘Helsinki
Initiative’ organized a round table dedicated to the 15th anniversary
of signing cease-fire regime agreement between the parties to the
Karabakh conflict.

As ArmInfo correspondent reported from Stepanakert, representatives
of different layers of the society, including Azerbaijanis living in
Nagornyy Karabakh, took part in the round table. The participants
in the round table discussed conditions for the Karabakh conflict
settlement. They are sure that the compromise for the conflict
resolving cannot be to the detriment of the Karabakh party.

‘Representatives of the Karabakhi society think the Madrid principles,
laying on the basis of the Karabakh settlement talks, are unacceptable.

Without recognition of the NKR and giving its people strict
international instruments to ensure their physical and democratic
security, the Karabakhi society will not allow anybody to gain
returning of the territories liberated over the war, as they are
the NKR security basis’, – coordinator of ‘Helsinki Initiative – 92’
committee, Karen Ohanjanyan, said at the round table.