Author: Christine Harutyunian

Armenpress: Several Armenians denied boarding on Ural Airlines flight from Chinese city, embassy taking measures

Christine Harutyunian

Several Armenians denied boarding on Ural Airlines flight from Chinese city, embassy taking measures

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 17:34, 2 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 2, ARMENPRESS. A group of Armenian passengers were not allowed to board an Ural Airlines flight from Xi’an to a Russian city despite having tickets. Among those who were refused check-in were also citizens of other countries.

“Given the situation over the coronavirus outbreak in China, a number of international airlines are gradually limiting their flights from Beijing and other Chinese cities. Citizens currently in China are required to contact the given airline beforehand to clarify information about the flight,” the foreign ministry of Armenia said.

“On February 1, a group of Armenian citizens were denied check-in with Ural Airlines flight tickets. At the same time, citizens of a number of other countries were also denied check-in to the same flight. They were compensated for the tickets. The Armenian Embassy in China has advised the Armenian citizens to head for the nearest city from where it will be possible to board another flight of other airlines to Armenia, and to clarify the given airline’s regulations beforehand. The embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia are taking measures to prevent such developments. At the same time, we inform that the Embassy is maintaining constant contact with all Armenian citizens who are in China and who have registered with the Embassy and is responding to all questions,” the foreign ministry said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan




ACNIS reView from Yerevan #2, 2020_Weekly Update_18-25 January

Christine Harutyunian
Weekly Update   

26 JANUARY 2020  

 

  • President Xi Jinping said China was facing a “grave situation” as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak jumped to 41, overshadowing celebrations of the Lunar New Year that began on Saturday, REUTERS reported. China also announced further transport restrictions. With more than 1,400 people infected worldwide, most of them in China, Hong Kong declared a virus emergency, scrapped celebrations and restricted links to mainland China. Australia confirmed its first four cases on Saturday, Malaysia confirmed four and France reported Europe’s first cases on Friday, as health authorities around the world scrambled to prevent a pandemic.
  • Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan believes that the President of Azerbaijan, the President of Artsakh and the Prime Minister of Armenia personally bear responsibility for peace and stability in the region, Armenpress said. “We are ready for constructive, normal work, as much as we understand how difficult of a work that is,” the PM said at a news conference on January 25. “But that’s our responsibility in the region. I have told my colleagues, that now we – the President of Azerbaijan, the President of the Republic of Artsakh and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia – are personally bearing the responsibility of the future of peace and stability in the region. This is a personal responsibility, and to some extent also a common responsibility, and bearing this responsibility and [dealing] with it with honor is a very difficult task,” he said. Asked to elaborate on the NK talks, the PM emphasized that there is no secrecy around the negotiations.  “It is described and termed in my speech at the 2019 March joint Security Council session of Armenia and Artsakh in Stepanakert”, Pashinyan said. “In that speech I had outlined our circle of discussions in the negotiations process. It is this circle that we are now talking about. Currently there is no paper on the table for us to discuss. And we must work together to approach a more specific, more substantiated discussion phase,” the Armenian PM added.

 

  • A gunman surrendered to the Armenian police after reportedly bursting into an office building in Yerevan and opening fire there on Thursday, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service (Azatutyun.am) said. Police officers rushed to the Erebuni Plaza Business Center and cordoned it off shortly after the gunfire. “The situation is under control,” a police spokesman told reporters outside the building. In an ensuing written statement, the national police service said that its acting chief, Arman Sargsian, personally negotiated with the gunman and that the latter handed his weapon and surrendered as a result. The unidentified man was then taken to a police station in Sargsian’s car, according to the statement, “No citizens were injured,” added the statement. “All circumstances of the incident are being clarified.” The police said nothing about the man’s demands or motives.

 

  • Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said he is ready to meet his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov in the near future, News.am said. When asked about the meeting by MP Arman Abovyan, Mnatsakanyan said they have certain arrangements. The Minister also noted that he attaches great importance to the participation of Karabakh in negotiations. “The issue of Karabakh’s participation in the peaceful settlement of the conflict remains on the agenda, and we have repeatedly explained the reasons. It is very important to have direct participation of an entity that has elected authorities, a political entity,” he added.

 

  • In the framework of the World Economic Forum in Davos, President Armen Sarkissian met with the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Suma Chakrabarti, the Presidential Office informed. Noting that Armenia and EBRD are long-standing partners, President Sarkissian noted with satisfaction the efficient cooperation between the two and successful implementation of different projects in various areas. Suma Chakrabarti in his turn underscored the effective cooperation with the government of Armenia and said that EBRD was resolute to continue assistance to Armenia. President Sarkissian reiterated Armenia’s proposal to hold the 2021 annual meeting of EBRD in Armenia. The parties exchanged views on the prospects of implementation of new projects, development of the financial market, and new opportunities of cooperation in the IT area.

 

  • According to BBC, President Donald Trump's legal team, representing him at his impeachment trial, has demanded that he is immediately acquitted by the Senate. In a brief submitted on Monday, they called the impeachment "a dangerous perversion" of the constitution. Meanwhile House impeachment managers submitted their own brief, saying Mr Trump engaged in "corrupt conduct… to cheat in the next election". Impeachment hearings will begin on Tuesday at 13:00 (18:00 GMT). Mr Trump is charged with abusing his presidential power by asking Ukraine to investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden – and of obstructing Congress as it looked into his conduct.

 

Sources: https://www.president.am, https://www.azatutyun.am/en, https://armenpress.am, https://news.am/eng/, https://www.reuters.com/, https://www.bbc.com/.

 

 

ARF 129th Anniversary Marked with New Members Joining its Ranks

Christine Harutyunian
January 31,  2020

More than 750 community members celebrated the ARF’s 129th anniversary

With a slogan of “For the Homeland, With the People,” the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western U.S. Central Committee marked the party’s 129th anniversary through a series of events and programs on January 25 and 26, including a ceremony during which 25 new members joined the ranks of the party and an innovative broadcast that, this year, replaced the traditional ARF Day celebration, which is customarily held in a large auditorium.

A commitment ceremony was held on Saturday, January 25 at Ferrahian High School’s Dickranian Hall, where 24 novices (one was unable to attend), having completed a six-month educational program, joined the ranks of the ARF. The ceremony began with ARF Western U.S. Education committee member Aram Manoukian inviting the novitiates to the front and introducing long-time ARF leader Arto Keuleyan, who officiated the ceremony.

In his remarks, Keuleyan announced that the new members will be inducted into the organization as the Rosdom generation, in honor of one of the three founders of the ARF.

The youth dominated the ARF Day celebration

In his remarks, he cited the great ARF leaders, Simon Vratsian, who in his writings had said, “If Kristapor was the mind and the will of the ARF and Zavarian was its heart and conscience, Rosdom was [the ARF’s] mind, will and conscience—he was the [embodiment of] ARF in all its essence.”

Keulyan said that Vratsian has had an indelible impact on his life, reminding the novices that “the ARF is a not a group for optimistic dreamers. It is an organization for our shared struggle. It is a political party that requires effort and hard work.”

Mistress of Ceremonies Mirna Kassmanian

He urged the new members to be ready take party in any effort that advances the collective interests with the conviction of the ARF’s Program and ideology.

On behalf of the ARF Western U.S. Central Committee, Razmig Shirnian welcomed the new members, adding that during the novitiate program they were introduced to the ARF’s ideology and learned that the organization’s—and the ARF member’s—sole purpose was in service to the Armenian people and the Armenian Nation.

Following the ceremony, the ARF Western U.S. Central Committee hosted a gathering at the adjacent Avetissian Hall, where more than 750 community members joined in celebrating the ARF’s 129th anniversary. The event featured a rousing performance by popular singer Harout Pamboukjian who enlivened the evening with his music and rendition of patriotic songs.

The celebration’s Mistress of Ceremonies Mirna Kassamanian welcomed the guests and, in brief remarks, said that ARF anniversary celebration should serve as an opportunity for all to recommit themselves to the ideals of the party and to advance the Armenian Cause.

This year, by a decision of the ARF Western U.S. Central Committee, the annual gathering marking the party’s anniversary was changed to an hour-long television broadcast that aired on January 26 at 6 p.m. on Horizon Television, US Armenia and ARTN/Shant channels, and was live-streamed on the social media platforms of Asbarez, Horizon and ARF Western Region. The aim of this experimental and innovative approach was to reach more people with the ARF’s message provide an accounting of the organization’s activities to a wider audience. According analytics from the social media platforms, tens of thousands of people tuned in to the broadcast, with several ARF chapters hosting watch parties in local community centers, allowing hundreds to come together and mark the venerable party’s anniversary.

Two people who crawled from under barbed wire at Armenia border checkpoint are detained

Christine Harutyunian
News.am, Armenia
Jan 26 2020

13:53, 26.01.2020
                  

Two people who crawled from under barbed wire at Armenia’s border checkpoint Armavir Province have been detained.

Yesterday, at about 5:30pm, police received a call from the Russian border guard military unit that they had found two persons without documents at the Yervandashat-Bagaran precinct, who reported that they were locals, shamshyan.com reported.

Armavir Province residents Igor B., 25, Mkhitar P., 27, were taken to a police station from the area monitored by the border guards in the Yervandashat administrative district.

Igor B. had a machine gun, and Mkhitar P. had a gun with several bullets.

It turned out that the same day at about 4:30pm they entered a protected area of the restricted border zone by crawling from under the barbed wire running across Yervandashat to hunt. They were detected at the exact spot, and with their weapons.

Police are preparing a report on the case.

A number of forensic examinations have been appointed.

Igor B. and Mkhitar P. are detained.



Armenian MP sends letter to Bundestag over ethnic discrimination scandal

Christine Harutyunian

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 20:16,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Chairman of the National Assembly Standing committee on Science, Education, Culture, Diaspora, Youth and Sport Mkhitar Hayrapetyan sent a letter to the colleagues of the German Bundestag on behalf of the members of the committee over the incident that Azerbaijani singer Yusif Eyvazov refused to sing with Armenian singer Ruzan Mantashyan in Dresden on February 7, citing her being Armenian.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of Mkhitar Hayrapetyan, the letter reads as follows,

“Honorable Mrs. Budde, the participation of soprano Ruzan Mantashyan living in Hamburg in Dresden Opera Ball scheduled on February 7 has been cancelled by the request of Azerbaijani tenor Yusif Eyvazov, who refused to sing with a singer of Armenian origin.

Such xenophobic incidents in the sphere of culture are inadmissible. It’s an obvious disrespect towards culture. Culture was and remains one of the most effective platforms for establishing dialogue and new bridges between nations, which goes beyond politics and ethnic belonging. Respect and equality of artists presenting various nations and cultures should be preserved here.

We draw the attention of our colleagues at the Bundestag to this concerning fact. We hope that you, being supporters of the struggle against racial discrimination and xenophobia, will keep the issue in focus”.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Music: Today marks Armenian composer Arno Babajanyan’s 99th birth anniversary

Christine Harutyunian
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 21 2020
Culture 11:29 21/01/2020Armenia

Today, 21 January marks the 99th birth anniversary of Arno Babajanyan, a renowned Armenian composer and pianist of the Soviet era.

The composer was born in Yerevan on the day when Lenin died. Because of that, his father changed his birth date to January 22.

By age 5, Babajanyan's extraordinary musical talent was clearly apparent, and composer Aram Khachaturian suggested that the boy be given proper music training. Two years later, in 1928 at the age of 7, Babajanyan entered the Yerevan State Musical Conservatory, the Music of Armenia reported.

In 1938, he continued his studies in Moscow with Vissarion Shebalin. He later returned to Yerevan, where from 1950–1956 he taught at the Yerevan State conservatory. It was during this period that he wrote the Piano Trio in f# sharp minor. It received immediate acclaim and was regarded as a masterpiece from the time of its premiere.

Subsequently, he undertook concert tours throughout the Soviet Union and Europe. In 1971, he was named a People’s Artist of the Soviet Union. As a composer, Babajanyan was active in most genres and even wrote many popular songs in collaboration with the leading poets such as Yevgeny Yevtushenko and Robert Rozhdestvensky among others.

Much of Babajanyan’s music is rooted in Armenian folk music and folklore. But generally, the way in which he uses Armenian folk music is in the virtuosic style of Rachmaninov and Khachaturian. His later works were influenced by Prokofiev and Bartok. Praised by Dmitri Shostakovich as a "brilliant piano teacher", Babajanyan was also a noted pianist and often performed his own works in concerts.

He received the Stalin Prize of 1950 for his Heroic Ballad for Piano and Orchestra and the Order of the Red Banner of Labour. He was People's Artist of the Armenian SSR (1956) and Soviet Union (1971). He was a laureate of two Stalin State Prizes of the USSR (1951, 1953) and two Armenian SSR State Prizes (1967, 1983).

Arno Babajanyan died on November 11, 1983, in Moscow and is buried at Komitas Pantheon in Yerevan. 

Fresno’s Honorary Consul of Republic Armenia responds to historic genocide resolution vote and how the Senate will react

Christine Harutyunian
Your Central Valley, CA
Nov 1 2019
Fresno's Honorary Consul of Republic Armenia responds to historic genocide resolution vote and how the Senate will react          

News Nov 1, 2019 / 03:08 AM PDT

Fresno's Honorary Consul of Republic Armenia responds to historic genocide resolution vote and how the Senate will react


Watch the repot at


U.S. Congress to vote on resolution to commemorate Armenian genocide

Christine Harutyunian
Ahval News
Oct 26 2019
U.S. Congress to vote on resolution to commemorate Armenian genocide

2019-10-26

The U.S. Congress is poised to vote next week on a resolution to commemorate the 1915 Armenian genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire, a move that supporters say is driven in part by fears of potential Turkish atrocities against the Kurds in northern Syria, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Most international scholars and 29 countries recognise the events starting in 1915 as a genocide; Turkey, however, admits that massacres took place but rejects the term genocide.

The United States has issued annual statements on Apr. 24, the date when mass deportations began in 1915, now held as the annual Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day.

The U.S. Congress has considered moving a similar resolution to recognise the Armenian genocide several times over the last several decades, but has pulled back due to pressure from Turkey and the U.S. administrations’ concerns about alienating a NATO ally, the WSJ said. 

“Turkey opposes all legislative steps and other official acts that try to render judgment on its history. This issue should be left to the historians,” the Turkish Embassy in Washington said this week in a written statement. 

The embassy said that the resolution would not serve the interests of Turks and Armenians, and also of the United States.

“While the State Department does not generally comment on pending legislation, our policy on this issue is clear: The United States recognises the Meds Yeghern was one of the worst mass atrocities of the 20th century,” a State Department spokeswoman told the WSJ, using an Armenian phrase that means “great calamity” instead of genocide. 

Aram Hamparian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of America, said the State Department’s statement could be interpreted as neutral on the resolution. “It could serve as a signal to the president’s allies on the Hill,” he said.

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, the only Armenian-Assyrian member of Congress who pushed for the vote, said in an interview that a historical bell had rung in her mind when she had learned about U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to withdraw American troops in northern Syria to clear the way for Ankara’s military operations into Kurdish-controlled territories along its border that was launched on Oct. 9 and lasted nine-days. 

Eshoo’s personal appeal carried weight because she lost family members in the massacre and her parents fled persecution in the region, but she said there was already support for the resolution. 

“Each leader that I spoke to agreed that they thought it should be brought up, so there wasn’t any hesitation on anyone’s part,” Eshoo said.

Art: “Ararat. The Holy Mount” exhibition opens at Armenia’s National Gallery

Christine Harutyunian
Public Radio of Armenia
Oct 15 2019
 
 
“Ararat. The Holy Mount” exhibition opens at Armenia’s National Gallery
 
 
An exhibition titled “Ararat. The Holy Mount” opened today at the Armenian National Gallery.
 
The exclusive exhibition embraces paintings and graphic works of Armenian classic and contemporary artists, including  Gevorg Bashinjaghian, Martiros Sarian, Hakob Kojoyan, Georgy Yakulov, Yeghishe Tadevossian, Stepan Aghajanian, Sedrak Arakelian, Panos Terlemezian, Hovhannes Zardaryan,Petros Konturajian, Grigor Khanjyan, Seyran Khatlamajian, Ruben Grigoryan and others. The majority of the works are “pure” landscapes.
 
Along with the same common motif of Mount Ararat and the Ararat Valley, the biblical mount is in its own way represented in the canvases of each artist thus expressing the artist’s own perceptions and feelings. It begets the innermost feelings of national spirit, love and pride in homeland numerous generations have been nurtured and brought up with.
 
As home of humanity, Mount Masis rises in its primeval majesty (“Noah Descending Mount Ararat”, 1889 by H. Aivazovsky, “Mount Ararat”, 1912 by G. Bashinjaghian, “Mount Ararat”, 1968 by H. Zardaryan). As an important part of homeland’s collective image it completes the beauty of the nature in a number of paintings (“Mount Ararat”, 1929 by M. Sarian, “Armenia”, ca 1927 by G. Yakulov, “Mount Ararat”, 1914 by Ye. Tadevossian, “Mount Masis in Autumn”, 1922 by P. Terlemezian and “Mount Ararat”, 1985 by S. Khatlamajian).
 
In some canvases the Mount is represented as a centuries-old evidence of the ties between the past and the present (“Yerevan on the Background of Mount Ararat in Spring”, 1923 by St. Aghajanian, “Mount Ararat at Sunset”, 1961 by G. Gyurjian and “Khor Virap and the Lesser Ararat” by V. Karapetyan).