Sports: Beach Volleyball Eastern Europe Championship kicks off in Yerevan

Panorama, Armenia
Sept 7 2017

Armenia’s capital Yerevan will host on September 8-10 the Men’s Eastern Europe Volleyball Championship. The chairman of the Volleyball Federation of Armenia informed 15 countries, including, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and Israel applied for participation in the Championship.

“The Armenian team is represented by Razmik Hakobyan-Arman Miskaryan and Ashot Balabekyan – Andre Simoni pairs. Our boys are ranked the seventh among the 15 teams. I hope we are able to reach the quarter-finals. The tournament is important for being a qualification ahead of the 2010 Summer Olympic games,” Karen Asmaryan has told the press service of the National Olympic Committee.

Azerbaijani gunfire during OSCE monitoring is blow against organization, says Ashotyan

Armenpress News Agency , Armenia
September 2, 2017 Saturday


Azerbaijani gunfire during OSCE monitoring is blow against
organization, says Ashotyan



YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani shooting in
Armenia’s Tavush province during an OSCE monitoring mission was a blow
at OSCE and another attempt to discredit the organization, chairman of
the foreign relations committee of the Armenian parliament Armen
Ashotyan said.

“This was a shooting at OSCE. This was another attempt of discrediting
the organization. The Azerbaijani leadership is in a deadlock in the
negotiations process in terms of diplomacy, and Azerbaijani cannot de
facto give its agreement to the well-known provisions. This is a
consequence of duality, “feed” its own society with certain
statements, and make other statements abroad. Azerbaijan is making
efforts to change the negotiations game”, Ashotyan said.

He mentioned that OSCE and UN are busy with restoring their lost
influence and are unable to respond more rapidly to such incidents.

According to Ashotyan, the OSCE is avoiding the final cutting of ties
with Azerbaijan. He said OSCE knows very well who is doing the
shooting, and it simply avoids opposing in order not to give
Azerbaijan the chance to doubt OSCE’s regulatory mandate.

Artsakh and Armenia winemakers to showcase their products at wine festival

ARKA, Armenia

Aug 23 2017

YEREVAN, August 23. /ARKA/. Dozens of winemakers from Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and Armenia will showcases their products at the fourth annual Artsakh Wine Festival that will be hosted by the village of Togh on September 16, the Artsakh Tourism Development Organization reported.

It said as part of the festival the visitors will be treated to locally-grown agricultural products, see an art exhibition "Treasures of Melik Palace", enjoy concerts of jazz, blues and ethno music. During the festival, group excursions and other events will be organized. In addition, the guests of the festival will be able to taste the dishes of the local cuisine.

The event is aimed at developing event tourism in Artsakh and creating a platform for Armenian and Karabakh winemakers. The latest festival saw more than 2 thousand guests. The event is held at the initiative of the Artsakh ministry of economy. -0-

Aznavour aura son étoile à Hollywood

Luxemburger Wort.lu (French)
dimanche 13 août 2017 15:24 GMT


Aznavour aura son étoile à Hollywood



(AFP) - La légende musicale française Charles Aznavour, à 93 ans, va
enfin recevoir son étoile sur la Promenade de la célébrité de
Hollywood, le «Walk of Fame», a indiqué l'organisme qui les attribue
dans un communiqué mercredi dans la soirée.

«La chambre de commerce d'Hollywood est fière d'annoncer que le
légendaire artiste Charles Aznavour recevra la 2.618 ème étoile sur la
Promenade de la célébrité jeudi 24 août», selon ce communiqué. Elle
sera située sur le célèbre Hollywood boulevard, devant un théâtre
historique de Los Angeles dédié aux comédies musicales, le Pantages.

«Charles Aznavour est un artiste populaire connu à travers le monde et
aimé de millions de fans de toutes générations», a constaté Ana
Martinez, productrice de ces cérémonies sur le «Walk of Fame».

180 millions de disques vendus

Celui qui a été déclaré par un sondage de CNN et Time en 1998 le
«chanteur de variété le plus important du 20e siècle», devant des
icônes comme Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, et Frank Sinatra, a vendu plus
de 180 millions de disques et écrit 1.300 chansons dans de multiples
langues.

Shahnourh Varinag Aznavourian de son vrai nom, né à Paris de parents
arméniens et devenu l'un des plus ardents porte-drapeaux de la
diaspora arménienne, avait reçu à l'automne dernier une étoile
honorifique à l'image de celle qui sera cette fois officiellement
cimentée sur le «Walk of Fame» la semaine prochaine.

«Je viens à Hollywood depuis des années, j'ai beaucoup travaillé aux
Etats-Unis car (...) le pays du +show-business+, c'est l'Amérique»,
avait-il alors déclaré à l'AFP. L'auteur et interprète de «La Bohème»
ou «Mes Emmerdes» est particulièrement populaire à Los Angeles et ses
environs où vit la plus grande communauté arménienne en diaspora.

OSCE MG preparing Azerbaijani, Armenian presidents’ meeting

Express Newsline

Aug 17 2017


Culture: A Generational Question: ‘If You Don’t Speak Armenian, Are You Really Armenian?’

The Armenian Weekly

Aug 17 2017

“If you don’t speak Armenian, are you really Armenian?”

On our walk to the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) offices under the warm D.C. sun, my peers were debating this question loudly. Passionate exclamations ensued, involving the assertion that losing one’s ability to speak Armenian was equivalent to assimilating altogether: ignorant and morally reprehensible.

I walked along quietly, pondering the various assertions of my peers. I appreciated where these arguments came from. Part of me agreed, part of me felt ashamed, and part of me began to question the validity of my “Armenian-ness.” Little did I know this was the same question my grandmother, as well as many other members of my family, have faced over the years.

I am fifth generation Armenian-American on my mother’s side, and third-generation on my father’s. My ancestors in the U.S. all managed to find marriageable Armenians. And so I am considered by some to be “100% Armenian,” or “full Armenian.” That is, before they learn that my knowledge of the Armenian language is at an introductory level at best.

My maternal grandmother, Marilyn Arshagouni, was born in 1935 to one of the earliest Armenian families to settle in Los Angeles—a shocking fact, given that the current Armenian population there is almost half a million. In childhood, she didn’t know many other Armenian families, and the language, though spoken by her father’s family, was not spoken in her home. Despite her lack of knowledge of Armenian, she was smart and hardworking, becoming the first junior at UCLA to be elected to the Phi Beta Kappa honors society and later graduating with highest honors and a BA in English. The English language was her first love, and she went on to study English at graduate school.

Mrs. Marilyn Arshagouni with her granddaughters, Ani and Marie.

When my grandmother married my grandfather in 1956, he began bringing her closer to Armenian culture. He was born and raised in the Armenian Diaspora, in Greece, and so he was a native speaker and had a strong sense of community. Once my grandmother met Richard Hovannisian, a graduate student of Armenian history at UCLA, she furthered her great, though untraditional, contributions to the Armenian community. She helped edit his dissertation, which would become the classic Armenia on the Road to Independence. She then went on to edit the first volumes of his four-volume History of the Republic of Armenia.

For over 25 years my grandmother taught English and history at the Holy Martyrs Ferrahian Armenian High School in Encino, Calif. And she and my grandfather were on the Armenian Monument Council that established the first Armenian Genocide monument on public land in California.

Given her great influence on the Armenian community, I was stunned when I learned of the accusations that she bore the brunt of as an Armenian born in the U.S. It is an accusation that both of my parents have heard countless times. It is one to which I am just now being exposed.

My ancestors have lived in the U.S. for over 100 years. Despite this, my love of Armenian culture is strong, and my yearning to give back to my community even stronger. Ours is an important history and an important story. Each of our experiences is different. Some of us grew up in the midst of an Armenian-speaking community. Others, like my grandmother and me, grew up surrounded at home by an incredible library of Armenian books and culture and friends.

Although my grandmother was never fluent in Armenian as a child, her immersion into the community led her to pick up a considerable amount of the language. It was the same with my mother. I expect that it will be the same for me. I still plan to study Armenian in college. But, as I do so, I will remember that our goal as a Diaspora should be inclusiveness, as a nod to our shared, bitter, and rocky history. It is counterproductive to shun those who have not had the privilege of a strong cultural or linguistic upbringing. As Yeghishe Charents, the famous Armenian writer and poet, wrote, “Oh, Armenian people, your only salvation lies in the power of your unity.”

And so, I disagree with the assertion that one must speak Armenian to truly be Armenian. If that were the case, my grandmother would be an outcast in our greater community, despite her countless contributions. As members of a diaspora, exposure to the Armenian language isn’t all that unites us.

It is our love of community, our blood, our shared history and future, and our determination to help in any way we can. I am beginning to learn that. Although I will continue to face questions from my peers about the validity of my Armenian identity, I embrace my ethnicity wholeheartedly. And as my grandmother did, I will continue to do my part, not only as an Armenian but also as an Armenian in America.

Frank Pallone intends to visit Armenia and Artsakh

ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
 Friday


Frank Pallone intends to visit Armenia and Artsakh

Yerevan August 11

Tatevik Shahunyan. Armenia-USA friendship group co chair, congressman
Frank Pallone intends to visit Armenia and Artsakh.

"In September, I plan to visit Armenia and Artsakh in connection with
the Independence Day of Armenia (September 21, ed.). For members of
the House of Representatives of the Congress, this will be a good
opportunity to achieve the set goals for rapprochement between the US
and Armenia, "Frank Pallon said at a meeting with the Patriarch of the
Jerusalem Diocese of AAC Nurkhan Manukyan, Israeli media reported.

He also said that the friendship group with Armenia in the Congress
continues efforts to bring the United States and Armenia closer and to
support the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict.

Why Did Armenia Not Feel Like Armenia?

Armenian Weekly

Aug 11 2017

 

Why did Armenia not feel like Armenia to me this time?

That is the question I have been trying to answer for the past few days…

Could it be because I did not go sightseeing?

Could it be because I did not meet many new Armenians from other regions?

Could it be because most our time there was spent (ill-advisedly, in hindsight) going to bars and discos with the people we came with?

Could it be that Armenia—where I once thought I would settle down to build a life—is now a more of a place I might live after retirement, if that?

A view of Yerevan from the Mother Armenia monument. The twin peaks of Mount Ararat are in the background. (Photo: David Sullivan)

Let’s take a step back…

After walking around the streets of Yerevan and meeting some of the locals, I began to think more about this country and the state it is in, and whether I could see myself moving there. Most of the locals I met, hearing I was from America, pleaded with me to help them figure out a way for them to go to the States—to (in their view) gain a better life.

I felt great sadness when these people spoke about the troubling times in Armenia and what they saw as a lack of a future for themselves.

I did not have an answer for them. I do not know what the future holds for these people in Armenia. And, to be honest, I don’t know if anyone does.

I met a man whose family moved to Armenia during the Lebanese Civil War. He explained to me how they did exactly what many Syrian-Armenian families are doing now. According to him, his family was “fooled” into thinking Soviet Armenia offered a better life for them and said it was sad how Syrian-Armenians are being “fooled” into believing that, too. He said he could not wait until his children finished school so that he could join the rest of his family in the U.S. I had no answers for him, either.

I met a worker at one of the cafes who asked how he could come to the U.S., even going as far as asking (several times) one of the ungerouhis with me to marry him so that he could go back to the U.S. with her. He explained that he works two jobs, one of which is preparing hookahs for cafe customers, and said his situation is far from ideal. Again, I did not know what advice to give to him.

I met a taxi driver on my trip to the airport. He wanted nothing more than to move to Seattle, Wash., to drive trucks for a living. He drew an extended analogy (which revealed as much about him as about the situation in the country) about how the government is like the father of the family, the opposition is like the wife, those in coalition with the government are like the grandparents, and the people are like the kids. The father sets the rules for the household, he said; the wife does not always obey those rules, but is convinced that in the end she must; the grandparents always agree with the father; and the kids are too young to have a say. He made a comparison to how, in the middle of the night, the kids wake up having soiled themselves and wait for the government to help, but neither government nor opposition agrees to come and “save” the people from their sad state. He said we are the kids, in a soiled state, and there is no one here to help us. On so many levels… I did not know how to respond.

I honestly hope that sharing these encounters does not deter anyone from repatriating to the country. I hope that we, the Diasporan Armenian youth, understand that going to Armenia should not consist of only going to the bars and discos, but rather doing something there that will give back to the people. We obviously cannot bring everyone back to our respective countries and set them up with a nice-paying job and a nice home, but surely we can begin making their lives in Armenia better by helping to improve the quality of their lives and, in that way, perhaps helping them choose to remain in Armenia.

I learned a lot on this trip. I’m embarrassed about the minimal work I did at a soccer clinic hosted by Girls of Armenia Leadership Soccer (GOALS), and I would like to apologize to the people I could have helped and done more for during my stay.

I want to encourage all those going to Armenia, and all those who are still there, to find a way to get more involved with the country and its people. Personally get to know them. Use the many organizations, in Armenia and the Diaspora, that offer opportunities to become more familiar with the country.

The opportunities to better Armenia exist. Let’s come together to make it happen. Find your passion, help others to discover theirs, and let’s come together to help make a positive change for our people and our nation.

Armenian Bar Association Protests Americana’s Rejection of Film Ad

ASBAREZ

Aug 11 2017

Armenian Bar Association

GLENDALE—The Armenian Bar Association, along with its Armenian Rights Watch and Armenian Genocide Reparations committees, has lent its voice to the community-wide uproar and anger over the rejection by Americana at Brand to advertise an Armenian Genocide documentary.

In letter to Americana parent company Caruso Affiliates and Glendale Mayor Vartan Gharpetian, the Armenian Bar Association has expressed its protest over the decision to reject advertisements for “Architects of Denial,” a documentary centering on the denial of the Armenian Genocide and other human rights issues.

In its letter to Caruso Affiliates, the organization argued that the message of the film is not controversial, saying, “The film is about human rights and the prevention of genocide. If the actions which are being taken here against the Architects of Denial were attempted at The Grove on a film that exposes Holocaust denial, there would most certainly be amplified rebuke and scorn by civil and Jewish rights organizations, and the equally certain demand for apology and revelation of the specter of litigation. The same situation is presented here.”

“We believe that banning the advertisement of the film Architects of Denial is arbitrary, discriminatory and capricious. Of note, is the fact that part of the Americana at Brand property is dedicated as a public park where the right to _expression_ is particularly protected. At the very least, the suppression of speech in this context illustrates a profound insensitivity to that which is of significant importance to a majority of Glendale’s citizens,” the Armenian Bar Association letter emphasized.

The letter was signed by Saro K. Kerkonian, Chairman of the Board of Governors; Garo B. Ghazarian, two-term past chairman of the board, current board member and co-chairman of the Armenian Rights Watch Committee; Armen K. Hovannisian, three-term past chairman, current board member and chairman of the Armenian Genocide Reparations Committee; and Karnig Kerkonian, board member and co-chairman of the Armenian Rights Watch Committee.

The same signatories also sent a letter to Glendale Mayor Gharpetian asking for a meeting to discuss this issue.

In Yerevan, in the apartment where the explosion took place, weapons and ammunition were found

ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
August 4, 2017 Friday


In Yerevan, in the apartment where the explosion took place, weapons
and ammunition were found

 Yerevan August 8

Tatevik Shagunyan. In the apartment in the Yerevan administrative
district of Davidashen, where in the evening of 3 August the explosion
exploded, weapons and ammunition were found.

As the RA Police reports, besides the two shells that the ambassadors
immediately found in this apartment, the law enforcers found two more
shells - two artillery shells of 120 mm, one anti-tank mortar, one
missile, all in combat readiness. Sappers of the Ministry of Defense
and operational groups of the Ministry of Emergencies left the scene.

Note that the previous night in the apartment at Davydzhashen 56  2,
owned by RM, an explosion occurred, which resulted in injuring two
citizens - AE. Born in 1997 and N.E. 1985 year of birth. Later N.E.
died in the medical center "Armenia", and A.E. His leg was amputated,
his condition is estimated as extremely difficult.