Author: Jabejian Elizabeth

Iraqi priests defy bombers in half-empty churches

By Matthew Green

BAGHDAD, Aug 8 (Reuters) – Priests thundered defiance on Sunday at
attackers who bombed Iraqi churches a week ago, but fears of more
strikes ensured they were preaching to half-empty pews.

Blasts at five churches in Iraq killed 11 people during evening
prayers last Sunday — inspiring dread among some of Iraq’s 800,000
Christians and invigorating the faith of others.

“We have paid the price of love in Iraq with our blood,” Catholic
Archbishop Antoine Atamian said at Baghdad’s Armenian church, where
the scorched wreckage of a car tipped on its side by one of the blasts
still lay in the street.

“We’re not worried about physical death, we fear the death of the
principles of love and compassion that make up the soul of Iraq,” said
Atamian, who represents the Armenian denomination, one of several
Christian communities in Iraq.

Above him, shards of stained glass dangled from a high window
shattered by the explosion — although the solemn figure of an
Armenian saint in the panel had been spared destruction.

Worshippers at the church said about a third of the usual 600 people
attended mass on Sunday, a major break with tradition for Iraqi
Christians who pride themselves on a much stauncher level of devotion
than in many European countries.

Leaving the church, built with solid arches and an imposing bell
tower, locals said nowhere was safe in Baghdad, where the sound of
mortars and rockets starts soon after sundown most days.

“What can you do?” shrugged May Yousif, 46, who designed the stained
glass damaged in the blast. “At home all night we hear bombing, it’s
the same everywhere.”

Dwarfed by a mainly Muslim population of 25 million, Iraq’s Christians
have been gripped by anxiety since last year’s U.S.-led invasion
toppled Saddam Hussein, who had largely left them free to worship as
they pleased.

Last week’s blasts crushed any hope Christians had of avoiding the
kind of attacks on mosques staged in the past year in apparent
attempts to stir sectarian strife among Muslims.

“THEY WANTED TO KILL PEOPLE”

Divided into various close-knit denominations — such as Armenians,
Assyrians and Chaldeans — many members of the various Christian
communities share a growing sense that they might be targeted for
their religion.

At the Syrian Catholic Church, where workmen gathered to repair damage
caused by another car bomb blast, only about 70 of the usual
1,000-strong congregation made it to a makeshift mass held on Sunday
in a nearby hall.

“They won’t come as they used to before,” said Reverend Raphael
Kutaimi, one of the senior clergy. “They wanted to kill people in the
church, of course this will affect our members.”

Priests have urged Christians to resist the temptation to quit Iraq to
join their brethren in countries such as neighbouring Syria, fearing
an exodus of hundreds of their co-religionists will sap the life force
of their community.

“We will not flee Iraq, our blood was mingled with the blood of Iraq’s
martyrs,” said Peter Haddad, at the church of Mary in Baghdad, where a
good deal of bare wood from pews was visible during his
thinly-attended service.

“We, Muslims and Christians, are united in our efforts and hearts in
this country and over this land,” he said.

For Christians like Leon Terzian, 72, an architect who designed the
Armenian church to echo temples of pre-Christian fire-worshippers, the
attacks simply reinforced his faith.

“After each difficulty, a person goes to God and prays,” he said,
speaking near an altar adorned with vases of red roses. “Christians
never ask for revenge, just for forgiveness.”

(Additional reporting by Omar Anwar and Seif Fuad)

08/08/04 09:11 ET

CONGRESSMAN HUNTER PLEDGES MEMBERSHIP TO ARMENIAN CAUCUS

WASHINGTON, August 9, (Noyan Tapan). During the meeting with the
Armenian Assembly of America on August 6, Congressman Duncan Hunter
pledged to join the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, reported
the Armenian Assembly of America. “We’re pleased that Congressman
Hunter has pledged to join the Armenian Caucus,” said Assembly Western
Office Director Lena Kaimian. “Congressman Hunter is keenly aware of
the issues facing the Armenian-American community, having championed
legislation recognizing the Armenian Genocide and calling on Turkey to
acknowledge the atrocities of 1915,” she emphasized. According to
Kaimian, such important issues as the need for Congress to maintain
military aid parity between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Fiscal Year
2005 Foreign Operations bill were raised by the Assembly delegation.

The group said that attempts to provide Azerbaijan $6 million more
than Armenia in military financing would disrupt the careful balance
between the neighboring countries. Congressman Hunter, who is Chairman
of the influential House Armed Services Committee and a member of the
Select Committee on Homeland Security, commended Armenia’s efforts on
the war on terror and its participation in Iraq. Rev. Father Datev
Tatoulian of St. John’s Armenian Church, Assembly Fellow Trustees
Rouben Avsharian and Gary Takessian and Affiliate Members Serop
Karoglanian and Joanie Schwarz were also present at the meeting. The
Armenian Caucus has focused on strengthening the U.S.-Armenia and
U.S.-Karabakh relationships, searching for a peaceful solution to the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict, ending the Turkish and Azerbaijani
blockades of Armenia and Karabakh, as well as reaffirming the
U.S. record on the Armenian Genocide.

ArmenPress
Aug 6 2004

ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY COMMENTS ON AZERI FOREIGN MINISTRY
STATEMENT

YEREVAN, AUGUST 6, ARMENPRESS: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of
Armenia dismissed Azerbaijan’s most recent efforts to divert
attention from its unwillingness to negotiate a lasting peace. It
said in a statement that whether complaining about Karabakh’s
peaceful, legal, democratic elections, or whether making disparaging
remarks about the people of Nagorno Karabakh and their continued
readiness to defend themselves, their families and their property,
should Azerbaijan’s belligerent rhetoric go beyond mere words, these
statements simply result in a continuation of the atmosphere of
distrust and cynicism.
“In the face of such unproductive discourse, Armenia continues to
be prepared to participate in international organizations’ efforts in
the region, particularly in the upcoming NATO / PfP exercises well as
to continue to remain engaged in the search for a peaceful resolution
to the conflict,” it said.

PRESS OFFICE
Armenian Holy Apostolic Church Canadian Diocese
Contact; Deacon Hagop Arslanian, Assistant to the Primate
615 Stuart Avenue, Outremont Quebec H2V 3H2
Tel; 514-276-9479, Fax; 514-276-9960
Email; [email protected] Website;

Students of St Sahag-St Mesrob Saturday School Returned from Armenia

On July 29, 2004, graduating students of Toronto’s St. Sahag
St. Mesrob School arrived from Armenia in a very high spirit and with
great enthusiasm. On Sunday, August 1, the group attended the Divine
Liturgy at the Holy Trinity Armenian Church and received Holy
Communion.

Prior to his sermon, Rev. Fr. Zareh Zargarian, Pastor of the church,
invited the students to come forward to the presbytery (tas) and to
present their impressions of Armenia. One by one the students related
their memorable experiences and impressions of the
Motherland. Fr. Zargarian then spoke about the importance of
safekeeping and maintaining the Armenian cultural and national
heritage, as well as of constantly being aware of our sense of
belonging.

Following the Divine Liturgy, a reception was held in the Church’s
Magaros Artinan Hall in honor of Mrs. Sona Zeitlian from Los Angelos,
on the occasion of the publication of her most recent book titled “The
Input of Armenians in Egypt’s Early Middle Ages and Contemporary
History”. The book-launching was organized by the “Gamar” Cultural
Association of Holy Trinity Church. The book was presented by the well
known scholar from Montreal Miss Armine Keoshkerian, who offered a
comprehensive overview of this interesting dissertation. The author
then related pertinent information about the subject and what had
motivated her to write the book. The reception was concluded by
Rev. Fr. Zareh Zargarian’s praise for the book and by his blessings.

Camp Sevan Participants visited St Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral

On Tuesday, August 03, 2004 participants to the Sevan Summer Camp of
the Tekeyan Cultural Association visited St Gregory the Illuminator
Armenian Cathedral to ask for His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian’s
blessings and prayers.

Around 70 children aged between 4-13 gathered at St Gregory the
Illuminator Church and prayed that Almighty God grant the Motherland,
Armenia, family members and beloved ones good health and a prosperous
life. His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate, and Rev Fr
Vazgen Boyajyan greeted the teachers of for the camp and the
participating students.

Mrs. Ardemis Boyadjian is the principal and her assistants are Dzeron
Ohanian, Marie Mouradian, Mariana Tarkonian, Stephanie Boyadjian and
Patrick Kamel.

In his words of praise, Bishop Galstanian expressed his joy and
appreciated the organizers of the Sevan Summer Camp. His Eminence
encouraged the participants to be loyal to Armenian traditions and
values.

First Annual Armenian Youth Pilgrimage to St Catharine’s

The oldest and the first Armenian Apostolic Church in Canada,
St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church of
St. Catharine’s, Ontario, will be hosting the first Annual Armenian
Youth Pilgrimage.

His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian will join the pilgrims from
Montreal, Laval, Toronto and Ottawa at this historic event that will
take place starting Saturday, August 14th. in the evening and continue
on Sunday, August 15th. with the 74th. Annual “Blessing of the
Grapes” Holy Badarak and traditional Picnic.

His Holiness Karekin II Extends Sympathies to Pope John Paul II

His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All
Armenians, has sent a letter of sympathy and support to Pope John Paul
II, related to the terrorist events directed against Catholic churches
in Iraq on August 1, 2004.

The letter of His Holiness states in part, “We are saddened that some
extreme elements are attempting to endanger the centuries of
friendship and peaceful co-existence among the Christian and Muslim
peoples of the East, and offer our prayers to the Almighty that the
love of our Lord Jesus Christ will enter into the hearts of men,
reconcile them one to another, and that violence and war will be
eliminated from the region and all of humanity.”

The Catholicos of All Armenians has sent a similar letter to the
Patriarch of the Armenian Catholics, His Beatitude Nerses Bedros XIX.

Statement from Mother See on Church Bombings in Iraq

The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin learned with sorrow from the
Armenian Diocese of Iraq of the terrorist events of August 1, the
result of which caused loss of life and many to be injured. Five
churches were damaged, among them being an Armenian Catholic church.
The Armenian Apostolic churches and Diocesan headquarters of Iraq were
not attacked or damaged.

The Armenian Apostolic Holy Church expresses her sympathies to the
families of the victims and all Iraqi people, and wishes complete
recovery to the wounded and injured. We pray that the centuries of
friendship and peaceful co-existence among Christian and Muslim
peoples in the East will not be endangered by similar condemnable
violence; for peace to be re-established in the region; and that the
Iraqi people continue with the creation of their safe and progressing
lives.

Montreal Children’s Hospital

The Armenian Holy Apostolic Church Canadian Diocese team gave a
helping hand to its community on the occasion of the 89th
commemorative anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. After a “Toy
Drive” that took place in the spring, the team came for a visit at The
Children’s on April 22, 2004, to distribute the toys the young
patients.

The Diocese of the Armenian Church of Canada;
Prayers Needed For Maritsa Rina Laleyan-Yemenidjian

Maritsa Rina Laleyan-Yemenidjian, age 52, of Montreal, Canada, is
presently in deep coma at Sacre Coeur Hospital in Montreal. The
Diocese of the Armenian Church of Canada asks the faithful to pray for
the full recovery and well being of Maritsa Rina Laleyan-Yemenidjian.

Anyone wishing to send prayer notes and caring thoughts may do so by
writing to the attention of Deacon Hagop Arslanian at [email protected]
and they will be forwarded to the Yemenidjian Family.

The power of prayer will bring miracles to this family and they need
our support via this prayer request.

MONETARY BASE TOTALED 106.3BLN. AMD IN JANUARY-JUNE, 2004

YEREVAN, AUGUST 3. ARMINFO. In January-June, 2004, Armenia’s monetary
base decreased by 10.4% and totaled 106.3bln. AMD. According to the
preliminary data of the Armenian CB, in June it increased by 2.3%.

In January-June, 2004, in the monetary base structure net external
assets decreased by 9.2%, and in June alone increased by 4%., totaling
139.7bln. AMD. The CB-set AMD/USD average exchange rate totaled
558.18 AMD/US $1 in Jan-June, 2004, and 543.90 AMD/US $1 in June
alone.

According to the CB, net internal assets remained negative and
decreased by 5.1%, and increased 9.9% in June alone, totaling 33.4bln
AMD. This is accounted for by a decrease in government liabilities by
31.5bln. AMD, to a negative level of 32.3bln. AMD, these increasing by
13.3% in June. As regards bank liabilities, they increased by 5.8% in
January-June, 2004, and by 97.8% in June alone, totaling
9.1bln. AMD. Other assets, remaining negative, decreased from
12.3bln. AMD to 10.2bln. AMD in January-June inclusive, which is by
57.4% higher than the indicator of May.

The CB’s monetary program for 2004 envisages a 9.1% average annual
increase in the monetary base and a 4.9% increase by the end of the
year.

La Nouvelle République du Centre Ouest
02 août 2004

La grande croix de Saint-Lazare à Dominique Morche

La duchesse de Brissac, Grand prieur de Saint-Lazare, a remis samedi
après midi à Tours, en présence de l’archevêque honoraire Monseigneur
Honoré, la grande Croix, la plus haute distinction de l’ordre
militaire et hospitalier, à Dominique Morche.

Celui-ci avait participé à sept missions en ex-Yougoslavie et au
Kosovo durant les années quatre-vingt-dix, ceci pour le compte de
l’ordre de Saint-Lazare, qui compte quelque 5.000 membres à travers
le monde. L’ordre gère un certain nombre d’hôpitaux et de
dispensaires, comme à Jérusalem, Cracovie ou au Sénégal. Il participe
actuellement à la construction d’un hôpital à Erevan et de trois
dispensaires en Arménie.

Woman, 27, is latest victim of attacks on Russian journalists

The Independent – United Kingdom;
Jul 31, 2004

Andrew Osborn in Moscow

NATALIA ROMANOVA, a well-respected financial journalist at the weekly
Russian business magazine Company, had just walked into the stairwell
of her apartment inn Moscow with her day’s shopping when an attacker
struck.

The man waiting for her said nothing, stole nothing and betrayed no
emotion. Instead, he silently administered a savage beating to the
27-year-old reporter, repeatedly punching her in the face and head. He
left her body crumpled on the floor, her face a bloodied mess. She is
still in hospital today.

Police have opened a criminal investigation into Wednesday’s attack,
made public yesterday, but Ms Romanova’s colleagues think they know
why she was beaten so viciously. Her attack, they suspect, is the
latest in a long line of assaults, some of which end in death, on
Russia’s beleaguered journalistic community.

Earlier this month, Paul Klebnikov, the American-born editor of the
Russian edition of Forbes magazine, was murdered and the corpse of an
Armenian journalist, Paul Peloyan, was found dumped on Moscow’s outer
ring road.

Sixteen journalists have lost their lives in dubious circumstances in
Russia since 2000. Police in St Petersburg are currently searching for
Maxim Maximov, an investigative reporter who has been missing for over
a month.

Ms Romanova’s boss and chief editor, Andrei Grigoriev, believes she
was targeted because she wrote something that offended someone in
Russia’s powerful and often shadowy business world.

“In almost every issue, we carry something about business conflicts,
about the struggle for some kind of new market, about a clash of
interests,” he said yesterday. “I’m fairly certain the attack was
linked to her work. It could be simple hooliganism but it seems
unlikely.”

Ms Romanova was holding a purse, keys and an expensive mobile phone
when she was attacked, but nothing was taken.

Mr Grigoriev says it is difficult to say which article might have
triggered the attack but notes that the magazine has covered the
recent banking crisis in Russia a lot and that the sector is “under
real strain”.

“Sometimes you can write something that looks innocent but which has
serious and decisive implications for somebody else. You just never
know.”

Although Mr Grigoriev says Russia’s journalists are not panicking yet,
he says the situation is worrying. “Journalists have been beaten and
killed before, in the 1990s, but it appears to be starting again.”

armenianow.com
July 30, 2004

Vacation Armenian Style: Up on ” Miracle Mountain”

By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter

“From the top of Azhdahak the world has a completely different picture. It’s
there where you feel the kind of wind which evokes unusual feelings in your
soul and prepares you to fly with it. You look at it and imagine how the
volcano erupted. Only from that height one can notice the flawless work of
nature.”
Fifty-five year old Gegham Harutyunyan of the village of Geghard is not a
poet, but speaks poetically about his mountain home.
Gegham lives in a village in the highlands,1,900 meters above sea level. But
he is used to even higher territories since he is the man everyone comes to
if they want to go up to the mountains.
For Armenian vacationers Gegham is a guide to that “flawless work of nature”
. He knows the territory by heart. He says he spent his life wearing out
those mountains.

Small lakes add to the mountain’s magic
The road to Azhdahak, the highest peak of Geghama mountain range, goes right
through the village where Gegham lives. Before going up the next day, the
famous village guide draws the approximate route on a paper. On a table he
lays out a physical map of Armenia and explains in details the disposition
of the ranges. Then he calls the principal of the village school Vigen
Taroyan since only his “Vilis” car can make that road.
In order to go up to the mountains one has to wake up early in the morning
when village roosters start crowing between night and dawn. Gegham’s wife
gives home made cheese and lavash to eat on the way. Gegham doesn’t forget
to take several bottles of Armenian beer. He says all of it tastes
differently in the mountains.
The road up Geghama is difficult. Vigen always warns to hold on and sit
firmly. Passing the rocky roads the “Vilis” drives higher with difficulty.
In some places some place one has to walk.
“Last time I escorted like this a group from Moscow to Azhdahak. There were
about 10 people. They were riding bicycles. They also had a small map. They
got to Azhdahak, saw the Vanki Lake and from there they passed through
mountains to Martuni, then they were to go up the Selim mountain pass and
down to Yeghegnadzor. They were circling around Armenia,” tells Gegham.
In the mountains there’s a whole parade of wildflowers. Different kinds of
flowers grow at the bottom, but the higher you go the more they gradually
disappear. The foot of every mountain is covered with only one special kind
of flower which you won’t come across on another height. From higher above
fields of flowers are like multicolored blankets dressing the foothills.
Vigen’s brother, Vahagn Taroyan, who is a historian, says, “The higher you
are, the colder the air is and they cannot sustain that climate. No flowers
ever grow on slopes of Azhdahak.”
In the mountains one can also come across yaylavors (Yezidis, who take
cattle to the mountains and live there during the summer). Gegham says
pastures here provide wonderful conditions for cattle. Shepards’ dogs with
shortened ears run towards the car and keep on barking.
“Their ears are long and when covered their hearing becomes worse. They cut
them so that the dogs can hear better. Some say it is so they can avoid
being bitten by wild animals. They control the cattle so that especially at
night wolves don’t get them,” says Vahagnn.
Several months during the year Yezidis’ tents break the mountains’ solitude.
They go up to the mountains with their families and for a while they live
isolated from the world, but merged with the nature.

History rocks
Towards the West next to Azhdahak is the Paytasar ( Horseshoe Mountain),
which gets its name by its shape.
“There are two Paytasars, a big one and a small one. Water always collects
on the small one, they are volcanic cones, meaning small lakes on mountain
peaks,” explains Gegham.
At the bottom of Paytasar there’s the tent of a Yezidi sheikh. Here, they
know well the guide of Geghard. One of the Yezidi women treats the hikers
with newly made lavash, and even the bread has a different taste in the
mountains. The air is so cold that a person must constantly move to stay
warm.
At the bottom of Paytasar is found a pile of black stones, petroglyphs (rock
carvings).
“We call those ‘chngli stones’. These stones are covered with black color,
traces of volcanic lava, so if you scratch the stone you can see the basalt
underneath,” says Gegham.
He thinks petroglyphs are similar to observatories on which ancient people
depicted whatever they saw in the sky, constellations of Libra, the Great
Bear. Gegham says he has brought many people to show them the petroglyphs.
Years ago a professor from Warsaw University came here and Gegham took her
near Naltapa, which is farther and there are bigger “chnglis” there. Last
year he brought members of the Archeology Institute here.
The petroglyphs include hunting scenes, deer and sheep.
“Now there aren’t so many different animals in this area. Supposedly, once,
in these very areas in warm and damp conditions of the land there were
forests, rich with various animals. Otherwise, people wouldn’t simply come
here to make petroglyphs,” says Vahagn.
He also tells how last summer they brought here a tourist from Egypt to the
mountain site.
“Her name was Hurik, she was Egyptian Armenian, an archeologist. I don’t
even know where she found out about those petroglyphs. She came, took
pictures in one day and then went back,” says Vahagn.
Ahead is Azhdahak, surrounded with many mountains. Their peaks are embracing
the grey and white clouds. In some places one can notice large layers of
snow that rebel against the warm summer weather.
The old name of Azhdahak is Gzldagh. It is the third highest peak in Armenia
after Aragats and Kapuit Jugh (in Zangezur). The mountain is cone shaped and
is 3,598 meters high. On the north side of the peak starts the Gavaraget
river. The ascent towards Azhdahak is rather hard. It stars raining.

“We look at the neighboring mountains bottom-up, but from the top of
Azhdahak we look at them top-down. From that height one can see the small
natural lakes on mountain peaks. It’s an indescribable view,” Gegham says.
The weather is getting worse. The ascending has to stop for a while. Gegham
describes the lake on the top of Azhdahak.
“The mountain is an extinguished volcano. And the lake atop it covers 2
hectares and is rather deep. The ice on the western side melts very late,
meaning there’s ice almost throughout the year. It melts late July or early
August.”
He says that on the left to Azhdahak on the top of one of the mountains
there’s another natural lake which is called Kani Gyol and which melts more.
During Soviet years there was also a weather station there.
At the bottom of Azhdahak there are 10 dragon-stones. Dragon-stones are
pagan stones which for ancient Armenians symbolized the God of Water in the
shape of a fish. Vahagn says dragon-stones are evidence that in this area
there were old settlements where dragon-stones were carved.
“When they came from the Archeology Institute in autumn, they never managed
to figure out more clearly what century it belongs to,” adds Gegham.

Shepherds make temporary homes
Many years ago Gegham went there with architect Sahinyan who did the
reconstruction of Garni temple. The architect tells him that dragon-stones
are even older than Urartu kingdom and have a history of 4-5,000 years.
During Soviet years Gegham took one of those dragon-stones to his office and
put it in a pool. However, someone betrayed him.
“Some police came and took me. It’s an old story. Now, that very
dragon-stone is in the pool next to Aragast cafe,” he says.
An artificial reservoir built during Urartu kingdom (which reached back to
at least 9 th century BC) is also situated at the bottom of Azhdahak. After
adopting Christianity Geghard Monestary took the lake under its control that
is why until today it is called the Vank Lake.
“The waters of Vank Lake irrigating Garni fields reach ‘Tokhmakh Gyol’ (a
territory in Yerevan) and from there to Dalma Gardens. The Lake is filled
with water of the melted snow in the mountains,” says Gegham.
Next, trekkers can see Spitakasar (White Mountain) which is completely from
obsidian. Vahagn says they also often call that stone”Satan’s Nail”. A
little bit aside there’s the Karmir Sar (Red Mountain) which is 3,000 meters
high. On the top of Karmir Sar there’s also a wonderful lake. Gegham says he
went up there with his wife. They call it Red since it consists of volcanic
slag. On the other side of the mountains is the Gegharkunik region.
Seven springs start from this area. The biggest of them is called Shah
Bulakh, which in Armenian means Spring of Shah.
A little bit above from the western shore of the Vank Lake there are the
tombs of Assyrian kings, which are scientifically proved. According to
Gegham, in 1980s employees of the National Academy of Sciences came and did
serious studies.
“These are round stones, a little high. It’s several of them, not one. They
said these are Assyrian, since before Assyrians have been reigning in
Armenia for centuries,” he explains.
The road back to the village is easier. The “Vilis” descends easier. Gegham
stops it somewhere in the mountains and shows a place like a cave and says
that it’s a natural refrigerator.
“There’s no water, once there used to be a spring here, which dried out. Now
there’s simply a draft, which makes the air even colder.”
He places the beer bottles right there and only thirty minutes later it’s
ready for drinking.
It’s a pity the weather wasn’t good enough. The whole of Armenia is seen
from that height, Lake Sevan on one hand, Ararat valley and Yeghegnadzor on
the other. In a word, on the top of Azhdahak you interact with the real
miracle of life,” says Gegham.

BP Faces Problems Over Caspian Pipeline

International Oil Daily
26 July 2004

By Michael Ritchie

LONDON — BP said on Monday that it hopes to resume work on a section
of its crucial 1 million barrel per day Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan crude oil
pipeline on Aug. 2, after the former Soviet republic of Georgia called
for a temporary halt to construction because of environmental
concerns.

But diplomatic sources say the new government that took power in
Tbilisi last year, after ousting veteran Georgian leader Eduard
Shevardnadze in a bloodless revolution, could create more problems for
the $3 billion project.

The 1,768 kilometer pipeline is being backed by the US as a way of
exporting oil from fields in the Caspian Sea at the same time as
achieving strategic goals. It will reduce Russia’s grip on exports
from the region’s former Soviet states, will avoid routing exports
south through Iran, and will direct flows through Nato ally Turkey,
which stands to earn handsome transit fees from the traffic.

Georgia, for its part, is in line to bank $1 billion in transportation
tariffs from the line over the next 20 years.

But with at least 50% of the construction work completed on the 248 km
of pipeline that crosses its territory, the Georgian environment
ministry on Jul. 19 requested BP to stop work for two weeks on a 17
km section that crosses the Borjomi region.

“The new government [in Tbilisi] wants to look into the measures being
taken on the pipeline to make sure it is secure,” a BP spokesperson
told International Oil Daily.

But the delay could grow because the new Georgian authorities want to
bring in their own consultants to look at the safety measures that BP
has taken and review new documentation they have requested from the UK
major.

The section of line in question skirts, but does not cross, the
territory of the Borjomi national park, BP says.

Environmentalists have attacked the pipeline for threatening the
ecology of the park, which is a designated area of outstanding natural
beauty and the source of a mineral water famous through the former
Soviet Union.

BP claims it has already implemented special conditions for the
Borjomi stretch of line, such as installing extra valves to ensure
rapid shutdown in the event of a leak, and extra sensors to detect any
earth movements.

It says that work is continuing on the rest of the pipeline in
Georgia, adding that it remains on schedule to start pumping crude
from Baku in Azerbaijan to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan
for export to world markets in the second half of 2005.

Diplomatic sources in the region say the new government in Tbilisi may
try to wring more cash out of BP and its partners to bolster Georgia’s
efforts to bring the breakaway region of South Ossetia back into the
fold.

“This is about money. They need money,” one Georgian politician told
International Oil Daily.

BP maintains that Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has in the
past said that he doesn’t want the pipeline project to be delayed.

But the diplomatic sources said that Saakashvili and two of his
closest political allies, including Prime Minister Zurab Zvania, have
Armenian roots and would sympathize with Armenia’s position of not
wanting to see arch-enemy Azerbaijan rake in huge oil earnings.

The sources point out that work on the pipeline was halted just days
before the visit to Tbilisi of Armenian Prime Minister Andranik
Margaryan for cooperation talks with his Georgian counterpart.

“These guys will try to do anything to delay the project,” the
Georgian politician said.

US engineering giant Bechtel is the contractor for the sections of the
line that cross Azerbaijan and Georgia, while Turkish pipeline concern
Botas is handling the Turkish end.

The line is being built by an international consortium headed by BP,
which has a stake of 30.1%, and includes Azeri state oil company Socar
(25%), Unocal (8.9%), Statoil (8.71%), Turkey’s TPAO (6.53%), Total
and Eni (both with 5%), Itochu (3.4%), ConocoPhillips and Inpex (both
with 2.5%), and Saudi-US venture Delta Hess (2.36%).

Le Monde
27 juillet 2004

Ces artistes étrangers qui ont choisi la France : Seyhmus Dagtekin.
Les mots libres de Seyhmus Dagtekin, pacifique contrebandier de la
langue

L’ÉTÉ DU MONDE CULTURE ;

Le poète et romancier, né et élevé dans un village du Kurdistan turc,
vit à Paris depuis 1987. Il ne s’y sent pas en exil

par Catherine Bédarida

NAÎTRE ICI, vivre là, grandir dans une langue, écrire dans une autre
: le chemin du poète et romancier Seyhmus Dagtekin est une suite de
passages, depuis sa naissance, en 1965, dans un village kurde du
sud-est de la Turquie, jusqu’à sa vie actuelle d’écrivain parisien.
Un itinéraire d’artiste toujours méfiant à l’égard des destins figés,
des identités assignées. « Personne n’est défini une fois pour toutes
par des limites de langue, de territoire ou d’appartenance. Chacun
est en devenir. Chacun peut exister dans une langue autre que celle
de son origine. »

Les hommes de son village vivaient, pour beaucoup, de contrebande,
chevauchant la nuit à travers les frontières afin de se procurer les
mille et un produits manquant dans ces vallées pauvres. Seyhmus
Dagtekin est un contrebandier pacifique, qui chevauche dans la nuit
de la littérature pour ouvrir le monde. « L’univers d’aujourd’hui est
plein de frontières et de toutes sortes de barrières. On vient d’une
culture, d’une langue, d’un pays. Alors on ne pourrait pas se glisser
dans ceux des autres. Je ne partage pas cette conception. L’autre ne
m’est pas étranger, mais seulement inconnu. D’inconnu, il peut me
devenir connu, si j’en fais l’effort. »

L’écrivain a grandi dans une bourgade de montagne au mode de vie
quasi autarcique. « Jusqu’à 10 ans, j’ai vécu au village, où il n’y
avait ni voiture, ni télévision, ni radio. Deux fois par mois, on
descendait au marché acheter le thé et les victuailles », se
souvient-il. Cette enfance, il la raconte – en français – sans
nostalgie dans son premier roman, A la source, la nuit, paru cet
hiver (« Le Monde des livres » du 5 mars).

Au village, l’écrit n’existe pas, sauf sur les emballages d’aliments
ou sur les paquets de cigarettes arrivés en contrebande des pays
arabes voisins. Le kurde, unique langue des villageois, est interdit
par l’Etat turc. Pendant la petite enfance de l’auteur, seuls deux
hommes, dont son père, parlent le turc et lisent l’alphabet latin.
Les années fastes, les paysans font appel à des lettrés pour diriger
les prières du ramadan. Ils apportent le livre sacré, écrit en arabe
que nul villageois ne sait déchiffrer. Mais l’Etat turc construit une
école et nomme un instituteur vers 1970, et l’enfant appartiendra à
la première génération scolarisée du village.

Ce passage en entraînera d’autres – vers la langue turque, vers
l’université à Ankara. Seyhmus Dagtekin y fait des études de
journalisme et d’audiovisuel.

Entre-temps, l’un de ses frères est parti travailler en France comme
ouvrier dans l’industrie lorraine. « En 1974, il a fait partie de la
dernière vague de travailleurs immigrés recrutés par contrat dans
leur pays. » En 1987, Seyhmus rejoint son frère aîné, pour compléter
ses études universitaires. Il « naît au français », selon
l’expression qu’il aime utiliser.

Au cours intensif du début à Nancy succèdent des études de cinéma à
Paris. Ces années-là, la répression turque dans les régions kurdes
est d’une extrême violence. « Je ne suis pas un militant, mais j’ai
la conscience de mon appartenance. Je ne me voyais pas faire mon
service militaire dans une armée qui menait la guerre contre mon
peuple. Je suis resté en France pour éviter d’aller à l’armée, puis
je me suis enraciné. Je me suis replanté dans le terreau de la langue
française, mais je reste l’arbre que j’étais. »

Seyhmus Dagtekin n’a jamais écrit dans sa langue maternelle,
interdite à l’oral comme à l’écrit. Les romanciers kurdes les plus
connus, comme Yacher Kemal, écrivent en turc. L’adolescent suit ce
chemin, pour ses premiers textes. Quatre ans à peine après son
arrivée en France, il commence à écrire en français.

D’entrée, il choisit la poésie, sans doute la porte d’accès la plus
difficile pour un étranger : elle exige, plus encore que la rédaction
d’un essai ou d’un livre document, une appropriation de la langue, un
travail d’émancipation.

Dans ses quatre recueils de poésie, les femmes aimées se prénomment
Agnès ou Cécilia, les lieux évoqués sont Montmartre, Belleville ou
les monts d’Arrée. « Je ne me sens pas en exil, je me place pas comme
étranger », affirme l’auteur.

Son premier roman plonge au contraire dans l’enfance. Il apporte des
éclairages sur la vie dans ces villages reculés. Mais c’est toujours
l’écriture qui prime, le choix d’un angle serré, d’une langue
poétique qui suggère plus qu’elle ne démontre. Fait rare sous une
plume turque, un passage évoque le génocide des Arméniens de 1915 et
la participation de Kurdes aux massacres.

Aujourd’hui, l’écrivain est ancré dans la vie littéraire française.
Il n’est plus retourné en Turquie depuis douze ans, où il reste en
délicatesse avec les autorités, suite à son refus d’effectuer son
service militaire. L’artiste va demander sa naturalisation française,
bien que l’idée de frontières lui reste étrangère. « Quand je suis
arrivé en France, je déchiffrais Les Fleurs du mal, à l’aide du Petit
Larousse. J’étais profondément touché et je ressentais comme une
appartenance immédiate. Je ne suis pas venu avec mes limites. Je suis
venu comme un territoire ouvert. »

NOTES: PROCHAIN ARTICLE Natacha Kouznetsova, danseuse contemporaine
russe