Author: Jabejian Elizabeth

RA PRESIDENT HOPES, NUMBER OF ARMENIAN STUDENTS IN TOP UNIVERSITIES OF THE WORLD TO GROW EACH YEAR

PanARMENIAN.Net/
11.08.2009 18:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and the RA
Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan met with the Fellows of Luys Foundation
and awarded certificates to students who received scholarships to
study in the top universities of the world. During the meeting the
RA president congratulated students. He noted that for many years
that opportunity has been a dream for many young people, but today
it has become a reality, and the government not only emphasize the
importance of obtaining high-quality education, but in fact fund it.

"I think your example will inspire many young people, and the number of
Armenian students in top universities of the world to grow each year,
" the President of Armenia said.

Armenian National Committee of Hollywood
1611 North Kenmore Avenue
Hollywood, California 90027

PRESS RELEASE

August 3, 2009
Contact: Thora Giallouri

ANC HOLLYWOOD JOINS THAI CDC AT ANNUAL COMMUNITY FAIR

HOLLYWOOD, CA — On July 25th, the Armenian National Committee of Hollywood
participated in the Thai Community Development Center’s 9th Annual Live,
Work, & Play in East Hollywood Consumer Resource and Health Fair. The event
was held at the Hollywood and Western MTA Portal Plaza, an intersection
point of Thai Town and Little Armenia. Joined by the Armenian Relief
Society of Hollywood, the ANC Hollywood provided translating services for
Armenian-speaking visitors, mediating conversation between Armenians and the
over 40 community organizations that participated in the fair.

"It was great being here today to help provide translating services and
connect members of the community," said Paul Seradarian, ANC Hollywood
Executive Committee member. "Organizationally, it was a wonderful
opportunity to get to know some of our fellow organizations working hard to
make Hollywood a better community for all of us."

Pheel Wang, the Thai CDC project manager in charge of organizing this year’s
fair was pleased with the increased Armenian American turnout.

"I think this year we saw a lot of Armenians coming out, especially because
of the ANC’s efforts,’ she said. She noted that she approached the ANC
Hollywood to participate in the event because of the extensive overlap of
the Armenian and Thai communities in the Little Armenia district of
Hollywood.

ANC Hollywood members and volunteers visited the booths lined along the
metro plaza sidewalk and introduced themselves to organizations as diverse
as the East Hollywood Neighborhood Council and Consumer Action. They also
passed out fliers informing the community of its upcoming events, including
a small business tax seminar being organized by the ANC Hollywood in
collaboration with the California State Controller’s office. The event will
take place in late October.

Assisting the ANC Hollywood were high school volunteers who took part in the
community fair with great enthusiasm.

"It is very ambitious and cool for the ANC Hollywood to reach out beyond the
Armenian community," said Astkhik Hakopyan, senior at John Marshall High
School. "It is important for us to be an active part of the larger
Hollywood community. That in and of itself is important, but it also means
that being supportive of others will encourage others to be supportive of
us."

Other event participants included groups that provide health services and
information, such as the Martin Luther King Medical Center and the Asian
American Drug Abuse Program. Among the other organizations were CAUSE,
which registers voters for upcoming elections, and the Community
Redevelopment Agency, which focuses on Hollywood infrastructure development.
Newly elected California State Senator Curren Price also welcomed the
fairgoers visiting booths including the ANC Hollywood’s.

"The event was well organized and the volunteering was a good outreach
effort. We should always seek more involvement between our community
organizations," said Nick Davtyan member of the Armenian Relief Society’s
staff who participated in the fair.

Baydsar Thomasian, Senior Field Representative of California Assembly Member
Kevin de Leon, addressed those in attendance and highlighted the interactive
spirit of the event.

"Please give yourselves a big hand. I want to salute all of you," she said,
"I love seeing the Latino community, the Armenian community, and the Thai
community working together and volunteering their time and services this
Saturday morning."

The ANC of Hollywood promotes greater understanding of issues of concern to
the area’s Armenian American community and strives to increase Armenian
American civic participation at the grassroots and public policy levels.

####

CK GARABED: BETTING AGAINST THE AZERI TRACK RECORD?

/garabed-betting-against-the-azeri-track-record/
A ugust 2, 2009

"RADIOLUR," the Public Radio of Armenia, carried an article on July 20
(reprinted below) which touched off a series of thoughts I desire to
share with my fellow Armenians.

My family hails from Western Armenia-Dikranagerd, specifically. And,
like many Armenians of that city, we were massacred and scattered to
the four winds during the 1915 genocide. None of us have ever visited
Dikranagerd since, but we still retain the deeds to property that
was seized from us, and have never lost hope that one day justice
will be served our people.

Given my background, one can imagine my delight upon learning that
archaeologists had recently discovered another Dikranagerd-apparently
one of several built by King Dikran the Great during his reign-this
one being found in, of all places…Karabagh! One day, I hope to
visit this "new" Dikranagerd, but in the meantime, when my brother
Harry passed away three years ago, I consulted with his family and we
agreed it would be appropriate and symbolic to bury his ashes there,
on sovereign Armenian soil.

With the help of Karabagh Armenians, we were able to achieve our
goal. My younger brother’s ashes are now buried in the garden before
the restored church overlooking the city’s remains. The epitaph on
his gravestone is in Armenian, translated as follows:

"Sarkis Haroutiun Der Kasbarian was born in the United States
of America in 1929 and died in 2006. He was the son of Hagop Der
Kasbarian, a native of Alibunar, a village just outside the western
wall of Dikranagerd, in Western Armenia. He was also the grandson
of Der Kasbar, village priest of Alibunar, who was martyred in the
Hamidian massacres of 1895. Sarkis Haroutiun is a son of Armenia,
and his ashes rest here in Karabagh, near a historic site believed
to be one of the four cities of ancient Dikranagerd (built by King
Dikran the Great)."

And so, my brother’s spirit migrated from Dikranagerd to Dikranagerd.

If our family’s ancestral hearth cannot be reclaimed for now, then this
tiny portion of liberated Karabagh will do just fine. Nevertheless,
I worry. Given all the back-and-forth of recent negotiations, what
will happen to this gravesite if the area is returned to Azerbaijan,
especially given that country’s record of desecration of religious
monuments? Will Karabagh go the way of Nakhichevan, which has been
depopulated of Armenians, and yet retains its Armenian name?

Perhaps a proviso should be inserted in the agenda for any talks
between the Armenians and Azerbaijanis. The proviso would require
Azerbaijan to officially acknowledge such past desecrations (which
have been documented by independent researchers) and make restitution,
and include in any treaties assurances that such heinous crimes will
no longer be tolerated.

*** Excavations to Prove Armenian Traces in Karabagh

By Lena Badeyan

While the world powers and politicians are trying to resolve the
Karabagh issue, historians and archeologists are trying to prove that
the territory has been originally Armenian. The Armenian specialists
reached the greatest success in 2005, when they found one of the four
Tigranakert cities founded by Armenian King Tigran the Great on the
liberated land of Aghdam, to the southeast of Martakert region.

"For me this is Troy, this is how I would assess it. We continue
finding different items here, but it’s not the most important. What’s
important is that the city once existed here," said Vardges Safaryan,
member of the Tigranakert expedition, assessing the political and
historical essence of the diggings.

"The two main walls and the towers of the Hellenic city have been
discovered. The city was founded in the 80s B.C. and survived through
the 15th century, about 1,500 years. That is why here we have not
only Hellenic monuments, but also Christian ones. We have discovered
an Armenian church built in 5th to 7th centuries, where we found
one of the most interesting items last year-a clay, disk-like item
with an engraving: ‘Me, Vache, the slave of God.’ This inscription
dates back to the 6th to 7th centuries and it is the most ancient
Armenian inscription found on the land of Karabagh up to now,"
Vardges Safaryan said.

The authorities of Nagorno Karabagh also attach great importance to
the excavations of Tigranakert and the government has been financing
the works for about two years.

RUBEN HAKHVERDYAN PREDICTS CLAN WAR FOR ARMENIA

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
03.08.2009 14:59 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenia suffers from absence of intelligentsia,
according to well-known singer poet Ruben Hakhverdyan.

"So-called intellectuals who participate in various TV shows are just
taking the opportunity," he told reporters today. "I prefer to donate
money rather than spend it on apartments or cars. Once I maintained
a dining hall for the poor during 6 months with the money I was paid
for concerts."

The Armenian singer poet also predicted a ‘clan war’ between the sons
of oligarchs in Armenia.

OSCE Monitoring of the Line of Contact scheduled for August 4

armradio.am
01.08.2009 16:16

The Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE
Chairman-in-Office appealed to the NKR authorities for their support in
holding the scheduled-for-August 4 monitoring of the NKR and AR armed
forces’ contact-line near Talish settlement of Martakert region, NKR.

From the NKR Defense Army positions, the monitoring will be held by
Coordinator of the OSCE Office, Lieutenant-Colonel Imre Palatinus
(Hungary) and Field Assistant of the Personal Representative of the
OSCE Chairman-in-Office Vladimir Chuntulov (Bulgaria).

From the opposite side, the monitoring group will be headed by Personal
Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk.

From the Karabagh party, the monitoring mission will be accompanied by
representatives of the NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of
Defense.

IF COMRADE TOVMASYAN SPEAKS

A1+
04:12 pm | July 31, 2009 | Politics

"The Communist Party of Armenia has yet to become the ruling party
in Armenia," leader of the Communist Party of Armenia, Comrade Ruben
Tovmasyan told "A1+". He says that he is waiting for that moment
every minute of every day and is sure that it has yet to come.

"I see our return when the people finally mature, so that they won’t
misunderstand things come election time. We have so many advantages,"
said Tovmasyan.

Although Tovmasyan doesn’t consider himself Nostradamus, he is
confident that his party’s ideology will live on.

The Communist Party of Armenia has only 2,000 members, but Comrade
Tovmasyan has no complaints.

"It’s normal. The most important thing is that we have our regional
organizations in all regions of Armenia."

The Communist Party leader is not concerned over the fact that there
are few young members.

"The youth have so many things on their minds that the last thing
they can think about is ideology. Boys want to buy flowers for their
girlfriends, the girls want to buy presents for their boyfriends
and so on. If I were given a chance to speak to them on television,
they would see how their fathers and ancestors used to live and how
they are living. They don’t know anything nowadays."

When we reminded Comrade Tovmasyan the example of Moldova when the
Communists lost, he said:

"The example of Moldova showed once again the democratic attitude of
the Communist. They weren’t able to solve the issue of the president
through one voice and they held a second round of elections. Nobody
was arrested and nobody was killed. This was the advantage of the
Communists."

SERZH SARGSYAN TRAVELS TO ORENBURG

Panorama.am
17:10 31/07/2009

President Serzh Sargsyan is going to travel to Orenburg on 2-3 August,
"Yerkramas" paper of Armenian Community in Russia reports.

According to the source, President will put wreath on famous Armenian
writer Vahan Teryan’s grave and visit "Illumination and victory"
monument. On 3 August "National village" Armenian cultural complex
will be officially opened.

LEAVING FOR BISHKEK

A1+
06:50 pm | July 30, 2009

Official

Serzh Sargsyan will pay a working visit to Bishkek on July 31 to
participate in the non-official meeting of the Presidents of the
member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, as
reported by the President’s Press Office.

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
[email protected]
Internet

PRESS RELEASE

July 30, 2009
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

OVER 80 HOUSE MEMBERS SLAM TURKEY’S REVERSAL ON PROPOSED "ROADMAP"

— Congressional Letter Urging "Administration to separate the
issues of normalization and genocide recognition" Comes as Turkish
Leaders Reiterate Preconditions on Dialogue

WASHINGTON, DC – Over 80 House House Members, today, expressed
concern about Turkey’s backtracking on a so-called "roadmap" to
advance Armenia-Turkey dialogue, urging President Obama to separate
Armenian Genocide recognition from normalization of ties between
the two countries, reported the Armenian National Committee of
America (ANCA.)

"We commend the leadership of Representatives Pallone, Kirk,
Schiff, Radanovich and their 78 colleagues in calling attention to
Turkey’s efforts to inject the resolution of the Karabagh conflict
as a precondition to lifting the its illegal blockade of Armenia,"
said ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian. "U.S. affirmation of the
Armenian Genocide should not be held hostage to a sham ‘roadmap’
designed to prolong U.S. complicity in the denial of that crime
against humanity."

In a July 29th letter to President Obama, initiated by
Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and
Mark Kirk (R-IL) as well as Armenian Genocide resolution lead
sponsors Adam Schiff (D-CA) and George Radanovich (R-CA), Members
of Congress questioned Turkey’s commitment to talks normalizing
relations with Armenia, as stated in a "roadmap" agreement signed
just two days prior to April 24th, the international day of
commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. Turkey has since added
preconditions to continued discussions, which have led most
observers of the process to conclude the effort to be stalled
indefinitely.

"It would appear that Turkey, in an effort to block U.S.
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, agreed to a roadmap it did
not intend to uphold," notes the letter to the President.
"Therefore, we urge your Administration to separate the issues of
normalization and genocide recognition. We hope that renewed
efforts and focused resources from the Administration can be
utilized to nurture the Armenia-Turkey normalization process
without preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe, and
continue to remain strongly supportive of your stated campaign
policy to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide."

Joining Reps. Pallone, Kirk, Schiff and Radanovich in cosigning the
letter to President Obama were Representatives: Gary Ackerman (D-
NY), Joe Baca (D-CA), Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Shelley Berkley (D-
NV), Howard Berman (D-CA), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Bruce Braley, (D-
IA), John Campbell, (R-CA), Lois Capps (D-CA), Michael Capuano (D-
MA), Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Jerry Costello (D-
IL), Joe Courtney (D-CT), Joseph Crowley (D-NY), Peter DeFazio (D-
OR), Steve Driehaus (D-OH), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Chaka Fattah (D-PA),
Bob Filner (D-CA), Barney Frank (D-MA), Elton Gallegly (R-CA),
Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY),
Rush Holt (D-NJ), Michael Honda (D-CA), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL),
Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), Dale Kildee (D-MI), Leonard Lance (R-NJ),
James Langevin (D-RI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Sander Levin (D-MI),
Daniel Lipinski (D-IL), Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ), Daniel Lungren (R-
CA). Stephen Lynch (D-CA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Edward Markey
(D-MA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), James
McGovern (D-MA), Jerry McNerney (D-CA), Candice Miller (R-MI), Walt
Minnick (D-ID), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Richard Neal (D-CA), Devin
Nunes (R-CA), John Olver (D-MA) Payne, Donald (D-NJ), Gary Peters
(D-MI), Collin Peterson (D-MN), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Peter Roskam
(R-IL), Steven Rothman (D-NJ), Edward Royce (R-CA), Bobby Rush (D-
IL) Paul Ryan (R-WI), Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), John Sarbanes (D-MD)
James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Chris Smith (R-
NJ), Mark Souder (R-IN), Zack Space (D-OH), Jackie Speier (D-CA),
John Tierney (D-MA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Paul Tonko (D-NY), Niki
Tsongas (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tim Walz (D-MN) Henry
Waxman (D-CA), Anthony Weiner (D-NY), Frank Wolf (R-VA), and Lynn
Woolsey (D-CA).

The letter comes just days following a statement by Turkish Foreign
Minister Ahmet Davutoglu once again citing that the resolution of
the Nagorno Karabagh conflict as a precondition to Armenia-Turkey
normalization efforts. In recent weeks, Western diplomats have
stated that dialogue between Armenia and Turkey is virtually
frozen. An ANCA fact sheet outlining Turkey’s backtracking from
the April 22nd "roadmap" agreement can be viewed at:
_nowhere.pdf

Over the past two weeks, Armenian Americans have been contacting
their legislators to cosign the Congressional letter. ANCA Leo
Sarkisian intern Nareg Aghjayan documented the grassroots community
efforts to educate Congress about Turkey’s backtracking on the
roadmap in a "Capital Perspectives" piece issued today, posted on
the ANCA Leo Sarkisian 2009 blog page:
/30/grassroots-making-our-cause-a-reality/

The full text of the letter to President Obama follows.

#####

July 30, 2009

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We write to you with our concerns about Turkish backpedaling on the
agreed upon roadmap to normalize relations between Turkey and
Armenia.

On April 22, 2009, just two days before the 94th commemoration of
the Armenian Genocide, the Department of State released the
following statement:

"The United States welcomes the statement made by Armenia and
Turkey on normalization of their bilateral relations. It has long
been and remains the position of the United States that
normalization should take place without preconditions and within a
reasonable timeframe. We urge Armenia and Turkey to proceed
according to the agreed framework and roadmap. We look forward to
working with both governments in support of normalization, and thus
promote peace, security and stability in the whole region."

Two days later, instead of recognizing the Armenian Genocide, the
Administration opted to focus on this new roadmap to Armenian-
Turkish normalization. "I also strongly support the efforts by
Turkey and Armenia to normalize their bilateral relations," you
wrote. "Under Swiss auspices, the two governments have agreed on a
framework and roadmap for normalization. I commend this progress,
and urge them to fulfill its promise."

While the Government of Armenia remains committed to this roadmap
and has long offered to establish ties with Turkey without
preconditions, Turkey’s public statements and actions since April
24th stand in sharp contrast to this agreement and undermine U.S.
policy that normalization take place without preconditions.

On May 13, 2009, Prime Minister Erdogan publically conditioned
normalization of relations with Yerevan on Azerbaijan’s approval of
a future settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict that fully
meets Baku’s satisfaction. "I want to repeat once more that until
the occupation ends, the border gates [with Armenia] will remain
closed," Erdogan told the Azeri Parliament.

On June 17, 2009, EU South Caucasus Envoy Peter Semneby said Turkey
had taken "tactical steps backwards" in the normalization process
with Armenia.

It would appear that Turkey, in an effort to block U.S. recognition
of the Armenian Genocide, agreed to a roadmap it did not intend to
uphold. Therefore, we urge your Administration to separate the
issues of normalization and genocide recognition. We hope that
renewed efforts and focused resources from the Administration can
be utilized to nurture the Armenia-Turkey normalization process
without preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe, and
continue to remain strongly supportive of your stated campaign
policy to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide.

Sincerely,

IN DAVIT SHAHNAZARIAN’S WORDS, KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT AT PRESENT THRUSTED UPON US BY STRONGEST OF WORLDS

Noyan Tapan
July 30, 2009

YEREVAN, JULY 30, NOYAN TAPAN. The Karabakh conflict settlement at
present reminds of the Dayton process, that is, the settlement is
thrusted upon us by strongest of the world. Representative of the
Armenian National Congress (ANC) Davit Shahnazarian expressed such
an opinion at the July 30 press conference. In his words, among the
U.S., Russia and France there is an agreement on the Karabakh issue:
to reach serious movements if not a final solution. "In my opinion,
they already prepare the great agreement in Krakow," D. Shahnazarian
mentioned. According to his prevision, four factors can prevent from
signing of that agreement: if there is power shift in Armenia through
special elections, if Russia changes its positions for some reasons,
if Azerbaijan does not satisfy itself with what it gets, or if a
force major situation is created in the world and region.

Touching upon the Madrid document, D. Shahnazarian mentioned that
there is no formulation in it about the Karabakh status. Instead, in
his words, it is mentioned that the territories got liberty must be
controlled by the armed forces of Azerbaijan. The ANC representative
added that he does not share OSCE Minsk Group American Co-Chairman
Matthew Bryza’s opinion that a referendum and will is, in essence,
the same. As D. Shahnazarian explained, a will can not have legal
consequances.

He also stated that though there are different approaches on the
Karabakh problem at the ANC, everybody is of the same opinion in
one issue: the problem must be settled based on the principle of the
nations’ self-determination. But, first of all, in D. Shahnazarian’s
words, the radical opposition, in the face of the ANC, must first of
all reach power shift.