Author: Jagharian Tania

IRAQI FUNDAMENTALISTS MAKE ARMENIAN WINNER OF “MISS IRAQ” CONTEST RENOUNCE HER TITLE

Yerevan, April 17. ArmInfo. Tamara Goregyan, Armenian by origin,
had to renounce her Title “Miss Iraq” threatened by the Islamic
fundamentalist grouping. A second Armenian winner of the Title “Miss
Iraq” Silva Sahakyan also has to hide herself from fundamentalists.

Referring to the Associated Press, RFE/RL reports that 4 days
after the secret beauty contest “Miss Iraq” on April 9, the winner
Tamara Goregyan had to renounce her title and find shelter in Jordan
threatened by Islamic fundamentalist organizations. Then, “Miss Iraq”
title was proposed to a second and a third winners – Muslims.

However, they also had to refuse from the crown. At last, the title
was conferred on the Armenian Silva Sahakyan, who occupied the fourth
place in the contest. Now, she is also threatened. The source reports
that Silva Sahakyan is currently hiding herself, but she has not
renounced her title.

Police Day celebrated also in Nagorno-Karabakh

ArmRadio.am
15.04.2006 15:20

According to April 15 decree of the NKR President Arkadi Ghukasyan,
NKR Deputy Chief of Police, Poliice Colonel Sergey Grigoryan was
awarded the title of Major-General of Police. Deputy Chief of the
Department of Operative Services of Police, Head of the Criminal
Investigations Department, Deputy Colonel of Police Boris Yengibaryn
was awarded the title of Police Colonel.

KOCE-TV TAKES A STAND AS THE SOUTHLAND’S ONLY
PBS STATION TO AIR THE HIGHLY-PUBLICIZED FILM
`THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE’
`The Armenian Genocide’ Premieres Wednesday, April 26 on KOCE-TV at 9:00 PM

(HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIF.) March 9, 2006 – KOCE-TV, Orange County’s
local PBS station, is taking a moral stand as the only station in the
Southland, including Los Angeles to air the highly-publicized program,
`The Armenian Genocide.’ The acclaimed program, which shares the
under-reported story of the Ottoman Turks’ brutal slaying of more than
one million Armenians during one of the largest genocides in history,
will premiere on KOCE-TV Wednesday, April 26, 2006 at 9:00 PM.

To date, despite overwhelming evidence and against the opinion of the
overwhelming majority of historians, the Turkish government denies an
Armenian genocide ever took place. However, in the face of this
adversity, KOCE-TV has taken a moral stance by airing the documentary
and recognizing the opinionof the overwhelming majority of historians
that genocide did indeed take place.

`KOCE-TV is proud to be recognized as the only station in the
Southland, including Los Angeles to air “The Armenian Genocide,” said
Mel Rogers, president and general manager of KOCE-TV. `This film and
its topic are significant, and KOCE-TV feels it is important that the
genocide suffered by the Armenians not be forgotten, denied or glossed
over. It is part of the mission of public television to stimulate
responsible discussion and illuminate complex issues. Since most
Americans do not fully understand the issue in all its complexity, we
are committed to offering the program which we sincerely hope will
help viewers better understand this chapter in world history.’
KOCE-TV Shares the Largely Untold Story of the Turks’ Atrocious Crimes
against Humanity `The Armenian Genocide’ is the unprecedented and
powerful complete story of the first genocide of the 20th century. The
one-hour documentary which features extensive never-before-seen
historical footage explores the ongoing controversy of the Armenian
genocide and explains why the Turkish government denies the events
ever took place. The documentary, written, directed and produced by
Emmy Award-winning producer Andrew Goldberg is narrated by Julianna
Margulies, Ed Harris, Natalie Portman, Laura Linney and Orlando Bloom.

Filmed in the United States, France, Germany, Belgium, Turkey and
Syria, the program features discussions with leading experts in the
field including Pulitzer Prize-winning author Samantha Power, and New
York Times best-selling author Peter Balakian, and Kurdish and Turkish
citizens in modern-day Turkey who speak openly about the stories told
to them by their parents and grandparents.

`As Turkey seeks to join the European Union, 90 years later, this film
can give people a much better understanding of why this issue is such
an important and current part of the international conversation about
Turkey’s role in the world today,’ said Goldberg.

About Emmy Award-Winning Producer Andrew Goldberg

Andrew Goldberg’s television credits include PBS, ABC News, E!, CNN,
and countless others. In addition to documentaries, he has also
written and produced commercials for such companies as Bell South,
Sephora/Louis Vuitton, AT&T and PetSmart. Goldberg’s recent
documentary productions include, A Yiddish World Remembered for PBS
which won an Emmy in 2002, and The Armenians, A Story of Survival,
which aired on PBS stations nationally in 2002 and was awarded the
CINE Golden Eagle.

About KOCE-TV

KOCE-TV, one of the most watched PBS stations in America, has an
estimated 4.5 million viewers* each month, and offers a mix of both
local and national programs. In addition, KOCE Classroom serves more
than half-a-million K-14 students. The winner of hundreds of awards
including Emmys and Community Service Awards, KOCE continues to be a
leading resource for education, culture and local issues in Southern
California. For more information, please visit _www.koce.org_
() .

* This figure was calculated by KOCE’s program consultant and is based
upon information obtained via PubTV Online.

####
Editor’s Note: Photos and interviews are available by contacting Sabrina
Shannon at (714) 573-0899 ext. 27
or via e-mail at [email protected]

RA FIRST OMBUDSPERSON TO PRESENT SOCIETY DURING NEXT WEEK 2005 REPORT
ON HER ACTIVITY

YEREVAN, APRIL 14, NOYAN TAPAN. RA first Ombudsperson Larisa
Alaverdian will present the society during the next week her 2005
activity report. She informed about this at the April 13 sitting of
the RA National Assembly. “It’s is shown in report with examples and
analyses that really, violations of the human rights are of system
character in Armenia,” she mentioned. According to L.Alaverdian, those
are violations in all those spheres which are very important from the
viewpoint of the national security. L.Alaverdian was invited to the
Parliament for discussion of the RA Ombudsperson’s annual report about
the 2005 activity and violations of the human rights and fundamental
freedoms in the country. Newly appointed Ombudsman Armen Haroutiunian
presented the report. L.Alaverdian considered the process of
discussing the report at the NA “not rather legal” when she was
deprived of the possibility to report about her own activity herself,
but may only make use of the right of making a speech.

GOVERNMENT LIQUIDATES YEREVAN STUDIA CJSC

Noyan Tapan
Apr 13 2006

YEREVAN, APRIL 13, NOYAN TAPAN. At the April 13 sitting, the Armenian
government made a decision about liquidation of Yerevan Studia
CJSC. The decision was made taking into account the fact that although
the company has paid all its debts, it is impossible to organize normal
activities of Yerevan Studia CJSC under conditions of small allocations
from the state budget and low commercial incomes. According to the
RA Government Information and PR Department, it was also decided
to separate property of balance value of 42 mln 84 thousand 433.5
drams (about 93.5 thousand USD) from property of Yerevan Studia CJSC
in order prescribed by law and to transfer it, as state property,
to Public Television and Radio Company Board state establishment,
increasing the company’s authorized capital in the amount of the
property value by issuing additional shares.

DEMOCRACY WAS ABOLISHED TWO YEARS AGO

A1+
[08:49 pm] 12 April, 2006

At night of April 13, 2004 the authorities used all the forces of
the police, water-spraying cars, batons and explosives to fight
against they own people. They even blocked several parts of the
streets. And all this because the people used their Constitutional
right to organize peaceful demonstrations to demand a confidence
referendum against the President.

The unprecedented violations resulted in tens of injured. Two years ago
the rights of the journalists were violated harshly: representatives
of several Mass Media – journalist of the newspaper “Armenian Times”
Hayk Gevorgyan and cameraman of the TV Company ORT Levon Grigoryan
were beaten severely, and their cameras were broken.

In the picture the policeman is trying to forbid the representative of
“A1+” to take photos of what is going on in the Baghramyan avenue. It
is noteworthy that there were no representatives of the Armenian
“free and fair” TV Companies. Being closed down by the authorities
“A1+” still tried to do its professional duty representing unbiased
information about the incidents to people. The “A1+” website worked
online, and the “A1+” staff provided NTV, ORT, Rossia, Reuters and
other foreign TV Companies with impartial information and photos.

After April 13, 2004 many international organizations made condemning
statements. But that changed nothing in Armenia. The fact is that the
common citizens felt on their skin that one fair word in Armenia is
equal to one hit with a baton.

AZERI DIPLOMAT SAYS BOTH IRANIAN AND ARMENIAN NUKE DEVELOPMENTS POSE THREAT

Interfax-AVN military news agency website, Moscow
11 Apr 06

Baku, 11 April: NATO has no plans to stage a military invasion of
Iran, said NATO Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central
Asia Robert Simmons.

Speaking at a news briefing in Baku on Tuesday [11 April] following
negotiations with the Azerbaijani leadership, Simmons said, however,
that NATO is concerned about the situation in Iran and hopes that
the negotiating process involving three of its members, Germany,
the UK and France, will be completed successfully.

Azeri Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said Baku is also concerned
about how the Iran crisis will be resolved, due to the geographical
proximity of the two states.

Azerbaijan is following the negotiating process with Iran closely,
he said.

“The problem is currently being discussed at the UN Security Council,
and we hope that it will be resolved at a political, diplomatic level,”
Azimov said.

Azimov also pointed out that, while the Iranian nuclear problem poses
a strategic threat to Azerbaijan, the Metsamor nuclear power plant
functioning in neighbouring Armenia is a real threat to Azerbaijan’s
and the entire region’s security, which, he said, has been confirmed
by international experts.

BULGARIAN AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA PAYS A VISIT TO VANADZOR

Noyan Tapan
Apr 11 2006

VANADZOR, APRIL 11, NOYAN TAPAN. On April 11, Bulgarian Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Armenia Stefan Dimitrov paid a
visit to Vanadzor.

As Noyan Tapan correspondent was informed from the Press Service
of Vanadzor Mayor’s Office, the Ambassador’s visit had a cognitive
character, it pursued the purpose of possible establishment of friendly
contacts between Vanadzor and Bulgarian city of Varna. Accompanied
by Vanadzor Mayor Samvel Darbinian, the Ambassador walked about the
city, visited the chemical plant, the “Gloria” sewing factory, city’s
cultural centers – the Museum of Painting and the Aesthetic Center.

GEORGIAN CHURCH PREPARES GROUNDS FOR TERRITORIAL CLAIMS TO ARMENIA

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.04.2006 GMT+04:00

Orthodox hierarchs have declared their rights to Armenian churches
located in the borderline regions of Armenia.

The newly established special commission created in the patriarchy
of Georgian Orthodox Church is aimed at proving the necessity of
passing six Armenian churches located in the Northern regions of
Armenia to the ownership of Georgia. The decision on the creation of
such a committee is viewed in Yerevan as a deliberate provocation,
which can have political consequences with a negative impact on
Armenian-Georgian relations.

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ It is not the first time that Georgian Orthodox
Church asserts unconcealed claims to the property of Armenian
Apostolic Church. It is noteworthy that this time Georgians lay claim
to churches, located in the Republic of Armenia – regions of Tavoush
and Lori. What is especially delicate in this issue is the fact that
those churches are located on territories, which were included in
the map of united Georgian Republic by Georgian Mensheviks back in
1918. It was the control over Tavoush and Lori regions that caused
conflicts between Armenia and Georgia. Fortunately the rulers of
the first Georgian Republic found enough wisdom and common sense to
acknowledge the sovereignty of Yerevan over those territories. Since
then no one has publicly cast doubt on the fact that those territories
belong to Armenia.

This is why the decision of orthodox hierarchs promoting reanimation
of the closed and completely senseless discussion looks even more
unexpected.

The establishment of the “special commission” was preceded by
another demarche, which was no less provocative. Early in March,
the supreme synod of Georgian Orthodox Church made a decision on the
establishment of eparchy of Georgian Orthodox Church in Armenia. Making
the decision Georgians did not even inform Armenian Apostolic Church
or the political leadership of Armenia. “To restore historical
existence of the eparchy of Agarak-Tashir and subordinate it to the
bishop of Dmanisi with a title bishop of Dmanisi and Agarak – Tashir,
Dmanisi chair”.

This is what the synod’s decision says. Taking into account the fact
that there is not a single pious Georgian in those territories, it
is not clear for whom they are creating the new eparchy. Meanwhile,
Georgians living in Yerevan have the opportunity of holding liturgies
according to the Orthodox rite. As a gesture of good will the Armenian
Apostolic Church has given them a church, creating all the necessary
conditions. It is quite strange that the gesture was not appreciated…

There is no doubt that the synod of Georgian church made the decision
on the establishment of eparchy and creation of the special committee,
basing on the claims to Armenian churches and the approval of
Georgian political leadership. But why did the official Tbilisi need
that? Usually Georgian political scientists accuse Russian special
services in the rise of tension between Armenia and Georgia. But this
time it is quite obvious who is standing behind the attempt to involve
the two neighbor nations in a quarrel. It is especially strange that
those things happened immediately after the successful visit of the
newly appointed Georgian Minister of Foreign Affairs Gela Bejuashvili
who gave special attention to the problem of relations between Armenian
and Georgian churches.

Nevertheless, it is not hard to find an answer to the question “Why
now?”. The problem of defining the status of traditional faiths has
been discussed in Tbilisi for a long time. Though in the multi-national
Republic of Georgia the church is detached of state, authorities refuse
to create legal base for the activities of other faiths. Especially
morbid is the attitude of Georgians to the issue of defining the
rights of the local eparchy of Armenian Apostolic Church. The issue
of the status of the eparchy presupposes determination of ownership
rights on the six Armenian churches, which ceased functioning after
the establishment of Soviet power. Orthodox hierarchs call those
churches Georgian. There is no doubt that latest demarches of the
Georgian Orthodox Church are an answer to the demands of Georgian
Armenians. It looks like the claims of Georgians to the six Armenian
churches are not accidental too. They are probably guided by the
principles “eye for eye” and “best the defense is attack”…

Under such circumstances it is getting harder and harder to believe
in the purposefulness of the planned visit of Armenian Catholicos
to Tbilisi. The issue of the visit of Garegin II to Tbilisi has
been discussing for a long time. His visit to Georgia could become
a break-through in the complicated relations between Armenian and
Georgian churches. It is worth mentioning that the last Catholicos
to visit Georgia was Khrimyan Hayrik who went to Georgia 110 years
ago. Thus, the situation is not normal: the patriarchs of two
sister nations communicate through mediators and see each other on
the funerals of their predecessors. Wishing to put an end to this
absurdity the Armenian Catholicos was ready to pay a visit to his
Georgian brother. And this is how Tbilisi responded.

“PanARMENIAN.Net” analytical department

BAGRAT YENGIBARIAN EXPLAINS HIS CANDIDACY FOR MILLENNIUM CHALLENGES CHIEF’S POSITION
By Aghavni Harutyunian

AZG Armenian Daily
12/04/2006

Bagrat Yengibarian, head of the Fund of Incubator Enterprises,
has applied for the position of project director of the Millennium
Challenges among other 48 applicants. “I think there are lots of
question I am going to ask once I am called for an interview. One
thing is certain: at stake are the Fund of Incubator Enterprises and
its successful development. I will demand equivalent compensation
for that. I am applying for the position as I see great demand for
human resources. I think my career and potential can help fill the
gap and it would be wrong to stay out.”