Author: Jalatian Sonya

Azeris insist on return of occupied districts in exchange for opening railway

Azad Azarbaycan TV, Baku
15 May 04

[Presenter Namiq Aliyev] The sides only exchanged ideas at the
Strasbourg meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers,
and the co-chairmen [of the OSCE Minsk Group] did not voice specific
proposals, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov has
said. According to him, the reopening of the Baku-Naxcivan-Yerevan
railway in return for the liberation of the seven occupied lands will
be the main subject of the talks in the future as well.

[Correspondent over video of Mammadyarov speaking to microphone]
Despite the Yerevan government’s denial, the liberation of the seven
districts under Armenian occupation was discussed at the Strasbourg
meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers, Mammadyarov
said in an exclusive interview with Azad Azarbaycan TV on his return
from the Strasbourg meeting. We should recall that Armenian Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanyan had denied that the issue of the seven
districts was discussed and had described this subject as absurd. But
Mr Mammadyarov said that this issue, which was discussed in Strasbourg,
would be included in the agenda of the future talks as well.

[Mammadyarov] You are aware of Azerbaijan’s position on the railway
and the seven districts. We, the Azerbaijani side, will always put it
forward as an idea. Well, this is Azerbaijan’s idea. The Armenian side
expressed its idea as well. The co-chairmen expressed their ideas as
well. We think that this exchange of ideas is to be continued at the
next meetings.

[Correspondent] Describing the Strasbourg talks as useful on the whole,
Mammadyarov did not reveal the details of the meeting. According to
him, the sides agreed to keep the results in secret.

[Mammadyarov] We had a very useful exchange of ideas at the meeting
and agreed to continue these meetings. For the time being, this is the
only thing I can say, because we decided to continue these meetings
and exchange any ideas in a confidential way.

[Correspondent] Mr Mammadyarov added that after submitting a report to
President Ilham Aliyev about the Strasbourg meeting, he could answer
specific questions. We should recall that the co-chairmen of the OSCE
Minsk Group attended the talks as well. As for the new proposals on
the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict, Mr Mammadyarov said
that all this was only an idea so far.

[Mammadyarov] I would not say that they were in the form of new
proposals. All this is an exchange of ideas. At the moment, we,
each side, express our own opinions. The time will show which ideas
will turn into proposals in the future.

[Correspondent] The sides also discussed a meeting between the
Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Astana. According to
Mammadyarov, if the heads of state’s schedule makes it possible,
their meeting will take place this autumn.

Rasad Huseynov, Bahruz Maharramov and Ziyad Aliyev for “Son Xabar”.

KARABAGH MUST BE INVOLVED IN TALKS, FORMER TOP OFFICIAL SAYS

ArmenPress
May 12 2004

YEREVAN, MAY 12, ARMENPRESS: A former top official in the
administration of ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosian backed up today
the idea that Nagorno Karabagh authorities must be involved in talks
over its future. Babken Ararktsian, a former parliament chairman,
told a news conference, which he called on the occasion of the 10-th
anniversary of the establishment of ceasefire on the line of contact
between Armenian troops of Nagorno Karabagh and Azerbaijan forces that
Karabagh had been involved in all talks with various international
peace-brokers, held prior to the ceasefire.

Reverting to the details of the ceasefire agreement, Ararktsian
said it was a key decision by all the sides to the conflict, who
realized that continuation of the war would bring only new losses.
Ararktsian recalled today that one of the provisions of the agreement
was that Nagorno Karabagh should continue participating in all talks
and that the overland connection between Armenia and Karabagh through
the Lachin corridor should operate.

The first international mediation effort to resolve the Nagorno
Karabagh conflict was attempted by the presidents of the not yet
independent Russia and Kazakhstan, Boris Yeltsin and Nursultan
Nazarbayev, respectively, in September 1991. Their visits to Baku,
Stepanakert, and Yerevan, and subsequent talks between the leaders of
Armenia and Azerbaijan in Zheleznovodsk, Russia produced an agreement
to negotiate the conflict; this was negated by the government of
Azerbaijan almost immediately.

The international involvement in the resolution of this conflict began
in earnest in 1992, after successor states to the Soviet Union had
been admitted to the Conference (later Organization) for Security and
Cooperation in Europe. The CSCE (OSCE) thus became the primary venue
for the resolution of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict, and remains so
to this day.

On March 24, 1992, a CSCE Council meeting in Helsinki decided to
authorize the CSCE Chairman-in-Office (i.e., the presiding officer
of the CSCE who is usually the foreign minister of the country
presiding in the organization, based on rotation principle) to
convene a conference on Nagorno Karabagh under the auspices of the
CSCE. The purpose of the conference was “to provide an ongoing forum
for negotiations towards a peaceful settlement of the crisis on the
basis of the principles, commitments and provisions of the CSCE.” This
decision launched the so-called Minsk Process, which spearheads the
international effort to find a political settlement of the conflict.
(The process is so named because the city of Minsk, Belarus had
been originally selected as the site of the future conference on
this problem.)

The objectives of the Minsk Process are to provide an appropriate
framework for conflict resolution to support the negotiation process
supported by the Minsk Group; to obtain conclusion by the Parties
of an agreement on the cessation of the armed conflict in order to
permit the convening of the Minsk Conference; and to promote the
peace process by deploying OSCE multinational peacekeeping forces.

Ararktsian argued today that after the Karabagh conflict transformed
into “a territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan
has snatched off the ceasefire becoming its master to ground that it
can revoke the ceasefire agreement any time in order to restore its
territorial integrity.” In concluding Ararktsian aid the resolution
of the conflict must be based on the principle of self-determination
of Karabagh Armenians and mutual compromises.

Armenian opposition urges authorities to meet Europe’s demands

A1+ web site
11 May 04

11 May: The Justice political bloc today circulated a statement on
the authorities’ actions that run against resolution No 1374 of the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe [PACE].

1. The authorities have not given up the practice of administrative
detentions. New arrests have been made (in violation of Point 9 of
the PACE resolution).

2. People arrested for participation in rallies have not been set
free immediately. Fourteen Armenian citizens have been arrested for
political motives. One of them – Martin Gazaryan – has been sentenced
to one year in prison.

3. No transparent and trustworthy examination has been started into
their cases to find those responsible for violence and trampling on
human rights (in violation of Point 9 of the PACE resolution).

4. The law on administrative offences has not been amended (in
violation of Point 9 of the PACE resolution).

BBC News
Last Updated: Thursday, 6 May, 2004, 10:23 GMT 11:23 UK

Regions and territories: Ajaria

A mountainous semi-autonomous region of Georgia, Ajaria is situated on the
Black Sea coast on Georgia’s southwestern border with Turkey.

Its narrow band of coastal lowland has a lush sub-tropical climate while
high in the mountains there can be snow for six months of the year.

OVERVIEW

The port in the capital, Batumi, is used for the shipment of oil from
Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Its oil refinery handles Caspian oil from
Azerbaijan which arrives by pipeline to Supsa port and is transported from
there to Batumi by rail.

Batumi is also an important gateway for the shipment of goods heading into
Georgia, Azerbaijan and landlocked Armenia. The Ajarian capital is a centre
for shipbuilding and manufacturing. Ajaria has good land for growing tea,
citrus fruits and tobacco.

History

The people of Ajaria are ethnically Georgian and the region also has a
substantial Russian-speaking population. Under Ottoman rule from the 17th
until the 19th century Islam predominated. The word Ajarian came to mean a
Georgian Muslim.

In 1878 Ajaria was annexed by Russia and, following the Bolshevik
revolution, incorporated into Georgia as an autonomous republic within the
USSR. Under Stalin, Islam, like Christianity, was ruthlessly repressed.
Nowadays about half the population professes the Islamic faith.

Tensions erupt on the internal border between Georgia and Ajaria
Unlike the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Ajaria has been
spared major violence and ethnic unrest since Georgia became independent
after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The region was led between 1991 and May 2004 by Aslan Abashidze under whose
tight control it enjoyed political stability and relative economic
prosperity. Election results gave him at least 90% of the vote every time
and he ruled in what many observers described as an autocratic style.

Autonomy

Ajaria achieved a substantial degree of autonomy from Tbilisi, which accused
it of failing to pay a large proportion of the sum due in tax and customs
duties. It also had its own security and interior ministries which were
under the full control of the Ajarian leadership.

After Eduard Shevardnadze was overthrown as Georgian president and the
results of the November 2003 elections were annulled, a state of emergency
was declared in Ajaria. Its leadership refused to recognise the full
authority of Mikhail Saakashvili as Georgian president.

Mr Saakashvili wanted to reassert control, abolish the Ajarian security
ministry and end what he said was corruption in the Ajarian tax and customs
authorities.

Standoff with Georgia

In a bid to assert his authority after he was prevented from entering Ajaria
in the run-up to the March 2004 elections, the Georgian president imposed an
economic blockade. It was lifted within days after talks between Mr
Saakashvili and Mr Abashidze.

However, the standoff grew increasingly ominous. In early May, Mr Abashidze
claimed that Georgian forces were preparing to invade. His forces blew up
bridges connecting the region with the rest of Georgia and pulled up rail
tracks, disrupting exports of Caspian oil from the port of Batumi.
Immediately afterwards, Mr Saakashvili gave the Ajarian leader 10 days in
which to comply with the Georgian constitution and start disarming or face
removal.

The Georgian president imposed direct rule on Ajaria on 5 May. Subsequently,
after talks with a Russian envoy, Mr Abashidze resigned and left the region.

Ties with Russia

Ajaria maintained close ties with Russia, which has a military base there –
a source of great tension with Tbilisi. Following the departure of Eduard
Shevardnadze, this tension rose still further when Russia eased entry visa
regulations for residents of Ajaria.

Developments unfolded under Moscow’s watchful eye. Russia had warned Tbilisi
that the use of force to resolve the situation would have “catastrophic
consequences”.

FACTS

Status: Autonomous region within Georgia
Population: 400,000
Capital: Batumi
Major languages: Georgian, Russian
Major religions: Islam, Christianity
Natural resources: Citrus fruit, tobacco, tea
Industry: Oil refining, shipping, manufacturing, wine-making

LEADERS

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili imposed direct presidential control
over the region on 5 May 2004. Hours later the Ajarian leader Aslan
Abashidze resigned, ending more than a decade in power by flying, with his
family, to Russia.

Georgian officials appointed an interim administration to run the region
pending elections in June and abolished the post of Ajarian leader.

Aslan Abashidze, a teacher turned Communist bureaucrat in the Soviet era,
was appointed leader in Ajaria by Georgian President Zviad Gamsakhurdia
following the collapse of the Soviet Union and Georgian independence. He
proved remarkably adept at establishing absolute control.

Former Ajarian leader Aslan Abashidze

Mr Abashidze was born in Batumi in 1938 into a family which has been
influential in Ajarian affairs for many years. Observers often described his
style of leadership as autocratic. Ajarian election results had always given
him 90% or more of the vote.

A family affair

All opposition was suppressed and the economic reins were firmly in his
hands. Close relatives of his late wife headed the important security and
interior ministries, and other relatives also held public office.

Mr Abashidze also played a prominent role in Georgian political affairs
outside Ajaria. He was leader of the Revival of Georgia political bloc which
was the main rival of Eduard Shevardnadze’s party in parliamentary elections
in 1999. He at first stood as a candidate in the Georgian presidential
elections of 2000 but withdrew, leaving victory in Mr Shevardnadze’s grasp.

When mass protests erupted over the conduct of the November 2003
parliamentary elections in Georgia, in which the Ajarian leader claimed 95%
of the regional vote, Mr Abashidze rallied to Mr Shevardnadze’ support. He
denounced Mr Shevardnadze’s overthrow as a coup and declared a state of
emergency in Ajaria.

Differences with Tbilisi

The pro-Western Mr Saakashvili insisted that the Russians pull out of their
base in Ajaria. The pro-Russian Mr Abashidze took a different view. Mr
Saakashvili vowed to bring Ajaria into the Georgian mainstream and eradicate
corruption and nepotism.

Mr Abashidze insisted he simply wished to retain the status quo and did not
want Ajaria to secede from Georgia. He had indicated that military force
remained an option should Mr Saakashvili try to enforce his wishes.

Despite what appeared to be frequent tensions between former President
Shevardnadze and Mr Abashidze, the two always managed to come to some
arrangement in the end.

MEDIA

The Ajarian authorities operate TV and radio networks in the region.

Reporters Without Borders, the media rights body, reported in 2004 that two
private Georgian TV stations had been banned from operating in Ajaria. It
added that five journalists had been physically assaulted.

Television

Adjara TV – operated by Ajarian authorities
Channel 25 – private
Radio

Radio Adjara – operated by Ajarian authorities

RIA OREANDA , Russia
Economic Press Review
May 7, 2004 Friday

Russia-Armenia Cooperation Issues Be Discussed in Samara

SAMARA

On May 14, 2004 the Federation Council of the RF Federal Assembly
and the National Assembly of Armenia will hold the international
conference Interregional Russia-Armenia Cooperation: State and
Prospects . It is expected that the following officials will
participate in the Conference: Sergey Mironov, the RF Federation
Council Chairman, Artur Baghdasaryan, Chairman of the National
Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, members of the RF Federation
Council, the RF State Duma and the National Assembly of Armenia. The
conference participants will consider process of implementation of
the long-term Program for economic cooperation between two states
till 2010 and touch upon the problems of coordination of legislation
of both countries. Notably, the choice of the Samara region for
conference holding is not random- at the present moment the Samara
region is in the lead among the Russian regions in the trade turnover
with Armenia and above all, almost 70 thousand Armenians live in
Samara and the Samara region.

PR Newswire (press release)
May 5 2004

Wealth and Poverty Continue to Coexist in Europe – Diouf

WASHINGTON, MONTPELIER, Vt. and ROME, May 5 /PRNewswire/ — Europe
includes some of the most advanced countries in the world as well as
others that have high levels of poverty, FAO Director-General
Dr. Jacques Diouf said today in his address to the FAO Regional
Conference for Europe.

“The level of poverty in the region, based on a poverty line of
less than $2 per day, stands at 21 percent and 5 percent of the
population are affected by food insecurity. Such levels are lower
than in most other parts of the world, but significant differences
exist among the countries,” Dr. Diouf said.

“Special attention needs to be paid to the poorest countries of
the region, especially those of southeast Europe and the Commonwealth
of Independent States, to help resolve their problems of food
insecurity and rural poverty,” Dr. Diouf said.

Factors fuelling poverty in the past 15 years include the
difficulties associated with moving from a centrally planned economy
to a market economy, declining production in agriculture and the
agrifood sector and resulting unemployment. In the Balkans, the
situation has been further exacerbated by conflict, he added.

The number of undernourished people in the countries in transition
grew from 25 to 34 million between 1993-1995 and 1999-2001, according
to FAO’s State of Food Insecurity in the World 2003. Nearly all of
the increases in undernourishment took place in the Commonwealth of
Independent States, where the number of hungry people rose from 20.6
to 28.8 million.

Agricultural production Agricultural production in the region as a
whole fell by about 0.5 percent per year between 1998 and 2003.
Agriculture accounted for 12 percent of the region’s gross domestic
product in 2001.

Agricultural exports represented 7.4 percent of total exports in
2002, for a value of $211 billion, against agricultural imports of
$222 billion. The 25 countries of the European Union account for more
than 90 percent of these figures.

The year 2003 was unfortunately not a good year for agriculture in
most countries in the region, Dr. Diouf said. Drought, frost,
flooding and other problems, such as locust and rodent infestation,
led to a sharp decline in agricultural production, especially in
Armenia, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine.

“During the last biennium, six countries of the Balkans and
Commonwealth of Independent States received emergency assistance from
FAO to deal with crises in their agricultural sectors, for a total of
some US$15 million,” he added.

Despite these problems, Dr. Diouf said that he was confident that
a determined Europe can meet the challenges of poverty and food
insecurity.

Noting that external aid to agricultural development fell from $27
billion to as low as $10 billion during the 1990s, Dr. Diouf called on
countries to double external aid to agriculture. He said investment
in agriculture should also be increased in order to achieve progress
in reducing undernourishment.

He underlined that a fair trading policy is essential for rural
development and food security.

Agricultural technology The transfer and adoption of appropriate
technology is essential for the sustainable intensification of
agricultural systems, Dr. Diouf added.

Very important are the promotion of exchanges, the existence of
regional and global partnerships and the strengthening of linkages
between public and private research, extension, education and
communication institutions.

The Regional Conference for Europe will also discuss the
improvement of food safety.

“Improving the safety and quality of food products remains a key
objective of governments, private sector and civil society
organizations of all the countries of the region. Such improvement
will help safeguard public health, meet consumer expectations and
encourage local and international trade,” Dr Diouf said.

turkishnewsline, Turkey
April 29 2004

US’ Armenia move

The US is determined to improve its influence on Caucasus; so it has
some movements that have not been realized.

Under this framework, US’ signing a military deal with Armenia could
be evaluated as last, silent but an important move. Press reported a
little on the issue when the agreement was signed in Yerivan on April
25. Armenia Chief of General Staff declared the deal on April 26.
With this deal, for the first time US is signing a military agreement
with Armenia.

According to information on the deal, this is a military logistic
deal. The US will able to come to Armenia and it will able to remain
in the Armenian bases and he will able to benefit from the facilities
of the bases. The same conditions will be valid for the US military
forces; of course it is a detail because the Armenian forces will not
go to the US. And why should they go?

There are some special clauses that the US will pay for the services
that it benefited from in Armenia and the US will compensate the
Armenian forces, which would be deployed in Iraq. We discover that
Armenia is ready to send a military unit to Iraq to get closer to the
US. The aim is not only to be closer to the US, but also Armenia
wants to balance Azerbaijan and Georgia in Iraq, which sent troops to
the country.

This agreement that the US signed with Armenia is the last move of
the US against the Caucasus. Aiming to break Russian and Iran
influence in the Caucasus, the US had signed a very comprehensive
deal with Georgia.

Scotland on Sunday, UK
April 30 2004

Eu’s Outsiders Look in with Envy and Bitterness

“PA”

While new EU members celebrated, their left-out neighbours stood
outside the rope and watched the party today, wondering when – or if
– they will join Europe’s exclusive club of the stable and
prosperous.

An entire swathe of countries, from Belarus and Russia in the north
to Albania in southern Europe, are seeing their relative poverty and
outsider status reinforced with the eastward push of the union’s
borders at the stroke of midnight.

Some, like Croatia and Romania, have a chance to get in the next
several years. Others, burdened by shrivelled economies and
international concern about human rights, can only dream of meeting
the tough requirements for economic reform and democracy.

Ukraine’s president Leonid Kuchma, leader of one of the biggest
outsider nations, testily accused the EU of erecting a new wall to
replace the ones torn down at the end of the Cold War in the late
1980s and early 1990s.

`We regard it as historically unjust that we are outside this
system,’ he told a Warsaw conference this week. `We are not asking
for charity, we are simply announcing to Europe that there is such a
country as Ukraine.’

Kuchma’s emotional reproach was greeted with a bland thank-you from
EU enlargement commissioner Guenter Verheugen, sitting on stage a few
feet away at the European Economic Summit.

He left no doubt where Kuchma stands, however.

`For the time being, accession of the Eastern European countries –
Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine – is not on our agenda,’ Verheugen
said. `It makes no sense to make promises which are not realistic.’

The newcomers are Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic Latvia,
Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Malta, and Cyprus. And
there’s a clear pecking order for outsiders.

The former Yugoslav republics of Croatia and Macedonia and former
Soviet satellites Romania and Bulgaria have applied for EU membership
and could start getting in as early as 2007. Turkey is awaiting a
decision on whether it will be able to start negotiations with the
EU.

In the Balkans, Serbia and Montenegro – even impoverished Albania –
have a theoretical chance to get in years down the road.

Others have no real chance for now. Russia has dismissed the prospect
of getting in, and its view of Caucasus nations such as Georgia and
Armenia as belonging in its sphere of influence may place a long-term
lid on any faint hopes there.

Then there’s isolated, authoritarian Belarus, which refused
permission for an EU enlargement ceremony in the capital Minsk and
cancelled a visit to the Warsaw economic summit by Prime Minister
Sergei Sidorsky.

Ukraine, meanwhile, has struggled economically since becoming
independent with the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. European
officials have expressed concern about the pace of democratic
progress, most recently criticising local elections won by a
pro-presidential party this month amid accusations of widespread vote
fraud.

However, Ukraine and Belarus may be able to get more aid and sympathy
at the urging of Poland, which shares a border with both.

Pacific Stars and Stripes, Japan
May 2 2004

U.S., Armenia sign military compact

By Ward Sanderson, Stars and Stripes
European edition,

The United States recently signed a compact with Armenia making it
possible to swap or buy military supplies and services through that
country’s forces.

Armenia may ask the same of the Americans.

`It shows that we are increasing and cementing our relationship and
that Armenia is a full participant on the war on terrorism,’ said Gen.
Charles F. Wald, deputy commander of U.S. forces in Europe, in a press
statement.

In and of itself, the acquisition and cross-servicing agreement, or
ACSA, may not seem unusual. The Defense Department has negotiated 77 of
these; nearly 50 are with countries dealing with the U.S. European
Command. But the Armenia deal cemented on April 26 means that U.S.
forces can now operate with ready access to local supplies not only in
Armenia, but throughout the strategically important Caucuses region:
U.S. defense officials reached a similar agreement with Georgia two
years ago and with Azerbaijan last year.

The Caucuses region is important because the region is rich in oil and,
as beginning of the ancient Silk Road, is a doorway to the East
directly bordering Russia and Iran. And whatever the merits of having
military-to-military chumminess in that neighborhood, it also
highlights the U.S. push to have such agreements anywhere in the world
where a friendly government holds power.

The arrangements were hatched in 1979 via the Mutual Support Act, a
mechanism for the United States and other NATO members to help one
another without going through the usual contracting hoops. More
recently, Congress expanded the concept so that the U.S. government
could negotiate such arrangements with any friendly nation.

Since then, America has vigorously sought to clinch such arrangements.

`With this country and all 93 countries in our area of responsibility,
we have a responsibility to cooperate with most of them, if they’re a
friendly and willing member,’ said Lt. Col. Charles Sherwin of the
Logistics and Security Assistance Directorate at the U.S. European
Command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. `There are certain
agreements you’d like to have in place to work with them.’

The deals take time. The chatting up of Armenia began in March of 2002
when both the State Department and Defense Department signed off on the
idea.

`Here, two years later, we were able to conclude,’ Sherwin said. `We
can’t just go willy-nilly to negotiate these things.’

No one actually gives anything to anyone under the agreements; each
country buys, swaps or returns in kind whatever it needs from the other
military.

As for signing such deals with nations eastward, it could provide
obvious benefits for operations in Afghanistan or Iraq. And, Sherwin
said, were U.S. forces to push on to new bases in Eastern Europe, it
would advance that effort, too.

However, Lt. Col. Bill Bigelow, a spokesman for the Stuttgart
headquarters, was quick to say that the Armenian news does not equate
to a final decision to build eastern bases.

More broadly, `It enhances operability throughout the theater,’ Bigelow
said.

Business Wire
May 3 2004

“Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” Exhibit At Forest Lawn

–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
WHAT: “Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film”

An exciting new exhibit at the Forest Lawn Museum
explores the art of photography through the lenses of
seven unique photographers. Their photography ranges
from landscapes and those living on skid row to obsolete
film equipment and much more.

A VIP and media reception with the photographers will
take place May 6th at 6:00 p.m. at the Forest Lawn
Museum at 1712 S. Glendale Avenue in Glendale.

Throughout the duration of the exhibit, special
activities will take place, including:

— May 9: Mother’s Day: Create a Keepsake for Mom – Kids
can make a beautiful sun catcher craft for mom! From
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

— May 16: Meet the Artist: Jacob Demirdjian – Jacob
will lead a question-and-answer session about his
work and its significance to the Armenian community.
From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— May 23 and 30: Photography Workshop with Kevin
Tidmore for Adults and Children – Join Kevin for a
photography workshop. Participants will be given a
single-use camera to take their own shots.
Participants will then be able to return on May 30 to
have Kevin discuss the results. From 1:00 p.m. –
4:00 p.m.

— June 6: Ronald Dietel: Landscape Photography – From
Large Format to Digital (adults and children) – Bring
your digital camera to a hands-on workshop, which
traces the evolution of the camera and its influence
on California history. Led by photographer Ron
Dietel, participants will have an opportunity to view
Dietel’s large-format photography, currently on
display, followed by an opportunity to enhance their
own photography skills. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— June 19: Father’s Day Activity: Make a Memory for Dad
– Children can make a unique and special mosaic tile
frame for Dad’s big day. From 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

— June 27: Meet the Artist: William Ortiz – Meet
William and hear about photographic manipulation as
art. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— July 18: Photojournalism – Meet Patrick Liotta, whose
photographs are currently on display, and join him
for a discussion on photojournalism as both art and
presentation of fact. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— July 25: Meet the Artist: Vince Gonzales – Join Vince
as he talks about his photographic inspirations. From
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— July 31: Meditative Art: Art in a Yantra Style with
Kelly Mason – Yantra means mantra except in image not
word. In this demonstration, Kelly will use
repetitive imagery to help the viewer see beyond the
obvious core presence to benefit their entire being
physically, emotionally and spiritually. From
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

WHEN: Reception, May 6th at 6:00 p.m., Forest Lawn Museum,
Glendale
Opening Day, May 8th, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Daily through August 1st, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

WHERE: Forest Lawn Museum
Forest Lawn-Glendale
1712 S. Glendale Ave.
Glendale, CA 91205

COST: Free

INFO: 1-800-204-3131

WHO: All art enthusiasts

INFORMATION: “Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” is an exhibit
that explores the art of photography through a
collection of works by seven photographers of varying
ethnic backgrounds — Armenian, African American,
Latino, South American, and Caucasian — whose
photography will be the featured exhibit at The Forest
Lawn Museum in Forest Lawn-Glendale from May 8th through
August 1st. The photography represented in the exhibit
ranges from landscapes to people living on skid row to
obsolete film equipment and more, and adds to the
distinctive vision of the photographers.

“Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” is part of the
Forest Lawn Museum’s presentation of events which are
designed to bring a diverse mix of community, cultural,
and historic art and artists to the greater Los Angeles
community. The exhibit is open to the public at no
charge seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. through
5:00 p.m.

The following photographers’ work will be included in
the exhibit: Jacob Demirdjian, Kevin Tidmore, Ronald J.
Dietel, William Ortiz, Patrick Liotta, Vince Gonzales,
and Kelly Mason.