Author: Jalatian Sonya

PRESS RELEASE
REF: PR /04/03/006
Assembly of Armenians of Europe
Rue de Treves 10, 1050 Brussels
Tel: +32 2 647 08 01
Fax: +32 2 647 02 00

THE AAE calls upon the AGBU to reconsider its decision of closing the
Melkonian School

Brussels, March 15th, 2004 – It is with deep regret that the Assembly
of Armenians of Europe learnt about the decision of the AGBU
Administrative Board to close gradually the Melkonian School of
Cyprus. The Boarding School of the Melkonian Educational Institution
will be the first to be shut down.

It is undeniable truth that the Armenian School is the stronghold
that preserves the Armenian Diaspora from being assimilated and keeps
alive the Armenian spirit. Indeed, since its foundation the Melkonian
Educational Institution has not been just a school, but the principle
basis for the preservation of our national identity outside of
Armenia. Many political and cultural figures have been educated here.

Taking into consideration that many young Armenians attend the
Melkonian School, the closing of the latter will have grave
consequences not only on the Armenian Community in Cyprus, but also
in the countries of Middle East, Europe and countries of ex-Soviet
Union Republic. The Melkonian School offers the best opportunity to
the young Armenians to get acquainted with the Armenian history,
culture and traditions and inspires them with the Armenian values.
The fact that the Melkonian Educational Institution is the only
Armenian secondary school in Europe (besides the school, recently
established in France) emphasizes its importance.

Such decision puts under question the very principles and objectives
of the AGBU Administrative Board which for many decades has been
administrating the Melkonian School and their commitment to the
preservation of Armenian values.

Therefore, the Assembly of Armenians of Europe calls upon the
Administrative Board of the AGBU to reconsider their decision for the
sake of the whole Armenian Diaspora. By applying such a decision, the
AGBU will definitely fail to fulfill its historical mission, which is
the preservation of the Armenian Identity and Armenian values.

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan, in Russian
10 Mar 04

Armenian leader urges nationwide fight against corruption

YEREVAN

Armenian President Robert Kocharyan expressed his regret today that
“the fight against corruption in our country is not nationwide”, the
Armenian president said at a meeting with Yerevan State University
students today, according to a Mediamax correspondent.

Kocharyan said that for an efficient fight against corruption, it is
necessary to regulate all the functions of the state. “For example,
in Armenia, four years ago, it was impossible to have a commercial
company registered without a bribe. Moreover, it took about a month.
Now it takes only two days to have a company registered and nobody
can dare to demand a bribe,” the Armenian president said.

Robert Kocharyan cited the energy system as another example, he said
that “it used to be one of the most corrupt spheres in Armenia”. “The
privatization of the Armenian grids has led to a considerable drop in
the level of corruption in this sector,” the president said.

“We have the necessary political will that enables us to reduce the
volume of corruption every year. The elimination of corruption
demands daily laborious efforts, and this is not a problem that can
be resolved very quickly by chanting big slogans,” Kocharyan said.

Space TV, Baku, in Azeri
10 Mar 04

Azeri officer suspected of killing Armenian to serve time at home –
lawyer

[Presenter] Ramil Safarov’s interpreter has finally spoken out and
informed the Azerbaijani public about the latest news. We present you
with a telephone conversation with the interpreter as follows:

[A female voice on the phone] He is in a normal state and is being
held in normal conditions. He is treated well by everyone.

[Passage omitted: Personal belongings can be sent to Safarov in
prison]

[Presenter] Lawyer Adil Ismayilov, who has returned after visiting
Safarov [who is suspected of killing an Armenian officer], says that
to all appearances, Safarov will serve a prison term in Baku.

[Correspondent over video of news conference] To recap, the incident
occurred at about 0500 [0100 gmt] on 19 February.

[Passage omitted: Reported details of incident]

Ismayilov did not answer a number of questions to preserve the
secrecy of an investigation. He only said that the incident had
occurred because of the Armenian officer’s unethical behaviour. As
for the future stages of the process, Ismayilov said that the trial
could have been held in Azerbaijan in accordance with a European
convention. But it is impossible to hold the trial in Azerbaijan as
most of the witnesses are in Budapest. The investigation is expected
to finish by the end of this month. As for the lawyer appointed by
the Azerbaijani side, Ismayilov said that the lawyer has already been
named. His name is Elcin Usubov, a member of the Board of Lawyers.

[Ismayilov] The Azerbaijani lawyer can meet Safarov and take part in
the investigation only with the prosecutor’s preliminary consent.

[Correspondent] Ismayilov believes that the key issue now is to prove
the reason for the incident. That’s why, it is necessary to furnish
the trial and Budapest television with facts about the Xocali tragedy
[1992 massacre of Azeris in Karabakh] and other Azerbaijani lands
under occupation because the Armenians have already started an active
propaganda campaign in this sphere. The Armenians have managed to
broadcast two programmes of this kind on Hungarian TV in the last 15
days. Ismayilov is confident that although Safarov will be sentenced
in Hungary, he will serve his prison term in Azerbaijan. This is not
our demand, but a requirement of international law.

Mircavad Rahimov and Rasad Bagirov, Space.