Author: Kafian Jirair

Armenian paper questions Russia’s claim to act as Karabakh settlement
mediator

Golos Armenii, Yerevan
24 Aug 04

Text of Aris Kazinyan’s article “Vladimir Putin’s statement: there are
more questions than answers” published by Armenian newspaper Golos
Armenii on 24 August

“Russia can be a guarantor and mediator in settling the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said on 20 August
during his Sochi meeting with Armenian President Robert Kocharyan.
Putting it mildly, the Russian leader’s statement is not very clear:
how is Moscow going to become a mediator, if it became one long ago?

Does Vladimir Putin’s statement mean that official Moscow is
displeased with the trilateral institute of the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairmen? Does it mean that in future Russia sees itself if not the
only then at least the main mediator in the negotiating process on
peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict? Or should the Russian
president’s words be taken as a claim to Russia’s exclusive authority
in settling conflicts in the South Caucasus? If so, who this claim is
addressed to? Is it addressed to Washington, Paris or maybe to Tbilisi
in connection with the Georgian-Ossetian conflict? The way he was
speaking about “South Ossetian autonomy abolished by the Georgian
authorities” one would think that the sovereignty of the Russian
Federation was at stake.

Finally, there is the time bomb of Javakh [Georgia’s Armenian-populated
Samtskhe-Javakheti Region], which may be put in operation if needed.
“We inherited many conflict situations. In some places these conflicts
are in a dampened state, while in others they have flared up with a
new force,” the Russian president said at a joint news conference
[with Kocharyan].

The Russian president’s statement about the possibility of Russia
becoming a “guarantor” in the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh
conflict is even less clear. What does it mean to be a guarantor in
this political conflict? By the way, once Moscow had almost the same
powers: in January 1989 a new form of government was introduced in the
Nagornyy Karabakh Autonomous Region [NKAO] and in effect the region
was taken out of direct subordination to Azerbaijan. Under a
resolution of the USSR Council of Ministers, all organizations and
enterprises of NKAO were re-subordinated to the relevant Soviet
departments. This legal status was the last for NKAO during the Soviet
period.

Can Moscow, which does not want to recall this aspect of the Karabakh
settlement, become a guarantor of a fair settlement of the conflict?
Talking about today’s stage, why does not Moscow remember that earlier
Armenians in Karabakh were fighting against [Chechen rebel warlord]
Shamil Basayev? Of course it is up to the Kremlin to ignore absolutely
obvious realities, but after all this it hardly has the right to claim
the role of so-called “guarantor”.

Still, what does it mean to be a “guarantor” in the Karabakh
settlement? Can this statement be interpreted as an intention to bring
in Russian peacekeeping force to the conflict zone or to deploy it at
the security line? In all probability, the Russian leader meant this
too, but again with Georgia in mind. Russian peacekeepers are
“guarantors of the peaceful settlement” of the Geo rgian-Ossetian
conflict, are they not?

Given the above, President Robert Kocharyan’s words said at the same
news conference, acquire quite a peculiar sense: “There is a great
difference between the Georgian-Ossetian and the Karabakh
conflicts. There is security line in the Karabakh conflict
zone. Everything is under control there.” Unlike in the
Georgian-Ossetian conflict.

The Sochi meeting of the Russian and Armenian leaders did not look
like a meeting of strategic allies. It was more like a talk of the two
countries’ prime ministers outlining common economic interests in the
region. The Russian president made it clear once again that Moscow
wants to make friends with Yerevan and Baku equally. As for our
problems with transport communications conditioned by the “known
geopolitical situation of Armenia”, alas, they are difficult to
overcome. Vladimir Putin mentioned the prospective “North-South”
railway corridor. A decision on its construction was adopted in May in
Moscow at a meeting of the railway ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan and
Iran. This railway link via Derbent, Baku, Astara, Rasht and Qazvin
should provide Russia with direct access to the Indian Ocean. And this
is not “an hour-long flight to Sochi,” this is strategy!

From: Loucia Isaac Seropian

By Cilina Nasser
Daily Star staff

August 20, 2004

Friends host dinner to bid farewell to Lucia Seropian

BEIRUT: Around 25 friends and journalists said goodbye to Public
Relations Director at Haigazian University Lucia Seropian at a
farewell dinner at Place de L’Etoile in downtown Beirut Wednesday.

Seropian is leaving to Qatar with her family to join Promoseven, an
international communications company in the Middle east and North
Africa.

Among those saying goodbye were UN Secretary-General’s Personal
representative to Southern Lebanon Staffan de Mistura and the head of
the World Health Organization in Lebanon, Habib Latiri.

Seropian thanked the reporters, who represented different Lebanese
media institutions, for “their dedication in highlighting educational
activities in Lebanon” and wished them all the best, saying she hoped
she would continue cooperating with them in her new job in Qatar.
###

Agence France Presse — English
August 20, 2004 Friday 2:12 PM GMT

Lawyers make final appeal for release of ‘mercenaries’ in Zimbabwe

HARARE

Lawyers representing 70 suspected mercenaries held on charges of
plotting a coup in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea asked a Zimbabwe court
to acquit most of the men in a final appeal.

The men were arrested in March when their Boeing 727 landed in Harare
to pick up a consignment of weapons, including rifles, grenades,
rocket-launchers and mortar bombs which Zimbabwe says were to be used
to overthrow the regime in Equatorial Guinea.

In his closing arguments, defense lawyer Jonathan Samkange said
charges of “conspiracy to possess dangerous weapons” against 66 of
the men should be dropped as the alleged soldiers of fortune knew
nothing of the arms purchases in Harare.

“The charge is incompetent and therefore I ask that the accused be
acquitted on that basis,” said Samkange.

Magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe ajourned the trial until August 27 but
gave no indication as to whether a verdict would be handed down at
that hearing.

The trial opened on July 27 at a makeshift court in the Chikurubi
maximum security prison where the men have been held since their
arrest almost six months ago.

The detained group included three crew members, and three men on the
ground who allegedly went to Harare International Airport to inspect
the firearms to be purchased from Zimbabwe’s state arms manufacturer.

The court has heard that the weapons were needed to guard diamond
mines in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where most
of men claim they were going to do security work after being
recruited in South Africa.

But Zimbabwe has accused them of plotting to overthrow President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema’s 25-year regime in the small central African
state of Equatorial Guinea, a former Spanish colony.

Eight other South Africans and six Armenians are due to go on trial
in Equatorial Guinea’s capital Malabo on Monday, charged with taking
part in an advance force that was to be later joined by the ‘Harare
70’ to carry out the coup.

State prosecutor Lawrence Phiri argued the men could not have
possibly been going on ordinary security duties considering the
manner they behaved at Harare airport, the nature of the equipment
they were supposed to collect and some of the documents and supplies
found on their plane.

The group stayed on board an aircraft with no cabin lights, remained
silent with some of them even lying down on the aisle, to avoid
detection, according to Phiri, obeying instructions that were
contained on a piece of paper allegedly found on the plane.

Phiri also argued that some items found on the plane such as
camouflage cream and survival kits could not possibly be for use by
security guards.

He said mortar bombs and grenades could not have been used for
guarding mines.

“These items are exclusively of military use, not for a security
company,” he said.

“One is inclined to conclude that in fact these persons knew that
whatever expedition they were going on, was illegal,” Phiri argued.

Some of the men have testified that they knew nothing about landing
in Harare to pick up weapons, and Samkange argued Friday that they
could therefore not be charged with conspiracy.

Samkange said the state should have called witnesses from South
Africa to say whether a meeting took place to discuss and agree on
the conspiracy.

“In this case there is deafening silence as regards the form of
agreement, and the court cannot therefore find any way of convicting
these people,” he added.

“I would ask this court to act judiciously and when it acts
judiciously and in fairness to all parties, it has no option but to
acquit the accused,” said Samkange.

“It is wrong to suggest that there was any conspiracy,” he said.

If convicted under Zimbabwe’s Public Order and Security Act (POSA)
the men could face a 10-year jail term.

PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

August 17, 2004

CLASS OFF 2004 COMPLETES SIAMANTO ACADEMY PROGRAM

NEW YORK, NY-They all spoke with nostalgia about their three years at the
Siamanto Academy. This year’s graduates, Mark Yetemian, Sylvie Aghjayan,
Marie Demirchyan, and Massis Sarkissian, each read their graduation speeches
with emotion and gratitude for the enriching experience they had at the
Academy.
Sponsored by the Armenian National Education Committee (ANEC), the three
year weekly program focuses on language, literature, history, Christian
studies and current events in addition to guest lecturers on various
Armenian cultural disciplines. This, in addition to the field trips that
enhance the traditional, national values that the students embrace, provide
a unique educational opportunity.
In the presence of parents and guests, Siamanto principal, Deacon Krikor
Lakissian, and ANEC executive director, Gilda B. Kupelian, the graduates
dressed in their caps and gowns, walked into the hall amidst enthusiastic
applause.
Dn. Lakissian gave a brief account of last year’s activities and Ms
Kupelian provided an overview of the Academy’s three year accredited
program. The graduates received their diplomas, awards and gifts from ANEC.
A reception hosted by the parents concluded the day’s joyous
festivities.
The Academy’s 2004-2005 term will begin next month. For information
contact the ANEC office, [email protected] or 212-689-7810.

Zaman, Turkey
Aug 15 2004

Armenians Tune into Tarkan, Arabs Sibel Can

Turkish songs are quite the rage in Halep, Syria’s second largest
city.

Savt-ul Suleymaniye/The Sound of Suleymaniye is a unique music store
that has been selling Turkish music in Halep’s Armenian Suleymaniye
district since 1976. When compared to the Turkmen districts of Halep,
the streets of Suleymaniye are modern and clean. It is as we were
walking down these streets that we happened up a music store covered
with posters of Turkish singers such as Tarkan, Sibel Can, and Nazan
Oncel.

Turkmen courier Fadi guessed that the owner is Turkmen; so it must be
in one of the villages near Kilis. We entered the small store and
were greeted by CDs and cassettes stacked to the ceiling. Whatever
you could possibly want, the store has. Gülden Karaböcek, Zeki Müren,
Emel Sayýn, Ümit Besen, Müslüm Gürses, Candan Erçetin, Tarkan, and
Davut Güloðlu to name a few.

Arab singers frequent Savt-ul Suleymaniye. Lebanese singer Iyad Sakar
reportedly asked the store to send a Serdar Ortac album to Beirut two
days ago.

Many Arab singers such as Sakar translate the Turkish songs they like
into Arabic. The Turkmen owner has an order list in front of him. An
Armenian planning to visit his daughter in America ordered 23 Turkish
albums. The owner, who enjoys introducing Turkish music to the
country, said, “I have lots to do, such as packing these after
copying.”

GOVERNMENT APPROVES DRAFT LAW “ON MELIORATION OF AGRICULTURAL LANDS”

YEREVAN, August 12 (Noyan Tapan). The RA government approved the draft
law “On Melioration of Agricultural Lands” during the August 12
sitting. It will be submitted to the National Assembly in a set
order. According to the RA government’s press service, by the draft
law relations connected with the melioration of agricultural lands are
regulated with the purpose of the preservation and increase of crop
capacity of lands, protection of soil from making greasy and washing
out, use of barren lands in agriculture.

The Moscow Times
Friday, August 13, 2004. Page 2.

News in Brief

Racism Warning

MOSCOW (AP) — Racism is spreading at an alarming pace in Russia, resulting
in a growing number of ethnic-based killings and attacks on minority groups,
human rights activists said Thursday.

Authorities have been reluctant to persecute the publishers and authors of
numerous virulently xenophobic and anti-Semitic publications that have
flooded Russian cities, said Alexander Brod, the director of the Moscow
Bureau for Human Rights and coordinator of an EU-funded program monitoring
xenophobia, anti-Semitism and ethnic discrimination in Russia.

A nationwide poll conducted earlier this year had 42 percent of respondents
saying that the involvement of Jews in politics, business and other spheres
must be curtailed — a prejudice that reaches far back into Russia’s
pogrom-haunted past — while 35 percent spoke against such restrictions and
the rest did not have an opinion.

Some 60 percent of those polled supported restrictions against migrants from
Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.

The poll of 2,500 people, conducted by the independent Expertisa foundation,
had a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

UNDP IMPLEMENTS PROJECT OF E-GOVERNANCE SYSTEM FOR TERRITORIAL
ADMINISTRATION

YEREVAN, AUGUST 9. ARMINFO. UNDP is launching the $35,000 E-Governance
System for Territorial Administration project in Armenia’s regions.

The objective of the project is to raise the public importance of the
use of e-networks between the population and local
administrations. The project coordinator Artashes Darbinyan says that
Harmony Project has set up numerous internet-centers in the country –
e-coordination between villages and regional centers is an important
but the only way to establish stable communication between the public
and the authorities. This is especially important for remote districts
So the task of the project is to coordinate the population-local
government cooperation. For this purpose UNDP is planning training
course for instructors, workshops on e-governance, e-training in the
regions for regional officials, local school directors, local NGO
representatives.

The ideal e-governance system will allow people to save time and money
on unnecessary trips to district centers giving them optimal e-access
opportunities.

The project will be launched in Kotayk this month and will be finished
in Shirak in Dec.

zaway
Aug 6, 2004

WASHINGTON, Aug 05, 2004 (United Press International via COMTEX) — Insider
notes from United Press International for Aug. 5:

Since March the Bush administration has frantically tried to keep “coalition
of the willing” members from voting with their feet and leaving Iraq. Now a
new nation may be preparing to send troops to the strife-ridden country.
According to reports in the local press, Armenia may be readying to send
troops to Iraq. The Armenian government has approved the decision by the
country’s Defense Ministry supporting the memorandum, “On commanding and
regulating the work of the multi-national stabilization force in Iraq.”
Armenia had earlier announced that it was ready to send trucks, 10 field
engineers and three military doctors to Iraq. The decision is not popular
with sections of Armenian society; the Armenian Communist Party called the
decision “an anti-Armenian step, endangering not only the lives and security
of dozens of our specialists, but also the large Armenian community in a
country we are in friendly relations with;” the secretary of the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of Armenia, Ruben Tovmasyan, labeled the
decision “immoral.” Cynics looking for cause and effect might note that
President George W. Bush recently selected Armenia as a potential recipient
of assistance from the Millennium Challenge Account, a new bilateral
development program established in 2002 as a new channel for development
assistance.

Copyright 2004 by United Press International.

DEPUTY ASSEMBLY OF ARMENIAN DIOCESE OF TEHRAN HIGHLY ESTIMATES
ACTIVITIES OF LEVON DAVTIAN, DEPUTY OF PREVIOUS SESSION OF ISLAMIC
PARLIAMENT

YEREVAN, August 5 (Noyan Tapan). The special 36th sitting of the
Deputy Assembly of the Armenian Diocese of Tehran was convened on
August 3. It was presided over by Archbishop Sepuh Sargsian, Head of
the Diocese, Rubik Karapetian, as well as under the chairmanship of
Gevorg Vardanian, newly elected deputy of the Islamic parliament of
the Armenians of Northern Iran. According to the Armenian “Alik”
(“Wave”) dialy newspaper of Tehran, Levon Davtian, deputy of the
previous session of the Islamic Parliament of the Armenians of
Northern Iran, was also invited to the sitting. The Deputy Assembly,
speaking about the 40-year effective activities of Doctor Davtian,
highly estimated his activities. During the sitting the holy father
presented the role of Levon Davtian in the life of the Armenian
Community.