Author: Kalashian Nyrie

MEMORIAL POSTCARD ON THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE "RAVISHED ARMENIA" DOCUMENTARY

armradio.am
26.02.2009 16:03

On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the "Ravished Armenia,"
one of the first documentary memoirs of an eyewitness of Armenian
Genocide, the AGMI has issued a memorial postcard and has created an
on-line exhibition at

"Ravished Armenia," was published in 1918, in New York. In this book
Arshaluys (Aurora) Mardiganian, a girl from Chmshkatsag, Armenian
populated town in the Ottoman Empire, gave a detailed account of the
terrible experiences she endured during the deportations. At the age
of fourteen Arshaluys was beaten and tortured in harems of Turkish
officials and Kurdish tribesmen.

The book "Ravished Armenia" was completed when American Committee
for Armenian and Syrian Relief offered to create a film based on
the scenario of the book and all the profit, which later on reached
$30 million, would be given to 60.000 Armenian orphans in the Near
East for relief purposes. In 1918, at Metro Goldwin Mayer studio,
director Oscar Apfel made "Auction of Souls" silent film, which
actually became not only the first movie on the Armenian genocide,
but also the first genocide movie ever made. More than 10.000 Armenian
residents of Southern California, including 200 deported children,
participated in the scenes.

The premiere of the=2 0"Auction of Souls" was held on February 16,
1919, in Plaza Hotel, New York under the auspices of Oliver Harriman
and George Vanderbilt, members of American Committee for Armenian
and Syrian Relief.

The film was shown in large cities of 23 U.S. states, in several
countries of Latin America, including Mexico and Cuba. It was a
success everywhere and was estimated as "epoch-making film".

The "Auction of Souls" was taken to Great Britain in December, 1919,
and censured. After long lasting negotiations the film was shown in
Royal Albert Hall, by the permission of Scotland Yard and played for
three weeks.

At the beginning of 1920s Mardiganian’s "Ravished Armenia" was censured
and taken off the British and American libraries.

For over eighty years film historians have been searching the world for
the nine reels of Ravished Armenia but failed to find any trace. The
remaining reels of the rare nitrate based film were lost. Some say the
reels presumably sunk with a ship on their way to the port of Batoum,
Georgia, or stolen by thieves. The full-length version of the film,
which lasting 85 minutes, unfortunately, hasn’t been saved. With the
efforts of Eduard Gozanlian, an Armenian from Argentina, a 20 minute
segment of the reel was found in 1994. One copy of that segment is
kept in the funds of Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute. The film
included English, Frenc h and Armenian subtitles for every scene. The
list of the original subtitles for Ravished Armenia is preserved in
The Selig Collection at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. They are also reproduced in
Anthony Slide’s book "Ravished Armenia and the Story of Aurora
Mardiganian". This book was published by Scarecrow Press in 1997.

It tells the story of the making of the film and reveals the young
girl’s survival story.

JETHRO TULL BRITISH ROCK GROUP TO GIVE CONCERT IN YEREVAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.02.2009 20:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Jethro Tull British rock group will give a concert
in Yerevan National Theater of Opera and Ballet on May 22.

Jethro Tull was formed in 1965-1968. Their music is characterized by
the songs, vocals and flute work of Ian Anderson, who has led the
band since its founding, and guitarist Martin Barre, who has been
with the band since 1969.

Initially playing blues rock with an experimental flavor, they
incorporated elements of classical, folk and ‘ethnic’ music, jazz
and art rock into their music.

The band has sold more than 60 million albums worldwide.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Armenian version: nian.htm

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I VISITS HIS BEATITUDE IGNATIUS JOSEPH III YOUNAN
THE NEWLY CONSECRATED PATRIARCH OF THE SYRIAC CATHOLIC CHURCH

His Holiness Aram I accompanied with Bishops of the Brotherhood visited His
Beatitude Ignatius Joseph III to congratulate him on his election as
Patriarch to lead and serve his people.

During the visit, the two Heads spoke of the relationship between the two
churches while the new Patriarch served his church in Syria and the United
States of America as a Bishop. The two leaders also recalled the
relationships between the Syriac Catholic Church and the Armenian Orthodox
Church during the Armenian Kingdom (now Turkey), since the 11th century.

Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III asked Catholicos Aram I about his visit to the
Vatican in November 2008, and its follow-up.

At the end of the visit, His Holiness Aram I expressed the hope that the
ancient bonds of relationship between the two churches would be strengthened
under the leadership of Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III, and would find new
expressions in their common ecumenical task regarding Christian presence in
the Middle East.

##
View the photos here:
tos/Photos361.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Ecumenical
activities of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

LATimes.com
$75,000 award announced in shooting death of father, daughter in Hollywood
10:47 AM | February 24, 2009

Los Angeles police and city officials today offered a $75,000 reward
for information leading to the arrest of those involved in the killing
of a man and his 8-year-old daughter in Hollywood. Khachik Safaryan,
and his daughter, Lusine, were found shot to death in December inside
their Little Armenia apartment in the 1200 block of Tamarind Avenue.

Investigators think Safaryan and his daughter were killed in the
morning. Their bodies were not found until that afternoon when
Safaryan’s 15-year-old daughter returned home from school, police
said. The $75,000 award is being offered by Los Angeles Councilman
Eric Garcetti, whose district includes the area.

Anyone with information is asked to call Hollywood homicide detectives
at (213) 972-1203 or (877) 527-3247. Callers may remain anonymous.

INTEREST IN ARMENIAN MUSEUM AT BANK BUILDING STILL STRONG, ANSWER MAN FINDS
By John Kelly

AZG DAILY
24-02-2009

Today I was at the corner of 14th and G streets NW, and once
again I wondered what the story is on the southeast corner of that
intersection, where the National Bank of Washington and Hahn Shoes
were. It’s quite a handsome building. But with all that has been going
on in downtown Washington, I’m surprised it is allowed to remain an
eyesore. — Marilyn A. Jones, Washington

Answer Man first answered this question in 2004. Back then, he said
that the handsome 1925 structure — designed by Alfred C. Bossom and
Jules-Henri de Sibour in the Classical Revival style, with touches
of the Baroque — would reopen in 2008 as a museum devoted to the
Armenian genocide.

You will recall that 2008 came and went, and there is no museum. I
asked Rouben Adalian, director of the Armenian National Institute,
what’s taking so long. He said there are several factors. Usually
you assemble a museum collection and then build a building to put it
in. "In this case, the property came first," he said. Wealthy Armenian
Americans purchased the building, and several adjacent properties,
and donated it to Rouben’s group for a museum. "So we’ve had to think
about how to create the museum following the purchase of the property."

Another complication is that both the exterior and interior of the
building have historic designation protection. Martinez & Johnson
Architects and museum designers Gallagher & Associates can’t just
rip out the inside and start from scratch.

Finally, this isn’t the greatest time to be raising money.

But Rouben was gracious enough to let Answer Man inside to take a
look — with a video camera. (Check out the exclusive footage at
)

Answ er Man can report that it’s like entering a beautiful
post-apocalyptic time capsule. A wall clock is stopped at 3:18. Deposit
slips sit in drawers. The interior is incredibly ornate, with an
intricate coffered ceiling, large arched windows and enormous columns.

When the bank opened — as the Federal-American Bank — it was the
first to have the banking room on the second floor. This reduced noise
from the street and served as a security measure: Robbers would have
to run down a flight of stairs or take the elevator.

Some of the tellers’ counters date to the bank’s earliest days. A
tiny plaque on one reads "Patent 1,673,639. John Poole." Poole,
the bank’s president, invented an open counter system that replaced
the individual tellers’ cages that had been common before. (Poole
wrote that the cages and tiny windows through which business was
traditionally conducted "keep the customer and teller from personal
contact and prevent the cultivation of friendly relations.")

Downstairs, a massive circular safe door opens onto the safe deposit
boxes. They look like they’ve been ransacked, the drawers open, tiny
keys dangling from each lock. In some rooms, paint curls from the
walls. Engineers have drilled holes to test walls and foundations,
leaving piles of concrete and plaster dust. But there’s still a
certain grandeur about the building.

The centenary of the Armenian genocide — the killing of 1.5 million
Armenians at the hands of the Turks — is in 2015. "It’d be ideal to
have [the museum] open way before then," said Rouben.

Is there a mystery structure you’d like to see the inside of? Maybe
Answer Man can gain access. Send a request to [email protected] .

PREMIER: ARMENIAN CHEESE MANUFACTURERS AND EXPORTERS IN NEED OF UNIFIED STRATEGY

ARKA
Feb 23, 2009

YEREVAN, February 23. /ARKA/. Armenia is in need of a unified strategy
for producing and exporting cheese, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan said at a round-table discussion held Saturday in Tsakhkadzor
as part of the sixth international economic forum "Bridge 2009".

He said he had instructed the Agriculture Ministry and Armenian
Development Agency to submit a relevant business program to the
Government.

The premier said that 500 small and mid-size enterprises produce
cheese in Armenian now.

These enterprises build up their output 30 to 40 percent every year.

Sargsyan said that today they can fully satisfy the domestic market’s
demand.

"But they will be able to grow in 2009/2011, if we provide them with
markets", Sargsyan said.

BRIDGE 2009 INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC FORUM KICKS OFF IN ARMENIA

ARKA
Feb 23, 2009

TSAGHKADZOR, February 23. /ARKA/. The sixth International Economic
Forum Bridge 2009 kicked off in Armenia last week.

The forum focuses on the global community and Armenian businesses
aborad, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said.

"We are trying to accentuate our privileges to make Armenia more
attractive for foreign investors," the premier added.

Sargsyan said "people should remember about their motherland and rerun
home during a crisis." No country can simply avoid economic recession,
he added.

"Even the remotest villages feel the influence of the global financial
crisis," the premier was quoted saying.

A country will be able to weather the crisis if it reorganizes and
undertakes necessary precautions, the prime minister said.

"We undertake efforts to overcome temporary difficulties and correct
our past mistakes, as well as reveal our strong points and derive
benefits from the crisis," Sargsyan concluded.

The Bridge 2009 economic forum focused on the priorities, modern
trends and opportunities of economic cooperation. Its major purpose
was to introduce Armenia’s economic capacities to the political and
business circles of the West and Middle East. Over 300 businessmen
participated in the forum.

The organizers of the event were the Union of Manufacturers and
Businessmen of Armenia (UMBA), Center of=2 0International Integration
Support Master.

The official sponsors of the forum were the RA Ministry of Economy,
RA Foreign Ministry and Central Bank of Armenia.

The first international economic forum Bridge took place in Armenia’s
Tsaghkadzor resort on June 23-26, 2004. Over 70 entrepreneurs from
Russia, Armenia, Georgia and Iran participated in it.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Armenian version: nian.htm

MRS. RACHEL DINK THE WIDOW OF THE ASSASSINATED ARMENIAN JOURNALIST IN
ISTANBUL
VISITS HIS HOLINESS ARAM I

On Thursday 19 February 2009, Mrs. Rachel Dink visited His Holiness Aram I
at the Spiritual Centre of the Armenian Orthodox Church in Antelias
(Lebanon). Also Present at the meeting was Rev. Meguerditch Karaguezian, the
President of the Armenian Evangelical Churches, and Rev. Sebouh Terzian.

The widow of Hrant Dink informed His Holiness of the circumstances of the
assassination of her husband on 19 January 2007 in Istanbul, and the
procedures adopted by the criminal court in Turkey to judge the 17-year-old
assassin Orgün Samast, the Turk nationalist and his accomplices. She said
that her husband was repeatedly threatened and prosecuted for his
non-violent opinions. Hrant Dink the Editor of the newspaper "Agos" was one
of the most prominent voices in Turkey’s reduced Armenian community. As
Amnesty International wrote on 19 January 2009, "still no justice for
murdered journalist Hrant Kink. Hrant Dink was assassinated for his
willingness to debate openly and critically issues of Armenian identity and
the official versions of history in Turkey related to Armenian massacres of
1915."

At the end of the audience, His Holiness Aram I declared: The Holy See of
Cilicia located in Antelias (Lebanon), is itself a reminder of the Armenian
Genocide, as the See was uprooted from its homeland, which is part of Turkey
today. Therefore, we respect and support the non-violent advocacy work for
justice started by Hrant Dink. The Armenian Genocide is a historical fact.
We demand from modern Turkey to take responsibility for the acts of genocide
planned and executed by their forefathers."

At the end of the audience, Mrs. Dink and the other guests offered their
prayers at the Memorial dedicated to the one and a half million victims of
the genocide within the compound of the Monastery.

##
View the photo here:
tos/Photos359.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

"SORSIO" TO TAKE PART IN THE "CBIT" INTERNATIONAL IT EXHIBITION IN GERMANY

ARMENPRESS
Feb 20, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 20, ARMENPRESS: "Sorsio" company will take part
in the "CBIT" international exhibition of information technologies
which will be held March 3-8 in Germany.

Director of the company Hovhannes Avoyan told Armenpress that services
and products provided by the company will be presented.

"This is one of the biggest exhibitions of the IT sphere which will
create a big opportunity for our company and promote the establishment
of cooperation with other companies", – H. Avoyan said.

"Sorsio" will particularly try to cooperate with companies of German
IT sphere also to find consumers for its product.

The exhibition is organized by German "BITCOM IT Association" with
the support of German government.

Each year nearly 7 000 IT companies take part in the exhibition.

AMERIABANK EXPANDS ATM NETWORK

PanARMENIAN.Net
19.02.2009 17:24 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The expansion of Ameriabank’s ATM network will be
continued during the current year.

The number of Ameriabank’s automatic teller machines reached 20. 17
of them are in Yerevan, 2 in Kotayk region and 1 in Nagorno Karabakh.

The money turnover through ATMs has increased by 13.1 times as compared
to the January 2008 index.

The number of plastic cards issued by the bank has increased by
5.6 times.