Kanayan Tamar – Page 57 – Armenian Directory & News

TUMO programmer appointed deputy minister of Diaspora

July 8, 2018July 8, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

| 09:09 | July 7 2018

Luxembourg ratifies Armenia-EU Agreement

June 30, 2018June 30, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

| 18:05 | June 29 2018

168: Security Council convenes session led by PM Pashinyan

June 26, 2018June 26, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

| 15:51 | June 25 2018

Ministry of Diaspora of RA, Zareh Sinanian

June 26, 2018June 26, 2018 Kanayan Tamar



--
Please find the attached press release of the Ministry of Diaspora.

Sincerely,
DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION AND TELECOMMUNICATION

(+374 10) 585601, internal 807

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Zareh_Sinanyan.docx
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Turkey Elections: Nationalism & Piety Dominate

June 24, 2018June 24, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

Heavy.com

Turkey Elections: Nationalism & Piety Dominate

By The Conversation

Published Jun 23, 2018 at 2:00pm

Getty Supporters of Muharrem Ince, presidential candidate of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), take part in an election rally in Istanbul on .

By Resat Kasaba, University of Washington

Turkey goes to the polls to vote for president and parliament on Sunday.

As a scholar of the history and politics of the Middle East, I believe the most striking feature of the campaign is the ideological uniformity displayed by the main parties and their presidential candidates. With the exception of the pro-Kurdish People’s Democracy Party, candidates espouse strong sentiments of activist nationalism, Muslim piety or, sometimes, both.

This seems to resonate well with the majority of the Turkish electorate.

First as prime minister and then as president, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party have worked to recast Turkey in an increasingly nationalist and religious mold. Today, Erdoğan successfully uses these two ideas to cement his bond with voters.

Turkey was regarded as an outpost of Western-type secularism during much of the 20th century. But Islam and Turkish nationalism were always present in the country, even if not as strongly displayed as they have been in recent years.

The growing focus on religion and nationalism is leading Turkey away from democracy and democratic participation, making it difficult for diverse ideas to be advanced and respected by all parties. That has been evident in the increased authoritarianism of Erdoğan’s rule and the state of emergency he imposed after an attempted 2016 coup.

As Turkey becomes less liberal and more authoritarian, it contributes to the fracturing of western alliances, furthering instability in Europe and the Middle East.

Forcefully establishing an identity

Before World War I, the Ottoman Empire was home to a large number of Christian communities, Greeks and Armenians most prominent among them, and various ethnic groups.

But following the Ottomans’ destruction of the Armenian community in the early part of the 20th century and the expulsion of the Greeks, leaders of the new Turkish Republic devised policies to assimilate the country’s largest remaining ethnic minority group, the Kurds.

They believed that otherwise they would continue to lose territory and would not be able to hold on to their new country.

The Kurds, who are predominantly Muslim, resisted almost immediately and have been locked in an armed struggle with the Turkish state since the early days of the Republic in 1923.

The elimination of the largest non-Muslim groups, the Greeks and Armenians, meant that Islam became the de-facto identity for the overwhelming majority of the people who remained in Turkey.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and the first president of the Republic, initiated a radical policy of separating religion from politics. He created institutions and laws that were modeled after European counterparts, and severed ties with the country’s recent Islamic past, making Turkey the model country for successful westernization in the eyes of many observers.

But the reach and penetration of these policies beyond the country’s urban centers was limited.

For the more than 80 percent of the population who lived in rural areas, these reforms meant little. For them, their Muslim religion continued to be the most immediate way in which they identified themselves.

Power of religion, nationalism

This year – with the exception of the Kurdish party – the parties that are running for the parliament have competed with each other to showcase their nationalist and religious credentials.

Most of them have formed alliances to boost each other’s chances. But they have all rejected any form of cooperation with the pro-Kurdish People’s Democracy Party, HDP. None of these parties raised any serious objections when the HDP leadership and deputies were jailed almost two years ago. Government prosecutors have charged them with aiding Kurdish terrorism but a proper trial or sentencing has not taken place yet.

As for Islam, none of the candidates are promising a return to the strict secularism of the early 20th century. Even Muharrem Ince, the presidential candidate of the Republican People’s Party that was founded by Ataturk, enthusiastically flaunts his religious beliefs in his rallies. In fact, his unexpected success in the polls is attributed, in part, to his embrace of Islam.

Eroding barrier between religion and politics

Center-right parties that have dominated Turkish politics and won all the elections in Turkey since the 1950s have always used a combination of Turkish nationalism and Islam to advance their chances.

But for most of the 20th century they had to be careful in how they used religion for political purposes.

Red lines separated religion and politics and were enforced by laws and by the ever-present military, which claimed to be the guardian of the secular order. Appeals to religion were carried out indirectly – for example, by showing up at Friday prayers.

There were, however, no limits to using nationalism in politics. With a history curriculum that excluded any reference to any aspect of the region’s multicultural past, generations grew up believing mythical theories of national origins of Turks and their superiority.

The lines that separated religion and politics in Turkey eroded steadily in the course of the 20th century. The political parties wanted to appeal to constituents keen on asserting their Islamic identity and practicing their religion without having to conceal their beliefs.

Erdoğan pushes limits further

Under Erdogan’s leadership, Turkey’s education and government bureaucracy have been reformed to train and govern “a pious generation”. Following the attempted coup in 2016, the military has been defanged, becoming a bystander if not an enthusiastic supporter of this epochal transformation.

Today, I believe it is inconceivable for any political party to be successful in Turkey by advocating a staunchly secular line of policy.

Similarly, national unity is a non-negotiable plank in the election platforms of all the parties.

The armed conflict with the Kurds continues. The Turkish military has invaded and occupied a strip of land in northern Syria in recent months to fight against the Kurds there. But no candidate, other than HDP’s Demirtaş, has seriously questioned these policies.

None of the political parties or presidential contenders, with the exception of HDP, veer too far away from either Turkish nationalism or Muslim piety. So the short campaign for this snap election in Turkey has almost exclusively revolved around President Erdoğan. He has become such a paramount figure that being for or against him has become the single most important marker for politicians.

The campaign hasn’t included a sustained discussion of Turkey’s economy or international relations, even though the country is facing serious challenges in both of these areas.

It is hard to know what difference electing one of the opposition candidates will make in these areas since we don’t really know where parties stand. We know, however, what staying with Erdoğan will mean.

If Erdoğan emerges as a victor with the newly enhanced powers of presidency, he is certain to steer Turkey further down the road of authoritarianism. This will have serious implications for the people of Turkey, the region and Europe. If he loses, there will likely be an opening that will allow for new visions to emerge.

Even with a new party or president in power, it will not be easy to recreate the space for genuine democratic participation in Turkey. For a more inclusive politics to develop, the constraints of religious nationalism will have to be broken.

Resat Kasaba, Professor of International Studies, University of Washington

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

Azerbaijan to display new weapons at army parade

June 23, 2018June 23, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

BBC Monitoring



Azerbaijan to display new weapons at army parade


By BBC Monitoring

Azerbaijan's defence minister has said that a military parade to be
held on 26 June will feature new weapons that this country has bought,
news reports have said.

Zakir Hasanov was speaking at a news conference on 20 June. He said
that Baku had acquired helicopters capable of destroying enemy targets
without entering the battlefield, haqqin.az said. "Those helicopters
are equipped with systems that make it possible to carry out strikes
at a distance of 10 to 50 km," Hasanov said. He said the army would
demonstrate state-of-the art hardware and weapons at the upcoming
military parade. He also said, however, that "we have weapons that we
will not demonstrate yet because we have not yet tested those
weapons".

APA news agency quoted Hasanov as saying that Baku had bought "new
types of weapons" for its army. "[Azerbaijan has] bought new tanks,
new infantry fighting vehicles and new armoured vehicles that are used
in fighting. All this hardware will be demonstrated at the 26 June
military parade," Hasanov said.

He added: "At present, we have state-of the-art missile and artillery
systems. Those missiles are capable of destroying any enemy target.
The supreme commander-in-chief [Azerbaijan's president] familiarised
himself with those missiles several days ago. All the missiles will be
demonstrated at the parade."

Azerbaijan may have Iron Drome air defence system

Minval.az news website said that the minister hinted that Azerbaijan's
army possessed the Israeli-made air defence system Iron Dome.

It quoted Hasanov as saying that Baku would demonstrate an
anti-missile shield system at the parade. "We possess long-range
artillery missile systems. They are capable of using precise targeting
to destroy ground and air enemy targets. A shield system will also be
demonstrated at the parade. Many say there cannot be this system in
Azerbaijan, but you will see at the parade that it can. This is just
one part of new weapons purchased," the report quoted the minister as
telling the briefing. It added that the minister did not specify what
shield system he was talking about.

Hasanov also said that the country's president had tasked them with
ensuring the army's combat readiness for actual military action. "We
will completely achieve our objectives within several years," he said.
He explained he was referring to acquisition of new military vehicles
and modernisation of military vehicles, and purchase of new artillery
systems. He added that the Azerbaijani army was 90 per cent equipped
with automated control systems. "A colossal amount of work is being
done to this end," he said.

In the meantime, Turan news agency cited the minister as telling
cadets from a military school that the parade would feature
Azerbaijan's anti-missile system. The report said the minister was
speaking about long-range artillery missile systems capable of
destroying ground and air targets deep in enemy territory, and that he
did not provide further detail.

Turan pointed out that Azerbaijan had the Russian-made missile air
defence systems S-300 Favorit, S-200, BUK M1, and TOR2E, the
Israeli-made missile air defence systems Iron Dome, Barak, and Spider,
and also several Israeli- and Russian-made radar systems. In June
2018, Azerbaijan has obtained the medium-range missile systems Polonez
(Belarus) and Lora (Israel), the report added.

Land reclaimed; Armenia losing its own information war

Hasanov also spoke about "a very successful" military operation
conducted by Azerbaijan in its exclave Naxcivan in May to reclaim land
from Armenians. APA quoted him as saying: "As a result of the
successful operation by our army, 11,000 ha of land were liberated
from the occupation. I want to say that our army is now in control of
the road to [the Armenian-held Azerbaijani district of] Lacin. This is
our latest success."

The minister said that Azerbaijan was also a success in an information
warfare that he said Armenia had started against it. "The enemy has
unleashed a large-scale information warfare against us. However, they
are losing to us even in it," APA quoted Hasanov as saying.

Hasanov went on to urge Azerbaijan's media not to yield to Armenian
"provocations". "At present, we all must fight the enemy. The Armenian
special services are using social networking websites to try to make
our soldiers unconfident about their strengths. Media outlets that
respect themselves should not yield to those kinds of provocations. I
am asking journalists to be careful. Media outlets are a great power.
That great power should join the fight against the enemy and defend
the country," he said.

Hasanov also said that the recent change of government in Armenia was
a result of diplomatic efforts by the Azerbaijani president. "We try
to defeat the enemy in all possible ways. You have all seen that the
supreme commander-in-chief [Azerbaijan's president] put an end to the
rule of [former Armenian President and then former Armenian Prime
Minister Serzh] Sargsyan without resorting to the power of weapons,
using diplomacy alone," he said.

The minister added that Azerbaijani army soldiers were provided with
best-quality food, which he said was done "to enhance combat
readiness".

Baku and Yerevan are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijan's
Armenian-populated breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven
districts around it.

Source: BBC Monitoring 21 Jun 18

Wendy Kopp: We’re excited to see the impact Teach For Armenia has made

June 20, 2018June 20, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

MediaMax, Armenia

Wendy Kopp: We’re excited to see the impact Teach For Armenia has made

Mediamax’s exclusive interview with CEO and Co-Founder of Teach For All Wendy Kopp.

TFA is a global network of independent nonprofit organizations working to expand educational opportunity in their own countries and the Founder of Teach For America, a national teaching corps. Wendy Kopp recently visited Armenia and attended Teach For Armenia Ambassador Induction Ceremony.

In 2018 Teach For Armenia had a second generation of alumni, who became Ambassadors for Educational Equity. Summing up the work of these years, how do you assess the mission of Teach For Armenia? Does the program serve its goals?

Teach For All is a network of independent organizations in 48 countries and growing, which all share a common purpose to develop collective leadership in order to ensure all children fulfill their potential.

These organizations and their staff members, teachers and alumni all learn from each other across borders, because we’ve seen that the roots of the challenges we address are so similar from place to place, and it means that the solutions in education are much more similar than one might assume. This network is working to grow local leadership to expand opportunity for children. What we’ve seen is that local leaders can move a lot quicker if they’re exposed to what is working and what is possible from other places. We’re so excited to see the impact Teach For Armenia has already made so early in its tenure.

Interviews | 2016-08-23 10:51:35

Wendy Kopp: Education needs a systemic change

The mission is, first of all, to channel the energy of some of Armenia’s most promising future leaders into working with Armenia’s most vulnerable children and to see the impact they’re having during the ten years and beyond. They really commit themselves to working long-term to improve and expand opportunity for kids.

What is the position of Teach For Armenia in the network in terms of academic knowledge, teachers’ engagement and prevalence in the country?

One of the real strengths of Teach For All is just the diversity context in culture and the innovations of different network partners. Teach For Armenia has been doing such good work in training and helping teachers to engage their students, and also in supporting the fellows during their two years to work in partnership with people in their communities, to work on broader partnerships for community development.

Many of our network partners and our global organization are learning a lot from the approach to pre-service and ongoing support.

If you compare the network’s missions in different countries, what are the specific features of Teach For Armenia?

Teach For Armenia believes and understands that the circumstances of children’s birth predict their educational outcomes. It is a very complex issue and we need to take that issue on its full complexity to address it. It means that ultimately we need people with the vision for all children fulfilling their culture working at every level of the education system, at every level policy and across sectors.

That purpose and those beliefs are what unites everyone across the Teach For All network. Of course, how Teach For Armenia is living in that is adapted to the Armenian context.

Wendy Kopp at Teach For Armenia office

Photo: Teach For Armenia

They get there so early on in their journey, just four years into the development of Teach For Armenia. As one example, they’re working with their communities to articulate a vision for students, alongside students and parents and other educators to consider. What we want for our kids is the engaging, the hope community working towards that vision, which is really powerful.

Apart from educational programs, the fellows also implement community projects in Armenian villages, assisting in the activation and improvement of community life.

A whole segment of kids face many extra challenges that other kids don’t face. They may be economic challenges, just the challenges of growing up in poverty, not having access to adequate nutrition or health care or early education.

The idea behind the community projects is to engage the teachers in working alongside the members of the communities to address different aspects of that problem. For example, the initiative by one of the fellows was to start a company, and now they produce amazing cheese and honey.

Teach for Armenia | 2018-04-01 00:05:27

Little innovators catch wind and big dreams

He started working with the families to say, “We can actually make business out of it.” That can support economic development in region, which is actually a piece of this larger puzzle. It helps the fellows integrate themselves in communities, better understand the communities, to develop stronger relationships and stronger trust with families while.

The ranks of Teach For Armenia Ambassadors are expanding as new fellows arrive. What is your message to them?

I’m so excited about what they have the potential to do for the sake of kids, families, communities here in Armenia and because I know that the innovations they find here will help inform efforts all around the world through the Teach For All network.

Their leadership is very important. If we can develop enough leadership, we can solve anything. I think they’re realizing that their leadership and engagement is important. At the same time, we need the leadership of many others. So, they can support and inspire the leadership of their students, parents and other teachers and schools, other people in their communities, and it will take collective leadership to ensure that we really get where we’re trying to go. And maybe, we can move more quickly if we’re open to learning from outside of our own community, from each other in Armenia and outside of Armenia.

A couple of years ago, we at Teach For All stepped back to ask ourselves what we were working to accomplish together by 25 years from now. We articulate the vision around whole communities in every part of the world and with all their children to have the education and support an opportunity to shape a better future for themselves and all of us. I really believe some of those communities will be here in Armenia, I think those communities have been inspiring form a worldwide movement to accomplish that everywhere.

Marie Taryan talked to Wendy Kopp

Deputy Speaker of Parliament responds to Azerbaijani counterpart’s threats to launch war

June 14, 2018June 14, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

| 17:53 | June 13 2018

Sports: IWF Lifts Doping Suspensions On Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan Early

June 14, 2018June 14, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

BarBend

July 12 2018

IWF Lifts Doping Suspensions On Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan Early

By Jake Boly

–

Over the last month, there’s been a plethora of news regarding the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and recently formulated anti-doping regulations.

Earlier today, the IWF announced that Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan — three of the nine currently suspended countries for doping violations from the 2008 and 2012 Olympics — have had met criteria originally bestowed on them per their initial banning to partially restore some of the rights as members within the IWF.

Back in October 2017, year-long suspensions began for nine countries following a ruling for multiple anti-doping rule violations (ADRV) from the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics. These countries include: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine.

At the time of their suspension in October, the IWF created a lengthy list of criteria each country needed to improve upon and follow to earn their rights back within the IWF. This list of new anti-doping criteria was in addition to paying a $50,000 USD fine as a contribution to the IWF’s enhanced anti-doping activity.

As of today, the IWF has stated that the countries above (Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan) have met the criteria of asks per their 6-month check-ins. Turkey has been granted the ability to compete with youth athletes at IWF-focused youth events starting June 11th, while Armenia and Azerbaijan can do the same starting June 19th.

The IWF wrote in their press release, “The decision to favour youth athletes reflects a decision of the IWF Executive Board to provide additional opportunities for a young and demonstrably clean generation of young weightlifters who can serve as ambassadors for the sport in international competition.”

Within their press release, IWF President Tamas Ajan pointed out that the Independent Monitoring Group has found significant positive changes within each country’s policies toward clean sport and anti-doping procedures.

While youth athletes have been granted the ability to compete by the end of 2018 in these three countries, there are still some rights that remain suspended and these include:

The right to organize IWF Events, IWF Congress, IWF Executive Board meetings, meetings of IWF Commissions and Committees;

The right to participate in the Congress with voting rights;

The right to submit proposals for inclusion in the Agenda of the Congress;

The right to submit proposals for the modification of the IWF Constitution, Technical and Competition Rules & Regulations;

The right to take part in and benefit from the IWF Development program apart from Education and Anti-Doping Seminars

As of right now, the IWF has stated that all nine countries remain under strict monitoring, and the Independent Monitoring Group will remain to have the ability to reverse restoration rights during the one-year suspension.

Armenian Prime Minister to Visit Moscow on June 14 – Cabinet’s Press Service

June 10, 2018June 10, 2018 Kanayan Tamar

Four Four Two, Australia

June 11 2018

By Sputnik News Jun 11 2018 4:12AM

“The prime minister will arrive in Moscow on June 14 and will attend the opening match of the [2018 FIFA World Cup]. He will also hold talks with Russian authorities,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik that, next week, Russian President Vladimir Putin would meet with Pashinyan, who will pay a visit to the country to attend the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Russia's first-ever World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15 in 11 host cities across the country.