Anush Grigoryan (Armenia) on Sunday became a gold medalist at the EUBC U22 European Boxing Championships which are concluding in Vladikavkaz, Russia.
In the final of the Girls’ 51kg competition, Grigoryan defeated Gelusa Gulieva (Russia) on a unanimous decision by the judges.
Armenia’s Hrayr Shahverdyan (60kg), Vakhtang Harutyunyan (75kg), and super heavyweight Gurgen Hovhannisyan on Saturday had won bronze medals in their weight categories on the boys’ competitions.
[Armenian News note: The below is translated from Persian]
The head of Iran's Islamic Culture and Relations Organisation has dismissed speculations about change of Tehran's strategy towards Baku and said that the Supreme Leader has always defended the rights of the people and the government of Azerbaijan Republic, Mehr news agency reported on 5 March.
Abouzar Ebrahimi Torkaman made these remarks in Persian and Azeri during a special news conference in Tehran after certain incidents during the Armenian Prime Minister's visit to Tehran last week led to speculations about souring of relations between Iran and the Azerbaijan Republic.
"In the past few days, unfortunately, a misunderstanding has upset the endeared people of Azerbaijan [Republic] and led to rumours and suspicions that the Islamic Republic of Iran has changed its strategy towards the nation and the government of Azerbaijan Republic… As the spokesman of our Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also underlined, the slogans chanted on the margins of the meeting of the Armenian Prime Minister with the Armenian community in Iran, do not reflect the Islamic Republic's views at all," Mehr quoted Torkaman as saying.
He described Azerbaijan as one of the "most important countries of the region" among the 15 neighbouring countries of Iran and stressed that Tehran always uses official channels to announce its position.
Torkman went on to add that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has always defended the rights of the people of Azerbaijan. He said: "The Supreme Leader of the Islamic revolution has always shown that he is kind and fond of the people of Azerbaijan Republic. That opinion of his has remained unchanged today."
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited Iran last week and met the Supreme Leader and President Hassan Rouhani. In his meeting with Supreme Leader, Khamenei advised Yereven and Baku to "continue talks" on the issue of the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh and offered Iran's mediation to resolve the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan Republic.
In the recent months several Iranian and Azerbaijani delegations, including one headed by the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Maj-Gen Mohammad Baqeri, visited each other's capitals. As Torkman was making the reconciliatory remarks on 5 March, Tehran hosted the Azerbaijani minister of economy.
The Armenian national women’s team has defeated Egypt in the first round of the FIDE World Team Championship that kicked off today in Astana. The tournament has brought together the strongest national teams of 14 countries.
The leading Armenian chess player Elina Danielyan missed the starting round. Among other games, China defeated Hungary by 3,5:0,5 as of 19:00 Yerevan time. The Armenian team will face Russian in the round second of the tournament.
To note, 20 teams are participating in the tournament – 10 men’s and 10 women’s teams from China, Azerbaijan, Iran, USA, Egypt, Russia, Poland, England, India, Ukraine, Georgia, Hungary, Armenia and Kazakhstan.
Acting PM’s spouse Anna Hakobyan hosts kids on the occasion of upcoming holidays
16:33,
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. Anna Hakobyan, spouse of Armenia’s acting prime minister, today hosted 300 children aged 7-13 on the occasion of upcoming holidays, reports Armenpress.
Children of volunteers fallen in the Artsakh war, grandchildren of missing persons in war, kids of soldiers killed during the 2016 April war, orphanage kids, Syrian-Armenians, as well as children from bordering villages participated in the New Year event.
“We have gathered from a village, a town, different places to celebrate this day together, say goodbye to 2018 and greet 2019. We are here to take care of each other, become friends, love each other and keep ties next year. We are not here just to spend time and leave, we are here to get acquainted with each other and be in touch during the whole year”, Anna Hakobyan said.
She welcomed the kids at the acting PM’s residence together with her two daughters.
She expressed confidence that in 2018 children have been smart, studied well and added one year to their path to becoming a good person. She urged the kids to make more efforts next year for this purpose.
Different games, exhibitions and shows have been organized for the children.
6-year-old Liana Topalyan said she was so impressed with the games that will ask her mother to again bring her here.
The Snowman and Snow White handed over gifts of Armenian production to the children.
Anna Hakobyan toured the hall, talked to all children. Most of the kids also communicated with acting PM’s daughter Shushan Pashinyan.
Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
Turkish-Armenian entrepreneur, Tayk Mirijanian, on Dec. 21 met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s spouse Anna Hakobyan in the Armenian capital city of Yerevan to discuss opening a museum in memory of famous photographer Ara Güler, ArmenPress said .
Mirijanian said that creating a museum including a cafe and a restaurant in commemoration of Armenian-Turkish photographer Ara Güler was his dream.
The history and present-day activities of the Armenian community in Istanbul are not well known in Armenia, but this museum may become a connecting circle between the Armenian communities in Turkey and Armenia, according to Mirijanian.
“We are (Istanbul-Armenians), we aren’t Turks, but unfortunately little is known about us in our homeland. We have renowned greats – Komitas, Paylans, Ara Güler and many others. They and present-day Armenians of Istanbul must be known in the homeland,” the news site quoted Mirijanian as saying.
The community has numerous problems, one being the fact that very few of the 100,000 population speak or read in the Armenian language, according to Turkish-Armenian businessman.
Anna Hakobyan said the Armenian authorities were ready to assist in fulfilling the project.
“Our duty is to support this project. I will stand by you with the help of My Step Foundation” Hakobyan said.
Hakobyan chairs the board of trustees of the My Step Charity Foundation, which aims to find solutions for problems that cannot be fully addressed by the government.
Ara Güler, real name is Aram Güleryan, was an award-winning Armenian photo-journalist from Turkey who for decades captured the changing streets of Istanbul and came to lament the dizzying pace of the city’s redevelopment. He died on Oct. 17 at the age of 90 in Istanbul. In an interview in 2013, he said that he had no difficulty living in Turkey because not everyone knew that he was an Armenian.
‘’Güle Güle Ara Güler“ (Farewell Ara Güler) has been a worldwide hashtag in the past days. The death of Turkey’s legendary photographer on Wednesday night has created a wave of grief and sympathy.
Turkish cartoonist Ramize Erer shared a classic from the 1950’s on Facebook using this Hashtag. She shared a headscarved Anatolian woman in a long cloak on her tiptoes. In the image, she is handing over a package of food to a man through the porthole of a huge freighter on the shore of the the Bosphorus in İstanbul. The hardship of working far away from home, the loneliness of the ones left behind, and the stunning beauty of the metropolis of Istanbul are etched into a unique piece of photographic poetry. The photo is black and white, has a perfect framing and a touches on a symbolism that triggers several emotions for the viewer. It is these sort of images which made photographer Ara Güler famous.
The lonely man strolling the city with his Leica was known as the “eye of Istanbul” to many. “Istanbul was his canvas, his notebook” shared South-Korean photojournalist Yunghi Kim from the U.S. on social media.
Güler used to stage the metropolis: the old tram in a snowstorm, on the shopping street Istiklal Street; ferries, steamboats and fishermen on the Bosporus; craftsman, the labourer, simple people on the street. Istanbul was for him "like a box full of jewels and precious stones," as he once described.
Just last August, a photography museum named after Güler was opened in Bomontiada, a district of Istanbul that was inhabited mostly by the non-Muslim minorities before the 1950s. The opening ceremony at Bomontiada Museum took place last August to honor Güler’s 90th birthday. Already suffering from health problems, the veteran photographer was brought in a wheelchair amid cheers and a birthday cake was cut. The exhibition includes photographs, stories, videos, paintings, objects and books from the Ara Güler Archives.
“His chair without him sitting there leaves a big void for us”, a waitress in the famous “Ara Güler-Café” said with tears in her eyes.
The always-crowded venue is located close to the Galatasaray High-School at a famous square. Lots of demonstrations would begin at that very corner prior to the July 2016 coup attempt.
“For him that was always a matter of excitement” Hülya S. reflects. The photographer was known for his unpredictable grumpiness. He did always treated the people working for him like a father, though.
Güler was a man full of contradictions. He was first educated as an actor by the country’s legendary actor Muhsin Ertuğrul. Then he decided to study economics. After all that he opted to make his passion, photography, a profession. Although his deep attachment to Istanbul, Güler always resisted a one dimensional interpretation of himself or his work. The photographer never wanted to be understood as a chronicler of one city alone.
"People call me a photographer of Istanbul," he once said. "But I am a citizen of the world. I am a photographer of the world.”
Güler was born in 1928 in Istanbul to Armenian parents. He always refused to commenting on his ethnicity. “I am an Ottoman,” was his usual answer to political questions. Güler began his career as a photographer with the Turkish newspaper “Yeni Istanbul”. In 1953, he met Henri Cartier Bresson and joined the legendary Magnum agency. He was working for major magazines such as Time-Life and Paris Match. Throughout his career he had also captured portraits of great personalities such as Salvador Dalí, Alfred Hitchcock, Winston Churchill, John Berger, Bertrand Russel, Willy Brand, Pablo Picasso and Sofia Loren.
Güler won several awards for his work: in 1961, the Photography Annual named him one of the seven best photographers in the world. In 1962, he was declared "Master of Leica." In 1968, he was voted among "The Ten Masters of Color Photography" by the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Güler always resisted the idea of celebrity, though. “I am not an artist, I am not a photographer, I am a photojournalist,” he repeated during interviews. His works, however, continued to be exhibited as contemporary art pieces.
Four years ago, a retrospective was put on display at the “Willy-Brand-Haus” in Berlin called ‘’Ara Güler – The Eye of Istanbul. A retrospective from 1955-2005.”
The transformation of the metropole was visualized masterfully through his adoring eyes of city. Güler was particularly fond of the Galata Bridge spanning the Golden Horn. He photographed it in black and white and in color, in the morning and at night and all seasons.
He created unique photographic paintings. The title of one of his books is incisively “Vanishing colors.” When the floating bridge built in 1912 was badly damaged in a fire in 1992, Güler was deeply affected. He continued capturing images of the new bridge.
Six years ago, at the age of 84, Güler agreed to an exhibit on his life for the first time. “The Unknown Ara Güler” was curated by Lora Sarıaslan, daughter of Güler's childhood friend İkna Sariaslan.
Visitors to the exhibit were startled by blurry photographic abstractions spread over a magical atmosphere. “These are the broken pictures, they lack exposures which reflects my broken life,” the master shared with the audience during the opening ceremony.
It was obvious that the artist wouldn’t have kept exposures in his archive for no reason.
Art historian and curator Sariaslan is deeply saddened about the loss of an important figure in her life. Her memories working with an outstanding artist are heartwarming.
“I grew up with Ara’s narrations around the dinner table of his fantastic stories and encounters around the globe. He had a distinct sense of the world and its inhabitants and a keen eye to constantly present it even till the very end. I was lucky to have also gotten the chance to curate his exhibition of never before seen abstract photos, and he was always open to new ideas and encounters, the way a great artist should be.”
His presence in the city he captured ever so poetically will be missed. Güle güle Ara Güler.
The economic activity index for November 2018 made 3.6% against 2017 November, Armenia’s Finance Ministry reports summing up the initial data provided by the Statistical Service of Armenia.
The major share of the growth comes to service sector – 17,2%, trade turnover sector – 5,3%, industry sector – 1,1% and construction sector – 0,2%. In the sphere of agriculture negative index has been registered -8,3%.
As compared with the same span of the past year the volume of trade turnover made 6,9% of which -5% is the export and 12,5% import.
With the results of first 11 months of 2018 the economic activity made 5,7% against the same span of 2017.
As compared with the same span of the past year, the trade turnover has grown by 19,1% – 9,8% export growth and 24,2% import growth have been registered.
YEREVAN, December 20. /ARKA/. The price for a 50-kilogram bag of flour went one US dollar up – from $22 to $23, Zhamanak reports.
The cereal price rose as well – by 40 cents.
The media source finds it remarkable that flour and cereal are sold for dollars, not for Armenian drams in a clear breach of the law.
Remarkable is also that all flour producers increased the prices on the same day and evenly, which gives grounds for suspecting an anticompetitive collusion.
Although the price for a bag of flour rose by $1, a loaf of bread became more expensive by 10 to 20 drams, i.e. by 2,500- 4,000 drams per one 50-kilogram sack. -0—
ArmInfo. Beginning of the 52nd meeting General Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) in Yerevan was marked by a small scandal.
After the welcoming speech of the Chairman of the National Assembly, Ara Babloyan, the speaker announced that all national delegations were awarded honorary medals in connection with the 25th anniversary of the organization. However, immediately four delegations, including Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia and Ukraine, declared that they were refusing medals. The head of the Azerbaijani delegation, Eldar Guliyev, said that he had recently taken this post and therefore he could not accept this honorable award. "I want to note that this is in no way connected with politics. On the contrary, we are very well received in Yerevan, and I am sure that during the next PABSEC summit, which is likely to be held in Azerbaijan, we will also be able to welcome the Armenian delegation," Guliyev said.
The representative of the Georgian delegation, as the head of the delegation was absent, noted that the latter was refusing a medal, while asking not to discuss this issue. The head of the delegation of Turkey declared that he is currently only acting head and does not have the honor to accept this medal. Head of the Ukrainian delegation Chubarov also did not arrive in Armenia, and asked to postpone the medal award.
Speaker Babloyan noted that the award is given not only, and not so much to the heads, but to the delegations themselves, who have worked in the PABSEC for 25 years, to which Secretary General Asaf Hajiyev stated that it is not worth making tragedy of the issue, stressing that the head of the Turkish delegation has not yet been approved in office, noting that those who did not receive the medals in Yerevan will be able to receive them at meetings in Baku.
At the same time, in an interview with journalists, Babloyan urged not to politicize this issue, since the PABSEC is not a political organization. "I think that this issue should not be politicized. When we discussed this issue with the Secretary General, he noted that representatives of some delegations believe that we need to give the medals to those heads of delegations who have long led them. Our approach was somewhat different. We awarded medals not to the heads of the delegations themselves, but to all the delegations as a whole, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the organization. And Asaf Hajiyev and I agreed that those who did not receive the medal today will be able to receive it during the next meetings in the organization, " Babloyan said. He also noted that these issues should not be speculated due to the problems accumulated in the region.
To note, on November 27, the 52nd meeting of the PABSEC General Assembly started in Yerevan.