Author: Madatian Greg

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Archbishop Vartan Demirdjian is laid to rest in Antelias

Antelias, Lebanon – Archbishop Vartan Demirdjian, who faithfully served
the Armenian Church for half a century, died Thursday, September 9,
2004, in Antelias, of a massive heart attack. His Eminence was 65
years old.

The Wake Service and the service of Final Unction took place Saturday,
during the Divine Liturgy, September 11, at St. Illuminator’s Cathedral
in Antelias, and was placed in eternal rest in the Zareh I Mausoleum
of Antelias.

His Holiness Aram I presided over the Divine Liturgy, with the
attendance of a large number of people including dignitaries
from various church denominations and communities. Also attending
were officials including the Ambassador of Armenia to Lebanon, His
Excellency Arek Hovhannissian, deputies, representatives of political
parties, benevolent unions and educational institutions.

Archbishop Demirdjian has served the Armenian Church in various
capacities including several years of service in Iran and Greece. For
many years he has been a member of the religious council, a teacher
at the Cilician See’s Theological Seminary, and Director of the
Printing House. At the time of his death he was the Librarian at the
Catholicosate’s Library.

Catholicos Aram I eulogized Archbishop Vartan by vividly describing
his life of service. “His whole life was shaped by his dedication and
devotion. Vartan Srpazan was our nation’s faithful servant. He was
a hard-working and obedient member of the Cilician Brotherhood, loyal
to the principals of the Cilician See and author of many publications”.

With the ending of the service, the remains of Archbishop Vartan were
placed in his final resting place in the Zareh I Mausoleum of Antelias.

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View printable pictures here:

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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.

Armenian official denies Azeri statement on OSCE’s new Karabakh proposal

Mediamax news agency
10 Sep 04

Yerevan, 10 September: Official Yerevan has denied the Azerbaijani
foreign minister’s statement that the co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk
Group will submit an idea to the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents
for consideration. According to the idea, the status of Nagornyy
Karabakh will be discussed only after the return of the occupied
territories and refugees.

“If the Azerbaijani media has not exaggerated Mr Mammadyarov’s words
and he has really made such a statement, then I am obliged to declare
that this is wishful thinking on the part of Azerbaijan,” the spokesman
for the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Gamlet Gasparyan, said.

On 9 September, Baku’s Trend agency quoted Azerbaijani Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov as saying that an idea according to which
the occupied territories must be liberated and the displaced persons
must be returned to their places of residence will be submitted
to the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents for consideration. Only
after this, can the status of Nagornyy Karabakh be discussed, the
Azerbaijani foreign minister said.

Armenia, Poland to join forces in crime busting
By Tigran Liloyan

ITAR-TASS News Agency
September 4, 2004 Saturday

YEREVAN, September 5 — Armenia’s President Robert Kocharyan begins
a three-day official visit to Poland on Sunday. The two countries
are to sign agreements on military cooperation and on joint action
to combat organised crime.

The Armenian Ministry of Trade and Economic Development and Poland’s
Union of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses are to sign a memorandum
during Kocharyan’s visit.

An official in Armenia’s presidential press service has told
Itar-Tass that the purpose of the visit is to give an impetus to
bilateral relations, map out priorities and orientations for economic
cooperation, and exchange views on matters of international life.

The Armenian leadership believes that Poland, which has gained wide
experience in integration into Europe and in democratic reforms,
can play an important role to Armenia that has also taken course
towards integration into Europe. In this sense, Polish experience
is instructive. Yerevan has thus acquired a new partner within the
framework of the European Union, namely Warsaw, which furthers its
aspirations. By no means unimportant is also Poland’s experience in
attracting foreign investments to the national economy.

Political relations between Armenia and Poland are at a high level
and develop dynamically. However, economic cooperation indicators
are far from the desired quality, the presidential press service
official emphasised.

Yet another problem is posed by a massive flow of migrants from
Armenia to Poland and the unregulated nature of matters connected with
their stay in that country. According to Ashot Ovakimyan, Armenia’s
Ambassador in Warsaw, from 20,000 to 25,000 citizens of the republic
currently live in Poland.

While in Poland, Robert Kocharyan is to meet with President Aleksander
Kwasniewski, as well as with the Marshal of the Sejm, Marshal of the
Senate, and the Prime Minister.

Philippine Daily Inquirer
August 28, 2004

A FUNNY STORY

by Bambi L. Harper

THIS is not funny in the sense of being comic but funny as far as it
shows the quirks in human behavior that make the study of human
beings in action an interesting pastime. Many of these stories would
certainly make entertaining movies as well. John Foreman in his book
“The Philippine Islands,” has many of them and would-be story-tellers
and scriptwriters are encouraged to read them for inspiration.

Some time early in the 18th century, a ship captained by an Armenian
arrived in Manila from India bearing a young man who called himself
Monsignor Charles Thomas Maillard de Tournon. He claimed to be the
visitor-general, bishop of Savoy, patriarch of Antioch, apostolic
nuncio and legate ad latere of the pope. As you can see, people have
a thing about titles (this is as true now as it was then, otherwise
why would they get a kick out of being addressed as “Your Honor” or
“Excellency” and so on?). Anyway, Cardinal Tournon (at some point he
must have been named so because he’s listed as such in the Index of
Blair and Robertson) claimed he was on his way to China to visit the
missions together with eight priests and four Italian families and
took a side trip to see how we were getting along. (The ramifications
of the China story are in themselves fascinating because it seems the
Jesuits were at first allowed to use Chinese rituals in Catholic
rites but this was later disallowed by Rome as being idolatrous.
Tournon had been sent to look into the matter.)

It was the practice in those days to place guards on foreign vessels,
perhaps for security reasons, by the custodian of the Fort of Cavite.
The act infuriated the stranger who insisted on a verbal message
being taken to Governor-General Domingo Zabalburu announcing his
arrival. Whatever powers of intimidation the legate had were enough
to send the custodian scurrying to Manila to convey the message to
the governor-general, who forthwith instructed the custodian to
accompany the stranger.

Tournon was greeted with cannon salutes from the plaza although he
still hadn’t shown any of his credentials. In Manila, he took up
residence in the house of the maestre de campo, Bernardo de Endaya,
where the governor went to visit him, although there was a question
about his papal credentials since no one had as yet seen them.

A commissioner was sent to request royal confirmation of his powers
and his papal credentials. Again the visitor got on his high horse
and waxed indignant that his position was being doubted and promptly
threw the commissioner out. Incredibly, neither the archbishop of
Manila nor the governor-general stood up to him. As a matter of fact,
the archbishop was ordered to set aside his archiepiscopal cross
while Cardinal Tournon used his own in religious ceremonies and left
it in the cathedral when he departed. Part of the official robes and
insignia of the archbishop were taken from him as well, and with his
consent at that. The chief authorities of the country paid Tournon
their respects while he, on the other hand, never returned their
gesture. It turned out that he was really Poe Clement XI’s legate and
not an impostor, just a pain.

However, he was nice to the maestre de campo, who was under
ecclesiastical house arrest at the time even if the former did spend
$ 20,000 getting on the good side of the man. Cardinal Tournon got
the archbishop and the governor to pardon the man and asked that the
pardon be proclaimed publicly. He also managed to have the Armenian
captain made a knight of the Golden Spur in a ceremony at the
maestre’s house in ceremonies to which the governor-general wasn’t
even invited.

Finally, Tournon left for China where his highhandedness had little
effect on the Chinese who after all weren’t Catholic and couldn’t be
intimidated with threats. Not only did his imperious ways get the
missionaries into trouble, but he was also thrown in jail by the
Chinese courts. The emperor, just as imperious if not more, then
booted him out of the country.

Tournon then made his way to Macao where he spent the time quarreling
with the missionaries and finally died in 1710 in the Inquisition
prison, having met his match when he tangled with the Jesuits.

Zabalburu got it in the neck when the king found out what had
happened in Manila. The governor-general was declared disqualified
for life to serve after having proved his incompetence while the
senior magistrates were removed from office. Each priest who had not
taken cognizance of regium exequatur had to pay a fine of $ 1,000.
The archbishop was degraded and sent to Guadalajara but continued to
intrigue and connive with Tournon, sending him $ 1,000 from Mexico
and promising him a fixed sum of $ 1,000 per annum for whatever
support he could give him.

Finally, the king in exasperation issued an edict to the effect that
any legate who arrived in his domains without royal confirmation of
his credentials was to be treated civilly but afforded no special
treatment. Every year the edict was to be read in full on certain
days before all the civil and ecclesiastical officials in case they
forgot and another papal Legate got them into another pickle.

As you can see, the struggle between Church and State has a long and
noble history with various footnotes in between.

Messenger.com.ge, Georgia
Aug 27 2004

Georgian pipelines for sale?
By Messenger staff

Georgia has a very sophisticated network of natural gas pipelines.
The first natural gas pipeline started functioning in Georgia during
Soviet times on December 25, 1959. The first influx of natural gas
came from Azerbaijan. Later this pipeline was extended to the north
towards Russia. Then this pipeline was joined to the Iranian gas
being pumped through Azerbaijan into the north.

Later another pipeline was added for the purpose of pumping Russian
natural gas through Georgia into Armenia. Fortunately today the
country still has this complicated network and has the capacity to
pump natural gas in many different directions, sometimes consuming
the gas itself or for serving as a transit unit.

In couple of years it is planned that, after Tbilisi-Baku-Ceyhan is
ready, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum natural gas pipeline will be finished
as well.

Up until now, the main supplier of natural gas to Georgia has been
Russia. It provides all of the gas used, 10 percent of which Georgia
earns from the pipeline leading to Armenia and Georgia receives this
during transit.

Recently, during his Iranian visit, President Saakashvili raised the
issue of providing Georgia with Iranian gas as an alternative to
Russia. As soon as the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum, also known as the Shah
Deniz pipeline, starts, Georgia will have a concrete alternative
supply from Russia and therefore, it can always look for better
prices and a reliable partnership.

With the country entirely dependent on Russia, Georgia experiences
discomfort as Russian politicians threaten to cut off the gas supply
and thus weaken Georgia. Even in the recent past they did so, always
excusing their behaviour, hypocritically, as a problem of gas
shortage with various technical explanations. Georgia must also deal
with its significant debts to Russia and lacks an alternative
supplier with to improve its negotiating position.

Complicating the situation, in one of his interviews with the
newspaper Akhali Versia the Minister of Economy Kakha Bendukidze
responded to the question of whether the main natural gas pipeline
should be sold or not and said: “Give me a good buyer who will give
me a good price and I am going to sell it.”

Experts think, however, that at the moment the natural gas pipeline
in the condition that it is in now will need several hundred million
USD for its rehabilitation and few investors will be attracted to buy
this network.

However one possible investment might appear from Russia because it
needs the connection with their Armenian ally as well as Iran. And of
course, as current practice shows, if Russia becomes the owner of
these pipelines, it could exercise its complete influence much
stronger than now and in particular in situations of crisis for
Georgia.

Therefore, the opinion of the Georgian political and economic
analysts is that selling the main natural gas pipelines to investors
and in particular to Russians will be dangerous from the prospect of
Georgia’s energy security and furthermore to Georgia’s state
security.

MINISTER OF CULTURE MENTIONS THAT ARMENIA SHOULD RECOGNIZE DIASPORAN
ARMENIAN CELEBRITIES

YEREVAN, August 23 (Noyan Tapan). “My wish is that Armenia should
recognize sculptor Arto Chakhmakhchian, Hasmik Papian and other
Diasporan Armenian celebrities.” RA Minister of Culture and Youth
Affairs Hovik Hoveyan said about it during the August 20 meeting with
Diasporan Armenian art workers. The latter arrived in Armenia at the
invitation of the RA Minister on the occasion of “One Nation, One
Culture” Pan-Armenian first cultural festival. According to poetess
Sona Vani, the festival gave numerous Diasporan Armenian art workers
an opportunity to be present at the cultural events taking place in
Armenia.

According to her, if the festival held for the first time has only
romantic importance, i.e. “art workers mark the revival of the
Armenian culture just through banquets and feast”, it would be better
if the festival had also practical continuation. Sona Vani doesn’t
agree with the title of “One Nation, One Culture” festival, because
according to her, there can’t be art of the Diaspora or the
Homeland. “If it is one nation, naturally, it has one culture.” The
poetess thinks that the festival should have been called “Pan-Armenian
Cultural Festival”. Sculptor Arto Chakhmakhchian expressed
dissatisfaction in connection with the monuments erected in
Yerevan. “I was surprised when I saw the tasteless monuments erected
in Yerevan. Could it be that there are no gifted sculptors in Armenia,
whose works should have been erected in the streets of the capital?”
mentioned the sculptor.

SARGIS HARUTYUNYAN INVITES ARSHAK SADOYAN TO DEBATE

YEREVAN, AUGUST 21. ARMINFO. “I am ready to invite the Parliament
member Arshak Sadoyan to debate over training us, the newcomers’, as
he expressed himself, politics,” Vice-Chairman of the Youth
Progressive Party of Armenia Sargis Harutyunyan told a press
conference, commenting on Sadoyan’s statements during his interview to
the “Epicenter” program yesterday.

According to Harutyunyan, Sadoyan made a laughing stock of their party
by stating that it is ridiculous to hear “newcomers to politics”
talking about the defense of the country’s citizens. Responding to the
statement, Harutyunyan pointed out that defending citizens’ interests
is each person’s duty. “Sadoyan solves the problems of citizens that
apply to him due to his authority, but not due to his deputy mandate,
as he himself admits, whereas our party is carrying out such
activities during direct contacts with the population,” Harutyunyan
said. Elaborating on the subject, he pointed out that it is Arshak
Sadoyan that is laughed at in the country. “His time as a respectable
Armenian parliamentarian has passed. Instead of laughing at any young
parties, he would better assist their political activities,”
Harutyunyan.

Glendale News Press
LATimes.com
Aug 20 2004

Schiff meets with U.S. troops in Iraq
Congressman is in delegation touring war zones, meeting with
soldiers and political leaders

By Jackson Bell, News-Press

GLENDALE – Iraq is worse off than the last time Rep. Adam Schiff
(D-Glendale) visited it a year ago, but he believes the country’s new
prime minister will stabilize the struggling new democracy.

Schiff, traveling with four other members of Congress, left for Iraq
on Tuesday and met with Prime Minister Iyad Allawi to discuss the
leader’s vision for his country. Schiff also met with troops from
various California cities, including La Crescenta, Montrose and
Pasadena.

“I want to make sure that the money we appropriated in Congress [for
troops] is getting to its intended destination, and see if there is
anything they need that they aren’t getting,” Schiff said Thursday
afternoon in a telephone interview from Jordan. “And to be here on
the ground to get a firsthand sense of what is happening here that is
not filtered through the Pentagon.”

Schiff strongly supports Allawi and believes the prime minister has a
“sober” understanding of what it will take to successfully lead a
democracy, especially when dealing with increased terrorism and
neighboring Iran.

But Schiff has seen changes for the worse in Iraq since he visited
last summer.

“Security continues to deteriorate since I was last here,” he said.
“The violence is more widespread and difficult to confront, and is
impeding the reconstruction.”

Schiff added that mortar was fired about 500 yards from a helicopter
he was riding in.

Regardless, he found “pretty good” morale among the troops he spoke
with, even in the wake of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal and a report
implicating about two dozen soldiers and civilian contractors.

“I think a great many of them feel betrayed, but it’s the soldier’s
ethic to move on to the next challenge,” Schiff said.

“What I found on this trip – which is similar to my last trip – is
that morale is highly dependent on [soldiers] individually knowing
when they are coming home,” he added. “Those who have a date can get
through just about anything. It’s harder without a date. That’s why
it’s so important to meet our commitment to the troops when telling
them when they are going home.”

Spirits were also lifted when Schiff handed out cards, posters and
banners made by local children from such organizations as the
Armenian National Committee’s Western Region, New Horizons Family
Center and the Boys & Girls Club of Burbank.

Schiff and the delegates will also travel to Afghanistan and
Pakistan, where he will visit more troops and meet with other foreign
leaders, including Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. But
because of security concerns, Schiff cannot say exactly where he is
going next or when he will leave.

Azeri pundit says Saudi report of anti-US plot targets Iran

Ekho, Baku
20 Aug 04

Excerpt from N. Aliyev and Z. Alakbarov report by Azerbaijani
newspaper Ekho on 20 August headlined “Iranian secret services uncover
conspiracy against US citizens in Azerbaijan?” and subheaded “This has
been reported by an influential Saudi newspaper published in London”

Al-Qa’idah terrorists and representatives of the Iranian radical
revolutionary guard were going to perpetrate a series of terrorist
attacks on American citizens in Azerbaijan. The plot has been thwarted
by the Iranian secret services controlled by the reformist forces in
the Islamic Republic of Iran.

This sensational report has been carried by the influential and
informed Saudi newspaper published in London Asharq Al-Awsat quoting
informed sources in the Iranian secret services.

Passage omitted: background information about the newspaper

The newspaper says, quoting sources close to the Iranian secret
services, that the conspiracy was discovered after the secret services
had laid their hands on the correspondence between Al-Qa’idah, the
Iranian revolutionary guard and the so-called Al-Quds brigade. After
that, the Iranian secret services started tapping telephone
conversations of a senior official from the office of Iran’s spiritual
leader Ayatollah Ali Khamene’i. It transpired that he was actively
communicating with a high-ranking Al-Qa’idah member in Iran.

The investigation uncovered a “sensational conspiracy”. Members of
Al-Quds, Al-Qa’idah and the revolutionary guard had planned to kill US
military and intelligence personnel working in several
countries. According to Asharq Al-Awsat, the terrorist operation was
to take place first in Azerbaijan. Besides our country, Armenia and
Turkmenistan were mentioned as well.

The newspaper has also established the main purpose of the planned
killings. Terrorists were planning to involve Iran in a direct
standoff with the USA and the countries bordering on Iran in the
north.

It is noteworthy that the US and Iranian embassies in Azerbaijan have
refused to provide a comment on Asharq Al-Awsat’s report. The US
embassy, for example, said that the diplomatic mission does not
provide comments on issues connected with the security of US citizens
abroad. As for the Azerbaijani National Security Ministry, it has no
press office and one cannot obtain comments on any issue there.

According to the director of the Centre for study of terrorism and
asymmetric threats, Cahangir Aras, there is really a standoff between
the reformist and conservative blocks in the Iranian
administration. However, according to Aras, “their confrontation has
not yet reached a point where one power-wielding entity could be
openly opposed to the other”.

Aras believes that although Asharq Al-Awsat is indeed a well-known and
informed edition, the newspaper has frequently been accused of
deliberately spreading misinformation, the reasons of which can only
be guessed.

At the same time, the director of the centre said that suggestions of
possible contacts between the Iranian revolutionary guard and
Al-Qa’idah were quite interesting and that different sources had
speculated on this idea.

“However, reports like this one are not substantiated by facts, which
reminds us of similar accusations of the Saddam Husayn regime of links
with Al-Qa’idah. Therefore, the Asharq Al-Awsat report is just another
volley in the information war against Iran,” the expert said.

The Economist
August 21, 2004
U.S. Edition

A matter of Russian honour; Russia

Four unresolved conflicts in the ex-Soviet republics are a festering
sore

Vladimir Putin should solve rather than stoke regional conflicts

AFTER a humiliating decline as a world power, Russia is working hard
to regain respect and authority. That is a fair, even praiseworthy
aim. But to achieve it, Russia must respect other countries too,
including places once ruled from Moscow. It will prosper more with
friendly, confident countries around it – not weak, frustrated ones.
Russia understands that, but often seems incapable of showing it.

By offering unconditional support to rebel regimes in the Georgian
provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russia dishonours itself and
destabilises its neighbourhood (see page 35). Since South Ossetia
broke away from Georgia 12 years ago, it has degenerated into a
smugglers’ paradise. Russian soldiers prop up a sleazy regime that
peddles vodka and arms. Moves by Georgia to cut this illegal trade
have led to a violent summer. Heavier fighting, and open Russian
intervention, are a risk.

The crisis needs delicate handling, but the fundamentals are simple.
South Ossetia is not a viable state. It lives on crime. Its
government needs to be closed down as part of a generous settlement
which Georgia now offers. Abkhazia, Georgia’s other breakaway
province, is a tougher problem, and its local government even less
legitimate – in that it speaks for even fewer of the region’s lawful
residents – than South Ossetia’s.

Of the two places, Abkhazia has more claim to separateness – and it was
the scene, in 1992-93, of a war where both sides fought dirty. Any
settlement must include some deal for Georgians who fled Abkhazia;
but only a limited right of return may be possible – and not straight
away. On the positive side, Georgia wants to talk, and will offer
Abkhazia any arrangement short of independence. But by underwriting
the separatists, Russia is holding up such a solution.

Faced with this, America and Europe should give more help to
Georgia’s Mikhail Saakashvili, whose openness to ethnic co-existence
and western values make him the region’s most promising leader for
decades; the governments of the West should steady his hand while
affirming his choices.

They should also look beyond Georgia, to other “frozen conflicts” in
the region. One is in Moldova, where another rebel statelet,
Transdniestria, lives on smuggling and Russian guns. Then there is a
far bigger stand-off: over Nagorno-Karabakh and its environs, where a
decade ago Armenians broke free from Azerbaijan and expelled local
Azeris. That logjam has other causes besides Russian meddling – but it
would be easier to shift if Russia worked constructively with the
West.

All these conflicts destabilise countries on the new borders of NATO
and the European Union. The four Russian-backed statelets at the
heart of these disputes have something in common: they have no legal
existence, and can easily serve as a free-for-all for illegal
activity of every kind.

That should be a worry for Russia too. If it sponsors adventurism and
racketeering in Georgia and Moldova, that is partly because its
policy there has been captured by crooks. The West should take its
worries to the top, putting it to Vladimir Putin in plain language.
Will the president continue backing separatist regimes that live on
smuggling? Is a miserable bit of local power worth the harm done to
Russia’s name as a responsible state? Of course it is not. But only
when Mr Putin takes a stand will the behaviour of more lowly Russians
change. And he will do so only if other countries persuade him that
his reputation, and that of Russia, are at stake.