Author: Mamian George

2006 DRAFT BUDGET SETS 54.1 BILLION DRAMS FOR SOCIAL PROGRAMS

Armenpress
Oct 17 2005

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 17, ARMENPRESS: Armenia’s 2006 draft budget earmarks
54.1 billion drams for the labor and social affairs ministry, an
8.1 billion drams rise against the 2005. Labor and social affairs
minister Aghvan Vardanian told parliamentary debates on the draft
budget today that a set of new programs would be implemented next year,
one of which is to establish a single system of children’s protection,
which would require 113 million drams.

He said around 26 billion were set aside to pay social benefits to
insecure families. This is almost 5 billion more than was earmarked
for 2005. The average amount of a monthly benefit to these families
will grow from current 12,000 drams to 15,300 drams. He said
another one billion drams would be released for 24-hour care of
935 institutionalized children. Also some 1.4 billion drams will be
released for taking care of graduates of children’s houses and senior
lonely citizens in specialized institutions.

And eventually some 90 millions are set for construction of the first
ever shelter for homeless people.

Pan Armenian

Assistant Secretary for Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs to Arrive in
Yerevan October 18

14.10.2005 22:29 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ October 18 U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for the
Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs Daniel Fried will arrive in Armenia
on a short-term visit to meet with Armenian President Robert Kocharian. To
note, it is the first visit of the high rank official after the re-election
of George Bush in 2004. Daniel Fried took the oath of office as Assistant
Secretary of State on May 5, 2005. Before taking the helm of the Bureau of
European and Eurasian Affairs, Ambassador Fried served as Special Assistant
to the President and Senior Director for European and Eurasian Affairs at
the National Security Council since January 22, 2001.

QUIRKY WORKS FOR ENSEMBLE
By Tom Strini

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Oct 13 2005

Moscow Chamber Orchestra Full Of Surprise Moments
Journal Sentinel music critic

Intriguing oddities carried the day for the Moscow Chamber Orchestra
at Wisconsin Lutheran College on Wednesday.

Arrangements of Five Armenian Dances (collected by the folklorist
Komitas and arranged by Sergei Aslamazian); Karl Davidov’s “At
the Fountain”; Prokofiev’s “Visions Fugitives”; and Rachmaninoff’s
“Vocalise” won’t show up on another program any time soon.

The Armenian music chants or dances in exotic modes. The arranger
gussied them up with ostinatos but retained their primal feel.

“Garun’a,” with its exquisite melody in the violins and a distant
countermelody buzzing in the cellos, is especially engaging.

Principal cellist Alexander Zagorinsky was the soloist in a meditative
take on Rachmaninoff’s “Vocalise” and in the Davidov showpiece. “At
the Fountain” is a colorful little etude meant to show off and develop
cello tremolo. It’s fun.

“Visions Fugitives” flit by like hummingbirds – splashes of color here
and gone so quickly you wonder if you imagined them. The MCO’s founding
conductor, Rudolf Barshai, arranged the 1917 piano original for his
orchestra. Under current leader Constantine Orbelian, the MCO plays
them with an unerring feel for their quirky gestures and vivid timbres.

I remembered the Moscow ensemble as nearly perfect, technically, in
their 2000 visit to Wisconsin Lutheran’s Schwan Concert Hall. This
time around, quite a few bouts of fuzzy ensemble and intonation
crept in, especially in the more conventional repertoire. They had
the most technical trouble, oddly enough, in Mozart’s Serenade No. 6
(“Notturna”), and they never managed the easy grace that is the whole
point of this piece.

At the other end of the emotional spectrum, they didn’t get the
desperation that is the essence of Astor Piazzolla’s music. Readings
of three of his tangos were more English tea dance than Buenos Aires
tango club.

Ripsime Airepetyants and Irina Krasko took the solo parts in Bach’s
Concerto in D minor for Two Violins (BWV 1043). They and the orchestra
played Bach the old-fashioned way – not spartanly Baroque in the
early-music movement way, but buttery and Romantic in the circa 1950
way. The slow movement sounded like Puccini. I didn’t mind that so
much as the muddy counterpoint in the finale.

The first encore, a dolorous Russian folksong, was profound.

Violinist Alexander Mayorov opened the second with a cadenza that
sounded like Sarasate. Everyone laughed when it turned out to be
“Yankee Doodle” in a completely nutty virtuoso setting. It was an
apt ending for a slightly nutty program.

COORDINATING COUNCIL ON CONSTITUTIONAL REFERENDUM FORMED

Pan Armenian
14.10.2005 18:59 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Yesterday Armenian President Robert Kocharian
held a working meeting with members of the council of the political
coalition to discuss matters referring to constitutional amendments,
RA leader’s press center reported. As result it was decided to
from a council for coordination of the preparatory works on the
constitutional referendum. The council will consist of representatives
of the political coalition and political forces supporting the
amendments. The work of the council will be coordinated by chairman
of the NA commission on defense, national security and home affairs
Mher Shahgeldian. The first sitting of the coordinating council will
be held on October 18.

PRESIDENT PRESS SECRETARY SAYS R. KOCHARIAN ASSIGNED TO ELIMINATE FLAWS IN VOTERS’ LISTS

Armenpress
Oct 13 2005

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS: Responding to the question of the
Armenpress correspondent on the attitude of the Armenian President
Robert Kocharian towards the flaws in the voters’ lists, the President
Press Secretary Victor Soghomonian said “Armenian President instructed
the chief of the police who is responsible for the voters’ lists to
undertake necessary steps for the elimination of the existing flaws.”

According to the press secretary, Robert Kocharian assigned the chief
of the police to improve the works connected with the voters’ lists.

MINISTRIES OF TRANSPORT OF RUSSIA, ARMENIA SHOULD CREATE CONDITIONS
TO ATTRACT ROLLING-STOCK, ADDITIONAL CARGO FOR SHIPPING OPERATIONS BY
KAVKAZ -POTI FERRY PASSAGE

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Oct 13 2005

YEREVAN, October 13. /ARKA/. Ministries of Transport of Russia
and Armenia should create conditions to attract rolling-stock and
additional cargo for shipping operations by Kavkaz -Poti ferry passage;
Co-Chairman of the Armenian-Russian Intergovernmental Commission
on Economic Cooperation, RF Minister of Transport Igor Levitin told
journalists in Yerevan. He reported that this formulation was included
in the protocol of the 7th meeting of yteh Commission. Levitin
said that currently the state did all possible for operation of
this ferry. “The states did everything was required from them,
and currently the business should use it”, Levitin pointed out. He
said that the state can not bought additional ferry-boats; it should
be doe by business. He also said that not everything in this issue
depends on Armenia and Russia. “Georgia is the participant of this
transit direction as well, and we have questions regarding tariffs,
which we will discuss in Georgia”, Levitin said.

LEARN HOW TO HELP ARMENIAN SCHOOLS

Cambridge Chronicle, MA
Oct 13 2005

The Perkins School for the Blind will host a reception for the
Armenian community Wednesday, Oct. 19, at 7 p.m. in the Howe Building
on Perkins campus at 175 North Beacon St. in Watertown.

Perkins staff will share information about a new initiative to aid
schools and services for children who are blind in Armenia. The
presentation will be based on an April 2005 visit to the country,
hosted by the Cambridge-Yerevan Sister City Association

RSVP to Emily Goodman at [email protected] or call
617-972-7583. For more information, visit

EUROPEAN BOWL HIT BY WITHDRAWAL OF ARMENIA: PLAYERS DENIED VISA

International Korfball Federation, Belgium
Oct 13 2005

The IKF has been informed by the Korfball Federation of Armenia that
six members of their delegation hoping to travel to participate in
the European Bowl have been refused a Visa.

The team had been planning to travel to the Netherlands and then
make onward travel from there to Catalonia. Such an occurrence as
the refusal of a Visa has never before happened in any IKF Tournament
anywhere in the world. We bitterly regret the situation and the IKF
has been forced to reluctantly accept the Armenian’s withdrawal from
the Tournament which is being used as the route to qualification
for the European Championships, scheduled for Budapest next April,
and the World Championships due to take place in 2007.

Matches schedule:

Day 1 Portugal vs. Poland (1845 hrs) Opening Ceremony (2000 hrs)
Catalonia (Spain) vs. Russia (2045 hrs)

Day 2 Russia vs. Portugal (1900 hrs) Poland vs. Catalonia (Spain)
(2045 hrs)

Day 3 Russia vs. Poland (1900 hrs) Catalonia (Spain) vs. Portugal
(2045 hrs)

Day 4 3rd vs. 4th (1100 hrs) 1st vs. 2nd (1245 hrs)

The first three days will have the pool matches and on the final day
matches based on the end of pool positions to decide the medal winners.

The European Bowl is a new IKF event being used as a qualification
event for the European Senior Championships 2006 to be held in Hungary
and the World Championships 2007 to be held in Czech Republic. The
inaugural edition will take place in Terrassa (Spain) from October
27-30, 2005.

ANTI-PREACHING HEADQUARTERS FORMED

A1+
| 19:46:54 | 12-10-2005 | Politics |

“The Justice bloc says no to the Constitutional amendments”, after
the 2-hour session of the bloc announced secretary Viktor Dallakyan
who will act as coordinator of the works of the anti-preaching
headquarters.

According to him, “There are two things the structure must do – hold
meetings with the people and do organizational work with the observers’
missions and the representatives of the bloc in the Committees”.

October 18 and 19 meetings will be held in Aragats and Martouni. The
table of the rest of the meetings will be cleared later. Possibly the
Justice bloc will soon make a joint announcement with the National
Unity. According to Viktor Dallakyan, he has already spoken with
Artashes Geghamyan.

By the way, during the session two variants of saying “No” were
discussed – to vote or to boycott. According to the People’s Party
secretary Grigor Haroutyunyan, except the National Democratic Union
which has already announced about its intention to boycott the
referendum, the rest of the parties have chosen the first strategy.

According to him, as the blocs are not allowed to create a fund, the
parties to raise money for the anti-preaching. “And we are not going
to tell you where from as we do not want to risk those businessmen
who may finance us”, he added.

Member of the Republican Party political Council Smbat Ayvazyan said
that the Party has made offers which will be discussed during the
bloc session.

And founder of the “National Renaissance” Albert Bazeyan thinks that
they can decide whether to boycott or not even three days before
the referendum.

What is important is that they must be accompanied with acts of
complaints, “otherwise the boycott will be too passive”.

EUP HR DELEGATION FOCUSES ON RECOGNITION OF GENOCIDE

RISK MONITOR BRIEFING
October 10, 2005

According to Cumhuriyet, Members of the European Parliament Human
Rights Subcommittee led by Helene Flautre paid a visit to the Turkish
Parliament. During the meeting, delegation members called on Ankara
to recognize the Armenian genocide claims and consider the issue of
education in Kurdish. Polish members of the delegation noted that
Poland had to acknowledge its part in the Jewish holocaust and asked
when Turkey would face up to its own history.