Author: Nahapetian Lilit

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 22 2005

Transport Minister: Georgia Cannot Transfer Cargo to Armenia

The cargo transported by railway from Azerbaijan to Georgia is not to
be passed on further to Armenia, as this is prohibited by the
existing legal framework between the two countries, Transport
Minister Ziya Mammadov told journalists. Georgia must comply with the
documents it signed, he said.

Mammadov noted that the consignments that Azerbaijan is withholding
on the Azeri-Georgian border are released only after it makes sure
they are not bound for Armenia.

‘Both foreign and local companies must realize that any cooperation
with Armenia, which has occupied Azerbaijan’s lands is out of the
question and everyone should comply with this.’

AzerTag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
Jan 22 2005

PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV RECEIVES PARTICIPANTS OF THE DAYS OF ITAR-TASS
IN AZERBAIJAN
[January 22, 2005, 23:32:14]

On 22 January, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev
received at the Presidential Palace participants of the Days of the
Russian news agency ITAR-TASS in Azerbaijan.

Warmly greeting the guests, President Ilham Aliyev described the Days
of ITAR-TASS in Azerbaijan that had brought together heads of Russian
leading news agencies, highly reputable representatives of science,
culture, sport and other spheres of Russia’s social life, as a very
important event. He also pointed to its significance from the
standpoint of providing the public with true and objective
information about Azerbaijan.

The Head of State told of the problems Azerbaijan faced with in the
first years of its independence, re-establishment of stability in the
country which became possible thanks to the purposeful policy
initiated and pursued by national leader Heydar Aliyev, and the work
done for strengthening of ties of friendship and cooperation with
other countries including the Russian Federation. `The
Azerbaijan-Russia cooperation is steadily expanding in all fields,
and our countries have no contradictions in this regard,’ he said.
Pointing to the high level of ethnic and religious tolerance in
Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev said that Russian-writing press in
the country had even more developed since independence.

The Azerbaijani leader also informed the guests on the large-scale
energy projects implemented in Azerbaijan, economic growth in the
country and progress gained in its provinces.

President Ilham Aliyev also touched upon the Azerbaijan’s most
painful problem, the conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh,
emphasizing that `we want to solve the problem peacefully, but if
it’s not possible, Azerbaijan will have to resort to other means to
release its lands.’

Leader of the Russian delegation, Director General of ITAR-TASS
Vitaliy Ignatenko thanked the Azerbaijani President for hospitality,
and noted that the visit of such a large delegation representing
various spheres of the Russian society plays an exceptional role in
strengthening and deepening of friendship and cooperation between the
two countries.

Speakers at the meeting – Chief of the Federal Agency on Press and
Mass Communications Mkhail Seslavinski, Chairman of the Russian
Committee on Sport Vyacheslav Fetisov, Head of the Department of
Culture at the Ministry of Press and Culture Mikhail Shvydkoy,
Vice-President of the International Olympic Committee, Honorary
President of the Russian Olympic Committee Vitaliy Smirnov, renowned
Political Scientist Gennadiy Burbulis, Cardiologist, Academician
Renat Akchurin, Editor-in -Chief of the `Moskovskiye Novosti’
newspaper Pavel Gusev and First Deputy Director General of ITAR-TASS
Mikhail Gusman – pointed out apparent progress in all spheres of life
in Azerbaijan they had witnessed, and expressed confidence in good
prospects of the country.

In the end, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev presented `Shohrat’
/Glory/ order to ITAR-TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail
Gusman he had been awarded for contribution to development of
cultural ties between Azerbaijan and Russia.

NorthJersey.com, NJ
Jan 21 2005

Turning nature into a classroom for young minds

Friday, January 21, 2005

By CATHERINE HOLAHAN
STAFF WRITER

NEW MILFORD – Saving energy to energize minds.

That could be a new motto at the Hovnanian School, where teachers and
students are trying to raise $118,000 to construct a greenhouse and
garden learning center that runs completely on alternative energy
sources.

“I think it’s appropriate for the kids to grow up in this kind of
environmentally sensitive surrounding,” said Vahak Hovnanian, founder
of the Armenian private school in New Milford.

The pre-K-8 school was started 29 years ago by Hovnanian to educate
the region’s growing Armenian student population in the Armenian and
French languages, as well as connect the students to their ancestral
culture. The school has 200 students from Bergen County and New York.

“America is beautiful because we have so many different nationalities
living here, and we are part of the mosaic,” Hovnanian said. “We
don’t want to lose our color in that beautiful garden that we all are
in.”

Teachers and parents came up with the idea for the garden learning
center last year as a way to utilize land around the school to teach
students about nature and science, and have space for outdoor
classes.

Miriam Kaprielian, the parent of a seventh-grade student, volunteered
to head the committee to develop the plans and raise funds for the
center.

Kaprielian contacted friend David Delardi of Wayne-based Landscape
Perceptions and Lynn Stile, a professor of physics at Richard
Stockton College and a geothermal technology expert, to design the
center.

Plans call for construction of a greenhouse heated by coils or pumps
that are installed deep underground and draw heat from the earth.
Floor lighting for the center will be solar-powered, and rainwater
will be collected in a cistern and pumped out to nourish the
greenhouse plants, Kaprielian said.

School faculty also hope to have a bird-feeding station, a place for
wind instruments, a pond, a sunken outdoor classroom for poetry and
English courses, and a human checkerboard where the kids take the
role of the pieces.

Kaprielian said that nearly all the courses have designed curriculum
that would utilize some feature of the greenhouse and garden. Science
classes will teach about various forms of energy and plants, computer
classes will log information gathered through experiments in the
garden, and the English and language classes will use the outdoor
classroom on warm days.

“We are very excited,” Kaprielian said. “The hard part is raising the
money.”

The school has raised $11,886 of the total cost. On Saturday and
Sunday, a yard sale will be held at the school to raise money. A
specially made quilt will be auctioned off on Sunday.

Varak Baronian, a 13-year-old seventh-grader, said he is looking
forward to the center.

“It will be a nice place to be with your friends and study,” he said.

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

SERIES OF IMPORTANT MEETINGS IN ANTELIAS

Antelias, Lebanon – Throughout the last week a number of important meetings
took place at the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia in Antelias. These
meetings were presided by His Holiness Aram I.

On the first day the Religious Executive Council met. Its agenda covered
activity reports related to Christian Education, Ecumenical relations and
Youth Department as well as programs and concerns related to different
spheres of religious life.

On the second day the Lay Executive Council had its meeting. The committee
studied questions and projects related to the financial administrative
social and public relation spheres of the Catholicosate. In the meeting of
both Executive Committees a special attention was given to the direct
assistance that the Catholicosate provides to the Dioceses in different
areas of the Diocesan activities.

On the third day His Holiness presided over an enlarged meeting with the
participation of Religious and Lay Committees, diocesan primates and lay
representatives. This gathering addressed a number of issues, mainly related
to the overall activities of the Catholicosate. In his introductory and
closing remarks, His Holiness emphasized the importance of responsibility
and accountability in the work of the Catholicosate on global and diocesan
level. He also stressed the needs for self-critical assessment as a way
towards progress and success.

##

View printable pictures here:

********

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.

POLITICAL MASS-MEETING IN FRONT OF US EMBASSY

A1+
19-01-2005

Representatives of several youth organizations carried out political
mass- meeting from Opera square towards US embassy in Armenia
today. The action was guided by `Baze’ union. Main participants were
the representatives of youth branches of Republican, RAF and Orinats
Erkir parties and NGOs.

The main goal was that several youth organizations express their
indignation with the statement of Secretary of State Elizabeth Johns
that – It is necessary to stop the corruption in Nagorno-Karabakh and
remove the ruling criminal chains. Thus as far us the participants of
the mass-meeting were the representatives of Armenian ruling parties
this meeting can be considered as `mass-meeting of the government of
Armenia in front of US Embassy».

The whole action was controlled by police forces; the participants
closed the Bagramyan Avenue. The police was protecting the
participants by forming a life chain around them and controlling the
traffic.

The following statement could be seen on the posters `Shame on
Elizabeth Johns ‘, `No, to double standards’ which attracted the
attention of people who three months ago participated in mass meeting
`Against Terrorism’. It is noteworthy that the mass meeting in the
memory of victims of October 27 organized by `Ardarutyun’ union last
year also took place on Bagramyan Avenue close to US Embassy but there
was no police protection from traffic or any other accident.

Armenian peace-keepers to leave for Iraq

Mediamax news agency
17 Jan 05

YEREVAN

An Armenian peace-keeping contingent is to leave for Iraq tomorrow, 18
January, the press service of the Armenian Defence Ministry told
Mediamax news agency.

The Armenian National Assembly ratified a memorandum at its closed
session on 24 December 2004, to send 46 Armenian military doctors,
drivers and sappers to Iraq.

Ninety-one deputies voted for, 23 voted against the ratification of
the document. In particular, the Justice opposition bloc and the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation – Dashnaktsutyun, which is a member
of the ruling coalition – voted against sending the Armenian
humanitarian contingent to Iraq.

The memorandum “On the management of the multi-national group included
into the stabilization forces in Iraq and on the settlement of other
similar issues” was signed between Poland and 19 other countries and
came into force on 24 July 2004. The countries which joined this
memorandum as the multinational battalion Polish command, are taking
part in establishing stability and security in Iraq and restoring the
economic infrastructure of this country.

NEWS RELEASE
St James Armenian Church
816 Clark Street Evanston IL 60201
TEL: 847-864-6263 email: [email protected]
Program contact: Gevik Anbarchian at (773) 878-0215 or [email protected].

ST JAMES ARMENIAN CHURCH
Film-Discussion Series: “THE TEN COMMANDMENTS”
FRIDAYS AT 7:30PM: FEB 18; MAR 18; APR 15; MAY 20; JUN 3
FREE admission

Saint James Armenian Church (Evanston IL) announces its Winter into
Spring film discussion series. This year we will be screening the
highly-acclaimed The Decalogue by the Polish filmmaker Krzysztof
Kieslowski. The Decalogue (The Ten Commandments) is a series of ten
hour-long films written and directed by Kieslowski for Polish
television in 1988. Each episode looks specifically at the relevance
of one of the Ten Commandments in the context of contemporary life
circumstances, and explores larger issues of morality, ethics and
justice in both religious and secular/humanistic terms. The Decalogue
is the recipient of numerous international film prizes including the
Cannes Special Jury Prize and Chicago Film Critics, Best Foreign
Language Film. The films are in Polish with English subtitles.

Film screenings will be held on Friday evenings in the main hall of
St. James Church beginning promptly at 7:30 with dinner and the film,
and discussion to follow from 8:30 until 10:00. Guests are encouraged
to bring a small dish and/or drinks to share with others.

____________________________________________________________________________

Friday, February 18 at 7:30pm: Decalogue I-I am the Lord thy God.Thou
shalt have no other Gods before me.

A university professor trusts in the infallibility of the computer and
instructs his young son in its use. Anxious to try out a new pair of
ice skates, the two consult the computer to calculate the safety of
the thickness of the ice on a nearby pond. A freak thaw results in
unforeseen and tragic consequences. (53 minutes)

Friday, March 18 at 7:30pm: Decalogue V-Thou shalt not kill. Jacek, a
disaffected youth, randomly and brutally murders a taxi driver.
Arrested, he is given Piotr, a young lawyer, to defend him. Jacek is
put on trial, found guilty and executed by hanging. Is an eye for an
eye just and does the legal system, in the name of the people and
sanctioned by the government, have the right to kill? (57 minutes)

Friday, April 15 at 7:30pm: Decalogue II-Thou shalt not take the name
of the Lord thy God in vain.

Dorota visits her dying husband in the hospital. She is pregnant by
another man. She asks the doctor for her husband’s
progress-considering abortion should he live, choosing life for the
fetus if her husband dies. By predicting the fate of the husband, is
the doctor determining life or death of the unborn child? (57 minutes)

Friday, May 20 at 7:30pm: Decalogue X-Thou shalt not covet thy
neighbor’s goods.

In this black comedy, two financially strapped brothers, Jerzy and
Artur, unexpectedly inherit a small fortune when their father wills
them the most valuable stamp collection in Poland. (57 minutes)

Friday, June 3 at 7:30pm: Decalogue VII-Thou shalt not steal.
Six-year-old Ania is being brought up by Ewa in the belief that Majka,
Ewa’s daughter, is her sister, whereas Majka is really her
mother. Tired and saddened by the deception and desperate to have Ania
love her as a mother, Majka “kidnaps” Ania and runs away from her
parents. (55 minutes)

ST JAMES ARMENIAN CHURCH 816 CLARK STREET EVANSTON IL 60201 TEL:
847-964-6263

email: [email protected]

Divine Liturgy 10:30am every Sunday followed by fellowship.
Park FREE on Sundays in the Maple St garage one block west of the Church.
St James Armenian Church is conveniently located 2 blocks north of the Davis St CTA & Metra/UP North trains.

*************

Krzysztof Kieslowski (1941-1996)

Probably the best known Polish film Director of the last two decades, Krzysztof Kieslowski began his film career at Lodz State Theatrical and Film College. His first films were documentaries that concentrated on aspects of Polish life, culture, and politics under the then Communist Party. Indeed it was these conditions which helped spark the Solidarity movement which ultimately forced the Party to relinquish power by way of new general elections.

Starting with short black and white 16mm documentaries, Kieslowski began to develop a style that would become characteristic of his work. Emphasis on seemingly insignificant moments such as feet walking, or background characters helped to bring a natural clarity to his cinematography. The audience becomes a genuine third party, observing the natural flow of the subjects within his field of vision imposed by the camera. Realism was what Kieslowski concentrated on, and indeed his films, especially the features, have a documentary feel to them.

Earlier films reflected a social commentary on Polish martial law and the way in which ordinary people maintained their lives inside a restrictive social environment. His award-winning 1979 feature, CAMERA BUFF, a slyly humorous, satirical look at life in a corrupt provincial factory, may have had personal dimensions for Kieslowski as it depicts a filmmaker who exposes himself to both attention and criticism when he progresses from home movies to committed social documentaries.

Kieslowski learned firsthand that censorship may ride on the coattails of exposure with BLIND CHANCE (1981), which considered three possibilities for Poland’s political future as it explored three different outcomes springing from the premise of a student trying to catch a train. BLIND CHANCE was unable to include a fourth story in which Poland throws out the Communist Party entirely, and the remaining film, still quite impressive, was banned for over five years before finally being released in 1987. While the outcome of one BLIND CHANCE story was a blithely apolitical world (the student misses the train, and instead meets a sexy woman with whom he becomes involved), Kieslowski’s subsequent NO END (1984), while not forsaking wit entirely, nonetheless refused to be glibly satirical. The film’s hero, a
lawyer who represented many Poles oppressed by martial law, is dead at the film’s opening.

Kieslowski’s films always featured philosophical journeys into the human spirit and a concern for the moral and ethical implications of human action. Fittingly, he confirmed his status as a major contemporary director with DECALOGUE (1988), an ambitious series of ten hour-long films funded by Polish TV, telling stories “based” on the Ten Commandments. (In DECALOGUE 10, for instance, two brothers, an accountant and a punk rocker, both covet the stamp collection they have inherited from their father.) In the same year, Kieslowski expanded segments five and six into two features, A SHORT FILM ABOUT KILLING and A SHORT FILM ABOUT LOVE. Partially set, like the rest of the series, on a Warsaw housing estate, A SHORT FILM ABOUT KILLING is a grim and powerful tale drawing formal parallels between the act of murder
and the workings of the criminal justice system.

His first major international film, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE (1991) explored human emotion in a very delicate often ironic way. Indeed as he put it, “…a sensitive film for sensitive people…” “Veronique” explores the simultaneous lives of two women, one Polish and the other French who are each other’s double, and who both feel a strange link to each other’s lives.

His magnum opus and fittingly enough, his last film project was a trilogy series entitled THREE COLOURS: BLUE (1993), RED (1994) and WHITE (1994).
Based on the three colours of the French Revolution, each film examines one thread of each theme. BLUE examines freedom, as portrayed by a woman who loses her family in an automobile accident, and the way in which she discovers a new direction to her life. WHITE looks at one man’s struggle for equality in his marriage in an aura of black humor, and finally RED concentrates on fraternity by highlighting the development of a relationship between a young model and an elderly man.

Krzysztof Kieslowski was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1941 and passed away in a Warsaw hospital in March 1996 due to heart complications but not before announcing tentative plans for another trilogy rumoured to be based upon the concepts of heaven, hell and purgatory.

———————————
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ARMENIA SCORES HIGHEST AMONG CIS ON ECONOMIC FREEDOM INDEX

WASHINGTON, January 7 (Noyan Tapan). The Armenian National Committee
of America (ANCA), in letters sent on January 5 to Members of
Congress, Administration officials, think tanks, the media, and the
broader Washington, DC foreign policy community, welcomed Armenia’s
high rating from the Index of Economic Freedom, prepared jointly by
the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal. The Index
measures 161 countries against 50 variables divided into 10 factors of
economic freedom. Armenia received a 2.58 rating and was ranked 42nd
overall – ahead of both France and South Korea. Armenia’s scores
places it, by a considerable margin, as the highest scoring nation
among the Commonwealth of Independent States. Within the Caucasus,
Armenia was listed as the only “Mostly Free” nation. Georgia ranked
100th overall with a score of 3.34, and Azerbaijan came in at 103rd
with a score of 3.38. Turkey continued to slip on economic freedoms,
coming in with a score of 3.36 and a ranking of 112th overall. Lower
scores on the Index’s five-point scale are more desirable. “Armenia’s
strong economic growth and steady progress in each of the ten areas
weighed by the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal are
reflected in the expansion of U.S.-Armenia economic relations,” said
ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian. “We look forward to helping further
expand these commercial ties and to building on the passage of
Permanent Normal Trade Relations legislation – spearheaded last year
by Congressman Joe Knollenberg and Senator Mitch McConnell – by ending
double-taxation, securing a Social Security Agreement, and paving the
way toward free trade between the United States and Armenia.”
Armenia’s ratings in each of the ten factors covered by the Index are
provided below (Lower scores are more desirable): Trade: 2.0 Fiscal
Burden: 2.3 Gov. Intervention: 2.5 Monetary Policy: 2.0 For.
Investment: 2.0 Banking: 1.0 Wages & Prices: 3.0 Property Rights: 3.0
Regulation: 4.0 Informal Market: 4.0 According to the Index, Armenia
has made steady progress on economic freedom over the past
decade. Below find Armenia’s past scores: 2005: 2.58 2004: 2.63 2003:
2.59 2002: 2.78 2001: 3.03 2000: 3.21 1999: 3.50 1998: 3.50 1997: 3.50
1996: 3.69

Sonics Expands Operations into Armenia; New Engineering Center
Highlights Revenue Growth Strategy

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)—-Sonics Inc., the premier
supplier of system-on-chip (SoC) SMART(TM) Interconnects, today
announced the opening of an engineering design center in Armenia as
part of a company-wide strategy aimed at supporting revenue growth.

“As Sonics completes its transition from a start-up company previously
fo cused on engineering critical first products, to an emerging growth
company now focused on enhancing established market positions and
expanding its customer base, we are directing the company’s resources
to support the expected revenue growth,” said Grant Pierce president
and CEO.

The Armenia design center will be used for both product development
and sustaining infrastructure projects. “The expansion into Armenia
enables Sonics to utilize a team of talented engineers while managing
development costs moving forward as our business expands,” said
Pierce.

The company also announced that Geert Rosseel, Senior Vice President
of Development Programs, has assumed the additional responsibility of
managing Sonics’ Applications Engineering Group.

About Sonics

Sonics, Inc. is a leading provider of SMART Interconnects that deliver
high SoC design predictability and increase design efficiency. Major
semiconductor and systems companies including Broadcom, Samsung, Texas
Instruments and Toshiba have applied Sonics SMART Interconnects in
leading products in the wireless, digital multimedia and
communications markets. Sonics is a privately held company funded by
Investar Capital, Smart Technology Ventures, TL Ventures, Easton Hunt
Capital, JAFCO Ventures, and H&Q Asia-Pacific. For more information,
see

SMART is a trademark of Sonics, Inc. All other trademarks and
registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Acclaim Public Relations Nancy Sheffield, 408-269-0849
[email protected]

01/07/2005 14:52 ET

ArmenPress
Jan 6 2005

DESPITE HEAVY SNOWFALL ROADS OPEN FOR TRAFFIC

YEREVAN, JANUARY 6, ARMENPRESS: The capital city Yerevan and much
of Armenia were socked by a Wednesday heavy snowfall, with no more
expected today in the capital. The snowfall began at about 7 p.m.
January 5 and went on through the night, but warmer air from the
south pushed its way today morning, resulting in snow melting in the
capital, while it is continuing to fall in some southern and east-
northern regions.
The only closed road is the one stretching along the Selim
mountain pass, all others are being cleaned up and are open for
traffic, Armenian weather service told Armenpress.