Author: Nahapetian Samvel

NEWLY ESTABLISHED TURKISH AGENCY TO COUNTERBALANCE ARMENIAN DIASPORA?

news.am
April 6 2010
Armenia

Turkish President Abdullah Gul approved decision #5978 on establishing
the department for foreign and national Turks.

It will have three vice-presidents, three advisers and 101 officers,
the Turkish presidential website reports.

The body will work with Turks living abroad, tackle their problems
and develop cultural and humanitarian ties. Turkish sources report,
that the newly established department aims at opposing the Armenian
Diaspora.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT MEET FIDH PRESIDENT

news.am
April 6 2010
Armenia

RA President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting on Apr. 6 with Ms. Souhayr
Belhassen, President of the International Federation of Human Rights
(Fédération internationale des droits de l’homme) (FIDH) on the
occasion of the FIDH’s 37th conference.

The RA presidential press office Affairs informed NEWS.am that the
Armenian leader expressed his appreciation of the FIDH’s cooperation
with Armenia and welcomed the FIDH’s decision to hold such a
representative conference in Yerevan.

President Serzh Sargsysan pointed out numerous problems with human
rights protection in Armenia. He stated that all of them cannot be
resolved at once.

Ms. Belhassen thanked the Armenian leader for Armenia’s efforts
to host the conference at a high level. She designated the FIDH
conference in the South Caucasus as a historic event. She pointed
out that the Armenian capital has turned into the capital of human
rights today. According to her, Armenia is favorably distinguished
in the region in terms of human rights protection, personifying the
whole region.

‘TURKEY FIRST NEEDS TO MAKE PEACE WITH ARMENIANS IN TURKEY’: BAGDAT

Tert.am

Hayko Bagdat, an Armenian who was born and raised in Turkey, says
peace between Turkish and Armenian people is more important for him
than Turkey’s normalization of relations with Armenia because he
would like to have a "normalized life" in Turkey, where he lives.

"Turkey may or may not have good relations with Armenia. The first
thing Turkey needs to do is to make peace with Armenians in Turkey,
where you can find Armenian heritage everywhere," Bagdat told Turkish
news source Today’s Zaman.

"I understand the benefits of the normalization of relations with
Armenia from the perspective of realpolitik, but it is not enough
for me. For me, the important thing is to have normalization in my
daily life."

Born into a family with a Greek mother and an Armenian father, Bagdat
is married to a Turkish woman. Bagdat said he feels comfortable where
Turkish is spoken.

ARTSVIK MINASYAN ASKS ARMENIA’S GOVERNMENT TO REMOVE THEIR ROSE-COLOURED GLASSES

Tert.am

Armenia today is in the post-crisis stage of ascent; the 2011 GDP
per capita in the country will reach 2008 indicators, said RA Deputy
Minister of Finance Vardan Aramyan rather optimistically at a press
conference today, noting that this year’s budget based on a 1.2%
economic growth has risen slightly as a result of discussions with
the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The deputy minister announced
that the rate of the economic growth will speed up after June.

The RA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary
Affairs Deputy Chair and Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF-D,
Dashnkatsutyun) MP Artsvik Minasyan, however, didn’t agree with
Aramyan’s forecast. In fact, Minasyan went as far as to say to Aramyan
to remove his rose-coloured glasses, since "the colour density on
the colourful glasses cannot change the situation."

"Your much-loved international bodies record the poverty level in
Armenia as being at 30%, [and] the unemployment indicator is the same.

And it’s not advantageous for you to present the truth with bright
colours," said Minasyan, while proposing the government to publicize
specific results from the work carried out.

Prior to this observation, Aramyan was stating that the level of
unemployment declined in the two months of this year, and that the
government’s decision to raise pension and social welfare payments
will ease the social tension.

NEW LIE BY AZERBAIJANI FOREIGN OFFICE

news.am
April 1 2010
Armenia

Belarus has repeatedly stated its position on the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict through high-ranking officials. Minsk is for the soonest
settlement of the conflict within international law, Belarussian
Ambassador to Armenia Stepan Sukharenko told NEWS.am.

The Azerbaijani mass media recently reported that the participants
in the Azerbaijani-Belarussian consultations pointed out that "the
only way of establishing durable peace in the region is settling
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the principle of sovereignty and
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan."

"Both friendly nations, Armenia and Azerbaijan, are close to us. We
are for the soonest settlement of the conflict in the conflicting
parties’ interests, as the present situation cannot be considered
normal," the Ambassador said.

So it is obvious that the Azeri mass media is once again misinforming
the public about the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.

378 HAVE JOINED THE ON-LINE PETITION "WE ARE LIVING IN ANOTHER TURKEY"

armradio.am
02.04.2010 15:40

Angered by a Turkish-Armenian representative’s failure to emphasize
the group’s suffering in 1915 during a recent meeting with the prime
minister, community members have demanded "civilian" leadership within
the community through an online petition.

The intra-communal split stems from a March 26 meeting in Ankara
between Bedros Sirinoglu, president of the Yedikule Surp Prkich
Armenian Hospital Foundation, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

During their conversation, Sirinoglu, who is also a prominent
businessman, described the events of 1915 as "a fight between two
brothers," and said Armenians in Turkey have no problems whatsoever.

Furious at the remarks, some members of the Armenian
community have started an online petition campaign at
bizbaskabirturkiyedeyasiyoruz.blogspot.com, a domain name that means
"We are living in another Turkey." The petition had been signed by
378 individuals as the Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review went to
press Thursday.

Speaking to the Daily News, Sirinoglu said he was deeply sorry
about the issue. "I do not deny what was experienced, but calling it
‘genocide’ does no good to anyone," he said.

Rakel Dink, the widow of assassinated Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink, and other Dink family members are among those who have
signed the online petition. Signatories see the petition as a first
step on the path toward "civilianizing" the community.

Pakrad Oztukyan, editor at the weekly Agos, where Dink once worked,
is among the signatories. "This is the reaction of the Armenian
people, a denominational stance and a first step on the path toward
civilianization," he told the Daily News.

UNRECOGNIZED TURKISH REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS TO DISCUSS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

armradio.am
01.04.2010 13:56

The unrecognized Parliament of the TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus) will discuss the resolution on Armenian Genocide, Gibrahayer
e-magazine reports.

A small political party of the far left, represented by Ragip Levent
has announced that in the next session of the so-called Assembly
of the TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus) he will submit a
resolution for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, honouring
the survivors of the Armenian Genocide who fled to Cyprus in the
beginning of the 20th century.

Levent said that Armenians and Turks lived in harmony for decades
and as Turkish Cypriots who witnessed the influx of the Armenians to
Cyprus have the moral obligation to make a statement towards history.

"As we are all trying to make a fresh start with the solution of the
Cyprus problem, we as Turkish Cypriots must do our bit, towards our
Armenian Cypriot compatriots," Levent concluded.

ARMENIA’S ECONOMY RECOVERY EXPECTED BY END OF 2011

PanARMENIAN.Net
31.03.2010 14:17 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA Minister of Finance Tigran Davtyan said that
Armenia’s economy is at the final stage of stabilization and its
recovery is already expected.

"Today, our basic goal is to restore our pre-crisis potential as soon
as possible," Mr. Davtyan told a press conference on March 31.

Besides, according to the Minister, the economy’s recovery shall be
accompanied by its simultaneous restructuring. He added that this
process will require huge efforts by the Armenian authorities.

"I believe that the current growth rates will be preserved and,
taking into consideration other facts, 1-1.5 year will be required
for Armenia’s economy recovery, while we will be able to speak about
return to previous growth index by the end of 2011," added Mr.

Davtyan.

As for the inflation index, according to the Minister, the Armenian
government and Central Bank will apply the available mechanisms to
decrease its rates, specifically, reduction of the state budget
deficit, improvement of the legislative field and competition
environment, increase of the refunding rate, etc. "We will have an
inflation index close to the planned one at the year-end," he stated.

Referring to the national currency exchange rate, the Minister noted
that it will keep fluctuating during a year, while the RA Central
Bank will undertake all measures to avoid its sharp fluctuations.

GOVERNMENT TO COMPENSATE FOR INFLATION RISKS, RA FINANCE MINISTER STATES

news.am
March 31 2010
Armenia

RA Government separated 2010 macroeconomic risks from inflation risks –
the latter were increased by a rise in gas pices, RA Finance Minister
Tigran Davtyan told journalists on Wednesday. The Government also
intends to compensate most vulnerable groups for the inflation risks.

According to him, starting May 1, 2010, the monthly welfare will be
raised by AMD 3,500, and pensions by AMD 2,650. More than 525,000
pensioners are registered in Armenia, and welfare recipients number
110,000. Minster Davtyan noted that the reforms require an additional
AMD 6-6.5bn, but will not be carried out at the expense of other
budget items.

As regards financing sources, Davtyan pointed out the following
three factors: increased tax revenues, improved administration and
reserve funds.

VENICE HOSTS NEW NAMES OF ARMENIA CHARITY CONCERT

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.03.2010 17:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Venice hosted New Names of Armenia charity concert,
reported the press service of RA Ministry of Culture.

The concert was initiated by Monaco-Armenia Children’s Fund. The
profits will benefit regional hospitals in Armenia.