Author: Nargizian David

The importance of Turkey’s EU bid for Georgia

The Messenger, Georgia
Dec 21 2004

The historical decision made by the EU to start negotiations with
Turkey in regard to the nation’s possible accession into the union
has inspired great interest in the South Caucasus. It is clear that
negotiations will not be finished in the near future, but the beginning
of this process and its result will have a crucial impact on Georgia
and the South Caucasus as a whole.

It will not be easy for the EU to rule on Turkey’s entry into the
organization. As pointed out by the newspaper 24 Saati, Turkey
is a very big, rather poor Muslim country located mostly outside
of Europe. The EU now must determine which result will bring more
problems: allowing Turkey to join or rejecting the country’s bid.

An EU refusal would taint the legacy of early 20th century leader
Kemal Ataturk, who introduced numerous radical reforms in an effort
to Europeanize the country. Turkey’s main strategy over the better
part of the last century has been to strengthen ties with Europe.
Therefore, not admitting Turkey into the EU may to some extent result
in the country’s “returning to the East.” This could subsequently
become a source of instability at the edge of Europe and jeopardize
the EU’s future welfare.

Proponents of Turkey’s accession point out that the nation plays
the role of a bridge between Europe and the Muslim world. It is also
worthy of consideration that Turkey is one of the top allies of the
United States and a member of NATO.

Negotiations regarding Turkey’s entry into the EU will start on
October 5, 2005. Any of the EU’s 25 member states have the right
to veto and many already stand in firm opposition. Turkey will have
to fulfill many demands issued by the union, first and foremost the
official recognition of Cyprus, without which the negotiations will
not be held. Meanwhile, this issue will face serious debates in the
Turkish Parliament.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a statement in
Belgium that Turkey deserves to be considered a European country given
its mentality, geographical location and the westernizing reforms
it has carried out. Nevertheless, there is far from a consensus
within the country itself as many on the Anatolian peninsula are
protesting their government’s westward course due to religious and
cultural differences. This means that eventually Turkey as a whole
has to make a crucial decision itself as to whether it wants to be
accepted as a European nation.

Accepting Turkey into the EU will have a tremendous influence on the
entire South Caucasus. Turkey is not only an “overseas neighbor,” like
new members Romania and Bulgaria, but shares a land border with all
three South Caucasian countries. The issue is of critical importance
for Georgia, which has EU ambitions of its own and considers Turkey’s
entry into the EU as key to its foreign policy interests.

Turkey’s entry into EU will bring benefits for European countries as
well from the point of view of energy supply. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan
oil pipeline and the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzrum natural gas pipeline will
enable Europe not to rely only on Russian energy suppliers as it
does now. Potential competition for Russia’s hold on the EU energy
has caused much concern in Moscow.

Georgia’s prospects for EU membership are at this point remote. Many
reforms must be carried out, as is the case with Georgia’s neighbors
Armenia and Azerbaijan. It has been remarked many times that the EU
would prefer having a dialogue on the EU entry of all three South
Caucasus countries if and when certain standards are met by these
states. Turkey’s acceptance into the EU will automatically accelerate
Azerbaijan’s drive towards the union and inspire it to move closer
to EU standards. Armenia, on the other hand, has expressed negative
feelings about the prospects of Turkey joining the EU.

Yerevan protesters sent an appeal to the EU leadership to this
effect. Despite being Russia’s strategic partner in the South Caucasus,
Armenia still considers EU entry a top priority. But if Turkey is
accepted, Armenia will withdraw its application.

If Turkey does join the EU, it will further polarize the situation in
the South Caucasus. Georgia and Azerbaijan will be inspired to move
forward, whereas Armenia will fall further under Russian influence.
This, of course, is only speculation based on current trends. History
is full of sudden twists, and therefore it is not out of the question
that events in Armenia will develop in a radically different way.

The long list of necessary reforms issued to Turkey by the EU is
exemplary for Georgia. This shows that the union will be strict
in demanding that all potential partner states fulfill all their
commitments.

Czech News Agency (CTK)
CTK National News Wire
December 16, 2004

HEAD OF REFUGEE CAMP MEMBER OF PEOPLE-SMUGGLING RING

BRATISLAVA, Dec 16 ; (YOP)

The Slovak rail police and the illegal migration police unit broke
up a people-smuggling gan on Tuesday and Wednesday that transported
refugees from the Adamov camp to Austria and the head of the Adamov
camp was part of the 15-member gang, rail police chief Tibor Gaplovsky
said today.

The gang brought the refugees to Bratislava, where they were loaded
on to freight cars and shipped to Austria.

“This is an international crime network connected to other groups
outside Slovakia,” Gaplovsky said. The head of the group is allegedly
an Armenian. Two Azerbajianis, three Russians, an Afghan and eight
Slovaks were also part of the group.

“The group was able to transport at least 115 people through Slovakia,”
Gaplovsky said. However, the total number of refugees is probably
several times higher.

Daniel M. (52), head of the Adamov, west Slovakia, refugee camp was
allegedly part of the group. He gave the refugees passes to leave
the camp in return for money.

The gang charged 200 to 600 dollars per refugee. A total of 800
police officers took part in the bust. The gang members have been
charged with criminal conspiracy, illegal border crossings and money
laundering and they face up to 15 years in prison.

RAFFI PORTAKAL BRINGS WORKS OF PICASSO, DALI AND OTHER WORLD-FAMED ARTISTS IN TURKEY

ISTANBUL, December 16 (Noyan Tapan). “Raffi Portokal, a specialist of
art and an organizer of auctions on the sail of art works, realized
his dream, i.e to familiarize art-lovers of Turkey to the creation
of the most famous and most talented artists of the world,” Istanbul
“Marmara” newspaper writes.

These days the “Portakal” hall is turned to a show-room and guarded
by the strongest security measures, as one may watch Picasso’s “Man
with Pipe”, Salvador Dali’s “Magic – Seven Ats”, Raul Dyufi “Harbor
Fishers” and other works of 15 world-famed artists of the West.

Raffi Portakal said during his interview given to the “Zaman” newspaper
that it is time now to represent the Turkish art abroad and the foreign
art in Turkey. He expressed hope that all the art-lovers would visit
the exhibition and watch the originals of the greatest artists’ works.

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION LEADER SAYS DRAFT 2005 BUDGET NOT SOCIALLY-ORIENTED

Arminfo
14 Dec 04

YEREVAN

“To put it mildly, the draft 2005 budget that the government has
submitted to the parliament cannot be considered socially-oriented.
There can be no talk of a socially-oriented basic financial document
when (the government) fires 10,000 teachers and then talks about
raising the salaries of the rest,” Viktor Dallakyan, secretary of the
(Armenian) parliamentary faction of the opposition Justice bloc, told
reporters at the Pakagits club today.

Official figures say 42 per cent of the Armenian population do not
have enough to eat while the parliamentary majority is doing
everything possible to hinder the adoption of a decision on repaying
the (citizens’ bank) deposits lost after the collapse of the Soviet
Union, Dallakyan said.

“They are praising this draft budget, which is 650-680m dollars,
whereas Azerbaijan’s budget is 2.1bn dollars. Armenia’s military
spending is thought to amount to 80m dollars while Azerbaijan’s is
equal to 250m dollars. Over 86 per cent of the 100m budget deficit is
covered by borrowing from abroad,” he said.

Dallakyan added that 32.8m drams (63,500 dollars) had been envisaged
for health sphere (in the draft budget), whereas Former Health
Minister Ararat Lazarian has said the sphere needs 70m drams (135,500
dollars) a year.

“But the government still keeps talking about the merits of the 2005
daft budget,” Dallakyan said.

Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic
Dec 14 2004

Azerbaijani Leader Seeks Help Over Karabakh

13 December 2004 — Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has called
upon the Council of Europe, the European Union, and the United
Nations to do more to help his country settle a long-running
territorial dispute with neighboring Armenia.

Aliyev was speaking at the Royal Institute of International Affairs
today during a visit to London. Aliyev said he remains committed to
seek a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with the
help of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

But he said other international organizations should play a more
active role in the negotiation process.

The predominantly ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh seceded
from Soviet Azerbaijan in 1988, triggering a six-year war between
Yerevan and Baku.

The conflict has claimed some 35,000 lives and driven an estimated
800,000 Azeris out of Karabakh and neighboring areas that are still
occupied by Armenian troops.

“NOBODY WILL SUCCEED IN INCITING THE ERKRAPAH VOLUNTEERS UNION AGAINST
THE PEOPLE,” MANVEL GRIGORIAN ASSURES

YEREVAN, December 11 (Noyan Tapan). “I assure you all on behalf of my
friends that we have remained true to the behests and ideas of
sparapet Vazgen Sargsian and will not abandon our cause: to serve our
people and state.” Lieutenant-general Manvel Grigorian, chairman of
the “Erkrapah” volunteers union board and the RA Deputy Minister of
Defence, stated this at the sixth congress of the union on December
11. “Nobody will be able to incite us against the people, nobody will
succeed in this,” M.Grigorian noted. He also assured of the Armenian
army’s fighting efficiency and pointed out that the level of its
training and technical fitting out gives a full guarantee of Armenia’s
security in the region. M. Grigorian also touched upon the issue of
peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict. According to him, the
issue of the territories under control of the Armenian side should be
discussed by diplomats: “If the matter concerns these territories’
defence, we are ready to take up arms again and defend them.” He
called on the union members to be united in the name of protection of
interests of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh.

Erdogan lauds tolerance as ‘Garden of Religions’ opens in Turkey

Agence France Presse
Dec 8 2004

BELEK, Turkey, Dec 8 (AFP) – Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
pledged Wednesday that his government would remove any remaining
obstacles to religious freedoms in Turkey as he opened a complex of
Muslim, Christian and Jewish worship sites.

The “Garden of Religions” in the Mediterranean resort of Belek,
which contains a mosque, a church and a synagogue, was inaugurated
to underscore inter-cultural tolerance at a time when Turkey is
under fire from the EU for failing to fully respect the rights of
its non-Muslim minorities.

Speaking at the ceremony, Erdogan said that religious tolerance was
a heritage of the Ottoman Empire and quoted edicts by Mehmet the
Conqueror, the sultan who took Istanbul in 1453, ordering respect
for non-Muslims.

“Owing to this great historical experience, Turkey is today the
guarantor of peace and brotherhood in its region,” he said.

“Of course, we still have deficiencies and we are expending efforts
to overcome them in the shortest possible time,” he added.

Visiting Dutch European Affairs Minister Atzo Nikolai, whose country
currently holds the EU presidency, members of the diplomatic community
in Ankara as well as religious leaders of Turkey’s Greek, Armenian
and Jewish minorities attended the ceremony.

“People will be able to freely practice their religions in this
center. This is a very important message,” Nikolai said, quoted by
Anatolia news agency.

Belek is a major touristic center on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast,
which attracts millions of foreign holiday-makers each year.

“The EU will continue to encourage reforms in Turkey,” Nikolai said.
“There could be frictions sometimes, but the reforms Turkey has
undertaken are encouraging.”

The Dutch minister was in Turkey for consultaions with Turkish
leaders in the run-up to an EU summit on December 16-17, at which
Ankara is expected to be invited to begin membership talks, though
under tough conditions.

Leaders of Turkey’s non-Muslim minorities hailed the inauguration
of the “Garden of Religions,” but not without some barbed remarks on
legal snags restricting their activities.

“Catholics are able to practice their religion in Turkey but do not
have (property) rights over churches. I hope they will have that right
one day,” Father Alphonse Sammut, a representative of the Catholic
community said, according to Anatolia.

Armenian Orthodox Patriarch Mesrob II, for his part, said that
non-Muslim places of worship should be opened in all major Turkish
cities.

“This should be done either by rennovating historical sites or by
building new ones as the one here,” he said.

ASBAREZ ONLINE
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12/08/2004
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1) ANCC, ARF Canada Youth Organization at Liberal Party Convention
2) Clerics Condemn Church Bombings
3) Karabagh President Awards Canadian Armenian Photographer Hawk Khatcherian
4) Armenian Court Gives Green Light for Iraq Deployment
5) BRIEFS

1) ANCC, ARF Canada Youth Organization at Liberal Party Convention

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–The Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC) and the
Youth Organization of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), Canada
participated in convention of the ruling Liberal Party of Canada, on
December 2
in Toronto.
Addressing the convention, Prime Minister Paul Martin spoke of the relations
between his country and the United Sates, as well as the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, and Iraq elections.
Meeting with Prime Minister Martin and Defense Minister Bill Graham, the ANCC
representatives addressed the issue of opening a Canadian embassy in Armenia
and including Armenia in the Canadian International Development Agency’s
projects.

2) Clerics Condemn Church Bombings

MOSUL (Combined Sources)The attack on Mosul’s Chaldean and Armenian
churches on
Tuesday did not go unnoticed by religious heads. Condemning the violence,
Catholicos Karekin II of the Holy See of Etchimiadzin, warned of a “danger to
the centuries-old co-existence of the Christian and Islamic peoples” of Iraq,
and urged Iraqi spiritual leaders to prevent the continuing unrest in the
country from degenerating into a religious conflict.
Karekin II’s alarm was echoed by Pope John Paul II on Wednesday. “I
express my
spiritual closeness to the faithful, shocked by the attacks,” John Paul said,
speaking from his apartment window above St. Peter’s Square on the Roman
Catholic feast of the Immaculate Conception.
The harshest condemnation of Tuesday’s attacks, however, came from Aram I,
Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia. “One cannot understand fully and
accurately the history of the Middle East, with its upheavals and tensions,
challenges and achievements, without the Christian-Moslem co-existence which
remains a vital dimension of the history of this region,” His Holiness noted.
“In fact, Christianity and Islam have made a significant contribution to the
history of the Middle East, particularly in the areas of culture, science,
civilization and politics.
“The centuries old Christian Moslem co-existence has developed mutual
understanding and trust among the peoples of the region. That is why I often
remind our Western friends that Christian-Moslem dialogue in the Middle
East is
not an intellectual notion, but an existential reality and an integral part of
the daily life of the people. And, in view of the growing concern for
Christian-Moslem dialogue, I often remind our friends in the West that
Christian-Moslem dialogue in our part of the world is deeply rooted in our
common history. For centuries, not only Christians and Moslems have talked to
each other, but they have lived together, worked together, dreamed and
struggled together and have sustained their life by common moral and human
values,” said Aram I.
Referring specifically to the attacks, the Catholicos stated: “I cannot
understand and accept these bombings of churches in Iraq. How such a thing
happens between followers of two religions who have lived together for
centuries as one community and as good neighbors. I cannot understand such an
attitude towards Christians who have been inseparable part of the Middle
Eastern society and have played a major role in all aspects of the society
life. I consider these bombings serious attempts aimed at endangering the
Christian-Moslem co-existence, undermining the importance of common values and
aspirations which have sustained the life of the Middle Eastern societies, and
questioning the importance of human rights and religious liberties. Such
attempts also underestimate the unity of the Arab world and the credibility of
the Arab cause. Therefore, I urge and appeal to the leaderships of Christian
and Moslem communities in Iraq to come together and to re-affirm the
Christian-Moslem co-existence as well as their national unity.”
Numbering 1.2 million, the country’s Christian community has been subject to
several attacks since the onset of violence within the country. On November 8,
at least three people were killed and 45 wounded when two suspected car bombs
exploded within minutes of each other outside two churches in southern
Baghdad.
In a coordinated assault on August 1, six car bombs killed 10 people and
injured 50 others outside churches in Baghdad and Mosul.

3) Karabagh President Awards Canadian Armenian Photographer Hawk Khatcherian

STEPANAKERT (Combined Sources)–Mountainous Karabagh Republic President Arkady
Ghukasian awarded well-known Canadian Armenian photographer Hrair Khatcherian
the prestigious “Gratitude” medal on December 8 for his notable contributions
to the development of Karabagh’s culture, since the onset of the Karabagh
national liberation struggle.
Khatcherian remarked that Karabagh provides a source of creative inspiration
not only for him, but also for all art and cultural activists in the diaspora.
Presenting one of his works to the President, Khatcherian thanked Ghukasian
for the high praise.
Khatcherian has made photographic voyages to Artsakh on various occasions
almost every year from 1992-1999, his vision motivated by the natural
beauty of
the mountains and the fields, the rich farms and historic villages, the
ancient
churches and monasteries of Artsakh. He has also visited Armenia, Turkey,
Georgia, Romania, Lebanon, Cyprus, and the Island of St. Lazzaro in Venice,
Italy.
Born in Beirut, Lebanon, Khatcherian always dreamt of becoming a pilot as a
child. Instead, he spent most of his time in school fiddling with cameras,
snapping pictures of anyone and anything that was around.
His dream finally came true in 1982, when he moved to the United States, and
became a certified commercial pilot. He returned to Lebanon to pursue his
dream, but because things did not go as planned, he returned to the US.
He then moved to Toronto, Canada in 1984, dedicating himself to freelance
photography. He first visited his ancestral land in 1992. “Psychologically, I
was prepared to visit Armenia along time before my first visit,” says Hrair of
that trip. With his photographs, he tried to capture the everyday life of
Armenians.
Diagnosed with cancer in 1993, Hrair was in a stage so advanced, that he was
given one week to live. His only option was enduring heavy doses of
chemotherapy. On his 32nd birthday, he attended his first session. After five
more sessions and a bone marrow transplant, he pulled through, calling it his
“rebirth.”
During his illness, the people of Karabagh and their troubles constantly
occupied Khatcherian’s mind, making him even more determined to survive to
return to Armenia; and ever since, he has returned many times.
In 1997, he published his first album, Artsakh: A photographic Journey–the
story of Artsakh in 200 color photographs: its land, its monuments, its
people,
its culture, and its struggle. Khatcherian captured the vitality of the people
and the courage of their struggle to be free.
The story of Artsakh is witnessed in these remarkable photos. Between the
covers of this book, one will also find the story of Artsakh. It is carved in
stone and written in books, scratched into the sides of hills; recorded in the
village graveyards.
Hrair “Hawk” Khatcherian has used his camera to portray an ancient and
beautiful civilization in an ancient and beautiful land. When asked about the
nickname Hawk, Hrair explains that as a child in school, he had an American
pen
pal who had trouble pronouncing his name, so she asked him to come up with a
nickname. Having a particular interest in birds, he decided to call himself
Hawk. The nickname stuck, and now even appears on his passport. He says he
feels a connection with this bird: they both like to fly, they both have good
eyesight (in Hrair’s case, to see a photo opportunity), and they both like to
be alone when choosing a target.

4) Armenian Court Gives Green Light for Iraq Deployment

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–Armenia’s Constitutional Court gave the government the green
light on Wednesday to send Armenian non-combat troops to Iraq, paving the way
for a debate on the issue in parliament.
Some members of parliament hold serious misgivings about the wisdom of such a
deployment, sharing concerns about the security of Iraq’s Armenian community.
But Defense Minister Serge Sarkisian brushed aside those concerns as he
addressed the panel of nine judges. “Armenia could not have stayed isolated
from regional developments,” he said. “Hence, the Armenian authorities’
decision to participate in the process of Iraq’s stabilization.”
Sarkisian warned that Armenia’s failure to follow neighboring Azerbaijan’s
and
Georgia’s example and join the US-led “coalition of the willing” in Iraq
“could
create certain obstacles to a further expansion of Armenia’s cooperation in
the
international arena.” He did not elaborate.
The one-day court hearing centered on an agreement between Poland and 18
other
countries that have troops in a Polish-led multinational division controlling
south-central Iraq. Armenian President Kocharian promised to place about 50
Armenian military doctors, sappers and truck drivers under Polish command
during a visit to Warsaw last September. The Constitutional Court found that
the agreement does not run counter to the Armenian constitution.
Sarkisian said Yerevan will sign up to the document on the condition that
Armenian military personnel take part only in “defensive and humanitarian
activities” and avoid joint contact with a larger Azerbaijani contingent.
“Performance of joint tasks with the contingent of Azerbaijani armed forces
stationed in Iraq will not be acceptable,” he said.
Speaking to reporters afterward, Sarkisian was confident that the National
Assembly would endorse deployment plans endorsed by the US. “I think that the
overwhelming majority of our parliamentarians care about Armenia’s future and
will not make emotional decisions,” he said.
Critics have been warning that an estimated 25,000 Iraqi citizens of Armenian
descent could face retaliatory attacks from Iraqi insurgents once Armenia
becomes part of the US-led occupation force. The insurgents have routinely
kidnapped and killed citizens of countries cooperating with it.
Leaders of the Iraqi Armenians have themselves exhorted Kocharian not to send
any servicemen. Underscoring their fears was Tuesday’s bombing of Armenian and
Chaldean churches in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. News reports said
gunmen
burst in and set off explosions inside the buildings, damaging them but
hurting
no one.
In Yerevan, meanwhile, one of the Constitutional Court judges, Kim Balayan,
wondered if the planned deployment could put the lives of Iraqi Armenians at
greater risk. Sarkisian countered that they will be insecure regardless of
Armenian military presence in Iraq.

5) BRIEFS

CE Committee Report Highlights Ill-Treatment in Azeri Detention Facilities

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of
Torture (CPT) published Wednesday its first report on Azerbaijan. The report,
concerning the CPT’s periodic visit to Azerbaijan in November/December 200,
concluded that those detained by the police in Azerbaijan run a significant
risk of being ill-treated. The Committee recommends that high priority be
given
to professional training for police officers and that legal safeguards against
ill-treatment be applied. The report also highlights serious shortcomings in
the detention centers, including overcrowding and a lack of constructive
activities for inmates.

EBRD Invests in Armenian Bank

YEREVAN (RFE-RL)–The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
purchased on Wednesday a 25 percent share in a major Armenian commercial bank
in line with its pledge to boost direct investments in the country’s private
sector.
Senior EBRD executives said they will pay Armeconombank $1 million and grant
it $500,000 in “technical assistance” as they sealed the deal in Yerevan.
“This
is our first investment [of its kind] in Armenia, and if further opportunities
arise we will certainly consider them,” an EBRD finance director, Maria-Luisa
Cicogniani, told a news conference.

Azerbaijan to Raise 2005 Defense Spending

BAKU (AFP)–Azerbaijan’s defense spending will increase by 30 percent next
year, and may eventually grow by 200 percent, Azeri President Ilham Aliyev
said
late Tuesday, linking the hike to his country’s conflict with neighboring
Armenia.
“Next year, defense spending will be increased to 250 million dollars, which
is 30 percent more than in 2004,” Aliyev told a cabinet meeting. “And in the
future, we will continue to increase defense spending. As long as our land is
occupied,” he added, in a reference to Karabagh.

Armenian Court Gives Green Light for Iraq Deployment

YEREVAN (RFE-RL)–Armenia’s Constitutional Court gave the government the
green
light on Wednesday to send Armenian non-combat troops to Iraq, a deployment
which Defense Minister Serge Sarkisian claimed will spare the country
international isolation.
The ruling paved the way for a debate on the issue in parliament, with some
concerned about the security of Iraq’s Armenian community. But Sarkisian
warned
that Armenia’s failure to follow neighboring Azerbaijan’s and Georgia’s
example
and join the US-led “coalition of the willing” in Iraq “could create certain
obstacles to a further expansion of Armenia’s cooperation in the international
arena.”
Leaders of the Iraqi Armenians have themselves urged Kocharian not to send
any
servicemen. Underscoring their fears was Tuesday’s bombing of Armenian and
Chaldean churches in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.

Russia Lifts Restrictions on Abkhazia Section of Border

MOSCOW (Itar-Tass)–Russia lifted restrictions imposed on the Abhkazian
section of its border, aide to the Russian prime minister Gennady Bukayev said
on Wednesday. “The decision was made over an address of the leadership of the
self-proclaimed republic of Abkhazia and the normalization of the situation in
the republic,” he emphasized.
The Russian side imposed instructions on the Abkhazian border section on
December 2. The railway communication between Moscow and Sukhumi was suspended
on the same day. Growing tensions in Abkhazia caused restrictions of the
border-crossing regime,” Bukayev emphasized. Last Monday Sergei Bagapsh and
Raul Khadzhimba, who are running for the presidency, signed an agreement
uniting in one team for the upcoming new Abkhazian presidential election,
settling an acute political crisis in the self-proclaimed republic.

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Central Maine Morning Sentinel, ME
Kennebec Journal, ME
Dec 5 2004

Some pride has nothing to do with fads

I have never understood the pride fad.

The attraction of bumper stickers with statements such as “Proud to
be an Irish-American” (and I am one) escape me. My father’s father
came from Ireland, which makes me half-Irish, of which I am neither
proud nor embarrassed. It is just a fact.

A lot of people identify themselves as “a proud American” or a proud
Hoosier or march to express their pride in being gay, etc. They
insist on being prideful of something that is nothing more than an
accident of birth.

I can understand being proud of an accomplishment, say a baseball
player who is proud of throwing a no-hitter. But someone who is proud
of being, for example, a Red Sox fan has done damn little to earn
that pride. (OK, maybe that is a bad example. Red Sox fans do have
their suffering to point to, but, generally, fandom does not require
much more than a TV and time to spend in front of it.)

But an involuntary glow of pride popped into my head the other day
and really surprised me. I said, to myself, “I’m proud of America.”

It happened on Ellis Island, that former sandbar in New York Harbor
that is now a shrine to the American immigrant.

While there is much shameful in America’s treatment of immigrants,
such as turning a blind eye to many who tried to flee Nazi Germany,
there is also a history of generosity, decency and openness. And a
trip Ellis Island brings it all out, the good and the bad. You can
literally walk into the same rooms that 12 million immigrants entered
from 1887 to 1938, some of them perhaps your grandparents or great
grandparents.

The statistic that got to me was this one: Of those 12 million who
arrived at Ellis Island, only 2 percent were turned away. The main
reasons for rejection were contagious disease or proof that the
immigrant’s passage was paid by a U.S. employer in return for working
here as a virtual indentured slave. Everyone else was accepted, no
matter their country of origin, religion, language, social class,
etc. In fact, most were poor refugees, fleeing famine or political
and religious oppression.

Although their trip over, often in steerage, was harrowing, their
time at Ellis Island was made as quick and comfortable as possible.
Most were processed in five or six hours in a beaux-arts style
building erected just for this purpose and so beautiful it won
international design awards. Yes, the immigrants were herded through
various inspections process, checked for heath and mental capacity
and some had to stay longer if they were deemed seriously ill or
mentally deficient.

Those rejected had the right of review by a Board of Special Inquiry
and five out of every six cases were reversed and allowed into the
country.

Dormitories and hospitals were erected to care for those who were
ill. Some were eventually sent back to their country of origin, but
others were treated, cured and allowed into the country.

Visitors to Ellis Island can see the actual menus served to the
immigrants who had to stay longer. They got three meals a day,
nothing fancy, usually beef stew as the main meal, and Jewish
immigrants were offered a kosher meal.

The main building at Ellis Island is a museum now, with displays of
photos, clothing, artifacts and other items that represent the
experiences of different ethnic groups that made their way through
Ellis Islands.

Two million people a year make the trip via ferry from Battery Park
on the southern tip of Manhattan (the ferry also stops at the Statue
of Liberty). The wait for a ferry is often two hours or more, but
that does not dissuade many. Odds are that many of those in line are
descendants of immigrants who came here through Ellis Island. The
museum records show that more than 100 million Americans “trace their
ancestry … to a man, women or child whose name passed from a
steamship manifest sheet to an inspector’s record book in the great
Registry Room at Ellis Island.”

That included me. My grandmother (on my mother’s side) came through
Ellis Island in 1920, a 21-year-old refugee from Armenia. She walked
those wide steps up the Registry Room, was questioned and inspected
by the strangers in starched white shirts and admitted to the United
States of America. Her finance (also Armenian) was already here and
they were married right away, at Ellis Island.

They moved to Dover, N.H., and had six children. Shortly after the
sixth was born, her husband died and she raised her kids herself,
surviving the Depression as what we now call a single mother.

Now that is something to be proud of.

John Christie is publisher of the Kennebec Journal and the Morning
Sentinel. He can be reached at [email protected].

Interfax
Dec 2 2004

Latvian experts to discuss military cooperation in Azerbaijan

Vilnius. (Interfax-AVN) – An expert delegation of the Lithuanian
Defense Ministry will hold a series of meetings in the Azerbaijani
Defense Ministry and General Staff from December 3 to 6, the
Lithuanian ministry’s press service told Interfax-Military News
Agency.

The meetings will address bilateral military cooperation, regional
security in Transcaucasia, training of Azerbaijani military in the
Lithuanian Military Academy and the Baltic Defense College, and
participation in international operations, a press service official
said. In particular, the parties will finalize the bilateral military
cooperation plan for 2005.

Lithuania believes that the visit will be an additional means of
assessing details of Azerbaijan’s integration into NATO.

Lithuanian military experts took part in military-political
consultations with Georgia, Armenia and Ukraine this autumn. The
parties agreed to continue cooperation in military personnel training
and to hold more consultations on NATO integration. The Defense
Ministry of

Lithuania, which joined NATO in March this year, decided to continue
financial assistance to the training of Armenian and Ukrainian
officers in the Lithuanian Military Academy and the Baltic Defense
College in 2005.