Author: Nargizian David

YEREVAN PRESS CLUB WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

NOVEMBER 26 – DECEMBER 2, 2004

HIGHLIGHTS:

SIXTH “PRESS CLUB” SHOW

“INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISTS” WIN THE CASE AGAINST THE YEREVAN MUNICIPALITY

VERSION OF “HAIKAKAN ZHAMANAK” CAR SELF-IGNITION WAS NOT CONFIRMED

SIXTH “PRESS CLUB” SHOW

On November 29 on the evening air of the Second Armenian TV Channel the
sixth “Press Club” show was issued. The cycle is organized by Yerevan Press
Club under “Strengthening Democracy in South Caucasus by Free Expression”
project, implemented jointly with “Article 19” international organization
with the support of Open Society Institute.

The heads of the leading media and journalistic associations of Armenia
discussed the issue of reliable information and trustworthiness of media.
The second topic was the Karabagh conflict, in particular, the events that
drew the greatest attention of the media during that past days: the draft
resolution introduced to the discussion of the UN General Assembly upon the
proposal of Azerbaijan “On the Situation on Occupied Territories of
Azerbaijan”, and the report on Mountainous Karabagh prepared by the reporter
of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe David Atkinson and
discussed at the PACE Politics Committee.

“INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISTS” WIN THE CASE AGAINST THE YEREVAN MUNICIPALITY

On December 1 the RA Court of Appeals secured the suit of “Investigative
Journalists” NGO versus the Yerevan municipality. The court obliged the
municipality to provide the resolutions passed by the city administration in
1997-2003 on construction of the green zone around the National Opera and
Ballet Theater, necessary for the journalistic investigation. The demand of
the plaintiff had previously been rejected by the courts of primary and
secondary jurisdiction, and in late October the RA Court of Cassation
redirected the case for the consideration of the Court of Appeals in a new
composition (see YPC Weekly Newsletter, October 29 – November 4, 2004).

VERSION OF “HAIKAKAN ZHAMANAK” CAR SELF-IGNITION WAS NOT CONFIRMED

On November 29 the State Fire Service of the RA Department of Emergencies
provided “Haikakan Zhamanak” daily with a final expert assessment of the
reasons why the car owned by the newspaper and used by the Chief Editor
Nikol Pashinian went on fire. As it has been reported, the fire occurred on
the evening of November 22 and by the preliminary assessment of the experts
was caused by a malfunction of the battery wires in the car. Meanwhile,
Nikol Pashinian qualified the incident as intentional, directed against him
personally and suggested that a well-known businessman and RA National
Assembly deputy Gagik Tsarukian was involved in it (see details in YPC
Weekly Newsletter, November 19-25, 2004).

On November 30 “Haikakan Zhamanak” published extracts from the expert
assessment above. According to the document, the experts had considered two
reasons for the ignition, an electrotechnical malfunction and outside
intervention, and arrived at the conclusion that “the probable reason for
the fire was the heat impact of an open fire source in presence of flammable
substances”. As to the earlier version of ignition due to battery wire
malfunction, in the opinion of experts, it is of little probability.

Thus, the supposition of self-ignition of the car is actually rejected. At
the same time, “Haikakan Zhamanak” believes there are certain deficiencies
in the assessment: the phrasings are obscure, the mechanism of the ignition
is not explained. For this reason the representative of the editorial office
refused to sign the document.

The assessment of the Fire Service is sent to an appropriate investigation
body which is now to decide whether criminal proceedings will be instituted.

When reprinting or using the information above, reference to the Yerevan
Press Club is required.

You are welcome to send any comment and feedback about the Newsletter to:
[email protected]

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Editor of YPC Newsletter – Elina POGHOSBEKIAN
____________________________________________
Yerevan Press Club
9B, Ghazar Parpetsi str.
375007, Yerevan, Armenia
Tel.: (+ 374 1) 53 00 67; 53 35 41; 53 76 62
Fax: (+374 1) 53 56 61
E-mail: [email protected]
Web Site:

SLOVAK PARLIAMENT’S ACKNOWLEDGING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE STRENGTHENS
ARMENIA’S POSITIONS ON INTERNATIONAL ARENA

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2. ARMINFO. The Slovak parliament’s acknowledging
the Armenian Genocide is significantly strengthening Armenia’s
positions on the international arena, says Armenia’s FM Vardan
Osknanyan.

The Armenian Genocide has ceased being an Armenian problem
only. Unless the past is condemned and preventive measures are taken
humanity may face new genocides in the future. Slovakia’s step was one
more drop into the international pressure on Turkey – this is getting
especially important now that Turkey is preparing for the talks for EU
membership. Europe does not accept closed borders. So Armenia is
working in this directions. Pres.Kocharyan has appealed to all the EU
presidents. All the foreign ambassadors to Armenia have been invited
to Armenia’s FM to discuss the problem. Turkey should realize that
Europe does not accept the fact that a country seeking to join it is
keeping close its border closed with a neighboring country involved in
the Wider Europe program and wishing to join Europe itself, says
Oskanyan.

CUSTOMS OFFICIALS OF AZERBAIJAN START CHECKING OF DOCUMENTATION OF
CARGO DETAINED IN THE BORDER WITH GEORGIA

TBILISI, DECEMBER 1. ARMINFO. Working group of the custom officials of
Azerbaijan which started checking of documentation of cargo detained
before in the Azerbaijani-Georgian border has arrived in Tbilisi
Tuesday, TURAN was told in the Embassy of Azerbaijan in
Georgia. According to the same source, the term of clarification and
of the stay of the working group in Georgia are not known. “Check
will last as long as it is necessary”, noted the representative of the
Embassy.

According to TURAN, customs officials of Azerbaijan will check the
documents for almost all detained cargo. If some of them are intended
for Armenia they will not be allowed. This month the Azerbaijani side
detained almost 900 cargo wagons going from central Asia to
Georgia. The reason was the information that part of cargo went from
Georgia to Armenia. Baku treats it as violation of the agreement with
Georgia and demanded explanation from the official Tbilisi. The Head
of the Georgian railway Onoprishvili admitted in fact that part of
cargo was delivered to the Armenian border.

Even in 1998 Baku prohibited transportation of cargo going to Armenia
and from Armenia via the territory of Azerbaijan. Bilateral agreement
between Baku and Tbilisi was signed last year.

The Azerbaijani press noted more than once about the facts of delivery
of cargo to Armenia via Azerbaijan. The Armenian press and officials
did not conceal that Armenia bought through some false firms the Azeri
goods, and first of all oil products. However, official Baku refuted
it.

According to informed sources, among cargo transported in transit via
Azerbaijan to Georgia and then to Armenia there were strategic goods:
oil products, food, cotton, products of machine building, various
equipment and so on.

AIDS Day Is Observed Around the Globe

By ALEXANDER G. HIGGINS
.c The Associated Press

GENEVA (AP) – From Armenia to Zambia activists turned out by the thousands
for World AIDS Day on Wednesday, singing in mighty cathedrals, lighting
candles in city squares and playing sports.

The United Nations has dedicated this year’s observance to improving
protection for women and girls. Nearly half of the 39.4 million people infected with
HIV worldwide are female.

“Prevention methods such as the ABC approach – Abstinence, Be faithful and
use Condoms – are good, but not enough to protect women where gender
inequality is pervasive,” said Peter Piot, head of UNAIDS.

“We must be able to ensure that women can choose marriage, to decide when
and with whom they have sex and to successfully negotiate condom use,” Piot
added.

As the day began in Asia, where the disease has claimed 540,000 lives this
year, campaigners in Japan and South Korea handed out condoms. Thailand,
Vietnam, and Bangladesh had marches, and the Philippines a promotion for HIV
testing.

The Chinese government ordered local officials to learn about the disease
and televised a rare visit by President Hu Jintao to AIDS patients in a
hospital.

China, which has an estimated 840,000 infected with the AIDS virus, has been
criticized for reacting too slowly to the threat of AIDS. The U.N. AIDS
agency has warned that China could have as many as 10 million people infected by
2010 if it doesn’t take urgent action.

An Indian cricket match against South Africa, whose players wore red ribbons
to show their support for the anti-AIDS campaign, was dedicated to promoting
AIDS awareness.

In Pakistan, about 400 aid workers discussed how to empower women in a
region where men usually have a dominant role in society.

At the forefront of the pandemic in southern Africa red ribbons were tied to
lamp posts and draped over buildings. Zambians gathered for a candlelight
memorial service in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the capital, Lusaka.

Soccer matches in Botswana were dedicated to the campaign.

Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of South Africa appealed for
tolerance.

“HIV/AIDS is not God’s punishment of the wicked,” Ndungane told a rally in
Cape Town. “AIDS is a preventable, treatable and manageable disease – no
more, no less.”

Malawi’s President Bingu wa Mutharika said he wants at least 1 million of
his 11 million people to test for HIV by the end of next year so his government
can determine how many need anti-retroviral treatment.

“We want to have 80,000 people on ARVs by the end of 2005,” he said at an
event in the central border district of Nchinji. That would be nearly 10
times the number of Malawians receiving free treatment.

Eastern Europe, where AIDS figures have jumped since the collapse of the
Soviet Union, joined in the observance. Events in Armenia included a concert
with well-known local artists.

Serbia-Montenegro, where the number of infected people has risen sharply,
had live radio and television programs to increase awareness of how the disease
spreads.

In the Croatian capital of Zagreb activists handed out condoms and selling
Christmas cards made by AIDS-infected children.

In Estonia, where 4,356 of the 1.4 million residents are HIV positive, the
biggest event was an “Open Your Eyes” concert in the Kaarli Church, in the
capital, Tallinn.

Polish campaigners were out to halt the trend of growing infections. In the
northern city of Sopot they lit red candles in the shape of a ribbon, and in
nearby Gdansk they distributed condoms.

Portugal, which has one of the highest rates of new AIDS infections in
western Europe, opened the new headquarters of an association to support AIDS
patients.

A televised five-hour dance-a-thon, which was held simultaneously in the
Dutch city of Arnhem and in Cape Town, South Africa, raised money to fight AIDS.

One candle was lighted for each of the 1,800 people who have died of AIDS in
Denmark during a ceremony in a Copenhagen square.

Victor Mooney, 40, of Woodhaven, N.Y., kicked off a campaign in Rome to
raise $200,000 by selling bracelets to fund his rowing trip from Senegal to New
York next year to raise AIDS awareness.

Piot took his message about improving the chances of women to the United
Nations’ commemorative event at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York
City. Hosted by actors Gloria Reuben and Alan Cumming, the event featured
singer Mary Wilson and South Africa’s Sinikithemba Choir.

Piot said laws must be passed everywhere against domestic abuse and rape and
to make sure women are educated and have property rights because that will
make them more secure and “far less vulnerable to HIV.”

“We will not be able to stop this epidemic unless we put women at the heart
of the response to AIDS.”

On the Net:

UNAIDS:

12/01/04 11:08 EST

Armenian president, Russian power grid’s top official discuss cooperation

Mediamax news agency
30 Nov 04

YEREVAN

Armenian President Robert Kocharyan met the chairman of the board of
directors of the Unified Energy Systems of Russia joint-stock company,
Aleksandr Voloshin, in Yerevan today.

The interlocutors examined Armenian-Russian cooperation in the energy
sphere and discussed the programmes implemented in Armenia by the
Unified Energy Systems of Russia, the Armenian presidential press
service told Mediamax news agency.

Azerbaijan detains 288 wagons carrying fuel to Armenia via Georgia – agency

Turan news agency
30 Nov 04

BAKU

Azerbaijan’s customs officials are currently holding nearly 450
railway cars, bound for Armenia, on the Azerbaijani-Georgian border.

The [Azerbaijani] State Customs Committee says that 288 of the railway
cars were carrying fuel from Turkmenistan to Armenia. The customs
committee, which has been inspecting buyers of the transit cargo since
4 November this year, has found out that some of the cargo from
Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan arrives in Armenia via
Georgia. Because of the Armenian occupation, Azerbaijan is not
allowing goods to enter Armenia via its territory in line with
transportation agreements signed with the CIS countries.

EARLY SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH CONFLICT DEPENDS ON CONFLICTING PARTIES’ MUTUAL
CLAIMS: US CO-CHAIR OF OSCE MG

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 25. ARMINFO. The early settlement of the Karabakh
conflict depends on the mutual claims that the conflicting parties
are laying against each other, OSCE MG US co-chair Stephen Mann says
in his interview to RFE Azeri Office.

He says that the US has not changed its stance on the Karabakh conflict
settlement – it advocates peaceful solutions to the problem with due
consideration for the interests of all conflicting parties. There
are many reasons why the problem should be settled quickly. Such a
protracted conflict is all but contributing to stability in South
Caucasus while stability and dynamic development in the region are
a srtong priority for the US.

Mann says that in the last year OSCE MG has done much work to have
the dialogue resumed. As a result, the FMs have held four meetings in
Prague and the presidents met twice under MG aegis. These meetings
were not talks but a dialogue, an exchange of views while OSCE MG
wants it to be a full negotiating process.

Commenting on Azerbaijan’s initiative for UN’s discussing “the
situation over the occupied Azeri territories” Mann says that the
Karabakh problem has traditionally been considered in the framework
of OSCE MG. He wonders how this initiative contribute to the
settlement. This is the questions the parties should ask themselves
every time they take some step.

Mann says that there are no absolutely successful formats but MG has
been working for many years already and has proved quite effecient
in the matter. “We are going to continue this work,” says Mann noting
that the world community does not send MG to the region to be judges
there but to organize talks between the conflicting parties. Mann is
realistic – he says that if the talks are resumed the conflict will
be settled very quickly. Otherwise the “no war no peace” situation may
stay for many more decades. Mann calls “a nonsense” the possibility of
resumed war. Both parties are trying hard to restore their economies
while resumed war may only distract them from this process. There
will be no winner in the resumed war, says Mann.

Azeri diaspora in Moscow accuses Kremlin

The Messenger, Georgia
Nov 26 2004

According to the Azeri newspaper Ekho.Baku, the Azeri diaspora is
gathering strength in Russia to demonstrate against the Kremlin.
According to the president of the public organization “In the name
of Azerbaijan” Eldar Namazov, Azeri people in Moscow are sure that
Russia is impeding the settlement of the Karabkh conflict. He said
that rumors regarding the breakup of the Azeri diaspora in Russia do
not correspond to reality.

“The Azeri diaspora has recently started the process of organizing.
But two other structures have already created their own branches all
over Russia. This is international charitable fund ‘Karabakh’ and the
federation of national-cultural autonomy for Azeris in Russia. Azeris
as well as high-ranking officials in Russia are taking part in these
events,” he noted.

According to Namazov, Moscow journalists have taken note of the
high attendance at recent Azeri demonstrations and commented during
broadcasts that “there has never been such wide scaled demonstrations
of Azeris in Moscow.” According to Namazov, representatives of the
Azeri diaspora were expressing their dissatisfaction in connection
with the delay of the settlement of the Karabakh conflict by the
Russian side.

Azeri protesters have accused the Kremlin of conducting a
double-standard policy. As an example, demonstrators cited the
presence of Russian military bases in Armenia, a country that they
say is occupying 20 percent of Azeribaijan’s territory. “Russia will
have problems in the North Caucasus because separatism has started
from Nagorno-Karabakh,” protestors stated. “Azeri people think that
this problem should be solved based on the principles of territorial
integrity and national-cultural autonomies,” added Namazov.

The Patriot-News, Pennsylvania
Nov 23 2004

A QUIET BOW
Ailing Vartan hands over duties to family

BY TOM DOCHAT
Of The Patriot-News

John O. Vartan, a nearly penniless immigrant who used his
entrepreneurial zeal to become one of Harrisburg’s most influential
businessmen, is ending his reign over multiple enterprises because of
poor health.

Although Vartan’s oldest son, Hovig, and wife, Maral, are assuming
chairman functions of Vartan’s many businesses, they are not taking
on his titles.

Vartan, 59, has been a patient in Harrisburg Hospital for three weeks
in his 15-year battle with throat cancer. He is “not responsive,” his
son said yesterday, explaining that his father can breathe on his own
but is using a ventilator. “He’s stable. He’s comfortable,” Hovig
Vartan said.

“We are not anticipating that Mr. Vartan will return to an active
day-to-day role in the company,” said Robert J. DeSousa, executive
president, secretary and general counsel for The Vartan Group Inc.,
the umbrella company for Vartan’s businesses.

Employees of Vartan’s companies were informed of the situation
yesterday afternoon in a memo. More than 200 people work in the
Vartan ventures, which include a bank, a restaurant, a building
materials company and a construction and real estate business.

Employees have an “intense loyalty” to Vartan, DeSousa said.

In the memo, the Vartan family said it hopes Vartan can “enjoy a few
more years of peace in the presence of his loved ones.” But, the
family added, “Even if he should fully recover, it is unlikely that
he will be able to throw himself into his work with the same passion
and perspicuity for which he is famous. For him, to live means to
work.”

Vartan has been a dominant presence on the Harrisburg scene since the
late 1970s, when he began his embattled development of a series of
office buildings off North Progress Avenue in Susquehanna Twp.

He later set his sights on Harrisburg, first becoming embroiled in a
legal fight with Harristown Development Corp. and Mayor Stephen R.
Reed before beginning a cordial relationship with Reed that led to a
series of Vartan buildings in the city. The latest of those sites is
the state Department of Labor and Industry facility, 1521 N. Sixth
St.

“It’s fair to say that, in our area, there were very few people over
the last three decades that believed as strongly in Harrisburg as
John Vartan did,” DeSousa said.

He has been a controversial figure.

Jack S. Pincus, a former Susquehanna Twp. commissioner and director
of Vartan’s bank, conceded that Vartan has had his detractors. Some
of them lived in the township that Vartan successfully sued a few
years ago when he was denied a permit for a concrete-manufacturing
facility at his Linglestown Road business.

“Without a doubt, he had opposition to everything he did,” Pincus
said. “I always said that if he would build a Fort Knox in the
township and give a $50 tax credit to every resident, they would
still have 80 people coming in to express their opposition.”

Vartan’s businesses include Vartan National Bank, Parev restaurant in
downtown Harrisburg and the Vartan Supply Co. along Linglestown Road
in Susquehanna Twp.

The restaurant enabled The Tuesday Club to continue operations in a
renovated facility along Pine Street in the city, DeSousa said.
“Vartan stepped into the void and built a five-star, first-class
facility” that opens at 5 p.m. for the public and is used by The
Tuesday Club during the day.

His vision for those businesses will continue to motivate them,
DeSousa said. “There is no dramatic or substantial change in the
structure of the companies,” he said. “Every one of the company heads
knows the vision that John had and knows the parameters within that
vision.”

Vartan has contributed heavily to charitable organizations, something
his wife and son will continue to oversee. He is also involved in the
Armenian Apostolic Church’s worldwide activities.

Born and raised in a Lebanese refugee camp, Vartan came to the United
States about 40 years ago to attend Michigan Tech, transferring from
the American University of Beirut.

After graduating with a degree in civil engineering, Vartan started
work at Gannett-Fleming, a Harrisburg engineering firm. He earned a
master’s of engineering degree at Penn State University.

Hovig said his father vowed to Gannett-Fleming that he would form his
own business five years after he started working there. In 1975, he
founded his first company.

“He’s our father, and we love him dearly,” Hovig said yesterday.

During Vartan’s battle with throat cancer, he suffered with a dry
mouth, causing him to always carry a bottle of water. His appetite
suffered, and his speech was difficult to understand at times.

“Of all the things he did, I think the way he handled his health
problem was the most amazing,” Pincus said. Calling Vartan “very
ambitious,” Pincus said, “He has a determination that most people
can’t compete with.”

Rostam & Sohrab Opera ready for stage

IranMania, Iran
Nov 22 2004

LONDON, Nov 22 (IranMania) – The Opera ‘Rostam and Sohrab’ directed
by Behrouz Gharibpour will go on stage in January.

According to Mehr News Agency (MNA), Gharibpour had earlier announced
plans to stage ‘Rostam and Sohrab’ opera in marionette style, but
Ferdowsi Hall was not prepared for the performance.

The director said that his group is currently rehearsing to bring to
stage the opera using marionettes.

The composer of the opera, Loris Tjeknovarian, the composer of the
opera said that it took 20 years to compose ‘Rostam and Sohrab’
and epic poetry from Ferdowsi.

Preparations for the opera took at least two years during which
$100,000 was spent on ordering puppets from Austria which were
manufactured with Iranian features and in line with the culture
of Shahnameh.

The music of the opera has been performed by Roudaki Symphonic
Orchestra. All vocalists are Armenians singing in Persian.