Author: Nargizian David

PRESS-SECRETARY OF ARMENIAN PRESIDENT: PRESIDENT’S PROPOSAL ON AMNESTY ALSO CONCERNS PERSONS PRIVY TO 1-2 MARCH 2008 EVENTS IN YEREVAN

ArmInfo
2009-06-16 20:30:00

ArmInfo. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has told our public for
several times about his willingness to be guided by public mood,
Press-secretary of Armenian President Samvel Farmanyan said when
replying to Armenpress question on whether the results of public
hearings on granting amnesty.

Farmanyan said that at the president’s proposal, Armenia’s public
held active and multi-lateral hearings. Various political parties and
politicians, the Public Council, interim parliamentary commission,
ombudsman’s office, public and law-enforce structures, representatives
of civil society and mass media received an opportunity to express
their positions concerning the issue of amnesty.

We welcome the conduct of the public discussions. The administration
of the president attentively followed them and has reported to the
president on their results.

Asked if the amnesty would cover the people detained for complicity in
the Mar 1-2 events, Farmanyan said that, today, according to article
70 of the Constitution, President Sargsyan submitted to the parliament
an official proposal for announcing an amnesty. According to article
81 of the Constitution, the proposal will be discussed at a special
parliamentary session on June 19. This proposal covers the people
privy to the Mar 1-2 events in Yerevan.

ARMENIA PARTICIPATED IN EASTERN EUROPEAN CULTURE FESTIVAL

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.06.2009 21:08 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenia participated in Eastern European Culture
Festival held in Tilburg, Netherlands, on June 14.

The Armenian pavilion was organized by representatives of Armenian
Consulate in Hague and Alfa-Yerevan Armenian community of Eindhoven. A
concert of Armenian songs and dances also took place.

The aim of the event was to promote development of intercultural
dialogue.

IRAN ADVOCATES TURKEY’S MEMBERSHIP AT EU

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.06.2009 21:03 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "The Islamic Republic of Iran has supported
Turkey’s membership at the EU in the past and will do in the future,"
Hosseinpour said in a meeting with Turkish State Secretary Egemen
Baghish.

He hailed the growing ties between Tehran and Ankara over the past
10 years.

"Iran and Turkey can expand cooperation to resolve regional
problems. There is no need for interference of foreign countries,"
the Iranian diplomat said.

Baghish stressed the importance of expanding bilateral economic ties
and said the two countries should take steps toward enhancing the
level of economic cooperation to 20 billion dollars.

He said Iran’s support for Turkey’s membership at the EU would
accelerate the process.

He urged Tehran and Ankara to exchange views on regional woes including
developments in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as the campaign
against terrorism and illicit drugs.

He expressed hope to pay a visit to Iran in the near future to explore
ways for bolstering mutual ties, turkishny.com reported.

ENP Newswire
June 12, 2009 Friday

Signing a new credit line agreement: Ardshininvestbank joint IFC
global trade financing program

Today the signing agreement referring IFC’s credit line provision to
Ardshininvestbank shaped to financing foreign trade took place in
Yerevan, at the head office of Ardshininvestbank.

Sergey Virabyan – the Deputy Chairman of Ardshininvestbank, and
Snezhana Stoilkovich – IFC Regional Director for Central and Eastern
Europe, signed the agreement.

Thus, Ardshininvestbank is included in the Global Trade Financing
Program (GTFP) and joint the international network of banks rendering
standard financial services at the sphere of foreign trade, which
promote the development of the foreign trade. The total amount of the
credit line is USD 5 million.

The IFC credit line gives an opportunity to Ardshininvestbank to
extend the range of such banking services in the foreign trade sphere,
as letter of credit, guarantees, bill of exchange, bank accepts,
thereby to diminish the trade risks of Armenian businessmen acting in
the sphere of the international trade.

As the Deputy Chairman of Ardshininvestbank said: ‘Ardshininvestbank
continues deepening the cooperation with International Financial
Corporation. In this regard, we rate the credit line provided in the
framework of IFC global trade financing program (GTFP) as an immediate
successful cooperation certification, due to which Ardshininvestbank
will get an opportunity to enlarge its commercial activities, as well
as have a proactive participation in the financing sphere of Armenian
exporting and importing companies’ activities’.

[Editorial queries for this story should be sent to
[email protected] ]

THE SOCIAL JUSTICE WORLDVIEW VS. THE ISRAEL WORLDVIEW
by Kung Fu Jew

Jew School
ocial-justice-worldview-vs-the-israel-worldview/
J une 12 2009

Jewschool is co-sponsoring Love, Hate and the Jewish State: A
Conversation on Social Justice and Israel, with Makom, the New Israel
Fund, and 16 other minyanim, arts & culture, and social justice orgs
(see below).

This is the internal conflict that is already defining our generation
of Jews. Two worldviews that are deeply Jewishly informed and yet at
odds with each other: social justice vs. Israel.

Social justice is a worldview of "all helping all" and more
specifically the stronger helping the disadvantaged, the weak helping
the weak, the weak helping each other. It’s about fighting against
entrenched power which resists giving up unfair advantage. The most
concise definition of "social justice" was told to me by a Catholic
youth minister: "a state of right relationships." Rightness in conduct
and healthy relations between employer/employee, government/citizen,
Jew/gentile, and state-to-state.

The Israel worldview, regardless of whether you are right or left,
is one defined by "Jews helping Jews," each ethnicity looking out
for themselves, and the weak nation becoming strong (and maintaining
deterance). It’s about apportioning power by nationality, ethnicity
or religion — and a heirachy of their comparative greivances. Israel
becomes important as the national liberation project of the Jewish
people. It defines success as the safety of one group among others
(even if other groups happen to benefit, theirs can be secondary).

The conflict becomes:

Many people who support peace in the Middle East will not engender to
spend time on Israel — and why should they? There are worse conflicts
in the world, like genocide in Darfur. Even if you are left wing,
paying special attention to one’s own ethnicity is still a parochial,
inward-focused conversation. These people might feel more comfortable
helping all people, regardless of ethnicity in ways that cut across
socioeconomic status: health care for all, ending racism against
all, collective bargaining rights for all, housing rights for all,
international rights for all, et al.

Many people who see a relevance for Israel’s existance (of one
version or another) are uncomfortable christening underdogs and
painting all holders of power with the same brush. A worldview that
doesn’t validate the historical travails of the Jewish people or
seeks to pave away nationalisms or ethnic prides entirely is also
uncomfortable. Anti-Semitism is subsumed into just another racism,
where many might feel it has special, and specially personal, perils.

This conflict cuts many other directions: Some who do both social
justice activism and Israel activism must compartmentalize their
value systems, keeping them separated, balanced. A rare few manage
to integrate them fully. And plenty — tragically a great many —
do neither.

It has serious effects on our Jewish communities:

While it aims to benefit all peoples through its work, the
Anti-Defamation League created permanent schisms by opposing
Congressional recognition of the Armenian genocide — leading to staff
quitting in protest, the loss of Armenian partners in anti-racism
projects, and accusations of hypocrisy.

Social justice organizations like Jewish FundS for Justice and
American Jewish World Service must keep their distance from Israel
matters to avoid the pitfalls of how their differing supporters
proportion "justice" between Israel and Palestine. They are lambasted
unfairly for not having a stance on an issue thousands of miles away,
tangental to their core missions. Their distance can prevent their
involvement in many worthwhile projects in which Israel, however
briefly, is addressed.

The New Israel Fund is one of the few organizations that manage to
integrate Israel and social justice via social justice for all members
(not just citizens) of Israeli society. The Progressive Jewish Alliance
takes local, global and Israel justice stances. Both lose the valuable
support of constituents who have an Israel (pro or con) litmus test.

Our minyanim and shuls have "Israel committees" and "social action
committees" — but who ever has seen an "Israel and social justice
committee"? Or who has seen an Israel committee take up the issue
of gay rights in Israel? Or a social justice committee tackle
anti-Semitism on the left?

Can we integrate the two? Are they neccesarily exclusive? Are those of
us who feel this way really so many? Can we envision Jewish communities
that manage to blend them without rancor?

Next Thursday’s event proposes no answers, but offers a chance
to explore this topic in a safe space, guided by experienced
facilitators, and designed by activists who seek also a healthier
conversation. Please join Jewscool for Love, Hate and the Jewish State:
A Conversation on Social Justice and Israel on Thursday, June 18th
at 7 pm – 10 pm, at the JCC in Manhattan. And hey, Yisrael Campbell
emcees and afterwards there’s alcohol and JDub DJ Joro Boro too.

This event is brought to you by Makom and New Israel Fund, in
partnership with AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps, Encounter,
Foundation for Jewish Culture, The JCC in Manhattan, Jewcy.com, The
Skirball Center for Adult Jewish Learning, The Union of Progressive
Zionists, and the following co-sponsors: Bnai Jeshurun’s Tze’irim,
Brooklyn Jews, JDub Records, Jewschool.com, Just Vision, Kehillat
Hadar, Kol Zimrah, Rabbis for Human Rights-North America, Romemu,
and Zeek.

EBRD GOING TO PROVIDE $50-$100 MILLION INVESTMENTS TO THE BANKING SYSTEM OF ARMENIA

ArmInfo
2009-06-12 13:45:00

ArmInfo. European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is going to
provide $50- $100 million investments to the banking system of Armenia,
Head of the EBRD Yerevan Office Valery Razlog said at the general
assembly of shareholders of Armeconombank on Friday. ‘Unfortunately
EBRD has no assets in terms of the national currency. We are currently
studying the possibility of raising these assets’, he said. V. Razlog
said negotiations are currently underway with the Central Bank of
Armenia for this purpose. He did not dwell into details regarding the
reply from the Central Bank. EBRD representative said a not large fund
will be established and the investments will be first of all on-lent
to the banking system in terms of the national currency. V. Razlog
said potential borrowers may grow in number in the current year,
particularly, new banks will join the EBRD, as well as investments
may be made in the real sector of Armenia.

THE 39TH WORLD SOCIOLOGY CONGRESS IN YEREVAN STATE UNIVERSITY

ARMENPRESS
June 11, 2009

YEREVAN, JUNE 11, ARMENPRESS: The 39th world sociology congress
entitled "In Sociological Crossroads" kicked off today in Yerevan State
University. The organizer is International Institute of Sociology in
Stockholm in collaboration with YSU.

Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, Swedish Collegium of Advanced
Studies, President of International Sociological Institute Byorn
Vitrok, YSU rector Aram Simonyan, as well as lecturers and scientists
from about 50 countries were present at the opening of the congress.

Welcoming the guests, T. Sargsyan noted that today there is another
version of what takes place in the world, according to which these
happenings is not a regular crisis but we deal with formation of
a new world, which means that that the crisis may be overcome by
revealing new regularities typical of the new world. As far as the
degree of uncertainty is very high, according to the prime minister,
it is necessary to continue searches in two platforms within the
public’s industrial and post-industrial logic.

According to T. Sargsyan, it is very difficult to realize how the new
world is going to be and what activities are necessary to undertake
today in order to be able to be among the winners tomorrow.

YSU rector A. Simonyan said such an event in the field of sociology
in Armenia is conducted for the first time, it will enable to specify
achievements gained during the latest period and get acquainted with
the novelties.

During the meeting theoretical and methodological achievements of
social sciences, up-to-date problems and the consequences of the
crisis will be discussed and solutions will be proposed.

At the congress the role and peculiarities of sociology in the
territory of Armenia will be presented. About 450 representatives from
50 countries participate in the event. Over 100 plenary, special and
thematic sessions and round tables will be conducted.

B. Vitrok said it is not strange that such a great and important
event is held in Armenia, as YSU really possesses a serious scientific
potential and a rich cultural past. He noted that in the last decade
sociology in Armenia has made a great progress and Armenian specialists
have greatly contributed to the history of sociology. "The discussions
will be very efficient. It is very important as problems of utmost
importance not only for Armenia but also for the world will be
discussed’,-B. Vitrok said.

ALIBI FOR GOVERNMENTAL ELITE
Hakob Badalyan

LRAGIR.AM
11:55:24 – 10/06/2009

The version of changing the situation through civil conscience is
spoken much in Armenia. In addition, this version is considered to
have no alternative. Its alternative, no one knows why, is considered
the radicalism. And no one knows why, the radicalism is supposed to be
the synonym of the revolutionism. In reality, these words have been
so much circulated that they lost their meaning and are represented
in the reality with the declarative content and form. And the change
of the situation, at least via development of the civil conscience
lacks almost completely. Moreover, some kind of situation is shaped
when the members of the governmental elite are complaining about the
civil conscience, pretending to be in trouble because of the provincial
thinking. While the reality is that, the lack of the civil society is
a very nice excuse for the Armenian government to throw its mistakes
and crimes on the public.

There is a simple question, the answer of which is not pronounced
in the speech of any figure, who pretends to be the sculptors of the
civil conscience. The point is that the most practical way to reach
it in Armenia is to lose one’s life if not physically, but at least
morally. The point is that a person does not reach a realization due
to the reprimands received in their life. A person lives and thinks
the way they can, in order to reach the best conditions of life. If
someone tries to teach a person civil conscience, they should know that
it should not be made by lectures but it should be shown in practice,
that when the civility is present, the life and the living become
more convenient.

For example, now the government is engaged in showing the people, that
if they steal, deceive, beat, seize, terror, the life becomes almost
free, and in case they do not do all this, this means that you are
incapable, so they face physical, moral and social humiliation at any
step. This does not concern the people, who have such a strong inner
force that the life is just a chain of conditionality for them. But it
is a fact that this kind of people is the small part of the Armenian
society, and the great part of the people thinks proceeding from the
ground how to secure the life of their sons.

There is no other version in any other country. Try to make more
difficult the life of any civil society, try to deprive it from
caring for their families by the civil conscience, you will see
that all the civil societies will become a mass, which is able to
destroy everything. So the approach of changing the life though civil
conscience perhaps is utopia or at least romantics. Just the opposite
is necessary, in other words, changing the life one will be able to
change the people’s conscience. A person, the society, needs to see in
practice that living by civil values is more favorable. Such a society
needs an elite, which instead of justifying its mistakes and errors
with the help of the society, is able to use its governmental levers
creating such conditions, which do not have any other alternative,
but civil conscience.

ARMENIAN KHACHKAR EXHIBITED IN NEW YORK

A1+
11:56 am | June 10, 2009

Official

A 12th century Armenian khachkar was exhibited at New York’s
Metropolitan Museum.

The khachkar was given to the Museum by the Armenian government for
five years’ time.

It was a present by the Armenian government to the United Nations
Organization and was transported from Geghard to New York in 1994.

The construction of the UN’s headquarters aroused a necessity to take
the khachkar to a safer place.

During his visit to New York in September 2008, RoA President Serzh
Sargsyan made an agreement with the Museum Administration on the
khachkar’s transportation.

SPEECH TO BE READY IN TWO DAYS

A1+
07:11 pm | June 09, 2009

Politics

The trial of MP Sasun Mikayelyan, who is charged with the case of
March 1, was postponed today before it even started. Mikayelyan’s
advocate Hovik Arsenyan was supposed to read his defense speech,
but he appealed to the judge to postpone the speech for two working
days in order for him to finish it. with Part 1, Article 225 of the
RA Criminal Code for organizing mass disturbances, as well

The next trail was set for June 11 at 12 p.m.

Let us remind that Sasun Mikayelyan is charged as Part 1 and 2 of
Article 235 for keeping illegal weapons.

The prosecutor demanded a sentencing of 9 years.