Author: Navasardian Karapet

MEETINGS BEFORE LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS

Noyan Tapan
Feb 22, 2010

AKHALTSKHA, FEBRUARY 22, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. A meeting with
a representative of the organizations Association of Young Lawyers of
Georgia, Fair Elections and International Democracy Society took place
on February 21 at the office of Akhaltskha House of Culture. Various
strata representing Armenian population of Akhaltskha: representatives
of NGOs, students, pensioners were invited at the meeting.

The goal of the meeting organizers was before the local self-government
elections to be informed of society’s problems, at the end of which
the organizations are going to present them to all parties functioning
in the country.

Unemployment proved to be the main problem of Akhaltskha’s Armenian
population. Those present mentioned that its reason is mainly ethnic
discrimination because it is Armenians who are mainly unemployed. They
also touched upon health sphere problems, in particular, high prices
for health services. The sad condition of communal services: water
condition, old sewerages, town’s pollution, rubbish, as well as the
bad condition of roads was also mentioned. Residents of Akhaltskha also
raised questions of the legal status of the Armenian Apostolic Church,
return of churches and historic monuments, information blockade,
illegal actions of customs employees, prohibition of Armenian books,
newspapers and other Armenian-language literature, as well as giving
a legal status of a regional language to Armenian.

The meeting participants will also meet with local Georgians and on
February 23 the guests will also have similar meetings in Akhalkalak.

CRISIS IS BEHIND, BUT NOW WORK SHOULD BEGIN TO DEAL WITH FUTURE CHALLENGES, NERSES YERITSIAN SAYS

Noyan Tapan
Feb 22, 2010

TSAKHKADZOR, FEBRUARY 22, NOYAN TAPAN. "It is impossible to foresee a
crisis, even if you feel that there is such danger. It is important to
be able to manage the crisis and to derive benefits from it. Armenia
has acted in this way: it made the financial and economic crisis
controllable," Armenian Minister of Economy Nerses Yeritsian stated at
the Kamurj international economic forum held in the city of Tsakhkadzor
on February 20.

In his words, the crisis demonstrated to the world that no country
can remain unaffected by global developments. "In fact, for Armenia
the crisis was a forced one. However, thanks to the perception of
our people, the support of business circles and the active policy of
the government, Armenia managed to make the crisis controllable,"
the minister said, adding that 2.4% growth in January 2010 shows
that the crisis is behind, and now work should start to overcome
future challenges.

The minister said that today all countries are trying aggressively
to become international players, they are making serious investments
in new directions of development, and Armenia should become more
enterprising in order to use these opportunities. So, according to N.

Yeritsian, it is necessary to have a more global thinking and not to
limit the country to its resources because in the post-crisis world,
capital will become more mobile. In this sense the governent can play
a catalytic role in those large infrastructure projects, which have
already been announced, with concrete steps being taken on some of them
today. In particular, a great investment project on road construction,
communication and energy sectors is under preparation.

Concrete decisions on the foundation of an all-Armenian bank have been
taken: some investments were made, and a management team is currently
being created. These are big projects to change the scale of the
Armenian economy. "We will speak about investments worth billions,
and they are already obvious today," the minister stated.

He considered export as another key direction of economic development.

He also underlined the importance of improving the business climate.

"We should be able to make developed markets accessible to Armenia,
particularly a great opportunity has formed to enter the European
market, <…> where there are millions of consumers with good taste
and money, and this will help us to diversify our industry," N.

Yeritsian declared. He added that these programs will be implemented
within 5-7 years, but intense work on them is already underway
at present.

According to him, it is necessary to create infrastructures,
through which "we will finance our growth and development, and our
economy’s dependence on the world will become more proactive and
manageable instead of being sensitive". In his opinion, reforms
should be implemented in 3 directions: management of the state and
private sectors, shift to a new pension system, and introduction of
insurance companies.

N. Yeritsian said that a serious dialog on the indicated problems
will begin this year, and the Sustainable Development Program will be
revised in late 2010. "We will develop a new program through dialog
and independent research, and in case of solution of its problems,
Armenia will become a state with a serious role in the region. That
is, instead of using other standards and becoming involved in
various regional developments, we will create standards ourselves,"
N. Yeritsian declared.

MONITORING OF AZERBAIJANI-ARMENIAN CONTACT LINE PASSES OFF PEACEFULLY

news.az
Feb 23 2010
Azerbaijan

The field assistants of the personal representative of the OSCE
chairman-in-office have monitored the contact line at Agdam.

Imre Palatinus, Peter Key and Jiri Aberleh conducted the monitoring
on the Azerbaijani side and recorded no incidents.

The field assistants first visited the Agdam executive authorities,
where the head of the authorities, Nizami Sadikhov, told them of
numerous violations of the ceasefire by the Armenian side, losses
amongst Azerbaijani servicemen and manoeuvres held by the Armenian
armed forces in order to intimidate the Azerbaijani population in
the frontline villages.

The field assistants then went to Tezekend village in Agdam District
where they monitored the front line. The monitoring recorded no
incidents.

AMENDMENTS TO RA LAW "ON INTERNATIONAL TREATIES" CAN BE APPLIED TO PROTOCOLS

PanARMENIAN.Net
23.02.2010 18:22 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On February 23 Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward
Nalbandian , briefed on a bill amending RA law "On international
treaties" at the National Assembly of Armenia. According to Nalbandian,
the bill refines internal procedures related to suspension of a treaty
during its conclusion.

As the Foreign Minister of Armenia noted, according to Vienna
Convention the Republic of Armenia has the right not to join an
international treaty by the end of its conclusion. "The bill provides
a legal basis for Armenia to withdraw from a treaty at any stage of
its conclusion," Nalbandian said.

Answering the question of MP from Heritage group Armen Martirosyan,
can this bill be regarded in light of statements of Armenian president
Serzh Sargsyan to suspend the ratification of Armenian-Turkish
Protocols, if Turkey would delay the process, Nalbandian replied
affirmatively. "Protocols are also international agreements and
if necessary in relation to them this bill can also be applied,"
Nalbandian explained.

DARK HORSE SUES ELECTIONS COMMISSION
By Kevin Koeninger

Courthouse News Service
4909.htm
Feb 22 2010

CLEVELAND (CN) – A dark horse running for Congress sued the Ohio
Elections Commission, claiming it unfairly reprimanded him for accusing
the incumbent of taking "blood money from Turkish government sponsored
political action committees … in exchange for helping them to cover
up the mass murder of 1.5 million Christians" in the World War I
Armenian genocide.

Plaintiff David Krikorian came in third in the 2008 election,
behind incumbent Jean Schmidt, a Democrat, and her Republican
opponent. Kirkorian posted the statement at issue about Schmidt two
days before the election.

Schmidt complained to the state Elections Commission, which, after
a fairly lengthy process, reprimanded Krikorian.

Krikorian says he’s running again this year. He seeks declaratory
judgment that his comments are protected speech.

He is represented in Federal Court by Scott Simpkins.

Two years after the fire

stice-ministry
12:31 pm | February 19, 2010 | Social

Two years have passed since the devastating fire in the RA Ministry of
Justice but no renewal work has been carried out ever since.

Walking along Vazgen Sargsyan Street you can still see the burnt walls
of the half-ruined building.

Recall that the roof and two upper storeys (3rd and 4th) of the
Armenian Ministry of Justice burned out in Yerevan at 4.44 a.m.,
February 8, 2008. The firemen managed to carry out some equipment but
the damage was grave. The offices of the Minister and his deputies
were completely burned down.

The departments of the building are today located throughout Yerevan.

Under a government decree dated December 11, 2008, a new building will
be erected in the yard of 1 Karavarutyan.

MoJ Spokesperson Lana Mshetyan says the construction works have been
suspended because of the global financial crisis.

According to the police the criminal case has been discontinued and
there are no arrestees.

Campaign Urges Parliament Members to Say `No to Protocols’

19/campaign-urges-parliament-members-to-say-%e2%80 %98no-to-protocols%e2%80%99/
By Weekly Staff – on February 19, 2010

YEREVAN – Given that the Armenia-Turkey protocols have been submitted
for ratification to Armenia’s National Assembly, the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation has launched an email campaign urging
parliament members not to ratify the protocols in their current state.

A five-language (Armenian, English, Russian, French, and Spanish) web
site has been established, through which electronic letters can be
dispatched to the members of parliament. The Web address is

According to an ARF statement, `In their present form, the protocols
satisfy two preconditions set by Turkey for normalizing its relations
with Armenia, namely giving up any land claims from Turkey and
effectively abandoning the pursuit of the international recognition of
the Armenian Genocide. Moreover, the ratification process of the
protocols satisfies Turkey’s third precondition of making
Armenia-Turkey relations conditional upon the resolution of the
Artsakh issue.’

The ARF urged all Armenians to take part in this campaign and make
their voices heard by sending an appeal via the website.

This campaign is designed to join the voices of all Armenians-Diaspora
and homeland-heard on this matter and to emphasize that all Armenians
have a stake in Armenia’s national interests.

IMF’S TALES AND ARMENIAN BUSINESS IN RUSSIA

news.am
Feb 18 2010
Armenia

Mark Lewis, Chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission in
Armenia, who recently visited the country, forecast economic growth of
about 2% for this year. Hopes are mostly placed on the Armenian mining
industry, agricultural and services sectors. The situation is clear in
the country’s mining industry. A few years ago the Zangezur Copper and
Molybdenum Combine topped the list of Armenia’s largest taxpayers; in
2006, the enterprise ensured 1/10 of all the tax revenues. However,
with the global crisis, all the hopes for the largest companies
collapsed like a house of cards.

James McHugh, the then IMF Resident Representative in Armenia, did
not say a single word about the large-scale housing construction,
monopolized economy and low-level economic diversification. Nor did he
say anything about the disastrous consequences of AMD revaluation. On
the other hand, IMF representatives would sing praises to Armenia’s
economic policy. Now we have "found out" that the Armenian economy
was not at all "all right."

At present, however, we are not "reassured" with 2% economic growth.

Nothing is easier than making economic forecasts. Any figures can be
cited. Who is going to remember the "old forecasts"?

In the middle of 2009, Nienke Oomes, the then IMF Resident
Representative in Armenia, stated that the IMF did not forecast a
two-digit decrease in Armenia’s GDP, but a decrease of 9.5%.

Unfortunately, despite the IMF experts’ forecasts, Armenia did register
a two-digit decrease in its GDP.

We can only guess at what is going to happen in the future. The
situation is unpredictable, which may be the reason why, more
and more often, Armenian businessmen set their eyes on the other
CIS member-countries and foreign states. For example, some Armenian
businessmen recently announced their intention to construct two jewelry
and diamond-cutting factories in Ulyanovsk, Russia. On the other hand,
the once prosperous Armenian diamond-cutting industry has actually
closed down and desperately needs bulk orders.

Specialists express varied opinions of the IMF’s role in national
economies. Many independent experts analyzing the efficiency of loans
issued by the IMF and World Bank arrive at deplorable conclusions. The
programs funded by the banks normally fail to produce results in the
developing countries. The explanation is a simple one: widespread
corruption, low professional level of program builders and executing
officers, etc…

VIMPELCOM WILL SUPPORT THE BIGGEST EVER CAMPAIGN OF MOBILE OPERATORS ‘1GOAL: EDUCATION FOR ALL’

ArmInfo
2010-02-17 19:25:00

ArmInfo. VimpelCom will support the biggest ever campaign of mobile
operators "1Goal: Education for All," reports the press service of
ArmenTel, subsidiary of VimpelCom CJSC.

>>From Apr 20 to July 11 2010 18 members of the GSM Association
providing mobile services to over 1,000,000,000 people worldwide
will hold a campaign offering their subscribers a chance to vote in
support of "1Goal: Education for All" initiative, aimed at making
primary education accessible to all children around the world.

VimpelCom CEO Boris Nemsic is sure that the campaign is an excellent
way to attract wide public attention to the global social initiative
"1Goal: Education for All." He says that it is a great honor
for VimpelCom to take part in this unique effort to use modern
technologies and mobile communication solutions for the benefit of the
world community. VimpelCom will support this action in all countries
of presence.

ARMENIA CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO FRUSTRATE TALKS – AZERBAJIANI MP

news.az
Feb 16 2010
Azerbaijan

Asim Mollazade News.Az interviews Azerbaijani MP Asim Mollazade,
leader of the Democratic Reforms Party.

You met Kanat Saudabayev, the OSCE chairman-in-office and Kazakh
foreign minister, in Baku yesterday. What was your impression of
the meeting?

It is positive that for the first time a post-Soviet country has
taken chairmanship of such an important European organization. I
voiced the hope that Kazakhstan, as a regional country well versed in
our problems, would be able to promote the resolution of the Karabakh
conflict during its chairmanship of the OSCE. I voiced the resentment
of the Azerbaijani public at the work of the OSCE Minsk Group which
in many years has failed to attain any breakthrough. In addition, the
Minsk Group is conducting a policy of legal nihilism. The situation
is paradoxical. Armenia is violating basic laws and OSCE documents,
has occupied land and does not recognize the territorial integrity of
an OSCE member-state, while the OSCE does not have a single document
that condemns this fact.

This must be the wrong approach and it is the cause of failure in the
negotiating process. Today Azerbaijan seriously doubts the capacities
of the international organizations: the UN is unable to ensure
the execution of the resolutions of its Security Council, the OSCE
supports Armenia’s pretence at negotiating and hundreds of thousands
of Azerbaijanis today are the basis of a humanitarian disaster in
Europe as displaced persons and refugees. I also recalled at the
meeting that the OSCE has not assessed the legal crimes on Azerbaijani
territory. We also spoke about the improvement of our election system,
the development of human rights and the mass media. These were the main
issues discussed. In turn, Saudabayev gave assurances that Kazakhstan
would take active steps and try to do everything possible to promote
the conflict settlement. But he said that much depends on the parties
and this phrase alerted me. If everything depended on the parties,
there would have not been the need for either peacekeeping activity
or mediation.

Considering that Karabakh is close to us, does it have any additional
capacity to help a resolution?

The resolutions in the OSCE are taken on the basis of consensus.

Therefore, the potential of the organization is limited. But
Kazakhstan could at least initiate the process to recognize facts
and realities. The definition that should be presented to the world
community is very important for Azerbaijan today: our territory is
occupied and Armenia is an aggressor. Armenia must be condemned by
the world community for this. We do not expect Kazakhstan to fight
in our place and liberate our lands, but the fact must be recognized
by the world community and we expect Kazakhstan to promote this.

The OSCE chairpersons-in-office visit our region every year but no
progress has been made on resolution of the conflict. Do you think
this chairmanship will differ from previous ones?

I do not think there will be any serious revolutionary progress, but at
least I hope the Kazakh chairmanship will understand that Azerbaijan’s
patience is not limitless. The fact that the Azerbaijani public is
today concerned about the situation will probably be important both for
the chairman-in-office and for other member-states of the organization.

Baku has declared today that the updated basic principles of the
settlement are acceptable, while the Armenian side has not yet voiced
its position on them. What if the Armenian side takes a negative
position on them?

We think that if Armenia continues to impede the peace process, the
international organizations must have their say. Otherwise, if they
are unable to condemn the aggressor, the role of these international
organizations becomes just ridiculous. Why then do we need their
mediation and peacekeeping efforts?

May Armenia’s rejection of the updated principles lead to the
resumption of hostilities by Azerbaijan in order to liberate its land?

Azerbaijan always reserves this right. But we want to inform the
world community that it is abnormal when an aggressor is not seriously
condemned by the international organizations. And I think Azerbaijan
has been waiting patiently for many years and if Armenia frustrates the
process again today, I do not think continuation of the negotiations
is expedient.

Leyla Tagiyeva News.Az