Author: Tadevosian Garnik

KARABAKH CONFLICT: "SLUMBERING" RATHER THAN "FROZEN"

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.03.2010 18:30 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan
can’t be characterized as "frozen". There are no frozen conflicts
in Caucasus, so Karabakh issue is rather a "slumbering" one, British
journalist Thomas de Vaal said.

As the expert told a news conference in Yerevan, Karabakh status
is the key issue in conflict settlement process. He emphasized
establishment of contacts between Armenian and Azeri people as crucial
for achieving peace in the zone of conflict. "Intermediary status for
Karabakh is being negotiated, but this is only possible with full
safety guarantees. Still, under the circumstances, with the region
militarized, I see no ways to achieve the status," Thomas de Vaal
said, stressing that the settlement of conflict is a responsibility
of people involved in it.

The expert spoke about the necessity to establish atmosphere of
trust, noting that Baku is not happy with the preservation of status
quo. In the short term, Thomas de Vaal ruled out the possibility of
hostilities’ resumption in Karabakh, noting, though, that Azerbaijan
might use this method in 5-10 years.

As the expert noted, EU has to intensify its role in conflict
settlement, supporting conflicting parties and trying to promote
trust between them.

The expert characterized Armenia-Turkey relations as more dynamic
compared with those between Armenia and Azerbaijan. "Normalizing
relations with Armenia, Turkey will be able to break out of vicious
triangle, thus facilitating Karabakh conflict settlement. Ankara’s
attempt at direct interference will only harm the process," he
concluded.

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan broke out in
1988, as result of the ethnic cleansing the latter launched in the
final years of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh War was fought from
1991 (when the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was proclaimed) to 1994
(when a ceasefire was sealed by Armenia, NKR and Azerbaijan). Most
of Nagorno Karabakh and a security zone consisting of 7 regions is
now under control of NKR defense army. Armenia and Azerbaijan are
holding peace talks mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group up till now.

Arpa Foundation for Film, Music, and Art (AFFMA)
2919 Maxwell Street
Los Angeles, California 90027
US

2010 Upcoming Events

AFFMA Announces Dates for 13th Annual
Arpa International Film Festival
October 15-17, 2010
Egyptian Theatre, Hollywood

[email protected]

Saturday, March 13- The Power of Broadcast Media

[ il/a55c7f6400/6c5fab4db7/3c9e6f9f83]

The Status of Armenian Communities Living in the United States: The
Power of Broadcast Media Join AGBU Hye Geen’s Young Circle as they
examine the power of broadcast media. The topics will include:

The portrayal of Armenians in the media throughout the 20th century.
Prevalent ethnic stereotypes perpetuated in media.
What can be done to affect the media’s portrayal of Armenians and
other ethnicities?
What can be done to counteract the effects and treatment by the media?

The conference will be moderated by Jill Simonian, past Arpa
International Film Festival host at California State University,
Northridge (CSUN). Visit
[ l/a55c7f6400/6c5fab4db7/1489b6ea37]
www.agbuhyegee n.com for program and registration.
[ ionforFil/a55c7f6400/6c5fab4db7/fd66339a9b]

Mo nday, March 22 – The Lark Farm

AFFMA joins UCLA Armenian Language and Culture Studies and other
associations in presenting the West Coast Premiere of The Lark Farm, a
film by legendary Italian filmmakers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani. The
film is an adaptation of the novel La Masseria delle Allodole by award
winning Italian-Armenian author Antonia Arslan. The film stands as
one of the few international feature films to tackle the Armenian
Genocide head on. Q&A with Dr. Antonia Arslan will follow with a wine
and cheese reception. FREE ADMISSION!

The film will screen at James Bridges Theater at UCLA’s Melnitz Hall
at 8:00 p.m. For more information contact Friends of UCLA Armenian
Studies at (310) 704-4353.

Friday-Saturday, March 26-27 – How We Live

AFFMA is proud to sponsor How We Live, an exhibit produced by the
Tufenkian Foundation documenting life on the margins in Armenia,
featuring the photography of Sara Anjargolian and curated by Narineh
Mirzaeian, both past Arpa International Festival filmmakers. The
exhibit and accompanying book document the lives of families
struggling with poverty in Armenia. Through immersive photography
suspended by an intricated tensile network of wires, multimedia
vignettes and video interviews, How We Live explores in compelling
detail the challenges these families face every day, as well as the
socio-economic and political factors behind the perpetuation of
poverty.

The exhibit will be held at Casitas Studios in Los Angeles. For more
information and tickets visit
[ l/a55c7f6400/6c5fab4db7/b79b574fe9]
www.HowWeLive. org

Sunday, April 25 – Beneath the Veil, NYC Premiere

AFFMA encourages its east coast friends to support the New York City
premiere of Beneath the Veil, produced, directed, and starring Mary
Apick, international award winning actress, human right activist, and
2008 Arpa Foundation Award winner. Beneath the Veil, a Critic’s
Choice play based on real events, unveils the truth behind the brutal
treatment of millions of women today in the Middle East. Traditional
music and dance, presented by a cast of twelve, highlight the action.

Experience the rare glimpse behind the traditional veil worn by
millions of women in the Middle East in this powerful production
playing exclusively for one night only at the Alice Tully Hall at the
Lincoln Center for Performating Arts in New York City on Saturday,
April 25. A VIP reception will follow the performance attended by
celebrities and dignitaries.
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For tickets and more information, please click here.

13th Annual
Arpa International
Film Festival

ARPA FILM FESTIVAL

AFFMA is a charitable, non-profit, tax-deductible organization
registered as a 501(c)3 corporation.

TURKISH PRIME MINISTER SAYS U.S. VOTE TO ‘GREATLY HARM’ TIES

Asbarez
er-says-u-s-vote-to-%e2%80%98greatly-harm%e2%80%99 -ties/
Mar 8th, 2010

ANKARA (Reuters)-Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on
Saturday warned that a U.S. resolution recognizing the Armenian
Genocide Monday, endorsed by the House Foreign Affairs committee on
March 4, will seriously damage U.S. Turkish relations.

Turkey has expressed its outrage at Thursday’s non-binding vote in
the key House committee and recalled its envoy to the United States
for consultations.

"The decision of the Foreign Affairs Committee will not hurt Turkey,
but it will greatly harm bilateral relations, interests and vision.

Turkey will not be the one who loses," said Erdogan, speaking at a
summit of Turkish businessmen.

The Obama administration made a last-minute appeal against the
resolution and has vowed to stop the vote, which was broadcast
live on Turkish television, from going further in Congress. A
Democratic leadership aide told Reuters Friday there were no plans
"at this point" to schedule a vote of the full House on the measure,
and a State Department official said this was the administration’s
understanding as well.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, facing questions about the issue
while traveling in Latin America, declared Congress should drop the
matter now. "The Obama administration strongly opposes the resolution
that was passed by only one vote in the House committee and will work
very hard to make sure it does not go to the House floor," she said
in Guatemala City.

Turkey has said the resolution could jeopardize a fragile drive
by Turkey and Armenia to normalize relations and lead to further
instability in the south Caucasus, a region crisscrossed by oil and
gas pipelines to Europe. Turkey’s ambassador to the United States
told journalists upon his return on Saturday it was unclear when he
would head back to Washington following his talks with the president,
prime minister and foreign minister.

"I will return when the time is right … We will have to wait and
see," Namik Tan said. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was quoted in a
media report as saying that the consultations could last "a long time."

The resolution calls on Obama to ensure U.S. policy formally refers
to the massacre as "genocide" and to use that term when he delivers
his annual message on the issue in April – something Obama avoided
doing last year.

Pro-Turkish analysts say the vote may alienate it at a time when there
are concerns that its warmer ties with Syria, Iran and Russia, could
herald a shift away from its traditional Western allies. Commentators
had said the bill could affect Washington’s use of the Incirlik air
base in southeast Turkey. Though Turkey denied US forces access to
the base in the run-up to the Iraq war, commentators still claim
it is vital in logistical support for U.S. troops serving in Iraq
and Afghanistan.

CNN GENOCIDE DOCUMENTARY LEAVES BOTH ARMENIANS AND TURKS DISGRUNTLED

Tert.am
08.03.10

On March 7, CNN once again broadcast the documentary on genocides of
the 20th century shot by Chief International Correspondent Christiane
Amanpour.

First broadcast in 2008, "Scream Bloody Murder" covers the Armenian
Genocide, the Holocaust, and genocides in Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda,
Darfur, as well as the Genocide of Iraqi Kurds under former president
Saddam Hussein.

But this documentary paid little attention to the first genocide of the
20th century, the Armenian Genocide — only 46 seconds, which roused
discontent among Diaspora Armenians who accused the journalist of not
presenting the Armenian Genocide in due manner. The documentary also
referred to the fact that the killings of Armenians played an essential
role for Rafael Lemkin (Polish citizen) to coin the term "genocide."

"For 8 years, Christian Armenians were subjected to slaughter and
deportation which resulted in the death of 1 million Armenians.

Turkish authorities deny acknowledging those events as genocide,"
mentioned Amanpour.

This time, this documentary has also spurred US-based Turkish
organizations. Ali Cınar, the Vice-President of the Assembly of
Turkish American Associations, called for an immediate complaint
against CNN, drawing attention to the fact the documentary was
broadcast at a time when the US Congress Committee on Foreign Affairs
voted for a Resolution 252 that recognizes the Armenian Genocide.

Saying that the broadcasting of this documentary will be detrimental to
Turkish-American relations and place Turkey in an inconvenient position
before the international community, Cınar said: "With financial
assistance from the Armenian Diaspora, American TV companies show a
working style that is biased and against the ethics of mass media."

THE WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL DAY CELEBRATED IN ARMENIA

Aysor
March 8 2010
Armenia

The 8th of March is the international day of women. On this day the
representatives of feminine sex get a special attention from the men,
they also get flowers and presents. However it’s worth mentioning
that years ago this day had also another meaning.

Before, the 8th of March was dedicated not to the beautiful women,
but to the world-shattering women in the world. That day was celebrated
by those women who were tending to have equal rights with the men.

For the first time the women’s international day was celebrated in
1911 in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Dania. The women’s day
was celebrated on March 8, as the women of Austria, Germany, Hungary,
Netherlands and Russia decided to have their day celebrated on March 8,
since 1914.

During the time the political part of the feast was forgotten and
now there is left just the tradition of honoring the women on this
day for their beauty, tenderness and love.

The women’s day in Armenia is celebrated for two times in a year. The
first time is on March 8, the international day of women, and the
second one is on the April 7, the day of maternity.

Famous historian Sergo Mikoyan dies at 81

07.03.2010 16:18 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Sergo Mikoyan, a famous historian and publicist, the
son of well known politician Anastas Mikoyan, died at the age of 81 in
Moscow. Death was caused by cancer, Lenta.ru reported.

Sergo Mikoyan was a chief researcher at the Institute of Peace Studies
and a visiting Professor at Georgetown University. He wrote
exclusively on international relations, political science and history,
particularly on Latin America, Russia, India and the United States.
His works were widely published in English.

Today, Azerbaijan
March 6 2010

Azerbaijani ruling party sends letter to speaker of US House of representatives

06 March 2010 [09:21] – Today.Az

The New Azerbaijan Party has sent a letter to the Speaker of the
United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.

"The New Azerbaijan Party very much regrets and strongly condemns the
resolution on the so-called ‘Armenian genocide’ passed by the US House
Committee on Foreign Affairs on March 4 this year," the letter says.

"No doubt, adoption of the decision on the fictitious `Armenian
genocide’, which is not based on established facts, contradicts the
principles of truth and justice."

"The fact that some members of the US House of Representatives voted
for this document under the evident pressure of the Armenian lobby
does not only arouse regret but also heavily damages US-Turkey and
US-Azerbaijan relations," the NAP said in a letter.

"The attempt of the US Congress to adopt such a decision throws shadow
on the country`s mediation efforts since the US, the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chair country, undertook a mission to settle the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. On the other hand, US shows disrespect
to its commitment to friendship and partnership. At the same time, it
suggests the country does not want to take objective and impartial
approach to historical events. The Khojaly genocide, which occurred
not so long ago, on February 26, 1992 in the region of Karabakh,
showed to the world, in fact, who is able to commit crimes against
humanity. Nevertheless, the US House of Representatives, for some
reason, has been indifferent to date to this bloody crime, thus,
patronizing the aggressor directly," the letter reads.

"We consider that the decision of the US House Foreign Affairs
Committee will have a negative impact on the regional developments as
a whole and be regarded as a moral and political support to Armenia `
the country, which does not recognize territorial integrity of
neighboring countries and pursued the policy of ethnic purge ` in its
actions threatening peace and stability in the region of Caucasus."

"Expressing sentiments and reaction of the people of Azerbaijan, the
New Azerbaijan Party once again strongly condemns the resolution of
the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, evaluates it as a biased,
partial and unfair step in essence, and hopes that common sense will
prevail in the US Congress, and adoption of the fictitious `Armenian
genocide’ by the Congress will be prevented," the Azerbaijani ruling
party said in its letter.

/AzerTac/
URL:

MEMRI
March 7 2010

Saudi Daily: Israel behind Congress Bill Recognizing Armenian Genocide

The Saudi Al-Rai daily claimed that Israel was behind Congress draft
bill recognizing the Armenian genocide, and that its aim was to punish
Turkey for drawing close to the Arabs and Iran and for condemning
Israel’s attack on Gaza.

The daily added that the Turks’ treatment of the Armenians was no
different from the treatment meted out by Western countries to the
peoples they conquered during the colonialist era. The reopening of
this historical issue, it said, would only sabotage the rapprochement
between Turkey and Armenia.

Source: Al-Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), March 7, 2010

/25420.htm

Ynetnews, Israel
March 6 2010

Erdogan: US ‘genocide’ resolution will harm bilateral relations

Published: 03.06.10, 15:49 / Israel News

The US resolution that branded as genocide the killing of Armenians by
Ottoman Turks during World War One is a "parody that will have an
effect on all nations involved", Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan
said on Saturday.

"The decision of the Foreign Affairs Committee will not hurt Turkey,
but it will greatly harm bilateral relations, interests and vision.
Turkey will not be the one who loses," said the Turkish PM, speaking
at a summit of Turkish businessmen. (AFP and Reuters)

MONEY FALSIFICATION GREW

12:15:39 – 05/03/2010
hos17057.html

If in 2008, RA Police Department for Organized Crime Prevention
revealed 1 case of falsification of money, in 2009, the number of such
cases reached 8. This was said by the head of the above said Police
department Hunan Poghosyan who added that though the amount of false
drams is little, nevertheless, it is worrying because the revelation
level is low too. He noted that the problem is under the personal
control of the Chief of the Police.