Author: Tadevosian Garnik

PRESS RELEASE

Pyunic – Armenian Association for the Disabled
6606 Cantaloupe Avenue
Van Nuys, CA 91405

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 4, 2004
Contact: Sarkis Ghazarian
818-785-3468

PYUNIC SPONSORS EDUCATIONAL SEMINAR FOR FAMILIES WITH DISABLED MEMBERS
IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

GLENDALE, CA (June 4) – The Los Angeles chapter of Pyunic, the
Armenian Association for the Disabled, will sponsor an educational
seminar for Armenian families with disabled members on Saturday,
June 19 at Glendale Community College from 10 am – 1 pm.

The educational seminar will provide information about the programs and
services that are available to individuals with disabilities in the
Southern California region. Representatives from public and private
agencies will provide information about their particular programs,
services and eligibility requirements.

Agencies participating in the seminar include: the Lanterman Regional
Center, Department of Rehabilitation, Pasadena Unified School District,
Glendale Community College, LA Regional Protection and Advocacy,
Exceptional Children’s Foundation, Modern Support Services and others.

Founded in 1989 to help the disabled children of the devastating
1988 earthquake in the Republic of Armenia, Pyunic has become the
leading non-governmental organization assisting individuals with
physical and psychological challenges, as well as promoting welfare
and assisting in shaping public awareness for the disabled. Pyunic
provides humanitarian aid, social services, career training and annual
summer and winter teaching camps for children with disabilities.

With the growing Armenian-American community, Pyunic has become aware
of the increasing numbers of individuals with disabilities in the
region. “We organized this seminar to inform the community about the
large numbers of public and private agencies that provide programs
and services to individuals with disabilities,” said Sarkis Ghazarian,
President of Pyunic.

Ghazarian stated, “Pyunic’s efforts in Armenia include the creation of
various public and provide agencies to provide programs and services to
the disabled community. Here in the USA, these programs have been in
existence for decades and we need to make sure our community members
are aware of them and are able to utilize them to help them become
productive members of the southern California society.”

The educational seminar will take place at the Glendale Community
College’s Student Center. Free parking will be available off the
Mountain Street entrance near the tennis courts. The Student Center
and parking areas are accessible to the handicapped. Admission is free.

For further information, please call Pyunic at 818-785-3468.

Pyunic, the Armenian Association for the Disabled, is a 501(c)(3)
non-profit organization dedicated to assisting, supporting and shaping
public awareness for the disabled in the Republic of Armenia.

###

MY PRIEST PROGRAM ON ARARAT DIOCESE SITE

A1 Plus | 19:55:04 | 07-06-2004 | Social |

My Priest program is launched on Armenian Apostolic Church Ararat
diocese’s site. Interviews with priests and
secular activists on the themes interesting to the youth will be
placed at the site.

The program provides its readers with the opportunity to ask questions
on condition of anonymity.

The program is expected to appear on a separate site by the end of
this year, the diocese press-secretary Elza Manoukyan says.

Missionaries retire in peace
RICHARD DYMOND

Herald Staff Writer
Posted on Sat, Jun. 05, 2004

EAST MANATEE – In a village of salmon and pale green duplexes just
off State Road 64, roughly 100 retired missionaries and their spouses
live quiet lives surrounded by swaying palms and four man-made lakes
stocked with fish.

But the stillness of Bradenton Missionary Village doesn’t silence
the strong emotions these retirees feel for their brethren serving
in missionary fields around the world.

“On Thursday, missionary doctors were killed in north Afghanistan,”
said Berge Najarian, 79, who had a 25-year missionary career in the
Middle East, Caribbean and Africa. “But this is a calling. Even though
we are always in danger, we feel safe in the center of God’s will.”

Established in 1980 by Anthony T. Rossi, the founder of Tropicana
Products Inc., Bradenton Missionary Village allows needy retired
missionaries to live rent-free for as long as they can live
independently. Many of these residents worked 20 to 40 years as
Christian missionaries and came away with no money for rent or to
buy a home.

Najarian, whose parents escaped the Armenian massacres in Turkey,
estimates he earned only $3,000 or $4,000 yearly in his missionary
life. When he began in the 1960s, he and his family received only
$100 a month plus free rent.

“I thank God for this place every day,” said Najarian, who has a
duplex on the 300-acre tract, about 200 acres of which are scheduled
to be sold to developers.

Rossi was a born-again Christian whose second wife, Sanna, was a
missionary, said Ken Solomon, 77, a Pennsylvania-born resident who
spent 14 years in Argentina and 11 years in Colombia.

“Before Mr. Rossi passed away, he sold Tropicana and a large part
of that money went to create the Aurora Foundation that supports
Missionary Village,” Solomon said.

Rossi, who was 92 when he died in 1993, left the president’s chair at
Tropicana a year after the company’s stock was purchased by Beatrice
Food Co. in 1978 for $490 million.

There is a handsome picture of him in the Rossi Activities Center,
which includes a large cafeteria, a well-stocked library and offices.

The cafeteria serves a sumptuous lunch meal for residents and their
guests every day for $3.

“We are all a lot more plump than we were in the field,” Solomon
kids. “The food is great here.”

Every Friday morning, many retirees attend a worship service and
prayer requests. Most residents spend their days volunteering at
area hospitals, churches and nursing homes. On Sundays, there are
no services in the Village, allowing the retirees to attend their
own churches.

There are also two swimming pools, shuffleboard courts and a Jacuzzi.

But the pleasant surroundings and the sound of birds in the trees
that rim the Village don’t keep out the outside world and all its news.

“Recently I read about the killing of one of our pastors in Colombia,”
Solomon said. “It was discovered that he was slain by Satan worshippers
who were opposing the spread of the gospel.”

Solomon dodged bullets himself during 11 years in Medellin, Colombia,
from 1973 to 1984. Fights between guerrillas and government troops
would lead to scattered gunfire.

“Once we had to duck in the doorway of a shop while bullets were
flying,” Solomon said. “Sometimes I would have to keep parishioners
at our church inside until the shooting was over.

“But you know, I never experienced any great fear,” Solomon added. “I’m
not especially brave. But we knew our lives were in his hands.”

Fred Kowalchuk, 79, served 30 years in Peru and 12 in Spain. One year
a rumor spread through the jungles of Peru that the U.S. government
was rendering people into grease for atomic weapons, Kowalchuk said.

“We were told that people would greet us with shotguns when we came,”
Kowalchuk said. “We never had trouble. But I was at peace. When you
place yourself in God’s hands, if he wants to take you, he takes you.”

Richard Dymond, East Manatee reporter, can be reached at
[email protected] and 782-5517.

US scheme rewards good governance with aid
By Guy Dinmore in Washington

FT
Published: June 3 2004

US aid experts are this week visiting 16 low-income countries selected
to receive aid as a reward for good governance in a multibillion
dollar programme that has won high praise for the Bush administration.

The administration has in effect created a new category of countries
eligible for US aid through the Millennium Challenge Account. It is
meant to be free from bias in allocating the money, $1bn this year
and $2.5bn (â^¬2bn, £1.4bn) requested from Congress for 2005.

Countries with a per capita income of less than $1,435 a year had to
meet performance-based criteria using publicly available indicators
in three fields, broadly defined as “ruling justly”, “encouraging
economic freedom” and “investing in people”.

Paul Applegarth, head of the Millennium Challenge Corporation,
which administers the fund, said the project was about “government
leadership”, adding that the 16 selected countries must now propose
their own projects and administer them.

“We are breaking new ground rules here with MCC,” he said. “MCC will
focus on sustainable growth through partnerships. Countries will set
their own priorities. Funding stops if performance slips. This is
not signing a blank cheque.”

The 16 countries named in May as eligible were: Armenia, Benin,
Bolivia, Cape Verde, Georgia, Ghana, Honduras, Lesotho, Madagascar,
Mali, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Senegal, Sri Lanka and
Vanuatu. A second tier of unnamed “threshold countries” was also
created, with $40m set aside to encourage those that nearly made it.

Steve Radelet, of the Centre for Global Development, a policy research
institute, said MCC “promises to be one of the most fundamental changes
in foreign aid in decades”. The Brookings Institution described it as
“visionary”.

The US will continue to give aid to countries such as Egypt
and Pakistan, which are important political allies but would not
necessarily make the “good governance” criteria. “We will still give
aid to our political friends, but separately, from a different pot
and making the distinction clear,” says Mr Radelet.

He noted that the 16 qualifying countries were all democracies. Three
countries that passed the necessary hurdles but failed to qualify –
Bhutan, Mauritania and Vietnam – were not. “Should democracy be a
criterion? That was a huge political debate,” he said.

The board showed some flexibility. Georgia did not pass the
“corruption” test but the MCC decided its new government had
demonstrated willingness to tackle the problem. This was not yet
reflected in the data.

Carol Graham, of the Brookings Institution, said it was increasingly
accepted wisdom that aid money was better spent in countries with
good governance.

But she was concerned “bad” countries would be left demoralised
and underfunded, and that USAID, the State Department agency that
oversees aid issues, would become marginalised. “How big will the
pot be with looming deficits, huge military expenditure and aid to
Iraq and Afghanistan? Who will fight for the budgets to sub-Saharan
countries?” she asked.

Cross Country call center gets GM contract, will add 100 jobs
By TEYA VITU, Tucson Citizen , FRANCISCO MEDINA/Tucson Citizen

Tucson Citizen, AZ
June 2 2004

Employees look at a Bentley outside the Cross Country Automotive
Services’ call center, 1401 S. Pantano Road. Seeing the car is supposed
to help workers provide better help when answering emergency road
service calls.

Cross Country Automotive Services call center employees last week
got a close look at a dozen luxury $150,000 Bentley Continental
GT coupes, all parked outside the center at 1401 S. Pantano Road.
It’s part of the job, a matter of getting to know the car better so
Tucson employees fielding emergency services calls from across the
nation can better identify with a caller’s problem.

Cross Country takes calls from owners of 70 percent of the automotive
brands at call centers in Medford, Mass.; Sebring, Fla.; and, since
1995, in Tucson, which is the largest center, with 500 employees,
and about to get larger.

In the coming months, 100 new jobs will be added to help serve all
eight lines of General Motors vehicles, a contract that Cross Country
just landed, spokeswoman Kathy Cavolina said.

Applications are being accepted at the office, online at
[email protected] and by phone at (800) 343-3288.
Starting salaries range from $8 to $9.50 per hour, with some jobs
starting higher, Cavolina said.

It’s not like every other call center job.

“At this one you are more in contact with the customer,” said Lelani
Barrios, a Cross Country roadside associate for one year. “You’re
more in-depth with them.”

Cross Country primarily deals with people with an automotive situation
such as a breakdown, a flat tire or a child or dog locked in the
car. The associates are trained to confirm the caller’s safety,
determine location and the problem and send help which could be a
tow truck, police, even a helicopter.

Vartan Yozghadlian, an Armenian immigrant with seven years at Cross
Country, one day found himself on the other end of a call from a
couple in Colorado stuck in a snowstorm on the way to the hospital.
The woman was in labor.

All he had to do was stay on the line until paramedics or police showed
up. But he stayed with the couple even as the helicopter came in.

“Suppose I needed to send for a tow truck,” Yozghadlian said. “It’s
my duty. We do whatever it takes to help and give our best to the
customer. This is our dedication, the quality we give to the customer.”

A family in Texas was driving to the airport for its first trip to
Disneyland when the car’s tire went flat.

There was no spare.

The family called and got Cross Country roadside associate Corrie
Fisher in Tucson, who added urgency to her dispatch style.

“They were freaking out,” Fisher remembered. “While I dispatched
service, I could hear the children asking, ‘Can we still go to
Disneyland?’ I was talking to the dispatcher, saying, ‘These kids
had to go to Disneyland. You need to get someone there fast.’ ”

Every few months, automakers take cars to the Cross Country center
for employees to inspect. But never before has the Tucson operation
seen a fleet of Bentley Continental GTs.

“I think that’s the highest end, especially that volume – 12 cars,”
said Paul Kline, the center’s operations director. “This is for
folks to actually see the vehicle and see some of the nuances,
like how the remote key works. It makes people feel more engaged,
not just something you read about.”

PRIME MINISTER MEETS ADB DELEGATION

ArmenPress
June 2 2004

YEREVAN, JUNE 2, ARMENPRESS: Armenian prime minister Andranik Margarian
received today a delegation of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), headed
by ADB deputy secretary Amarjit Vasan. The delegation has arrived in
Armenia to have consultations on Armenia’s membership to the bank.

The government press service quoted prime minister Margarian as saying
that Armenia has already obtained huge experience in dealing with such
influential international lending organizations as World Bank, EBRD
and others, underscoring at the same time establishment of efficient
cooperation with ADB. He said Armenia has been working towards that
end since 1997.

Assessing positively the results of consultations in Armenia, Andranik
Margarian noted, pointing out to ADB’s main directions of activity,
aimed at boosting economic growth in developing countries and reducing
poverty, saying Armenia’s membership to ADB will provide the country
with an opportunity to attract additional means for quicker development
of agriculture, education, health and infrastructures.

Margarian also said that the membership will help Armenia to establish
close contacts with the countries of the region leading in IT sphere
that will give a fresh muscle to IT development in Armenia, a sector
that was announced by the government as one of its priorities.

Among other benefits that Armenia may draw from the membership,
according to the prime minister is an impetus to implementing projects
aimed at reducing the poverty volume, especially having in mind the
favorable terms on which the bank allocates credits.

Amarjit Vasan was in turn quoted by the government press office as
saying that he was pleased too with the outcome of the consultations.
He added that the general conclusion of the Bank’s board,
after negotiating with 63 member countries, World Bank and other
international lending organizations is that it is time to pass to
practical actions for Armenia’s accession.

Margarian said Armenia is ready to solve all required organizational
and other technical problems in due time, expressing hope that the
anticipated cooperation will produce good and tangible results.

Greeks bring food, music, life to festival
By Rachel Uranga, Staff Writer

Los Angeles Daily News, CA
May 30 2004

With the smell of roasting meat wafting through the air and notes of
Greek music echoing through the crowd, thousands gathered Saturday
for the opening of the Valley Greek Festival.

The free event at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is scheduled to
continue from 1 to 9 p.m. today and Monday. It is expected to draw
50,000 revelers by its close, many who come year after year to enjoy
food, music and dance, as well as to see old friends.

“We look forward to this festival every year,” said Sonia Siekertzian,
a Granada Hills resident who, with her Greek-Armenian husband, has
not missed the event in its 31 years.

Put together by more than 300 church parishioners, the all-volunteer
effort yields tons of souvlaki — a Greek shish kebab — and oodles
of other Greek delicacies.

Parishioners began baking some of the 14 varieties of desserts —
including baklava and kourambiethes (a shortbread) — in January to
ensure the festival had the 48,000 pastries needed for the spread.

And rivaling Krispy Kremes are loukoumathes, a kind of Greek doughnut
hole, served warm. But there’s plenty of other food for those without
a sweet tooth, including tiropita (cheese pie), moussaka (a casserole
with eggplant, meat and potatoes), spanakopita (spinach and cheese pie)
and dolmades (grape leaves stuffed with rice).

“This is the way that we give back to the community,” said Peter
McCarty, a 47-year-old Northridge volunteer who could be found under
a white tent Saturday cooking up loucanico, a sausage flavored with
orange peels. Married to a Greek and himself Irish, McCarty said only
the music rivals the food.

Holding his 5-year-old daughter piggyback style, Toma Popescui stood
beneath a tree, watching traditional Greek folk dance.

“Seeing somebody’s culture is something amazing,” said the
28-year-old. “And the food is unbelievable.”

Rachel Uranga, (818) 713-3741 [email protected]

IF YOU GO: The 31st Valley Greek Festival, from 1 to 9 p.m. today
through Monday at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church at 9501
Balboa Blvd., Northridge. For more information, (818) 886-4040 or

Azeri officials more critical than media of BBC’s Karabakh coverage

Ekho, Baku
28 May 04

The BBC has broadcast a documentary named “One Day of War” about the
situation in the Nagornyy Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. The ruling
New Azerbaijan Party [NAP] and the pro-government parties are warning
the BBC that its broadcasts in Azerbaijan can be suspended. Meanwhile,
the experts suggest waiting until the film is shown.

“Neil Harvey is in the mainly ethnic Armenian enclave of
Azerbaijan… It’s visually extremely good. Looks like World War One
trenches. The front line is just beyond the city,” this is what is
reported about the film on the BBC’s official web site.

The film was broadcast yesterday by the BBC Two TV channel. The web
site carries information about the course of work by journalist Neil
Harvey, who visited Xankandi between 15 and 22 March 2004.

[Passage omitted: Quotes from the BBC web site]

“They allowed me to film the valley, but were against me filming
Agdam,” Harvey reports. Next comes an enthusiastic report about the
bandit formations of the separatist regime who were “marching like
samurais”.

[Passage omitted: Threats by Azerbaijani officials against the BBC]

The pro-government circles are increasingly vocal in blaming the BBC
Russian Service for “bias”. However, experts suggest looking into
each case separately and not jumping to conclusions.

“The way the film about Xankandi has been made does not give enough
grounds to judge whether it is ethically correct. It all depends on the
content: on whether the views of both sides are presented and so on,”
the chairman of the Yeni Nasil Union of Journalists, Arif Aliyev, says.

“The preparation and broadcasting of the film means imparting
information to TV viewers, which is a journalist’s responsibility,” the
director of the Institute for Media Rights, Rasid Hacili, says. There
may be claims about “bias” if a journalist has violated the principles
of objectivity and balanced reporting by failing to present the views
of both sides.

The radio station can be deprived of its frequency only by a court
ruling.

LRAPER Church Bulletin
Armenian Patriarchate
TR-34130 Kumkapi, Istanbul
Contact: Deacon V. Seropyan
T: +90 (212) 517-0970
F: +90 (212) 516-4833
E-mail: [email protected]
or [email protected]

Istanbul 2nd Magistrates Court Rules in Favor of Armenian Patriarchate

In view of many accusatory, unfounded, reprehensible, discriminatory,
provocative and false assertions made regarding His Beatitude the Patriarch
and the Armenian community in an article by Soner Yigit entitled, “Former
Eminonu Mayor Lutfi Kibiroglu: They Want To Turn Kumkapi Into Balat” which
appeared in the 25 April 2004 issue of the daily Anadolu’da Vakit
newspaper, Armenian Patriarchate lawyer and Patriarchate Press Spokesperson
Luiz Bakar sent a notarized declaration of falsehood to the aforementioned
newspaper on the 30th of April.

In consequence of application made to the Istanbul 2nd Magistrates Criminal
Court when the newspaper did not print the declaration of falsehood, the
court found in favor of the request for a declaration of falsehood and
rendered the verdict that the declaration of falsehood be printed in the
next issue on the same page and in the same columns as the original article.
As is well known, both the former and present mayors of Eminönü also
declared the news item to be untrue.

The text of the declaration of falsehood is as follows:

THEY DO NOT WANT TO TURN KUMKAPI INTO BALAT
“THE ACCUSATIONS MADE AGAINST MY CLIENT, MESROB MUTAFYAN, THE ARMENIAN
PATRIARCH OF TURKEY, IN THE ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN THE 25 APRIL 2004 ISSUE
(NO. 872) OF YOUR NEWSPAPER ARE UNFOUNDED, REPREHENSIBLE, DISCRIMINATORY AND
UNTRUE.”

The article, “They Want To Turn Kumkapý Into Balat,” written in an obviously
one-sided fashion, is a concrete example of an irresponsible editorial
philosophy that abuses persons’ freedom and right to be informed.

In the news article you published on page 10 with a large-point headline, to
have former mayor of Eminonu Kibiroglu state that there was a sneaky plot
behind the burning of historic buildings, that the buildings that burned
down in Eminonu had been purchased by Armenian citizens, that a church was
going to be built in place of the buildings that burned down and that the
Patriarchate, the official office my client, the Patriarch, intended to
establish an area that would be a center for ‘proselytism’ like the one in
Balat; and to have the Patriarch say ‘We want to get a place in Kumkapi,
repair it and set it up; we’re expanding,’ represents your own false,
unfounded, one-sided, non-factual, discriminatory, racist and fabricated
interpretations, which constitute a provocation meant to create enmity
between Muslim Turks and Armenian citizens of the Republic of Turkey.

First of all, just as the Armenian Patriarchate, over which my client the
Patriarch presides, has no intention of establishing a center for
proselytism in Kumkapi and has engaged in no such undertaking, so also my
client the Patriarch did not say “I want to establish a center for
proselytism.”

Furthermore my client, the Patriarch and the Patriarchate which he
represents, did not make any devious plan nor did they, for the sake of this
plan, have buildings burned down or arson committed. The historic buildings
that burned down in Eminonu were not bought by Armenian citizens of the
Republic of Turkey. My client, the Patriarch, did not say, “We want to get a
place in Kumkapi, repair it and set it up; we’re expanding.” The
Patriarchate has no intention of having a church built on the site where the
buildings burned down and no such activity exists.

Your news article, which is reprehensible from start to finish, violates the
principles of professionalism in journalism by creating an atmosphere that
incites hatred and enmity, not just towards my client the Patriarch, but
toward citizens of Armenian descent living in Turkey and against their
institutions. Your news article, which is contrary to the truth, is clearly
written from a partisan perspective which targets Armenians and belittles
them and aims to stir up resentment and enmity. Your publication constitutes
a clear attack on human rights. It exceeds the acceptable bounds of
interpretation and criticism.

As your publication has damaged the honor, personal dignity and public
respect of my client, the Patriarch, to alleviate the moral damage done to
my client’s honor and respectability and person, you shall, by printing
unchanged the text of this reply and correction statement, make known to the
public that my client Does Not Want To Turn Kumkapi Into Balat, that he has
no intention of building a church on the site of any burned down buildings,
that he has not been involved in any devious plot, that he did not have old
buildings burned down or arson committed, and that he did not want to create
a center for proselytism in Kumkapi. I hope that you will not cast a shadow
upon the respectability of the press and that you will put an end to such
partisan publications.

Respectfully,

Att. Luiz Bakar

“Christians and Muslims stand united against terrorism,” Patriarch Aram I says

AsiaNews.it, Italy
May 21 2004

Beirut (AsiaNews) – Fighting against violence and terrorism are
absolute priorities in cooperative efforts made between Christians
and Muslims, said Armenian Patriarch Aram I Keshichian at the end
of conference on “Iranian-Armenian International Religious Dialog”
which opened yesterday.

Organized at the Armenian patriarchate in Antelias, 20 km from Beirut,
the conference aimed to promote dialog among Eastern Christians and
the Islamic faithful.

At the conference were Iranian Imam Mohamed Al-Iraqi (president of the
Iranian Islamic Affairs bureau) the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon,
university officials and scholars from Tehran as well as members of
Iran’s Religious Dialog Commission. There were also three bishops
from Iranian dioceses: Sebuh Sarkissian of Tehran, Shahen Sarkissian
of Isfahan and Nishan Tobozian of Azerbaijan, in addition to many
more lay and religious exponents.

Patriarch Aram I, in his opening address yesterday, stressed the
importance of religion and culture when considering “the road toward
reciprocal trust and cooperation among people”.

The Armenian patriarch praised the role Iranian Christians have played
in making this possible and the historically good relations between
Christian Armenians and Iranian Muslims. Aram I said religion was a
“basis for development of peaceful solutions to conflict.”

The patriarch said, however, there is no need to “exploit religion for
reasons other than those of theology”, adding that there “the needs of
today’s world force religions to overcome their theological differences
by concentrating on (common) spiritual, ethical and social values”.

“These form the real basis of (Islam and Christianity) working together
and for a continued cooperation,” he said.

Reflecting on the current issues of conflict between Islam and
Christianity, the Aram I said “fighting violence and terrorism are
absolute priorities in any cooperation between our faiths.”

The patriarch warned that “terrorism, in all its facets, has
become dividing force” in the world. Hence, he said, it has become
indispensable (for Christians and Muslims) to work together put a
stop to such attitudes by fostering principles of spirituality and
ethics and by making common efforts for peace and justice.”

The head of the Iranian delegation, Mohamed Al-Iraqi, said that
“today’s society needs the guidance of religion more than ever.” Each
day, he added, “we hear about the occupation (of countries), human
rights being violated, cases of immorality and many other actions
contrary to God’s will.”

Armenian Catholics are the largest Christian community in Iran
(360,000), where they enjoy rights of religious worship and expression
and are even represented in the country’s parliament (the Majliss).

In Iran there are also Armenian schools and news publications in the
language. (PB)