Author: Takmazian

ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT RESIGNED

PanARMENIAN.Net
07.06.2007 13:20 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ According to the 55th article of the RA Constitution
and taking into account the fact that the first session of the newly
elected Armenian Parliament is scheduled for June 7, 2007, Armenian
President Robert Kocharian signed an order on resigning the government
of the Republic of Armenia, the Presidential Press Office reports. The
RA President ordered the members of the resigned government to continue
to perform their duties till formation of the new government.

According to the RA Constitution, on the day of the first session
of the newly elected National Assembly the government declares
resignation. Ten days following that resignation the new Prime Minister
is being appointed, and during the following 20 days the premier must
form the future cabinet.

DEPUTY REPRESENTING THE 15TH ELECTORAL DISTRICT REFUSES FROM MANDATE

ArmInfo
2007-06-06 16:15:00

The deputy representing the electoral district N015 (Aragatsotn
region), a member of the Republican Party of Armenia, the owner of
Max-Group, Khachik Manukyan applied to the Central Electoral Commission
and refused from his mandate, Wednesday.

CEC received the petition and announced new election in the above
district.

Talking to journalists, Khachik Manukyan refuted the information. RPA
was also surprised at the petition and added that Manukyan should
have been informed the party of his refusal from the mandate if there
was such.

Manukyan’s major rival in the district was Mnatsakan Mnatsakanyan,
representative of Prosperous Armenia party, Talin Mayor. Talin
residents were against the candidature of Khachik Manukyan.

Moreover, after the election, the votes in the district were
recalculated, however, the district election commission left the
voting result in effect.

FIRST CONSIGNMENT OF PIPES FOR CONSTRUCTING SECOND PART OF IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE DELIVERED TO ARMENIA

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
June 5 2007

YEREVAN. June 4. /ARKA/. The first consignment of pipes
with 720mm diameter, assigned for the construction of 1974km
Kajaran-Sisian-Angeghakot-Jermuk-Ararat (second part of Iran-Armenia
gas pipeline) gas pipeline, has been imported to Armenia.

"40 carriages of cargo delivered from Russia were transported to the
base in Yeraskh, rented by the "ArmRosgasprom", from there the pipes
were transported to the building site," the press service of the
"ArmRosgasprom" reported.

The Company said that by the end of the year it is planned to import
1200 carriages with pipes, which makes 25ths tons of cargo.

For the implementation of the gas-transport enlarging program
large-scale operations are envisaged and for the first time within
15 years there has been a necessity of importing pipes with 720mm
diameter, the press release ran.

Meghri-Kajaran, the first 40km area of Iran-Armenia gas pipeline, was
exploited on March 19, 2007. The opening ceremony took place in the
Armenian city of Agarak (to the south of Armenia), near the Iranian
border in the presence of the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan
Robert Kocharyan and Mahmud Ahmadinejada.

The Iran-Armenia gas pipeline will allow the increase of throughput
capacity of the Armenian gas-transport and will provide transportation
of good deal of volumes of the Iranian gas to Armenia’s thermoelectric
power station.

The total cost of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline makes $220-250mln.

At the initial stage Armenia will receive 400mln cubic meters of gas
with the prospective of increasing the index up to 2.3bln cubic meters
each year. The agreement envisages 36bln cubic meters of natural gas
supply for 20 years from Iran to Armenia with the possible extension of
the agreement for five years and the gas supply to 47bln cubic meters.

The total volume of gas is planned to process into energy envisaged
for the export to Iran on the basis of 3 kilowatt-hours for 1 cubic
meter of natural gas, as well as for the use inside Armenia.

ANCA INTENDS TO KEEP AMERICAN ARMENIANS INFORMED ABOUT RESOLUTION 106 ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Jun 05 2007

LOS ANGELES, JUNE 5, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The initiative
is expanding in support of the resolution on the Armenian Genocide in
the US House of Representatives and the Senate, the Armenian National
Committee of America (ANCA) reports.

The Project Outreach Western Region – POWER aims to keep American
Armenians informed, through activities of ANCA, about the current
status of the resolution on the Armenian Genocide in the Congress.

Congressmen of 11 West coast states currently support this resolution.

In recent weeks, ANCA has worked with local activists, organizing
meetings with district congressional offices throughout the country.

WHY NOBODY SPEAKS ABOUT THE ESSENTIAL ISSUE

Lragir.am
04-06-2007

Now a situation has occurred when even the Armenian government could
not be accused of the return of territories, stated Igor Muradyan on
June 4 during a discussion held by the Alliance Organization.

"Karabakh has a president, a parliament, a civil society. I am quite
frank. These people are political criminals. I think a public tribunal
should be set up and accuse them of high treason. There are facts,
facts are always found," Igor Muradyan says. He thinks it is necessary
to swap historical arguments why the territories cannot be returned
for this.

According to Igor Muradyan, the Karabakh government has always
kept aloof, outside the reach of criticism. "Away from criticism,
God forbid. What should happen has happened. The year 2006 was real
capitulation. The NKR parliament did not utter a word. This reaction,
more exactly the absence of reaction was under the surveillance of
Arkady Ghukasyan and the impression was that on the whole everyone
was for this retreat," Igor Muradyan says.

According to him, the government of Karabakh blames Armenia, and the
Armenian government refers to external pressure, Igor Muradyan says.

According to him, there is no force in Armenia and Karabakh which
can set up relations with the outer world. "I mean a political
resource for relations with the outer world. That’s all. There is
no such resource. Here is a small episode, though not so very small,
regarding the recent Armenian parliamentary election when the Western
community did not react, in fact. In brackets, of course. The reaction
came and it was clear: they set timing. They gave time for radical
statements. In fact, there can be no such statements. Because a
principal subject may play a multi-vector game, who knows what it
needs, who has other purposes than holding on to power. There is no
such subject in the society, the political class and the political
leadership," Igor Muradyan says.

According to him, there is no society, there is not even a criminal
society. "Absolutely nobody, people have no understanding," Igor
Muradyan says. He says everyone should feel responsible, including the
government of Karabakh. "It should not think it is not accountable
to the so-called political parties, wine and wheat producers," Igor
Muradyan says. He asks who must get the society out of this situation,
who must give them ideas. "Nobody said the Karabakh presidential
election is being prepared, another political crime is being plotted,
a professional drug addict and non-professional KGB agent may become
the head of state in Karabakh.

And all this is imposed on people without asking anything from
anyone. Why are you silent, friends?" Igor Muradyan asked the
participants of the discussion and the society. He says the opinion
that everything is decided in Armenia is a fairy tale. So why in this
case do we speak about the president, parliament, and finally the
state of Karabakh, Igor Muradyan asks. If everything is decided in
Armenia, all this should be thrown away. Igor Muradyan urges starting
everything in Karabakh. "Why not to launch a real process? Let us
try to launch the process there," Igor Muradyan concluded.

OSCE CiO: Armenia and Azerbaijan must use the current opportunity to
resolve the Karabakh issue

armradio.am
04.06.2007 15:13

The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Spain’s Foreign Minister Miguel Angel
Moratinos declared in an exclusive interview with Mediamax that Armenia
and Azerbaijan must use the current opportunity to resolve the Nagorno
Karabakh issue.

Does he believe Azerbaijan will really agree to holding a referendum in
Nagorno Karabakh? Miguel Angel Moratinos said: `It’s not easy to
combine the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity with the
principle of the right for self-determination of peoples. Both are
universal principles applicable under different circumstances. I’m sure
Armenia and Azerbaijan have the opportunity to find a solution, using
the more convenient principles to settle the situation that causes
damage to thousands of people who have the right for worthy, peaceful
and welfare life.’

Commenting on the fact that one of the Minsk Group Co-Chair countries `
Russia ` states that the independence of Kosovo can become a precedent
for settlement of other conflicts, and the other two Co-Chairs ` France
and US ` have the opposite stance, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office stated:
`The conflicts on OSCE territory are extremely different. Russia,
France and the US consider it’s not sensible to use predetermined
formulas, since the great difference of situations makes these
unviable.’

A1+

`OPPOSITION RESEMBLES A RIPEN PEAR’
[04:44 pm] 04 June, 2007

On June 4 the National Press Club hosted NA deputies who disputed on
parliamentarism.

`There hasn’t been any heated discussion in the National Assembly
since 1998. All decisions have been made by button pressing,’ says
Grigor Harutyunyan, the Secretary of the People’s Party of Armenia.

ARF Dashnaktsutyun member Alvard Petrosyan reflected on the recent
skirmish in Gyumri and connected it with the present-day
parliamentarism.

`No one can say on which criteria state and government officials are
elected. I would like to see more literate people in the NA,’ Alvard
Petrosyan said.

`If a whole nation is in search of oppositionalists it means the
country lacks real opposition. Like a ripen pear opposition betrays
its principles every now and then,’ she said.

Freelance deputy Tatul Manaseryan avoids both pro-governmental and
oppositional forces as none of them can account for his adherence to
this or that field.

Glendale News Press
June 2 2007

Junior fire chief chosen

Selection is based on an essay on fire safety and prevention. Winner
gets a new mountain bike for her good work.

By Jason Wells

As one of her first acts as junior fire chief, fifth-grader Zara
Minasyan would gather all the city’s children and replant trees that
have been lost in this year’s blazes.

"I’d want to replace all of them because these fires are all caused
by careless people," the Horace Mann Elementary School student said.

Glendale Fire Chief Chris Gray announced Minasyan’s appointment from
a crowded field of candidates at Verdugo Park Friday based on an
essay that read more like that of a seasoned civic administrator than
it did a wiry 11-year-old with dark, curly hair and glittery jeans.

Resources spent fighting recent fires could have been better spent if
it weren’t for the apparent careless acts of the fire-starters, she
wrote in response to the question on how each student would make
their family and home safe from fires.

"The money that was lost could go to help the needy, to help schools,
or to help the environment, but instead it was wasted on careless
people causing fires," her essay read.

Glendale Firefighters chose her from 25 finalists representing just
as many fifth-grade classes from public and private schools
throughout the Glendale area.

Her signing bonus? A brand new mountain bike.

"I was so excited when they called my name and really eager," Zara
said.

She was flanked by her deputies – Natalie Delpino of Skyward
Christian School as junior assistant fire chief and Jacob Deyell of
Balboa Elementary School as junior deputy fire chief, who were also
chosen based on their essays.

The announcements capped off a four-month process that saw thousands
of fifth-graders in the city’s schools complete fire-prevention
workbooks and manuals handed out by firefighters at school
presentations.

More than 250 top-scorers earned the right to skip class Friday and
attend the 52nd annual Junior Fire Picnic at Verdugo Park, complete
with potato sack races against Glendale Firefighters and a water
balloon toss.

Just before the announcements, a fire engine soaked the crowd of
screaming, fully clothed students with a water stream that extended
more than 100 feet.

That didn’t stop them from chanting "One more time" until
firefighters released another stream from atop the engine.

And while the deafening screams and hyperactivity drew grins from at
least a dozen firefighters throughout the event, there was another
reason behind the smiles.

"All of this sticks, even into adulthood," Gray said as a mob of
students crowded the stage in the hopes their raffle tickets might
win something from a stack of prizes that included sports equipment,
a Game Boy, toy trucks and a Super Soaker.

Despite all the games, prizes and water, the basics of fire
prevention were just a tap on the shoulder away for children who had
clearly learned the material.

Glendale Firefighter and program director Fred Castro tapped on
Lincoln Elementary students Alec Bottrell and Joe Torres as they
waited in line for hot dogs.

They promptly recited the three basics of fire mitigation – cut off
the oxygen supply, remove the fuel and pour the water.

And they would never go back into a burning building, not even for a
pet, they said.

"That’s right, because we can’t replace you guys," Castro said.

They nodded and went back to snapping twigs.

But for Castro, it made all the effort worthwhile.

"That’s the key thing, that they all know this stuff by heart," he
said.

ARTICLE 19 STATEMENT ON NEW PROVISIONS FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON TELEVISION AND RADIO

A1+
[07:21 pm] 31 May, 2007

ARTICLE 19 welcomes the amendments to the Law of the Republic of
Armenia on the Rules of Procedure of the National Commission on
Television and Radio, adopted on 26 February 2007, and signed by
the President on 20 March 2007. They demonstrate the government’s
political will to improve existing legislation. The new definition
of the National Commission on Television and Radio (Commission) as an
"independent regulatory body, which ensures the freedom, independence
and diversity of the broadcasting media" is especially welcomed.

Meanwhile we remain concerned at the actual level of independence of
the Commission. The stipulation that the Commission will be composed of
eight members (compared with the current nine members), half of them
to be appointed by the National Assembly and the other half by the
President, is a central issue in the amendments. Previously all nine
members of the Commission were appointed by the President. Currently
there is also no mechanism for public consultation for the
nomination of members. The new amendments do not address the issue
of nomination. Moreover, there are no provisions stating that the
members should reflect Armenia’s social and political diversity,
or that the appointment process should be open and transparent.

Although the amendments improve the law, they are still not
satisfactory and fail to guarantee the autonomy and independence
of the Commission. This concern is especially pressing when the
Parliamentary majority and the President have the same political
affiliation, as is the case in Armenia.

Broadcasting is by far the most important source of information and
entertainment in Armenia. The difficulty of distributing newspapers,
especially to the remote regions of the country, makes the broadcast
media effectively the only source of information for the majority
of the population. As a result of this central role and its growing
profitability, broadcasting media has crucial political and economic
power. Thus, the independence and the diversity of broadcast media
are decisive for the freedom of expression in the country.

Therefore, it is of paramount importance that the Commission
responsible for the distribution of broadcast licences enjoys full
and unconditional independence from government control and any form of
political and/or commercial interference. The process for appointing
members should be open and democratic and should not be dominated by
any particular political party or commercial interest. Such a process
should include public consultation with civil society in relation to
the nomination of members in order to ensure adequate representation
of the political and social diversity of the country.

In order to achieve this, we recommend that nominations be elicited
from the public through advertisements in leading media outlets,
and the Commission’s selection hearings be held in public, so as to
allow input and comments from any interested party. The appointment
of half the members by the president, and the lack of procedure for
nomination of members, clearly do not meet the international standards
listed above.

We therefore call on the National Assembly of Armenia to further
review the Law of the Republic of Armenia on the Rules of Procedure
of the National Commission on Television and Radio so as to ensure
the following:

The president should not have the power to appoint half of the
members of the Commission. Instead, all members should be appointed
by an all-party body, such as the Parliament, or directly by civil
society groups.

Appointment of members to the Commission should be based on public
interest considerations. To promote this, public nominations should
be allowed and advertisements announcing the process should be placed
in leading media outlets.

The Law should require the Commission’s selection hearings to take
place in public and in a manner that allows for input from any
interested party.

The Law should stipulate that the members of the Commission as a
whole should reflect the diverse makeup of Armenian society.

AZERBAIJAN: FIFTEEN JOURNALISTS SEEK ASYLUM IN PROTEST AGAINST PRESS CLOSURES

Reporters Sans Frontieres press release, Paris
29 May 07

Text of press release by Paris-based organization Reporters Sans
Frontieres (RSF) on 29 May

Reporters Without Borders today condemned constant government
harassment of the opposition media, which has led 14 journalists
working for two dailies, the Azerbaijani-language Gundelik Azerbaijan
and the Russian-language Realny Azerbaijan, to seek political asylum
in the past four days after their newspapers were closed last week.

The editor of the newspaper Nota Bene has also requested asylum
because he fears for his safety.

"First the offices of Gundelik Azerbaijan and Realny Azerbaijan were
shut down for alleged fire safety violations then, on 26 May, the
owner of their premises suddenly rescinded their lease and they had
to vacate immediately," Reporters Without Borders said. "They would
have us believe this is just a coincidence. These are the methods of
an authoritarian regime."

The press freedom organization added: "If President Ilham Aliyev
wants to protect the press, he should help these two dailies find
new premises. The 41 employees and contributors to these newspapers
are now without any source of income, some of them feel threatened
and the country’s press is all the poorer."

The 14 Gundelik Azerbaijan and Realny Azerbaijan journalists submitted
their political asylum requests to the US, German, British and
Norwegian embassies and the office of the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). They include Gundelik Azerbaijan
editor Uzeir Jafarov, who said they were seeking asylum because of
persecution, and because arrests and attacks made it impossible for
them to work as journalists.

Jafarov was attacked and beaten on 20 April after given evidence at
the trial of Eynulla Fatullaev, the founder of Gundelik Azerbaijan
and Realny Azerbaijan, who received a 30-month prison sentence the
same day for "defaming" and "insulting" Azerbaijanis in an article
about Armenia.

The satirical website , whose editor Habib Muntezir
is based in Germany, has meanwhile been inaccessible again since 21
May because of a hacker attack on the Site5 server that hosts it.

Muntezir is convinced the attack was deliberately targeted. It is
not the first time that the site has been attacked.