Author: Taslakhchian Andranik

PLEASED WITH CYPRUS
Riza Turmen

Hurriyet
March 8 2010
Turkey

Rage born with the approval of the Genocide Bill in the United States
has cast a shadow over the critical acquisitions we have gained through
the European Court of Human Rights’ decision on the Cyprus question.

The European court decision dated March 5 in the Demopoulos vs. Turkey
case has brought this issue to a brand-new state. Greek Cypriots who
moved from the north of the island to the south following the peace
operation in 1974 resorted to the European court for their immovable
properties in the north. There are nearly 1,550 cases against Turkey.

In order for the court to take these cases, parties have to try
internal legal channels first.

As a domestic remedy in accordance with the European court and
northern Cyprus set up an Immovable Property Commission, or IPC, to
compensate the damages of Cypriot Greeks. The court selected eight
pilot cases in order to decide whether the IPC was an effective,
appropriate judicial system. The Grand Chamber announced that the
commission is effective enough and overruled to take eight cases.

Since these eight pilot cases are legal cases, they will also determine
the fate of the 1,550 cases as well. From now on, if claimants claim
compensation for their immovable properties in the north, they have
to apply to the IPC. If they don’t, as stated in the decision, they
can wait for a final solution to be found in the Cyprus conflict.

Applicants and the Greek Cypriot Administration asserted that
since northern Cyprus is not recognized in the international arena,
the IPC cannot be legally binding and therefore such legal channel
legitimizes the occupation of the island. The European court rejected
these claims and reached a conclusion that the IPC is an independent,
impartial and legitimate legal body.

The court rules that if there is an effective domestic way to settle
similar issues, they should be tried first. The European court has
left the judgment to see if compensation or the return of property
is needed to the IPC, stating that they cannot impose a solution to
force people to move out from properties.

Critical legal and political consequences

Legally speaking, Turkey, from now on, will not pay enormous amount
of compensation to the European court. Cypriot Greeks are paid
compensations as long as they resort to the IPC, but there are two
differences.

The first is the amount of compensation. The amount from now on will
be decided by way of conciliation between the parties.

The second is that applicants still have the ownership rights of their
properties in the European court decisions if Turkey is found guilty.

Since the ownership right is still protected, the applicant can
resort in the future and claim rights. But, in the IPC decisions,
the ownership right ends after compensation is paid.

Another critical point in this decision is the European court’s
recognition of a legal body set up by northern Cyprus. That doesn’t
mean the court recognizes northern Cyprus. Still, this is a critical
step showing that a legal decision by northern Cyprus is considered
valid in the international arena.

The Demopoulos decision will make positive contributions to the
solution of the Cyprus issue. One of the toughest areas of discussions
in settlement talks is the property issue. With this decision, a way
has been found how this particular issue can be resolved. The European
court ruling is binding. States have to abide by the decision.

Besides, the decision put an end to recommendations such as the return
of land to Cypriot Greeks in some cases to set aside the property
problem as envisaged in the Annan Plan. The Demopoulos verdict is
the product of long years of a legal fight.

Turkish public opinion should see this significant achievement
in the Cyprus issue, rather than the negative development in the
Armenian issue.

* Mr. Rıza Turmen is a columnist for the daily Milliyet in which
this piece appeared Monday. It was translated into English by the
Daily News staff.

AN EVENT ON RESISTING THE POLICY OF DENYING GENOCIDES TOOK PLACE IN MARSEILLES

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
2010-03-09 17:28

Recently, the fifth event by the Amnesie Internationale organization
has taken place in the French city of Marseilles. The organization
is aimed at resisting the policy of denying the genocides of the 20th
century. Along with some intelligentsia and art representatives, NKR
Permanent Representative to France Hovhannes Gevorkian participated
in the event.

Making a speech during the round-table discussions, Hovhannes Gevorkian
dwelt on the mass massacres in the Azerbaijani town of Sumgait in 1988,
noting that having avoided any corresponding assessment by the Soviet
authorities or the international community, similar atrocities spread
over to the Azerbaijani towns populated by Armenians, later growing
into a wide-scale war against Nagorno Karabakh.

He noted that political condemnation of genocides and mass massacres
would prevent new tragedies.

ARMENIA – HONORABLE GUEST OF ARGENTINE FILM FESTIVAL SCREEN PINAMARA: 2010

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.03.2010 19:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenia is among honorable guests of the Argentine
Film Festival Screen Pinamara: 2010 held in Buenos Aires between
March 6 and 13. "Border", a documentary by Harutyun Khachatryan and
"Bonded Parallels", a feature film by Hovhannes Galstyan will be
presented at the festival on march 11 and 12, press office of the
Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported.

STRENGTH FROM WOMEN
By Jirair Ratevosian

from-women/
Mar 8th, 2010

Abraham Lincoln once said, "All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my
mother." No words better describe the way I feel about my own mother,
two grandmothers, and the myriad of strong and courageous women that
have surrounded me throughout life-including my sister, cousins,
aunts, teachers, colleagues, and friends.

Born in the U.S., I take for granted the freedoms and privileges that
my mother and grandmothers never had, having escaped civil war in
Lebanon or being exiled for opposing Russian nationalism in Armenia
during Stalinist rule. Indeed, equality and human rights remain merely
hopes for millions of women around the world who are vulnerable to
discrimination, disease, and violence due to social marginalization
and gender inequality.

Every day, 1,500 women die from pregnancy or childbirth-related
complications according to the World Health Organization. Most of
these deaths occur in developing countries and most are avoidable.

Many pregnant women have little or no access to health services either
because these services are non-existent where they live, are poor in
quality, or the cost of care is prohibitively expensive.

HIV/AIDS disproportionately impacts women around the world. Women’s
vulnerability to the epidemic is dangerously magnified by the severe
social, legal, and economic discrimination that limits their ability
to access education, economic opportunities, and health systems,
all of which have been shown to reduce the probability of contracting
the disease.

Women and young girls are also explicitly and routinely targeted in
some of the world’s deadliest conflicts, namely in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, Sudan, and Zimbabwe. Rape and sexual violence
are used as instruments of war. In desperation, many women too often
must sell their bodies in order to provide food and other services
to their families. Along with the physical and psychological scars,
women who have experienced sexual violence become stigmatized and
are then rejected by their husbands and communities.

Ongoing conflict and natural disasters like the earthquake in
Haiti increase the vulnerabilities women face when seeking medical
attention. In these hardship settings, women often have little access
to safe and comprehensive health clinics, and an untold number suffer
severe health effects or die of complications related to childbearing.

Gender inequality and discrimination is widespread even in our own
community-in Armenia and the U.S. Both at home and worldwide, these
issues have received only scant public attention and the international
community has made little progress in holding governments accountable
for protecting women from aggressors or providing adequate health
facilities to all populations.

In the U.S, where women won the right to vote 150 years after the
signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Obama Administration
has elevated the cause of the political, economic, and social
advancement of women around the world by creating a new position of
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues. All countries should
emulate this increased attention and importance given to women’s
issues and fully integrate women’s rights into the development of
national and international policy.

Each of us-especially men-must also play a part in mobilizing our
community to debunk gender stereotypes, combat violence against women
and girls, and support efforts to increase equal access to education
and healthcare. By taking bold steps to better the lives of women,
we will be improving the lives of children and families everywhere.

I often ask myself how much better my mother’s or grandmothers’ lives
may have been had they not endured the disruption of their education,
dislocation from their culture, and the challenge of integrating into
a new society. I take some comfort in knowing that their strength
inspires me and many others to defend women’s rights worldwide.

In honor of the outstanding women in our lives, let us redouble
our efforts and commit to a world where everyday is International
Women’s Day.

Hillary Clinton’s statement is an attempt to balance situation around
Resolution 252, Armenian political expert thinks

2010-03-06 14:12:00

ArmInfo. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s statement, which
condemns adoption of the pro-Armenian resolution, is an attempt to
balance the situation around Resolution 252, Armenian political expert
Karen Bekaryan, told journalists today.

‘In general, there was nothing new in this statement. Moreover, there
was absolutely no aggression peculiar to the statements of the Bush
administration in 2007, when the foreign relations committee of US
Congress adopted Resolution No 106’, – he said.

Bekaryan thinks that Clinton simply created another opportunity for US
Administration to maneuver against the background of the urgent needs
of the American-Turkish strategical relations.

Politics Daily
March 5 2010

Turkey Protests House Panel Vote to Call Armenian Deaths ‘Genocide’

Tom Kavanagh

By a narrow vote of 23 to 22, the House Foreign Affairs Committee has
passed a measure calling on President Obama to characterize Turkey’s
killing of 1.5 million Armenians during and immediately after World
War I as "genocide."

In response to the vote, the Washington Post reports, the Turkish
government recalled its U.S. ambassador and warned that the move
"could adversely affect our cooperation on a wide common agenda."
Turkey has contributed troops to the war effort in Afghanistan and
allowed the use of an air base to supply U.S. forces in Iraq. It also
sits on the U.N. Security Council and will have a vote on U.S.-sought
sanctions against Iran.

Turkey has long insisted that the deaths early last century were
caused by forced relocations and fighting at the end of the
600-year-old Ottoman Empire and were not part of a genocide campaign.

Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.), who voted against the resolution, said he
has sympathy for the victims, "but we’re in the 21st century. We have
troops in the field. We run the risk of losing a base of operations in
Turkey."

0/03/05/turkey-protests-house-panel-vote-to-call-a rmenian-deaths-genoci/

KOREAN COMPANIES SHOW INTEREST IN IMPLEMENTATION OF INVESTMENT PROJECTS IN VARIOUS SPHERES OF ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
March 4, 2010

YEREVAN, MARCH 4, NOYAN TAPAN. The Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran
Sargsyan on March 4 received a delegation of Korean businessmen
and the following companies: Korea Resources Corp. (KORES), Daewoo
Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), DSME E&R, and CORUS. The
delegation was headed by CEO of KORES Kim Sin-Jong. According to the
RA Government Press and PR Department, representatives of Vallex Group
(Armenia) also participated in the meeting.

The prime minister expressed a hope that cooperation of Armenian
and Korean businessmen will be successful due to the existence of
a number of projects of mutual interest. The representatives of
Korean companies said they are interested in implementing investment
projects in various spheres of Armenia, in particular prospecting and
extraction of minerals, infrastructure development, and processing
of concentrates.

The interlocutors attached importance to the signing of memoranda
on cooperation between Armenian ministries and companies and Korean
organizations.

GUL, OBAMA TALK BY PHONE

news.az
March 4 2010
Azerbaijan

Turkish President Abdullah Gul discussed bilateral and regional issues
in a phone conversation with Barack Obama on Wednesday.

Sources in the Turkish presidential administration told Anatolia news
agency about the presidents’ conversation.

The officials pointed out that the conversation took place before
Thursday’s vote by the US House of Representatives’ Foreign Affairs
Committee on a resolution calling the 1915 killings of Armenians
genocide.

ZABEL JOSHIS DAUGHTER.MUMBAI.INDIA.
Zabel is one of the few last armenians in Mumbai.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Tulip Joshi

Tulip Joshi born 1979[1] is an Indian model and actress in
Bollywood. She was born in Bombay India on September 11 1979 is a
Virgo and stands 5’6" tall. She has dark-hair brown eyes. She has two
sisters Selphi and Monalisa. The latter is married to Bollywood actor
Rajat Bedi. She has a nephew Vivann and niece Vera.

Tulip is half Gujarati and half Armenian. Her mother was born in
Lebanon and later moved to India. Tulip was brought up in Mumbai and
attended the Jamnabai Narsee School and later Mithibai College from
where she graduated in food science and chemistry. She excelled in
sports competing in athletics at the National level.

Tulip entered the Femina Miss India Contest in 2000. She did not make
it to the list of winners but was noticed by many advertising
agencies. She appeared in a number of advertising campaigns for big
brands (Ponds Pepsi Siyaram BPL Smirnoff etc.). (She also appeared in
a video made as a tribute to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

m/2010/03/tulip-joshi.html

ACCUMULATED PROFITS OF THE ARMENIAN BANKING SYSTEM UP 10% TO $198.4 MLN IN 2009

ArmInfo
03.03.2010

ArmInfo. The accumulated profits of the Armenian banking system were
up 10% (8.8% for Q4) to 75 bln drams ($198.4 mln) on Dec 31 2009. The
share of accumulated profit in total capital was 26%. Out of 22
commercial banks 20 accumulated a total of 77.1 bln drams positive
profits ($204 mln). The remaining two banks generated negative profits
in the amount of 2.1 bln drams ($5.6 mln) in total.

Analysis and Rankings of the Armenian Banking System prepared by
Agency of Rating Marketing Information (ArmInfo) say ACBA-Credit
Agricole Bank was the leader by the accumulated profits in the amount
of 12.9 bln drams or $34.1 mln (45.3% growth per year and 12.4% for
Q4). HSBC Bank Armenia was the second by 9.3 bln drams or $24.6 mln
(27.2% decline per year and 7.5% growth for Q4), Converse Bank was
the third by 8.1 bln drams or $21.4 mln (12.6% decline per year and
1.9% growth for 1.9%), Ardshininvestbank accumulated 7.9 bln drams or
$20.9 mln profits (25.3% growth per year and 4.9% for Q4), and VTB
Bank Armenia accumulated profits in the amount of 7.2 bln drams or
$19.1 mln (21.1% growth per year and 62.4% growth for Q4). BTA Bank
suffered the largest loss in the amount of 1.5 bln drams or $3.9 mln
up 7% per year and 38.9% for Q4).

Out of 22 commercial banks 17 ensured annual growth of accumulated
profits (in 2009 versus 2008). Cascade Bank ensured the highest growth
of accumulated profits per year from the negative 321 million drams to
positive 91.5 mln drams. Accumulated profits of Mellat Bank suffered
76.6% decline to 121.4 mln drams. The amalgamation of Cascade Bank and
Cascade Credit Universal Loan Company was over in late July 2009. In Q4
2009 the accumulated profits of 18 banks grew. Cascade Bank increased
accumulated profits more than twice, whereas Mellat Bank showed 67.8%
quarterly decline of accumulated profits.