Author: Toganian Liana

Daily News Tribune
March 29 2009

Film opens a lens on the story of Armenian genocide

By Chris Bergeron/DAILY NEWS STAFF
GHS
Posted Mar 29, 2009 @ 02:54 PM

FRAMINGHAM ‘ Descended from survivors of the Armenian genocide,
filmmaker Apo Torosyan hopes his art transforms prejudice and hate
into tolerance and compassion.

Growing up in Turkey, he learned his father’s parents had both starved
to death after the genocidal massacres of 1915. As a teenager in
Istanbul, he saw mobs hang Christian priests and rape Armenian women
while his pregnant sister cowered in their apartment preparing to kill
herself if necessary.

Yet when Torosyan screens his newest film Wednesday in the Framingham
Library, it will honor a man who fought oppression at great personal
risk while refusing to preach hate.

His hour-long film, "The Morgenthau Story," will be shown at 7 p.m. on
Wednesday, April 1 in the Costin Room of the library at 49 Lexington
St.

"I’m trying to reach out and warn people genocide is still with us
today," said Torosyan. "Too often we don’t see it. But when you say
‘us’ and ‘them,’ you’re already prejudging people."

A shorter version of his film will be shown Monday, April 23 at 11
a.m. in Peabody City Hall at 24 Lowell St.

The son of a Greek mother and Armenian father, Torosyan earned his
bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the Istanbul Academy of Fine Arts
in the 1960s.

He has exhibited his rich, moody paintings in more than 40 solo and 20
group shows in Europe and North America. His paintings are in the
permanent collections of several museums, including the Museum of
Modern Art in Bordeaux, France, the Armenian Library and Museum of
America in Watertown, Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn., and
the Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Now 67, Torosyan has made seven documentaries, including four dealing
with aspects of the genocide and three others he describes as
philosophic "meditations."

Since immigrating to the United States in 1986, he fears he can’t
return to Turkey because on an earlier visit he expressed his opinion
about the Armenian genocide, which puts him in danger of imprisonment.

Torosyan’s documentary incorporates interviews with the three
descendants of Henry Morgenthau Sr., ambassador to Constantinople from
1913 to 1916, and archival footage about Turkish oppression of the
Armenian minority.

He credits Morgenthau for trying to alert the world to the Ottoman
massacres of Armenians and other Christians and later, as chairman of
the Greek Resettlement Commission, saving thousands after the 1922
Smyrna massacre.

While often regarded as the 20th century’s first holocaust, Toroysyan
fears Westerners know little about the Ottoman Empire’s murderous
policies against Christians.

He said in April 1915, civilian and military authorities of the
then-Ottoman Empire now present day Turkey launched attacks, massacres
and forced marches to drive Armenians, as well as Greeks and Syrians,
off their lands and into exile. While exact figures remain in dispute,
Torosyan said it’s "generally accepted" that between 1915 and 1923 1.5
million Armenians died and another 2 million, representing nearly half
the group’s population, were driven from the country.

Rather than "play the blame game," Torosyan said his films present
history objectively so future generations can recognize the symptoms
of ethic, religious and racial prejudice before they take effect. "I
believe history should be known so we don’t forget the past," he
said. "I’m trying to reach out to youth in high school and
college. They should know what happened."

While the Republic of Turkey, which succeeded the Ottoman Empire,
refuses to describe the deaths and forced relocations as genocide,
Torosyan insisted he "holds no prejudice toward Turkish people today."

Whether painting or making films, he said his art is intimately
connected to his personal history.

"What else is mine? My roots, my family history? Starving family
members dying during the Armenian, Greek and Assyrian Genocide,
including my grandparents," he said. "…I started making my films,
which are not all related to human rights, but to life itself. My
documentaries have been shown in places I’ve never been to and seen by
thousands of people I’ve never met. And through the Internet, I have
met a lot of new friends with the same message: Hope not hate."

THE ESSENTIALS:

"The Morgenthau Story," will be shown at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1
in the Coston Room of the Framingham Public Library. Admission is
free. For information, contact Michelle LeMonde-McIntyre at
508-532-5570 ext. 4347.

To learn more about Apo Torosyan’s films, visit

To learn about Apo Torosyan’s paintings, visit

http://www.dailynewstribune .com/arts/x1239302465/Film-opens-a-lens-on-the-sto ry-of-Armenian-genocide

UPDATE ON ARMENIAN GIRL – THANKS FOR YOUR HELP

eMaxHealth.com
nian-girl-thanks-your-help.html
March 27 2009

We at eMaxHealth want to thank you for the response to the story
on Gayane Tovmasyan, the 13 year old Armenian girl with the ovarian
tumor. There has been $450 dollars donated at this time.

It is difficult to get complete news, but we have been told that
her surgery has been postponed so that a previous medical condition
can be improved. This medical condition is a hypothyroid condition
(if properly translated). She needs this improved so that she will
have less risk from the anesthesia and surgery. The family and young
girl are tired and worried, but thankful for your support and prayers.

Link to initial article: "13 Year Old Armenian Girl Needs Your Help"
If you would like to support Gayane’s healthcare costs:

eMaxHealth would like to help Gayane and her family. We have set
up a bank account in her name. The funds will be transferred to
her family to help them pay for her surgery and any postoperative
treatments she may need. If you would like to contribute, please
email [email protected] or contact emaxhealth.

Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland fails to
produce enough thyroid hormone. The thyroid gland is located in the
neck just in front of the larynx (voice box). It makes hormones,
thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3), which are important in
controlling metabolism.

The most common cause of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto’s thyroiditis,
in which the immune system attacks the thyroid gland. A less
common cause of hypothyroidism is when the pituitary gland does
not release a hormone to stimulate the thyroid gland (secondary
hypothyroidism). Other causes include congenital absence of the
thyroid, radiation to the gland, and surgical removal of the thyroid
gland.

Symptoms include abnormal menstrual periods, cold intolerance,
constipation, depression, fatigue, thin and brittle hair, and
weight gain (unintentional). Other symptoms include dry flaky skin,
hoarseness, swelling of feet and legs, slow speech, joint stiffness,
overall swelling, and hair loss.

Once diagnosed, hypothyroidism can be treated by replacement of the
replacement hormone.

IS IT FORBIDDEN TO VISIT SHANT? HIS RELATIVES INSIST SO
by Naira Mamikonyan

Aravot
March 27 2009
Armenia

Shant Harutyunyan, one of the seven oppositionists on trial, was
transferred on 17 March from the Vardashen prison to the Health
Ministry’s mental health centre, the Nubarashen clinic, where,
under the 9 March decision of judge Manatsakan Martirosyan he is to
be examined for mental health. On the same day, the court ruled to
suspend the criminal proceedings until after the examination results
are received.

[Passage omitted: The examination is to determine whether currently
or at the time when charged Shant Harutyunyan was of diminished
responsibility.]

Since 17 March, relatives of the political prisoner [Shant Harutyunyan]
have been deprived of the right to visit him. Harutyunyan’s wife,
Ruzanna Badalyan, told Aravot yesterday that employees of the mental
clinic refuse to allow her to visit her husband, saying that she
needs a permission by judge Martirosyan to do so. Days ago, Shant’s
relatives voiced concern that the political prisoner’s state is
extremely bad. They said that even human rights organizations and
MPs were not allowed to visit Harutyunyan. In this case, they are
referring to Mikayel Danielyan, the head of the International Helsinki
Association’s Yerevan office, and Larisa Alaverdyan, a member of
the Heritage party faction in parliament. Danielyan, however, told
Aravot that he was planning to visit Shant but because the experts’
commission was in a working process at that time, he did not try to
seek permission. He added that he is planning to seek a visit in the
coming days. MP Larisa Alaverdyan said that she was not denied a visit;
simply, there is a procedure that she is trying to follow.

Karen Manucharyan, a public attorney appointed by the court on 9 March,
says he cannot visit Shant since Shant has refused to have an attorney.

The political prisoner’s wife says that on 24 March they officially
asked judge Martirosyan for a permit to visit Shantz.

[Passage omitted: Harutyunyan has filed a complaint about the issue
but it is not clear with whom.]

Shant’s relatives have little information about the state of his
health. They only know that Shant does not receive any medication,
and that he receives parcels sent to him by the family.

[Passage omitted: Shant’s wife denies allegations that her husband
suffers from mental illness, says Shant simply is a suspicions person.]

The family members have been told that the examination will last for
24 days. It is unpredictable what the results of the examination will
be. They will largely depend on the authorities’ will.

U.S. READY TO DO WHAT ONE CAN TO HELP IN SETTLING NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT: U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE

Trend
March 26 3009
Azerbaijan

U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, in her message to the Foreign
Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandian expressed her willingness
to help in peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
the Armenian Foreign Ministry press service said on Wednesday, the
News-Armenia reported.

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, co-chair of OSCE Minsk Group
Matthew Bryza conveyed Secretary of State’s message during a meeting
with the Minister Nalbandian.

Hillary Clinton warmly remembering the last telephone conversation
with President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and touched upon the
Armenian-American friendly relations, regional issues and opportunities
of settlement of Armenian-Turkish relations.

During the meeting, Nalbandian and Bryza discussed issues related
to the negotiation process for a peaceful settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

TURKEY’S PREMIER FACING POLITICAL TEST
by Thomas Seibert

The National
March 24 2009
UAE

ISTANBUL // Kemal Kilicdaroglu thinks he has found what Turkey’s
opposition has been lacking for years: an effective political weapon
to corner Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, who has pulverised
his opponents in election after election since 2002.

"Fifteen or 20 years ago, Mr Erdogan did not even have the money to
buy new studs for his football boots," Mr Kilicdaroglu, his voice
hoarse from daily stump speeches, recently bellowed out in front of
several hundred supporters at a rally in Sultan Gazi, a working class
neighbourhood in the European part of Turkey’s main city Istanbul.

"Today, he is one of the richest heads of government in the
world. Where does the money come from?"

Mr Kilicdaroglu’s efforts to suggest Mr Erdogan and the ruling
Justice and Development Party, or AKP, are corrupt have emerged as
the central theme of the opposition campaign before Turkey’s local
elections on Sunday.

Although Mr Erdogan is not a candidate in the polls, the vote is seen
as a major political test for the prime minister. One of Mr Erdogan’s
aides has even suggested the country could head towards early general
elections if the AKP does badly.

As mayoral candidate in Istanbul for the main secular opposition group,
the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, Mr Kilicdaroglu is challenging
the AKP in a city that has been ruled first by Mr Erdogan and then
by the prime minister’s supporters since 1994.

Mr Kilicdaroglu’s immediate opponent is Kadir Topbas, the ruling AKP
mayor who is running for re-election. But fundamentally, the contest
is between Mr Kilicdaroglu and Mr Erdogan, analysts say.

"Prime Minister Erdogan has been throwing himself into the race
[in Istanbul] as if he himself were the candidate," the respected
pollster Adil Gur told the Taraf newspaper.

If the AKP were to lose control of Ankara or Istanbul, it would be a
"catastrophe" for the ruling party, he said.

Few observers expect Mr Kilicdaroglu to take Istanbul, although his
aides talk about a possible surprise on election day. Polls show Mr
Kilicdaroglu trailing Mr Topbas by at least seven percentage points.

With his grey hair and trademark rounded spectacles, Mr Kilicdaroglu
looks more like a book-keeper than a formidable political player. When
supporters on the campaign stage in Sultan Gazi made him join a
traditional jig, he danced stiffly, looking around with a shy smile
as if he expected someone to correct him.

But the political significance of Mr Kilicdaroglu’s rise lies in the
fact that his attacks against what he calls examples of the AKP’s
corruption have hit a nerve with many people. According to the latest
polls, Mr Kilicdaroglu can expect to win about 33.5 per cent of the
vote in Istanbul, which would be almost 10 percentage points more
than the CHP received in the last local elections in 2004. Last year,
documents tabled by Mr Kilicdaroglu led to the resignation of two
high-ranking AKP officials.

"Corruption is one of the weakest points of the AKP," said Gursel
Tekin, a former leader of the CHP in Istanbul and the party’s
candidate for the post of speaker of the city parliament. Under the AKP
government, an "organised corruption" had developed, he said. The AKP,
which was founded seven years ago with the promise of clean government,
denies the accusations.

Mr Gur, the pollster, said the AKP’s share of the nationwide vote
could fall to less than 40 per cent, which would be a drop of seven
percentage points compared to the most recent general elections
in 2007.

A leading AKP official, Nihat Ergun, said this month that Turkey
would be heading for early general elections if the AKP were to lose
its position of the strongest party nationwide in this Sunday’s local
elections. He said a nationwide result of about 37 per cent for the
AKP would be a "sharp warning" for the party.

In Sultan Gazi, Mr Kilicdaroglu asked his supporters, who booed every
time Mr Erdogan’s name was mentioned, to "vote for honesty. We are
opening a new page."

That new page also involves a break with some of the CHP’s traditional
positions.

Last year, the CHP made headlines by welcoming several women wearing
the carsaf, a strictly Islamic veil covering the whole body, into the
party in Istanbul. In Sultan Gazi, Mr Kilicdaroglu was joined on the
stage by women wearing the Islamic headscarf.

Only a year ago, the CHP turned to Turkey’s constitutional court to
block a bill that would have allowed women to enter university campuses
with a headscarf. The court agreed with the CHP and cancelled the bill.

"We have no problems" with women wearing the headscarf, said Mr Tekin,
who is seen as the main architect behind the CHP’s "headscarf opening",
as the move has been dubbed by the press.

"We are social democrats, we are open for all parts of the population,
no matter if they wear the headscarf or the carsaf, or if they are
Kurds or Armenians."

Still, Mr Kilicdaroglu has been encountering some scepticism. When his
candidacy for Istanbul was announced, Kadir Topbas, the mayor, made the
most of the fact that Mr Kilicdaroglu, who has been a parliamentary
deputy in Ankara, is new in town. Mr Topbas joked that he would give
Mr Kilicdaroglu a city guide to find his way around Istanbul.

Some voters in the crowd watching Mr Kilicdaroglu in Sultan Gazi also
said they did not trust the CHP candidate because he does not have
local roots.

"I don’t know who I am going to vote for but I will not vote for
Kilicdaroglu," said one man, Mehmet Agca. "He is a stranger."

PREMIER: ARMENIA’S RESISTIVE CAPACITY MUST BE STRENGTHENED

ARKA
March 23, 2009

YEREVAN, March 23. /ARKA/. We must upgrade our state’s resistive
capacity to stand the impact of the global crisis, Armenian Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan said Friday after the discussion with
participation of the President Sargsyan and political parties’ leaders.

He told journalists that they discussed impacts of the global crisis
on Armenia and ways to mitigate them.

"First of all, infrastructures should be considerably strengthened and
small and mid-scale businesses will be provided with support. Support
will be provided to those companies facing temporary difficulties
and unable to overcome them without governmental assistance"

The premier thinks that support should be provided to promising and
export-oriented companies having thousands of employees as well as
those companies processing domestic agricultural products and own
resources.

Sargsyan said that state social programs are aimed at relieving the
difficulties low-income people face amid the crisis.

PEOPLE’S PARTY LIST OF CANDIDATES TO BE LED BY TIGRAN KARAPETYAN AT ELECTION FOR YEREVAN ALDERMEN

ArmInfo
2009-03-22 10:43:00

ArmInfo. The People’s Party (PP) submitted the list of its candidates
at the election for Yerevan aldermen to the Central Electoral
Commission of Armenia (CEC), CEC Press-secretary Tatevik Ohanyan told
ArmInfo correspondent.

The PP list of candidates is led by PP Leader Tigran Karapetyan, the
latter himself told the ArmInfo correspondent. According to him, Head
of PP Political Council Artak Harutyunyan ranks next on the list, and
the third position is held by Dean of the Russian-Armenian University,
Professor Hrachik Vardapetyan.

PanARMENIAN.Net

Israeli President urges Iranian people to reclaim their place among
"enlightened nations"
21.03.2009 11:57 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Israeli President Shimon Peres has recently issued a
special message to the Iranian people, ahead of the Iranian holiday
Nowruz, which symbolizes the start a new year, urging the Iranian
people to reclaim their place among "enlightened nations," Haaretz
reported.

"With great pleasure, I offer you this blessing on your holiday, a day
of renewal that brings with it happiness and hope of a new day, of
better days and a blessed new year," Peres began.

"Unfortunately, the relations between our two countries have hit a low
point, stemming from ideas that compel your leaders to act in every
possible way against the state of Israel and its people. But I am
convinced that the day is not far off when our two nations will
restore good neighborly relations and cooperation in thriving in every
way," he went on to say.

"At the start of the new year," he concluded his blessing, "I urge
you, the noble Iranian people, on behalf of the ancient Jewish people,
to reclaim your worthy place among the nations of the enlightened
world, while contributing a worthy cultural contribution."

The message, part of which was recorded in Farsi, was broadcast on
Israel Radio’s Farsi channel, which enjoys a wide audience in the
Farsi-speaking world.

"Things in Iran are tough," said the president at the start of the
address that preceded the blessing. "There is great unemployment,
corruption, a lot of drugs and a general discontent? You can’t feed
your children enriched uranium, they need a real breakfast. It cannot
be that the money is invested in enriched uranium and the children are
told to remain a little hungry, a little ignorant."

"[I suggest] you don’t listen to [Iranian President Mahmoud]
Ahmadinejad, it is impossible to preserve a whole nation on incitement
and hatred, the people will become tired of it," the president
continued.

"I see the suffering of the children and ask myself ? why? [Iran] is
such a rich country with such a rich culture, why do they allow a
handful of religious fanatics take the worst possible path, both in
the eyes of god and in the eyes of man?" Peres asked.

"I think that the Iranian people will topple these leaders," Peres
went on to say, "these leaders who don’t serve the people ? in the end
the people will realize that."

The president also addressed Ahmadinejad’s address at an international
conference questioning the Holocaust in 2006, saying "since when is he
an expert on the Holocaust of the Jews? Was he in Auschwitz? What does
he know? Every day he speaks and speaks? They are destroying their
people, but they won’t destroy us so fast. We’ve heard, over the 4,000
years of our existence, many speeches, many anti-Semites, many people
who wanted to destroy us – we survived and they didn’t."

EU OFFERS CLOSER TIES WITH FORMER SOVIET STATES

ng/2009/0320/breaking51.htm
Friday, March 20, 2009, 14:51

EU leaders said in a statement the union should provide total aid worth
â~B¬600 million until 2013 to the six, which also include Azerbaijan,
Armenia, Moldova and Belarus, and seek better cooperation with them
on energy supplies.

Diplomats said the aid under the EU’s Eastern Partnership scheme
for non-member states was approved despite attempts by some southern
European countries to prevent the aid figure being included in the
official summit declaration.

"We have been able to start the Eastern Partnership… That is a great
victory, not just for the countries themselves but for EU itself,"
said Czech foreign minister Karel Schwarzenberg, whose country holds
the EU’s presidency until the end of June..

The summit declaration offered vaguer prospects for easing visa
restrictions for citizens of the six countries than had been proposed
only weeks ago. The global economic crisis has made rich western
European countries wary of migrants and foreign workers and less
eager than before to promise easier travel arrangements.

Under the scheme, the EU is to negotiate new association agreements
– accords setting terms for cooperation with non-member states —
in reward for democratic and free-market reforms.

The plan envisages the gradual creation of a free trade zone with the
count ries. Of the â~B¬600 million aid, some â~B¬350 million will be
new funds for strengthening state institutions, border control and
assistance for small companies.

Although the scheme is modest and offers no prospect of EU membership,
it is likely to upset Russia because Moscow regards these countries
as part of its traditional sphere of influence, EU diplomats say.

Russia has also opposed efforts by Georgia and Ukraine to join Nato. EU
officials said adoption of the plan took on more urgency after Russia
fought a brief war with Georgia last August over South Ossetia.

The plan provides for closer cooperation on energy with the countries
as the EU looks for ways to diversify its energy supplies following
a price row between Russia and Ukraine which temporarily halted gas
supplies to Europe in January.

EU leaders are to hold summits every two years with their counterparts
from the six countries. The first will be in the Czech Republic in
May but it is unclear whether Belarus will be invited because of
questions over its democratic credentials.

France and southern EU members would prefer the EU to focus on
boosting ties with Mediterranean countries. The EU has created a
"Mediterranean Union" for this reason, diplomats say.

CLOSE DISCUSSIONS DO NOT LEAD TO TRUST
Hakob Badalyan

Lragir.am
12:15:03 – 19/03/2009

It is above all doubts that the second discussion on the financial
economic crisis convoked by the Armenian president Serge Sargsyan
and scheduled on March 20, will be represented by the governmental
propaganda machine as a dialogue, as it was done in case of the first
discussion on Nagorno-Karabakh issue. This circumstance is merely
a illusion, which has nothing in common with the political-social
dialogue of which necessity everyone states. The point is that what
is called a dialogue supposes publicity, but until now the public
does not have any idea of what the president and the party leaders
discussed last time on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.

We can be sure that no one will get aware of the details of the second
discussion concerning the financial economic crisis either. Perhaps,
this is what we need, as proceeding from the questions of national
security, our enemies must not know about the agreements of the
Armenian president and the party leaders. However, such kind of close
discussions are just impossible and they are out of any logic to be
considered a dialogue, sure if we admit that a dialogue should shape
an atmosphere of trust.

The problem is that the main component of the atmosphere of
confidence is the confidence of the public towards the situation
in the country. The authorities and the opposition may much trust
in each other, but we will be able to speak about a real atmosphere
of confidence only in case it will be deep-rooted among the public
too. What confidence among the public we speak about if such kind of
close discussion take place, even if they deal with topics of great
importance to the public. The public should be aware of the content
of the discussions in order to get filled up with confidence.

Moreover, the government and the parties participating in its meetings
have never mistrusted each other. For example, Khosrov Harutunyan or
Artahses Geghamyan has never reported to distrust the government; we
can state the same regarding any of those 50 parties participating in
the discussion on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. Gurgen Arsenyan seems to
have lost his trust a little, stating that the government has broken
the unbreakable, but this is not a big problem for the government,
at least for now.

So, the presidential meeting may be considered a conference of
confidents which changes nothing for those who have no confidence. Of
course, the government may blame those political forces which
reject the invitations to these meetings of not contributing to trust
shaping. The forces who do not accept the invitations are right in case
these discussions are not public, visible to everyone. If they accept,
they will acquire the image of a political trader, nothing more.

Steps towards a dialogue, which contain potentials for confidence,
may be regarded those which are visible and perceivable for the public
from both form and content points of view. For example, our TV channels
got used to broadcasting in live every fall of the leaves. Why the
government does not want to hold any live discussion. This may be
called a real step towards the dialogue, or a real step towards
shaping public confidence.

In the opposite case, they turn out to gather, let alone that these
parties have nothing in common with the public, discuss something
and then demand confidence from the public, and if the public does
not believe them, they start complaining of the capriciousness of the
public, saying that the government and they do their best for them,
and the conspired public, on the contrary, does not believe them.