Author: Torgomian Varazdat

NALBANDYAN MEETS WITH ARMENIAN COMMUNITY IN U.S.

Aysor.am
September 30

Armenian FM’s visit to NY was full of events and meetings with Armenian
organizations in U.S.

Thus, Archbishop Hazhak Parsamyan of the Right Bank Diocese of Armenian
Church in U.S. hosted a reception in Mr. Nalbandyan’s honor. During
the reception Mr. Nalbandyan has presented main items of Armenian
foreign policy and its ways of realization, detailing the settlement
of Armenian-Turkish relations and issue of Karabakh and has answered
Diaspora representatives’ questions.

At the meeting with President of the Armenian General Benevolent
Union Perch Sedrakian the Foreign Minister has discussed items of
Organization’s work in Armenia and Diaspora as well as programs of
humanitarian matters and of national identity conservation. The sides
shared views on Armenian-Turkish ties.

Mr. Edward Nalbandyan also has met with Border of Armenian Congress
in U.S. and discussed with them items of Armenian-U.S. ties, process
of negotiation with Turkey and last processes in settlement of
Karabakh item.

Foreign Minister also met with leader of the Kilikian Eparchy of
Armenian Apostolic Church, Archbishop Oshakan Choloyan.

JOINT ARF AND HERITAGE

os15317.html
14:23:14 – 28/09/2009

All those who see the dangers of the Armenian and Turkish protocols,
are against singing them, and want to prevent it have the problem to
unite their efforts during the forthcoming two weeks of discussion. The
head of the Heritage faction Stepan Safaryan expressed this opinion
on September 28.

In this connection, he informed that on the upcoming days, we will
witness ARF-Heritage joint actions and events which, according to
Stepan Safaryan, will enable them to be more effective in preventing
the singing of the protocols than in case of separate actions. Stepan
Safaryan notes it would be good if the Armenian National Congress
joins them.

As to what the Heritage will do if the protocols are signed, so the
Heritage like the ARF says that it did not discuss their actions
because the party is engaged in preventing the signature.

CLINTON MEETS WITH NALBANDIAN, CALLS HIS EFFORTS ‘DILIGENT, EFFECTIVE’

/28/clinton-meets-with-nalbandian-calls-his-effort s-diligent-effective/
September 28, 2009

NEW YORK (A.W.)-On Sept. 28, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met
with Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian at the Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel in New York. After the meeting, Clinton said, "I am very pleased
to have this opportunity to meet with the foreign minister. He and
I have talked on the phone. I have watched his very diligent and
effective efforts over the last months that I’ve had the privilege
of being the Secretary of State. And I want to reiterate our very
strong support for the normalization process that is going on between
Armenia and Turkey, which we have long said should take place without
preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe."

She added, "We will continue to work closely with the foreign minister
and, of course, with his president and the Government of Armenia. And
we also are very committed to the democratic development of Armenia. We
want to be a partner and a friend in increasing prosperity and economic
development as well. So this is a comprehensive relationship. We
are very focused on this challenge of normalization which Armenia
has demonstrated great commitment to, yet our relationship is much
broader and much deeper in addition to that."

POLL: 52,4% OF YEREVAN RESPONDENTS AGAINST SIGNING OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH PROTOCOLS

ArmInfo
2009-09-28 13:41:00

ArmInfo. The Armenian Sociological Association has conducted a poll
on a topic of normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations. The
poll was held on September 21-25 with participation of 1000 Yerevan
residents.

According to the poll results, 52,4% are against and 39,2%
– for signing of the Armenian- Turkish protocols. Moreover,
47,9% of respondents stand for and 40,9% oppose to opening of the
Armenian-Turkish border. According to the Association, the poll was
conducted in Yerevan only, and its results in the republic may differ.

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email. [email protected]
Internet

PRESS RELEASE

September 28, 2009
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR DODGES CONGRESSIONAL CALL ON PRESIDENT TO
HONOR PLEDGE TO RECOGNIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

— James Jones Cites Protocols, Ignores President’s Promise

WASHINGTON, DC – President Barack Obama’s National Security Advisor
James L. Jones, in a letter sent recently to a bipartisan group of
82 U.S. Representatives, failed to meaningfully respond to the
specific concerns raised by these legislators with the President
regarding Turkey’s ongoing efforts to block U.S. recognition of the
Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National Committee of
America (ANCA).

The letter from Jones, dated September 17, 2009, sidestepped
concerns regarding Turkey’s backtracking from the commitments it
has made as part of its discussions with Armenia, and, most
notably, Ankara’s use of this dialogue to serve its longstanding
interest in preventing Presidential commemoration and condemnation
of the Armenian Genocide. In his letter, Jones used the very
evasive and euphemistic terminology, in the place of an honest and
straightforward recognition of this genocidal crime, that President
Obama powerfully condemned as "inexcusable" while a U.S. Senator
and Presidential candidate.

On July 30th of this year, 82 members of the U.S. House shared
their concerns with President Obama about Turkey’s efforts to
manipulate the public perception of its dialogue with Armenia to
block U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide. The legislators
stressed in their letter, that, in light of Turkey backtracking
from its commitments, it was especially important for the President
to honor his campaign pledge to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

"It would appear that Turkey, in an effort to block U.S.
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, agreed to a roadmap it did
not intend to uphold," explained the legislators in their July 2009
letter. "Therefore, we urge your Administration to separate the
issues of normalization and genocide recognition. We hope that
renewed efforts and focused resources from the Administration can
be utilized to nurture the Armenia-Turkey normalization process
without preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe, and
continue to remain strongly supportive of your stated campaign
policy to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide."

The Congressional letter was initiated by Representatives Frank
Pallone (D-NJ) and Mark Kirk (R-IL), who co-chair the Armenian
Caucus, and Adam Schiff (D-CA) and George Radanovich (D-CA), the
lead authors of the Armenian Genocide Resolution, H.Res.252.
Joining them as co-signers were Representatives: Gary Ackerman (D-
NY), Joe Baca (D-CA), Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Shelley Berkley (D-
NV), Howard Berman (D-CA), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Bruce Braley, (D-
IA), John Campbell, (R-CA), Lois Capps (D-CA), Michael Capuano (D-
MA), Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Jerry Costello (D-
IL), Joe Courtney (D-CT), Joseph Crowley (D-NY), Peter DeFazio (D-
OR), Steve Driehaus (D-OH), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Chaka Fattah (D-PA),
Bob Filner (D-CA), Barney Frank (D-MA), Elton Gallegly (R-CA),
Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY),
Rush Holt (D-NJ), Michael Honda (D-CA), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL),
Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), Dale Kildee (D-MI), Leonard Lance (R-NJ),
James Langevin (D-RI) Barbara Lee (D-CA), Sander Levin (D-MI),
Daniel Lipinski (D-IL), Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) Daniel Lungren (R-
CA). Stephen Lynch (D-CA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Edward Markey
(D-MA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), James
McGovern (D-MA) Jerry McNerney (D-CA), Candice Miller (R-MI), Walt
Minnick (D-ID), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Richard Neal (D-CA), Devin
Nunes (R-CA), John Olver (D-MA) Payne, Donald (D-NJ), Gary Peters
(D-MI), Collin Peterson (D-MN), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Peter Roskam
(R-IL), Steven Rothman (D-NJ), Edward Royce (R-CA), Bobby Rush (D-
IL) Paul Ryan (R-WI), Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), John Sarbanes (D-MD)
James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Chris Smith (R-
NJ), Mark Souder (R-IN), Zack Space (D-OH), Jackie Speier (D-CA),
John Tierney (D-MA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Paul Tonko (D-NY), Niki
Tsongas (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tim Walz (D-MN), Henry
Waxman (D-CA), Anthony Weiner (D-NY), Frank Wolf (R-VA), and Lynn
Woolsey (D-CA).

The full text of the letter from James Jones to President Obama
follows.

#####

THE WHITE HOUSE

WASHINGTON

September 17, 2009

Dear Representative________:

Thank you for your July 30 letter to the President regarding the
normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey following
their April 22nd announcement of an agreed framework and roadmap.
We agree that the Armenia-Turkey normalization process, which has
important benefits for both sides, should move forward without
preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe. Toward this end,
we are actively engaged at the highest levels to support full
restoration of relations between Turkey and Armenia. On August 31,
the U.S. warmly welcomed the joint statement made by Turkey and
Armenia, with Swiss participation, outlining further steps in the
normalization of their bilateral relations.

Thank you also for your restatement of your position on the
massacres of 1915, which the President has described as one of the
great atrocities of the 20th century. As he said in his
Remembrance Day message, his view of that history has not changed.
Our interest remains the achievement of a full, frank and just
acknowledgment of the facts. We continue to believe the best way
to advance that goal is for the Armenian and Turkish people to
address the facts of the past as part of their efforts to move
forward. We will continue to pursue these efforts vigorously in
the months ahead.

Sincerely,

[signed]

General James L. Jones, USMC, Ret.
National Security Advisor

Turkey, Armenia to restore ties

Story from BBC NEWS:
europe/8277835.stm

Published: 2009/09/27 20:57:49 GMT

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said his country will
sign a deal to establish diplomatic relations with Armenia on 10
October.

Mr Erdogan said the deal would still need parliamentary approval in
Turkey and Armenia after being signed by their foreign ministers.

The two countries remain deeply divided over the fate Armenians
suffered under Turkish Ottoman rule.

A roadmap for normalising relations between them was agreed in April.

Anticipation of a diplomatic breakthrough had been growing ahead of a
planned visit by Armenian President Serge Sarkisian to Turkey on 14
October.

He is due to attend the return leg of a World Cup qualifying football
match between the two countries.

Turkey has resisted widespread calls for it to recognise the mass
killing of Armenians during World War I as an act of genocide.

Armenia says 1.5 million people died. Turkey insists it was not
genocide and that that figure is inflated.

Died on the road

ent
01:46 pm | September 24, 2009 | society

A car accident took place on the 62nd kilometer section of the
Yerevan-Ijevan highway at 8:27 p.m. yesterday.

In circumstances that are still unclear, the "BMW" car with the state
license 11 US 789 curved off the road.

Before firefighting rescuers made it to the scene, the locals brought
out resident of the Kotayk village of the Kotayk Marz Vartan
Harutyunyan (born in 1969) out of the car. He died on the road to the
hospital.
Firefighting rescuers extinguished the engine and washed the asphalt.

ACTIVISTS PURSUE GENOCIDE PAYMENT
By Zain Shauk

Glendale News Press
September 23, 2009

Armenian activists believe they can sway a split 3-judge appellate
panel to collect insurance.

Published: Last Updated Wednesday, September 23, 2009 10:02 PM PDT
SOUTH GLENDALE — Armenian activists insisted Wednesday that a recent
federal appeals court ruling would not stop them from seeking payments
from life insurance companies on the policies of those killed in the
Armenian Genocide.

Representatives from the Armenian National Committee and Armenian Youth
Federation, among other groups, assured attendees during a town hall
meeting at St. Mary’s Apostolic Church that the lawsuit’s plaintiffs,
which number in the thousands, would win a favorable decision from
the court as the group fights a recent legal hurdle.

The group’s goal is to sway a split three-judge appellate panel,
attorney Mark Geragos said.

"We’re hoping it just takes one vote," he said of plans for an appeal.

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Aug. 20 that descendants
of Armenian Genocide victims could not request payment from insurance
companies, despite a state law that allowed them to do so, because
it would interfere with U.S. foreign policy.

"The federal government has made a conscious decision not to apply
the politically charged label of ‘genocide’ to the deaths of these
Armenians during World War I," said Judge David R. Thompson, who wrote
the majority opinion in the ruling. "Whether or not California agrees
with this decision, it may not contradict it."

That logic, agreed to by two of the three judges on the appellate
panel, drew harsh criticism not only from town hall attendees, but also
from Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, who has written legislation to push
for national acknowledgment of the genocide and, as an state senator,
co-wrote California’s law allowing the descendants of genocide victims
to claim insurance benefits.

"The problem with that is that there is no federal policy against
genocide recognition and there has ne s week to reconsider its ruling.

Congress has considered three resolutions in the last decade that would
have paved the way for official recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

But the White House has worked to kill each effort, fearing they
would damage relations with Turkey, which denies a genocide took place.

The U.S. government currently has no official position on the mass
killings of 1.5 million Armenians that occurred between 1915 and 1923
in Ottoman Turkey.

"I think when they examine the record more closely, they’ll realize
that the court made a poor judgment, not based on the facts or the
law," Schiff said.

Lawsuits from genocide victims have yielded a combined total of $37
million in settlements from two firms, New York Life Insurance Co. in
2004 and AXA S.A. in 2005.

Glendale priest Vazken Movsesian, of St. Peter Armenian Church, filed a
case six years ago seeking a settlement of claims under policies issued
by German insurers Victoria Versicherung and Ergo Versicherungsgruppe,
as well as parent company Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG.

Thousands of Armenians whose relatives were genocide victims also
joined in the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs scored a partial victory two years ago when
U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder said the law passed in 2000 by
the California Legislature gave the descendants standing to sue. But
that ruling was overturned by the appellate court.

Town hall organizers hoped their forum would give stakeholders
confidence despite the recent court ruling, said Zanku Armenian,
chairman of the Armenian National Committee Glendale chapter.

"It’s a legal matter that often times [includes] complicated matters
and so it’s important to get the community to understand both what
transpired, what the implications of the court decisions are, as well
as what the potential avenues for them are, in terms of appeals,"
Armenian said.

Representatives for Shant Student Assn. and the Armenian Bar
Assn. participated in the town hall discussion, bringing more than
100 pe ys.

An overwhelming majority of those in the audience had no direct ties
to the outcome of the case, but were interested nonetheless, they said.

The court’s ruling to block the push for a settlement on insurance
claims was unfair because a law was in place to allow similar suits,
La Crescenta resident Caroline Tashejian said.

"Taking it back, it pushes us further back, in terms of progressing
our cause," she said.

Sylvia Natalie Manoogian, of Los Angeles, had benefited from the New
York Life settlement and came to learn more about what she said was
an unfortunate appellate court ruling.

Her family, which received $20,000 in the New York Life settlement,
claims to own property within modern Turkey’s borders, but has not
been able to secure it.

She saw the battle for life insurance claims and genocide recognition
first hand, she said.

"The more information I have, the more it gives me tools and means
[for moving forward]," she said.

MASSAVETAS TRIES TO FIND WHAT’S GONE IN ‘A CITY OF ABSENCES’

Today’s Zaman
24 September 2009, Thursday

A view from Istanbul’s Tarlabasi neighborhood.

Alexandros Massavetas suggests taking a walk in Tarlabasi. Tumbling
down from just below the British Consulate in Beyoglu and landing on
the doorstep of Bilgi University’s Dolapdere campus, Tarlabai’s steep
hills and rows of narrow, three-story buildings are home to Kurds,
Roma, some Africans and enough Arabs to make it good business sense
for one shop to advertise the price of baguettes in handwritten Arabic

Many of the transvestites who work in Beyoglu also live in Tarlabai. A
woman sitting on the curb is separating wool into a plastic
bowl. Streams of men head for the mosque for Friday prayers. Stoned
huffers crowd a side street. Friendly taxi-drivers offer directions
to the Adam Mickiewicz Museum. Lots of kids play in the streets. At
the tea and börek shop, the only table is taken, but the local man
enjoying his tea clears out and insists the foreigners sit. These days,
Tarlabasi is a poor neighborhood; it has a reputation for crime and
is at risk of gentrification.

One hundred years ago, it was Greeks and Armenians who tramped
up and down the slopes of Tarlabasi. After generations of calling
Istanbul home, the 20th century saw most of them off, forced out by
politics. "Though you can’t find Jews, Greeks, Armenians or Russians
to speak to in every corner, you can, in almost every corner, find
their memories," says Massavetas. Only a few steps inside Tarlabasi,
Massavetas has already spotted a Greek engraving preserving the name
of a home’s architect. At the bottom of the hill, the facade of a
red-brick hamam is decorated with Greek, Armenian and Ottoman plaques;
each reads, in its own language: "Baths of the Constitution 1911."

Massavetas, a 33-year-old Greek journalist, is an expert on the
history of cosmopolitan Istanbul. He is the author of "Going Back
to Constantinople — Istanbul: A City of Absences." He was rrived
in Istanbul after deciding to "flee" a career in law, and though he
didn’t have sensational memories of his first visit to Istanbul as
a young tourist under the lignite fumes in the mid-1980s, Massavetas
says he was "shocked" when he returned in 2000. Since then, he says,
he’s been obsessed and in love with Istanbul. Comfortable between
cultures, Massavetas, who speaks 10 languages, says, "I’m more able
to relate to the late Ottoman time and to districts like Pera [today’s
Beyoglu], which was a Babel of people, languages and customs."

Time travel

"I wanted to talk about Istanbul and its cosmopolitan past, which
doesn’t only include the Greeks … [and] convey my sense of amazement
at the memories of Istanbul," says Massavetas, explaining why he wrote
his book. Though the old minority communities are now a fraction of
their previous numbers, "you have their heritage still dominating
over the city," he says. "I just wanted to preserve the memory of
cosmopolitanism."

The book is about "how you can reach the people who are absent." To
make contact, Massavetas studied Benjamin of Tudela’s account of his
visit to Constantinople in the 12th century; he researched medieval
Russian travelogues; he mined the mountain of 19th century travel
literature. Massavetas learned of the White Russian refugees, of the
Sabbateans and of the Bulgarians who once monopolized the milk trade.

"This is what I found most charming about late Ottoman Istanbul,
that it was such a mosaic of all these people — some of them
very integrated into their communities … and others who were in
between, with one foot here, the other there, the Levantines being
an example." The Levantines are Mediterranean Europeans who settled
in stanbul for centuries. "European historians, in a sort of very
cheesy way, [have] written about this ‘beautiful co-existence’
and tolerance — it’s a bit exaggerated," says Massavetas. "It’s
exaggerated to speak about this brotherhood and coexistence being
so idyllic, ple existed together. And I found that very interesting,
having been brought up in such a homogeneous country as Greece."

Ministry to memories

At midday, the white sun melts the discrete shapes of the Tarlabasi
skyline into shimmers. Trying to photograph the dome and vault of
St. Constantine’s church becomes futile.

An hour earlier, as if Massavetas’ Greek greeting had been a
shibboleth, the gate of St. Constantine’s was opened for us, and
we were welcomed into the courtyard. Mesmerizing and spooky, the
church is kept immaculate and airy for a congregation that doesn’t
exist. But nothing in the church suggests closure. No dust. The metals
shine. Everything is ready. It feels like everyone has either just
left moments ago, or is set to arrive. But this is not the case.

Tarlabasi’s Greeks, like Istanbul’s, like Turkey’s, are almost all
gone. In 1923, the peace treaty between Greece and the new Turkish
Republic required "population exchange." Half a million Muslims in
Greece and 1.5 million Greek Orthodox people in Turkey were forced
to emigrate. The Orthodox of stanbul were permitted to stay, but the
so-called "wealth tax" of 1942 and the pogrom of 1955 forced many
to leave.

"We are told in Greece about the September 1955 events, evictions,
and that people were subject to a constant intimidation. 1955 was
the most hysterical expression of something that was there from the
foundation of the republic until very recently. … Although nobody
would phrase it this way, I think that only a Jew would understand
the situation who had experienced being Jewish in Europe in the 1930s."

Today there are perhaps 5,000 Greeks in Istanbul. "They hang on to
the city with great determination," says Massavetas. "And they felt
when there was a community; [that] they were the real owners of the
place … A lot of people felt like that — because it’s their city
and their culture. The local community has always defined themselves
as Constantinopolitan first and foremost, and then Greek. They felt
very s eeks were so insistent in staying in Istanbul that even 1955
did not succeed in wiping the community out."

"There are different kinds of responses," he says, speaking of how
Greeks now view this history. "You can never generalize different ways
of dealing with it. [You could] become very nationalist and aggressive,
or become very open-minded and see yourself as part of all this mess
of the 20th century. … We always think in Greece of us being a
nation of refugees, coming over from Asia Minor or wherever, but it

is also true here."

REAL ESTATE RATES REDUCED BY 19% IN YEREVAN

News.am
19:13 / 09/24/2009

The average prices for real estate decreased in Riga — by 53%,
Tbilisi — 42%, Kiev — 39% in September 2008-2009. The least fall
in prices was recorded in Bishkek — 16%, Yerevan -19% and Chisinau
— 21%, the statistics on price-level changes in 15 ex-Soviet Union
capitals by GED Analytics center says.

Various price changes in these cities are conditioned by both local
political and economic factors beyond the global crisis. For instance,
price slash in Georgia last year is connected with the August 2008 war,
implicit economic blockade by north neighbor and attendant economic
and investment losses.

In Moscow and Baku price slash is conditioned by one-sided economy
of Russia and Azerbaijan, as demand for raw materials produced in
these countries has dramatically declined in the world market. These
countries had to be followed by Turkmenistan, however the real estate
market in this limited Central Asian country develops in peculiar
oriental rules.

The least price cut is registered in relatively poor and decent
Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Moldova. Here the price "bubble" was not that
much soared at the expense of petrodollars surplus and needlessly
optimistic investors. In addition, their economy did not depress that
much. One of the main reasons for price reduction was lowered wages
of the citizens working in Russia.

As of September 2009, the lowest prices for real estate are registered
in Tashkent and Dushanbe (U.S. $ 500/m2). In Tbilisi 1 m2 totals
U.S. $ 550, having the Moscow registering the max of U.S. $4500/ m2,
followed by Kiev — U.S. $ 1750/ m2 and Almaty with U.S. $ 1550/ m2.