Author: Vardanian Garo

Chanticleer offers tonic for the soul
By Richard Scheinin

San Jose Mercury News , CA
Dec 20 2004

CENTURIES OF CHRISTMAS MUSIC CELEBRATED

Going to hear Chanticleer is a ritual at this time of year. You go
to slow down, to be still, to luxuriate in the purity of the sound
of the 12-member men’s choral group from San Francisco.

Friday night’s “A Chanticleer Christmas” at Mission Santa Clara was
musical shiatsu, deep spiritual massage. From the ensemble’s entrance,
one man at a time, each holding a candle in the darkened church,
singing 15th-century plainsong from a French abbey, to its final
medley of African-American gospel and spiritual Christmas tunes,
this was a time to let out a sigh, enjoy, shake off all stress.

Quite a gift.

Despite numerous cast changes over the past year or two, Chanticleer,
under the direction of Joseph Jennings, just doesn’t falter. Its
delivery of the most complex polyphony is at once buttery smooth
and deeply felt. There were many moments in Friday’s program —
also performed last week in Petaluma, where it was recorded for
broadcast on National Public Radio — when Chanticleer sounded like
12 supplicant Beach Boys, singing the equivalent of “Help Me, God,”
instead of “Help Me, Rhonda.”

This was a seamless program, perfect for radio: “The telling of the
Christmas story through a thousand years of music,” is how alto Jesse
Antin described it at the first of two concerts at the Mission.

The 15th-century plainsong, sung by four members of the chorus,
blossomed into the simultaneous singing, by three “quartets” within the
group, of three celebratory Christmas works spanning eight centuries —
a gorgeous tangling and untangling web of voices.

Next came “Bazmutyunq,” an early 20th-century reflection on Jesus
by Komitas, the Armenian monk and musician who composed in his
country’s “true” liturgical style. His work was rooted in a drone,
with melismatic adornments hovering, then many voices circling and
interweaving; Chanticleer’s sound was a physical presence in the
still-dark church.

The lights came on for 16th-century works from Prague and then Spain,
richly contrapuntal, and a 15th-century “Nowell” from England, grittier
and chant-like. The tour continued with joyous mutterings of Estonian
Arvo Part; a long, shimmering work by the Russian Cesar Antonovich Cui;
and more glorious supplications from Britain’s Benjamin Britten.

Saved for last were carols and the gospel and spiritual numbers, which
gave soloists a chance to embellish and “preach.” Everyone resounded,
but two singers deserved special praise: Soprano Dylan Hostetter, a
new member, has a voice that poured through the church like balm all
evening, and veteran bass Eric Alatorre sang with driving precision,
buzzing like a boombox and rooting the whole ensemble.

Georgia’s policymakers finish training course
Nine graduates focus on public sector reform
By Mary Makharashvili

The Messenger, Georgia
Dec 17 2004

The graduation ceremony of the first nine trainees to pass the
one-year Public Policy Knowledge Network (PPKN) training program was
held on Thursday at the Tbilisi Marriott.

The program is part of a four-year project organized by the Georgian
Foundation for Strategic and International Studies (GFSIS) and the
Canadian Bureau for International Education, and financially
supported from the Canadian International Development Agency.

The training is focused on public sector reform and is specifically
concerned with public policy capacity building within the government
of Georgia

More specifically, the project trains officials to deliver practical
assistance, that is, policy analysis, on issues of importance to
government ministries. At the same time, it aims to build public
policy curricula within the major public administration schools of
Georgia.

The curriculum involves specific training in modern academic and
governmental practices of public policy, economics, and
transition-oriented training in public administration.

“This program is very important, because it increases analytical and
managerial abilities, which is very important for the state service.
An understanding of modern management styles in the state sector is
very necessary,” President of GFSIS Alexander Rondeli said in an
interview with The Messenger.

“State service is not paid proper attention. Very often people who
cannot find any other job are employed in the state service. But over
time this should change. Now the state service is becoming smaller
and that is why it should be more effective,” he said.

According to him, the continual changes in the state administration
is a clear sign that Georgia needs better staff.

The nine employees from five state structures, including the
ministries of foreign affairs and economic development began the
one-year training course conducted by foreign experts in October
2003.

“The year-long training held at GFSIS has been very profitable for
me. I learned a lot of interesting things that will be useful for my
future carrier,” said training participant Maia Kurdgelashvili from
the Ministry of Economic Development.

In the current 2004-2005 academic year, Rondeli says 34 officials are
participating in the course. They will be followed by two more years
of trainees before the project ends in spring 2007.

Rondeli says that trainees are chosen who have much to offer and are
considered by their ministries to be future planners and implementers
of strategic policy-making. “It is strategic thinking that is most
lacked by Georgian state employees,” Rondeli says.

Georgia is not the only country in which the Canadian International
Development Agency is implementing this project. It is also
successfully active in Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Sydney Morning Herald , Australia
Dec 17 2004

Fenech backing Darchinyan
December 17, 2004

Vic Darchinyan intends to “destroy” International Boxing Federation
flyweight champion Irene Pacheco in their world-title bout today.

Darchinyan enters the ring at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
in Tampa, Florida, this afternoon (Sydney time) a few hours before
Shannan Taylor fights Thai Sakda Sorpakdi for the lightly-rated World
Boxing Foundation super-middleweight title.

Darchinyan, 28, who relocated to Australia after representing Armenia
at the 2000 Olympics, has won all 21 of his professional bouts, 16 by
knockout. Colombian Pacheco, 33, is unbeaten in 30 fights, with 23
KOs. He has held the title for over five years but has not fought for
15 months.

“I’m confident, I know I will win this fight, my time has come,”
Darchinyan said from Florida. “I know I must destroy him.”

Trainer Jeff Fenech believes the hard-punching Darchinyan charge
could score an early KO.

“I think if Vic gets in the right position to end it, the fight could
be over pretty early because of his power,” Fenech said. “[But] if it
was the worst day he ever had, Vic would still be throwing punches at
the end, he’s that kind of fighter. I know Vic will die just to win
the fight, he’s prepared to be carried out of there.”

Meanwhile, Taylor hopes to use tonight’s bout at the Royal Pines
Resort on the Gold Coast as a “battery charge” for his mooted
challenge to IBF junior-middleweight champion Kassim Ouma.

The 32-year-old will start a strong favourite to defeat Sorpakdi, who
is more accustomed to fighting in a far lighter division, with Taylor
saying he was keen to win a world title of any type before the end of
this year.

OFFICE OF THE NAGORNO KARABAKH REPUBLIC IN THE USA
122 C Street, NW, Suite 360, Washington, DC 20001
Tel: (202) 347-5166
Fax: (202) 347-5168
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site:

PRESS RELEASE
December 16, 2004

MASSACHUSSETTS STATE ASSEMBLY WELCOMES PRESIDENT GHOUKASIAN
Reps. Koutoujian and Kaprielian initiate a pioneer resolution in
recognition of Artsakh’s achievements

WASHINGTON, DC – On the first day of President Arkady Ghoukasian’s visit
to the United States last month, the Massachusetts State Assembly
adopted a resolution in support of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic
(Artsakh), honoring the NKR President.

The resolution was presented to President Ghoukasian on November 13,
2004 by State House members Peter Koutoujian and Rachel Kaprielian
during a public event at the Armenian Library and Museum in Watertown,
Massachusetts, organized by the Armenia Fund USA, Inc.

“We feel strongly about supporting Artsakh and recognizing its
achievements in democracy building and economic development. It goes
without saying that the freedom-loving people of Artsakh deserve a
continued and stronger American support,” said Koutoujian and
Kaprielian.

Proposed by Representatives Peter Koutoujian and Rachel Kaprielian and
signed by Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, the resolution is a first-ever
legislation passed by any U.S. state in recognition of Nagorno Karabakh
Republic’s achievements in democracy building, economic development and
contribution to regional stability.

“I thank Speaker DiMasi and State Representatives Koutoujian and
Kaprielian for their support. This resolution is a very important
statement of recognition for Artsakh. We deeply appreciate Koutoujian’s
and Kaprielian’s leadership in spearheading this effort to raise greater
awareness of Artsakh in the State of Massachusetts and the United States
in general,” said Vardan Barseghian, Nagorno Karabakh’s Representative
in the United States.

The Office of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in the United States is
based in Washington, DC and works with the U.S. government, academia and
the public representing the official policies and interests of the
Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

* * *
The full text of the resolution appears below.

HONORING THE PRESIDENT OF THE NAGORNO KARABAKH REPUBLIC (ARTSAKH) H.E.
ARKADY GHOUKASIAN.

WHEREAS, We welcome the President of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic
(Artsakh) H.E. Arkady Ghoukasian’s visit to the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts; and

WHEREAS, For over 16 years the brave people of Karabakh have been
successful in defending their land and their freedom and now they are
building a democratic state; and

WHEREAS, Since the cease-fire agreement (May of 1994) among Azerbaijan,
Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, Karabakh has made a serious progress in
recovering from devastating consequences of Azerbaijani military
aggression; and

WHEREAS, We support the position of the Nagorno Karabakh people and
government to reach a comprehensive and long lasting resolution of the
conflict with Azerbaijan through peaceful negotiations, reflecting the
will of the people of Karabakh to live in freedom; and

WHEREAS, We support initiatives aimed at building trust among the
parties to the conflict, especially between Azerbaijan and Nagorno
Karabakh; and

WHEREAS, Democratic and economic reforms undertaken in Karabakh have
built a foundation for strengthening democratic institutions and a
continued economic development; Karabakh was able to create favorable
conditions for direct foreign investments; and

WHEREAS, Understanding the importance of modern road infrastructure for
further economic development of Karabakh, the State House encourages
active participation of Armenian-Americans in the upcoming Armenia Fund
Telethon for the completion of the North-South Highway in Karabakh;
therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the Massachusetts house of representatives JOINS IN
WELCOMING THE PRESIDENT OF THE NAGORNO KARABAKH REPUBLIC (ARTSAKH) H.E.
ARKADY GHOUKASIAN with which We share the universal values of freedom,
democracy and justice WHICH create a strong foundation for continued and
expanded friendship between the peoples of the United States and
Artsakh; and be it further

RESOLVED, that a copy of these resolutions be forwarded by the Clerk of
the House of Representatives to the President of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic (Artsakh) H.E. Arkady Ghoukasian.

Signed by Speaker Salvatore DiMasi
November 12, 2004

* * *

This material is distributed by the Office of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic in the USA on behalf of the Government of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic. The NKR Office is registered with the U.S. Government under
the Foreign Agent Registration Act. Additional information is available
at the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.

Associated Press Worldstream
December 15, 2004 Wednesday

U.N. food program to halt food aid for Azeri refugees displaced by
war with Armenia

AIDA SULTANOVA; Associated Press Writer

BAKU, Azerbaijan

The World Food Program said Wednesday that it will halt food aid to
nearly 140,000 Azeri refugees displaced by the 1990s conflict with
Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh enclave by January if the
U.N. agency does not receive more assistance.

WFP country director Rahman Chowdhury said the agency had halved
rations for refugees last month in an effort to stretch food stocks.
The WFP faces a US$10 million ([euro]7.5 million) shortfall this
year, he said, in part due to higher retail prices and rising
gasoline and natural gas prices.

He said only the food aid for 5,300 primary children would continue,
though on a limited basis.

“Most of the displaced are so poor they don’t have the means to buy
food,” Chowdhury said in a statement. “It’s a dreadful situation,
especially in the winter.”

Refugee rights activists said the decision was horrible. Vugar
Gadirov, who heads an Azeri organization looking after the needs of
refugees, said the WFP decision would be a “humanitarian
catastrophe.”

“Ending the aid is a harsh blow for these people, many of whom live
in the very worst conditions in tent camps, camps that don’t have any
amenities for living,” Gadirov said.

Government officials declined to comment on the WFP decision.

Most of the displaced live in western regions of Azerbaijan, not far
from Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, which ethnic Armenian forces seized
after several years of war in the early 1990s.

A cease-fire was signed in 1994, after 30,000 people were killed and
about 1 million were left homeless.

No agreement has been reached on the territory’s final status, and
the two countries have tense relations.

KurdishMedia, UK
Dec 15 2004

Turks grapple with minority taboo as EU imposes change

15/12/2004 AFP
ANKARA, Dec 15 (AFP) – Are Turkey’s Christians and Muslims equal? Are
non-Sunni Turks a minority? European Union demands on minority
freedoms have struck at the heart of a taboo on Turkey’s national
identity, forcing the country to grapple with fears and prejudices
rooted deep in its history.

Hrant Dink recalls his childhood days when his mother, wary of
hostility, warned him to neither call her “mama” in the street nor to
speak in their native Armenian.

“Turkey perceives minorities as a threat… a security problem,” the
Istanbul-based publisher said.

Lying beneath the mistrust is the traumatic experience of World War I
when Greeks and Armenians sided with the Allies invading the decaying
Ottoman Empire and sealed its dissolution.

For many Turks today, the mere discussion of minority freedoms is a
recipe for national fragmentation.

Unwritten rules bar the country’s 130,000 or so non-Muslims from
senior public posts and school books still portray them as
unreliable.

Ankara today officially recognizes only Armenians, Greeks and Jews as
minorities, a concept based on modern Turkey’s founding document, the
1923 Lausanne Treaty, which envisaged special protection for
non-Muslims.

Citing the treaty, Ankara for decades rejected even the existence of
its sizeable Kurdish community, and only recently granted it cultural
freedoms, under EU pressure.

What was long shoved under the carpet is now coming into heated
debate, fueled by EU criticism over the treatment of minorities and a
report by a local human rights body, which said Turkey lacks any
sense of multiculturalism and described as “paranoia” its mistrust of
minorities.

The government, the president and the influential army all responded
with hostility, and hardline nationalists held protests.

Another group coming out for its rights despite the tensions is the
Alevi or Alawite community, a distant relative of Shiite Islam, which
follows a moderate interpretation of the Muslim faith, friendly to
secularism and gender equality.

Although they form about a quarter of the 70-million population and
their religious practices differ significantly from those of the
Sunni majority, Alevis are denied the status of a separate sect and,
unlike the Sunnis, receive no financial support from the government.

The EU has urged Ankara to grant the Alevis minority status, sparking
a wave of criticism that Brussels is aiming to foment divisions even
between Turkey’s Muslim population.

“We do not ask for special minority rights. We just want to be
equal,” said Izzettin Dogan, chairman of the Cem Foundation, a
leading Alevi grouping. “The EU process will bring us benefits. The
EU has certain standards on freedom of faith and Turkey must abide by
them.”

Alevis are already campaigning to have their religious identity
inscribed on their ID cards and for their faith to be included in
school books, which currently teach only the Sunni religion.

Prejudices against the Alevis stem not only from bloody sectarian
clashes throughout history, but also from the Cold War, during which
NATO-member Turkey tended to see them as potential allies of
Communism because of their traditional left-leaning stance.

EU opponents say Turkey’s efforts to align with the democracy norms
of the European bloc is pushing the country to the brink of break-up.

“Fulfilling EU demands would spell an end to Turkey’s unitarian
structure,” said Mehmet Sandir, a far-right politician. “Eventually,
we would get at each other’s throats.”

Dink, however, believes that the tensions are the birth pangs of
eventual reconciliation.

“I find the debates very helpful. A taboo is being destroyed,” he
said. “The more we speak, the more we get used to it and attitudes
soften.”

Foreign minister rules out Ukrainian scenario in Armenia

Arminfo, Yerevan
14 Dec 04

YEREVAN

The example of Ukraine must put an end to the Armenian opposition’s
claims, Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan told a news
conference in Yerevan today.

The minister said that many international organizations did not
recognize the Ukrainian elections, which means that if the elections
in Armenia had not reflected the reality, the same international
organizations would have said that without reservation. But since no
such statements were made, the Armenian opposition’s claims are
illegitimate, the foreign minister said.

Asked whether the Armenian authorities’ decision to congratulate
Viktor Yanukovych on his election as president was hasty, the minister
pointed to the decision of the Ukrainian Central Electoral Commission
and regarded the congratulation as a perfectly normal move.

The minister added that there is no reason to worry that the Ukrainian
scenario may be repeated in Armenia because all countries have their
own peculiarities. Also, the minister said that the situation in
Armenia is not similar to that in Ukraine and that Armenia is simply
not ready for such a turn of events. Therefore, the minister said the
concerns that the Ukrainian or Georgian scenario may repeat itself in
Armenia are unfounded.

ANSA Notiziario Generale in Italiano
14 Dic 2004

UE: TURCHIA; BARNIER, FRANCIA PORRA’ QUESTIONE ARMENA ;
(V. “UE: TURCHIA, BARNIER…” DELLE 8:57)

PARIGI

(ANSA) – PARIGI, 14 DIC – La Francia porra’ “tutte le
questioni, e in particolare quella del genocidio del popolo
armeno” del 1915, al momento dei negoziati di adesione della
Turchia all’ Unione europea. Lo ha dichiarato oggi il ministro
degli esteri, Michel Barnier, all’ Assemblea nazionale.

Proprio stamani alcuni quotidiani francesi hanno pubblicato
una lettera aperta al capo dello stato Jacques Chirac – e
sostenuta da diversi partiti e comitati del popolo armeno – in
cui si sostiene che “la Turchia non e’ pronta ed e’ lontana
dagli standards europei”.

“90 anni dopo – e’ scritto ancora nella lettera – la Turchia
non ha ancora riconosciuto questo fatto ed orchestra una
campagna di negazione del genocidio armeno”. (ANSA).

Associated Press Worldstream
December 12, 2004 Sunday 1:19 PM Eastern Time

French politicians oppose Turkey’s EU membership

PARIS

France’s centrist leader said in an interview published Sunday that
Turkey has shown repeatedly that it is not part of Europe, while a
right-wing politician urged voters to reject the European Union
constitution to keep Turkey out.

Turkey “does not belong to Europe, and shows that in multiple ways,”
said Francois Bayrou, head of the centrist Union for French
Democracy, in the Le Journal du Dimanche newspaper.

It “militarily occupies Cyprus, a European state, and refuses to
recognize it,” Bayrou told the weekly paper. “It (opposes) any
recognition of the Armenian genocide, maintains practices that hurt
the status of women.”

The remarks came days before European leaders are to decide whether
to open negotiations with Ankara.

Right-wing politician Philippe de Villiers told Radio J that a “no”
vote in France’s planned referendum on the European Constitution
would be useful in helping to prevent Turkey’s membership.

It would be a “vote of precaution for those who don’t want Turkey” in
the EU. If the EU constitution is defeated, he said, “that will level
everything.”

The French political class is deeply divided over the question of the
admission of poor, majority-Muslim Turkey to the EU, which currently
has 25 members.

EU leaders are to meet Thursday and Friday to decide on opening
membership talks with Ankara.

President Jacques Chirac supports Turkey’s EU membership, while Prime
Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, a centrist, is skeptical and Chirac’s
party, the Union for a Popular Movement, is opposed.

Chirac has warned against politicians’ mixing the referendum and
Turkey’s membership.

“These are two problems that have nothing to do with each other,” he
said recently.

The referendum is to be held likely in the final six months of next
year.

Chirac has said that French citizens also will have the “final word”
on Turkey’s entrance through a referendum when the time comes – and
if EU leaders agree to start membership talks.

ArmenPress
Dec 9 2004

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT UNDECIDED OVER SENDING TROOPS TO IRAQ

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS: Grigor Ghonjeyan from the United
Labor Party’s parliamentary faction was the only parliament deputy
who said openly their faction welcomes the decision on sending a
non-combat contingent to Iraq, saying the faction would back it when
the parliament starts debates. On Wednesday Armenia’s Constitutional
Court paved the way for debates ruling that the decision does not run
counter to Armenia’s Constitution.
He said Armenia’s joining the US-led coalition of international
forces would raise the country’s international image. He said the
interim government of Iraq and the local Armenian community did not
speak against Armenians presence. However, his latest remark was
wrong as the Armenian community asked Armenian authorities not to
send its troops, saying it would prompt Islamic insurgents to take
retaliatory measures against local Armenians putting their lives at
higher risks.
Representatives of other factions refrained from comments saying
they would express their views when the issue would be debated and
only Viktor Dalakian from the opposition Ardarutyun alliance said
they would vote against.
If the decision goes through about 50 Armenian military doctors,
sappers and truck drivers will be placed under Polish command in
Iraq.
Speaking to reporters after Wednesday Constitutional Court hearing
of the issue defense minister Serzh Sarkisian said Yerevan will send
its nationals to Iraq on condition that the Armenian military
personnel take part only in “defensive and humanitarian activities”
and avoid joint actions with the bigger Azerbaijani contingent.
According to some estimations, there is a 25,000-strong Armenian
community in Iraq.