Author: Virabian Jhanna

ARA ABRAHAMIAN HELPING RUSSIAN SAILORS OUT OF NIGERIAN PRISON
By Karine Danielian

AZG Armenian Daily #151, 26/08/2005

Diaspora

Eminent businessman, UN Goodwill Ambassador and chairman of the
World Armenian Congress Ara Abrahamian has undertaken the task of
getting 11 Russian sailors out of prison in Nigeria,
informs expressing hope that “his personal ties and the experience
in cooperating with an African government while releasing Armenian
pilots will help him get the sailors out as well”.

Six Armenian pilots sentenced to 14-24 years in prison were released
from jail in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, in June thanks to the efforts
of Mr. Abrahamian.

According to the online newspaper, Ara Abrahamian took on the task of
releasing the sailors a month ago. He also helped their relatives to
leave for Nigeria. As soon as Russian authorities — Foreign Affairs
Ministry and State Duma — failed in their attempts, Ara Abrahamian
was asked to interfere.

Russia is optimistic to see the sailors free. “We helped to get
the sailors out to better wards, gave money for food and for health
services and hired lawyers”, Ara Abrahamian told daily Azg. He said
also that he is working with President Vladimir Putin’s administration
and looks forward to his personal support. Mr. Abrahamian’s aides
are currently in Nigeria.

Along with 11 Russian sailors, Nigerian authorities have arrested 2
citizens of Rumania and 1 citizen of Georgia. Nigerian authorities
accuse them of smuggling oil valued $2.64 million.

AMID DEEPENING CRACKS IN POST-SOVIET PACT, LEADERS OF FORMER REPUBLICS TO HOLD SUMMIT
By MIKE ECKEL

The Associated Press
08/25/05 13:19 EDT

KAZAN, Russia (AP) – Leaders from 12 former Soviet republics meet here
Friday amid deepening cracks in the alliance and growing efforts by
some members to temper Russia’s influence in the region and increase
ties with the West.

President Vladimir Putin will host the meeting of the Commonwealth
of Independent States against the backdrop of millennial anniversary
celebrations in this central Russian city some 720 kilometers (450
miles) east of Moscow.

Mass upheavals in Ukraine and Georgia, which brought pro-Western
leaders to power, have threatened to pull the CIS apart. Their
presidents – Viktor Yushchenko and Mikhail Saakashvili – met at a
Georgian spa two weeks ago and discussed setting up a new regional
alliance to champion democracy in former Soviet space.

The Commonwealth of Democratic Choice, the two leaders said in a
statement, would “help usher in a new era of democracy, security,
stability and peace across Europe, from the Atlantic to the Caspian
Sea.”

Such a group would further irk Russia, which has always dominated the
CIS. Both Georgia and Ukraine have made membership in the European
Union and NATO priorities, and Moldova has taken a sharp Westward
turn – and Moscow’s ties with all three countries have consequently
deteriorated.

Russia has already showed signs it is trying to devise a new rubric
for dealing with former Soviet republics.

On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow should base its
relations on “international norms” – a hint that Russia may eventually
stop providing its substantial energy resources to the three countries
at subsidized prices.

The Foreign Ministry also said during a meeting of CIS foreign
ministers in Moscow this week that ways to reform the bloc were
also discussed.

Sergei Karaganov, of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policies,
a leading think-tank, called the CIS a defunct organization.

“The CIS, in its old form, is dead. It is no longer an integration
organization but, rather, a forum for consultations between state
leaders in the post-Soviet space,” Karaganov was quoted as saying by
the Interfax news agency.

The CIS was set up following the demise of the Soviet Union with the
aim of preserving economic and defense ties. It does not include the
Baltic states.

Also expected on the sidelines of the CIS summit is a meeting between
Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliev. Tensions between the two leaders’ countries remains high, more
than a decade after a cease-fire was signed ending open fighting over
the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Tens of thousands were killed and more than a million displaced in the
fighting, and the lack of resolution over the status of the enclave
– now controlled by ethnic Armenians – has impeded development in
the region.

PRESS RELEASE
MASHDOTS COLLEGE
616 N. Glendale Avenue
Glendale, CA 91206
Contact: Sofi Kambourian Boyle
Tel: 818-548-9345
Fax: 818-548-9342
E-mail: [email protected]

A NEW RESEARCH STUDY CONDUCTED BY DR. GARBIS DER YEGHIAYAN

A demographically representative 200-page opinion survey of Armenian
Americans was recently released on CD by Mashdots College in Glendale,
California. The study, conducted by Dr. Garbis Der Yeghiayan,
president of the college, reveals an array of attitudes, beliefs,
values, views, perceptions and experiences about a broad range of
subjects. Among the topics covered in the survey are: Armenian
identity; family structure and interests; moral, ethical and spiritual
issues; social concerns; Armenia-related issues; volunteerism;
interest and involvement in the life of the community; inter-ethnic
issues; political participation; community support and contributions;
the role of the media; economic and fiscal status and priorities;
attitudes towards education and religion; assimilation challenges; the
affects of September 11; individual and community concerns and
priorities.

In order to adequately capture the research needs of the study, a
unique questionnaire was devised based on the writer’s vast experience
within the Armenian and non-Armenian communities, combined with
invaluable input from three research scientists and numerous community
leaders and members. The questionnaire was mailed to 8,624 Armenian
Americans residing in 22 states from California to New York. The names
were randomly selected from a demographically representative mailing
list of 75,000 addresses compiled from numerous sources. Responses
totaled 3,014 or 35%. The study was conducted between May and
December, 2004. The completed questionnaires from across the country
were scored, coded, tabulated and statistically analyzed. The study is
presented in color graphs. The margin of error for the sample as a
whole is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The study is a serious attempt to define the status, role and
prospects of the Armenian American community. It is the writer’s
earnest hope that it may stimulate further interest and action among
the religious, educational, political, professional and civic leaders
who serve our community.

Please contact Mashdots College at (818) 548-9345 (telephone) or
[email protected] (e-mail) to request a copy of the CD free of charge.
Donations to Mashdots College are always welcome and appreciated.

Armenian president says his country not turning away from Russia

.c The Associated Press

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) – Armenian President Robert Kocharian said
Monday that the Caucasus Mountain nation has no intention of turning
away from its ally Russia, and called speculation of a westward shift
unfounded.

The talk of Armenia seeking to shun Russia in favor of the West is
“the fruit of sick imagination and narrow thinking,” Kocharian said
during a televised news conference with visiting Georgian President
Mikhail Saakashvili.

The two met at Lake Sevan, in the mountains some 60 kilometers (37
miles) east of the capital, Yerevan, and discussed economic
cooperation, international issues and other matters including the
situation for Georgia’s sizable ethnic Armenian population.

Saakashvili has steered his country westward since his 2004 election,
and sought to shed Russian influence. The leaders of Ukraine and
Moldova, two other former Soviet republics, have made similar moves.

Armenia is Russia’s closest ally in the Caucasus region, and has much
warmer relations with Moscow than Georgia does. Russia maintains a
military base in Armenia, though it has begun withdrawing two bases
from Georgia after prodding from Georgia and the West.

08/22/05 16:14 EDT

Grandma Ani, if you hear me, H-E-L-P!
By Anita Houk

commercialappeal.com , Tennessee
Aug 21 2005

First, Araxee Ross didn’t even want to meet Kristian Moxley.

She was a University of Memphis sophomore with deep roots in the city
and a keen interest in having fun.

He was an ex-Marine, a Texan new to the city, a world traveler with
little direction.

But once Kristian heard of Araxee through a mutual friend, “I kept
pressuring him: ‘Can you give me her phone number?’ I was at his mercy;
so, I’d just show up wherever she might be. There was no real first
date. Just meeting.”

“Going out with friends,” she explains.

Until New Year’s Eve 2000, their first outing-for-two.

Their romance advanced steadily. “I knew what I was looking for and
how she fit in with that picture.”

Soon, however, he realized it might not be easy convincing this
Southern belle.

“Armenian belle!” she declares. “You know My Big Fat Greek Wedding?
That’s my family, but Armenian. And my family didn’t like him.”

Kristian didn’t have big life plans yet. He hadn’t finished college.
Her folks didn’t approve.

“I was under a lot of stress when we first started dating,” she says.
“If my parents didn’t like the guy, I would normally just break up
with him. So I went to break up with Kristian, and he said, ‘What do
you really want?’ ‘I want to date you.’

“So I decided we were still going to date and my parents, well,
eventually they had to see who you really were.”

Did her folks need an errand run? Kristian would volunteer. The yard
raked? He’d sweat.

“I had to convince them. I’d do anything they asked.”

But they remained unswayed. Araxee was so concerned she reached out
to the netherworld.

“My mom always told us that my Grandma Ani (Anitza Keshishian)
was always looking after us,” Araxee says. “One day, when all the
struggle over my family not liking Kristian seemed endless, I took a
picture of him and a little ceramic angel to my grandma’s grave site.
I didn’t tell a soul.

“I said a little prayer, showed her a picture of Kristian and said,
‘Grandma, I really love this boy.’ I asked her to watch over our
relationship and if it was meant to be, to help us out.”

Kristian got a plan: In addition to working, he signed up for
college. He’s majoring in accounting, planning to be a certified
public accountant.

Then, he got up his nerve.

“He had to talk with my mom.” He wanted Araxee to come; she refused.

“My mom,” Araxee says, “is the tough one in the family. She’s the
one all the boyfriends are always scared of. She’s Armenian. My dad
is from upstate New York, Swedish background. But he was kind of in
on it, too!”

“A joint venture,” says Kristian — all smiles now.

He went alone. “We sat down for a couple hours: What were my intentions
for her daughter, and how precious she is to her, and how much she
means to her parents. I knew she’s not going to give me any slack.”

And now?

“They love him, LOVE him,” says Araxee, who has graduated college and
is working at the Assisi Foundation and on her master’s in education.

“Her family is wonderful,” he said. She elaborates: “My family is
very protective. They know everything that everyone in the family is
doing. Everyone is involved in your life.”

So the party was huge after Kristian, 29, and Araxee, 25, wed at
First Baptist Church Caudill Chapel on June 25.

“The night before we got married, I started to cry,” says Araxee,
“because I was reminded of the day I had prayed to my grandma.”

When Araxee explained her tears to her mother, “she said that my
grandma was always one for true love.”

,1426,MCA_521_4014793,00.html

123 COMPANIES AND ASSOCIATIONS TO TAKE PART IN ARMENIA EXPO 2005 EXHIBITION

Armenpress

YEREVAN, AUGUST 18, ARMENPRESS: Some 123 industrial and trade companies
and associations have confirmed their will to participate in “Armenia
EXPO 2005” 5th universal trade-industrial exhibition which will be
held in sport-concert complex after K. Demirchian September 14-17.

The officials from “LOGOS EXPO Center”, which is the organizer of the
exhibition, said it is expected that 160-180 participants from Western
Europe, Middle Asia, China, Iran, Georgia, Turkey, Syria, Ukraine and
United Arab Emirates will take part in the exhibition. Within the
frameworks of the “Armenia EXPO 2005” 6 international specialized
exhibitions will be organized, “Cooperation 2005” Armenian-Russian
business meeting will be conducted, “China’s Day” will be held. The
specialized exhibitions will be organized on industry, construction,
transport, printing, publishing and advertising, and information
technology themes.

The exhibition conference will be held with the support of the Armenian
Trade and Economic Development Ministry, Foreign Affairs Ministry
and Manufacturers and Businessmen Union. “Printing, Publishing and
Advertising EXPO” and “Comp EXPO” thematic exhibitions will be held
with the support of the National Association of Publishers and the
Union of Information Technology Companies respectively.

TWO CHESS PLAYERS LEAD VETERANS’ COMPETITION

YEREVAN, AUGUST 16, NOYAN TAPAN. 6 rouds have been held at the
veteran chess players’ championship in Armenia. 2 participants lead
the competition: international master Eduard Mnatsakanian and master
of sport Gagik Hakobian who have 5 points each. Adolf Demirkhanian,
Albert Haroutiunov and Murad Varzhapetian, candidates for mastery,
share the 3rd-5th places with 4.5 points each. There are 3 rounds left
before the end of the championship being held with the participation
of 32 chess players. The meetings of the regular, 7th round takes
place on August 16.

Armenian regulator fines ArmenTel for antitrust violations

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
August 12, 2005

YEREVAN, Aug 12 (Prime-Tass) — Armenia’s State Commission for the
Protection of Economic Competition has imposed a U.S. USD 400,000 fine
on Armenian national telecom company ArmenTel for alleged violations
of antitrust laws, the commission’s Chairman Ashot Shakhnazaryan
said Friday.

The fine was set at 1% of ArmenTel’s profit from GSM mobile services,
Shakhnazaryan said.

ArmenTel failed to provide stable and high-quality communications in
June-July, Shakhnazaryan said. He added that a mobile operator should
ensure that at least 95 calls out of 100 be connected, but ArmenTel
did not match this requirement.

Artak Khachatryan, an ArmenTel spokesman, said that the commission
had not set any call standards for the company and that the 95%
level was far above the 60% one set in ‘developed countries.’

‘The company did in fact provide low-quality communications but
the customers were warned beforehand about these problems. Besides,
technical problems that arose on June 30, of which the company had
warned, didn’t affect the customers. However a major network failure
occurred on July 1 during the launch of the services of the second
mobile operator,’ Khachatryan said.

K-Telecom, the second operator, launched its network on July 1 and
operates under the Vivacell brand.

Earlier ArmenTel has held a monopoly to provide GSM services in
Armenia. However, in November 2004 the Armenian government decided
to make amendments to ArmenTel’s license, depriving the company of
its exclusive right to provide GSM, mobile satellite and mobile radio
communication services in the country.

Greece’s OTE holds a 90% stake in ArmenTel, with the Armenian
government holding the remaining 10% stake. End

Newsday, NY
Aug 14 2005

WHO’S COOKING

NANCY

KHACHADURIAN

Office manager for her husband’s orthopedic surgery practice. Lives
in Old Westbury and East Hampton with her husband, Varvartkes. They
have three adult children, Peter, Jennifer and Lori.

What is your ethnic heritage?

My husband and I were both born in Cuba. The Armenians migrated there
in the ’20s, since they couldn’t come into this country. My parents
lived in a small Armenian community in Santiago for about 25 years. I
came to the U.S. in 1943, when I was 3 weeks old. My husband,
coincidentally, was also Armenian and grew up on the other end of
Cuba in Victoria de las Tunas. He came here in 1948, when he was 13.
When my husband went to medical school in Italy, he met my brother
there. It so happens they were both Armenian and from Cuba. Talk
about fate. We’ve been married 39 years.

How has your ethnic heritage influenced your cooking?

We had two cultures growing up – the Cuban and the Armenian cultures.
Our Christmases are always celebrated in the Cuban style. We have
fresh ham with black beans, white rice, fried bananas, yuca with
garlic, lemon and olive oil. Some of the Armenian dishes my husband
and I make are shish kebab and pilaf for Easter, tabbouleh, bulgur
and baba ghanoush, which we make from eggplant we get at the
farmstand. We grew up with yogurt and cucumbers mixed with fresh
garlic, which also was good. We make baklava a little different from
the Greeks. We use walnuts and ours is not as sweet. Something else
that you won’t find in the recipe books that we were brought up with
is yaglee. It’s got many layers of phyllo on top and curd cheese in
the center. You have to eat it warm and sprinkle it with granulated
sugar.

When you’re not cooking, where do you like to go out to eat?

Radici in Carle Place. I’ve been there at least six times, and it’s
been great. I had the swordfish last night and my husband had the cod
with black beans on the side and julienne lettuce on top. They come
around with a complimentary tablespoon of soup and sorbet. The
presentation there is always beautiful. Out East, we go to Bostwick’s
in East Hampton and Dave’s Grill in Montauk, when we can get
reservations. We like fish; nothing fancy.

What’s your favorite sandwich?

I love panini sandwiches. We have a panini machine and we make them
with the ciabatta bread and olive oil. My husband likes to buy
expensive olive oil. He’s a simple person and never buys himself
anything, but when it comes to buying oils, he likes that. We make
our panini with mozzarella, tomato and some nice basil from the
garden.

What do you like to nosh on?

I love pretzels, French fries, pasta, rice and potatoes. I’m a carbo
nut.

Yalanche

(Stuffed Grape Leaves)

1 cup olive oil

3 pounds onions, coarsely chopped

1 cup uncooked rice

1/2 bunch Italian parsley, stemmed, washed and chopped

2 tablespoons fresh chopped dill

3/4 cup pignoli nuts

Juice of 3 lemons, divided

1 small can tomato sauce

1 small can tomato paste

Salt and pepper to taste

1 jar grape leaves, rinsed, drained and stems removed

Sliced lemon for garnish

1. In large heavy pot, heat olive oil over medium. Saute onions until
translucent, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

2. To pot, add rice, parsley, dill, pignoli nuts, juice of 2 lemons,
tomato sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper. Mix well. Allow to cool.
Place in refrigerator.

3. Place a grape leaf on a flat surface, shiny side down. Put 1
teaspoon of cooled filling and wrap like cigar, folding ends in and
rolling. Repeat with 40 to 50 leaves, about half the jar.

4. Line bottom of pot with unused leaves to cover. Neatly place layer
of rolled leaves on top. Repeat, making neat layers until all leaves
are used up. Pour about 3 cups water mixed with remaining lemon juice
over leaves. Place heavy plate on top. Cover pot.

5. Cook over medium heat slowly for 30 to 40 minutes, until rice
is cooked. Allow to cool. Remove plate and place leaves on platter.
Garnish with lemons. May be refrigerated several days. Makes about
20 appetizer servings.

Raffles is a lucky dip
By Nur Dianah Suhaimi

Gold Coast Bulletin (Australia)
August 6, 2005 Saturday

The famous Raffles of Singapore may be losing some of its facade of
wonder writes Nur Dianah Suhaimi

AUTHOR Somerset Maugham penned novels under the frangipani trees at
Raffles Hotel in the 1920s. Ernest Hemingway sipped Singapore Slings
at the Long Bar and, in 1967, the hotel was the backdrop for the
movie Pretty Polly.

But if it once was an artists’ haunt, the present-day Raffles Hotel,
made a national monument in 1987, is a far cry from its former self.

“The hotel is nothing more than a kitschy icon of Singapore’s colonial
past,” said Cyril Wong, a Singaporean poet. “It’s romantic surroundings
are no longer relevant to today’s writers who wish to be inspired by
contemporary issues.”

Some think the 118-year-old hotel, a recent acquisition by US-based
Colony Capital, is just another self-important colonial structure of
the past.

“It started as a colonial enterprise and is now another foreign
enterprise,” said Economist Group researcher Yasmine Yahya.

“There has never been anything particularly Singaporean about the
Raffles Hotel identity. Now it has been sold to Westerners, I guess
the Raffles story has come full circle.”

The hotel, formerly an Arab mer-chant’s bungalow, was opened by
Armenian hoteliers in 1887.

In 1933, after the death of its last Armenian owner, Raffles Hotel
was made a public company called Raffles Hotel Ltd.

But many of today’s writers and artists would rather draw inspiration
from buildings being torn down than from the old colonial landmark
it-self, said poet Wong, 28.

“If there’s a writer who gets his inspiration from Raffles Hotel today,
I’d tell him ‘Go to Little India — talk about the real thing’.”

Little India is one of Singapore’s ethnic enclaves which has managed
to resist much of the urbanisation that has overtaken the area
around Raffles.

Tony Watts, editor of a magazine for expatriates, believes the hotel’s
former reputation as a writers’ haunt may have been a bit overblown.

“It was probably not the hotel which inspired writers at the time
but the tropical, undeveloped sur-roundings of Southeast Asia,”
said Watts, an expatriate of eight years.

“Back then, Raffles Hotel might just be another one of those exciting
places to be in this exotic region.”

Introduced to many through the movie Pretty Polly , the ambience of
the hotel was elevated beyond its reality. The film starred Hayley
Mills and Trevor Howard in a Noel Coward romantic comedy about a
young woman who spends a few months as a travelling companion with
her wealthy aunt.

The hotel today is largely fre-quented by wealthy tourists who don’t
mind splurging on hospitality and food.

Despite its central location, few locals frequent the hotel.

“It’s not for teenagers like me,” said Gan Ruben, an 18-year-old who
works at the Raffles Cafe. “Prices here are too expensive.”