Author: Yeghisabet Arthur

Why Armenians cannot ‘get past’ the genocide

Allowing Turkey to continue its denial of the 1915-1918 genocide is too high
a price for Armenia to pay for normalized relations.

By Karnig Dukmajian

Los Angeles Times
3:22 PM PDT, October 15, 2009

Just as The Times expressed in its Oct. 13 editorial, "Turkey and Armenia:
reconciling history," I believe that it’s in both countries’ interest to
restore diplomatic ties and open their shared border. However, I cannot help
but question the logic of The Times’ appeal to Armenians and Turks to "get
beyond" the issue of the Armenian genocide — especially when the editorial
board shares the concern of Armenians that the establishment of a commission
to study the genocide is "simply a means for Turkey to continue denying
history."

For Armenians, there is no "getting beyond" the issue of the genocide.
Turkey’s denial of the genocide, for which it has gone unpunished, is an
injustice all Armenians must live with every day.

Imagine this: Suppose Israel and Germany share a common border, as Armenia
and Turkey do. Suppose also that Germany has not recognized that the
Holocaust took place; that Germany admits only that some Jews died in "civil
unrest" during World War II, and that Germany claims that Jews also killed
many Germans. Suppose West Germany did not pay 3 billion marks in
reparations to Israel (which it did in the 1950s and ’60s), renovate
deserted Jewish synagogues across Germany or establish memorial parks where
concentration and extermination camps once stood. Suppose then that 16 years
ago, Germany unilaterally decided to shut its common border with Israel in
solidarity with a third country with which Israel went to war, and that its
stated purpose of such action was to cause Israel economic strain. And
finally, suppose that after much international pressure, Germany has decided
it will reopen the border but only if Israel agrees to make several
concessions, including partaking in a commission to study whether the
Holocaust actually took place and making territorial concessions in its
unresolved conflict with the third country.

These circumstances would justifiably outrage the international community.
But today, no one shares in the Armenians’ outrage as they continue their
long march on the road to justice alone.

Turkey and Armenia should establish diplomatic relations, but it should not
come at so high a price for Armenians. Turkey’s calculated campaign of
choking Armenia’s economy — after having nearly annihilated its people less
than a century ago — and subsequently seeking concessions in return for
reopening the border should be unequivocally condemned by all Western
democracies. Instead, the foreign ministers of the European Union, the
United States, France, Switzerland and Russia were on hand in Zurich last
week to applaud the lopsided agreement signed by Armenia and Turkey.

For Turkey, this is another victory in its efforts to erase the genocide
from the world’s memories, a campaign it prosecutes both within its own
borders (a national law makes it illegal to insult the Turkish nation, which
the government uses to prosecute those who speak truthfully about the
genocide) and abroad by working to stop further international recognition of
the genocide. For the West to applaud the agreement reached by Turkey and
Armenia, presumably due to geopolitical gains, is to condone sweeping under
the rug one of the world’s worst unpunished crimes.

It is highly offensive to suggest that Turkey and Armenia "get beyond" the
Armenian genocide. To "get beyond" an issue, one must first face it. It is
impossible for either Turkey or Armenia to "get beyond" the Armenian
genocide because Turkey has not yet faced its crime.

Karnig Dukmajian lives in Tarzana.

Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times

DAVID SHAHNAZARYAN PROPOSES THE NA TO ADOPT A LAW SIMILAR TO ARTICLE 301 OF THE TURKISH PENAL CODE
Anna Nazaryan

"Radiolur"
16.10.2009 15:25

Representative of the Armenian National Congress presented proposals
today, in case of application of which we would stand on an equal
position with Turkey after the ratification of the protocols.

A month ago David Shahnazaryan declared he would make a proposal, which
the authorities could hardly refuse from. Today he actually suggested
the parliament to adopt a law similar to Article 301 of the Turkish
Penal Code before the protocols would enter the National Assembly.

"Before the protocols are brought to the parliament floor, the
National Assembly should adopt a law, prohibiting any official,
representatives of the local self-government bodies, legislative and
executive bodies to participate in any discussion that would call into
question the fact of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire,"
David Shahnazaryan said.

According to him, this will somewhat balance the situation in the
sub-committee of historians and will provide no opportunity to discuss
the genocide issue.

Shahnazaryan next proposed to prevent Turkey’s efforts to tie the
Armenian-Turkish relations to the Karabakh issue.

Representative of the Armenian National Congress suggests that the
authorities fix a term of two months for ratification of the protocols
by the Turkish Parliament and state that otherwise they will cancel
the process.

ULLI WEGNER: ARTHUR WILL FIND A WAY TO BEAT TAYLOR

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.10.2009 10:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 67-year-old trainer Ulli Wegner is of the opinion
that his fighter, Arthur Abraham, will win the entire "Super Six"
168-pound tournament.

"Anybody that I train, has to train hard," said Wegner. "If Arthur
wants to win and if he wants to be successful he has to accept the
demands that I ask of him. The only way, in my view, to achieve great
things in such a competitive sport as boxing is to go through a lot
of pain.

Commenting on the impending fight vs. Taylor, he said, "We have had
a great training camp. We went to a small island in the Baltic Sea so
that Arthur could get away from all the frenzy in Berlin. He is ready
to move up in weight. Taylor is a great fighter, a true champion,
but Arthur will find a way to beat him."

"Most everybody, obviously, hopes to avoid pain. So, my role as
Arthur’s trainer is that I have to help him fight through the pain
barrier. When he fought Edison Miranda the first time, his jaw was
broken in two places. It was mostly my decision to let him continue
fighting through that. It didn’t look very pretty. His jaw was broken
in two places, but it was not up high on his face. Had it been up
higher I would have had no choice but to stop the fight," he said,
boxingscene.com reported.

The 29-year-old Abraham, the former IBF middleweight titlist, is
undefeated at 30-0, 24KOs. Many are predicting that he will be the
last man standing when the tournament is over. First up for Abraham
is former middleweight champion Jermain Taylor. The fight takes place
Oct. 17 in Berlin, Germany.

"This historic tournament will revolutionize boxing. We are thrilled
to stage the first fight of the Super Six. Abraham and Taylor are two
great champions who will please the crowd with a spectacular fight,"
Abraham’s promoter Wilfried Sauerland said. "Arthur has been in great
shape and he is very happy that he does not have to lose much weight
any more. He is excited to get in the ring knowing th n will support
him. We are looking forward to Saturday."

NAGORNO-KARABAKH LOOMS IN REGIONAL TIES

United Press International, Asia
Top News
Published: Oct. 14, 2009

WASHINGTON, Oct. 14 (UPI) — The ratification of protocols restoring
bilateral relations between Turkey and Armenia are beneficial for both,
though regional issues remain, an expert said.

Claims of genocide against the Armenian people under the Ottoman
Empire during World War I damaged bilateral relations.

Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in support of Azerbaijan,
which was engaged in a military conflict over the disputed territory
of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Turkish and Armenian leaders convened in Zurich, Switzerland, during
the weekend to sign measures that would normalize bilateral relations
if approved by both governments.

Henri Barkey, a Turkish expert and visiting scholar at the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace, described the protocol as beneficial
for both Turkey and Armenia.

"Turkey will have removed an important source of tension with their
allies in Europe and across the Atlantic," he said. "The Armenians
will benefit economically, especially if they can slowly link into
the oil and gas pipeline networks in the region."

Regional relations are complicated, however, over issues regarding
Nagorno-Karabakh, an area of dispute between Azerbaijan and
Armenia. Yerevan claims ethnic Armenians are deprived of their basic
rights in the territory, while Baku argues those solutions lie in
annexing Nagorno-Karabakh.

"It is too early to tell how the region as a whole will be affected,"
says Barkey. "Much depends on Azerbaijan’s reaction, and future
efforts to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem."

2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

ORGANIZATION OF YOUTH’S ARMY ENROLLMENT GAINING IMPORTANCE IN VIEW OF RAPPROCHEMENT

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
13.10.2009 16:37 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today, RA Defense Ministry’s Army Enrollment
Committee sitting was held, attended by RA Defense Minister Seyran
Ohanyan, General Staff Chief of RA Armed Forces Yuriy Khatchaturov,
representative of RA NA Committee for Defense issues, Chief of RA
Police Alik Sargsyan, Yerevan Mayor Gagik Beglaryan and RA Deputy
Health Minister Hayk Darbinyan.

As Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan noted in his statement,
army enrollment is an important event aimed at raising RA
Army’s fighting efficiency. He emphasized the importance of army
enrollment organization in view of RA -Turkey rapprochement, as
Armenian authorities are revising defense doctrine in connection
with normalization of relations with neighboring countries. "We,
as supporters of RA-Turkey ties normalization, have to undertake
steps towards negative factors’ neutralization," RA Defense Minister
stressed.

ARMENIAN FM WAS TENSE
Diana Markosyan Zurich, Switzerland

12/signing
12:03 pm | October 12, 2009

Politics

What happened in Zurich on October 10 caught unawares not only
Armenian and Turkish journalists but also the meeting organizers –
the Swedish side.

While the organisers were preparing for the signing of the Protocols
between Armenia and Turkey, international mass media circulated
information that the Armenian side had refused to sign the Protocols.

After making a few telephone calls Turkish journalists left the
University of Zurich, while Armenian journalists continued waiting
for the comments of the Armenian FM in total hesitation.

At 5:00 p.m. (European time), the ceremony participants, musicians,
administrative employees, left the premises while Armenian journalists
continued waiting. At about 6:30 Spokesman for the RA Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, Tigran Balayan informed them to wait as "they were
arriving."

Half an hour later RA Ambassador to Switzerland, world-renowned
chansonnier Charles Aznavour entered the building escorted by other
participants. After Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and
U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton appeared on the monitors it
became clear that the signing would commence soon.

But for some unknown reasons the signing was delayed. The Turkish
and Swedish journalists who had left the building were soon back to
participate in the historical event.

At about 8:15 (Yerevan time), after a three-hour delay, the signing
ceremony started in the University of Zurich with the participation
of U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton, RF FM Sergey Lavrov, French
FM Bernard Kouchner, Secretary-General of the Council of the European
Union Javier Solana, President of the CoE Committee of Ministers and
Slovenian FM Samuel Zbogar.

Before the signing, Swedish FM Micheline Calmy-Rey announced that
great efforts had been taken to bring the sides to the signing of
the Protocols. He also underlined Turkey’s former FM Ali Babacan’s
key participation in the process. "If the sides are ready, they are
welcome to sign the documents," announced Micheline Calmy-Rey.

Armenian FM Edward Nalbandian was tense during the signing while
Turkish FM Davutoglu was obviously glad and hurried up with the
signing. The other officials including Ms. Clinton stared at
Mr. Nalbandian and the movements of his hand.

After the Protocols were signed the two FMs shook hands and embraced
their senior partners. RA Foreign Minister looked tired and sad.

The FMs made no announcements after the signing though they were
scheduled to.

While the FMs were signing the documents a group of local Armenians
staged a protest action in front of the University building demanding
the RA FM to abstain from signing.

After the ceremony, RA MFA Spokesman Tigran Balayan announced, "We
witnessed a historical event today supported by the international
community. We highly appreciate the support of our partners."

With regard to the foreseen announcements, Mr. Balayan said: "The
verbal announcements carried some unacceptable interpretations for
the Armenian side and a decision was made during the talks to cancel
the announcements."

Although the Swedish side had promised journalists to arrange
interviews with the FMs and guests, they were deprived of the
opportunity because of the unexpected turn of events.

Armenian journalists didn’t have an opportunity to see Clinton,
Lavrov,Davutoglu and Edward Nalbandian. All their efforts to speak
to them outside the buildings failed because of police.

Research and Markets: ArmenTel Is Granted the Exclusive Right to
Provide All Telecommunications Services in Armenia Until 2013
Mon Oct 12, 2009 12:30pm EDT

DUBLIN–(Business Wire)–
Research and Markets
( h/ee407f/armenia_telecoms)
has announced the addition of the "Armenia – Telecoms, Mobile &
Internet" report to their offering.

The Armenia – Telecoms, Mobile & Internet report includes all research
data and analysis on this country. Covering trends and developments in
telecommunications, mobile, internet, broadband, infrastructure and
regulation.

The telecommunications sector in Armenia went into decline following
the collapse of the former Soviet Union. Fixed-line teledensity fell
by around 2% partly due to the prevailing socio-economic instability
in the region triggered by the collapse of the Soviet Union. But more
significant a factor was that the country had failed to embrace any
vigorous reform in the telecom sector.

With steadily improving economic conditions, the telecoms sector has
nevertheless been slow to respond. In the 2006/07 period positive
signs were emerging for the sector, however; despite fixed line
expansion continuing to be flat, mobile subscriber numbers were
increasing by around 75% annually for a number of years, helped no
doubt by the introduction of competition into the mobile market in
2005. Growth in mobiles had slowed to 30% annually coming into 2009 as
the faltering Armenian economy started to have a negative effect on
the telecom market.

Armenia’s progress to a more competitive market has been
slow. ArmenTel, the country’s national telecom provider, was granted
the exclusive right to provide all telecommunications services in
Armenia, including public switched telephony services and mobile
telephony, until 2013. As a consequence of this monopoly, no other
company was able to provide international satellite services. The one
segment of the market initially exempt from this monopoly was Internet
services.

Greek company Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE) invested
US$142.5 million in 1998 for a 90% equity stake in ArmenTel. The
remaining 10% was retained by the Government of Armenia. OTE agreed to
develop and expand the telecom infrastructure in Armenia, including
the digitisation of the Public Switched Telephone Network. OTE also
agreed to invest US$300 million in the country’s telecommunications
network by 2003, of which US$100 million was to be invested in
ArmenTel.

However, amid growing dissatisfaction over the performance of the
country’s telecoms network, in November 2004 the government was under
increasing pressure to do something about the ArmenTel monopoly. It
reached a compromise agreement with ArmenTel to end its exclusive
rights to provide a range of services, including GSM mobile services,
satellite and mobile radio communications services in exchange for
various other concessions, including the stipulation that only one
alternative mobile operator would be allowed to operate in Armenia
until 2009. ArmenTel was to also retain sole rights to Internet
telephony and the use of fibre optic cables.

The government subsequently made a controversial decision to choose
Armenia’s second mobile operator without transparent and competitive
bidding; Karabakh Telecom (KT), a little-known Lebanese-owned company,
was officially awarded a licence to operate a GSM network in Armenia.

OTE put its 90% equity in ArmenTel up for sale in June 2006, offered
to the market through a bidding process. Russian operator VimpelCom
was the successful bidder, finally acquiring the stake in November
2006. VimpelCom finalised the deal in April 2007 acquiring the
remaining 10% of the shares of ArmenTel from the Government of Armenia
to raise its equity holding in the company to 100%.

In December 2007 the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) said
that the government of Armenia planned to award a third mobile licence
in 2008 based on the GSM 900/1800 standard. There was to be a call for
an international tender with bidding for the licence which was due to
start in May 2008 and to be completed by August 2008. A new
commission, to be established by the government, would oversee the
process. Orange Armenia was awarded a 15-year mobile operator licence
in November 2008. The newly licensed operator was 100% owned by France
Telecom (Orange).

Key Highlights:

* By December 2008 mobile penetration in Georgia had reached 85%,
having increased more than fivefold in just three years; * In late
2008 and into 2009, however, the mobile market was showing signs of
stalling, as the country’s faltering economy impacted on the telecom
sector;
* On the positive front, a third mobile licence had been issued and
the new player Orange Armenia had already invested heavily in its
network and was aiming for a launch late in 2009;
* It was also encouraging that ArmenTel had launched its 3G mobile
service in October 2008 and had signed up almost 20,000 subscribers by
March 2009;
* Fixed-line growth in Armenia was slow; with still only 67% of the
network digital by mid-2009, the big challenge facing ArmenTel was to
complete the digitalisation program;
* While there is a growing Internet awareness in the country, the
Internet segment of the market remains sluggish, with user penetration
down around 6% in early 2009;
* Broadband Internet development has also been poor; the advent of
wireless broadband/WiMAX service offerings in 2008/09 could allow for
faster expansion, however;
* Armenia’s economy experienced a serious setback in 2008/09; it is
hoped the progress being made in telecom sector reform would not
suffer as a consequence of troubles in the wider economy.

Report’s Stats:

* Armenia – key telecom parameters – 2008 – 2009
* Category: 2008 – 2009 (e)
* Fixed-line services:
* Total number of subscribers: 650,000 – 675,000
* Annual growth: 4% – 4%
* Fixed-line penetration (population): 21% – 22%
* Internet:
* Total number of subscribers: 1120,000 – 127,000
* Annual growth: 7% – 6%
* Internet subscriber penetration (population): 4% – 4%
* Mobile services:
* Total number of subscribers (million): 2.56 – 2.90
* Annual growth: 37% – 14%
* Mobile penetration (population): 85% – 94%

For more information visit
e407f/armenia_telecoms

Research and Markets
Laura Wood, Senior Manager,
[email protected]
U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907
Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

Copyright Business Wire 2009 3050+12-Oct-2009+BW20091012

TURKS PASS TO KARABAKH

hos15499.html
11:23:18 – 12/10/2009

After the singing of the Armenian-Turkish protocols, the Turkish
officials made a statement regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The
Turkish Prime Minister Erdoghan stated that the Armenian and Turkish
relations will not be normalized until the Karabakh conflict is not
settled. He said Turkey is loyal to its promise to Azerbaijan and until
the Azerbaijani territories are not liberated, Turkey cannot give a
positive answer in connection with its relations with Armenia. The
last word belongs to the Turkish parliament.

In turn, the Turkish Foreign Minister Davudoghlu said the protocols
are the peace project of Turkey. He said Turkey knows where it goes
and for what, and in order to establish peace in the region, the
Karabakh conflict must be settled. We did not leave Azerbaijan alone,
we mean the liberation of Azerbaijan territories, said Davudoghlu.

He said if the parliament ratifies the protocols, it will be the
start of diplomatic relations. Turkey recognizes Armenia until 1993,
in other words, before the "occupation of Azerbaijani lands", said
the Turkish Foreign Minister.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry also issued a statement which reminds
the Turkish officials about their pledges that until the Azerbaijani
lands are not liberated, the border will not open. The Azerbaijani
Foreign Minister stated that establishment of relations without
the withdrawal of the Armenian troops contradicts the Azerbaijani
interests and shadows the spirit of brotherhood of the Azerbaijani
and Turkish nations. The Foreign Ministry stated that the unilateral
opening of the border will make questionable the peace in the region.

News.am

Kremlin confirms Serzh Sargsyan’s visit
17:18 / 10/10/2009

Kremlin confirmed the information on RA President Serzh Sargsyan’s
visit to Moscow, October 12, 2009. Sargsyan will arrive in Moscow at
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s invitation, Kremlin press service
reports.

As NEWS.am reported earlier, RA President Serzh Sargsyan will hold
talks with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev during his
visit. The parties will discuss a wide range of issues, including the
political situation in the South Caucasus in the context of
Armenia-Turkey Protocols’ signing in Zurich.

President Sargsyan arrived in Rostov-on-Don as part of his
pan-Armenian tour. Sargsyan discussed the Armenia-Turkey normalization
process, as well as the signing of the Armenian-Turkish Protocols with
Diaspora representatives.

As regards the view that the Armenia-Turkey reconciliation will cause
damage to the Armenian-Russian strategic cooperation, Serzh Sargsyan
stated: `These views are unfounded, incited by unawareness and are
often presented as a product of analytical thinking.’

`Armenian-Russian strategic cooperation is progressing rapidly,
including the cooperation within the OSCE. You will witness the
developments that will dispel doubts of the ones showing the deepest
distrust,’ Sargsyan said.

A BOOK A WEEK: MOTHER ON FIRE BY SANDRA TSING LOH
Becky Holmes

Isthmus Daily Page
10/09/2009 6:00 pm

Sandra Tsing Loh is a writer, performance artist and public radio
commentator. I don’t hear her much on radio but I do read her
pieces in the Atlantic. I’ve also never seen any of her one-woman
shows but would sure like to. In 2008 she published Mother on Fire,
a memoir about her life in Los Angeles, framed around her search for
an appropriate school for her kindergarten-age daughter.

This is a very funny book, filled with raw emotion and angst. Loh
takes on issues of class and status, money worries, stalled careers,
the mommy wars and the frantic pace of life in LA. She expertly
captures the desperate panic of educated, affluent, urban parents in
search of the perfect environment for their precious offspring.

Loh herself vacillates between being one of these super-obsessed types
and being a slacker mom, and freely admits her own contradictory
impulses. That’s partly what makes the book so entertaining. One
day Loh is touring the $22,000-a-year private (pseudonymous) Wonder
Canyon School, where "children honor diversity, learn peaceful conflict
resolution and are taught music using the Orff-Schulwerk method."

Of course there is no diversity at Wonder Canyon; as Loh points out,
the children must honor it because they don’t actually experience
it. The next day Loh is letting her daughters watch Disney
princess videos for the 82nd time and feeding them Kraft macaroni
and cheese. She is consumed with guilt for failing to provide Baby
Mozart and organic broccoli, all the while railing against the forces
that make her feel guilty. But despite how much Loh wants the Wonder
Canyon, there is no way that she and her husband can afford it on
the combined income of a journalist and a musician.

Thus Loh’s daughter ends up at an L.A. public magnet school. It’s
a better choice than the local elementary school, though she is the
only blonde in a sea of Central American and Armenian children. But w
~@~Ys school is a warm and loving place where the children thrive. As
a result of this revelation Loh becomes a public school activist and
runs a Web site for parents of children in L.A. public schools.

Loh’s writing style takes a little getting used to. Her articles in
the Atlantic are straightforward magazine-style journalism, but Mother
on Fire is filled with exclamation marks! — and interjections! Also
lots of $%^#@!!!!! Before writing this book, Loh performed a stage
version of Mother on Fire for seven months in Los Angeles. I imagine
the book reflects the style of the show. Was there a lot of ranting
and desperate proclaiming? I bet there was.