Author: Zatikian Raffi

Boston Globe, MA
April 4 2004

OFF TO ARMENIA:

For 26 Lexington High students, it will be a unique spring break,
touring Armenia and performing several concerts. Several of the
school’s Madrigal singers and concert choir members leave April 14
for New York City, where they will fly to Moscow and then travel on
to Armenia. “I can’t tell you what they’ll come home with, but it’s a
completely different experience than anything they’ve seen in the
world , starting with the architecture, the language, the customs,
the weather,” said Peggy Hovanessian, a parent who has coordinated
much of the trip and whose daughters, Manneh and Naris Ghazarian, are
going. Brian O’Connell, the school’s choral director, will accompany
the group to Armenia. The students are packing two suitcases each,
one of personal belongings and one filled with clothing, musical
instruments, toys, and gifts to give away there.

Los Angeles Times , CA
April 4 2004

Putting Broken Georgia Back Together Again

Saakashvili must navigate political minefields while reviving the
economy.

By Rajan Menon, Rajan Menon is Monroe J. Rathbone professor of
international relations at Lehigh University.

NEW YORK – Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili had better savor
his party’s overwhelming victory in last Sunday’s parliamentary
elections, because his chances for similar triumphs as he tackles his
country’s serious and longstanding problems are clouded.

For openers, his government doesn’t control much of the territory
over which it has nominal jurisdiction – and hasn’t since 1992.
Abkhazia, the northwestern segment of Georgia’s Black Sea coast, is,
in effect, independent. The Abkhaz, a predominantly Muslim Caucasian
people that, with Russian help, broke away from Tbilisi more than a
decade ago, maintain a special relationship with Moscow and are
wedded to outright independence. Saakashvili is determined to regain
Abkhazia, as are most Georgians, especially the thousands who were
expelled from the region. Clashes between Abkhaz and Georgian forces
routinely puncture a tenuous cease-fire overseen by a predominantly
Russian-dominated contingent. Peace talks have been fruitless.
Abkhazia remains a flashpoint and a symbol of the precariousness of
Georgia’s political equilibrium.

Another slice of Georgia’s Black Sea coast, which includes the port
of Batumi, runs through the dissident region of Adzharia, whose
indigenous people are predominantly, albeit nominally, Muslim, a
legacy of several centuries under the Ottoman Empire. The local
strongman, Aslan Abashidze, rules with scant regard for the central
government in Tbilisi. He hasn’t sought full-fledged independence
largely because he already possesses its attributes: a constitution,
control of local revenues, a police and militia, and unchecked power.

But Adzharia is a crisis-in-waiting. Earlier this month, Abashidze
banned Saakashvili from entering his fiefdom, then relented after the
Georgian president imposed an economic blockade. The incident
highlighted the fragility of Georgian unity. Bringing Adzharia under
Tbilisi’s control won’t be easy because Abashidze has independent
economic resources, an extensive patronage network and connections to
Russia, which maintains a military base at Batumi.

A similar situation prevails in South Ossetia. The Georgia
government’s writ doesn’t hold in the region, and Russia exercises
considerable leverage there, not least because the Ossetians are a
nation divided by state boundaries: Russia’s republic of North
Ossetia holds open the dream of unification for Georgian Ossetians –
and for Georgians the nightmare of political disintegration.

Saakashvili’s most formidable challenge, then, is to reunite Georgia
– or at least prevent its fragmentation.

Another more urgent, but also more doable challenge is to revive
Georgia’s economy. Despite respectable rates of growth in the last
several years and low inflation and little foreign debt, the
country’s gross national product is still only 40% of its 1989 level.
About the same proportion of people live below the poverty line, and
pervasive corruption and persistent doubts about Georgia’s ability to
remain whole have made foreign investors leery.

But two pipelines – one carrying oil from the Azerbaijani port of
Baku to Turkey’s Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, the other transporting
natural gas between Baku and the Turkish city of Erzurum – are under
construction, and their transit revenues will be a significant and
steady source of income, or so Georgia hopes. But political chaos
could undo both economic ventures, and not only because of Abkhazia,
Adzharia and South Ossetia.

The durability of the Saakashvili’s political alliance with Zurab
Zhvania, the prime minister, and Nino Burjanadze, the parliamentary
speaker, is uncertain. There are no strong personal or political
bonds uniting the three. In the weeks before the elections, members
of Zhvania and Burjanadze’s Democrats, which united with
Saakashvili’s National Movement for the parliamentary vote, were
unhappy that the president’s party insisted on getting most of the
spots on the party list. While Saakashvili remains immensely popular,
murmurs about an imperial presidency, his dislike of press criticism
and the inexperience of his top lieutenants have surfaced.

The bigger question concerns the political opposition. Eleven
parties, most of them tiny and chaotic, contested Sunday’s elections.
To qualify for representation in parliament, a party had to win at
least 7% of the overall votes. Some opposition parties complained
that the high threshold would freeze them out; three, including the
Citizen’s Union, the party of former President Eduard A.
Shevardnadze, boycotted the vote; and since the elections, complaints
have arisen about irregularities that put the opposition parties at a
disadvantage. The problem is that parties left outside the political
system may choose to disrupt it.

Then there is Russia, which is determined to keep Georgia within its
orbit. Ever since its independence, Georgia has battled to break
Russia’s grip, and Saakashvili will not stop that struggle. To
diminish Russia’s leverage and create stability and prosperity, he
will have to continue Shevardnadze’s policies of more trade with and
investment from the West, as well as solidifying political and
strategic ties with Europe and the U.S. The pipelines, Georgia’s
participation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Partnership
for Peace and continuing American training for Georgian
border-security forces are examples of such efforts.

Russia, which views the South Caucasus, the larger region of which
Georgia is part, as its historic sphere of influence, has plenty of
strings to pull. Thousands of Georgians work in Russia, and their
remittances are vital for many Georgian families. Moscow can impose
travel and employment restrictions on Georgians, and has done so in
the past. Georgia owes Russia $157 million (for Georgia, a
considerable sum) in unpaid debts, and Moscow has used debt
rescheduling as both carrot and stick. Georgia’s economic problems
and its dependence on Russian energy have enabled Moscow to link the
resumption of gas supplies to an agreement on the debt. This is a
matter of simple economics and shrewd accounting; it is also an
object lesson to Georgia on the necessity of taking Russia seriously.

Moscow has military sources of influence as well. Russian troops
remain stationed at Batumi and Akhalkalaki, the predominantly
Armenian region in the south of Georgia and talks to negotiate a
schedule for closing the bases have stalled. Russia insists that it
needs until 2014 to complete the closures, and, despite reaping a
windfall from surging oil prices, also says that it needs help paying
for the relocation of its troops. The bases give Moscow leverage on
important issues.

Georgia wants to join NATO. Russia wants it to declare neutrality or,
preferably, to align with Moscow. The bases act as an impediment to
Georgian membership in NATO. While the possibility of Georgia
aligning with Russia seems remote, in Moscow’s eyes, Tbilisi’s
political course remains uncertain and thus changeable. Its bases in
Georgia also give Russia a bargaining chip to prevent the U.S. from
relocating some of its forces from Western Europe to NATO’s new East
European members.

Finally, the quasi-independence of Abkhazia, Adzharia and South
Ossetia gives Russia a foothold in Georgia, which controls the road
and rail links to Armenia, a key Russian ally and host to Russian
military bases. Not surprisingly, Moscow insists that Tbilisi must
agree not to forcibly annex these regions before a deal can be
reached on the bases.

The parliamentary elections significantly increased Saakashvili’s
political capital, but there are many ways in which his account could
be drawn down – and rapidly. Georgia’s seemingly intractable problems
can easily transform heroes into villains. Just ask Shevardnadze.

ArmenPress
April 2 2004

ARSHILE GORKY’S CENTENARY TO BE MARKED IN YEREVAN

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS: The centenary of Arshile Gorky, one
of the most famous contemporary artists, the founder of Abstract
Surrealism, will be marked in Yerevan on April 15 by a set of events,
initiated by Arshile Gorky Foundation in collaboration with the Union
of Armenian Artists. One of the events will be an exhibition of
pictures and sculptures of Armenian artists. The government has set
up a commission to steer the events. An exhibition of his works will
be organized also at New York Metropolitan Museum. By the way, there
is only one picture by Gorky in Armenia, kept at the headquarters of
the Armenian Church in Etchmiadzin.
Arshile Gorky was born Vosdanik Adoian in the village of Khorkom,
province of Van, Armenia, on April 15, 1904. The Adoians became
refugees from the Turkish invasion; Gorky himself left Van in 1915
and arrived in the United States about March 1, 1920. He stayed with
relatives in Watertown, Massachusetts, and with his father, who had
settled in Providence, Rhode Island. By 1922 he lived in Watertown
and taught at the New School of Design in Boston. In 1925 he moved to
New York and changed his name to Arshile Gorky. He entered the Grand
Central School of Art in New York as a student but soon became an
instructor of drawing; from 1926 to 1931 he was a member of the
faculty. Throughout the 1920s Gorky’s painting was influenced by
Georges Braque, Paul Cézanne, and, above all, Pablo Picasso.
In 1930 Gorky’s work was included in a group show at the Museum of
Modern Art in New York. During the thirties he associated closely
with Stuart Davis, Willem de Kooning, and John Graham; he shared a
studio with de Kooning late in the decade. Gorky’s first solo show
took place at the Mellon Galleries in Philadelphia in 1931. From 1935
to 1937 he worked under the WPA Federal Art Project on murals for
Newark Airport. His involvement with the WPA continued into 1941.
Gorky’s first solo show in New York was held at the Boyer Galleries
in 1938. The San Francisco Museum of Art exhibited his work in 1941.
In the 1940s he was profoundly affected by the work of European
Surrealists, particularly Joan Miró, André Masson, and Matta. By 1944
he met André Breton and became a friend of other Surrealist emigrés
in this country. Gorky’s first exhibition at the Julien Levy Gallery
in New York took place in 1945. From 1942 to 1948 he worked for part
of each year in the countryside of Connecticut or Virginia. A
succession of personal tragedies, including a fire in his studio that
destroyed much of his work, a serious operation, and an automobile
accident, preceded Gorky’s death by suicide on July 21, 1948, in
Sherman, Connecticut.

Armenia aims to blame Azerbaijan for delay in Karabakh talks – TV

Lider TV, Baku
1 Apr 04

[Presenter] Yerevan is trying to blame Azerbaijan for any delay in
talks on resolving the Nagornyy Karabakh issue.

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan said that the cancellation
of the meeting between the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers
due in Prague shows that Azerbaijan is worried. According to Oskanyan,
Azerbaijan needs time to clarify its position on Nagornyy
Karabakh. Having stressed that Yerevan is always ready for talks,
Oskanyan ruled out the possibility of starting dialogue from
scratch. Let Baku turn to Stepanakert if it has such intention, he
said.

The head of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry press service, Matin
Mirza, said that Azerbaijan’s position on the resolution of the
conflict has remained unchanged. As for Oskanyan’s statement, Mirza
said that Baku has never regarded the so-called Nagornyy Karabakh
Republic as a party to the conflict and will continue to adhere to
this position. Armenia wants to win time and strengthen its aggressive
policy by making such statements, Mirza said.

The head of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry press service said that
irrespective of the stage of talks, Azerbaijan aims to maintain its
territorial integrity.

The Globe and Mail, Canada
April 1 2004

A reel close-up on diversity

Documentaries and social-realist dramas dominate this film festival
dedicated to giving visual minorities greater exposure, LIAM LACEY
writes

By LIAM LACEY

Toronto’s fourth ReelWorld Film Festival, which kicks off today and
runs through the weekend at the Famous Players SilverCity Empress
Walk cinema, is moving up to a new level this year with a series of
seminars and panel discussions about breaking into the film business.

Started four years ago by soap-opera actress Tonya Lee Williams, the
festival (and the ReelWorld Foundation behind it), has generated
government financing and corporate sponsorship, and on that level is
already a success. What remains difficult to pin down is what the
festival, with its all-too generic name, is about.

The aim is diversity, specifically films about and by visual
minorities, but there’s a lot of overlap with existing Toronto
festivals. There is already a successful Reel Asian film festival in
the fall, and for black film, Planet Africa at the Toronto
International Film Festival and the Get Reel Film Festival (April
21-25). But nobody ever suggests a cap on the number of film
festivals for white people, and more festivals may mean more
opportunities and better representation of minorities in films.

The handful of films I’ve seen — there are more than 80 works
ranging from feature films to music videos in the festival — look
like good old Canadian multiculturalism. Several of the films have
white lead characters. Several others — the short Nigel’s
Fingerprints, the feature Little Brother of War and the Cuban film,
Entre Ciclones (Between Hurricanes) — have bi-racial lead
characters.

Documentaries and social-realist dramas are predominant. (The extreme
example of this is a film called Take Out, about Chinese immigrants
in New York, which spends most of its running time taking us on a
tour of food deliveries.) The opening gala, Little Brother of War
(tonight at 6:30), is Vancouver director Damon Vignale’s story about
an eight-year-old half-Indian orphan boy who travels across the
country to Chicago for a lacrosse championship, and befriends a jaded
cop. The film previously played at the Vancouver and Montreal film
festivals.

The closing-night gala on Sunday is the world premiere of a romantic
comedy, The Seat Filler (at 7 p.m.), about a regular guy who falls
for a superstar, Destiny’s Child’s Kelly Rowland.

A couple of documentaries look promising. Change from Within (Sat., 3
p.m.), a first film from Montreal’s Peter Farbridge, is about
inspirational teacher Margaret Bolt and her success in giving poor
children a break through her St. Peter Claver school in Kingston,
Jamaica.

Wet Sand: Voices from L.A. Ten Years Later (tomorrow at 1 p.m.) is
Korean-American filmmaker Dai Sil Kim-Gibson’s re-examination of the
L.A. riots of 1992, and its aftermath, on relations between the
Korean and black communities.

I Made a Vow (tomorrow at 4:30 p.m.) is a documentary focusing on
Canada’s oldest black community in Nova Scotia. Filmmaker Juanita
Peters (winner of a $5,000 National Film Board’s Reel Diversity Award
for her story pitch) offers a charming shot-on-video profile of the
importance of elaborate weddings in the town of North Preston. The
hour-long film follows the year-long preparations for Sharon and
Robbie up to the big day. The film does little to explain the
cultural history of these elaborate fetes but the music and warmth of
the characters carries it through.

Music and dance are the subjects of a quite wonderful film, Dame La
Mano (Give Me Your Hand) (Sunday, 3 p.m.), by veteran Dutch
documentarian Heddy Honigmann, which follows a group of irrepressible
Cuban expatriates. These characters gather each Saturday night at a
New Jersey nightclub to sing and dance the rumba, a dance that is
promoted as doing everything from stopping aging to promoting sexual
vigour and fighting cancer.

Cuban culture is also the focus of Entre Ciclones (Between
Hurricanes), which is screening Saturday at 9:30. This Havana-set
comedy, a huge hit in its native country last spring, follows the
misadventures of a handsome telephone repairman and the various women
in his life. While it does offer some insights into contemporary
Cuba, its bureaucratic frustrations and the differences between the
revolution generation and the pragmatic self-interested children,
it’s a shrill affair, with the stereotypes broadly drawn.

Neither is there much new in director Michael Tolajian’s feature
Bought & Sold (Friday, 9 p.m.). This multi-ethnic dramedy is about a
young Hispanic man who takes on work for a local Italian loan shark,
befriends an Armenian pawnbroker, learns about the Armenian genocide
and ditches his gold-digging girlfriend for a better choice.

A much more ambitious if not entirely successful drama, set in the
world of graffiti artists, is Bomb the System (Saturday at 7 p.m.).
When the film was shown at festivals in New York and Los Angles last
year, Variety hailed its director, Adam Bhala Lough, as a fresh new
directing voice, with a kinetic visual and driving narrative sense.

The film follows recent high-school graduate Anthony (Mark Webber,
who played Scooby in Todd Solondz’s Storytelling), who lives to go
out at night with his crew and “bomb” or paint walls with his art.
Anthony’s older brother, also a graffiti artist, was killed years
before on the streets. The movie, which plays out like Footloose with
spray cans, feels more than a little absurd, but it’s a visual tour
de force, with the director throwing in jump cuts and dissolves in
celebration of a visual art form, all accompanied by a layered
techno-rap soundtrack.

All screenings take place at the Famous Players SilverCity Empress
Walk, 5095 Yonge St., Toronto. For more information: the ReelWorld
website (); for tickets call (416) 923-9232.

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE
March 31, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]

ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY TO HONOR ARMENIAN CAUCUS CO-CHAIRS WITH PUBLIC SERVICE
AWARD

Washington, DC – The Armenian Assembly of America announced today that it
will honor Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues Co-Chairs Joe Knollenberg
(R-MI) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) with the Deukmejian Award for Public
Service at the upcoming National Conference and Banquet in Washington, DC.

“The Assembly is proud to once again give this award to two individuals who
exemplify its spirit – Congressmen Knollenberg and Pallone,” said Assembly
Board of Directors Chairman Anthony Barsamian.

The congressmen will accept their awards during a banquet at the Mayflower
Hotel on April 19.

“We’re looking forward to an exciting night as we pay tribute to two of our
closest supporters in the House of Representatives and hear from our Senate
friends, Senators Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), who are
the evening’s keynote speakers,” Barsamian added.

The National Conference and Banquet, which is being held in cooperation with
the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and the Eastern and Western
Diocese of the Armenian Church, starts on Sunday, April 18 with a memorial
service at the National Cathedral marking the 89th anniversary of the
Armenian Genocide. After the service, the conference will officially open
with a welcoming reception at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

On Monday, activists will gain hands-on experience on the art of advocacy in
preparation for their meetings on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. Monday’s
preparatory exercises will include workshops designed to hone participants’
advocacy skills. Among the day’s highlights will be a panel discussion on
the “Secrets to Advocacy,” which will be moderated by Assembly Board of
Directors Vice Chair Lisa Esayian, and include former Congressman James
Rogan (R-CA), New Hampshire State Representative Harry Haytayan (R-NH),
legislative assistant for Senator Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) Joanne Berry and
Assembly Board of Directors member and one-time aide to former Governor
Wilson (R-CA), Lisa Kalustian.

The conference closes on Tuesday with a farewell breakfast followed by a
full day of meetings with Members of Congress and their senior staff.

Throughout their tenure in Congress, both Knollenberg and Pallone have been
steadfast supporters of issues facing the Armenian community. They have
repeatedly fought for affirmation of the Armenian Genocide, co-sponsoring
legislation that would properly recognize the cataclysm of 1915 and urging
President Bush, as well as his predecessors, to accurately characterize the
events as genocide. The congressmen, working closely with their House
colleagues on both sides of the political aisle, have also fought for
increased funding to Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh, U.S.-Armenia trade
normalization, the re-opening of Armenia’s borders and maintaining Section
907 of the Freedom Support Act, among other critical issues.

Pallone, who created the Caucus in the mid-1990s, has traveled to Armenia
and Karabakh on numerous occasions, most recently with fellow Caucus member
Rep. Llyod Doggett (D-TX) as part of an Assembly-led delegation.
Knollenberg, also a frequent visitor to Armenia, earned a unique distinction
when in 2001 President Robert Kocharian awarded him the Order of Mkhitar
Gosh.

Since 1997, the Assembly has given the Deukmejian award, named after former
California Governor George Deukmejian, to individuals who embody the
qualities of an exemplary public servant. Among those who have received the
award are: Representatives David Dreier (R-CA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and John
Sweeney (R-NY), as well as Armenia’s Minister of Trade and Industry Garnik
Nanagoulian.

Online registration is available via the Assembly Web site at
For more information on the Conference, contact Nancy Yerian
Hiteshue at [email protected] or (202) 393-3434.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-031

Photograph available on the Assembly’s Web site at the following link:

Caption: Congressmen Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ)
flanked by Massachusetts State Representative Peter Koutoujian (D-10), far
left, and New Hampshire State Representative Harry Haytayan (R-46), far
right, during the Armenian Assembly’s Advocacy Conference in Washington last
April.

Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 31, 2004, Wednesday

U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE RICHARD ARMITAGE’S VISIT TO THE CIS
HAS FINISHED: THE U.S. ACTIVATES ITS POLICY IN THE CAUCASUS

US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage’s visit to the CIS
finished on Saturday. He held negotiations with President Ilkham
Aliyev in Baku. One of the topics concerned paths to settling the
Karabakh conflict. In addition, the US Deputy Secretary of State
thanked Azerbaijan for its assistance in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the
same time, Mr. Armitage said that the US does not intend to deploy
its bases in Azerbaijan. (…)

Richard Armitage met with President Robert Kocharyan in Yerevan. He
stated that he arrived as the US president’s messenger in order to
“revive a political dialogue between Washington and Yerevan”. He
stated: “This visit must emphasize our interest in the
South-Caucasian region and Armenia’s importance for the US.”

Mr. Armitage noted that he visited Kiev, Baku and Yerevan owing to
several reasons: “I discussed issues linked with an impending
presidential election in Ukraine. I haven’t visited Georgia because
we already held negotiations there. This is why I am here. I also
visit Azerbaijan because you are interested in the Karabakh problem
and the Partnership for Peace program.”

The results of the visit show that the US activates its policy in the
Caucasus. Washington has already established close relations with
Georgia, and has focused on Baku and Yerevan.

(…)

Source: Kommersant, March 29, 2004, p. 9

Translated by Alexander Dubovoi

The Montreal Gazette
March 29 2004

Armenians find new way to commemerate WW1 slaughter

A life-affirming quality is at the heart of this year’s commemoration
in Montreal of the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
during World War I.

For the first time in Canada, says Deacon Hagop Arslanian, the accent
will be on helping others in need through a blood drive, and
collections of food and toys.

“These events are all new in concept for the Armenian community in
Canada,”Arslanian, assistant to the spiritual leader of the Armenian
Holy Apostolic Church in Outremont, said Monday.

“We said to ourselves, `we lost our forefathers, now we give blood to
the others, we assist the others.

“It’s a way of being with our forefathers.”

These acts of giving are also planned in an ecumenical spirit,
underlining the humanitarian and spiritual nature of this year’s 89th
commemoration.

Successive Turkish governments have refused to accept the term
“genocide” for the fate of up to 1.5 million Armenians during World
War I.

At that time, fearing Armenian nationalist activity, the
disintegrating Ottoman Empire organized mass deportations of
Armenians from its eastern regions.

Men, women and children were sent into the desert to starve, herded
into barns and churches that were set afire, tortured to death or
drowned.

The Gazette is following this story. Please read Tuesday’s paper for
more details.

Radio Free Europe, Czech republic
March 25 2004

World Bank Survey Highlights Shrinkage Of Armenian Forests

By Gevorg Stamboltsian

Armenians’ continuing use of firewood as a source of heating remains
a serious threat to the country’s endangered mountainous forests, new
research funded by the World Bank concludes.
The study conducted recently by a team of British and Swedish experts
found that 73 percent of people living near the Armenian forests
still resort to logging for keeping their homes warm in the winter.
`It’s a hard situation,’ said Andrew Mitchell, a British forestry
consultant involved in the effort.
`The total volume [of wood] that’s removed each year is approximately
750,000 cubic meters,’ he told RFE/RL. `And this is a very large
volume if you compare it with the officially planned volumes. So it
is likely to have an environmental impact.’

The total area of lands covered by woods in Armenia has already
shrunk considerably since the severe energy crisis in the early 1990s
which left the population without electricity and central heating.
Although the power shortages were eliminated by 1996 many people,
especially in rural areas, still prefer firewood to the more
expensive electricity, and the authorities have still not restored
natural gas supplies to the majority of households.

The authors of the World Bank study believe that poverty is the main
driving force of the continuing deforestation. But Armenian
environmentalists say there are also powerful commercial interests
involved, pointing to the fact that wood is heavily used by local
firms producing construction materials and furniture. They warn that
the deforestation is causing soil
erosion and having other negative effects on the country’s ecological
system.

`It’s a devastating business,’ admitted Ruben Petrosian, the recently
appointed head of Hayantar, the government’s main forestry agency.

Petrosian complained that the state now spends less than $300,000 a
year on forest protection and restoration — a far cry from Soviet
times when an equivalent of $4 million was annually budgeted for that
purpose. `In 1985, for example, new trees were planted on 3,500
hectares of land, creating new forests,’ he said.

However, Hayantar itself is viewed by many as a major cause of the
problem. Its employees are thought to routinely sanction illegal
logging in exchange for kickbacks. Their modest salaries only
contribute to the corruption.

`The temptation for corruption must be very large,’ Mitchell said.
`If I was in that position and my family was sick and I needed to
send them to hospital, I would take a bribe.’

Mitchell added that tougher penalties alone would not remedy the
situation. Besides, he continued, the government’s existing logging
regulations are not clear enough. `It is difficult to say what is
legal and what is illegal,’ he said.

Hayantar, which was previously controlled by the Armenian Ministry of
Environment, was transferred to the Agriculture Ministry in January
amid protests from 14 environmental protection groups. In a joint
letter to President Robert Kocharian, they warned that the move could
have `dangerous consequences’ for the country’s shrinking green
areas. They claimed that the Agriculture Ministry lacks the expertise
and commitment to protect them.

[19-03-2004 ‘1915 Issues’]
————————————————- ———————
MFA OF ARMENIA ISSUED A DIPLOMATIC NOTE,
Source : `Echo’ newspaper (Azerbaijan)
Author: H. GASIMOVA

Opposing the Statement by UK Ambassador Thorda Abbot-Watt

Yesterday Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia sent a diplomatic
note to UK government in view of the statement by the ambassador of
this country in Armenia, Thorda Abbot-Watt on the issue of the
so-called `Armenian Genocide’. `Novosti’ RIA reports it with reference
to MFA of Armenia press service. “Great Britain accepts that the
events of 1915 were mass killings the responsible for which are the
Turks. But, I do not think that recognizing the events as genocide
would be of much use’, Abbot-Watt declared. The statement by the
British Ambassador raised diplomatic scandal. The representatives of
Armenian public and Armenian Diaspora in USA, Great Britain, France
and other countries officially condemned the statement by
Abbot-Watt. Thus, according to Armenian Assembly of Europe, the
International Group on Recognition and Prevention of Genocides called
upon the UK Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jack Straw to reconsider
appropriateness of Thorda Abbot-Watt’s further activity as the
ambassador of this country in Armenia.

According to the authors of the letter, by denying the Armenian
Genocide the British ambassador aggravates the wound of the Armenian
people and discourages all those who have experience with the
consequences of Genocide denial. “As an international NGO we urge you
to consider the issue whether Abbot-Watt may continue its diplomatic
mission in Armenia, where half of the population are descendants of
Genocide survivors. Moreover, the fact is that she is not familiar
with the historical realities and international relations and
constantly makes incompetent and insulting statements’, the text
runs. Yerevan pro-government press also started a campaign aimed at
British ambassador’s recall from Armenia.

“Some countries recognized the Armenian Genocide, others didn’t. Each
government sticks to its own position on this issue. However, the
ambassadors of all countries on the Armenian land should approach this
emotional issue with all due care and tact”, MFA press secretary,
Hamlet Gasparian noted.

In the opinion of former foreign affairs minister of Azerbaijan, Tofik
Zulfugarov, it is one more propaganda scandal of Armenians. According
to the latter, the position stated by the British ambassador reflects
the official position of Great Britain on the given issue. The
Azerbaijani diplomat thinks it highly questionable that UK authorities
may take the initiative of recalling the ambassador. The reason is
that the International Group on Recognition and Prevention of
Genocides is an NGO, whereas the policy of official authorities runs
contrary to the view by an NGO. `In my opinion, all of this occurs in
the world because of a certain influence of stereotypes on public
opinion formation in Armenia’.

In his turn, political scientist Vafa Guluzade holds that demanding
the recall of the British ambassador, Armenia demonstrates its poor
political culture. “An ambassador is entitled to express his/her
opinion on historical events. What Armenians are speaking about is a
matter of ancient history. The world has not recognized the Armenian
Genocide’, he added.

At the same time the political scientist holds that this scandal will
in no way impact British-Armenian relations since they are factually
non-existent. “Britain and other states are not interested in
Armenia. This country lacks any national resources. It is not
Azerbaijan which is a strategically significant country located in the
Caspian region and rich in oil and gas resources’, Guluzade states.

Besides, as Guluzade notes, Armenia is not an independent state since
it is actually a part of Russia. Armenian industry and all Armenian
energy system is Russia’s property. In his opinion, the diplomatic
scandal will eventually end by the Armenians’ quieting down all the
fuss.

It is not the first campaign against the ambassadors on the issue of
`Genocide’. In 2002 during his press conference Israeli ambassador to
Armenia and Georgia, Rivko Koen came forward with a protest against
identification of the Armenian `Genocide’ with Jewish Holocaust. In
response, the representatives of the Armenian Diaspora pressed the
Armenian officials to immediately expel the ambassador from the
country. Israeli authorities, ignoring the official notes of the
Armenian government, supported the position taken by their diplomat.

[18-03-2004 ‘Region’]
———————————————————————-
CYPRUS: THIRTY YEARS AFTER
Source : Yerevan Press Club Weekly Newsletter
(Armenia)
Author: Elina Poghosbekian

On May 7-14 a group of 19 Armenian and Azerbaijani journalists visited
Cyprus. The trip was organized by Yerevan and Baku Press Clubs under a
bilateral project `Possible Resolutions to the Karabagh Conflict:
Expert Evaluations and Media Coverage’, supported by Network Media
Program of Open Society Institute. Assistance in the preparation and
the realization of the visit was provided by Press and Information
Office of the Interior Ministry of Republic of Cyprus and personally
its representative Loucas Louca, the Press Department of the Embassy
of Republic of Cyprus in Russian Federation, the Chairman of the
Cyprus Journalists Union Andreas Kannaouros, Press and Information
Office of the Government of Northern Cyprus.

The purpose of the visit of this – as the hosts invariably noted, for
the first time so numerous – group of representatives media and
journalistic associations of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Mountainous
Karabagh was to try and gain an insight into the Cyprus problem and,
possibly, draw parallels with realities of our region.

The thirty-year-old – since 1974 – history on negotiations on the
reunion of Northern and Southern Cyprus may be drawing to its
end. Should the direct dialogue of the internationally recognized
Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish community of the island fall flat
till March 22, according to the plan of the UN Secretary General Kofi
Annan and under his auspices, the guaranteeing countries, Greece and
Turkey, would join the talks. Should this stage end in a failure too,
Kofi Annan will present his final proposals. If this version of the
plan is again disagreed on by the parties, the final solution will be
given by simultaneously conducted referenda in the North and the South
of the island. The suggested referendum date is April 21 – a most
remarkable month in the newest history of Cypriots.

After the military coup in Athens on April 21, 1967 and the `black
colonels’ assuming power, on July 15, 1974 an attempt to join Cyprus
to Greece was made that resulted in the entry of Turkish troops on the
island.

On April 23, 2003 free movement was allowed across the so-called
`green’ line of separation. According to the Spokesman of the
Government of Republic of Cyprus Kypros Chrysostomides, after the
border opening, about ten thousand of Turk and Greek Cypriots cross it
and not a single incident was registered. “Is it not the best proof
that the two communities can and want to live together?’,
Mr. Chrysostomides stresses.

Finally, the freedom of movement enabled the Turk Cypriots to receive
passports of Republic of Cyprus. According to the figures of RC
Interior Ministry, currently 13.5 thousand of `Northerners’ have such
passports. For those unaware I will explain the significance of the
moment: on May 1, 2004, RC is joining the European Union and,
therefore, the zone of free movement for its citizens is significantly
expanded. However the RC Interior Minister Andreas Christou places
equal emphasis on the fact of `local importance’ – since this same
April last year 34 thousand of Cypriot Turks received identification
cards. `Overall, in our archive we have records of having issued such
ID cards to 115 thousand Cypriot Turks’, the Minister noted.

Our meeting with Prime Minister of the unrecognized Turkish Republic
of Northern Cyprus Mehmet Ali Talat was before his departure to Ankara
for consultations with the Government of Turkey – the only country
that has officially recognized the TRNC. The nearest future will show
what reflection these consultations will have on the position of the
new (since 2003) head of the Government, the leader of opposition
Republican Turkish Party. Mehmet Ali Talat believes that `the
political unification of the island is one of our main tasks’. `We do
realize that this cannot continue, the situation where the Northern
Cyprus is not internationally recognized, exists in a closed system,
must be changed. Nothing good will happen if the Southern Cyprus joins
the European Union, and we do not’, the Prime Minister confesses and
adds that if the referenda on the unification yield no result, a
question of who is to blame will arise. The President of TRNC Rauf
Denktas is more radical and insists on the confederation of two
sovereign states.

The option proposed by Denktas for Greek Cypriots is absolutely
unacceptably, but there are smaller stumbling blocks, or, as Prime
Minister Talat put it, questions that are being traded. What will be
the fate of migrants from Turkey, who are said to be more numerous in
Northern Cyprus than the indigenous inhabitants? No specific figures
are given, as the Greek party maintains, they make about 125-130
thousands, while according to the estimates of the Turkish party they
are 35% of the 200-thousand population of the North. Who of these
people that have already settled on the island will be able to stay,
and who will have to leave, having received compensation? What is the
percentage of Cypriot refugees from both sides and how long their
re-settlement will last? What will the compensation for their property
left in the North or South be? Greek Cypriots announce about the 35-40
thousand Turkish military troops. The leaders of the Turkish community
do not give specific number in this regard. What will be the further
presence of foreign troops (besides Turkish, there are British and
Greek soldiers) in both parts of the island?

This and number of other questions, also referring to the organization
and administration of the island, have answers given by Annan’s plan,
by Greek and Turkish Cypriots. And almost all of them differ.

The RC Interior Minister Mr. Christou believes in reunification via
economic ties, which are becoming all the intensive after the opening
of the `green’ line. He is more concerned with the question what will
the cost of the reunion be for Cyprus? `In my opinion, this will take
6 billion pounds (13 billion USD – Ed.), the maximalists speak about
16 billion. One thing is certain – we will not be unable to ensure the
viability of the state without donors’, Mr. Christou says. The annual
revenue of Greek Cypriots (16 thousand per capita) today is higher not
only than that of Turk Cypriots, but also than that of such `old’ EU
members as Greece and Portugal. Will the `Southerners’ agree to
tighten their belts for the reunification is another open
question. Its answer, I believe, greatly preconditions the `yes’ of
the Greek community to the reunification in case of the
referenda. Both the Greek and the Turkish parties in their referendum
forecasts were reticent.

At the Southern approaches to Famagusta flags of RC and Greece are
flapping. A bit farther – on another deserted building with its
windows and doorways blocked with bricks the flags of TRNC and Turkey
are flown. On the building facade a poster is attached: `Cyprus will
never be Greek’. This is how Famagusta looks when you gaze at it with
a binocular from the South. `This is truly a ghost city’, I thought,
as I directed the lenses at the skeletons of dead buildings. `Is this
the same Famagusta?!’ The North dazzled us with expansive construction
of countless glamorous cottages, villas, bed-and-breakfasts of white,
red, green… The rumor goes that not only the Turkish but also the
Greek capital is involved in an effort to return the past glory to the
city – one of the best resorts on the Mediterranean. The businessmen
are prudent folk and are investing in stability…

The Minister of Interior of RC Andreas Christou is confident, that the
intercommunal economic ties along with the institutional frameworks
established by the EU will enable to solve the Cyprus problem very
fast. `We will re-learn walking, having the bitter, but the good
example of co-existence.’

The X hour for Cyprus will be on May 1. Will this May Day signal its
accession to European family reunited, or the 30-year separation will
continue? Little time is left. One thing is certain: the changes in
the atmosphere in both South and North do inspire some optimism.

It is much harder to predict, whether we – the Armenian and
Azerbaijani journalists that happened to find themselves on the
hospitable Island of Aphrodite right on the eve of `moment of truth` –
will `re-learn walking’. So alas, it is still too early to draw
parallels with the realities of South Caucasus. But the second purpose
of our visit was the discussion of further cooperation between the
journalistic associations and media of the two countries.

[16-03-2004 ‘1915 Issues’]
———————————————————————-
RESTORATION OF TURKISH GENOCIDE MAUSOLEUM
Source : “Hurriyet” newspaper (Turkey)
Author:

600 milliard Turkish liras will be spent for restoration of the
Mausoleum of Turkish Genocide executed by the Armenians.

`The Genocide Mausoleum’ was founded by the first mayor Igdir
Shemseddin Uzun and is the symbol of the city. The Mausoleum was
opened in 1996 by the ninth President of Turkey Suleyman Demirel and
former President of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliev. The granite flags of the
Mausoleum, where a museum is located, started to crumble. Therefore
the municipality issued a decision on the start of restoration
works. 600 milliard Turkish liras will be spent for the restoration.

—
Yerevan Press Club of Armenia, ‘Yeni Nesil’ Journalists’ Union of
Azerbaijan and Association of Diplomacy Correspondents of Turkey
present ‘Armenia-Azerbaijan-Turkey: Journalist Initiative-2002’
Project. As a part of the project web site has
been designed, featuring the most interesting publications from the
press of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey on issues of mutual
concern. The latest updates on the site are weekly delivered to the
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