Category: News

On May 8 a Regional Conference on contemporary issues of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Armenia, Georgia and beyond will kick off in Yerevan. Guests include state officials, religious leaders, and representatives of civil society and academia from Armenia and Georgia, as well as renowned experts from Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Russia and Norway.

The conference will take place in Armenia Marriott hotel, Tigran Metz hall. The working languages will be Armenian, Georgian and English, with simultaneous translation. The event is open to media, and will be live-streamed online.

Opening remarks will be delivered by Deputy Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Mr. Vigen Kocharyan and Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Armenia and Georgia Mr. Jos Douma. The OSCE/ODIHR Senior Adviser on FoRB Kishan Manocha and UN OHCHR Senior Human Rights Adviser for the South Caucasus Vladimir Shkolnikov will attend the event. Representatives of Foreign diplomatic missions and international organizations are invited.

The goal of the conference is to provide a platform for key stakeholders to discuss the situation and developments of FoRB in Armenia, Georgia and globally and define recommendations for governments, religious communities and policy makers. The main topics that the Conference will cover are:

• International standards of FoRB and the situation in Armenia and Georgia;
• FoRB and education;
• FoRB and secularity
• FoRB and equality between men and women

 

 

 

Armenia and Russia continue discussing legal solutions to ensure the execution of Valery Permyakov’s sentence in Russia, Armenia’s Deputy Minister of Justice Vigen Kocharyan has said.

Russian soldier Valery Permyakov, who was sentenced to life for murdering a family of seven in Armenia’s second largest city of Gyumri, will serve the sentence in Russia, RIA Novosti reported today.

“In a situation, where there are two verdicts by the Armenian and Russian courts, we’re holding discussions with the Russian side to find necessary legal solutions to ensure the execution of Permyakov’s sentence,” Vigen Kocharyan said.

Yervand Varosyan, the lawyer who represents the legal successors of the Avetisyan family, says the news should come as no surprise. He reminded that Permyakov had been under Russian jurisdiction from the day of his detention, as he was detained by Russian law-enforcers.

The legal successors are preparing to file an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights connected with Russia’s responsibility, the lawyer said.

Valery Permyakov from Russia’s military base was sentenced to life for killing a family of 7 in Armenia’s second largest city of Gyumri.

The family, including a six-month-old baby, was killed as a result of an armed assault on January 12, 2015.

Permyakov was arrested and later charged with the murder of two or more persons under the Armenian Criminal Code.

On August 12, Permyakov was found guilty of desertion, theft of weapons and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The murder case was singled out for considering it in a separate procedure and passed to the Armenian authorities.

On October 13, Permyakov was found sane. According to experts, he was not in the heat of passion while committing the crime. He also could recognize the consequences of his actions.

On October 16, Permyakov was additionally charged with armed assault, home-invasion robbery and attempted border crossing.

Artsvik, Armenia’s representative at Eurovision Song Contest 2017, had her second rehearsal on Eurovision stage in Kyiv.

She will perform her song ‘Fly With Me’ in the first Semi-Final on Tuesday, 9th of May.

Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan received Bulgarian Ambassador to Armenia Maria Pavlova Tzotzorkova-Kaymaktchieva.

The Prime Minister pointed out that Armenia is interested in the furtherance of bilateral relations. Highlighting the development of economic cooperation and business ties, Karen Karapetyan stressed the need for reinvigorating the activities of the Armenian-Bulgarian Intergovernmental Commission.

Noting that Bulgarian investors may consider Armenia as an appropriate platform for entering the Eurasian and Iranian markets, the Premier said that the Bulgarian capital has the opportunity to engage in the free economic zone of Meghri. Karen Karapetyan went on to note that he could see good prospects of cooperation in the transport sector in terms of implementing multimodal transportations via the Black Sea-Persian Gulf transport corridor. The Prime Minister conveyed his greetings and congratulations to newly elected Prime Minister of Bulgaria Boyko Borisov.

Maria Pavlova Tzotzorkova-Kaymaktchieva said Bulgaria keen to strengthen relations with Armenia, noting that they could be bolstered by centuries of bilateral ties. Stressing the importance of developing economic cooperation, she considered it necessary to boost trade turnover mediating business forums, promoting new business ties and implementing investment programs. The Ambassador added that Bulgaria is ready to share its experience in different fields, including public administration and the agrarian reform.

The interlocutors concurred in that cultural and educational cooperation might serve as a milestone on the way to strengthening contacts between the two peoples by means of cultural and educational exchange programs.

Russian soldier sentenced to life for murdering a family in Gyumri, Armenia, will serve his term in Russia, RIA Novosti reports, quoting a representative of the North Caucasus Regional Military Court.

Valery Permyakov was sentenced to life for killing a family of 7 in Armenia’s second largest city of Gyumri.

The family, including a six-month-old baby, was killed as a result of an armed assault on January 12, 2015.

Permyakov was arrested and later charged with the murder of two or more persons under the Armenian Criminal Code.

On August 12, Permyakov was found guilty of desertion, theft of weapons and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The murder case was singled out for considering it in a separate procedure and passed to the Armenian authorities.

On October 13, Permyakov was found sane. According to experts, he was not in the heat of passion while committing the crime. He also could recognize the consequences of his actions.

On October 16, Permyakov was additionally charged with armed assault, home-invasion robbery and attempted border crossing.

The family of a prominent Armenian folk singer who died following routine gallbladder surgery accused her surgeon of missing obvious signs of infection after the operation in a medical malpractice trial currently underway in California state court,  reports.

An attorney for Flora Martirosian’s adult children accused Dr. Mardiros Mihranian of failing to prescribe adequate antibiotics and discharging their mother from Glendale Memorial Hospital despite her running a fever after surgery. During her opening statement on April 28, Amanda McClintock of Girardi & Keese LLP told jurors that these errors resulted in Martirosian’s unnecessary death.

“If the defendants had been practicing according to the standard of care, they would have kept Mrs. Martirosian in the hospital,” she said.

Martirosian was a well-known folk musician in Armenia who later developed a loyal following in the United States, going on to perform with headliners like Stevie Wonder. She underwent emergency gallbladder surgery in 2012 and died days later of sepsis at the age of 55.

McClintock told jurors that infection is one of the most common complications from this type of surgery, and that Dr. Mihranian should have determined the cause of the fever Martirosian presented the morning she was discharged. She said infection should have been even more of a concern due to Martirosian’s weight and the presence of a lap band in her abdomen, two factors that make infection even more of a risk.

When Martirosian returned to Glendale in respiratory distress after being discharged, Bradford said she was treated by a team of doctors that didn’t include Mihranian, and that everyone agrees the original surgery was done correctly.

The trial before Judge Brian Currey is still underway and expected to continue through at least May 9.

The program of modernization of the Meghri checkpoint at Iran’s border has kicked off. The project aims to create conditions conducive to business and commodity turnover.

“Modernization of the Meghri border crossing point is the continuation of the program of modernization of the northern checkpoints of Bagratashen, Gogavan and Bavra,” said Armen Sakapetyan, deputy chief of the State Revenue Committee.

He added that the “improved conditions will provide an opportunity to apply procedures meeting modern standards.”

The program is implemented by the UN with financing from the European Union and the International Center for Migration Policy Development.

The modernization of the checkpoint at the country’s southern border will boost the commodity turnover between Armenia and Iran.

The two countries intend to implement on-line data exchange within the framework of the joint use of the border crossing point.

Vartan Gharpetian will serve his third year on the Glendale City Council as the city’s mayor thanks to a unanimous vote by council members Monday, where new and returning faces were officially sworn in to their roles as civil servants, reports.

City Council incumbents Ara Najarian and Zareh Sinanyan took their oath of office for another four years of service alongside first-time Councilman Vrej Agajanian. Unopposed candidates Ardy Kassakhian and Rafi Manoukian will continue their roles as city clerk and city treasurer, respectively.

Before Gharpetian took on his new role, acting Mayor Paula Devine received recognition for her contributions to the city by state Sen. Anthony Portantino and a representative from the office of Assemblywoman Laura Friedman.

Mayors serve one-year terms and are selected by fellow council members. No city code governs the annual process, but members are encouraged to elect someone with experience on council.

Gharpetian, whose swift selection as mayor occurred late in the meeting, spoke at length about his goals to complete ongoing city projects “in a timely manner” and start those that have already been approved.

“I’m looking forward to working with all [city employees] for the betterment of our city and its residents,” Gharpetian said. “Together, we will continue to keep our city a beautiful and dynamic, safe place to live.”

At a historic reception set at UCLA, Creative Armenia was officially launched with a mandate to discover talent and empower stories of impact in the digital age. The event was co-hosted by Teri Schwartz, Dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, and Dr. Eric Esrailian, producer of The Promise, who is also a founding member of Creative Armenia’s advisory board.

Grammy Award winning musician and activist Serj Tankian and social impact filmmaker Carla Garapedian introduced the organization’s first initiative – a $5,000 from the Oscar-winning director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda and The Promise). Filmmakers everywhere were invited to take part in Creative Challenge 001: Art of Impact with a submission of a short film, no more than 60 seconds, that takes on a human rights issue important to them.

“For me film is the greatest medium to confront catastrophe and expose the conscience,” Terry George says in the video. “The medium itself is the struggle of light against shadow.”

Launched in partnership with the The Promise, the Gulbenkian Foundation, a major anonymous benefactor, and a global network of supporters, Creative Armenia reflects the Armenian community’s increasing interest in the realm of human rights and entertainment. The Promise, which in recent weeks catapulted the saga of the Armenian Genocide onto the big screen, has been accompanied by a storm of human rights activity off screen – including the establishment at UCLA of a 20 million-dollar Promise Institute for Human Rights. All proceeds of the film will be going to charitable causes. 

“To have something like this come out of a dark chapter of our history, moving toward the light, is extraordinary,” said Esrailian. “And it is heart-warming to see it all coming together at UCLA.” 

Dean Schwartz added: “We look forward to the exciting work that Creative Armenia will be doing, as it plays a leading role at the cross-section of human rights, entertainment, and creative technologies.” 

“We are at the beginning of a new cultural coalition,” said Garin Hovannisian, founder of Creative Armenia. “And we are proud to be building together this dynamic new cultural infrastructure.”

Creative Armenia is a non-profit organization based in Los Angeles and Yerevan, Armenia. Its online platform is the hub of its programming, with its signature creative challenges, fellowships, video productions, and a digital magazine.

On May 4, 2017, in accordance with the arrangement reached with the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh, the OSCE Mission conducted a planned monitoring of the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Artsakh and Azerbaijan, in the direction of the Askeran region, south-east of Akna.

From the positions of the Defense Army of the Republic of Artsakh, the monitoring was conducted by Field Assistant to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Mihail Olaru (Moldova) and Personal Assistant to the CiO Personal Representative Simon Tiller (Great Britain).

From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was conducted by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, his Field Assistant Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova), and staff member of his Office Martin Schuster (Germany).

The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule. No violation of the cease-fire regime was registered.

From the Artsakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the Republic of Artsakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense.