ARKA News Agency – 01/19/2005

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Jan 19 2005

Session of Intergovernmental Commission on Cooperation between
Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh held in Yerevan

Statements of deputy US Secretary General Elizabeth Jones did not
pursue the goal to criticize authorities of Nagorno Karabakh

Administrative court to start functioning in Armenia beginning with
2006

Statement on Nagorno Karabakh of Elizabeth Jones, US Assistant
Secretary of State, shocks Armenian diaspora of America

The policy of the State Department of the USA in respect of
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict hasn’t changed

*********************************************************************

SESSION OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL COMMISSION ON COOPERATION BETWEEN
ARMENIA AND NAGORNO KARABAKH HELD IN YEREVAN

YEREVAN, January 19. /ARKA/. The session of the Intergovernmental
Commission on Cooperation between Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh was
held in Yerevan today. According to the Public Relations and Press
Department of RA Government, provisions of events program on
long-term cooperation between the two Governments were discussed
during the session. Currently, the program is being developed by the
working groups of the Commission, which will present it to the
corresponding Ministries and Departments of the two countries till
February 5 in order to develop sub-programs for separate spheres. The
RA Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan emphasized the importance of
further development of Armenian and NKR economic relations and gave
commissions to render professional and methodological assistance to
the working groups for the determination of a more pragmatic and
feasible tasks. L.V.-0–

*********************************************************************

STATEMENTS OF DEPUTY US SECRETARY GENERAL ELIZABETH JONES DID NOT
PURSUE THE GOAL TO CRITICIZE AUTHORITIES OF NAGORNO KARABAKH

STEPANAKERT, January 19. /ARKA/. Statements of deputy US Secretary
General Elizabeth Jones did not pursue the goal to criticize
authorities of Nagorno Karabakh, NKR MFA press service told ARKA that
it was stated by assistant of OSCE MG Co-Chairman from USA Elizabeth
Ruth during telephone conversation with NKR Regular Representative to
USA Vardan Barsegian. Ruth said that statements of Jones considered
policy conducted by Russia.
The policy of the State Department of the USA in respect of
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict hasn’t changed, according to the statement
of Press Service Department of the US Embassy to RA referring to
official Washington. It’s stated in the press release of the Embassy
that the USA doesn’t recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent
state, and the authority of NKR is not recognized at the
international level, or by the USA. The USA defends the territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan and considers that the further status of
Nagorno-Karabakh should be determined by means of the negotiations
process in the framework of OSCE Minsk Group’, according to the press
release, stating that the USA continues its active contribution to
the peaceful settlement of the conflict through OSCE Minsk Group. `We
are encouraged by continuing consistent negotiations held between the
Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Azerbaijan’, according to
the press-release.
As statement of the US Embassy to RA referring to official Washington
states that according to the comments in Moscow Times, the Deputy US
Secretary General Elizabeth Johns puts emphasis on the necessity of
joint cooperation between the USA and Russia regarding the issue of
the law priority and increasing transparency in the settlement of
conflicts in conflict regions. `We realize that each conflict has its
own and specific circumstances’, according to the press-release.
To remind, according to Mass Media, Elizabeth Jones stated in her
interview to journalists in the course of the video- conference with
Moscow on January 13 that US President Jorge Bush is alarmed by the
lack of enough efforts on the part of Russia to settle
Pridnestrovski, North Ossetian, Abkhazian and Karabakh conflicts.
`These four conflicts will be discussed at the meeting of Bush with
Putin in the capital of Slovakia. It’s in the interests of Russia
that the situation in Pridnestrovie, North Ossetia, Abkhazia and
Nagorno-Karabakh be stable, corruption be combated, and criminal
elements be eliminated in the echelons of power’, she noted. L.D.
-0–

*********************************************************************

ADMINISTRATIVE COURT TO START FUNCTIONING IN ARMENIA BEGINNING WITH
2006

YEREVAN, January 19. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian held a
working meeting with RA Minister of Justice David Harutunyan.
According to the OPress service of RA President, in the context of
judicial-legal system, Kocharian attached importance to the
establishment of administrative courts and work on development of
legislative packages. The system of administrative courts, widely
applied in world practice, will allow protecting the interests of
citizens and legal entities in disputes with the official structures
through specialized courts. It is supposed, that administrative
courts should start functioning in Armenia already beginning with
2006.
During the meeting, the Justice Minister presented to the RA
President other directions of work scheduled for 2005. In particular,
he laid stress on the successful implementation of the second stage
of judicial-legal reforms and considerable improvement of services
for compulsory fulfillment of judicial and criminal-executive acts.
L.V. -0–

*********************************************************************

STATEMENT ON NAGORNO KARABAKH OF ELIZABETH JONES, US ASSISTANT
SECRETARY OF STATE, SHOCKS ARMENIAN DIASPORA OF AMERICA
YEREVAN, January 19. /ARKA/. Armenian Diaspora of America is shocked
by the statement on Nagorno Karabakh of Elizabeth Jones, US Assistant
Secretary of State. According to the Armenian National Committee of
America (ANCA), `these remarks undermine the Karabakh peace process’.
`Assistant Secretary Jones’s comments seriously weaken the foundation
of our role – as Americans – as impartial mediators of the Nagorno
Karabagh conflict. Her remarks unfairly attack the right of the
people of Nagorno Karabagh to express themselves democratically
through elections and they also- very significantly – embolden the
growing chorus in the Azerbaijan government that are calling for
renewed aggression against Nagorno Karabagh’, said ANCA Chairman Ken
Hachikian. To remind, Elizabeth Jones, US Assistant Secretary of
State, stated in her interview to journalists during the video-
conference with Moscow on January 13 that US President George Bush is
concerned with lack of sufficient efforts on behalf of Russia to
settle the conflicts of Pridnestrovje, North Ossetia, Abkhazia and
Karabakh. `These four conflicts will be addressed in the Bush-Putin
meeting in the capital of Slovakia It is in Russia’s interest for
these areas, for Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia,
Nagorno-Karabakh, for these areas to be stable, for corruption to end
there, for the criminal secessionists who rule there to be removed.
‘, noted Jones. It is known that Karabakh conflict will become one of
the issues that the Presidents of the USA and Russia are going to
discuss in the meeting in February in Bratislava, the capital of
Slovakia. L.V. –0–

*********************************************************************

THE POLICY OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF THE USA IN RESPECT OF
NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT HASN’T CHANGED

YEREVAN, January 19. /ARKA/. The policy of the State Department of
the USA in respect of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict hasn’t changed,
according to the statement of Press Service Department of the US
Embassy to RA referring to official Washington. It’s stated in the
press release of the Embassy that the USA doesn’t recognize
Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent state, and the authority of NKR is
not recognized at the international level, or by the USA. The USA
defends the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and considers that
the further status of Nagorno-Karabakh should be determined by means
of the negotiations process in the framework of OSCE Minsk Group’,
according to the press release, stating that the USA continues its
active contribution to the peaceful settlement of the conflict
through OSCE Minsk Group. `We are encouraged by continuing consistent
negotiations held between the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Armenia
and Azerbaijan’, according to the press-release.
As statement of the US Embassy to RA referring to official Washington
states that according to the comments in Moscow Times, the Deputy US
Secretary General Elizabeth Johns puts emphasis on the necessity of
joint cooperation between the USA and Russia regarding the issue of
the law priority and increasing transparency in the settlement of
conflicts in conflict regions. `We realize that each conflict has its
own and specific circumstances’, according to the press-release.
To remind, according to Mass Media, Elizabeth Johns stated in her
interview to journalists in the course of the video- conference with
Moscow on January 13 that US President Jorge Bush is alarmed by the
lack of enough efforts on the part of Russia to settle
Pridnestrovski, North Ossetian, Abkhazian and Karabakh conflicts.
`These four conflicts will be discussed at the meeting of Bush with
Putin in the capital of Slovakia. It’s in the interests of Russia
that the situation in Pridnestrovie, North Ossetia, Abkhazia and
Nagorno-Karabakh be stable, corruption be combated, and criminal
elements be eliminated in the echelons of power’, she noted.
To note, the Karabakh conflict will become one of the issues that the
Presidents of the USA and Russia are going to discuss at the planned
meeting in February in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. A.H.
–0–

Obit: Felix Aprahamian

The Times, UK
Jan 20 2005

Felix Aprahamian

Irrepressible writer, critic and enthusiast for music in Britain, who
helped to shape the nation’s cultural life for many years

FELIX APRAHAMIAN was a critic, organist, publisher, broadcaster,
adjudicator, lecturer, editor, concert organiser and much more
besides. Above all, he was an enthusiast: an animator, with a
cosmopolitan touch, of British music, musicians and musical events
over a period of more than 60 years.

Generous, quick-witted, energetic especially in the cause of French
composers, he did much to sustain music in England during the war by
his work for the London Philharmonic Orchestra. He did no less, once
the fighting was over, to build bridges with the Continent. For many
years his short, tubby, goatee-bearded presence, spectacles flashing
with delight, made him a magnet at London musical events.

Felix Aprahamian was born in London in 1914, of Armenian parentage,
and educated at Tollington School in Muswell Hill. He began
contributing articles to the musical press when not yet out of his
teens.

An early enthusiasm for Delius sent him off to the composer’s home at
Grez-sur-Loing, some 45 miles south of Paris, and was sustained
throughout his life: he was an adviser to the Delius Trust from 1961.

In 1940, abandoning a business career, Aprahamian became assistant
secretary and concert director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra,
then in economic difficulties and feeling the loss caused by Sir
Thomas Beecham’s departure. Aprahamian, refusing to compromise,
devised enterprising programmes that included, in 1944, the first
performance of Tippett’s A Child of Our Time.

In 1946 Aprahamian left the LPO to become, nominally, a consultant to
the firm United Musical Publishers, but in effect he made himself
through the firm’s Paris connections one of the main agents, along
with the French cultural attaché Tony Mayer, of the promotion of
French music in Britain.

The Concerts de Musique Française which they organised between 1942
and 1964 not only introduced French music to London but also brought
to British notice artists including Gérard Souzay, Monique Haas,
Yvonne Lefébure and, with Poulenc, Pierre Bernac.

His gift for friendship stood him in good stead, and the
affectionately signed photographs festooning his office were a sign
of real appreciation from composers including Poulenc and Messiaen,
conductors including Ansermet, Munch and Désormière, and many other
artists.

Aprahamian’s particular interest in organ music – he had an organ in
his house and encouraged young organists to use it for practice – led
to much greater English awareness of the riches of the French
repertory.

He was honorary secretary of the Organ Music Society from 1935 to
1970 and was made an honorary member of the Royal College of
Organists in 1973 and an honorary fellow in 1994. He was energetic in
the successful campaign in the early 1970s to save the Alexandra
Palace organ which the GLC was proposing to sell, and led an appeal
to restore it; this became a much greater challenge when it was badly
damaged in a fire in 1980.

In 1948 Aprahamian also became deputy to Ernest Newman as music
critic of The Sunday Times. Especially when the aged and increasingly
Olympian Newman’s weekly articles tended to become reflections or
pronouncements, Aprahamian provided urbane and well-judged reviews of
the London concert scene. It was a testament to his abiding respect
for Newman that he found the time to edit two volumes of his senior’s
essays in 1956 and 1958.

He also much enjoyed his forays on the paper’s behalf to the
Edinburgh Festival, where he held something of a court in an obscure
hotel, and where his amusement at his own exotic aspect once led to
him, when driving along Princes Street in a tourist horse-drawn open
carriage in his scarlet-lined opera cloak, to toss halfpennies as
largesse at the feet of some awed Americans. He relished his fleeting
appearance as an art dealer in the John Schlesinger film Darling
(1965).

Aprahamian’s immense capacity for hard work took him in many other
directions. From 1942 he was a regular and well-loved broadcaster,
especially on Music Magazine.

He lectured widely, including at Morley College, the City Literary
Institute and Surrey University, and from 1989 he was Visiting
Professor of the University of East London. In 1991 he was Regents
Lecturer at the University of California.

He was a regular member of international juries in Geneva, Montreux
and Biarritz. His musical editorship of The Listener drew
contributions of a high standard, so that he was able to edit a
selection for publication. He served on the BBC Central Music
Advisory Committee from 1958 to 1961.

As president of Putney Music, he helped to make it one of the most
important gramophone societies in the country. In 1995 he was made an
honorary doctor of music by City University.
Aprahamian’s house in Muswell Hill – which he liked to refer to as
`the stately pleasure-dome’ – was one dispensing boundless
hospitality.

He did not marry, and in the postwar years, his much loved, much
put-upon widowed mother would cook vast, wonderful meals for streams
of visiting friends, who would play chamber music with him, be made
free of his enormous library, be shown his Proustian treasures or
explore his beautifully tended, floodlit garden in the Japanese
style.

Felix Aprahamian, musician and writer, was born on June 5, 1914. He
died on January 15, 2005, aged 90.

Armenian patriarch of Turkey sues AGBU

Azg Daily, Armenia
Jan 20 2005

ARMENIAN PATRIARCH OF TURKEY SUES AGBU

The Zhamanak (Time) daily of Istanbul published an article on January
18 informing that the Armenian Patriarch of Turkey, archbishop Mesrob
Mutafian, applied to the Californian court to bring an action against
the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU). The Patriarch assumes
that the AGBU has violated a paragraph of Melgonian’s testament
signed in 1926 saying that the Armenian Patriarchy of Constantinople
should receive 1000 English coins from the AGBU.

The Patriarch reminds in the article that the Melgonian brothers, who
handed all their wealth down to the Armenian nation and who founded a
number of important establishments, guaranteed the future of these
national establishments. The Patriarch thinks that the Central
Administration of the AGBU appeared to be very shortsighted if it
wants to sell the Melgonian Educational Institute (MEI). The
trilateral agreement signed in 1926 by the Patriarchy the AGBU and
Karapet Melgonian, one of the brothers, handed the will over to the
AGBU. Following this document, the AGBU has been successfully
sponsoring the MEI for years now. The constructive usage of the
testament was questioned last year when the Central Administration of
the AGBU decided to close the MEI. The prudent circles of the
Armenian Diaspora tried to shield AGBU’s activity from all-out
criticism and concentrated on the issue of MEI. But the AGBU remained
inflexible. In the created situation the Melgonians’ will appeared in
the spotlight. Those opposing to the closure of the MEI were fairly
fingering that the AGBU has no right to take such a decision. AGBU is
not the owner of the MEI but it was only sponsoring the institute as
the heir of the will.

Besides, the Patriarch reminds that the will supposes that the AGBU
distributes 3000 golden English coins (at the price of the date the
document was signed) to the Yerevan State University, and 1000 golden
English coins to the Armenian Patriarchies of Jerusalem and Istanbul.
He notes that the Patriarchy of Istanbul did not receive anything
during these 79 years.

Apparently, the last fact was the reason why Patriarch Mesrob
Mutafian instituted the lawsuit. But it is uncertain if the lawsuit
will include the MEI case or not.

Extract from daily Zhamanak, Istanbul

ASBAREZ Online [01-19-2005]

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
01/19/2005
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1) ARF Bureau Member Hovannisian Slams Jones’s MKR Statement
2) Youth Demonstration Vocalizes Concern about US Remarks on Karabagh
3) Vatican Unveils Monument of Saint Gregory the Illuminator
4) ARS Annual Christmas Party Honors Longtime Volunteer Sarkissian

1) ARF Bureau Member Hovannisian Slams Jones’s MKR Statement

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–Responding to the outgoing US Assistant Secretary of State
Elizabeth Jones’s incendiary statement about the Mountainous Karabagh
Republic,
Armenian National Assembly vice speaker and Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(ARF) Bureau member Vahan Hovannisian told Yerkir media on Wednesday that the
American official’s stated opinions were the result of Turkish and Azeri
lobbying efforts.
As reported by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) on
Wednesday,
Jones, during a January 13 video conference discussing US bilateral relations
with Russia, called for increased US engagement in resolving regional
conflicts
in the former Soviet Union, stating: “It is in Russia’s interest for these
areas–for Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Mountainous Karabagh–to be
stable, for corruption to end there, for the criminal secessionists who rule
there to be removed. It is not appropriate for this kind of instability and
criminality to exist right in the middle of Europe.”
Hovhannisian said that Jones’s statements are both obnoxious and baseless.
“Jones is an outgoing official, and had never made similar comments during her
tenure as assistant secretary of state.” This fact, according to Hovhannisian,
indicates that high ranking American officials had not authorized her to
express such statements. He added that Jones’s stance does not actually
reflect
official US policy.
“Don’t forget former Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly rapporteur on
Karabagh, Terry Davis, who issued a report after leaving the post. The same
goes for the next rapporteur, David Atkinson,” Hovhannisian said.
On Wednesday, the US embassy in Yerevan issued a statement in response to
situation, noting, “US policy with respect to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
has
not changed. The United States does not recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an
independent country, and its leadership is not recognized internationally
or by
the United States.”
“The United States supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and holds
that the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh is a matter of negotiation between
the parties in the Minsk Group process,” continued the statement. “The United
States remains actively engaged in advancing a peaceful settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through the Minsk Group process. We are
encouraged by
the continuing talks between the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“Assistant Secretary Jones’s comment quoted in the Moscow Times was directed
at the need for the US and Russia to work together to resolve the conflicts
and
advance transparency and rule of law in the conflict areas. We recognize that
the circumstances of each conflict are unique.”

2) Youth Demonstration Vocalizes Concern about US Remarks on Karabagh

YEREVAN–Representatives of several youth organizations in Armenia expressed
their indignation with US Assistant Secretary of State Elizabeth Jones’s
recent
statement referring to Mountainous Karabagh’s leaders as “criminal
secessionists” and calling for their removal from power.
Organized by the “Baze” youth group, demonstrators gathered in front of
the US
embassy in Armenia on Wednesday. Participants included representatives of the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation, Republican, and Orinats Yerkir youth
groups,
as well as non-governmental organizations.
The demonstration closed down Bagramyan Avenue, while police protected
them by
forming a chain and controlling the traffic. Carrying posters that read “Shame
on Elizabeth Jones” and “No to double standards,” the youth expressed their
outrage at Jones’s remarks on January 13 during a digital video-conference
with
journalists in US Embassies in Moscow, Rome, and Bratislava.
Expressing the Armenian American community’s shock and outrage at Assistant
Secretary Jones’s remarks, the ANCA, on Tuesday, also condemned her statements
“as counter to the long-standing US policy of helping the parties reach a
negotiated settlement.” The ANCA also called on the Administration to begin
repairing this damage by immediately and clearly renouncing the unfair and
inaccurate remarks.

3) Vatican Unveils Monument of Saint Gregory the Illuminator

(VATICAN CITY)–Pope John-Paul II, along with Armenian Church officials,
attended the official inauguration of the statue of Saint Gregory the
Illuminator in the Vatican on January 19.
The almost 18 feet high statue was placed in the last remaining empty niche
along the walls leading to St. Peter’s Basilica, which house the statues of
famous saints. It is situated at the site where visitors wait to climb the
cupola.
An almost two-foot gilt bronze Armenian Cross is situated in the right
hand of
the statue, and a Holy Bible in the left. Two Armenian crosses and Saint
Gregory’s adorn the statue’s vestment.
The Latin and Armenian inscription on the pedestal reads, “Saint Gregory
Illuminator of Armenia 301.”
On his trip to Armenia to mark the 1700th anniversary of the conversion of
the
Armenian nation to Christianity, Pope John-Paul II became inspired by a visit
to Khor-Virab where Saint Gregory was confined, crouched in the dark for 13
years.
Thus, at the urging of the Armenian catholic Patriarch Nerses-Bedros XIX, the
Pope pledged to do his utmost to erect, in the Vatican, a statue of the Saint
Illuminator of the first Christian nation.
In 2001, the Vatican Launched an international design contest for a marble
statue of the Founder of the Armenian Church.
The winner was artist Khachik Kazandjian from Paris, who recently created
a 30
feet high monument of Alfred Nobel. That statue is in the center of the
city of
Sevran where Nobel lived and worked. Kazandjian is also a founding member and
the First President of the Society of Armenian Artists of France.

4) ARS Annual Christmas Party Honors Longtime Volunteer Sarkissian

GLENDALE–The Armenian Relief Society Western Region (ARS-WR) annual Christmas
party took on a special celebratory mood on January 4, not only because 350
ARS
members from San Diego to the San Fernando Valley, representing three
generations, gathered to celebrate, but also because one of its finest members
was honored.
ARS social services worker Annig Sarkissian was honored for her dedicated
volunteer work throughout the years. As Santa escorted Sarkissian, who was a
little shy, from her seat to the stage, ARS members were ready to speak of her
efforts and present a commemorative plaque.
Explaining that volunteer work lies at the heart of the ARS, ARS-WR Social
Services Director Sona Zinzalian explained Sarkissian’s work as incomparable.
Zinzalian described her as the kind of volunteer who does not stop when her
work is done, but asks if other committees need help. ARS-WR Regional
Executive
Chair Angela Savoian expressed the Regional Executive’s appreciation of
Sarkissian’s presence within the office saying, “We are so happy that we have
someone like you among us.” In her turn, the honoree, who is in her eighties,
promised to volunteer until she turns 100.
Members of the ARS Central Executive (CE) and ARF Central Committee
representative were among the attendees. An east coast transplant, Yeretzgin
Habeshian, officiated the prayers. Speaking on behalf of the ARS-CE, Anahid
Meymarian urged the membership to stay physically and mentally healthy in
order
to carry on the name and reputation of the ARS–an organization which will
celebrate its centennial in 5 years.
Savoian invited the Regional Executive members to join her for a toast,
expressing her appreciation for being surrounded by like-minded board members
who make the meetings an enjoyable place to discuss serious issues for the
ARS.
She also announced the start of a campaign to assist the tsunami victims. On
January 15, the ARS-WR Regional headquarters were open to accept donations.
ARS General Accountant Jassik Jarahian, party coordinator, had arranging for
performances by Razmig Mansourian and Alen Aghajanian, as well as a cappuccino
service, and a uniquely decorated fruit table donated by Arthur Hamedi.
For a brief few hours, the ARS enjoyed the company of fellow members in a
happy and carefree atmosphere, only to return to their chapters and continue
working for their communities.

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Armenians Remember Azerbaijan Riot Victims

Armenians Remember Azerbaijan Riot Victims

.c The Associated Press

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) – Hundreds of Armenians, most of them refugees
from neighboring Azerbaijan, marched in Yerevan on Wednesday in memory
of the victims of riots in that country that killed at least two dozen
ethnic Armenians 15 years ago.

Marchers placed wreaths and flowers at the foot of the Armenian
capital’s Monument to the Victims of Genocide.

After the January 1990 rioting in Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku, Soviet
President Mikhail Gorbachev sent troops in to crush an uprising by
Azerbaijani nationalists, and more than 100 people were killed.

The outbreak of violence was one of several clashes linked to the
conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, an enclave in Azerbaijan that is in
ethnic Armenian hands after a 1988-1994 war that killed some 30,000
people and drove 1 million others from their homes.

No settlement has been reached over Nagorno-Karabakh, and the
unresolved conflict damages both nations’ economies and raises the
threat of renewed war.

On Tuesday, the Armenian government’s ombudswoman, Larisa Alaverdian,
a Baku native, called for compensation for refugees and deportees from
Azerbaijan and restitution of the property they left behind.

01/19/05 19:22 EST

Two Las Vegas Girls Are Deported to Armenia

Two Las Vegas Girls Are Deported to Armenia

KLAS-tv.com (Las Vegas, Nevada)
January 18, 2005

By Atle Erlingsson, Reporter ([email protected])

Two local teenaged girls are headed for Armenia, a country completely
foreign to them. They grew up here and are completely Americanized, but
federal immigration says they’re not legal residents and must leave. The
family told Eyewitness News their heart-wrenching story.

Fourteen years ago the girls and their mother fled the former Soviet
Union seeking asylum in the United States. They were denied and ordered
to leave but ultimately slipped through the cracks and were able to
establish a new life here. They became a successful and productive
family. Now, years later the government is breaking the family bonds.

The pain is so deep. Ruben Sarkisian can only cry. His two oldest
daughters, 18-year-old Emma and 17-year-old Miriam, have been taken
away. Federal immigration officials detained the girls as they tried to
gain residency Friday at the Las Vegas office of the U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Services, or USCIS. They are now in Los Angeles just
hours away from being flown to Armenia.

Ruben Sarkisian said, “We never had an opportunity to say goodbye to
each other, and it’s just so difficult to describe for me.”

Sarkisian is safe to stay here. He married an American woman although
later divorced. The three younger sisters are also okay because they
were born here. But Emma and Miriam have no such protection. They are
two American teenagers forced to return to Armenia, a country completely
foreign to everything they know.

“They don’t know how to write. They don’t know how to speak. There is
nobody who will take care of them there. And I have no idea how I can
help them,” Ruben said.

The federal government says there is little the Sarkisian’s can do.

The family’s attorney, Jerry Stuchiner, is baffled the girls aren’t
being allowed to stay and become residents, especially after so many
years in the country. “These girls are not terrorists. They’re not
criminals. They’re girls,” Stuchiner said.

Immigration and customs enforcement officials declined to speak on
camera about this case. They say they’re simply following the law. The
girls were denied asylum and must be deported.

There are many complicated and tangled legal issues that are too
difficult for a 13-year-old girl, like Michelle, to understand. She just
wants her older sisters to come home. “I don’t understand. They didn’t
do anything wrong. They just wanted to be successful like you and
everybody else. They didn’t do anything. Like, why they were taken? I
don’t understand,” she stated.

Sarkisian has no way of contacting his daughters who will soon to be
thousands of miles away with nothing but the clothes on their backs. “I
feel like my family is being destroyed because we are nothing without
these girls. We are just one piece and this is how we’ll always be,”
Rueben said.

They are a family of six, physically broken apart with little hope in
sight. What’s even more painful for the family is the father, who owns a
local Tropicana Pizza restaurant, is just months, possibly weeks, away
from establishing full citizenship.

If the government waited for that, the girls would then be allowed to
stay. But once in Armenia, they will have to file all new paperwork,
which could take years.

USCIS falls under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security. It was formerly known as INS, or Immigration and
Naturalization Services.

;nav=168XVNXS

http://www.klas-tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2830943&amp

Armenian MP Says Use of Force Against Iran “Unacceptable”

ARMENIAN MP SAYS USE OF FORCE AGAINST IRAN “UNACCEPTABLE”

Arminfo
19 Jan 05

YEREVAN

Armenia believes that any use of force against neighbouring Iran is
unacceptable and might have dangerous repercussions, the head of the
Foreign Relations Commission of the Armenian National Assembly and a
representative of the supreme body of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation – Dashnaktsutyun, Armen Rustamyan, told an Arminfo
correspondent today when commenting on the US president’s statement
about the possibility of using military force against Iran if the
latter continues developing its nuclear programme.

“Iran is Armenia’s closest neighbour and strategic partner. Not very
long ago when Armenia was facing difficult times, it was the friendly
relations with Iran that helped the republic overcome the blockade and
economic recession. And it is quite natural that any use of force
against Iran runs counter to the interests of Armenia,” Armen
Rustamyan said.

The head of the commission stressed that the military action in Iraq,
which the United States carried out without the consent of the UN
Security Council, should give Washington food for thought. He said
decisions on the use of military force against any country without the
consent of the UN Security Council threaten with dangerous and
unpredictable consequences, which was the case in Iraq.

Success of Sculptor from Artsakh

SUCCESS OF SCULPTOR FROM ARTSAKH

Azg/arm
20 Jan 05

Recently, Robert Askarian, a sculptor from Nagorno Karabakh,
participated in the international symposium of sculpture organized in
the Brazilian city of Bruskve. He was awarded among the best 10
sculptures. It is worth mentioning that 184 sculptures arrived in this
Brazilian city from various countries of the world to participate in
the symposium.

Robert Askarian’s “The Angels’ Rendezvous” sculpture was chosen among
the other works and passed to another stage. Robert Askarian was proud
and delighted to represent Artsakh, an internationally unrecognized
country, among the other countries of the world.

In 2004, the sculpture created by Robert Askarian and dedicated to the
1000th anniversary of “The Book of Mournful Songs” by Grigor Narekatsi
was set in Kaunas, Lithuania. The sculptor was awarded NKR’s annual
award after Yeghishe Charents by the end of 2004.

The sculptor stated at the press conference that the participants and
the organizers of the symposium highly estimated the Armenian culture
and he was proud of representing his nation abroad.

We are hopeful that “The Angels’ Rendezvous” by Robert Askarian will
be given a higher prize during the conclusion of the symposium’s
results this summer in Brazil.

By Kim Gabrielian in Stepanakert

Armenia’s foreign minister signs deal for talks with Arab League

Armenia’s foreign minister signs deal for talks with Arab League

MENA news agency
19 Jan 05

Cairo, 19 Jan: Visiting Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan held
talks on Wednesday [19 January] with Egyptian International
Cooperation Minister Fayizah Abu-al-Naja and Arab League
Secretary-General Amr Musa. [Passage omitted]

The Armenian top diplomat signed earlier in the day a protocol for
consultations with the Arab League.

In exclusive statements to MENA, Oskanyan said the protocol would help
launch a new stage for cooperation between Armenia and the pan-Arab
organization.

Oskanyan said his talks with the Arab League chief were very fruitful
and would have a positive impact on Armenia’s relations with the Arab
world.

As for Iraq, he voiced hope Iraq would soon succeed in restoring
stability under an elected Iraqi government.

On the Palestinian track, Oskanyan said his country supports the
Palestinians’ right to establish a sovereign Palestinian state, living
in peace with Israel.

this / that

Sunday, January 16, 2005
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NOTES / COMMENTS
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If fools outnumber the wise, they will choose a fool as a leader.
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Some of my critics pretend to know better, but instead of sharing their wisdom, they prefer to share their venom.
*
Because three readers disagreed with me, a fourth reader writes: “If one man calls you a fool, you may not have a problem. If two men call you a fool, you may have a problem. If three men call you a fool, you might as well resign yourself to the fact that you are a damn fool.”
*
Maybe so, but it is also written: “Not everyone who identifies himself as a man is one.”
*
It is also written: “You cannot contradict the braying of an ass. Neither can you contradict the braying of three, or, for that matter, four asses.”
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Let it be said, if this is not written, it shall be.
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I knew we were in deep trouble on the day one of our elder statesmen wrote me a letter saying he could prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was spelling my name wrong.
*
“May you go to hell!” might as well be synonymous with “May you spend the rest of your life working for an Armenian.” I know what I am saying; I have been in both places.
*
A tolerant atheist is closer to god than an intolerant Christian.
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I wish someone had warned me that in the first thousand days of every important undertaking, you will make a thousand mistakes; and the worst mistake you can make is to assume that in the second thousand years, you will make only 999 mistakes.
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Monday, January 17, 2005
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In the December 16, 2004 issue of LE POINT, a Paris-based French-language illustrated weekly, there are a number of articles, commentaries and a long interview about Turkey in which Armenians are inevitably mentioned and discussed.
*
“There is a Christian – a Bulgarian or an Armenian – in the family tree of every Turk [alive today],” states Levent Yilmaz, identified as a young Turkish intellectual.
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To the question, “Why is it that there is a law that prohibits all mention of the Armenian genocide of 1915-1916?” Yilmaz replies: “No, that is not true. The law does not mention this or any other event specifically. It speaks only of blasphemy against the integrity and unity of the Republic – a judge is free to interpret the law in many ways.”
*
To the question whether or not Turkey is in denial of the Armenian genocide, Yilmas is willing to admit that the Armenian genocide is the last great national taboo, and it must be openly discussed, which is being done by a number of Turkish historians, among them Taner Akcam and Tayyip Erdogan. He goes on to say that Vahakn Dadrian’s book was published recently without cuts. The debate, he adds, is whether or not the word genocide, “which was coined in 1948 in reference to the Jewish genocide,” can be applied to the Armenian experience.
*
In the concluding remarks of the editorial on page 3 by Claude Imbert, we read: “Turkey’s ambition is to be part of the West, but its interests lie in the East with the Turkish-speaking peoples of the Caucasus and by the Caspian Sea. Turkey also comes with a heavy freight of controversies (Cyprus, Armenia, Kurdistan)….”
*
A subtitle in an essay titled “Europe: The Battle of Turkey,” reads: “The Non-Recognition of the Armenian Genocide: Is It an Obstacle to
Its Membership?” It goes on to say that it will be a point of contention during the next ten years of negotiations.
*
Far from being “forgotten,” it looks like our genocide is very much alive and kicking.
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Elsewhere, in the same issue, and on the occasion of the sale of one of his paintings at Christie’s in London, Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (1817-1900) is identified as a Russian. It seems, an anonymous buyer paid 2.1 million euros for it – “a record so far for a 19th-century Russian painting.”
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Tuesday, January 18, 2005
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The internet is a useful medium in so far as it allows hoodlums and cowards to expose themselves.
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There should be an unspoken law that says, if you are going to attack or insult someone on the internet, you should identify yourself, because to do so anonymously is a sure symptom of cowardice.
*
We are insensitive to human rights issues. We don’t even like to mention free speech. After all, who among us can plead not guilty to the charge of not having violated the free speech of a fellow Armenian by means of insults masquerading as criticism?
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And since literature is inconceivable without free speech, it follows, we are all guilty of implementing a policy of systematic extermination of our intellectual class. But perhaps what I am talking about here is not free speech but civilized conduct.
*
When was the last time any one of our academics spoke up in defense of free speech? As for our bosses, bishops, and benefactors (our axis of evil): what can I say about them that has not already been said by Raffi, Baronian, Odian, Voskanian, Shahnour, Massikian, and Zarian, among many others?
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Wednesday, January 19, 2005
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When I first met an assimilated Armenian in Italy, I remember, he looked down at me as an odd curiosity, and I looked at him as a brazen renegade. I was wrong and he may have been right. Because, as a teenager, I might as well have been a walking encyclopedia of chauvinist clichés and a dupe who believed my elders knew better and they had done whatever was humanly possible to save and preserve the nation. I know better today.
*
In a commentary, I read the following: “The inhabitants in many of the hardest hit areas [by the tsunami] are amongst the poorest in the world. One reason they live in squalor is that the governments in their countries rule by force, keeping everything for the ruling class. Long before the tsunami hit, peasant populations had been excluded from aid programs intended to benefit them.”
My first thought: our homeland too has been hit by an invisible and slow-motion tsunami of bureaucratic corruption and incompetence. We, in the Diaspora, may be better off financially, but are we really better of morally?
*
A headline in our paper reads: “Pope wants more dialogue between Jews and Catholics.” I can’t help wondering what were they doing during the last 2000 years? – except perhaps calling one another blasphemers. And what will they call one another after 2000 years of dialogue? Brothers? Maybe. But perhaps the real question should be: Will they ever stop thinking of one another as blasphemers? Can they, without sacrificing a central tenet of their faith?
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