ArmenPress
April 9 2004

FOREIGN MINISTER TO TRAVEL BETWEEN TEHRAN, PRAGUE AND LONDON

YEREVAN, APRIL 9, ARMENPRESS: Armenian foreign affairs minister
Vartan Oskanian is leaving for Tehran, on April 12 for a two-day
visit, where he is scheduled to meet with Iran’s president Mohammad
Khatami , secretary of security council Hasan Rowhani and his
counterpart Kamal Kharazi.
On April 16 minister Oskanian will depart for Prague to attend a
conference on Nagorno Karabagh, to be held under the aegis of the
OSCE Minsk group. In Prague he is expected to meet with his newly
appointed Azeri counterpart Elmar Mamadyarov.
On April 22-23 Oskanian will fly to London for a working visit.

ArmenPress
April 9 2004

OPPOSITION ACTIVIST ARRESTED FOR DISTRIBUTION OF ANTI-GOVERNMENT
LEAFLETS

YEREVAN, APRIL 9, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian Prosecutor’s Office
said today it continues investigation into public calls for violent
overthrow of the constitutional order and offensive languages
directed at authorities.
Prosecutors said they have detained today a citizen of Yerevan,
Artak Gabrielian on the same charges. Gabrielian was arrested when he
was distributing leaflets of the opposition National Unity of
Artashes Geghamian urging people to participate in the unsanctioned
rally with concurrent calls for illegal seizure of power. These
actions were classified as violation of article 301 of the Armenian
Criminal Code.
In a reference to the April 8 detention of an opposition
parliament member Viktor Dalakian, prosecutors said he had been
summoned as a witness for a case under investigation, but refused to
come and therefore was brought by force, an action stipulated by
article 153 of the Armenian Criminal Code.

ArmenPress
April 9 2004

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AND HISTORICAL MEMORY PUBLISHED IN ENGLISH

YEREVAN, APRIL 9, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian Genocide and Historical
Memory, this the name of a book by Verjine Svazlian, consisting of
650 survivors stories of eye-witnesses of the Armenian genocide,
methodically carried out by the government of Turkey between
1915-1922, published in English earlier this month.
Verjine Svazlian collected most of these testimonies herself
through many years, across Armenia as well as some interviews abroad.
The book also contains folk songs, many of which in Turkish,
depicting the events of the Genocide, “the screams of the unheard
suffering, protest, as well as the heroic resentment of the people
subjected to genocide, undeniable testimonies addressed to the Turk
historians and politicians of today who are denying the Genocide.
This book is a heavy contribution to the history of the Armenian
Genocide. Published in 500 copies it will be distributed to foreign
embassies in Armenia, international organizations, researching in
Armenian history. Its Turkish-language edition will appear soon.
Ethnographer and folklorist, Verjine Svazlian was born in 1934 in
Alexandria (Egypt) in the family of a writer and public man Garnik
Svazlian, himself an eye-witness survivor of Turkish tyranny. In
1947, she was repatriated with her parents to Armenia. In 1956, she
graduated with honors from the Department of the Armenian Language
and Literature of Abovian Pedagogical Institute.
Beginning from 1950-s she started on her own initiative writing
down and thereby saving from a total loss various folklore creations
communicated by the repatriates forcibly deported from Western
Armenia, Cilicia and the Armenian-inhabited provinces of Anatolia, as
well as the narrated memoirs of the eye-witness survivors of the
Genocide.

ArmenPress
April 9 2004

ARMENIAN EPIC POEM “DAVID OF SASOUN” TRANSLATED INTO UKRAINIAN

YEREVAN, APRIL 9, ARMENPRESS: The Ukrainian “Dnepro” publishing
house has released the Ukrainian translation of the Armenian epic
poem “David of Sasoun.” It was translated by a well known poet and
translator Pavlo Tichina in collaboration with Victor Kochevski. The
introductory word is written by a well known expert in Armenian
literature Vasil Shkliar.
Armenian foreign ministry said Armenian Ambassador to Ukraine
Armen Khachatrian visited Viktor Kochevski to congratulate him on his
80-th anniversary and to praise his work. The translation took him
and his co-translator about 10 years.

The Independent (London)
April 9, 2004, Friday

SPORTING DIGEST: BOXING

Scott Harrison will defend his World Boxing Organisation
featherweight title against William Abelyan on 29 May at the Braehead
Arena, Glasgow. The Cambuslang fighter has been due to face the
Armenian for his last defence of the title last month before Abelyan
withdrew through injury. However, after defeating the stand-in
opponent Walter Estrada, Harrison will finally face Abelyan who has
recovered from a shoulder problem.

Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
April 9, 2004, Friday

WE’LL MAKE A BANG!

SOURCE: Moskovsky Komsomolets, April 7, 2004, p. 2

by Olga Bozhieva

Russian and Belarusian Antiaircraft Forces were put an alert this
morning. A command exercise of the CIS United Antiaircraft System is
under way, run right near the western borders of the Commonwealth.

No general of the Russian or Belarusian Antiaircraft Forces could be
found at their desks on day two of the exercise. All of them
descended into underground command posts to practice “joint command
of antiaircraft forces and means in a deteriorating
military-political situation.”

Needless to say, “deterioration” means unpredictable or hostile
actions on the part of the Alliance. The official legend of the
exercise is approximately like that: actions of the CIS United
Antiaircraft System when terrorists hijack foreign planes or cross
the borders of the Commonwealth.

Planes imitating the potential enemy will make runs between Russian
and Belarusian airfields allegedly trespassing and land in nearby
countries. S-300 crews and fighters of the Antiaircraft Forces will
“destroy” them on LCDs.

Actual targets will be handled next week on Ashuluk near Astrakhan.
The Belarusians set out for Ashuluk on April 12 to “open the season”.

Lieutenant General Oleg Paferov, Belarusian Air Force and
Antiaircraft Forces Commander: Up to a dozen Belarusian batteries are
involved in shooting practice every year. Russia provides the
equipment, the testing site, and targets. Belarus spends much less on
Russian military objects on its territory than what Russia spends to
allow us to make use of its testing sites and shooting grounds free
of charge.

It means that “gas” and financial problems worry Russian and
Belarusian politicians only. The military is concerned with common
military threats.

The command exercise involves:

– over 100 units and formations of the Air Force and Antiaircraft
Forces;

– over 80 aircraft from Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Russia.

Russia is represented by the Special Task Command (Moscow, and
Leningrad, Rostov, and Yekaterinburg armies of the Air Force and
Antiaircraft Forces.

Agence France Presse
April 9, 2004 Friday 7:35 AM Eastern Time

Asian states move step closer to building trans-national highway

BANGKOK

A decades-old dream of building Asia’s first trans-national highway
will move a step closer this month as 24 of 32 countries committed to
it will sign an agreement for a road from Japan to western Russia,
the United Nations said Friday.

The proposed Asian Highway would extend across 32 countries along
several routes, stretching through China south to Indonesia, and as
far west as Russia’s border with Finland, according to the UN
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).

“This 140,000 kilometre (87,000 mile) highway will contribute
tremendously to regional economic integration,” UNESCAP executive
secretary Kim Hak-Su told reporters ahead of the official signing in
Shanghai on April 26.

“All 32 countries have agreed in principle to signing, but it will
depend on passing this agreement internally through each country, so
not everyone will be ready to sign in Shanghai,” said Kim.

The UN first conceived of an Asian trans-national route in 1959, but
was unable to implement the project because of geo-political hurdles
at the time.

“Under the Cold War period we could not think of any highway running
through China or even Russia or the Korean peninsula,” said Kim,
adding that all Cold War states, including North Korea, had now
agreed to develop the route.

The agreement in Shanghai will outline roads to be built and upgraded
and establish minimum standards for the highway routes, while an
overall budget and time-frame for completion are expected to be
announced in 2006.

“Trade is increasing quite rapidly, about 40 percent last year, and
Asian countries realise they need this infrastructure to service that
growth,” said UNESCAP poverty and development division chief Raj
Kumar.

The UN would encourage governments and the private sector to jointly
fund the project.

“Funding arrangements are taking place now in many different forms.
Thailand is assisting Laos and Cambodia with soft loans, India is
assisting Nepal and Bhutan and the Asian Development Bank is looking
at funding other portions of the scheme,” said Kumar.

The main route — Asian Highway 1 — is expected to start in Tokyo
and terminate in Istanbul, passing though North and South Korea,
China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, India, Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Iran and Armenia along the way.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Agence France Presse
April 9, 2004 Friday

OSCE condemns attack on journalists during Yerevan protest

YEREVAN

The pan-European security and rights body OSCE condemned the attacks
on journalists that occurred during an opposition rally in Yerevan
this week, the OSCE envoy in Armenia said.

“Any violence against journalists should be condemned, the
instigators identified and criminal proceedings against them
initiated,” Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin said late Thursday.

“I hope the Armenian authorities will keep their promises to take the
necessary measures in this respect,” he added.

Unknown assailants grabbed two television cameras and two cameras
from journalists covering the Monday demonstration, smashing them to
pieces in front of police, who did not intervene.

More than 3,000 Armenians took to the streets of Yerevan Monday to
protest against President Robert Kocharyan and demand a referendum on
his contested rule in the impoverished, landlocked Caucasus nation.

Last Friday, Armenian journalists held a rally to protest against the
threat to freedom of expression in this former Soviet republic, which
has been criticized by the Council of Europe for cracking down on
independent media.

City News Service
April 8, 2004 Thursday

Youth Aid

LOS ANGELES

Mayor Jim Hahn today approved the transfer of $50,000 in grant money
to the Armenian Relief Society, to provide support services for
at-risk youth and senior citizens. The motion to transfer the funds
from the Mayor’s Urban Development Action Grant was sponsored by
Councilman Eric Garcetti. “I’m thrilled that we can can provide
support for the Armenian Relief Society’s mission of working
‘jhoghovoordes hamar jhorvordees head,’ or ‘with the people, for the
people,”‘ he said. “The people of Hollywood and surrounding areas are
very well-served by ARS’ dedication.” The funds, originally allocated
to develop a Bellevue Park master plan, became available after the
refurbishment project progressed faster than expected. “In this time
of budget constraints, I am pleased to be able to redirect funds to
where they can do the most good,” Hahn said. “This money will help to
improve the quality of life for many people, especially those in
danger of being touched by gang violence.”

ARKA News Agency
April 9 2004

Four best students of Armenian institutes awarded with name
scholarships after Isahak Isahakian

Coalition thinks that demand on conduction of referendum on vote of
confidence to RA president does not corresponds to constitution

Armenian opposition gives the authorities time till April 12 for
implementation of changes to the law on referendum

RA MFA and OACS Secretary General discuss regional goals

The RA President receives the Secretary- General of the Organization
for Agreement on Collective Security

The RA Minister of Foreign Affairs to go to Iran with an official
visit on April 12-13

RA President Robert Kocharyan: The present situation in Armenia may
be called as a revolution of empty vessels

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

FOUR BEST STUDENTS OF ARMENIAN INSTITUTES AWARDED WITH NAME
SCHOLARSHIPS AFTER ISAHAK ISAHAKIAN

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. Today in Central Bank of Armenia, four best
students of Armenian institutes were awarded with name scholarships
after Isahak Isahakian. Given activity is conducted second time.
According to the Chairman of CB Tigran Sargsian the activity is to
stimulate science-research works in the institutes’. All
students-participants represented their works that were studied by
the members of contest commission of CB and on this base four
students – Asmik Torosian, Asghik Gevorkian, Mariam Momdjian and
Arthur Grikorian. All of them will receive scholarships after Isahak
Isahakian in amount of 50 thousand AMD during six months. L.D. –0–

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

COALITION THINKS THAT DEMAND ON CONDUCTION OF REFERENDUM ON VOTE OF
CONFIDENCE TO RA PRESIDENT DOES NOT CORRESPONDS TO CONSTITUTION

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. Coalition thinks that demand on conduction
of referendum on vote of confidence to RA president does not
corresponds to constitution. According to statement of Republican
Party of Armenia, Orinats Yerkir Party and ARF Dashnaktsutyun,
coalition is ready to discuss any issue considering internal
political situation, including the issue of legality of given offer.
Today coalition discussed the issue of referendum at the working
sitting. At the same time opposition National Unity Party and Justice
Bloc conducted a rally in center of Yerevan. On different estimations
from 5 to 40 thousand people took part in the rally.
After 2003 presidential elections, opposition turned to
Constitutional Court with an offer to recognize the official results
of elections invalid. CC turned down the suit of opposition and
offered to conduct referendum on vote of confidence to the president
and make changes to election code of the republic. L.D. –0–

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

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION GIVES THE AUTHORITIES TIME TILL APRIL 12 FOR
IMPLEMENTATION OF CHANGES TO THE LAW ON REFERENDUM

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. Armenian opposition gives the authorities
time till April 12 for implementation of changes to the law on
referendum, ARKA correspondent reports from the meeting organized by
opposition party National Unity and Justice bloc. According to the
Secretary of Justice Bloc Viktor Dallakian, it may become a beginning
of a dialogue with authorities. `If the decision on the referendum is
not made, there will be no dialogue with coalition’, he said.
Dallakian said that the Secretary of National Unity Party Alexan
Karapetian took part in working sitting of the Parliament and
represented the package of changes to the members of the coalition.
`We have different scenarios considering the way of struggle in the
future’, Dallakian said urged the people `to stand till the end’.
After 2003 presidential elections, opposition turned to
Constitutional Court with an offer to recognize the official results
of elections invalid. CC turned down the suit of opposition and
offered to conduct referendum on vote of confidence to the president
and make changes to election code of the republic. L.D. –0–

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

RA MFA AND OACS SECRETARY GENERAL DISCUSS REGIONAL GOALS

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian and
Secretary General of the Organization of Agreement on Collective
Security Nikolay Borduja discussed regional goals, RA MFA told ARKA.
The parties noted the importance of strengthening of the process of
ratification of document signed in the frames of OACS. Borduja noted
that the process of OACS creation is almost completed: the
organization takes part in the works of UN, it has joint
headquarters. The parties also discussed the agenda of oncoming
regular sitting of Collective Security Council and MFA Heads Council
scheduled on June 18-19. L.D. –0–

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

THE RA PRESIDENT RECEIVES THE SECRETARY- GENERAL OF THE ORGANIZATION
FOR AGREEMENT ON COLLECTIVE SECURITY

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. The RA President Robert Kocharyan received
the Secretary- General of the Organization for Agreement on
Collective Security (OACS) Nikolai Bordiuzha, who has arrived in
Armenia with a three-day official visit. According to the RA Press
Service Department, Bordiuzha introduced the issues to the President
with regard to the next session of the Council on Collective Security
to be held in Astana in June. The President and the Secretary-
General exchanged opinions regarding co-operation in the framework of
OACS and increasing the efficiency of co-operation. A.H. –0–

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

THE RA MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO GO TO IRAN WITH AN OFFICIAL
VISIT ON APRIL 12-13

YEREVAN, April 9. /ARKA/. Vartan Oskanian, the RA Minister of Foreign
Affairs will go to Iran with an official visit on April 12-13.
According to the RA MFA Press Service Department, meetings of
Oskanian with the President of Iran Mohammad Khatami, the Secretary
of the Security Council Gosan Rokhan, and the Head of the Iran
External Affairs Department Kamal Kharazi to take place within the
framework of the visit. A.H.–0 –

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress