East Mountain Telegraph, NM
April 8 2004

Where Did Noah Park the Ark?

By Kathy Louise Schuit
Telegraph Staff Writer
Almost since Moses reported the great flood and the ark that
survived it in the Bible’s book of Genesis, men have searched Mount
Ararat for remains of the life-saving craft.
In this century, Ed Davis of Albuquerque was one of the few who,
before his death in 1998 at age 95, claimed to have seen the ark.
But it was Mountainair’s Don Shockey who told Davis’ story to the
world in his book “Agri-Dagh, Mount Ararat – The Painful Mountain” and
who continues trying to prove that what Davis saw in 1946 was indeed
Noah’s Ark.
In the book, Davis recounts to Shockey his experiences in and
near Hamadan, Iran, while serving with the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers in 1943. Mount Ararat rises from within the Turkish borders
near Iran and Russia.
Davis said he was shown artifacts from the ark and held them in
his hands. Then, accompanied by the family of a man who represented
himself as a guardian of the ark, Davis said he was taken to it.
Since writing the book Shockey has himself scaled Mount Ararat
three times – in 1984, 1989 and again in 1990.
Countless TV and radio appearances, including an episode of the
popular “Unsolved Mysteries” series, have given thousands of people a
look at Shockey’s own photographs of the mountain and what appears to
be an object resting high on a northern slope. Shockey believes this
object is the ark.
But Shockey, a true New Mexican who made all three climbs to the
snowline in cowboy boots, has never been able to get close enough to
gather conclusive evidence of his find.
On the 1984 trip that resulted in the now-famous photos, he said,
climbing permits issued by the Turkish government and enforced by
guides did not allow him to cross into the distant area where the
object was resting.
On subsequent trips – including 1989, when Shockey rented a
helicopter to photograph the object from the air and hopefully land
nearby – he said he was prevented by border hostilities and military
actions taking place in Russia and Iran.
If proven, the finding of Noah’s Ark would validate Christianity
and set the world on its ear, Shockey said in a recent interview at
his Mountainair home.
“Gilbert Grosvenor (chairman) of National Geographic said it
would be the single most important archaeological find in the world,”
Shockey said.

Anthropology past
Though Shockey is retired from a long career as an optometrist,
he is no anthropological amateur.
Under the tutelage of Dr. Frank Hibben, renowned anthropology
professor, Shockey graduated from the University of New Mexico in
1957 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology with a minor in biology
and then went on to finish a degree in secondary education.
While completing his anthropology studies, he said, he was
privileged to assist in the excavation of a site near Lucy, N.M. –
between Willard and Encino.
The location, Shockey said, has since been officially designated
as a site once occupied by Sandia Man, considered by anthropologists
to be one of the most ancient inhabitants of North or South America.
The original Sandia Man site centers on a cave in the Sandia
Mountains.

Findings doubted
Despite Shockey’s expertise and connections in the scientific
community, many people challenge his belief that he, with the help of
Ed Davis’ recollections, has found Noah’s Ark. The “Unsolved
Mysteries” episode, which aired in 1993, also examined the findings
of archaeologist Dave Fasold.
Fasold claimed at that time to have found the ark’s resting place
14 miles away from Shockey’s site, and from Mount Ararat.
According to “Unsolved Mysteries,” disagreement between biblical
scholars about whether the ark actually came to rest on Ararat itself
adds plausibility to Fasold’s claim.
The Bible says the ark landed on “the mountains of Ararat.”
Unfortunately for ark hunters, Shockey said, the mountains of
Ararat are one of the world’s largest – not tallest – mountain ranges,
and include greater and lesser Ararat in a mountainous region that
geologically extends from the Atlantic Ocean to the Himalaya
Mountains. At high elevations, they are mostly covered with snow and
ice year-round.
The size and shape of Fasold’s find – a depression in the earth
near Ararat – coincide roughly with archaeologists’ best calculations
of the ark’s dimensions, said “Unsolved Mysteries.”
Additionally, the depression is filled with what Fasold claimed
were regularly spaced iron deposits – something, he said, you might
find after 5,000 years of deterioration left behind only the traces
of iron studs that once possibly held the ark’s framework together.
Shockey, however, said Fasold’s claims are completely
manufactured.
“If that’s Noah’s Ark, Noah had a fleet,” said Shockey.
He explained that similar iron deposits occur throughout the
Ararat range.
Based on his photographs and his research into historically
recorded sightings of the ark throughout recorded time, Shockey said
he is offended by Fasold’s claims that the ark is today nothing more
than a deteriorated depression in the side of the mountain.

Ark sightings
According to Arktracker, an obscure ark timeline on the World
Wide Web, ark sightings date back to the year 275 B.C., when
Berossus, a Babylonian priest, scholar and astronomer, claimed that
“pilgrims went up a mountain in Armenia to carve amulets from the
petrified pitch that covers the ark.”
In the fourth century, Faustus of Byzantium reported the
experiences of bishops who said they saw it, and in the 13th century
Marco Polo wrote an account of seeing the ark in his book “The
Travels of Marco Polo.”
In 1883, Turkish officials documented avalanches on Ararat that
they said revealed the scattered remains of the ark and left them
fully visible for six years.
Davis was just one of five American servicemen who between 1942
and 1946 claimed to have seen the ark, either from the ground or from
their planes.
Shockey credits his belief in the ark’s continued survival to its
construction from “gopher wood.”
There is no Hebrew word for gopher wood, said Shockey, but the
Bible says it is the material from which the ark is constructed. Most
biblical scholars believe gopher wood to be a type of cypress or
cedar, but Shockey has a different theory.
“What if gopher wood is a process, not a species?” said Shockey.
Much like the process used to create modern-day laminates, gopher
wood, Shockey said, might have been a composite material formed from
strong wood and tree sap that hardened to steel strength.
Shockey said he discovered the possibility of a gopher wood
process in talking with members of the Jewish community in the Middle
East.
“If we didn’t know what plywood was, we might be looking for a
tree,” he said.
Today’s stealth bomber technology includes some construction with
a similar, “para-laminate” material, which contains no metal, Shockey
said.
Whether the ark actually rests on Mount Ararat or ever existed at
all, the probings of Shockey and other ark hunters will likely
stimulate thought, interest and discussion from now until the matter
is finally proved one way or the other.
However, no one can dispute the geological facts that from the
icy center of the mountains of Ararat, the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers are born. Between these two rivers Mesopotamia, the historical
“seat of civilization,” took shape.
Historians can’t say for sure whether a great flood preceded
these events, but if Noah did come down off the mountain to
re-establish life on earth, scholars agree it was a fertile place
that guaranteed humanity’s success.

CanadianChristianity.com, Canada
April 8 2004

Bayrakdarian’s star blazing

By David F. Dawes

CANADIAN soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian has been considered a ‘rising
star’ for the past few years. But judging from the response of
various audiences and critics, it is now more accurate to state that
she has arrived as a true star, establishing herself as a presence to
be reckoned with on the world stage.

Her latest CD, Azulao, won recognition April 4 as best classical
vocal album at the 33rd annual Juno Award ceremony. A collection of
Spanish and Latin American music, the album is Bayrakdarian’s second
solo CD for CBC Records. Her first was Joyous Light, featuring an
exquisite set of Armenian hymns. In addition to high-profile opera
roles and recitals which have been garnering high praise from
critics, she has made her mark in TV appearances — and on film
soundtracks, such as The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

It’s an interesting turn of events for someone who originally
attended university with the intention of becoming an engineer.
Having been raised in the choral tradition of the Armenian church,
she was instead inspired to pursue music.

Bayrakdarian won the Metropolitan Opera National Auditions in 1997,
and went on to win first prize at the Placido Domingo ‘Operalia’
competition in 2000; she also received the Queen Elizabeth II Golden
Jubilee medal. In the past several years, she has played major roles
in operas such as The Magic Flute, The Barber of Seville, The Merry
Widow and A View from the Bridge. She has appeared internationally,
most notably at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. She also
performed Villa-Lobos’ Bachianas Brasilieras No. 5 on CBC TV, and
Rachmaninov’s Vocalise on Bravo Arts Television.

Critics have been charmed, frequently using the word ‘luminous’ to
describe her. Urjo Kareda, in the Globe and Mail, found her singing
“instinctively dramatic and expressive,” asserting that Bayrakdarian
“is able to inhabit whatever music she sings.” After her 2002
Carnegie Hall recital, Matthew Gurewitsch of Opera Now described her
as “an exotic, dark-eyed beauty blessed with a gracious platform
manner,” adding: “What Teresa Berganza was to her generation,
Bayrakdarian should prove to be for ours.”

A 2001 Vancouver appearance prompted the often-acerbic Lloyd Dykk to
proclaim the soprano “a great new voice in music, one no less than
equal to Anne-Sophie von Otter or Renee Fleming.” Referring to her
appearance in Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore, Hamilton critic Hugh
Fraser enthused: “Don’t, whatever you do, miss soprano Isabel
Bayrakdarian as Adina . . . Come, marvel and then forever hold your
peace. At least you were there once.”

In an interview with La Scena Musicale, the singer indicated that she
puts a lot of thought into the characters she plays. Regarding
Zerlina, in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Bayrakdarian said: “She is not a
victim, I will never portray my characters as victims, because in
life I’m not a victim, I’m a survivor and I aim for honesty in every
way on stage. Sure, Zerlina has people around her who physically and
emotionally toss her around, but she’s not accepting it and doesn’t
get stuck in self-pity.”

Regarding Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro, she said: “There are
some roles that you identify so much with that it almost ceases to
become acting and pretending, where the vocal writing suits your
voice perfectly and it becomes almost like speaking. It becomes me in
a way on the stage, it’s just pure pleasure.”

She also indicated that, in her view, opera is still a vital creative
medium with much to offer contemporary audiences. “We are a
generation that is used to multimedia and I think directors are
responding to that, possibly a bit more in Europe than in North
America. But the main thing is that you have an honest, committed
performance. It’s the same with any kind of live performance. Why is
it that people get so carried away in concerts as opposed to
listening to a CD, whether it’s a pop-group or something else? In the
live performance there’s the adrenaline and that extra magic that I
think people will always crave. I hope!”

It is evident that Bayrakdarian has a faith rooted deeply in her
Armenian Orthodox background. She is featured on the soundtrack of
Atom Egoyan’s film, Ararat, performing a traditional Good Friday
piece. Canadian composer Christos Hatzis was so inspired by her
singing that he wrote an Easter oratorio especially for her, based on
Armenian hymns. Light from the Cross, commissioned by the Eastern
Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America, was performed
several times in 2002 and 2003, and has yet to be recorded.

Hatzis writes that the singer’s childhood experience singing in
church directly influenced the composition in several ways.

“When conductor Mario Bernardi asked me to get involved with this
project and gave me printed arrangements of some of these hymns as
well as a CD of similar hymns recorded by Isabel, I realized that
there were quite a few discrepancies between Isabel’s renderings and
the actual notation of these melodies. Hers was a ‘liquid,’ flowing
rendering with a myriad of small vocal modulations and ornamentations
that defied notation. Knowing that she grew up with these hymns —
and therefore with the oral tradition that has preserved them to this
day — I preferred to follow her far richer renditions rather than
the notated versions of the same hymns.

“I had Isabel record the hymns for me unaccompanied . . . and then
used these recordings as the basis of my own composition, creating an
orchestral ‘presence’ around her actual pre-recorded voice. I
composed the work using a computer, and it was a great inspiration to
hear her voice constantly as I was sculpting the music around the
minutest inflections of her recorded rendering.”

Speaking recently to CBC radio about the liturgical music on Joyous
Light, Bayrakdarian said: “It’s almost as if you’re listening to a
conversation with heaven . . . It comes from the soul.” The
scripture-based lyrics, she added, “are my conversation with God.”
She said she felt privileged “to sing them with the gift he’s given
me.”

That gift is in top form, judging from a recent concert appearance.
The Vancouver Recital Society presented Bayrakdarian March 19,
accompanied by pianist Serouj Kradjian. In addition to several
selections by Mozart, Vivaldi and Rossini, she performed music by two
obscure composers: Johann Adolph Hasse from the 18th century, and the
20th century’s Xavier Montsalvatge

She showed consummate musical ability, negotiating both bravura and
delicate passages with admirable ease. She also demonstrated an
acting ability reminiscent of the legendary Maria Callas —
expressing courage, intense sorrow, flirtatiousness, whimsicality and
unbridled joy with equal skill. The packed house gave her a
well-earned standing ovation.

Clearly, Bayrakdarian has a promising career ahead of her — and
evidently has a healthy perspective on it. Asked about the impact of
her success on her everyday life, she told La Scena Musicale:

“It’s good to be ambitious, but there’s a limit. It’s important to
understand how the business works, while at the same time not
becoming too immersed in it because, then you are not concentrating
on your art. You have to ask yourself if you are comfortable with the
attention you get, being in the spotlight. I’m from the Armenian
community and there you also have a kind of spotlight on you. I’ve
learned what I can accept to be known publicly and what I want to
keep private.”

In addition to a May-June stint with the Los Angeles Opera, in The
Marriage of Figaro, Bayrakdarian is also preparing her next
recording. It will be another CBC Records production, featuring
operatic portrayals of the legendary Cleopatra, by Handel and several
other composers.

Eurasianet organization, United States
April 8 2004

AZERBAIJAN: TURKEY COULD PROVE SPOILER FOR NAGORNO-KARABAKH PEACE
Zulfugar Agayev: 4/08/04

Prospects for a Nagorno-Karabakh peace agreement suffered a potential
setback recently when President Ilham Aliyev warned that Azerbaijan
might withdraw from peace talks if Turkey opens its border with
Armenia. In recent months, Turkey, a key Azerbaijani ally, has
indicated that it may be willing to consider ending its 11-year
blockade of Armenia. The Turkish decision-making process appears to
be driven by Ankara’s ambitions to join the European Union.

Turkish-Armenian relations have been marked by animosity for much of
the past century, with tension continuing to revolve around the mass
slaughter of Armenians by Ottoman Turkish soldiers during World War
I. On an official visit to the United States in late January, Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that his Justice and
Development Party (AKP) government might decide to re-open the border
with Armenia “if the friendly initiatives of Turkey were
reciprocated.” Erdogan said that Turks living in economically
depressed neighboring regions with Armenia want to see the border
opened so that they can easily trade with the former Soviet republic.
Currently, trade between the two states – estimated by the
Turkish-Armenian Business Council, a non-governmental organization,
at roughly $70 million – takes place via Georgia and Iran.

Without Turkey, Azerbaijan would be the only state maintaining a
blockade of Armenia over Yerevan’s ongoing occupation of Azerbaijani
territory captured during the Nagorno-Karabakh war. A decision to
open Turkey’s borders with Armenia, Aliyev said, would leave Baku at
a disadvantage in negotiating for the withdrawal of Armenian troops
from Azerbaijani territory. “If Turkey were to open its doors to
Armenia, Azerbaijan will lose an important lever in finding a
solution to the conflict,” the president told reporters on March 24
after returning from an official visit to Uzbekistan. “It also would
make it impossible for us to continue the peace talks and would even
bring the talks to an end.”

Already that threat appears to have been put to work. A meeting
between the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers, originally
scheduled for March 29 in Prague, was cancelled at “the wish of one
side,” OSCE Minsk Group Chairman Yuri Merzlyakov told the Azerbaijani
Channel ATV. The Minsk Group, made up of the US, UK, Russia and
France, is charged with overseeing the Nagorno-Karabakh peace
process. Citing an “informed source” in the Armenian Foreign
Ministry, the Armenian news agency Mediamax reported that the
cancellation had not been at Armenia¹s instigation.

Little progress has been made in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process
since 2002. [For additional information see the Eurasia Insight
archive]. Despite intermittent announcements of fresh peace
proposals, and a meeting between Armenian President Robert Kocharian
and President Aliyev last December in Geneva, no concrete
breakthrough has emerged. Aliyev stressed in early February that he
was “not in favor of making compromises,” and Azerbaijani officials
later announced that they were in “no hurry” to find a solution to
the Karabakh question.

Since Aliyev’s initial comments, other Azerbaijani leaders have
attempted to exert pressure on Ankara to maintain the status quo. “If
Turkey opens the border with Armenia, it will deal a blow not only to
Azerbaijani-Turkish friendship but also to the entire Turkic world,”
Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Murtuz Alasgarov told MPs on April 6,
according to a Trend news agency report.

Until recently, Turkish support for Azerbaijan on the Karabakh
question appeared steadfast. Turkey and Azerbaijan share close
cultural ties. Although Turkey was one of the first countries to
recognize Armenian independence in 1991, Ankara has no diplomatic
relations with its neighbor. In 1993, Ankara closed the Turkish
border with Armenia in an act of solidarity with Azerbaijan.

But now, more than 10 years later, Turkey’s foreign policy objectives
have changed. In December 2004, the European Union will decide
whether to begin accession talks with Turkey, potentially putting the
country in line to become the EU’s first predominantly Muslim member
state. To enhance Turkey’s chances for success, Prime Minister
Erdogan launched an ambitious reform program to improve the country’s
checkered record on human, political and ethnic minority rights and
rebuild its economy from a five-year-long recession. [For background
see the Eurasia Insight archive].

>From the EU’s perspective, lifting the blockade of Armenia remains a
key component of any program for change. A draft version of the
European Parliament’s yearly report on the status of Turkey’s
accession bid reportedly called on the country “to open the borders
with Armenia, establish good-neighbor relations . . . and to give up
any action impeding the reconciliation of the two countries.”

EU economic clout provides a compelling incentive for Ankara to
listen. In 2002, the latest year for which figures are available, the
EU ranked as Turkey’s top trade partner, accounting for more than 50
percent of its exports and 45 percent of its imports. At the same
time, the United States has also urged Turkey to rebuild ties with
Armenia. At a March 26 press conference in Yerevan, US Deputy
Secretary of State Richard Armitage stated that restoring official
economic ties between the two states would bring benefits to both
sides “rather dramatically and relatively quickly.”

For its part, Azerbaijan represents vast oil and natural gas wealth
that could enable Turkey to realize its dream of becoming a highly
profitable East-West energy bridge. Conscious of this weight, Aliyev
was quick to remind Ankara where its interests should lie. “Turkey is
a great and powerful nation and I am sure that Turkey will withstand
the pressures [to open its border with Armenia],” the Azerbaijani
president stressed. “The Turkish-Azerbaijani brotherhood is above
everything.”

Aliyev said he had received previous assurances from both Erdogan and
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul that the Turkish-Armenian border would
be opened only after Armenia withdraws from Azerbaijan’s occupied
territories. Ahmed Unal Cevikoz, Turkey’s ambassador to Baku, told
The Baku Sun, an English-language weekly, that Erdogan’s statement in
Washington had probably been “misunderstood” by the Azerbaijanis.

The Turkish ambassador emphasized that his country maintains all
three of its conditions for opening its border with Armenia:
withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh, an end to Armenian territorial
claims on Turkey’s Eastern Anatolia region, and an end to Armenia’s
campaign to secure international recognition of the 1915 slaughter of
1.5 million Armenians by Turkey’s Ottoman Empire as genocide.

But some Azerbaijani analysts believe that Turkey’s changes on other
foreign policy questions presage a similar about-face on its Karabakh
position. Thirty years after its invasion of Cyprus, Turkey recently
began talks with Greece on a UN reunification plan for the island,
another ingredient for Turkey’s accession to the EU. Turkey also has
bowed to US pressure on the Kurdish question, as Ankara has refrained
from sending Turkish troops into Kurdish-populated northern Iraq, and
has since extended language and media rights to its own Kurdish
populations. “This policy of retreat is obvious in the positions that
Ankara now holds on the issues of Cyprus, the Iraqi Turkomen and also
on Karabakh,” said Altay Goyushov, a Baku-based expert on Turkish
affairs.

Some analysts argue that Erdogan’s government is more concerned with
expanding trade than it is about potential for friction with a fellow
Turkic, Muslim state. “I think there are many in AKP who believe that
increased commerce makes better neighbors, and thus eases the way for
better relations,” Ugur Akinci, a Turkish analyst who accompanied
Erdogan to Washington, wrote in an opinion piece published in the
Turkish Daily News.

The World Bank agrees. Both the Bank and the UN’s Food and
Agriculture Organization have long argued that the blockade has
hindered the economic development of both Armenia and Turkey. The
World Bank has estimated that the lifting of both the Azerbaijani and
Turkish blockades could increase Armenia’s GDP by as much as 30-38
percent. The Turkish-Armenian Business Council has estimated that
bilateral trade could reach $300 million per year with the lifting of
the blockade.

As Azerbaijan looks on from the side, one analyst cautions that
patience is the best operating strategy. “We should consider that
Azerbaijan and Turkey are two separate countries,” said Goyushov,
“and although the two are bound by ethnicity and religion, their
interests can sometimes be different.”

Editor’s Note: Zulfugar Agayev is a freelance writer based in Baku.

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
April 8 2004

ACTIONS OF PROTEST HELD UNDER THE INITIATIVE OF THE AZERBAIJAN
JOURNALISTS IN TURKEY
[April 08, 2004, 23:20:32]

As was stated, representatives of independent mass media of
Azerbaijan have carried out in the cities of Igdir and Ankara of
Turkey, actions of protest to express the concern in connection with
probability of opening of borders between Turkey and Armenia. During
the meetings and rallies in Igdir, citizens of Turkey also have
joined our journalists and have supported them. Governor of Igdir
Musa Kiuchukgurd received our journalists. Having reminded words of
our national leader, the outstanding politician of the Turkic world
Heydar Aliyev `we are one nation, two states!’, the Governor has
emphasized that the Turkish people constantly supports fair position
of the Azerbaijan brothers.

On April 8, at the Gizil Ay Square in Ankara, a populous meeting with
participation of the independent journalists who have arrived from
Azerbaijan, our citizens living and working in Ankara, students, and
representatives of the Turkish public was held.

The demonstrators had in their hands national flags of Azerbaijan and
Turkey, posters with slogans `NO!’ to opening of borders! ‘, `The
Turkish-Azerbaijan friendship is eternal and indestructible!»
expressed protest against the aggressive policy of Armenia.

For carrying out of mass action in Ankara all corresponding official
sanctions have been received. During meeting and rally, no
infringements of law and public order were admitted.

Dover Sherborn Tab, MA
April 8 2004

Women bring world in music

By Chris Orchard/ Correspondent

SHERBORN – Music from around the world filled the
Unitarian-Universalist Church in Sherborn last Saturday.

Libana performed several international folk songs, many of which
dealt with longing for home.

The group brought rhythms, lyrics, instruments, and voices from
across the globe into the church. Their songs came from countries
such as South Africa, Republic of Georgia, Israel, Armenia, Russia,
Hawaii and 14th-century Persia.

“We’ve been exploring music from around the globe” for 25 years, they
said.

Libana performs “contemporary and traditional music of the world’s
women,” said artistic director and founder Susan Robbins.

“We play ancient folk songs,” and “also songs that give voice to a
more visionary sense of how women” are creating better lives for
themselves, she said.

The group, composed of seven women, was formed in 1979, when “world
music was hardly even a term yet,” said Robbins.

That year was a turning point, musically, in the life of Robbins.

“It was the times and my curiosity,” she said. “I wanted to see what
the women of the world had created.”

Other members of Libana are Lisa Bosley, Allison Coleman, Charlotte
Miller, Marytha Paffrath, Linda Ugelow and Cheryl Weber.

In folk cultures, where men and women work separately, there are
differences between men’s music and women’s music, said Robbins.

“Women were the carrier of a lot of oral tradition,” she said.

Gary Strichartz, chairman of the music committee at the
Unitarian-Universalist Church, said “I’m enraptured” by the music.

“Sue and Marytha have come to our Sunday services,” he said. Marytha,
who is Libana’s main percussionist, also leads a drum group at the
church.

Libana’s rhythms and songs brought listeners, momentarily, to another
place and time. Their music has a spiritual dimension, said
Strichartz.

“It’s one of the most wonderful things to drive around in, especially
in Boston traffic,” he said.

While the group hails from Harvard Square, its members travel and
perform around the world, learning as they go.

“We do a lot of listening to world music,” said Robbins.

There’s international flavor right here in Boston, too. In order to
get songs right, “we will go about finding someone from the greater
Boston area,” said Robbins.

They specifically mentioned local Armenian communities as great
sources of music and authenticity right here in Eastern
Massachusetts.

Some of their most profound songs that night came from Islamic
countries, such as Algeria and Egypt, where women still struggle for
a public voice in society. One song, from the Bedouin tradition, they
said, involved heavy drum beats. One rhythm melted into the next
rhythm, with dancing and high-pitched shrieking.

The music they played that night was also being recorded for a live
album.

“I love this church,” said Robbins.

“I don’t think you can have any idea how glad we are to be here
tonight,” said Paffrath.

Though in their minds they were probably somewhere else – in some
far-off country, the crowd seemed glad to be there, too.

ASBAREZ ONLINE
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04/09/2004
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1) Opposition and Coalition Representatives Meet
2) Intellectuals Push for Dialogue between Opposition, Authorities
3) Announcement
4) France Tries to Ease Turks’ Fears on EU Accession

1) Opposition and Coalition Representatives Meet

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–Representatives of the opposition and coalition government
met on Thursday at The Armenian Center for National and International Studies
(ACNIS), according to accounts, on the initiative of the Intellectuals’ Forum
organization.
Coalition participants were Galust Sahakian and Tigran Torosyan of the
Republican Party (HHK); Levon Mkrtchian and Armen Rustamian of the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation (ARF), and Samvel Balasanyan and Mher Shahgeldyan of
the Orinats Yerkir Party.
Opposition representatives were Republican Party political caucus members
Aram
Sargsyan and Smbat Ayvazian, as well as Vazgen Manukyan and Aram Karapetyan.
Also present were Raffi Hovannisian of the ACNIS, academicians Lenzer
Aghalovyan, David Setrakian, Ohan Dourian, and Khoren Balyan.
Both coalition and opposition representatives presented their views on
political activities, and reportedly reached a fundamental understanding in
not
allowing for matters to develop outside the political framework.

2) Intellectuals Push for Dialogue between Opposition, Authorities

YEREVAN (Combined Sources)–At a roundtable discussion on the political
situation in Armenia, prominent intellectuals agreed that dialogue is the only
means to resolve the existing conflict between the authorities and the
opposition. In saying so, they were quick to note that the opposition, and
some
of the public, would misconstrue their appeal as siding with the president and
the authorities. They even speculated that certain representatives of the
Armenian press would, in fact, spin the story in that direction the next day.
As a group, they conveyed that intellectuals refuse to surrender to any
political force or decision; however, stressing the possible threat to the
Armenian nation, and its already achieved successes–as small as they may
be–they stood firm in calling for dialogue to avoid impending conflicts.
Organized by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation’s (ARF) Supreme Body of
Armenia, the Thursday roundtable attracted prominent intellectuals, including
the chairman of the Armenian Writers Union Levon Ananian, who warned that the
deepening standoff has placed Armenia “on the brink of an abyss,” and called
for a compromise deal between Kocharian and the opposition.
ARF Supreme Body representative Armen Rustamian noted that in the life of
each
nation, and peoples, similar conflicts exist.
“We must avoid those developments that take conflict resolution outside of
the
political arena,” said Rustamyan, noting that the current political discord in
Armenia has reached a stalemate, and both sides must moderate their views.

3) Announcement

The present political tension in the Republic of Armenia greatly concerns
Armenians worldwide, and especially the children of our nation living in the
western United States.

The rapidly developing crisis situation that began in the past weeks has
deeply shaken all Armenians.
Thus, in the name of the spiritual leaders and people of all Armenian
denominations of the Western United States, we forward to the children of our
nation in Armenia, calls of love, Christian love of peace, mutual respect, and
harmony–so that the spirit of the Great Week prevails in our souls–and
forward calls to always exempt our nation from harm and fraternal hate.
It is our deep conviction and expectation of all the children of our nation
both in Armenia and the Diaspora, to be guided by prayer, practical and active
dialogue, and a sound spirit and path. Let us keep eternal Armenia distant
from
unjustifiable, fatal, and destructive actions, especially keeping in-mind our
present geopolitical situation.
Let the prayers of Armenians resound in all spirits, in order to keep our
borders and households distant from apparent and invisible dangers and
misfortunes.
Prelate of Western Region, Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian
Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church, Archbishop Hovnan
Derderian
Dean Pastor Raphael Minassian, leader of the Catholic Armenian Community
Reverend Joe Matossian, leader of Evangelical Armenian Community

4) France Tries to Ease Turks’ Fears on EU Accession

PARIS (Combined Sources)–France’s new foreign minister sought on Thursday to
ease growing concerns in Turkey that Paris wants to block its accession to the
European Union.
He said French policy on Turkey’s membership had not changed even though he
rattled Turkish financial markets Wednesday by telling parliament Ankara was
not yet ready to join the EU and the ruling conservative party said it opposed
rapid accession.
“The French government pays attention to all that is said in the internal
political debate, starting with the biggest party in parliament, but our line
on this remains the same,” said Michel Barnier, who was appointed only last
week in a government reshuffle.
He reiterated that the EU would take no decision on whether to open accession
talks with Turkey until the executive European Commission releases a report
later this year looking at whether Ankara has made sufficient progress on
human
rights.
“It is the European Commission which will say objectively if and when
accession talks can start because there are currently no accession talks with
Turkey,” he told reporters at the Foreign Ministry.
The European Commission in November noted “significant progress” by the
Turkish government in meeting EU conditions for membership. It cited, however,
several areas where more needed to be done, including improving the country’s
judicial system and human rights record.
The 15-member EU takes in 10 new members, mainly from eastern and central
Europe, on May 1. Turkey hopes to be in a later wave of accession.
Barnier made clear in parliament Wednesday that Turkey had not yet met the
conditions for membership. “Turkey does not respect the conditions, even if it
is preparing to do so,” he said, adding that there was “no question” of
Turkey’s joining the EU “under current circumstances.”
Barnier’s remarks triggered a furor in the Turkish press and helped drive
Turkish financial markets lower on Thursday.
“The cock has crowed too soon,” said the headline in the Aksam daily.
“When Turkey has fulfilled all the criteria for membership and opened the way
to a solution in Cyprus, France drops its mask. The government has declared
its
true intentions,” it said.
However, a Turkish official downplayed Barnier’s comments, saying they simply
reflected the current state of affairs.
“We know that we still have some shortcomings which must be dealt with,
and we
will deal with them before December,” the official told Reuters in Ankara.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told reporters, “Various exaggerated words can
be said for reasons related to domestic politics.”
EU leaders will decide in December whether to open accession talks with
Turkey, the only membership aspirant that has so far been denied a seat at the
negotiating table.

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ArmenPress
April 8 2004

STANDOFF BETWEEN AUTHORITIES AND OPPOSITION ESCALATES FURTHER

YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS: In a move that is expected to raise
further the confrontation between Armenian authorities and the
opposition, leaders of the two major anti-government forces rejected
today proposals for starting a dialogue and diffuse the escalating
tension.
Stepan Demirchian, the leader of the Ardarutyun (Justice) alliance
argued that the only chance for a dialogue was the inclusion of a
motion on a national referendum on confidence in the incumbent
president on the parliament’s agenda, as was suggested by the
country’s Constitutional Court in the wake of last year’s contested
presidential election.
In a reference to parliament chairman, Arthur Baghdasarian’s
Wednesday offer to start a `dialogue’ with the opposition, Artashes
Geghamian, the leader of another major opposition party, National
Unity, said he had met with the parliament speaker “to say that we
are prepared for a dialogue on ways for transfer of power without
upheavals through a referendum.” He added that the proposal was
rejected by Baghdasarian.
Aram Sarkisian, the leader of the radical opposition Hanrapetutyun
(Republic) party, a component of the Ardarutyun bloc, welcomed the
readiness of the coalition forces for a dialogue. “This shows that
these parties are concerned with the future of the country and we
hail it,’ he said.

ArmenPress
April 8 2004

ARMENIA TO SEND OFFICERS FOR NATO EXERCISES IN AZERBAIJAN

YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS: Armenian deputy defense minister,
Arthur Aghabekian, told today that Armenia will send its officers and
a platoon to NATO-supported exercises, Best Cooperative Efforts-2004
that will take place in Azerbaijan later this year.
During a meeting with students of Yerevan Engineering University,
the deputy minister said Armenian authorities will demand NATO
guarantees for Armenian officers and platoon to demonstrate their
skills in the exercises.
Aghabekian went on saying that regional stability can be preserved
only through cooperation, which he said “is the main line of Armenian
foreign military policy.”

ArmenPress
April 8 2004

“TOURISM AND REST ARMITT-2004” EXHIBITION HELD IN YEREVAN

YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS: Armenian EXPO.com has initiated an
exhibition “Tourism and Rest ARMITT-2004” which is held at the Cinema
House in Yerevan on April 7-10. The exhibition aims to unveil the
potentials of Armenian tourism markets, emphasize the role of tourism
in the economic development of the country and contribute to a
growing interest to Armenia thus fostering investment and new
employment places.
Armenian deputy minister of trade and economic development Ara
Petrosian noted that these are the first steps and this exhibition is
going to become a tradition increasing in geography and supported by
the Armenian government. “Tourism is at an irreversible and dynamic
stage of its development in Armenia,” the deputy minister noted. The
statistics indicate that in the coming years it will keep on
developing as dynamically, he added. Some 30 per cent rise is
registered in this field as compared to the data of 2002. The deputy
minister expects similar growth in the coming year. Much should be
done in promotion activities and assistance programs while this event
serves particularly to those aims, the deputy minister said.
He also stressed the role of the private sector and stated that
“it is capable to record successes and attract tourists to Armenia in
the conditions of serious competition in the international market.”
A. Petrosian also expressed his gratitude to the diplomatic agencies
present at the meeting stressing that tourism has a great potential
in Armenia.
The deputy tourism minister of Lebanon Antoine Issa El Quirin
congratulated all the participants. He expressed his happiness for
this inaugural event and added that the historical backgrounds of
both Armenia and Lebanon allow to say that such events and tourism
will become a tradition.
Moscow office head of Armenian EXPO.com Hovhannes Khachatrian who
also supervises the current exhibition said that more than two dozens
Armenian and one Lebanese company participate in the event. For the
coming year, there are five applications received from Cyprus. An
international conference titled “Domestic Tourism: Problems and
Challenges,” another round table are also expected. At the end of the
event, the companies named as the best in 11 categories will receive
honor certificates.
The exhibition was officially supported by Armenian foreign
ministry, ministry of trade and economic development and
Interregional Internet-Commercial Net.

American Oil Diplomacy in the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea

MODERN HISTORY AND POLITICS

The Middle East Journal (Washington)
Winter 2004
Vol. 58, Iss. 1
pg. 155

Book Review of “American Oil Diplomacy in the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea”
by Gawdat Bahgat. Gainesville, FL: xiii + 173 pages.
Gloss, to p. 178. Notes to p. 192. Bibl. to p. 206. Index to p. 213

By Paul M Mecray III.

American Oil Diplomacy by Professor Gawdat Bahgat of Indiana University
of Pennsylvania is a thorough and sophisticated analysis of geopolitical
events encompassing Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Azerbaijan, and
Kazakhstan. This book is recommended reading for those desiring a
dispassionate history of the region’s oil industry without succumbing to
personal biases – quite an accomplishment for any writer familiar with
the ethnic, religious, and political rivalries in that part of the
world. Dr. Bahgat manages to fill 173 pages with vital statistics, but
still produces a readable, objective narrative. Diplomats, businessmen,
and analysts seeking an in-depth understanding of the
regional alliances and rivalries that will directly impact American
foreign policy, global oil production, and, as a result, both the future
of oil and inflation would do well to read this book.

Particularly helpful is Bahgat’s discussion of the long relationship
that France and Russia have had with Iraq, involved as both have been in
the oil sector and as arms suppliers over the years.

Any treatise on the Middle East becomes dated quickly, and this book is
no exception. Written shortly before the invasion of Iraq in April 2003,
the book discusses reasons for and against launching the war but not the
subsequent chaos. Yet, from a longer term viewpoint, Bahgat does a
superb job explaining regional tensions and rivalries – ranging from the
Arab-Israeli conflict to the continuing friction between Azerbaijan and
Armenia, from pre-war Iraq versus all of its neighbors, Iran’s
relationships with the United States and with Pakistan – and their
implications for the oil industry.

A particularly valuable element of Bahgat’s analysis is his use of
Energy Information Administration (EIA) projections of potential oil
reserves and productive capability for Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Iran.
These figures are seldom cited by authors, many of whom prefer to use
much lower “official” reserve estimates. Given the ever more
sophisticated oilfield technologies, even the EIA figures cited by
Bahgat may be low. In particular, his projections for Kazakhstan are
clearly too conservative, as new data on the Tengiz and Kashagan fields,
alone, suggest recoverable reserves should surpass 25 billion barrels,
three times the BP estimate cited in this book.

That Kazakhstan’s oil potential is indeed far greater than many experts
had estimated focuses one’s attention all the more on Bahgat’s excellent
discussion of pipeline diplomacy, where the politics of competing routes
from the Caspian via the Black Sea/Bosporus, Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan (BTC)
to the Mediterranean, and sales to Iran that free up oil for export
through the Persian Gulf, all illustrate the battle for control between
Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and the United States. He correctly notes that
Washington initially exaggerated the significance of Caspian oil
potential in order to promote the Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and thus
greatly reduce Russia’s control of export routes. In this instance, the
United States has been fortunate, for subsequent massive oil discoveries
in Kazakhstan will consume all the Caspian Pipeline Consortium capacity
to Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossisk as well as that of the BTC
line to the Mediterranean. Both lines will now need to be expanded, and
pressures will grow to negotiate oil swaps with Iran, which heretofore
Washington has opposed.

In sum, Gawdat Bahgat has produced a superb account of the oil
-geopolitics nexus, and of the conduct of American diplomacy in
furthering US strategic interests in the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea
region.

[Author Affiliation]
Paul M. Mecray, III, Senior Vice President and Partner, Wellington
Management Company, LLP, has served as a global energy industry analyst
for 36 years.

Copyright Middle East Institute

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress