Month: June 2005

ARMENIA TREE PROJECT
65 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472
Tel: (617) 926-8733
Email: [email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
June 6, 2005
Armenia’s Shikahogh Nature Reserve and Mtnadzor Forest at Great Risk
–ATP working with coalition of NGOs to protect this irreplaceable national
treasure
Armenia, a country which historically had forest cover of 40-45 percent, is
today at perilous risk of becoming completely deforested. Current estimates
place forest cover at around eight percent, and at current rates of cutting,
the last of the forests could be gone in as little as 20 years.
Despite this, the government recently announced plans to build a new highway
in southern Armenia right through the middle of the old growth Mtnadzor
(Dark Canyon) forest, which occupies about half of the Shikahogh nature
reserve, one of only three pristine reserves in the country.
According to news reports, the plans call for cutting at least 14,000 old
growth trees and 90,000 younger ones. The Shikahogh reserve, established in
1958, is home to innumerable rare and endangered plant and animal species,
including up to 12 leopards, whose habitats would be gravely threatened by
the road’s construction and the ensuing traffic pollution.
A coalition of organizations and individuals, including Armenia Tree Project
(ATP), Armenian Forests NGO, World Wildlife Fund, and Armenian Assembly of
America have been working together to identify viable alternatives to the
proposed route which would do less environmental damage, and put a stop to
the plan to begin immediate construction until public hearings are held.
ATP founder Carolyn Mugar sent a letter on May 25 to President Robert
Kocharian and Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan, in addition to the Minister
of Nature Protection, Minister of Transportation, and other high-ranking
officials. `The Shikahogh forest reserve provides unique habitats for many
rare and endangered plants and animals whose survival depends upon the
government’s responsible stewardship. We call on you to protect this reserve
for the sake of future generations of Armenians and the world’s ecosystem,’
wrote Ms. Mugar.
The Armenian government has cited `strategic’ reasons for choosing the route
through the reserve, but hasn’t provided adequate justification for the
plan, which would violate numerous national laws and internationally signed
treatises to protect such nature preserves, which are widely regarded as
part of a national heritage.
To date, the Ministry of Transportation as well as the Ministry of Defense
have stated their intention to move forward with construction plans and
ignore any proposed alternatives. In response, the Minister of Nature
Protection announced his intention to resign if the road is constructed
through the reserve. This stated determination to ignore alternative routes
has led many to question the true motivation for the government’s plan,
given the monetary value of the oak trees from the old growth forest that
will be destroyed.
`The construction of the proposed road through the preserve will introduce
pollution from passing vehicles into this almost pristine forest, destroy
the habitat for rare wildlife and migratory paths, and attract illegal
logging, depriving future generations of Armenians of an irreplaceable
resource. The encroachment by illegal loggers has already destroyed much of
Armenia’s forests during the past decade,’ added the ATP founder in her
letter, which was also sent to government officials by Armenian Assembly of
America Chairman Hirair Hovnanian.
`[If Armenia’s government] does not demonstrate responsible management of
its natural and historical heritage, it weakens its ability to protect
Armenia from the impact of destructive policies in neighboring countries.
Any gains that may be realized by building this road through the preserve
will be far outweighed by the long-term environmental and political damage
that Armenia will suffer. We most urgently ask you to consider an
alternative route,’ concluded Ms. Mugar in her appeal.
The full text of the letter from ATP is available on the Web site
Those who wish to express their opinions on this issue
are encouraged to communicate with Minister of Nature Protection Vardan
Ayvazyan via the Web site , and send letters to President
Robert Kocharian, Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan, and Minister of
Transportation Andranik Manukyan, via Tatoul Markarian, Armenian Ambassador
to the United States, 2225 R Street N.W., Washington, DC 20008, tel. (202)
319-1976, fax (202) 319-2982.
PHOTO CAPTIONS:
Shikahogh reserve.jpg
A coalition including Armenia Tree Project, Armenian Forests NGO, World
Wildlife Fund, and Armenian Assembly of America are advocating for an
alternative to the proposed route of a highway in the Shikahogh nature
reserve in southern Armenia (Photo courtesy of World Wildlife Fund Armenia)
Construction machinery.jpg
As of late last month, construction equipment was lined up at the site to
begin construction through the Shikahogh nature reserve in southern Armenia,
which would result in the cutting of at least 14,000 old growth trees and
90,000 younger trees (Photo courtesy of World Wildlife Fund Armenia)
Leopard in Armenia.jpg
The Shikahogh nature reserve, established in 1958, is home to innumerable
rare and endangered plant and animal species, including up to 12 leopards,
whose habitats would be gravely threatened by the road’s construction (Photo
courtesy of World Wildlife Fund Armenia)

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan
June 7 2005
FOREIGN MINISTER OF AZERBAIJAN MEETS LITHUANIAN DELEGATION
[June 07, 2005, 11:27:42]
On June 6, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov met with the delegation headed by Chairman of the Seym of
Lithuania Arturas Paulauskas.
As is informed to AzerTAj from the press center of the Ministry, Mr.
Mammadyarov has in detail informed on the important power projects
which are carried out in the region. Speaking about the main
priorities of foreign policy of Azerbaijan, E. Mammadyarov has
emphasized the line of integration of Azerbaijan to Europe and the
Euro-Atlantic structures, including cooperation with the NATO and the
European Union, has reminded of the Order of the President of the
Azerbaijan Republic dated June 1, 2005 about creation of the State
Commission on integration of the Azerbaijan Republic into Europe.
Having noted that the Republic greatly contributes to establishment
of peace and stability in the world, the Minister has told that
militaries of the country take part in structure of peace-making
forces in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Having stopped on the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh conflict,
E. Mammadyarov has stressed occupation of 20 percent of the Country’s
territory by the armed forces of Armenia, and the fact that these
territories are under the control of the militaries called on to
military service in Armenia. He has told that the policy of ethnic
cleaning pursued by the Armenians on occupied territories, reminds
the events in Bosnia. Armenia, at the state level carries out the
policy of illegal resettlement in these territories, which
contradicts the Geneva Convention of 1949. The Minister has
emphasized that this conflict creates serious obstacles on the way of
integration of the Republic and as a whole of region to Europe, and
that 4 Resolutions of Security Council of the United Nations,
demanding immediate and unconditional withdrawal of military forces
from the occupied territories still are not observed.
Having expressed satisfaction with the visit to Azerbaijan, Chairman
of the Seym of Lithuania has reminded about close relations of
cooperation between the two republics even during the former USSR,
has expressed confidence that in new European family they would
develop even more.
Noting that special importance is given to links with Azerbaijan in
economic sphere, Mr. Paulauskas has told: `We see Azerbaijan as
economic partner, and we are interested in cooperation both in the
bilateral order, and in frameworks of GUAM’.
At the meeting, also were exchanged opinions on other questions
representing mutual interest.

Released Armenian pilots to return home on 9 June
Sources:
A1+ web site in Russian 6 Jun 05
Armenian Radio 1in Armenian 7 Jun05
The official representative of Armenia and employee of the Foreign
Ministry, Gevorg Petrosyan, left for the capital of Equatorial Guinea,
Malabo, today to organize the return of Armenian pilots.
In a press release the Foreign Ministry said that Armenia is very much
pleased with the release of the Armenian pilots and expressed its
gratitude to the Equatorial Guinea authorities, in particular, to
President Teodoro Obiang Nguema for his compassionate attitude towards
the pilots.
By the way, the law enforcement bodies of that country have been
ordered to release the pilots immediately and send them back to
Armenia.
All the charges against Commander Ashot Karapetyan, second pilot
Samvel Darbinyan, navigator Samvel Mahkalyan, technicians Razmik
Khachatryan and Suren Muradyan and engineer Ashot Simonyan were
dropped.
(The Armenian radio reported today that the pilots, who have been
released from jail several days ago and who are now being treated in
hospital, will be brought back to Armenia on 9 June)

Daily Pilot, CA
Newport Beach & Costa Mesa
June 7 2005
Student tackles human trafficking
By Michael Miller, Daily Pilot
For most students, a Fulbright scholarship is a chance to travel
abroad for the first time. For Tatyana Martell, it’s more like a
homecoming.
Last summer, the Armenian-born UC Irvine student interned at the U.S.
Embassy in Lithuania, the country where she spent much of her
childhood. While working for the State Department, Martell read
reports about one of the worst crises facing the former Soviet Union:
human trafficking. Hearing accounts of young women being bartered and
sold in the economically depressed countries, Martell vowed to
dedicate the next phase of her life to researching — and, possibly,
fighting — the illicit trade.
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“It’s a dreadful problem, and it’s so little-talked about,” said
Martell, 30. “It affects the U.S., and it affects nearly every other
country in the world.”
Martell has an ally in her journey. This fall, the undergraduate will
travel on a Fulbright community service grant to study human
trafficking at Yaroslavl State University in Russia. In addition, she
will use part of her scholarship money to work with women and teenage
girls who are potential targets of the trade.
“A lot of the time, women think they’re going to work as nannies or
dishwashers,” Martell said. “Then, as soon as they cross the border,
their papers are taken away. They’re often beaten and abused, or
forced into sex work.”
Studying at Yaroslavl and visiting women’s shelters, Martell may pull
a number of long, lonely hours. On Monday, however, she sat among
friends as one of 16 students honored at UCI’s annual National Awards
Recognition Luncheon.
Packing the small dining room in the back of the campus University
Club were three Fulbright scholars, three Barry M. Goldwater scholars
and several candidates and winners of other awards. UCI tied its
single-year records for number of Fulbright and Goldwater winners in
2005.
“There is a palpable feeling of hope in this room,” scholarship
counselor Rebecca Harris told the crowd. “It’s wonderful to be a part
of.”
Audrey DeVore, founder of the campus Scholarship Opportunities
program, presented certificates to each of the 16 honorees present.
She noted that at least 70 UCI students had applied for scholarships
in 2004-05.
“It takes courage to apply for these awards,” DeVore said. “You know
the odds. You may do everything right and still not get it.”
Since 1990, when UCI began the Scholarship Opportunities program,
nearly 100 students have won state and national honors, including 23
Goldwater scholars, 20 Fulbright fellows and five Truman scholars.
This year, recipients’ destinations ranged from Costa Mesa to France
and Austria.
Apart from Martell, the other Fulbright winners were Catherine
Nguyen, who plans to study Vietnamese literature at the University of
Provence, and David Hallowell, who got a grant to study psychology at
the University of Vienna. Hallowell will work under the tutelage of
Alfried Längle, a protégé of existentialism pioneer Viktor Frankl.
Goldwater scholarships, which fund undergraduate work at UCI, went to
information and computer science major Arthur Asuncion Jr.,
mechanical engineering major Danielle Issa and biological science and
dance major Vicky Zhou. The second annual Merage American Dream
Fellowship went to political science major Mayte Santacruz Benavidez,
who will study law at UC Berkeley in the fall.
Biochemistry and molecular biology major Vivek Mehta won the Donald
A. Strauss Scholarship to develop a series of health seminars at the
Share Our Selves medical clinic in Costa Mesa.
Also honored at the luncheon were Brittany Schick, UCI’s first George
J. Mitchell scholar, Rotary scholars Gregoria Baranzadeh and Mukul
Kumar, Morris K. Udall honorable mention Sara Huber, Fulbright
candidates Theresa Nguyen and Kara Tanaka, National Science
Foundation honorable mention Sukant Mittal, and Jacqueline
Chattopadhyay, one of Glamour magazine’s Top Ten College Women this
year.

Interfax.ru, Russia
June 7 2005
Georgia hampering Russian operations – commander
MOSCOW. June 7 (Interfax) – Col. Vladimir Kuparadze, deputy commander
of the Russian forces in Transcaucasia, has accused the Georgian
authorities of creating obstacles to the operations of his troops.
“Because of Georgian visa denials, Maj. Gen. Alexander Bespalov has
long been performing his duties as commander of the Group of Russian
Forces in Transcaucasia from Russia’s 102nd Military Base in Armenia.
And now the Georgian authorities have denied a visa to the recently
appointed deputy commander for armaments,” Kuparadze said.

Ultimate-Guitar.Com
June 7 2005
System Of A Down US Tour

Date: 2005-06-07 Artist: System Of A Down Category: Upcoming Tours

Described by the media as “the most wonderfully bombastic band in
modern rock,” “the most wholly unique band making music today,” and
“capable of single-handedly carrying rock into a new era,” System Of
A Down will kick off its first major North American tour in three
years on August 4, headlining the Long Beach Arena just outside of
Los Angeles. The tour, which features The Mars Volta as special
guests and Bad Acid Trip as the tour’s first leg openers, will see
System Of A Down headlining arenas in some forty cities over a
ten-week period.

Tickets for the first five cities on the tour – Long Beach, San
Diego, Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas – will go on sale this
weekend (see below for details), and will be priced from $32.50 to
$45.00. System Of A Down’s site – – will host a ticket presale
beginning this Wednesday, June 8 at 10:00AM PDT running through
10:00PM PDT on Thursday, June 9. Log onto the site for the special
password and complete details. General ticket on-sales will begin
this weekend for these initial five dates at the band’s website, at
all Ticketmaster outlets including ticketmaster.com, and at the
venues’ box office.
The tour is in support of System Of A Down’s the brand-new album,
“Mezmerize” (American Recordings/Columbia Records), which was
released May 17 and debuted in the Number One slot on the
Billboard/SoundScan charts. “Mezmerize” also experienced worldwide
first-week success having soared to the top of album charts in more
than a dozen countries – worldwide sales for “Mezmerize” in its first
week topped 800,000 copies. “Mezmerize” is the first disc in a
two-disc set, with disc two, “Hypnotize,” set for a late fall
release. “Mezmerize/Hypnotize” was produced by Rick Rubin and
System’s main songwriter/guitarist Daron Malakian.
Since its self-titled debut in 1998, System Of A Down – Daron
Malakian (guitars, vocals), Serj Tankian (vocals), Shavo Odadjian
(bass), John Dolmayan (drums) – has sold more than 10-million records
world wide, and risen to the level of an arena headliner while
maintaining its musical integrity, its core fan base, and its
position as one of the most unique bands in rock. With the unexpected
commercial radio success of “Chop Suey!,” “Toxicity,” and the Number
One “Aerials,” the three Top 10 radio tracks from 2001’s
multi-platinum album “Toxicity,” System blew the definition of
mainstream rock wide open. System Of A Down’s music is impossible to
pigeonhole, as it runs the gamut from Metallica to Frank Zappa to
Gilbert and Sullivan to Armenian folk tunes. Lyrically, System is
highly opinionated about numerous topics including war, religion,
politics, Hollywood, love, genocide, drugs, sex, injustice, and just
having a good time.
System Of A Down is currently on a 23-date tour of Europe comprised
of appearances at major rock festivals as well as handful of
headlining dates including a three-night stand at London’s Brixton
Academy. This past April, the band took to the road on a nine-city
“guerrilla tour,” headlining small venues in major U.S. markets with
the shows being announced only a day or two ahead of time. Of the
Washington, D.C. show, the Washington Post wrote that System
“delivered a performance as pummeling and cathartic as rock gets.”
Initial confirmed dates for System Of A Down’s North American tour
are as follows:
Initial confirmed dates for System of a Down’s North American tour
are as follows:
08/04 – Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA – On-sale is 12NOON,
Saturday, June 11
08/06 – TBA, San Diego, CA – On-sale is 3:00PM, Friday, June 10
08/11 – American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX – On-sale is 12NOON at
Saturday, June 11
08/12 – SBC Arena, San Antonio, TX – On-sale is 10:00AM, Saturday,
June 11
08/13 – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, Houston, TX – On-sale is
10:00AM, Saturday, June 11
More dates to be announced shortly.

The Messenger, Georgia
June 7 2005
Political Analysis: GUAM contemplates ‘GUAAMK’
By M. Alkhazashvili
GUAM is actively debating possible new members. While Kyrgyzstan’s
membership is widely anticipated, other candidates, like Armenia,
seem unlikely.
When the GUAM Parliamentary Assembly met in Italy last month,
Vladimir Litvin, the speaker of the Ukrainian legislative body, the
Supreme Rada, announced the organization was prepared to consider
Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Armenia and other countries as potential
members. However, Azerbaijan, a founding member of GUAM, raised
serious concerns about Armenia’s possible participation in the
alliance.
“We principally state that as long as 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s
territory is occupied by Armenia – and Armenia maintains a hostile
attitude toward us – we cannot have normal relations with them,”
Speaker of the Mili-Mejlis – the Azeri legislature – Murtuz Aleskerov
said during a press conference on May 31. He added that in addition
to blocking Armenia from entering the GUAM, Baku is actively trying
to stop it from joining the EU as well.
However, not all politicians in Baku are against Armenia becoming
part of the GUAM in the near future. According to Elmar Mamedov, the
foreign minister of Azerbaijan, if Armenia is ready to sign the all
of the base documents prepared by GUAM, their membership is
acceptable.
He added that the GUAM base document is concerned with on going the
struggle against separatism and the restoration of territorial
integrity. “If Armenia and Russia or Lithuania and Latvia share the
same feelings with GUAM member countries, they can apply and join
this organization too,” Mamedov was quoted as saying by the newspaper
Rezonansi.
According to reports, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania and
Bulgaria have all expressed interest in joining GUAM.
At the same time, the current members are considering a name for the
organization with a bit more ring. Earlier in May the Ukrainian
Ministers of Foreign Affairs Boris Tarasyuk announced that the
organization was considering a name change with one possible
appellation being the “Commonwealth for the Democracy and
Development.”
GUAM was started in 1997 by founding members Georgia, Ukraine,
Azerbaijan and Moldova. Uzbekistan joined the alliance in 1999, but
left this year. It was created largely as an economic alliance,
although recently GUAM has reinitiated efforts to solve the multitude
of separatist issues troubling several of the member states. Both the
OSCE and the United States have supported its work to solve
territorial problems.

The Messenger, Georgia
June 7 2005
Russia launches new brigade to “prevent terrorists” from Georgia
The Russian government has announced that two new light mountain
rifle brigades will be set up along the Georgian-Russian border.
Sergey Ivanov, the defense minister of the Russian Federation, made
the announcement. “The resolution has been passed at all levels.
Funding will be large – up to 1 billion rubles[USD 55 million],” he
said in a statement to journalists. “They will be deployed at the
border between Georgia and Russia with the goal of supporting our
border guards under a special program aimed at preventing terrorists
from traveling from Georgian territory to Russia.”
Ivanov also spoke about the two Russian military bases to be
withdrawn from Georgia by 2008. “We are to withdraw about 2,500
military and their families, about 2,500 units of heavy equipment,
80,000 tons of ammunition, military property and different goods,”
Ivanov said.
He noted that the equipment and the property, as well as the
personnel, would leave by sea. Some parts of the equipment will be
re-deployed to the Russian military base in Armenia.
“The bases were deployed there not by Russia, but by the USSR. They
have no military role,” he declared.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Voice of Europe campaigns against Turkey’s EU admission
07.06.2005 16:56
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Voice of Europe, a Slovakia non-governmental organization,
has launched a campaign to petition against Turkey’s admission into the
European Union, Armenpress reported, citing a Russian source.
During the campaign, the citizens of Slovakia can express their position
towards the EU enlargement in the context of Turkey’s inclusion in the Union.
Similar actions are underway in Germany, Poland, Hungary and Czech Republic.

Politics.co.uk, UK
June 7 2005
Amnesty International UK – Equatorial Guinea: Trial of alleged coup
plotters unfair
Tue, 07 Jun 2005
EQUATORIAL GUINEA: NEW REPORT SHOWS TRIAL OF ALLEGED ‘MERCENARY COUP
PLOTTERS’ UNFAIR
As six Armenians convicted of taking part in an alleged coup attempt
in Equatorial Guinea last year await release after a pardon issued by
the country’s President, Amnesty International said today that the
arrest, trial and detention of the group of alleged “mercenaries” was
unfair and full of flagrant human rights violations.
In a report released today, ‘Equatorial Guinea – A trial with too
many flaws’, Amnesty International exposes in detail the series of
human rights violations seen throughout the uncovering and
prosecution of the alleged coup plot against Equatorial Guinea’s
President Obiang Nguema (which several UK businessmen, including Mark
Thatcher, are alleged to have financed). The report’s findings are
based on the three month monitoring of the trial by Amnesty
International delegates.
Kolawole Olaniyan, Director of Amnesty International’s Africa
Programme, said: “Everyone, including those accused of “mercenary
activity” has the right to a fair trial and to have his or her rights
protected – including the right to be presumed innocent until proven
guilty, and not to be subjected to torture or other cruel and
degrading treatment. These rights were flagrantly violated in this
case.
“No evidence was presented in court to support the charges against
the accused, and the court repeatedly ignored allegations that
defendants had been tortured while under interrogation in order to
extract confessions.
“The court often appeared more interested in gathering information to
further a separate civil case being brought by the Equatorial Guinean
government against several British businessmen it accused of
financing the alleged coup than in securing justice.”
Amongst other recommendations in the report, Amnesty International is
calling on the government to ensure an immediate and fair hearing of
the appeal lodged by defence lawyers, and to ensure that all
allegations of torture and other human rights violations are promptly
and thoroughly investigated and that suspected perpetrators are
brought to justice.
Torture allegations include the case of Gerhard Eugen Merz, a German
national arrested on 8 March 2004, who died about ten days after his
arrest. Several South African defendants stated in court that he had
died in front of them, after having been subjected to severe torture,
including lighter-burns on his back and feet.
Background
Since President Obiang Nguema came to power in 1979, Amnesty
International has documented over a dozen allegations of coup
attempts. The announcement of a foiled coup plot is typically
followed by a wave of arrests accompanied by torture and unfair
trials. The authorities seldom produce evidence in court to
substantiate the charges, often based on confessions extracted from
the accused under torture. Until recently such cases have gone
largely unnoticed by the international community.
In 2004 there were at least three alleged coup attempts, which led to
the arrest of about 200 people. Most of those arrested continue to be
held without charge or trial; many of them are seen to be contenders
for power and as such a threat to President Obiang Nguema’s rule.
In the first week of December 2004 four men and one woman were tried
by a military court and convicted of treason, “terrorism” and
espionage. They were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 22 to 26
years. Reports indicate that the five were severely tortured and the
woman raped by several members of the security forces.
The report is available at: