Month: June 2005

RA PRESIDENT SIGNS DECREE ON INSTITUTING PRIZES IN THE AREA OF
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES
YEREVAN, June 3. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian has signed
decree on instituting educational prizes in the area of information
technologies. According to the Press Service of the RA President, the
prizes will be awarded in nominations “Best Bachelor Student”, “Best
Master Student”, “Best Aspirant”, “Best Student” and “Best Pupil”.
Ion the same day, Kocharian also signed the law On Basic Provisions
of National Water Policy of RA adopted by the RA NA. L.V.-0–

LUFTHANSA CARRIES OUT FIRST MUNICH-YEREVAN FLIGHT
YEREVAN, June 3. /ARKA/. The Lufthansa air carriers has carried out
the first Munich-Yerevan flight today. At a press conference held on
this occasion, Guenther Ott, Regional Director in Russia and CIS,
pointed out that the flight is the inauguration of regular flights
to Armenia planned by the Lufthansa air carrier. Specifically,
Munich-Yerevan flights will be carried out on Monday, thursayd and
Sunday, and Yerevan-Munich flight on Monday, Thursday and Friday. He
also pointed out that Lufthansa makes a special offer to Armenian
passenger, namely, flights to Europe, North Amercia and Africa, which
offer will be in effect until October 24. Guenther Ott reported that
from today the passengers that will make use of the new package offered
by Lufthansa will have the opportunity to fly to the German citiers
of Munich, Berlin, Ftrankfurt, Cologne, Dresden for 299 USD; to the
European cities of Amserdam, London, Brussels, Rome, Madrid and Milan
for 349 USD, as well as to North America and Africa for 599 USD. He
also said that Lufthansa air carriers proposes the «Miles&more» bonus
system to Armenian passengers. The air carrier also offers special
Flynet services to its clients, which will afford businessmen the
opportunity to use Internet during flights, Ott said.
He also reported that on June 5 Lufthansa intends to make its first
flight to Georgia.
The Lufthansa air carriers wasa founded in 1926 and currently makes
15,000 daily flights to 139 countries in 375 directions. P.T. -0–
–Boundary_(ID_llskoI9Ex1PgE9habZ6mBA)–

MOVIE REVIEW
Boston Globe
Twists add charm to ‘Vodka Lemon’
By Ty Burr, Globe Staff | June 3, 2005
If any geographical area can be said to have been hosed by history,
the mountainous region around Aparan, Armenia, qualifies. Turkish
genocide, Soviet occupation, a large population of Kurds to abuse —
and that’s just the 20th century. Every now and then, a figure on
horseback gallops madly through the background of “Vodka Lemon,” as if
to remind viewers that the Mongol hordes passed this way as well. For
all the weary inhabitants of this movie know, they’re coming back.
If so, at least they’d offer a diversion. Hiner Saleem’s fanciful,
minor-key, extremely likable comedy imagines life in a geopolitical
football that the world has abruptly stopped kicking. Nothing much
happens in this tiny snowbound village in the high peaks — or in
the movie itself — and the truth of the matter is that’s how the
residents like it. They may be poor, they may be freezing, but for
once history is happening elsewhere.
The central character out of a dozen lives glimpsed sideways is Hamo
(Romik Avinian), a courtly older man with a full head of white hair
and a healthy appreciation for the absurdities of fate — he gives
the impression of a sea captain who has mislaid his fleet, or Omar
Sharif playing a figure out of Nabokov. Hamo is reduced to selling
off his old army uniforms for food money and hoping that one of his
sons living in Europe will send cash, preferably American dollars.
He also spends part of each day visiting his wife’s grave in the local
cemetery, a barren piece of tundra so frozen it’s a wonder they can put
anyone underneath. Hamo tells her the latest gossip, and occasionally
the wife’s engraved portrait on the headstone changes expression in
response. This was a good gag when Preston Sturges did it in 1941’s
“Sullivan’s Travels” and it still gets a laugh in 21st-century Armenia.
Visiting her husband’s grave each day is Nina (Lala Sarkissian),
an attractive widow in her 50s, and as she and Hamo ride the local
bus to the cemetery, listening to the driver (Armen Sarkissyan)
lip-synch French pop songs, they grow incrementally closer. Both
understand there’s no need to rush things.
Elsewhere, Nina’s daughter (Rouzana-Vite Mesropian) passes herself
off as a hotel bar pianist even though everyone knows she’s turning
tricks. Hamo’s wastrel son Dilovan (Ivan Franek) is happy to marry
off his daughter (Astrik Avaguian) to a stranger if he thinks he can
get a job out of it. “Don’t you miss the time when the Russians were
still here?” Hamo asks an acquaintance. “No, we didn’t have freedom
then,” comes the response. Hamo: “We had everything else!”
They still have a landscape of paralyzing natural beauty. “Vodka Lemon”
(named for the unprofitable drink stand at which Nina works) takes
place in a sunny and blindingly white winter universe which filmmaker
Saleem adorns with sly bits of surrealism. The film opens with a
decrepit old musician being towed along a snow-clogged road in his
hospital bed so he can play at a funeral; it ends with a piano ghosting
mysteriously down a thawed-out highway. Tough, resilient folk music
bangs away under many of the scenes, like the heartbeat of a survivor.
This is frostbitten Fellini — a film that finds fresh beauty and
contentment in the wake of centuries of conquering armies. The great
joke of “Vodka Lemon” is that the conquerors missed what was there
all along.

Azerbaijan To Prevent Unsanctioned Rally
RFE/RL
Friday, 03 June 2005
Baku, 3 June 2005 (RFE/RL) — Azerbaijani authorities said today they
will prevent an unsanctioned anti-government rally the opposition
has called for tomorrow.
Government spokesman Ehsan Zahidov says no permit was issued to the
opposition parties to hold the rally. Zahidov says the opposition’s
intent was to create a confrontation in Baku and that was unacceptable.
The head of the opposition Popular Front of Azerbaijan, Ali Kerimli,
vowed the rally will be held in a central square in Baku. Kerimli
says it is a constitutional right to hold a rally.
Police and protesters clashed last month at a similar rally, in which
some 75 people were arrested.
(RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani Service, AFP)

REVOLUTION WILL BE CARRIED OUT THIS YEAR
A1plus
| 20:57:31 | 02-06-2005 | Politics |
With these words leader of New Times party Aram Karapetyan addressed
the people, who gathered today at the monument to Vardan Mamikonyan.
According to the party members about 1080 people were present at
today’s rally. Aram Karapetyan promised to organize rallies every
10 days. “This is our revolutionary strategy- not to be afraid and
activated people. According to him the revolution will take place
when 50 000 people are engaged in the process. The nation must make
the authorities listen to it. And this will take place this year,
he stressed.
To note, when answering the question about the financial support of
the party Aram Karapetyan said, “Even the National Security Service
cannot find it out”.

EU NOT READY TO ACCEPT TURKEY
Pan Armenian News
03.06.2005 04:57
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Chairman of the Christian Social Union, Bavarian
Premier Edmund Stoiberg stated that in case the party wins the
preschedule parliamentary elections this autumn the negotiations on
Turkey’s accession to the EU will take a different course and instead
of membership Turkey will be offered a privileged partnership, Yerkir
Online reports with a reference to Die Zeit. According to Stoiberg,
the party does not object Turkey’s EU membership but considers that
the country cannot be a full member of the EU. He also noted that
with Christian Democratic Union leader Angela Merkel’s coming to
power Germany’s policy towards Turkey will differ from that pursued
by Gerhard Schroder. To note, NTV Turkish channel reported that Mr.
Stoiberg said the EU is not ready to accept a country with a great
number of Muslim population however has nothing against Romania
and Bulgaria.

SITUATION IN AZERBAIJAN AROUSES CONCERN OF INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Pan Armenian News
03.06.2005 04:13
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Freedom House today expressed serious concern over
the government of Azerbaijan’s increasing abuse and intimidation of
opposition activists. Azeri authorities arrested and detained more than
30 activists on May 18 and 19, part of a broader pattern of repressive
measures that effectively deny any non-governmental actor a meaningful
voice in Azeri society. Independent media, the non-governmental sector
and opposition political parties all face serious obstacles created
by the authorities. The detention of the activists comes in advance
of a scheduled public rally planned by the UGUR opposition bloc
for May 21. Freedom House called on the government of Azerbaijan to
immediately release the detained individuals and to respect the right
to freedom of assembly. “It is time for the Azerbaijani government to
demonstrate its commitment to democratic reform with genuine action”
said Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer Windsor. “Actions
speak louder than words. Unfortunately, there is a wide gap between
the regime’s pledges to implement democratic reforms and its following
through on these commitments.”

ARMENIAN SHASHLIK BESTOWED WITH TITLE OF RECOGNIZED ESTONIAN PRODUCT
Pan Armenian News
03.06.2005 04:48
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ May 25, during the testing initiated by the Estonian
Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce the expert committee announced
the list of 31 winners bestowed with the title of recognized Estonian
product. According to Armenian Portal in Estonia, in the nomination of
meat products Armenian shashlik was acknowledged the best product of
2005. Armenian shashlik appeared at the Estonian market in 2000. It
was produced by the Pilval meatpacking plant co-owned by Spartak
Hakobjanian, Armenian in origin. The plant that earlier output
grill-products set up a new line named Armenian Shashlik. To note,
the name is not accidental. Shashlik is prepared by Armenian method by
specialist Ara Karapetian, who arrived in Estonia from Armenia. With
the introduction of a new brand the amount of shashlik produced
by the plant has increased three times during the recent 3 years.
As result it won the title of the recognized Estonian product and at
the same time represents Armenia’s culture and originality to Estonia,
where the Armenian Diaspora is rather small in number.

CHANGE OF POWER IN GERMANY MAY BURY THE IDEA OF TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP
Pan Armenian News
The future Chancellor of Germany will probably be against the acception
of Turkey to the family of European nations.
On Monday, the major German oppositional political force – the
“Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union” has selected the
candidate for the federal chancellor’s post. In case of victory of
the conservators in the upcoming pre-term parliamentary elections the
government will be headed by the leader of the “Christian Democratic
Union/Christian Social Union” Angela Merkel. The tough pronouncements
of Miss Merkel towards Turkey have won the sympathy of Armenians,
guaranteeing the support of the large Armenian community of Germany.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Political analysts consider the coming of “Christian
Democratic Union/Christian Social Union” quite realistic. The ruling
Social-democratic party headed by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has
lost the greatest part of the Land elections. The last drop was the
loss in the most populous and urbanized Land – North Rhine-Westphalia
where the “Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union” has
ruled without break during the past 39 years. After a series of
failures, the Social Democrats have little chance of success. The
negative outcome of the European Constitution referendum in France
weakened Schroeder’s party even more since the Germans associate the
failure of European constitution with the failure of its founders,
including the German Chancellor.
The change of power may bring certain changes in the state policy of
Germany concerning issues that are in the interests of Armenia. This
first of all refers to Turkey. With the coming of Christian Democrats
the position of Berlin concerning Armenian Genocide will become much
more distinct. According to the Armenian Ambassador in Germany Karine
Kazinyan, the resolution, recognizing the fact of Armenian Genocide
in Ottoman Turkey may be passed by the Bundestag yet before its
dissolution. However, if that does not happen, the future parliament
controlled by the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union
will probably insert tougher formulations in the resolution text. In
this situation Armenian community does not need to hurry with the
lobbying of returning the issue of Armenian genocide to the agenda.
The Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union may arouse
the issue of Armenian genocide already in June not to win the votes
of German Armenians, but to demonstrate their principality towards
Ankara and to persuade people in their ability to prevent Turkey’s
EU membership. Excessive radicalism of Angela Merkel in this issue
should more likely alarm than please Armenian political leaders. The
thing is that the leader of Christian Democratic Union/Christian
Social Union excludes the possibility of Turkey’s EU membership,
accepting only Turkey’s status of a “special partner”. In this case
Miss Merkel shows solidarity to the French people who, judging by the
results of the referendum, also intend to get rid of the undesirable
neighborhood with the Turks, even if they fulfill all the set
requirements. This means that Ankara actually does not need to fulfill
any requirements, including those concerning the genocide and the
opening of the borderline with Armenia. Such an approach contradicts to
our interests since it bears a hidden threat to our national security,
because outcast Turkey will not only refuse to compromise, but will
also become an unpredictable neighbor. Paradoxically, it turns out
that in this case the interests of Yerevan and Ankara coincide,
since full removal of the issue of Turkey’s EU membership from the
agenda equally contradicts the interest of both Armenia and Turkey.
01.06.2005, “PanARMENIAN Network” analytical department

JUSTICE MINISTRY WARNS: FOREIGN E-MAIL LOTTERIES MERE FRAUD
Pan Armenian News
03.06.2005 03:50
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On June 2 the Armenian Justice Ministry had to
issue a recurrent statement warning the Armenian citizens against
participation in Internet lotteries notifying of various big
winnings. The latest statements was issued at the beginning of 2005,
when Spanish swindlers offered Armenian citizens to make some payments
for receiving the winning of EL GORDO DE LA PRIMITIVA lottery or NET
SWEEP STAKES LOTTARY. According to a source in the RA Justice Ministry,
one Armenian citizen even sold his car to pay for the “service” of the
Spanish swindlers and sincerely believed that he has really won $2
million in the lottery. It turned out that he was in correspondence
with the cheaters and even informed them about his bank requisites,
IA Regnum reports.