Condemning Black PR

CONDEMNING BLACK PR

Lragir, Armenia
Oct 20 2006

On October 23 the Orinats Yerkir Party released a message condemning
the black PR agains it. "Over the past month Lori Channel of Vanadzor,
Tsaig Channel of Gyumri, the channel of Martuni, and yesterday also
Hrazdan Channel broadcast reports denigrating the Orinats Yerkir Party
and the leader Arthur Baghdasaryan, carry out a black PR. In addition,
the same report is shown on different regional channels after meetings
with the members of the Orinats Yerkir Faction. All the channels
later refuse to tell the name of people who pay for these reports,"
runs the statement of the political party.

The Orinats Yerkir Party states that they are denied airtime and,
therefore, they cannot counteract to these illegal actions. "We
have learned that this has been launched by separate high-ranking
officials, who also instruct not to tell the names of people who buy
airtime. The Orinats Yerkir Party condemns the black PR against it
and urges the Attorney General to start investigation in accordance
with the law to find out the persons who denigrate the political
party and thousands of its members, and apply sanctions," runs the
statement of the Orinats Yerkir Party.

The Mechanics Of Blessing

THE MECHANICS OF BLESSING
Tigran Avetisian

Aravot, Armenia
Oct 24 2006

We should say from the beginning that what we are going to speak
about has no connection with any version of national anthem. Those
discussions have already been made, and it won’t be serious to speak
about it in the context of newest developments round the RA anthem.

We’d like to speak about the sad reality that not only political
elections are falsified. Everything is falsified in Armenia, which
has a remote connection with "election" or "contest" concepts. The
best proof of these words is the fact that Aram Khachatrian’s written
music for the ASSR epoch won in the contest. Nobody was surprised at
when the commission, which approved Tigran Mansurian’s melody suddenly,
changed its mind and "chose" Aram Khachatrian’s melody.

While it has no connection with the soundness.

There is only an answer, it isn’t interesting in our reality, and
unfortunately it has a lot of explanations. Now it isn’t essential
what the commission members got for that selection. Though it is
unpleasant to think that that the commission may vote with the same
criteria for the most valuable music of the world and for example,
Natasha Koroleva’s song.

The essential is that next important attribute of our state after
Constitution, the national anthem is devaluated. I should also
mention that I wouldn’t stand up for the anthem, which was selected
in that way.

"Damnation Isn’t A Political Category"

"DAMNATION ISN’T A POLITICAL CATEGORY"
Margaret Yesayan

Aravot, Armenia
Oct 24 2006

NA vice chairman Vahan Hovhannisian reminds.

The Parliament was completely against parliamentarian Tatul
Manaserian’s legislative initiative to form a temporary commission
for discussing Armenian Genocide issues. Factually, the parliament
was against the government, too as the government approved the
parliamentarian’s proposal. But as it was found out, the government
didn’t express any positive opinion and the minister of justice had
said himself that the government was for that proposal. NA chairman
made an exclusive decision to discuss that issue out of package,
separately: "I share my partners’ anxiety that the formation of such
commission will give our neighbor countries an opportunity to say
that this parliament of Armenia does what they were proposing. It
is even written that the conception of Armenian Genocide must be
specified. What must we specify, the idea of this commission’s
formation is inadmissible for me." The NA vice chairman noticed:
"As an experienced person I should say that the temporary commissions
aren’t so effective in our society because discrepancies inside it
become the public ownership, are reflected in the newspapers and
create an atmosphere from which we will only suffer."

The discussion of refused law about "Higher Interest" was more
emotional. The NA chairman said in his speech that "irrespective of
anyone’s whish, the law makes us discuss this package during this
four-day sitting, we should simply improve the draft." The government
brings a draft to the parliament for which the majority doesn’t vote.

It isn’t known yet why the government insists on the adoption of
that draft, this problem has become the part of show, and people
gathered in front of the parliament, who were exiled from their homes
on Buzand street not getting any valuable compensation for it, were
demanding from the parliamentarians not to adopt the draft. "Justice"
and OEP factions were against that draft as usual. Hovhannes Margarian
reminded that one of the exiled inhabitants damned those who exiled
them, represent the law and adopt it. Vahan Hovhannisian suggested;
"Don’t make damnation as a political category because the curse has
already been made."

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Read A Book Not To Read A Case

READ A BOOK NOT TO READ A CASE
Hakob Badalyan

Lragir, Armenia
Oct 20 2006

When the Attorney General announced to the National Assembly that he
did not have time to address the parliament earlier to indict Hakob
Hakobyan because one case followed the other, the society laughed
at this statement for a long time. But if we try to imagine this
situation, horror will replace laughter. Whenever a case is brought
against a figure of the Armenian government, an entire chain of cases
opens up, which means that the system of government is buried in
nepotism, corruption and crime. And it is not only Hakob Hakobyan’s
case that leads to such a conclusion. The case of the murder of
Shahen Hovasapyan, the chief of the department of investigations of
the State Tax Agency is vivid evidence too. After that the picture
of relations within the State Tax Agency began to outline. Nepotism,
businesses. It became clear that drivers have an important role in
the system of government, they can solve problems, act as mediators.

Of course, all this is clear to every citizen of the Republic of
Armenia, but it is not revealed that soon because the officials in
particular and the system in general tend to hide carefully this
reality to avoid public criticism and to appear law-abiding. But as
soon as they appear in a difficult situation, they prefer to reveal
phenomena, having very little in common with the law and order, which
in this case can be used as an alibi. This concerns every high-ranking
official having hundreds of charges behind their back, because they
believes that a person either lives or works as a librarian.

They were taught this when they were young, when their fathers worked
as heads of building companies, and their sons thought that if a
library were a good thing, the building company would have a library.

And the question occurs why they fear the library so much. The answer
is clear. They think that reading is a way of spending one’s free time,
and it is not a way of making money. And since they were taught to
make money out of everything, even their free time, they think that
the book is a punishment. In other words, they associate the library
with the prison, where there is nothing to do, no way of making money,
and one has but to read.

It would be worthwhile to explain to them that the book is not a
shame, and is not even dangerous for health. Only one needs to read
carefully. If you do not feel the effect after reading once, do not
worry, read twice, in a loud voice, thus the body will communicate
with the book more easily. Start with small books, three times
a day, before meals, because you lie after meals, and lying and
reading damages the eyesight. If you again do not feel the effect,
consult librarians. Do not be afraid, they are healthy people, and
most importantly, they are not vindictive and will gladly help you
to understand where you must start reading a book.

Do not be afraid if people around you laugh at you. The one laughs
who does not laugh in prison. Also do not be afraid of financial
problems. Books will cost you several thousand drams, but on the
other hand, it is not as expensive as the gifts to give each other on
birthdays, weddings and even at lunch. Therefore, the money spent on
books will not crack your budget. Even if you appear in a difficult
situation, it is possible to offer a public demand to the government
to exempt every official who spends money on two pages a month on
average from the profit tax or the water bill for a year. Thereby,
buying books will not only open up for you the aspects of life which
are not fit for chewing, but will also legalize your avoidance to pay
the profit tax and the water bill. Oh yes, only do not forget to read
the book after buying it, and for God’s sake, do not be lazy and open
the book before reading it.

Armenian, Azeri Foreign Ministers To Meet In Brussels On 14 November

ARMENIAN, AZERI FOREIGN MINISTERS TO MEET IN BRUSSELS ON 14 NOVEMBER

Regnum, Russia
Oct 24 2006

The next meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers
will take place on the sidelines of the Armenia-EU cooperation council
in Brussels on 14 November.

The meeting between the two countries’ foreign ministers, Vardan
Oskanyan and Elmar Mammadyarov, which was held in Paris on 24 October,
took place in a positive atmosphere and continued discussions on the
new principles of settling the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict proposed
by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen during the Moscow meeting of the
two countries’ foreign ministers.

An agreement was reached to continue consultations between the foreign
ministers in order to clarify positions. The Armenian foreign minister
also met his French counterpart, Philippe Douste-Blazy, today.

BAKU: French, Azeri Ministers Discuss Karabakh, "Genocide" Bill

FRENCH, AZERI MINISTERS DISCUSS KARABAKH, "GENOCIDE" BILL

Turan News Agency, Azerbaijan
Oct 24 2006

Baku, 24 October: Talks between French Foreign Minister Philippe
Douste-Blazy and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov were
held in Paris yesterday [23 October]. A Turan correspondent learnt
from the head of the press and information policy department of the
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, Tahir Tagizada, that the talks had
lasted over one hour. The ministers discussed three subjects.

Mammadyarov spoke about the implementation of energy projects as well
as public and political reforms in the country. In turn, Douste-Blazy
said that Paris’s attitude to the reforms in Azerbaijan was positive.

The Karabakh settlement was the second subject of the talks.

Mammadyarov spoke about the negative role of the Armenian diaspora
in the settlement of the conflict and the situation in the region.

Douste-Blazy hoped for a speedy settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict.

The third subject, according to Tagizada, was raised by the French side
and had to do with the adoption by the French National Assembly of a
draft law criminalizing the denial of "the genocide of Armenians". This
decision, according to Douste-Blazy, causes official Paris’s "regret
and bewilderment". Douste-Blazy assured Mammadyarov that the French
government would do its best this draft not become a law.

Coalition Appeared In A Difficult Situation

COALITION APPEARED IN A DIFFICULT SITUATION

Lragir, Armenia
Oct 20 2006

The National Assembly will spend all October 24 discussing the draft
Electoral Code. There are three drafts: Victor Dallakyan’s project
including a 100 proportional system of election, Arshak Sadoyan’s
project including electronic voting along with ballots, and the project
of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun, the Republican Party and the United Labor
Party, which provides for 90 seats for the proportional system and
41 for the majority system.

After the speech of Republican Samvel Nikoyan on the previous day
on October 24 the Rafik Petrosyan seeks for courage. He invited
the political parties of the coalition not to break the political
agreement, placing the committee in a difficult situation every time.

"The committee should not be guided by arrangements between the
political forces but by what is good and what is bad for the nation,"
said Shavarsh Kocharyan. And Rafik Petrosyan announced that if the
political agreement is broken, the Republican will insist on keeping
the 56/76 correlation.

According to Rafik Petrosyan, the ARF Dashnaktsutyun broke the
agreement by avoiding to vote to the proposal on a 100 percent
proportional system of election, and the United Labor Party, which was
for this proposal. We expressed our free will, the political agreement
is a compromise, said Grigor Ghonjeyan, ULP. Rafik Petrosyan thinks the
majority system is necessary. First because the political parties are
not established and besides, "People need the support of the members
of parliament elected from constituencies."

Rafik Petrosyan, like the entire Republican Party, did not say what
should be done to make the political parties established and what
support he meant.

Instead, when Aram Sargsyan asked to define the borderline between
electoral corruption and charity, he said people who are poor
take the bribe. Which is the same as support. Rafik Petrosyan said
charity should not be connected with the elections and should not
pursue political aims. Otherwise, you can go to court, recommended
the doctor of law.

The committee led by Rafik Petrosyan did not discuss any of the four
main proposals of the Commission of Venice, including use of ink,
cancellation of election if there is only one candidate, the Central
Election Committee put in charge of printing and distribution of
ballots. The authors did not propose, was Rafik Petrosyan’s excuse.

Construction Of Iran-Armenia Gas Pipeline’s Meghri-Kajaran Section T

CONSTRUCTION OF IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE’S MEGHRI-KAJARAN SECTION TO BE COMPLETED BY DECEMBER 20

Noyan Tapan
Oct 24 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 24, NOYAN TAPAN. It is envisaged to complete the
construction of the 40-km Meghri-Kajaran section of the Iran-Armenia
gas pipeline by December 20, which will allow to start the new gas
pipeline’s operation ahead of the planned date – January 1, 2007. Sahak
Abrahamian, Director of High-Voltage Electric Networks company –
the customer of the gas pipeline’s Armenian secton construction,
told NT correspondent that as a result about 1.7 billion cubic meters
of gas will be imported from Iran into Armenia annually. To recap,
ArmRusgazprom company is implementing the construction work of the
Armenian side. According to S. Abrahamian, the Armenian side received
80% of 35 mln USD envisaged for the construction work as a loan from
Iran’s Development Bank, while the remaining sum will be allocated
from own resources. To recap, the agreement on import of natural gas
from Iran into Armenia was signed in Yerevan in May 2004. Under this
agreement, Armenia shall receive no less than 1.1 bln cubic meters of
gas from Iran annually. The term of the agreement is 20 years. Armenia
will pay with electricity for the imported gas.

Henri Cuny Wishes Armenia Establishment Of Normal Relations With All

HENRI CUNY WISHES ARMENIA ESTABLISHMENT OF NORMAL RELATIONS WITH ALL NEIGHBORS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

Noyan Tapan
Oct 24 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 24, NOYAN TAPAN. "I have always thought that
peace, economic development and securing a normal future for its
youth are most important for Armenia." The French Ambassador to
Armenia Henri Cuny, who finishes his diplomatiuc mission in Armenia,
stated this at the Octoberb 24 press conference. In his opinion, all
three directions are closely related, because if there is no peace,
the country’s economic development and therefore the employment of
young people are just out of question. The ambassador dwelt upon
the issue of development of Armenian-French economic relations:
"I am glad that the number of French enterprises, as well as the
amount of French investments has increased in Armenia." He attached
great importance to the fact that Air France started operating
Yerevan-Paris flights. H. Cuny expressed confidence that Armenia has
much potential for developing the high-tech sector. In his words,
taking into account the demographic aspect and the low purchasing
capacity of the population, "Armenia does not represent a market
in itself." At the same time, in his view, Armenia opens windows
to other markets – Russian, Middle East, and markets of other Asian
countries. However, according to the ambassador, the arrangement of
forces would be entirely different, if the borders were open. "Leaving
Armenia, I wish it prosperity and establishment of normal relations
with all its neighbors as soon as possible,:" H. Cuny said.

According to some reliable sources, Henri Cuny will continue his
diplomatic mission in Slovakia.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress