Month: November 2006

AZG Armenian Daily #226, 25/11/2006

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Examination on History of Armenia Included in
Graduation Final Exams for High School

In accordance with yesterday’s Government decision it
was ratified that the exams on the Armenian language,
on the history of Armenia, on mathematics and on
foreign languages are compulsory for the students of
the high school. The students who want to enter
universities should pass the abovementioned exams and
may chose an additional subject close to the relevant
profession they are applying for. Thus, by the
abovementioned decision, the exam on the History of
Armenia was included in the list of the compulsory
ones.

By Ara Martirosian

A1+

POISONED LITVINENKO SPOKE ABOUT `OCTOBER 27′ TOO
[02:42 pm] 24 November, 2006

Former officer of the RF Federal Security Service Alexander
Litvinenko died last night in a hospital in London where he went on
November 17. The doctors never found out what he had been poisoned
with.

Litvinenko received political refuge in Great Britain in 2002. During
the last few weeks he took measures to reveal the murder of Russian
journalist Anna Politkovskaya; he was sure that Kremlin had a finger
in it.

The residents of Armenia learned the name of Litvinenko in 1999 after
the October 27 crime in the Parliament when he announced that `It was
all organized by Russia’. Litvinenko announced that the RF special
services, particularly, the Chief Investigation Administration, have
planned the murder of the Armenian politicians.

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APPLICATIONS FOR A UNITED KINGDOM VISA IN ARMENIA:
BIOMETRIC FINGERSCANS
[03:14 pm] 24 November, 2006

From 1 December 2006 the British Embassy in Yerevan
is introducing biometric data collection
(fingerscans). This is part of a world-wide biometric
identification process, designed to protect an
individual’s identity, facilitate future entry to the
UK, combat visa fraud and abuse of the UK’s
immigration and asylum systems. With effect from 1
December 2006 all visa applicants, irrespective of
nationality, will have to apply in person at the
British Embassy in Yerevan and have their fingerscans
taken.

All visa applicants must have their fingerscans taken,
with the exception of children under the age of five.
An exception may also be granted to applicants, who
for genuine medical reasons cannot provide
fingerscans. The following categories of applicant are
also exempted from providing their fingerscans:

– Holders of Diplomatic passports and accompanying
dependants travelling on official government business.

– Holders of Official passports who are travelling on
official government business in the United Kingdom.

– United Nations officials holding UN Travel Documents
who are travelling on official UN business.

– Commonwealth and NATO armed forces personnel posted
for service in the UK

– Holders of a certificate of entitlement confirming
right of abode in the United Kingdom.

Fingerscans will be collected from each applicant by
using an electronic scanner. No ink, liquid or
chemical will be used and the procedure will take no
more than two minutes to complete.

If an applicant refuses to provide fingerscans, the
application cannot be processed.

All applicants should ensure that their fingertips are
free from any forms of decoration (henna, for
example), abrasions or other markings prior to
attending the British Embassy as these may affect
their ability to provide acceptable fingerscans.

Visa applications cannot be processed until applicants
are able to provide acceptable fingerscans.

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MARATHON GATHERED ABOUT 14 MILLION USD
[03:35 pm] 24 November, 2006

The annual TV marathon organized by Pan-Armenian fund
`Armenia’ titled `I Love Armenia’ and `I Love Artsakh’
which lasted 12 hours gathered 13.7 million USD. The
money will be used for the development of the NKR
Hadrout region. Over 12 thousand people reside in the
region.

By the way, the sum gathered this year is twice as
much as that of last year. The 7 million gathered last
year was allotted to NKR Martakert region.

A1+

APPLICANTS TO TAKE OXFORD TESTS
[07:19 pm] 24 November, 2006

The training program for Armenian teachers has been
declared the best during the conference in Saint
Petersburg in which Ministers of Education of 11
countries participated.

Minister of Education and Science Levon Lazarian
rendered a press conference today in order to inform
the journalists about the radical educational reforms
which have been done and will be done. According to
him, the results will be obvious in 2009-2010. `We
work in two directions: to prepare reforms of
specialized education and to find necessary technical
grounds. At present we are trying to find partners and
sources of financing. We do our best not to trouble
the budget much’. The Minister mentioned that all the
business trips realized lately have that very aim.

In order to secure the objectivity during the
school-leaving exams, the RA Ministry of education has
decided to prepare the tests in Oxford, like the
Ministry of Education of Georgia. `If the printing
houses of Armenia don’t get the tests, no one will
have access to them and it will be impossible to
spread them’, Levon Lazarian mentioned.

Armenpress

COMMISSION DECLINES ARMENTEL’S REQUEST

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 24, ARMENPRESS: Armenia’s Public
Services Regulatory Commission has declined today a
request by ArmenTel telephone company seeking to raise
tariffs for its exclusive and non-exclusive services.
The commission said the current prices will remain in
force until March, 2007 as ‘transitional prices."
On September 1 ArmenTel asked the Commission to
allow it to raise the monthly payment for one
fixed-line telephone from current 1,100 drams to
3,3000. It also asked for a permission to cut the
360-minute limit of free telephone conversations from
digitized telephones to 280 minute and raise the price
of conversations above that limit from 4 drams per one
minute to six drams.
It also suggested that 9 drams be charged for every
minute of conversations above 1000 minute. ArmenTel
also wanted to double the price for providing a new
telephone number to 24,000 drams. As a compensation it
suggested it could reduce prices of international
telephone calls up to 70 percent. However, the
Commission declined the proposal.
The company repeated the request 45 days later, as
allowed by the law, but it was again denied by the
Commission.
Commission chairman Robert Nazarian said they hope
that the new owner of ArmenTel (it was sold to Russian
Vimpelcom at 342 million euros) will be able to use
this short period of time to assess the situation
inside the company and reach through open debates with
the Commission a result that would satisfy all sides.
ArmenTel has about 600,000 fixed-line and 400,000
mobile service subscribers, and uses the GSM 900 and
CDMA standards.

Armenpress

MASKED MEN ROB MONEY EXCHANGE OFFICE

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 24, ARMENPRESS: Armenian
prosecutors reported today about a broad daylight
robbery of 1.5 million drams ($4,000) from a currency
exchange office in Yerevan.
They said three masked men entered the office and
pointing their guns at the man running it took away
the money that was on his table. The robbery was
reported on November 22 at 7 seven o’clock in the
evening.

Panorama.am

14:00 24/11/06

CHAIRMAN OF AFF TO BE ELECTED TOMORROW

Fifth election assembly of the Armenian Football
Federation (AFF) will be held tomorrow. The assembly
will elect a new chairman of AFF.

Araik Manukyan, AFF press secretary, told Panorama.am
that legal entities, clubs and organizations, which
are members of AFF, may nominate a chairman. Only one
candidate has been nominated until today – the present
chairman of AFF Ruben Hairapetyan. It is very likely
that Hairapetyan will be re-elected. /Panorama.am/

Panorama.am

14:41 24/11/06

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION OPENS A CASE AGAINST
UNREGISTERED ACADEMY

Minister of education and science, Levon Lazarian,
said the European Academy in Armenia has not been
accredited as a private establishment and its
curriculum is not approved by the state in the case
when the first graduates will be in the year 2006. The
minister is concerned what kind of certificates the
students will get. The ministry has sent letters to
different educational establishments in Europe which
were supposedly taken part in the founding assembly
but the latter refused saying they never participated
in such meeting. Some, particularly from embassies,
said they were invited as guests. One of the two
German organizations, which supposedly initiated the
academy, is liquidated whereas the other `is involved
in financial manipulations and is closed,’ German
embassy in Armenia said.

The ministry decided to apply to court to find out the
grounds on which the academy was formed. `I have never
see more absurd situation in education,’ the minister
said. While the court may find out the responsible
persons, we must only mention that the chairman of
board of directors of the academy is ex-speaker of the
National Assembly, Arthur Baghdasaryan. The average
tuition in the academy is $700. The ministry has made
no claims on compensation yet. /Panorama.am/

Panorama.am

15:04 24/11/06

ECONOMIC COURT TO HEAR A CASE AGAINST ARARAT GOLD

The Economic Court will continue the hearing of
`Ararat Gold’ enterprise vs. Armenian Nature
Protection State Inspection on December 1. This is not
the first lawsuit between the parties. The last court
hearing ended up with reconciliation.
The Nature Protection State Inspection has unveiled
that the company has misreported on the volume of
gold. The inspection has drawn up a statement. The
company did not agree with the statement and issued a
case at the Economic Court. A special committee was
set up by the court to investigate the case. The
committee supported the statement saying 500 kg gold
was misreported. The inspection has also found out
non-compliances in the reports of the chief accountant
and the geologist.

Figures were misleading small in quarterly reports.
The statement also says the company experts have not
made a re-assessment of mines. The inspection believes
it is profitable to extract gold even in small
quantities at the present reality taken the case of
the gold prices in the world market. They say the
company relies on the assessment of gold made in 80s.

The management of Ararat Gold complained that the gold
processing factory is in Ararat whereas the mines are
in Sevan. The management suggested building a gold
processing factory in Sevan which raised a discontent
by environmentalists, NGOs and mass media. The
government, in its turn, said, `All conditions were
known when they took hold of the mines.’ Experts are
not sure the poisonous water will not run into the
lake. Further, building such a factory in Sevan is
prohibited by law.

Followed this debate, the volumes of gold started to
diminish. Some say the logic is the following: `We
suffer losses, why you shouldn’t?’
Arthur Hambarzumyan, legal department head at the
nature protection ministry said, `Negotiations are
conducted with the company beyond the statement.
Global changes are expected in the relations of the
company and the state. It is not clear yet if the
company and the inspection will find a compromise.’

P.S. The company has not insured its employees despite
of the fact that the insurance money is not a big sum.
The insurance of employees in gold industry is a
priority and that is the policy of all big companies.
Moreover, some say the management does not treat well
the Armenian nationals in the company. /`My Right’
newspaper/

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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress