Month: March 2007

ODIHR DEPLOYS LONG-TERM OBSERVATION MISSION IN ARMENIA

ArmRadio.am
20.03.2007 14:18

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR)
opened an election observation mission for the 12 May parliamentary
elections in Armenia.

This follows an invitation from the Armenian Foreign Ministry.

Thirteen experts will be based in Yerevan, and 29 long-term observers
will be deployed around the country. The ODIHR will request that a
further 300 short-term observers be provided by OSCE participating
States to monitor the opening and closing of precincts on election day,
voting, the vote count, and the tabulation of results.

The mission will assess the parliamentary elections for their
compliance with principles for democratic electoral processes,
including commitments agreed to by all 56 OSCE participating states,
as well as with national legislation.

Observers will closely monitor campaign activities, the work of
the election administration and relevant governmental bodies,
election-related legislation and its implementation, the media
environment, and the resolution of election-related disputes.

"The recently amended election code of Armenia provides a sound
framework for democratic elections, but the challenge for the
authorities is its implementation in good faith, so that this and
future elections are held in accordance with OSCE commitments,"
said Ambassador Boris Frlec, who heads the ODIHR mission.

The mission intends to join efforts with the short-term observers
from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, who will be headed by Tone
Tingsgaard, Vice-President of the OSCE PA. The mission will also
co-operate with other parliamentary delegations from the Council of
Europe and, possibly, the European Parliament.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RA NA DISCUSSES ON MARCH 19 4 CREDIT AGREEMENTS, 27 DRAFTS AND LEGISLATIVE PACKAGES

Noyan Tapan
Mar 20 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 20, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA NA had to stop the first day
work of the March 19 regular four-day sittings 25 minutes early. As NA
Deputy Speaker Vahan Hovhannisian, presiding the sitting stated the
reason was finishing discussion of the issues envisaged by the day
working order. The Parliament envisages to re-start work of plenary
sittings on March 20.

To recap, the NA was able to discuss during one day 27 drafts and
legislative packages as well as 4 credit agreements presented to
certification by the RA President. The majority of drafts related to
making amendments and additions to the acting laws.

Such efficiency of the Parliament work was provided by the fact that
from 72 deputies registered at the beginning of the working day few
deputies remained in the hall in a short time, so discussion of the
issues was mainly limited with their presentation by the speakers. By
the way, only 2-4 deputies were present when discussing some issues.

DUAL CITIZENS MAY NOT BE TAKEN INTO SERVICE AT RA NATIONAL SECURITY BODIES AND OCCUPY HIGHEST GROUP POSTS AT POLICE

Noyan Tapan
Mar 20 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 20, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA NA discussed on March 19 in the
first reading the package of drafts envisaging amendments and additions
to 2 laws on service at the National Security Bodies and Police.

In the words of Gevorg Malkhasian, the main speaker, Deputy Minister of
Justice, the amendments and additions being proposed are provided by
introduction of the dual citizenship institute in Armenia. According
to it, a person, at the same time being a citizen of another state,
may not be taken into service at the National Security Bodies and
occupy highest group posts at the Police. In the case of stopping
RA citizenship as well as at the same time with the RA citizenship
getting citizenship of another state, above-mentioned servicemen of
the National Security Bodies and Police will be discharged. With the
exception of ones occupying a highest group post, other servicemen
of the Police may at the same time be citizens of another state, but
stopping of the RA citizenship will be a basis for discharging them.

UNDP AWARDS GRANTS TO 4 TV COMPANIES TO DEVELOP AND PRODUCE PROGRAMS ON CORRUPTION ISSUES

Armradio.am
20.03.2007 14:39

Today UNDP Resident Representative Ms. Consuelo Vidal concluded
Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) for provision of grant funds with,
Lori TV LLC (Vanadzor, Lori marz), Media Center Ltd. (Yerevan),
Hrazdan TV Company (Hrazdan, Kotayq marz), and STV1 Television Edition
(Sevan, Gegharkunik marz) – the four finalist TV companies to develop
and broadcast TV programmes on corruption issues.

The winners of this initiative were selected through a competition open
to TV stations and individual journalists or groups of journalists. The
selected winners were those who articulated a well formulated,
thought provoking plan and demonstrated an ability to implement it.

The goals of the competition are: 1) To strengthen media’s capacity
to monitor and report on corruption issues, thus contributing to the
fight against corruption; 2) To air TV programs to serve as a source
of information, discussion of issues, allowing the viewer to form
his or her own opinions about the subject under discussion; and 3)
To raise the population’s awareness of corruption issues in Armenia
in order that better-informed viewers may have a better understanding
of, greater involvement in, and greater impact on, the fight against
corruption.

Ms. Vidal said in her remarks to the winners that: "UNDP is pursuing
a new, innovative approach. The purpose of the grant competition
is to motivate broadcast companies and journalists to come up with
new, thought provoking ways to address issues of particular concern
to Armenia. We have begun this pilot within our anti-corruption
activities as we have a particular focus on strengthening the capacity
of the media in this field. We hope the Armenian public will find
the productions interesting, and that the broadcasts will motivate
all members of society to fight corruption."

This activity is part of UNDP’s project on "Strengthening Awareness and
Response in Exposure of Corruption in Armenia", which UNDP implements
in cooperation with the Government of Armenia. The project aims at
strengthening the institutional capacity of government and civil
society organizations to effectively participate in anti-corruption
initiatives.

THE GENOCIDE MUSEUM-INSTITUTE TO PRESENT A NEW DISPLAY ON APRIL 20

Armradio.am
20.03.2007 15:08

Prior to the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide the Genocide
Museum-Institute of RA Academy of Sciences will have a display of
new documents.

Director of the Genocide-Museum-Institute Hayk Demoyan told Armenpress
that the display will open on April 20, 4 days ahead of April 24,
when Armenians worldwide will mark the 92nd anniversary of this crime.

Hayk Demoyan said they will be working in the next five years to
prepare what he called "a super new exhibition of facts and evidence
of the first genocide in the past century."

Demoyan said all questionable documents of vague origin will be
removed from the current display, saying also the Museum will undergo
a sweeping interior remodelling and part of the new display will
depict the life of Armenians in their homeland in Western Armenia,
which is now in Turkey before Turkish rulers ordered the complete
annihilation of the Armenian race in 1915.

The Director also said the Museum will also seek contacts with
Diaspora-based Armenian organizations which have many documents and
evidence of the genocide. He said an online bulletin in English and
French will be released beginning from Aril to present the Museum
and its activities. Another direction of the activity, according to
Demoyan, will be to collect the evidence of survivors of the genocide,
whose number is dwindling with each passing year.

ARMENIAN LOBBYING ORGANIZATIONS OF EUROPE CALL ON U.S. EMBASSY TO ARMENIA TO DEFINE ITS POSITION IN ARMENIAN GENOCIDE ISSUE

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Mar 20 2007

SLOVAKIA, MARCH 20, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The Armenian
Organizations Representation in Europe (AORE) spread a statement
concerning a statement recently made by the U.S. Embassy to Armenia.

The statement submitted to Noyan Tapan by Ashot Grigorian, the Chairman
of the AOER and Armenian Community of Slovakia, particularly, reads
the following:

"The Armenian lobbying organizations of Europe observe with great
attention the dialogue between Aram Hamparian, the Executive Director
of the Armenian National Committee of America Washington and the
U.S. Embassy to Armenia.

I, as the Chairman of the Armenian Organizations Representation in
Europe, lobbyist of the Armenian Genocide resolution at the National
Council of Slovakia, state with most responsibility that it is, mildly
speaking, strange for me and my colleagues acting in our region to hear
similar statements from such an authoritative body as the U.S. Embassy
to the RA is. In our opinion, Armenian lobbyist Aram Hamparian clearly
presented the incomprehensible position of the U.S. administration and
candidate for ambassador Hoagland’s statements which seriously hurt
every Armenian and arisee serious wish of protest, and the U.S. Embassy
displays exclusive unawareness in this issue. To refuse usage of the
"genocide" term means to renounce the crime committed towards 1.5
mln of innocent victims and accept the executioner’s being just.

This reality becomes especially inadmissible after the fact when
after former Ambassador John Evans’ manly step the latter was quiet
inappropriately and unequivalently punished by the U.S. acting
administration.

To add, we have had exclusively close ties and, it is natural,
exchange of opinions on the Armenian Genocide issue as well, with
representatives of the U.S. Embassy to Slovakia during different
periods of time, and no American diplomate was ever found who
would accuse Evans of his statement. More, there were people among
representatives of the U.S. Embassy, occupying high posts who visited
with us the khachkar (cross stone) – memorial dedicated to the Armenian
Genocide which was placed by us in the center of Bratislava and
has never avoided using the "genocide" term. Supporting John Evans,
we all refuse understanding Hoagland and ones like him, demanding
more correctness when touching upon the Armenian nation’s historic
misfortune. We state that if the U.S.

Embassy to the RA does not want to support its former head honourable
Ambassador John Evans’ step, proper for a honest diplomate, then let
it be kind to clearly present its position on the Armenian Genocide,
arising of the fact that this Embassy is placed in Armenia, the
Fatherland of the people survived the first genocide of the 20th
century.

If the Embassy makes an attempt to renounce the fact of the genocide
and turning to diplomatic measures, attempts to avoid establishing the
truth on the Armenian land, we shall start a gathering of signatures in
European countries to support Ambassador Evans and will demand from the
U.S. present administrative heads a clear explanation on their posture
in the Armenian Genocide issue. Everybody knows that after lont-term
discussions and voluminous cognitive works, parliaments of a number
of countries of the European Union adopted resolutions affirming the
Armenian Genocide and are puzzled with the repulsive posture of the
U.S. today’s administration. Of course, there are great hopes that the
U.S. Congress will have courage to establish the truth and will give
the U.S. possibility to occupy its worthy place near other democratic
and developed counties of the world in this issue as well.

We support Aram Hamparian, join his statement and persuade not to be
depressed on the way of reaching the truth. We address to heads of the
U.S. Embassy to the RA, again to touch upon the statement made by it
and persuade to correct its terminology about the Armenian Genocide,
taking into consideration the fact that this Embassy functions in
bosom of the people suffered the first genocide of the 20th century
and presents a country the Ambassador of which, Morgenthau, was once
one among the first people to respond the terrible massacres committed
by the Ottaman Empire, qualifying them with worthy labels.

IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE AS COUNTERACTION
Marlena Hovsepyan

"Radiolur"
20.03.2007 15:36

Construction of the Iran-Armenian gas pipeline is our response to
the attempts of tour neighbours to isolate the country from regional
projects, Head of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Bureau’s
Hay Dat and Political Affairs Office Kiro Manoyan considers. Speaking
about reference to Nagorno Karabakh as an occupied territory of
Azerbaijan in the latest Human Rights Report of the US Department
of State, Mr. Manoyan said it is an additional lever of pressure on
Armenia prior to elections.

According to the speaker, the political and geopolitical importance
of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline is an opportunity to move forward
and a response to the attempt of our neighbours to isolate Armenia
from regional projects.

What can be the influence of the pipeline’s operation on
Armenian-American relations? Kiro Manoyan mentions that the United
States is interested in increasing its influence in the region,
simultaneously preventing the possible influence of Russia and
Iran. Probably, that is the reason why the US tries to mediate and
solve the issue of the Armenian-Turkish border for the Armenian
side not to complain that under the blockade it has no one else to
cooperate with except for Iran.

The latest Human Rights Report of the US Department of State labels
Nagorno Karabakh as the occupied territory of Azerbaijan. Isn’t this
Armenia’s diplomatic failure?

"I consider this another lever of pressure for the American authorities
in this pre-election period. The American diplomats and the State
Department are teaching all of us. I think this is another expression
of this pressure," says Kiro Manoyan.

"Such abrupt position can question the impartiality of the United
States as an OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair country," Mr. Manoyan added.

"In regard to the propaganda on the Karabakh issue Armenia has yielded
its positions," says the speaker and clarifies that we demonstrate fair
approach and do not make an attempt to hamper the negotiations. On
the contrary, Azerbaijan is attempting to prevent the negotiations
in the OSCE Minsk Group framework in every possible way. Elections
expected in Armenia, Azerbaijan, the US and Russia will protract the
talks. Therefore, the Armenian side should struggle via propaganda
as well. "We must not simply counteract," Kiro Manoyan concluded.

TIGRAN KARAPETOVICH WILL LEAVE HOLDING

A1+
[08:25 pm] 20 March, 2007

Parties or unities taking part in the forthcoming elections have
equal rights to make use of TV or radio broadcast due to the 20th
article of RA Election Code.

To carry out any election campaign while in post or to abuse any
position during elections are prohibited in accordance with the 22nd
article of RA Election Code.

This comes to prove that Tigran Karapetyan will not be allowed to
have programs on ALM channel.

Mr. Karapetyan has informed that he would leave ALM, i.e. he is not
going to run ALM Holding. Artak Muradyan, his son-in-law is going to
take over him.

Tigran Karapetyan will keep on having programs on ALM channel after
elections, but this time as a deputy. Hå will talk on political issues
to make public the electors’ problems.

‘ I am having my last program on April 7,’ informed Naira Zohrabyan,
the author-reporter in Kentron channel. She is involved in the list
of’ Prosperous Armenia’ party. If elected, she will think over another
program. But in case the creative work is also prohibited due to the
law, she will prefer deputy work.

–Boundary_(ID_jvFWvnzVj8YVoha0nmlwIg)–

VARTAN OSKANIAN MET WITH HEAD OF THE OSCE/ODIHR OBSERVATION MISSION BORIS FRLEC

ArmRadio.am
20.03.2007 15:48

On March 20 RA Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian received Head of the
Observation Mission of the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions
and Human Rights (ODIHR), Ambassador Boris Frlec.

Mr. Frlec informed that to carry out a long-term observation of the
parliamentary elections the first group of the OSCE/ODIHR observers
arrived in Yerevan on March 19.

Members of the Observation Mission are expected to meet with members
of the Central Electoral Commission, parties running and not running
for Parliament, mass media representatives.

On the eve of May 12 elections 300 OSCE observers will arrive in
Armenia to carry out a short-term mission.

Expressing willingness to support the observers in carrying out their
mission, Minister Oskanian emphasized the interest of the Armenian
authorities in holding free and fair elections. Special importance was
attached to the role of all the forces participating in the elections.

U.S. VISA APPLICATION FEES TO BE PAID AT ARMECONOM BANK

A1+
[05:20 pm] 20 March, 2007

Applicants for nonimmigrant visas to visit the United States may now
pay their application fee in Armenian dram at any of the 40 branches
of Armeconom Bank. A list of branches and their locations may be found
on the bank’s web site at Paying the fee in advance will
reduce the amount of time each applicant spends in the Embassy waiting
room on the day of their interview.

Starting immediately, applicants who pay the application fee for
U.S. nonimmigrant visas at the bank will be given preference for
appointments. And beginning April 15, 2007, ALL U.S. nonimmigrant
visa applicants will be required to pay the application fee at the
bank. All other fees, including fees for multiple-entry visas will be
collected by the Embassy cashier at the time of the interview. The
Embassy cashier now accepts Armenian dram as well as U.S. dollars
for the payment of all fees.

Applicants who pay the application fee at the bank must do so before
scheduling a visa appointment, because they must give the bank receipt
number when scheduling their appointment. Applicants scheduling visa
appointments must also provide the EVAF barcode number.

Beginning April 15, 2007, only applicants who have paid the application
fee at one of the branches of Armeconom Bank will be scheduled for
a visa appointment by the consular section in Yerevan.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress