Month: March 2007

SIX RUSSIANS JAILED FOR RACIST KILLING

Independent Online, South Africa
March 14 2007

Moscow – Six Russians, including three brothers, have been jailed for
up to eleven years for the racially motivated killing of an Armenian,
a Supreme Court spokesperson said on Tuesday.

An appeal had slightly reduced some of their sentences.

Investigators found a notebook with drawings of swastikas and calls for
violence against non-Slavs at the home of the brothers who together
with their friends attacked the dark-skinned Armenian on a train in
the Moscow region in 2005.

"The Supreme Court has examined an appeal by the defence," Pavel
Odintsov said.

A document detailing the Supreme Court’s conclusions said the Russians
had filmed their attack. The Kommersant daily reported on Tuesday
the video had been posted on the Internet.

One of the Russians shouted: "There’s a black one, let’s go rub him
out!" before the gang went on to kick and beat the Armenian over the
head and body, also using glass bottles and a metal chain with a knot
on the end, the document said.

Then one of the brothers followed a call by his friend to "finish him
off" and killed the Armenian by stabbing him in the neck and stomach
with a glass shard.

Attacks on dark-skinned foreigners in Russia have increased in recent
years as part of a general rise in xenophobia after the collapse
of communism.

President Vladimir Putin has described the trend as a threat to
national security and urged courts and law enforcement agencies to
step up their struggle against racism.

DIVIDED PARTIES SEEK ALLIANCES TO PASS THRESHOLD
Ercan Yavuz Ankara

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 14 2007

Rising ‘nationalism’ and ‘neo-nationalism’ in Turkey have made some
small political parties on the left and right popular among the
mainstream parties as they search for alliances to increase their
strength before the Nov. 4 general elections.

Two political parties have emerged as the most wanted in these
searches: The right-wing nationalist Grand Unity Party (BBP), led by
Muhsin Yazýcýoðlu, is favored by the political parties of the right;
Doðu Perincek and his marginal left-wing Workers’ Party (ÝP) have
been favored by the parties of the left. Perincek’s public denial of
Armenian genocide claims in Switzerland and a conviction that followed
it by the Swiss court have boosted his political credentials.

After many well-known figures left the Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP) to join the BBP, Yazýcýoðlu started to receive alliance bids
from all parties in the right wing. The Felicity Party (SP) was the
first to offer an alliance to the BBP, into which former MHP ministers
Abdulhaluk Cay, Sadi Somuncuoðlu and Enis Oksuz were transferred.

The SP serves as a spot for deputies known to be advocates of the
"national vision" who left the ruling Justice and Development Party
(AK Party). It aims at passing the 10 percent election threshold by
establishing an alliance with the BBP.

The BBP wanted to be given a 40-deputy quota in return for entering
the elections under the umbrella of the SP, thereby blocking the talks.

The Motherland Party (ANAVATAN, formerly ANAP), too, offered
cooperation with the BBP, which had attained parliamentary
representation by concluding a deal with the then-ANAP leader Mesut
Yýlmaz in the elections of 1995. The low-level talks are still
under way.

The AK Party, too, is giving serious thought to forming an election
alliance with the BBP. Intending to take its share from rising
nationalist sentiments and secure a clear victory against the MHP, the
AK Party has plans to start talks with the BBP. Since Nevzat Pakdil,
brother-in-law of Yazýcýoðlu, is an eminent figure in AK Party,
this is considered a facilitating factor for this alliance.

After long talks with the MHP for cooperation, the BBP has now acquired
the self-confidence to invite the MHP to enter elections under the
umbrella of the MHP.

Having seen in the recent polls that his party has electoral support
near the 10-percent election threshold, True Path Party (DYP) Leader
Mehmet Aðar gave a green light to establishing contacts with the BBP
at the level of deputy chairman.

The initiative, led by former Prime Minister Mesut Yýlmaz and former
President Suleyman Demirel for securing a union in the center right,
too, gives priority to the BBP. Arguing that the BBP cannot pass the
10-percent election threshold despite the impetus given by rising
nationalist sentiments, they maintain that the BBP will be of a
great importance within an alliance, not by itself. Yýlmaz and his
colleagues will bring a serious offer to Yazýcýoðlu following the
presidential elections before mid year.

Perincek: most wanted of the left

The search for an alliance in the left wing has made Perincek’s ÝP
highly sought after. Known by its harsh opposition to the government’s
EU policies and the relations with the US, the ÝP has even lured in
some former MHP and DSP deputies. Those who joined the party include
Mevlut Gungor Erdinc, the first senator from the MHP, former MHP
Yozgat Deputy Servet Bora and former Democratic Left Party (DSP)
Edirne Deputy Ahmet Erturk.

Perincek’s fight against the Armenian genocide claims has contributed
to the increasing popularity of the ÝP. Standing trial for his
statement, "Armenian genocide claims are imperialist lies," and
sentenced for it in Switzerland, Perincek had a welcome party that
he did not expect to see upon his return to Turkey.

The "neo-nationalist stance" adopted by the party despite immense
contradictions with its past has been a successful strategy in terms
of the number of alliance offers the party has received.

The myriad of small parties in the left wing can secure between 1 and 5
percent of the public vote. Some alliance combinations, however, might
bring safe passage of the 10-percent country threshold, experts say. It
is one of these combinations that has caused the ÝP’s ascendancy.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which has a
reputation of being center left but has become more nationalistic over
the years, has been exerting great efforts to woo the ÝP in order to
prevent the AK Party from taking power a second time and to ensure
CHP becomes the single ruling party.

However, as the CHP’s offer meant the ÝP’s accession to the CHP, it was
not even considered worthy of consideration by the ÝP. In contrast, the
ÝP’s talks with the DSP are well under way. An alliance between the DSP
and the ÝP might bring higher-than-expected votes, it is speculated.

The ÝP is also holding talks with the Social Democratic People’s
Party (SHP), led by Murat Karayalcýn; the Democracy for Freedom Party
(ODP); the Independent Republican Party (BCP), led by Mumtaz Soysal;
the People’s Ascent Party (HYP), led by Yaþar Nuri Ozturk; and the
Yurt Party (YP), led by Sadettin Tantan.

–Boundary_(ID_k6E9Sd8/G8j/tBvLvawidQ)–

CHIRAC’S ‘FRIENDSHIP WITH TURKEY’: ALL TALK AND NO ACTION
AlÝ Ýhsan Aydin Paris

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 14 2007

With French President Jacques Chirac’s recent announcement that he
would not be standing for a third term as president it appears that
the friendship with Turkey of which he spoke so frequently will remain
as words rather than deeds.

French President Jacques Chirac with Turkish Prime Minister R. Tayyip
Erdoðan.

Chirac, who was described as a "supporter of Turkey" in the
international arena and in his own country, has faced many difficult
periods during his 12-year tenure as France’s president.

He entered the French political scene in 1965, with one of his most
memorable features being his ability to swing through 180 degrees on
a variety of subjects, including those he had defended with great
energy. It was due to this flexibility that he quickly earned the
nickname "girouette," which means "pinwheel."

Chirac’s career has even seen a brief foray into communism, though
he started as a conservative before switching to liberalism in
the late 1970s. Despite being responsible for France’s nuclear
testing in the Pacific Ocean, Chirac later went on to become a
staunch environmentalist. Though he is known today as being among
the "most European" of European leaders, he was in fact opposed to
the European Union during much of the 1990s. As mayor of Paris for
eight years, prime minister for two terms and president of France
since 1995, Chirac’s stance towards Turkey has not been immune to
his pinwheel-like behavior.

EU membership: At the 1997 EU summit in Luxembourg, Chirac openly
expressed his sadness at Turkey not being granted candidate status.

Two years later, when it was announced at the Helsinki summit that
Turkey had been granted this status, Chirac allowed Javier Solana
to take his private plane to bring the news in person to Ankara. In
speeches over the following years, Chirac expressed frequent support
for Turkish membership of the EU. Chirac continued to publicly defend
Turkey’s "European" status, even in 2004 when the ruling Union for
Popular Movement (UMP) and the public opposition was against Turkish
EU membership.

Despite Chirac’s "positive" actions on the above-mentioned fronts,
the leader approved the taking of a referendum on Turkish membership
and registered this condition in the French Constitution. This stance
by Chirac opened the path to similar demands from other EU countries.

Chirac was also among the names at the 2002 Copenhagen summit pushing
to block a date being given to Turkey for the start of accession talks.

Armenian genocide claims: All the developments that took place in
France in relation to the so-called Armenian genocide law took place
under Chirac’s term; the draft came up for discussion in the French
Parliament in 1998 and was officially turned into a bill in 2001.

Despite warnings from various French legal experts that the law was
in direct opposition to the French Constitution, and despite the fact
that the president himself had admitted he was against it, Chirac
decided to bypass the Constitutional Council and approved it himself.

The Armenian bill opened the path to a deep crisis between Turkey
and France that still affects relations. Chirac took a stance of
"opposition" to the bill, accepted last year in the French Parliament,
which calls for penalties for those who publicly deny the claims of
an Armenian genocide. He noted that history could not be determined
via laws. But then on his official visit to the Armenian capital
Yerevan, Chirac did not only utter the word "genocide" but also
stated publicly that in order for Turkey to become an EU member,
it would have to accept the Armenian claims.

Demirel’s visit to Paris never reciprocated: Despite the fact that
Turkey has remained on the French public agenda since he first became
president, Chirac has never made an official visit to Turkey. In 1998,
then Turkish President Suleyman Demirel visited Paris as the guest
of Chirac, the first trip of its level from Ankara since 1967.

After Demirel visited Paris, Turkey awaited a reciprocal visit from
France, but it never occurred and was instead constantly postponed
for political reasons. Chirac, who was "unable to go to Turkey,"
chose instead to visit Armenia last year.

As the first French President to visit Yerevan, Chirac declared
2007 the "the Year of Armenia" in France. In the face of the many
diplomatic problems experienced with Turkey, Chirac still managed to
oversee the sales of Airbus airplanes from France to Turkey. However,
another French ambition, to participate in the bidding for contracts
in Turkey’s nuclear power plant plans, was waylaid by the Armenian
genocide bill.

Popularity at its lowest: Chirac’s announcement that he would not
be running again for the presidency was greeted with pleasure by
other presidential candidates. There is now great curiosity as to
who exactly Chirac will support in the race to become the next French
president and, in particular, what his stance is with regard to the
conservative candidate, Nikolas Sarkozy. Chirac has said that he will
reveal whom he supports after March 19.

Extreme-right-wing leader Jean Marie Le Pen reacted to Chirac’s
departure with the comment, "I am losing my greatest enemy." More
than 22 million people watched Chirac’s departure speech, and it is
notable that the president’s latest popularity standings had touched
bottom, according to recent polls, and that he was characterized in
both the French press and by the public as "unsuccessful." Chirac
has been repeatedly criticized for his part in the failure of the
European Constitution after he brought it to a referendum in France.

–Boundary_(ID_FFR8ZWC6ntF1pumJQlgPDQ)–

ONESIDEZERO LP RELEASE PUSHED TO 6/5, NEW TRACKS AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD

The Gauntlet, CA
March 14 2007

The official release date for Onesidezero’s self-titled sophomore
LP has been pushed back to June 5th. The official explanation is
as follows.

"We regret to inform everyone that we have decided to push back our
release date a few weeks to June 5th. As many of you might know,
our original release date was April 24th, which also happens to be
Genocide Memorial Day, a solemn day with many negative connotations
within the Armenian community.

As a band with deep roots within that community, we felt it would be
inappropriate to release our album on 4/24, so, with the support of
our label, we made the agonizing decision to move it back, choosing
June 5th as the best available date.

We will, however, be participating in a very special Genocide Awareness
benefit on that night (4/24) at the Knitting Factory in Hollywood,
and hopefully you can all make it down and support this very worthy
cause with us."

Onesidezero has also released 2 new downloadable tracks on their
Myspace at

"My Confessions" and "Sleep" are the first two singles from the
band’s upcoming Ulrich Wild (Static-X, Stabbing Westward, Pantera,
Deftones) produced sophomore release, Onesidezero, in stores June
5th via Corporate Punishment Records.

The band has also lined up the following shows: March 17th – The
Knitting Factory, Hollywood, CA – Special acoustic/electric performance
March 30th – The Key Club, West Hollywood, CA – w/ (hed)pe April
15th – Bovard Auditorium @ USC, Los Angeles, CA – Silenced Cries:
A Benefit for Humanity April 24th – The Knitting Factory, Hollywood,
CA – FourTwentyFour – Recognize the Armenian Genocide Benefit w/
Vokee, Mercenaries

Onesidezero released their Jim Wirt (Incubus, Hoobastank) produced
Maverick debut, Is This Room Getting Smaller?, in late 2001, and on
the success of singles "Instead Laugh" and "New World Order" went
on to tour with the likes of Incubus, 311, Static-X, and Soulfly,
as well as garnering glowing press in Blender, FHM, Variety, Guitar
World, Guitar One, and Metal Edge, and a live performance with Linkin
Park on HBO’s concert series Reverb.

84/Onesidezero.html

ISRAEL PARLIAMENT REJECTS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION BILL

Agence France Presse — English
March 14, 2007 Wednesday 2:55 PM GMT

Israel’s parliament on Wednesday rejected a motion recognising the
Turkish mass killings of Armenians dating back to 1915 as a genocide.

"Stop ignoring and rejecting the catastrophe of another people," MP
Haim Oron, who submitted the motion, told the plenum before the vote.

"We refuse to accept the turning of a blind eye to the Armenian
genocide," the opposition left-wing Meretz party MP said.

"We owe this vote not only to the Armenian people, we owe it to
ourselves, especially in a period where we are struggling to prolong
the memory" of the Nazi Holocaust of six million Jews during World
War II.

The motion was nevertheless rejected by parliament in a vote of 16
against 12, with a low turnout by MPs. It would have needed a second
ratification if it had passed.

The issue of the Armenian massacre has been raised several times in
the past in Israel’s Knesset, but there has never been an implicit
vote branding it as genocide.

If approved, Israel would have joined a growing list of countries
which have recognised the killings as genocide. It would have marked
April 24, the day when the massacres started in 1915, as Armenian
genocide memorial day.

Israel has close diplomatic ties with Turkey — one of the few Muslim
countries with which it has relations — and has in the past steered
clear of the recognition issue.

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen died in orchestrated
killings during the final years of the Ottoman Empire.

But the Turkish government strongly denies this, saying 300,000
Armenians and as many Turks were killed in civil conflict when the
Christian Armenians, backed by Russia, rose up against the Ottoman
Empire.

Oron told AFP he had been under heavy pressure from Israeli Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert’s office and the foreign ministry to withdraw
his motion.

"I have been under a lot of pressure, but that is something any
MP must face," Oron said. "Turkey has been exerting its pressure
everywhere. This is their right. But they can not set the agenda of
the Israeli parliament."

Government spokeswoman Miri Eisin said that Israel "did not intend to
place itself at the forefront of this issue, which is being handled
by the international community."

ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN FAIL TO OVERCOME DIVIDE IN TALKS; ARMENIAN FM

Agence France Presse — English
March 14, 2007 Wednesday

Armenia’s Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said Wednesday talks with
his Azeri counterpart in Switzerland over the disputed enclave of
Nagorno-Karabakh had failed to overcome deep differences.

"Although there is clearer understanding of each other’s positions,
one thing is evident that there are deep differences," Oskanian
said in a statement after he met Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar
Mamedyarov in Geneva.

However the two ministers did decide to hold a further meeting in
April, which could lead to talks at a presidential level, the Armenian
envoy added.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s break from Azerbaijan in 1991 precipitated a
full-blown war between the former Soviet republic and its neighbour
Armenia, claiming some 25,000 lives before ending with a ceasefire
in 1994.

The region’s status remains unsettled, despite years of diplomatic
talks.

ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN FMS TO MEET AGAIN TO DISCUSS KARABAKH SETLMNT

Itar-Tass News Agency, Russia
March 14 2007

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Vartan Oskanyan and
Elmar Mamedyarov, will meet again in April to discuss the Karabakh
settlement. The Armenian Foreign Ministry announced this following
the talks of the ministers held in Geneva on Wednesday with the
participation of the co-chairmen of the Minsk group of the OSCE for
Nagorno-Karabakh (Russia, France and United States).

"The meeting followed the visit to the region by French co-chairman
of the Minsk group Bernard Fassier who, on behalf of his Russian and
American colleagues, tried to get a clearer notion of the stances of
the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the run up to the foreign
ministers’ meeting," says the Armenian Foreign Ministry’s report.

"Despite the preparatory work, the talks proceed slowly," the Armenian
Foreign Ministry quotes Oskanyan as saying. "This time an attempt has
been made to discuss a second layer of details of the document on the
principles of settlement" of the Karabakh conflict, the minister said.

"Even though the sides have a clearer understanding of each other’s
positions, profound distinctions are apparent," Oskanyan said. "We
believe there still exist opportunities for progress to guarantee the
new meeting of the presidents, and we arranged for another meeting
in April," the minister said.

"Armenia adheres to the principles contained in the document that is
the subject of the talks," the foreign minister assured. "Despite
the fact that arrangements on numerous secondary questions are
still lacking, the principles contained in the document include
the fundamental questions essential for long-term settlement of the
conflict," Oskanyan said.

Although the talks were confidential, the mediators made public
back in June last the main provisions of the draft principles of the
agreement on the Karabakh settlement they referred for consideration
of Armenia and Azerbaijan. These are the framework agreement that,
specifically, calls for the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the
occupied territories in Azerbaijan, normalization of economic and
diplomatic relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the stationing
of peacekeepers, and international economic assistance to the region.

And finally, a referendum on the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh
will be held at some stage.

LAVROV VISIT TO YEREVAN TIMED TO 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF DIPLM TIES

Itar-Tass News Agency, Russia
March 14 2007

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s visit to Armenia slated for
April 3-4 is timed to the 15th anniversary of the establishment of
diplomatic relations between the two countries, Russian Ambassador
in Yerevan Nikolai Pavlov said.

The purpose of the visit "is to confirm Russia’s commitment to
strategic partnership with Armenia", the ambassador said on Wednesday.

During the visit, Lavrov will have meetings with Armenian President
Robert Kocharyan, Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan and Foreign Minister
Vartan Oskanyan. The Russian minister will give a speech at Yerevan
State University, the Russian ambassador stressed.

Russia recognised Armenia’s independence on December 18, 1991. April
3, 1992 is the day of the establishment of diplomatic relations
between the two countries. "This is one more date in the history
of Russian-Armenian relations, which remount to Ancient Russia,"
the ambassador said.

"Then the coincidence of geopolitical interests of both states
determines their wish to establish ally relations between our countries
and bring them to the level of strategic partnership," the ambassador
pointed out. Now it is based on the solid legal foundation and includes
over 160 international agreements and treaties.

"Relations between Russia and Armenia are considered ally and dynamic,"
the Russian ambassador added.

RUSSIA-ARMENIA TRADE KEEPS GROWING – AMBASSADOR

Itar-Tass News Agency, Russia
March 14 2007

Russian Ambassador to Armenia Nikolai Pavlov said on Wednesday that
Russian-Armenian trade kept growing despite certain difficulties in
economic ties.

"Although Russian-Armenian economic cooperation is facing certain
difficulties connected with transport communication, the amount of
bilateral trade keeps growing," the ambassador said.

Last year trade between the two countries amounted to 426 million
dollars, without taking into consideration Russian gas supplies,
against 350 million dollars in 2005, Pavlov stressed.

Russian investments in the Armenian economy keep growing, the diplomat
added. He cited as an example the activity in Armenia of the Russian
Gazprom gas giant, the Unified Energy Systems of Russia national
power utility, the Armenal plant and Vneshtorgbank.

Recently one more major Russian company, Vympelkom, entered the market
of Armenian telecommunication services.

The ambassador admitted, however, that problems also persist in
relations between the two former Soviet republics. They concern,
in particular, the implementation of an agreement on handing over to
Russia property of five Armenian enterprises to settle the inter-state
debt.

The activity of the inter-governmental commission for economic
cooperation is aimed to solve such problems. The latest meeting of
its co-chairmen was held in Moscow on March 5.

The ambassador said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov would visit
Armenia on April 3 to 4. The aim of his visit is "to confirm Russia’s
commitment to a course of strategic partnership with Armenia," the
top Russian diplomat stressed.

CIS DEFENSE CHIEF ARRIVES IN YEREVAN FOR TALKS WITH ARMENIA’S LEADERS

Itar-Tass News Agency, Russia
March 14 2007

Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization
(CSTO) of the CIS, Nikolai Bordyuzha, arrived on the three-day visit
in Yerevan Tuesday night. His visit here will last three days.

"Armenia is a reliable and time-tested partner in the system of allied
relationship of CSTO member-states and it cooperates actively with
other countries in the issues of foreign policy and counteraction to
new threats and challenges," – Bordyuzha said.

Armenia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Armen Kirakossian told Itar-Tass
Bordyuzha will continue dialogue with his Armenian hosts and will
meet with public activists.

The agenda of his visit includes meetings with President Robert
Kocharian and with teachers and students of Yerevan State University,
as well as a trip to the Military University of the Defense Ministry.

"Since Armenia remains a member of the CSTO, its relations with NATO
can’t be viewed as a form of contradiction with other CSTO members,"
Kirakossian said. "In one case, we are CSTO members and in another
case, we cooperate with NATO."

"We consider CSTO to be a cornerstone factor of our security,"
said Defense Minister Serge Sarkissian. As for Russian-Armenian
cooperation in the format of the organization is a crucial guarantee
of this country’s military security.

He recalled that the two countries had formed an effective grouping of
troops that includes units of the Russian military base and elements
of the Armenian Armed Forces.