Month: March 2007

French mediator pleased with talks in Armenia, Azerbaijan

Turan news agency, Baku,
9 Mar 07

An OSCE Karabakh mediator has said that his regional visit is aimed at
organizing the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers’ forthcoming
meeting in Geneva, Turan reported on 9 March.

In a news conference held in Baku on 8 March, OSCE Minsk Group’s French
co-chairman Bernard Fassier said that the co-chairs organized his visit
to ensure that Azerbaijan and Armenia want to continue peace process,
organize the Geneva meeting between the two foreign ministers and
conduct "constructive discussions and reach positive results".

Turan quoted Fassier as denying assumptions that his visits are
connected with the appearance of some new elements in the negotiating
process.

Fassier described his talks in Yerevan and Baku as "productive and
constructive". According to Fassier, the two presidents still cannot
meet directly because of the forthcoming parliamentary election in
Armenia.

Fassier visited Armenia on 7 March. He arrived in Azerbaijan on 8 March
and informed Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev about the results of
the meeting with Armenian President Robert Kocharyan. Fassier will go
back to Yerevan on 12 March to inform Kocharyan about the results of
his meeting with Aliyev, Turan reported.

The New Anatolian, Turkey
March 10 2007

Turkish ultranationalism on rise, claims Economist

The New Anatolian / Ankara
10 March 2007

News weekly The Economist on Thursday claimed that there has been a
dangerous upsurge in ultranationalist feeling in Turkey in recent
months.

"The upsurge threatens to undo the good of four years of reforms by
the mildly Islamist government led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan," said the
article entitled "Waving Ataturk’s flag." "Indeed, it is partly in
response to these reforms — more freedom for the Kurds, a trimming
of the army’s powers, concessions on Cyprus — that nationalist
passions have been roused. The knowledge that many members of the
European Union do not want Turkey to join has inflamed them further."

The analysis claimed that another factor is America’s refusal to move
against separatist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) guerrillas based in
northern Iraq.

Quoting Murat Belge, a leftist intellectual as saying, "This social
Darwinist mindset that implies it’s OK to kill your enemies in order
to survive has been perpetuated through an education system that
tells young Turks that they have no other friend than the Turks," the
analysis argued, "It has been cynically exploited by politicians and
generals alike."

"Mr. Erdogan and Deniz Baykal, the leader of the opposition
Republican People’s Party (CHP), have proved no exception. When more
than 100,000 Turks gathered at Mr. Dink’s funeral chanting ‘We are
all Armenians,’ Mr. Erdogan opined that they had gone ‘too far.’ Both
he and Mr. Baykal have resisted calls to scrap Article 301 (a
controversial law Dink was convicted under), though there have been
hints that it will be amended," The Economist explained.

"The politicians are keen to court nationalist votes in the runup to
November’s parliamentary election," the analysis said. "Mr. Erdogan
also hopes that burnishing his nationalist credentials will help him
to coax a blessing from Turkey’s hawkish generals for his hopes of
succeeding the fiercely secular Ahmet Necdet Sezer as president in
May."

"Yet a recent outburst by the chief of the general staff, Yasar
Buyukanit, suggests otherwise … These words, uttered during an
official trip to America, were widely seen as a direct warning to Mr.
Erdogan to shelve his presidential ambitions," The Economist argued.

The Economist claimed that prominent writers and academics are still
receiving death threats, underlining that some are under police
protection.

"Where will matters go from here? This week one court banned access
to YouTube after clips calling Ataturk gay appeared on it; and
another sentenced a Kurdish politician to six months’ jail for giving
the PKK leader, Abdullah Ocalan, an honorific Mr. But a private TV
station also withdrew a popular series, ‘The Valley of the Wolves,’
that glorifies gun-toting nationalists who mow down their mainly
Kurdish enemies, after the channel was inundated with calls for the
show’s axing. The battle for Turkey’s soul is not over yet," the
article concluded.

AZG Armenian Daily #044, 10/03/2007

Religious Controversies

ADDRESS OF THE ARMENIAN PATRIARCHATE OF JERUSALEM

Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem addressed the faithful of the
Armenian church on February 21, 2007 with the following message"

"Dear Faithful of the Armenian Church,

As the Armenian Community in Jerusalem prepares for Holy Week and the
Holy Fire Ceremony that takes place on Saturday of Holy Week (April 7,
2007), within the Tomb of Jesus Christ in the Church of the Holy
Sepulchre, we ask for your help in preserving the centuries-old Status
Quo rights of the Armenian Orthodox Church in Jerusalem, represented
by the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

In 2003, conflict arose with the Greek Orthodox Church over this
Ceremony. They demanded a deviation from the Status Quo procedures
that give the Armenian Patriarch or his representative the right to
enter the Holy Tomb together. Appeals to the Israeli Government since
that time, including legal recourse, the rendering of expert testimony
and evidence, and negotiation with the Greek Orthodox Church have not
produced a clear decision. The Status Quo procedures for the Holy
Places have been in existence for hundreds of years and are anchored
in the Ottoman period.

We urge all of our Armenian brothers and sisters around the world to
e-mail and/or fax the petition below in their name, or in the name of
an organization, to the Ministers of the Israeli Government listed
below, or to their local Israeli Embassy or Consulate. Ask that this
issue be resolved before the day of the Holy Fire Ceremony on April 7,
2007, so that the centuries-old Status Quo rights of the Armenian
Orthodox Church in Jerusalem may be maintained. Your participation is
crucial."

The following message was sent to the Representatives of the Israeli
Government:

"Since 2003, there has been conflict between the Armenian Orthodox and
the Greek Orthodox Patriarchates over the Holy Fire Ceremony held in
the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Holy Saturday of Easter Week. The
Greek Patriarchate demanded a deviation from the Status Quo procedures
that gives the Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem or his representative
the right to enter the Holy Tomb together. Appeals to the Israeli
Government since that time, including legal recourse, the rendering of
expert testimony and evidence, and negotiation with the Greek Orthodox
Church have not produced a clear decision. The Status Quo procedures
for the Holy Places have been in existence for hundreds of years and
are anchored in the Ottoman period.

This year, the Holy Fire Ceremony in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
is on April 7, 2007, I urge the Israeli Government to expeditiously
restore the centuries-old Status Quo rights of the Armenian
Patriarchate of Jerusalem as it was prior to 2003.

Divan of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem"

Azeri leader, French mediator discuss Karabakh

Day.az website, Baku
8 Mar 07

8 March: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received the French
co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group, Bernard Fassier, at the
presidential palace on 8 March.

The current situation and prospects for talks over the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan were discussed at the
meeting.

A1+

WHAT A TERRIBLE LIE!
[07:00 pm] 09 March, 2007

«We won’t permit the construction of the second Armenian state in the
territory of Azerbaijan», announced Ilham Aliev during the first
summit of the Azeri and Turkish overseas organizations. Aliev claims
that Zangezour and Nakhijevan are the lands of the «Azeri ancestors».

The President of Azerbaijan states that the NKR is occupied by
Armenia, and Armenia doesn’t implement the UNO resolutions. «The
territorial wholeness of Azerbaijan has never been put under
consideration; it is not a theme of discussions and will never be.
Azerbaijan will restore its territorial wholeness», APA agency
reports.

Critics’ Forum
Theater
The Times of Their Lives
By Aram Kouyoumdjian

The title of Stephen Adly Guirgis’ gritty drama "In Arabia, We’d All
Be Kings" doubles as a line spoken by one of its characters, Sammy,
the resident drunk of a dive bar. In some ways, Sammy, old and
nostalgic with alcohol, can trace his roots back to a barfly in a
play from an earlier era. The barfly is a philosophizing immigrant
(coincidentally enough, an Arab) given to such pithy utterances
as "No foundation. All the way down the line." The earlier play is
William Saroyan’s "The Time of Your Life."

Written 60 years apart – Saroyan penned his sprawling drama in 1939,
Guirgis in 1999 – both plays are loosely plotted works set in bars,
where all sorts of humanity stream in and out. Last year, the Open
Fist Theatre Company staged a fine revival of "The Time of Your Life"
in Hollywood. Now, the Elephant Theatre Company is presenting a
first-rate production of "In Arabia, We’d All Be Kings" along the
same Theatre Row.

"Time" takes place at Nick’s Saloon, a spot along the San Francisco
waterfront. The innocence of a jukebox and a pinball machine
notwithstanding, the joint is frequented by sailors, longshoremen,
and prostitutes. "Important people never come here," Nick himself
says. Caught at the tail end of the 1930s, Saroyan’s characters,
mostly poor and unemployed, have only the Depression years to look
back upon and a second world war to look forward to.

"In Arabia" unfolds in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York
City and follows similarly marginalized members of society struggling
to eke out an existence, even as some of them spiral into the vortex
of an ever-pervasive drug culture.

Guirgis’ play opens at the bar with the story of Lenny, an ex-felon
seeking to resume his life and his relationship with his girlfriend,
Daisy. The bar, however, is really a haven for downtrodden denizens,
including the druggie Skank. In fact, it only holds promise for
Greer, a wealthy developer who wishes to acquire the space. Having
no money himself, Lenny faces demeaning job prospects – and Daisy’s
rejection.

The action soon turns to Skank and his own girlfriend, Chickie,
herself a crank addict. To feed their habit, Chickie resorts to
prostituting herself on the streets along with a young girl named
Demaris, while Skank submits to the predatory advances of Greer in
return for money. In the play’s most taut and chilling bit, Greer
negotiates down Skank’s asking price to a paltry $20, which Skank, in
his desperation, accepts.

As Greer eventually acquires the bar and the neighborhood faces
gentrification, some of the characters meet with tragedy; the rest
try to outrun the ominous fates that await them. "In Arabia" offers
an unflinching look at lives devastated by addiction, and this topic
lends the play the gritty feel that "Time" – despite its own
depictions of hardship – lacks. Though it pulsates with an
undercurrent of social protest, Saroyan’s play exudes earnestness and
hope. Even its ending, while far from simplistic, metes out swift
justice to the play’s villainous cop, Blick, while saving its
suffering prostitute, Kitty, from the streets.

Saroyan’s seemingly bottomless optimism certainly riled many critics
in his day, who deemed it excessive and even irritating. Phillip
Rahv, an influential leftist writer and editor, dismissed
Saroyan’s "formula of innocence" as "the formula of `Ah, the wonder,
the beauty of it all.’" Of course, a deeper reading of Saroyan’s
work reveals his optimism to be "wistful, almost desperate" – as
Gerald Rabkin has put it – "accurately reflect[ing] the mood of the
late thirties."

Like Saroyan, Guirgis accurately reflects the mood of his own era, as
he dwells on the ever-widening gap between rich and poor. Unlike
Saroyan, however, his optimism is measured. Guirgis locates hope in
the redemptive power of personal relationships – a power that allows
solitary souls to trust, to give of themselves, to connect, and as a
result of those bonds, to achieve a sense of belonging and security.

"In Arabia" boasts a gifted cast, flawless direction by David Fofi,
and strong technical elements – an authentic set, effective lighting,
and well-suited costumes. Fofi maximizes the tension in the script,
even as he ably draws out its dark humor. The coiled construct
of "In Arabia" certainly differs from the vaudevillian aspect of
Saroyan’s play. Still, both works weave complex, intersecting
plotlines that tell more than stories; they capture the unique times
of their authors’ lives.

All Rights Reserved: Critics’ Forum, 2007

Aram Kouyoumdjian is the winner of Elly Awards for both playwriting
("The Farewells") and directing ("Three Hotels"). His latest work
is "Velvet Revolution."

You can reach him or any of the other contributors to Critics’ Forum
at [email protected]. This and all other articles published
in this series are available online at To sign
up for a weekly electronic version of new articles, go to
Critics’ Forum is a group created to
discuss issues relating to Armenian art and culture in the Diaspora.

Azerbaijan needs security guarantees if US invades Iran, paper says

Zerkalo website, Baku
3 Mar 07

Azerbaijan will need security guarantees from the USA if the latter
decides to punish Iran for ignoring warnings about its nuclear
programme by taking military action, but Azerbaijan will hardly be able
to remain neutral, an Azerbaijani newspaper believes. The Kurds in Iran
might support the USA which would be dangerous to ethnic Azerbaijanis
in Iran, the paper said. If the USA did go ahead and invade, then
Azerbaijan and Turkey should take the Azerbaijani-populated areas in
Iran under their control to prevent ethnic cleansing. The following is
excerpt from the report by Rauf Mirqadirov headlined "They will not
leave us in peace even if we try to preserve ‘neutrality’ in the Iran
crisis", published in Zerkalo newspaper website on 3 March; subheadings
have been inserted editorially:

Iran ignores warnings about its nuclear programme

The deadline set by the UN Security Council for Iran to cease its
nuclear programme expired on 21 February. Iran, naturally, has refused
to carry out this request, so now the problem of its nuclear programme
is being elevated to a higher diplomatic level. Open economic sanctions
by the UN against Iran are now almost inevitable, or at least, the USA
will insist on them. Besides, two US assault carriers are already in
the Persian Gulf. Despite the fact that officials in Washington deny
the likelihood of military action, practically everyone throughout the
world, including our region, and even in Armenia, is waiting, as they
say, in anticipation.

"A US attack on Iran will have very negative consequences for Armenia
which finds itself between the devil and the deep blue sea," Armenia’s
Iran expert Tadevos Charchyan has said in an interview for
PanArmenian.net website. He believes the choice will be a very
difficult one: on the one hand, there are the financial and economic
aspects, and on the other, there is neighbourly and friendly Iran, with
whom Armenia has much in common. Armenia cannot remain neutral because
there is much that links us [Armenia] with the international community.

What Charchyan is really saying is that at the end of the day Armenia
will have to support the sanctions of the international community,
including military sanctions. In other words, he says, Armenian today
must be prepared to abandon "neighbourly and friendly Iran".

[Passage omitted: Problem for Russia and Armenia is that USA wants to
replace current Iranian regime because if it acquires nuclear weapons
it will become more aggressive]

Armenia to follow Georgia in supporting USA

We would like to make the point that Georgia has stated officially that
it is prepared to examine the question of the deployment of US radar
stations on its territory. Georgia has made its position basically
clear. Whatever the USA requires is acceptable to Georgia. In other
words, in the event of military action against Iran the USA can count
fully on Georgia’s support.

And, in actual fact, Armenia has no other choice, either. It can no
longer allow itself the luxury of an anti-US position in the event of a
military action against Iran, because its outcome has already been
determined. Anti-Americanism in this event would mean a complete
blockade and Armenia’s isolation for many years.

[Passage omitted: Economist magazine carried report on Armenia’s
increasing isolation over international railway project and increasing
dependence on Russia.]

The problem is that if Russia lets Washington "deal with" Iran, then
Armenia will lose all its importance to Moscow as an outpost, because
the whole of the South Caucasus will automatically come under the
sphere of US interests. Moreover, Armenia is not one of those countries
that is prepared to remain a Russian outpost on "hunger rations". And
nobody, including Armenia, is prepared to be obedient to Russia for
nothing. But the whole problem is that in that case there will be no
reason to pay Armenia.

Azerbaijan cannot "stand aside"

Despite the solemn statements of officials at the highest level,
Azerbaijan will not be able to stand aside in the event of a US
military action against Iran. In the first place, whether we like it or
not, they will not leave us in peace.

The former president of Iran [Akbar] Rafsanjani, whose supporters today
comprise the majority in the Supreme Spiritual Council, recently said
that there are US military bases in Azerbaijan. Essentially, this means
that strategic facilities in Azerbaijan have already been included by
the Tehran regime in the list of targets against which will be liable
to retaliatory strikes in the event of the US military action against
Iran. We cannot defend ourselves and Russia has no intention of doing
so. This means that whether we like it or not, we will still need
certain guarantees of security from the West, and to be precise, the
USA.

Second, we ourselves cannot stand aside, because about 30 million of
the Iranian population are Azerbaijanis, and most of them live in
Southern Azerbaijan [northwestern Iran]. Suffice to recall that the
preservation of "neutrality" in the Iraq crisis cost Turkey dearly.
Moreover, the USA’s "allies", the Kurds, are essentially engaging in
ethnic cleansing in relation to the Iraqi Turkomans (in fact, ethnic
Azerbaijanis), but they have no intention of declaring the creation of
a Kurdish state on the border with Turkey.

One should remember that in both Iran and in Iraq the Kurds, unlike the
Azerbaijanis, are pretty well armed and are fighting against the
government forces. If one assumes that the joint Iraqi-Iranian Kurd
detachments might on this occasion, too, act as allies of the USA, then
we might be facing a new kind of ethnic cleansing.

If events develop in this direction the joint Azerbaijani-Turkish
forces will be left with no other choice than to take the territories
populated by the Azerbaijanis under their control. In the course of
time it was the Azerbaijani president himself who literally a year ago
said there are not 8 million of us in the world, but 50 million.

The New Anatolian, Turkey
March 10 2007

The Swiss are creating a hero out of Perincek

Ilnur Cevik
10 March 2007

A Swiss court has fined controversial Turkish politician Dogu
Perincek for defying Swiss laws by challenging claims that the
Ottoman Turks were involved in an act of genocide against the
Armenians in eastern Turkey at the turn of the last century …
Perincek is also to pay compensation to an Armenian organization for
insulting them.

The claims of the so-called genocide have been a hot issue thanks to
the efforts of the international Armenian lobby. The lobby has pushed
for parliaments to acknowledge the so-called genocide from Latin
America to Europe and the issue is now a major area of confrontation
between Turkey and the United States where a resolution is pending in
Congress that would acknowledge the genocide claims.

So while the Armenian lobby has been pushing Turkey into
confrontation with other states, even countries that are friendly
have come to odds with Ankara over this issue.

But the Armenian lobby has not stopped its offensive. It has managed
to get some parliaments to pass another law that makes it a crime to
reject the claims of genocide. The Swiss Parliament has passed such a
law and there are efforts to get the French Parliament to legislate
such a bill.

The Swiss are supposed to be liberal people and even they have fallen
into a trap of banning a debate on whether such genocide took place.
So they have prosecuted Perincek according to this very controversial
law…

Perincek himself is no angel. He is a controversial person in Turkey
whose views are regarded as extremist and antagonistic. He is one of
these left wing people who have turned into an ultranationalist. They
are called "ulusalci" in Turkey. He has been prosecuted many times in
Turkey and has served long prison terms. He has been responsible for
Maoist publications and founded the extreme left wing Workers Party
(IP), which could not even get one percent of the national vote in
the last elections.

He uses his organization to hit at intellectuals and journalists who
try to advance liberal and reformist views. He is strongly
anti-American and anti-European Union …

But it is sad that the Swiss court has put us in a position where we
as democrats and advocates of freedom of expression have to defend
Perincek against this injustice.

The Swiss are creating a hero out of Perincek and are allowing him to
exploit the current situation. Isn’t this a farce?

It is time we Turks put our resources together to find a way out of
the current mess regarding Armenian claims and this offensive against
us where friends are turning into antagonists. Does anyone have any
innovative views?

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Panorama.am

16:04 09/03/2007

ARMENIAN PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE – TARGET OF TURK NATIONALIST

The Turk, who Sunday fired a shot in the air in the yard of the
Armenian church of St. Virgin in Istanbul, stated that his real target
was the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mesrop Mutafyan. The shot
was fired after the liturgy served in the Church in connection with
the forty days after the death of the killed editor of Agos newspaper,
Hrant Dink.

`I had prepared it for Mutafyan Second’, Volkan Karova cried towards
the journalists, when he and the other suspect Yilmaz Can Ozalp were
being conveyed to the prosecutor’s office. As `Liberty’ reports,
referring to the Turkish `Anatolia’ news agency, the court has brought
an accusation against both persons for `threatening by means of shots’
`for bearing unauthorized weapon’. Both they are arrested.

Source: Panorama.am

Daily Georgian Times, Georgia
March 10 2007

Has Putin Downgraded Sergey Ivanov?

`Georgia does not owe anything to Armenia,’ says Ramaz Sakvarelidze

Russian President Putin’s decision to appoint Sergey Ivanov
Vice-Premier of Russia prompted analogies with Georgian President
Saakashvili’s move when he re-assigned Defense Minister Irakli
Okruashvili to the Ministry of Economy. The Georgian Times asked
Ramaz Sakvarelidze, an independent political expert and a former
foreign affairs adviser to President Saakashvili, to comment on
Ivanov’s reassignment.

Q: What was the rationale behind the cabinet shuffle in Russia? Would
you assess it as [Ivanov’s] advancement or downgrading?

A: The whole world would like to weigh in on it. No one has the exact
answer. I think Putin got rid of him. Ivanov had a rising political
rating and perhaps he would lay claim to Russia’s presidency, whether
or not it complied with Putin’s preferences. Ivanov’s policy was
based on the so-called `hawks” policy – or forceful methods in
politics. This ran counter to Putin’s political track.

Putin’s policy is also based on aggression, but it is built on
economic levers. Putin has taken a step that may seem pretty familiar
to us: he reassigned a high-rated Defense Minister to a position
which is honorable but also less popular. In his place, Putin
appointed the Chief of Tax Authorities, who may uncover some
financial disorders in the Defense Ministry and thus fund evidence of
Ivanov’s criminal accountability.

On the other hand, the appointment of the Tax Authorities Chief to
the Defense Structure suggests the ministry is going to lose its high
profile. Ivanov slipped out of control – he was leading an
independent policy that did not fully coincide with that of Putin.

Q: Should we blame Ivanov’s `independent playing’ for contributing to
tensions between Tbilisi and Moscow?

A: Certainly, the Defense Ministry has done the lion’s share in
deteriorating Georgian-Russian relations.

Q: Do you mean the Georgian Defense Ministry as well, or should we
just pile blame on Ivanov?

A: The Georgian Defense Ministry also played its part. After the
demise of the Soviet Union, the Russian Defense Ministry and
Intelligence Administration [known as GRU in Russia – GT] took over
control of the Caucasus region. The Defense Ministry of Russia was
trying to restore the Russian empire, while Putin does not seek to
reinstate the USSR. The Russian President hinges expansion plans on
economic levers. This is why there is infighting between President
Putin and the Defense Minister. Putin does not want the conflict to
erupt, as that would foil his plans of entering Europe. If Russia
plays a positive role in regional conflict resolution, Europe will
welcome Russia with applause.

Q: Let us leave Russia for a while and talk about Georgian-Armenian
relations. Quite recently, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey signed a
contract to launch a new regional railway project. Armenia again
found itself an outsider and expressed its protests. Does that mean
we are going to upset Armenia?

A: Georgia does not owe anything to Armenia. From history we remember
that in critical periods when Georgia was dependent on Armenia,
Yerevan took steps that served its national interests best but which
would compromise those of ours. Abkhazian events and its foreign
policy choices in Europe are good examples of this.

Georgia should not feel remorse if it prioritizes its national
interests. Armenia should realize soon that it has to become
friendlier towards its neighbors. It has yet to be made clear what
position Yerevan had towards Armenian military groups during the
Abkhazia war. I think Georgia has made more good-neighborly steps
towards Armenia than it was necessary. All three republics of the
South Caucasus should be interested in playing a common geopolitical
game. Therefore, we should forget old stories and look ahead. Georgia
should think of developing more harmonic relations in the future. The
same goes for Armenia. Armenia is running out of time. If we are
talking about Russia’s plans related to conflict settlement, then
there is a high risk that Armenia, with its current policy, will soon
be deadlocked.

Georgian Times