Month: March 2007

Domestic Waste Causes Damage to Armenia’s Rivers More Than Industrial
Emissions

Arminfo
2007-03-23 16:01:00

The household rubbish causes damage to the rivers in Armenia more than
the industrial emissions. Meanwhile, the purification of sewages is
carried out in Armenia’s capital only by aeration and in a mechanical
way, while the main part of drains freely leaks into the nearest
rivulets. The whole epopee of 9480 small and big rivers of Armenia is
displayed in the "Loquacious Wealth" film, the presentation of which
was held yesterday in the UN Armenia Office.

The author of the documentary film is the chairwoman of an "Ecolur"
ecological public organization Inga Zarafyan, the producer is Haik
Kbeyan, the operator – Mkrtich Baroyan. It is remarkable that a
transboundary value of Armenia’s rivers is touched on in the film,
since 80% of waters are carried by the Armenian rivers to the
neighboring Azerbaijan, a part – to Turkey, Iran and Georgia. Based
on this, a responsibility for the "transparency" of waters for Armenia
grows more, however, the assurance of transparency of these waters
monitoring yet fails.

According to the scientific secretary of the Institute of Hydroecology
and Ichthyology of NASA Evelina Ghukasyan, despite the apparent facts
of pollution of the local rivers by domestic and industrial waste, the
mountain rivers with a unique ability to self-purify, reach our
neighbors relatively pure.

Talking of a relativity of the rivers pollution and their natural
aeration ability, the Director of the "Armwaterproject Institute" CJSC
Yuri Javadyan noted that according to investigations, carried out in
2003, the percent of lead, that could ingress in the river from the
existing toxic waste tailing dumps of the mining productions, was
equal to zero in the waters of Armenia’s rivers, while the percent of
sulfur oxide made up 5%.

By the forecasts of FAO, 1,8 bln people in 2005 will live in the
countries and regions that permanently suffer from a lack of water. In
whole, the two third of the world population will face this
problem. The rates of water consumption in Armenia have grown. Thus,
according to the specialists estimations, a degree of evaporation –
drying of sweet water sources has also increased.

Over 500 attend opposition rally in Armenian capital

Arminfo
23 Mar 07

Yerevan, 23 March: Despite the ban imposed by the capital’s mayor,
over 500 people took part in a rally held by the [opposition]
Alternative movement in Yerevan’s Freedom Square.

"Today we managed to prove that no-one can prohibit free citizens of
Armenia from walking in the streets of their towns and from gathering
in Freedom Square. They wanted to ban us from gathering for the
rally, and today we won, showing the authorities that they are
powerless," said, addressing those present using a megaphone, one of
the leaders of the public-political movement Alternative and of the
Impeachment bloc, Nikol Pashinyan. Pashinyan is also the
editor-in-chief of the newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak.

He said that the Alternative movement would continue its litigation
against Yerevan mayor Yervand Zakharyan, demanding that his inaction
be recognized. "We will continue to appeal to the highest judicial
bodies so that they make as many mistakes as possible for which they
will have to answer for under the full strictness of the law. If we
fail to get the recognition of the mayor’s inaction via the courts
within a week, then we will consider, as an extreme measure, the
possibility of holding a rally outside the Matenadaran [museum] on 30
March. The reason is not that we are afraid to come to Freedom Square
again but that the next rally is a crucial one in terms of the
development, together with you, of further steps for the next couple
of months, and we have something to say," Pashinyan said.

The main leitmotif of the rally were repeated statements about victory
over the authorities, which, despite their endeavours, failed to
thwart the opposition rally.

More people took part in today’s rally than in the previous one.
[passage omitted: the mayor’s office simultaneously organized a
children’s concert in Freedom Square]

After the opposition members left Freedom Square, the organizers of
the rally staged an unforeseen march along the central streets of
Tumanyan and Abovyan, ending the event in Republic Square.

We should note that today’s rally was attended by representatives of
the opposition Republic party. The leader of the New Times party, Aram
Karapetyan, appeared for a short time and left.

Leader of Democratic Route: By selling its 10% stake in Armenia Armenian
Government betrayed our national interests

Arminfo
2007-03-23 15:44:00

The Mar 22 decision to sell the Government’s 10% stake in ArmenTel to
the owner of the 90% stake VimpelCom was a high treason, the leader of
Democratic Route party Arshak Sadoyan

"The first problem our party will solve – if it comes into power –
will be the problem of ArmenTel," Sadoyan said during a
press-conference today. He believes that the Armenian authorities have
put themselves into direct dependence on Russia. This deal will have
negative consequences and we will feel them very soon, Sadoyan said.

To remind, Mar 22 the Armenian Government decided to sell its 10%
stake in ArmenTel to the owner of the company VimpelCom (Russia).

World War 4 Report, NY
March 23 2007

Turkey rattles sabre at Iraqi Kurdistan – again

Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, joined by MPs, military chiefs
and diplomats, say up to 3,800 PKK fighters in Iraqi Kurdistan are
preparing for attacks into Turkish territory – and Turkey is ready to
hit back if the US fails to act. Said Gul: "We will do what we have
to do, we will do what is necessary. Nothing is ruled out. I have
said to the Americans many times: suppose there is a terrorist
organisation in Mexico attacking America. What would you do?… We
are hopeful. We have high expectations. But we cannot just wait
forever."

"If they are killing our soldiers … and if public pressure on the
government increases, of course we will have to intervene," said Ali
Riza Alaboyun, an MP for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
Justice and Development party. "It is the legal right of any country
to protect its people and its borders."

Turkish sources told The Guardian that "hot pursuit" special forces
operations into northern Iraq’s Khaftanin and Qanimasi regions are
already underway.

The PKK has responded to the bellicose rhetoric in kind. Murat
Karayilan, a PKK leader, said this week that a "mad war" was in
prospect unless Ankara backed off.

Fighting between Turkish security forces and Kurdish guerillas has
claimed 37,000 lives since 1984. The last Turkish incursion into Iraq
occurred 10 years ago, when 40,000 troops were sent across the border
to hunt down PKK stronholds.

The Guardian reports a firm Turkish belief that the US is playing a
"double game" in Iraqi Kurdistan. Officials say the CIA is covertly
funding and arming the PKK’s sister organisation, the Iran-based
Kurdistan Free Life party, to destabilise the Iranian government.

The Guardian also cites US acquiescence in plans to hold a referendum
in oil-rich Kirkuk in northern Iraq. Turkey suspects Iraqi Kurds are
seeking control of Kirkuk as a prelude to the creation of an
independent Kurdistan.

The Turks are also incensed by a pending US Congressional resolution
blaming Turkey for genocide against the Armenians in 1915. Faruk
Logoglu, a former ambassador to Washington, said that if the
resolution passed, relations "could take generations to recover."
(The Guardian, March 23)

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
March 23 2007

Matthew Bryza voices progress on a set of principles governing
Karabakh settlement

"While Azerbaijan has a long way to go on political reform,
Azerbaijan could potentially become the world’s first secular
democracy with a majority Shiite Muslim population," said U.S. Deputy
Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, OSCE
Minsk Group American co-chair Matthew Bryza.

Touching on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict between Azerbaijan and
Armenia, he said considerable progress has been made on a set of
principles governing a settlement, and he hopes for renewed momentum
after parliamentary elections in Armenia in May.

"We anticipate that right after the Armenian elections on May 12, the
both presidents will come back together. And we hope, we hope then,
that they’ll get close to finalizing the document. I don’t want to
say they’re going to finalize it, because it’s not fair to back them
into a corner. There are still some differences between them," he
added.

Internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan – an enclave
Nagorno Karabakh, and some other adjacent regions were occupied by
Armenia in early 1990s. The so-called Minsk Group of the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) was set up to seek a
negotiated peaceful solution between the two countries to the
dispute. The parties have not settled the conflict for years despite
regular meetings. APA

NIS News Bulletin, Netherlands
March 23 2007

Islam Expert: Netherlands Tolerates Muslim Excesses

AMSTERDAM, 24/03/07 – Dutch politicians and media are downplaying
excesses of multicultural society and thereby increasing these, in
the view of Islam expert Hans Janssen. "The Netherlands should
resist, using non-peaceful means", he argues in weekly magazine
Opinio.

Jansen, Professor of Modern Islamic Ideology at Utrecht University,
characterizes the Dutch as inhabitants of "a peaceful enclave" who
have, however, "forgotten that peace sometimes needs to be defended
through violence". A peaceful society that wishes to remain existent
and stay peaceful "will have to find a way to defend itself through
non-peaceful means from people who are not peaceful", as the Arabist
writes. "It will be hard to explaining this convincingly to all those
respectable and friendly people in the (Christian coalition parties)
CDA and ChristenUnie. And to the rest."

As Jansen sees it, the Netherlands is too indulgent to violence of
fundamentalist Muslims. But he also suggests that moderate Muslims,
too, strive after an Islamic society in the Netherlands. They
intentionally make use of the radicals to enforce their wishes,
according to the Arabist.

According to Jansen, Muslim fundamentalists frequently make threats,
but the Dutch media remain silent about them. He is pleading for a
central reporting station for all Dutch people who are being
threatened.

Jansen denounces the fact that the Nieuwe Kerk, a museum in
Amsterdam, allowed the Turkish government to remove passages on the
Armenian genocide from the catalogue of an exhibition about Istanbul.
"Even without the threat of violence, the public gets to see an
exhibition opened by the Queen that has been censored by Turkey".

The Netherlands chooses not to make an issue of these sorts of
matters, as Jansen states. "This attitude is gradually becoming
counterproductive. What is thought, written, exhibited or performed
in the Netherlands is to a large extent no longer made in freedom,
without this being perceptible. It is not the lie but the obscure
threat that reigns".

"We do not realise that the threat of violence, and violence itself,
can only be stopped through the controlled and cunning use of
violence". The Dutch secret service (AIVD) should get a special
department "that gets its hands dirty, if need be".

Jansen is an authority on the Arabic language and the Koran. Theo van
Gogh, who was murdered by a Muslim terrorist in 2004, employed him as
his tutor on Islam.

Turkish Press
March 23 2007

Press Review

TURKIYE

ARINC TO VISIT PORTUGAL NEXT WEEK

Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc is due to travel to Portugal next
Wednesday for a three-day official visit upon the invitation of his
Portuguese counterpart Jaime Gama. On the first day of his visit,
Arinc is expected to meet with Turks living in Portugal and later
attend a dinner hosted by Turkey’s Ambassador to Lisbon Kaya Erdem.
On Thursday, Arinc will meet with Gama to discuss a number of issues,
including bilateral relations. After being received by Portuguese
President Cavaco Silva, Arinc will then return to Turkey. In related
news, Arinc sent a letter to US House of Representatives Speaker
Nancy Pelosi expressing Turkey’s concerns over the resolution on the
so-called Armenia genocide, and stressed close ties between Turkey
and the US, warning that recognition of the Armenian allegations
would damage these relations deeply. /Turkiye/

Turkish Press
March 23 2007

Press Review

MILLIYET

ARMENIAN FM: `IF TURKEY WANTS TO MAKE A GESTURE, IT WILL OPEN ITS
BORDER’

Speaking at a press conference in Yerevan yesterday, Armenian Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanian said that he had gotten Turkey’s invitation
to attend the reopening ceremony of the restored Akdamar Church in
Van, but that the closed border could create great difficulties for
Armenian visitors. `If Turkey really wants to make a gesture, it will
open its border,’ said Oskanian. He declined to say whether a
delegation would attend the ceremony or not. /Milliyet/

Turkish Press
March 23 2007

Press Review

MILLIYET

MESROB II: `THE IMPACT OF ARMENIAN RESOLUTION WOULD BE NEGATIVE’

The resolution on the so-called Armenian genocide now before the US
Congress will be of no use to anybody, said Patriarch of Turkish
Armenians Mesrob II yesterday. Mesrob II added that no move that
would have a negative impact on dialogue between the two nations
could be called reasonable. /Milliyet/

PR-Inside.com (Pressemitteilung), Austria
March 23 2007

National Press Club "NEWSMAKER" Program

WASHINGTON, March 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The following was
released today by the National Press Club:

National Press Club "NEWSMAKER" Program Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Noon National Press Club (Zenger Room) Former U.S. ambassador to
Armenia The Hon. John Evans Will discuss "The Armenian Genocide: An
American Dilemma."

A career Foreign Service officer, John Evans served as the U.S.
ambassador to Armenia from 2004 through September 2006. In 2005,
breaking ranks with the State Department’s official position,
Ambassador Evans publicly characterized the mass deaths of Armenians
between 1915 and 1923 as a "genocide." Following complaints by the
Turkish government, Evans was compelled to issue a "clarification."
Evans’ diplomatic career subsequently ended, prompting outrage on
Capitol Hill. He is now writing a book about the Armenian
controversy.

CONTACT: National Press Club: Michael Doyle (202) 383-0006;
[email protected].

t-newsmaker-quot-program-r74759.htm