Month: April 2007

GRIM MEMORY STILL BURNING

Melbourne Herald Sun, Australia
April 26 2007

ARMENIANS have marked the 92nd anniversary of the genocide of hundreds
of thousands of their compatriots under the Ottoman Empire.

Though many nations recognise it, the genocide is a flashpoint in
Turkey’s relations with the West.

>>From early morning, mourners climbed in heavy rain to a hilltop
memorial in the Armenian capital to lay flowers.

Many Armenians from around the world come for the annual ceremony.

Hrant Gazariyan, 24, arrived from Turkey and said he would lay a
flower in honour of Hrant Dink.

The Turkish-Armenian journalist was killed in Turkey in January after
nationalists branded him a traitor for urging an open debate on the
1915 killings. Eleven suspects have been charged in the murder.

"Turkey must recognise the genocide so that there will not be more
victims, like Dink," Mr Gazariyan said. Armenians say up to 1.5 million
died in orchestrated killings in the Ottoman Empire’s last years.

But Turkey says 300,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in
civil strife in 1915-1917 when Christian Armenians, backed by Russia,
rose up.

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic ties and a closed border.

In March, the Israeli parliament refused to recognise a genocide.

Turkey froze military ties with France in November after lawmakers
voted to make it an offence to deny the genocide.

A resolution is pending in the US Congress to recognise the genocide,
but a vote is yet to be set amid lobbying by the White House and
Turkey.

The US ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, was recalled last year
after he used the term genocide in a speech.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

MATTHEW BRYZA COMMENTS ON DETAILS OF NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT TALKS

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
April 26 2007

"The changes to the initial 2006 State Department Country Reports on
Human Rights Practices are right. The previous variant of the report
was wrong. The situation needed clarifying, because the current stage
of negotiations on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict is very delicate,"
US Assistant Secretary of State, OSCE Minsk group co-chair Mathew
Bryza said in his interview to radio Voice of America, APA reports.

He said that he respects Azerbaijan’s position but being a mediator
he can not support any of the parties.

"The initial variant of the report noted that Nagorno Karabakh is under
Armenia’s occupation. This is Azerbaijan’s position. We understand
and respect this position. But as mediators we can not support any
of the parties. Armenia’s position is that they have not occupied
Nagorno Karabakh. The amendment made to the report does not mean to
support one of the parties. We only stated that Armenian government
says they have not occupied Nagorno Karabakh," he said.

Noting that the current stage of negotiations is promising, Matthew
Bryza underlined that the main topic of discussion is connected with
the status of Nagorno Karabakh.

"If our position is a little closer to the position of one of the
sides, we might cast shadow on the results of the negotiations. The
negotiations are being held between the parties to the conflict,
and the US is just a mediator," Bryza said.

Commenting on the current state of negotiations, Matthew Bryza said
that the process is close to reach an agreement on the basis of basic
principles proposed by the OSCE Minsk group co-chairs last year.

"These principles will be the formal essence of agreement. We hope
if the presidents reach an agreement on the basic principles soon,
it will be followed by intensive stage of negotiations when the
final peace treaty will be debated. In other words, basic principles
are the main terms of these negotiations. These main principles
envisage withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from the five regions
adjacent to Nagorno Karabakh, returning them to Azerbaijan, deploying
peacekeepers and brining IDPs back to their original places. The
negotiations on the conditions of releasing of Kalbajar and Lachin
still continue. We are close to the agreement on this issue. The
principles also cover providing corridor uniting Nagorno Karabakh and
Armenia that will be used for trade and civil purposes. Following this,
the status of Nagorno Karabakh will be determined by negotiations
and referendum. Azerbaijan is against using the word referendum,
as it contradicts the country’s constitution. Therefore, we continue
negotiations for holding elections," he said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

L.A. MAYOR SAYS TO ‘NEVER FORGET’ ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

San Diego Union Tribune, CA
April 26 2007

LOS ANGELES – Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called Tuesday for Americans
to "never forget" the deaths of up to 1.5 million Armenians at the
end of the Ottoman empire, an event widely considered by scholars to
be the first genocide of the 20th Century.

"As mayor of America’s pre-eminent Armenian community, I urge all
Angelenos to reflect not only on the vast scale and ruthlessness of
the genocide, but on the horror of the global silence under which it
took place," Villaraigosa said in a statement.

"Today, I urge Angelenos to simply never forget," he said.

Armenians were killed between 1915 and 1919 in what is now eastern
Turkey. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying that
the toll has been inflated and that those killed were victims of
civil war and unrest.

Demonstrators marking the anniversary of the killings marched through
Hollywood and a rally was held later at the Turkish Consulate on
Wilshire Boulevard.

Both protests were peaceful, police said.

TURKEY ‘WARNED’ CANADA, US AGAINST USING TERM ‘GENOCIDE’

Assyrian International News Agency

April 26 2007

Turkey warned Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper last week not
to issue an April 24 declaration where the incidents of 1915 are
defined as genocide. The Canadian Parliament recognized the Armenian
Genocide and Harper became one of the few heads of state to use the
word "genocide" in his written statement during 2006.

Wary of these genocide claims spreading to other countries including
the United States, Turkey is trying hard to block efforts by the
Armenian Diaspora in almost every country in the world.

Canadian Prime Minister Harper was warned through diplomatic channels
last week that "repeating these claims annually will not help in
normalizing Turkey-Armenia relations and will harm Turkish-Canadian
bilateral relations as well." "We hope that the Canadian PM will not
repeat this year what he did last year," a high-level Foreign Ministry
official said, the Turkish Daily News reports.

Ankara made the same diplomatic attempt with the United States before
April 24 where President George W. Bush also issues a declaration.

Turkish officials said Ankara is not expecting Bush to use the word
genocide. U.S. presidents prefer to define the incidents in 1915 as
a massacre.

Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper made a statement in connection
with the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. "Today we recall
the horrible losses of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire, particularly
the terrible tragedy of the Armenian nation. Last year I reminded,
the both chambers of Canadian Parliament adopted a resolution that
recognizes the first genocide of the 20th century. This day makes us
remember why we should do everything possible to guarantee rule of
human rights and democratic freedoms in our times. Today Canadians
with Armenian and Turkish descent live side by side and share values
of tolerance. We hope Armenia and Turkey will guide themselves with
those values in order to develop their relations. Together with you
we recall the past and share your hopes for building the future based
on peace and mutual respect," said Steven Harper in his statement.

George W. Bush failed to define the events of 1915 as genocide in
his annual April 24 statement.

CHAIRMAN OF AN AZERBAIJANI PARTY SAYS ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ACHIEVED COUNTER RESULT IN ISSUE ON MOVING AMENDMENTS INTO U. S. PREPARED REPORT

TREND News Agency, Azerbaijan
April 26 2007

Azerbaijan, Baku/ Trend , corr. A. Ismayilova/ George W. Bush, the
President of U. S. A. did not use the word – "genocide" again during
his annual message to the Congress held on April 24. He once more
prefered using the folowing expresion – "We honour the memory of
victims of one of the largest tragedies of 20 century, when almost
1.5 mln. Armenians died during the last years of the existing of the
Ottoman Empire, when many of them became victims of massacres and
forcible resettlement".

Asim Mollazadeh, the Chairman of the Azerbaijan Democratic Reforms
Party, considers that this step taken by President Bush spoke about the
fact that U. S. perfectly realized that the country’s acknowledging
the so-called "genocide" might seriously blow on cooperation with
the American strategic partner – Turkey.

Therefore, as compared with the position of some American congressmen,
the position of the U. S. Administration has always based upon the
national interests of U. S. A only.

Touching making alterations to the human rights report prepared by
the U. S. State Department, Mr. Mollazadeh said that it should not
affect mutual strategic relations between Azerbaijan and U. S. A ,
since we were strategic partners. According to him, the attempt to
organize a campaign on one’s own and use this fact was the key role
in the issue on making changes into this report.

The behavior and actions taken by the Armenian Acting Foreign Minister,
Vardan Oskanian was a vivid example to it. Mr. Oskanian has always
tried to play this event as a possibility of Armenia’s political
influence on taking decisions both in the U. S. State Department and
America as a whole.

The Chairman of the Azerbaijani Party notes that as a result of all
these, Mr. Oskanian has achieved a counter result by his behavior,
and U. S. A. once more stated that they acknowledge the territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan.

However, a political analyst, Zardusht Alizadeh considers that the
American ultimate goal is to redeem Armenia from Russia. "Official
Washington states that it acknowledges the territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan, but we should base upon the facts, not words," considers
Mr. Alizadeh. According to him, America financially, morally, as well
as politically, psychologically, and militarily maintains Armenia.

MOORE WON’T EXPLAIN ARMENIAN GENOCIDE ‘FLIP-FLOP’

Lawrence Journal World, KS
April 26 2007

Here are today’s headlines from the Kansas congressional delegation:

Rep. Dennis Moore (D)

(Politico.com) Pols sidestep debate over Armenian genocide: Beginning
in 1915, more than 1.5 million Armenians died when the Ottoman
government forced the relocation of the population. President Bush
has a reason not to call it genocide: That would anger the Turkish
government, an ally and a Muslim democracy which has threatened to
revoke permission for the U.S. to use an important air base over
the issue, among other repercussions. Resolutions recognizing and
condemning the genocide have been introduced in both the House and
the Senate, and the administration is vigorously opposing them. And
Turkey’s lobbying prowess has already forced four co-sponsors to
back off the bill. Rep. Dennis Moore (D-Kan.) also supported the
resolution before he withdrew as a co-sponsor. His office said he had
"no official comment" on the flip-flop.

[Other Congressional debates parts omitted]

‘FOCUS ON RECENT ATROCITIES’

News24, South Africa
April 26 2007

Los Angeles – Director Steven Spielberg’s Shoah Foundation is to
expand beyond a focus on the Holocaust to document survivor memories
from more recent atrocities, USA Today reported on Tuesday.

Until now, the foundation started by Spielberg has focused on recording
the statements of Holocaust survivors and has collected more than 52
000 interviews.

The foundation will continue to record those oral histories, but will
also turn its attention to recording eye-witness reports of genocide
in Rwanda and Cambodia, as well as stories of life under apartheid
in South Africa.

"The obligation to remember is a moral responsibility that all of us
owe to all of those who have suffered violence and racism in the modern
world, whether they are Jew or Armenians or Cambodians or Rwandans
or Darfuris," said Douglas Greenberg, executive director of the Shoah
Foundation Institute at the University of Southern California.

‘Never forget’

Spielberg said the organisation was dedicated to applying the mantra
"never forget" to more recent acts of genocide and oppression.

"Now we ask ourselves: How do we make this vision a priority in
communities all across the world?" Spielberg said.

Spielberg created the foundation after finishing his Oscar-winning
film Schindler’s List nearly 14 years ago, saying he was overwhelmed
by the personal stories he heard from Holocaust survivors after the
movie came out.

STUDENTS URGE THE WORLD TO STOP GENOCIDE
By Tony Kim
Star-Banner

Ocala.com, FL
Central Florida Community College
April 26 2007

Class learns firsthand from families touched by 1915 slaughter of
Armenians.

OCALA – On the 92nd anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian
genocide, two words resonated through the minds of 150 sophomores at
Forest High School: Stop genocide.

Students in Lela Kerley’s 10th-grade world history class spent the
past five weeks studying various cases of genocide and prejudice in
the 20th and 21st centuries.

The section culminated Tuesday when students – many of them wearing
homemade "Stop Genocide" T-shirts – heard the testimonies of two
Armenian men whose parents escaped the massacre.

"They still have to learn from people like me to learn what went on
over there," said Azad Merian, one of the founders of the Armenian
American Cultural Society in Ocala. "When one brings one form of harm,
someone tries for better, and that’s how genocide starts."

The Turkish government still refuses to call the massacre an act of
genocide or issue an apology to the Armenians, he said.

"You shouldn’t go away with the impression that Turkish people are
bad," Merian told the students. "It’s the position of the government
that we are protesting."

Merian and Richard Balian, vice president of the Armenian American
Cultural Society, told the students about how their parents escaped
from Turkey to America, and how they continue to have nightmares of
the horrors they saw.

Merian praised the students for their T-shirts, with messages such
as, "Say Nay 2 Genocide," and encouraged them to be active against
prejudice and violence.

"You want freedom?" he asked. "Then you need to stop genocide."

Many students said that prior to the talk and their history class,
they did not know about the atrocities suffered by the Armenian people.

"I just heard about the Holocaust and Hitler," said Justin Larkin,
16. "I never knew about the Armenian genocide. I feel sorry for it."

In addition to discussions, reading materials and video presentations,
the students reflected on the prejudices they have experienced –
and have had – in their own lives, Kerley said.

"We’ve been writing in journals about times we’ve been stereotyped
or dealt with people that don’t think the same way we do," she said.

"They’ve also been watching video on the Armenian genocide, one of
the first genocidal acts in the 20th century."

Students also learned about crises that have occurred or are still
occurring in other parts of the world, such as Cambodia and Rwanda,
she said.

"We hear things on the media and sound bites, and [the students] know
that Brad Pitt is involved with Sudan, but they don’t know what’s
going on in Sudan," she said.

After studying genocide in class, student Brandy Juliana said she
feels she can help raise awareness about the crisis happening today
in Sudan’s Darfur region.

"We talked about it, and we learned about it," she said.

"Now we’re taking action," she added, referring to the T-shirts
calling attention to the issue. "It takes more than a person. It’s
an entire nation that needs to step up and do something about it."

Photo: Forest High School sophomores Heather Buss, left, 16, and
Chelsey Moore, 16, react Tuesday to a story of atrocities against
Armenians.

ERICA BROUGH/STAR-BANNER

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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

LA MAYOR SAYS TO ‘NEVER FORGET’ ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

KNX1070, CA
April 26 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA (AP) — LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called for
Americans to "never forget" the deaths of up to 1.5 million Armenians
at the end of the Ottoman empire

Marking the killings yesterday, Villaraigosa said he urged "all
Angelenos to reflect not only on the vast scale and ruthlessness of
the genocide, but on the horror of the global silence under which it
took place."

Also yesterday, demonstrators marched through Hollywood and held a
rally at the Turkish Consulate on Wilshire Boulevard.

The Armenians were killed between 1915 and 1919 in what is now eastern
Turkey. The event is widely considered by scholars to be the first
genocide of the 20th Century.

Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying that the toll
has been inflated and that those killed were victims of civil war
and unrest.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NEW NUCLEAR PLANT IN ARMENIA
By M. Alkhazashvili
(Translated by Diana Dundua)

The Messenger, Georgia
April 26 2007

Armenia’s Soviet-era Metzamor nuclear power plant, similar in design
to Chernobyl’s nuclear power station, is scheduled to close in 2016.

Armenia is considering building a new nuclear facility to meet the
countries electricity needs.

The current nuclear power station generates half of the electricity
consumed in the country. The station consists of two reactors with
a capacity of 815 MWe (Mega-Watt electrical). After a devastating
1988 earthquake in Armenia, the nuclear power plant was closed but
the second reactor, with a 407.5 MWe capacity, re-opened in 1995.

In 2003, the nuclear power station was handed over to Russian RAOES
to manage for a five-year term to help pay off Armenia’s debts.

According to the Armenian deputy energy minister, Armenia’s
hydroelectric and wind resources will be able to satisfy only 30-35
percent of the country’s internal demands.

If Armenia wants to construct a new nuclear power station, it must
begin at once because construction will take approximately ten years.

Currently, the appropriate legislation is being prepared.

Approximately USD 2 billion will be spent on constructing the new
nuclear power station, which will have a capacity of 1000 MWe,
reports the news agency Regnum.