Month: April 2007

MARXIST PARTY NOT LEFT OUT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY RACE

ArmRadio.am
23.04.2007 17:52

The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of Armenia took the decision
not to stop the participation of the Marxist Party of Armenia in the
parliamentary elections.

The given issue was included on the agenda of the CEC session after
April 14, when the Leader of MPA David Hakobyan let majoritarian
candidate Tatul Manaserian use the free air time, allocated for him,
which is a violation of the Electoral Code of the country.

The leader of the Marxist Party David Hakobyan noted during the session
"he did not know that he was violating the law, and he will agree
to any decision the Commission takes, as he always highly assessed
the work of the given body and does not question the lawfulness of
its actions."

CEC President Garegin Azaryan stated that this time the Commission
will not apply sanctions against MPA, as this is the first case of
legislation violation by the given party. However, next time the
commission will have to turn to the court with a suit on cessation of
the participation of the Marxist Party in the parliamentary elections.
From: Baghdasarian

FIRED FOR SAYING THE WORD "GENOCIDE"

LAist, California
April 24 2007

John Marshall Evans became the US ambassador to Armenia in August
2004. Six months later he visited California and was convinced by
Armenian-Americans here to cut the political B.S. and simply say that
the 1.5 million Armenians who were the victims of genocide at the hands
of the Turks from 1915 and 1923… were indeed victims of genocide.

Today President Bush will tapdance around the word in fear of insulting
our ally Turkey, a country that is critical in our actions in the
Middle East. Infact over the last 13 years on April 24, ridiculously
but officially dubbed "National Day of Remembrance of Man’s Inhumanity
to Man", US Presidents acknowledge the Armenian tragedy without ever
saying the G-word. Whereas most of the EU recognizes the genocide,
Switzerland and France have taken it to the next level making it a
crime to deny the genocide.

Ambassador Evans’ crime was saying the word. In a interview with the
LA Times today, he explains that because no one ever really said the
word he didn’t really know what the punishment would be.

Clearly when I was here in February 2005, I knew that by mentioning
this word, I could get myself in trouble. I didn’t know precisely
what the degree of that trouble would be, but I knew that it could
range from a slap on the wrist to being immediately canned. And as it
turned out it was something between those extremes: I got more than
a mere slap on the wrist, I wasn’t immediately canned. I basically
was eased out after about 18 months, although I had more time on my
clock. […] I was basically asked to go ahead and retire.

The entire interview with the Times’ Matt Welch is fascinating, as is
Welch’s piece on Sunday explaining the dilemma President Bush faces
today as to how he will approach the G-word.

We’re sure the president will handle it as gracefully as he normally
does when slamdancing with the English language.

4/fired_for_saying_the_word_genocide.php

TWO AND A HALF YEARS IN PRISON FOR EDITOR WHO "INSULTED" AZERBAIJANIS
Source: Reporters Without Borders

Nieuwsbank , Netherlands
April 23 2007

Voicing concern about the growing number of press freedom violations in
Azerbaijan, Reporters Without Borders today called for the immediate
release of Eynulla Fatullayev, the editor of the weekly Realny
Azerbaijan and of the daily Gundelik Azerbaijan, who was given a
two-and-a-half year jail term by the Yasamal district court in Baku
on 20 April for "defaming" and "insulting" Azerbaijanis in an article
about murders of Azeris in Hojali town of Nagorno Karabakh. He was
taken off to prison at the end of the court hearing.

Fatullayev was already convicted of libel in 2002, when he was fined
10,000 euros. He used to be deputy editor of the Monitor, a weekly
known for criticising President Ilham Aliev’s government. Its founder
and editor, Elmar Huseynov, was murdered on 2 March 2005.

Uzeir Jafarov, a journalist with Gundelik Azerbaijan, was attacked
and beaten by two men as he was returning to his car after the 20
April court hearing. He said he recognised one of his assailants as
someone who had attended the Fatullayev trial.

AZERBAIJANI AND S. KOREAN PRESIDENTS HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
April 23 2007

Azerbaijani and Korean presidents Ilham Aliyev and Roh Moon–hyun
held a press conference after the documents were signed, APA reports
quoting Azertaj state agency.

Korean president said they are interested in the expansion of economic
relations and relations in applying new technologies.

"We are implementing joint projects in Azerbaijan in non-oil sector, as
well as in the spheres of transport, agriculture, energy, information
technologies, humanitarian and other spheres," the president said.

Azerbaijani president mentioned that terms on economic, political,
cultural cooperation are reflected in the joint statement of the two
presidents. Ilham Aliyev thanked Korean president for his position
in the justice solution to the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. The head of state spoke about the economic growth of our
country and favorable conditions created for foreign investors in
Azerbaijan President Aliyev responding to the journalists stressed
that there is a good condition in Azerbaijan for the participation of
Korean businessmen in the fields of energy, information technology,
infrastructure and other projects and also informed them of our
country’s oil and gas sectors.

Korean President said they are interested in oil development
of Azerbaijan’s Inam field in the Caspian Sea, and reminded that
negotiations have been carried out on it. He said that working group is
established for the expansion of bilateral relations with Azerbaijan.

President Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan is interested in the
cooperation with Korean companies and it is ready to the expansion
of cooperation in the fields of energy, transport, agriculture,
information technology. He said that the negotiations are being
carried out on Inam field and expressed confidence in the achievement
of positive results.

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
April 23 2007

OSCE MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS MAKE JOINT STATEMENT

OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs has made a joint statement on the meeting
of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Vartan Oskanian,
and Azerbaijan, Elmar Mammadyarov, in Belgrade on April 18 under the
aegis of the three Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Ambassador
Yuri Merzlyakov (Russia), Ambassador Bernard Fassier (France), and
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Bryza (USA) – and in the
presence of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman in Office,
Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, APA reports.

"The Co-Chairs facilitated a constructive and forward-looking
discussion between the foreign ministers, who continued to embrace
the Basic Principles proposed by the mediators as the foundation for
the negotiations. The foreign ministers and the mediators have driven
the process very close to a point at which Armenian President Robert
Kocharian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will have to assess
these principles.

The Co-Chairs plan to visit the region in late May in order to explore
with each president the idea of an additional summit between them
that could mark an endpoint for negotiations on basic principles and
a starting point for a process to develop a comprehensive settlement
agreement, based on those principles, that will pave the way for
enduring peace and stability in the region.

As always, the co-chairs continue to stress the important role that
the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan must play to prepare their
societies for peace. They urge both sides to engage actively in
confidence-building measures that will help build trust between them,"
the statement concludes.

ARMENIA: ‘EVERY ARMENIAN KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED TO THEIR ANCESTORS’
Harry Tamrazian

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Czech Republic
April 23 2007

On April 24, Armenians around the world will commemorate the 92nd
anniversary of the mass killings and deportations of Armenians by
Ottoman Turks. Armenians refer to this chapter in their history as
genocide — a term the Turks firmly reject. The issue has strained
relations and closed the border between the two countries. RFE/RL’s
Armenian Service director Harry Tamrazian gives his perspectives on
the issue. The views are his own and do not represent those of RFE/RL.

"To be Armenian and not know what happened in 1915 is unimaginable.

Every Armenian, wherever they are in the world, knows what happened
to their ancestors at the beginning of the 20th century. And every
Armenian knows that almost the entire Armenian population in Turkey
was lost because of an extremist, ethnocentric policy carried out by
the government of the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

The issue will not go away. Armenians will not give up or compromise
on their tragedy, which they firmly believe was a genocide.

For the Armenian government, the fact that Turkey refuses to
acknowledge the extent of the mass killings is disturbing. They still
consider Turkey to be the biggest security threat for the country.

Yerevan believes that that threat could be eliminated if Ankara
recognizes the Armenian genocide.

There have been hopeful signs in Turkey in recent months. More and
more Turkish intellectuals and academics have come forward to publicly
challenge their government’s stance on the issue, some calling for
open debate. Turkish writer and Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk has been
one of the most prominent and outspoken. He has said that over 1
million Armenians were killed in Turkey and no one wants to talk
about it. He was charged by the Turkish authorities for insulting
Turkishness under Article 301 of the penal code, but the charges were
subsequently dropped.

Many hoped that things would change after the killing of
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. Thousands of Turks took to
the streets to express their anger, chanting ‘We are all Hrant Dink,
we are all Armenians.’ Many saw the outpouring of emotion as a sign
that the reconciliation process had begun. But the Turkish government
has not capitalized on that historic moment. Article 301, which makes
it illegal to criticize Turkishness or the Turkish government, still
remains on the books.

Opening up the Armenian-Turkish border could be the most positive
and effective step toward reconciliation. Unfortunately Ankara still
refuses to consider the move, despite pressure from Washington and
Brussels. The border remains untouched, a relic of the Cold War.

Armenians still hope that one day Turkey will recognize their
tragedy. This year in Paris, Armenians and Turks jointly commemorated
the anniversary of the genocide. More than two dozens French-Armenians
and French-Turks laid flowers on the monument of the great Armenian
composer Komitas, who, for many, has come to symbolize the suffering
endured by the Armenians."

TWO-YEAR BAN FOR LIFTER

Melbourne Herald Sun, Australia
April 23 2007

DUAL Commonwealth Games weightlifting gold medallist Aleksan Karapetyan
has been suspended for two years for using a banned substance.

Armenian-born Karapetyan, nicknamed the "Big Gorilla", tested positive
to the stimulant benzylpiperazine (BZP) in a competition in the US
in June 2005.

However Karapetyan, 36, will be able to keep the gold medal he won
in the 94kg competition at the Commonwealth Games last year because
he tested clean at that event.

He is the fifth Australian weightlifter suspended for testing positive
to BZP.

TURKEY’S TROUBLES AND CHANCES SURROUNDING THE ENERGY STRATEGY
Ahmet Turker

Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
April 23 2007

Turkey’s energy strategy designed as a "hub" and/or "market (trader)"
is not an easy goal to achieve. Being a rather stable country in an
unstable region, passing through transitions to be a European country,
geopolitics are all have positive impacts on this strategy.

However, are these political and diplomatic parameters are enough to
make Turkey a strategic energy corridor?

Maybe the question is wrong. After all, with its gas and oil pipelines,
Turkey is already an energy corridor. But turning this into a strategic
asset requires more than steel pipes and ports.

Turkey, among other countries in the region, is not free of problems.

These problems may constitute a big obstacle in front of EU membership
which may only happen in the very long run.

This also depends what Turks and Europeans understand from being a
"European country". If it is based on economic integration, Turkey’s
energy strategy and its growing population (and domestic market)
is an advantage to EU. But if we understand a "social integration"
as well, that may take some time.

So, the economic and social parameters are the tides for Turkey’s
EU membership. No decision is easy for both sides. But energy and
energy security may play a great deal in this decisive process in
the following years.

Turkey’s huge experience with terrorism and number of experiences with
externally inflicted instabilities is a chance for Turkey in this
unstable region. Being a NATO member and getting on fine -not well-
with the problematic Bush government is also the country’s success.

Of course, one can argue that Turkey had no choice but to be a NATO
member during the cold war era and US’s influence on Turkey as the
dominant foreign effect on the country, but this doesn’t change the
fact that Turkey is a Muslim NATO member and has started membership
process with EU.

Turkey does not have any significant hydrocarbon resources of itself.

It is Iran, Turkmenistan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan or Iraq that
will be using the Turkish corridor. Most of these countries are not
stable, democratic regimes which is a trouble for the corridor, but
their reserves and willingness to have alternative ways for accessing
world markets are a chance for Turkey

Recently, Financial Times reported that Iraq’s reserves may be 100bn
barrels more according to IHS, well known for their CERA. These
reserves, if happens to be easily extractable and profitable may also
be a chance for Turkey, too. But can we talk about an Iraqi security
regardless of Syria and Iran?

Syria and Iran, being neighbors of Turkey, are problematic too. Any
instability caused in these countries may well be harmful to Turkey’s
regional security. US has not achieved control in Iraq and seems
like failing.

These countries are essential for Turkey’s and Iraq’s security. So
it is not only internal stability that adds value to Turkey’s energy
strategy, but these countries development and opening to the world
is essential. Iran for example is losing power due to underinvestment
in the energy sector.

On the other hand, Turkey is badly affected by Iraq war during Bush
Senior and now Bush Junior. Turks welcoming of the Iraqi Kurds during
Saddam’s chemical attack on them has been a one-sided friendship
towards the pragmatist Kurds. This is also the curse of the whole
region; the leaders thinking themselves wiser than the others fail
to make up long term good relations.

However, Turkey once again may change this, if it is really a major
power in the region. A stable pipeline transit between these areas
and Turkey will transform both sides. The challenge is how to bank
the selfish pragmatism of these tribal leaders in favour of Turkey
and avoiding any one sided -from Turkey’s side- "brother" rhetoric.

In the Caucasus, BTC pipeline is a great success, but how much of
this is Turkey’s or major oil companys’ may be disputed. But the
BTC’s success has also woken up the bear for a move. Burgas-Dedeagac
(Alexandropolis) pipeline is a small but a "should be watched
carefully" Russian counter move.

Burgas-Dedeagac is also a chance for relieveing the highly
crowded Bosporus, but what about the Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline? The
oil transferred is in control of Russia and with the choice of
Burgas-Dedeagac, Russia showed that it’s reluctance for Samsun-Ceyhan.

Turkey’s other chance is Azerbaijan, or we should say Azerbaijan’s
chance is Turkey and of course Georgia. Unfortunately, Armenia is the
common problem for both countries. But Azerbaijan has a rapidly growing
economy and has nearly the same language with Turks of Anatolia.

As Azerbaijan being a chance for Turkey, it will not be an exaggeration
to condemn Turkish political and diplomatic circles of not giving
enough importance to this "relative" country. If Turkey has given the
same importance of Northern Cyprus and Armenian problem to Azerbaijan
and Kazakhstan, the energy strategy may have been designed in a more
multilateral and beneficial way for both three countries.

It should be emphasized that with this strategy Turkey should enjoy
more foreign direct investment and petrodollars as well as cultural
richness of these countries. Unfortunately, who will do this? It all
boils down to humans.

If the chance knocks your door and if there is no one inside or if
everyone is busy for another thing to welcome the chance, the chances
may be wasted. The geopolitical chance needs man power to be welcomed.

Even the discussions of Kyoto agreement has been reduced to merely
signing or not signing the agreement instead of a progressive plan
to get ready for signing the agreement. Public has not been preached
wholly other than "signing will harm our economy".

So, how many diplomats, "real" energy specialists, energy departments,
research and development efforts is going on in Turkey?

In the hands of international relations experts, the chances will
be wasted within the realist and liberalist competition. Turkey
needs more economists, energy law experts, energy specialists and
environmental scientists.

Saying more is even an underestimation, playing energy politics in a
region of instability, Putin nationalism and insecurity needs a lot
of experts those whole heartedly knows the dynamics of the region and
energy. Without this man power, Turkey’s energy strategy will only be
a lucky or damned boat swimming through the tides of chance and curse.

This commentary is from USAK’s Energy Review Newsletter

ARMENIA/TURKEY: STILL DIVIDED ON GENOCIDE, BUT SIGNS OF WARMING
By Luke Allnutt

Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty, Czech Republic –
April 23 2007

PRAGUE, April 23, 2007 (RFE/RL) — Armenians around the world
are commemorating the 92nd anniversary of the mass killings and
deportations of Armenians by Ottoman Turks.

Armenians refer to this chapter in their history as genocide —
a term the Turks firmly reject.

It’s an issue that continues to blight relations between Armenia
and Turkey. The two countries do not have diplomatic relations and
the 268-kilometer border between the two countries has been closed
since 1993.

Armenians say that Turks killed up to 1.5 millions Armenians in 1915-18
as the Ottoman Empire was beginning to crumble. Turks say the killings
were part of the wider conflict of World War I, and that only 300,000
Armenians died.

Global Recognition

Today, the controversy has gone global, with a number of countries
debating whether the killings can be called genocide — the deliberate
and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group.

Many countries, including Russia, and Canada, have passed legislation
recognizing the killings as genocide. In France, the courts can
impose a one-year prison term and a fine of about $64,000 for anyone
found guilty of denying the genocide — the same penalty for denying
the Holocaust.

‘I think we should live in the present, since there are more important
issues, real issues, today.’In the United States, the Congress —
dominated by the opposition Democrats — has endorsed a bill to
officially recognize the Armenian killings as genocide. The bill
has met with stiff opposition from supporters of the presidential
administration, which is eager to maintain smooth ties with its NATO
ally Turkey.

But even as the genocide debate has occupied international politics,
some Armenians believe it’s time for their country to move on.

Davit Gevorgyan, a 21-year-old computer programmer from Yerevan, says
he thinks that pushing the issue of genocide is no longer appropriate.

"We should remember everything that’s happened, but we don’t need
to use that to create a certain political course. I think we should
live in the present time, since there are more important issues,
real issues, today," Gevorgyan says.

"It would be better to solve these than to devote all our energy and
efforts to those old issues. Many politicians are using the Armenian
genocide to create their political platform in Armenia and it serves
as a trump card, a way to manipulate people. They simply abuse it."

Politically Charged

But politicians in both countries aren’t likely to shift toward a
more moderate stance on the genocide issue in the months ahead.

Armenia holds parliamentary elections in May; Turkey will have
presidential and general elections this year.

A dramatic policy switch on such an emotional issue could prove
a massive political liability in a season when officials will be
fighting to hold onto votes.

Soner Cagaptay, who heads the Turkish research program of the
Washington Institute for Near East Policy in Washington, D.C., says
that "the public is as staunch, in some ways, on this issue and in
their entrenched commitments, as the politicians are."

An Armenian woman mourns the death of a boy during the deportation
(epa) Officially, Turkey has said that to establish diplomatic
relations it would require Armenia to drop its policy on seeking
recognition of the genocide internationally.

However, some Turkish politicians have said that Turkey should not
attach such preconditions to the opening of the border.

That is mirrored by recent Armenian comments. Speaking at the OSCE in
Vienna recently, Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said that
in order to normalize relations with Turkey, the Armenian side has
no preconditions and expects that Turkey should not have any either.

What complicates the issue is the powerful and wealthy Armenian
diaspora. The diaspora has huge lobbying power in the West,
particularly in the United States.

Cagaptay says that Armenia and the Armenian diaspora do not always
have the same position.

"Armenia seems to be more pro-dialogue with Turkey — unconditional
dialogue, that is. Whereas the Armenian diaspora will not start
a dialogue or a normalization of the relations unless Turkey
unconditionally recognizes there is something called the Armenian
genocide," Cagaptay says.

Another complication in relations between the two countries is
Nagorno-Karabakh, the ethnic Armenian enclave that Azerbaijan,
Turkey’s traditional ally, and Armenia fought over in the beginning
of the 1990s.

Business Links

Despite the impasse, however, there are significant business links
between the two countries.

The border, while officially closed, is quite porous in places.

Traders also travel from Armenia via Georgia to sell their goods in
Turkey. Some Armenians labor as guest workers in eastern Turkey and
there are regular flights between Yerevan and Istanbul.

Many in the business community in Armenia and Turkey have lobbied
for the border to be opened. They say it would have a huge effect in
revitalizing poor regions on both sides of the border.

Noyan Soyak from the Turkish-Armenian Business Development Council
says trade has grown significantly, from $35 million in 1997 to well
above $150 million now.

"The free flow of people, the free flow of commodities, would
definitely have a great impact on the development of the region,
of the economical development of the region," Soyak says.

In the troubled relationships between Armenia and Turkey, there have
occasionally been brief periods of hope for reconciliation.

Turkey’s earthquake in 1999 was one of them, when Armenians sent
truckloads of aid. The murder of Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant
Dink in January 2007, when tens of thousands of Turks turned out for
his funeral, was another.

Turkey also recently completed a $1.5 million restoration of an ancient
Armenian church located on an island on historic Lake Van in Turkey’s
eastern Anatolia region.

Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, called the
reconstruction a "positive" message. But a better one, suggested
Armenian Foreign Minister Oskanian, would be to open the border.

(RFE/RL’s Armenian and Azerbaijani services contributed to this
report.)

ACTIVISTS CALL FOR END TO GENOCIDE IN SUDAN
By Elbert Aull, Portland Press Herald Staff Writer

Portland Press Herald, ME
April 23 2007

Activists called for an end to violence in Sudan and remembered
millions of genocide victims worldwide during a vigil Sunday night
in Monument Square.

The vigil was one of more than 230 events planned in 150 cities
nationwide this week to draw attention to violence in Sudan’s Darfur
region.

"It is very shameful to be killed by your own government, and that
is happening to our people in Darfur," Mansour Ahmed, 40, of Portland
told a crowd of about 150 at the vigil.

Organizers with the Washington-based Save Darfur Coalition are trying
to build pressure on the Sudanese government to open its doors to an
international peacekeeping force.

The campaign comes after more than four years of violence in western
Sudan that began when local tribes rebelled against the Arab-led
government.

The Sudanese government is accused of backing Arab Janjaweed militias
that have terrorized villagers in Darfur ever since, killing an
estimated 200,000 to 400,000.

Members of Portland’s Fur community, the largest tribe in Darfur,
said they are skeptical of the Khartoum government’s recent agreement
to allow a United Nations peacekeeping force into the region.

The latest go-ahead comes after the government spent months
sidestepping its initial agreement to a hybrid U.N.-and-African Union
peacekeeping force.

Officials in Khartoum gave the United Nations approval to send an
international force into the region last week.

The Sudanese government first agreed to the hybrid force in November.

"They’re not committed to the peacekeeping agreement," Niemat Ahmadi
said.

Ahmadi, who came to the United States recently to lobby for action
in Darfur, said the Sudanese government has failed to protect its
citizens, so the U.N. shouldn’t need its permission to enter with a
peacekeeping force.

Other Fur community members said the international community should
tighten its financial grip on Sudan’s leaders, freezing their assets
if necessary, to force them to accept a peacekeeping force without
further delays.

"We need immediate intervention to protect the civilians there,"
said Portland’s Ahmed.

Sunday’s vigil honored genocide victims and survivors worldwide.

Abraham Peck, director of the Academic Council for Post-Holocaust
Christian, Jewish, and Islamic Studies at the University of Southern
Maine, called the survivors of past genocides, and their descendents,
members of a "sorority and fraternity of death."

"All together, they total 265 million human beings. It’s a shame.

It’s a disgrace," Peck said.

Representatives of Portland’s Armenian, Jewish and Rwandan communities
spoke to the crowd as their candles flickered and wax dripped to
the pavement.

Suleiman Nsenga, 29, who came to Portland from Rwanda, where
inter-tribal conflict escalated to the level of genocide in 1994,
praised the event.

"It’s beautiful, man. It’s beautiful," Nsenga said of the crowd.

The Associated press contributed to this report.