Month: May 2008

PARLIAMENT SPEAKER TOROSIAN TO LEAVE FOR STRASBOURG

ARMENPRESS
May 20, 2008

YEREVAN, MAY 20, ARMENPRESS: Parliament Speaker Tigran Torosian
will leave for Strasbourg to participate in the meeting of European
parliaments chairpersons.

The parliament press office told Armenpress that the meeting, scheduled
for May 22-23, will discuss topics on parliaments and civil societies,
national parliaments and the Council of Europe, democracy, human
rights and rule of law.

On the sidelines of the conference Tigran Torosian is expected to meet
with PACE Chairman Luis Maria de Puigi, Council of Europe Secretary
General Terry Davis, Marios Garoyan, chairman of the Cyprus Parliament,
as well as with Bogdan Borusevitzc, chairman of Polish Senate.

CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on May 20, 2008
Armenia

Maud de Byor-Boukikio, Deputy Secretary General of the Council
of Europe, had an impression from yesterday’s meeting with senior
officials that there has been a considerable progress towards the
compliance with the proposals of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe, the Ago Group of the Council of Europe Committee
of Ministers and the European Commissioner for Human Rights, and
the implementation of the proposals which are currently on the table
follows the right procedures.

The proposals of the European structure became the main topic of
the discussions held in Yerevan with the participation of the CoE
Deputy Secretary General. In a briefing organized after the meeting
with Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandyan, she mentioned that the body
investigating the March 1 events should be independent and transparent;
the discussions and developments taking place in Yerevan in this
connection are in harmony with the approaches of the Council of Europe.

PRESIDENT SERZH SARKISIAN RECEIVES SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC’S NEW AMBASSADOR

ARMENPRESS
May 20, 2008

YEREVAN, MAY 20, ARMENPRESS: Andres Venter, South African Republic’s
new ambassador to Armenia (seated in Kiev, Ukraine), handed today
his credentials to Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian.

The presidential press service told Armenpress that the president
congratulated the new ambassador on his new appointment noting that
Armenia emphasizes development of relationships with African continent
countries and with the South African Republic in particular.

Serzh Sarkisian assessed highly South African Republic’s balanced
position over a set of Armenia-related issues within international
organizations.

The new ambassador said he noticed many issues in the Armenian
government’s program which are peculiar also to his country. He said
having similar issues helps countries to better understand each other
and it may serve also as a good basis for future cooperation.

In President Serzh Sarkisian’s opinion, if there are common approaches,
there should be common interests and common edges of cooperation. In
this sense he stressed the importance of mutual visits and exchange
of diverse information between the two countries, which will allow
to outline the areas of possible cooperation.

According to the Armenian president, the small Armenian community
in the South African Republic may serve as a unique link between the
two countries.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IS THIS THE RIGHT TIME?

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published On May 20, 2008
Armenia

Leader of "Heritage" party Raffi Hovhannisyan invited the leaders
of the coalition parties – Serge Sargsyan, Gagik Tsarukyan, Arthur
Baghdasaryan, Armen Rustamyan and Levon Ter-Petrosyan for a "very
important discussion".

"Based on the imperative of Armenia’s endangered authority, its
democratic progressive future, the freedom and dignity of each citizen,
I invite you for a late but still indispensable discussion," Raffi
Hovhannisyan underscored in his letter.

The leader of "Heritage" party proposes to organize the discussion
in Armenian Center of Strategic and National Research.

URGENT PROPOSAL OF DISCUSSION PRESENTED TO THE AUTHORITIES AND OPPOSITION

AZG Armenian Daily
21/05/2008

Local

Chairman of "Jarangutyun" party Raffi Honhannissian made a statement
that invites heads of the coalition parties Serge Sargsian, Gagik
Tsarukian, Arthur Baghdasarian and Armen Rustamian and one of the
previous presidential candidates Levon Ter-Petrosian for an urgent
discussion taking into consideration "the damaged reputation of
Armenia, and preservation of its democratic leading future and freedom
and dignity of its each citizen".

The leader of the party offers to hold the discussion on May 21 in
the Armenian Center of Strategic and National Research.

INSURANCE COMPANY ‘HSBC BANK ARMENIA’ TO SPECIALIZE ON LIFE INSURANCE

arminfo
2008-05-20 14:33:00

ArmInfo. Insurance company will mainly specialize on life insurance,
chief executive director of Tim Slator said at the press-conference
when replying at ArmInfo correspondent’s question.

He also added that specific terms of this company entering the
insurance market is defined by introduction of relevant legislative
basis. ‘We shall start insurance when Central Bank confirms necessary
standards including those regarding pension insurance’, – he said.

Tim Slator said earlier that ‘HSBC Bank Armenia’ will enter Armenian
insurance market in 2009.

To recall, today 10 insurance companies are functioning in Armenia,
but none of them deal with life insurance.

THE "TARGET" – NATIONAL VALUES AND HUMAN EMOTIONS
By Hasmik Haroutiunian

AZG Armenian Daily
21/05/2008

Culture

"I remember, the audience kept silence after the premiere of the
film. Then one of the soldiers approached me, shook my hand and said,
"Thank you. Now I understood for what I fought". These words were the
best appraisal of my film", says film-director Shavarsh Vardanian,
who is one of the active participants of 1988 movement. He made films
of Khodzalu, Shahumian and Shushi liberation battles during Artsakh
war to tell the future generations about the heroism and victorious
spirit of the Armenian people.

"The others took up arms to go to war; my weapon was my camera".

In "Tirakh" (Target) film shot in 2000 Shavarsh Vardanian comments on
the struggle for existence in Artsakh with the eyes of documentalist
and a man who took part in the war.

It seems that the film is an autobiography but in the background we
see the battle-field, the disaster of the war and the marriage of
the hero as a call of new life at the end of the film.

JUDICIAL ENQUIRY ON VARDAN JHANGIRIAN’S CASE STARTS

Noyan Tapan

Ma y 20, 2008

YEREVAN, MAY 20, NOYAN TAPAN. The judicial enquiry on case against
Vardan Jhangirian accused of using dangerous violence to a power
representative started on May 19 at Yerevan Criminal Court. The
defendant, who is the brother of Gagik Jhangirian, the former RA Deputy
Prosecutor General, was walking on crutches. The court rejected the
defence party’s mediation on the withdrawal of the judge presiding
over at the sitting, as, according to the defence party, when making
a decision to fix a judicial enquiry the court committed a number of
violations, as well as "did not notice many violations committed by the
preliminary examination body, therefore, it cannot be impartial." The
court postponed examination of the the defence party’s mediations to
change the arrest chosen as a restraint, to invite the defendant’s
brother, Gagik Jhangirian, to the court as a witness.

According to the bill of indictment, on February 23, at about 23:00,
Vardan Jhangirian did not obey the demand of the Police group on
getting out of a car in the Argavand part of Yerevan-Etchmiadzin
highway, made resistance and used dangerous violence to a power
representative.

Rafik Muradian, aggrieved party on the case, started testifying. The
court sustained the defence party’s mediation to give time for
preparing the questions to be asked to the aggrieved party, and
postponed the judicial enquiry until May 26. Parallel with the sitting,
as well as during the trials, a great number of people had gathered
near the court building, voicing "Freedom!," "Free, Independent
Armenia!," "We Will Win!.

Two other cases scheduled in Yerevan Criminal Court did not take
place. The case against Gevorg Ghazarian and Vahagn Haroyan accused
of mass disorders and involvement in it failed due to the lawyer’s
illness, and the case against former freedom-fighter Nver Stepanian
accused of mass disorders failed due to giving time to the lawyer
from the Public Defender’s Office.

The cases’ examination is fixed for May 23 and 30, respectively.

The judicial enquiry on the case against former freedom-fighter
Khachik Gasparian accused of using not dangerous violence to
a power representative (part 1, Article 316) finished in the
general jurisdiction court of Yerevan’s Kentron and Nork-Marash
communities. Prosecutor Ashot Nadoyan insisted on the charge, mediating
to sentence the defendant to 2.5 years’ imprisonment, the defence party
will testify at the court sitting scheduled for May 22. And the stage
of witnesses’ interrogation on the case against Misak Hovakimian by
the same article started. It will continue on May 27.

TURK POLITICIAN AND JOURNALIST HOLD A HEATED DEBATE

A1+
[07:13 pm] 20 May, 2008

"Even God cannot change the past", declared Cem Toker, Turkish
politician and Leader of the Liberal-Democratic Party of Turkey
at the international conference organized by the Eurasia Foundation
Representative Office in Armenia and Analytical Center on Globalization
and Regional Cooperation.

Quite surprisingly frank ideas were heard at the conference. The Turk
politician, whose party is not included in the Turkish Parliament,
presented the process of his country’s integration into the EU. He
stated that Turkish national parties were not even willing to converse
with the representatives of European Institutions.

Toker also noted that he had been in close relations with the
assassinated Armenian journalist Hrant Dink who, having spent
his childhood with Armenians, had devoted all his life to the
democratization of Turkey.

"Turkey proudly states that 99.9% of its population are Muslims. And
where are the Armenians, Jews, Greeks? Why are they gone? Doesn’t it
mean that something is definitely wrong? You can see the investments of
the Armenian people while walking in Istambul. I am greatly displeased
with Turkey’s attitude towards Armenians", declares Toker.

Amber Zaman, a Turkish journalist, contradicted him in the description
of the current situation in Turkey.

Zaman, who introduced herself as a free journalist, is the
wife of Joseph Penington, the US temporary Charge d’Affaires in
Armenia. Mrs. Zaman stated that Turkey’s steps towards Democracy are
quite evident.

"Turkey still has much to do but it has made a great progress towards
democracy lately. Ten years ago the Kurds were imprisoned simply for
calling themselves Kurds. Whereas, today they are even allowed to have
broadcasts in their mother tongue. Besides, the capital punishment
has been abolished in my country.

You give a tough assessment of the situation, Mr. Toker", noticed
Amber Zaman.

In reply to the journalist’s views Cem Toker noted: "The abolition
of the capital punishment has nothing to do with Democracy. Does
it mean the USA is not a democratic country? As for the Kurds they
are only 30 minutes on the air." Meanwhile politician and diplomat
Davit Hovhannissian was making a report on the current state of
Armenian-Turkish relations. The politician noted that the First
President of RA Levon Ter-Petrossian carried out a very reserved and
cautious policy, taking into consideration Turkey’s attitude towards
the Genocide of 1915, whereas Robert Kocharian put the recognition
of the Armenian Genocide on the agenda of foreign relations. However,
in neither of cases did Turkey change its attitude towards Armenia.

Davit Hovhannissian also declared in his speech that the tense
relations between Armenia and Turkey were profitable for the
latter. "Firstly because it keeps Armenia out of the regional projects
and consequently Armenia’s influence in the Region is weakened.

Secondly, Turkey can use the absence of diplomatic relations and the
tension in threatening actions of diplomatic level."

OPENING CEREMONY OF DENO GOLD MINING COMPANY’S GEGHANUSH TAILING PIT TAKES PLACE

Noyan Tapan

Ma y 20, 2008

YEREVAN, MAY 20, NOYAN TAPAN. Despite the fact that the Geghanush
tailing pit of Deno Gold Mining Company (DGMC) – the former Kapan
ore mining and processing enterprise – was put into operation on
April 25, its opening ceremony took place on May 20, after solution
of some technical problems.

The director general of the enterprise Robert Faleta said that
the design solutions of the Geghanush tailing pit were developed,
taking into account the best international experience, which allows to
reduce the tailing pit’s impact on the environment to a minimum. The
construction cost about 6 million dollars and lasted two years. The
circulation system of cleaned water enables the enterprise to use
this water in the plant’s technological processes. The waste waters
will flow not into a river but back to the enterprise and will be
used again for technological purposes. So, in the words of R. Faleta,
natural resources will be saved.

The enterprise is doing large-scale geological survey in Kapan region,
and R. Faleta took the opportunity to offer the representatives of
the local authorities to get acquainted with the work done at the
north site of Shahumian mine. In all likelihood, this area will
become an open mine, and drilling work is being done there. Modern
drilling equipment has been brought from abroad, about 100 jobs have
been created. The regional governor of Syunik marz Surik Khachatrian
and the mayor of Kapan Armen Karpetian showed interest in the land
allocation agreements and land categories.

R. Faleta assured them that everything is done in accordance with
the Armenian legislation.