Month: February 2012

HALIDZOR RESIDENTS REFUSE TO SELL LAND; 1 SQUARE METER=PRICE OF 1.5 EGGS
Yeranuhi Soghoyan

HETQ
11:31, February 3, 2012

12 Halidzor residents await verdict of Constitutional Court

The land squabble pitting Halidzor village residents against the
Instate Management and Administration Company (IMAC) continues
unabated.

The brouhaha all started in 2009, when the Armenian government
declared certain village lands as eminent domain to be handed over
to the company.

12 affected residents held out. They weren’t satisfied with the land
evaluations or the company’s compensation offers.

They went to court in November, 2009, seeking to have the government’s
decision nullified.

The following March, the court found that the plaintiffs’ right to
a public examination of the issue had been violated.

In response, IMAC took the protesting village residents to court in a
separate suit lodged at the Syunik Regional Court. The company wanted
the court to force the hold-outs to sign a sales contract.

IMAC won the suit and the village defendants launched an appeal. In
December 2010, the RA Appeals Court threw out the appeal. The Halidzor
residents then took the case to the RA Court of Cassation. It too
threw out their appeal that April.

That in turn, led Karen Mezhlumyan, the attorney representing the
villagers, to take the matter to the RA Constitutional Court.

In February 2011, Armenia’s highest court found that the lower
court’s decision violated certain provisions of the Constitution
regarding the right to effective legal remedies and the restoration
of violated rights.

In November, Mezhlumyan again petitioned the Constitutional Court. The
case was accepted and an examination is scheduled for February 14.

The RA National Assembly was been named the defendant. The attorney
is arguing that Article 198, Part 3, of the RA Civil Code is
unconstitutional.

Mezhlumyan claims that IMAC never sent the draft sales contracts to
all village landholders.

Article 31 of the RA Constitution reads, in part:

Everyone shall have the right to freely own, use, dispose of and
bequeath the property belonging to him/her. The right to property
shall not be exercised to cause damage to the environment or infringe
on the rights and lawful interests of other persons, the society and
the state.

No one shall be deprived of property except for cases prescribed by
law in conformity with the judicial procedure.

The private property may be alienated for the needs of the society and
the state only in exclusive cases of prevailing public interests,
in the manner prescribed by the law and with prior equivalent
compensation.

Attorney Mezhlumyan claims that in the Halidzor case “prior equivalent
compensation” was absent and that his clients never agreed to the
amounts offered since they believed the appraisals to be incorrect.

Last December, Hetq tried to get some answers from IMAC about its
plans to build a hotel on the confiscated lands. In its response,
the company skirted around the issue of what steps it would take to
appease the village hold-outs.

IMAC Director Tigran Ghazaryan merely replied that the scope of the
construction and related costs had yet to be finalized.

So what did IMAC have in mind three years ago during the initial
land grab?

Perhaps a smaller amount of land could have been deemed as eminent
domain.

When we asked attorney Mezhlumyan the same question he said the rights
of the Halidzor residents continue to be violated.

“Is it any wonder that residents are refusing to sign when compensation
for one square meter of land amounts to the price of one and a
half eggs?”

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RULING PARTY MP CONFIDENT CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL WOULD APPROVE GENOCIDE BILL

NEWS.AM
February 03, 2012 | 14:07

YEREVAN.- Armenian ruling party MP considers the French Constitutional
Council will approve the bill criminalizing the genocide denial.

Gagik Melikyan, secretary of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia,
is confident the Council would ignore the offers voiced by the Turkish
authorities and pro-Turkish organizations.

Moreover, we would witness adoption of similar bills throughout Europe
and intensification of the Armenian Genocide recognition campaign in
the future, he told journalists on Friday.

BRITISH COMPANIES INTERESTED IN MAKING INVESTMENTS IN ARMENIA

ARMENPRESS
FEBRUARY 3, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 3, ARMENPRESS: Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran
Sargsyan received today Ambassadors of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland to Armenia Mr. Jonathan James Aves and Mrs Catherine Jane
Leach. Government’s press office reported that congratulating the
ambassadors on starting their diplomatic mission in Armenia, the Prime
Minister noted that Armenia is interested in boosting relations with
Great Britain. “Much depends on your work. The first important thing
is balanced approach of diplomacy of Great Britain in the region. We
do not have oil, but we have other resources – more expensive and
more important. First of all it is human capital, we put our accent on.

That is why Information Technology is one of our prior directions,”
Tigran Sargsyan said. The prime minister noted that Armenia’s economy
must be attractive for British investors and it will give new impetus
to the development of bilateral relations.

In her turn, Mrs Catherine Jane Leach expressed conviction that the
work of the two ambassadors will bring the Armenian-British relations
to a new intensive phase. The ambassadors noted that British companies
are interested in making investments in Armenia, specifically in the
spheres of mine industry and IT.

The interlocutors also referred to Armenia’s economic policy in
different branches, bilateral cultural cooperation and issues relating
to Armenia-EU cooperation.

ARF DOES NOT EXCLUDE NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES IN MAJORITY CONSTITUENCIES OF ARMENIA

ARMENPRESS
FEBRUARY 3, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 3, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Revolutionary Federation
does not exclude the possibility of nominating majority candidates
in the coming parliamentary elections, member of the ARF Bureau Vahan
Hovhannissyan told a news conference Friday.

“We are viewing the real policy with open eyes and we understand that
we may not succeed in our fight to fully pass to the proportional
system,” Hovhannissyan noted. In his opinion, certain concessions
though may be made.

“If there are majority seats in the elections, we of course, in not
all constituencies, but in a number of important ones will fight
with majority candidates. It is not excluded that we will fight by
defending other opposition candidates,” Hovhannissyan said.

WE DO NOT HAVE OIL, BUT WE DO HAVE MORE PRECIOUS RESOURCES – ARMENIAN PM

news.am
February 03, 2012 | 13:45

YEREVAN. – Armenia’s PM Tigran Sargsyan received Jonathan James Aves
and Catherine Jane Leach, Great Britain’s newly appointed ambassadors
to Armenia. They discussed Armenian-British relations.

Sargsyan noted that Armenia is interested in deepening relations with
Great Britain. “First and foremost, it is important for the British
diplomacy to secure a balanced approach in the region. We do not have
oil, but we do have more precious and important resources. Above all,
this is the human capital. That is why Information Technology is a
priority direction for us,” Armenia’s PM said, Governmental Press
Service informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

He also noted that economic interests need to be discovered in Armenia
for British investors, and this would give new impetus to developing
bilateral relations.

In her turn, Ambassador Catherine Jane Leach expressed a conviction
that their activities would transfer the Armenian-British relations
to a new phase. The two ambassadors also noted that British companies
are interested in making investments in Armenia, specifically in the
mining industry and Information Technology.

The interlocutors also reflected on Armenia’s economic policy, as
well as bilateral cultural and Armenia-EU relations.

90 ARMENIAN CITIZENS STUCK IN GEORGIA’S HIGH-MOUNTAIN REGION

news.am
February 03, 2012 | 13:36

Ninety citizens of Armenia got stuck in the neighboring Georgia
because of avalanche threat in high-mountain Kazbegi region

Local authorities said it is still unclear when the road would be
cleaned. Thirty Georgians got stuck in the high-mountain region as
well, Novosti Gruziya reports.

Georgia has registered the coldest winter for the last 15 years. All
the territory is covered with snow.

HOLY TRINITY CHURCH IN FRESNO MARKS 111TH ANNIVERSARY

PanARMENIAN.Net
February 3, 2012 – 10:51 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Western Prelate Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian
celebrated Divine Liturgy and delivered his message at Holy Trinity
Church in Fresno on January 29 on the occasion of the 111th anniversary
of the church. Parish Pastor Rev. Fr. Vahan Gosdanian and deacons
assisted at the altar.

Prior to the sermon, the Prelate gave thanks to Almighty God for
granting the blessed day together to celebrate Divine Liturgy the
111th anniversary of the parish. Reflecting on the Pontifical Visit
of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I to the Church and Sunday School
in October of last year, the Prelate noted that His Holiness places
a great deal of importance and priority to educating our youth and
providing them with the necessary knowledge and tools to develop their
unique Armenian Christian identity, and that we are all called to do
the same, for our youth are the future leaders who will continue in
our path and that of our forefathers, which is why we must instill
and root in them our faith, values, and heritage from a young age so
that they are fully prepared to take the lead.

Approximately 200 guests were in attendance, Asbarez reported.

ARMENIAN AMBASSADOR MEETS CANADA’S MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

ARMRADIO.AM
01.02.2012 14:00

Armenian Ambassador to Canada Armen Yeganyan had a meeting with
Canadian Minister of Science and Technology, Gary Goodyear.

During the meeting the parties attached importance to the friendly
nature of the Armenian-Canadian relations and discussed the
perspectives of development of cooperation in the fields of science
and high technologies.

FORMER MP: MY SON TRIED TO FIND UNDERSTANDING WITH ORINATS YERKIR

Panorama.am
01/02/2012

“It is not that I spoke a different language with the Orinats Yerkir
Party, it was my son who tried to find understanding with the party.

His friends were also members of that party. I told him that he would
be disappointed soon because there is no honesty in politics. I said
he was young, he could not bear it. He tried to establish ties with
them but was disappointed shortly, saying that I was right,” former
MP from Etchmiadzin Hakob Hakobyan told Aravot Daily, when asked to
comment on why he failed to find understanding with OYP because he
wanted to cooperate with the party a couple of months ago.

“We hardly accept any kind of servility and dishonesty. And how can
these honest children bear it?” said Hakobyan.

YEREVAN RESIDENTS PROTESTING HIGH-RISE CONSTRUCTION V. BUSINESSMAN: COURT DATE SET

epress.am
02.01.2012

The lawsuit launched by residents of 42 Koghbatsi St., 40 Pushkin St.,
23 and 25 Teryan St., and 37 Lalayants St. against businessman, owner
of the Second Armenian (H2) TV Channel Company Samvel Mayrapetyan
will be heard in an Armenian administrative court on Feb. 16.

Recall, the firm Local Developers belonging to Mayrapetyan is
constructing a high-rise building in the common yard shared by the
aforementioned buildings.

According to the residents, not only urban development and
architectural, but also environmental and seismic safety standards
have been violated in approving the construction of this building.

Furthermore, their children have been deprived of a place to play.

Speaking to Epress.am, Vardan Geravetyan, resident of 21 Teryan St.

and the spokesperson for the residents’ concerns, said that building
construction continues.

“We submitted a motion to the court that construction be suspended
until the court issues a ruling, but the court rejected our motion.

Note, we filed this suit five months ago, but it’s only now being
heard in court,” he said.

From: Baghdasarian