Month: February 2015

ARMENIE
Analyste : La déclaration sur le centenaire du génocide n’est > que si les protocoles arméno-turques sont annulés

L’analyste politique Ara Papyan, qui dirige le centre Modus Vivendi,
considère la Déclaration pan-arménienne sur le 100e anniversaire du
génocide arménien réaliste que si le Parlement arménien annule les
protocoles arméno-turcs signés à Zurich, en Suisse, en 2009.

La déclaration en 12 points exhorte la Turquie à “faire face à sa
propre histoire et mémoire”, mettant fin à la politique de déni du
génocide arménien.

Ara Papyan pense que la Déclaration pan-arménienne et les protocoles
de Zurich se contredisent.

“Si nous admettons théoriquement que la Turquie peut ratifier les
protocoles, ces deux documents se contrediront et dans ce cas on ne
sait pas quelle politique doit être appliquée, et si cette déclaration
n’est pas simplement une formalité, mais contient effectivement un
contexte politique et exprime effectivement des positions, les
gouvernements doivent faire deux ̩tapes Рpar une commande sp̩ciale le
président arménien doit annuler la signature du représentant de
l’Arménie en vertu des Protocoles de Zurich, et le Parlement doit
déclarer une Journée de la Patrie le 22 Novembre “, a-t-il dit.

En déclarant une Journée de la Patrie l’Arménie empêche la Turquie de
nouvelles possibilités d’invoquer l’inaction de l’Arménie et de
l’utiliser pour ne pas accepter un procès devant un tribunal
international.

Ara Papyan considère comme positif cette déclaration en termes
d’exigences et que la formation était un pas en avant, mais pas
suffisant. Elle met en évidence la partie de la Déclaration où le rôle
et l’importance du Traité de paix de Sèvres du 10 Août 1920 et la
sentence arbitrale du président américain Woodrow Wilson du 22
Novembre 1920 afin de surmonter les conséquences du génocide arménien
sont mentionnés.

“C’est la première fois que cela est souligné et apprécié par le
président arménien personnellement. Maintenant, si nous convertissons
cela dans la langue diplomatique, outre la référence et l’hommage,
nous clarifions aussi quelques revendications territoriales, en
particulier parce que le décision arbitrale parle de territoires, elle
déclare la frontière arméno-turque “, a-t-il dit.

Par Gayane Lazarian

ArmeniaNow

dimanche 15 février 2015,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

From: A. Papazian

The Voice star Mat Verevis lands role as Aladdin in Sydney pantomime

JO LITSON ARTS WRITER
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
FEBRUARY 15, 2015 12:00AM

Mat Verevis, who was part of The Voice last year, will play Aladdin in
Bonnie Lythgoe’s new pantomime. Picture: Jonathan Ng

THANKS to his exposure on The Voice last year, Mat Verevis will soon
be taking a magic carpet ride with former Hi-5 star Lauren Brant by
his side.

The 25-year old singer is to play Aladdin in Bonnie Lythgoe’s second
Sydney pantomime, Aladdin and his Wondrous Lamp, opening at the State
Theatre on July 3.

Brant, who is currently toughing it out in the jungle in I’m a
Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, will play Princess Jasmine.

Talking exclusively to The Sunday Telegraph, Lythgoe revealed Prinnie
Stevens will play the Slave of the Ring and British-Armenian comedian
and musician Kev Orkian will play the comedy role of Wishee Washee.

Lythgoe returns to Sydney in March to cast the Emperor, the Genie and
Widow Twankey (who in British panto tradition will be played by a
man).

Lythgoe said that it was seeing Verevis on The Voice that caught her
attention when looking for her Aladdin.

“I watched The Voice, X Factor, all those shows. I loved Mat. He came
in to read, I gave him a script and he walked away with it,” she said.

“Aladdin has to be a ragamuffin and a fun-loving guy. He’s a little
bit naughty, stealing apples, and cheeky, but at the same time he has
to be a boy who can transform into a Prince.

“He’s got to have a great voice, good acting ability and there has to
be chemistry between Aladdin and Jasmine,” added Lythgoe.

“You want the audience to fall in love with them.”

THE VOICE FANS STILL WAITING ON WOW FACTOR

BRITISH I’M A CELEBRITY WINNER’S ADVICE TO AUSSIES

Verevis hasn’t worked with Brant before but he knows her.

“I have met her a couple of times because one of my best friends
(Ainsley Melham) was in Hi-5 with her. She’s lovely so I’m excited
she’s my Jasmine,” he said.

Verevis said The Voice has “opened a lot of doors” for him.

“The best thing was I got the opportunity to show people what I could
do and be heard. I’m so grateful for that. It’s opened a lot of doors
in my career,” Verevis said.

“The second half of the year is shaping up to be a big one, especially
with my music.

“I’m signed to Universal. I’ve been working with them and have some
exciting things to release.Aladdin is a big deal as well.”

`3af7b5b9cf52fe8bcc8c5852365b54

Hraparak: Nubarashen penitentiary tightens control over lawyers

11:58 14/02/2015 >> DAILY PRESS

Nubarashen penitentiary has tightened control over lawyers, Hraparak writes.

“Recently a lawyer attempted to organize the escape of his client. He
visited the penitentiary and after he left, a saw was found in the
prisoner’s cell. It was concluded that the lawyer had brought it.
Following this incident, lawyers are let in only after being checked
thoroughly,” the newspaper says.

Artsakh parliamentary elections to be held on May 3

February 12, 2015 13:17
Photo: Press service of the NKR parlament

Yerevan/Mediamax/. The upcoming National Assembly elections in Artsakh
will be held on May 3, 2015.

NKR President Bako Sahakyan signed the relevant decree today.

The previous parliamentary elections were held on May 23, 2010.

Over the 20 years, the legislative body of Artsakh has adopted 1144 laws.

From: Baghdasarian

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 14 2015

Seyidov says Baku awaits Washington’s steps to settle the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Today the Azerbaijani parliament is holding hearings into “Relations
between Azerbaijan and the United States in the context of human
rights issues, energy and security.”

The head of the Parliamentary Committee on International and
Interparliamentary Relations, Samad Seyidov, made a statement during
the hearing, in which he stressed that in Baku there were certain
expectations from Washington to work in the framework of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as the US is one of the co-chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group, the news agency Trend reports.

Obama’s ‘Big Lie’: US Has Supplied Ukraine With Arms From the Start

(c) REUTERS/ Gleb Garanich
OPINION
10:30 15.02.2015(updated 10:36 15.02.2015)

President Obama is still considering arming Ukraine in case the latest
ceasefire is breached and the conflict escalates; but political
analyst Stephen Lendman told Sputnik in an exclusive interview that
the US leader is lying, and that the US has been supplying arms to
Kiev from the very start of the military operation.

(c) REUTERS/ GARY CAMERON
America Hell-Bent on War: 80-Year-Old Analyst Has Never Been More Afraid
The ceasefire between Kiev forces and independence supporters of
Donetsk and Luhansk is generally holding, shelling in Donbas has
stopped as the truce came in force on midnight, a spokesperson at the
Kiev special operations headquarters said Sunday.

But a day earlier Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and US
President Barack Obama, during a meeting by phone, agreed on the
further coordination of efforts in the case that the ceasefire fails
and the Ukrainian conflict escalates.

Stephen Lendman, a Research Associate for the Centre for Research on
Globalization explained to Sputnik, in an exclusive interview on the
recent developments in Ukraine, that Washington has been lying the
whole time – it has been supplying weapons to Kiev from the very start
of the military operation.

“Washington supplied heavy weapons since the conflict began last April
and maybe before it began in preparation for what was planned. I wrote
about it several times including in a new article this (Saturday)
morning,” he told Sputnik.

“So, key is understanding that Washington armed Kiev the whole time.
Obama claiming it’s under consideration is one of his many ‘Big
Lies’,” he said.

NATO and Ukrainian aircraft have shipped in arms and munitions on a
regular basis. Washington is the main culprit, he added.

‘Arms Supplied by US Are for Offense, Not Defense’

Another lie, the analyst says, is about the arms being “defensive.”

(c) FLICKR/ THE WHITE HOUSE
Ukraine, US Agree on Further Coordination if Donbas Conflict Escalates
“Heavy weapons are supplied for offense, not defense, of course,” he
says. “Fighting continued after the Minsk agreement was concluded.
Kiev forces kept shelling civilian areas.”

“US media, of course, blame Russia and rebels. Reports and opinions in
our press are scandalous. The most outrageous I recall in my lifetime.
Absolutely devoid of truth. Riddled with beginning-to-end Big Lies,”
Lendman said.

“I expect a short-term mostly (but not entirely) quieter period
beginning Sunday or Monday followed days or weeks later by Kiev
initiated escalated conflict — with full US support and
encouragement,” he predicts.

(c) AP PHOTO/ PETR DAVID JOSEK
Ukraine’s Right Sector Statement on Minsk Violation Vanishes From Website
“Hardline Kiev elements like the Right Sector’s Dmitry Yarosh and
likeminded extremists reject Minsk terms. They vow to keep fighting.
Expect Russia and rebels to be blamed for their aggression. Expect
vicious Putin bashing to continue. It’s evident in US weekend reports
I’ve seen so far,” he added.

The political analyst predicts that Washington will continue supplying
Kiev with heavy weapons. Hundreds of US combat troops are coming to
Ukraine on the pretext of training Ukraine’s military, while hundreds
of US special forces are already there.

‘The Big Question is Whether Obama Will Authorize Direct US
Involvement in Ukraine’s Conflict’

The big question is whether Obama will authorize direct US involvement
in Ukraine’s conflict. He’s already done it in Iraq with US boots on
the ground and more on the way despite vowing months earlier never to
do it.

“I believe if rebels keep decisively defeating Kiev forces, which I
expect, Obama will deploy US forces to Donbas — getting America
directly involved in another war as opposed to the proxy one he’s now
waging,” said Lendman.

(c) AP PHOTO/ EFREM LUKATSKY
Ukraine’s Interior Ministry Says Kiev Could Benefit From Lethal Aid From US
An escalation will bring the war to Russia’s borders, and the risk is
it may spill over. With US combat forces in Ukraine and Obama
determined to crush pro-independence fighters, the danger of East-West
confrontation is huge.

‘Donbas is Obama’s War. He Didn’t Launch it to Quit’

“We could find ourselves in WW III whether or not anyone wants it.
Global wars begin like what’s now ongoing. With neocon lunatics making
policy in Washington, anything ahead is possible,” he added.

“I strongly believe chances for a durable, sustainable peace in Donbas
are virtually nil despite, Putin’s best efforts to resolve things
diplomatically.”

President Putin, Sergei Lavrov, and other Russian officials have gone
all-out for peace throughout months of conflict.

“Obama wants war, not peace. Donbas is his war. He didn’t launch it to
quit. CIA, FBI and US special forces infest Kiev. They’re involved in
planning, implementing and directing the fighting,” said the analyst.

Ukraine’s Right Sector Statement on Minsk Violation Vanishes From Website

(c) AP Photo/ Petr David Josek
WORLD
08:36 15.02.2015(updated 09:36 15.02.2015)
Topic:
Situation in Ukraine After Ceasefire Agreement (448)

The statement made earlier by the leader of Ukraine’s Right Sector
Dmytro Yarosh regarding the advance of his two battalions in
Debaltseve area has disappeared from the Ukrainian Guard’s website on
Sunday.

(c) SPUTNIK/ PAVEL PALAMARCHUK
Right Sector to Continue Military Operation Regardless of Minsk Deal
KIEV (Sputnik) –The statement by the leader of Ukraine’s Right Sector
movement Dmytro Yarosh regarding the advance of his two battalions in
Debaltseve area has disappeared from the organization’s website on
Sunday.

The ceasefire between Kiev forces and Donbas independence supporters
entered in force at midnight, local time on February 15 (February 14,
22:00 GMT), as was agreed at the February 12 meeting between the
leaders of Ukraine, France and Germany and Russia in Minsk.

The statement saying that two armed battalions are continuing their
advance in Debaltseve area and have achieved serious gains was
published on National Guard’s website early on Sunday.

Since the beginning of the ceasefire regime, both Kiev forces and
Donbas independence supporters accused each other of violating the
truce.

Eduard Basurin from Donbas militia said Kiev forces have started
shelling the positions of LPR and DPR in Debaltseve and forced the
units of the DPR to open selective return fire.

Earlier Yarosh stated that the Right Sector movement does not
recognize the new Minsk agreements and reserves right “to continue
active military actions in accordance with its own operational plans.”

During the recent weeks, Debaltseve, one of Ukraine’s biggest railroad
junctions, has remained one of the sites of most intense fighting
between Kiev forces and independence supporters of Donbas.

From: A. Papazian

Trio Decision: Opposition parties schedule joint rally for Feb. 20

POLITICS | 15.02.15 | 21:56
RELATED NEWS

Tax audits of Tsarukyan businesses ordered; embattled tycoon dismissed
from posts

The Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP), the Armenian National Congress
(ANC) and Heritage have decided to hold a joint rally in Yerevan next
Friday in response to what they view as a government crackdown against
PAP leader Gagik Tsarukyan.

Meeting late on Sunday, the leaders of the three parties known as the
trio – Tsarukyan, Levon Ter-Petrosyan and Raffi Hovannisian –
reportedly cited the law on freedom of assembly that allows political
parties to call rallies at short notice without due notification of
local authorities if such rallies are considered to be “urgent”.

The three said their joint “urgent all-national rally” will discuss
the situation with citizens and “make a decision for resolving the
situation.”

On February 12, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told senior members
of his ruling Republican Party of Armenia that Tsarukyan is “evil” and
effectively ordered his ouster from politics. In what the opposition
forces claim amounted to political persecution the head of state also
called on the authorities to look into allegations that Tsarukian has
evaded taxes and has been involved in creating “mechanisms for
covering up crimes”.

Tsarukyan, who avoided openly demanding Sargsyan’s resignation until
recently, called for a “total change of power” in his February 13
response.

The PAP, the ANC and Heritage already held two well-attended rallies
in Yerevan’s Liberty Square last

From: A. Papazian

The process of change of power kicks off – analyst

14:38 / 14.02.2015

Political analyst Levon Shirinyan speaking to reporters today referred
to the recent conflict between the ruling Republican party and the
second biggest political force – Prosperous Armenia Party.

According to him, a political process has kicked which should not be
impeded. He said the process of change of power has started and it is
necessary to wait and see the further developments. “One thing is
clear the authorities should rely on exclusively their resources and
the opposition on the people’s resources. This situation brought up a
bi-pole political system. Our wish is that this conflict be in the
limits of morality,” he stressed.

Shirinyan said that the process has been accelerated and the solution
is not far. “People should not be told that nothing will change. The
changes will take place but no one knows how much,” he stressed.

Speaking about the February 5 conference organized by the PAP, the
analyst said that he does not understand why it has raised such a
panic. “It was not a party meeting, I have participated in it too and
proposed a conception. Nothing extraordinary happened there,” he said,
adding that the Republicans are probably in panic by another thing.
“The country is in crisis and the issues will be solved,” he said.

The speaker said that the process of change of power has already
launched. “They stated that the business of Gagik Tsarukyan must be
checked. I do not understand what the Republican party businessmen
were thinking while saying it,” Shirinyan stressed.
The analyst said he is convinced that the power will change, even if
not, the authorities will clean their rows. “Real reforms must be
implemented, not political figures must be cleaned from the field and
be represented in business only,” he said.

The ‘Legacy of Silence’ in Turkey Is Subject of French Documentary

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE, NEWS | FEBRUARY 15, 2015 1:39 PM
________________________________

By Alin K. Gregorian
Mirror-Spectator Staff

PARIS — The names might be Turkish. The attitude might be Turkish. But
the heart is Armenian. For young French documentary filmmakers, Anna
Benjamin and Guillaume Clere, the question of identity and especially
national identity became a focal point for their documentary, “Turkey,
the Legacy of Silence.”

The shock for the viewer — and even more so for the subjects of
“Legacy of Silence” — is finding out that they are Armenian, people
they have learned were traitors.

Clere and Benjamin were studying journalism together when they became
interested in the subject. Benjamin’s maternal ancestors fled the
Genocide.

For the past two years, Benjamin and Clere wanted to give a voice to
the descendants of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide. The two are
close to reaching their goal: achieving a documentary and a web-series
relating the story of four Turks who discovered their Armenian
origins… and who decide to break the silence regarding their heritage.

To finish their project, including have the proper English, French and
Armenian translations, the duo has launched a crowd-funding page in
France.

Through the portraits of Nazli, Armen, Dogukan and Yasar, the “Legacy
of Silence” reveals the weight of silence which still burdens
thousands of Armenian families in Turkey. After a century of silence,
history is reappearing: multiple families are now proclaiming the
Armenian heritage of their ancestors. By giving a face to the million
of descendants of these Islamized Armenians, Turkey, the Legacy of
Silence is a worldwide call to the duty of remembrance. Today, despite
risks, fear and shame, Nazli, Armen, Dogukan and Yasar have the
courage to break the taboo on their Armenian roots and show their
faces

The film will be released internationally for the commemoration of the
Armenian Genocide in April: on TV as a documentary film, and on the
Internet as a multi-episode web-series. Additionally, the public will
be invited to offer testimony on the website. The documentary arouses
interest : during April it will be broadcast in France (Paris,
Valence, Vienne) and in United States (starting in Glendale).

For the project, Benjamin and Clere went to Turkey four times. With
the help of their producer, Découpages, they obtained several
guarantees such as the broadcast of French channel Toute l’Histoire
and a writing and production help allowed by the CNC (Centre National
du Cinéma et de l’image animée).

Said Benjamin, “My mother is Armenian. But I know only a little about
the immigration of my maternal grandparents to France, or their life
in Turkey. My grandfather was from a village near Ismit. He fled with
his family, but was lost in the exodus, before being welcomed by an
orphanage in Greece and then another in the French suburb of Meudon,
near Paris.”

She added, “My grandmother was conceived in Istanbul and was born on
the road to exile. My grandparents preferred to forget, in order to
dispel memories that were too painful. So I have decided to tell a
part of what they lived, but in remaining connected to the present.
Further, I was in Turkey once before to make this film and I really
wanted to know the country where my grandparents came from but not
just as a tourist. I wanted to restitute the memory of the Genocide in
modern-day Turkey, and to initiate dialogue between the communities.
And talking about Islamized Armenians is a very important way to
successfully do this. For it is my belief that the struggle for
recognition of the Genocide is not that of one people against another,
but in fact a struggle against ignorance.”

And Clere added, “For me this story is really incredible. People
discover [their identity] in Turkey. They learn that Armenians are
traitors. One guy was a schoolteacher and he taught that Armenians are
traitors. When he came back to the house, his son asked him why did
you tell me.”

The stories have a similarity in that the narrators find out what it
means to be the hated “other.”

One character in the documentary is an ethnic Armenian man who was
adopted into a Kurdish family as a 5 year old. Now 100, he remembers
still that he is Armenian but is a devout Muslim, like the family into
which he was taken.

“You can’t hide the past. Human beings need to know where they come
from,” said Clere.

Clere himself has a diverse background, growing up in Lebanon,
Portugal, Singapore and Mexico, among other places, as his parents
traveled for work. In addition, he said his grandfather had been
involved in the war of Algiers and that he had never spoken to him
about it, making it a family secret, almost.

Clere credited Benjamin’s connections to the Armenian community in
France for being able to reach out to members of the community in
Turkey.

The filmmakers traveled during the making of the documentary to one
town, Muradiye, where the Armenian great-grandfather of one subject
came from. The town’s churches were destroyed and homes were built on
top of the cemetery.

Clere added that during their voyage in Turkey, especially when they
were meeting with Kurds, many of them “were saying ‘we are sorry for
what happened.'”

To make a donation to the project, visit