Month: February 2015

GEORGIAN PM ZURAB ZHVANIA DIED 10 YEARS AGO

February 3, 2015 17:45

Photo: REUTERS

Yerevan /Mediamax/. 10 years ago, on February 3, 2005, former Prime
Minister of Georgia Zurab Zhvania died.

Brother of the former PM, MP from “Georgian Dream” ruling coalition
Georgia Zhvania told Mediamax’s own correspondent that he is convinced
the new investigation will be successful. According to him, samples of
the former PM’s remains were sent to the foreign labs to be examined.

>From the very beginning, people in Georgia doubted the official
version that Zurab Zhvania and Vice Governor of Kvemo-Kartli region
Raul Yusupov died of gas leak from the faulty gas heater in the secret
address in Tbilisi.

In October 2012, after the party of former President Mikhail
Saakashvili “United National Movement” had lost power, the
investigation of the case restarted.

– See more at:

PEACE INSTEAD OF NATO

02.02.2015

By CURRENT CONCERNS
28 JANUARY 2015
By Oskar Lafontaine, Current Concerns, No. 2/2015

For the vast majority of the population of the former Federal
Republic, NATO has been the guarantor of peace and freedom for a long
time. Anti-communism, fuelled by the fear of the Soviet Union operated
by the world revolution, the Berlin Blockade and the construction of
the Berlin Wall left little room to think about alternatives to NATO.

But in 1965 at the latest, when US President Lyndon B. Johnson
bombed North Vietnam and deployed more and more ground troops to
South Vietnam, a discussion about the policy and objectives of the
Western power started especially in the universities. The military
infrastructure of NATO, which has always been a US military structure
in its core, brought about Germany’s involvement in every US war like
that of other states’, which were integrated into it. That has not
changed until today. In his book “The Grand Chessboard” former security
adviser to Jimmy Carter, Zbigniew Brzezinski, commented this dependence
as follows: “The brutal fact is that Western Europe and increasingly
also Central Europe, remains largely an American protectorate, with
its allied states reminiscent of ancient vassals and tributaries.”

The prevailing view, according to which Gerhard Schroder did not
participate in the Iraq war of George W. Bush is not the whole truth.

This war was also fought from US facilities in Germany. If Saddam
Hussein had been equipped with long range missiles, he would have been
entitled to attack US facilities like the German Ramstein Air Base.

As in the 80s, the peace movement took a stance against the
establishment of further nuclear missiles in East and West, the
calls for a withdrawal from the military infrastructure of NATO
became popular. Germany’s participation in the war in Afghanistan and
NATO’s eastward enlargement as a major cause of the Ukraine crisis
are meanwhile also discussed among politicians of the conservative
spectrum and raise the question whether a longer stay of Germany in
the NATO, may increasingly be setting the security of the Federal
Republic of Germany at risk. The so-called war on terror led by the
United States is a terrorist breeding programme and increases the
risk of terrorist attacks in Germany, as the former CDU MP Jurgen
Todenhofer properly analysed the situation.

Already in 2007, former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt stated:
“For the peace of the world, today there is much less risk emanating
from Russia than from America. (!) Even if America’s hegemony will
endure for a long future, the European nations have nevertheless to
maintain their dignity. (!) The dignity is based on our adherence to
the responsibility of our own conscience.”

On 13 December 2014, at the occasion of the demonstration called the
“Friedenswinter” in Berlin, in front of the Federal President’s office,
the theologian Eugen Drewermann said: “NATO is the most aggressive
alliance of all times.”

So peace instead of NATO!

But if NATO will be resolved like the Warsaw Pact, then what? The Left
Party knows that the change of military alliances is not a sufficient
condition to keep peace. Foreign politics was and is fighting for
resources and markets. Euphemistic speeches about human rights,
democracy and free market economy cannot change this fact. The famous
phrase of Jean Jaurès “Capitalism carries war within itself like a
cloud carries rain” has been confirmed in recent decades over and over
again. As the battle for raw materials and markets is also discharged
by military action, such as the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya
have shown, Pope Francis comes to the conclusion: “We are in the
middle of the third world war, but in a war of instalments. There
are economies that must wage war in order to survive. Therefore,
they produce and sell weapons.”

Since for the Left, capitalism and democracy are incompatible with each
other, it knows that to build a democratic society with a different
economic order is essential. Another democratic economic order would
also change the present power structure of the world, in which the
US global dominance has reached an unprecedented scale.

Interestingly, this basic policy approach of the Left concerning
insurance for peacekeeping is also shared by US policy hardliners.

Brzezinski writes in the above-mentioned book “The Grand Chessboard”:

“Never before has a populist democracy attained international
supremacy. But the pursuit of power is not a goal that commands
popular passion, except in conditions of a sudden threat or challenge
to the public’s sense of domestic well-being. The economic self-denial
(that is, defense spending) and the human sacrifice (casualties, even
among professional soldiers) required in the effort are uncongenial to
democratic instincts. Democracy is inimical to imperial mobilization.”

This is the same idea that Immanuel Kant formulated in his essay
about “Perpetual Peace”. He demanded a republican constitution for
all states so that citizens would then be empowered to decide for
themselves whether or not there was to be war. They would have to
decide on “bringing all the calamities of war upon themselves”.

Translated to the current situation, this means that we would not be
involved in the Afghanistan war if the population had voted on it or
if politicians and journalists favourable to wars of intervention had
been exposed to the trials and tribulations of the war in Afghanistan
themselves.

Prerequisite for a structurally peaceful world is the development of
a truly democratic society, i.e. of an economic order that prevents
large amounts of capital leading to an accumulation of power, because
it leaves the capital to those who earn it by their labour.

But the Left cannot let itself be contented with this statement alone.

Even in this day and age and given the current social and power
structures, answers must be found. This brings a possible participation
of the Left in a Federal Government into focus. The mainstream media
and the regime parties SPD (Social Democrats) and The Greens look
upon the willingness of the Left to engage in wars of intervention
as a requirement for a common government. Should they hold on to this
condition, there can be no red-red-green government.

The years of bombardment have led to a certain degree of discomfiture
of several elected representatives of the Left and have caused them to
pass some comments which have given rise to annoyances and confusion.

Although the ban on arms exports had been a central promise of the
Lefts’ last federal election campaign, some members of the Left called
for arms sales to the Kurds to fight the IS. An elected representative
working to abolish a key campaign promise behaves like the system
parties and contributes to the continuous increase of abstentionism.

The political key mistake of this proposal, however, is that the demand
for arms sales to the Kurds means to submit to the US imperialism’s
logic of war. It is an open secret that US policy has the oil wells
in the Kurdish region in mind, and by means of destabilization of
the Middle East is working towards political structures that will
guarantee the exploitation of oil reserves by Western corporations.

Of similar quality was the attempt made by some members of the Left
to blue-pencil the call for Germany’s resignation from the military
infrastructure of NATO, i.e. the US, from the Left Party’s programme
for the European elections. Those who had made this proposal were
disregarding the fact that with this, they are in favour of maintaining
a US infrastructure on German soil, from where, amongst other things,
the United States’ drone war with its thousands of dead is being
controlled.

In the coming years the Left must make it absolutely clear that the
condition sine qua non of their participation in a federal government
is a foreign policy that withdraws from the military escalation for
which US imperialism is responsible. In its basic programme, the Left
calls for the conversion of NATO into a collective defense alliance
involving Russia. This is a rejection of the unilateral eastward
enlargement of NATO, which is a breach of the West’s promise and has
led to the current crisis in Ukraine. The following requirements are
a prerequisite for this security concept, which will overcome Cold
War structures and which was also advocated by the SPD (the Social
Democrats) for many years:

1. Merkel’s policy towards Russia must be replaced by an Eastern policy
of detente which is based on Willy Brandt’s successful foreign policy.

2. A federal government in which the Left participates will not
agree to Ukraine’s acceptance into NATO or any other states’ adjacent
to Russia.

3. A federal government in which the Left participates will reject the
stationing of NATO troop formations on the western border of Russia.

Moreover, our terms and conditions remain the same. The “Bundeswehr”
(German army) must not participate in military interventions abroad,
and arms exports to areas of tension are to be stopped immediately.

This list of demands is, of course, not exhaustive. So for instance
we must set about the construction of a Willy-Brandtcorps for disaster
relief and disease control.

It remains crucial that participation of The Left in a federal
government is only justifiable if the German foreign policy undergoes
a fundamental reorientation after the failures in Afghanistan, in
Ukraine and in Europe.

Source: “Junge Welt” of 8 January 2015,

(Translation Current Concerns )

Oskar Lafontaine is a German politician who served in the government
of Germany as Minister of Finance from 1998 to 1999. Previously he
was Minister-President of the state of Saarland from 1985 to 1998, and
he was also Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 1995 to 1999.

>From 2007 to 2010, Lafontaine was co-chairman of The Left. He resigned
from federal political functions in January 2010.

A MESSAGE FROM THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CENTENNIAL COMMITTEE OF AMERICA-EASTERN REGION

By MassisPost
Updated: February 3, 2015

The Centennial is almost upon us…

Though over 1.5 million lives were lost to history 100 years ago,
we as a people will never forget each and every man, woman and child
who perished in the Armenian Genocide of 1915. We are launching an
ambitious campaign to honor the history of those who came before us
and register their existence and suffering in the world’s collective
memory. Please help us on this historic anniversary by considering
a donation to help restore history.

You can make an online donation in any amount by clicking
here:

Your contributions will fuel a campaign spanning public relations,
digital, print and broadcast media relations in addition to rapid
response countering anti-Armenian press. The digital media plan will
unite us all in a collective memorial to those whose identities were
washed away by history. It will be composed of millions of river
stones that take the shape of the Euphrates River – each stone will
be engraved with one name – one for each and every one of us who
takes a pledge to never forget the forgotten genocide.

We will implement an online movement to get as many people as
possible to take this pledge. Massive city billboards will show
famous Armenian-Americans “missing” until the genocide is universally
recognized and other non-Armenian celebrities lending their name to
stop genocides wherever they occur. We will push the media to tell
the truth about the Armenian Genocide and its consequences, enlisting
our supporters in the human rights and religious communities to stand
with us on this Centennial.

Our message? When one genocide is denied, so is every genocide.

This is our chance to raise awareness of our people on a scale never
before attempted. Our community is truly united behind this singular
effort. In an unprecedented measure our entire United States Armenian
community has come together to have our voice heard once and for all.

The campaign is big and ambitious. We are confident it will succeed.

But only with your help.

Donate online at

If you prefer to donate by check, please make the check payable to
any of the following institutions: Diocese of the Armenian Church
Prelacy of the Armenian Church AGBU AMAA Please note “East Coast
Centennial Committee” in the check memo and mail to:

Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee of America, Eastern Region
c/o AGBU 55 East 59th Street, 7th Floor New York, NY 10022

Together we can tell the world our story and ensure it’s never
forgotten.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CENTENNIAL COMMITTEE OF AMERICA – EASTERN REGION
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern) Prelacy of the
Armenian Church of America (Eastern) Armenian Catholic Eparchy of
United States & Canada Armenian Evangelical Union of North America
Armenian Missionary Association of America Armenia Fund USA, Inc.

Armenian Assembly of America Armenian Democratic Liberal Party
Armenian General Benevolent Union Armenian National Committee of
America Armenian Relief Society Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Knights & Daughters of Vartan Social Democratic Hunchakian Party
Armenian Bar Association Armenian Network of America, Inc.

Armenian Youth Federation AGBU Young Professionals Armenian Church
Youth Organization of America Armenian Students Association ONEArmenia
Armenian American Health Professionals Organization Armenian
International Women’s Association

STRATFOR: PERSPECTIVES OF ARMENIA AND BELARUS IN EEU DEPEND ON RESULTS OF RUSSIA-WEST CONFRONTATION

by David Stepanyan

ARMINFO
Tuesday, February 3, 16:27

Perspectives of Russia’s two allies in the post-Soviet area – Armenia
and Belarus – in the Eurasian Economic Union depend on the results of
the Russia-West global confrontation, experts at Stratfor say. In this
light, Stratfor analysts spotlight in their report the recent statement
by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko of possible withdrawal of
his country from the Moscow-initiated EEU. “Minsk could pull out of
the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union if agreements are not kept,
but also emphasized that the country’s integration with Russia is
deep and strong. Meanwhile, Armenia has faced growing difficulties
in its conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, where Russia
plays a key role.”

Simultaneously, the report says both Yerevan and Minsk are very
likely to continue the strategic course to Moscow given Lukashenko’s
statement that emphasizes “the deep and strong integration of Belarus
and Moscow.”

“Both countries are likely to maintain their strategic orientation
toward Russia, but Belarus and Armenia will continuously re-evaluate
their positions depending on how the broader struggle between Moscow
and the West plays out,” the analysts say.

Recent developments indicate that two of Moscow’s most loyal allies in
the former Soviet periphery, Belarus and Armenia, may be reassessing
their ties with Russia in light of the country’s standoff with the
West, Stratfor analysts say.

EXPERT: THE LINK USA-TURKEY-ISRAEL IS THE KEY THREAT TO ARMENIA’S SECURITY

by Ashot Safaryan

Tuesday, February 3, 16:57

The link USA-Turkey-Israel is the key threat to Armenia’s
security, political expert, Sergey Shakaryants, said at today’s
press-conference. He also added that just the above mentioned “three”
is trying at present at any cost to level significance and influence of
the events dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide.

‘And the statement by Israel’s foreign minister, that Israel does
not recognize the Armenian genocide, was not accidental. If Tel-Aviv
makes such sharp anti-Armenian statements, it expresses not only its
own position, but also the position of its key sponsor and strategical
partner – Washington. These two countries are not going to recognize
the genocide, as it is not beneficial to them”, – Shakaryants said.

He also added that he will not be surprised if the leadership of
the USA as well as the leaders of the other Western countries will
not arrive in Armenia to take part in the memorial events, but will
visit Turkey to celebrate the so-called “Gallipoli victory”.

The expert thinks that the rumors on worsening of relations between
Tel-Aviv and Ankara are a myth, as a true level and quality of
relations is determined not by the diplomatic rhetoric, but economic
cooperation. “Look, what huge investments Israel is making in the
Turkish economy, agriculture, defense industry and many other key
sectors. Against the background of such a close cooperation, all
the rest political statements simply lose their relevance”, – the
expert said.

To recall, the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide will be
marked on 24 April 2015. Official Ankara does not recognize the
genocide which was recognized in 24 countries of the world. There
are no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey and the 330
km long border between these countries has been shut down since 1993
according to Ankara’s initiative.

ARMENIAN PROSECUTOR GENERAL APPLIES TO HIS RUSSIAN COUNTERPART ON GYUMRI MURDER CASE

18:02, 03 Feb 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

Armenian Prosecutor General Gevorg Kostanyan has applied to his Russian
counterpart with a mediation to transfer the criminal proceedings
of the case of murder in Gyumri on January 12 to the law-enforcement
bodies of the Republic of Armenia.

Gevorg Kostanyan applied to the Russian Prosecutor General in
compliance with Article 6 of the Agreement between the Russian
Federation and the Republic of Armenia on judicial and mutual legal
assistance in issues linked with the presence of the Russian military
base in the territory of Republic of Armenia.

WHO WILL BE PRESENT AT THE EVENTS MARKING 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE GALLIPOLI BATTLE?

18:29, 03 Feb 2015Siranush Ghazanchyan

The Presidents of Azerbaijan, Albania, Somali, the Prime Ministers of
Australia and New Zealand and Prince Charles have accepted Turkish
President Regep Tayyip Erdogan’s invitation to participate in the
100th anniversary of the Battle of Gallipoli planned for April 24,
canakkaleninrehberi.com reports.

According to the source, another 38 countries have accepted the
invitation, but have not indicated at what level they will be
represented at the event.

Ankara sent out invitations to the leaders of 102 countries, including
Armenia.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan rejected the invitation to
participate in the events that coincide with the 100th anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide.

NEW SITUATION IN GYUMRI MANSLAUGHTER CASE

Hakob Badalyan, Political Commentator
Comments – 03 February 2015, 18:33

The Russian Interfax Agency has informed that agreement has been
reached between Armenia and Russia over the trial of Valery Permyakov
accused of the manslaughter in Gyumri in the garrison court of the
Russian military base.

After the manslaughter the Armenian prosecutor announced, including
for calming the angry public, that Permyakov will be tried in Armenia.

And the public was angry because a few hours after catching the
criminal it was announced that handing him to the Armenian jurisdiction
is out of discussion.

So far the investigation has not answered the questions of the Armenian
citizens on the manslaughter and jurisdiction. It has caused more
questions, including how Permyakov appeared in the Russian base after
the Russian border guards had found him when the Russian border guards
are supposed to hand him to the Armenian side. Even the prosecutor
general has announced about this obligation.

However, the Armenian and Russian authorities are not speaking about
it. It is clear that the Russians do not want to speak and the Armenian
government does not want to anger the Russians.

And the obviously unlawful and undignified situation continues when
Russia violates the law of Armenia, its state and national dignity.

In this setting, information comes on an agreement that Permyakov will
be tried in the court of the military base. It is not ruled out that
this news is an attempt to check the Armenian public’s reaction to
understand whether it keeps the potential for protest that existed in
Gyumri on January 14 and 15 and which was clamped down by the police.

Incidentally, the policy actions continued with use of another method.

The participants of the January 14 and 15 actions were invited one
by one to the police to find out who threw stones at the policemen.

Obviously, the purpose was to intimidate people, dissuade them from
attending future massive events.

Apparently, the purpose of the publication by Interfax was to check the
outcome of the clampdown to find out what results the explanatory work
has produced in order to determine the intensity of the next clampdown.

At this point the possible limit of this intensity is rather high. For
example, if Permyakov’s trial is taking place in the Russian military
base, obviously additional problems of transparency of the trial and
accessibility to public will occur. Moreover, provocations during the
trial are not ruled out which will force the Russian side to limit
public access to the trial in the territory of the military base.

The society will thus lose sufficient levers of control over the trial,
which will enable manipulations with the trial, covering up everything
that the Russian side will want to.

Interestingly, a few hours after the news of Interfax the Armenian
prosecutor general’s office announced that Gevorg Kostanyan has applied
to the Russian prosecutor general requesting to hand the case of murder
of the Avetisyan family to the Armenian law enforcement agencies. It
is interesting whether Chaika’s answer will differ from the news on
Interfax or whether this is the case when Saturday started earlier
than Friday.

TURNOVER TAX LAW TO LEAD TO INCREASE OF SHADOW ECONOMY AND CORRUPTION IN ARMENIA – ENTREPRENEUR

YEREVAN, February 3. /ARKA/. The turnover tax law, even with the
amendments upheld by the government, will lead to increase of shady
dealings and corruption in Armenia, Stepan Aslanyan, chairman of the
Armenian Union of Small Entrepreneurs, told journalists on Tuesday.

On October 1, 23014, amendments to the turnover tax law took force. In
accordance with the amended law, economic entities now have their
tax rates downed to 1% from 3.5%.

The amended law also stipulates the necessity of particular paperwork
along with facilitated procedure for monitoring compliance with
this requirement.

Small and medium entrepreneurs were initially unhappy about this
paperwork requirement and they staged protests outside the government
and parliament buildings demanding to withdraw the paperwork
requirement.

The prime minister met with the protesters and told them that the
government will do nothing harmful to the society and stressed that
the government approved the amendments in a bid to support small and
medium entrepreneurs.

Negotiations with the premier resulted in postponement of enforcement
of the amended law.

“We propose four changes to the law, which will allow small and medium
businesses to function properly,” Aslanyan said.

In particular, he said, entrepreneurs propose to let them choose
between paying taxes at a higher rate, as before, but without
preferences or paying lower taxes and enjoying these preferences but
with mandatory paperwork.

They propose to suspend the provision stipulating unscheduled
inspections, since such raids carry corruption risks.

The entrepreneurs also said they would hail a requirement to increase
taxable turnover amount benchmark from the current AMD 58.6 million
to AMD 100 million, since it would spur their activities.

Besides, they proposed to single out jewelry industry from other
industries, taking into account its specifics. Aslanyan invited all
political forces to take part in improvement of the document.

—0—–

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

THE TEST THE ECTHR FACES

02.03.2015 09:54NEWS

Human rights activist and lawyer Eren Keskin has assessed the Perincek
v. Switzerland case heard at the European Court of Human Rights in
a column piece for the Ozgur Gundem newspaper. Keskin states that
Perincek’s words “cannot be construed within the scope of the freedom
of expression”, and adds that they “clearly amount to an abetment
to crime.”

Eren Keskin’s column piece published in Ozgur Gundem is below:

“Last week, the first hearing of an important case was held at the
European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), widely referred to as “the
Dogu Perincek case”. We, the Human Rights Association, the Truth
Justice Memory Centre, and the Toronto-based International Institute
for Genocide & Human Rights Studies jointly submitted an application
to intervene in the case. Our application was accepted by the ECtHR

In other words, we took a stand against Dogu Perincek in this lawsuit.

As a person who for many years has repeatedly been tried for her
thoughts, and has served prison sentences, it is my opinion that Dogu
Perincek’s words cannot be construed within the scope of freedom of
expression, and should clearly be considered an abetment to crime.

It was as a result of this abetment that Hrant Dink, Father Santoro
and Sevag Å~^ahin Balıkcı were massacred.

Let us recall how Dogu Perincek and his like acted during the Hrant
Dink and Orhan Pamuk cases!

Taking the name of Talat, architect and implementer of the 1915
Genocide, they shamelessly declared themselves ‘The Talat Pasha
Committee’. And it was that committee that made calls for violence
outside court hearings. And they gave cause to new deaths, and
new crimes.

The day the hearing was held in Strasbourg, we, the Human Rights
Association and the Truth Justice Memory Centre, held a press meeting.

Unfortunately, the press did not dedicate much space to our words.

Today, I would like to present some excerpts from the press release
we issued that day.

‘The denial of the Armenian Genocide, in our land, provokes racist
hatred and encourages anti-Armenian sections of society. Neither
the ECtHR decision, nor the file we submitted as a third party are
about the historical reality, or the exact judicial definition of the
1915-1917 massacres. The issue here is that Perincek’s statements beget
racism and discrimination. In this respect, the lawsuit that will be
heard on appeal at the Grand Chamber, is of special significance since
for the first time, discrimination caused by denial, trivialisation or
legitimisation will be addressed in a context other than the Holocaust.

The ECtHR decision in favour of Perincek restricted the scope of denial
and discrimination to its impact upon Armenians in Switzerland, and
overlooked the direct impact of Perincek’s words upon the Armenians
in Turkey.

The Talat Pasha Committee, of which Dogu Perincek is also a member,
carries out its activities in Turkey. And its intended audience is
the society of Turkey. Perincek’s statement that those who lend an
ear to the voice of Armenians will not be permitted, and that they
will be put in their place even if they are at the ends of the earth,
was aimed at the society of Turkey.

Denial does not simply mean to say ‘The Genocide did not take place’.

Denial means the legitimisation of the irredeemable, irrevocable
destruction of an entire people.

In brief, the denial of the Genocide, in Turkey, is the most
significant and main cause, facilitated by the State, for Armenians
to still live under threat.

Denial leads to hatred, and hatred kills.

While we, as human rights defenders, expressed our views in this way,
the State and political parties took the side of Dogu Perincek with
all their might.

In their group photograph at the hearing, it was as if Dogu Perincek,
the CHP members of parliament, the AKP members of parliament and the
MHP members of parliament were saying ‘We are the Genocide perpetrators
of Ä°ttihat’.

Now, the ECtHR faces a test. Its verdict will either clear the path
for racist hatred, or draw a line.

It is an important test!'”