Author: Adrine Hakobian

Armenian president refuses order to dismiss army chief as political crisis worsens

Adrine Hakobian
EuroNews
Feb 27 2021
By Euronews with AFP  •  Updated: 27/02/2021 – 21:41
Opposition demonstrators carrying Armenian national and region of Nagorno-Karabakh’s flag. Armenia, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021.   –   Copyright  AP Photo

Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on Saturday refused to sign an order from Prime Minister Nikol Pachinian dismissing the head of the army, further aggravating the political crisis in the country, where several thousand people again took to the streets.

“The president, within the framework of the powers conferred on him by the Constitution, has returned the text (ordering the dismissal of the head of the army) with objections,” the presidency explained in a statement.

The political crisis “cannot be resolved by frequent changes of officials,” it added.

Shortly afterwards, Pachinian said on Facebook that he would refer the order back to the presidency, stressing that the decision had “not at all” defused the crisis.

It came as around 15,000 people demonstrated on Saturday in Yerevan for the third day of protests in a row, demanding the resignation of the prime minister.

Demonstrators marched in the centre of Yerevan, while many people cheered them from their windows or balconies.

At 7.30 pm, the procession arrived in front of the parliament, where some of the demonstrators set up camp, an AFP journalist said.

Around 5,000 demonstrators had gathered there earlier in the day, calling on parliamentarians to take action.

  • Nagorno-Karabakh: Why has there been a flare-up of violence between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces?
  • Armenia’s PM says the army attempted a coup. What’s really going on?

The catalyst for the recent unrest in Armenia is last year’s bloody conflict with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno Karabakh region, which saw thousands killed on both sides.

Swathes of territory in and around the mountainous region were ceded to Azerbaijan when the two sides signed a November 10 Russian-brokered peace deal and Pashinyan has faced protests ever since.

The trigger for recent events was comments made by Pashinyan about the alleged ineffectiveness of the Iskander missile system.

The military’s top brass released a statement saying “the prime minister and the government are no longer able to make reasonable decisions”, according to Armenpress, the country’s state news agency.

  • Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan accuses military chiefs of ‘attempted coup’

“For a long time, the Armenian armed forces were patiently tolerating the ‘attacks’ by the incumbent government aimed at defaming the armed forces, but everything has its limits,” the officials were cited as saying.

Pashinyan retaliated by sacking the head of the army’s General Staff, Onik Gasparyan, further angering the military elite.

He accused top military officers of attempting a coup, at this point rallying his supporters to gather at the march telling them: “The army is not a political institution and attempts to involve it in political processes are unacceptable.”

Sports: FC Krasnodar’s Eduard Spertsyan to play for Armenian national team

Adrine Hakobian
Public Radio of Armenia
Feb 17 2021

FC Krasnodar midfielder Eduard Spertsyan will play for the Armenian national football team. Spertsyan is supposed to join the Armenian national team ahead of the preparation for FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers.

Eduard Spertsyan was born in Krasnodar on June 7, 2000.

He joined FC Krasnodar in 2018.

After a fabulous start of the season in FC Krasnodar-2 (12 goals), Spertsyan made his debut in Russian Premier League in September 2020.

He made his debut in UEFA Champions League, when he came on to the pitch during the group stage match against Chelsea in October 2020.

He has made five appearances in RPL and two appearances in UEFA CL this season.

Rep. Schiff briefed on the situation following Turkish-Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh

Adrine Hakobian
Public Radio of Armenia
Feb 11 2021

The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) Board of Directors, regional and national staff, as well as local ANCA chapter leaders held a productive meeting with Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA-28).

ANCA representatives briefed Congressman Schiff on the latest developments in the region following the Turkish-Azerbaijani aggression and 44-day war waged against Artsakh and Armenia with the assistance of terrorist mercenaries from Syria. Chief among the topics discussed were the issues relating to the deployment of immediate U.S. humanitarian aid to Armenia and Artsakh, strict enforcement of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act as well as sanctions and other punitive measures against Turkish and Azerbaijani regimes, and the immediate return of Armenian POWs still in Azerbaijani captivity.

“Congressman Schiff is one of the most knowledgeable and committed legislators we have representing our community in the federal government. He has championed all aspects of the Armenian Cause in Congress and through the media, and we are grateful to enjoy a close partnership with him and his office throughout his 20 year Congressional tenure, especially as he successfully led the passage of the resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide,” remarked ANCA-WR Chair Nora Hovsepian, Esq. “We look forward to continuing to work with him moving forward as he continues to advocate for the needs and concerns of his constituents,” she continued.

Democratic Vice-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, Rep. Schiff has consistently and persistently advocated for justice for the Armenian Genocide, secure and prosperous Artsakh, stronger U.S.-Armenia strategic partnership, and other matters of critical importance to the Armenian-American community. In October 2020, Rep. Schiff called for the formal U.S. recognition of the Republic of Artsakh, in a statement entered into the official Congressional Record. He reiterated his position in a recent op-ed published in the San Francisco Chronicle and co-authored with Rep. Jackie Speier.

Rep. Schiff has consistently received an “A+” rating from the ANCA. In 2003, ANCA Western Region honored him with the prestigious Freedom Award. Rep. Schiff was also honored at the 2019 “Thank You Congress!” town hall as the principal co-author of H.Res.296 which passed in an overwhelming 405-11 bipartisan vote.

Yerevan’s Holocaust Memorial Vandalized

Adrine Hakobian

February 12,  2021



Yerevan’s Holocaust Memorial was vandalized on Feb. 12

Unknown assailants have vandalized a monument dedicated to the Holocaust by spray painting graffiti over the Hebrew letters on the structure, which was created as a memorial to the victims of the Genocides of the Armenian and Jewish people.

Yerevan police has launched an investigation with officials from all spectrums condemning the desecration of the monument, known as the “To Live and Not Forget” memorial that is located at a part on the intersection of Moskovyan and Teryan streets.

Specialists at Yerevan City Hall were mobilized Friday to restore the monument and wipe off the graffiti.

Hakob Karapetyan, the spokesperson for Yerevan Mayor Hayk Marutyan condemned the incident, saying there is no place for such crimes in Yerevan “where representatives of various nations are living side by side as Yerevantsis,” reported Armenspress.

“The desecration of any memorial is extremely unacceptable, especially memorials which are related to minorities living in the city. I think this problem should be solved through cooperation with aw enforcement agencies,” Karapetyan said when asked about efforts to put an end to such hate crimes in the future, since Friday’s incident was the second time this particular memorial has been targeted by vandals during the last few months.

The memorial photographed by Armenpress last month

Mayor Marutyan expressed hope that law enforcement agencies will give a swift and adequate response to the incident.

“Such an encroachment against any memorial is an unequivocally unacceptable and condemnable act which should never happen in our city.
Noted Jewish-Armenian composer William Weiner said he sees “foreign forces” in the vandalism and that he is certain that this couldn’t have been committed by an Armenian.

“As a citizen of Armenia, as a native Yerevantsi, I very much regret that things like this are happening here. I don’t understand it, I don’t want to understand it, this is the country where things like this never happened before, and I cannot understand who organized this. This is unacceptable for me. I am sure this wasn’t committed by an Armenian. I am certain that this is from outside,” Weiner told Armenpress.

Prosperous Armenia Party lawmaker Naira Zohrabyan, who is a member of the parliamentary Armenia-Israel friendship group, also condemned the vandalism.

“This is vandalism. Regardless what our attitude is (it is definitely negative) for the Israeli arms sales and overt military and political support to Azerbaijan during the latest Artsakh War, the Holocaust memorial cannot be desecrated,” said Zohrabyan. “We publicly express our protest to Israel’s policy, but desecrating the memory of victims is vandalism. I condemn Israel’s military support to Azerbaijan and the Israeli foreign ministry’s statements supporting the Turkish-Azerbaijani military aggression, but I bow before the memory of the innocent victims of the Holocaust.”

PM Pashinyan, Artsakh President discuss implementation of major infrastructure projects

Adrine Hakobian

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 13:39, 9 February, 2021

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan discussed the steps on implementing major infrastructure projects in Artsakh, the Armenian PM’s spokesperson Mane Gevorgyan said on Facebook.

“Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan chair consultation on the implementation of major infrastructure projects in Artsakh, attended by the heads of the responsible agencies of the Armenian government. The consultation outlined the future programs, their financial allocations and further steps”, the spokesperson said.

 

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Armenia Investigative Committee launches case against freedom fighter for statement targeted at PM

Adrine Hakobian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 9 2021
19:32, 09.02.2021

The Investigative Committee of Armenia has launched a criminal case against member of the Sasna Tsrer (Daredevils of Sassoun) armed group, freedom fighter Pavlik Manukyan for the statement he made yesterday, as reported the Prosecutor General’s Office.

The criminal case was launched for public calls for use of violence and for publicly justifying or advocating violence.

Pavlik Manukyan was among those holding a demonstration near the building of the Prosecutor General’s Office in support of former deputy of the National Assembly of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Vahan Badasyan. During the demonstration, he touched upon Badasyan’s statement on eliminating the Prime Minister of Armenia and said he is also ready to eliminate him.

Construction of new district starts in Armenia’s border village of Shurnukh

Adrine Hakobian
Public Radio of Armenia
Feb 6 2021

Construction of a new district has started in the village of Shurnukh in Armenia’s Syunik province, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan informs.

Agreement on the constriction of new houses was reached during Avinyan’s visit to Syunik last week.

The district will accommodate the families that lost their houses as a result of demarcation and delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani state border.

According to Goris Municipality, with the support of benefactors, 12 private houses are being built with all the necessary amenities.

The newly built district of Shurnukh will be completely asphalted.

Cattle barns will be built in the near future to promote the development of agriculture. 

Armenian opposition party has yet to consider applying to Constitutional Court regarding changes in Judicial Code

Adrine Hakobian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 4 2021
11:40, 04.02.2021

The agenda that the parliamentary faction of the ruling My Step bloc is presenting isn’t in line with the current situation and isn’t to the country’s benefit. This is what secretary of the parliamentary faction of the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party Arman Abovyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am, commenting on the amendments to the Judicial Code that were presented by the Government of Armenia and were adopted by the parliament yesterday.

According to him, the overall situation is such that the authorities are unable to analyze the situation correctly, draw conclusions or take normal steps. Abovyan also stated that Prosperous Armenia Party has yet to consider whether it will apply to the Constitutional Court to clarify the constitutionality of the adopted amendments.

Based on the amendments, there will be new judges who will deal with issues related to pre-trial measures. The opposition emphasizes that, with this, the authorities intend to launch massive repressions.

To apply to the Constitutional Court, there has to be one-fifth of the votes of deputies (27 votes), and the parliamentary opposition parties both have a total of 41 votes.

For Immediate Release: The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation donates 700 Tablets and Laptops to Armenian schools in Lebanon

Adrine Hakobian 
PRESS RELEASE:
Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Avenida de: 
Berna 45-A, 1067-001 Lisboa, Portugal
Contact: Vera Cunha
Telephone: (351) 21 782 3658
Web: gulbenkian.pt:
Galust Külpenkean Foundation donates 700 to Armenian schools in Lebanon 
computer device.
The Armenian Department of Galust Kulpenkean Foundation, Armenian Education in Lebanon 
according to its strategy to support institutions, 17 Armenians of the country 
donated 650 tablets and 50 computers to schools.
The numerous housing developments caused by coronal disease have made online learning possible 
an important component of educational activity everywhere. Nevertheless, in Lebanon 
thousands of school-aged students have difficulty following in a full-fledged way 
online classes due to lack of appropriate equipment. To the country 
in addition to the economic crisis and instability in August 2020 
The explosion in the port of Beirut caused significant damage to the Armenian community 
caused material losses, as a result of which many families and schools 
they do not have the means to provide the necessary equipment to the students. 
The Galust Kulpenkean Foundation continues to cooperate with Lebanese Armenians 
with educational institutions. Computer equipment data 
The donation is part of various programs aimed at the educational sector. 
The foundation will also support various programs pursuing the revitalization of Western Armenian 
initiatives. 
--
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation donates 700 Tablets and Laptops to Armenians 
schools in Lebanon:
The Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, in: 
line with its strategy to support Armenian educational institutions in Lebanon, 
donated 650 tablets and 50 laptops to the 17 Armenian schools in the country. The multiple lockdowns due to Covid-19 have made online learning a crucial 
component of educational practice worldwide. And yet, thousands of students in 
Lebanon could not adequately follow online classes due to the lack of equipment. The severe economic crisis and instability, coupled with the devastation caused 
by the August 2020 Beirut Port explosion that led to substantial damage and 
financial loss within the Armenian community, meant that many families and 
schools lacked the means to provide the necessary equipment to students to 
follow their courses. The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation continues to work with Armenian educational 
institutions in Lebanon. The current donation of IT equipment is one component 
of its support to the Armenian educational sector. The Foundation also supports 
various other initiatives to ensure the vitality of the Western Armenian 
language.