Author: Albert Nalbandian

Armenians push Bush over ‘G’ word
The New Anatolian, Turkey
April 21 2005
Armenian pressure on U.S. President George Bush to use the “G” word
in his speech for April 24, the 90th anniversary of the so-called
Armenian genocide, is growing. Some 32 senators from the U.S Congress
on Monday wrote a letter to Bush asking him to use the word “genocide”
in his speech.
The 32 signatures out of the 100-member Senate are reportedly a record.
The U.S. presidents’ speeches every April 24, to commemorate the
controversial events of the early 1900s between Armenians and the
Ottoman Empire, are a tradition. But despite Armenian pressure, no
U.S. president have ever used the word “genocide.” Due to sensitivity
on the issue from both the Turkish public and government on the usage
of the word, U.S presidents have instead referred to the events using
either “tragic events” or “massacre.”
There are some very weighty signatures on the U.S senators’ letter to
President Bush, including that of current New York Senator and former
first lady Hillary Clinton. Others are former Democratic presidential
candidate Sen. John Kerry, Senate Democrat Minority leader Harry Reid,
and 2000 Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman.
Last year senators sent a similar letter to the U.S. president but
only 22 senators signed it.
Recently, there was another letter sent from members of the U.S.
House of Representatives to Bush in an attempt to put pressure on
him to recognize the so-called genocide. It was signed by 175 out of
a potential 435 members, according to U.S. congressional sources.
The New Anatolian / Ankara 21 April 2005
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

VARDAN OSKANYAN: TURKEY NOT ONLY TRIES TO REWRITE SHAMELESSLY ITS OWN
HISTORY BUT ALSO CALLS OTHER PEOPLES TO DO THE SAME
YEREVAN, APRIL 13. ARMINFO. “90 yeas have passed after perpetration
of Genocide, however there are no a single-valued recognition of this
crime by international community, stated Armenian Foreign Minister
Vardan Oskanyan at a press-conference, Apr 13.
Furthermore, Turkey not only does not recognize Armenian Genocide,
but, quite the contrary, denies this crime day by day. “It is the most
important for us not to forget dark pages of the own history, to pay
homage to victims, and to keep a living memory as long as even a
minimal justice towards Armenian people triumphs”, Oskanyan stressed.
“Without recognizing the fact of Genocide by Turkey, we cannot be sure
in a neighbor, being a powerful state today and having an
unambiguously pro-Azeri position in Karabakh issue”, he noted and
added the necessity of consistent work and demand on recognizing
Armenian Genocide. Oskanyan reminded that the UN considered Genocide
to challenges to the mankind.
Speaking about Turkey’s efforts to become a member of the EU, Oskanyan
noted that the issue of Genocide is outside the scope of Armenian and
becomes European and common to all mankind. “On the threshold of the
90th anniversary of the tragedy Turkey passes to the offensive,
instead of taking more passive position. It tries not only rewrite
shamelessly its own history but also calls other peoples to “revise”
it. However, such actions as boomerang return to it and deal a serious
blow to the authority of Turkey itself”, minister noted.
At the same time, Oskanyan drew a differentiation between Turkish
authorities and people. In his words, some discussions on Genocide
issue are conducted there as far as possible, as well as there are a
number of intelligentsia which realize that Genocide had taken place
but do not dare to state it.
Oskanyan also noted that before starting negotiations on Turkey’s
entry to the EU, issue on Armenian Genocide will be put on the agenda.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Journalists protest in Azerbaijan
Associated Press
April 9, 2005
BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) – About 700 journalists and rights activists
rallied in Azerbaijan’s capital Saturday to protest what they call
authorities’ failure to fully investigate the death of an opposition
magazine editor and bring his killers to justice.
Police afterward detained seven activists from youth organization Yeni
Fikir, or New Thought, for distributing leaflets at the unauthorized
rally in the oil-rich Caspian Sea state, their leader, Ruslan Bashirli,
told The Associated Press by cellphone from a police station.
A police spokesman confirmed the detention but gave no further
information.
Elmar Huseinov, founder and editor of the opposition magazine Monitor,
was found dead in the lobby of his apartment building in Baku on
March 2. Police said he was shot four times in the heart and the side.
The opposition has blamed the former Soviet republic’s leadership for
Huseinov’s killing. President Ilham Aliev has countered by calling
the murder a provocation for unrest.
At the protest meeting opposite the city’s National Academy of
Sciences, the participants shouted “Freedom” and “Freedom of Speech.”
They then went the cemetery where the journalist is buried, and the
head of the country’s journalists’ union, Azer Hasrat, read a petition
calling for a speedy investigation into Huseinov’s killing and the
end to official pressure on the media.
The journalist’s widow, Rushana Huseinova, told the AP that the
government was trying to shift responsibility for the killing on
“foreign powers.”
“From the start of the investigation you could feel efforts to put
the blame onto any other country, Russia, Georgia, the United States,
but not on the Azerbaijani government,” she said.
An international press freedom group on Friday urged Azerbaijan to
find Huseinov’s killers, saying that would show that the country
valued press freedoms and democracy.
Robert Menard, who heads the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders,
said Interior Minister Rameli Usubovi told him in a meeting Friday that
the murder had a political motive, possibly to destabilize the country.
He suggested foreign countries, such as Azerbaijan’s regional rival,
Armenia, may have had a role.
Tension between the government and the opposition has increased since
the October 2003 election, in which Aliev replaced his father, longtime
leader Geidar, as president in a vote the opposition said was marred
by fraud. Several opposition leaders, including newspaper editors,
have been sentenced to prison over unrest that followed the election.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IN MEMORY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS AND POPE
A1+
07-04-2005
A concert in commemoration of the victims of the Armenian Genocide
will take place in the hall after Aram Khachaturyan on April 8 at 7
p.m. local time, maestro Alexander Siranosyan informed today.
He will conduct the State Philharmonic Orchestra of Armenia while he
daughter, cellist Astghik Siranosyan will be the soloist. The program
includes the “The Symphonic Poem and “The Poem for Cello and string
Band” by Mirzoyan. “The Concert for Cello” by Saint-Sans and the
premiere of “The Italian Symphony” by Vincent d’Andy dedicated
to the memory on Pope John Paul II.

GOVERNOR OF SYUNIK REGION PROMISES
YEREVAN, APRIL 2. ARMINFO. Governor of Syunik region, a member of the
Republican Party of Armenia Suren Khachatryan told journalists today.
He said that the sufferer had no evidences that the governor had
organized the burning of his car. Khachatryan assured journalists that
he had instructed the law-enforcement bodies to carry out a detailed
and objective investigation on the case. He expressed intention to
deal with the editor-in-chief within the limits of the Law. He also
said that such statements did not contribute to formation of a
positive image of a journalist. he said.
To note on 1 April, in the town of Goris, the car “NIVA” belonging to
the editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Syunats Yerkir” Samvel
Aleksanyan caught fire. Aleksanyan informed ARMINFO that the incident
was a regular terrorist act with respect to his newspaper by the
Governor of Syunik region. Judging on the aforementioned, Aleksanyan’s
interview to the newspaper “Novoye Vremya” dated March 12 has probably
become a reason for the burning. After his interview, Aleksanyan has
been repeatedly warned by the governor and even received anonymous
calls at nights. The editor-in-chief thinks that there is no second
person in Goris except Governor Surik Khachatryan able to burn a car.
At the same time Aleksanyan refuses to make any explanation to the
investigation structures of the region stating that the Armenian
Constitution is not effective in the region, that is why any employee
of the regional law-enforcement bodies may occur in the same situation
with the editor-in-chief when displaying objectiveness.

Turkish FM Calls for Proof of Armenian Allegations
Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
March 23 2005
Turkey called on countries having upheld Armenian allegations of
‘genocide’ to take the challenge to prove the genuineness of the
charges and maintained the debate was manipulated by the powerful
Armenian Diaspora.
“Account for what you have done; prove the allegations,” Turkish
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told a meeting of the parliamentary group
of his Justice and Development Party (AKP), referring to countries
whose parliaments have passed resolutions recognizing the alleged
‘genocide’.
Turkey categorically rejects charges that Armenians were subject to
a massacre campaign at the hands of the late Ottoman Empire in the
beginning of the last century and says deaths came while the Ottoman
Empire was trying to quell a civil unrest, which brought losses to
both Armenian and Turkish sides. Moreover Turkey claims that many
Armenians were killed in the ethnic conflicts between Kurds and
Armenians. 100,000 Armenians died due to the epidemic diseases and
famine in Anatolia while more than 200,000 Armenians died as a result
of the bad conditions under the Armenian rule around Yerevan in 1919.
But national parliaments of several countries have upheld the Armenian
allegations, drawing furious reaction from Turkey.
Turkish FM Gul said several parliaments have made mistakes and took
wrong decisions, referring to resolutions on the allegations and said
Turkey has reacted and would continue to react to such moves. He said
the government and the Parliament would be actively working against
Armenian allegations but did not give details.
Gul’s AKP and the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) recently
united forces in calling for a scholarly investigation of allegations
and said the Ottoman archives were open to researchers for study.
Turkish PM call the Armenian side to open their archives in Armenia
and the US. The Armenian archives, particularly the Tashnak Arcives
are closed to researchers.
The Turkish foreign minister blamed the Armenian Diaspora for the
anti-Turkey campaigns in parliaments of other countries and said
members of the Diaspora exploited the issue of alleged genocide to
promote their standing in the countries they are living. “They are a
minority. Because they are a minority, they needed a tool that would
help protect their minority identity and awareness,” he said, and
added: “In addition, they are guilty. They are living comfortably in
other countries and do not go to Armenia to help their country. They
are exploiting this issue in order to erase this feeling of guilt
and in order to strengthen their position in the countries they are
living in.” Hostility Against Turkey:
Gul said Turks and Armenians had lived side by side for centuries,
contributing to each other’s culture and added that the Ottoman
Empire had protected the Armenian language and religion, describing
the allegations of genocide as “slander and fallacy.”
“Yet, we see very well that there is hostility against Turkey,”
he went on.
Armenia – Turkey territorial borders are closed and there is no
diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey. Nationalist Armenian
parties are against the opening of the borders. The extreme Armenian
nationalist parties argue that the opening of the Turkish borders
will be a betrayal to the Armenian Case.
Armenia has occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories and does
not recognise Turkey’s national borders.
(JTW, news agencies and Turkish Daily News)
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian Jews call for Armenian Genocide recognition
23.03.2005  
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – The Jewish community of Armenia called the Jewish
organizations around the globe to recognize the Armenian Genocide.
The Ottoman Turkey killed 1.5 million of its Armenian citizens,
and for decades, the humankind has not condemned this fact, reads
the appeal, adopted by the congress of the Armenian Jews.
“The Holocaust may have been avoided if the world had united against
this brutality as it does now to fight terror,” the appeal states,
adding that no political or economic interest should become an obstacle
for recognition of this tragedy.
The appeal also stresses that the recognition of the Genocide is not
directed against the Turkish people. “In fact, it would only elevate
them in the eyes of the civilized world as it was the case with
Germany which admitted to the killings of 6 million Jews under Nazis.”
–Boundary_(ID_wdLuh1IA1bO5UIcjb2ETjA)–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RA PRESIDENT GREETS PROPOSAL TO PAY MORE ATTENTION TO COOPERATION
BETWEEN ARMENIAN AND BELORUSSIAN REGIONS
YEREVAN, MARCH 18, NOYAN TAPAN. The friendly relations between
Armenia and Belorussia exert a great influence on the development of
the whole range of inter-relations. The evidence of this is also the
considerable enlivening of cooperation especially in the sphere of
economy. RA President Robert Kocharian said this during the March 18
reception of Vladimir Konoplyov, Chairman of Belorussian House of
Representatives. According to RA President’s Press Service, Vladimir
Konoplyov said that though the commodity circulation between Armenia
and Belorussia increased for three times there is still a great
potential not used yet. He proposed that more attention should be paid
to inter-regional cooperation referring to the positive experience of
the contacts established between Sunik and Minsk. President Robert
Kocharian greeted the proposal.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

OSCE report: Settlement of Armenians in territories seized during
Nagorno-Karabakh war should stop
AP Worldstream
Mar 17, 2005
MIKE ECKEL

Armenia and authorities in the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh
should discourage any more Armenians from settling in territories
seized during a brutal war with Azerbaijan, top European security and
democracy organization said Thursday.
Azerbaijan has accused both Armenian and Nagorno-Karabakh officials of
illegally resettling refugees and other Armenians displaced during the
bitter six-year war in the lands surrounding the mountainous enclave,
which is located within Azerbaijan.
The issue is one of several that have stoked already hostile tensions
between Armenia and Azerbaijan and complicated efforts by the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and others to
reach a final peace deal over the enclave’s status. A tense cease-fire
has held since 1994, despite frequent small-scale violations.
The report released Thursday by the heads of OSCE’s Minsk Group, which
is seeking to help resolve the conflict, said Armenians were indeed
settling in territories outside of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Minsk Group investigators who traveled to the region last month found
no deliberate policy by Armenia to settle refugees in the territories,
the report said, but noted that Nagorno-Karabakh authorities were
actively supporting the resettlement, particularly in the Lachin
region separating the enclave from Armenia.
The report did not call for removing the settlers, though it noted
that most were refugees who wanted to return to their homes.
Nearly 1 million Armenians and Azerbaijanis were displaced or driven
from their homes before the cease-fire deal was reached in 1994,
ending the fighting that killed more than 30,000 people and left the
enclave under the control of ethnic Armenians.
The mission heads “request that any further settlement of the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan should be discouraged,” the report said.
Both Armenian and Nagorno-Karabakh authorities have said under no
condition would the Lachin region be returned to Azerbaijani control
since it would then cut the enclave off from Armenia proper.
Nagorno-Karabakh’s political status has not been determined, and
shooting breaks out frequently between the two sides, which face off
across a demilitarized buffer zone.
A statement from the Armenian Foreign Ministry welcomed the report and
called on the OSCE to send an identical fact-finding mission to
territory under control of Azerbaijani forces. There was no official
reaction from the Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry, though Deputy Foreign
Minister Araz Azimov earlier this month claimed the mission had
“determined and confirmed the resettlements.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Yemenidjian: MGM Says CEO’s Bonus Less Glamorous
Doers and doings in business, entertainment and technology
Faces In The News
Forbes.com
02.28.05
By Greg Levine

Cut. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (nyse: MGM) on Monday said it
paid Chairman and Chief Executive Alex Yemenidjian a
$1.13 million bonus last year. That’s down from $1.45
million the CEO got for 2003, according to the
company’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission. The legendary film and TV studio said the
head honcho’s 2004 package also included a base salary
of $2.5 million, which stayed the same over the last
two years. Although the studio posted a 2004 loss of
$29.2 million, or 12 cents per share, compare that to
MGM’s loss of $161.8 million, or 66 cents per share,
in 2003. Yemenidjian has served as chairman and CEO of
the entertainment production company since April 1999,
and a director since November 1997. The terms of his
employment agreement call for him to keep the C-level
posts through April 30, 2007. MGM is in the process of
being acquired by an investors’ consortium with Sony
(nyse: SNE) in its vanguard. Industry rumor had
suggested Yemenidjian as Michael Eisner’s successor at
The Walt Disney Co. (nyse: DIS) when the latter leaves
the CEO post in 2006, but MGM’s head waved off the
idea, saying he preferred to own a significant piece
of the next firm he captains.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress