Author: Alex Nanijanian

The Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC Australia) has partnered with Sydney-based filmmaker, Shahane Bekarian to produce the first Australian-made documentary on the Armenian Genocide. Today, ANC Australia launched a crowdfunding campaign with Kickstarter to help raise funds for this project.

The film, titled “Children of the Genocide,” is drawing on archival footage of interviews with Australia-based survivors of the Armenian Genocide, who are now no longer alive. It also features interviews with their descendants, currently living in Australia.

They have set up a Kickstarter campaign where one can easily pledge to donate. Click here to see and donate.

“This is the first such film produced in our community, and through this grassroots fundraising campaign on Kickstarter, members of our community can be part of this historic project,” said ANC Australia Community Relations Director, Stephen Abolakian.

“Children of the Genocide”  is described as “an examination of the sentiment of Armenians in Australia 100 years after the genocide which saw them flee their motherland after World War One. The issue to be explored relates to the surviving Armenians who found refuge in Australia. Although they fled to survive, we explore wether relocation is enough to settle the attempt of genocide and the upheaval from their homeland. After their families were brutally killed and their livelihood destroyed, was surviving enough? What basic human needs remained unsettled? Perhaps the success in maintaining their hereditary can only be measured by the strength of their new roots in Australia, the stability of life they have laid out for their kids and the separation they have made from racial intolerance. Is Australia the place? Have they gone down the path of cultural assimilation or integration in Australian society?”

ANC Australia is seeking to raise $20,000 to help fund the production of this film, which is set for a release in 2015, on the Centenary year of the Armenian Genocide.

The Azerbaijani government’s crackdown on independent and critical voices has a particularly damaging effect ahead of the country’s 1 November parliamentary elections, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s democracy and human rights Chairperson, Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal), said today.

“Citizen election-observer Anar Mammadli cannot monitor the vote from inside a jail cell. Journalist Khadija Ismayilova cannot report on the campaign from behind bars. Intigam Aliyev, Rasul Jafarov, Leyla Yunus — the list of human rights defenders and government-critics who have been made political prisoners in Azerbaijan goes on and on. On the eve of parliamentary elections, when independent voices are crucial for having an informed debate about the country’s direction, Azerbaijani citizens will especially suffer from the silence their government has imposed,” Santos said.

The Chairperson also expressed concern regarding recent reports that opposition leader Ilgar Mammadov has been abused in prison. He was sentenced in March 2014 to 7 years in jail on charges widely considered to be politically motivated.

“I urge Azerbaijan’s leaders to engage with their citizens and with the international community in an open and honest dialogue aimed at bringing human rights and rule of law back to the country,” Santos said.

She reiterated her openness to constructive engagement with Azerbaijan’s authorities on these and other democracy-related issues.

The Chairperson further expressed hope that the Azerbaijani government will choose to abide by its OSCE election-monitoring commitments and allow the Organization to conduct full, unrestricted observation missions to future elections in the country.

The leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly cancelled a planned observation mission to the upcoming parliamentary elections after its traditional observation partner, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR), was forced to cancel its mission due to restrictions imposed on its work by Azerbaijan’s authorities.

The Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire about 60 time last night, the NKR Ministry of Defense reports.

The rival fired more than 900 shots from weapons of different caliber, including 60 mm mortars in the direction of the Armenian positions.

The front divisions of the NKR Defense Army have given a worthy response to the rival’s actions and confidently continue with their military duty all along the line of contact.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has released video footage showing its nighttime cruise missile strikes from the Caspian Sea against Islamic State targets in Syria, Sputnik News reports.

Upon his arrival in New York on the evening of September 24th, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs Igor Popov, James Warlick and Pierre Andrieu. Anjey Kasprzyk, the personal representative of the OSCE Chairman in office participated in the meeting.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia expressed his indignation to the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs on the gross violations of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan, which caused human losses among the civilian population.

“Azerbaijan has developed a bad practice of escalating the situation, even at the expense of human casualties, on the line of contact with Nagorno-Karabakh and at the border with Armenia, ahead of important visits to the region and high level meetings, thus undermining the meetings and impeding the negotiation process”, underlined Minister Nalbandian.

Strongly condemning the killing of three Armenian citizens, as a result of ceasefire violation by Azerbaijan, Minister Nalbandian said: “This yet another provocation by Azerbaijan came as a response to the expectation, expressed by the Minsk Group Co-chairs on holding productive talks between Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers in New York.”

The possible steps on stabilisation of the situation were discussed at the meeting.

The Democratic Party of Artsakh and the European Free Alliance have adopted a joint declaration. In the declaration co-signed by Mr. François Alfonsi, President of European Free Alliance, and Mr. Ashot Ghulyan, President of Democratic Party of Artsakh, the parties agree to work together to contribute to a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, with the direct participation of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and on the basis of peoples’ right to self-determination, excluding any sort of agression or violence.

The full text of the declaration is below: 

• Taking note of the realisation by the people of Artsakh (the Nagorno Karabakh Republic) of its right to live in freedom and the European Free Alliance’s (hereinafter EFA) support of this democratic strive based on the principle of self-determination;

• Acknowledging that despite the isolation, the democratic processes in the Nagorno Karabakh Republic  have been successful and sustainable and are vividly manifested  in the free, fair and competitive elections that have become an inseparable part of Artsakh’s political culture;

• Welcoming the substantial democratic progress of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and the contribution of the Democratic Party of Artsakh (hereinafter DPA) that has been key to the implementation of a well-functioning European-inspired development model based on: fundamental freedoms; democracy; separation of powers; rule of law; sustainable peace.

• Stressing the commitment of both EFA and the DPA to European values and principles, as well as to a sustainable peace in the South Caucasus.

• Considering that the EU Institutions have on numerous occasions acknowledged the need to promote democratic values and peaceful cooperation in its neighbourhood and recognised the EU’s particular importance in this domain, EFA and DPA are committed to encouraging a greater involvement of the EU with the society of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic;

• Recognizing that the DPA and many of the EFA affiliated parties face similar challenges in terms of their fundamental freedoms, and in particular the right to decide on their own future, being acknowledged by the EU and the international community;

• Sharing a firm conviction that the established relationship should be considered in terms of mutual benefit, where the undersigning parties can be envisaged as substantial contributors and reliable partners in promoting basic European values and principles; thus, having a positive impact throughout the region.

EFA and DPA agree to associate aiming at:

• Sharing the experience of the independence process of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, achieving its sovereignty through democratic and peaceful means, to EFA and its member parties;

• Engaging the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in international processes, as well as, in the EU Institutions and bodies, and facilitating the participation of Karabakh representatives in those fora, backing to its international recognition;

• Contributing to a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, with the direct participation of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and on the basis of peoples’ right to self-determination, excluding any sort of agression or violence;

Therefore, EFA and the DPA reiterate full dedication to being worthy and suitable partners in the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and in the European Union.

A court in Baku on September 1, 2015, convicted the investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova on spurious charges of tax evasion and other economic crimes, Human Rights Watch said today.

Ismayilova was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison after a politically motivated prosecution, flawed trial, and campaign to discredit her. She was acquitted on an additional charge of inciting someone to commit suicide. The Azerbaijani authorities should immediately move to set aside the conviction and release her.

“The outrageous verdict against Khadija Ismayilova shows the Azerbaijani authorities’ willingness to subvert the law to exact revenge against critics,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “Her conviction and sentence should be immediately set aside.”

Ismayilova is a 2015 recipient of Human Rights Watch’s Alison Des Forges award for extraordinary activism, in recognition of her exemplary courage as a journalist and human rights activist in the face of the unprecedented crackdown on freedom of expression in Azerbaijan.

The trial against Ismayilova fell far short of international standards. The authorities appeared to rush the proceedings, denying nearly all of the defense’s petitions, including to introduce evidence in her defense or to challenge the prosecution’s assertions against her. Prosecutors claimed the motions were Ismayilova’s attempts to delay the trial. The authorities also denied Ismayilova’s requests for additional time to meet with her lawyers to discuss her defense, granting her only a few hours during the trial to meet with her lawyers.

The authorities prevented most independent observers and Ismayilova’s supporters from attending the proceedings, and, according to numerous news reports, often apparently filled the courtroom with “proxy” observers, so that Ismayilova’s relatives and supporters could not attend. Her mother and sister and some representatives from foreign embassies were unable to access some hearings though able to attend others. A Human Rights Watch representative was allowed to attend the proceedings on August 13, but was not allowed to attend on August 14.

During her trial, Ismayilova accused the government of trying to stop her investigative reporting, especially into President Ilham Aliyev’s family’s businesses.

The European Union and its member states in particular should mount a strong, unified response to the appalling state of human rights in Azerbaijan, Human Rights Watch said. Such a response should include freezing negotiations on a new Strategic Partnership Agreement with Baku and taking action in other multilateral bodies, including the UN Human Rights Council, to censor Azerbaijan over its atrocious human rights record. A common position among all member states and EU institutions vis-à-vis Azerbaijan is acutely needed to challenge Baku’s calculation that its outrageous behavior comes at no price, Human Rights Watch said.

Human Rights Watch said the voting rights of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe should be suspended.

Authorities arrested Ismayilova on December 5, 2014.

Ismayilova has reported extensively on government corruption, including exposing the business interests of members of the ruling family, and the government has made a concerted effort to silence her. In February 2014, police questioned Ismayilova as a witness in an investigation into the alleged leaking of state secrets only days after pro-government media claimed she had given files on Azerbaijani opposition politicians to United States government officials working as intelligence agents, a claim the US embassy denied.

“Ismayilova’s unwavering commitment to transparency and justice in her country should be a source of pride to Azerbaijan, not reason for punishment, persecution, and prison,” Roth said.

LOT Polish Airlines shall resume Warsaw-Yerevan-Warsaw flights, Press Service of “Armenia” International Airports” CJSC reports.

In January 2015 LOT shall operate three flights a week.  The aircraft will arrive from Warsaw on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and will depart from Yerevan Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

An agreement was reached to increase the flight frequencies in high season.

As a reminder, LOT Polish Airlines suspended flights to Yerevan on July 1, 2015 for purposes of restructuring its schedule.

 

Greece has taken a crucial step towards a bailout after its parliament passed a second set of reforms, the BBC  reports.

The passage of the measures means that negotiations on an €86bn European Union bailout can begin.

The reforms include changes to Greek banking and an overhaul of the judiciary system.

Thousands demonstrated outside of parliament as the bill was debated, with protests briefly turning violent as petrol bombs were thrown at police.

Five airports in Indonesia have been shut, including those in the tourist hotspot Bali, because of a volcanic eruption, transport officials say.

Mount Raung in East Java has been spewing ash into the air for nearly a week, raising concerns it could interfere with aircraft safety.

A spokesperson for state airport operator Angkasa Pura said Indonesian that Denpasar would be closed until at least 21:30 local time (13:30 GMT).

However, Indonesian transport ministry official JA Barata said the re-opening of the airports would be based on the activity on Mount Raung, which is about 120km from Denpasar airport.

The four other affected airports are the International Airport in Lombok, Selaparang Airport also in Lombok, Blimbingsari Airport in Banyuwangi, East Java and Notohadinegoro Airport in Jember, East Java.

Scores of flights have been postponed indefinitely or cancelled by airlines, including Jetstar and Virgin Australia who have halted all flights in and out of Denpasar Airport.