Author: Andres-Papazian

TURKEY’S ARMENIANS UNEASY ABOUT FRANCE’S GENOCIDE BILL

Today’s Zaman
Dec 20 2011
Turkey

As the French parliament is set to vote soon on a piece of legislation
which would make denial that events occurring in Turkey in 1915
constituted genocide punishable by up to one year in prison and a
fine of 45,000 euros, Turkey’s Armenian community is uneasy about
the development.

One prominent figure who voiced opposition to the bill is Orhan Dink,
brother of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was assassinated
outside his office by an ultranationalist teenager.

“Similar legislation was debated in the French parliament in 2001 and
2006. My brother Hrant Dink strongly opposed it. This legislation
completely violates human rights,” he said in a live television
program on Monday evening.

Dink pointed out that Hrant Dink was convicted of violating Article
301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), an article that has been
criticized for stifling freedom of speech as it forbids insulting
“Turkishness.” “That’s why he was murdered. It is natural for us to
oppose that legislation in France. My brother was against it when he
was alive. Even though he was murdered because of such a racist law,
we have never felt hatred, and we are still against the [French]
legislation because it violates human rights,” he said.

Dink also called on diaspora Armenians, saying they should object to
the French legislation because it is an “insult” to them. “This pain
should not be left in the hands of people who are in politics.

I call on my brothers, relatives, friends and people who share my
pain; they should be against this legislation, be against this human
rights violation. Don’t make our pain a tool to be used in politics,”
he said referring to the events of 1915.

Armenians say 1.5 million Anatolian Armenians were killed in a
systematic genocide campaign during the World War I. Turkey says
the figures are inflated and insists that the killings occurred as
the Ottoman Empire was trying to quell an uprising of Armenians,
who revolted against Ottoman rule for independence, in collaboration
with the Russian army, which was then invading eastern Anatolia.

In an apparent reference to Turkish accusations against France
for ignoring its bloody past, Dink also said: “I want to send this
message to politicians of both countries: Everybody should look at
themselves in the mirror. A debate over who is worse than who will
bring no result.”

According to academic Ohannes Kılıcdagı, it is obvious that the
French legislation restricts freedom of speech because it requires
punishment for people who deny that the events that occurred in 1915
in Turkey were genocide.

“Neither those who say that it was genocide nor those who say that
it was not should be punished,” he said answering Today’s Zaman’s
questions. “Penal codes should be differentiated from a mere expression
of facts in order to share the pain of people who suffered as a result
of what happened in 1915.”

Kılıcdagı also believes initiatives such as the one in France could
negatively influence efforts to find solutions to problems between
Turks and Armenians. “The ‘Armenian’ has a negative connotation in
Turkey. Such initiatives would make it even more negative and increase
tension. However, it is up to the decision makers to control those
negative effects,” said Kılıcdagı who is the co-author of the report
“Hearing Out Turkey’s Armenians: Problems, Demands, and Suggestions
for a Solution.”

The study had stated: “The Armenian community, which has avoided
visibility in Turkish society and which has isolated itself throughout
republican history due to discriminatory policies and attitudes,
started to raise its voice since the mid 1990s, and its demands for
equal citizenship and respect for the Armenian identity reverberated
in the democratization process starting in the 2000s.”As the emerging
Armenian civil society started to make its voice heard in Turkey,
they have also established connections with Turkish and Kurdish
civil society.

Garo Paylan, a long-time leader in Armenian institutions in Turkey,
said because of that interaction it was possible to organize an event
in Turkey two years ago on April 24 to commemorate the 1915 tragedy.

“It was the biggest news because Armenians, Turks and Kurds were
there. If we are able to remember what happened, then there is no
need for Sarkozy to use the issue in his dirty political games. As
long as Parliament in Turkey is silent over the issue, others will
use the issue for their own benefit, not to share our pain,” he said.

In the same line of thought, journalist and writer Markar Esayan
indicated in his Monday column in the Taraf daily, that French
President Nicolas Sarkozy is obviously after political gains
considering that France is heading into a presidential election
next year. “If a person who was massacred in a place in Anatolia in
1915 was able to be reincarnated and reach Sarkozy, s/he would spit
in Sarkozy’s face and say, ‘You are making political gains out of
my pain.’ But his or her grandchildren could not have such a clear
stance because this is now a blood feud, and anything goes when it
comes to striking out against the ‘other side’.”

Meanwhile, Turkey has threatened to withdraw its ambassador to France
if the bill is passed, while Ankara has lashed out at Paris, saying the
country should investigate alleged French abuses in Algeria and Rwanda
instead. France had troops in Rwanda, and Rwandan President Paul Kagame
has accused the country of doing little to stop the country’s genocide.

From: A. Papazian

THE ILLUMINATION AND SOUND SYSTEM OF THE OPERA AND BALLET THEATRE TO BE CHANGED IN 2012
Alisa Gevorgyan

“Radiolur”
20.12.2011 17:00

The National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet after Alexander
Spendiaryan had three premieres in 2011 – Alexander Harutyunyan’s
“Sayat Nova” opera, Prokofyev’s “Romeo and Juliet” and the
“Shopeniania” ballets, Director of the theatre Kamo Hovhannisyan told
a press conference today, summing up the results of the passing year.

In 2012 the National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet intends
to stage Puccini’s opera “La Boheme,” Adan’s “Giselle” ballet and
Tchaykovsky’s “Shchelkunchik.”

As for the problems, the troupe refused from tours because of the
crisis. They hope to make up the leeway in 2012. The theatre survived
in 2011 only thanks to budget means, failing to conquer the hearts
of sponsors.

Despite all this, only two of the members of the troupe accepted a
proposal to work abroad, the Director said.

“Notwithstanding the difficulties, we are doing our work hoping
for a better future,” Kamo Hovhannisyan said. The illumination and
sound system of the theatre will be completely changed in 2012, $8
million has been allocated from the state budget for this purpose,
the Director informed.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIAN IRON ORE RESERVES EXCEED 100,000 TONS

Vestnik Kavkaza
Dec 20 2011
Russia

Armenia has about 100,467 tons of iron deposits, head of the Agency
for Natural Resources of the Armenian Ministry for Energy and Natural
Resources Khachik Saponjyan said, News.am reports.

Two licenses for iron mining were issued for Spice Steel Armenia
(Abovyan area) and Fortune Resources (Razdan area). Spice Steel Armenia
is also operating at the deposits of Svarants and Syunik. Surart is
exploring the deposits of Bazumskoye direction of the Lori Region. .

From: A. Papazian

FRANCE LOWER CHAMBER PASSES BILL CRIMINALIZING DENIAL OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Panorama
Dec 20 2011
Armenia

The lower chamber of the French parliament passed Monday the
bill criminalizing the denial of Armenian Genocide, according to
Ermenihaber.am news website.

The bill was passed with 106 votes in favor and 19 against.

The bill will be discussed and voted on at the higher chamber of
French parliament on December 22.

We will remind that the bill authored by Valerie Boyer envisages one
year prison term and a fine of 45000 euros for anyone who denies the
fact of Armenian Genocide.

From: A. Papazian

CRIMINALIZATION OF DENYING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IS TO STOP AGGRESSOR IN FUTURE – PARLIAMENT DEPUTY HEAD

news.am
Dec 20 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – The bill on criminalization of denying the Armenian
Genocide adopted by the French National Assembly will have a major
role towards its international acknowledgement, the deputy head of
Armenia’s Parliament Eduard Sharmazanov announced.

“The step was firstly made to raise our national security level. The
adoption of the bill on criminalizing the Armenian Genocide was a
major step towards preventing the recurrence of such events.

Criminalization is an effective way to stop the aggressor,” Sharmazanov
stressed.

From: A. Papazian

TURKEY IN FULL-COURT PRESS AGAINST FRANCE

Hurriyet Daily News

Dec 19 2011
Turkey

Turkish lawmakers as well as business leaders will put more pressure
on Paris this week to block the passage of a bill punishing the denial
of Armenian ‘genocide.’ Turkey’s main opposition party also plans to
lobby against the bill, while Turkish PM Erdogan calls on France to
shed light on its ‘dirty, bloody history’

This file photo shows French President Sarkozy (L) and his Armenian
counterpart Sarkisian laying flowers at the Armenian Genocide
Memorial in Yerevan. AP photo Turkish lawmakers and business leaders
are preparing to run a full-court diplomatic press against France to
prevent the adoption of a controversial law penalizing the denial of
Armenian genocide claims.

A delegation led by Volkan Bozkır, head of Parliament’s Foreign
Relations Committee, will launch a three-day campaign in Paris today
where he will express the Turkish legislature’s unease to French
Foreign Minister Alain Juppe and other senior French lawmakers and
officials.

A vote on the bill is expected to take place Dec. 22.

Bozkır’s meeting will also include Jean-Marc Ayrault, head of the
Socialist Group at the French Parliament, and Michel Diefenbacher,
head of the Turkish-French Friendship Group. Bozkır will also meet
French Parliament Speaker Bernard Accoyer and French President Nicholas
Sarkozy’s foreign policy adviser, Jean-David Levitte, on Dec. 20.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) is also planning
to send a delegation to Paris today. Osman Koruturk, a lawmaker from
the CHP who was Turkey’s ambassador to France between 2005 and 2009,
and Haluk Koc, will lobby against the bill in Paris.

France “will make another historical mistake” if it approves the bill,
CHP deputy leader Faruk Logoglu said in New York on the sidelines of
a meeting.

This week’s diplomatic campaign comes after the Turkish government
warned France of serious repercussions should the law, which would
entail a year-long jail sentence and a 45,000-euro fine for individuals
who deny the genocide claims, be passed. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan and Parliamentary Speaker Cemil Cicek sent letters late last
week urging their counterparts to recognize that “there will be grave
consequences if the bill is adopted.”

Erdogan intensified his message against the French initiative on Dec.

17 saying: “There were reports France was responsible for the deaths of
45,000 people in Algeria in 1945 and for the massacre of up to 800,000
people in Rwanda in 1994. No historian, no politician can see genocide
in our history. Those who want to see genocide should turn around
and look at their own dirty and bloody history. The French National
Assembly should shed light on Algeria; it should shed light on Rwanda.”

Turkey has already announced it will withdraw its ambassador in Paris
if the bill is adopted and said the move would seriously damage
bilateral ties. Turkish EU Minister Egemen BagıÅ~_, meanwhile,
drew attention to Dec. 22, the day French Parliament is set to vote
on the bill, saying it was the anniversary of the assassination of
a Turkish diplomat at the hands of the outlawed Armenian Secret Army
for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA) in 1979.

BagıÅ~_ called on France to apologize to Turkey for failing to
protect the Turkish diplomat instead of initiating such “unwise”
moves in parliament.

France is among the countries that have recognized the mass killings
of Armenians during the World War I at the hands of Ottoman Empire as
“genocide.”

Business leaders in action

As well as lawmakers and diplomats, Turkey’s business leaders will
unite against the bill in Paris this week. Representatives of the
influential Union of Chambers of Commodity Exchange of Turkey (TOBB)
and the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSÄ°AD) will hold
meetings with their counterparts in Paris today and ask them to stand
against the bill to prevent any damage to economic ties. Turkish
business leaders will visit top French business associations like
the Medef and ICC.

“There are 960 French companies who have investments in Turkey. We
have mobilized them against the bill with concerns the motion will
damage their investments,” TOBB Chairman Rifat Hisarcıklıoglu said
over the weekend.

A TOBB board member also warned the adoption of the bill would result
in an entire boycott of French products in Turkey. “If this law is
adopted, it will have consequences not only in political and economic
fields, but also in scientific, social, cultural and humanitarian
dimensions,” Mustafa Yardımcı said in a written statement yesterday.

December/19/2011

Box: Speaking in Konya at a meeting of the Reform Monitoring Group,
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu slammed the bill and argued the
European Union should start monitoring the “freedom of expression
in France.”

The minister appealed to French intellectuals and civic society to
defend freedom of speech in the country, stressing “European values
are under threat in France.”

From: A. Papazian

TURKEY TO FRANCE: BLOCK GENOCIDE BILL, OR ELSE
Dorian Jones

Voice of America

Dec 19 2011

Ankara is continuing to ratchet up tensions with Paris over a proposed
French law to criminalize denial of claims that Turkey’s mass killings
of Armenians before and during World War I constitute genocide.

Ankara, which rejects the charge of genocide and argues the widespread
killings of its Armenian minority occurred during civil strife in
which many Turks died as well, dispatched a high-level delegation of
parliamentarians in a last-minute bid to lobby against the proposed
law.

Historians say up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed during
the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, and several
countries recognize the killings as genocide. Under the proposed
French legislation, denying the genocide would be punishable by up
to one year in prison along with a $58,000 fine.

On Saturday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched
a stinging attack on France, saying that no historian or politician
can see genocide in Turkish history, and that those who do want to
see genocide should turn around and look at their own “dirty and
bloody history.”

Relations between Turkey and France are already tense in connection
with French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s strong opposition to Ankara’s
bid to join the European Union. Erdogan last week reportedly sent
a letter to Sarkozy warning of dire consequences if the legislation
passes.

Diplomatic correspondent Semih Idiz of the Turkish newspaper Milliyet
warns such threats should be taken seriously.

“I think it is serious, I think that the government will make a big
issue out of this – [it] is not one that they can afford to let go
by,” he says. “In terms of public opinion, this is one of [the] most
[touchy] of issues for Turks, and you cannot just take it lightly.”

Opposition to the genocide claim is one of the few issues that unite
Turkey’s normally polarized main political parties.

The main opposition People’s Republican Party is due to send its own
deputies to Paris to lobby against the controversial legislation,
and the leader of the National Action party, Devlet Bahceli, strongly
backs Erdogan’s tough stance against Paris.

With such cross-party support, the potential repercussions to
French-Turkish relations are expected to be severe. Turkish officials
have said their ambassador to France, Tahsin Burcuoglu, will be
recalled if the French parliament passes the legislation.

International relations expert Soli Ozel of Kadir Has University
warns that will be just the beginning.

“[They could] ban the French companies from all economic bidding,” he
says. “For the future, [they will] not give the French companies the
light of day. And wherever they can block France, they will try to so.”

Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu summoned
representatives of leading French companies to explain what is at
stake for them. With Turkish exchange accounting for 2.5 percent of
France’s annual international trade, observers say such threats will
have a limited effect. But the repercussions of a deepening dispute
threaten to extend beyond France to the whole European Union.

“I think there is this negative potential, based on good information
the Turkish foreign minister met with EU ambassadors and lashed out
at them over this issue,” says Idiz.

Foreign Minister Davutoglu has warned the European Union it has a
responsibility to protect freedom of speech.

The ongoing crisis in Syria may also be affected. Despite strained
relations, Paris and Ankara have found common ground in their
opposition to Damascus’ ongoing crackdown on dissent.

But the head of the Turkish Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee,
Volkan Bozkir, warned in Paris that bilateral cooperation in the
region would be significantly harmed if the legislation was passed.

From: A. Papazian

DESTROYED ARMENIAN CHURCH WILL BE REBUILT IN ANKARA

news.am
Dec 19 2011
Armenia

To permit the building of a new military hospital in Ankara, Turkey’s
Culture and Tourism Ministry required that the Armenian Vank Church,
which was completely destroyed at the turn of the 20th Century,
be constructed at the given area.

The Ministry noted that the Vank Church, which was built in 1759 and
which functioned until the 1900s, was located in that area. And even
though no remains of the church were preserved there, the Ministry
cited the “Ankara” painting, which is kept in an Amsterdam museum,
in which the Vank Church is depicted, Haberturk of Turkey reported.

From: A. Papazian

SELECTIVE ABORTION OF GIRLS INCREASES IN ARMENIA: UN

Agence France Presse
Dec 19 2011

YEREVAN – The percentage of male children born in Armenia has risen
significantly due to an increase in female foeticide, the United
Nations Population Fund said on Monday.

More than 7,000 ArmenianS women have had selective abortions over
the past five years, according to a new study carried out by the UN
Population Fund with the Armenian health ministry and the Institute
of Perinatology.

The gender ratio of births is 110-120 boys to 100 girls, higher than
the accepted norm of 102-106 boys to 100 girls, the study said.

The trend could cause demographic problems for the small ex-Soviet
state, UN Population Fund official Garik Hayrapetyan told a news
conference in Yerevan.

“In ten to 20 years, we will face a deficit of women — that means,
of potential mothers,” Hayrapetyan said.

Selective abortion is a problem in countries like China and India.

But it has also reached “worrying proportions” in Caucasus states
Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary
Assembly said in a resolution on gender selection in October.

The resolution said that pressure on women to have selective abortions
should be seen as “a form of psychological violence”.

From: A. Papazian

Kechichian Named a VP at Los Angeles Times Media Group

asbarez
Thursday, December 15th, 2011

Mike Kechichian

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Time Media Group announced Thursday that
it has promoted Mike Kechichian to Vice President, Advertiser
Marketing, in a restructing of key leadership areas of its revenue and
advertiser marketing teams to better capitalize on emerging consumer
engagement trends, as well as social, mobile and experiential program
opportunities.

Kechichian has assumed increased responsibility since joining The
Times as Manager, Advertiser Marketing from ESPN. He will now better
integrate emerging sales lead generation efforts with the marketing
program development team and oversee all aspects of LATMG’s media kit,
portfolio packaging, customer segmentation and related revenue
opportunities.

LATMG hires and promotions are aimed at ensuring marketers and
advertisers looking to reach all demographics of the crucial Southern
California marketplace are best served.

The new changes also include Andrea Nunn who joined LATMG in a new
sales leadership role as Vice President, Media and Business
Development. Jennifer Collins has also joined LATMG in a newly created
Vice President, Digital Revenue Products position, having most
recently been General Manager, Variety.com. David Burns has been
promoted to a new role as Vice President, Promotional Revenue, Sports
and Events.
Jeff Dellinger will continue as Director, Entertainment Advertiser
Marketing, and adds General Manager, Business Operations for Hero
Complex. Dellinger will oversee continued expansion of Hero Complex’s
core online revenue base and further multimedia brand development
aimed at advertisers eager to reach the fanboy demographic, including
the Hero Complex Film Festival, IMAX partnership and annual Comic-Con
street guide.

`The competitive landscape is evolving faster every day, and our
ability to remain at the forefront demands ongoing change,’ said Times
Chief Revenue Officer and Executive Vice President, Advertising Sales,
John O’Loughlin. `The Los Angeles Times Media Group has great momentum
heading into the New Year, and these new hires and promotions clearly
indicate we do not intend to cede our current pole position.’

The Los Angeles Times Media Group(LATMG) businesses and affiliates
include the Los Angeles Times, The Envelope, Times Community News, LA,
Los Angeles Times Magazineand Hoy Los Angeles and reach approximately
5.1 million or 38% of all adults in the Southern California
marketplace. LATMG also owns and operates California Community News as
well as Tribune Direct’s west coast division and is part of Tribune
Company, one of the country’s leading media companies with businesses
in publishing, the Internet and broadcasting.

The flagship Los Angeles Times is the largest metropolitan daily
newspaper in the country, with a readership of 1.9 million Monday
through Saturday and 2.9 million on Sunday, more than 17 million
unique latimes.com visitors monthly and a combined print and online
local weekly audience of 4.4 million. The Pulitzer Prize-winning Times
has been covering Southern California for more than 129 years.

From: A. Papazian