Author: Andres-Papazian

EU MOVING FORWARD WITH VISA LIBERALISATION FOR ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN AND GEORGIA

Eurasia Review

June 14 2010

The Council of the European Union issued a statement Monday that
reiterated its support for South Caucasus nations, while at the same
time linking free trade and the evenutal goal of visa liberalisation
for Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia with the EU.

“The EU stands ready to promote mobility of citizens of the South
Caucasus countries and other Eastern Partnership countries through
visa facilitation and readmission agreements, and once these are
successfully concluded and implemented, move towards a controlled
process taking gradual steps towards visa-liberalisation as a long-term
goal, on a case-by-case basis, as well as describe the conditions
for well-managed and secure mobility. In this context, the Council
has invited the Commission to develop before the end of 2010 a plan
on how to take cooperation forward in this area,” the statement noted.

From: A. Papazian

WE GOT FULL INFORMATION ON SITUATION IN CONFLICT ZONES, RA FM SAYS

news.am
Armenia
June 14 2010

At their meeting in Tbilisi, the Armenian and Georgian FMs have
discussed the situation in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

After the meeting Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze stated
that it was the key issue discussed at the close-door meeting with
his Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian.

“We have informed our Armenian colleagues of the situation in the
occupied regions,” he said, stressing that the sides also touched upon
the issues related to bilateral cooperation and regional developments.

In his turn, Foreign Minister Nalbandian noted that they got full
information on the situation in conflict zones and discussed the
state of ethnic Armenians in Georgia.

Nalbandian pointed out there are no issues that cannot be solved by
Tbilisi and Yerevan. He added that the sides maintain contacts and
hold regular consultations.

From: A. Papazian

50 – 100 CASES OF CHILDREN’S CANCER IN ARMENIA

Aysor
June 14 2010
Armenia

In a year in Armenia is found 50 to 100 cases of children’s cancer
and only 60-65 percent of the sick is getting cured, informed on the
meeting with journalists Chairman of the Oncologists Association,
director of pediatric oncology and chemotherapeutic department Grigor
Badalyan today.

The speaker also noted that in the oncology and chemotherapeutic
children’s department about 250 children are treated, and added that
the same child enters the department for several times.

Speaking about the causes of the disease G. Badalyan noticed that it
may be congenital. According to the doctor, the disease most often
is being noticed with the children who are 2-4 and 10-12 years old;
these are congenital tumors.

The speaker also stressed that the treatment of tumors in Armenia is
being realized on the sidelines of state order, which makes around
170,000 AMD, which, according to Badalyan, is enough in some cases.

However the treatment of tumors is rather costly, the medicine is
especially expensive and very often the purchase of the medicine
falls on the shoulders of the parents, the doctor stated.

From: A. Papazian

PHILHARMONIA/SALONEN AT THE FESTIVAL HALL
Geoff Brown

Times Online/uk
June 15, 2010

To close Esa-Pekka Salonen’s London concerts with the Philharmonia
Orchestra this season, what better than something fantastic? Or,
indeed, Fantastique? The romantic bone-shaker and firecracker that
is Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique receives many concert outings,
but it takes a special performance these days to reignite the work’s
revolutionary fervour and make its sounds seem truly extraordinary,
raw and new.

This was such a special performance. As the opening movement lurched
forward from listlessness to tenderness and rage, we felt ourselves
right inside Berlioz’s head, mad like him with unrequited passion for
the actress Harriet Smithson. Yet for every autobiographical fantasy
that followed, Salonen, wise man, never abandoned tight control of
timbre and texture, or the timing needed for dramatic effects.

In a symphony crowded with fortissimo blasts, decibels were still
kept in store for the lethal, roof-lifting final pages. This was a
Witches’ Sabbath with real warts and teeth, and the sonic earthquake
of Sensurround. The March to the Scaffold flayed the eardrums too. The
Philharmonia gave us whipcrack precision and startling hues, from
ghostly rasping strings to the rudest brass. Quieter drama wasn’t
forgotten in the slow-burning adagio, beautifully shaped, with aching
solo winds, while the second movement’s ball scene engagingly waltzed
from light velvet strings towards the trumpet-topped bounce of a
theatre orchestra. Magnificent phantasmagoria, this.

It was such a contrast to the concert’s first half, featuring Brahms’s
Violin Concerto, given an intensely focused rendering by the talented
young Armenian, Sergey Khachatryan. No grandstanding tricks for him.

Head down, Khachatryan just fiddled away, the music’s servant,
his fingers lyrical, his face tortured – never more so than in the
anguished fragility of his Bach sarabande encore. Repeatedly in the
Brahms he tapered phrases toward the most delicate of pianissimos.

Admittedly, in the rondo finale Gypsy fire was a little subdued. But
you can’t have everything in life, and this concert already gave us
more of everything than most.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIAN FM VISITS GEORGIA

Civil Georgia
June 14 2010
Georgia

Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze met with his Armenian
counterpart Edward Nalbandian in Tbilisi on June 14 to discuss
bilateral relations and cooperation in political, economic, cultural
and humanitarian spheres, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said.

“We have discussed the international legal framework on which our
relations are based, especially in bilateral agreements. We also spoke
about the coordination, which Georgia and Armenia need in frames
of Eastern Partnership as the countries representing one region,”
FM Vashadze said at a joint press conference after the meeting with
his Armenian counterpart.

“My counterpart was interested in the situation on the occupied
territories as well as in Russian-Georgian relations. Of course,
I provided him with full information about these issues,” he added.

Later on June 14 the Armenian Foreign Minister will meet with President
Saakashvili in Batumi.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIA A UNIQUE PLACE OF ARCHEOLOGICAL VALUES

Aysor
June 14 2010
Armenia

“Whole territory of Armenia should be considered as that of
archaeological value, and it’s necessary to conduct serious excavations
before launching any building activities,” told media Monday Director
of the Erebuni Museum, Gagik Gyurjian.

Referring to issue of preservation of monuments, Gagik Gyurjian said
that they need professional care, and pointed that due to this factor
there is a necessity to give them status of conservancy area.

Director if the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography Pavel
Avetisian, in his turn, said that there is no society without cultural
sphere, and that if nations don’t protect the environment it may
be said of “society’s non-existing.” Pavel Avetisian pointed that
memorials must be socialized and brought closer to people.

“Armenia is one of those rare territories where there are a huge
number of cultural signs and monuments, what is more – archeological.

There are not many places of such kind on the earth that is why they
are perceived as places of world value,” stressed Avetisian.

From: A. Papazian

NO APPEALS FROM ARMENIANS TO RA CONSULATE IN KYRGYZSTAN

news.am
June 14 2010
Armenia

No information on Armenian victims in the interethnic violence in
Kyrgyzstan is available yet, a source at the RA Consulate in Bishkek
told NEWS.am. There is a small Armenian community in Osh, the southern
capital of Kyrgyzstan.

Over 117 people were killed, 1,500 wounded in the ethnic violence
between Kyrgyz and Uzbek residents. Gangs armed with automatic
rifles, iron bars and machetes had set fire to houses and shot
fleeing residents.

On June 14, the Secretaries of the CSTO member-states’ Natioal Security
Councils will hold a special sitting in Moscow to discuss the situation
in Kyrgyzstan.

In this regard, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkey
will send two planes to Kyrgyzstan to evacuate its citizens from the
country due to an unstable situation there.

Representatives of the UN, EU and OSCE left for the region.

From: A. Papazian

EXTERN AT SCHOOLS: SOME HEADMASTERS TO BE DISMISSED

Aysor
June 14 2010
Armenia

Head of State Inspectorate of Education Khachik Muradyan today, at
a meeting with reporters spoke about the issue of extern move up of
39 students to senior classes in Armenia mentioning that extern move
ups have been suspended according to Armenian Education and Science
Minister’s 2009 November decision.

The speaker stressed that an education system of 12 years was adopted
in 2006, and a student leaving the 9th form “could not have learnt
three years’ program within one year.”

“The Ministry does not organize extern for 2009-2010 examination year,”
K. Muradyan said mentioning that the State Inspectorate of Education
carries out monitoring of 10 and 11 form students extern move up.

According to monitoring results and the Evaluation and Testing Center
data, 39 students have put in applications for taking common extern
exams.

The disclosed cases have been sent to Prosecutor’s Office, and the
speaker said that it is possible that new cases will be also disclosed
and sent to the same instance.

“The Prosecutor’s Office will examine the cases to disclose those
guilty, but there is a gross violation, and some headmasters will be
dismissed,” K. Muradyan stressed adding that the list of headmasters
to undergo sanctions will become clear during the submission of the
final results to the Education and Science Minister.

From: A. Papazian

ANCA CALLS OUT TURKEY’S DOUBLE STANDARD

Asbarez
Monday, June 14th, 2010

Message to Capitol Hill Calls for Adoption of Armenian Genocide
Resolution

WASHINGTON-The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) this
week circulated a memo to Congressional offices highlighting Turkey’s
increasingly stark double-standard in aggressively challenging U.S.

interests while continuing to dictate to American leaders what they
can – and cannot say – about the Armenian Genocide.

The memo, sent by ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian, noted that
“Turkey’s leaders reserve for themselves the freedom to act with
complete disregard for U.S. interests, allies, and values, even as
they dictate to us what we are allowed to say about the Armenian
Genocide.” It closed with a call upon legislators to reject Turkey’s
veto of the Armenian Genocide recognition and called for the adoption
of H.Res.252, the Armenian Genocide Resolution.

The ANCA also stressed that Turkey should be the last country to
offer lectures about the conduct of other nations, and listed a
series of seven acts of violence and aggression by Turkish leaders,
both at home and abroad, over the course of more than a century.

The full text of the ANCA memo is provided below. Click
below for a link to a PDF version of the actual document:

*****

To: Foreign Affairs Legislative Aide From: Aram Hamparian, Executive
Director Date: June 9, 2010

RE: H.Res.252, the Armenian Genocide Resolution

When will we reject Turkey’s gag rule on U.S. recognition of the
Armenian Genocide?

Just a few hours ago Turkey voted against a U.N. Security Council
resolution imposing sanctions on Iran. Over the past few weeks, Turkey
has accused Israel of “state terrorism” and compared the Gaza flotilla
raid to 9-11. Since 2003, when Turkey blocked a northern front in the
war on Iraq, Ankara has lined up – aggressively and unapologetically –
against the United States on issue after issue.

What is truly striking is Turkey’s double-standard in its dealings
with our country:

Turkey’s leaders reserve for themselves the freedom to act with
complete disregard for U.S. interests, allies, and values, even as they
dictate to us what we are allowed to say about the Armenian Genocide.

The time has long since passed for America to stop outsourcing our
policy on the Armenian Genocide. Please reject Turkey’s veto of the
Armenian Genocide Resolution by calling for the passage of H.Res.252.

Turkey’s Hypocrisy

Turkey should be the last country to offer lectures about the conduct
of other nations, especially when we consider the record of violence
and aggression by Turkish leaders, both at home and abroad, over the
course of more than a century:

1) Turkey aggressively denies the Armenian Genocide, pressuring America
to remain silent on this crime, and prosecuting its own citizens who
speak truthfully about this atrocity.

2) Turkey has been illegally blockading landlocked Armenia since 1993.

3) Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 and continues to occupy over a third
of this sovereign nation.

4) Turkey has destroyed thousands of Kurdish villages, uprooting
millions of Kurds, and denying tens of millions of its own Kurdish
citizens their basic human rights.

5) Turkey denies the Darfur Genocide and provides arms to the
Sudanese government, led by Omar al-Bashir, who has been indicted
for war crimes.

6) Turkey continues to impose official restrictions and unofficial
pressure on the Armenian, Greek, Assyrian, and Syriac churches and
on other minority religious groups.

7) Turkey’s leaders foster domestic political support by taking
anti-U.S. and anti-Israel stands: Among the best selling books in
Turkey is Hitler’s Mein Kampf; one of their most popular films,
Valley of the Wolves, features a Turkish nuclear attack on Washington.

From: A. Papazian

U.S. JEWISH GROUPS ‘NO LONGER OPPOSED’ TO ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION

Asbarez
Monday, June 14th, 2010

WASHINGTON (RFE/RL)-Turkey can no longer count on the backing of
the powerful Jewish lobby in the United States in its efforts to
block a congressional resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide,
according to a Washington-based journalist.

Eli Lake, a national security correspondent for “The Washington
Times,” believes that Ankara’s furious reaction to the deadly
Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound international aid flotilla will help
Armenian-American advocacy groups trying to push such a resolution
through the U.S. Congress.

On June 8, the Washington Times published a revealing article by
Lake on the issue titled, “American Jewish community ends support of
Turkish interests on Hill.”

“In 2008, the major Jewish organizations decided they would no longer
quietly push Congress to block a resolution commemorating the Armenian
genocide,” Lake told RFE/RL’s Armenian service on Monday. “This
was a reflection in some way of deteriorating ties between Israel
and Turkey.”

“One of the prizes of the Turks in their relationship with Israel was
support from the American Jewish community in Washington. After the
flotilla incident, I would say that that support for now has dried up,”
he said.

Last March, a key committee of the U.S. House of Representatives
narrowly endorsed a draft resolution describing the 1915 mass killings
and deportations of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide and
urging President Barack Obama to do the same. Opposition from the
White House prevented further progress of the bill.

The leading Armenian advocacy groups in Washington are expected to
again try to bring it to the House floor for a vote ahead of the
November mid-term elections in the United States.

“I would say that they will certainly not be an obstacle to the bill,”
Lake said, referring to the more influential Jewish-American groups.

“It’s possible that some groups may end up supporting it because
there is a kinship, of course, between what happened to the Armenian
people in 1915 and what happened to the Jewish people in the Holocaust
in 1939-1945.”

Still, the journalist cautioned that this alone would not guarantee the
resolution’s passage. “You still have plenty of other interests that
are looking to make sure that such a resolution would never be passed
by the House and that is mainly in the U.S. defense establishment, that
still considers Turkey a major NATO ally,” he said. “You probably would
end up having an executive branch that would say that this complicates
our relationship with an important ally in the Mediterranean.”

Lake argued that despite its growing unease over Turkish policy towards
the Arab-Israeli conflict and Iran, the United States still has “very
deep ties” with Turkey. Washington could reconsider them only if Ankara
“orients itself towards Iran,” he said.

From: A. Papazian