Author: Andres-Papazian

ARMENIAN OPERA SINGER SPEAKS OF ACTORS’ PROBLEMS

18:51 * 11.02.14

Opera singer Barsegh Tumanyan believes that the Armenian people is
carrying a “unique civilization gene,” but the people is now being
made to turn into savages.

In an interview with Tert.am, Tumanyan commented on the failed
performance of Anoush at Yerevan Opera House. The actors joined the
movement against funded pensions.

Asked about deductions from the singers’ AMD 70,000 ($170) salaries,
Tumanyan said:

“It is not the singers that are in question. Both singers and dancers
use so much energy that it is ludicrous to speak of such sums. Nowhere
in the world can you find such salaries. We are not showing an
emotional attitude at all. Much money is needed for actors to remain
in good form, especially now that more performances are being ordered.

And 5,000 drams (about $12) is quite a sum for them. The problem is
that the salaries do not meet the present-day requirements. Food and
other products are rather expensive now, and you can spend 70,000
drams in a couple of days.”

As to what made the actors fail the performance, Tumanyan said:

“Daring has nothing to do with it. The Armenian people is very patient,
but when Greek meets Greek, then comes the tug of war. They must have
been forced to. I am sure they had shown patience for so long, doing
their job. I never want my people to turn into savages. We have always
been champions of civilized ways of settling problems. The Armenian
people is carrying a unique civilization gene, and, all of a sudden,
we have to see our people turning into savages. That is a terrible
thing. We are now being made to turn into savages, and I do not see
anything good in it.”

Armenian News – Tert.am

From: A. Papazian

MORE PEOPLE LEAVE THAN ARRIVE IN ARMENIA

In January, departures again exceeded the number of arrivals. Although
the new Russian legislation limits access of Armenian citizens to
Russia, according the official statistics, in January departures
exceeded arrivals by 6000.

In January, 61,423 people arrived in Armenia and 67,563 left. In
January 2014, departures exceeded those in January 2013 by 7450.

According to the General Civil Aviation Department, in January more
people departed from than arrived at the airport of Gyumri. In January
1198 people arrived and 1821 departed.

14:24 11/02/2014 Story from Lragir.am News:

From: A. Papazian

COMPETITIVITE DU TOURISME L’ARMENIE SE CLASSE AU 79E RANG SUR 140 PAYS

ARMENIE

Le dernier rapport de World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism
Competitiveness sur la competitivite du tourisme a classe l’Armenie
au 79e rang parmi 140 pays vient d’annoncer le ministre de l’economie
Vahram Avanesyan.

Selon le rapport, en 2013, l’Armenie a ameliore sa position sur 11
points par rapport a 2012. Selon le ministre, les principaux obstacles
qui entravent le developpement de l’industrie du tourisme sont des
billets d’avion eleves et le manque d’hôtels a prix abordable.

From: A. Papazian

L’AZERBAIDJAN PROPOSE A L’IRAK D’UTILISER SES GAZODUCS VERS L’EUROPE

CAUSASE

BAGDAD, 10 fev 2014 (AFP) – L’Azerbaïdjan a annonce lundi avoir
propose a l’Irak un accès au projet de “corridor gazier sud-europeen”
qui doit relier la mer Caspienne a l’Union europeenne, pour aider
Bagdad a exporter son gaz naturel. Le ministre azeri des Affaires
etrangères, Elmar Mammadyarov, en visite a Bagdad, a declare que des
responsables irakiens s’etaient montres interesses pour participer a
ce projet d’envergure soutenu par les Etats-Unis et visant a reduire
la dependance gazière de l’Europe vis-a-vis de la Russie. “C’est un
projet enorme (…) et il est ouvert si l’Irak veut aussi exporter
son propre gaz naturel”, a insiste le ministre lors d’une conference
de presse commune avec son homologue irakien Hoshyar Zebari. “Nous
sommes prets a entamer les negociations”, a-t-il ajoute.

Selon le projet, le gaz pompe dans le gigantesque gisement de Shah
Deniz II va traverser l’Azerbaïdjan et la Georgie via le futur
gazoduc trans-adriatique TAP, premier element du “corridor gazier
sud-europeen” qui doit aller de la mer Caspienne a la Turquie et a
l’Union europeenne. Dans le meme temps, la Russie soutient un autre
projet de gazoduc a très forte capacite (63 milliards de m3/an) a
travers le “corridor meridional europeen”, de la mer Noire a l’Europe.

La production gazière irakienne est pour l’instant modeste et
principalement destinee a la consommation interieure, mais le pays
souhaite augmenter ses exportations pour financier la reconstruction
de ses infrastructures et d’une economie ruinee par la guerre.

mardi 11 fevrier 2014, Ara (c)armenews.com

From: A. Papazian

AZERBAIJANI FAMILY’S ASYLUM BID UNDER PROCEDURE

16:15 * 10.02.14

The Azerbaijani family’s request for an asylum in Armenia is now
under an administrative proceeding, says a migration official.

“The case is under consideration according to the established
procedure. I have had the occasion to say and have to repeat that
we have so far had 2,800 citizenship requests for Armenia, so this
is one of the 2,800 cases,” Gagik Yeganyan, the head of the State
Migration Service, told a news conference on Monday.

Armenia’s National Security Service had earlier issued a statement
saying that an Azerbaijani citizen, Javid Orujev, turned to Armenian
customs officials at the Bagratashen checkpoint (Armenian-Georgian
border), asking for a political asylum for his family of five.

He complained about reprisals by the Azerbaijani authorities.

Foreign citizens seeking a political asylum on the territory of
Armenia are offered dwellings in special residential areas.

Asked about the most exotic countries from where people have sought
asylum, Mr Yeganyan pointed out to Cuba and Côte d’Ivoire.

Armenian News – Tert.am

From: A. Papazian

PENSION REFORM PROTESTS TO BE STAGED IN ARMENIA’S REGIONS

February 07, 2014 | 11:59

The Alaverdi members of Armenia’s “I am against” civil movement will
hold a huge demonstration in the city on Saturday, to express their
dissatisfaction with the new pension law.

Initiative member Marianna Pepanyan told the aforesaid to Armenian
News-NEWS.am.

“This is the third campaign we are organizing. [But] this time we
will specifically complain because they are compulsorily deducing
the mandatory pension payment from the employees,” she said.

A similar demonstration is expected to be held on the same day in
Vanadzor city, in which the capital city Yerevan members of the
“I am against” movement likewise will take part.

The new cumulative pension plan, which formally came into force in
Armenia on January 1, 2014, is mandatory for those born in and after
1974 and voluntary for those born before 1974. In line with this plan,
5 to 10 percent of the monthly salaries in Armenia will be deducted
and mandatorily be allocated to cumulative pension funds; the latter
will be reimbursed as pensions once a person turns 63 years old.

On January 24, however, the Constitutional Court decided to suspend
the execution of the some components of the Law on Cumulative
Pensions pending the hearing of the petition submitted by the
four non-ruling-coalition parliamentary forces–specifically, the
Armenian National Congress, Prosperous Armenia, ARF Dashnaktsutyun,
and Heritage–, and into the constitutionality of the several articles
of the law.

Notwithstanding this, some companies already are deducing the mandatory
pension payment from the salaries of their employees.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

From: A. Papazian

AZERI, TURKISH VOLUNTEERS EXPRESS WILLINGNESS TO FIGHT IN WAR

Thursday, February 6th, 2014

Azeri soldiers

BAKU–Dozens of volunteers have appealed to the Azerbaijani Armed
Forces expressing desire to fight against Armenia as part of the
Azeri army after recent escalations of tensions on the contact line
between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops.

Those who appealed include persons who passed military service,
received higher education, as well as under people under 18 and
elderly people.

The appeals indicate willingness to become volunteers in the case
of war. Besides Azeris, citizens of Turkey are also among the people
desiring to volunteer.

Azeri authorities thanked those who appealed to volunteer, but it was
stressed that there is no necessity yet, as Azerbaijan has a strong
army that is able to restore the country’s territorial integrity.

From: A. Papazian

SHARMAZANOV TO GUL: PROBLEMS OF THE PAST MUST BE SOLVED, NOT FORGOTTEN

GENOCIDE | 29.01.14 | 14:09

“Prickly problems of the past must be solved rather than be forgotten,”
said Vice-Chairman of the Armenian National Assembly Eduard Sharmazanov
in reply to Turkish President Abdullah Gul’s most recent comments
regarding the Armenian genocide.

At a joint press conference with visiting French President Francois
Hollande, Gul urged Armenia and its Diaspora “to leave the pains of
the past behind and not to pass them from generation to generation.”

At the same time, Hollande, as quoted by AFP, urged the Turks to
“uncover history” even if it is painful as he referred to the
Ottoman-era massacres of Armenians that France has recognized as
genocide.

“The genocide of 1.5 million Armenians in their native land is nothing
but a vivid manifestation of a crime against humanity. Forgetting
crimes ever committed against the human race begets new crimes, and the
Holocaust during World War II is an example,” emphasized Sharmazanov,
who is also a spokesman for the ruling Republican Party of Armenia
led by President Serzh Sargsyan.

The Armenian official also stressed that denying genocide is no
lesser crime than the one committed by the Young Turk government
against Armenians.

From: A. Papazian

Travel… Real & Fantasy

BY GAREN YEGPARIAN

For some two decades I’ve snarled, ground my teeth, and bewailed to
myself about the great positive publicity Turkey gets from all the
write-ups and advertising in the LA Times Travel section.

No doubt various travel agencies as well as perhaps the government
itself have also been showcasing their “wares” and travel shows
worldwide, though that’s not something I’ve seen. Of course the
pup-Turks of Azerbaijan are following at the heels of the genocidal
state they want to emulate and appearing at travel shows, too.

The LA Travel and Adventure Show 2014 is taking place this weekend at
the Long Beach Convention Center. It is billed as “the largest” of its
kind. Turkey will be represented with not just one, but two, booths,
and Azerbaijan will be there too. One of the Turkish booths is to be
right at the entrance of the show and the largest there!

One of the Turkish booths will be concentrating on “Eastern Turkey”
which of course is occupied Armenia. And that’s what’s so frustrating
and annoying about all this. They are profiting from Armenian and
other cultural legacies they have brutally usurped. Of course
Azerbaijan is doing the same, focusing on Artsakh, again. Yes “again”
because this is where it gets weird.

Perhaps it should come as no surprise that when a country is led by a
megalomaniac, the realm of fantasy is always near. The most prominent
banner at Azerbaijan’s booth at the LA Times Travel show held January
17-18 is headlined “Karabakh – Crown Jewel of Azerbaijan”. Yes, you
read that correctly. And, it’s a banner they’ve been using for at
least a year or so, since one of my sources had observed it at an
Orange County travel show, that long ago. These people are promoting a
travel destination that they cannot deliver any of their potential
customers to! What happens when someone wants to go there? Who knows?
Maybe they’ve cut a back-door deal with some oligarch in the Republic
of Armenia to shuttle them from Yerevan to Artsakh. But then, we also
have to wonder, if the Azeris are encouraging travel to Artsakh, why
are they blacklisting anyone who goes there?

An Azeri pamphlet featuring Karabakh

Of course this is all part of the “soft” propaganda that any country,
especially one with image problems, loves to have. So it’s natural
that the Azerbaijani consulate in Los Angeles has put out a
promotional video about it (see below). What’s frustrating about this
video is the glowing praise that a Devin Galaudet, travel writer who
also has some affiliation with the Huffington Post, heaps on
Azerbaijan after his trips there some three months ago. Are we doing
these things? I am not aware, and I fear the answer is not
affirmative.

The other bit of fantasy, if not farce, that came out of the January
show is a “news” item appearing about it in “Trend”, an online Azeri
so-called-news source. It is headlined “Armenian lobby fails to
prevent Azerbaijan’s participation at Los Angeles Times Travel Show”
but contains not a word about the matter until the penultimate
sentence which reads: “It should be noted that despite various
attempts by the Armenian lobby in California to prevent Azerbaijan’s
participation at the show, these attempts have utterly failed.” What’s
funny is, no one I spoke with knew anything about any effort our
community has made in this vein. It’s possible some individuals did
some work below the radar, of course. But, I’m more inclined to
believe this is just the Azeris trying to slam us and appear heroic to
their audiences.

It’s time our travel agents and the governments of our two republics
started showcasing our cultural wealth. After all, we are the
originators of the culture, not the thieves who are profiting from
their ill-gotten gains.

From: A. Papazian

168 Zham (in Armenian), Armenia
Feb 6 2014

Waiting for the agenda

Editorial

As expected, the parliamentary majority has blocked the move by the
non-ruling factions to set up an ad hoc committee to look into the
details of the gas deal with Russia. It was done, as usual, without
many plausible explanations. It is difficult to predict what the
practical use of that committee could be, though. Of course, in that
committee, the opposition factions would have demonstrated in a more
convincing and well-reasoned manner the “illegal” and “criminal”
essence of the gas deal as well as the accumulation of a debt of 300 m
[US dollars], drawing up a report, which would be rejected by the
parliamentary majority just like the very idea of setting up the ad
hoc committee was rejected. Even without setting up any committee, the
officials and the party in power produce so many documents and facts
that would be enough for dismissing several governments and serve as
volumes of evidence of criminal investigation materials.

Therefore, trying to set up a committee in such conditions is a
pointless action and the opposition understands this as well.
Nevertheless, before the voting on the issue just yesterday [5
February], they threatened that if the committee was not set up, “to
come up with a broader political agenda”, which means taking people
onto the streets. This move can also be explained in terms of a
political deal, offering to set up the committee in exchange for
keeping out people from protests. However, the authorities did not
accept either the threat or the deal. And now it is the turn of the
opposition to act. By yesterday, no one has seen them in Liberty
Square [central square in capital Yerevan, where most opposition
rallies are held]. In their interviews, they said that the government
should resign if the move of setting up the ad hoc committee is
rejected. The opposition, it is to be said, was saying earlier that
they would initiate a no-confidence vote of the government in early
February, which, however, did not take place. Even if the government
resigns, does this mean that the gas deal will be annulled and the
300-m debt will be revised? Not at all. In this sense, the
government’s resignation would not change anything, as these two
issues are outcomes of Armenia’s decision to join the [Russian-led]
Customs Union and criticizing the Customs Union is the same for
opposition parties as criticizing [President] Serzh Sargsyan is for
the [parliament’s second largest] Prosperous Armenia party, i.e.
unacceptable. The authorities are well aware of that and this is the
reason why neither the deal with the opposition seems rewarding nor
the threats are impressive. The authorities know every opposition
figure, who will not be in the square to fight against the Customs
Union and who will “come up with a narrower agenda”, when the only
solution to all these problems will be overthrowing the incumbent
government. The key to the solution of the current problems in Armenia
lies not in the parliament’s lobbies, but in the streets with a wide
agenda set up by a majority of people. The street option, i.e.
overthrowing of the government, however, is not a demand for the
opposition, but a bargaining chip with the government, which the
latter refuses to admit. Probably it does not admit it because deals
in the “personal” mode are far more efficient than negotiations on
“wider political agenda”.

[translate from Armenian]

From: A. Papazian