Author: Antonian Lara

TOROSYAN MET THE CHAMPIONS
A1+
[07:47 pm] 18 October, 2006
Today chess club “Mika” of Yerevan, the winner of the European
women’s club championship, was received in the NA. Elina Danielyan,
Maya Chiburdanidze, Maya Kurtsidze and Nelly Aghinyan returned from
Austria with victory.
NA Speaker Tigran Torosyan congratulated the chess players on their
brilliant victory mentioning that this is the first time the Armenian
women surpass the Armenian men. The NA Speaker qualified the victory
in Austria as very important.
By the way, Tigran Torosyan did not forget to thank Michael
Baghdasarov, the sponsor of the team, underlining his contribution
not only to the development of the economy of Armenia, but also to
the development of sport. The NA Speaker awarded Michael Baghdasarov
with the NA certificate, and the chess players with watches.

“HISTORY CAN NOT BE MADE MATERIAL FOR ELECTIONS”
Sabah, Turkey
Oct 17 2006
Reactions against the “Armenian genocide denial bill” approved in the
French Parliament are coming also from France as well as Turkey. The
most eminent historians of the country objected to the bill and
students also raised a rebel flag. The federation gathering 12 art
and history student associations declared: “the history study of
Turkish people is being despised and this bill will hurt the feelings
of Turkish people very deeply.”

ESTABLISHMENT OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS HARDLY POSSIBLE IN NEAR FUTURE
PanARMENIAN.Net
17.10.2006 15:46 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Establishment of Armenian-Turkish relations hardly
possible in near future, analyst of Spectrum Center for Strategic
Analysis Sergey Sargsyan told PanARMENIAN.Net. In his words, Turkish
foreign policy is rising currently. “It became activated in the
Middle East, as illustrated by the participation of Turkish military
in the peacekeeping contingent in Lebanon. Turkey became more active
in the South Caucasus: its projects of breaking a Turkic corridor via
Georgia to Azerbaijan and father to Turkic republics of the Central
Asia is realistic as never.
Specifically owing to Georgia needing allies due to the confrontation
with Russia. I believe that the “European project”, which is actively
lobbied by Islamic-leaning Party of Justice and Development, is
a clearly calculated move, aimed at reviewing basic principles of
Turkey as a secular state, not at its accession to the EU,” the
Armenian analyst said.
The military who were considered to preserve the legacy of Kemal
Ataturk, secular nature of the country and close integration of Turkey
with the West, were deprived of influence on political decision-making
resulting to reforms at the demand of the EU, Sargsyan remarked. “This
strengthened the position of the Justice and Development Party and
allowed the Islamist party changing the foreign and internal policy
of Turkey. The growth of nationalist and Islamist moods in Turkey and
Europeans’ apprehensions for the future of the EU in case of Turkey’s
accession are the outcome. As a result Turkey will probably be left
out of the EU, positions of guarantors of Turkey being secular – the
military – are undermined. Thus, Islam-leaning forces by pro-European
policy can attain what they could not during their attempts of direct
Islamization of the country during Erbakan being the Premier. Thus,
against the background of on the whole successful internal and foreign
policy, withdrawal of “the Armenian block” of issues as compulsory
preconditions of Turkey’s accession to the EU, it is more advantageous
for the ruling JDP to abide by its earlier position, i.e. linking
establishment of Turkish-Armenian relations with settlement of the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict at terms favorable to Azerbaijan and thus
to a further prospect,” Sergey Sargsyan said.

CHIRAC REGRETS BILL
7DAYS, United Arab Emirates
Oct 16 2006
French President Jacques Chirac expressed his regret to Turkey’s prime
minister over a French bill that insists the World War I massacres
of Armenians were genocide, Turkish media reported yesterday. “Mr
Chirac expressed to me this morning (Saturday) his regrets” and said
he understood the fierce reaction in Turkey to Thursday’s approval
of the bill by France’s lower house, Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency.
The bill, launched by MPs of France’s opposition Socialist party but
opposed by Chirac’s government, would make it an offence punishable
by jail to deny that the massacres carried out under Ottoman rule
constituted genocide. Armenians claim up to 1.5 million of their people
were slaughtered, but Turkey rejects the use of the term “genocide”,
saying some 300,000 Armenians died when the Ottoman Empire fell apart,
but at least as many Turks did too.
Speaking in Erdine, northwestern Turkey, Erdogan said Chirac had
promised to “do everything he could in the following process”
of readings through which the bill must pass before becoming law
in France.
rets-bill.html?comment_add=1

FRENCH HISTORIAN DENYING FALSE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE WANTS TO BECOME TURKEY CITIZEN
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Oct 11 2006
French historian Jean-Michel Thibaux who objects to the discussion
of draft law about false Armenia Genocide in France Parliament wants
to become Turkey citizenship, APA Turkey bureau reports.
The historian appealed to Turkey Parliament Foreign Affairs
Commission chief, PM Mehmet Dulger with the help of his Turkish
acquaintance. The appeal says: “France President Jacques Chirac’s
statement “If Turkey wants to enter EU, it should recognize Armenian
Genocide” is blackmail. I protest against this policy. In this case,
Turkey can demand the recognition of the genocide committed in 1789 in
France. Hundreds of French were killed during the revolution; their
skins were used as material for cloths, and their grease used in the
kitchens of detention places. So, American people should be accused
of the death of millions of Indians, and Spanish people should be
blamed for destroying the culture local resident in South America,”
the historian said.
Justice and Development Party member Mehmet Dulger brought his appeal
to Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s notice. Edogan wanted the letter
to be investigated in the Interior Ministry.

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address: Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact: Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel: (374 10) 517 163
Fax: (374 10) 517 301
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website:
October 11, 2006
27 New Deacons Ordained in Holy Etchmiadzin
During the celebration of Divine Liturgy in the Mother Cathedral of Holy
Etchmiadzin, twenty seven senior classmen of the Gevorkian Theological
Seminary were ordained to the diaconate on Sunday, October 8, 2006.
The celebrant and ordaining bishop, His Grace Bishop Paren Avedikian,
granted the lowest of the holy orders to the young men who shall be
graduating from seminary this spring.
His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians,
presided during the liturgy and the luncheon organized in honor of the new
deacons in the refectory of the Mother See.
The following morning, His Holiness Karekin II received the newly ordained
deacons and gave them his pontifical blessing and exhortation.
Upon completion of the current academic year, the deacons must defend their
graduation theses, whereupon they shall be appointed to serve in the various
dioceses and organizations of the Armenian Church.

Council of Europe Secretary General Death penalty is a fatal form of injustice
Brussels, 10.10.2006 – Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of
Europe and Franco Frattini, Vice President of the European Commission
held today a joint press conference in Brussels to mark the World Day
against the Death Penalty. On this occasion, Terry Davis said:
“Death penalty is a fatal form of injustice and a fatal violation of
human rights. You cannot have a genuinely civilised and humane society
if the state is uncivilised and inhumane.
Death penalty is barbaric. It does not deter crime. It does not help the
victims of crime. It transforms murderers into martyrs. It transforms
judicial errors into irreversible tragedies. The bottom line is – the
next time that judicial error may be you.
The European Convention on Human Rights and its protocols guarantee the
right to life and prohibit torture, degrading and inhuman treatment.
Death penalty violates that Convention.
The Council of Europe has been working for the past 30 years to outlaw
the death penalty in Europe. Since 1989, abolition has been set as a
formal condition for accession for all new members. 45 of the 46 member
states have formally abolished the death penalty. We expect the Russian
Federation will soon follow suit. Meanwhile it has had a moratorium
since it joined in 1996. As a result, there has not been a single
execution in any member states of the Council of Europe for 10 years.
In the whole of Europe, only Belarus is out of step.
But, as far as I am concerned, the abolition of the death penalty is
still an unfinished business. First, many Europeans are still in favour
of the death penalty. This is not something we can ignore. We need to
go out and explain to people why the death penalty is wrong, why it has
been abolished and why it should stay abolished. This is an area where
the Council of Europe and the European Commission can work together and,
I hope, will work together.
Second, we must look beyond Europe. Some of our closest friends and
allies continue to execute people. We all know that the decision to
abolish the death penalty must come from them. But until they decide to
do so – and eventually, they will – we should not remain silent.
Politely but persistently, we should encourage them to follow our
example and say yes to justice but no to cruelty, torture and death.”
Press Release
Council of Europe Press Division
Ref: 576a06
Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 25 60
Fax:+33 (0)3 88 41 39 11
[email protected]
internet:
To receive our press releases by e-mail, contact :
[email protected]
A political organisation set up in 1949, the Council of Europe works to
promote democracy and human rights continent-wide. It also develops
common responses to social, cultural and legal challenges in its 46
member states.

RPA LEADER FORECASTS NK PROBLEM’S SOLUTION IN 2012
Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Oct 6 2006
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, NOYAN TAPAN. The outcome of the meeting of the
Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in Moscow on October 6
fully depends on Azerbaijan’s position, on whether it will state
a willingness to continue the negotiations from the point at which
they were discontinued. Spartak Seyranian, member of the RA National
Assembly ARF faction and the ARF Armenia Supreme Board, expressed
this opinion at the October 6 briefing.
As regards the statement that the EU Special Representative to the
South Caucasus Peter Semneby recently made in Brussels to the effect
that Armenia and Azerbaijan are playing for time in the issue of the
Karabakh conflict, S. Seyranian noted that as a rule, statements of
representatives of international structures involved in the settlement
process are based on “the subjective notions or impressions of the
given person concerning some issue.” In his opinion, “no statement
made by an official reflects the real state of affairs.”
According to the secretary of the Justice faction Grigor Harutyunian,
“there are always great expectations” prior to any meeting held within
the framework of negotiations on the Nagorno Karabakh problem, but
“unfortunatley, these expectations never realize.” He expressed an
opinion that neither the Armenian president not the Azerbaijani one
are interested in the resolution of the Karabakh conflict, since
“it prolongs their term of office.”
In the view of leader of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Galust
Sahakian, the only expectation from the current meeting of the two
foreign ministers is that “dicussion volumes between the presidents
of the two countries will somewhat become active.” In connection with
P. Semneby’s statement, the deputy noted that the delay is not only
related to the two states but also conditioned by the fact that no
deep discussions take place in the international community. “I do not
see that a solution to the Nagorno Karabakh problem will be found in
2006. Moreover, I see solutions in 2012,” G. Sahakian said.

‘FRANCE HAS TO BE RECONCILED TO LOSING TURKEY’
AZG Armenian Daily #191, 07/10/2006
Turkey
Spokesperson for the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Namik Tan, at a weekly
meeting with journalists yesterday said that once the French Parliament
adopts the draft bill penalizing denial of the Armenian Genocide,
France will have to be reconciled to the fact of losing Turkey. The
draft bill is to be discussed on October 12. This threatening rhetoric
together with futile visit of Turkish delegation to Paris last week
display that official Ankara’s concerns about adoption of the bill
are very serious.

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet:
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 6, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
SERJ TANKIAN WELCOMES HOAGLAND “HOLD”
— System of a Down Vocalist Praises
New Jersey Senator’s Principled Stand
“[Bob Menendez’s] principled stand represents a powerful
contribution to the worldwide effort to end the denial
of justice for this crime, and break forever the
worldwide cycle of genocide.” — Serj Tankian
WASHINGTON, DC – Serj Tankian, lead singer for the Grammy Award-
winning band System of a Down, has welcomed the “hold” placed by
Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) on the confirmation of Richard
Hoagland as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia until the Bush
Administration ends its denial of the Armenian Genocide.
“I respect U.S. Senator Bob Menendez’s decision to block the
President’s nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Armenia until the Bush
Administration ends its cover-up of the Armenian Genocide,” said
Serj Tankian. “His principled stand represents a powerful
contribution to the worldwide effort to end the denial of justice
for this crime, and break forever the worldwide cycle of genocide.”
This April, Tankian was joined by fellow System member John
Dolmayan in a three-day Armenian Genocide recognition advocacy tour
of Washington, DC, featuring meetings with Members of Congress, an
anti-denial rally outside the Turkish Embassy, and a Capitol Hill
screening of the new Genocide documentary “Screamers.” For a full
review of the tour, visit:
leases.php?prid=945
In announcing his decision last month to block the Hoagland
nomination, Sen. Menendez stressed that, “as a leader and defender
of democracy, it is our nation’s responsibility to speak out
against injustice and support equality and human rights. But if
the Bush Administration continues to refuse to acknowledge the
atrocities of the Armenian Genocide, then there is certainly cause
for great alarm, which is why I am placing a hold on this nominee.”
He added that, “I will continue to work with my colleagues in the
United States Senate to make strides toward ensuring that all
people, regardless of race, religion, or ethnicity, receive
protection from policies of discrimination and hate that lead to
genocide.”
On September 7th, after more than forty minutes of intense debate,
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved Ambassador-
Designate Hoagland’s nomination. Following the vote, the ANCA
announced that it would continue to urge Senators to place a hold
on the Hoagland nomination. On two previous occasions, June 28th
and August 1st, the panel delayed its consideration of the
nomination due to bipartisan concerns over a series of
controversies. Among these points of contention were the nominee’s
written responses to Senator Boxer’s inquiry, in which he
questioned the genocidal intent of the Ottoman Turkish government.
Also of concern to members of the panel was the State Department’s
firing of the current U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Marshal
Evans. His early recall from Yerevan is widely seen as retribution
for his public statements, in February of 2005, calling for an end
to “word games” by the U.S. government in avoiding the proper
recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Despite dozens of
Congressional inquiries, the Administration has yet to explain its
reasons for firing Amb. Evans or to reveal the communications it
received from the Turkish government on this matter.
To date, more than half of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,
including Senators George Allen (R-VA), Joseph Biden (D-DE),
Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), Norm Coleman,
Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Russell Feingold (D-WI), John Kerry (D-
MA), Barack Obama (D-IL) and Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), have contacted
Secretary Rice or questioned Ambassador-designate Hoagland directly
regarding his nomination or the firing of Ambassador Evans.
Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL), Edward Kennedy (D-MA), Jack Reed
(D-RI), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and most recently John Ensign (R-NV),
along with over sixty Members of the U.S. House have also expressed
serious concerns to the State Department on this matter.
In a September 1st letter, the ANCA urged Members of the Committee
to block the Hoagland nomination until:
1) Ambassador-designate Hoagland provides a responsible and
unambiguous public statement affirming that he does not question
the clear genocidal intent of the Ottoman Turkish government
against its Armenian population.
2) The State Department provides a full, honest, and public
explanation regarding the reasons for the controversial firing of
the current Ambassador, John Marshall Evans.
3) The Administration explains any and all communications,
directly or indirectly, between the U.S. government and the Turkish
government concerning Ambassador Evans.
Since February of this year, the ANCA has led nationwide efforts to
demand answers concerning the recall of Ambassador Evans and,
later, to educate Senators about the adverse impact of sending an
envoy to Armenia that has called into question the genocidal
character of Ottoman Turkey’s systematic destruction of its
Armenian population.
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