Author: Antonian Lara

DAYS OF REMEMBRANCE IN BESLAN
By Ruzan Poghosian
AZG Armenian Daily #156, 02/09/2005
Children Should Not Fall Victims of Terrorists
One year ago these days the world community experienced tremble
of horror. Hundreds of people including 170 children died in the
1st secondary school of Beslan in Southern Ossetia. Today, the
world remembers all innocent victims sending the people of Beslan
condolences.
The letter of condolence of the UN Children’s Fund to the people
of Beslan is an appeal at the same time to protect children from
conflicts. The message of Maria Kalivis, UNICEF regional director in
Central, Eastern Europe and CIS, reads, “The sanctity of childhood
was attacked on these 3 days of September. It was done in most inhuman
way. It’s high time to oppose the violence against children”. Kalivis
finds the measures that are being taken today insufficient and thinks
that it’s possible to do more.

FATHER AND SON; PULL THEIR WEIGHT
Glenn Fisher
Knox News (Australia)
August 30, 2005 Tuesday
KNOX is set to be represented with a history-making combination at
the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Apart from Opals women’s basketball squad members Hollie Grima and
Samantha Richards, triple Olympian Russell Lavale and elite athlete
with a disability swimmer Rod Welsh, there are two other locals
desperately fighting for berths on the Australian team.
Rowville weightlifters Yurik and David Sarkisian are aiming to become
the first father and son combination to represent their country at
the same international competition.
Yurik is ranked number one in the country in the 62kg division and
number three in the 69kg division, while his 19-year-old son is ranked
number one in the 69kg division.
David has come a long way in a short time in the tough world of
weightlifting, winning last year’s Commonwealth Youth Games with an
overall total of 260kg, a total on which he improved by 15kg earlier
this year.
His 44-year-old father has won more than 600 medals in national and
international events, including a silver medal at the 1980 Moscow
Olympic Games when representing the former USSR.
After moving to Australia from Armenia in the early 1990s, Yurik has
gone on to represent his adopted country at the 1996 Atlanta and 2000
Sydney Olympics, as well as the 1998 and 2002 Commonwealth Games.
Wantirna teenager Welsh last year had an ambition to make the Athens
Paralympic team and win gold and he did so in fine style in freestyle,
backstroke and medley events.
Grima and Richards are two of the youngest members of the Opals’ squad.
The 190cm Grima is an integral part of the Knox Raiders in the
South-East Australian Basketball League, and the Bulleen Melbourne
Boomers in the Women’s National Basketball League.
The 170cm Richards played as a guard in Dandenong Rangers’ WNBL
championship victories in the past two years.
Lavale has three Olympic team uniforms hanging in his Boronia wardrobe.
And, as the current Australian men’s singles, doubles and mixed doubles
table tennis champion, the 31-year-old is well on target to slam his
way into the Games team.
Melbourne 2006 chief executive John Harnden last week wished the
athletes the best in their quest to make the 400-strong Australian
team.
“August 27 marked 200 days to go until the spectacular opening ceremony
of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.
“This will be when the largest Australian team ever will march on to
the Melbourne Cricket Ground,” Mr Harnden told the Leader.

PRESS RELEASE
Federation of Armenian Organisations in The Netherlands (FAON)
24 April Committee
for the recognition and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide of 1915
Weesperstraat 91
2574 VS The Hague – The Netherlands
Contact: M. Hakhverdian
Tel: +31-704490209
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:
Turkey can only access EU by recognising Armenian Genocide
The European framework of negotiation with Turkey must include the
recognition of Armenian Genocide
Armenian Federation presents a petition to the Dutch Parliament
The Hague, 30 August 2005 – 24 April Committee of the Federation of
Armenian Organisations in the Netherlands (FAON) presented today
a petition to the President of the Standing Committee on European
Affairs of the House of Representatives, Mrs. G. Van Heteren. Members
of parliament of almost all parliamentary factions were present. The
24 April Committee calls for the amendment of the proposed negotiation
framework for Turkey¹s accession to EU. In this document, the European
Commission has included the subjects, which must be discussed with
Turkey during the accession negotiations beginning probably from
3 October 2005. The Armenian Genocide and Turkey¹s relation with
neighbouring country Armenia is, however, not mentioned in this
document. This approach has already been received many criticism in
Europe. Hundreds of European organisations want that recognition of
the Armenian Genocide to be a part of the negotiations. The final
negotiation framework will be adopted at European level in the month
of September.
The Dutch House of Representatives has recognised the Armenian Genocide
in December 2004, by unanimously adopting the motion of André Rouvoet
(Christian Union), wherein the Dutch government is requested to bring
up continuously and expressly the recognition of the Armenian Genocide
in the dialogue with Turkey. In the last period in European context the
Dutch Minister for Foreign Affairs Ben Bot has persistently submitted
arguments in favour of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by
Turkey. However, since there is no word mentioned on this question
in the proposed negotiation framework, it is, according to 24 April
Committee, the responsibility of the House of Representatives and
the minister to insist on the inclusion of effective agreements on
this point in the document.
Explicit agreements are all the more necessary, because since 17
December 2004, the day that it was decided that probably from 3
October 2005 the negotiations with Turkey for accession to EU will
start, Turkey turned on more intensive denial policy not only at home,
but also abroad and particularly in Europe.
Minister Bot spoke several times at the House of Representatives about
the awareness of Turkey to not be able to join the EU without coming
to terms with the past. However, since such condition is not mentioned
anywhere in the negotiation framework established by the European
Commission, it is not clear how Turkey can be bound to this condition.
For this reason the 24 April Committee urges that the Netherlands
should put heavy pressure for amendment of this document, in the sense
that the recognition of the Armenian Genocide becomes an explicit
component of the negotiation framework. It is obvious that at the start
of the negotiations all Copenhagen criteria must be implemented. Since
normal relations with neighbouring countries belong to these criteria ,
the 24 April Committee expects that in the short term Turkey will open
the border with neighbouring country Armenia and will also establish
diplomatic relations. If it would not be the case, then opening of the
border and establishment of diplomatic relations with Armenia has to be
added of course at the remaining conditions for possible negotiations.
–Boundary_(ID_lp8iTpMJ6N6WaZZM9AQ8TA)–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DO NOT COMPARE US WITH IRAQ
A1+
| 18:14:17 | 30-08-2005 | Politics |
Today during the discussions of the constitutional amendments the
NA hall was almost empty. Though speeches by the opposition deputies
aroused some interest, during the speeches by the coalition members
the hall became quite empty.
The opposition deputies have worked out a serious tactic and each of
them uncovered the faults of the draft from various aspects. According
to Shavarsh Kocharyan, the fact that the U.S. compares Armenia
with Iraq, on which it is now trying to impose the adoption of the
Constitution, is humiliating for Armenia.
He stated that the international structures approve the draft not
because it is good but because they do not have other expectations. In
his words, this does not do us credit, taking into account that we have
the constitution written by Shahamir Shahamiryan in the 19th century.
DECEIT OCCIDENTALLY
Noting that the draft items conflict with one another NA deputy
Arshak Sadoyan states that the “occidental form of deceit” is being
implemented. “Is it hard to fix that despite the constitutional
amendments one person cannot run for president three times.
Independent deputy Hmayak Hovhanissyan is battling against the
expansion of the Prime Minister’s authority. In his words, presently
the President has less authority than the Premier appointed by the
oligarchic majority.
PRESIDENT’S GRATITUDE
National Unity Secretary Alexan Karapetyan emphasized that the
Constitutional Court is empowered with ultimate authority. In his
words, in this way Robert Kocharyan “covers up” the debt to the CC,
which saved him in 1998 and 2003.
CONSTITUTION BETRAYS HOMELAND?
Aram G. Sargsyan touched upon the clause on land sale, due to which
“our homeland can go to the enemy’s hands in the near future”. He
also pointed out to the technical faults, for example the expression
stating that “The Constitution is adopted by the Armenian people via
referendum”. “Considerable number of Armenian people are members of
the Diaspora and cannot take part in the referendum”, he noted.

RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, Czech Republic
Aug 26 2005
CIS: If It’s So Ineffectual, Why Do Leaders Keep Meeting?
By Valentinas Mite

Do CIS summits provide more than photo opportunities?
(CTK)
Leaders from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) are holding
a summit today in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan. They are due to
discuss CIS reform, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and other issues.
The meeting, hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, is expected
to end with agreements being signed on terrorism, fighting extremist
groups, and on curbing illegal migration. But the CIS is widely
considered to be ineffectual in its goal of preserving close economic
and defense ties between the former Soviet states. So why do the
leaders keep meeting?
Prague, 26 August 2005 (RFE/RL) — Many observers believe the current
summit of CIS leaders will be just as ineffectual as the ones that
preceded it.
Aleksei Malashenko of the Moscow Carnegie Center told RFE/RL that the
CIS has clearly failed in its mission of becoming an organization
integrating the post-Soviet states. “If we measure the effectiveness
in terms of organizing some kind of order in the post-Soviet
political and economic space, the importance [of the summits] almost
equals zero,” he said.
Malashenko said the CIS has failed to hammer out a coordinated
foreign policy, while little or no progress has been made in economic
cooperation and other spheres.
The CIS was founded in December 1991 in the wake of the Soviet
Union’s collapse. Of the 15 former Soviet republics, only the three
Baltic states did not join.
Malashenko said it is difficult to guess how the organization —
which serves as a venue for personal contacts and consultations
between the heads of state — will develop in the future. “I think it
will become clear what will happen with this organization during this
summit or in two more summits in the future,” Malashenko said. “We
will see if [the CIS] disappears completely or becomes some kind of a
presidential club.” He added that CIS summits at least afford leaders
an opportunity to reduce tensions and to consult without having to
make commitments.
CIS leaders themselves offer a more upbeat analysis, at least in
public. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev told journalists in
Kazan today that the CIS “should be preserved as an
organization…for the sake of economic integration and the
improvement of living standards of our people.”
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko promised to bring proposals to
Kazan on how to improve cooperation between Ukraine and the other CIS
states. Yushchenko said Ukraine will put up for discussion several
issues, including a mechanism for a free-trade zone within the CIS.
However, Stuart Hensel of the London-based Economist Intelligence
Unit said reviving the CIS isn’t a priority for Ukraine. “I think
[the Ukrainians] are very conscious about making it appear that they
are keeping all avenues of possible links with Russia open and that
they are open for discussion on any issues,” Hensel said. “I think
their line throughout all of this is going to be that any sort of
integration that happens through the CIS or through the Single
Economic Space, that this happens in ways that are in Ukraine’s
interest. And I don’t think they are going to back off of that in any
way.”
Hensel said it is in Ukraine’s interest to create a real free-trade
area instead of a trading system dominated by Russia. Since Russia
opposes the idea, this conflict of interest “will stop further
integration from happening.”
Yushchenko and Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili are the
staunchest critics of the way the CIS has been functioning, but both
nevertheless continue to attend the summits. Malashenko says it easy
to understand why. “Both Yushchenko and Saakashvili clearly
understand that moving closer to Europe is not a sudden jump,” he
said. “It is a very long process, a very long one. In fact, it will
take a whole generation to make it. It is not solid to ignore the CIS
completely. And to pretend that they have nothing to do with it would
be childish.”
Both Georgia and Ukraine have made membership in the European Union
and NATO priorities. Yushchenko and Saakashvili met in Georgia two
weeks ago and discussed setting up a new regional alliance to
champion democracy in the former Soviet space.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

MINISTER OF FOREIGN RELATIONS OF ARGENTINA TO ARRIVE IN ARMENIA ON OFFICIAL
VISIT, ON AUGUST 29
YEREVAN, AUGUST 26, NOYAN TAPAN. The official visit of Rafael Bielsa,
the Minister of Foreign Relations, International Trade and Worship of
the Republic of Argentina will take place on August 29-31. Noyan Tapan
was informed about this by the RA Foreign Ministry’s Press and
Information Department. Minister R.Bielsa’s meetings with the RA
President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Catholicos of All
Armenians are envisaged during the meeting. Within the framework of
the visit, the Argentinian Minister will visit the Armenian Genocide
Museum-Institute and school “Republic of Argentina.”

La Croix , France
22 août 2005
Un été dans La Croix.
Les Arméniens de Turquie (1/7).
Dossier. Sur les routes d’Anatolie, le retour aux racines. Le long
silence des grands-mères arméniennes. Des milliers d’enfants,
épargnés et convertis à l’islam au moment des tueries, ont ensuite
gardé le secret toute leur vie. ISTAMBOUL, reportage de notre envoyé
spécial.
par PLOQUIN Jean-Christophe
Fethiye Cetin a encore la voix qui se brise en reparlant de sa
grand-mère. En 1915, celle-ci avait 9 ans. Sa famille habitait un
village de l’est de l’Anatolie, Habap en arménien, Ekinözu en turc.
Lorsque l’ordre de déportation est tombé, tous les hommes ont d’abord
été pris. On ne les a plus jamais revus. Puis les vieux, les femmes
et les enfants ont été emmenés sur les routes, direction le sud. À
Cernik, non loin de Diyarbakir, le convoi était déjà passablement
décimé par les violences, la faim, la soif, la chaleur étouffante. Un
militaire extirpe l’enfant du convoi et la confie à une famille.
Une soixantaine d’années plus tard, Fethiye Cetin est étudiante quand
elle entend ce récit. “Tout à coup, ma grand-mère m’a raconté cela,
se souvient-elle. Elle savait qu’elle avait de la famille aux
États-Unis. Elle voulait que je l’aide à la retrouver. Mais moi, au
début, je n’ai pu en parler à personne.”
La révélation a la violence d’un choc. Fethiye Cetin avait grandi
dans la bonne conscience d’être turque. À l’école, à la ville, on lui
avait enseigné l’héroïsme d’une jeune nation ayant survécu à
l’avidité des grandes puissances après la Première Guerre mondiale.
Brutalement, elle découvre un passé douloureux et apprend qu’elle
appartient à une minorité honteuse, les Arméniens, présentés dans les
livres d’histoire comme des traîtres à la patrie. Elle se tait, mais
elle voudrait crier dans les rues cette douleur enfouie, brutalement
resurgie. Elle constatera plus tard que sa propre mère connaissait
l’histoire, mais qu’elle ne l’avait jamais transmise à ses enfants,
pour les protéger.
Il faudra plus de vingt ans à Fethiye Cetin pour mettre sur la place
publique la vie de sa grand-mère, sous la forme d’un livre de deux
cents pages, paru en décembre. Aujourd’hui, l’ouvrage en est à sa
cinquième édition et a été vendu à 12 000 exemplaires, un grand
succès éditorial dans un pays où les gens lisent peu. Sa grand-mère
est morte avant d’avoir pu revoir ses cousins d’Amérique, mais son
visage anguleux, encadré par un foulard islamique, est devenu un
symbole pour des milliers de Turcs.
“En lisant le livre, deux fois, je me suis mise à pleurer”, raconte
une jeune femme d’Istamboul, mère de deux enfants. Notamment quand
l’auteur raconte comment, il y a quatre-vingt-dix ans, une autre
jeune mère a préféré noyer son fils de ses propres mains, avant de se
jeter dans une rivière, plutôt que de tomber dans les mains de
pillards kurdes. C’est avec ce livre que beaucoup de Turcs éduqués
ont découvert la violence du massacre des Arméniens, un sujet tabou,
totalement occulté par l’élite militaire et bureaucratique qui
gouverne le pays depuis sa fondation en 1923.
Après la parution de son livre, Fethiye Cetin, une avocate ancrée à
gauche, a reçu un abondant courrier. Une amie lui a avoué que sa
propre grand-mère aussi était arménienne, mais que personne ne
l’avait su jusqu’à ce que, sur son lit de mort, la survivante ne
récite des prières dans la langue de son enfance. “Même les
nationalistes turcs ont été touchés, souligne l’auteur. Sans doute
parce que j’ai seulement raconté la réalité. Personne ne peut dire
que j’ai menti. Ce livre est sorti de mon coeur.”
L’avocate a aussi participé à une conférence avec des Arméniens
d’Istamboul. “J’ai pleuré, et beaucoup de femmes ont pleuré avec moi,
dit-elle. Les Arméniens me disaient: “Vous êtes notre voix. Pour la
première fois en Turquie, quelqu’un a parlé de nos douleurs.””
Le livre de Fethiye Cetin met au jour une certaine schizophrénie de
la société turque dont le nationalisme farouche a longtemps étouffé
d’autres voix, intérieures. “Notre société dépense beaucoup d’énergie
pour défendre une apparence, note l’avocate. Il est temps de
commencer à parler normalement, sans héroïsme, et de rentrer dans le
débat.”
J.-C. P.

Armenian general advises Azerbaijan to spend more on people
Arminfo
22 Aug 05
YEREVAN
Instead of increasing its military budget, Azerbaijan had better spend
that money on resolving much more important issues, the chief of the
General Staff and first deputy defence minister of Armenia, Col-Gen
Mikael Arutyunyan, has told our Arminfo correspondent.
“I think they ought to invest that money in the socio-economic
development of their country and people who are poor and
starving. There are very many problems. They could resolve the problem
of refugees, build houses and raise the pensions. But they are saying
that all the money will be spent on the army, which I believe is an
approach lacking seriousness. And what will they do afterwards? They
will destroy the armada created, again rather than spending the money
on the people? I think they had better think about their people,”
Arutyunyan noted.
At the same time, he stressed that the Armenian side “will not stay
idle” either. “We are also preparing and although we are not going to
invest big money, we will invest enough,” he said.
[Passage omitted: background note on Azerbaijan president’s statement
on increasing military budget]

Cabinet approves payment of dlrs 10m loan to 7 states
Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran
Aug 21 2005
Tehran, Aug 21, IRNA — Cabinet on Sunday approved payment of a
10-million-dollar grant to seven states upon a proposal of the
Foreign Ministry.
According to Public Relations Department of Ministry of Economy and
Finance, the grant will be provided from development credit fund.
Based on the cabinet’s approval, Iran will grant 2.5 million dollars to
Tajikistan, two million dollars to Iraq, 1.5 million dollars to Niger,
1.5 million dollars to Guinea, 1.5 million dollars to Mali, half a
million dollars to Armenia and half a million dollars to Georgia.
The credit will be allocated to the states for completion of Anzab
tunnel in Tajikistan, Iraq’s reconstruction, renovation of gas transfer
pipeline to Georgia and implementation of development projects in
four other countries.

DIASPORA ARMENIAN TEACHERS MEET EDUCATION AND SCIENCE MINISTER
Armenpress
YEREVAN, AUGUST 19, ARMENPRESS: The Diaspora Armenian teachers
who arrived in Armenia from 13 different countries to participate
in the training program met today with the Armenian Education and
Science Minister Sergo Yeritsian who greeted the Armenian teachers and
underscored the necessity of the organization of the classes describing
them as “new beginning in strengthening Armenia-Diaspora ties.”
During the meeting the minister presented the educational reforms
implemented in Armenia and handed them letters of gratitude for the
participation in the classes. At the end of the meeting the minister
answered the questions the teachers were interested in. At the end
of the classes August 22 the three best participants will be awarded
by the Armenian Catholicos.