Author: Ara Felekian

Turkish Press: Seven investigations, three lawsuits launched on Diyarbakır Bar for Armenian Genocide Remembrance in last six years

Ara Felekian
 duvaR.english 
Turkey – Dec 15 2023
Friday 08:43 pm

Turkish prosecutors have launched seven investigations and filed three lawsuits against the Diyarbakır Bar Association administration since 2017 for Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), “Insulting the Turkish nation, state, government, Parliament, and its judicial bodiesi” for statements made during Armenian Genocide Remembrance Events.

The Media and Legal Studies Organization (MLSA) documented the Turkish state’s legal battle with the Bar Association of the southeastern Diyarbakır province over its stance on the Armenian genocide. 

A Diyarbakır prosecutor’s office most recently launched an investigation into chair Nahit Eren and ten executive board members of the Diyarbakır Bar Association regarding the statement “Confrontation and reconciliation must begin from 24 April 1915” published on the Bar Association website. 

The investigations for the TCK 301 require approval by the Justice Ministry. The ministry found that the remarks “Hundreds of thousands of Armenians were torn from their lands and were killed or left to die through the relocation supported and controlled by the Committee of Union and Progress,” warranted an investigation. 

The ministry however looked over the 2014 remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan included in the statement: “We wish that the Armenians who died due to conditions of the early 20th century rest in peace, and extend our condolences to their grandchildren.” 

The Bar Association interpreted the President’s remarks as “an important step to confront this dark history,” in their statement that is now subject to an investigation.

Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office called in the Bar Association executives for defense statements. The 11 bar officials rejected to give defenses and claimed that their statement fell under freedom of _expression_.

Deputy head of the Diyarbakır Bar Association Mehdi Özdemir said that the Justice Ministry allowed six investigations so far, four of which turned into lawsuits. The various Bar Association executives were acquitted in two of these cases. One case and two investigations are still ongoing. Özdemir stated another application to investigate the Bar Association’s 2023 Armenian Genocide statement had reached the Justice Ministry. 

Özdemir stated that the Penal Code Article 301 was infamously used to threaten everyone who voiced an opinion opposite to the official ideology of the government. He added, “We believe the enforced disappearances beginning with the 1915 Armenian Genocide and continuing with the 1937-38 Dersim Massacre are realities Turkey needs to face.”

“Unless we confront the truth, we cannot talk of real justice. We will continue defending this struggle for human rights as we honor our values and historical legacy,” said Özdemir.  

Armenpress: Prime Minister meets with the relatives of the prisoners of war who recently returned to Armenia

Ara Felekian

 21:29,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 15, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his wife Anna Hakobyan on Friday had a meeting with relatives of prisoners of war from Shirak region who returned to Armenia recently, the Prime Minister's Office said.

In his speech, the Head of the Government noted that during these three years, everything possible was done for the return of prisoners. "While it's clear that we were all anxious to see them back as soon as possible, I want to thank you for your patience because it was very important. As a human being, I highly appreciate your patience," said the Prime Minister and added that everything should be done so that our brothers can return to normal life.

The relatives of the prisoners thanked the Prime Minister and the government for their efforts.

Flyone Armenia airline launches daily flights to Sheremetyevo International Airport

Ara Felekian

 12:39,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 15, ARMENPRESS.First Armenian national airline FLYONE ARMENIA launches daily flights to Sheremetyevo International Airport from December 15th.

"We are pleased to announce the addition of Sheremetyevo International Airport to our flight network, one of Moscow's key aviation hubs. This flight will serve as an additional, accessible, and comfortable alternative for thousands of FLYONE ARMENIA passengers traveling to or from Moscow," stated Aram Ananyan, Chairman of the company's board.
Currently, the airline operates daily flights from Zvartnots International Airport in Yerevan to the international airports of Vnukovo and Domodedovo in Moscow.

Considering the high demand for Russian destinations, FLYONE ARMENIA airline currently operates flights to Moscow Domodedovo Airport, Moscow Vnukovo International Airport, as well as to Saint Petersburg, Sochi, Mineralnye Vody, and Novosibirsk. The airline also offers international flights to Paris, Milan, Chisinau, Tbilisi, Istanbul, Larnaka, Sharm el-Sheikh, and Hurghada.

About FLYONE ARMENIA:

FLYONE ARMENIA (www.flyone.am) is a leading airline in Armenia, founded in 2021. The airline's fleet comprises Airbus A320 and Airbus A319 aircraft types, meeting all safety standards set by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

Tehran proposes holding referendum to determine the fate of Palestine

Ara Felekian

 19:24,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The only thing Iran and Israel share is that both do not believe in a two-state solution, Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Monday via translation at an international forum in Doha, Al Arabiya reports.

According to the source, during the forum, Amir-Abdollahian reiterated Iran’s proposal that a referendum be held to determine the fate of Palestine, with only descendants of those who lived there prior to 1948 being permitted to vote.

The European Union and the Azerbaijan-Armenia Conflict: Between Mediations and Obstacles

Ara Felekian
The European Times
Dec 1 2023

Written by Alexander Seale, LN24

The establishment of territorial sovereignty for each State in the world is a necessity, it is in this regard that Azerbaijan, by regaining control of Nagorno-Karabakh in September after a lightning offensive, can argue that it was seeking to restore its territorial sovereignty lost during the previous conflict. The reconquest could be seen as a legitimate response to the unacceptable status quo situation that had prevailed in the region for many years, and as a manifestation of the international right of each country to guarantee its territorial integrity. Regional stabilization is an essential element for Azerbaijan. The reconquest of Nagorno-Karabakh could be interpreted as an attempt to restore regional balance and put an end to a persistent source of tension. In this light, Azerbaijan could argue that a tough stance is necessary to ensure stability and security in the region.

Additionally, Azerbaijan’s recent decision to decline participation in normalization talks with Armenia, scheduled to take place in the United States in November, has heightened tensions. Azerbaijan invokes a “partial” position from Washington, thus highlighting the complexity of alliances in the region. Baku’s refusal to engage in negotiations is a direct response to the events of September 19, suggesting that the current situation requires tangible progress on the path to peace to restore normalization of relations.

 American Response and Risks of Loss of Mediation

The reaction of the US national security adviser, Mr. O’Brien, underlines the firm stance of the United States towards Azerbaijan after the events of September. The cancellation of high-level visits and condemnation of Baku’s actions highlight the United States’ determination to push for concrete progress toward peace. However, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry’s response, suggesting that this unilateral approach could cause the United States to lose its role as mediator, highlights the geopolitical risks inherent in this situation.

The rounds of negotiations between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, mediated by the European Union, reflect the complexity of the situation. However, Ilham Aliyev’s refusal to participate in negotiations in Spain citing France’s biased position raises questions about the EU’s ability to play a neutral mediation role. The initially planned presence of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, accompanied by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, underlines the importance of European mediation.

The territorial conflict around Nagorno-Karabakh, the massive population displacements, and the flight of more than 100,000 Armenians to Armenia highlight the major humanitarian challenges linked to the conflict. Nikol Pashinian, Armenian Prime Minister, reaffirms Yerevan’s desire to sign a peace agreement in the coming months, despite current difficulties. The leaders of the two former Soviet republics have raised the possibility of a comprehensive peace deal by the end of the year, but this will largely depend on the resolution of geopolitical obstacles and the willingness of all parties to agree. engage constructively in the negotiation process.

Azerbaijan’s attitude towards international mediations, including distrust towards mediation perceived as “biased” by France, can be interpreted as the protection of national sovereignty. This attitude may reflect the belief that crucial decisions related to conflict resolution should be made independently, thereby preserving national autonomy and avoiding harmful external interference.

The deep complexity of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The dynamics at play, shaped by passionate domestic reactions, diverse international interventions and complex regional implications, create an ever-changing geopolitical landscape. The humanitarian challenges resulting from the conflict, such as massive population displacements, highlight the urgency of concerted action.

It is clear that mediation in this sensitive region must adapt to a nuanced reality, taking into account deep national sensitivities, the requirements of international diplomacy and glaring humanitarian imperatives. The search for a lasting resolution requires a delicate balance between these various factors, and the obstacles to mediation highlight the need for a strategic and inclusive approach.

Ultimately, the quest for peace in Nagorno-Karabakh requires a comprehensive vision and the willingness of all parties involved to transcend differences, demonstrate flexibility and resolutely engage in constructive negotiations. The future of the region will depend on the ability of domestic and international actors to skillfully navigate these complexities to forge a path toward a lasting and peaceful resolution.

Armenpress: Armenian PM, OSCE Secretary General meet in Yerevan

Ara Felekian

 17:23,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has met with OSCE Secretary General Helga Schmid in Yerevan.

Pashinyan and Schmid discussed the ongoing OSCE PA session in Yerevan, its agenda items, as well as cooperation between Armenia and the OSCE, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a readout.

Issues related to the humanitarian problems of over 100,000 forcibly displaced persons of Nagorno-Karabakh resulting from Azerbaijan’s policy of ethnic cleansing, as well as the Armenian government’s measures in the direction of overcoming these problems were discussed.

Issues pertaining to the Armenia-Azerbaijan normalization process were also discussed.

The importance of continuing the peace process based on the principles agreed as a result of the May 14 and July 15, 2023 Brussels trilateral meetings was underscored.

Views were exchanged around regional peace and stability, as well as other issues of mutual interest.

Music with meaning: Bar Harbor band plays for Armenian refugee relief

Ara Felekian
Maine – Nov 16 2023


    By Nan Lincoln | Special to The Ellsworth American


The Kotwica Band will be performing a concert of international folk tunes to benefit Armenian refugees at Saint Saviour’s Church in Bar Harbor Sunday, Nov. 26 at 2 p.m. Pictured, from left, are: Kevin Stone, Carolyn Rapkievian, David Quinby, David Rapkievian, Eloise Schultz, Frances Stockman and Anne Tatgenhorst.

BAR HARBOR — About 125 years ago, the town of Bar Harbor became galvanized by the plight of the Armenian people, who were being slaughtered in the hundreds of thousands by the Ottoman Turks and forced from their historical homeland, between the Caucuses and the Caspian Sea.

Bar Harbor summer resident Henry Morgenthau, the U.S. ambassador to the declining Ottoman Empire, was the first to sound the alarm about this ongoing genocide. He eventually resigned in protest over what the Turks (eventually joined by the German army at the outset of World War I) were doing in Armenia and the lack of a cohesive, official American response.

In 1897, the Bar Harbor Record reported, “A most interesting lecture was given at the Congregational church by Rev. A. S. Abraham on the Armenian question. The church was filled, and the audience listened with rapt attention to the recitation of the wrongs done the race.”

By 1915, an estimated 1,500,000 Armenians, more than half of the total population living in their ancient homeland, had been massacred and thousands more displaced.

“I am firmly convinced that this is the greatest crime of the ages,” Morgenthau told Congress.

There are some who believe the reluctance of Europe and America to hold the Turks responsible for their war crimes against the Armenians emboldened Hitler to implement his extermination of the Jews. If the world could look the other away at the mass destruction of its oldest Christian nation (301 AD), would it come to the rescue of Europe’s Jewish population? The Holocaust may have been the terrible answer to that question.

If the world’s governments failed to act in time to prevent the Armenian disaster, the American people in big cities and small towns like Bar Harbor did pay attention. According to the Bar Harbor Times, in 1917, the Congregational church donated $91 to Armenian relief; the Sewing Circle voted to contribute its refreshment money, and in 1919, even the Sunday School pitched in $5 a month to support one of the thousands of children orphaned by the Turkish pogroms.

Led by Morgenthau and fellow Bar Harbor rusticator Cleveland Dodge, with the help of author Julia Ward Howe, Charlie Chaplin, child star Jackie Coogan and many others, Americans would raise $116 million in funds and supplies (worth more than $2 billion today).

A century of uneasy peace followed the fall of the Ottoman Empire, including two world wars and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union. On the one hand this exacerbated the tension between the Islamic Turks and the Christian Armenians by creating the Turkic state of Azerbaijan on the large oil- and mineral-rich section of historic Armenian lands bordering the Caspian Sea, and on the other hand managed to prevent further mass slaughter (although not deadly pogroms) with its iron-fisted control of the region.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, in 1991, Azerbaijan became increasingly emboldened to reclaim the region of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), an autonomous ethnic Armenian enclave within its borders. In 2020, when the world’s focus was on the COVID pandemic, Azerbaijan launched a major attack on Artsakh, creating a new humanitarian crisis as the ethnic Armenian population fled what they fear will be another genocide.

So once again Bar Harbor and area residents at large are being asked to help as they did a century ago when local church congregations and schoolchildren contributed to Armenian relief.

The Kotwica Band, led by David and Carolyn Rapkievian of Bar Harbor, will be giving a concert to benefit Armenian refugees on Sunday, Nov. 26, at 2 p.m. at St. Saviour’s Church in Bar Harbor (41 Mount Desert St.). The concert will feature music from Armenia and the neighboring countries — Poland, Macedonia, Ukraine, Romania and Greece — where many Armenians settled after the last diaspora.

For the Rapkievians it is personal. Carolyn’s Armenian relatives were among those who fell victim to the Ottoman slaughter, and the horrors they endured are part of her family lore. A photograph of her grandfather’s handsome family is not simply evidence of her Armenian heritage but a memento of loss.

“When the photo was taken, my grandfather Hovnan Okoomian had already been sent to America for safety,” Rapkievian said. “My great-grandparents who are pictured seated in the photo were beheaded in front of the children, and the youngest children were killed along with the eldest sister’s husband. The sisters were taken into a harem and raped.”

She says American missionaries eventually helped her surviving family members escape. U.S. missionaries also helped her then-infant maternal grandmother escape by pretending she was their own child and her mother their maid. Sadly, such horrors are no longer a part of the Armenian people’s past.

“Just this past September,” Rapkievian said, “120,000 people — nearly the entire population of Artsakh — fled across the border to Armenia in an arduous three-day exodus to escape attacks on their villages and towns. These refugees, who left behind their belongings, their livelihoods and their lands, are undernourished and have medical needs.

She said Armenia, now a small democratic republic wedged between modern-day Turkey and Azerbaijan, is a poor country and unable to support a refugee crisis of this magnitude.

Rapkievian hopes people will once again rally to support the Armenian people by attending the Nov. 26 concert.

“We hope they’ll enjoy our music, too,” she added with a smile, picking up her drum to resume the rehearsal.

Carolyn and her husband, David, play a variety of instruments themselves including fiddle, guitar, oud (a precursor of the lute), balalaika and drum; they have recruited button accordionist Kevin Stone of Waterville, bass player David Quinby of Sedgwick and three singers, Anne Tatgenhorst of Winterport, College of the Atlantic grad Eloise Shultz and Conners Emerson School eighth-grader Frances Stockman (whose aunt, the late Kirsten Stockman, co-founded with Tatgenhorst the Maine Women’s Balkan Choir).

Kotwica plans to perform 15 songs that speak of love, loss and yearning.

“Many of the songs have a dual meaning,” Rapkievian said. “For instance the first song, ‘Gorani,’ is Armenian and the words are about the loss of love. But it is also about the loss of a homeland.”

As they practice, one can hear that thread of longing, interwoven into often lilting tunes that beg to be danced to and most often are.

“At this Thanksgiving time we are especially thankful for our town’s support of the Armenian people — both in the past and present,” Rapkievien said. “Our songs and our music have survived, and we are thrilled to be able share them and our story with everyone.

“And, yes,” she added, “there will probably be dancing.”

https://www.ellsworthamerican.com/lifestyle/arts/music-with-meaning-bar-harbor-band-plays-for-armenian-refugee-relief/article_92f0bebc-84b9-11ee-b415-331c890ccccf.html













Citigroup Discriminated Against Armenian-Americans, Regulator Says

Ara Felekian
The New York Times
Nov 8 2023

The bank agreed to pay nearly $26 million to settle claims that its employees denied an immigrant community in Southern California fair access to its credit cards.


By Emily Flitter
Nov. 8, 2023, 11:33 a.m. ET

Citigroup employees labeled a group of roughly 80,000 Armenian-Americans living near Los Angeles — the largest Armenian community outside Yerevan, the Armenian capital — as “bad guys” and secretly denied them fair access to the bank’s credit card products, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said in a statement on Wednesday.

The bank has agreed to pay $25.9 million to settle a case brought by the consumer bureau under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the federal law that prohibits banks from discriminating against people based on a host of qualities, including race, national origin and religion. Of the total, $1.4 million will go to the victims of Citigroup’s discriminatory practices, the regulator said. The other $24.5 million is a penalty for the bank’s misconduct.

“Citi stereotyped Armenians as prone to crime and fraud,” Rohit Chopra, the director of the consumer bureau, said in a news conference on Wednesday. “In reality, Citi illegally fabricated documents to cover up its discrimination.”

Mr. Chopra said that Citigroup had been caught violating bank regulations on several occasions. The consumer regulator said Citigroup’s discriminatory practices regarding Armenians were in place from at least 2015 to 2021. “I am concerned about Citi’s longstanding problems when it comes to managing the many parts of its sprawling business,” Mr. Chopra said.

According to the regulator, Citi employees pegged the community, in Glendale, Calif., as a group whose members were likely to rack up huge debts and then flee the country. They warned new hires not to give credit card applicants with Armenian-sounding last names that ended in “ian” or “yan” the same rates that other customers received, and in some cases urged them to reject these applicants altogether.

The people affected by the bank’s practice were not applying for Citigroup-branded cards; they were seeking cards offered by retailers, like Home Depot and Best Buy, that were underwritten by the bank. Eric Halperin, the consumer bureau’s enforcement director, said during the news conference that Citigroup was still trying to identify how many people were affected by the discrimination, but so far regulators had identified “hundreds.”

Karen Kearns, a spokeswoman for Citigroup, said in a statement that the bank had been “trying to thwart a well-documented Armenian fraud ring operating in certain parts of California,” and that “a few employees took impermissible actions.”

According to regulators, Citi managers knew excluding Armenians was illegal and warned employees “not to discuss it in writing or on recorded phone lines.” Even so, regulators found evidence of Citi employees discussing over email how to cover up their denial of applicants from Glendale.

“It’s been a while since I declined for possible credit abuse/YAN — gimme some reasons I can use,” one employee wrote to another in 2016, seeking advice on how to tell a potential customer that a credit card application had been denied without revealing the real reason, according to the consumer bureau.

“We sincerely apologize to any applicant who was evaluated unfairly,” Ms. Kearns said. “Following an internal investigation, we have taken appropriate actions with those directly involved in this matter, and we promptly put in place measures to prevent any recurrence of such conduct.”

Emily Flitter covers finance. She is the author of “The White Wall: How Big Finance Bankrupts Black America.” More about Emily Flitter

Aram I serves as Guest Chaplain of U.S. House of Representatives, calls for U.S. support to Nagorno-Karabakh refugees

Ara Felekian

 12:33,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia has called for American leadership in aiding Nagorno-Karabakh’s 100,000 forcibly displaced persons, during discussions with U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and a dozen U.S. Representatives, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

Aram I was on Capitol Hill at the invitation of Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and served as Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives.

After a meeting in the Capitol with Speaker Johnson, Rep. Schiff, and U.S. House Chaplain Rev. Dr. Margaret Grun Kibben, His Holiness Aram I offered the opening prayer at the November 10 U.S. House of Representatives session. In his prayer, he noted, “Help us, God of Mercy, remember in our prayers more than one hundred thousand Armenian refugees who were recently forced to leave Nagorno Karabakh, their centuries old homeland…” The prayer was televised on CSPAN and streamed live on the ANCA’s social media channels.

In remarks on the U.S. House floor, Rep. Schiff welcomed His Holiness Aram I to Congress, noting that “his unwavering commitment to the values of faith, community, and compassion embodies the spirit of our vibrant Armenian community.” Rep. Schiff went on to stress that His Holiness Aram I’s “support for humanitarian issues, advocacy for human rights, engagement in several educational and cultural initiatives, and promotion of interfaith understanding have left an indelible mark making the world a better place for all.”

Following the prayer, His Holiness Aram I met with Speaker Pelosi, House Democratic Whip Representative Katherine Clark (D-MA), and Representatives Jim Costa (D-CA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Young Kim (R-CA), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Dina Titus (D-NV), at a reception hosted by the ANCA. His Holiness also met separately with Rep. Jerry Carl (R-AL). The Armenian pontiff praised members of the Congressional Armenian Staff Association in attendance, for their efforts to educate elected officials on Armenian American concerns.

Prior to leaving the Capitol, His Holiness Aram I led fellow clergy in a moving rendition of The Lord’s Prayer, sung in Armenian in the Congressional Prayer Room near the rotunda in the United States Capitol.

During his visit to the U.S. Capitol, Catholicos Aram I was accompanied by His Eminence Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian, Prelate of the Eastern U.S. Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America; His Eminence Archbishop Papken Tcharian, Prelate of the Canadian Prelacy; His Grace Bishop Torkom Donoyan, Prelate of the Western U.S. Prelacy; Very Rev. Fr. Sahag Yemishian, Vicar General of the Eastern U.S. Prelacy; Very Rev. Fr. Hovagim Panjarjian, head of the Catholicosate Media Department; Very Rev. Fr. Sarkis Aprahamian, head of the Middle East and Christian-Islam dialogue section of the Ecumenical Department of the Catholicosate; Mr. Stepan Der Bedrosian, co-chair of the Central Executive Council of the Catholicosate; Leaders of the Executive Councils of the Eastern U.S. Prelacy, Western U.S. Prelacy, and Canadian Prelacy; as well ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian and members of the ANCA Washington DC Staff.

Russia says it removed military equipment of peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh for planned repair

Ara Felekian

 15:09, 7 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 7, ARMENPRESS. The Russian Ministry of Defense has said that it has completed the rotation of personnel of the peacekeeping contingent in Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as the transfer of weapons and military equipment to Russia for planned repair.

In a statement, the Russian Defense Ministry also said that its peacekeepers in NK ‘continue to fulfil their objectives.’

The Russian peacekeepers have closed one more observation post in the Shushi region, it said. “Overall, 10 observation posts and 16 temporary observation posts have been closed since September 19,” the ministry said.