Author: Babajanian Karo

Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee March 31, 2014
Media Contact:
David George Gevorkyan
Tel: (818) 212-9111

DONOR FUND ESTABLISHED FOR PASADENA ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MEMORIAL

A special fund has been established through the Community Foundation of the
Verdugos to receive donations for the Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial.

Everyone is encouraged to consult with their accountants and financial
advisors about contributing to the project, which will commemorate the
Armenian Genocide and condemn all crimes against humanity.

Funding raised for the project will help pay for construction and ongoing
maintenance of the memorial, for which a Ground Blessing ceremony will take
place Sunday, April 27, at 6 p.m. at Memorial Park in Pasadena.

“I believe it is the calling of corporations, nonprofits, individuals,
accountants and financial advisors to work together in making this memorial
a reality,” said David George Gevorkyan, Chief Financial Officer for the
Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee. “Each of us, in our way and
capacity, can bring about the change we would like to see for us and for
future generations.”

Approved by the City Council in September 2013, the Pasadena Armenian
Genocide Memorial will be completed and dedicated in April 2015 to mark the
100th anniversary of the killing of 1.5 million Armenians over a three-year
period beginning in 1915.

Checks made payable to Community Foundation of the Verdugos, with “PASAGMC”
written on the memo line, may be mailed to 272 S. Los Robles Ave., Pasadena
CA 91101. Donations may also be made at
(click on How to Help/Donate).

The Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee is an independent,
nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of
the law.

“This unique memorial pays tribute to the fallen martyrs and their
descendants in the diaspora,” said Bernard K. Melekian, a member of the
committee and former Pasadena Police Chief. “It will stand as a testament
to faith, courage and perseverance.”

For more information about the Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial visit
or PASAGMC on Facebook or call
(626) 795-1750.

# # #

ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY GAVE NO RESPONSE TO DEVELOPMENT IN SYRIA – VAZGEN MESROPIAN

15:00 / 31.03.2014

As of today 22 Kessab Armenians are kidnapped and taken to the
newly-built prison near the border with Turkey. The fate of 11 is
unknown, all they are adults. It has become known today that three
of them will be released and later the day will be in Latakia,
deputy head of Social-Democratic Republican party Armenia office,
Syrian Armenian Vazgen Mesropian told the reporters on Monday.

He said the houses of Armenians have been robbed by the Al Qaeda
group that entered the settlement from Turkey.

“Luckily, the Armenian young people guarding the border felt the
danger and moved the Armenian families to Latakia but people in
haste and panic left their mobile phones. The terrorists take them
and call to the contacts in the phone list threatening people and
their relatives,” Mesropian said.

He also stressed that the photos of beheaded people have no relation
to Kessab and no Kessab Armenian has been killed.

The speaker stressed that during a week all the Armenian-populated and
Christian settlements have been shelled. “For already a week we have
no communication with Aleppo, there is no electricity there. Kessab
is very dear place for us, but we must not forget about Aleppo and
the Armenian there. The Syrian Armenians and the people of Syria are
convinced that Syria’s powerful army will return all the occupied
territories. It is terrorism and the worst thing is that the world
is just an observer,” he said.

He stressed that Armenia’s Foreign Ministry must complain against
Turkey in international establishments. “We must have courage, the
foreign minister must send a letter to international establishments,”
he said, adding that the MPs departed on the site, met with Bashar
Al-Assad and that’s it and what next?

“The foreign ministry gave no response voicing just condemnation,”
Mesropian said.

RESIDENTS OF AZERBAIJANI VILLAGE WANT TO BE PART OF GEORGIA

15:56 31/03/2014 >> SOCIETY

The residents of Shinikh village of Azerbaijani Gedabey region which
is located on the border with Armenia are looking for opportunities
to move to Georgia. They explain their decision by the fact that
State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) in the near future will start
the implementation of the project of the gasification of Georgia,
while they are freezing cold and no trees are left in the woods for
their furnace. As the Azerbaijani news portal Haqqin.az reports,
the villagers said about this in their appeal.

“We don’t have any other choice. In order to become consumers of
Azerbaijani gas, we need to become the citizens of Georgia,” the
villagers said.

They are surprised that the settlements located on the border with
Armenia are still not supplied with gas. The residents of these
settlements for many years have been living in harsh conditions but
nobody cares about the improvement of their living conditions. “There
is no heat in our houses; we still use woods to heat them, while
SOCAR instead of thinking in the first place about its citizens,
supplies Azerbaijani gas to the neighboring country.”

Haqqin.az notes that 28 villages in the area of Shinikh are not
supplied with gas. “We ask Rognav Abdullayev (SOCAR president-ed.)
whether we need to resettle in Georgia, become the citizens of Georgia
to be able to make use of Azerbaijani gas. If our country has gas
resources, if its amount is so big that you sell it to neighboring
countries then why you don’t deliver gas to the regions of Azerbaijan?

Why you close your eyes to the felling of trees by the villagers
for heating purposes? We have no other choice. You proudly report
that Azerbaijan delivers gas to the most remote villages of Georgia,
how can we understand this?” the residents of the region asked.

The portal notes that there has already appeared information in media
that SOCAR has already finished the construction of gas pipeline
in Surami village of Georgian region of Khashur. The length of the
pipeline is 14.5 km, which will result in the delivery of Azerbaijani
gas to 1000 Georgian houses. It is emphasized that SOCAR provides 75%
of Georgian gas, while the subsidiary company of SOCAR Georgia Gas
controls the delivery.

It is noted in the article that President Ilham Aliyev in 2013 aimed
to deliver natural gas to 95% of the population. “The aim is note
achieved, gasification covers only 85-88% of the territory of the
country, while the gasification of Georgia is conducted in full swing,”
the author states.

According to the article, in the current situation, the residents
of Gedabey region have no choice but to declare about their
self-determination and together with their territory become a part
of Georgia. The cost of that will be much cheaper. In this way they
don’t have to leave their houses, their ancestors’ graves and resettle
in new places.

US CONGRESSMEN CONCERNED ABOUT KESSAB ARMENIANS

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 31 2014

30 March 2014, Sunday /ANKARA, TODAY’S ZAMAN

Four members of the US House of Representatives who are the leaders
of the Armenian Caucus in Congress have urged the White House to take
the necessary measures to safeguard the Christian Armenian community
of Kessab in Syria.

In a letter to US President Barack Obama dated March 28, Democrats
Frank Pallone, Jr., of New Jersey and Adam Schiff of California, and
Republican Congressmen David Valadao of California and Michael Grimm
of New York said: “We are writing to express our serious concerns
regarding credible reports that Islamist rebels entering from Turkey
this past weekend were involved in attacks in the Latakia region
of Syria, specifically the town of Kessab, which is a predominately
Armenian populated area. Such actions shock the conscious and must
be resoundingly condemned.”

Rebel groups, including the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front, seized
control of Kessab last Sunday.

The Syrian government as well as several Armenian websites claim that
the rebels entered Syria from Turkey.

The letter continued with a report from The Wall Street Journal on
March 26, saying, “For Armenian-Syrians from the town of Kassab
[sic] in Latakia, which rebels overran this weekend, the Turkish
involvement reminded them of a dark chapter in their history: the
Armenian genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman empire in 1915.”

Ankara denies claims that the events of 1915 amounted to genocide,
arguing that both Turks and Armenians were killed when Armenians
revolted against the Ottoman Empire during World War I in collaboration
with the Russian army, which was then invading Eastern Anatolia.

The congressmen’s letter claimed that with the 1915 deportation of
the Armenian population by the Ottoman Empire, 5,000 Armenians lost
their lives in Kessab. “Now, 99 years after their initial deportation,
another expulsion of Armenians is a telling reminder about the dangers
of genocide denial and Turkey’s failure to address its genocidal
legacy,” said the letter.

It continued, “With the Christian Armenian community being uprooted
from its homeland, yet again, we strongly urge you to take all
necessary measures without delay to safeguard the Christian Armenian
community of Kessab.”

SYRIA DEPLOYS ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM ON BORDER WITH TURKEY

PRAVDA, Russia
March 31 2014

Damascus has deployed a new anti-missile system along the
Syrian-Turkish border. The system will be able to intercept Turkish
jets should they invade the country’s airspace.

Previously, Turkey let Al-Qaeda militants cross the border: the
militants had seized the border town of Kesab, mostly populated by
Armenians. The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the capture of
Syrian civilians.

Not that long ago, Turkish air defense down a Syrian plane that
illegally crossed the country’s airspace.

Last week, Turkey banned YouTube video hosting service after the
appearance of the video, in which senior Turkish officials discuss
a possible invasion of Syria.

EU EASTERN PARTNERSHIP WAS BASED ON “EITHER WITH US OR AGAINST US” LOGIC, RUSSIAN FM STATES

Monday 31 March 2014 10:21
Photo:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated
that “the very idea of EU Eastern Partnership project was based on
“either with us or against us” logic.

The Russian FM said this in his interview to Vesti TV program,
Mediamax reports.

Mediamax notes that Armenian and EU leadership used to make
diametrically opposite assessments.

In July 2013, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy
Stefan Fule said in Yerevan that Armenia shouldn’t face the choice
of cooperation with EU or Russia.

“We have never told our partners: stop or reduce your cooperation
with Russian partners. Vice versa, we clearly say that the commitments
within Eastern Partnership can’t have a negative impact on traditional
ties with Russia. We state the same thing in Moscow, too”, said Stefan
Fule. He noted that the EU “encourages to continue the cooperation with
Russia which Armenia thinks important and relevant to its interests”.

Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said in his interview to
“Kommersant” newspaper in April 2012 that EU Eastern Partnership
program is not aimed at weakening of Russia’s positions.

“Armenia is a small country. It cannot play with the diplomacy. Our
strategic partner, Russia, knows about all our cooperation programs, be
it with the EU, NATO, USA, Iran, China or Georgia. Russia understands
what we are doing. If we look at the issue from the positions of
Yerevan, it becomes clear that we don’t have big choice for the
development of partner relations, taking into consideration our
geopolitical situation and the problems with the neighbors. But we
do not hide anything from our partners and this is our strength,”
the PM said then.

UWC SELECTION COMMISSION: “ARMENIAN CHILDREN ARE VERY TALENTED”

Monday 31 March 2014 14:20
Photo: Mediamax.

UWC Selection Commission: “Armenian children are very talented”

On March 29 and 30, education experts and representatives of United
World Colleges (UWC) network conducted the final round of interviews
with children from Armenia.

This year, 21 children from Armenia will be able to study in UWC
system. 10 of them will enter UWC Dilijan and 11 – UWC colleges in
other countries (Italy, Wales, Hong Kong, Holland, Norway, Germany,
U.S., Singapore and India).

The main peculiarity of the selection process in UWC system is that
it doesn’t involve schools as admissions and selection processes are
carried out by independent structures – UWC National Committees in
each country.

UWC Armenian National Committee received 270 applications. After
preliminary examination of the applications, 159 young people were
selected and UWC specialists interviewed them on Skype. 64 boys and
girls who passed this round got an invitation to the interview in
Yerevan on March 29 and 30.

Heavy snowfall at the night of March 30 was like a special test for
children from regions. Though many republican highways were closed
on March 30, parents of children from Gyumri, Spitak and other towns
managed to take children to the capital with all the possible and
impossible ways.

The selection commission comprised Armenian and foreign education
specialists, particularly representative of Anania Shirakatsi Complex
Satine Karakeshishyan, Director of Armenian Branch of PH International
Mariam Martirosyan, representative of UWC Adriatic (Italy) Rimma
Rapoporte, head of UWC Armenian National Committee Simone Sgarbossa,
graduate of UWC USA School Samir Mastaki, representative of UWC
Russian National Committee Darya Brodnikovskaya, UWC International
Office Senior Officer Mia Eskelund (Denmark) and others.

While selecting students for UWC schools, preference is given to
talented and socially active children. This selection system allows
bringing together interesting young people with out-of-box mindset
who are creative and socially active.

The members of the selection commission were pleasantly surprised by
the level of training of Armenian children. Mia Eskelund and Rimma
Rapoporte pointed out high level of mathematics knowledge. “I can
honestly say comparing the knowledge of mathematics in my own country,
Denmark, the knowledge is much better here”, admitted Mia Eskelund
talking to Mediamax.

Mia Eskelund.

ФоÑ~Bо: Mediamax.

Rimma Rapoporte especially stressed the knowledge of languages among
participants.

“It was a big surprise to see how many people speak Russian. In some
other former Soviet Union republics people don’t speak Russian. In
Armenia, it is fantastic – they can write in 3 completely different
alphabets, which is not something that average kids are able to do
worldwide”, said UWC Adriatic representative.

Another selection commission member, UWC USA alumni Samir Mastaki
admitted talking to Mediamax that it will be difficult to select 21
people out of 64. “Every one of them can be a UWC student”, he said.

At the same time, he advised teenagers to “remember that this is a
very competitive process”. “Don’t take it personally – if you were
not selected, it doesn’t mean that we didn’t like you or you wasn’t
good enough”, he stressed.

Samir Mastaki.

ФоÑ~Bо: Mediamax.

Samir Mastaki said that all the people were very positive in Armenia,
“starting from the officer at passports control at the Yerevan
airport”. “Next time I would like to spend a couple of weeks in
Armenia”, said Samir.

Simone Sgarbossa, Head of UWC Armenian National Committee, said that
many Armenian boys and girls surprised him a lot, especially those
from regions.

Simone Sgarbossa.

ФоÑ~Bо: Mediamax.

“They are very ambitious in a very human way. They really want
their lives to improve, they really care for their country, they
have very strong roots with their families”, Simone Sgarbossa shared
his impressions.

Rimma Rapoporte pointed out that UWC Dilijan College is not a college
itself; it is going to become a part of bigger Dilijan community. “I
believe students can also participate in the developments and projects
related to the preservation of the National Park”, she noted.

Rimma Rapoporte.

ФоÑ~Bо: Mediamax.

UWC International Office Senior Officer Mia Eskelund also said that
before Dilijan School establishment, the UWC hadn’t been represented
in the region. “We welcomed UWC Dilijan initiative on setting up
National Committees in the countries of the region”, she said.

The results of the selection round held on March 29-30 will be
announced in late April. Following it, colleges, including UWC Dilijan,
should give their consent and approve the candidate students.

ARMENIA’S IMMEDIATE TRANSITION TO CU DUTIES MAY REDUCE FOREIGN TRADE BY ABOUT $104MLN – ARAMYAN

YEREVAN, March 31. /ARKA/. Armenia’s immediate transition to Customs-
Union duties may lead to a reduction of about 104 million dollars in
foreign trade, first deputy head of the presidential administration
Vardan Aramyan said at the second economic conference of the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia on CU opportunities and challenges for
Armenia Saturday.

Customs duties on most goods will increase after accession to the CU;
the duties will remain unchanged for 10% and will reduce for some
goods, Aramyan said.

Aramyan also said the Armenian leadership is currently negotiating
with the CU to leave duties unchanged for about 900 goods.

Armenia’s decision to join the CU made Russia cancel export tax for
gas, which is an annual saving of about 140 million dollars, Aramyan
said. -0–

– See more at:

ARMENIA’S ACCESSION TO CUSTOMS UNION MAY SERVE AS NEW IMPETUS FOR REOPENING OF ABKHAZIAN RAILWAY

YEREVAN, March 31. / ARKA /. Armenia’s accession to the Customs Union
may serve as a new impetus for the reopening of the Abkhazian railway,
according to Tatyana Valovaya, a senior member of the Eurasian Economic
Commission (EEC), who spoke last Saturday at a conference in Yerevan
organized by the governing Republican Party of Armenia to look into
opportunities and challenges of Armenia’s accession to the Russia-led
trade bloc.

According to her, regardless of all other issues, Russia is interested
in establishing normal railway links with Abkhazia, Georgia and
Armenia. She added this could make the reopening of the Abkhazian
railway more feasible.

“Of course, there are certain objective and subjective problems
hindering the revival of the Abkhazian railway, but I hope they would
be overcome,’ she said.

She added that all transport projects largely depend on the economy.

“If there are goods which must be transported, there is then a need
to invest and open transport corridors,” she said.

During a visit to Armenia in 2013 January former Georgian prime
minister Bidzina Ivanishvili said the railway communication through
Abkhazia could be restored after the resolution of a number of disputes
with Russia.

The issue, which is of strategic importance for the economy of
Armenia, was discussed also by the presidents of Armenia and Russia
last September in Moscow. -0-

– See more at:

KARDASHIAN FOR KESSAB: ARMENIAN-AMERICAN SOCIALITE TWEETS APPEAL FOR EMBATTLED SYRIAN TOWN

NEWS | 31.03.14 | 12:20

Top American socialite and television star Kim Kardashian has joined
tens of thousands of fellow Armenians in cyber space in condemning
the recent attacks by Islamic militants on the town of Kessab in
northwestern Syria, at the border with Turkey.

The onslaught by al-Qaeda-affiliated armed bands penetrating
from Turkish territory resulted in the seizure of the mostly
Armenian-populated community, driving hundreds of local families from
the area and calling into doubt continued Armenian presence there.

“Please let’s not let history repeat itself!!!!!! Let’s get this
trending!!!!” wrote Kardashian on Sunday.

The celebrity with more than 20 million followers on Twitter continued:
“If you don’t know what’s going on in Kessab please google it, its
heart breaking! As an Armenian, I grew up hearing so many painful
stories!… Praying for everyone.”

The situation around Kessab has been in the focus of attention of
Armenians around the world. Many have been using the “#Save Kessab”
image for their profile photos in Facebook and other social networking
websites.