Author: Babajanian Karo

LYON ACCUEILLE UN NOUVEAU MEMORIAL ARMENIEN

La Croix, France
Lundi 21 Octobre 2013

Un Centre national de la memoire armenienne (CNMA) a ete inaugure
hier a Decines, près de Lyon, en presence de la ministre de la
culture Aurelie Filippetti. Installe dans un immeuble moderne de 900
m2, le centre dispose d’une bibliothèque specialisee, d’un espace
d’archives et d’une salle de conferences de 80 places. Le centre, qui
a ete finance pour une moitie par un financement public-prive et pour
l’autre par des dons, fonctionne avec trois salaries et une trentaine
de benevoles. ” N’oublions jamais ce qui s’est produit en 1915.

Rappelons aux enfants d’Armenie, de la France et du monde où mène
cet oubli “, a declare Aurelie Filippetti. Le genocide armenien a
ete reconnu en 2001 par la loi francaise mais, en fevrier 2012, le
Conseil constitutionnel censurait une deuxième loi qui penalisait la
negation de ce genocide. Les sages avaient juge ce texte contraire
a la liberte d’expression. Peu après son election, Francois Hollande
s’etait engage a presenter un nouveau texte au Parlement, conformement
a ses promesses de candidat. ” Le gouvernement examine les moyens
juridiques permettant d’assurer cette vigilance dans le respect
des principes fixes par notre Constitution et de nos obligations
internationales et europeennes “, a assure hier la ministre de la
culture. Environ 500 000 personnes d’origine armenienne vivent en
France, dont 150 000 a 200 000 en region Rhône-Alpes.

CHARLES AZNAVOUR : ” ETRE FRANCAIS, CA SE MERITE ”

Le Parisien, France
Jeudi 24 Octobre 2013

par: EMMANUEL MAROLLE

D’origine armenienne

Il est ne en France mais est fils d’armenien. Quand on lui demande
s’il se sent plus l’un que l’autre, Charles Aznavour, 89 ans, a une
reponse toute faite : ” C’est comme le cafe au lait, on ne peut pas
separer l’un de l’autre. ” ” Je suis le seul de ma famille a etre ne
en France. Mais après tant d’annees, je me sens moins armenien que
francais. On ne peut pas etre toute sa vie un fils d’apatride. Je
voulais etre francais, je suis francais. ”

Et pour lui ” ca se merite “, loin de toute polemique comme celle
autour de Leonarda et de sa famille. ” Ce père bizarre qui fait des
enfants, parce que ca donne des droits, de l’argent, je trouve ca
absolument abominable. C’est une reaction que l’on ne devrait pas
admettre en France. Ca fait des annees qu’ils sont la, qu’ils ont
tout essaye pour pouvoir rester. Mais pourquoi rester? Quand mes
parents sont arrives ici, il n’y avait pas d’aides sociales. Ils ont
travaille dur pour se faire une situation, pour, petit a petit, devenir
francais. Il a fallu que mon père s’engage et rejoigne la Resistance
pour qu’il obtienne des papiers. Dans le cas de Leonarda, on veut le
beurre et l’argent du beurre. Je ne suis pas pour que l’on renvoie
tous les sans-papiers, mais que l’on garde ceux qui le meritent. ”

Aujourd’hui, sa France, Aznavour la defend, loin des debats sur le
droit du sol. ” Il ne faut pas rigoler! Il y a plein de grands peintres
qui sont d’origine etrangère, des auteurs qui ecrivent en francais
et sont nes ailleurs aussi. Etre francais, c’est epouser sa langue,
sa culture et ne pas vouloir etre autre chose. J’ai donne un concert
au Hollywood Bowl a Los Angeles. On y jouait l’hymne americain. En
entendant ca, j’ai dit que je n’entrerai pas en scène avant que l’on
joue la Marseillaise. A l’etranger, je suis plus franchouillard que
francais. ”

AZERBAIJAN AGAIN WARNS AGAINST ETHNIC ARMENIAN SYRIANS’ SETTLEMENT IN OCCUPIED TERRITORIES

AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Oct 30 2013

30 October 2013, 15:22 (GMT+04:00)
By Sara Rajabova

Baku is concerned over Armenia’s actions on settling Syrian citizens
of Armenian descent to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, the
Azerbaijani embassy in Russia said.

The embassy noted that Armenia continues its illegal actions,
especially efforts aimed at protracting the military occupation and
its consequences and artificially changing the demographic situation
in Azerbaijan’s occupied territories, thus ignoring the international
community’s position which condemns such activities.

Recently about 200 Armenian refugees from Syria were settled in the
occupied Zangilan region, which was “another clear evidence of the
illegal settlement policy pursued by the Armenian state,” a document
received by the Russian news agency RIA Novosti said.

The embassy said that thereupon Azerbaijan hopes that the international
community will take a more resolute approach for a swift solution of
this inveterate problem and to address the “attempts to consolidate the
results of military occupation, including through the implementation
of illegal migration”.

Head of the Azerbaijani mission to the United Nations Agshin Mehdiyev
earlier expressed concern over the actions taken by Armenia with a view
to settling Syrian refugees to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

He said that undoubtedly, attempts to address the needs of refugees
from Syria at the expense of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani
displaced persons cherishing the hope of returning to their homes are
illegal and cannot be tolerated or accepted under any circumstances.

According to the Armenian government, more than 7,000 Syrian Armenians
have already expressed the desire to move to Armenia, Eastbook.eu
portal reported in August.

The Armenian government started constructing apartment buildings for
Syrian refugees in May this year, the same source said.

Azerbaijan has repeatedly expressed serious concern over the settlement
of Syrian Armenians in its Nagorno-Karabakh region that has long been
occupied by Armenian armed forces.

Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said that Azerbaijan
is not opposed to the placement of Syrian Armenians in other areas,
but is absolutely against the accommodation of Armenian refugees from
Syria in Nagorno-Karabakh.

For over two decades, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in
conflict which emerged over Armenia’s territorial claims against its
South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory,
including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. A fragile
ceasefire has been in place since 1994, but long-standing efforts by
US, Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four
resolutions on its pullout from the neighboring country’s territories.

ARMENIA BETWEEN CSTO AND NATO

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Oct 30 2013

30 October 2013 – 11:50am

Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

Experts’ attitude to the recent visit to Armenia by the special envoy
of NATO Secretary General in the South Caucasus and Central Asia,
James Appathurai was ambiguous. Some of them have pessimistic views
on the further cooperation between Armenia and NATO, since President
Serge Sargsyan stated on Armenia’s intention to join the Customs
Union. According to them, the EU and NATO try to put Armenia aside
and actually reject it. The other group of experts is sure that the
struggle for the region between the leading political centers of the
world is still acute, and Armenia is not isolated. And Appathurai’s
visit confirms this.

Appathurai expressed gratitude to the authorities in Armenia for their
contribution to the peacemaking processes in Kosovo and Afghanistan,
saying that Armenia was a member of the international community. He
confirmed NATO’s desire to encourage cooperation between Armenia
and NATO in the sphere of reforms. NATO helps Armenia with military
education and meet high international standards; with struggling
against corruption in the sphere of purchases for Armed Forces; with
the development of a new defense strategy of Armenia. However, it is
not clear how NATO can help with development of the defense strategy,
if its representatives don’t know all necessary details.

According to the former defense minister of Armenia Vagarshak
Arutyunyan, in this case it can mean only methodological support
because crucial issues of elimination of threats by the Armenian
army and the CSTO have already been defined by the National Security
Strategy.

Very notable was Appathurai’s statement that Armenia’s membership
in CSTO and its desire to join the CU didn’t prevent its cooperation
with NATO which didn’t oppose the fact that Armenia chose Russia as
a guarantor of its security.

“Cooperation between Armenia and NATO doesn’t prevent cooperation
between Armenia and Russia, or the CSTO. The top authorities of either
CSTO or NATO have always stated that they see no contradiction in
this case. Armenia has never tried to play on contradictions between
military and political alliances operating in the region; it has
always tried to combine cooperation with them,” the deputy head of
the institute “The Caucasus”, Sergey Minasyan says.

Cooperation between Armenia and NATO positively influences the
training of Armenian soldiers. Together with NATO Armenia opened a
mine clearance center where combat engineers are trained; NATO helps
Armenia with modernization of military education infrastructure.

According to some information, they establish training classes for
officers and tutors of Vazgen Sargsyan Military Institute and Monte
Melkonyan Military School. However, the problem of security is still
priority for Armenia. At the same time, NATO has no liabilities to
Armenia in the sphere of security guarantees. The frameworks of IPAP
(Individual Partnership Action Plan) do not require military aide, so
the program cannot be an alternative to the Collective Security Treaty
which requires clear liabilities toward providing Armenia’s security.

Moreover, NATO representatives have many times stated that they have
no intention to provide Armenia’s security.

Armenia has a three-level security system which is based on three
documents. The first is the treaty between Armenia and Russia of 1997
On Friendship and Cooperation. The second is the treaty on the Russian
military base situated in Armenia; it says that Russia is obliged to
provide Armenia’s security and provide modern military machineries
to Armenia. The third document is the CSTO. So, the only guarantor
of Armenia’s security is Russia.

EXPORTS AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION DRIVE ARMENIA’S REAL ECONOMIC ACTIVITY IN JANUARY-SEPTEMBER

IHS Global Insight
October 29, 2013

by Lilit Gevorgyan

Armenia’s real GDP expanded in the first nine months of 2013 by 3.2%
in annual terms, according to the preliminary data by the country’s
Statistical Service. Industrial production and net exports were the
key contributors to the real GDP growth, expanding by 7.0% year on year
(y/y) and 8.1% y/y, respectively, during January-September 2013.

Along with industrial production, the 5.5% y/y increase in agricultural
output was another major contributor to the overall economic activity
on the supply side. In addition, the latest data revealed that trade
volume during January-September increased by 2.8% y/y, while services
sector, excluding trade, increased by 2.8% y/y.

Conversely, construction activity continued shrinking, down by 9.2%
y/y, reflecting poor domestic demand as well as expensive and tight
lending conditions offered by Armenia’s financial institutions.

Electricity production also declined 4.1% y/y, according to the
latest data from the Statistics Service. The data release further
demonstrated that nominal monthly wages were up by 4.0% y/y, while
consumer price inflation stood at 5.6% in January-September.

Significance:In its latest round of review, IHS Global Insight
continues to believe that Armenia’s real GDP will increase by 6.4%
in 2013, at a slower pace, compared with a 7.2% expansion of real
economic activity in 2012. With agriculture being a large component of
the overall economy, we expect the sector’s output to boost economic
activity in the latter part of 2013. Harvest is reported to be better
than normal, despite adverse weather conditions in April-May 2013.

However, construction and general investment levels remain a serious
drag on the overall economic performance and are unlikely to pick up
anytime soon. Downsized government investment is another drawback
for the real GDP developments, as highlighted in the recent IMF
summary of Armenia’s economic performance. Against this backdrop,
we are likely to revise Armenia’s real GDP growth for 2013 down,
although not drastically.

REANIMANIA DEVELOPS ARMENIAN-FRENCH COOPERATION

[ Part 2.2: “Attached Text” ]

15:00, 30 October, 2013

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 30, ARMENPRESS: The animation film specialists
of Armenia and France had quite wide opportunities of experience
exchange in the framework of the ReAnimania International Festival. The
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of France to the Republic
of Armenia Henri Reynaud stated at the press conference on October
30 that ReAnimania becomes more efficient due to the participation
of the French specialists as well. “It is important that during the
festival the most prominent figures of the French animation transfer
their word to Armenia”, – said Henri Reynaud, Armenpress reports.

The director of the Annecy International Animated Film Festival and
Market (Festival d’Annecy) Tiziana Loshi, who has come to Armenia
with the French delegation, considers the organization of ReAnimania
in Armenia to be positive and perspective.

The director of ReAnimania festival Vrej Kassouny stated that the
fact, that Tiziana Loshi has Armenian roots, will become a base for
the further Armenian-French cooperation.

On October 26 the 5th ReAnimania International Film Festival
was launched, dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the Armenian
animation. During the festival the audience will have the opportunity
to watch 212 films from 70 countries.

ReAnimania will continue its works for the first time in the Nagorno
Karabakh Republic on November 1-3.

ReAnimania’s goals are to facilitate the development of animation art,
educate a new generation of world class animators and provide a forum
for presenting works of Armenian animators in the international arena
as well as introduce examples of the world’s finest animated films
to the Armenian audience.

peration.html

ARMENIAN-POPULATED ANJAR TOWN – PEACEFUL OASIS AMID VIOLENT CLASHES

[ Part 2.1.2: “Attached Text” ]

14:24, 30 October, 2013

Inline images 1

ANJAR, OCTOBER 30, ARMENPRESS. The Responsible for Foreign Affairs
of the Italian-Arab “Assadakah” centre Talal Khrais issued a remark
titled “Armenian Diaspora… The Armenian Pearl of the Bekaa Valley”
exclusively for “Armenpress” News Agency. The remark is dedicated
to the Armenian-populated town Anjar, which is located in the Bekaa
Valley.

“There are about 4000 residents living in the Armenian town of Anjar,
which is located in the Bekaa Valley. A girl called Sarin from the
local community takes me to the Armenian refugees, which fled from
Syria, so that I could interview them. Tragic past is hidden behind
the abundant fauna of the village. The stream of memories, which links
the Caucasus to the Near East, runs as a groove in the daily life
of these people. The habitants of 6 Armenian villages of Musa Dagh,
which had to leave their homes, reside in here.

Anjar, the Armenian pearl of the Bekaa Valley, is a peaceful oasis
in the region full of conflicts.

Notwithstanding, looking around you realize that the Armenian people
did not give up, because, as my partner used to repeat, the previous
generations had created what we possess now – the Armenians from Musa
Dagh, who initiated an armed rebellion against the Ottoman troops at
the course of the Armenian Genocide about one century ago.

I had a meeting with a 43-years old man called Goro. He told me that 14
months ago he left the Northern region of Aleppo with his wife and two
kids. Among other things he said that about 32 families fled to Anjar.

One moment I noticed sadness in Goro’s eyes. “I’ll return to Syria,
as soon as it is possible. Syria is everything for me and my family,”
he noted. (THE FULL VERSION OF THE ARTICLE IS AVAILABLE IN ARMENIAN)

l-oasis-amid-violent-clashes.html

Historical Remark

Anjar is a town of Lebanon located in the Bekaa Valley. The population
is almost entirely consisting of Armenians. The total area is about
twenty square kilometers (7.7 square miles).

After being abandoned in later years, Anjar was resettled in 1939
with several thousand Armenian refugees from the Musa Dagh area of
Turkey. Its neighborhoods are named after the six villages of Musa
Dagh: Haji Hababli, Kabusia, Vakif, Khodr Bek, Yoghun Oluk and Bitias.

The majority of Anjar’s Armenians are Armenian Apostolics (Orthodox)
who belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church and Holy See of
Cilicia. Armenian Apostolic Saint Paul Church is the second largest
Armenian church in Lebanon.

The Armenian Apostolic community has its own school, Haratch Calouste
Gulbenkian Secondary School. In 1940, the chief editor of the
Armenian newspaper Haratch in Paris, Shavarsh Missakian, organized
a fundraising campaign among the Armenians living in France which
enabled the building of the “Haratch” Elementary School next to the
newly established St. Paul Armenian Apostolic Church. The official
opening of the school took place in 1941. The administration of the
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation contributed to the expansion of the
school, which was named in honor of Calouste Gulbenkian.

Our Lady of the Rosary Armenian Catholic Church in Anjar serves as
church for the Armenian Catholics, who also run the Armenian Catholic
Sisters School. In the beginning, the school had two divisions,
St. Hovsep for the male students and Sisters of Immaculate Conception
for the female students. In 1954, these departments were united. 1973
saw the official opening of the Aghajanian Orphan House, already
serving as an Armenian Catholic orphanage since 1968.

The Armenian Evangelical Church of Anjar is in operation to serve
Anjar’s small Armenian Evangelical community. The Protestant community
school was established in 1948 by Sister Hedwig Aienshanslin as
part of her missionary work in Anjar. In 1953, the school, which had
already become an intermediate school, was promoted into a secondary
school. It has day classes as well as boarding facilities for students
from other regions who stay there throughout the winter

l-oasis-amid-violent-clashes.html

[ Part 2.2, Image/JPEG 17KB. ]
[ Unable to print this part. ]

AVERAGE SALARY OF SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN ARMENIA TO REACH 152,000 DRAMS IN JULY 2014

YEREVAN, October 30. /ARKA/. An average salary of full-paid teachers
at secondary schools in Armenia will increase to 152,000 drams in
July 2014 from the present AMD 140,400, Armenian Deputy Finance
Minister Pavel Safaryan said Wednesday at budget hearings in the
National Assembly.

“School accountants’ salary will average AMD 132,300 and that of the
auxiliary personnel AMD 78,100,” he said.

In the 2014 draft government budget, he said, AMD 70 billion is
earmarked for this purpose and current spending.

In accordance with the labor payment law that implies introduction
of salary scale in Armenia, pensions will rise 15% on January 1, 2014
and public servants’ salaries will be increased by 40% on July 1, 2014.

According to official statistical reports, the average nominal salary
in the public sector reached AMD 127,200 in July 2013 after rising 8%,
compared with the same month a year earlier. —-0—–

– See more at:

ARMENIA’S SECOND PRESIDENT SET OFF DISCREDITING OF POLITICAL PARTIES – OPPOSITION BLOC FORMER MEMBER

October 30, 2013 | 13:39

YEREVAN. – Second President Robert Kocharyan started the process of
discrediting the political parties in Armenia.

Opposition Armenian National Congress bloc former member, Green Party
of Armenia Chairman Armenak Dovlatyan stated the above-said at a
press conference on Wednesday.

In his words, dozens of political parties, clones were set up during
Kocharyan’s tenure.

“They were doing different things, [and] they were doing something and
being discredited; this was causing disenchantment among the people.

“Now, numerous active youth do not want to become party members,
they fear the party name because the meaning of a political party is
discredited,” Dovlatyan said, and added that all this was a targeted
policy.

As per the Green Party leader, if people do not want to collaborate
with political parties, this weakens the parties and the society,
alike.

He also noted that a reason why the Green Party of Armenia is not
very active is because of their limited financial resources, and
since they do not have fellow party members that are businessmen.

Armenak Dovlatyan also stressed that the majority of Armenia’s
emigrants are representatives of the opposition, and that human and
quality force is reducing on a daily basis.

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan/NEWS.am

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

BUCE DELEGATION IN ARMENIA TO STUDY EXCHANGE BUSINESS, E-COMMERCE

Belarusian Telegraph Agency, Belarus
Oct 29 2013

29.10.2013 17:55

MINSK, 29 October (BelTA) – The effective use of exchange and
e-commerce to advance to new markets was discussed during a visit of
the Belarusian delegation to Yerevan, BelTA learned from the press
service of the Foreign Minsitry.

On 28-29 October the Armenian capital hosted the first international
exchange forum organized by the Belarusian Universal Commodity Exchange
(BUCE) in conjunction with the Yerevan Commodity Exchange Adamant
under the auspices of the Interexchange Electronic Union.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Armenia
Stepan Sukharenko made a welcoming address. The event brought together
representatives of government agencies and business community of
Belarus and Armenia, the heads of commodity exchanges of Russia,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine.

The event discussed the effective use of exchange and e-commerce
to advance to new markets. The prospects of cooperation within the
framework of the Interexchange Electronic Union were discussed as well.

Armenia is also hosting a Belarusian business delegation. The
delegation headed by the Director of the Minsk Office of the
Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Alexander Fedorchuk
includes representatives of ten enterprises of Belarus.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Yerevan hosted a business
matchmaking event which was attended by representatives of more than
40 Armenian companies. The Belarusian delegation made presentations
of Belarusian goods, and held talks on the cooperation with economic
entities of Armenia.