Author: Babajanian Karo

CON MAN POSED AS DOCTOR, LAWYER AND RABBI, BROWARD AUTHORITIES SAY
By JON BURSTEIN

Palm Beach Post

May 7 2012
FL

He’s on probation for practicing law without a license. He’s charged
with carrying a foreign diplomat’s passport. He got a badge from
a Broward hospital identifying him as a doctor and clergyman. His
second wife believed he was a rabbi.

But David Vyner only has one true profession: con artist, according
to the Broward sheriff’s detective who spent months piecing together
the Armenian immigrant’s life in South Florida.

ARMENIA: ON ELECTION DAY, FAMILIAR COMPLAINTS AND A FAMILIAR FINISH
Marianna Grigoryan

EurasiaNet.org

May 7 2012
NY

Elections in Armenia on May 6 should not significantly alter the
current balance of power in parliament, according to preliminary
results. The most significant, unanswered question is whether
incumbent authorities conducted a clean enough vote to satisfy the
European Union.

EU officials had said prior to Election Day that the conduct of vote
would play a major role in defining diplomatic relations between
Brussels and Yerevan.

After the polls closed on May 6, leading representatives of the
Republican Party of Armenia, the leader of the three-party governing
coalition, were quick to tout the vote as free-and-fair. Prime Minister
Tigran Sarkisian, for example, called the poll “the most transparent”
in the 20-year “history of our newly independent state.”

Republican Party spokesperson Eduard Sharmazanov also pronounced the
voting to be largely irregularity-free.

“If someone thinks differently, I would ask for facts; not rhetoric
and speeches, but specific facts,” lectured Sharmazanov. “There have
been no facts.”

But international observers managed to come up with a few. Observers
from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s
Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights OSCE/ODIHR),
the Council of Europe, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and European
Parliament assessed the vote count negatively in roughly 20 percent
of the polling stations observed.

Speaking at a May 7 press conference in Yerevan, Francois-Xavier de
Donnea, the special coordinator for the OSCE’s 250-member short-term
observer team, praised Armenia “for its electoral reforms and its
open and peaceful campaign environment,” yet noted that the election
law was not always enforced by election commissions, or observed by
“stakeholders.”

“The international commitments to which Armenia has freely subscribed
were not always respected,” de Donnea said.

Inaccurate voter lists, handouts (money, cell phones, and even
basturma, an Armenian dried meat, according to some reports),
intimidation tactics, voter bussing and carousel voting were among
the familiar repertoire of election-day irregularities alleged by
opposition monitors and local election observers. Local observers
planned to hold a news conference on May 8.

The 170-member Commonwealth of Independent States observation mission
offered a rosier picture of the voting. CIS mission head Vladimir
Garkun, a veteran Belarusian diplomat, declared irregularities to
be mostly “technical,” adding that “Armenia is on the right path
to democracy.”

The 62.6-percent official voter turnout on May 6 was the largest
since Armenia’s 2003 parliamentary election.

According to the preliminary results, the Republican Party gained just
over 44 percent of the vote, far outpacing its nearest competitor,
multimillionaire businessman Gagik Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia
Party, which is also part of the current governing coalition.

Prosperous Armenia gained 30.2 percent of the votes, according to
the preliminary results. The third coalition member, the scandal-hit
Orinats Yerkir (Rule of Law) Party, barely cleared the 5-percent
threshold.

The Armenian National Congress, headed by former president Levon
Ter-Petrosian, led opposition parties with 7.1 percent of the vote.

The Heritage Party, the outgoing parliament’s lone opposition group,
and the nationalist Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun
barely qualified for representation, attracting 5.79 percent and 5.73
percent of the vote respectively.

In all, 90 of the 131 seats in parliament will be allotted according
to the percentage of the vote given to a political party. The remaining
41 seats were determined in first-past-the-post votes among individual
candidates. It would appear that candidates aligned with the Republican
Party won most of the individual-constituency seats up for grabs.

How authorities follow through on investigating election-related
complaints could become an issue. Most of the 494 complaints – all but
33 filed by a single person – submitted to Armenia’s Central Election
Committee before election day were not investigated, recounted a
post-election report issued by the OSCE/ODIHR, Council of Europe,
European Parliament and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

“Almost all other complaints filed to the CEC were denied consideration
on various technical grounds, or rejected, often without due
consideration of the claim’s substance or evidence,” the report
found. “Some decisions lacked sound legal basis.”

Widespread media reports about the disappearance of stamps placed by
election officials in passports to prevent repeat voting kicked off
Election Day. CEC Chairperson Tigran Mukuchian earlier had asserted
that the stamps would last for 12 hours; he attributed the stamps’
disappearing act to failure to stir the stamp ink before use, but a
test later run at the CEC showed that stirring made no difference,
Panorama.am reported.

Members of the opposition and some local election observers believe
the vanishing stamps facilitated carousel voting, a longtime feature
of Armenian elections. The Armenian National Congress has filed a
complaint with the CEC about the stamps, media reported.

Even if the elections were the fairest conducted in recent memory,
the results still left some voters feeling embittered. “I myself
witnessed how people are transported to the elections. And when you
look at the results, and the discredited Orinats Yerkir Party gets
as many votes as the opposition, I just want to leave this country,”
grumbled 32-year-old designer Edgar Matevosian.

Twenty-six-year-old philologist Armine Hayrapetian expressed relief
that, unlike the 2008 presidential vote, which led to deadly rioting;
“[e]verything went normally and everything was calm.”

A fireball from exploding gas balloons at a May 4 Republican Party
campaign rally that left at least 154 people hospitalized was the
lone major incident that marred that peaceful assessment.

“[T]his time, it was significantly easier, and if some complain about
voter bribes, let them just not take the bribes,” Hayrapetian said.

“People decide themselves what to do and what not to do.”

Editor’s note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter in Yerevan
and the editor of MediaLab.am.

ARMENIANS HAVE SATISFACTORY CO-EXISTENCE WITH MISLIMS IN IRAN

Islamic Republic News Agency
May 7 2012
Iran

Tehran, May 7, IRNA – Armenian religious leader from Sicily Church
Jasliq Aram I, said here Monday Iran considers justice for minorities
and Armenian community in Iran has had satisfactory co-existence with
Muslim fellow countrymen for several hundred years.

He made the remark in his address to a mass at sacred Sarkis Church
in Tehran.

The Armenian religious leader said he believes that Iran has been a
successful country in the Middle East in terms of restoring justice.

Priest Jusliq Aram is scheduled to take part in the Fifth Dialogue
of Civilizations Conference, due to be held in Tehran on May 14th
and 15th.

The Islamic Culture and Relations Organization has invited Jasliq
Aram I to the conference.

Jasliq Aram I will also pay tribute to the late founder of the Islamic
Republic of Iran Imam Khomeini (P) at his mausoleum and will meet
religious leaders at Qom Seminary.

Jasliq Aram I is currently serving as Chairman of World Council
of Churches.

TURKISH EX-GENERAL BASBUG MISSES COUP TRIAL AS CASE MERGED

PanARMENIAN.Net
May 7, 2012 – 18:38 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Former Turkish armed forces commander General Ilker
Basbug failed to appear among defendants in a mass trial over suspected
coup conspiracies, witnesses said, in an apparent protest at the
merging of his case with other coup investigations, Reuters reported.

The court held the first hearing on Monday, May 7 combining a series of
trials into suspected members of an alleged arch-nationalist network
called Ergenekon.

Police say the Ergenekon network, uncovered in 2007, was trying to
destabilize, discredit and ultimately overthrow Prime Minister Tayyip
Erdogan’s Islamist-rooted AK Party government.

A total of 16 indictments have been prepared against the defendants
and they have now all been combined in a single case being heard at
a court in Silivri, west of Istanbul, where many suspects have been
held in an adjoining high security jail. The sprawling investigation
has landed 256 defendants in the dock, overwhelming the courtroom’s
capacity to accommodate them all at the same time.

Some 61 defendants have been subject to lengthy pre-trial custody,
including General Basbug, whose arrest in January shocked Turks, who
had otherwise become used to the sight of pashas, as commanders from
the Ottoman era were known, being paraded before the courts over the
past few years.

Basbug, who was chief of staff from 2008 to 2010, described the
accusation he led a terrorist organization as “tragi-comic”. The case
against him revolves around websites set up by the military to run
anti-government propaganda. His trial began last month amid drama,
as Basbug refused to recognize the authority of the court and at one
stage walked out.

Having had a supreme court trial denied him, and with his case bundled
together with other Ergenekon trials, Basbug bridled at sharing the
dock with underworld figures and the convicted killer of a senior
judge assassinated at the Council of State in 2006, a source close
to Basbug told reporters.

“I will not sit on the same seats as gangsters and murderers,” Basbug
was reported as telling those close to him by media reports. The source
quoted him as saying his “reputation and honor have been damaged”
by being put in the same category as Alparslan Arslan, the Council
of State killer, and the bombers of a secularist newspaper.

AZERBAIJANI POPULATION IN PANIC DUE TO SERIES OF QUAKES REGISTERED ON MAY 7

news.am
May 07, 2012 | 17:15

BAKU. – Azerbaijan registered the fourth quake of 4.0 magnitude in
Zaqatala city on Monday.

As Armenian News-NEWS.am informed earlier a strong 5.9 magnitudes
quake was registered to the north-west of Sheki city. As a result,
destructions but no serious casualties are reported.

Population is in panic due to the series of quakes, Turan reports.

RUBEN HAKHVERDYAN: “WAS NZHDEH ALIVE, HE WOULDN’T LEAVE ANY OF THEM ALIVE”

12:17 . 08/05

“We are so far from being an exemplary country that it may take
the money of the millionaire presidents 50 years to “melt” and the
millionaire presidents-to get sated with their money and become
civilized, otherwise it turns out 10% are very sated and the other
90% are thinking whether to stay on this territory or to leave it,”
the known singer and song writer Ruben Hakhverdyan said in his talk
to Aravot Daily.

He wouldn’t like to see the Republican Party of Armenia in the new
parliament.

This is an opportunistic party, which “kissed PANM” during the
presidency of Levon Ter-Petrosyan and “they became spouses” and
during the presidency of Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan the
party has been supporting them. They made Garegin Nzhdeh a shield
for them but was Nzhdeh alive, he wouldn’t leave any of them alive,
they have a smell of corpse today,” Hakhverdyan said.

The song writer who is dissatisfied with the election results and
doesn’t trust the assessments of the international observers, doesn’t
see many political forces in the new parliament who will improve the
people’s social-economic situation, either: “They have eaten out the
people’s blood and will continue doing so like leeches, as the MPs
really concerned about the people, who go the parliament to change
something, are few. All of us know why before the elections they bother
their heads, make falsifications and get what they want by all means”.

ARF-D ISSUES A STATEMENT

13:57 . 08/05

The 2012 parliamentary elections are over. They were a new political
and moral trial for our statehood and people.

ARF-D presented a clear election programme to the public, in case of
the implementation of which all of us would live in a country differing
from the present one by its quality. We held a lively public campaign,
we brought our approaches to the attention of the voters and were
generally understood. We thank all of them who cast a vote for ARF-D.

Unfortunately, through the elections the will of the people and the
real ratio between the political forces were not expressed. It became
clear that the general election violations were planned and took
place outside the polling stations on May 6 and the days preceding
the election day. High results were recorded for the ruling coalition
members: firstly, through a full usage of the state and administrative
leverages and through the unprecedentedly large funds in form of
election bribes.

It is an undisputable fact that election bribes had a decisive
influence on the election results. This fact proves that the absolute
majority of the Armenian public, which is in a difficult social
situation, is legally unprotected and alienated from the state,
didn’t make a free and realized choice. The people’s depoliticization,
poverty and miserable situation ensured the authority’s reproduction
through election bribes and pressures.

This also means that the political forces, including ARF-D haven’t
still been able to enroot a consciousness of free citizens and citizens
who make a dignified choice among our public.

ARF-D, as an independent political force that adheres to clear
principles, calmly formulates its decline in the election results as
a start of a new stage of activity-a continuation of a general fight
till a complete authority change.

We are sure that sooner or later FREEDOM, JUSTICE, ARF-D and UNITY
will win our independent state.

ARF-D SUPREME BODY.

MAYRAPETYAN RUSHED TO DEMOLISH AOKS BUILDING

06:20 pm | Today | Social

Representatives of several civil initiatives today gathered near the
AOKS building after hearing the news about the demolition of this
historical building located at Abovyan Street.

In response to this, representative of the Ministry of Culture Karo
Ayvazyan assures that the ministry has offered the construction firm
a new plan aimed at restoring the Lalayants Street, which forms a
part of Old Yerevan.

“We have offered to review the plan because we would like to restore
Lalayants Street. The building is being demolished for purposes of
reconstruction,” mentioned the ministry representative.

The citizens concerned about the protection of historical monuments
welcome the plan to restore the street, but many questions remain
unanswered.

Author of the plan “Let’s Save the Monuments” Narek Ashughatoyan
welcomes the fact that the Ministry of Culture has the desire to
restore a street of historical significance, but says the demolition
of that building is prohibited by the law. “There has to be a decision
from the municipality permitting the replacement. If they are building
a street, we welcome that. However, the construction of that street
has to be proportionate. They shouldn’t build something at the price
of another,” said Narek.

The protest continued in front of the Ministry of Culture, after
which Deputy Minister of Culture Arev Samuelyan agreed to meet with
the activists.

“During the meeting, we simply mentioned that the construction firm,
namely head of Local Develops, owner Samvel Mayrapetyan had rushed to
demolish the building,” said organizer of the “Our City” initiative
Grigor Ghazaryan.

The Deputy Minister of Culture assured that the demolished part of
the building would be restored.

“It is clear that if the construction firm stops construction, but the
street doesn’t have the look it should have and the building remains
demolished, the Ministry of Culture won’t be held financially liable,”
said Narek Ashughatoyan after the meeting.

The Ministry of Culture has also assured that the owner is obliged
to restore the building according to architectural solutions of the
19th century and place tiles on the street.

CRONIMET DONATES EQUIPMENT TO PAN-ARMENIAN TABLE TENNIS ASSOCIATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
May 8, 2012 – 16:54 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – On May 8, in the framework of Support to Youth
Initiatives and Sport Program, CRONIMET Charity Foundation provided
various sporting equipment to the Pan-Armenian Table Tennis
Association.

The main goal of this particular project is to improve the training
conditions of the children’s table tennis club and ensure adequate
level of capacity building. As such, the Foundation has donated to
the Table Tennis Association 7 professional tennis tables along with
the other consumables, such as balls and racket rubbers, in a total
amount of approximately AMD 6.5 million, the foundation’s press
service reported.

As a result of these cooperation activities, adequate training
conditions will be ensured for children allowing them to uncover their
potential and increase professional sporting and playing skills. The
Pan-Armenian Table Tennis Association is the organizer of the annual
pan-Armenian table tennis competition and has significant input in
the area of table tennis professional development and promotion in
the country.

The CRONIMET Charity Foundation welcomes long-term and continued
cooperation with all its beneficiaries. The Foundation believes
that this initiative would transform into long-term and fruitful
cooperation, fostering development of table tennis and re-establishing
its this tradition in Armenia. As such, during the preliminary
discussions with the Association, it has been agreed to organize
a competition among young players and establish a special CRONIMET
Charity Foundation prize to the winner.

CRONIMET Charity Foundation was established in June 2011, aiming to
support children and people in need throughout the country.

ARTSAKH HOSTS CONCERT ON SHUSHI LIBERATION ANNIVERSARY

PanARMENIAN.Net
May 8, 2012 – 15:47 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Artsakh town of Shushi hosted a beautiful concert
on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of its liberation.

The town’s new hymn performed by choir and all those present marked the
climax of the event, PanARMENIAN.Net correspondent reports from ground.

Meanwhile, Armenian and NKR top officials laid wreaths at monument
to Vazgen Sargsyan and examined the houses restored. Construction is
currently under way in Shushi, which inspires hope that the town may
regain its initial image in near future.