Author: Badalian Vardan

“HOT LINE” ON HIV/AIDS LAUNCHED FOR THE SUBSCRIBERS OF VIVACE-MTS AND ORANGE ARMENIA

/ARKA/
October 21, 2011
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, October 21. /ARKA/. “Hot Line” sms-line on the issues of
HIV/AIDS launched in Armenia in cooperation with the Armenian Red Cross
Society (ARCS), Peace Corps, and the main operators VivaCell-MTS and
Orange Armenia.

Subscribers of VivaCell-MTS and Orange Armenia can get answers to their
questions regarding HIV/AIDS by sending free sms-message on the number.

“Practice shows that the countries where the society gathers its
efforts in struggling against HIV/AIDS gain success. One of the options
of such a consolidated struggle is our project and we welcome everybody
who wants to join to this or other similar initiative”, said the Head
of ARCS Mkhitar Mnatsakanyan to the journalists on Friday.

Due to the Armenian mentality, many residents of the country do
not know how to behave themselves correctly, do not understand the
seriousness of the illness and do not apply for consultation.

“In this case our ethnic characteristics and shame are an obstacle
for applying to the doctor. Therefore, there was a need for advice
anonymously”, said Mnatsakanyan.

In Armenia as of August 31, 1.1 thousand cases of HIV infection
were recorded.

“In total, this figure is 33.3 million worldwide. It seemed that the
disease is not so common in Armenia but it is very dangerous and we
should think how to stop its growth”, he said.

VivaCell-MTS General Director Ralph Yirikyan said that HIV/AIDS is
a great evil which every year takes away more and more lives.

“We must struggle together against it and not allow the disease to
develop. Unfortunately, businessmen who are willing to invest money,
is not sufficient. That is why I would like to call other companies
for joining this project as much as they can”, he said.

Orange Armenia General Director Bruno Duthoit said that they were
getting prepared to the launch of the hot line for a long time.

“Our participation in the project was conditioned by a number of
reasons. First of all, it is implemented for public welfare in order
to combat the terrible disease like AIDS. It is consonant with the
approach of our company – use of technologies for the benefit of the
society and this project provides us this opportunity”, he said.

With the help of Red Cross volunteers trained in the National Center
of AIDS Prevention there is a 24-hour service to promptly respond
the messages and an information site. Volunteers will also actively
inform population on the program through social networks.

As of August 31, 2011, 1.1 thousand cases of HIV disease were
registered in Armenia, of which 71.8% of infected (747 people) are
men and 28.2% (293 people) – women. Among children 22 cases of the
disease (2.1%) are registered. About 58% of infected are within the
age group from 25 to 39.

ARMENIA’S PRESIDENT MEETS WITH OSCE MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS

Tert.am
21.10.11

Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan met with OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
on Friday and discussed issues related to the current state of peace
talks over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

According to a press release by the presidential office, Sargsyan
and Robert Bradtke (US), Bernard Fassier (France) and Igor Popov
(Russia) also spoke about the necessity of strengthening trust among
the conflict parties.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict sparked in the early 1990s when Karabakhi
Armenians voiced their intention to live independently and later
spiralled into a bloody war, leaving around 30,000 killed and more
than a million displaced.

Earlier in the day, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs were received by
Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan.

The co-chairs visit come after a statement by the Azerbaijan Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, who said that the goal of the co-chairs’
visit is to prepare the parties for a coprehensive agreement.

AMERIABANK OFFERS AN ALTERNATIVE TO DEPOSITS – STANDARD GOLD BARS

arminfo
Friday, October 21, 16:08

Ameriabank offers an alternative to deposits – standard gold bars,
Trade Operations Manager of Ameriabank Sergey Shevchenko said in an
interview to ArmInfo.

He said that the bars are produced in Central Europe, particularly,
in Switzerland. The bank sells 999.9 gold bars weighing 1 ounce,
10 grams, 20 grams, 50 grams, 100 grams and 1 kilogram.

The costs of the bars will depend on the USD rate and gold prices in
the world. For the moment 10 g cost 214,450 AMD, 20 g – 417,560 AMD,
1 ounce – 643,498 AMD, 50 g – 1.025mln AMD, 100 g – 2.022mln AMD,
1 kg – 20.009mln AMD.

Concerning the prospects of the “gold” market in Armenia, Shevchenko
said that since the country’s securities market is not developed,
the local population is forced to look for alternatives and gold bars
are a good alternative to deposits.

Shevchenko said that the monthly gold bar turnover in Armenia is 100-
150 kg. The sale of gold bars is exempt from VAT.

Ameriabank also offers metals accounts for unallocated gold operations.

According to international stock exchanges, Oct 21 one troy ounce
cost $1,605-1,628 against $1,644 Oct 20.

The other Armenian banks using standard gold bars are INECOBANK,
Armswissbank, Converse Bank, Unibank, VTB Bank Armenia and Artsakhbank.

USAID ARMENIA MARKS PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP WEEK

Noyan Tapan
21.10.2011

This week, as part of its 50th Anniversary, USAID is highlighting the
role that public-private partnerships play in fostering development
around the world. Since the creation of the Global Development
Alliance program ten years ago, USAID has been a recognized leader
in public-private partnerships. USAID has created more than 1,000
partnerships with over 3,000 partners, leveraging billions of dollars
and impacting the lives of millions of people around the world.

Public-private alliances catalyze foreign investment and motivate
new players to enter the local market. In Armenia, the USAID Mission
has leveraged resources through partnerships to foster private sector
growth, promote environmental preservation, increase energy efficiency,
and improve women’s health and well-being.

In the area of technology and innovation, USAID Armenia established the
Microsoft Innovation Center (MIC) in partnership with Microsoft RA. The
MIC assists small- and medium-sized enterprises and professionals to
create innovative new products and services and bring those products
and services to market.

In the area of health and social welfare, USAID Armenia has partnered
with World Vision to improve the quality of rural health services; with
the Armenian-American Wellness Center to improve women’s health; and
with the Tufenkian Charitable Foundation and the Armenia International
Women’s Association to treat and prevent domestic violence. A recently
concluded alliance with the Armenian EyeCare Project also targeted
diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases across Armenia.

As USAID Armenia marks the 10th anniversary of the Global Development
Alliance program, the Mission recognizes the achievements of past
and current partnerships and continues to seek out private sector
partners that bring unique expertise and resources to further Armenia’s
economic, democratic, and social progress.

MR. KONSTANTIN SAROYAN APPOINTED AS CEO OF NASDAQ OMX ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
21.10.2011

Starting from October 18, 2011 Mr. Konstantin Saroyan was appointed CEO
of NASDAQ OMX Armenia. On October 3, 3011 NASDAQ OMX Armenia Management
Board approved Mr. Saroyan as Acting CEO pending registration by
the Central Bank of Armenia, which was officialy received later on
October 18, 2011.

Mr. Saroyan is a senior banking executive with solid experience of
technologies implementation and development, strategic planning and
management, gained from leading companies in Armenia. He started
his career in 1999 in Armagrobank. In 2001-2002 Mr. Saroyan leaded
Clearing and Settlement group in Central Depository of Armenia.

Afterwards starting from 2002 he headed marketing, strategic planning
in a number of Armenian banks.

In 2004-2011 Mr. Saroyan had senior executive positions in
“Armswissbank” cjsc, including Head of Internal Audit, Member of
the Management Board, as well as managed various departments of the
bank, including marketing, PR, human resouces, strategic planning,
business development.

Mr. Saroyan participated in Working groups of international
organizations as an expert of capital market development.

Mr. Saroyan graduated from Yerevan State Univercity and holds PhD in
Economics. Mr. Saroyan attended to various seminars and trainings, both
local and abroad. He was also a lecturer in a number of Universities in
Armenia, currently teaching in Frech University of Armenia Foundation.

About NASDAQ OMX

The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world’s largest exchange company. It
delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services
across six continents, and with over 3,900 companies, it is number
one in worldwide listings among major markets. NASDAQ OMX technology
supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations
and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries.

In January 2008, Nordic exchange operator OMX Group acquired 100%
of shares of the Armenian Stock Exchange (Armex) and the Central
Depository of Armenia (CDA). After the combination of NASDAQ and OMX
in February 2008, Armex and CDA have become fully owned by the NASDAQ
OMX Group, Inc. For more information on the NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.

visit

On January 27, 2009, “Armenian Stock Exchange” ojsc was officially
renamed as “NASDAQ OMX Armenia” ojsc. On June 5, 2009, “NASDAQ OMX
Armenia” ojsc became the owner of 100% of the shares of the “Central
Depository of Armenia” ojsc.

PRESIDENT SERZH SARGSYAN RECEIVED DELEGATION OF HIGH LEVEL AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN OFFICIALS AND EXPERTS

armradio.am
21.10.2011 10:57

President Serzh Sargsyan received delegation of high level American
and European officials and experts who have arrived to Yerevan in the
framework of a regional visit. The visit is organized jointly by the
German Marshall Fund, Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation and
Robert Bosch Foundation.

At the meeting, the President of Armenia responded to the questions
raised by the members of the delegation. The parties spoke about
South Caucasus regional problems and challenges, the NK peace process,
efforts made so far toward the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish
relations, Armenia-EU cooperation, role of civil society in the
country’s development and some other issues.

160 EMPLOYEES HAVE BEEN SACKED

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 13:28:19 – 21/10/2011

160 employees of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, who handed in
resignation letters, have been sacked today. They demanded to increase
their salaries. They met with the leadership of the NPP yesterday,
but came to no agreement.

The dismissal of 160 employees of the Plant caused the dissatisfaction
of the rest of the staff who will have to do two shifts, until
new employees are assumed. At least 2 years are necessary to form
specialists of this sphere.

Armenian specialists are high-qualified and they are demanded abroad.

It is not ruled out that the greater part of the 160 specialists
leaves Armenia.

NSC SECRETARY LEAVING FOR NAGORNO KARABAKH

armradio.am
21.10.2011 12:13

Secretary of the National Security Council of Armenia Arthur
Baghdasaryan is leaving for the Nagorno Karabakh Republic for a
working visit.

Within the framework of the visit Arthur Baghdasaryan will have
meetings with NKR President Bako Sahakyan and other high-ranking
officials of the republic.

US OFFICIAL HAD NO COMMENT ON ANNULLING PROTOCOLS

asbarez
Thursday, October 20th, 2011

Burns with President Serzh Sarkisian

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)-US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns declined
to comment on Yerevan’s threats to formally annul the Turkey-Armenia
protocols if Ankara continues to make their parliamentary ratification
contingent on Karabakh peace. He said only that Washington believes
both sides should implement the normalization deal “as quickly as
possible.”

“We appreciate Armenia’s commitment to normalization of relations
with Turkey,” Burns said. “We support the Turkey-Armenia protocols
[signed in 2009] and hope that they will be ratified, creating a
better future for both countries.”

“We continue to encourage our partners in Turkey to move in that
direction,” he added.

Burns urged a greater “sense of urgency” for the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on Thursday, saying that continued deadlock
in Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks would be fraught with serious
security risks.

“It’s obvious to all of us that there is no military solution to this
[Karabakh] conflict,” he told journalists. “And it’s also obvious,
it seems to me, that the status quo is not sustainable.”

“Therefore it’s important to approach this challenge with a sense of
urgency,” he said.

Burns gave no indications that Washington will now seek a larger role
in the negotiating peace and push harder for an Armenian-Azerbaijani
peace deal. “I would simply re-emphasize the commitment of the United
States to doing everything that we can to help bring about a lasting
peaceful settlement,” he said.

Russia, which co-chairs the OSCE Minsk Group with the U.S. and France,
has been the most active player in the Karabakh conflict mediation
in recent years. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has hosted about
a dozen meetings between his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts.

But the latter have so far failed to iron out their differences on the
basic principles of a peaceful settlement put forward by the three
mediating powers. The impasse is fuelling growing fears of another
Armenian-Azerbaijani war.

Karabakh was high on the agenda of what Burns called “excellent and
productive” talks with President Serzh Sarkisian and Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian held on Wednesday. The U.S. official discussed the
unresolved dispute with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev in Baku
on Tuesday.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reportedly pressed the Turkish
leaders to drop the Karabakh linkage when she visited Istanbul in
July. However, the Turkish government remains adamant in linking the
two issues.

Echoing statements by other U.S. diplomats, Burns further stressed
the importance of the proper conduct of Armenia’s next parliamentary
and presidential elections due in 2012 and 2013 respectively.

“Since 2012 is an election year, we discussed [with Sarkisian] the
importance of establishing an electoral environment conducive to
free and fair elections,” he said. “This means not only what happens
on election day but what happens in the wider democratic process,
including encouraging vibrant and diverse media so that citizens can
make well-informed independent choices.”

REVUE DE PRESSE N°1 – 21/10/11 – COLLECTIF VAN

Publié le : 21-10-2011

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN [Vigilance
Arménienne contre le Négationnisme] vous propose une revue de presse
des informations parues dans la presse francophone, sur les thèmes
concernant la Turquie, le génocide arménien, la Shoah, le génocide
des Tutsi, le Darfour, le négationnisme, l’Union européenne, Chypre,
etc… Nous vous suggérons également de prendre le temps de lire ou
de relire les informations et traductions mises en ligne dans notre
rubrique

Par ailleurs, certains articles en anglais, allemand, turc, etc,
ne sont disponibles que dans la newsletter Word que nous générons
chaque jour. Pour la recevoir, abonnez-vous à la Veille-Média :
c’est gratuit ! Vous recevrez le document du lundi au vendredi dans
votre boîte email. Bonne lecture.

Turquie : réouverture de l’église arménienne de Diyarbakir Info
Collectif VAN – – Lâ~@~Yune des plus grandes
églises de lâ~@~Yépoque, au Moyen Orient, lâ~@~YEglise Saint
Dominique (Sourp Guiragos) dans la province de Diyarbakir, du sud
est de la Turquie, sera réouverte le 23 octobre pour une cérémonie
religieuse. La rénovation avait été commencée à la fin de 2009
après que la Fondation de lâ~@~YEglise Arménienne Saint Dominique ait
entrepris le projet de restauration de lâ~@~Yéglise. Sourp Guiragos
avait été saisie par lâ~@~Yarmée allemande pendant la Première
Guerre Mondiale, et avait été convertie en 1918 en un entrepôt
de textiles par la Sumerbank. Dans la soirée du samedi 22 octobre
2011, un service sera donné dans lâ~@~Yéglise pour la consacrer. Le
lendemain, dimanche, un service religieux s’y tiendra.

Câ~@~Yest une église très importante du point de vue architectural
et qui est aussi un symbole du passé. Câ~@~Yest la seule qui reste
des sept églises de la ville. A Diyarbakir, vivaient quelques quarante
à quarante cinq mille Arméniens dans la ville avant le génocide des
Arméniens en 1915. Aujourdâ~@~Yhui, il n’y reste qu’une seule famille
arménienne. Cette cérémonie religieuse sera suivie dâ~@~Yautres :
étant donné que lâ~@~YEglise Saint Dominique de Diyarbakir appartient
aux Fondations de lâ~@~YEglise, il nâ~@~Yy aura pas de restrictions
quant aux dates des offices religieux. Le Collectif VAN vous invite
à lire une traduction de Gilbert Béguian d’un article en anglais
mise en ligne sur le site de NAM (Nouvelles d’Arménie Magazine)
le 18 octobre 2011.

Les Kurdes se remettent en question Info Collectif VAN –
– « Récemment, j’ai observé une sorte de
réveil parmi les Kurdes, qui me donne bon espoir pour l’avenir. Tout
d’abord, Osman Baydemir, le maire kurde de Diyarbakir et très
récemment Altan Tan, un député kurde, ont fait certaines remarques
provocantes, appelant chacun en Turquie à regarder le passé sous
des angles différents. La première remarque émanait de Baydemir :
â~@~Nous ne devrions pas oublier que les Arméniens ont vécu dans
cette région, tant en Mésopotamie quâ~@~Yen Anatolie, pendant une
longue période. Il est inacceptable que la relation nâ~@~Yait pas
encore été normalisée. â~@¦ La génération dâ~@~Yaujourdâ~@~Yhui
nâ~@~Yest pas responsable de ce quâ~@~Yil sâ~@~Yest passé, mais
elle est obligé de dire : â~@~XOui, il y a eu un massacre, oui,
nous en sommes désolésâ~@~Y.â~@~] » Le Collectif VAN vous livre
la traduction de cet article en anglais paru le 18 octobre 2011 sur
le site du quotidien turc Today Zaman.

Affaire Pinar Selek : la Turquie manie la torture psychologique Info
Collectif VAN – – “Le cas de la sociologue et
écrivaine Pınar Selek, qui a été acquittée par trois fois dans
l’affaire de l’explosion du marché égyptien dâ~@~YIstanbul (1998)
a de nouveau été examiné le mercredi 28 septembre 2011 par la 12e
cour criminelle de Besiktas, pour compléter l’instruction en raison
de vices de procédure concernant des affaires jointes. La session
du tribunal a été repoussée au 7 mars 2012 pour un détail de
procédure purement technique. Il faut rappeler que le même tribunal
avait, pour la troisième fois, acquitté Pinar Selek le 9 février
2011. Pınar Selek est innocente, comme l’ont prouvé les expertises
scientifiques, c’est de nouveau une torture psychologique qui lui est
infligée, après les tortures physiques et l’emprisonnement”. Le
Collectif VAN relaye cette information de l’association Collective
de Solidarité avec Pınar Selek- France.

Shoah : Oser raconter ce qui ne peut être raconté Dominique Sigaud
et Romain Slocombe, sâ~@~Yattaquant à la « bête immonde », la
contournent pour mieux la terrasser. Implacable, et littéraire.

Turquie : opération militaire turque contre les positions kurdes
en Irak Appuyés par des hélicoptères de combat Cobra, un millier
de commandos turcs ont été déployés dans les montagnes du nord
de lâ~@~YIrak oú se trouvent des positions du PKK, le parti des
travailleurs du Kurdistan.

Il y a deux jours à peine, les séparatistes kurdes ont mené des
attaques en Turquie, causant la mort de 24 soldats turcs.

Procès Khmers rouges: l’unique femme poursuivie ne serait pas jugée
L’unique femme poursuivie à Phnom Penh dans le procès titanesque
de quatre ex-dirigeants khmers rouges, concernant le génocide entre
1975 et 1979 souffre de démence et ne devrait pas être jugée après
la présentation d’un rapport d’experts. Les familles de victimes
craignent que ces actes restent impunis.

L’armée turque poursuit son offensive contre le PKK en Irak L’armée
turque mène des opérations terrestres et aériennes contre des
positions du Parti des travailleurs du Kurdistan (PKK) dans le nord
de l’Irak, trente-six heures après la mort de 24 soldats dans des
attaques des séparatistes kurdes en Turquie, a annoncé jeudi le
Premier ministre Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

L’info vue par la TRT (1) Le Collectif VAN vous propose cet
article publié sur la TRT (Télévision & Radio de Turquie). Les
articles de ce site ne sont pas commentés de notre part. Ils peuvent
contenir des propos négationnistes envers le génocide arménien ou
d’autres informations à prendre sous toute réserve. “Les milieux
internationaux ont aussi sévèrement réagi à l’attaque perpétrée
par l’organisation terroriste PKK à Ã~Gukurca qui a causé la mort
de 24 soldats”.

Le PKK veut la guerre, il l’aura !

Le 18 octobre, 24 soldats turcs ont été tués dans des attaques
menées par des séparatistes kurdes du PKK. Les Kurdes tournent le
dos à une solution politique, estime le quotidien indépendant Taraf.

Haut Karabakh, l’un des rares conflits gelés européens qu’on
peut régler Le conflit du Haut Karabakh, région disputée entre
l’Azerbaïdjan et l’Arménie, est l’un des rares conflits gelés
européens qu’on peut régler et Moscou y fera sa contribution,
a déclaré jeudi le président russe Dmitri Medvedev lors d’une
rencontre avec des jeunes à Moscou.

L’ambassadeur sera à Biarritz Il y a trois millions d’habitants en
Arménie, plus de six autres à travers le monde. Lancée en 2007 pour
l’année de l’Arménie en France par Serge Miassérian, l’association
Agur Arménie regroupe désormais près d’une centaine d’adhérents.