Author: Badalian Vardan

ARF ATTENDS SI CONVENTION IN NEW YORK

Thursday, October 10th, 2013

Delegates at Socialist International’s 6th annual meeting

NEW YORK-Members of the Socialist International Presidium, heads of
state and government from Socialist International (SI) member parties,
heads of UN agencies, and international organizations and a number of
foreign ministers gathered at the United Nations headquarters in New
York on September 26 for the 6th annual meeting in conjunction with the
UN General Assembly. The meeting was chaired by SI President George
Papandreou, with participating members of the Presidium comprising
SI Secretary General Luis Ayala, and SI vice-presidents.

The main themes of the meeting were the latest developments in the
struggles to gain new democracies in the world, as in Syria and Egypt,
with a particular focus on peace, security and human rights; and the
social democratic commitment to end poverty and to establish equality.

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation was represented by Bureau
member and SI Vice President, Mario Nalbandian. Heads of state and
government present included the recently-elected President of Mali,
Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, prime ministers Elio Di Rupo (Belgium) and Edi
Rama (Albania), both SI vice-presidents, Navinchandra Ramgoolam, prime
minister of Mauritius, and Joseph Muscat, prime minister of Malta.

Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and Jose Miguel
Insulza, Secretary General of the Organisation of American States,
participated as special invited guests. A number of other senior
government officials were also present: Manuel Vicente, vice-president
of Angola, Titus Corlatean, minister of foreign affairs of Romania,
Zlatko Lagumdzija, minister of foreign affairs of Bosnia & Herzegovina,
and George Rebelo Chicoty, minister of foreign affairs of Angola.

ARF Bureau member and SI Vice President, Mario Nalbandian

During the discussion about the Syrian crisis, ARF representative
Mario Nalbandian spoke about the problems of the Syrian Armenians. He
emphasized on the necessity of making international aid feasible to
all the segments of the population. Nalbandian noted minorities’ issues
and, in the case of the Syrian Armenian community, he spoke about the
need of providing international assistance to support the educational
system. As for the neighboring countries, Nalbandian made a special
reference to Turkey and to the artificially created difficulties the
latter poses occasionally to Syrian Armenians at the check points.

The SI President also addressed the humanitarian needs of the Syrian
Armenians.

Mario Nalbandian also talked about the relations of the EU’s Eastern
Partnership countries with the (Eurasian) Customs Union. The ARF
Bureau member pointed out that in the case of Armenia joining the
Customs Union one should consider that the European Union hasn’t
made major investments in the country and hasn’t contributed in the
creation of new job positions. At the same time, Armenia is ready to
continue deepening its political and social relations with the EU.

The Presidium decided that the next SI Council meeting would take
place in Istanbul on 11-12 November 2013, hosted by the Republican
People’s Party (CHP), with special emphasis on current crises related
to the struggles for democracy, particularly in the Middle East and
North Africa, and conflicts threatening peace and security. It will
equally include discussions to reaffirm the centre-left vision for
the global economy with an emphasis on growth, jobs and equality,
and for a new development agenda.

Socialist International is the worldwide organization of social
democratic, socialist, and labor parties. It currently brings together
170 political parties and organizations from almost 140 countries.

In 2003, ARF was the first one among CIS political parties to hold
a SI full membership status.

ARF Bureau member Mario Nalbandian serves as SI Vice-President while
ARF Bureau member Vahan Hovhannesyan is Co-Chairman of the Committee
for the CIS, the Caucasus and the Black Sea. ARF is also a member of
the Statutory Committee on Finance and Administration of the SI.

The ARF Women’s Group is a full member of the SIW (Socialist
International Women). The youth organization of the ARF, the Armenian
Youth Federation, is a full member of the IUSY (International Union
of Socialist Youth).

AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT ALIYEV WINS THIRD 5-YEAR TERM BY A LANDSLIDE

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Oct 10 2013

10 October 2013 /REUTERS, AP, BAKU

Azerbaijan’s president won a third five-year term by a landslide in
Wednesday’s election, according to preliminary results, extending a
decade of rule in the oil-rich Caspian Sea nation allied with the West.

With 72 percent of precincts counted, Ilham Aliyev was leading the
field with nearly 85 percent of the vote, said the Central Election
Commission chief, Mazahir Panahov.

The main opposition candidate, historian Jamil Hasanli, had about
5 percent of the vote, followed by eight other contenders. Full
preliminary results are expected later on Thursday.

Exit polls have earlier shown similar figures, prompting Aliyev’s
campaign chief, Ali Ahmadov, to quickly claim victory. “Ilham Aliyev
has unconditional support of the population,” Ahmadov said.

Aliyev has ruled the ex-Soviet nation of 9 million since 2003,
succeeding his father, Heydar Aliyev, who had been at the helm for
most of the previous three decades, first as Azerbaijan’s Communist
Party boss during the Soviet times, then as its president.

The current president has presented himself as a guarantor of
stability, an image with broad appeal in a nation where painful
memories are still fresh of the years of turmoil that accompanied
the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union.

A six-year war with neighboring Armenia over the disputed territory
of Nagorno-Karabakh left ethnic Armenian forces in control of
Nagorno-Karabakh and neighboring areas in Azerbaijan and turned 1
million Azerbaijanis into refugees.

Under Aliyev, Azerbaijan has basked in oil riches that have more
than tripled its GDP and helped bolster his popularity. The State Oil
Fund that accumulates oil revenues held $34 billion at the start of
the year.

After hearing the exit poll data, hundreds of Aliyev’s supporters
carrying national flags and pictures of the president took to the
streets, some dancing to popular music. Motorists and bikers drove
around the city, waving Azerbaijani flags and honking horns.

“We all are very happy and think that Azerbaijan in the coming five
years will continue to prosper and will become the best country in
the world,” Baku resident Samira Guliyeva said.

“I am grateful to the Azeri people for voting for me and putting their
trust in me and the future development of the country,” said Aliyev,
speaking on state television.

Azerbaijan’s oil boom, the product of a BP-led consortium that
exports Caspian Sea oil to ships in the Mediterranean Sea, raised
living standards and boosted the mainly Muslim country’s clout to
court Western powers.

Azerbaijan has also boosted its arms budget and the amount of money
it spends on defense is higher than the GDP of its regional rival
Armenia, with whom tensions are still simmering.

ARMENIA : RED CROSS IS ASKED TO BE MORE ACTIVE CONCERNING ARMENIAN CAPTIVE IN AZERBAIJAN

TendersInfo
October 9, 2013 Wednesday

The Head of the Delegation of the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) to Armenia Lorenzo Caraffi was acknowledged by the first
Deputy Defense Minister of Armenia David Tonoyan in relation with the
conclusion of his operation in Armenia. Sarah Epprecht, the new Head
of the ICRC Delegation to Armenia also attended the conference.

According to the press service of Defense Ministry , problems of
mutual collaboration were mentioned at the conference. D. Tonoyan
called on the ICRC associates to accentuate their initiatives relevant
to Armenian POW Hakob Injighulian held imprisoned by Azerbaijan and
to visit him more regularly.

KOUTOUJIAN: MAKING OUR VOICE HEARD

By Contributor // October 9, 2013

‘I hope that you will join me in voting for a strong community leader
and a great public servant, Peter Koutoujian!’

By Peter Koutoujian, Sr.

On Oct. 15, the Massachusetts’ 5th Congressional District has the
chance to write another chapter in the story that is the American
Dream in a way that has never been done before!

On Oct. 15, you can vote for my son, Peter Koutoujian (Jr.), and
help elect the first Armenian American to the U.S. Congress from the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

I have so many reasons to be proud of Peter as a son and family man.

He has spent nearly 25 years in public service standing up for
people who need help. He started as a prosecutor and then served
as a state representative for our hometown of Waltham as well as
Watertown and Newton. When Governor Patrick chose Peter to restore
the public trust in the Middlesex County Sheriff’s office, he stepped
up to the challenge and voters voiced their support by subsequently
electing him sheriff with over 77 percent of the vote. He listens to
his constituents. He cares. He solves problems. He stands up for you.

On Oct. 15, you can vote for my son, Peter Koutoujian (Jr.), and
help elect the first Armenian American to the U.S. Congress from the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

At the State House, Peter was at the forefront of confronting violence
against women by helping establish the white ribbon campaign in the
Massachusetts legislature. He chaired the Public Health Committee
when Massachusetts passed healthcare laws that now ensure 98 percent
of residents and 99 percent of children are covered.

He has also been a leader within the Armenian-American community. He
led the fight to create the Armenian Heritage Park in Boston. He is
active with the Knights of Vartan as well as the Armenian Council of
Executives, and he sends our grandchildren to the Armenian Sisters’
Academy.

One of the fundamental aspects of the American Dream is that we have
the ability to shape the political destiny of our country. U.S.

citizens have the opportunity to register and vote for their elected
representatives.

Your vote is your voice.

I urge you to vote on Oct. 15. I hope that you will join me in
voting for a strong community leader and a great public servant,
Peter Koutoujian!

This election is about you. Together, our voice will be heard beyond
Massachusetts all the way to our nation’s capital.

Peter Koutoujian, Sr. is a former Waltham City Council member and
city clerk.

ARMENIAN REVIEW APPOINTS NEW ASSISTANT EDITOR, PUBLISHES RECENT ISSUE

Thursday, October 10th, 2013

Dr. Talar Chahinian joins the Armenian Review as assistant editor

WATERTOWN, Mass.–The Spring-Summer 2013 issue of the Armenian Review
was published earlier this month. The most recent issue includes
articles ranging from historic textual analysis to current political
issues.

In the first article of the current issue, Albert Stepanyan reexamines
and analyzes sections from Moses Khorenati’s History of the Armenians.

The analysis not only focuses on the content of the sections from the
Khorenati’s work, but also dwells into epistemological and semantic
interpretations of the work by looking at Greek and other Armenian
sources.

The second piece, authored by Rouben Shougarian, is an account of a
diplomat’s assessment of Turkish-Armenian Track I and II diplomacies.

The piece offers a survey of bilateral relations and the context
in which the two countries attempted to have rapprochement and
normalization of relation but without much success.

The third and fourth pieces are a dialogue between Taner Akcam on the
one hand and Ugur Umit Ungör and Mehmet Polatel on the other. The
dialogue starts with a review essay by Akcam examining and critiquing
Ungör’s and Polatel’s book Confiscation and Destruction: The Young
Turk Seizure of Armenian Property. In the lengthy essay, Akcam tries
to deconstruct and point out some of the issues which make the book
problematic. In their response, Ungör and Polatel respond to the
critique and go even further by providing more detailed explanations
about their research and methodology. This exchange should prove to be
quite interesting for our readership as it is not often that scholars
working on Armenian issues engage in a critique of their work in an
academic forum.

The recent issue of the journal also features book reviews and review
essays by Levon Chorbajian, who reviewed four books dealing with the
Armenian Genocide and its aftermath; Lerna Ekmekcioglu whose review
essay of the book dealing with the memoirs of Levon Yotnakhparian
provides a unique insight into the life of a prolific individual and
helps re-read those memories in the context of Armenian Genocide
literature; Levon Saryan’s review of a recent book on Tigranes II
and Vartan Matiossian’s review of Garegin Nzdeh’s selected works,
complete this quite diverse issue.

The latest issue of the Armenian Review is also one that welcomes Dr.

Talar Chahinian to the editorial team as an assistant editor. Dr.

Chahinian holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from UCLA and
lectures in the Department of Comparative World Literature at
California State University, Long Beach. Her current book project
examines the Western Armenian literary tradition within the World
Literature model, by comparatively analyzing the Post-WWI and
Post-WWII literary centers of Paris and Beirut, respectively,
and their intellectual exchange with literary and journalistic
institutions in Soviet Armenia, North America, and the greater
Middle-East. She contributes regularly to the online journal,
Critics’ Forum, and directs the Saroyan Project, which works to
enhance Armenian language instruction in Chamlian Armenian School
in Southern California. Dr. Chahinian’s joining of the Review team
will expand the journal’s geographic reach as well as its academic
disciplinary horizons.

The current issue of the Armenian Review may be ordered by itself
or as part of a subscription to the journal from its website,
All subscription, order, and renewal
inquiries should be addressed to the publisher by writing to the
Armenian Review, Inc., 80 Bigelow Avenue, Watertown, MA 02472-2012;
by emailing [email protected]; or by calling (617) 926-4037.

ZARUHI POSTANJYAN HAS ASKED THORNIER QUESTIONS, HEAD OF ARMENIAN DELEGATION TO PACE SAYS

17:33 10.10.2013

Lusine Vasilyan

Head of the Armenian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe David Harutyunyan wonders why Zaruhi Postanjyan’s
question to President Serzh Sargsyan at PACE session has given way to
heated discussions. According to him, Postanjyan’s question to the
President in 2011 was even thornier, although more correct from the
point of view of ethics. Representative of the Heritage Party then
demanded from the President to leave the country.

David Harutyunyan considers that Postanjyan’s question was
unprecedented in PACE, although there have been MPs using this strategy
to launch their political activity. “I remember Vladimir Zhirinovsky
and several others using such tricks at PACE. This does not mean,
however, that my attitude towards such behavior is positive.

My attitude is definitely negative, and I think the question was
offensive. “But this was not the worst blow,” he said

Harutyunyan believes it was a greater blow to the opposition. PACE
holds a number of discussions on the rise of the role of the
opposition. However, this is not the behavior the Assembly considers
complying with European standards

Did Zaruhi Postanjyan’s question harm the reputation of Armenia and
its President? David Harutyunyan says “it changed nothing.” “The
President of the Republic has participated in more complicated
negotiations and has discussed harder issues,” he said.

According to the Rules of Procedure of the Parliamentary Assembly,
a Deputy shall not be persecuted for his/her statements. Won’t this
contradict Armenian Parliament Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan’s intention
to make changes in PACE delegation? According to Harutyunyan,
this provision has nothing to do with the situation. He believes
that whatever decision is made, it will not contradict the PACE
requirements. The most importance is to keep the balance of forces
in the delegation.

MP KOKOBELYAN: CUSTOMS UNION WOULD RESTRICT ARMENIA’S SOVEREIGNTY

Mаry Mamyan

13:46, October 10, 2013

During the Q&A period at yesterday’s “Armenia’s Strategic Challenges
to Socio-Economic development” discussion that centered around the
pluses and minuses of Armenia joining the Customs Union (CU) or its
European Union variant, Armenian MP Khachatur Kokobelyan said that
he believed the CU would restrict Armenia’s national sovereignty.

Kokobelyan argued that since a separate economic committee operated
within the CU, whose decisions are obligatory for all member states,
Armenian sovereignty would be restricted.

The MP states that Armenia’s possible entry into the CU has to be
viewed from the perspective of three issues – sovereignty, security
and prospects for development.

Kokobelyan said such a loss of sovereignty could not be justified
with possible price breaks in Russian imported gas.

As for the security issue, Kokobelyan believes that the security
guarantor for Armenia and Artsakh could be a a free economic market
and a government with long-term plans for instituting stability and
development, and not Russia or the EU. He added that presently neither
Armenia nor Artsakh are capable of solving the Karabakh issue.

“The key to its resolution lies on the international level, and there
must be a confluence of super power interests,” he said.

He called the government’s decision to join the Customs Union as
senseless, arguing that Armenia can’t afford to pass up the development
opportunities offered by the Free Trade Agreement.

“The Customs Union simply dictates restrictions. With the Association
Agreement, we are dealing with standards,” Kokobelyan said.

In a conversation with Hetq, the MP didn’t exclude the possibility
that the Armenian President had been pressured into joining the CU.

But he noted that no amount of pressure could justify the decision
taken by the government.

Kokobelyan isn’t hopeful that Armenia will reconsider joining the CU.

“Maybe we could join with an observer status. Something that wouldn’t
force CU decisions on us,” the MP noted.

While he doesn’t believe that Armenia will sign any Association
Agreement with the EU come November, Kokobelyan described such
an outcome not as a lost opportunity, but rather lost time, given
that it will take years to guarantee that Armenia develops on the
European path.

LAWYER SAYS FUGITIVE DINK MURDER SUSPECT ‘INNOCENT’

October 10, 2013 – 14:27 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The lawyer of a key suspect in Armenian-Turkish
journalist Hrank Dink’s murder has revealed that his missing client,
Erhan Tuncel, is in Turkey working on his defense and that it was
the latter’s decision whether or not to surrender, Hurriyet Daily
News reports.

Erdogan Soruklu, the lawyer of Tuncel, for whom an arrest warrant was
issued after he was ordered to stand in a retrial, told the HDN that
his client was innocent and was working on his defense somewhere in
an unknown location in Turkey.

“[Tuncel] is in Turkey working on his defense; he will go more into
details in his defense. He calls me [on the phone]; I cannot call him,
as I do not know where he is. It is his decision whether or not to
surrender,” said Soruklu.

Dink, the editor-in-chief of Armenian-Turkish newspaper Agos, was
shot dead in broad daylight in Istanbul on Jan 19, 2007.

Soruklu said they did not expect Tuncel to receive a long-term sentence
but if that was the case, they would appeal to the European Court of
Human Rights (ECHR), as “his client’s rights that derived from the
European Convention of Human Rights were being violated.”

“The ECHR is not going to judge Tuncel; it will evaluate whether his
rights have been breached. The ECHR had previously punished Turkey
for Turkish authorities’ insufficient acts to protect Dink’s right to
life. Therefore, this decision also vindicates Tuncel,” said Soruklu.

Tuncel, the suspected instigator of the murder, was an informant in
the Black Sea province of Trabzon before the murder of Dink.

Soruklu also said Tuncel was not a stooge in Dink’s murder. “Erhan
is not a person that was used by others. He was a university student
in Trabzon, who was delivering intelligence about illegal groups. He
was brought to this position in 2004 and was discharged from it one
month before the Dink murder but it was not communicated to him. It
is still a mystery why he was discharged from this post,” said Soruklu.

Soruklu said he did not believe that Tuncel was the “key person”
in the trial and thus his life was not in danger.

“Even though some media outlets and the public opinion are trying to
depict Erhan [as the key person], he is not the black box in the case.

The public opinion that has been created against Tuncel does not rest
on concrete evidence. Punishing Erhan will not make a difference in
shedding light on the case. If all the evidence had pointed Tuncel,
he would not have been acquitted. Tuncel is being set up as the ‘Big
Brother’ but he is the person who reported the murder [to authorities
before it took place],” said Soruklu.

Commenting on the accusations of the convicted Yasin Hayal, Soruklu
said there was an attempt to cast his client as an instigator. “There
is someone who looks like Osman Hayal [the brother of Yasin Hayal] at
the crime scene. Yasin Hayal accused Tuncel of being the instigator of
the murder just to prevent the truths from coming out,” said Soruklu.

Yasin Hayal was convicted of being the instigator of the assassination
and the “leader of a terrorist organization.” Hayal is also among
the suspects who are being retried as part of the murder case.

Stating that he was not hopeful about the trial process, Soruklu
said that though the court had good intentions, some of the public
institutions had not provided the necessary support for the case to
proceed. Soruklu said he felt for the Dink family and their loss and
that he was not against the Dink family’s struggle but was merely
defending his client’s rights.

“My position is not against the Dink family; I share the same
intentions as them. I respect their sorrow. I wish with all my heart
that the truth will be revealed, but I defend the rights of Erhan
Tuncel as a lawyer and believe that he is innocent,” Soruklu said.

ZHOGHOVURD: NEW OPPOSITION FORCE TO BE SET UP IN ARMENIA

Thursday,
October
10

A new opposition political party will be set up in Armenia soon.

Former deputy of the Armenian parliament Sasun Mikaelian told
‘Zhoghovurd’ paper that the action program of their party will be
published in the near future.

TODAY, 11:19

Aysor.am

SAMVEL ALEXANYAN’S NIGHTMARE

Yesterday the Save the Monument from Oligarch Initiative went on
protest in front of the Covered Market. Protests will be held every
day. The owner of the market MP Samvel Alexanyan again deployed his
supporters who shouted “grant-eaters, Turks” and other phrases in
the address of the activists.

The participants of the action left the Covered Market, leaving Samvel
Alexanyan’s shouting supporters alone but promised to return soon,
therefore the “supporters” could not decide for a long time whether
to leave or not.

Filmmaker Tigran Khzmalyan advised the activists to use Facebook to
call for a boycott of the Yerevan City chain of supermarkets.

The initiative has adopted an effective mechanism that makes Samvel
Alexanyan keep his stores under daily control. Besides the police,
he needs teams of “supporters” who will keep the stores under 24-hour
scrutiny. The more populous the actions become, the higher the number
of teams will grow.

Samvel Alexanyan will then have to maintain an army. At some point
he will have to launch his guard of security staff and the mob which
will clash with the citizens. Then the number of police officers
will multiply.

So, who will be more persistent?

10:43 10/10/2013 Story from Lragir.am News: