Author: Badalian Vardan

TURKEY SLAMS, ARMENIANS BACK LITHUANIAN PARLT MOVE ON NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Baltic News Service / – BNS
March 25, 2013 Monday 2:12 PM EET

VILNIUS, Mar 25, BNS – The establishment of a parliamentary
friendship group with unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh continues to
spark controversy, with the move being criticized by the Turkish
ambassador to Lithuania, supporting Azerbaijan, and backed by the
Union of Armenians in Lithuania.

“It is really regrettable because Nagorno-Karabakh is an Azerbaijani
territory under occupation. This so called Nagorno-Karabakh republic
and parliament they have have absolutely no internationally recognized
legal basis,” Turkish Ambassador to Lithuania Akin Algan told BNS
on Monday.

The diplomat said Lithuanian lawmakers have the freedom of action
but called the move a bad precedent.

“But at every level, Lithuanian authorities declared that Lithuania
has an official policy, and in democracy sometimes you cannot contain
deputies. But is not a good precedent,” the ambassador said.

Meanwhile the Union of Armenians in Lithuania thanked members of
the Seimas who established the friendship group which, they said,
is aimed at establishing a dialogue and not at dividing nations.

“We are not surprised at Azerbaijan’s hysterical reaction to the
establishment of this group we have observed in the Lithuanian
press and Seimas blogs. But we are disappointed at some Lithuanian
politicians’ rhetoric and actions which were and are aimed at closing
this group. The name of the group itself shows that it’s not aimed at
dividing nations but, on the contrary, at establishing a dialogue,”
the union said in a statement.

The friendship group was established on the sidelines of an event at
the Lithuanian Seimas in February attended by the minister of foreign
affairs of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh republic. Azerbaijan’s
ambassador to Lithuania later handed in a diplomatic note to
Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, saying that it “can have a
negative impact on our bilateral relations.”

The Community of Azerbaijanis in Lithuania slammed the establishment
of the friendship group, and the Lithuanian ambassador was summoned
to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baku.

ARMENIA SEEKS 3.89 MILLION EUROS FROM EU TO UPGRADE ITS FOOD SAFETY LABS

YEREVAN, March 25. / ARKA /. Armenia has applied to the European Union
to seek 3.8 million euros in assistance which it wants to spend on
upgrading its food safety laboratories, Abram Bakhchagulyan, chief
of the State Food Safety Service, an affiliation of the Ministry of
Agriculture, told ARKA. He said a positive response is expected to
arrive by the end of this year. According to him, the upgrading will
encompass three main areas: food safety, sanitary and phytosanitary
capabilities.

Bakhchagulyan said modern lab equipment used together with a new
e-program designed to analyze and assess risks will enable Armenia
to certify food exports to Europe. Without such certificates Armenia
can not export food products to the European market, he said.

Arthur Nikoyan, head of phyto-sanitary inspection of the State Food
Safety Service, stressed the need to harmonize related Armenian laws
with European legislation. He said Armenia is adopting a number
of European directives in order to be guided with when issuing
certificates.

“The EU will recognize our products safe only if the monitoring for
detection of harmful organisms is carried out according to European
standards,” Nikoyan said.

EU provides assistance to Armenia as part of Food Safety Capacity
Building program, conducted with the support of the USAID-funded
Enterprise Development and Market Competitiveness Program (EDMC).

As part of the program five-day training was held with the
participation of international experts and also a seminar on impact
of international agreements on sanitary and phyto-sanitary activities
in Armenia. . -0-

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION OPENS MEETING IN YEREVAN (LIVE)

TERT.AM
17:42 ~U 25.03.13

Armenian opposition activists have started their civil forum in
Yerevan’s Liberty Square.

The leader of the opposition Heritage party, Raffi Hovhannisian opened
the meeting.

A secretary for the party, Stypa Safaryan, is now delivering a speech.

Hovhannisian, who considers himself an absolute winner in the February
18 presidential election, launched his protest last month, to dispute
the voting results. After several rallies in Yerevan, he conducted
a tour to several regions. The politician declared a hunger-strike
after a March 10 rally, urging president Serzh Sargsyan to step down.

YOUNG ARMENIAN MAN HOPES FOR REVOLUTION OF GOOD

17:33 ~U 25.03.13

Ivan Poghosbekov, a resident of Yerevan’s Kanaker community, cannot
keep his family on his wages and has now joined Raffi Hovannisian in
Freedom Square in Yerevan.

Talking to Tert.am, Ivan said he pins his hopes on the newly formed
movement Revolution of Good.

“I have come to struggle for changes in this country, but I see
nothing is changing at all,” he said.

Ivan’s daily earning is about $8. He has a sick mother. “Our
outpatients’ clinic gives out only one medicine, but we cannot buy
the rest,” he says.

Ivan has a child and his wife is pregnant. “My child was ill, but I had
to send him to kindergarten today for him to eat something,” he says.

“We do not receive any financial aid. I do not know what to do –
winning bread or taking care of mother or my wife. I cannot keep my
family on this money,” he says.

ARMENIA’S PRESIDENT APPEARS TO BE SETTING PRECONDITIONS – HERITAGE PARTY REP

TERT.AM
20:18 ~U 25.03.13

Styopa Safaryan, Political Secretary of the Heritage party, spoke
at the 7th meeting of the public council in Yerevan’s Freedom Square
on Monday.

He has the impression that Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan sets
terms in his written response to Heritage party Chairman Raffi
Hovanisian.

Specifically, “end you hunger strike and we will talk,” Mr Safaryan
said.

“No preconditions are acceptable in negotiations, because the major
task is to put an end to this crisis,” he said.

This means that the “formal aspect” of the talks is much more important
for Armenia’s president than the “substance.”

Armenia’s president has not much time before “April 9” – a situation
that will be fraught with irreparable losses for the country.

“Serzh Sargsyan says that by going on a hunger strike Raffi Hovannisian
made political processes go off the political rails. What is going
on is not a political process. Rather, it is just not the politics
Armenia’s authorities are accustomed to,” Mr Safaryan said.

“From Freedom Square in Yerevan to squares in Armenia’s cities the
developments remain unpredictable for them. They erroneously think
this time they can employ their methods to suppress the people or
gain time,” Mr Safaryan said.

“The processes going on inside and outside Armenia are certainly not
to Armenia’s benefit and, surely, not to the ruling regime’s benefit.

The circles close to Armenia’s authorities voice different opinions
that the present challenges must be dealt with jointly,” Mr Safaryan
said.

None of the solutions is so important as elections. All the rest
– constitutional amendments, ministerial portfolios and so on –
although can change something in the country, cannot resolve the
post-election crisis.

SNAP PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS ARE THE ONLY WAY OUT, SAYS STEPAN SAFARYAN

19:32 25/03/2013 » POLITICS

What takes place at Yerevan’s Liberty Square and in the other cities
is still unpredictable for the authorities who still think they can
come out of this situation with their own methods, Heritage member
Stepan Safaryan announced on the sidelines of the civil forum at
Liberty Square.

According to him, the authorities are facing one task – to take the
country out of the crisis with brave decisions. Otherwise everybody
will be defeated.

If this situation was caused by the elections and the people have
doubts, then there is only one way out – holding new elections,
the Heritage member said.

“It is unequivocal that snap parliamentary elections are the only way
out. It is up to the people to make their choice, based on their free
will,” Safaryan said.

Source: Panorama.am

AZERBAIJANI MP URGED TO PUNISH FORMER DEFENCE MINISTER FOR INSULTING ALIYEV

18:23, 25 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 25, ARMENPRESS: Deputy Chairman of Azerbaijani ruling
party and MP, Siyavush Novruzov, called to punish the former defence
minister, Rahim Gaziyev, for his criticism of Azerbaijani President
Ilham Aliyev.

As reports Armenpress, in an interview with the pro-government agency
“Ses” and in the pages of the ruling body of the “Yeni Azerbaijan”
party, Novruzov used phrases and expressions that fall under Article
148 of the Criminal Code (insult). In particular, he called Gaziyev
“dishonest and unscrupulous,” “not a man”, “yard dog,” “traitor,”
“Russian intelligence agent,” “dog, which had to be shot, and his
house should be burnt,” etc.

Novruzov used such epithets in response to an open letter from Rahim
Gaziyev to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev; the letter called to
respect people and not to violate the rights of citizens.

Commenting Turan this interview, a lawyer Alasgar Mammadov said that
such expressions by Novruzov are clear violation of the media law
and the Articles of the Criminal Code.

“It is noteworthy that earlier courts considered an insult and brought
to justice the editor of “Khural” newspaper for the expression “the
press butcher.” The newspaper “Azadlig” was brought to justice for
comparing a parliamentarian Novruzali Aslanv with a literary character
“Novruzali”, said the lawyer.

Therefore, Rahim Gaziyev has every right to file a lawsuit against
the author of the material, of the newspapers and Siyavush Novruzov,
said Mammadov.

In his letter to the president of state, Rahim Gaziyev called Ilham
Aliyev to end the soldier deaths in the army. After this publication,
Gaziev was detained by police, which demanded to stop criticizing
Azerbaijani president.

DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGY TO STRENGTHEN PHYTOSANITARY SYSTEM UNDER DEVELOPMENT IN ARMENIA

YEREVAN, March 25. /ARKA/. A strategy is being developed in Armenia
to strengthen phytosanitary system and apply international standards,
head of Armenia’s food safety service Abram Bakhchagulyan said Monday.

It will help better sell Armenian products on the European market,
he said.

Under the Enterprise Development and Market Competitiveness (EDMC)
project financed by USAID, a number of events were held in Armenia,
including a seminar on impact of international agreements on Armenia’s
sanitary and phytosanitary activities and a phytosanitary training
course where EDMC international advisor on phytosanitary measures
Andrey Orlinski participated.

Head of EDNC project Bruno Kornelio said Armenia is a WTO-member
country and it signed the agreement on sanitary and phytosanitary
standards to enhance exported goods safety level.

Kornelio stressed the importance of cooperation on the matter with
international organizations and local establishments. Both private and
government sectors should demonstrate interest in the process, he said.

Earlier Bakhchagulyan said that the state food safety service
applied to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for support
in development of a strategy. The pressing agenda is diagnosis
of phytosanitary diseases and measures against them, training of
laboratory staff, procurement of the respective laboratory equipment
and enhancement of the quality of diagnostic tests for foodstuffs at
border locations. -0-

ARMENIAN WATER AND SEWAGE COMPANY NEEDS $1 BILLION WORTH INVESTMENT TO IMPROVE WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM

YEREVAN, March 25. / ARKA /. Armenian water and sewage company
(Armvodokanal) needs around $1 billion worth investment to improve
the water supply system, Vartan Melkonian, the technical director
of the company, said today at a national conference on integrated
management of urban water.

“In order to solve the problems in the water system, particularly,
to raise the quality of drinking water to the European level, we need
to make around $1 billion investments in the system,’ he said.

He said a total of $100 million have been invested in the system since
2004, which allowed the company to increase the average duration of
water supply from 5-6 to 16 hours.

“Our goal is to increase the water supply duration for one hour every
year, but to do so we need more resources, ” Melkonian said.

He said the conference will allow water companies not only to exchange
ideas and experiences, but also to listen and discuss drinking and
sewage water problems across the country.

Arevik Hovsepian, the chairwoman of the “National Water Cooperation”
non-governmental organization told reporters that the main problem
of drinking water in Armenia is its quality.

“We have no problems with water sources, as they are very clean
meeting drinking water standards, but the water on the way from the
source to consumers gets contaminated. Many countries purify waste
water to provide it free to farmers for irrigation purposes. We also
need to achieve this,” he said.

She also pointed out huge losses of water in the system, reaching
80-85% because of bad management and dilapidated pipes. -0-

AMIC’s Newsletter, Montreal, Canada
AMIC’s Info-Flash
369 Frontenac Drive, D.D.O. Qc., Canada
Web:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 514 620 1900

March, 2013

Article 1: Readers want alternative formats for Info-Flash
Article 2: ACMAO and AAMS collaborate for Stepanakert Women’s Clinic
Article 3: FIDEC Presentation in Los Angeles, October 2012
Article 4; Canadians Uncover Genetic Cause of Rare Children’s Disease
Article 5: YSMU Alumni Association
Article 6: Healthcare in Armenia Plenary Session
Article 7: Early Registration and Abstract Submission deadline March 30

*****************************

1. Readers want alternative formats for Info Flash

Thank you to the 43 colleagues who answered our survey, “How do you like
your
Info-Flash?” last month. The respondents, who reported that they read the
Info “Most or all of the time (38), or “Some of the time” (5), indicated
that while they tend to read the Info as a Microsoft Word e-mail attachment,
there is interest in having an online/web version and compatibility with
iPad-like devices. There were several requests that the info be sent as a
PDF format and a few calls for translation into Armenian. One brave
individual even offered to help with translation to Armenian!

This month’s Info-Flash is offered online at

****************************

2. ACMAO and AAMS collaborate for Stepanakert Women’s Clinic

The Armenian Canadian Medical Association of Ontario, which had in 2012
voted to downsize their clinic operations in Nagorno Karabagh, has developed
a partnership with the Armenian American Medical Society (of California) to
provide joint funding for the Women’s Health Clinic in Stepanakert. (See
also the acmao.ca website) The NKR Minister of Health Dr. Zoya Lazarian has
also promised support from the Ministry of Health of Karabagh amounting to
40% of the annual clinic budget.

This joint venture prevents the downsizing of the clinic which is so
necessary to the health of women in Stepanagert. The clinic was started
through the efforts of AMIC’s past President Dr Avedis Bogosyan.

ACMAO President Dr Berdj Artinian adds that the interaction of the various
members of the AMIC group is essential for our ongoing efforts to provide
healthcare services to our Motherland. The partnership we have created
between AMAQ (Montreal), AAMS (Los Angeles) and ACMAO (Toronto) is a good
example.

You may read the formal ACMAO announcement at
(935 KB PDF file)

*************************

3. FIDEC Presentation in Los Angeles October 2012

On Friday October 19th, 2012,FIDEC (Fighting Infectious Diseases in
Emerging Countries) was introduced to the Armenian community of California
at the Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, detailing the actions taken in
this Eurasian country under the Women of Tavush Health Program.

The event was hosted by Mr. Jorge Rabaso and included presentations by Dr.
Daniel Stamboulian, President of FIDEC, Dr. Sarkis Anac Medical Director of
the program and Dr. Pablo Elmassian, FIDEC’s Armenian Medical Director. They
showed a testimonial video filmed in Tavush describing the current medical
situation of women living in under-served rural areas of that province.

Afterwards, Dr. Stamboulian described the other regions where FIDEC works as
well as the objectives set for 2013. He emphasized that the program is
carried out thanks to the contribution of individuals committed to the
progress of Armenia and improving access to women’s health in that country.
He invited those present to join the project.

A brochure in English from the evening is available at
(1.4 MB PDF
file)

FIDEC is a US-based nonprofit organization that provides resources to
develop programs that control and prevent infectious disease in emerging
countries. Daniel Stamboulian of Buenos Aires, Argentina is FIDEC’s Founder
and President. Please see FIDEC’s website is in
Spanish and English

********************************

4. Canadians Uncover Genetic Cause of Rare Children’s Disease

Please read and savor this accomplishment of a team led by Toronto
Neurologist Berge Minassian from The Globe and Mail, Canada’s main national
newspaper. Briefly, Dr Minassian’s team pinpointed the genetic cause of a
rare disorder causing Parkinsonism in young children. The work was
completed in less than two years, an astonishing feat. Their report was
published in the Feb 7, 2013 New England Journal of Medicine.

Link to The Globe and Mail:

ver-cause-of-rare-childrens-disease/article8017283/
Link to the NEJM article:

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5. YSMU Alumni Association

YSMU Grads! Please join us Friday evening July 5 at the 11th Armenian
Medical World Congress in Hollywood. Info is available at

Find us on Linkedin (link can be found on the 9amwc.org/ysmu webpage). You
can also register for the Association using the link on the same webpage.

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6. Healthcare in Armenia Plenary Session

Friday morning July 5, the plenary session will focus on Healthcare in
Armenia.The Minister of Health of Armenia will discuss Healthcare Policy in
Armenia, and the other presentations will discuss what Armenia needs, how
much education will play a role, what else is needed, and how the Diaspora
can help.

This session replaces the Saturday morning Strategic sessions that we had in
the San Francisco and New York Congresses. Obviously there is much to
discuss. If you have any strong opinions or ideas of how the session could
proceed, please share them with me at [email protected]
Thanks, –Jerry Manoukian, AMIC President

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7. Early Registration and Abstract Submission deadline March 30

Links to the Congress:
General Congress info:
Hotel registration:
Registration:

AMIC has a Silicon Valley office
In addition to our Montreal office, we also have an office in Mountain View,
California (home of Google, Yahoo, Mozilla and so many dot-com startups).
We have a new phone line, 1-650-961-2013.

The address is

Armenian Medical International Committee
c/o Jerry Manoukian
2500 Hospital Drive, Building 4, Mountain View, CA 94040, USA
In addition to the usual correspondence ([email protected]) you can reach us in
California at [email protected]