Author: Badalian Vardan

OPENING OF ABKHAZIAN RAILWAY MEETS THE INTERESTS OF ALL SOUTH CAUCASIAN COUNTRIES
Gita Elibekyan

“Radiolur”
14:28 16.11.2012
Tbilisi

Exploitation of the Abkhazian railway meets the interests of the
all countries of the South Caucasus, some Georgian experts say. They
consider that this will have a positive influence on the economies
of those countries. The new authorities in Georgia have declared
recently about the willingness to restore the railway communication
with Russia interrupted 20 years ago.

“If we open our part of the railway, Abkhazia will have an
alternative,” says Paata Zakareshvili, Georgia’s State Minister for
Reintegration. “The railroad will serve all -Russia, Georgia, Armenia.

This will increase the geopolitical role of our country. The cargoes
will then be shipped not only from the east to the west, but also
from the north to the south.”

“Surely, the operation of the railway will be positive for the
economies of Armenia and Georgia also as other countries of the
region. The volume of commodity turnover will increase,” political
analyst Georgy Areshidze says. However, he advises the Georgian
authorities to be cautious and consider the issue primarily from the
point of view of national security.

As for the negative reaction of the Azerbaijani side, the expert says
it’s understandable. “Azerbaijan fears that the Russian military
cargoes will reach Armenia this way. If the railway is really
re-launched, it will bring about tension in the Georgian-Azerbaijani
relations,” Areshidze notes.

It’s worth mentioning that in response to assessments of some
Azerbaijani political scientists, Paata Zakareshvili said “it’s not
up to Azerbaijani political scientists to decide whether the rail
communication with Russian should be restored or not.”

“No Georgian government will ever question the Georgian-Armenian
and Georgian-Azerbaijani relations, but it’s not going to sacrifice
its interests to the benefit of other countries,” the Minister for
Reintegration declared.

The railway was constructed during Tsarist times. The railway
communication was suspended in 1992-1993 after the Georgian-Abkhazian
conflict.

VAZGEN KHACHIKYAN REFUSES TO GIVE TESTIMONIES HAVING ALREADY GIVEN TWO, LAWYER SAYS

tert.am
16.11.12

Former head of State Social Security Service Vazgen Khachikyan
refuses to give testimonies as he has already given two while
being interrogated as a witness in the same case, Zhora Varosyan,
Khachikyan’s lawyer told Tert.am.

“His status has changed but not the nature of testimonies,” the lawyer
said, asked why Khachikyan refuses to give testimonies not considering
that the charges against him are politically motivated.

Varosyan did not exclude that at some point former official will write
an application on giving testimonies. Khachikyan who was detained
September 28 and then arrested considers the case against him the
work of bad-wishers, his former lawyer told Tert.am, explaining that
Khachikyan means those who gave testimonies against him.

Khachikyan is charged with embezzlement of big amount of money,
approximately 211 million of drams ($800,000) and in abuse of power.

Asked how many people testified against Khachikyan, the lawyer said
he cannot say the exact number as it will be seen only in the phase
of cross examinations. “As of the moment we are getting familiarized
with the documents that relate to Vazgen Khachikyan’s personality,”
Varosyan said.

As of September 29, 7,900 people were interrogated, 42 have been
charged, 12 have already been convicted.

ARMENIA’S FOUR PARLIAMENTARY FACTIONS TO VOTE AGAINST 2013 BUDGET DRAFT

YEREVAN, November 16. /ARKA/. Armenia’s oppositional political parties,
such as Heritage, the Armenian National Congress, ARF Dashnaktsutyun,
and a party defining itself as alternative, Prosperous Armenia,
declared Thursday they would vote against the 2013 state budget draft.

Armenia’s parliament finished evaluating the 2013 budget draft
Thursday. Vote on the draft will be held not earlier than four days
later after the end of evaluation. Within 24 hours the deputies are
still allowed to present their written proposals.

Republican Party (69 seats in 131-seat parliament) and Orinats Yerkir
(6 seats) factions said they would vote for the budget draft.

Armenia’s 131-seat parliament has six political factions: the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia-RPA (69 seats), Prosperous Armenia (37
seats), Orinats Yerkir, coalitional with RPA, (6 seats), and the
oppositional Armenian National Congress (7 seats), ARF Dashnaktsutyun
and Heritage (5 seats each).

The revenues of the consolidated budget are supposed to account 1
trillion 31 billion, the expenditures- 1 trillion 151 billion drams,
and the deficit- 120 billion drams or 2.6% of the GDP. Revenues from
taxes and duties are anticipated at 992.9 billion drams, which is
118.6 billion more from 2012. The rate of a twelve-month inflation
is projected at 4±1,5%, and GDP growth- 6.2%.($1 – 407.71 drams).-0-

$130-150 Thousand Needed Annually For Complete Excavation Of Karabakh’s Tigranakert, Head Of Excavation Group Says

tert.am
16.11.12

At least two months in a year and $130-150 thousand annually are
necessary for making complete excavations in Karabakh’s Tigranakert,
head of archeological excavation group Hamlet Petrosyan told the
reporters on Friday.

“The program has been approved in 2005, in 2007 stationary excavations
launched that may last for tens of years. Till now we have excavated
2-3% of Tigranakert,” he said, adding that starting from 2008 the
excavations have been funded by Karabakh government which allocates
20 million drams annually.

Petrosyan said declaration of Tigranakert and its study as a priority
does not pass smooth with complications varying.

“We have also initiated creation of an NGO and I am sure that the
business circle will assist us and help in solution of some financial
issues,” Hamlet Petrosyan said, adding that they expect certain raise
in funds to be able to start international recognition process.

ARMENIA WAS BETTER THAN TURKEY, SAYS MIGRANT PUPIL (PHOTOS)

16.11.12

An Armenian migrant schoolboy attending Istanbul’s Hrant Dink school
says he would very much wish to return to Armenia where he felt much
more comfortable than in Turkey.

Erik Gevorgyan, 11, left Armenia with his parents and a grandmother
in 2004, like many others who have moved to Turkey out of the dire
need of a job.

“It was better in Armenia,” says Erik, who formerly lived in Yerevan.

“My daddy does wood engraving and mummy does a cleaning job,” he says.

The child has dim recollections of Armenia, but the desire to return
to Armenia is not the only and the most serious problem the students
of the Istanbul-based Armenian schools face.

The school’s principal, Heriknaz Avagyan, says one of their best
pupils, Karen, was subjected to psychological violence out of school
serving tea to a master.

“We got very excited when we heard that,” she says, adding that
her husband had asked the master personally to take the 13-year old
boy under his apprenticeship. “We were greatly offended and took it
very hard.”

The principal noted that other Armenian children too, often become
victims of psychological violence in Istanbul.

“It is very hard to find a solution, but we are trying our best to
make the children realize that this is a war and that they must be
able to protect themselves by all means … That’s to say, it is a war
that has entrapped the child prematurely, so he has to face it,” said
Avagyan, who was for eight years an Armenian language and literature
teacher at a Yerevan secondary school.

“But we have a growing number of pupils, unfortunately. Twenty children
were admitted to the first grade this year, with the total number of
pupils being 108 at the school,” she added.

A pastor at Istanbul’s Armenian Evangelical Church, Rev. Krikor
Agabaloglu (Agabalian), says although the school has no permission
to operate, the Turkish authorities do not ban it from organizing
the Armenian children’s education.

“We do our job. Should there be any measure by the state, we’ll think
of what to do. But we will keep working because they are our children.

The state refrains from any interference now. It is now necessary
to first of all prevent the children from Armenia from losing the
language skills,” he said.

Noting that the Turks are very staunch nationalists, the reverend
stressed the need of being very cautious and vigilant in the Turkish
society.

He said the school receives its textbooks from Armenia. Formerly
reliant on different sources’ funding, and partially the parents,
the school later established ties with the Karitas Foundation which
now provides food for the pupils and covers the teachers’ salaries.

Hersilia Petrosyan, who settled in Istanbul ten years ago, says she
left Armenia because of employment-related difficulties.

“I decided to come here for work as the situation in Armenia is [bad],
you know. I have been working here for ten years, and thank God, my job
allows me to provide for my children and grandchildren,” she explains.

Petrosyan thinks the Armenian immigrants in Istanbul must stay there
until they feel they can find a job in Armenia to take care of their
families.

“You know, it seems to me we have to stay here until we see everything
comes right in Armenia so that people will have jobs and be properly
paid. We do not want to stay here; we are very eager to go to
our country but you know that the situation is like there. It is
impossible. I am from Yerevan. I sought employment opportunities
there; tried to work as a waitress for 1,000 Drams [approx $2.5]
per day. Can you provide for a family with that?” she asked.

“Sometimes I blame myself, asking why I stay here at all. But looking
at these children, I realize the answer to my question,” says Lilit
Poghosyan, a teacher of the Armenian language and literature, who
has been working in Istanbul for two years.

“It is good here, but as I attended neither a school nor a kindergarten
in Armenia, I don’t know whether or not it is good there,” Yeva
Lazarian, a student at the Hrant Dink school, says,

The child says she would very much like to return to Armenia,
adding that her family too, is discussing the issue. “But only I
will go there to live with my grandmother and grandfather,” says the
10-year-old girl.

Kohar Concert
1/5 Garegin Njdeh Avenue
3103 Gyumri
Armenia
Tel.: +374 312 326 25
Fax.: +374 312 306 93
[email protected]

KOHAR’s Finale in São Paulo
KOHAR Performing at Orfeo Superdomo, Córdoba

KOHAR Warms the Hearts of Armenians in São Paulo

KOHAR performed in three sold-out concerts on 9, 10, and 11 November to
fully-packed and mainly Armenian audiences, who rushed to the
architecturally impeccable Auditorio Ibirapuera, where they witnessed KOHAR’s
All Time Armenian Favorites program that included new songs specifically
targeted to the local audience, such as Mas que Nada, Garota De Ipanema and
Aquarela do Brasil.

The enthusiasm of the Armenians was obvious from the very first moment the KOHAR
delegation arrived at the entrance of their accommodation Hotel in São Paulo
where the members were welcomed by fans who lit the skies with colorful
firework. KOHAR members were able to witness a piece of the São Paulo local
community members’ warm hospitality and penchant for Armenian music.
[2]Read more…

[3]Watch the Image Gallery in Facebook

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Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region
104 North Belmont Street, Suite 200
Glendale, California 91206
Tel: 818-500-1918
Fax: 818-246-7353
Email: [email protected]
Web:

ANCA Glendale
Path to College: Application and Essay Lab

November 13-16, 2012
4:00 PM – 7:00 PM

Saturday, November 17, 2012
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Kirkor and Mariam Karamanoukian
Glendale Youth Center
211 W. Chestnut St., 3rd Floor
Glendale, CA 91204

The week-long lab’s mission is “Beyond the Basics”:
Navigate, complete, and submit the UC/CSU and Common applications on
or before the November 30th deadline.
– Hands-on college application and essay assistance
– Lab outfitted with many computers
– Lab supported by high school counselors & English teachers

* Hosted in partnership with the Glendale Unified School District

For More Information Contact ANCA-Glendale (818)243-3444

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Director
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Watch video summary here:

ARMENIANS SHOULD CHERISH AND PRESERVE ARMENIAN BOOKS

Last week His Holiness Aram I inaugurated the 34th annual Armenian Book Fair
in the presence of the clergy, the seminary students and members of the
community.

In his opening speech, the Catholicos noted that the public’s interest in
Armenia books has dwindled. He said that peoples’ lives are impoverished
without Armenian books. He added, “From our Golden to the Silver Age, from
the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, from the Genocide to the organized
Diaspora, the Armenian book has enriched our people spiritually and shaped
their identity. In 2012, UNESCO declared Yerevan the book capital of Europe,
and we celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Armenian printing press. We
organized conferences and published new books as a way to connect the people
of the Armenian diaspora to one another.”

The Catholicos then paid tribute to St. Mesrob Masdots the inventor of the
Armenian alphabet and all those who followed him. He said that through their
writings they built the present and envisioned the future. At the end of his
speech, the Catholicos thanked all those individuals and foundations that
sponsor publications to ensure the continuity between the past, the present
and the future.

Before concluding, he said, “Irrespective of the spread of digital
technology, the printed Armenian book should remain the basis on which
Armenians are formed and the culture is sustained.
##
Watch video summary here:

***
Photos:

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Director
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I RECEIVES THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE CONFERENCE ON THE
SPIRITUAL AND CULTURAL LEGACY OF THE SYRIAC CIVILIZATION

On 8 November 2012, theologians and specialists on Syriac spirituality, who
were in Beirut to participate in a conference, visited His Holiness Aram I.

After welcoming the participants, His Holiness said that this was indeed an
important conference, and he remarked that “the achievements of the past
should not be forgotten; they should be assessed and revived in the
present.” Speaking of the spiritual legacy of the Armenian Church, he noted
that during the Kingdom of Cilicia, the theology of the Armenian Church
developed along with the discourses of the Syriac, Greek and Latin
theologians. Then, as now, the Armenian Church affirmed its own specificity,
while remaining open to dialogue.

During a brief discussion period, the participants asked the Catholicos to
speak of the challenges to the ecumenical movement today. He said that
theological dialogue among churches should continue because of past
misunderstandings and differences. However, he added, “These dialogues today
should also take into consideration the social issues societies are facing,
because those issues are also linked to the life of the churches.
##
Photo here:

The Official Visit of Yuri Khachaturov to Greece

2012-11-13

The delegation headed by Yuri Khachaturov, Chief of General Staff of
the ARM Armed Forces was on an official visit in Greece from November
12-14 and had meetings with Panos Panagiotopoulos, Minister of
National Defense of Greece and Michail Kostarakos, Chief of Hellenic
National Defense General Staff.
At the meetings they touched upon issues of bilateral military
cooperation, particularly collaboration between departments of the two
agencies coordinating combat support and combat service support,
military education, military industry, training in military operations
other than war, etc.
In the scope of the visit Yuri Khachaturov also visited Hellenic
Military Academy where Armenian cadets are being trained and several
military-industrial enterprises.
Armenian Chief of General Staff alsolaid a wreath at the monument of
the Unknown Soldier.