Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

FOREST PROTECTION: FLEG II WORK PLAN FOR ARMENIA DISCUSSED IN YEREVAN

ENPI Info Centre, EU
Jan 21 2014

21-01-2014

A work plan for dealing with different aspects of management and law
enforcement in the forestry sector in Armenia was discussed at the
second meeting of the Armenian National Programme Advisory Committee
(NPAC) for the EU-funded ENPI FLEG (Forest Law Enforcement and
Governance) II programme in Yerevan.

At the event on 15 January, the implementing organizations presented
their plans for the first year of programme implementation and
“sought the advice of NPAC members to facilitate collaboration and
synergy with other on-going Projects and Programmes in the field,”
a press release said.

Participants also familiarized themselves with the results of the
ENPI FLEG II Steering Committee meeting in Minsk last October,
where the Country Work Plans (CWP) for each participating country
had been approved.

The activities of the ENPI FLEG II programme will be implemented over
the next 3.5 years, covering the five priority areas identified by
the Republic of Armenia, the press release said. The activities are
designed in a way to cover and build on the successful results of
the Phase I of the FLEG programme, as well as to address priorities
identified for Phase II. Progress in implementation will be presented
and discussed at National Programme Advisory Committee (NPAC) meetings
on a regular basis, in order to make recommendations when and if a
justified need for adjustments to the CWP occurs.

The ~@9 million ENPI FLEG II programme deepens reforms in forestry
policy, and legal and administrative matters in the sector while
carrying out pilot projects, and addressing forest fire and climate
issues. It builds upon the achievements of its predecessor, ENPI FLEG
I programme. (EU Neighbourhood Info)gr

From: Baghdasarian

NEITHER ERDOGAN NOR EU THE SAME AFTER FIVE YEARS

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Jan 20 2014

MURAT YETKÝN

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoðan is expected to leave Turkey on
Jan. 20 for Brussels to have high level contact there with European
Union officials.

This is going to be Erdoðan’s first visit to Brussels for EU contacts
since January 2009. Then, Erdoðan had promised for more democratic
reforms in Turkey and urged the EU not to block the accession of
his country just because of the Greek Cypriot veto. Turkey would
contribute to the EU strategically, not only because of being an
exemplary democracy in the Islamic world, but also because of its
access to all Middle East countries, better than most Europeans.

Indeed, Turkey was then not only talking to all countries in the
region, from Israel to Iran, trying to develop relations with Armenia,
having joint cabinet meetings with many neighbors from Greece to
Iraq and Syria. Later that year, the new U.S. President Barack Obama
would choose Turkey as the first stop in his first overseas trip;
the country was a rising star.

Now, Erdoðan is going to Brussels as the prime minister of Turkey
who doesn’t even have ambassadors in three of its region’s important
capital; Cairo, Tel Aviv and Damascus. A negotiation chapter was opened
in November 2013 after a three-year freeze. Erdoðan had to sack the
former EU minister from the cabinet because of the allegations in
relation with a major graft probe in December 2013 and appointed
Mevlut Cavuþoðlu to that post.

Cavuþoðlu had to face strong criticism by European politicians during
his first visit to Strasbourg on Jan. 14, warning Erdoðan’s Justice
and Development Party (AK Parti) government not to cover-up the
corruption allegations and try not to block the courts that want to
investigate them. Erdoðan refuted the criticisms and asked Turkey’s
ambassadors abroad, in a yearly conference in Ankara last week that,
they should tell the world the graft probe was not real, but a cover
for a “coup attempt” against him by a “parallel” structure within
the government apparatus, run by the sympathizers of a U.S.-resident
moderate Islamist scholar Fethullah Gulen, once his closest ally.

There are European politicians who took the opportunity to call for
an immediate freeze of negotiations with Turkey. It was Turkey’s main
opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kýlýcdaroðlu
who wrote a letter to Martin Schulz, the President of the European
Parliament last week and said the Erdoðan government should be forced
to adopt EU standards more and that to cut EU links with Turkey would
be a mistake and “would only strengthen the hands of those who would
wish to steer Turkey away from its Euro-Atlantic moorings.”

Schulz is among the top EU officials who are going to meet Erdoðan
in Brussels, along with Herman Van Rompuy, the President of the
European Council and Jose Manuel Barroso, the President of the
European Commission.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoðlu called the EU on Jan. 19
and said Erdoðan was ready to discuss all issues, including the row
over government-judiciary crisis, but the EU should be patient for
some time more and stop discriminating against Turkey. This is rather
a defensive position for a visit after a five-year interval. That’s
why Eroðan’s patience while talking to EU officials is likely to play
a more determinative role in the near future of Turkish-EU relations.

January/20/2014

From: Baghdasarian

ISTANBUL PROTEST FOR MURDERED TURKISH ARMENIAN JOURNALIST

Authint Mail, Pakistan
Jan 20 2014

20 January 2014 – 08:17AM GMT |
Middle East

ISTANBUL – Turkish riot police were out in force on Sunday as large
crowds massed in Istanbul to demand justice for a prominent Turkish
Armenian journalist murdered seven years ago.

“Murderer state will account for this,” chanted several thousand
protesters gathered in Istanbul’s Taksim Square to mark the anniversary
of Hrant Dink’s killing, with questions still lingering about the
circumstances of his death.

A demonstration has been staged every year since Dink’s murder and
has often turned into a general plea for justice.

“I’m not here only for Hrant. For more than 100 years, there has been
so much injustice in Turkey… and it is not only Armenians who have
been affected,” young historian Saro Dadyan told AFP.

Dink, 52, a leading member of Turkey’s tiny Armenian community, was
shot dead in broad daylight by a teenage ultranationalist outside
the offices of his bilingual Agos newspaper on January 19, 2007.

He had campaigned for reconciliation between Turks and Armenians,
but incurred the wrath of Turkish nationalists for calling the mass
killings of Armenians during World War I a genocide.

Dink’s supporters believe that those behind the murder were protected
by the state and have asked for a deeper investigation to uncover
officials who were allegedly involved.

Backing up widespread accusations of a state conspiracy, a former
police informant accused of instigating the murder claimed during
his trial last month that he had warned police of the plot but they
failed to act.

Dink’s self-confessed murderer, Ogun Samast, a 17-year-old jobless
high-school dropout at the time, was sentenced to almost 23 years in
jail in 2011.

Sunday’s rally came as the Turkish government is battling fresh
protests in the wake of a wide-ranging corruption scandal ensnaring
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s closest allies.

Turkish police on Saturday fired tear gas and plastic bullets to
break up a protest by around 2,000 people over controversial plans
to impose curbs on the Internet.

“This demonstration would still be meaningful even if there was no talk
of corruption. Because all these people are here for justice,” said
one man at the Dink demonstration who only gave his first name Levent.

“So many people have been put behind bars for unfair reasons…

Students, journalists, scientists and young people are suffering,”
the 45-year-old said.

Turkey has long been criticised for a lack of freedom of expression
and has been branded the world’s top jailer of journalists.

Dozens of journalists are in detention, as well as lawyers,
politicians and lawmakers — most of them accused of plotting against
the government or having links with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’
Party (PKK).

From: Baghdasarian

YEREVAN TO HOST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “WOMEN IN THE CAUCASUS”

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Jan 20 2014

20 January 2014 – 8:30pm

>From April 14-16 Yerevan will host the second international conference
“Women in the Caucasus: politics of war, peace and violence,” the
founder of an NGO “Democracy Today,” Gulnara Shaginian said.

The participants in the conference will discuss UN resolutions,
necessary reforms to be conducted in the military, security issues
and problems of religious fundamentalism News -Armenia reports.

The conference will be attended by experts from 15 countries,
Shaginian said.

From: Baghdasarian

Church leaders call to action for a just peace in Syria

16:12 18.01.2014

Aram I, Geneva, Syria

With the Geneva 2 talks on Syria scheduled for 22 January, some 30
church leaders from Syria and around the world gathered a week ahead
of time at the headquarters of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in
Geneva, Switzerland, and called for substantial action be taken at the
talks to end the armed conflict.

In a message to be delivered to Geneva 2 by Lakhdar Brahimi, the
United Nations-Arab League joint representative for Syria, the group
which is convinced there is no military solution, said in the message
that there needed to be `immediate cessation of all armed
confrontation and hostility within Syria’, thus ensuring that `all
vulnerable communities in Syria and refugees in neighboring countries
receive appropriate humanitarian assistance’ and that `a comprehensive
and inclusive process toward establishing a just peace and rebuilding
Syria’ should be developed.

`There is no time to waste; enough people have died or had to leave
their homes,’ Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC,
said following the meeting. `As churches we speak with one voice.’

The church leaders and representatives came from the Middle East, the
Vatican, Russia, other European nations and the United States and
included representatives from Syrian churches, the Middle East Council
of Churches, the Roman Catholic Church, Orthodox, Protestants and
Anglicans.

The meeting, called the Ecumenical Consultation on Syria and sponsored
by the WCC, was held 15 to17 January. It is a follow up to a similar
meeting in September 2013 sponsored by the WCC which also included
Brahimi and former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

`We are representing the silent majority, the voice of the voiceless,’
said Catholicos Aram I, head of the Holy See of Cilicia of the
Armenian Apostolic Church, to Brahimi who consulted with the group on
Thursday afternoon, 15 January.

`Your mission is not an easy one,’ His Holiness continued. `It is a
critical, crucial mission. You can be sure that you have our full
support, the full support of all churches, the full support of the
global Christian community.’

The meeting was accompanied by an ecumenical prayer held on the
evening of 16 January, also joined by the members of the international
community to express their solidarity with the people of Syria,
expressing hopes for peace in the country.

The service drew attention to the great antiquity of the Christian
presence in Syria, as well as the commitment of Syria’s Christians,
inspired by the New Testament to transform violence and oppression
into healing and reconciliation.

Church leaders and representatives from Syria, the Middle East Council
of Churches, the World Council of Churches and the Holy See issued the
following statement for Geneva 2 talks on Syria:

`Christians have maintained a continuous presence in the land of Syria
since the dawn of Christianity. Today, as churches and church-related
humanitarian agencies, we are present with the people of Syria on a
daily basis both inside the country and amongst refugees. In this
communication, we seek to raise their voice.

Our concern is for all people affected by the indiscriminate violence
and humanitarian calamity in Syria. Innocent children, women and men
are being killed, wounded, traumatized and driven from their homes in
uncounted numbers. We hear their cries, knowing that when `one member
suffers, all suffer together with it’ (1 Corinthians 12:26).

There will be no military solution to the crisis in the country.
Endeavouring to be faithful to God’s love of all human beings, and
within the context of international humanitarian law, we submit these
calls for action and guidelines for building peace.

We call upon you, as participants in the Geneva II conference, to:

1. pursue an immediate cessation of all armed confrontation and
hostility within Syria. We call for all parties to the conflict to
release detained and kidnapped persons. We urge the UN Security
Council to implement measures ending the flow of weapons and foreign
fighters into Syria.

2. ensure that all vulnerable communities in Syria and refugees in
neighbouring countries receive appropriate humanitarian assistance.
Where such large populations are at serious risk, full humanitarian
access is essential in compliance with international law and the
Responsibility to Protect.

3. develop a comprehensive and inclusive process toward establishing a
just peace and rebuilding Syria. All sectors of society (including
government, opposition and civil society) need to be included in a
Syrian solution for the Syrian people. We recognize the urgent need to
integrate women and young people fully in these processes.

Geneva II must be transformed into a peace-building process,
responding to the legitimate aspirations of all Syrian people. We
offer these guidelines:

· Any peace-building process must be Syrian-led. It should be
transparent and credible so Syrians may determine their country’s
future. Such a process requires the support of the Arab League, the
United Nations and the constructive engagement of all parties involved
in the current crisis.

· All efforts must be made to secure the peace, territorial integrity
and independence of Syria.

· The multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-confessional nature and
tradition of Syrian society must be preserved. The vibrant mosaic of
Syrian society entails equal rights for all of its citizens. The human
rights, dignity and religious freedom for all must be promoted and
protected in accordance with international norms.

As Christians we speak with one voice in calling for a just peace in
Syria. To achieve this peace, we are committed to working hand-in-hand
with Muslim sisters and brothers, with whom we share a common history
along with spiritual and social values. We seek to work for national
reconciliation and healing through building trust.’

From: Baghdasarian

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Jan 19 2014

Hrant Dink’s friends call for `justice’ on 7th year of murder

ISTANBUL

The crowd marched to the front of Armenian weekly Agos, where Hrant
Dink was murdered in broad daylight by a 17-year-old ultranationalist
in 2007. DHA Photo

Tens of thousands gathered in Istanbul to mark the seventh anniversary
of the killing of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink on Jan. 19.

The Friends of Hrant Dink organization, established in memory of the
late journalist, called for a march starting at 1:30 p.m. from Taksim
Square, which ended with a homage to Dink in front of the Agos
newspaper’s office building in the Pangaltı neighborhood of Å?iÅ?li.

Police took tight security measures around Istanbul’s Taksim Square
and closed Gezi Park, which was the site of massive resistance against
the government last summer, ahead of the commemoration.

The crowd marched to the front of Armenian weekly Agos, where Hrant
Dink was murdered in broad daylight by a 17-year-old nationalist in
2007.

At 2:56 p.m., mourners observed a minute of silence for Dink, after
which Gülten Kaya, the widow of late singer Ahmet Kaya, took the
microphone. Kaya commemorated not only Dink, but also those who were
killed during the Gezi Park Resistance last year. `We are here not
only to remember Hrant, but also Ethem [Sarısülük], Abdullah [Cömert],
Medeni [Yıldırım], Ahmet [Atakan] and those who died in the Gezi
protests,’ Kaya said. `You have left mothers and fathers devoid of
their children. Sons of this country were shot with treacherous
bullets. How can we forget how many homes were broken?’ she said.

Hrant Dink commemorated seven years after his murder

`What is your truth? This is 2014: You are carrying guns in your
trucks instead of peace, democracy and human rights,’ Kaya added,
addressing Turkey’s security forces.

Dink, the highly esteemed former editor-in-chief of weekly Agos, was
murdered in broad daylight in front of his newspaper’s building on
Jan. 19, 2007ü by a 17-year-old Turkish nationalist. The triggerman,
Ogün Samast, was convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to 22
years and 10 months of prison after a two year-trial.

The marchers chanted the slogan `Buradayız Ahparig!’ (a half-Turkish,
half-Armenian slogan meaning `We are here, brother”), `For Hrant, for
justice,’ and `We are all Armenians,’ in front of the Agos office. A
popular chant from the Gezi Park protests, `Everywhere is Taksim,
everywhere is resistance,’ was also heard.

After the rallyended, the crowd marched to Taksim.

In a controversial apparent gesture, a number of traffic police
officers assigned to the area were photographed wearing white caps. On
the day of the murder, Samast was wearing a white cap, which later
became an infamous symbol of the incident and a badge of pride among
ultranationalist fascists.

ErtuÄ?rul Günay, a former member of the ruling Justice and Development
Party (AKP), asked Istanbul Gov. Hüseyin Avni Mutlu, who became the
subject of mass revilement last year due to perceived lies surrounding
the police’s often brutal conduct during the Gezi Resistance, over
Twitter who had ordered the police to don white caps.

A small group of Trabzonspor supporters also attracted attention,
carrying a banner that read “We have not forgotten” in honor of the
slain journalist; Samast and those involved in instigating the murder
were based in Trabzon, and the Black Sea side’s supporters are
infamous for their ultranationalism. During the march, the Trabzonspor
supporters chanted “Trabzonspor is here, where are the gangs?”

The Dink murder case remains unsolved, with the court ruling that it
was not a result of an organized crime to the dismay of Dink’s family
and supporters. The ruling was mde despite serious claims that a
number of civil servants linked to the `deep state’ were `indirectly’
involved.

The acquittal of top suspects was ultimately overturned by the Supreme
Court of Appeals and many key suspects charged as instigators of the
murder, such as Yasin Hayal and Erhan Tuncel, are currently being
retried.

The organizers of the commemorative march also denounced the trial
process, accusing the state of protecting those responsible for the
murder.

January/19/2014

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIE
L’Iran et l’Arménie vont renforcer leurs relations selon une experte

Une experte arménienne de l’Iran Gohar Iskandaryan, a prédit une
percée dans les relations économiques entre l’Arménie et l’Iran en
2014.

S’exprimant lors d’une conférence de presse elle a déclaré qu’après
les pourparlers de Genève sur le programme nucléaire de Téhéran l’Iran
cherche un rôle pro-actif et une fois partie que les sanctions
occidentales sont retirées il y aura une occasion de réaliser un
certain nombre de projets, y compris avec l’Arménie .

Elle a déclaré qu’après les pourparlers de Genève, l’économie de
l’Iran montre des signes d’équilibre de plus en plus stables ce qui
donne l’espoir que certains projets arméno-iraniens seront
matérialisés tout d’abord la construction de la centrale
hydroélectrique de Meghri sur la rivière frontalière de l’Araxe.

Elle a ajouté qu’à la suite des pourparlers de Genève l’Iran a indiqué
qu’il pourrait vendre à l’Arménie du gaz pas cher, ce qui était
impossible auparavant.

« L’élimination partielle des sanctions et des restrictions a permis à
l’Iran de développer la coopération avec les pays partenaires et de
pénétrer de nouveaux marchés, ce qui était impossible sous
l’administration de l’ancien président Ahmadinejad » a déclaré
Iskandaryan.

dimanche 19 janvier 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIE
De nouvelles espèces de poissons devraient être interdites dans le lac
Sevan selon un scientifique

Des élevages de toutes sortes de poissons non typiques de l’écosystème
du lac Sevan, y compris la carpe et l’esturgeon, devraient être
interdits dans tous les élevages de poissons dans le lac a déclaré
Evelina Ghukasyan, chef de l’institut hydroécologie et ichtyologie.

Les ressources halieutiques commerciales ont expiré en Arménie et la
diversité biologique du lac Sevan a subi des changements importants,
notamment la réduction de la plupart des espèces de grande valeur et
l’émergence de nouvelles espèces de poissons qui peuvent causer des
problèmes a dit Evelina Ghukasyan ajoutant que seuls les saumons sont
les espèces endémiques dans le lac Sevan.

Les nouvelles espèces mangent la même nourriture que les espèces
endémiques, certains mangent même le caviar, dit-elle.

En vertu d’un plan gouvernemental de restauration des espèces
indigènes, beaucoup de bébés poissons de truite (bakhtak et
gegharkuni) sont relchés dans le lac chaque année. Mais parce que
l’eau est utilisée pour l’irrigation dans les rivières où les poissons
jettent leurs oeufs, la reproduction naturelle est menacée, a déclaré
la scientifique.

À cet égard, l’Institut hydroécologie et ichtyologie a développé un
concept pour attraper des truites matures de Sevan et les mettre dans
des incubateurs pour les préserver.

dimanche 19 janvier 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

Arménie-opposition-manifestation-social-retraites-retraite
Arménie : 6000 manifestants contre un nouveau régime de retraites controversé

Environ 6000 opposants ont manifesté samedi à Erevan, la capitale de
l’Arménie, contre une nouvelle loi sur les retraites controversée.

Cette loi, qui a pris effet le 1er janvier, oblige les gens nés après
1974 à verser cinq pour cent de leurs salaires à des fonds de pension
privés.

`Un racket du gouvernement, qui permet aux autorités de mettre leurs
mains dans les poches des gens, a été instauré`, a dénoncé Naira
Zokhrabian, une députée du parti d’opposition Arménie prospère.

Cette ex-république soviétique souffre d’un fort taux de chômage, et
les manifestants affirment que la nouvelle loi pourrait les
contraindre à chercher du travail à l’étranger.

`Les salaires des gens leur appartiennent et nul n’a le droit de leur
dire quoi faire avec`, a déclaré à l’AFP un des manifestants, Artur
Garibian.

`Cette loi ne devrait pas être contraignante`, a ajouté ce
programmateur informatique de 34 ans.

Ce nouveau régime de retraite a suscité la colère à travers la société
contre le gouvernement du président Serge Sarkissian.

Petit pays enclavé du Caucase, l’Arménie est isolée du point de vue
économique car ses frontières avec la Turquie et l’Azerbaïdjan voisins
sont fermées en raison de différends politiques.

AFP

dimanche 19 janvier 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Jan 17 2014

Russian helicopter squadron formed in Armenia

17 January 2014 – 10:05am

Russian Mi-24P, Mi-8MT and Mi-8SMV helicopters formed a squadron of
Armenian aviation at the Erebuni Airfield in the Southern Military
District of Russia, RIA Novosti reports.

A squadron of MiG-29s used to secure the area within the framework of
the CIS missile shield. The squadron will now provide air support and
assist in transportation of troops of the Russian military base in
Armenia. Pilots are currently making flights in Rostov-on-Don.

Transportation of helicopters to Armenia will start in 2014.

From: Baghdasarian