Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

Cilicia Seminary institutes new summer school programme in response to
the needs of Diaspora

16:20, 3 August, 2013

YEREVAN, AUGUST 4, ARMENPRESS: Because of the situation in Syria and
the region, many seminarians could not join their families
for a short vacation. Hence, the directorate of the Seminary
instituted a new summer school programme from 1 July to 28
September, reports Armenpress referring to Armenian Church
Catholicosate of Cilicia.

During the two six-week semesters, the students will follow the
following courses: Old and New Testament Studies, History of the
Armenian Church; History of the Catholicosate of Cilicia;languages:
classical and western Armenian, Arabic, English, French;
painting, singing and piano lessons.

Through its summer school, The Catholicosate of Cilicia aims at
preparing better qualified spiritual and community leaders and
invites parents to encourage the youth to enroll in the seminary.

From: Baghdasarian

Rustamyan Meets Swedish Ambassador

July 26, 2013

On July 26, ARF-D Supreme Council of Armenia Chairman and Head of the
Parliamentary Faction, Armen Rustamyan held a meeting with the
Ambassador of Sweden Diana Janse at the party’s `Kristapor Mikaelyan’
premises. Ambassador Janse who is stationed in Tbilisi and accredited
to Armenia, paid a visit to Yerevan in order to have a series of
meetings.

Rustamyan presented Janse with the ARF-D positions on domestic
developments and on the Armenia-EU relations.

Janse stated that Sweden is interested in fortifying the ties with the
Republic of Armenia.

Both sides agreed to periodically hold similar meetings.

From: Baghdasarian

Provocation Or Threat?

The response of official Ankara to the murder of the Turkish shepherd
on the Armenian-Turkish border was tough. It even contains certain
threats. Ankara states that the killing of an innocent citizen of
Turkey due to accidental crossing of the border is intolerable. At the
same time, Turkey’s ministry of foreign affairs has called Yerevan to
treat its relations with neighbors with common sense with a view to
regional stability.

In fact, the incident on the Armenian-Turkish border is a diplomatic scandal.

The Russian border guard service which guards the Armenian-Turkish
border stated that the shepherd did not only violate the border but
fired at the border guards. It is not clear when the Russian border
guards will present undeniable proof. They say they are investigating.
If the shepherd fired, they must present at least the gun with which
he fired because the gun could not just vanish.

Now it is clear that Turkey will use the incident as a weapon which it
needs so badly judging by internal and external problems.

Interestingly, the incident at the Armenian-Turkish border overlaps
with completion of negotiations on the Association Agreement and DCFTA
between the EU and Armenia. Furthermore, recently Armenia is brought
up the issue of the Armenian-Turkish border officially, stating that
association and free trade cannot be complete unless the border
between Armenia and Turkey which is also part of the EU customs is
closed.

In fact, Armenia indirectly puts forth conditions to the EU. In answer
to this, the EU commissioner Stefan Fule stated during his meeting
with the civil society representatives in Yerevan that Turkey will
remind the EU at every opportunity that being a member of Europe means
being good neighbors. In fact, the EU acknowledges the issue brought
up by Armenia where the sides have mutual understanding if completion
of negotiation is announced.

In this context the border incident occurs as Armenia tries to refresh
the issue of the Armenian-Turkish border on the European agenda. The
incident occurs on the Armenian side, and the Turkish trespasser is
killed. Crossing a border is a crime indeed, an encroachment on state
security but killing is too extreme a thing to be chosen as a
preventive or stopping measure.

Turkey gains an extra argument to tackle this process. And the Russian
border guards give Turkey this argument, who kill instead of catching
the shepherd.

Moreover, a point of view is kneaded that the Turkish shepherd was not
a shepherd and had other reasons to cross the Armenian border because
he fired at the border guards, as the Russian border guards say.

All the more so, he should not be killed. In such cases, everything
must be done to catch the trespasser and find out the purpose of his
visit. This is the requirement of principles of state security and
professionalism. In this case, the Russian border guards would give
the weapon to Armenia, not Turkey.

So, either border guards lack professionalism if they are unable to
render harmless a trespasser who could hardly have been someone like
Rambo with his equipment and arms, or the Russian border guards
controlling the Armenian-Turkish border are guided by the state
security issues of their own state, rather than the Armenian state.

The result is an Armenian-Turkish, not a Russian-Turkish scandal. And
in its current situation Armenia needs scandals the least because
scandals harm Armenia and empower Turkey to oppose allegations ahead
of the 100th anniversary and development of relations with the EU.

Although the Russian border guards shot the trespasser who officially
perform border guard service, the Republic of Armenia is responsible.
So, Turkey will talk to Armenia, not the Russian Federal Border Guard
Service. The issue is a broader one which has persisted over the past
two decades of the independent state. The border with its paramount
military, political and even geopolitical importance is actually out
of control of Armenia while even the humming of bees may result in an
interstate or a regional scandal. This is an absurd situation.

Besides, incidents can be provocations, mistakes or accidents. It is
not important now that Armenia is responsible for the mistakes or
intentions of the state service of another country. The problem is not
fears from Turkey but the logic of the general situation which renders
Armenia vulnerable, keeping this section of the Armenian-Turkish
border as a source of provocations. In addition, the situation stakes
Russia as well because it is possible to shatter regional stability
and shift responsibility on Russia.

James Hakobyan
11:07 03/08/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

From: Baghdasarian

Bicycle parking lots to be set up in Yerevan

12:33 03/08/2013 » SOCIETY

On the initiative of Yerevan Municipality, bicycle parking lots will
be set up in Yerevan, the press service of Yerevan Municipality
reported.

A working group involving individuals and representatives of NGOs has
been formed for this purpose.

Proposals regarding the areas where bicycle parking lots will be
constructed were discussed during a meeting at Yerevan Municipality.
The parking lots are planned to be located near rest zones and
universities.

Source: Panorama.am

From: Baghdasarian

GOLDEN APRICOT TO ASSIST DONATE LIFE CHARITY PROJECT

11:45, 2 August, 2013

YEREVAN, AUGUST 2, ARMENPRESS: The Golden Apricot International Film
Festival will cooperate with the Donate Life charitable project. As
Armenpress was reported by the Press Service of the Festival, the
10th Golden Apricot International Film Festival, held on July 7-14,
presented about 230 films from 61 countries of the world. 51,000 people
attended the screenings held in different cinemas and clubs of Yerevan.

The Festival was broadcast by international media, such as Euranews,
“СанкÑ~B-Ð~_еÑ~BеÑ~@бÑ~CÑ~@гÑ~Aкие ВедемоÑ~AÑ~Bи”,
“ВеÑ~GеÑ~@нÑ~OÑ~O Ð~оÑ~Aква”, “ТÑ~@Ñ~Cд”, Art1 Visual
Daily, “Ð~ZÐ~XÐ~]Ð~^ТÐ~U”, Le Courrier d’Erevan, Nouvelle d’Armenie,
Armenian Weekly, Garoon Monthly, Kino-teatr.ru, “Topic Life”, Agence
France Presse (Tbilisi), Norwegian broadcasting corp. (NRK P2).

Meetings with some of the honored guests of the Festival were held,
particularly with the noted documentary filmmaker Godfrey Reggio,
Margarethe von Trotta, Jos Stelling, etc.

The young students of the Tumo Center of Creative Technologies were
provided with the opportunity to meet with Atom Egoyan, Godfrey Reggio,
Pietro Marchello and Maria Sahakyan.

On July 9-11 in the framework of the Festival, the 7th regional forum
“Directors without borders” was held, presenting 13 film projects. The
main prize of â~B¬5000 was awarded to “Dede” project of Mariam
Khachvani and Vladimir Kacharava (Georgia). The second prize of
â~B¬3500 went to Kivanch Sezer and Soner Alper (Turkey) for “Blood
Money”. The third award of â~B¬3500 was granted to Emil Lazarian,
Hasmik Hovhannisyan and Arevik Avanesyan for the Armenian film project
“A Song For Nola”.

The legendary Armenian composer and chansonnier Charles Aznavour was
present at the 10th Golden Apricot International Film Festival held on
July 7-14 in Yerevan. During the Festival the program of retrospective
screenings presented the films of Charles Aznavour and the event was
opened by the Francois Truffaut’s “Shoot the Piano Player” film with
the participation of the famous singer.

The 10th Golden Apricot International Film Festival was assisted by
the Embassies of the United States, Germany, France and Poland to
the Republic of Armenia, which provided the financial support for
some of the Festival’s programs.

The Ambassador of the United States of America to the Republic of
Armenia John Heffern stated at the meeting with the journalists that
they were happy to assist the Golden Apricot Festival. John Heffern
highlighted the fact of assisting the Armenia-Turkey film platform,
noting that for this year 11 short films and a documentary on the
subject of the Armenian-Turkish relations reconciliation were prepared.

The 10th Golden Apricot Yerevan kept the tradition of “Yerevan
Premieres”, “Retrospectives” and “Tributes” out-of-competition
programs.

This year 3 special programs were presented: “Georgian Cinema”,
“Sister Festivals” and “Armenians: view from outside and inside”.

“Tributes” celebrated the jubilees of the famous composer Aram
Khachatryan, and directors Artavazd Peleshyan and Nerses Hovhannisyan,
with intended retrospectives screenings.

On Aram Khachatryan’s 110th anniversary, in association with the
museum of the honorable composer, the festival planned an evening,
dedicated to him. An excursion around the museum and a concert with
the participation of a trio named after the respective melodist
were planned for the evening. The following films, where the
original music is by Khachatryan, were screened: Sonata – Song
(by Lusine Martirosyan), Othello (by Sergey Yutkevich), Pepo (by
Hamo Beknazaryan).

On the 75th anniversary of Artavazd Peleshyan retrospective screenings
of his films were planned, as well as of Peleshyan’s Silence by
the Italian director Pietro Marcello. Nerses Hovhannisyan’s 75th
anniversary was memorized also with the retrospective screenings of
his films.

Krzysztof Zanussi and Godfrey Reggio were among the official guests
of the Golden Apricot 10th jubilee IFF.

“Yerevan Premieres” of 10th Golden Apricot included “The girl and
Death” by Jos Stelling, “Till Night Do Us Part” by Boris Khlebnikov,
“Hannah Arendt” by Margarethe von Trotta, “The Paradise…” trilogy
by Ulrich Seidl and “Right to Love” by Paul Kurti. Jos Stelling,
Margarethe von Trotta were personally present at the festival as
honorable guests and presented their own films.

The annually held Golden Apricot International Film Festival was
established in the capital of the Republic of Armenia, Yerevan, in
2004 by the “Golden Apricot” Fund for Cinema Development, the Armenian
Association of Film Critics and Cinema Journalists, supported by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, the Ministry
of Culture of Republic of Armenia and Benevolent Fund for Cultural
Development.

From: Baghdasarian

MY SON SHALL BE ARMENIAN: DOCUMENTARY ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

12:24 02/08/2013 ” SOCIETY

My Son Shall Be Armenian is a 2004 Canadian documentary by Hagop
Goudsouzian, who travels to Armenia and Syria with five other members
of Montreal’s Armenian community who lost relatives in the Armenian
Genocide, to speak with survivors.

In Syria, Goudsouzian films in Deir ez-Zor, where thousands of
Armenians were said to have been killed. In one scene, he scrapes
the soil around a church and discovers the remains of what appears to
be a mass grave, scooping up bones, a wedding ring and a bullet. In
Armenia, Goudsouzian visits villages that had been renamed for former
settlements, finding elders who recount what had occurred to their
parents and siblings.

The Armenian Genocide has been recognized and condemned by Uruguay
(1965), the Republic of Cyprus (1982), Argentina (1993), Russia
(1995), Canada (1996), Greece (1996), Lebanon (1997), Belgium (1998),
Italy (2000), Vatican (2000), France (2001), Switzerland (2003),
Slovakia (2004), The Netherlands (2004), Poland (2005), Germany
(2005), Venezuela (2005), Lithuania (2005), Chile (2007), Sweden
(2010). The Armenian Genocide has been recognized by Vatican, the
Council of Europe and the World Council of Churches.

The documentary is available here.

Source: Panorama.am

From: Baghdasarian

HOW MUCH GOLD AND SILVER IS EXTRACTED IN ARMENIA?

August 02, 2013 | 04:25

YEREVAN. – In 2012, a total of 2,896 kilograms of gold and 22.2 tons of
silver was mined inArmenia, informs the National Statistical Service.

As compared to 2011, the extraction of gold in Armeniaincreased by
5.8 percent, whereas that of silver dropped by about 12 percent.

In addition, 10,700 tons of zinc, 6,500 tons of molybdenum, and 52,500
tons of copper were mined in Armeniain the year past.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

From: Baghdasarian

TURQUIE : LA DETRESSE CACHEE DES POLICIERS

turquie

Les manifestations en Turquie ont mis en lumière la contestation
d’un peuple a l’egard de ses dirigeants, mais aussi la violence de
la police turc, qui n’hesite pas a employer la manière forte pour
deloger les manifestants. Ce qui est moins connu, en revanche, c’est
la detresse de ces forces de police. Comme l’indique un reportage
d’une envoyee speciale du Point.fr, depuis six mois, il y aurait eu
vingt et un suicides de policiers. Et ceux qui tentent de se lier en
syndicat risquent perdre leur emploi.

“Il n’y a pas eu une ligne a ce sujet dans les journaux. Le
gouvernement, lui, fait la sourde oreille devant les demandes du
syndicat de creer une cellule de soutien psychologique.

Paradoxalement, les revendications du syndicat de police ne sont
pas si eloignees de celles des manifestants. Ils luttent pour plus
de liberte d’expression, de reconnaissance et pour le respect des
droits de l’homme”, ecrit le site de l’hebdomadaire. Et de poursuivre,
citant l’un des policiers officieusement syndiques : “il y a eu des
derapages individuels de policiers durant les protestations et les
fautifs doivent etre blâmes. […] Mais ils n’ont fait qu’appliquer les
ordres des superieurs et ont riposte aux attaques pour se defendre”.

vendredi 2 août 2013, Stephane ©armenews.co

From: Baghdasarian

CONSTRUCTION D’UN QUARTIER ” NOUVEL ALEP ” DANS LA VILLE D’ACHTARAK

ARMENIE

L’ensemble de la presse relève que la construction d’un quartier ”
Nouvel Alep ” qui sera destine aux Syriens d’origine armenienne
refugies en Armenie, a demarre. Ce projet elabore par le Ministère de
la Diaspora, beneficie du soutien du President de la Republique. Le
Conseil municipal de la ville d’Achtarak a decide d’attribuer
gracieusement 4,8 hectares de terrain pour la construction de 5 a 10
immeubles et de quelque 100 villas. Le choix de l’endroit a ete fait
par les refugies eux-memes. Les quotidiens relèvent aussi que l’homme
d’affaires armenien, Hrant Vardanian, (proprietaire de Grant Holding)
a octroye 100 000 $ pour la mise en place de ce projet. Selon Azg,
la famille de Samvel Karapetian, homme d’affaires russe d’origine
armenienne (d’après le classement Forbes, l’Armenien le plus riche au
monde), a egalement souhaite contribuer a ce programme. La Ministre
de la Diaspora, Hranouch Hakobian, a appele tous les Armeniens,
hommes d’affaires et hommes politiques, a apporter leur contribution.

Extrait de la revue de presse de l’Ambassade de France en Armenie en
date du 26 juillet 2013

vendredi 2 août 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

MP VISITED DETAINED ACTIVIST

Member of Parliament Pashinyan visited Argishti Kiviryan who was taken
to the police station today at the City Hall during the clash with
activists demanding the resignation of the mayor and other officials.

Pashinyan met him and afterwards announced that he will be fined for
disobeying the orders of the policeman. He said Argishti Kiviryan
will be set free in three hours. Earlier Kiviryan had stated that he
underwent violence.

16:56 01/08/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:

From: Baghdasarian