Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

CITY OF GLENDALE DESIGNATES APRIL 2015 AS “ARMENIAN GENOCIDE COMMEMORATION MONTH”

By MassisPost
Updated: March 10, 2015

GLENDALE – The Glendale City Council Tuesday presented a proclamation
designating the Month of April 2015 as “Armenian Genocide Commemoration
Month.” Mayor Zareh Sinanyan presented the proclamation during
the regular session of the City Council to representatives of the
Armenian-Genocide Centennial Committee of Western United States.

The Glendale City Council also unanimously passed a Resolution
designating April 2015 as the “Month of Commemoration of Centennial
Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide”; and Taking Actions Necessary
to Ensure the City and its Institutions Including Schools, Libraries
and Publicly Owned Museums Properly Commemorate, Inform and Provide
Education About the Genocide.

Below is the text of the Resolution:

RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GLENDALE DESIGNATING APRIL
2015 AS THE “MONTH OF COMMEMORATION OF THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY
OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE”; AND TAKING ACTIONSNECESSARY TO ENSURE THE
CITY AND ITS INSTITUTIONS INCLUDING SCHOOLS, LIBRARIES AND PUBLICLY
OWNED MUSEUMS PROPERLY COMMEMORATE, INFORM AND PROVIDE EDUCATION
ABOUT THE GENOCIDE

WHEREAS, the Armenian people were subjects of a systematic and
premeditated Genocidal campaign which began on April 24, 1915, at
the hands of the Young Turk Government of the Ottoman Empire from
1915-1919, and which continued at the hands of the Kemalist Movement
of Turkey from 1920-1923 whereby over 1.5 million Armenian men, women
and children were slaughtered or marched to their deaths in an effort
to annihilate the Armenian Nation in the First modem Genocide of the
20th century, while thousands of surviving Armenian women and children
were forcibly converted and Islamized, and hundreds of thousands more
were subjected to ethnic cleansing during the period of the modern
Republic of Turkey from 1924-1937; and

WHEREAS, during the genocides of the Christians living in the Ottoman
Empire and surrounding regions which occurred during the first half
of the 20th Century, hundreds of thousands of Assyrians, Greeks
and other Christians, lost their lives at the hands of the Ottoman
Turkish Empire and the Republic of Turkey, and WHEREAS, these crimes
against humanity also had the consequence of permanently removing all
traces of the Armenians and other targeted people from their historic
homelands of more than four millennia, and enriching the perpetrators
with the lands and other property of the victims of these crimes,
including the usurpation of several thousand churches; and

WHEREAS, in response to the Genocide and at the behest of the
President Woodrow Wilson and the U.S. State Department, the
Near East Relief organization was founded, and became the first
Congressionally-sanctioned American philanthropic effort created
exclusively to provide humanitarian assistance and to rescue the
Armenian Nation and other Christian minorities from annihilation,
who went on to survive and thrive outside of their ancestral homeland
all over the world and specifically in the State of California; and

WHEREAS, the planning and implementation of Genocide is indisputably
recognized in international law as a Crime Against Humanity and is
punishable as such, yet has remained unpunished for nearly one hundred
years, as the government of Turkey is allowed with impunity to distort
history and to deny the Genocide and its consequences perpetrated
both by its Ottoman predecessor and its subsequent regimes despite
international recognition of the Armenian Genocide by 23 countries,
including the United States of America; and

WHEREAS, the Republic of Turkey inexplicably and adamantly has
denied the occurrence of the crimes against humanity committed by
the Ottoman and Young Turk rulers for many years, and continues to
do so a full century since the first crimes constituting genocide
occurred despite the Turkish governments’ earlier admissions and the
overwhelming proof of genocidal intent; and

WHEREAS, the Republic of Turkey has escalated its international
campaign of Genocide denial; it maintains its illegal blockade of
humanitarian aid to the Republic of Armenia, and steadily increases its
pressure on any movement in Turkey acknowledging the Armenian Genocide
and seeking justice for its victims and other persecuted indigenous
minorities; and WHEREAS, this resolution declares that the Glendale
City Council deplores the persistent, ongoing efforts by any person,
in this country or abroad, to deny the historical fact of the Armenian
Genocide and its related atrocities; and WHEREAS, every person should
be made aware of and educated about the Armenian Genocide and other
crimes against humanity, and know that April 24, 1915 is globally
recognized as the commencement of the Armenian Genocide and that 2015
marks the centennial anniversary since its commencement.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GLENDALE
AS FOLLOWS:

1. That April 2015 is hereby designated as the “City of Glendale Month
of Commemoration of the Centennial Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide
of 1915-1923â~@³, in order to ensure that the Armenian Genocide is
properly commemorated and taught to the community at large, to the
schools, their faculty and student body, and to visitors to Glendale
through educational and cultural events.

2. That the Glendale City Council hereby commends the extraordinary
service which was delivered by Near East Relief to the survivors of
the Armenian Genocide and Assyrian Genocide, including thousands of
direct beneficiaries of American philanthropy who are the parents,
grandparents, and great-grandparents of many Californian residents,
and the City Council reaffirms its commitment to working with
community groups, nonprofit organizations, City personnel, and the
Glendale Unified School District to host campus wide educational
events dedicated specifically to these efforts as an important part
of American history.

3. That the Glendale City Council calls upon the President of
the United States to work toward equitable, constructive, stable,
and durable Armenian-Turkish relations based upon the Republic of
Turkey’s full acknowledgment of the facts and ongoing consequences
of the Armenian Genocide, and toward a fair, just, and comprehensive
international resolution of this crime against humanity, including
reparations to the Armenian nation.

4. That the Glendale City Council transmit copies of this Resolution to
the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker
of the United States House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader
of the United States Senate, to each United States Senator and Member
of Congress from California, to the Governor of California, and every
member of the California State Legislature, to the California State
Superintendent of Instruction, and to the Turkish Ambassador to the
United States.

From: Baghdasarian

RESOLUTION ADOPTEE PAR L’ASSEMBLEE POLITIQUE DU PARTI POPULAIRE EUROPEEN (3 MARS 2015) SUR >

EUROPE

Le Parti Populaire Europeen reaffirme sa reconnaissance et sa
condamnation du Genocide et la grande depossession nationale du peuple
armenien a la veille du 100ème > du 24 avril 2015.

1. Nous condamnons les actes genocidaires commis contre le peuple
armenien, planifies et perpetres en continue par l’Empire Ottoman
et les differents regimes de la Turquie entre 1894 et 1923. Nous
condamnons la depossession du pays d’origine, les massacres et
les nettoyages (epurations) ethniques visant l’extermination du
peuple armenien, la destruction de l’heritage armenien, de meme que
la negation du genocide des Armeniens, et toutes les tentatives de
fuir toute responsabilite, d’expedier dans l’oubli les crimes commis
et leurs consequences ou de les justifier, tel un prolongement de
ce crime. Nous condamnons egalement l’encouragement a commettre de
nouveaux genocides.

2. Nous commemorons 1.5 million de victimes innocentes du genocide
des Armeniens de 1915 et nous nous inclinons devant ceux qui furent
martyrises mais qui ont survecu en heros et lutte pour leurs vies et
leur dignite humaine. Plus encore, nous reconnaissons que le genocide
est le resultat de la mort et de la depossession non seulement du
peuple armenien mais egalement des peuples grecs et assyriens, et
nous les commemorons tout autant.

3. Nous rejoignons et supportons fermement le devouement de l’Armenie
et du peuple armenien a continuer leur lutte internationale pour la
prevention des genocides, le retablissement des droits des personnes
assujetties au genocide et l’etablissement d’une justice historique.

4. Nous invitons la Turquie, a la lumière de la Republique federale
d’Allemagne d’après-guerre qui fut un exemple d’integrite et de
leadership prefere, a se confronter a l’Histoire et a finalement
reconnaître la realite patente du genocide des Armeniens et de la
depossession qui s’y attache, afin de se racheter et reparer de
facon appropriee, tel un pays europeen. Cela inclut, sans limite,
de garantir un droit au retour du peuple armenien a leur foyer en
toute securite, avec l’accomplissement imperatif d’une reconciliation
a travers la verite.

5. Nous appelons le Gouvernement Turc a respecter et a realiser
pleinement les obligations legales qu’il a entrepris, qui incluent
la protection de l’heritage culturel, et a se comporter de bonne foi
et integrer un inventaire de l’heritage des armeniens et des autres
heritages culturels detruits et ruines pendant le siècle passe, base
sur le developpement d’une strategie de restauration prioritaire
des biens des capitales medievales, eglises, ecoles, forteresses,
cimetières, et autres tresors situes dans l’historique Armenie
Occidentale et de rendre pleinement operationnelles les institutions
culturelles et religieuses susmentionnees.

6. Nous faisons appel a l’Union Europeenne et a ses Etats membres,
aux organisations internationales, et a toutes les personnes de
bonne volonte, peu importe leur origine ethnique et leur confession
religieuse, pour unir leurs efforts afin de retablir la justice
historique et de rendre hommage a la memoire des victimes du genocide
des Armeniens.

7. Compte tenu des considerations qui precèdent, le Parti Populaire
Europeen invite la Turquie a prendre les mesures suivantes en
application de ses obligations/ engagements internationales et en
vertu de l’identite europeenne a laquelle elle aspire :

Reconnaître et condamner le genocide des Armeniens commis par
l’Empire Ottoman, et faire face a sa propre histoire et memoire par la
commemoration des victimes de cet abominable crime contre l’humanite ;

Apporter une vision et un plan d’action louable d’une veritable
Turquie europeenne, ce qui comprend une resolution pacifique avec
des solutions attenants a la liberte d’expression et de reference
au genocide des Armeniens dans l’Etat, dans la societe de manière
generale et dans les institutions d’education ainsi que la reparation
de sites culturels et religieux et leur restitution aux Armeniens et
aux communautes correspondantes.

8. Le Parti Populaire Europeen invite aussi l’Union europeenne,
la Commission europeenne, le Conseil et le Parlement a evaluer les
promesses, engagements et obligations entrepris par la Turquie en
concordance avec la reconnaissance, la restauration, la restitution de
nos heritages partages declares ci-joints et desormais officiellement
commemores le 24 avril, comme un jour pour se souvenir et condamner
le genocide des Armeniens et l’inhumanite de l’homme envers l’homme.

9. Nous exprimons l’espoir de cette reconnaissance et de cette
condamnation du genocide des Armeniens par la Turquie ce qui servira
de point de depart a la reconciliation historique entre les peuples
armenien et turc.

mardi 10 mars 2015, Stephane (c)armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

TI: CORRUPTION REMAINS IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

SOCIETY | 10.03.15 | 15:45

By SARA KHOJOYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

Transparency International says widespread corruption remains in the
field of public procurement, despite government efforts to curb it.

“We have systemic problems,” Transparency International expert Artak
Manukyan told reporters Tuesday. “Through certain means it is possible
to register short-term progress in some directions, but that is not
growth established in legislative or institutional terms.”

Manukyan said that Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union
opens the way for more opportunities of corruption, saying that EEU
countries will be granted certain trade preferences.

“The government presents this as a method of encouraging local
producers, but this is the worst method, by which corruption risks are
created. Even without it our budgetary means are not efficiently spent,
and now we create extra grounds so that goods that were previously
purchased by x amount of money, are now purchased 15 percent more
expensive,” Manukyan said.

From: Baghdasarian

ARCHBISHOP ARAM ATESHIAN: ‘WOMEN FROM ARMENIA COME TO ISTANBUL, MARRY TURKS, AND COVER THEIR HEADS’

Anna Muradyan

12:22, March 10, 2015

Hetq talks to Archbishop Aram Ateshian, General Vicar (Acting
Patriarch) of the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople.

After being in Istanbul for a few months, I get the impression that
the Armenian community in Turkey Armenia isn’t all that connected
to Armenia.

Long before Armenia gained its independence, our community members
had a desire to see the homeland and to visit our compatriots there.

Afterwards, singers, song and dance troupes, intellectuals and other
individuals came to Turkey and, of course, people from here visited
Mother Armenia as well.

Armenians from Armenia living here get medical treatment in our
hospitals to the degree possible and their children receive totally
free treatment. We take care of the baptisms. If the deceased cannot
be transferred back to Armenia, we take care of the services and bury
them in our cemeteries. We also participate in the education these
children receive at the Hrant Dink School. I have personally become
involved in this matter in the last few months. So how can you say
that the connection has been broken?

At the same time it must be said that when our compatriots from Armenia
first came to Turkey our community members opened their doors to them
but, unfortunately, several families were robbed.

Your Holiness, aren’t you making a judgment based on a few cases?

Naturally, there are thieves and robbers in every people and community,
and you cannot accuse the majority for the acts of the minority. Our
community was simply hurt by this.

When a period of mourning was declared in Armenia over the tragic death
of little Seryozh Avetisyan in January, we expected some reaction to
the incident here as well.

Of course there was a reaction. When the newspapers covered that
matter for days on end, our community members were also pained. The
Patriarchate instructed all its churches to perform a hokehankisd
(repose of souls) service. But since we didn’t tell the newspapers
about this, many never heard of it.

How do you see the future of Armenians in Istanbul?

First, as Christian Armenians our future are our churches and schools,
our language and culture, our national and church values. Individuals
however search for their future in the country where they were born
and raised.

The question is often raised as to why Armenians in Istanbul do not
speak Armenian that well.

One must not forget that Bolis was a center of intellectualism and
that many famous writers were born here who played a significant role
in preserving our language and literature.

A majority of our community hails from the provinces where there are
no Armenian schools. Thus, they couldn’t learn their mother tongue.

It’s not their fault. Most of those enrolled in our schools come from
such families. True, while they may not learn the language perfectly,
we are still pleased with the result.

Over the past 40-50 years most of the classroom instruction in our
schools has become Turkish. We changed the language to Turkish so that
the students could pass the college entrance exams in Turkish. They
couldn’t by using Armenian. And this wasn’t only the decision of the
principals. It was community wide. It was decided to keep Armenian
language and religion classes in Armenian and the rest in Turkish.

But we have the example of the Syrian Armenians, where the level of
Armenian speaking and preserving the language is very high.

Syria, for the Syrian-Armenians, was a free country without
discrimination where they were able to preserve the language, religion
and culture.

And what about the Armenians who come here from Armenia? When I talk
to some of them in Armenian, they answer back in Turkish. I ask them,
‘Aren’t you Armenian? Why do you speak Turkish?’ Their answer is that
they can speak Turkish better. How many women are like this? It’s
not just one, two, or three. And many of those Armenians come here
and marry Muslims. There are Armenians who cover their heads. They
thought differently back in Armenia and completely change after
coming to Turkey. Sure, there are mixed marriages in all countries,
but we have seen a rise her recently.

If there are mixed marriages in the Istanbul Armenian community,
why such a negative reaction when Armenians from Armenia marry Turks?

I didn’t use the word Turk, but rather mixed marriage in which people
of all religions and faiths can be involved. If the issue is marrying
Turks, I will say that our compatriots from Armenia, being born and
educated there, who learnt Armenian history there and who had different
ideas about them [Turks], regarding them as the enemy, in a word hating
them, they came here and, besides looking for a job, married them. Why?

The matter of Islamized Armenians is often talked about. On different
occasions you have stated that Christianity is a criterion for being
Armenian.

I would say that Christianity is an inseparable part of being
Armenian. Nationality and religion are inseparable for us. Who has
given more martyrs in the name of Christianity than the Armenian
people?

But the grandfathers and grandmothers of many of those people were
Armenian like you and me.

How can an individual prove that he or she is Armenian? The answer
is a baptismal certificate. Should we accept them just when they
state ‘I am Armenian’? The government of Armenia requires a baptismal
certificate when one files for citizenship. That’s the right thing to
do. Neither our nationality nor religion should be for sale so cheaply.

Let’s assume that a person wants to be baptized in the church.

In that case, they have to submit a request to the Patriarchate,
take lessons, change that section of passport to read ‘Christian’,
get baptized and become a member of the Armenian Church. But they do
not want to change their documents. They just want to get baptized.

In that case, why do they desire to get baptized?

It’s because a baptism certificate opens many doors overseas. They
want to become a member of the Armenian Church but, on the other hand,
to show that they are Muslim. They want the flexibility to use both
variants. If they go to Armenia or Europe they can use the baptismal
certificate, while in this country they can play the Muslim card when
it suits them. No one will accept this.

But you have reservations about Armenians who became Muslims in the
late 1950s.

I have no reservations but hope because there are still Armenians in
their midst; people who speak Armenian, who secretly make the sign of
the cross. I have brought children and young people of those families,
especially from Dikranagerd, to our schools here in Istanbul. The
older ones have married other Armenians and all have been baptized
and are members of the Armenian Church.

From: Baghdasarian

TENSIONS REIGNITE IN THE NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT

Updated News, Canada
March 9 2015

The embers of the quarter-century-old war over Nagorno-Karabakh –
a landlocked mountainous region in the South Caucasus that lies at a
crossroads between East and West – are smouldering again, and raising
concerns another full-scale war is not far away.

The region has been the playground of empires for centuries with the
Persian, Russian, Ottoman, and European empires wrestling over its
natural resources and geostrategic advantage – while various ethnic
groups fought for local control.

The most recent conflict erupted in 1988 after 65 years of imposed
peace under Soviet rule, when Armenians living in the Nagorno-Karabakh
region of what was then the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR)
declared their desire to separate and join neighbouring Armenian SSR.

What was initially a peaceful movement soon degenerated into violence
and ethnic cleansing by both sides, and ultimately a full-scale war
between the newly independent Republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan in
the 1990s.

It was one of the most brutal conflicts to result from the imploding
Soviet Union with an estimated 30,000 people killed, mostly civilians,
and hundreds of thousands displaced before a ceasefire took hold.

“You are asking very painful questions,” said Ashot Harutiunyan, a
war veteran and director of the history museum in the town of Shushi
in Nagorno-Karabakh, when asked about the region’s bloody past.

Life before the war, he said, was different “because that was during
the Soviet government. It was a government where people couldn’t
discuss questions of national identity… And of course we lived
in this system, had neighbours, visited each other – there were
good Azeris.”

‘Grenades at home’

Aynur Jafar was an internally displaced person who fled her home in
the Azerbaijani city of Aghdam with her family when the situation
became too dangerous.

“It was a very peaceful place and even Armenians were coming and
visiting,” she recalled. “I mean, we were neighbours, we were living
peacefully … we didn’t think a war could happen.”

But it did.

“We kept hand grenades at home. Everybody had this … in case they
suddenly attacked,” Jafar, who was seven-years old when the war
started, told Al Jazeera.

The stories of torture from neighbouring villages were so terrifying
that all in the community feared being taken hostage.

“We’d decided to come together and just use that grenade to [commit]
suicide,” Jafar said.

Traumatised civilians, who initially resolved never to abandon their
homes, felt lucky to have escaped the war zone in the end.

“People didn’t even have time to pack some things. They just ran …

arriving in Yerevan [Armenia’s capital] with just the clothes on
their backs,” Silva Prodan, who served as a doctor in the war, said
of the Armenian refugees who fled Nagorno-Karabakh upon being caught
in the crossfire.

By the time a ceasefire was negotiated in 1994 with the help of
regional powers, Armenian forces took control over Nagorno-Karabakh,
along with some buffer corridors of Azeri territory, and
Nagorno-Karabakh declared itself an independent republic, albeit
unrecognised by much of the world, with its own government and
military.

The ceasefire has far from resolved the conflict, however, and failed
to lead to a peace agreement. To the contrary, said Harutiunyan.

“Basically since 1994 … there has been an ongoing unofficial war”.

Azerbaijan vows to re-establish the integrity of its “occupied”
territories sooner or later, while Armenian authorities boast they
will retain the “liberated” Armenian lands.

Ceasefire

In the 25 years since the ceasefire, tit-for-tat gunfire has resulted
in periodic deaths of border guards on both sides.

But there has been a significant escalation in these incidents recently
involving the use of heavier weapons and attacks on civilians,
“which was not visible as often before”, said Arsen Kharatyan,
a Tbilisi-based freelance journalist.

In 2014, 60 people died in cross-border violence, with one of the more
serious incidents involving the downing of an Armenian helicopter by
Azeri forces in early November.

More troubling is both Armenia, and by proxy Nagorno-Karabakh, as
well as Azerbaijan have been amassing an unprecedented presence of
weaponry, with Azerbaijan’s annual military budget reaching $3bn by
2011, exceeding Armenia’s entire gross domestic product.

Furthermore, recent statements from officials from all sides contain
increasingly belligerent rhetoric.

Bayram Safarov, chairman of the Azerbaijani Community of
Nagorno-Karabakh in Exile, declared on February 3 that the Azerbaijani
army is capable of “running the Armenians not only out of the occupied
territories of the Azerbaijan Republic, but from Armenia itself”.

In his New Year’s greetings to the armed forces, Azerbaijani Defence
Minister Zakhir Gasanov announced: “We will not allow the enemy to
live peacefully on our historic lands. We will restore our territorial
integrity.”

On the other side, Armenian authorities have indicated they are
preparing for all-out war.

As early as 2010, Lieutenant General Movses Hakobian, the defence
minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic stated: “I’m not waiting for
[Azerbaijani] provocations, I’m waiting for war… Nagorno-Karabakh’s
defence ministry and defence army were set up to wage war, and we
are getting ready for that every day, every hour.”

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan responded to the latest border
violence with: “We have prepared many surprises for the hotheads
in Azerbaijan.”

A tangle of alliances raises further concerns that the escalating
situation could expand beyond full-scale war into a wider regional
conflict.

Russia has taken Armenia under its wing, while Azerbaijan, with
its abundant oil resources and strong cultural bonds with Turkey,
has forged alliances with NATO and the West.

On February 7, senior officials of the Organisation for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Minsk Group, comprised of the
United States, Russia and France – tasked with finding a peaceful
resolution to the conflict – met to discuss the worrying developments
and issued a statement condemning the deadly and escalating aggression
from both sides.

Officials encouraged the involved parties to stop the violence and take
“steps to reduce tensions and strengthen the ceasefire and … find
the political will to begin this process immediately without excuses”.

>From February 16-19, representatives from these organisations
travelled to the region for personal meetings with officials of the
conflict countries to further discuss “the dangerous rise in violence”.

No need to worry

Despite the heightened state of alert, however, analysts agree there
is no reason for worry about an escalation and, on the contrary,
the current situation of perceived danger actually benefits some of
the countries involved.

“A full-blown war is in nobody’s interest,” said Luke Coffey, a
political analyst.

Both Armenia and Azerbaijan want to pursue economic development and
recover from the devastating effects of the war, he said.

Coffey, who just returned from a visit to Azerbaijan, said although
Azeri officials vow to retake “stolen” territories, Azerbaijan,
in particular, has much to lose.

“Azerbaijan likes making money from oil and gas, but oil and gas is
going to be there for a certain time, but Nagorno-Karabakh is going
to be there forever. So I’d say in the short term, their interest is
getting money from oil and gas to improve infrastructure, to improve
the lives of the IDPs living in Azerbaijan, and to modernise and
rearm their military,” Coffey told Al Jazeera.

Likewise, Armenia, is working to recover both economically and
politically from the war, and on reducing its dependence on Russia
and diaspora remittances, and cannot afford another full-out war.

“In order to reach peace with a neighbour, we must first make order
inside our own country,” said Harutiunyan, the museum director.

“We must create a strong economy, jobs, a country of social justice,”
because economic development is key to any successful peace process,
he continued.

Another war would be “disastrous for all parties”, agreed Kharatyan.

“Political rhetoric is one thing, and it is strongly directed to
internal audiences, all politics is local.”

Creating distractions at the border takes attention away from internal
political troubles for the leaders of both Armenia and Azerbaijan,
he argued.

“This is especially true in the case of Azerbaijan,” said Arzu
Geybullayeva, a political analyst and human rights activist based in
Istanbul. “To divert international attention from these issues, the
Azerbaijani government is skilfully using the conflict and escalation.”

Regional powers also have a stake in the status quo of instability
in the region.

“I think part of it is that Russia is antagonising Armenia to take
more of an aggressive stance, and that is triggering a response from
Azerbaijan, so both sides are willing to use force along the line of
control… But I think Russia benefits from this,” said Coffey.

It is interesting that despite being members of the Minsk Group,
Russia and the US are among the main suppliers of military equipment
to both countries.

The Minsk group, explained Coffey, “right now is dead, just because
of the political realities… It can issue statements, but that’s
the extent of its abilities.”

The spotlight brought on by the instability in the Caucasus, “distracts
the West [in light of the Ukrainian war], and makes Putin look like
a statesman [trying to broker a peace deal], and helps Russian oil
and gas companies” by pushing business away from unstable Azerbaijan,
he added.

Turkey, on the other side, explained Coffey, “needs the investors to
look to the South Caucasus. They need oil and gas transiting through
the region into Turkey, because Turkey has this aspiration to be a
regional oil and gas hub”.

Yet, despite this economic incentive, Turkey remains steadfast in its
support for its ally. The Turkish-Armenian border remains closed to
this day.

Despite all the noise, the casualties, and the rhetoric of war –
the status quo will likely linger.

“Which is terrible,” said Coffey. “I think that’s the reality,
especially in the South Caucasus, [where] these frozen conflicts find
a natural home.”

Al Jazeera

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIA TO SUPPORT SMES

CISTran Finance
March 9 2015

March 9, 2015 5:00 AM
By CISTran Finance Reports

A measure that would provide support for small and medium-sized
enterprises (SME) in Armenia was approved during a meeting chaired
by Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan on Thursday.

The measure is to meant to increase the presence of these kinds of
businesses within the national gross domestic product, including in
areas with little to no SME activity. It will largely help SMEs in
more remote areas including those at the borders.

Abrahamyan predicted that the measure would result in a drop in
unemployment of approximately 12 percent in the targeted areas.

Other matters discussed during the meeting included changes to laws
relating to voluntary work, the bankruptcy law and issues dealing
with current legislation on prosecution practices.

All matters and measures discussed will be submitted to the National
Assembly for approval.

From: Baghdasarian

CHURCH HISTORY IN SCHOOL CURRICULUM IN ARMENIA ATTRACTS GEORGIA’S ATTENTION

YEREVAN, March 9. /ARKA/. Introduction of Church history in school
curriculum in Armenia has attracted Georgia’s attention, the press
office of Armenia’s education ministry reported after Deputy Education
Minister Manuk Lazarian with met a delegation of Georgia’s agency
on religion.

Describing the process of introduction of the curriculum in the
state education program to the Georgian guests, he stressed that this
subject is nothing in common with propaganda of religion, but it just
presents the Church as inseparable part of Armenian national culture
and history.

Some professional issues related to methodology of this subject
teaching were discussed at the meeting. —-0—-

From: Baghdasarian

`Pursuing Justice Through Art: 2015′ Exhibition and Symposium at
Whistler House Museum of Art

Armenian Mirror Spectator

MARCH 9, 2015

LOWELL, Mass. ‘ As April is International Genocide Month, the Whistler
House Museum of Art is planning a Multi-Cultural Genocide exhibition
and symposium titled `Pursuing Justice Through Art: 2015.’ In
conjunction with the symposium, which will take place from 1 to 4 p.m.
on Saturday, April 18, there will be an art exhibition which will be
presented in the Parker Gallery. The exhibition runs from March 18 to
April 25, where works of art will be displayed by artists whose themes
are rooted in genocide and holocaust memories and commemoration. The
opening reception for the exhibition will take place on Saturday, March
21 from 2 to 4 p.m.

The year 2015 is significant in genocide history. It is the 100th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the 70th anniversary of the end
of the Jewish Holocaust, and the 40th anniversary of the Cambodian
Genocide.

The word `genocide’ was coined in 1944 to name a particularly shocking
and horrific crime of violence. It was hoped it would never happen
again. Genocide is the systematic and widespread extermination or
attempted extermination of an entire national, racial, religious, or
ethnic group. Genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time
of war, is a crime under international law.

More than 262 million people throughout the world were murdered as a
result of genocide in the 20th century. Armenian, German, Cambodian,
Bosnian, Guatemalan, Rwandan, Sudanese and Native Americans are only a
few of the nationalities that have been affected by genocide. It is
the hope that education and awareness through the medium of art can be
used to help ensure a more peaceful future in the 21st century.

`We are very proud to be presenting this important pro
m to the
public,’ says Whistler House Museum of Art president and executive
director, Sara Bogosian. `It was inspired by Arshile Gorky, the Father
of Abstract Expressionism, who is one of the artists in the Whistler
House Museum of Art collection. Gorky is considered to be one of the
most famous survivors of the Armenian Genocide,’ added Bogosian.

The symposium will include experts in the field of genocide studies
including:

Diana Der-Hovanessian: Der-Hovanessian, a New England born poet, was
twice a Fulbright professor of American Poetry and is the author of
more than 25 books of poetry and translations. She has awards from the
National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Society of America,
PEN/Columbia Translation Center, National Writers Union, Armenian
Writers Union, Paterson Poetry Center, Prairie Schooner, American
Scholar, and the Armenian Ministry of Culture. Her poems have appeared
in Agni, American Poetry Review, Ararat, CSM, Poetry, Partisan, Prairie
Schooner, Nation, etc., and in anthologies such as Against Forgetting,
Women on War, On Prejudice, Finding Home, Leading Contemporary Poets,
Orpheus and Company, Identity Lessons, Voices of Conscience, Two Worlds
Walking, etc. She works as a visiting poet and guest lecturer on
American poetry, Armenian poetry in translation, and the literature of
human rights at various universities in the USA and abroad. She serves
as president of the New England Poetry Club.

Kim Servart Theriault PhD: Dr. Theriault holds a PhD in art history
from the University of Virginia and is currently associate professor
of
art history, theory and criticism at Dominican University in River
Forest, IL. She has several academic publications to her credit
including Rethinking Arshile Gorky and the essay `Exile, Trauma, and
Arshile Gorky’s The Artist and His Mother’ and the published catalog
for the Philadelphia Museum of Art exhibition Arshile Gorky: A
Retrospective. She has given art historical lectures at venues such as
the Library o
allery of Art, and Los Angeles
Museum of Contemporary Art, and universities such as Oxford, the
University of London, UCLA, Berkeley and the University of Michigan.

Dr. Elliott W. Salloway: Dr. Salloway is the USA founder of Project
eXodus, an international organization that explores the issues of
genocide and human nature through art exhibitions, raising awareness
throughout the world. As a faculty member at the Harvard School of
Dental Medicine, he has used art extensively as a teaching tool. Dr.
Salloway has been a periodontist in Worcester for 49 years and is an
avid painter and photographer whose works have been exhibited at the
Miami Historical Museum, Worcester City Arts, Boston City Arts, The New
Gallery in Boston, Panopticon Gallery in Boston and Waltham, Arts
Worcester, and the Davis Art Gallery. He studied art at Boston’s School
of the Museum of Fine Arts and the Worcester Art Museum. Salloway’s
works of art will also be included in the genocide exhibition.

Sayon Soeun: Soeun is a survivor of the Cambodian Genocide featured in
the documentary, Lost Child: Sayon’s Journey. He was abducted at the
age of six, exploited by the Khmer Rouge, his family life and education
stolen. His recovery and redemption from unimaginable evil entails his
transition from an orphanage in a refugee camp to adoption by a loving
American family. After more than 35 years, he recently made contact
with brothers and a sister he assumed were dead. The documentary
follows his journey back to Cambodia to heal himself by finding the
family that let him slip away and forgiving himself for his complicity
as a Khmer Rouge child soldier.

Artists featured in the art exhibition are well-known painters,
sculptors, textile artists and collectors specializing in this genre.
They include: Mohammed Ali and Al Asadi, Gagik Aroutiunian, Bayda
Asbridge, John Avakian, Ani Babaian, Stephen Clements, Ellen Davison,
Adrienne Der Marderosian, Dave Drinon, Charlotte Eckler, Amy Fagin,
Fanardjian (loaned by
ynne Foy, Gillian Frazier,
Charles Gallagher, Mary Hart, James Higgins, Raymond Howell (loaned by
Eve Soroken), JoAnn Janjigian, Andrew Ellis Johnson, David Jones,
Lucine Kasbarian, Mico Kaufman, Chantha Khem, Puthearith Kret, Sandra
Lauterbach, Markus Lewis, Adam Mastoon,Talin Megherian, Crissie Murphy,
Ruth Naylor, Marsha Nouritza Odabashian, Judith Peck, Dany Pen, Sandra
Presley, Bill Reedy, Hope Ricciardi, Jennifer Rocco Stone, Alain
Rogier, LinDa Saphan, Susanne Slavick, Jessica Sperandio, Rose Sielian
Theriault, Nora Tang, Sopheap Theam and New England Quilt Museum’s
Community Quilters, Rita Thompson, Robert Thurlow, Holly Tomlinson,
Carol Vinick, Denise Warren

The exhibition and symposium are free to the public. The program is
supported in part by a grant from the Lowell Cultural Council, a local
agency which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.
Funding was also supplied in part by UMass Lowell, Moses Greeley Parker
Lecture Series, and with the participation of NAASR (National
Association of Armenian Studies and Research) and Artscope Magazine.

The Whistler House Museum of Art is the historic birthplace of the
famous American artist, James McNeill Whistler. Established in 1878 as
the Lowell Art Association Inc., it is the oldest incorporated art
association in the United States. It is known internationally for its
distinguished collection of 19th and early 20th century New England
representational art. The Whistler House hosts many exhibits, lectures,
educational and community programs, concerts and an array of social
events in the residence, gallery and adjoining Victorian park.

From: Baghdasarian

INDIA TO INVEST $25 BILLION IN FIFTH-GENERATION FIGHTER JOINT PROJECT WITH RUSSIA

[ Part 2.2: “Attached Text” ]

March 9, 2015 16:37

INDIA IS READY TO SEAL A BIG PROJECT WITH RUSSIA FOR THE STEALTH
FIFTH-GENERATION FIGHTER AIRCRAFT (FGFA), THE TIMES OF INDIA WROTE
REFERRING TO THE COUNTRY’S DEFENSE MINISTRY.

[13936.jpg]

STEPANAKERT, MARCH 9, ARTSAKHPRESS: “Faced with continuing deadlock
in the mega deal to acquire 126 French Rafale fighters, India is now
pressing the throttle to seal the even bigger project with Russia for
the stealth fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA),” the newspaper
wrote. “India will overall spend around $25 billion on the FGFA
project if it goes ahead with its plan to induct 127 such fighters,
as earlier reported by TOI. Meanwhile, India is ready to forego the
earlier plan for a 50:50 design and work-share agreement with Russia
on its under-development FGFA called PAK-FA or Sukhoi T-50.”

The PAK FA – “Prospective Airborne Complex of Frontline Aviation” –
is a fifth-generation fighter program of the Russian Air Force. The
T-50 is the aircraft designed by Sukhoi for the PAK FA program. The
aircraft is a single-seat, twin-engine jet fighter, and will be
the first operational aircraft in Russian service to use stealth
technology. It is a multirole combat aircraft designed for the air
superiority and ground attack functions. It combines supercruise,
stealth, manoeuvrability, and advanced avionics to overcome previous
generation fighter aircraft along with many ground and maritime
defences.

The PAK FA is intended to be the successor to the MiG-29 and Su-27 in
the Russian Air Force and serve as the basis for the Fifth Generation
Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) being co-developed by Sukhoi and Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force. The T-50 prototype
first flew on 29 January 2010 and production aircraft is slated for
delivery to the Russian Air Force starting in 2016. The prototypes
and initial production batch will be delivered with a highly upgraded
variant of the AL-31F used by the Su-27 family as interim engines while
a new clean-sheet design powerplant is currently under development. The
aircraft is expected to have a service life of up to 35 years.

$25-billion-in-fifth-g
eneration-fighter-joint-project-with-russia.html

From: Baghdasarian

IL PRIMO GENOCIDIO DEL ‘900 IGNORATO PER QUASI UN SECOLO. ANTONIA ARSLAN E IL MASSACRO DEGLI ARMENI PER VINCINCONTRI

Go News, Italia
9 mar 2015

Il genocidio degli Armeni è il primo genocidio del ‘900. Questo lo
sfondo storico che ha caratterizzato la serata di venerdì 6 marzo
nell’incontro con la scrittrice Antonia Arslan a Vinci al Teatro
della Misericordia.

Quello attuato cent’anni fa ad opera dei Giovani Turchi non è un
orrendo massacro, ma un vero e proprio genocidio perche pianificato
e studiato per motivi essenzialmente politici e di logica di potere,
un modello poi ripreso in epoche successive. Se nel corso dei decenni
questo genocidio è stato volutamente dimenticato o ancora oggi viene
negato dal Governo turco, i motivi hanno avuto origine diversa ma
tutti hanno ignorato la verita dei fatti. Ne è prova che anche nei
libri di storia delle nostre scuole solo da 5 o 6 anni si accenna a
questa tragedia che ha causato circa un milione e mezzo di morti.

La pubblicazione del libro di Antonia Arslan “La masseria delle
allodole” nel 2004 ha fatto breccia su un muro di omerta e di
opportunismo, venendo a contribuire notevolmente alla divulgazione
di questa vicenda. Stampato in trentadue edizioni, tradotto in
quattordici lingue ed onorato da vari premi letterari, “La masseria
delle allodole” con la forza di un romanzo che, apparentemente innocuo,
parla di lontane storie familiari reali ha avuto un effetto dirompente.

La strada è stata, poi, percorsa dai fratelli Taviani che nel
2007 hanno girato il film omonimo “La masseria delle allodole”,
moltiplicando la conoscenza della tragedia. Tra poco più di un mese,
il 24 aprile ricorrera il centesimo anniversario del genocidio. Lo
stesso Papa Francesco, al quale il cantante novantenne di origine
armena Charles Aznavour ha chiesto in questi giorni un’udienza,
ha stabilito una celebrazione per gli Armeni il 12 aprile.

La conferenza di Vincincontri, durante la quale è stato accennato
anche al viaggio svolto proprio un anno fa da alcuni parrocchiani di
Vinci in Armenia, è stata caratterizzata da un coinvolgimento pieno
dei partecipanti alle sollecitazioni fornite da Antonia Arslan. Ecco
perche la serata si è conclusa con un applauso interminabile!

From: Baghdasarian