Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

ASSYRIAN COMMUNITY ‘AT RISK OF EXTINCTION’ FROM ISLAMIC STATE

Wednesday, February 25th, 2015

People from the Yezidi community flee from massacres by Islamic State
forces towards the Syrian border. Syria’s Assyrian community fears
a similar fate if nothing is done to stop the Islamic State. (Photo:
Reuters)

HASAKAH, Syria (RFE/RL)–An Assyrian Christian organization has warned
that Syria’s Assyrian community could face a mass killing and has
called on the international community to intervene, after militants
from the Islamic State (IS) group abducted Assyrian Christians from
villages in Syria’s Hasakah Province.

Karam Dola, a member of the Assyrian Democratic Organization in Hasakah
Province told Radio Free Iraq reporter Manar Abdulrazzaq on February
24 that militants had overran rural villages populated by Assyrian
Christians at dawn on February 23.

“In Tel Hormuz there were not many families, but there were more
than 13 people, elderly men, women and children who were kidnapped,”
Dola said.

According to Dola, up to 90 people from the village of Tel Shamiram
are also considered missing.

“They were unable to escape when [the IS group] overran the area at
dawn,” Dola added.

The British-based group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR),
which monitors the violence in Syria via a network of contacts, also
reported that at least 90 Assyrian Christians had been abducted by
militants in Tel Shamiram and Tel Hormuz.

Moreover, SOHR said that 14 Islamic State militants had been killed
in U.S.-led air strikes east of the town of Tel Hamis in Hasakah.

Dola said that on February 24, 34 villages on the banks of the Khabur
River in Hasakah province had been evacuated and residents moved to
Hasakah town or to the town of Qamishli.

The Assyrian community in Syria is extremely concerned about the
situation, according to Dola, who told Radio Free Iraq that there
are about 600 Assyrian families in Hasakah province.

“We in the Assyrian Democratic Organization have sent out a distress
call to the international community and to all national forces to
immediately intervene and prevent the occurrence of [the] expected
massacre,” Dola said.

Dola warned that the Assyrian community in Syria is “at risk of
extinction.”

According to the pro-opposition Step News Agency, the Islamic State
group’s military commander in Syria, the Georgian-born ethnic Chechen
Kist Umar Shishani, is leading the offensive in Hasakah. That news,
which is plausible based on previous offensives in northern Syria, has
not been independently reported on pro-Islamic State Russian-language
social media.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION FORCE BACKS DOWN

Institute for War and Peace Reporting, UK
IWPR Caucasus Reporting #768
Feb 25 2015

After calling for the downfall of the president, Prosperous Armenia’s
leader has a change of heart.

25 Feb 15 By Arshaluis Mghdesyan

After calling for protests to bring down Armenian president Serzh
Sargsyan, government, the country’s leading opposition party has
backed down and says it will work towards consensus instead. The
Prosperous Armenia party’s abrupt change of plan has created a rift
in the three-member opposition bloc, and experts say the credibility
of mainstream politics has been undermined.

Prosperous Armenia, the biggest parliamentary opposition party, called
for a “nationwide rally” against the ruling coalition to take place
on February 20, signalling an end to any kind of working relationship
with the ruling administration.

Its relations with President Sargsyan’s administration and the
governing Republican Party were already near breaking-point after an
attack on one of its senior figures earlier in the month. Prosperous
Armenia accused the authorities of complicity in the February 7
abduction and beating of Artak Khachatryan, a member of its governing
council. (See Outrage at Attack on Armenian Oppositionist.)

On February 12, President Sargsyan launched a personal attack on
Prosperous Armenia’s leader Gagik Tsarukyan. Addressing a Republican
Party meeting, he described Tsarukyan as “an evil for our country”
and a “pseudo-politician”.

Sargsyan ordered the prime minister to oversee an investigation into
allegations that Tsarukyan owed massive amounts in unpaid taxes,
and the same day he stripped the politician of his seat on Armenia’s
National Security Council. He also proposed depriving him of his
parliamentary seat, a move which would remove his immunity from
prosecution.

Tsarukyan hit back the next day with a speech calling for mass rallies
to press for the president’s resignation.

“I am calling for a general mobilisation [for protests] with the single
aim of getting Serzh Sargsyan to resign by all legal political means
– continuing rallies, marches and acts of civil disobedience – in
order to rid ourselves of the evil that the authorities have become,”
he said.

Tsarukyan said the reason he was under fire was because he would
not bow to a planned constitutional reform that would shift powers
from president to parliament. After consultations and a draft set of
constitutional amendments, Sargsyan is expected to decide early this
year whether to move forward to a referendum.

The proposed change might seem a desirable way of creating greater
democratic accountability, but opposition parties see it as a plot
to give Sargsyan a hold on power once his term as president expires
in 2018. This is his second term, the last he is entitled to. The
suspicion is that with his Republican Party dominating the legislature,
he could get himself elected speaker of a body armed with more power
than before; or else control things in the more back-seat role of
party chairman.

Tsarukyan said he had been offered various inducements to back the
reform, including the post of president. “It was on condition that
I wouldn’t obstruct the recycling of the [same] powers that be. I
categorically refused, and that’s why this [verbal] attack happened.”

Despite being in coalition with Sargsyan’s Republicans until 2012,
Prosperous Armenia joined forces with the opposition Armenian National
Congress and the Heritage Party last year to form the Nationwide
Movement, known informally as the “troika”. The other two parties
signed up to plans to hold the first mass protest on February 20.

The political confrontation now escalated rapidly. Insults were traded
publicly, and police raided premises owned by supporters of Tsarukyan,
and around 30 Prosperous Armenia members were detained.

As parliament embarked on the process of depriving Tsarukyan of his
seat, five legislators withdrew from Prosperous Armenia’s parliamentary
faction, clearly feeling the strain.

As tensions peaked, reports emerged that a mediator had appeared on
the scene, in the shape of billionaire businessman Samvel Karapetyan,
a Russian national of Armenian extraction. Karapetyan’s company
refused to confirm or deny the story.

Some analysts suspected the Kremlin had asked him to step in to
resolve the dispute in Russia’s closest ally in the South Caucasus.

“I believe Samvel Karapetyan has close ties to the Russian political
and business elite. Seen that way, his arrival in Yerevan looks like
Moscow’s attempt to intervene in this internecine political conflict
and to reconcile the sides,” political analyst Stepan Danielyan said.

Another peacemaker appeared, the Dashnakstutyun party, which engineered
a face-to-face meeting between Sargsyan and Tsarukyan.

Dashnakstutyun normally opposes the government but is supportive of
the planned constitutional reform.

“We are very pleased that the meeting happened, and that contact
was made and the ice broken,” Armen Rustamyan, who leads the party
in parliament.

Vahram Baghdasaryan, the Republican’s parliamentary head, struck a
note of caution, telling RFE/RL radio that the meeting only resulted
in a temporary truce.

After a weeklong stand-off between the two political heavyweights,
it was Tsarukyan who gave way. His party called off the rally, and
he declared that “we must not fight one another, but rather carry
on working and find and implement solutions to problems calmly and
without recriminations”.

He said that the way things were going, “it’s easy to envisage what
this will lead to in a week or two. No one will win, least of all
our society.”

Tsarukyan’s sudden about-face left the opposition troika in danger of
collapse. While the Armenian National Congress expressed understanding
for his decision, the Heritage Party threatened to leave.

Alexander Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasus Institute in Yerevan,
argues that Tsarukyan retreated after gambling and losing.

“Tsarukyan was responding to the public appetite for fast solutions to
complex political problems, for example through revolution or regime
change,” Iskandaryan said. “He suffered defeat because he is a priori
unable to meet that demand,”

Iskandaryan argues that Tsarukyan has backed down before, for example
when he decided not to run against Sargsyan in the last presidential
election. As Armenia’s wealthiest businessman, Tsarukyan may fear that
his assets are vulnerable to confiscation or takeover by the state.

Looking at the broader political scene, Iskandaryan regrets the
absence of a genuine, committed opposition.

“The authorities have set about liquidating the opposition, and it’s
worked,” he said. “That’s having a deleterious effect on the political
system. Politics is shifting away from the political arena to towards
public discourse and Facebook, becoming more radical along the way
and turning into endless discussions about regime change.”

This trend could have dangerous consequences, Iskandaryan said.

“In the absence of a serious political force to articulate it, public
dissatisfaction may eventually become so heated that everything
blows up into what one might call a “Maidan” [Kiev-style uprising],
in other words the collapse of the political system,” he said.

Arshaluys Mgdesyan is a freelance journalist in Armenia.

From: Baghdasarian

IVICA DACIC CONCERNED ABOUT GROWING TENSION IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 25 2015

25 February 2015 – 2:43pm

The OSCE Chairperson, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, expressed
concern about the growth of tension in Nagorno-Karabakh, while speaking
with a report at the UN Security Council meeting.

“I am particularly concerned over the recent developments related to
Nagorno-Karabakh. Last year’s three meetings between the Presidents
of Armenia and Azerbaijan were an encouraging indication of a renewed
appetite for dialogue,” Dacic said.

He said that Serbia’s OSCE chairmanship will continue to support
the efforts of the Minsk Group co-chairs to facilitate “high-level
meetings and to explore, together with the parties, all avenues that
may lead to a long-overdue settlement”.

“I also discussed the situation with the Foreign Ministers of Armenia
and Azerbaijan. And I shall continue my engagement with the leaders
in the region when I visit them in a few months,” Trend cited Ivica
Dacic as saying.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN NATIONAL ARCHIVE CONTINUES PUBLICATION OF GENOCIDE-RELATED DOCUMENTS, DIRECTOR SAYS

GENOCIDE | 26.02.15 | 10:49

By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

Toward the centennial of the Genocide Armenian, the National Archive
director says that their primary problem is the publication of
corresponding documents, at the same time adding that National Archive
materials are open for everyone, as well as for Turkish historians
and reporters.

National Archive director Amatuni Virabyan continues the publication
of documents in the form of books. Still in 2012 the book “Armenian
Genocide in the Ottoman Empire” was published in three volumes, this
year its 4th and 5th volumes will be published. In 2013, the English
version of the book was published, and last year the Turkish-language
version – in Istanbul.

“Within several days the Russian version will be published in Moscow –
in 1,000 copies, by April we will have the Spanish version as well. In
Moscow we will publish the collection of documents “about the economic
losses of the Armenian nation in 1915″ in Russian and English,”
Virabyan said.

The National Archive continues forming a nominal database of the
Genocide victims which was launched still last fall. By January 1
they had already 33,000 names. According to the director, the program
continues and it will take years.

With the support of benefactor Ruben Vardanyan a book telling about 100
famous Armenians will be published; the latter survived the Genocide
with a miracle and in different countries they or their successors
succeeded in the world. Virabyan mentions the name of one of them –
Armenian-American Arshile Gorky.

“We want to show that, despite the Turkish desire – to leave only
one Armenian and that in a museum, we still live, we exist, although
spread across the world,” Virabyan said.

Addressing the Turkish plans for the celebration of the 100th
anniversary of the Battle of Gallipoli, which the Turkish government
had proposed to hold on April 24, on the same commemoration day of
the Armenian Genocide, Virabyan said that they have no documents on
the battle, but there is an interesting fact: “The Turkish divisions
that won in Gallipoli defeating the British, were devastated in the
battle of Sardarapat [in 2018] and were forced to retreat by the
Armenian Army. This is a big and an important fact.”

The director of the National Archive gave assurances that works
devoted to the centennial will continue throughout the year: “The
order to arrest the Armenian scholars was issued on April 24, 1915,
but most of the massacres continued throughout the summer months;
thus if some commemoration events take place in summer it is no delay.”

Among many other events devoted to the centennial of the Genocide
a joint Armenian-French virtual gallery will be held, including
different materials showing Armenian-French cooperation during World
War One years.

From: Baghdasarian

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL REPORT: THERE ARE A TOTAL OF 23 PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE IN AZERBAIJAN

12:40 26/02/2015 >> SOCIETY

Azerbaijan proved particularly aggressive in its repression of dissent;
there are a total of 23 prisoners of conscience in Azerbaijan,
including bloggers, political activists, civil society leaders and
human rights lawyers. Azerbaijan’s presidency of the Council of Europe
in the first half of the year failed to induce restraint, the report
of the international human rights organization “Amnesty International”
reads. The report 2014/15 documents the state of human rights in 160
countries and territories.

“At least six prominent human rights defenders were imprisoned and
leading human rights organizations forced to shut down or cease their
activities. Independent journalists continued to face harassment,
violence and trumped-up criminal charges. Freedom of assembly
remained restricted. There were frequent reports of torture and other
ill-treatment,” the report reads.

According to the report, NGO leaders continued to face threats and
harassment from the authorities, including raids by security forces,
the confiscation of equipment and imposition of travel bans. At least
10 leading human rights NGOs were prevented from operating as their
bank accounts were frozen under a high-profile criminal investigation
from May onwards. Additional restrictions concerning NGO registration
and activities were introduced in the law and used arbitrarily to
open criminal proceedings against several NGO leaders.

It’s also noted that the authorities continued to imprison government
critics, political activists and journalists. At the end of the year,
there were at least 20 prisoners of conscience. In a major crackdown
on human rights activists, six prominent NGO leaders were remanded
on charges of fraud, illegal entrepreneurship and “abuse of power”.

Independent journalists continued to face threats, violence and
harassment. Bloggers and opposition youth leaders were typically
charged with drug-related offences.

Demonstrations remained effectively prohibited outside officially
designated, and typically remote, areas. In central Baku, the capital,
law enforcement authorities used violence and excessive force to
prevent and break up “unauthorized”, peaceful assemblies throughout
the year, the report reads.

The organization is also aware of a number of cases of torture and
other ill-treatment which were not effectively investigated.

From: Baghdasarian

RUSSIA COMPLETES SUPPLY OF ARMS TO AZERBAIJAN

Lragir.am
Politics – 25 February 2015, 12:05

David Tonoyan received Head of the Delegation of the International
Committee of the Red Cross to Armenia Sarah Epprecht

Russia completes supply of T-90C tanks to Azerbaijan, TASS reported,
referring to the representative of the Azerbaijani delegation attending
IDEX-2015.

Earlier, the advisor to the CEO of Rosoboronexport Esen Topoyev had
announced that in 2015 Moscow will complete supply of arms under the
agreement signed in 2010.

It is about 100 units of T-90C tanks, 18 units of IFV-3, Smerch and
other weapons.

From: Baghdasarian

AMNESTY CALLS ON UN POWERS TO LOSE VETO ON GENOCIDE VOTES

13:22, 25 Feb 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

Amnesty International has urged the five permanent members of the
UN Security Council to give up their power of veto in cases where
atrocities are being committed, the BBC reports.

In its annual report, the rights group said the global response to
an array of catastrophes in 2014 had been shameful.

Richer countries were guilty of taking an “abhorrent” stance by not
sheltering more refugees, Amnesty said.

The outlook for 2015 was bleak, the group added.

Saying that 2014 had been a catastrophic year for victims of conflict
and violence, Amnesty said world leaders needed to act immediately
to confront the changing nature of armed conflict.

Salil Shetty, the organisation’s secretary general, said in a
statement that the United Nations Security Council had “miserably
failed” to protect civilians.

Instead, the council’s five permanent members – the UK, China,
France, Russia and the US – had used their veto to “promote their
political self-interest or geopolitical interest above the interest
of protecting civilians,” Mr Shetty said.

Part of the solution would be those countries surrendering their
Security Council veto on issues related to mass killing and genocide,
Amnesty added.

From: Baghdasarian

NUMBER OF REGISTERED DRUG USERS IN ARMENIA PASSES 5,000

14:12, February 25, 2015

Gayane Sargsyan

There are 60 intravenous drug users registered at the Lori Provincial
Neuro-Psychiatric Dispensary in the northern Armenian town of Vanadzor.

Another 90 are registered as those getting medical counseling. Most
of the registered drug users are from Vanadzor and the Gougarq region.

There are no adolescent or women registered as users. The youngest
registered user is 21, the oldest 52.

Drug specialist Hovhannes Amirkhanyan, who has worked at the dispensary
for the past seven years, believes the number of drug users is several
times more than the number registered.

In the past two years, the number of in-patients at the dispensary has
dropped from 14-15 to 6-7. In-patient treatment, according to state
regulations, lasts for twenty days. The state pays 6,500 AMD (US$13.58)
per day of treatment (medications, meals, wages of staff, etc.)

Amirkhanyan believes the drop in in-patient cases is due to the
inclusion of methadone treatment.

There are 20-30 patients at the Lori dispensary receiving methadone
treatment annually.

“Most of the users who have filed for treatment and have been cured
have been in the methadone program,” says Amirkhanyan.

However, many users avoid being treated at the dispensary given
that the drug unit isn’t separated from other units. Those with
psychological problems get treated alongside drug users.

“It would be better for the drug unit to be separate, but given our
resources that isn’t possible,” says Amirkhanyan.

Every year, the number of patients receiving methadone treatment in
Armenia is inching up. In 2009 the number was 32. It rose to 111 the
following year, 160 in 2011, 116 in 2012, and 312 in 2013.

Overall, the number of drug users in Armenia has been on the rise
as well.

According to a 2014 national report on drug usage in Armenia, there
were 1,686 registered drug users in the country in 2009. The number
rose to 3,893 in 2011 and 4,922 in 2013.

Today, the number has passed 5,000.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN IT COMPANIES TO SHOWCASE THEIR PRODUCTS AT CEBIT 2015

YEREVAN, February 24. / ARKA /. Several Armenian IT companies will
showcase their products at the largest technology exhibition CeBIT
2015, scheduled for March 16-20 in Hanover, Germany, the Union of
Information Technology Enterprises (UITE) of Armenia said.

These companies are Volo, Altacode, E-Works, IU Networks, Technology
and Science Dynamics, Web, Locator, Instigate and VTG Software.

“Armenia has traditionally participated in this largest European
exhibition, but this year is different. This year Armenia participates
with a separate pavilion called Surprising Engineering and Why
Armenia”, UITE deputy director Hayk Chobanyan is quoted as saying in
a press release.

The participation of Armenian companies is being coordinated by UITE
with the assistance of the specialized agency of the Netherlands
ministry of foreign affairs for promotion of developing countries
(CBI).

CeBIT is an international platform for discovering the latest IT
trends, establishment of business relations and showcasing own
products.

CeBIT attracts annually more than 4000 companies from 70 countries,
while the number of visitors exceeded 310,000 from about 110
countries. -0-

From: Baghdasarian

ARTHUR ASHUGHYAN: FUTURE OF LAPIDARY INDUSTRY DEPENDS ON HOW COMPETITIVE AND EFFICIENT IT IS

ArmInfo’s interview with Advisor for Economy Minister of Armenia
Arthur Ashughyan

by Arthur Yernjakyan

Wednesday, February 25, 14:26

The agreement of cooperation with Russia in import of natural gas,
oil products, and rough diamonds in Armenia on preferential terms was
to ensure additional growth in the field of lapidary industry. Russia
has canceled the 6.5% customs duty on the rough diamonds exported to
Armenia, at the same time imposing strict re-export restrictions.

What has changed in the lapidary industry of Armenia?

The agreement has had a positive effect on the field. Actually, 90%
of the rough diamonds imported from Russia were cut in Armenia unlike
previous years, when the country re-exported 80% of the imported rough
diamonds to third countries. Nevertheless, the agreement coincided
with stagnation in the market of diamonds.

Re-export is a speculative sale of stones, though it was banned
in all the agreements made with Russia previously. In this light,
our enterprises engaged in diamond production faced quite an unusual
situation, as the agreement restricts re-export and the government is
responsible for it. The country gains nothing from such deals. The
lapidary industry has been exempted of taxes. What government seeks
is to settle the employment problems through development of the sector.

After Armenia’s accession with the Eurasian Economic Union, the
situation has changed. The agreement mismatches many provisions
dictated by the EEU. The point is that for the EEU countries there
is no such idea as re-export. There is only export. We have no border.

What re-export you are talking about, if we work in the same customs
area. No customs document contains such concept as re-export, and
supplies to third countries is also export. On the other hand, all
the stones that are imported from other countries, not Russia, are
processed as customer-supplied raw materials and the new legislation
applies to such products.

What countries Armenia had re-exported the rough-diamonds imported
from Russia previously?

Belgium, Thailand, India, Canada and other countries.

ALROSA offered 380,000 carats of diamonds in 2014. How much did the
local lapidary enterprises buy?

They bought some 5% of the total volume. It is around 10,000-12,000
carats of Russian rough diamonds. This is business and the private
enterprises buy as much as they need. The parties to the agreement
are ALROSA, the Government Treasury and lapidary companies of Armenia.

ALROSA’s permanent customers – big companies have priority access
to the lots and are bound to buy, but our companies have no such
capacities to join that club of 47 enterprises from various countries.

Actually, a year ago Armenia’s lapidary companies complained that
Alrosa offered them small-size stones, while last year they complained
of being offered too big and expensive ones.

By data of the Customs Service of Armenia, in 2014, the country
exported 160.1 thousand carats of diamonds versus 202.7 thousand carats
in 2013, and imported 345.7 thousand carats versus 406.4 thousand
carats in 2013. Did Armenia re-export Russian diamonds last year?

Part of the imported rough diamonds undergoes cutting and polishing
and falls under quite different category and different customs code.

Part of the rough diamonds – unfit for cutting – is re-exported.

We buy rough diamonds not only from Russia. The turnover with Russia
is very low, much lower than it could be. I cannot bring specific
figures for the last year, but in 2013, Russia accounted for 25% of
the total import of rough diamonds in Armenia. We did not anticipate
that everyone would rush to Russia for diamonds, but those who really
benefits from it – the operating lapidary companies – took advantage
of that opportunity. Lifting of the 6.5% custom duty does not settle
all the problems in the sector. It is just an impulse to development,
but much depends on the enterprises, not the government.

Do you mean that local lapidary companies operate insufficiently
effective?

That’s not the point. Our labor force is not cheap and there is
deficit of human resources. Many have left the country for earning.

This industry requires highly qualified specialists, and it is not that
easy to find and prepare such human resources. The cutting price in
the country averages about $17-$22 per carat. For instance, in India
and China, the price is lower. In Russia this price is much higher,
while in Belarus there is one state lapidary enterprise. In Kazakhstan
they do not cut diamonds, actually. Therefore, new opportunities are
available there.

It turns out that it is still favorable for Russian companies to open
enterprises in Armenia, isn’t it?

Everything depends on the terms. Even Indians may benefit from it.

Shoghakn Company – once the flagship company in the sector – had
been idling for a long time already. In January 2015, it announced
re-launch of the production. Do you have any information about it?

I have no information that they launched procurement of raw materials
for production. As far as I know, the enterprise was under repair.

Once Shoghakn employed 1,500 people. Now, it will have to hire
specialists again. This is the problem. We have deficit of lapidaries.

Relevant training takes, at least 6, months.

What is happening to the lapidary business in the country? Once,
it was one of the most developed ones in Armenia.

Besides the stagnation and falling demand in the world, there are
also other reasons, such as the currency rate fluctuation and more
expensive labor force. The lapidaries that migrated to Russia, Africa
and other countries easily found jobs as highly qualified specialists.

About 1,000 Armenian lapidaries work abroad now.

What is diamond? I think it is a product the value of which is
comparable with a work of art. In India there is a many-million
middle class that can afford jewelry. India is the gold consumer
number one in the world due to big domestic demand and market. After
all, that country has a population of 1 billion people. Meanwhile,
we do not work for the internal market, in actual fact. Armenia has
entered the 170 million market of the EEU, which will significantly
increase our domestic market.

Do you anticipate any activation in the market in 2015?

Everything will depend on how actively, seamlessly and effectively we
will integrate into the new system of relations in the EEU area. We
are not a country-supplier of raw materials. We do not recover our
own diamonds. Much depends on our partners, particularly, Russia –
theworld’s top producer of rough diamonds.

From: Baghdasarian