Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

ANDRIAS GHUKASYAN TO CEASE HUNGER STRIKE AT 16:00

13:58, 19 February, 2013

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 19, ARMENPRESS: Andrias Ghukasyan, Armenia’s February
18 Presidential election candidate will stop hunger strike at 16:
00. The candidate’s headquarter coordinator Armen Grigoryan told
Armenpress, Andrias is going to cease his hunger strike on February
19. After Ghukasyan is scheduled to pass a medical examination,and
make efforts to recover. Later Andrias Ghukasyan will come forth with
statement regarding February 18 elections.

February 18 Armenia’s Presidential candidate Andrias Ghukasyan has
been holding hunger strike started the launch of pre -election
campaign on January 21 with the demand to delay Presidential
elections. Presidential candidate was unable to participate in February
18 elections due to poor health condition.

In accordance with the preliminary results Serzh Sargsyan was
re-elected. He has received 861 160 votes, 58.64 percent of the valid
votes.”Heritage” party leader Raffi Hovhannisyan has received 539
672 votes (36,75 percent), the third comes Hrant Bagratyan with 31
643 votes (2,15 percent), 18 093 citizens (1.23 percent ) have cast
their votes for Presidential candidate Paruyr Hayrikyan, subjected
to an assassination attempt.

From: Baghdasarian

DECISION 2013: CEC ANNOUNCEMENT MET WITH OBJECTION BY OPPOSITION CANDIDATES/HCA

VOTE 2013 | 19.02.13 | 14:47

Photolure

Artur Sakunts By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN ArmeniaNow reporter

Following the Central Election Commission’s official announcement
proclaiming the re-election Monday of President Serzh Sargsyan,
opposition candidates and human-rights groups are contesting the
legitimacy of the vote in which Sargsyan has claimed some 57 percent.

Runner-up and leader of Heritage Party, Raffi Hovannisian, is himself
claiming victory, despite the CEC’s tally that saw him get about
36 percent of votes. Further, candidate Hrant Bagratyan (about 2
percent in the official count) is claiming that Sargsyan “stole”
votes that otherwise would have gone to Bagratyan (who officially
got around 30,000).

In a speech around midnight Monday, Hovannisian said that “for the
first time in two decades the people have won” and urged Sargsyan
to accept the people’s wishes, further adding that “whoever distorts
the voice of the Armenian nation and Armenia will be held accountable”.

Early this morning Helsinki Citizen’s Association Vanadzor office
leader Artur Sakunts – his organization visited 50 polling stations
with 16 mobile groups observing the elections – stated that not only
the election processes were violated, but the election results have
been forged.

“From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. there was a large stream of voters, the
turnout was high as compared to the parliamentary elections. Crowded
masses were a perfect opportunity for election bribes. There were
‘posts’ outside the polling stations from where people were able
to coordinate outflow of information on absent voters. It was with
their help that the bribing or ‘encouraging’ was carried out. When
there was a special vehicle, voters who had cast their ballots were
eager to approach, offer a greeting, etc,” says Bakunts (alleging
that voters were collecting bribe promises).

Sakunts also said that his office sent seven written violation reports
to the police and CEC, but received no responses.

CEC chairman Tigran Mukuchyan stated that the commission received no
written complaint, and all the hotline calls about violations were
considered and analyzed.

According to the information released by the Prosecutor General’s
office, 72 violation reports were acted upon, 50 among them were the
result of the Prosecutor General’s office’s monitoring of mass media,
and five were hotline calls. Two criminal cases have been filed for
attempted double-voting and voting in place of another person. One
case has been sent to the Special Investigation Service, the other
calls are being examined at the police.

The Ombudsman’s office statement says the entire burden of public
distrust towards the election results lies on the police, and
that untrustworthy work of the police would mar all the positive
achievements of these elections.

From: Baghdasarian

PRESENTATION OF THE LARGEST YELLOW DIAMOND OF THE WORLD TO PARIS

01:15 PM | TODAY | SOCIAL

On February 18, Armenian Jewelers Association (AJA) presented the
largest yellow diamond in the world at InterContinental Hotel in Paris.

This diamond of 110 carats belonging to Hagop Bardaglian (HB group,
NY) is estimated $ 15M.

This event coincided with an exhibition of the finest achievements
of 23 jewelers Armenian of the diaspora and Armenia.

The ambition of the AJA, besides the main objective to contribute to
the development of the jewelry industry in Armenia, is to develop a
free zone having purpose the creation of thousands of jobs over the
next few years.

At the time of the Ottoman Empire, the Sultans were only appeal
Armenian jewelers, masters in the art of working gold and metals. They
are considered the best craftsmen of the world.

Jean Eckian / Paris

From: Baghdasarian

NON-CREDIBLE ACTIVITY BY ARMENIA’S POLICE COULD CAST SHADOW UPON POSITIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF ELECTION – OMBUDSMAN

NEWS.AM
February 19, 2013 | 10:44

YEREVAN. – Armenia’s Human Rights Defender, Karen Andreasyan, issued
a statement in which he reflected on Monday’s presidential election
in the country.

“What’s more important than the election results is the public
trust in these results. This notwithstanding, no evaluation can
be complete and trustworthy for the Armenian body politic unless
Armenia’s Police objectively present how many reports were made
with respect to the following most serious election violations,
and how many of them were valid: Distribution of election bribes;
multiple voting; voting upon directives; ballot stuffing; pressuring a
[polling precinct] commission member, or a proxy, during vote-counting;
[and] falsification of the results of vote-counting.

It is also extremely important to find out and present to the public as
to why the activities of Gala TV’s website were hampered on Election
Day. It is also indispensable to expose all cases of hindrance to
the activities of journalists and observers, and to hold the guilty
to account.

A non-credible activity by the Police could cast a shadow upon the
positive accomplishments of all phases of this election,” the Armenian
ombudsman’s respective statement reads in particular.

From: Baghdasarian

SOPRANO ANUSH HOVHANNISSYAN SIGNS TWO YEARS CONTRACT WITH THE ROYAL OPERA-LONDON

In January the Royal Opera House, Convent Garden, London, made an
announcement about ” Jette Parker Young Artists 2013″. We are quoting
below part of the announcement related to the outstanding Armenian
soprano, Anush Hovhannissian.

“The Royal Opera House is delighted to announce the five singers who
will join the Jette Parker Young Artists Programme in September 2013,
selected from over 365 applicants from 50 countries.

Armenian soprano Anush Hovhannisyan Australian soprano Kiandra Howarth
Russian mezzo-soprano Nadezhda Karyazina Irish mezzo-soprano Rachel
Kelly Portuguese tenor Luis Gomes

Anush Hovhannisyan : Soprano Armenian soprano Anush Hovhannisyan
is currently studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland under
Patricia Hay. In the UK, she has been supported by ABRSM International
Scholarships, AGBU, RCS Trust and the Guzelian family. Prizes include
the Clonter Opera Prize, the Margaret Dick Award, Ye Cronies Opera
Award (RCS) and 3rd prize at Les Azuriales International Singing
Competition as well as a Tatevik Sazandaryan special prize and
the silver medal in the Delphic Games International Competition in
Armenia). She has taken masterclasses with Jane Eaglen, Lisa Milne,
Malcolm Martineau, Michele Crider and Montserrat Caballe.

Opera includes Forester’s Wife The Cunning Little Vixen and Clara
Betrothal in a Monastery for RCS/Scottish Opera, to be followed by
Helena A Midsummer Night’s Dream for RCS/Scottish Opera and Frau Fluth
Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor for RCS. Concerts include The Voices
of Montserrat Caballe Gala Concert in Zaragoza. She has appeared on
In Tune on BBC Radio 3 singing live with Donald Runnicles.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE JETTE PARKER YOUNG ARTISTS PROGRAMME
The Jette Parker Young Artists Programme supports the artistic
development of young professional singers, conductors, directors
and répétiteurs. The Young Artists are an international group of
outstanding professionals at the start of their careers who have
undertaken formal training and have already worked with professional
companies. They are not students, but contracted, salaried employees
of the Royal Opera House, who work here full-time over two years.

There is no age limit for those on the Programme, but when choosing
the Young Artists the audition panel take into consideration the stage
individuals have reached in their careers and where they will be in
terms of career development and age after working for two years on
the Programme.

The Young Artists work on productions for The Royal Opera, singing
small roles, covering larger roles or joining the music or directing
staff.

They also receive coaching in all opera disciplines. They work with
Royal Opera music staff, a wide range of freelance music and language
coaches and visiting singers, directors and conductors. Every facility
of the Company is made available to them so that their talents are
nurtured through total immersion in the life of the Royal Opera House.

For further information, visit
”

ANUSH PERFORMS AT THE LES AZURIALES OPERA CONCERT IN LONDON On
7 February 2013, Anush Hovhannisyan , one of the prizewinners of
the ” LES AZURIALES YOUNG ARTIST” competition (South of France),
participated in a concert entitled “LES AZURIALES OPERA”, which
took place at the palatial residence of Sir Vernon and Lady Ellis,
London. Anush mesmerized the audience with her outstanding performance
and interpretation of ” Ja Zhdu tebja”, S. Rachmaninov, “Nun eilt
herbei Wintz, heitre Lune”, Otto Nichilai and “Lo son l’umile ancella”,
Frencesco Cilea.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY?

“Anush Hovhannisyan won the Clonter Opera Prize 2012. This is a
prestigious award and it is the only inter-conservatoire opera prize
awarded in the United Kingdom. Singers are nominated by the heads of
opera form the UK’s leading conservatoires and then go forward to a
competition at Clonter Opera Theatre.

Congratulations and a very well deserved award.”

Professor John Wallace CBE Principal of Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

“…The cast was very strong for the competition and very
international, not sure who the panel was in the end because of no
shows but it was an even performance of the first two arias until Anush
Hovhannisyan of Armenia came to sing and put the other into second
place, Ashley Riches would have been our choice up to that point.”

MPM Films

“Hovhannisyan catches well the prissiness of Clara, also how aghast
she is on donning the nun’s veil, while her voice conveys the warmth
and sincerity of Clara’s feelings.”

The Opera Critic

“Anush Hovhannisyan had seemed to have an ordinary, workaday kind of
voice as Clara until the moment when she was called upon to masquerade
as a nun. In that moment she seemed utterly transformed. The suddenly
sublime tone that she found was unexpected but not unwelcome and
apparently heaven sent.”

Opera Britania

” Anush Hovhannisyan reached her forte as Clara in her big second
half aria, one of the few moments in this opera where fully-charged
emotional depth is called for.”

Scotsman ****** Anush is an outstanding soprano, who has all the
qualifications to become one of the top international opera stars.

Anush’s website:

A.G.

London

From: Baghdasarian

LE PARTI AU POUVOIR EN AZERBAIDJAN AURAIT PROMIS PLUS DE 12 000 DOLLARS A CELUI QUI COUPERA L’OREILLE A L’ECRIVAIN AZERBAIDJANAIS, AKRAM AYLISLI

Rappelons que celui-ci avait publie un livre evoquant, entre autres,
les pogroms d’Armeniens en Azerbaïdjan dans les annees 90. / Hayots
Achkhar, Aravot, Golos Armenii

Extrait de la revue de presse de l’Ambassade de France en Armenie en
date du 12 fevrier 2013

mardi 19 fevrier 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIE: SARKISSIAN DONNE GAGNANT DE LA PRESIDENTIELLE, L’OPPOSITION CRITIQUE

Le Nouvel Observateur, France
18 fevr 2013

EREVAN (AFP) – Le president armenien sortant Serge Sarkissian
est donne gagnant, selon un sondage a la sortie des bureaux de
vote, a l’issue d’un scrutin-test pour la democratie dans cette
ex-republique sovietique du Caucase, mais denonce comme frauduleux
par ses adversaires.

M. Sarkissian, 59 ans, a obtenu 58% des voix et son principal rival,
l’ex-ministre des Affaires etrangères Raffi Hovannissian, 54 ans,
32%, d’après le sondage de l’institut Gallup.

Un ex-Premier ministre, Hrant Bagratian, et l’ancien dissident
sovietique Parouïr Haïrikian n’obtiennent chacun que 3% des voix.

Le taux de participation a atteint 60,05%, a annonce la commission
electorale centrale qui a promis les premiers resultats officiels
pour dans la nuit de lundi a mardi.

“Cela a ete la meilleure election dans l’histoire de l’Armenie
independante. Elle montre que les processus democratiques sont
irreversibles”, a assure Edouard Charmazanov, porte-parole du Parti
republicain de Serge Sarkissian.

“Sarkissian est le seul favori”, a-t-il ajoute.

Le porte-parole de M. Hovannissian, Hovser Hourchoudian, a pour sa part
denonce un scrutin “honteux marque par une quantite enorme de fraudes”.

Il a appele a une manifestation mardi après-midi.

“Nous avons recu vers 18H00 des centaines de messages concernant
les violations massives du code electoral comme le bourrage d’urnes,
l’intimidation et l’achat de votes”, selon un communique diffuse par
l’etat-major electoral de M. Hovannissian.

M. Bagratian a aussi deplore des “infractions massives”, soulignant
qu’il n’excluait “pas des actions de protestation après le vote”.

La police armenienne a rejete ces accusations, les qualifiant
d'”inventions manifestes”.

Les observateurs de l’Organisation pour la cooperation et la securite
en Europe (OSCE) doivent donner mardi a 07H00 leur bilan de ce scrutin.

La campagne electorale a ete assombrie par une attaque contre M.

Haïrikian, blesse par balle a l’epaule le 31 janvier, et la grève de
la faim d’un autre candidat.

Trois des principales forces d’opposition, qui disposent de 48 des
131 sièges au Parlement, ont refuse de participer a cette election.

“J’ai vote pour l’avenir de l’Armenie, pour le bien-etre de nos
concitoyens et de nos familles”, a declare M. Sarkissian après avoir
depose son bulletin dans l’urne.

Les autorites espèrent que le calme prevaudra, afin de pouvoir
ameliorer les perspectives d’integration europeenne de ce petit pays
enclave du Caucase du Sud, peuple de trois millions d’habitants,
et qui ne dispose pas de ressources en hydrocarbures contrairement
a ses voisins.

En 2008, sa victoire a la presidentielle, contestee par l’opposition,
avait declenche des manifestations qui avaient degenere en
affrontements après l’intervention de la police, faisant 10 morts.

Vazguen Akobian, un charpentier de 53 ans, a vote pour le president
sortant. “Il a des nerfs d’acier et, en tant que chef de l’armee,
il peut prendre de bonnes decisions”, estime-t-il.

Siranouch Mnatsmkanian, 67 ans, considère en revanche que son pays
a besoin d’un dirigeant d’un “nouveau type” comme M. Hovannissian :
“Il est ne et grandi aux Etats-Unis, il a une mentalite occidentale,
il a promis de combattre la corruption”.

Les problèmes economiques de l’Armenie, confrontee a un important
chômage et a la corruption, ont ete au centre des debats electoraux.

Selon la Banque mondiale, 36% des Armeniens vivent en-dessous du
seuil de pauvrete. Ces deux dernières decennies, environ un million
d’Armeniens ont quitte leur pays pour fuir le chômage et chercher de
meilleures perspectives d’avenir a l’etranger.

D’autant plus que le pays souffre de la fermeture de ses frontières
avec l’Azerbaïdjan et la Turquie.

Bakou et Erevan se disputent le contrôle du Nagorny-Karabakh, une
region secessionniste azerbaïdjanaise contrôlee de facto par les
Armeniens après une guerre qui a fait 30.000 morts entre 1988 et 1994.

Par ailleurs, la Turquie et l’Armenie sont divisees sur la question
du genocide armenien sous l’empire ottoman (1915-1917), les autorites
turques recusant le terme de genocide.

From: Baghdasarian

AN ETHNIC LOBBY PUSHES STATE LEGISLATURES INTO CHALLENGING DORMANT FOREIGN AFFAIRS DOCTRINE

Journal of Turkish Weekly
Feb 18 2013

JTW

Since the founding of the United States, the division of federal and
state authority under the Constitution has been much debated. The
Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which emerged in the New
Jersey Plan on June 15, 1787, along with the Foreign Commerce Clause
formed the so-called dormant foreign affairs doctrine. According
to this doctrine, the U.S. Constitution, federal laws and treaties
supersede state laws to be “the supreme Law of the Land”. State
laws must yield to the laws of Congress, made in pursuance of the
Constitution, or some treaty made under the authority of the United
States (see Douglas v. Seacoast Products , 431 U.S. 265, 277 -279
[1977]). Consequently, the Supreme Court considers any state law
that contradicts a federal action that could be executed in a form
of treaty, federal statute, or express executive branch policy,
to be unconstitutional.

State involvement in U.S. foreign policy was barely significant
until 1980s, when to voice opinion against the apartheid regime,
over half of the states adopted sanctions against South Africa. In
the late 1990s, several state legislatures and localities targeted
the military regime in Burma, and in 2000s – the regime in Sudan for
genocidal crimes in Darfur. But most of these state laws have been
targeted by litigation. For example, in Crosby v. National Foreign
Trade Council case, the Supreme Court struck down a Massachusetts
law that imposed sanctions against companies doing business in Burma.

Over the past couple of decades, the Armenian-American lobby has been
actively targeting the nations of Turkey and Azerbaijan, the arch-foes
of Armenia. In case of Turkey, Armenian-American special interests
seek state-level acknowledgement of the claims of Armenian genocide
in the Ottoman Empire; in case of Azerbaijan – push for recognition
of the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), an unrecognized
client regime established in the parts of Azerbaijan occupied by
Armenian military.

On May 17, 2012, the State of Rhode Island House of Representatives
adopted Resolution H8180 calling on President and Congress to
recognize NKR. In November 2012, California Assemblyman Katcho
Achadjian and State Senator Kevin De Leon, hosted the self-proclaimed
foreign minister of NKR at the State Capitol in Sacramento. During the
reception, Senator De Leon asserted that California legislature should
recognize the NKR independence. Yet according to the U.S. Department
of State, the United States does not recognize NKR and considers
the comprising territory to be a part of Azerbaijan. Furthermore,
the U.S., along with France and Russia, is a co-chair of the OSCE
Minsk Group, an international body mediating a solution for the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. The ethnic-lobby-driven resolutions
in Rhode Island and California represent a certain impediment to this
mediating role of the federal government.

On the first day of the California Assembly in December 2012,
California Assemblymen Katcho Achadjian and Mike Gatto introduced
Assembly Joint Resolution 2 calling to recognize World War I-era
inter-ethnic atrocities in the Ottoman Empire as genocide against
Armenians. Armenian-American interest groups in California and other
states have repeatedly lobbied for similar resolutions. But without an
appropriate decision of the International Court of Justice (see Case
T-346/03 ), such state resolutions contradict the Constitution, as
neither the U.S. Government nor Congress recognize Armenian genocide.

The Armenian-American lobby’s influence on state legislatures yields
a pioneering new tendency. While previously state legislatures
interfered in foreign affairs only to express a position on issues
of human rights violations or commerce, they never did so to satisfy
an antagonism of a U.S.-based ethnic voting block against a foreign
nation. In this sense, Armenian-American example may be a disturbing
precedent for other ethnic lobbies that want to use state government
to settle foreign scores by circumventing federal jurisdiction.

By Rafiga Gurbanzade 18 February 2013 Journal of Turkish Weekly

From: Baghdasarian

Armenians cite poverty, unemployment concerns amid presidential election

Free Speech Radio News (Pasadena, CA)
Mon, 02/18/2013

-Year: 2013
-Length: 5:10 minutes (2.37 MB)
-Format: MP3 Mono 22kHz 64Kbps (CBR)

In Armenia, voters went to the polls today to elect the next
president. Incumbent Serzh Sargsyan faced a number of challengers, but
the campaign has been marked by controversy. One candidate was shot
and wounded last month, another has been on a hunger strike. And some
candidates say they won’t even vote in today’s poll. The campaign has
led to apathy by many voters who do not see the elections as a way to
change social and economic conditions. FSRN’s MJ del Valle spoke to
some of them and files this report.

From: Baghdasarian

SARKSYAN EXPECTED TO WIN RE-ELECTION IN ARMENIA

EuroNews, EU
Feb 18 2013

Voting has begun in the Armenian presidential elections where current
President Serzh Sarksyan is bidding for a second consecutive term
in office.

Elected in a vote marred by fraud and deadly violence in 2008,
this year’s poll has seen the leading opposition figures decline
the challenge, so Sarksyan has scored 60% in opinion polls, with his
nearest challenger barely making double figures.

One outsider candidate is currently in hospital after being shot, while
another has been on hunger strike since the start of the campaign to
demand Sarksyan’s candidacy be annulled, and for the international
observers in Armenia to boycott the vote.

Council of Europe officials observed on a January visit that there
was an atmosphere of apathy towards the vote, and that few people
expressed confidence in the electoral process.

Sarksyan is a native of the Nagorno-Karabakh region wrested from
Azerbaijan in a war in the 1990s. He says he is pursuing peace talks
with Armenia’s neighbour, but is ready to fight for the territory
again if necessary.

From: Baghdasarian