Author: Chakhmakhchian Vatche

VLADIMIR PRYAKHIN COMPARED ADOPTION OF RA CONSTITUTION WITH FOOTBALL MATCH
PanArmenian News Network
Aug. 3 2005
03.08.2005 05:04
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The adoption of the new Constitution is one of the
commitments Armenia undertook at the entry to the CoE, head of the OSCE
Yerevan Office, Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin stated during today’s
press conference dedicated to the constitution reform process. “The
current draft Constitution is closer to international standards”,
he said. He agreed with the Venice Commission on the necessity of
open debate of the constitutional amendments. As for the possible
obstacles posed by the opposition, Vladimir Pryakhin compared the
constitutional debates with a football match, where condemnation of
players and the referee is possible but own goals are absurd.

Caucaz.com 04/07/2005
Post-Soviet Azeri Islam: under Turkish, Arabic and Iranian influence
By Bayram Balci
head of the Turkey-Caucasus programme at the Baku campus of the French
Institute for Anatolian Studies (IFEA)
As with everywhere else within the Soviet region, Azeri Islam has
seen a veritable resurgence since the first signs of the collapse
of the Soviet Union at the end of the 1980s. At that time, religion
emerged from the private, or even underground, domain, to claim a
place of its own in public life. However, its arrival in this space
had not been previously discussed with the ruling political power,
which was intrinsically very attached to the secularism passed down
from the Soviet period.
Whereas Azeri Islam had existed without any contact with the
outside world until then, relations between Soviet Islam and that
of the Arabo-Iranian-Turko world being very limited, the advent of
independence allowed it to establish contact with these three regions
and become open to all the different Islamic influences.
Shiitism in Iran, an historical influence
The way in which most of Azeri Islam belongs to duodecimal Shiitism,
predominate in Iran since the 16th century, can be explained by the
fact that Iranian influences were the first to arrive in Azerbaijan
at the start of the 1990s.
Before even establishing diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and
Iran, whose diplomats have openly worked on developing religious
exchanges between the two countries, private Iranian initiatives
had opened madrasas (schools) and sent missionaries to the main
Azeri towns, particularly in the south, to Lenkeran, Massalli and
Nakhichevan.
But above all else, since the border between the two countries was
opened, hundreds of Azeri students have headed for Iran to carry out
religious studies, especially in the holy towns of Machhad and Qom,
where hozes (Islamic campuses) welcome students from across the world.
Thanks to the efforts from both the diplomatic services and private
Iranian organisations, as well as from initiatives taken by young
Azeris, there exists today a close Islamic cooperation between the two
countries. This cooperation has meant that while Azeri Shiitism plays
a role in debating ideas that are being discussed within the Shiite
world, their integration into worldwide Shiitism has not alienated
the integration of Azeri Shiites in their own country.
Sunnism, Turkey enters the playing field
The second, and no less important Islamic influence to arrive in
Azerbaijan at the start of the 1990s came from Turkey. This influence
had a dual nature, public and private, led respectively by the State
and a succession of bodies, often linked to the brotherhood, which
went to Azerbaijan and the whole of the former USSR when the Soviet
Union began to collapse.
In Azerbaijan, it is necessary to mention three Turkish religious
tendencies, whose influences played a real role in shaping post-Soviet
Azeri Islam. In the first instance, this concerned Nakshibendis,
the representatives of the most widespread brotherhood in the Muslim
world. Two Nakshibendi leaders that were influential in Turkey,
Osman Nui Topbas and Mahmut Ustaosmanoglu, sent vekils (emissaries)
and disciples to spread ideas and the movement throughout the country.
More active than the Nakshibendis, the Nurcu are the representatives
of a movement founded by Said Nursi (1876-1960). This movement is
made up of many different forms, but just two have successfully taken
root in Azerbaijan – that of Mustafa Sungur and the more influential
form of Fethullah Gülen, a very popular religious leader in Turkey
who took voluntary exile to the United States.
The disciples of the latter have set up a vast network of private
schools in Azerbaijan allowing the movement to mobilise a modern
proselytism which many have compared to that developed by Christian
Anglo-Saxon movements.
Other Turkish Islamic tendencies have managed to take root in
Azerbaijan, but their influence is limited. All of these Turkish
Islamic currents, including that represented by the State, spread
a Sunnite form of Islam that is moderate and close, or at least
respectful of, to other mystical brotherhood traditions that are
established in the Caucasus.
Arab countries and fundamentalist Islam
The third and final Islamic influence that has touched Azeri Islam
since the start of independence is that from the Arab world. Often
called Wahhabite because of the symbiosis between this type of Islam
and the religious philosophy of Abdul Wahhab (1703-1792), this trend
considers itself as Salafist, a follower of the teachings of the
ancestors and thereby the tradition of the prophet.
This is a rigorous, puritan and fundamentalist form of Islam
that wants to establish Islam as it was during the time of the
prophet. This Islam, virtually absent during the Soviet period,
has become established in the country thanks to preachers coming
from the Arab world. These preachers came at the end of perestroika,
but mainly during the war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Its development was helped to such an extent by local initiatives
that it very quickly became almost indigenous to the country.
Very widespread among North Caucasian Sunnite populations, the State
does not approve of this form of Islam and has tried to stamp it out,
albeit it without much success. This Islam is today well established
in Baku and in regions with a high proportion of Sunnite, notably
Guba and Zakatala.
The changes in the relations between these three ‘Islams’ has led to a
new situation for Azeri Islam in that it is becoming more diversified
and fragmented. The State tries to monitor this evolution by managing
spiritual affairs. The State is doing neither a bad job nor a good job
of this, which is mainly controlled by a new body for the regulation
of Islam that was set up in 2001. This body, the State committee for
religious affairs, seeks to encourage a synthetic form of Islam, that
is not too Shiite, nor too Sunnite and that is an official Islam in
the service of the State. This is an ambitious aim and difficult to
achieve as, although they want to create a national form of Islam to
serve the state, the political authorities still refuse to provide
any religious education in state schools.
(Translated by Victoria Bryan)
–Boundary_(ID_Ri5ffLdmSpYCIqs+o7azLQ)–

Middle East Times, Egypt
Aug 1 2005
Regional Roundups
Turkish politician calls Swiss law ‘medieval’
BERN – A Turkish politician under investigation in Switzerland for
saying that massacres of Armenians during World War I did not amount
to genocide, said that Swiss anti-racism laws were comparable to
the “medieval Inquisition” in a newspaper interview published on
July 31. The law threatens to damage relations between Switzerland
and Turkey and should be done away with, Dogu Perincek, the leader of
the small leftist Turkish Workers Party, told the Swiss-German paper
SonntagsBlick. Perincek was questioned by police last weekend in the
Swiss town of Winterthur after allegedly saying that the Armenian
genocide was “an international lie”, a remark deemed racist under
Swiss law.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
08/01/2005
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Cyprus Regrets Turkey's EU Accord Does Not Mean Recognition 2) Armenian Flag at Council of Europe Disappears 3) US Western Region Team Shines at Athens Games 4) Homenetmen Delegation Meets Greek President 1) Cyprus Regrets Turkey's EU Accord Does Not Mean Recognition NICOSIA (AFP)--The Cypriot government said it regretted Turkey's declaration that its signing of a key document on the path to European Union membership does not signify official recognition of the Cyprus republic. "The Republic of Cyprus expresses its deep regret that Turkey considers it necessary to make a unilateral statement on Cyprus at the time of signing the protocol," said government spokesman Kypros Chrysostomides on July 30. "It is regrettable that a candidate for accession declares that it does not recognize one of the member states of the Union it wishes to join," he added. Greece also expressed disappointment at Turkey's declaration, and continuous refusal to acknowledge Cyprus as a state. A Greek foreign ministry statement called Ankara's declaration "unilateral," adding that Turkey "insists on the continuation of a political and legal paradox." On July 29, Turkey agreed to extend an existing customs accord with the EU to include the bloc's 10 newest member states including Cyprus, whose internationally recognized Greek Cypriot government Ankara refuses to endorse. The signing of the document was a key precondition set by Brussels for the start of accession talks between Ankara and the EU, set for October 3. Turkey, which invaded and occupied northern Cyprus in 1974, attached a declaration to the document stating that its signature did not amount to recognition. "The signing, ratification, and implementation of this protocol in no way means recognition of the Republic of Cyprus, which the protocol refers to," a Turkish foreign ministry stated. "Turkey will continue to regard the Greek Cypriot authorities as exercising authority, control, and jurisdiction only in the territory south of the buffer zone [in Cyprus]... and as not representing the Turkish Cypriot people and will treat the acts performed by them accordingly," the declaration said. The Cyprus government spokesman said Turkey could not sustain this position against Cyprus because Ankara's EU accession negotiations would involve all 25 states in the bloc. "We urge Turkey to abide by the EU's founding principles of equal treatment for all states and embark on a process of speedy normalization with the Republic of Cyprus," he said. However, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Ankara had kept its end of the bargain and expected membership talks to begin on schedule. "Turkey fulfilled its commitments. There are no longer any obstacles ahead of the launch of EU accession negotiations on October 3," Gul told NTV news channel. Cyprus plans to study the document closely to see if the declaration makes the signing of the protocol itself invalid under the preconditions set by Brussels for Turkey's EU accession negotiations to begin. Turkey is the only country to recognize the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) proclaimed in 1983 in the Turkish-occupied northern third of the Mediterranean island. TRNC leader Mehmet Ali Talat said July 30 that Ankara's qualified signature of the agreement would bring about "many changes" and "various crises," but could eventually be beneficial. "The result of these crises will be that the resolution of the Cypriot question is established to be imperative and cannot be delayed," he told Turkey's Anatolia news agency. He included that the Turkish Cypriots could use the accord to formulate new demands for a settlement. The last international effort to end the division of Cyprus failed in April 2004 when the Greek Cypriots voted down a UN reunification plan even though the Turkish Cypriots gave it overwhelming support. The outcome ensured that the Greek Cypriots alone joined the EU in May last year, leaving the breakaway Turkish Cypriots out in the cold. EU efforts to assist them economically and ease trade restrictions as a reward for their vote have been blocked by the Greek Cypriots. Turkey is eager for the peace talks to resume, wary that the Greek Cypriots could use their EU membership as leverage to block Ankara's own accession aspirations. Gul tried to minimize any concern about a possible veto by Nicosia, highlighting that EU leaders--including President Tassos Papadopoulos--had agreed to open talks with Ankara last December. 2) Armenian Flag at Council of Europe Disappears YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--Armenia sent a note of protest to the leadership of the Council of Europe on August 1 against the mysterious disappearance of its national flag displayed outside the Strasbourg headquarters of the human rights organization. The Foreign Ministry in Yerevan said the red-blue-orange flag was found to be missing on July 30 from one of the 46 flagpoles in front of the building's main entrance that carry the national banners of all Council of Europe member states. A ministry statement said a plaque on the metal pole bearing Armenia's name was found twisted. "The Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Armenia is vehemently protesting against that act and is demanding that the Council of Europe take necessary security measures on its territory and prevent the national symbols of its member states from being vandalized," it said. According to the Foreign Ministry, a top aide to Council of Europe, Secretary General Terry Davis, apologized for the incident but said the organization's security service is only responsible for what happens inside the sprawling building. "Control of the territory outside the building is carried out by the French police and the latter have already been notified about what happened," the statement said, adding that a new Armenian flag has already been hoisted in place of the missing one. 3) US Western Region Team Shines at Athens Games ATHENS--As the Homenetmen 7th Pan Armenian Games came to an exciting close in Athens, Greece, the USA West team came out on top. The A Division Women's basketball team was undefeated under the direction of Coach Jerry Armen. Team captain Tamar Kataroyan was honored as the Games' Most Valuable Athlete. The A Division Men's basketball team made an impressive showing throughout the Games as well, defeating the Tehran team during finals to clench first place. In the swimming competitions, the USA West team clenched second place, while the men's volleyball team reached the finals, but lost to the Athens team. 4) Homenetmen Delegation Meets Greek President Prior to the close of Homenetmen's 7th Pan Armenian Games in Athens on Sunday, a delegation representing the Armenian athletic and scouting organization had the opportunity to meet with the president of the Republic of Greece Karolos Papoulias. The delegation included Homenetmen Central Executive members Karnig Megerdichian, Stepan Der Bedrosian, Vahram Tanielian; organizing committee chair of the Games Boghos Cholakian; and ARF Greece Central Committee representative Krikor Erchanian. The group thanked Papoulias for hosting the games, and briefed the president about Homenetmen's mission and worldwide activities. Papoulias noted the centuries-long friendship between Armenians and Greeks, and in the example of the Pan Armenian Games, conveyed that thought should be given to organizing a similar activity for diasporan Greeks. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.

Armenian Youth Federation-YOARF Eastern US
80 Bigelow Ave
Watertown, MA 02472
Tel. (617) 923-1933
Fax (617) 924-1933
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release ~ July 27, 2005
Contact: Sossi Essajanian
(617) 923-1933
AYF and ANC Members Say Never Again: Stop the Genocide in Darfur
WATERTOWN, Mass.-On July 26, members of the Armenian Youth Federation
(AYF) and the Armenian National Committee (ANC) of Eastern
Massachusetts participated in a protest organized by the Massachusetts
Coalition to Save Darfur at Boston City Hall Plaza.
The members joined a large crowd gathered to listen call for action to
end the genocide currently taking place in Darfur, Sudan. Through the
words of CBS4 newswoman Liz Walker, the message of “never again”
resonated throughout Boston Plaza. The program included a musical
selection, as well as moving accounts from survivors of the Rwandan
and Sudan genocides.
Joining in the call to end genocide, the Armenians held ups signs
reading, “Stop the Cycle of Genocide.”
“I attended the protest to support the oppressed people in Darfur. The
Armenian genocide was an awful atrocity, and we should do our part as
Armenians to ensure that such crimes against humanity are never
repeated again,” said AYF Central Executive member Anto
Megerdichian. “Regardless of race or color, human rights should be
respected. These speakers helped me realize that unfortunately, if you
don’t have resources like oil to provide for this Administration,
you’re simply not a priority.”
The mission of the Massachusetts Coalition to Save Darfur is to
stimulate, support and facilitate the efforts of faith based and
secular organizationsin Massachusetts to stop the genocide, rape and
other crimes against humanity being committed in the Darfur region of
Sudan. The Armenian National Committee (ANC) of Eastern Massachusetts
is a member organization of the coalition. For more information, visit
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EVENTS DEVOTED TO 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE HELD IN CANADA
YEREVAN, JULY 29. ARMINFO. July 16-26 in the framework of Past Lives
TV series Prime TV channel (Canada) broadcast Rognan Fernand’s
30-minute program on the Armenian Genocide.
Another Canadian TV company CBC Newsworld presented a film about
Nagorno Karabakh Republic as part of its TV series Holidays in the
Danger Zone: Places than Don’t Exist.
State commission for organization of events devoted to 90th
anniversary of e Armenian Genocide says that Past LIves TV series
shows the everyday life of multi-national Canada and its ancestors
while the film about NKR is the documentary of the Karabakh
war. Journalist Simon Reeve presents the facts and analyses the events
laying special emphasis on the strategic importance of Shushi
liberation. The source says that Reeve has to date visited and shot
films in Somalia, South Ossetia, Taiwan.

ArmenPress
July 29 2005
TURKISH MAYOR INVITES ARMENIA FOR A FESTIVAL
YEREVAN, JULY 29, ARMENPRESS: Mayor of Turkish Edirne, Hamdi
Sedefci, announced Thursday he was going to invite an Armenian
delegation to participate in a September 18 international Peace and
Beauty festival. Anadolu news agency said participants of the
festival from 20 countries will address an appeal of peace and beauty
to the world from a point where the borders of Turkey, Greece and
Bulgaria meet.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Edicom, Suisse
Jeudi 28 Juillet 2005
Le DFAE explique à l’ambassadeur turc que la négation d’un génocide
est punissable en Suisse
L’ambassadeur de Turquie reçu à Berne – Après les déclarations d’un
politicien turc –
Berne (AP) Un entretien a eu lieu jeudi au Département fédéral des
affaires étrangères (DFAE) avec l’ambassadeur de Turquie en relation
avec l’enquête ouverte en Suisse à l’encontre d’un politicien turc
pour négation du génocide arménien. Le DFAE est confiant que les
clarifications données sur l’ordre juridique suisse permettront de
rétablir une atmosphère de travail «plus sereine».
Ce nouveau refroidissement dans les relations helvético-turques fait
suite aux propos tenus ces derniers jours par le chef du Parti des
travailleurs à l’occasion de la commémoration du Traité de Lausanne,
qui a délimité les frontières de la Turquie moderne en 1923. Dogu
Perincek a notamment déclaré que le génocide arménien de 1915 était
un «mensonge des impérialistes».
L’ambassadeur de Turquie en Suisse a été reçu par le chef de la
Division politique I, l’ambassadeur Jean-Jacques de Dardel. Le DFAE a
réitéré sa surprise face aux protestations continues du gouvernement
turc au sujet de l’ouverture d’une enquête à l’encontre de Dogu
Perincek. Lors de l’entretien, il a rappelé que le Code pénal suisse
contenait une norme contre le racisme, qui punissait tout propos tenu
en public niant, minimisant ou tentant de justifier un génocide ou
autres crimes contre l’humanité. Il a par ailleurs renvoyé à
l’indépendance du pouvoir judiciaire en Suisse.
Le DFAE rappelle que le Conseil fédéral a toujours déploré et
condamné les tragiques déportations et les massacres qui ont eu lieu
en Arménie à la fin de l’Empire ottoman. Toutefois, il est d’avis
qu’il appartient aux historiens de faire la lumière sur ces
événements et de les analyser dans leur contexte historique. A cet
égard, le Conseil fédéral salue la proposition du gouvernement turc
d’instaurer une commission mixte composée d’historiens turcs et
arméniens pour procéder à une étude approfondie de la question.

I-Newswire.com (press release)
July 28 2005
New CD: The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide
Simon Maghakyan, a student from Colorado, has recently issued a CD
called `The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide.’ The CD
contains more than 400 photographs testifying to the destruction of
the Armenian cultural monuments in the Republic of Turkey.
(I-Newswire) – Simon Maghakyan, a student from Colorado, has recently
issued a CD called `The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural
Genocide.’ The CD contains more than 400 photographs testifying to
the destruction of the Armenian cultural monuments in the Republic of
Turkey.
The CD is a collection of old and new photographs taken in historic
Armenia, which is now part of Turkey. During the Armenian Genocide (
1915-1923 ), Armenian churches and cathedrals were set on fire,
converted to mosques, destroyed and desecrated. The Turkish
government still continues the policy of the cultural genocide.
Between 1915 and now, more than 2000 Armenian churches have been
destroyed in Turkey. Some of them, as old as 1700 years, have been
entirely wiped off ( such as the 7th century church of St. James in
Bagrevand ), others have been converted to mosques ( St. Apostles’ of
Kars, etc. ) and several churches have been converted to public
buildings ( sport centers, cultural centers, etc. ) The legendary
monastery of Mush known as St. Apostles ( founded in the 4th century
) has been ruined and desecrated. Armenia was the first country to
adopt Christianity as the state religion in 301 A.D.
The CD has been designated for educational purposes only and is not
on sale. Copies of the CD have been donated to educational
institutions throughout the world. The Armenian National Institute in
Washington D.C., Zoryan Institute of America and the Armenian Library
and Museum of America have copies of this work.
`The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide’ also contains
information about other forms of cultural genocide, including
distortion of geographical names and national songs.
To learn more about the project visit

AUTHORITIES VIOLATE SOME EUROPEAN CONVENTIONS WHEN CONSTRUCTING
NORTHERN AVENUE IN YEREVAN: LOCAL RESIDENTS STATE
YEREVAN, JULY 28. ARMINFO. Authorities have violated some provisions
of both Armenia’s Constitution and European conventions when
constructing the Northern Avenue in Yerevan, stated representatives of
“Victims of “state needs” public organization at today’s
press-conference.
They demanded to recognize invalid the government’s decisions on lands
as they contradict to country’s Constitution and provisions of the
European convention, as well as to consider objectively the cases
connected with the development of both Northern and Main
Avenues. “Some criminal “businessmen” and state officials suckled by
their bribes, under the ephemeral idea of state need possess the
property of hundreds of families redoubling social polarization of our
society”, the organization’s massage says.
Old buildings have been demolished with the aim to construct the
Northern Avenue and 600 residents lost their dwellings and were not
given an adequate compensation.