Author: Chakrian Hovsep

COMMISSION MEMBER TO LEARN FORMING PROTOCOLS

Panorama.am
18:17 16/01/2008

"From January 30 to February 14, trainings for all the members of
the electoral commissions will be organized. Preparation works are
under way," CEC Secretary Abram Bakhchagulyan told a news conference
today. In his words, this year special attention will be paid to
forming the protocols since during the presidential elections most of
the shortcoming pinpointed by international observers related to that.

"We will try to accomplish that each member of the commission knows
what protocol is and how they are formed," the commission secretary
said.

In compliance with the requirements and the timeline of the Electoral
Code, the electoral commissions will be formed from January 24 to
27. The first sessions will be held at 12:00 of January 28. The
sessions will elect chairmen, deputies and secretaries of the
commissions.

RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN ECONOMIC FORUM TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN ON JANUARY 20-21

YEREVAN, JANUARY 14, NOYAN TAPAN. A Russian-Armenian economic forum
will be held in Yerevan on January 20-21. The Union of Armenians of
Russia (UAR) and the RA ministry of trade and economic development are
the event’s organizers. NT correspondent was informed by the UAR that
it is envisaged that at the January 21 plenary sitting of the forum,
the Armenian prime minister Serge Sargsian will address forum
participants with an opening speech, while the chairman of the UAR Ara
Abrahamian will make a speech of welcome.

During the plenary sitting, the RA minister of trade and economic
development Nerses Yeritsian will give the report "The Development
Prospects and Priority Investment Directions of Armenia’s Economy". The
director of the Armenian Development Agency (ADA) Tigran Davtian will
make the report "The Current Investment Environment in Armenia".

On the same day A. Abrahamian and N. Yeritsian will hold a joint press
conference. Individual meetings of businessmen – forum participants
will take place. 60-70 businessmen are expected to arrive from Russia
to participate in the forum.

LEVON ARONIAN GAINS VICTORIES IN FIRST TWO TOURS OF WIJK AAN ZEE
TOURNAMENT

WIJK AAN ZEE, JANUARY 14, NOYAN TAPAN. An International Chess Festival
under the title Korus started for the 70th time on January 12 in the
city of Wijk aan Zee, Holland. Almost all strongest chess players of
the world perform in the 20-category tournament.

Levon Aronian, the festival’s last year winner, is among 14 grand
masters taking part in the main tournament. In the first two tours he
defeated first Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria), then Boris Gelfand (Israel).
L. Aronian and Magnus Karlsen (Norway) gained two out of two possible
points each and are at the top of the tournament table.

In tournament B being held parallel with the main tournament, Gabriel
Sargsian and Sergei Movsisian (Slovakia) ended their two games in a
draw and share the 7-10th places with one point each.

WILL IT BE SOLVED?

A1+
[04:33 pm] 10 January, 2008

Head of the Department for Economics of the "Republic of Armenia
Government Staff" Simon Ghonakhchyan received employees of
"Hydroaparat" OLC today.

We should remind that about 230 shareholders demand their 35 %
shares. As they mention no equipments are preserved in the factory
today, everything is sold without their permission. "ArmRusGazArd"
is the present owner of 65 percent of the factory.

Simon Ghonakhchyan promised to provide 35% of shares to the 230
shareholders.

Shushan Grigoryan, one of the shareholders told "A1+" that they wanted
their part in compliance with 1994 facts, since the factory was very
rich then and had various equipments. "Now only walls preserve in
the factory", mentioned Shushan Grigoryan.

Simon Ghonakhchyan said that they were unable to meet the employees’
demand.

The shareholders are going to convene a session and discuss their
further activities.

ARMENIAN AMERICANS SET TO PLAY PIVOTAL ROLE IN PRIMARIES

armradio.am
10.01.2008 10:42

In the wake of the hotly contested Iowa caucus and New Hampshire
primary, Armenian Americans are better positioned than ever to play a
decisive role in the key states that will help choose the Presidential
nominees of the Republican and Democratic parties over the next 30
days, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

In recent weeks, the ANCA has invited each of the candidates to
share their views on Armenian Americans issues, and to comment
on both the growing relationship between the US and Armenian
governments and the enduring bonds between the American and Armenian
peoples. Questionnaires sent to the candidates have invited them
to respond to a set of 18 questions, including those addressing:
affirmation of the Armenian Genocide, US-Armenia economic, political,
and military relations, self-determination for Nagorno Karabakh,
the Turkish and Azerbaijani blockades and the genocide in Darfur

"Armenian Americans are set to cast their votes in the presidential
primaries in record numbers," said ANCA Eastern Region Executive
Director Karine Birazian. "We look forward to working with all the
campaigns to make sure that Armenian American voters go to the polls
empowered to make informed decisions about the candidates who will
best represent our community’s views and values."

"In California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, and throughout the Western
part of the country, Armenian American voters are in a position to
play a truly decisive role in this year’s highly competitive battle
between the candidates to secure the nominations of their party,"
said ANCA Western Region Executive Director Andrew Kzirian.

HEAD OF OSCE OBSERVATION MISSION HOPES TO REGISTER ARMENIA’S FURTHER PROGRESS IN MAKING THE ELECTION PROCESS MEET THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS

Mediamax
January 10, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Head of the long-term observers’ mission of the
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in
Armenia, Ambassador Geert-Hinrich Ahrens stated in Yerevan today that
"after the presidential elections of February 19, we hope to register
Armenia’s further progress in making the election process meet the
international standards".

Mediamax reports that the representatives of the OSCE ODIHR mission
of long-term observers gave the first news conference in Yerevan today.

14 goups of long-term observers (2 observers in each) will work in
the whole territory of Armenia. It is expected that on the day of
elections the number of short-term observers from the OSCE will make
250 people, not counting the representatives of the Parliamentary
Assemblies of the OSCE and the Council of Europe.

"I believe that we will have enough people for carrying out observation
over the elections in Armenia", Geert-Hinrich Ahrens stated. The Head
of the mission said that he had already met the Minister of Foreign
Affairs and the Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia
and had agreed on holding weekly meetins with the leadership of the
Foreign Ministru and the CEC. Geert-Hinrich Ahrens stated that he
intends to meet all the 9 candidates, claiming to occupy the position
of the Armenian President.

Before the elections, the OSCE ODIHR mission will present two interim
reports. The preliminary conclusion, as usual, will be publicized
the following day after the elections, and the final report – in the
course of 2 months after the elections.

Answering the question on how important the data of exit-polls, which
are planned to be held on the day of elections on the initiative
of the U.S. government, will be for the OSCE observation mission,
Geert-Hinrich Ahrens stated:

"We will consider the data of exit-polls as one of the sources of
information, however we will not base on that for anticipation of
the elections".

Geert-Hinrich Ahrens noted that today the OSCE ODIHR mission will start
the realization of a monitoring of the electronic and print media of
Armneia. He stressed that "the media sometimes play a decisive role
in securing democratic elections".

Geert-Hinrich Ahrens refrained to make any commens concerning the
pre-election situation, noting that the mission has been working in
Armenia for only 2 days yet.

SMALL BUSINESSES IN ARMENIA TO RECEIVE BOOST FROM UN RURAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

ARMENPRESS
Jan 9, 2008

ROME, JANUARY 9, ARMENPRESS; A new US$32.2 million Farmer Market
Access Program in Armenia, supported by a US$ 11.9 million loan and a
US$500,000 grant from International Fund for Agricultural Development
(IFAD), will provide innovative financing for poor rural and peri-urban
people to develop profitable on-farm and off-farm small businesses.

IFAD said in a press release that the program will provide loans to
people who develop rural microenterprises that have the potential
for rapid growth but are held back because they can’t qualify for
conventional bank loans.

The loan agreement was signed January 8 at IFAD headquarters by IFAD’s
President Lennart Bage and Armenia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary to Italy Ruben Shougarian.

The OPEC Fund for International Development will co-finance the program
for US$10 million. Other co-financiers will contribute US$2 million;
the Government of Armenia US$5 million; participating financial
institutions US$900,000; and project participants US$2 million.

"Once they are able to access credit, poor rural producers will
have many more opportunities to develop profitable and commercially
viable products and services all along the market value chain," said
Henning Pedersen, IFAD’s country program manager for Armenia. "More
rural enterprises will also mean new jobs for people who have not
been able to find work."

The programmer’s main financing instrument will be a venture capital
fund – the Fund for Rural Economic Development in Armenia (FREDA) –
which represents an innovation for both rural Armenia and IFAD.

Those applying for financing under the program will have to show
that their enterprise will foster sustainable income growth among
the program’s target groups, which include farmers and unemployed,
under-employed and self-employed people. Applicants for FREDA support
who engage women as suppliers and employees will be given preference.

The program will also help participants gain access to the knowledge,
technology and infrastructure they need to enable them to profit from
domestic and export markets.

Improved access to roads, small-scale irrigation and village gas
supplies are also part of the program.

Participants will contribute a minimum of 10 per cent in cash or in
kind to overall infrastructure costs, and participate in infrastructure
design, supervision, operation and maintenance.

IFAD has financed five programs and projects in Armenia since 1995,
investing a total of US$64.2 million. IFAD investments in the country
support poor farm families so they can produce a surplus to be sold
for additional income. Small- and medium-scale rural service providers
such as traders, processors and suppliers also are targeted for support
because of their important role as links between farmers and markets.

IFAD was created 30 years ago to tackle rural poverty, a key cause
of the droughts and famines of the early 1970s. Since 1978, IFAD
has invested almost US$10 billion in low-interest loans and grants
that have helped more than 300 million very poor rural women and men
increase their incomes and provide for their families.

IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized
United Nations agency. It is a unique partnership of OECD, OPEC
and other developing countries. Today, IFAD supports more than 200
programs and projects in 84 developing countries.

Granite City
PRESS-RECORD

Manoyan chronicles 1940 state champions

By Theo Tate Saturday, January 5, 2008 12:15 PM CST

The Granite City Warriors boys basketball team captured its first and
only state championship in 1940.

It was a team that had players who grew up in the Lincoln Place
neighborhood in Granite City and bounced back from a loss to Wood
River in the regional championship to win the state title at the
University of Illinois.

"This was a really good story that should have been told a long time
ago," said Dan Manoyan, who is a sports writer at the Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel. "I hope it’s going to be made into a movie
someday. We’re all hopeful of it."Manoyan is the author of the book,
"Men of Granite," which told the story about the 1940 state
champions. The book was published last month and numerous copies were
sold during the Granite City boys basketball team’s games against
Mater Dei on Nov. 19 and Sumner on Nov. 21.

"I’m proud of it, but I wished I could have done it 10 or 15 years ago
when all of these guys are still alive," Manoyan said. "There only
three survivors from the team. It would have been a lot more
comprehensive and a better book had I done it 10 years ago. I think
it’s still pretty good."

Two of the survivors on the team, Andy Hagopian and John Markarian,
joined Manoyan at a book signing last week at Krieger’s Sports Bar and
Grill in Granite City.

Both Hagopian and Markarian were juniors on the 1940 Granite City boys
basketball team. Hagopian was the Warriors’ second-leading scorer on
the team at the state tournament with 30 points in four
games. Markarian was one of the bench players.

"I think Dan did a fantastic job (on the book)," Hagopian said.

Manoyan said Hagopian was pretty helpful in giving him information
about the team.

"Andy had a really good scrapbook that helped quite a bit," Manoyan
said. "Of course, he was the primary source of the book because he
played with the team and started all year. Basically, half of the book
was from Andy’s memory."

Manoyan also got help from Babe Champion and Gus Lignoul, who
graduated from Granite City in 1951 and 1946, respectively.

"Babe Champion and Gus Lignoul went through the microfilm for the
Granite City Press-Record and they got all of the stories from that
year (1940)," Manoyan said.

There are 24 chapters in the book, plus statistics from the state
tournament. One of Manoyan’s favorite chapters in the book was chapter
two, which told the story about Markarian and his family.

"I think the first two paragraphs were what I liked," Markarian
said. "I think he did a great job writing up the first two
paragraphs."

Andy Phillip, another member of the Granite City boys basketball team,
was the leading scorer of the 1940 state tournament with 53 points. He
went on to play college basketball at the University of Illinois and
had an 11-year career with the NBA. Phillip died in 2001.

"One of the things that I’m regretful in my life is I never saw him
play," said Corky Phillip, who is Andy’s widow.

George Gages, Evon Parsaghian, Dan Eftimoff, Ebbie Mueller, Everett
Daniels, Sam Mouradian and Ed Hoff were the other members on the
Granite City squad that finished with a 29-5 record and beat Herrin
24-22 in the state championship game. Byron Bozarth was the head
coach.

"It’s a pretty good story," Manoyan said. "The hardest part about
writing a book is finding a good story here. I always wanted to write
a book, but never had a good story."

Corky Phillip, who was in attendance at the book signing last week at
Krieger’s, said she was pleased with Manoyan’s project.

"I read the draft copy and I couldn’t put it down," she said. "I kept
reading and reading. This is a great thing for Granite City. It gives
them another lift."

Manoyan covers the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men’s basketball
team for the Milwaukee-Journal Sentinel, where he has worked for the
last 15 years. He’s a native of Waukegan and a graduate of the
University of Illinois.

"I had people from Milwaukee asking me why are you doing a story about
something that happened in Illinois," Manoyan said. "I said I don’t
think anything like this ever happened in Wisconsin."

Manoyan said he came up with the idea of "Men of Granite" while
visiting the St. Louis area.

"I was leaving St. Louis one time and I saw the sign for Granite City
and drove over and I saw the steel mills," Manoyan said. "I thought
there might be a story there. When I got home, I went to the IHSA site
and got the names of all of the guys who were on that team in 1940 and
I did a people search for Granite City and I came up with two guys,
Andy Hagopian and John Markarian, and their phone numbers. I talked to
them on the phone and I asked Andy do you think there’s enough here to
do a book?"

So in the spring of 2006, Manoyan started his project.

"I talked to them (Hagopian and Markarian) over at the Armenian Church
and spent the day with them," Manoyan said. "There was a lot
there. It’s a pretty compelling story on how these guys changed
Granite City around. All five starters were immigrants and
first-generation Americans. They weren’t accepted here in town, but
after they won the state championship, they sure were. I think they
made life better for everybody in this town."

To order a copy of the book, call Champion at 451-1212 or Lignoul at
452-3339 or e-mail Champion at [email protected].

E-mail: [email protected]

http://granitecitypress-rec ord.stltoday.com/articles/2008/01/05/sports/sj2tn2 0080105-0106gcj_boysbb.ii1.txt

Global Insight
December 28, 2007

Opposition Candidates in Armenia Slam U.S.-Funded Opinion Poll over
Low Ratings

by Natalia Leshchenko

Three Armenian opposition leaders–Artur Baghdasarian, Levon
Ter-Petrosian, and Vazgen Manukian–have deplored the electoral
opinion poll conducted with support by the U.S. government as
fraudulent. The poll, held in Armenia for the first time, started
with the commencement of the election campaign. It was offered by the
U.S. government as a part of its "off-the-peg" packet of measures
designed to ensure the democratic nature of elections in countries
with dubious democratic records. The poll is designed by the
renounced Gallup organisation and is intended to serve as a backdrop
to the official results of the presidential election to be held in
February 2008. So far, the polls have highlighted Prime Minister
Serzh Sarkisian’s clear lead with an approval rating of 35%.
Baghdasarian is some way behind with 13%, and Ter-Petrosian even
further with just 3%.

Significance:On the surface, the opposition’s challenge to what is
intended to be means of support for them is highly ironic. If the
polls are correct, they highlight the opposition forces’ political
marginalisation–a wider tendency in the CIS region that Global
Insight has pointed to in its report. There is a possibility,
however, that these polls are biased, with opposition leaders
doubting their quality and claiming that they are conducted that they
are conducted by government supporters. In any case, bringing into
question the quality of the polls has already discredited them as a
means of support for the opposition, and as such has undermined their
value.

ACCORDING TO VAZGEN MANUKIAN, AS ALWAYS ARSHAK SADOYAN HAS FOUND THE
MOST ORIGINAL SOLUTION

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 27, NOYAN TAPAN. The willingness to get acquainted
with the new parliament’s staff more closely made Arshak Sadoyan, the
Chairman of the Union of National Democrats party, become the Adviser
of one of the friends of RA Prime Minister Serge Sargsian, businessman
Levon Sargsian. Saying this at the December 27 press conference, A.
Sadoyan added that he has also applied to opposition parliamentarians
with that issue, but it was found out that every one "has a large list
of assistants" there. "Lyovik agreed to my becoming his assistant. And
I registered my name as Lyovik’s assitant by the end of December,"
Sadoyan said. At the same time, Sadoyan said that he is ready to
provide free consultation to everyone who wishes, as this is done in
case of L. Sargsian.

NDU Chairman Vazgen Manukian taking part in the press conference said
that at first he was surprised when he learnt about one of his
co-thinkers’ becoming L. Sargsian’s assistant. However, in the future
he realized that for the purpose of receiving a permanent pass to the
NA "Arshak Sadoyan as always has found the most original solution."