Author: Chakrian Hovsep

SERZH SARGSYAN SAYS NOBODY MADE HIM INVITE GUL TO ARMENIA

Panorama.am
16:10 30/09/2009

Nobody forced Armenia to normalize ties with Turkey, Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan declared today at meeting with the members of Public
Council.

During the discussion with the members of Public Council, President
answered to the observations that Armenia resumed negotiations with
Turkey under international pressure:

"Nobody made us to resume negotiations to normalize ties with Turkey,
Nobody pressed on us. Nobody made me to invite Turkey’s President
to Armenia."

It’s worth reminding that extended format meeting of Public Council
chaired by President Serzh Sargsyan took place in Sport&Concert
Complex after Karen Demirchyan. The issues related to the processes
round Armenian-Turkish ties have been the highlights of the meeting.

THE MINISTRY OF DIASPORA IS ONE-YEAR-OLD
Sona Hakobyan

"Radiolur"
30.09.2009 14:50

The Ministry of Diaspora celebrates the first birthday
anniversary. Today Minister Hranush Hakobyan summed up the work dune by
the agency over the past year. The activity of the Ministry has been
primarily targeted at the revival of the Diaspora in the spiritual,
cultural and educations spheres.

The Minister laid a special emphasis on issues of maintenance of the
Armenian national identity and repatriation. Thus, presenting the work
done in different directions, Hranush Hakobyan confessed that there
had been a number of difficulties resulting from lack of experience.

"This first year was like a preparation for our employees. The main
difficulty is connected with the fact that the Diaspora is not a
single body. The Diaspora is far from us, and there are a lot of
Armenians, not included in any organization. The more we get involved
in Armenians structures and organizations, the easier the work of
the Diaspora Ministry," Mrs. Hakobyan stated.

ARMENIA FM MEETS UN SECRETARY GENERAL

armradio.am
30.09.2009 17:48

The Foreign Minister of Armenia, Edward Nalbandian, had a meeting
with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

During the meeting reference was made to the issues on UN agenda,
the reformation of the organization, the process of implementation
of the millennium challenge goals, the organization of the summit
of UN member states in 2010, as well as the cooperation between the
Armenian Government and the UN Office in Yerevan.

Minister Nalbandian presented the process of normalization of the
Armenian-Turkish relations. The UN Secretary General expressed his
support for Armenia’s steps targeted at the normalization of relations
with Turkey. The interlocutors dwelt on the Karabakh settlement.

ARMENIAN CHESS PLAYER DEFEATED ENGLAND’S TEAM DURING THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
29.09.2009 20:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In the 6th round of World Junior Chess Championship
held in Akhisar, Turkey, on September 24-October 3, Armenian junior
chess team (under age 16) beat England’s players 3:1.

Armenian team winners were Hayk Vardanyan, Robert Aghasaryan and Tigran
S. Petrosyan. The only unsuccessful player was Samvel Ter-Sahakyan,
the youngest sportsmen, who suffered two consecutive defeats.

Let’s note that in the first three rounds, Armenian players competed
against Turkish team, holding victory in the first two matches and
making a draw in the last game. In the 4th and 5th rounds, Armenian
players fell behind Russian and Hungarian teams with minimal scores.

After 6 rounds, Armenia’s junior team gained 14.5 points, sharing the
4th-7th positions with Georgia, Turkey and Uzbekistan. Indian team,
with 17.5 points, tops tournament list. Russian and Azerbaijani teams
share 2nd-3rd positions with 16 points.

There are 22 teams participating in championship, with 6 representing
Turkey.

In the 7th round, Armenian chess players will play against Georgian
national team.

CLINTON EXHORTS TURKEY, ARMENIA ON NORMALIZATION

New York Times
September 28, 2009

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged
Turkey and Armenia Monday to carry out their plans to normalise ties
soon during separate meetings with their foreign ministers.

Her comments appeared to reflect uncertainty about whether the
countries will stick to their plan to sign a pact restoring diplomatic
ties and reopening their border by mid-October.

Signing the deal would help to end almost a century of hostility
stemming from the World War One killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks.

Turkey rejects Armenian claims the killings, a defining element of
Armenian national identity, amount to genocide, and says many people
were killed on both sides of the conflict.

"I want to reiterate our very strong support for the normalization
process that is going on between Armenia and Turkey, which we have
long said should take place without preconditions and within a
reasonable timeframe," Clinton told reporters as she sat down with
Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian on the sidelines of the
U.N. General Assembly.

She later met Turkish Foreign Ahmet Davutoglu.

A U.S. official said Clinton does not want the signing to be disrupted
by Armenian nationalist demands that Turkey acknowledge the 1915
killings as genocide or by demands by some Turks for a resolution of
the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

Turkey closed its frontier with Armenia in 1993 in solidarity with
its Muslim ally Azerbaijan during the war in Nagorno-Karabakh, where
ethnic Armenians threw off Azeri rule with the backing of Armenia.

Armenia and Turkey on August 31 said they would sign accords within
six weeks to restore ties and reopen their border.

S. FARMANYAN,"WHEN THERE IS CLARITY ON THE NEXT ROUNDS OF THE DISCUSSION, WE WILL INFORM"

ARMENPRESS
SEPTEMBER 28, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS: Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan
stated that the initially signed Armenian-Turkish protocols will be
signed on October 10 or 11. On this occasion Press Secretary for the
Armenian president Samvel Farmanyan explained," When there is clarity
on the next rounds of the discussion, we will inform".

AGBU School Celebrates New State-of-the-Art Building

4/agbu-school-celebrates-new-state-of-the-art-buil ding/
By Weekly Staff – on September 24, 2009

September 8 will be engraved in the AGBU Alex and Marie Manoogian
School’s history as a memorable day. In the presence of the school’s
current and former board of directors, Greater Detroit Armenian
community members, teachers, and students, the opening ceremony of the
new high school took place in the atrium of the building.

Exuberance and excitement were in the air, apparent especially on the
faces of the Manoogian students who were the main beneficiaries of the
gift, a donation from Richard Manoogian and Louise Simone.

Dyana Kezelian, the elementary and middle school principal, gave the
opening remarks, welcoming family and friends, and thanking the
Manoogian family for their support. `Our founders and benefactors,
Mr. and Mrs. Alex and Marie Manoogian, are delightedly watching our
ceremony from heaven, being fulfilled on what we have achieved in
these past 40 years,’ she said.

She proudly announced that 40 years ago, no one could have anticipated
that this school, which opened its doors with 10 students and 2
teachers, would have endured to find its respectable place in the
educational world. Today, however, with the continuing efforts of its
staff, dedication of past principals and teachers, and the visionary
guidance of its board members, the school has earned the accolades it
deserves, thriving with its more than 400 students and 45 faculty and
staff.

`Today on this festive occasion, the Manoogian spirit soars as we
collectively celebrate not only the 40th anniversary of the founding
of our school, but the grand opening of this breathtaking building,’
said high school principal Dr. Hosep Torossian, after welcoming the
audience. `Alex Manoogian’s passion for giving did not end with his
passing. As torchbearers of their parents’ dreams, Richard Manoogian
and Louise Manoogian Simone continue their unwavering support of our
school.’

Board of Directors chair Dr. Richard Marburger congratulated the
audience, starting his remarks by saying, `It’s a great day for us
Armenians.’ He thanked the Manoogian family for their gift and
continuous support and, enumerating the school’s past successes,
praised the current administration.

Marburger and Board of Directors vice chairman Edmond Azadian,
together with both principals, cut the ceremonial ribbon, reminding
school family and friends that the grand opening ceremony of the high
school building will take place on Oct. 10.

Examiner.com

Paul Krekorian places first in Tuesday’s Special Elections

September 25, 2:23 PMLA City Hall ExaminerBita Neyestani

On Tuesday September 22nd, Assemblyman Paul Krekorian received the
highest amount of votes for the position as a Los Angeles City Council
member representing L.A.’s Second Council District, which comprises
portions of North Hollywood, Sherman Oaks, Studio City,
Sunland-Tujunga, Valley Glen and Valley Village. Less than12% of
registered voters participated in Tuesday’s special election that aims
to replace former Councilwoman and current Los Angeles City Controller
Wendy Greuel. Krekorian received 34.1% of the votes, while former
Paramount Pictures Corporation executive Christine Essel received
28.3% of the votes.

On December 8th Paul Krekorian will challenge Christine Essel in a
runoff election. If Krekorian wins he will be the first
Armenian-American individual to serve in the Los Angeles City
Council. For more information, please visit
.htm.

MINISTER OF DIASPORA MEETS WITH DELEGATION OF ARMENIAN ASSOCIATION OF UROLOGY

NOYAN TAPAN
SEPTEMBER 24, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 24, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. RA Minister
of Diaspora Hranush Hakobian on September 23 received a delegation
of the Armenian Association of Urology. The delegation was headed
by Prof. Garo Tertzakian, Founding Member of the Association, member
of American Urological Association and American College of Surgeons,
and Prof. Hovhannes Aghajanian, President of the Association.

The doctors from the Republic of Armenia and the Diaspora said that
the 11th forum of the Armenian Association of Urology will be held in
Dilijan on September 25-26. About 120 doctors from Armenia and some
80 Diaspora Armenian doctors from the U.S, France, Great Britain,
Russia and Georgia are expected to participate in the forum.

According to a report of the Ministry of Diaspora, Ms. Hakobian
attached importance to the forum from the viewpoint of the tasks
included in the ministry’s programs such as the identification of
expert potential of the Diaspora, the creation of a database of
experts, and the foundation of all-Armenian professional networks.

The interlocutors focused on the necessity to develop university
education of doctors in Armenia, the establishment and use of health
care standards, and the use of advanced experience at domestic medical
institutions.

The guests underlined the need to encourage Armenia-Diaspora dialog
on the problems of national importance and to take steps aimed at
protecting the Armenian websites against actions of Turkish hackers. In
the words of the minister, the problem of information security should
be solved by joint efforts of highly qualified experts from Armenia
and the Diaspora.

Le livre du jour: Un Arménien et un Turc en thérapie

IL AURA donc fallu attendre 2009 pour qu’un Turc et un Arménien
acceptent d’évoquer ensemble la question du génocide de 1915 à travers
un livre. Dialogue sur le tabou arménien est un premier essai
concluant. L’économiste turc Ahmet Insel et le philosophe français
d’origine arménienne Michel Marian répondent aux questions de la
journaliste Ariane Bonzon, tels deux patients ayant enfin franchi le
pas du cabinet de psychanalyse pour surmonter leur traumatisme.

Car il s’agit bien d’une thérapie bilatérale à laquelle le lecteur
assiste. L’un est l’initiateur d’une pétition en Turquie demandant "
pardon aux Arméniens pour la Grande Catastrophe ", l’autre l’a
remercié publiquement pour son geste. D’un commun accord, ces deux
anciens militants d’extrême gauche ont dressé leur " feuille de route
" du dialogue, expression à la mode en Turquie et en Arménie, alors
que les deux Etats sont à quelques semaines de normaliser leurs
relations.

Mais si d’un côté, ce sont les Etats qui parlent paix et coopération,
de l’autre ce sont deux intellectuels qui essaient de retisser les
liens d’une histoire commune. La démarche est courageuse, le ton
parfois franc, parfois émouvant, tant ils abordent de façon simple des
sujets jusqu’alors refoulés dans les inconscients collectifs turc et
arménien. Matières anthropologiques, sociologiques, juridiques,
politiques et historiques, tout est utilisé de telle sorte que le
lecteur se dise que, finalement, Turcs et Arméniens ont plus
d’éléments en commun qu’on ne saurait le penser. Y compris le travail
de mémoire auquel se prête Michel Marian en s’interrogeant sur le
mouvement révolutionnaire arménien au XIXe-XXe siècle et sur le
terrorisme arménien (1975-1985), qu’il condamne.

Quant à Ahmet Insel, qui s’emmêle dans les fils de la définition du
concept de génocide, il nuance le cas arménien puis l’associe à la
liste des génocides en glissant un petit oui entre deux répliques de
son interlocuteur. Sans doute le mot lui brûlerait-il moins les lèvres
si son gouvernement abrogeait l’arsenal répressif des articles 301 et
305 du code pénal turc, qui menacent de peine de prison toute personne
qui porte atteinte à la dignité de la Turquie en évoquant le génocide
des Arméniens. Les hauts responsables n’ont pas été jetés en prison à
l’époque, pourquoi y envoyer des innocents quatre-vingt-treize ans
plus tard ?

Gaïdz Minassian

Dialogue sur le tabou arménienAhmet Insel et Michel Marian (entretien
avec Ariane Bonzon) Liana Levi, 150 p., 15 ¤.