Author: Chakrian Hovsep

"ACTIONS OF POLICE WERE NOT COMPETENT AT ALL," IMPEACHMENT REPRESENTATIVE STATES

Noyan Tapan
May 10 2007

YEREVAN, MAY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. "The actions of police were not competent
at all and pursued a single purpose, to disperse and cause panic among
people, which they failed. Impeachment representative Nikol Pashinian
said in his interview to Noyan Tapan correspondent commenting upon the
conflict between participants of May 9 rally organized by Impeachment
bloc, Nor Zhamanakner and Hanrapetutiun parties and law enforcement
bodies.

In his words, the goal of the peaceful procession towards the building
of RA National Security Service was to express opposition’s protest
in connection with kidnappings, political persecutions and violence
in the country. In N.

Pashinian’s words, at the moment when they were going to announce
the rally closed, "law enforcement bodies started to push people to
the opposite pavement creating a danger of pressing, to which the
demonstrants showed an adequate resistance."

In N. Pashinian’s words, 7-10 thousand people took part in the rally.

In the words of the opposition figure, during the conflict law
enforcement bodies used clubs and tear-gas. In his words, 4-5 rally
participants got slight bodily injuries.

Estimating the process of Impeachment’s election campaign, N. Pashinian
said that they held a "brilliant" election campaign and their rating
has risen by geometric progression."

KARABAKH PARTIES SAID TO SUPPORT THE HEAD OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY SERVIC

KarabakhOpen
09-05-2007 12:21:47

The Karabakh parliament parties – the Democratic Party of Artsakh,
the ARF Dashnaktsutyun, the Azat Hayrenik Party and the Movement 88
party – agreed on the internal and foreign political principles for
the upcoming few years and stated that in the presidential election
on July 19 they will support the head of the National Security
Service Bako Sahakyan. The statement was released in the evening
of May 7. Besides Bako Sahakyan, Vania Avanesyan, Hrant Melkumyan,
Masis Mayilyan and Armen Abgaryan were nominated.

According to Davit Babayan, a political scientist, Vania Avanesyan,
professor at Artsakh State University, will work with the professors
and students of the university. The head of the National Security
Service Bako Sahakyan, who is supported by the main parties of the
country, has a broad electorate which actually includes all the layers
of the society in Karabakh. The leader of the Communist Party will
count on the segment nostalgic for the Communist rule.

"The possible electorate of the two other candidates, the deputy
foreign minister Masis Mayilyan and Member of Parliament Armen
Abgaryan, is of peculiar importance. Since both are government
officials, the main stress will be on the protest voters.

A unique situation has occurred about the current election. There
are no opposition and pro-government candidates. All the candidates
except the leader of the Communist Party were nominated by a civil
initiative. Secondly, the main parties, including the opposition
parties, supported the single candidate.

Thirdly, the programs of the candidates will have a lot in
common. Therefore we think the main strategy will be the protest
voters for whom the ideologies of the parties are secondary," said
Davit Babayan.

"The name of the NKR deputy foreign minister Masis Mayilyan on the
list of the candidates is already a small victory in sustaining the
democratic image of the country," says Member of Parliament Gegham
Baghdasaryan. "Obviously the pre-election period passes in the
backstage mode rather than publicly, which contradicts to the logic
of the classic political struggle. The developments are not based on
ideological struggle, which would be desirable, but under a political
and other calculations, in which the ideas and principles were cropped
in "a single candidate". And if nothing obstructed this course of
developments, one day the party elite would lead the electorate into
a deadlock, depriving it of an alternative, i.e. real choice. An
identical scenario presupposed a formal alternative which from the
beginning appeared in different weights with the single candidate."

Apart from all it would be a stroke for the democratic image of
the country.

Meanwhile, the nomination of Masis Mayilyan, who has considerable
authority, thwarted this plan.

Time will show what percentage of non-politicized and unpartisan voters
will vote for Masis Mayilyan but it is obvious that his electorate
will at least be equal to the voters for the "single candidate". And
it means there is real choice. It means the democratic reputation of
the country was "saved". What is more, not by joint effort.

The assault on Assyrian Christians

By Paul Isaac

Tuesday, May 8, 2007

WASHINGTON:

A militant Islamic group in Iraq recently issued a fatwa, or religious
edict, to the Assyrian Christian residents of the Baghdad suburb of Dora:
Convert to Islam within 24 hours, or face death. At the same time, Muslim
neighbors were instructed, over the loudspeakers of local mosques, to
confiscate the property of Christians and enforce the edict.

The response was as swift: The majority of Assyrians remaining in Dora
immediately gathered whatever they could carry and fled the city.

Iraq’s Assyrian Christians know quite well that these latest threats are not
empty promises. Since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, over 25 churches across
Iraq have been bombed, in highly symbolic and coordinated manners. The
Islamic group claiming responsibility for the bombing of four churches in
August 2004 issued a warning. "To the people of the crosses: Return to your
senses and be aware that God’s soldiers are ready for you. You wanted a
crusade and these are its results."

Several priests have been abducted and beheaded, one in apparent retribution
for the pope’s public musings about Muhammed and the nature of Islam in
October 2006. In March, two elderly nuns were reportedly stabbed to death in
Kirkuk. Several Christian women have been beheaded or doused with chemicals
for failing to wear the veil. And last October a 14-year-old Assyrian boy
was crucified near Mosul.

For the Islamists, the violence has certainly had the desired effect: The
massive exodus of Assyrian Christians from Iraq. The UN High Commission for
Refugees estimates that as many as a third of the 1.8 million refugees now
outside Iraq are Christian.

A similar percentage of the 1.6 million internally displaced within Iraq are
likely Christian, many of whom have fled Baghdad, Basra and Mosul to the
relatively stable Northern Iraq. The Catholic Bishop of Baghdad, Andreos
Abouna, recently stated that as many as half of Iraqi Christians, perhaps
half a million people, have fled the country since the 2003 invasion.

Assyrian Christians, the indigenous people of Iraq, the inheritors of the
ancient Mesopotamian civilization and the world’s earliest converts to
Christianity, are at risk of being completely eradicated from their
homeland.

In a case of tragic irony, the "liberating" international forces have done
nothing to protect Iraq’s Christians. Not wishing to admit the catastrophic
security failure nor be seen as intervening on a religious basis, U.S.
officials have simply stood aside and watched. The State Department’s recent
offering of 7,000 visas for refugees is not only woefully inadequate but
will merely encourage the flight of Assyrians from Iraq.

The United States has been complicit with the destruction of an entire
people and should be held liable for the rectification of this misfortune.

Many Assyrians have pled for the establishment of an autonomous region for
Christians in Iraq. This zone would likely be situated around the Nineveh
Plains, the Assyrians’ ancestral homeland, where Christians still comprise
the majority. Sargis Aghajan, the finance minister for the Kurdistan
Regional Government and himself an Assyrian, has called for autonomy in the
Nineveh Plains. He also has financed the construction of thousands of homes
in the area and to the north, to prevent those Assyrians fleeing Baghdad and
elsewhere from leaving the country altogether.

In March, I joined 1,200 Assyrian intellectuals and civic leaders, both from
the diaspora and around Iraq, in attending a conference in Erbil which
formalized Iraqi Christians’ demand for autonomy. An autonomous region for
Assyrians will convince those remaining in Iraq that their faith, language
and way of life has a future in Iraq and persuade many of those who have
fled to return.

The Bush administration and its Iraqi allies should support this development
and ensure its realization. The fate of an entire people lies in the
balance.

Paul Isaac is a member of the Assyrian Christian community in Washington and
has been a leading campaigner for Assyrian rights since the invasion of
Iraq.

International Herald Tribune Copyright © 2007 The International Herald
Tribune |

Source: saac.php

ARMENIA CONTRIBUTES TO STABILITY IN IRAQ – FOREIGN MINISTER

Arminfo
3 May 07

Yerevan, 3 May: Armenia has made its humble contribution in the
establishment of security and stability in Iraq, Armenian Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanyan said in Egypt’s Sharm al-Shaykh city today.

Oskanyan participated in the conference dedicated to the launch of
the International Compact with Iraq.

The document is meant to implement the strategy of the national
development of Iraq. Delegations from 70 countries took part in
the conference.

The press service of the Armenian Foreign Ministry has quoted Oskanyan
as saying that the small Armenian Diaspora in Iraq has also contributed
to the process, as Armenians have always felt the Arab hospitality
and certain obligation connected with it.

Oskanyan spoke about the ethnic character of the document to be
launched. A successful implementation of the document will be done
through three factors. The factors are the ethnic and religious
dialogue, the involvement of neighbouring countries in the development
of Iraq, and the strengthening of Iraq’s national identity.

TIGRAN KARAPETYAN WILL RUN FOR PRESIDENT IN ANY CASE

ArmRadio.am
04.05.2007 16:30

The leader of the People’s Party (PP) Tigran Karapetyan stated in
Yerevan today that the parliamentary elections of May 12 will be
held without serious frauds. "However, certain opposition forces are
interested in the post-election developments and have corresponding
scenarios prepared."

Among these forces Tigran Karapetian named the "Impeachment" bloc,
"Republic " and "New Times" parties.

Tigran Karapetyan expressed confidence that the party will overcome
the 5% barrier and will be represented in the parliament. The leader
of PP stated that he does not trust the public opinion polls, calling
them "far from being objective."

"Irrespective of the results of parliamentary elections, I plan to
run for President in 2008", Tigran Karapetyan stated.

PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA
Alexander Svarants, Vice-President of the Armenian Union of Russia, Moscow

Eurasian Home Analytical Resource, Russia
May 3 2007

The parliamentary elections in Armenia scheduled for May 12 are
of extreme importance to the Armenian society and the state. The
elections will have a direct influence upon the regional processes
in the South Caucasus region. The political configuration in Armenia
will be significant in terms of development of the strategic relations
and strategic partnership with Russia.

I believe that today’s situation in Russia resembles that in
Armenia in the context of the regular parliamentary and presidential
elections. According to the Constitutions, the Presidents of the
both states are to leave office after two presidential terms. The
two leaders are young and up-and-coming politicians.

In Armenia the future of President Robert Kocharian is an issue of
current importance. I think that the constitutional amendments that
give more power to the Parliament, the future Prime Minister and
President leave space for different options.

The coming parliamentary elections in Armenia are marked by divisions
in the opposition camp. To a large extent it may be the current
authorities’ merit. The relative stability in Armenia allows us to
suppose that a color revolution will not occur in the country.

More than that, the positions of the Armenian political parties in
power are strong while those of the ideological parties are weak. I
believe that the similarity between Armenia and Russia is that in both
countries in the run-up to the elections new parties supporting the
current authorities have been created. In Armenia it is "Prosperous
Armenia", in Russia it is "Fair Russia". I think that "Prosperous
Armenia" can get more than 20% of votes.

At last, it seems to me that the relations between the South Caucasian
states, the situation in Georgia and Azerbaijan and the West’s more
intense actions in that region will influence the parliamentary and
presidential elections in Armenia. And the West will try to support
its adherents in Armenia.

As regards the developments after the presidential elections in 2008,
current Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan may most likely become the
election favorite and successor to the President. He is a very serious
and flexible politician that has gone through all the stages of the
political struggle. He was one of the leaders of the Nagorno-Karabakh
movement, the head of the military, security and law enforcement
agencies in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia. It is important that he
heads the intergovernmental committee on the economic cooperation
between Armenia and Russia.

It is not fortuitous that he was appointed Prime Minister. Sargsyan
controls the military, security and law enforcement as well as
economic and foreign-policy agencies. He is also the leader of the
Republican Party.

For all that I think that a reshuffle is possible. Current President
Robert Kocharian may be appointed Premier. This forecast is connected
with the fact that the Republican Party is the leader of the election
campaign, it can get up to 40% of votes. If the result of the
"Prosperous Armenia" is good enough, the majority will be 50-60%.

The coalition government may be formed with the participation of the
third force – the Armenian Revolutionary Federation "Dashnaktsutyun"
that expects to get over 10% of votes. I should say that it is the
only political party having ideological supporters in Armenia as well
as in the other countries where the million-strong diaspora lives.

The party members have significant influence in the USA. For all
that the USA cannot pin its hopes on that party alone. Washington is
seeking new political forces in Armenia.

It indicates that the party keeps its succession and is a serious
political force that has proved its capacity in the Nagorno-Karabakh
movement and comes out for improvement of relations between Russia
and Armenia.

The party members may participate in the coalition government. Both
Kocharian and Sargsyan favored the cessation of persecution of that
party and the release of its leaders and functionaries from prisons.

There is a question if Kocharian’s policy will go on in the context
of the strategic security course pursued towards Russia.

Predictability of the political changes in Armenia makes it possible
to suppose that the policy will be stable. The Armenian authorities
are not going to change their beliefs dramatically.

One should say that for the recent 16-17 years the West’s
representatives, in particular the U.S. former citizens, have become
members of the government. I think it is not a political problem. It
is normal relations between Armenia and the leading world countries.

What prevents Russia and Armenia from improving bilateral relations?

On the one hand, we came from the same state and we have common
culture, language and education. But we have been living in different
political formats for more than 15 years. For this time in Russia a
pleiad of worthy Armenian personnel has been educated. Their skills
can prove useful to the Armenian government in the sphere of economy,
defense and security.

The text is based on Alexander SVARANTS’ address to the round table
on April 27, in the Russian Agency of International Information RIA
Novosti, devoted to the parliamentary elections in Armenia.

WILL NATO AND RUSSIA ONCE AGAIN COUNT TANKS AND AIRCRAFT IN EUROPE?

RIA Novosti
13:14|30/ 04/ 2007

MOSCOW. (Alexander Khramchikhin for RIA Novosti) – The 1990 Treaty on
Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) established equal quotas for
NATO and the Warsaw Pact in the number of tanks, artillery (weapons
with a caliber over 100 mm), armored combat vehicles, aircraft and
attack helicopters.

Now almost all Warsaw Pact countries, and some republics of the
former Soviet Union and the former Yugoslavia (which was never part
of the Warsaw Pact) have joined NATO, thereby invalidating the treaty
geopolitically.

A modified version of the CFE treaty established national quotas
instead of bloc limits. It was signed in 1999 but has not been ratified
by a single NATO country – ostensibly because of Russia’s failure to
withdraw its troops from Georgia and Transdnestr, a breakaway region
of Moldova. The treaty has flank limitations, but they mainly affect
Russia. In fact, Russia finds them very inconvenient, especially in
the country’s south (mainly, the Caucasus).

Some NATO members – Slovenia and the three Baltic nations – are not
parties to the CFE treaty. This means that in theory they can have
armed forces of any strength, and let NATO deploy as many troops as
it wants on their territory.

Russia is not worried about Slovenia in this context, but it is very
concerned about Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

But all the inconveniences of the CFE exist only in theory. In
practice, not a single one of its 30 signatories has as many of
the five types of weapons covered by the treaty as its quota allows
(four countries – Iceland, Kazakhstan, Canada and Luxembourg – have
no such weapons at all). South Caucasian countries have run into
some problems because of unrecognized states on their territories –
Nagorny Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia – with strong armies
that are completely beyond the control of the recognized governments.

Moreover, it is not clear how such forces should be counted – formally,
the Karabakh army must be included in Azerbaijan’s quota, whereas in
reality it belongs to Armenia. But South Caucasian problems do not
concern anyone outside the region.

Russia’s displeasure with CFE limitations is surprising because
like most countries, it has fewer weapons than the quota allows. It
is not clear, either, why Russia is worried about NATO’s eastward
expansion because it has been accompanied by rapid arms reductions
both by its old and new members. Today, NATO’s 26 members have 33%
fewer weapons of all classes than its 16 participants had in 1991,
and these reductions are continuing.

The four NATO countries that are outside the CFE treaty have purely
symbolic armed forces, especially the Baltic republics. All three
of them combined have only three hopelessly obsolete tanks (Latvian
T-55s) and four aircraft (Lithuanian L-39s) that can be classified
as military, and even then with reservations. The only foreign force
on their territory is a group of four fighters (rotated every six
months, representing all NATO countries with air forces) deployed at
the Zokniai base in Lithuania at the request of the Baltic nations.

There are no NATO bases at all in eastern Europe. To be more precise,
the term "NATO base" can be applied to some facilities in Afghanistan,
but that is all. All other military installations are national. There
are no foreign military facilities in new NATO members except for
Zokniai.

American forces in Europe are also being rapidly decreased. In the late
1980s, there were four divisions (plus one brigade in West Berlin)
and nine tactical wings of the U.S. Air Force. Now there are two
divisions, one brigade and three wings; moreover, both divisions are
actually not even in Germany but in Iraq. The United States has signed
agreements on leasing some facilities in Bulgaria, Romania and Poland,
where it will deploy only small numbers of technical and auxiliary
personnel. It is possible to deploy rather large contingents at local
facilities, but this would take time, so any surprise attack is out
of the question. But the main point is that today the United States
does not have the potential for conducting operations outside Iraq
and Afghanistan. Moreover, the Iraqi syndrome has taken away American
society’s appetite for armed conflicts, thus depriving the U.S. of
the ability to conduct any more or less serious wars for a long time
to come.

European pacifism presents an even bigger problem for NATO. If neither
the people, nor governments, nor armies are ready to go to war, it
does not matter how many weapons a particular army has, and of what
quality. The operation in Afghanistan is a case in point. Continental
European countries are sending only symbolic contingents there,
and even these units adamantly refuse to fight despite Washington’s
growing insistence.

All this is readily apparent. The seizure of 15 British sailors is also
telling. There is no need to comment on their conduct in captivity.

For these reasons, NATO does not pose any threat to Russia. This does
not mean that the CFE treaty should be buried. Unilateral withdrawal
from it would not be in Russia’s interests because it would help
Washington achieve what it wants the most: to unite NATO in the face
of a "new threat from the East."

It would be much more sensible for Russia to offer two possibilities
for the treaty to be overhauled.

The first option: instead of being measured against the Warsaw Pact,
NATO forces should equal those of the Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO).

Members of the latter who are also signatories of the CFE treaty
include Russia, Belarus, Armenia and Kazakhstan. All flank limits
should be canceled.

Instead, the sides should agree that a change in the membership of
an alliance should not alter the total ceiling of armaments that it
is allowed to have.

Admission of a new country to an alliance or withdrawal from it should
be offset by the redistribution of limits between its members, while
the total ceiling should remain the same. The existing limits may be
preserved for countries that are not members of any bloc (Ukraine,
Moldova, Georgia and Azerbaijan). Naturally enough, the treaty should
include Slovenia and the Baltic countries as well as Croatia, Albania
and Macedonia if they join NATO.

The second option is that NATO could be regarded as equivalent to
Russia, or since this is not very realistic, the sides could establish
a ratio for all types of armaments, for instance 1.5-to-one. They
should also accept a ceiling for NATO’s weapons, regardless of its
expansion.

Since the existing quotas are too high anyway, Russia should propose
much lower ones, for itself as well. Such cuts would not run counter
to anyone’s interests – the sides would simply get rid of obsolete
weapons if they had any.

But the signing of a new treaty would substantially build trust and
reduce tensions.

Alexander Khramchikhin heads the analytical department at the Institute
of Political and Military Analysis.

The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s and do not
necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.

NGOS OPEN BOOK, PHOTOGRAPH BOOTH IN HAMBURG TO COUNTER ARMENIAN ALLEGATIONS

Turkish Press, MI
April 30 2007

HAMBURG – A group of non-governmental organizations in Hamburg set
up a booth for books and a photograph exhibition on one of the city`s
busiest streets to counter so-called Armenian genocide allegations.

Germany Ataturk Culture Center, Azerbaijan Culture Association, Iraqi
Turkmen Association and Hamburg Association for the Handicapped issued
a joint statement, saying that the world needed to be aware of the
Armenian lies on so-called genocide allegations.

The books and photographs at the booth on Spitalerstrasse give
instances of the Armenian terror and genocide in Khodjali and massacres
in Upper Karabakh, Kars, Van and Erzurum.

CHRISTIANITY ON TRIAL IN TURKEY
By Father John Flynn

Zenit News Agency, Italy
April 30 2007

Killings and Persecution Continue

ROME, APRIL 30, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The blood of martyrs continues to
be shed in Turkey. The April 18 killing of two Turks and a German at
a Christian publishing house in Malatya, in eastern Turkey, renewed
concerns over the fate of Christians in the country. The three victims
were found with their hands and legs bound and their throats slit.

The three men worked at the Zirve publishing house, which had
previously been the object of protests for allegedly distributing
Bibles and proselytizing, reported the London-based Times newspaper
April 19.

The same day the BBC reported that 10 people were arrested in
connection with the murders. The BBC added that many commentators
noted the similarity of the latest killings to the murder of a Catholic
priest by a teenage gunman last year and the shooting of the Armenian
journalist, also a Christian, in January. In each case the killers
were young, apparently Islamist ultra-nationalists.

Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said the killings were "an
attack against Turkey’s stability, peace and tradition of tolerance,"
according to the BBC.

In February, the Pope’s vicar for the Diocese of Rome, Cardinal Camillo
Ruini, visited Turkey to commemorate the anniversary of the murder of
Father Andrea Santoro. The Italian missionary was shot dead Feb. 5,
2006, in St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Trabzon, northeast Turkey.

Cardinal Ruini said during his homily Feb. 5 in the church where the
priest had been murdered: "We have come to help promote peace among
peoples and religions, respect for the beliefs of each person and
love for the brother or sister present in every human person created
in the image and likeness of God," reported the Fides news agency
the same day.

"We have come to promote religious freedom everywhere in the world,
and to ask God to illuminate all minds and hearts to understand that
only in freedom and love of neighbor can God be truly adored," the
cardinal added.

Islamic extremists

Malatya, like Trabzon, is an Islamic stronghold, observed Mechthild
Brockamp in an April 19 commentary published by the German agency
Deutsche Welle. He noted that journalist Hrant Dink was also killed in
Malatya earlier this year, and underlined the Islamic element in the
shooting of Father Santoro, which took place during fevered protests
against the caricatures of Mohammed.

Each time one of these attacks occurs authorities call it an
exceptional case, said Brockamp. But the number of such cases means
that it is more a pattern than an exception, he observed. Brockamp
called upon the government to resolve the underlying issue of religious
freedom and to ensure that the Christian minority is able to practice
its faith without putting their lives at risk.

These are sentiments shared by the German magazine Der Spiegel, in
an article published online April 23. The latest murders reveal a
deep-seated problem, the magazine argued. The article quoted Ertugrul
Ozkok, editor-in-chief of the leading secular Turkish daily Hurriyet,
who noted that in Germany, Turks residing there have opened up more
than 3,000 mosques. He asked in an editorial: "If in our country we
cannot abide even by a few churches, or a handful of missionaries,
where is our civilization?"

An article published April 25 by the Christian Science Monitor cited
Christian missionaries in Turkey as saying that they now have more
freedom to carry out their work due to reforms enacted as part of the
country’s attempt to enter into the European Union. At the same time
violent attacks against Christian targets are becoming more frequent.

Last year, the article noted, several evangelical churches were
firebombed, and a Protestant church leader in the city of Adana was
severely beaten by a group of assailants.

The report also opined that while there is a religious dimension to
the recent murders of Christians, some experts also attribute them
to the influence of extreme nationalism and anti-Western xenophobia
that are on the rise in Turkey.

Nevertheless, other news reports testify to the considerable
difficulties Christians face when they try to practice their faith.

Both Christians and intellectuals are frequent targets of legal action
taken under article 301 of the penal code. The article allows people
to be charged for denigrating "Turkish identity," explained a report
by Compass Direct News last Nov. 27.

Compass Direct is a Christian news service based in California,
reporting on religious persecution. The report presented the case of
Hakan Tastan and Turan Topal, who appeared Nov. 23 before the Silivri
Criminal Court, located in northwestern Turkey.

As Muslims converted to Christianity, they were accused not only
of denigrating Turkish identity, but also of reviling Islam. "We
don’t use force to tell anyone about Christianity," Tastan said to
the media outside the courtroom according to Compass Direct. "But we
are Christians, and if the Lord permits, we will continue to proclaim
this," he added.

Christians likened to terrorists

Compass Direct also reported that attorney Kemal Kerincsiz, who
intervened for the prosecution, is notorious for his actions against
intellectuals using article 301. "Christian missionaries working
almost like terrorist groups are able to enter into high schools and
among primary school students," Kerincsiz told reporters. The court
case against the two Christians is still underway.

Further difficulties were reported in an article published by the
Boston Globe last Dec. 9. The newspaper referred to the difficulties
faced by Metropolitan Apostolos, a Greek Orthodox bishop.

In 1971, the government shut down the Halki theological seminary on
Heybeliada, an island in the Sea of Marmara. The school had trained
generations of Orthodox leaders, but authorities closed it, along with
other private religious schools. In the meantime the Greek Orthodox
community in Turkey has dwindled to 3,000, from 180,000 in 1923.

In general, noted the Boston Globe, Turkey’s religious minorities
including about 68,000 Armenian Orthodox, 20,000 Catholics, 23,000
Jews, and 3,000 Greek Orthodox face numerous legal restrictions.

Catholics, for example, encounter considerable difficulties when
it comes to obtaining legal rights over property and work permits
for clergy and nuns, explained Otmar Oehring, in an article written
for the Forum 18 news service Jan. 18. The Norwegian-based Forum 18
reports on issues related to religious freedom.

Places of worship of minority communities which are allowed to maintain
legally-recognized community foundations — such as the Greek Orthodox,
the Armenians, the Syrian Orthodox and the Jews — are owned by these
foundations, commented Oehring.

But Catholics and Protestants are not allowed to set up such
foundations. Consequently, title deeds indicate that the congregations
or church communities themselves own the buildings. Yet the state
often refuses to recognize this. Additional legal obstacles include
problems in setting up bank accounts and in publishing religious
books and magazine.

At the time of Benedict XVI’s visit to Turkey at the end of last
year, Vatican representatives and government officials discussed the
possibility of establishing a mixed working group to resolve the
Catholic Church’s problems in Turkey, according to Oehring. There
has been little or no progress on the matter, however.

During his visit, the Pope held a meeting with the president of
the government’s religious affairs directorate. In his address,
given Nov. 28, the Pontiff called for an "authentic dialogue between
Christians and Muslims, based on truth and inspired by a sincere wish
to know one another better, respecting differences and recognizing
what we have in common."

The Pope also called for freedom of religion, "institutionally
guaranteed and effectively respected in practice." A call that takes
on greater urgency after the recent attacks.

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet

PRESS RELEASE
April 24, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

SENATOR MENENDEZ REAFFIRMS HOLD ON HOAGLAND NOMINATION

— Ambassador Evans Calls for Passage
of Armenian Genocide Resolution

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) reaffirmed his "hold"
on the controversial nomination of Richard Hoagland to serve as
U.S. Ambassador to Armenia in his remarks today at an Armenian
Genocide observance organized by the Congressional Armenian Caucus
in Capitol Hill’s historic Cannon Caucus Room, reported the
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

The Bush Administration has twice nominated Richard Hoagland to
replace John Marshall Evans, a decorated career diplomat who was
fired last year by the Secretary of State for speaking truthfully
about the Armenian Genocide. From the outset, the Hoagland
nomination has been the focus of intense controversy, first because
of the State Department’s willingness to explain its firing of
Evans, and later due to his denial of the Armenian Genocide in his
responses to questions raised during his confirmation hearing.
These remarks, which extended far beyond the euphemistic word games
traditionally employed by the State Department, sparked outrage
among Armenian Americans and widespread Congressional opposition to
his posting in Yerevan.

Looking to Ambassador Evans, who was seated in the first row of the
standing room only hall, Senator Menendez said, "I wish the
Ambassador was back in Armenia, but if we cannot get him there, I
refuse to release my hold on Ambassador Hoagland because of his
testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee." The
Senator added, to a sustained ovation, that, "the President
[should] appoint a new nominee who will represent the interests of
the United States and Armenia much better."

In his remarks, Ambassador Evans, the program’s keynote speaker,
called upon Congress to pass the Armenian Genocide Resolution. In
a speech repeatedly interrupted by applause, he said, "If we dare
not call the 1915 events genocide, we make it more likely that
current genocides, such as that in Darfur, will continue and future
genocides will occur… This is why, ladies and gentlemen, after 92
years, the time has come to call a spade a spade. House Resolution
106 on the affirmation of the United States record on the Armenian
Genocide should be adopted by the Congress." The former envoy
continued, stressing: "History does matter. Truth does matter.
Justice does matter."

The Armenian Genocide Resolution, H.Res.106 in the House and
S.Res.106 in the Senate, calls on the President to properly
recognize the Armenian Genocide and encourages the Administration
to ensure that the lessons of this crime are used to help prevent
future genocides. The resolution has over 190 cosponsors in the
House and 30 cosponsors in the Senate.

The April 24th observance was presided over by the Co-Chairmen of
the Armenian Caucus, Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe Knollenberg (R-
MI), and featured moving speeches by the lead authors of H.Res.106,
Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and George Radanovich (R-CA); original
cosponsors Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), both
of whom serve on the Foreign Affairs Committee; Senator Menendez;
and Representatives Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Ed Royce (R-CA), Donald
Payne (D-NJ), Jim Costa (D-CA), Mark Kirk (R-IL), and Diane Watson
(D-CA). Congressmen Jim McGovern (D-MA), David Dreier (R-CA) and
Tim Walz (D-MN) also participated in the remembrance.

Congressman Schiff, in his remarks, questioned the claims by
opponents of H.Res.106 that Turkey is making progress toward
recognizing the Armenian Genocide. "Was the murder of Hrant Dink
progress? No it was not. Was the bringing of charges against a
Nobel Prize-winning author progress? No it is not. Was the
inception of Article 301, which makes it a crime to insult
Turkishness progress? No it is not. The irony of our government’s
position is that instead of pressing Turkey to repeal Article 301,
our own State Department is trying to enforce 301 here in America,
here in our Congress – and that cannot be."

Representative Radanovich, expanding on this theme, said that, "I
am sorry that the State Department and the Administration are slow
to recognize the Armenian Genocide in the United States. And they
argue that we need to deal with Turkey with kid gloves, and they
need to come to this admission on their own. The fact is they are
not going to come to this admission on their own – and they need
prodding from the United States – and our recognition of the
Genocide will get us to the point where every civilized country in
the world should be."

Holding up a copy of a New York Times April 23, 2007, full-page
advertisement placed by Turkey denying the Armenian Genocide, Rep.
Anna Eshoo, the only member of Congress of Armenian descent,
stated, "My friends, we have work to do. They [the Turkish
government] have money, they have sway in Washington DC, as you
well know. I think the truth will help liberate the country of
Turkey and the people of Turkey, when we pass this resolution."
The ad, placed by the Embassy of Turkey, is valued at $130,000.
Similar ads were placed in the Washington Times and L.A. Times.

#####

Note the Editor: Photos provided under separate cover.