Author: Chalian Meline

UN Secretary General’s message on International Women’s Day

armradio.am
07.03.2009 14:33

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon issued a message on the occasion of
the International Women’s Day. The message reads:

`One year ago, I launched a campaign calling on people and governments
the world over to unite to end violence against women and girls. The
campaign will run through 2015, the target date for achieving the
Millennium Development Goals. The link with the Goals is clear. We must
stop the habitual and socially ingrained violence that mars lives,
destroys health, perpetuates poverty and prevents us from achieving
women’s equality and empowerment.

Violence against women is also linked to the spread of HIV/AIDS. In
some countries, as many as one in three women will be beaten, coerced
into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Women and girls are also
systematically and deliberately subject to rape and sexual violence in
war.

Violence against women stands in direct contradiction to the promise of
the United Nations Charter to `promote social progress and better
standards of life in larger freedom.’ The consequences go beyond the
visible and immediate. Death, injury, medical costs and lost employment
are but the tip of an iceberg. The impact on women and girls, their
families, their communities and their societies in terms of shattered
lives and livelihoods is beyond calculation. Far too often, crimes go
unpunished, and perpetrators walk free. No country, no culture, no
woman, young or old, is immune.

Increasingly, men, too, are speaking out against this stain on our
society. Global examples include the White Ribbon Campaign and the
V-Day Campaign’s `V-Men’ counterpart. And at community workshops, men
are teaching other men that there is another way and that `real men
don’t hit women’.

Changing mindsets and the habits of generations is not easy. It must
involve all of us ` individuals, organizations and governments. We must
work together to state loud and clear, at the highest level, that
violence against women will not be tolerated, in any form, in any
context, in any circumstance.

We need economic and social policies that support women’s empowerment.
We need programmes and budgets that promote non-violence. We need a
positive image of women in the media. We need laws that say violence is
a crime, that hold perpetrators accountable and are enforced.

The `Unite to End Violence against Women’ campaign encourages men and
women to join hands to oppose violence against women. Only by acting
together can we create more equal and peaceful societies. Let us all,
on this International Women’s Day, resolve to make a difference.’

RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan received a delegation led by UAE
Foreign Trade Minister Sheikh Lubnou bin Haled al Kasimi

Thurs day, 5 March 2009

Greeting the guests, the Prime Minister expressed hope that the visit
of such an important delegation, headed by the Minister of Foreign
Trade will give a new stimulus to the development of bilateral
relations. Tigran Sargsyan said to be aware of those meetings and
discussions the delegation had with the representatives of
corresponding ministries and government departments of Armenia and went
on to assure that his government is prepared to possibly promote the
development and implementation of joint programs to the mutual benefit.

Sheikh al Kasimi emphasized that his delegation which comprises
entrepreneurs from three different Emirates is very much impressed with
the opportunities available in Armenia in respect of economic
development, and expressed readiness for cooperation and realization of
investments in most various spheres. The UAE Foreign Trade Minister
further noted that the program package which the delegation is taking
away with itself will be discussed with the representatives of business
circles. Then Sheikh Al Kasimi briefed the Prime Minister on the steps
underway in his country to get over the global financial and an
economic crisis.

Power engineering inclusive of alternative energy, in particular, high
technologies, agriculture, banking and tourism were mentioned among the
most prospective areas of cooperation. Tigran Sargsyan noted that
cooperation in the spheres of economy, trade, science, education,
culture and in other areas will be fostered significantly by the
establishment of an Armenia-UAE intergovernmental commission.

The Prime Minister took the opportunity to extend an invitation to UAE
Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad bin Rasheed Al Maktumi to visit Armenia
at any convenient for him time.

TURKISH-ARMENIAN ISSUE: NOT THIS TIME

Today’s Zaman
March 6 2009
Turkey

With the month of April approaching, Armenian pressure on the US
Congress is increasing. Last year, the Armenian lobby was able to
pass a resolution (from the House Committee on Foreign Affairs)
labeling the Armenian deaths in 1915 as genocide. However, contrary
to her previous statements House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not bring
the resolution to a full vote in the House.

Mostly it was interpreted as Turkey’s important role in the Middle
East, especially in the Iraq war, having stopped Speaker Pelosi
from bringing the resolution to the floor. In 2007, she received a
joint letter signed by all of the eight living former secretaries of
state, warning her that the resolution would endanger the US security
interests in the region.

However, this year the Armenian lobby is more hopeful than ever of
passing the resolution. There are several reasons for this hope:

a) Democrats hold the majority both in the House and the Senate,
as well as the presidency.

b) The Iraq war is ending, and therefore Turkey is losing its
importance.

c) The Jewish lobby is no longer supportive of Turkey.

The following section of the article analyzes these issues from both
the Armenian and Turkish perspectives.

Democrats in power (Armenian): Democrats both in the House and
the Senate have been supporters of the resolution. Speaker Pelosi,
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama supported
the resolution in the past and co-sponsored it in 2007. And now,
Democrats hold the House, the Senate and the presidency; all together,
it becomes more likely that the resolution will be passed.

Turkey is losing its importance (Armenian): Both in his candidacy and
presidency, President Obama has stated that he would give priority
to Afghanistan. Last week, he announced his withdrawal plans, ending
the US combat operations in Iraq in 18 months, in 2010. Therefore,
Turkey won’t be as important as it used to be.

Jewish lobby (Armenian): Tension at the Davos World Economic
Forum between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and
Israeli President Shimon Peres over Palestine created a negative
climate between Turkey and Israel (and also the Jewish lobby in the
US). After the incident, the American Jewish Congress and four other
American Jewish organizations sent a letter to Prime Minister Erdogan
expressing their concerns over Turkish policies. David A. Harris,
the executive director of the American Jewish Committee, criticized
and warned Erdogan.

The following week, Israeli Maj. Gen. Avi Mizrahi, commander of the
Israeli army headquarters, criticized Prime Minister Erdogan’s comments
at the Davos meeting and stated that Erdogan should "look at himself"
before criticizing others — referring to the Armenian issue. He also
said that Turkey should be removed from the UN. The Turkish Foreign
Ministry delivered a diplomatic note to Israel regarding Gen. Mizrahi’s
comments, asking for an explanation. In addition to that, the Turkish
chief of general staff warned Israel that such statements could harm
their relations. Even though Gen. Mizrahi’s comment was disowned by
the Israeli government and the military, it fueled existing tension
between two countries.

Due to the recent tensions between Israel and Turkey, it seems the
Jewish lobby will not be as supportive of Turkey as it used to be.

In light of these aforementioned issues, this year the Armenian lobby
is more hopeful than ever of passing a resolution that recognizes
the Armenian genocide in the US House of Representatives.

On the other hand, Turkey still has some important cards to play and
the issues have other sides, too.

Democrats in power (Turkish): This is not the first time that the
Democratic Party has held the power in US politics; at the beginning
of the Clinton administration, Democrats had the majority both in
the House and the Senate. The Armenian lobby endorsed President Bill
Clinton and was hopeful that the resolution would be passed. However,
it did not happen. Even the leading Armenian lobby organization in
the US, the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), accused
President Clinton of betraying Armenia. In 2000, Speaker of the House
Dennis Hastert stopped the resolution from reaching the floor in the
House of Representatives. Hastert later explained that he was doing
so at the request of President Clinton.

Speaker of the House Pelosi also co-sponsored the resolution in 2007;
however, she did not bring it to the floor.

The current situation is not that much different than it was in the
Clinton administration, especially during the early days. Expecting
support from the Democrats is not groundless, but it may not be enough
to pass the resolution.

Turkey is losing its importance (Turkish): The other claim is that the
war in Iraq is ending and therefore Turkey is losing its importance
to the US. Even though Turkey is an important country for the war in
Iraq, its importance to the US goes well beyond the war. The Turkish
and American alliance started before the Iraq war and will continue
after it. As mentioned above, even during the Clinton administration
(when the Iraq war did not exist), President Clinton stopped the
resolution from going to the floor.

In 2003, at the beginning of the Iraq war, the Turkish Parliament
did not allow US troops to use its soil to launch a second, northern
front against Iraq. Still, the resolution did not pass during the
Bush administration.

Turkey is also an important country with regards to Afghanistan. Last
month, the Kyrgyz government closed the Pentagon’s Manas Air Base,
which was a vital link in the supply chain to NATO forces in nearby
Afghanistan, and now the US is looking for alternatives. Russia has
better relations than the US with the Central Asian countries. But,
Turkey stands as an important ally in relations to these Central Asian
countries. Turkey has strong cultural and economic relations with
the former Soviet Union countries, which are also called Turkic states.

Turkey has led NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
Command twice and the ISAF Regional Command in Kabul once. It has
the eighth-largest reinforcement with its 1,300 troops, and it also
commands 90 Azerbaijani troops. With its rising positive image,
"Muslim identity," and historical and cultural ties to region, Turkey
continues to hold a major importance to the US’s interests.

Jewish lobby (Turkish): It is true that Israeli and Turkish relations
have been shaken by recent incidents. However, Turkey still continues
to be the only Muslim country that has a friendly relationship with
the State of Israel. After the Davos incident both the Prime Minister
Erdogan and President Peres gave statements to ease the tension. The
Israeli army disassociated itself from the statement of its general
(for the first time in its history) in order not to damage the
relations.

If the Armenian resolution passes, it is most likely that Turkey will
blame the Jewish lobby and Israel more than the Armenian lobby. The
Jewish lobby may claim that it is neither against nor for the
resolution; the interpretation won’t be same by the Turkish public
and government.

Due to the fact that Rep. Adam B. Schiff, who is the leading sponsor of
the resolution, Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the US House Committee
on Foreign Affairs, and Speaker Pelosi are Jewish descendents, it
will be difficult to convince Turks that the Jewish lobby and Israel
stayed neutral to the resolution. If it passes, it will be perceived
as a punishment for Turkey from the Jewish lobby and Israel. It will
damage the already shaky relations.

Contrary to Armenian expectations, Israel and the Jewish lobby will
act more carefully than ever not to further damage the relationship
with Turkey.

*Dogan Koc is a Ph.D. student in political science at the University
of Texas, Dallas. He teaches courses on Middle East politics and
Islam and can be reached at [email protected]

HEALTH IN ARMENIA TO COST 30% MORE EXPENSIVE

PanARMENIAN.Net
06.03.2009 13:54 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The prices for medicine have gone up 30% as result of
dram devaluation. Costs of infant food will also increase, according to
a survey conducted by a PanARMENIAN.Net in the capital’s drug stores.

Natalie Pharm company managers said they will review prices. Given 12%
customs duties and 20% VAT, the prices will go up, they said.

The CB Tuesday decision on transition of floating rate, the
dram-to-dollar rate reached AMD400/$1. The next day the currency
market stabilized in some way and the rate was fixed at AMD373/$1.

The prices for imported goods have gone up 10-12%. Meanwhile, NGO
researches testify a 25-30% increase.

Armenian Prime Minister promised that the process will stabilize
within next few days and will not be shocking for the population.

STAR SUPERMARKET CHAIN MANAGEMENT IS AGAINST UNJUSTIFIED PRICE RAISE

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.03.2009 17:04 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The management of Star Supermarket Chain declared
itself against the unjustified price increase. The management has
settled on a partial price in crease for some of imported goods. Only
goods imported at new prices will be sold at higher prices, Star
press office reported to PanARMENIAN.Net.

"We’re categorically opposed to turning the current situation to our
benefit and aim at maximal price increase control. We highly value
our customers’ trust and are sure we’ll justify it," Star Executive
Director Vagan Kerobyan stated.

Star is one of the major Armenian supermarket chains, comprising 12
supermarkets located all over Armenia.

On Mar. 3 the dram-to-dollar exchange rate has gone up to AMD
360/$1 in few hours against 305 -310 index for sale and purchase
respectively. Dram/euro exchange rate reached AMD 440 (against
387). The upsurge followed CB President Arthur Javadian’s statement
on cessation of control over the foreign currency market and return
to floating rate policy.

U.S. CONGRESSMAN VOWS TO INTRODUCE ARMENIAN BILL

Hurriyet
March 3 2009
Turkey

A U.S. congressman vows to introduce a bill recognizing the 1915
incidents as "genocide", U.S. media reported on Tuesday.

Democratic Rep.Adam Schiff of Pasadena, a Southern California city,
said he would introduce the bill later this month, adding he believes
U.S. President Barack Obama will support it.

Armenian lobby organizations have increased theirs efforts to
have their claims regarding the 1915 incidents recognized in the
U.S. Congress. During the election campaign, Obama had pledged to
recognize the Armenian claims.

"He has a track record of supporting the recognition of the genocide,"
Schiff told Pasadena Star News. "I am very hopeful that he will
support the bill," he added.

Schiff previously introduced the bill in the fall of 2007 and initially
found a lot of support for it.

Schiff said Obama had spoken in support of the bill while in the
Senate, and said on the campaign trail that he was in favor of
the bill.

The bill would first face the challenge of getting through the House
and Senate, something which Schiff said was not guaranteed. "I’m not
taking anything for granted," he said.

The issue of 1915 incidents is highly sensitive for Turkey as well as
Armenia. Around 300,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks, died
in civil strife that emerged when Armenians took up arms, backed by
Russia, for independence in eastern Anatolia.

However Armenia, with the backing of the diaspora, claims up to 1.5
million of their kin were slaughtered in orchestrated killings in
1915. The issue remains unsolved as Armenia drags its feet in accepting
Turkey’s proposal of forming a commission to investigate the claims.

ARMENIA OPPOSITION DOES NOT PLAN REVOLUTION – EX-PRESIDENT

Interfax
March 1 20099:32 PM MSK
Russia

Opposition does not plan to make revolution and is not planning
round-the-clock protest actions or other radical measures, leader
of the Armenian National Congress, ex-Armenian President Levon
Ter-Petrosian said at an opposition rally dedicated to the anniversary
of the last March events has taken place in downtown Yerevan on Sunday.

"We reject such ideas. Armenia cannot become a democracy until such
outdated ideas are in our minds," Ter-Petrosian said.

"Constitutional struggle is our path. We will attain a legal new
presidential election," the opposition leader said, adding that the
creation of constitutional opposition and healthy civil society is
a passport for success.

Ter-Petrosian called on participants of the rally to act as prudently
as they can in order not to spoil the difficult situation complicated
by the financial crisis. "We will wait. The day when authorities
will self-destroy is not far. Their current policy will result in
mass dismissals," he said.

The opposition leader did not rule out that authorities could offer
opposition to jointly form the government, noting that it is people
who should react to this proposal.

Ter-Petrosian criticized the economic policy in the country, adding
that authorities conceal the real scales of the financial crisis.

"Authorities sign their verdict by saying that here is no crisis in
the country," he said.

"Our country is simply rolling to chaos. The national currency will
swiftly devaluate soon. Hundreds of enterprises will stop working. The
number of unemployed will increase. Real incomes of people will fall.

And the growth of gas and electricity tariffs will result of growing
prices. Armenia will face a humanitarian disaster," Ter-Petrosian said.

DOLLAR EVALUATION WILL HURT PEOPLE USING DRAMS

A1+
[07:34 pm] 03 March, 2009

"People who used to earn a living in drams and take care of their
expenses using drams are currently vulnerable," says "Prosperous
Armenia" party deputy, economist Vardan Bostanjyan regarding the
dollar-dram relations.

Bostanjyan considers the rise of the dollar as normal.

"Even the world’s most steadfast rate, the funt-sterling, rose. This
had to happen whether Armenia wanted it or not. This is right no
matter if it is accepted or not," says Vardan Bostanjyan. He doesn’t
think that the authorities were doing the right thing by keeping the
dram rate artificially stable.

"That was simply impossible. It meant throw a huge amount of money
in the market. Everything is getting back to order," said Bostanjyan.

Bostanjyan expects to see a balanced rise of the dollar and devaluation
of the dram.

"I have always said that the evaluation of the Armenian dram was
artificial," says Bostanjyan adding that he doesn’t believe the
economic policy of the authorities is right.

The economist predicts that this could lead to a positive result for
some businessmen and a negative one for others, but one thing remains
true: there will be more real competition.

The dollar rate for Armenia’s state budget has been fixed at 302.44
drams, but the authorities had warned that the rate might change.

RA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AWARDS EDUCATIONALISTS ON NATIVE LANGUAGE DAY

PanARMENIAN.Net
02.03.2009 17:12 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Minister of Education and Science Spartak
Seyranyan awarded diplomas to educationalists on the Native Language
Day celebrated in Armenia on March 2.

Among those awarded were: NKR Minister of Culture and Youth Affairs
Lernik Hakobyan, RA Ministry of Education State Language Inspection
Vice Chairman Marine Hovyan, "Hayrenik yev Spyurk" (Homeland-Diaspora)
TV program author and presenter Alina Khatchatryan, N6 Vagharshapat
School Director, teacher of the Armenian Language and Literature
Gayane Safaryan, Aragatsotn Regional Administration Staff Head
Hrachya Gevorgyan, RA People’s Artist and singer Susanna Safaryan,
ESU Armenian Philology Department Dean, PhD Artsrun Avagyan, teacher
of the Armenian Language and Literature at Tavush Region Choratan
secondary school Marietta Lazaryan.

Commendations were also awarded to the State Language Inspection
Administrative Violations department Head at the RA Ministry of
Education Lilit Harutyunyan, State Language Inspection Control
department at RA Ministry of Education Yesai Tadevosyan, Head
Librarian of Yerevan State Children’s Library after Khnko Aper Maria
Koshkakaryan.

"We’re trying to preserve our native language in the fast-changing
world of modern values and this is the mission to be accomplished by
every one of us. Please accept my thanks and congratulations for the
work performed," Spartak Seyranyan said, adding that the efforts of
the educationalists, scientific and cultural workers make preservation
of the native language in Armenia possible.

NEWSWEEK: CONGRESS CAN HELP KEEP THE PATH TO RECONCILIATION OPEN IF IT IS WILLING TO DENY THE ARMENIAN-AMERICAN LOBBY THE INSTANT GRATIFICATION OF A GENOCIDE RESOLUTION

ArmInfo
2009-03-02 13:09:00

ArmInfo. Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open
if it is willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant
gratification of a genocide resolution, whites American Newsweek in
an item ‘How to End Genocide Debate’?

The magazine writes: ‘It’s almost April, so Washington is gearing
up for another performance of the "Armenian Genocide Resolution
Spectacular," a regular event since 1984. Here’s the historical
plotline: the Armenian-American lobby gets a few U.S. congressmen to
sponsor a resolution recognizing the 1915 massacre of Armenians in
what is now Eastern Turkey as a "genocide." Then other members of
the House are induced to support it. (Members of the House may not
be history buffs, but they understand the importance of stroking a
powerful domestic lobby.) Next, the Turkish government says Turkey
is too important to be insulted like this. In response, the American
administration, recognizing that Turkey is indeed a critical NATO ally
whose Incirlik Air Base is vital to the Iraq mission, starts twisting
congressional arms to abandon the resolution. Offstage, the Israeli
lobby, generally keen to boost Turkish- Israeli relations (though
less so this year), works against the resolution. Finally, the House
leadership reluctantly shelves the whole thing and the curtain falls.

Before staging this year’s performance, however, Congress should
note that hitherto frozen relations between Armenia and Turkey are
now showing signs of melting, and that this may be the first step
toward reconciling the Turkish and Armenian peoples. In September,
Turkish President Abdullah Gul attended a Turkey-Armenia football match
in Yerevan at the invitation of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan,
who recently met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in
Davos. The two foreign ministers, Turkey’s Ali Babacan and Armenia’s
Eduard Nalbandian have also been meeting. Both have made optimistic
noises.

Progress has been possible because the Armenians have focused on the
concrete issue of opening the Armenian-Turkish border-a vital matter
to them since none of their other neighbors (Azerbaijan, Georgia and
Iran) can offer a viable trade route to the West. Both sides have
wisely avoided the genocide dispute, surely recognizing it will have
to be dealt with eventually but that developing economic ties will
make it easier to do so.

Lingering in the background, however, is the Armenian diaspora’s
passionate insistence that there was a genocide-and its mirror
image in the fury of the Turkish people denying it. Right or wrong
is not the point. No Turkish government could contemplate opening
the Armenian border with this issue front and center, and Congress
should re cognize that a genocide resolution would put it there.

In all probability, Turkey and Armenia can only resolve the genocide
dispute if they recognize that "was it a genocide?" may be the ultimate
question, but it is not the most important one today. To those aiming
for reconciliation, two questions outrank it: what common facts can
Turks and Armenians be brought to accept, and is the common ground
sufficient for both sides to start binding up the wounds? To this
end, Erdogan’s proposal to establish a joint historical commission
should be pursued. Though Armenia has rejected the idea so far-largely
because it is winning its argument on the world stage-the government
has softened its stance recently. If the aim is reconciliation,
persuading the Turks to abandon the blanket denial they are taught
as schoolchildren is what counts.

Progress is not as implausible as it sounds. In the early days of the
Republic, Kemal Ataturk, who was not personally implicated, described
the Armenian massacres as "shameful acts." No ex-Ottoman officials
were investigated, however, as Turkey needed the newly minted heroes
of its War of Independence to have no stain on their characters. Today,
Erdogan will accept an investigation. In return, Armenia must accept a
reciprocal investigation into the Ottoman Armenians, who fought with
the sultan’s Russian enemy, and their responsibility for massacres
of Turks and Kurds.

Weaving together these two violently oppo sed historical perspectives
will take time and patience. As important as the final answer, however,
is the development of empathy across the divide.

Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open if it is
willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant gratification
of a genocide resolution. Surely doing so would be far better than
repeating the exercises of the last 25 years over and over again until
a resolution finally passes and all the House’s leverage over Turkey
evaporates, along with most of the good will in the Turkish-American
alliance, and maybe even the alliance itself. For its part, the
Armenian diaspora might even support reconciliation if only as its
second choice.

Finally, good relations between Turkey and Armenia would further
U.S. objectives in the Caucasus. The proposed hydrocarbon corridor
through the Caucasus from Central Asia looks much more secure in the
context of Turkish-Armenian friendship, and it might give Armenia
the confidence to break with the status quo in the longstanding
Nagorno-Karabakh dispute with neighboring Azerbaijan. Congress
and others should recognize that this year holds real promise for
the beginning of reconciliation between the Turkish and Armenian
peoples. If nothing comes of it, Congress can always return to
a resolution’.