Author: Chatinian Lara

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212)-686-0710
Fax: (212)-689-1934

December 2, 2008

Communiqué

In the early morning hours of November 30, a shooting incident took
place in the vicinity of Second Avenue and 35th Street in New York
City, directly in front of St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral. The
incident was reported in local press reports which mentioned the
cathedral’s proximity; these subsequently initiated concerned
inquiries to the Diocesan Center. This communiqué is meant to address
those inquiries.

The shooting took place on the street outside the cathedral. A renter
with no affiliation to the cathedral or to the Armenian community had
rented the Diocesan Center’s auditorium for a private function, for
which all due security and permits had been secured. After 4:00 a.m.,
as the event ended and the guests dispersed to the street, a crowd
formed on Second Avenue. There, an unidentified gunman fired shots
into the crowd. Two of the three victims receiving minor injuries
were guests at the event; a third was a security guard, one of several
routinely hired by the Diocesan facilities manager for such occasions.

Contrary to some published reports, no staff members of the Diocesan
Center were injured in the episode.

The three shooting victims were taken to hospital and pronounced in
stable condition, and were subsequently discharged after receiving
basic care. We pray they will make a full recovery.

The New York City police have stated that they are still investigating
the matter, and have not determined whether the shooting was related
to the crowd, or was a random occurrence of street crime. Police have
announced no suspects, nor made any arrest in the incident.

DIVAN OF THE DIOCESE

###

In Jan-Sep 2008 National Security Service of Armenia detects a number
of transactions by forged plastic cards worth 85 mln AMD

2008-11-28 18:43:00

ArmInfo. In Jan-Sep 2008 the National Security Service of Armenia (NSS)
detected a number of transactions made by forged plastic cards worth 85
mln AMD.

As NSS press-service told ArmInfo, on November 26 it was found out as a
result of preventive measures that "Gasarga" LLC operating in Yerevan
made on-paper-only transactions worth 16,2 mln AMD by means of three
forged Master plastic cards belonging to US banks. Three members of the
criminal group are detained, a criminal case has been instituted. On
November 4, NSS officials detected a similar crime committed by the
director of "Skava" LLC which made transactions worth 45 mln AMD. In
addition, in September-October 2008 a criminal group of 10 citizens of
Romania was detained for cashing money from the bancomats of Armenian
commercial banks by means of forged plastic cards.
The confiscated amount made up 24 mln AMD.

AZG Armenian Daily #221, 28/11/2008

Culture

300 PHOTOS OF 3000-YEAR-OLD HISTORY

A photo-exhibition under heading "Armenia; 3000-year-old history"
opened in Porto Velio city (state Rondonia, Brasilia).

The visitors of the exhibition became acquainted with Armenia through
300 photos, Armenian music, the films "Lost motherland" and
"Screamers" of the band "System of a down".

The organizers of the exhibition try to tell about Armenia – from the
geographical location of the country to its economic and scientific
achievements, also its tragedies and celebrations.

The exhibition will continue until December 12. The organizers intend
to hold the exhibition in other cities of the state Rondonia as well.

By Nana Petrosian, translated by L.H.

RA PRESIDENT AWARDED ARMENIAN CHESS PLAYERS FOR BRILLIANT OLYMPIC VICTORY

De Facto
Nov 27, 2008

YEREVAN, 27.11.08. DE FACTO. According to an enactment the RA President
Serge Sargsian signed on November 26, the members of Armenian men’s
team, who had won the 38th World Olympiad in Dresden, were awarded
1st class Medal for Service to the Motherland.

According to the RA President’s Press Office, for brilliant victory
in the World Chess Olympiad, protection of the homeland’s sport
honor, Armenia’s proper presentation at the international arena and
stimulating chess’ development in the Republic, Arshak Petrosian,
the trainer of Armenian men’s team, Levon Aronian, Vladimir Hakobian,
Artashes Minasian, Tigran Petrosian and Gabriel Sargsian, international
grand masters, have been awarded 1st class Medal for Service to
the Motherland.

In the evening of November 26 the winners of the 38th World Chess
Olympiad in Dresden returned to Yerevan. Thousands of people met them
at the Zvartnots airport. The Olympic champions were driven along
the central streets of Yerevan with a solemn escort. The ceremony
of honoring the winners and a gala concert was held at the Yerevan
Sport and Concert Complex.

The festivities ended in fire-works.

APARTMENT PRICES FALL IN YEREVAN

A1+
[07:49 pm] 27 November, 2008

As of October 2008, there were 14,550 real estate deals in
Armenia. This number has gone down by 9.1% compared to October 2007,
while the number of houses sold rose by 10.0% in September 2008.

In October 2008, 82.3% of 5,035 alienated real estate deals were
sale and purchase, 16.5% were donations and 1.2% was barter. 30.0%
of alienation of real estate was registered in Yerevan, while 31.7%
of alienated real estate was the homes of apartment buildings.

According to data provided by the State Management Agency for Real
Estate Management, the average market prices for apartments in
multi-apartment buildings measuring 1 square meter went down by 0.3%
in October 2008 compared to prices in September 2008.

In October 2008, besides Yerevan, 426 apartments were sold in the
Marzes; that number rose by 9.8% compared to September 2008 and 20.7%
compared to October 2007.

HEAD OF THE OSCE OFFICE IN YEREVAN: TRANSPARENT AND PROPERLY FUNCTIONING SYSTEM OF CIVIL SERVICE IMPORTANT FOR EFFICIENT STATE GOVERNANCE

ArmInfo
2008-11-26 10:50:00

ArmInfo. Transparent, healthy and properly functioning system of civil
service is important for efficient state governance, Head of the OSCE
Office in Yerevan Ambassador Sergey Kapinos said at the ceremonial
awarding of certificates to the members of monitoring and attestation
commissions of the Armenian Council for Civil Service Affairs who
underwent relevant training-courses.

Ambassador Kapinos said OSCE Office in Yerevan has been cooperating
with the Council since 2007. It has been contributing to establishment
of modern system of state governance. He also added that with the
support of OSCE Office, the Council has started making transparent
decisions, ensuring public control over contests and upgrading
professionalism and independence of the examination commission
members. ‘We have achieved certain results and today’s event is one
of these achievements’, Sergey Kapinos said. ‘We note with approval
that the council has seriously come to grips with the problem of
improvement of professional skills and ethics of the members of
contest and attestation commissions. We also welcome the idea of
cooperation of the Council and the public within the frames of our
program and recommend measures to enhance the cooperation in future’,
the Ambassador said. He outlined the extreme interest of OSCE Office
in cooperation with the Council and expectations of more tangible
results in future.

ARQIVA PROVIDES WORLDWIDE DISTRIBUTION OF THE ARMENIA FUND’S INTERNATIONAL TELETHON

BroadCastBuyer.tv
http://www.broadcastbu yer.tv/publish/Productions_160/Arqiva_Provides_Wor ldwide_Distribution_Of_The_Armenia_Fund_s_Internat ional_Telethon_18307.shtml
Nov 25 2008
UK

For the fourth consecutive year, Arqiva will be providing
worldwide distribution of Armenia Fund’s 11th annual Telethon. The
internationally telecast fundraising event spans 12 hours of live,
continuous coverage on the American Thanksgiving holiday, which
falls this year on 27 November, and utilises Arqiva’s satellite,
terrestrial fiber and webstreaming infrastructure.

The live television broadcast is sent as a continuous feed to Arqiva’s
Los Angeles teleport and from there is distributed throughout North
America and Europe via Arqiva teleports in Washington DC, Winchester
(UK) and Paris. Arqiva’s extensive international and domestic satellite
capacity, as well as its global terrestrial fiber network, ensures
uninterrupted delivery of the telethon to all continents of the world.

Arqiva’s ability to combine online webstreaming of the content
with broadcast distribution is a significant benefit to Armenia
Fund. In 2007 webstreaming of the telethon dramatically increased
viewership and raised a record $15.2 million. Arqiva will encode
the 350kbps webstream and connect the video output directly to the
Internet backbone for streaming through local servers. In addition,
Arqiva will make the webstream available in Live Flash Media as well
as Windows Media, providing a greatly enhanced video experience for
thousands of Internet viewers

Greg Boyrazian, Director of Development for Armenia Fund, said:
"This is an important and emotional event for Armenians around the
world so it’s great to know that Arqiva is once again handling the
crucial process of distribution. Arqiva has consistently delivered
an unparalleled service which maximizes our reach to donors around
the world. As the Telethon continues to grow, it is both exciting
and reassuring to know that Arqiva is able to meet and exceed our
ever increasing expectations and requirements."

Simon Thrush, Senior Vice President of Arqiva Satellite & Media in
the US, said: "We are absolutely delighted to be at the heart of this
extraordinary event and proud to be playing such an important role in
ensuring its worldwide success. Being the primary distribution point
for the Armenia Fund Telethon, we physically connect the event with its
audience – and its all-important donors. International distribution
of a 12-hour continuous live broadcast is a major undertaking but
one for which Arqiva has the expertise, experience and infrastructure."

MARCH TO BE ORGANIZED IN YEREVAN ON INTERNATIONAL DAY OF FIGHTING VIOLENCE TOWARDS WOMEN

Noyan Tapan

Nov 24, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 24, NOYAN TAPAN. Events dedicated to fighting
violence towards women will be organized on November 25 and 27 in
Yerevan on the initiative of the Women’s Resource Center NGO. A march
under the motto "Violence towards women should be stopped starting
families up to conflict regions" will be organized on November
25, the International Day of Fighting Violence towards Women and a
discussion on the subject Sexual Violence in Armenia will be organized
on November 27.

According to the report provided to Noyan Tapan by the organization’s
office, 1 of 3 women becomes a victim of domestic violence in Armenia,
at that their 20% periodically undergo cruel violence.

ARMENIAN HISTORIAN: "IF THE AZERBAIJANI SIDE DEMANDS ANY LANDS, IT MUST ALSO BE READY FOR SIMILAR CONCESSIONS"

Today.Az
ws/politics/49195.html
Nov 24 2008
Azerbaijan

"The process of the resolution of the Karabakh conflict must base only
on mutual and equal concessions", said head of the Museum-Institute of
"Armenian genocide" Ayk Demoyan at a press conference on November 24.

According to the director of the institute, if the Azerbaijani side
demands some lands, it must be ready for such concessions.

"If the Azerbaijani side insists on the transfer of Aghdam and Fizuli
to it, Armenian side also has a right for the Shaomyan region",
explained Demoyan, noting that the concessions must be equal.

Demoyan noted that mutual concessions must imply not only the issue
of the lands, but must also base on the issue of return of refugees.

He said, while speaking of return of Azerbaijani refugees to Nagorno
Karabakh or Armenia, Baku must also guarantee the safe return of
Armenian refugees to Azerbaijan or pay due compensation to them.

"The issue must not be the number or the status of refugees. Its
settlement must be balanced", said the historian.

"In order to create the atmosphere of mutual trust it is necessary for
the concessions to be equal in order not to violate the correlation
balance", noted he.

"This is one of the features, which influence mutual trust, needed
for the conflict resolution", noted Demoyan.

According to him, the Azerbaijani public, is nontheless, not ready
for concessions, though it will demand for their maximal execution
by Armenians.

Saying that Armenian side has numerous opportunities for maneuvers,
Demoyan noted that caution is needed in this issue.

TURKEY CONSIDERS "DE FACTO" DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA

Hurriyet
Nov 24 2008
Turkey

The Turkish government is planning to restore diplomatic relations
with Armenia by appointing an "accredited ambassador" if the Yerevan
administration agrees to take a step on investigating the 1915
incidents. (UPDATED)

Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian arrived Monday in Istanbul
where he attended a meeting of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation
Organization (BSEC).

Nalbandian met his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan later in the day
and discussed bilateral relations, including the so-called "genocide"
claims of Armenia.

Hurriyet.com.tr said the two ministers were also expected to discuss
the normalization process of relations and that Turkey is planning
to propose the appointment of an accredited ambassador to Yerevan
without opening a diplomatic mission.

There is no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey, as
Armenia presses the international community to admit the so-called
"genocide" claims instead of accepting Turkey’s call to investigate
the allegations, and Armenia’s invasion of 20 percent territory
of Azerbaijan.

Turkey and Armenia have been holding contacts indirectly with the
mediation of Georgia. With the new Turkish proposal, Georgia would no
longer act as an intermediary and the appointment of an accredited
ambassador would eventually mean the "de facto" establishment of
diplomatic relations between the two countries.

TURKEY’S CONDITION

The report said Turkey has one condition for the establishment of
de facto diplomatic relations. Ankara would ask Armenia to send a
message saying it is warm to the proposal of forming a commission to
investigate the 1915 incidents.

Armenia, with the backing of the diaspora, claims up to 1.5 million
of their kin were slaughtered in orchestrated killings in 1915.

Turkey rejects the claims saying that 300,000 Armenians, along with at
least as many Turks, died in civil strife that emerged when Armenians
took up arms, backed by Russia, for independence in eastern Anatolia.

Turkey has offered to form a joint commission to investigate what
has really happened in 1915 and opened up all official archives,
but Armenia is dragging its feet in accepting the offer.