Author: Chmshkian Vicken

FRANCE IN DENIAL
New York Times
Oct 17 2006
Editorial
We’ve argued many times that Turkey must come to grips with the crimes
of its past and stop prosecuting writers who mention the Armenian
genocide of the early 20th century.
But we found it as absurd and as cynical when the French National
Assembly voted overwhelmingly last week to make it illegal – on pain of
a fine and imprisonment – to deny that there was an Armenian genocide.
France’s Senate still has a chance to throw out this outrageous bill,
and we hope it does. We hope, too, that the Turks do not retaliate
with something similarly nutty, like making it a crime to deny French
colonial atrocities in Algeria, as some legislators have suggested.
Enough damage has already been done.
There is no doubt that the sooner Turks confront their past the
better. They are beginning to, in large part because of the lure of
membership in the European Union. That does not excuse the way French
politicians are trying to exploit anti-Turkish feelings while playing
up to the large Armenian-French constituency.
There are a lot of reasons why this is wrong. It could further fan
anti-Muslim feelings in France, and we’ve already seen the potential
for a violent backlash. It is also a blow to freedom of _expression –
not exactly the standard that E.U. members want to set while they
lecture the Turks about being more respectful of human rights and
democratic norms.
Yes, France is one of a dozen European countries that have laws
against denying the Holocaust. There is an argument that they, too,
violate freedom of _expression. But those laws at least are based
on the threat posed by die-hard anti-Semites who still subscribe to
Hitler’s racist theories.
The Armenian question poses no dangers in France. Playing politics with
it trivializes not only the Holocaust, but also the Armenian genocide.

IF PEACEFUL TALKS REGARDING NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT DON’T YIELD ANY RESULTS, AZERI ARMED FORCES TAKE STEPS – AZERI DM
Author: S.Ilhamgizi
TREND, Azerbaijan
Oct 17 2006
We hope that the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be
settled peacefully. However, should the talks prove to be unsuccessful,
the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan will, with the determination of the
Azeri people and the approval of the State Head, take action to release
the Azerbaijan land from the Armenian invaders, the Azerbaijan Defense
Minister, Colonel-General Safar Abiyev stated on 16 October in Baku
during the meeting with the delegation of the Ad Hoc Committee for
Future Defense and Security of the Defense and Security Committee
of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly which was headed by the Chairman,
Vahid Erdem.
The Defense Minister stressed that Azerbaijan co-operated with NATO
in 1994 within the framework of the Program “Partnership for peace”,
and since 2004 the co-operation has been continuing on the basis of
the Individual Partnership Action Plan. Abiyev informed the delegates
of the military-political situation in the region of South Caucasus,
as well as the history of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. He
stressed that placing large military arsenals in the Azerbaijani
territories occupied by Armenia imposes serious threats for the
large-scale economical projects in the region.
Erdem voiced his confidence that the conflict will be resolved
peacefully. He was interested in the structure of the Azerbaijani
Armed Forces, the military budget and the character of co-operation
with NATO. He stated that the participation of the Azerbaijani Armed
Forces in the peacemaking operations carried out by NATO testifies that
the relations between Azerbaijan and NATO are developing favorably.

AZERI RESEARCHER REVEALS NEW EVIDENCE CONDEMNING CHIRAC
Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Oct 17 2006
The French National Assembly’s approval on Thursday of a bill that
envisions prosecution for denying the “genocide of Armenians” that
allegedly happened in Ottoman Turkey in 1915 is related to certain
historical developments, an Azeri analyst told a news conference
on Friday.
The National Academy of Sciences Human Rights Institute director,
Rovshan Mustafayev, cited facts derived exclusively from foreign
sources to back up his statement, saying that in 1982, the French
government signed a cooperation agreement with Armenian terror
organization ASALA.
“The document envisioned mutual assistance and jointly striving for
the recognition of the fake genocide of Armenians on the international
scale.”
Mustafayev said the adoption of the unfair bill was largely influenced
both by French President Jacques Chirac and MP of Armenian descent,
Patrick Davachian, who prepared the bill.
“Davachian is a lawyer for Jacques Chirac’s family and most of their
secrets have been confided in him. Therefore, it was under Davachian’s
influence that Chirac supported the measure. Moreover, Armenians are
now saying that Chirac’s last name is actually of Armenian descent,”
the Institute director said.
Mustafayev presented at the news conference excerpts from Washington
Post, Armenian Reporter and Le Monde newspapers as well as copies of
the minutes from the US Senate hearings providing his findings.
The researcher added that by passing the “genocide” bill, the French
parliament violated a provision of the European Convention on Human
Rights.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MONUMENT STOLEN IN FRANCE
By Foreign News Desk
Zaman Online, Turkey
Oct 15 2006
A bronze monument erected in 2002 in the village of Chaville near
Paris commemorating the Armenian genocide was stolen.
Stephane Topalian, a member of an Armenian church in the village,
said the bronze monument was probably stolen on Friday night.
It was notable that the incident happened just two days after the
French parliament approved a bill that penalizes denial of the
Armenian genocide.
“Police say it might have been stolen for the metal, but it seems
too much of a coincidence that this should have happened just after
parliament voted on the Armenia bill,” Topalian said.
Meanwhile, Socialist Party member and former French Culture Minister
Jack Lang opposed the approval of the bill.
Lang urged French and Turkish academics to organize a conference over
the issue.
Paris-based Reporters Without Borders also protested the French
parliament for approving the bill.

Agence France Presse — English
October 13, 2006 Friday
First Turkish protest against French ‘genocide’ bill comes in sports
Turkey’s Taekwondo Federation said Friday it would shun an
international tournament in Paris in protest at a French vote to make
it a crime to deny that there was an Armenian genocide in Turkey.
“The French move is nothing but slander against the Turkish people,”
federation chairman Metin Sahin told the Anatolia news agency.
“We have decided not to take part in the international Paris
tournament even though we have received persistent invitations as
both the men’s and women’s European champions,” he added.
Turkey was infuriated when the French National Assembly on Thursday
adopted the bill which stipulates a prison sentence of up to one year
and a fine of up to 45,000 euros (57,000 dollars) against those who
deny the Armenian genocide.
The bill still needs the approval of the Senate and the president to
take effect.

PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFUL ROYAL SAYS TURKEY MUST ACKNOWLEDGE ARMENIAN KILLINGS AS GENOCIDE
By Emmanuel Georges-Picot, Associated Press Writer
Associated Press Worldstream
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
French presidential hopeful Segolene Royal said Wednesday that Turkey
must recognize the mass killing of Armenians in the early 20th Century
as a genocide if it hopes to join the European Union.
Royal, a Socialist, also said she was in favor of a bill to go before
France’s parliament Thursday that would make it a crime to deny that
the killings amounted to genocide.
Turkish anger over the bill forced a delay in the initial debate, which
had been set for May, as lawmakers caved in to warnings by Turkish
authorities that bilateral ties would suffer if the bill became law.
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, commenting Wednesday on
the bill, said France would compromise its values if the measure
became law.
“We’ve done everything we can,” Gul said. “If this passes, Turkey will
lose nothing. But France will first lose Turkey … it will turn into
a country that throws people in jail for expressing their thoughts, for
expressing their ideas, for stating what is in historical documents.”
Royal, a lawmaker hoping for the Socialist Party’s nomination as 2007
presidential candidate, aligned herself with the official stance
that Turkey must recognize the killings as genocide if it wants
EU membership.
“It is obvious that if Turkey wants to confirm its candidacy and one
day enter Europe, it is obvious that it must recognize the Armenian
genocide,” she said at a news conference called to set out her
positions on Europe.
She added that she was for the legislation going before parliament.
“We have no lessons to give anyone and, at the same time, something
has to be done.”
On other issues, Royal called for Europe to immediately establish aid
to the Palestinian territories, and supported continued diplomatic
efforts to counter fears that Iran is looking to develop nuclear arms.
Meanwhile, about 40 Turkish demonstrators gathered at the Place de la
Concorde, facing the National Assembly, to denounce the bill making
it a crime to deny Armenian genocide.
“The Armenian genocide is an imperialist lie,” said Yalcin Buyukdagh,
who identified himself as the presidential counsel of the Workers
Party in Turkey.
“If France votes ‘yes’ to this law, it will have officially taken a
position as an enemy of Turkey,” he said.
In Ankara, lawmakers, looking to retaliate against Paris, discussed
proposals to recognize an “Algerian genocide” during France’s colonial
rule there, which ended in 1962 after a brutal war.
Armenians claim that as many as 1.5 million of their ancestors were
killed between 1915-1923 in an organized campaign to force them out
of eastern Turkey. However, Turkey contends that a large number of
people died in civil unrest during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.
French President Jacques Chirac visited the Armenian capital of
Yerevan the first by a French president less than two weeks ago and
urged Turkey to acknowledge a genocide.
Associated Press Writer Emily Withrow in Paris contributed to this
report.

ARMENIAN, BRITISH MINISTERS DISCUSS BILATERAL RELATIONS
Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
11 Oct 06
Yerevan, 11 October: Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan met
Minister for Europe at the British Foreign Office Geoff Hoon in
Yerevan today. Hoon is winding up his tour of the South Caucasus.
Oskanyan highly rated relations between Armenia and the UK, noting
that Yerevan wishes to expand these relations within the framework
of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), the press service of the
Armenian Foreign Ministry told Mediamax today.
Speaking about Armenia’s action plan within the framework of the ENP,
Oskanyan said that Armenia intends to implement all provisions of
the document, counting on support from the European Commission and
EU countries.
Oskanyan and Hoon also discussed the settlement of the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict, as well as the problems between Armenia and Turkey
in the context of talks on Turkey’s membership of the EU.

VAHAN HOVHANNISYSN: WE MUST HAVE RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN RELATIONS EXERT NO INFLUENCE ON ARMENIA’S INTERESTS
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 10 2006
“I think we should do everything for the conflict between Russia and
Georgia not to impact the interests of Armenia. For this purpose we
must have a distinct position in our relations with both Russian and
Georgian partners,” NA Deputy Chairman Vahan Hovhannisyan told the
journalists today.
In the Vice-Chairman’s opinion, it is obvious that Georgia is trying to
do everything for Russia to finally lose its role in Transcaucasian
politics, which is not favorable for Armenia today. On the other
hand, through utilization of the energy factor some political circles
of Russia are trying to become a superpower deciding everything in
the region, which is again unfavorable for Armenia. “The truth is
somewhere between,” Vhan Hovhannisyan mentioned.

ROME INAUGURATES STAR-STUDDED FILM FESTIVAL FRIDAY
by Katia Dolmadjian
Agence France Presse — English
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Rome kicks off the first edition of its film festival on Friday with
16 movies in competition, several high-profile world premieres and a
galaxy of stars including Nicole Kidman, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo
di Caprio.
Despite demure denials by the organizers, the event is seen as a
potentially serious rival to the venerable Mostra of Venice.
Kidman will be on hand to unveil “Fur, An Imaginary Portrait of
Diane Arbus,” a film expected to make waves with its departure
from biographical fact and the sheer originality of director Steven
Shainberg’s approach to the life of the controversial photographer
of freaks.
To run from Friday until October 21, the RomeFilmFest will also
feature appearances by Monica Bellucci, George Clooney, Robert De Niro,
Harvey Keitel, Sean Connery and Luc Besson.
Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni, the festival’s mastermind, said he wants it
to be “a great popular fete entirely dedicated to the cinematic art.”
The ardent cinephile has rejected any talk of a rivalry between the
RomeFilmFest and the decades-old Mostra, saying the two cities and
their respective festivals “help each other with reciprocal love
and respect.”
The Rome program is in fact less flamboyant than the Mostra, but it
enjoys a much larger budget — by several million euros (dollars) —
thanks to private donations.
Many big stars jumped at the invitation to attend.
The feature-length films in competition include French director Robert
Guediguian’s “Armenia”, “Primo Levi’s Journey” by Italy’s Davide
Ferrario, “A Casa Nostra” (At Our House) by Francesca Comencini, also
Italian, and Georgian filmmaker Otar Iosseliani’s “Gardens in Autumn”.
Three Asian films are in the running: “Nightmare Detective” by Shinya
Tsukamoto of Japan, “After This Our Exile” by Patrick Tam of Hong Kong,
and “The Go Master” by Tian Zhuangzhuang of China.
Another point of pride for the organizers is the amount of space
offered to the public: some 40,000 seats with affordable tickets
ranging from five to 10 euros (6.20 to 12.50 dollars) on sale at
kiosks.
This “democratization” will also see screenings both in the city
center and on Rome’s periphery.
What is more, the organizers have put together a unique jury made up
of 50 ordinary moviegoers, headed by Italian filmmaker Ettore Scola.
On October 21 they will bestow three awards: best picture (for 200,000
euros), best actress and best actor.
On Saturday Bellucci will offer “Napoleon and Me” alongside Frenchman
Daniel Auteuil, retracing Bonaparte’s life in exile on Elba.
Scorsese, the US director with Sicilian roots, will on Sunday present
“The Departed,” a drama from the Boston underworld teaming Di Caprio
with Jack Nicholson and Matt Damon.
The weekend will see Rome’s Via Veneto — setting of Rome’s iconic
“La Dolce Vita” — turned into “Business Street”, where films and
screenplays will be showcased for industry clients.

ARMENIAN THINK-TANK ACCUSES GEORGIA OF PURSUING ANTI-ARMENIAN POLICY
Armenpress
Oct 09 2006
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 9, ARMENPRESS: Two analysts of a Yerevan-based Mitk
(Thought) think-tank rapped today Georgia’s leadership for pursuing
what they said was ‘a pronounced anti-Armenian’ domestic and foreign
policy.
The analysts, Kadmus Balkhchian and Edward Abrahamian, argued during
a news conference that Georgia’s recent policies were unacceptable
for the international community. They said they had arrived at this
conclusion after looking into a long string of stories in Georgian
media on national minorities. “Our main conclusion is that the
policy of Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili is harmful to
Georgian-Armenian friendly relations,” they said.
One of the analysts, Kadmus Balkhchian, said the region of Javakheti
in southern Georgia which is now populated predominantly by ethnic
Armenians is being populated by Meskhetian Turks and ethnic Georgians
with the aim of driving Armenians out. He said a similar policy had
been conducted some 40 years ago in another region of Akhaltsikhe
that once had mostly Armenian population, as a result the number of
Armenians there drastically declined.
The two analysts then accused Georgian authorities of preventing ethnic
Armenians’ from keeping executive and legislative positions. They
also said in October 5 municipal elections in Georgia 1,000 Armenian
voters in Javakheti province failed to find their names in voter lists.
They also accused Saakashvili of plans to sign an agreement on purchase
of potato from neighboring Turkey, though he knows well that the main
source of income for Armenians in Javakheti is potato growing.