Author: Christine Harutyunian

TURKEY, ARMENIA MISS OPPORTUNITY FOR RAPPROCHEMENT
Emil Danielyan 6/03/05
EurasiaNet Organization
June 3 2005
An initiative to promote a thaw in Armenian-Turkish relations appears
to have fallen flat. The leaders of the two countries recently
exchanged unprecedented diplomatic notes that explored rapprochement
possibilities. But the letters did not achieve the desired effect of
easing decades of mutual animosity.
The inability of Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to meet on the sidelines of a Council
of Europe summit in Warsaw in mid-May signaled the collapse of the
rapprochement initiative.
Erdogan reportedly refused to meet Kocharian because of the latter’s
renewed calls during the summit for international recognition of
the 1915-1923 slaughter of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians in the
Ottoman Empire as genocide. Turkey vehemently denies that the mass
killings constituted a genocide, insisting that Ottoman Armenians
died in much smaller numbers and mainly as a result of civil strife.
Erdogan responded angrily to Kocharian’s statements at the summit.
“Turkey cannot accept such baseless allegations,” he told a separate
news conference in the Polish capital.
Armenia scoffed at the criticism of Turkish leaders, with Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanian saying that policy makers in Ankara
“naively” thought that Kocharian himself would request a meeting
with Erdogan. Oskanian additionally accused the Turkish leadership of
insincerity, alleging that Ankara never had any intention of altering
its policy position.
“As a result of wrong Turkish calculations, the more or less favorable
atmosphere created by the exchange of letters was spoiled,” Oskanian
told Armenian state television on May 20. “We took a step backward
in Turkish-Armenian relations because of the Turks.”
Erdogan wrote to Kocharian in April suggesting that the two countries,
which have no diplomatic relations, set up a commission of historians
that would look into the 1915 events and determine whether they
were indeed a genocide. The unusual move came ahead of the April 24
worldwide ceremonies commemorating the 90th anniversary of the start
of mass killings and deportations. It was welcomed by the United
States and some European leaders.
But Kocharian effectively rejected the idea, contending that the
Armenian genocide was already an established fact. At the same time,
he called for the creation of an Armenian-Turkish inter-governmental
commission that would discuss all issues of mutual concern, including
the genocide controversy.
In response to Kocharian’s offer, Turkish officials suggested that
the two contending proposals could be combined. “On the one hand,
political relations could be established,” Erdogan said in a newspaper
interview on April 29. “On the other hand, the work (on the historical
archives) could continue.”
As leaders of the two countries engaged in political maneuvering
in late April and early May, speculation mounted that Kocharian and
Erdogan might hold their first-ever face-to-face meeting during the
Warsaw summit May 16-17. As it turned out, however, the parties did
not even come close to achieving a breakthrough in Warsaw.
Erdogan made clear afterward that a pre-condition for rapprochement
between Yerevan and Ankara was a settlement between Armenia and
Azerbaijan of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. [For background see
the Eurasia Insight archive]. Turkey maintains an economic embargo
against Armenia as part of an effort to provide diplomatic support
for Azerbaijan during the search for a lasting Karabakh peace deal.
[For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
The Turkish prime minister also called on Armenia to halt efforts to
secure international recognition for the 1915-23 events as genocide.
The Turkish daily Zaman reported on May 31 that Ankara plans no
further diplomatic initiatives on the Armenian front.
The Armenian leadership, for its part, insists that the two nations
must establish diplomatic relations, and that Ankara must lift
the embargo against Armenia, before the two governments can tackle
contentious issues.
As Armenia and Turkey explored the rapprochement, the United States
remained diplomatically inactive, according to an Armenian source
privy to Turkish-Armenian dealings. US officials reportedly didn’t
offer to broker direct discussions between Kocharian and Erdogan in
Warsaw, dashing all hopes for such a meeting.
“The Bush administration has a long list of priorities when it
comes to Turkey, and I’m afraid that Armenian issues are the bottom
of that list,” David Phillips, a renowned scholar who chaired the
Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commission (TARC), said in a recent
interview. TARC was a US-sponsored panel of retired diplomats and
pundits that operated between 2001-2004 to promote reconciliation.
Perhaps TARC’s important accomplishment during was a study jointly
commissioned by its Turkish and Armenian members from the International
Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), a New York-based human rights
organization. The ICTJ concluded in a 2003 report that the massacres
of Ottoman Armenians technically fit the definition of genocide set by
a 1948 UN convention. However, the ICTJ report also stressed that the
1948 Convention’s provisions did not allow “retroactive application”
to events that occurred prior to the treaty’s adoption. Thus, Armenians
could not use the convention to claim any material compensation from
modern-day Turkey.
At present, Turkey is facing strong pressure from the European Union
as Ankara prepares to open accession talks with the bloc in October.
France, for example, wants the genocide issue to be on the agenda of
those talks, with President Jacques Chirac repeatedly urging Turkey
to address its contentious past. [For background information see the
Eurasia Insight archive].
The issue is also used by opponents of Turkish membership in the EU.
Germany’s opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is well
placed to defeat incumbent Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder’s Social
Democrats in upcoming parliamentary elections, has sponsored
a Bundestag resolution calling on Ankara to “take historic
responsibility” for the 1915 massacres.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Lebanese parliamentary polls open in Beirut
AP Worldstream
May 29, 2005
SAM F. GHATTAS

Voting began in Beirut on Sunday in Lebanon’s first free parliamentary
polls without heavy-handed Syrian meddling. The balloting was clearly
a show of loyalty for Rafik Hariri, the former premier whose
assassination catalyzed the political turmoil that drove Syrian forces
out.
To encourage voters, two of Hariri’s children, Fahd and Ayman, were
among the first to cast their ballots in a Ras Beirut polling station
near the American University, some 30 minutes after polls
opened. Their mother, Nazek, and sister Hind, voted at another polling
station in the Verdun neighborhood.
“I have high hopes today that we will uncover the truth of who planned
and carried out the crime against my beloved husband, who in life
built this country and in his martyrdom achieved national unity,”
Nazek Hariri told reporters after casting her ballot before she headed
to downtown Beirut to pray at her slain husband’s grave.
Many observers expect the polls to sweep the anti-Syrian opposition to
power and install a new parliament, removing the last of Syria’s
political control. Syrian forces withdrew in April, ending a 29-year
military dominance, after mass demonstrations in Lebanon and
relentless international pressure sparked by the February
assassination.
Polls opened at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) in three districts in the Muslim and
Christian sectors of the Lebanese capital, which votes first in the
staggered elections, and eligible voters _ Beiruti men and women over
the age of 21 _ began arriving at polling stations across the city
under a bright warm sun.
Polls close at 6 p.m. (1500 GMT) and returns are expected Monday at
the earliest. Others regions vote on the next consecutive Sundays.
More than 400,000 people are eligible to vote in Beirut. At stake in
the city are 19 seats, out of the legislature’s 128 seats, which are
divided equally among Muslims and Christians. In Beirut, seats are
allocated according to Lebanon’s power-sharing political system to six
Sunni Muslims, three Armenian Orthodox, two Greek Orthodox, two Shiite
Muslims, one Druse, one Maronite Catholic, one Armenian Catholic, one
Greek Catholic, one Protestant and one for minorities.
Free of Syrian control, the Lebanese government promised to hold “free
and fair” elections. More than 100 foreign observers from the European
Union and the United Nations will be watching the vote for
irregularities, the first time Lebanon has permitted foreign
scrutiny. The organization of French-speaking countries also sent a
delegation.
There were concerns about a low turnout amid calls for a boycott, and
complaints that the ticket of Saad Hariri, Rafik’s son and political
heir, lacked representation of political factions and that nine of his
19 candidates had won by default because there were no challengers.
Saad Hariri, who did not vote because he was registered in his
family’s southern hometown of Sidon, urged voters to go to the polls.
“I have said that the vote today is against the criminals. Many people
are try ing to say today that people will not turn out. We say to
people go out and vote to show gratitude to that person (Rafik Hariri)
who sacrificed his blood and life for this country,” he said after
visiting a polling station. He stressed that his priorities were
national unity and uncovering the truth behind the assassination of
his father, one of Lebanon’s internationally known politicians.
Saad Hariri took over his father’s political mantle in April, two
months after his father and 20 others were killed in a powerful bomb
on a Beirut street. Saad Hariri has staked the election as a show of
loyalty for his father, who held the premiership for 10 of the last 15
years and was credited with rebuilding Lebanon from the destruction of
the 1975-90 civil war.
The opposition has blamed Syria and its Lebanese security
allies. Damascus and the previous Beirut government have denied any
involvement.
Across the country, pre-election machinations have been marked by
withdrawals of candidates amid changing public sentiment. Disputes
within the opposition have also affected the race. A total of 17 of
the 128 legislative seats have already been won uncontested, including
one in the south by Rafik Hariri’s sister, Bahiya.
Hariri’s assassination plunged Lebanon into the worst political crisis
since the end of civil war, forced the resignation of the pro-Syrian
government and brought international pressure to bear on Damascus to
withdraw its army from Lebanon. Syrian forces completed the pullout
April 26.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

‘Turkish Soldiers Rescue Armenian Children of Freezing’
By Melik Duvakli
Published: Monday 16, 2005
zaman.com
Zaman Online, Turkey
May 16 2005
Professor Enver Konukcu from Erzurum Ataturk University History
Department has defended that all claims regarding the so-called
Armenian genocide are baseless.
Reminded that they have invited the Armenians and their supporters
to Anatolia to prove their claims, Konukcu said, “They talk about
mass graves. We are telling them come here and let’s search together,
if there are any; however, there has been no response.”
Konukcu participating in a conference titled “The View of Armenian
Issues from Anatolia and the Real Truth of the Genocide Claims”,
as a lecturer organized last night at Biltek College by the Erzurum
Ataturk University Graduates and Members Association (ERATUN).
The Professor said the army had tried to undertake its duties at
the time despite the tough conditions have been disparaged unfairly
with those accusations such as union gangs, union committees, and
union leaders.
Suggesting that Turkish soldiers have never shot innocent people,
Konukcu said, “On the contrary, they are our soldiers who rescued the
children left behind by the Armenians from freezing. They robbed and
violated when they entered our mosques and tombs. However, we did
not touch any of their churches.”
Revealing the names of those who are mislead on the Armenian issues
including Orhan Pamuk, Halil Berktay and Murat Belge, Konukcu said that
Pamuk mislead the truth to receive a prize. He also said regarding
Berktay, “It is easy to make claims while sitting in his comfortable
room at Sabanci University.”
Emphasizing that it is not possible to kill 1.5 million Armenians in
the East, Konukcu said, “Because there aren’t 1.5 million Armenians
in the whole of the East. All population information is relevant. It
has been said that 1.5 million Armenians were killed. If so, from
where have the other Armenians come? Or, to where did Armenians in
Beirut go?”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
05/19/2005
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) ARF Lebanon Pulls Candidates, Independent Candidates Follow Suit 2) Erdogan Adamant on Turkey's 'Innocent' Past 3) Russian Military Equipment in Georgia 'Could Be Moved to Armenia' 4) Rizhkov Visits Dzidzernagapert, Discusses Cooperation 5) ANCA to Hold Darfur Genocide Vigil at White House 1) ARF Lebanon Pulls Candidates, Independent Candidates Follow Suit LEBANON--Following its calls to local Armenians to withhold from voting in the Beirut parliamentary elections, Lebanon's Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) pulled its two candidates from Beirut's third constituency race to protest the snubbing of Beirut's majority of Armenians. Saad Hariri, son of the slain former premier Rafik Hariri, on Sunday announced his electoral list for Beirut's constituencies; though four Armenian seats are vacant, Hariri excluded the two candidates put forth by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), which enjoys extensive support among Beirut's significant Armenian minority. On Monday, the party called on its supporters in Beirut to boycott the Beirut elections because the Armenian candidates put forth by Hariri represent the smallest sector of Lebanon's Armenian community--and not the majority will. The party called the decision to pull its two candidates Stepan Der Bedrossian and Jacques Chookhadarian from the race, a "logical subsequent step" to boycotting the elections--since the ARF's candidates would have garnered victories, considering the party's influence in the area. In a symbolic move, independent candidates from Beirut's first and second constituencies, Haigaz Yardemian and Abraham Matossian, also pulled out of the race to show that Hariri's four Armenian candidates will be legally elected, but not with Armenian votes. 2) Erdogan Adamant on Turkey's 'Innocent' Past ANKARA (AA)--According to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey has never committed genocide throughout its history, making it impossible to accept "such accusations,'' he said on Wednesday. Addressing a gathering of his governmental Justice & Development Party, Erdogan said that Armenian genocide "allegations" were discussed at the Council of Europe Heads of State and Government Summit, held in Warsaw at the beginning of this week. Claiming that Armenians living during Ottoman reign fell prey to the games of foreign powers and rebelled (at this point, the prime minister resorted to slang, saying that Armenian's 'got pumped-up'), Erdogan said the "Ottomans did what they had to do. We will never succumb to the pressure to accept the Genocide." ''During my speech [at the summit], I said that we have opened our state archives. We don't have any concerns about our history, and believe that reality should be revealed. Armenia should also open its archives and historians, jurists, political scientists, and archivists should work on them. Then, we make the political decision. Unfortunately, I cannot get any positive response from [Armenian President] Kocharian so far,'' Erdogan said. Insisting that international diplomacy is contradicted because certain countries' parliaments have recognized "these so-called Armenian genocide allegations," Erdogan continued, "There is no word for assuming such an attitude without basing on any document or information against a country with which you are together in international institutions. In Warsaw, I told reporters that parliaments of 15 countries made such a decision, and we will examine these 15 countries. There are countries among these 15 which carried out genocide in the past. We will bring them to our parliament and pass a decision, basing on real documents and information, not with lobbying. We will take this step because Turkey had never committed genocide throughout its history.'' ''Of course some people might have died during relocation. It is true. But, why were these people forced to migrate? Documents indicate that the Ottomans were fighting in three fronts, and there was an Armenian nation which started to rebel due to provocations of some other circles. Naturally, the administration encouraged such a relocation under these circumstances. But it also met traveling costs of the people forced to migrate. And it issued circulars for the protection of these people. But the state did not carry out a genocide,'' remarked Erdogan. ''There might have been some problems for this or that reason, but it is wrong to define it as genocide. We won't build our future on hatred and resentment,'' added Erdogan. 3) Russian Military Equipment in Georgia 'Could Be Moved to Armenia' MOSCOW (AP)--A top military officer said Thursday that some of the equipment from Russia's bases in Georgia could be transferred to Armenia, where Moscow also has a military presence. General Yuri Baluyevsky, chief of the Russian General Staff, said that would help Russia reduce the timeframe for withdrawing the bases to four years, Interfax news agency reported. "The military bases will be withdrawn from Georgia to Russia. It is not ruled out that some property and military hardware will be deployed in Armenia," he said. Baluyevsky stressed that Russia makes the only principal condition--that Russian servicemen be withdrawn to some territory with developed infrastructure. Russia and Georgia have been in tense negotiations over the base withdrawal, which Tbilisi insist be complete by the beginning of 2008. The two sides are to hold a fresh round of negotiations on the lingering dispute in Tbilisi on Monday. 4) Rizhkov Visits Dzidzernagapert, Discusses Cooperation YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Co-chairman of Armenian-Russian inter-parliamentary cooperation commission and head of Armenian-Russian Business Cooperation Association Nikolay Rizhkov visited the Dzidzernagapert Genocide Memorial on Thursday, as well as placed a wreath on behalf of the Russian Senate. "We [Russians] agree with Armenians in the assessment of the Armenian genocide. Only by passing to future generations the truth about these evil deeds can we prevent repetition of such crimes in future." Rizhkov met with President Robert Kocharian, where he shared his impressions on the immense change that has taken place since he visited regions damaged by the 1988 earthquake. He added that the foremost issue is to increase employment, which will be promoted by the expansion of Armenian-Russian economic cooperation. Kocharian, in his turn, noted that the commission has implemented many successful programs in the past, but should work to find new ways of cooperation. 5) ANCA to Hold Darfur Genocide Vigil at White House --May 25 Protest to Call for Decisive US Response to Unfolding Genocide WASHINGTON, DC (ANCA)--Armenian Americans, the descendents of the first genocide of the 20th century, will host a White House vigil on May 25 to help bring an end to the first genocide of the 21st century--the systematic massacres, mass starvation, and ethnic cleansing taking place today in the Darfur region of Sudan. Up to 400,000 people have already died and more than 2,000,000 dislocated in Darfur over the past two years. Recent reports confirm that the situation on the ground is deteriorating and the humanitarian crisis is reaching desperate proportions. This special Armenian American vigil, hosted by the ANCA, will take place from 5:30-6:30 pm in Lafayette Park, across from the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue.  The gathering will be the most recent in a series of vigils, organized every Wednesday by Africa Action, a leading advocate for US and international action on the Darfur genocide.  For directions or more information, contact ANCA at (202) 775-1918 or [email protected]. New York Times Columnist Nicholas Kristof, a leading voice for US action on Darfur, has written to the ANCA about the situation in Sudan. In a powerfully worded letter, he touched on the unique responsibility of Armenians, as victims of genocide, to help end the ongoing suffering in Darfur and to work toward preventing future crimes against humanity. In congratulating the ANCA for holding the vigil, he stressed, "Obviously, crimes against any part of humanity require a response from all the rest of humanity, but I think any group that has suffered a systematic attack also has a particular responsibility to make sure that doesn't happen again to some other group." The ANCA has participated in previous Darfur vigils, protested outside the Sudanese Embassy, spoken at genocide prevention conferences, and generated support--both at the grassroots level and in Washington, DC--for Congressional legislation aimed at ending the slaughter in the Darfur region. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. --Boundary_(ID_vuSbj/7H5uieOgUBK/Dwuw)-- From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS COMMEMORATED IN SAINT PETERSBURG
Pan Armenian Nes
19.05.2005 03:18
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ It rained in Saint Petersburg on 23 April, however
the bad weather did not prevent several hundreds of Armenians from
gathering in the yard of the Armenian Apostolic Church for a dramatized
performance previous evening, reported the Yerkramas newspaper of
Armenians of Russia. The youth performed songs about the Genocide
and Nairi dance ensemble tried to convey the horror of the tragedy
of 1915 to those gathered via a dance performance. After priest
Ter Sargis read Our Father, hundreds of black balloons flied into
the sky in response to the rain. A funeral liturgy was held in the
Church April 24 morning, then wreaths were laid to the khachkar in
the yard. At 1:00 a rally began. “All we ask for is repentance,”
it was written on a transparent and it is the call of the Armenian
youth to the whole of the world on acknowledgement of the Armenian
Genocide. The same Day, a Commemoration Evening was organized by the
Armenian Apostolic Church, the Regional Armenian National Cultural
Autonomy with the support of the Consulate General of Armenia. Besides
the concert part First Genocide of 21st century documentary exhibition
was presented by the Armenian Friendly Association of Saint Petersburg
youth regional NGO. The exhibition was brought there specially for
the event from the Tsitsernakaberd Museum of Memory of the Genocide
in Yerevan. It included photographs, a short chronological excursus
of the events, narratives of witnesses, in four languages (Armenian,
Russian, English and French).
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Turk PM raps Armenia on genocide claims at meeting
WARSAW, May 17 (Reuters) – Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan
scolded Armenia on Tuesday for raising the issue of the alleged
genocide of its people 90 years ago during a summit of a pan-European
human rights watchdog.
Armenia says some 1.5 million of its people were killed in a
systematic genocide by Ottoman Turks during and after World War One.
Turkey denies any genocide, saying the Armenians were victims of a
partisan war in which many Turks also died. Addressing a session of
the Council of Europe, the continent’s top human rights body, Erdogan
said it was for historians, not governments or parliaments, to judge
what actually happened on Ottoman territory nearly a century ago.
“We do not appreciate these efforts to lobby (in favour of the Armenian
claims), lobbying that has no basis in historical documents and facts,”
said Erdogan, clearly irritated.
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan mentioned the genocide issue
during his address to the Council on Monday and he thanked those
countries which backed Yerevan’s stance.
Turkey is worried the Armenian claims could harm its plans to begin
European Union entry talks in October. Some EU politicians, notably
in France, home to Europe’s biggest Armenian diaspora, say Ankara
must accept the genocide claims.
Erdogan renewed an appeal to Armenia to open its archives from the
period to historians to demonstrate its good faith.
“We opened our archives, one million classified documents. We ask
Armenia to open its archives and we ask other countries to contribute
too… If there are decisions to be taken after that, they will be
taken. But not on the basis of lobbying and parliamentary decisions
based on such lobbying,” he said.
Several parliaments, including those of France, Canada and most
recently Poland — which is hosting the Council of Europe talks —
have passed resolutions backing the genocide claims.
Turkish media said Erdogan had cancelled a planned meeting in Warsaw
with Kocharyan which had been designed to underline Turkey’s desire
for better ties with Armenia as a protest against the reference to
the genocide issue.
Turkey broke off diplomatic ties with the tiny ex-Soviet republic
in 1993 over Armenia’s occupation of territory inside Azerbaijan,
a regional Turkic-speaking ally of Ankara.
05/17/05 10:46 ET
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIA TO DEEPEN COOPERATION WITH EU WITHIN NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY
Pan Armenian News
16.05.2005 06:28
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ “We intend to deepen our cooperation with the EU
within the Neighborhood Policy”, Armenian President Robert Kocharian
stated when addressing the Council of Europe Third Summit in Warsaw
today, Mediamax agency reports. “For us it is the possibility to carry
on political and economic reforms under the EU aegis. We feel as a
part of Europe. Our cultural heritage is a part of European culture. We
are carrying out reforms proceeding from domestic needs of our country
and not with the purpose to be praised. That is why the efficiency of
these reforms is rather high in Armenia”, Robert Kocharian noted. He
said Armenia will meet all the commitments undertaken at the entry to
the CE. “It was a hard but efficient process of reforms urged forward
by wide sectors of population”, he added.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CONSTITUTION WHICH IS MADE WITH FATHERLY CARE
A1plus
| 16:51:05 | 06-05-2005 | Politics |
Secretary of the Justice bloc Viktor Dallakyan announced today that
if the present constitution was made in 1995 for the then President,
this one is done for the President’s successor. “And Kocharyan acting
like a father for his successor will expect fatherly attitude from
him. That is, this is a Constitution of guarantees”.
Viktor Dallakyan represented the 11 authorizations which have been
added to the President by the coalition draft. Particularly, the
President appoints people to state posts, that is he will appoint
heads of such Committees as the TV and Radio National Committee.
Mentioning the other authorizations Viktor Dallakyan concludes that we
live not in a semi-presidential country but is a truly presidential
one. Viktor Dallakyan also noted that the Venice Committee which
is a consultative body has made a political announcement that the
Constitutional amendments must be adopted in the atmosphere of
political agreement, “whereas the Democratic Delegate renounced
its draft, the United Labor Party has its draft, Armen Haroutyunyan
announces that it is the coalition draft and the political opposition
boycotts the discussion”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARKA NEWS AGENCY ONE OF LEADING NEWS AGENCIES IN ARMENIA: TIGRAN
SARGSYAN
YEREVAN, April 29. /ARKA/. Chairman of the RA Central Bank has
addressed a congratulatory message to Director of the ARKA News Agency
Konstantin Petrosov on the occasion of the 9th anniversary of the news
agency. `The fact that you are working in the slowly developing
information sector of Armenia, without stopping at numerous
difficulties and disappointments testifies to your high professional
skill and readiness to achieve the set goals,’ the message says.
According to him, ARKA has not only become one of the leading news
agenciesof Armenia, but is also consistent in offering new information
products to its clients. `Various high-quality analytical materials
are especially noteworthy among your products,’ the CB Chairman said
in his message. He wished ARKA prosperity, stability and happiness.
The ARKA News Agency, which specializes in financial, economic and
political information, has been working since May 1, 1996. ARKA’s
professional credo is the reliability, trustworthiness and promptness
of information. P.T. â=80`0–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Agence France Presse — English
April 25, 2005 Monday
Armenians of Jerusalem mark 90th anniversary of massacre
JERUSALEM April 25
Around 1,000 Armenians turned out in Jerusalem on Monday to mark the
90th anniversary of the forced exile and mass killings of as many as
1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turks.
Attending a commemorative service at the Cathedral of St James in the
Holy City, the congregation then marched to the Armenian cemetery to
the thud of drums, praying for the hundreds of thousands killed
nearly a century ago.
Participants, many of them wearing black, held aloft the red, blue
and orange flag of Armenia alongside black and white photographs of
some of the victims, an AFP correspondent said.
Placards could be seen saying: “Armenians demand justice,” “Turkey
guilty of genocide,” and “Turkey: your past haunts you”.
Armenian patriarch Torkom Manoogian presided over further prayers as
wreathes were laid at the cemetery’s memorial to the massacres.
“After 90 years of Turkish denial, the issue of the Armenian genocide
came onto the international agenda. Turkey’s position has become very
shaky,” community leader Serob Sahagian told the crowd.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen perished in
orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire was
falling apart.
Ankara counters that 300,000 Armenians and thousands of Turks were
killed in “civil strife” during World War I.
A retired school principal from the Upper Galilee said the march had
been postponed by one day because this year’s anniversary fell on
Palm Sunday.
“Each of us here has a grandfather, an uncle or aunt killed. It’s a
very sad day. I’m a refugee in this country and I’m not sure whether
I can return to my village in Turkey,” Georgette Abakian said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress