Author: Dabaghian Diana

CONCERT IN THE PARK OF THE NATIOANL ASSEMBLY

armradio.am
18.09.2007 17:27

In the framework of the "Kenats" festival dedicated to Armenia’s
Independence Day, September 20, at 19:00 the concert titled
"The National Assembly for People" will start in the park of the
National Assembly. The National Chamber Music Orchestra headed by
Aram Gharabekyan will perform at the concert.

Public Relations Department of the National assembly informs that
the concert will feature also Nune Badalyan, Gayane Grigoryan, Marine
Danielyan and Ella Melik-Husyan. Admission is free.

TURKEY, ARMENIA: A THRIVING TRADE DESPITE TENSIONS, CLOSED BORDER

mmorning.com
Sept. 17, 2007

Barreling along at breakneck speeds, Turkish trucks loaded with goods
are a common sight on the winding highways of Armenia, showing that
for many Armenians the desire for a bargain outweighs historic hatred.

"What’s important for me are the quality and the price of the goods,
not where they come from", said 32-year-old Yerevan resident Souren,
who recently bought a Turkish-made washing machine.

Turkish goods are flooding into Armenia despite a long history of
antagonism between Armenians and Turks, closed borders and major
diplomatic tensions between Ankara and Yerevan.

Only 25 kilometers from the Turkish border, Yerevan should be a
short drive for the truckers. But with Armenia under a Turkish trade
embargo and the border sealed, they instead have to follow a long,
circuitous route through neighboring Georgia to bring home appliances,
building materials and other goods to Yerevan.

Turkey banned exports to Armenia and closed the border in 1993 in a
show of solidarity with its close ally Azerbaijan, which was at war
with Armenia-backed separatists over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Also angered by Armenia’s campaign for international recognition
of mass killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as genocide,
Ankara has also refused to establish diplomatic ties with Yerevan.

Yet at the main border crossing between Armenia and Georgia, the queue
of Turkish trucks headed for Yerevan can often stretch for more than
a kilometer.

To get around the embargo, the goods officially change hands in
Georgia, through middlemen or shell companies established by Turkish
exporters.

"There is a big quantity of Turkish goods today in Armenia", said Gagik
Kocharian, the head of the trade department at Armenia’s Ministry of
Trade and Economic Development.

Home appliances, building materials, household goods, clothes and
paper products are the most common Turkish items sold in Armenia,
he said, and sales of those goods rose 40 percent in 2006.

Many consumers, Kocharian said, are indifferent to whether the goods
they are buying are Turkish.

"People buy brands and very often are not interested or do not know
where a product is made", he said.

Many business leaders on both sides are urging the Armenian and
Turkish governments to work to end the embargo and re-open the border.

"There is great interest from companies on both sides in doing business
with each other. It would be very beneficial for both countries to
re-open the border", said Kaan Soyak, the Turkish co-chairman of the
Turkish-Armenian Business Development Council.

Re-opening the frontier would not only give Armenian exporters easier
access to Western markets, but also add to export routes for Turkish
companies targeting Azerbaijan and Central Asia, he said.

"Unfortunately, the political establishments on both sides benefit
from the status quo", he commented.

Analysts said it’s doubtful either side will give ground soon.

Winning international recognition of the mass killings as genocide
is one of Armenia’s top foreign policy goals. Armenians say up to 1.5
million of their kinsmen died in deportations and systematic killings
on the territory of present-day Turkey in 1915.

Turkey categorically rejects the genocide label and argues that
300,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in civil strife in
what was then the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

Turkey is also unlikely to end its staunch support for Azerbaijan
in the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh, an ethnic Armenian enclave
that broke away from Azerbaijan in the early 1990s and now has de
facto independence.

Azerbaijan has imposed its own economic embargo on Armenia and
Kocharian said there are virtually no Azerbaijani goods on sale
in Armenia.

Despite repeated meetings, Armenian and Turkish diplomats have failed
to break the deadlock.

At a meeting in Istanbul in June, Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan
Oskanian urged Turkey to open the border, but Turkey responded that
the dispute over Karabakh would have to first be resolved. Turkish
Foreign Minister Abdallah Gul also called on Armenia to support a
Turkish proposal to set up a joint committee of Turkish and Armenian
academics to study the genocide allegations. And not all Armenians
are willing to set political tensions aside in the name of commerce.

"I do not buy Turkish or Azerbaijani goods and I absolutely don’t
understand people who don’t care where goods come from", said Robert
Sanasarian, an elderly Armenian living in Yerevan. "Why can’t people
just buy locally-produced goods, helping Armenian businesses instead
of our opponents?"

NINETY-NINE ANIMALS AND 386 PLANTS IN ARMENIA’S RED BOOK

Panorama.am
19:31 17/09/2007

As of today, Armenia’s Red Book contains 99 animals and 386 kinds
of plants. Tatyana Danielyan, head of the water preservation and
animal preservation department of the ministry of nature preservation,
relayed this to a panorama.am journalist during an interview. According
to Danielyan, the study going on now has the purpose of finding out
the number of plants and animals in the country. "The results of the
study will be published in two years in the new Red Book," she said.

There are now several protected areas, where extinct or nearly extinct
animals are being looked over and protected, according to specific
routines. "If there is a certain breed listed in the book, its hunting
or exploitation will be prohibited," Danielyan said. We note that
there are eight different levels of protected zones in Armenia today.

According to Nellie Hovhannisyan, of the biology department of YSU,
the reasons for the disappearance of animals and plants are the
activities of man, loss of forest area, populating new areas, and
changes in climate and soil conditions. The professor is convinced
that to put a stop to this process a limit has to be put on man’s
activities, as well as prohibit the exploitation of certain lands.

Hovhannisyan sadly points out that there are plants endemic to the
region that are included in the new list. "Listing of these types of
plants as extinct or nearly extinct is done according to international
standards, at a 0-4 rating system," she said. Reaching four, a species
is considered extinct or on the verge of extinction. "There are
species in Armenia that we see no possibility of reviving," she said.

FACING JUDGE CAN BE MATTER OF INTERPRETATION
By Raul Hernandez

Ventura County Star, CA
Monday, September 17, 2007

The Spanish-language interpreter patiently wades through pink pages
of a plea-bargain agreement. The standard court form is several pages
long, awash with legalese, sentencing terms and constitutional rights.

Linda Evans reads a stack of pages to a Carpinteria man who stabbed his
wife last year. She’ll read another stack with slightly different terms
to the man’s brother, who handed him the knife used in the attack.

Evans, a state-certified court interpreter, tries to make sure the
brothers comprehend what is said or written in English. The stakes
are high in Courtroom 14. Fermin Garcia Alcantar is facing 15 years
in prison. His brother, Lionel Alcantar, could get four years behind
bars for his role.

Ventura County Superior Court Judge Kevin McGee needs to be satisfied
that the men understand what they are signing. Judges won’t accept
plea agreements unless they conclude that defendants made them
"freely and voluntarily."

Evans must interpret accurately and without paraphrasing, omitting
or editing.

"It is really difficult," said Cecilia Isaac, supervisor of the
county’s interpreters. "Just because you speak the language doesn’t
mean you will be able to stand next to a defendant and interpret."

As the number of California residents with limited English skills
keeps rising, courtrooms across the state are facing a shortage of
translators to deal with the language barriers.

"There is a critical shortage, and there has been for some time,"
said Lynn Holton, spokeswoman for the state Judicial Council’s
Administrative Office of the Courts.

Officials have launched a recruiting campaign to get more people
interested in translating for the courts, Holton said.

Also, a major study of the state’s testing program for translators
could result in raising passing scores on the tough oral and written
state language exams, she said.

Only those who pass the test and register with the Judicial Council
can interpret in the courts. The pass rate for the Spanish exam in
the past six years has been only 7.6 percent, Holton said. For other
languages, it varies from 1 percent to 40 percent.

Although Ventura County isn’t seeing a shortage of interpreters,
across the state, it’s a different story. The supply hovers just
above 1,600, and demand is on the rise as the state’s limited-English
population grows, according to the Judicial Council, which certifies
and registers interpreters.

Seven court interpreters work in the Ventura County judicial system,
including two sign-language interpreters.

The statewide shortage – and a recent strike by interpreters in Los
Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties – has raised
awareness about the mental agility that translators must possess to
do their jobs.

During the proceedings involving the Alcantars, prosecutor Melissa
Suttner tells Fermin Alcantar that he is entering a guilty plea for
attempted murder against his wife, Nancy Alcantar.

"That happened, but I didn’t know what I was doing," Fermin Alcantar
said in Spanish. "It was an emotional moment."

He pleads guilty and admits to using a deadly weapon and causing
great bodily harm.

Services used 16,700 times

Court interpreter services are provided in criminal, misdemeanor
and juvenile delinquency cases, and in certain kinds of civil cases,
such as divorce or child custody, according to state officials.

In Ventura County during the first six months of this year,
interpreters have been used in more than 16,700 instances in civil
and criminal cases, according to county figures.

During that period, interpreters were used more than 180 times for
languages other than Spanish, such as Mandarin, Korean, Armenian,
Vietnamese and Tagalog, county records show.

Jason Redmond / Star staff Court interpreters, from left, Amy
Hovanessian and Linda Evans chat with attorney Victor Salas and Deputy
District Attorney Melissa Suttner in court in Ventura.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, people in California speak 200
languages at last count, making it the most linguistically diverse
state. Many California residents are foreign-born – 26 percent of
its 34 million people.

In Ventura County, 12.4 percent, or 162,103 residents, are
foreign-born. Thirty-four percent, or 251,716 people, speak a language
other than English at home.

The cost for interpreter services in state courts alone is high. For
fiscal year 2007-08, the budget is $90.3 million, according to Holton.

The starting salary for a full-time court interpreter in Ventura
County is $73,445. Salary levels are different in other counties.

Independent interpreters hired by the county are paid $282 a day,
or $156 for half a day, said Robert Sherman, assistant executive
officer for the county’s courts. That figure is set by the state and
is the same in all counties.

Demanding higher pay, interpreters represented by the California
Federation of Interpreters union went on strike Sept. 5 in Los Angeles,
Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. The strike does not extend
to Ventura County, where court interpreters are represented by the
Service Employees International Union.

The strike is having little impact in Los Angeles County courtrooms,
according to Allan Parachini, spokesman for Los Angeles Superior Court.

Hearings and trials have been postponed, and other legal proceedings
have been rearranged, he said, but no court cases have been
dismissed. "It’s going surprisingly well."

Interpreters who didn’t strike are being used, and others are being
hired as independent contractors, he said.

Los Angeles has 257 full-time interpreters. Seventeen work part
time. An additional 125 interpreters are used as needed, Parachini
said.

Profanities need translation

Interpreters say they face special challenges in their work.

Words, including profanities, must be translated by interpreters
exactly as they are said in court. Isaac jokes that they must be
"trilingual" – knowing English, Spanish and profanities.

As part of a continuing education program, Isaac received training
in translating curse words of different Spanish-speaking countries.

Interpreters are forbidden to clean up the language, including
off-color words, because jurors make judgments about the honesty and
credibility of witnesses based on their testimony, according to Isaac.

Interpreters must keep up on the latest technical words and volumes
of legal terms.

Then there are idiomatic expressions.

"They say words don’t have meanings – meanings have words," said
Rebecca Rubenstein, an independent interpreter. "An idea in English
that’s expressed might not have an exact equivalent in Spanish … so
you just have to find the closest word that displays what the person
has said."

Phrases like "It’s raining cats and dogs," for instance, can’t be
translated verbatim because they wouldn’t make sense, Isaac said. In
Spanish, she said, one would say, "It is raining pitchers full."

"We are always talking about words. How would you say this? How
would you say that?" Rubenstein said. "I have 50 Spanish-language
dictionaries at home to help me find the meanings of different words."

78 PLASTIC CARDS FALLS AT SHARE OF EVERY 1,000 RESIDENTS OF ARMENIA

ARKA
13/09/2007 18:09

YEREVAN, September 13. /ARKA/. 78 plastic cards falls at share
of every 1,000 residents of Armenia as of the end of June 2007,
i.e. conditionally every 13th resident of the country had a plastic
card.

According to the analysis of ARKA Agency based on the data of the
Central Bank of Armenia and National Statistical Service, the previous
year only 55 plastic card fell at share of every 1,000 residents or
every 18th resident was a plastic card holder.

If this dynamics of increase in the number of cards is projected and
extension of services and dynamics of the population is considered,
then 90 cards is to fall at share of every 1,000 residents or every
11th resident of Armenia will have a plastic card by the end of 2007.

Based on the same dynamics, by the end of 2008 every 9th citizen can
become a card holder and about 115 cards will fall at share of every
1,000 citizens.

Having in mind extension of the range of services and ongoing
introduction of salary projects and new card instruments (particularly
for money transfers), as well as the increasing trend toward the
growth of card business under toughening competition conditions,
the further growth of this indicator can be forecasted.

According to CBA, as of July 1 2007 250,766 plastic cards were in
circulation in Armenia, including 113,445 local "ArCA" cards (45.24%
of the overall number), 104,102 (or 41.51%) Visa International
cards, 16,003 (or 6.38%) Master Cards and 17,216 (or 6.87%) other
international cards.

As compared with the beginning of 2007, the number of plastic cards
increased 7.73% or by 18,004 cards in Armenia. The number of cards
increased by an average of 18-20,000 cards every quarter.

Consequently, the number of plastic cards may exceed 370,000 by the
end of 2007.

Yet, plastic cards are not that widely used in Armenia as in other
countries. Particularly, in a number of foreign countries with
transition economy an average of 40 plastic cards falls at share
of every 100 residents, the indicator exceeds 100 in many developed
western countries.

In Russia the number of banking cards exceeded 92mln by the end of
June. If this number is compared with the number of population in
the Russian federation, then every second resident of Russia is a
"conditional" card holder and 648.3 cards falls at share of every
1,000 population. It is too early to speak of such an indicator in
Armenia if no essential spurt is recorded in the sphere. Under the
current circumstances, the number of cards per every 1,000 population
may exceed only 300 by the end of 2015. ($1= AMD340.10).

HALF A BILLION DOLLAR RUSSIAN INVESTMENTS THIS YEAR

Lragri.am
14-09-2007 14:37:41

On September 14 Prime Minister Serge Sargsyan and the Russian acting
minister of transport Igor Levitin held a news conference in Yerevan.

Sargsyan and Levitin head the Russian-Armenian intergovernmental
commission which held a meeting in Yerevan. Levitin arrived in Armenia
with a high-ranking delegation despite the resignation of the Russian
government.

During the news conference the acting minister of transport of
Russia stated that the upcoming parliamentary election in Russia and
the presidential election in Armenia will not affect the Armenian
and Russian cooperation. Levitin appreciated the dynamics of the
development of relations of the two countries evidence to which is the
agreements signed so far. "Business supports us," stated the acting
minister of transport of Russia, adding that the businessmen trust
the dialogue of the presidents of both countries. Levitin mentioned
that the main problem regarding the Armenian and Russian relation is
transport. He mentioned the operation of the ferry route. However,
he said trade between the two countries needs to be boosted to have a
regular ferry route. Levitin also said this question will be solved by
2010. The Russian acting minister said in 2007 the Russian investments
in the Armenian economy will total half a billion dollars.

The prime minister of Armenia credited the boosted level of Russian
investments in Armenia, adding that it is thanks to the dialogue of the
presidents of both countries. Serge Sargsyan stated that an agreement
will be signed on September 14 which will mark the entry of another
Russian company to Armenia. The prime minister perhaps means MTS which
is going to buy Viva Cell, the second mobile operator of Armenia. A
statement is expected to be released in the evening of September 14.

YEREVAN PLANS NPP NEAR TURKISH BORDER

New Europe, Belgium
14 September 2007 – Issue : 747

A new nuclear power plant being built in Armenia on the site of an
existing facility will cost around two billion Euro, Armenian Energy
Minister Armen Movsisyan told Interfax on September 7.

"The project’s feasibility study is being carried out by Armenia,
Russia, the US and the International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA]. The
old nuclear power plant is to be rebuilt within four-and-a-half
years," Movsisyan said in the Parliament. He said the construction
of the new plant, located in the town of Metsamor, near the Turkish
border, would require a complex refit, including the installation of
seismic safeguards.

The Metsamor nuclear reactor, which is composed of two WWER-440-230
units, each with power levels of 408 megawatts, is located not
far from the capital of Yerevan, 16 kilometres from the Turkish
border. The Armenian government decided to open the second unit in
the reactor in 1993, due to high energy needs, and thus the second
unit was started up in 1995. The Metsamor reactor provides up to 40
percent of Armenia’s electricity needs and is predicted to continue
doing so until 2016. Since Yerevan decided upgrade the reactor the
Turkish Atomic Energy Agency (TAEK) has been involved in following
related developments and taking the necessary precautions from the
Turkish side.

Movsisyan also stressed that Armenia must have a permanent source of
nuclear power and that the new Armenian nuclear power plant must be
operational until alternative sources are found. He said that "many
foreign countries now understand that Armenia must have a nuclear
power plant." "Only a new Armenian (nuclear power plant) can become
an alternative to the one now in use," he said.

TURKEY REMAINS AN ISLAMIC COUNTRY, IN SPITE OF ATATURK’S LEGACY

PanARMENIAN.Net
Analytical Department
11.09.2007 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ This will first of all refer to the decision of
the Supreme Military Council of Turkey, which annually realizes
"cleaning ups" of the armed forces from those who are in any way
engaged in cleric activities. These decisions are now considered
final and are not subject to any appeal in the court. In the draft
of the new Constitution the right of those fired from the army for
this very reason to appeal such decision in the court is anticipated.

Along with this, essential restrictions of the power of the
President of the country are anticipated. The possible influence of
the Presidential institute on manpower policy gives rise to anxiety
among the opposition. At present stage all the key appointments in the
Ministries and other government institutions made by the government
needs to be additionally confirmed by the Head of State. In the draft
of the new Constitution such privileges for the Head of State will
remain only in regard to appointing Ambassadors and Governors.

Moreover, the much-spoken Article 301 of the Turkish Criminal Code
may be omitted in the new Constitution.

One of the Articles of the draft of the Constitution, which has already
been worked on, requires that the Constitutional Court cancel laws
contradicting international agreements, signed by Turkey. According
to one of the authors of the draft of the new Constitution, Professor
Ergun Ozbudun, the new edition will contain the Article 90, which will
be reviewed to ensure the supremacy of the international agreements,
signed by Turkey; says newspaper Zaman.

However the government and the authorities may change, issues
concerning the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the
stabilization of the relations with Armenia and recognizing its
place in the world always remain ignored. The victory of Islamists
in the elections proved, that regardless all the attempts to take
the secular way of development, most of the Turks are for Islam. It
shouldn’t be forgotten that the European Turkey is only a part of
Istanbul, to some extent Ankara and the Aegean Sea Coast, the rest
of the territory is populated by people who still live in past.

Turkey now is to make its choice; either to become a European country
or to remain the way it is; i.e. a rather dangerous neighbor for
bordering countries.

Turkey poses danger not only for Armenia but also for Greece, Cyprus,
Iraq and even Georgia, which by the way is nothing else than just
a transit state for Turkey. On the other hand, nationalism doesn’t
enjoy much support among the population. Islamists do not share
European values, in spite of the course of Erdoghan’s government
on Euro-integration and membership in EU. The problem is not in the
denial of the Armenian Genocide but in Turkey’s current policy.

Turkey suffers the complex of guilty, just like the Armenians suffer
the complex of always being the victim. The Turks still has to grow
to be able to recognize the Armenian Genocide. However, Turkey cannot
be considered a self-identified nation yet.

They are Muslims, and this is the most important thing for Turkey. It
shouldn’t be forgotten that Sultan of the Ottoman Empire carried the
title of Khalif; i.e.

the Head of all Muslims regardless the nationality.

How Turks will identify themselves now is hard to guess if taking into
consideration the number of the national "taking part" in formation
of the Ottoman-Turks.

As for the Armenian-Turkish relations, according to Ruben Safrastyan
Turkey has no preconditions to review its policy on the denial of
the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire. "In the issue of the
Armenian-Turkish relations it is necessary to take into account the
fact that the currently ruling Justice and Development Party is trying
to free itself from the responsibility for the policy carried out by
Kemal Turkey. Justice and Development Party condemns Kemal Ataturk
for the model of State, which he had established in Turkey. In this
context the Party, according to the observers, is ready not only to
soften the home policy in regard to national minorities, but also to
some "compromises" in its foreign policy. This are Turkey’s relations
with its neighbors, including Armenia", said Safrastyan, adding that
one may expect some softening in the issue of borders or establishment
of relations in the political sphere.

INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR "HEALTHY CAUCASIAN WAVE" OPENED IN BATUMI

Prime News Agency, Georgia
September 12, 2007, 5:43 pm

Tbilisi. September 12 (Prime-News) – International seminar "Healthy
Caucasian Wave" opened in Batumi on Wednesday.

Aim of the seminar is to unite Caucasian youth for strengthening of
healthy way of life.

Government officials and representatives of mass media from Azerbaijan,
Armenia and Georgia, participate in the seminar.

Participants of the seminar will get detailed information about
preventive measures of different diseases.

It is also planned to hold different sport activities within the
frameworks of the seminar.

Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN)
T +995 32 75 19 03/04
F +995 32 75 19 05
[email protected]

Regional Eco-Library: Empowering Youth through the Seeds of Knowledge.

Call for Contributions – Plant a Seed of Knowledge!

On the 1st of September, 2007 the regional eco-library opened its doors in
the town of Vanadzor, Lori Marz of Armenia. The eco-library offers to the
public a growing collection of materials inviting students, researchers,
schoolchildren and just any interested individual to enrich his or her
knowledge in the fields of Environmental Science, Forestry and Natural
Resource Management.

The eco-library is already open to contributions and donations! We welcome
contributions in different forms from cash to books, journals, magazines,
and other materials in the field of Environmental Science! There is no lower
limit to a possible contribution as every dram counts for this nascent
library.

For example:

2000 drams will buy as second-hand book on Geobotanics.

5000 drams will buy a newly published text-book on Ecological Monitoring.

50,000 drams will help to equip the library with additional shelves for new
acquisitions.

250, 000 drams will buy a photo-copying machine to distribute the library
materials as wide as possible.

336, 000 drams will buy a computer for the eco-library.

How to Contribute:

To donate a book, a journal, or other material or equipment please either
leave it to the office of Environmental Conservation and Research Center,
American University of Armenia (40 Baghramyan Ave.) or call us at 091638571
and we will come and collect the materials.

For cash donations, please, call us again at 091638571.

Project Background:

The project has been made possible through seed funding received from the
"Be The Change!", a youth-led sustainable development Action Programme
aligned with the < =126>
Millennium Development Goals and aims to empower young people to "be the
change they want to see in the world."(Mahatma Gandhi). The implementation
of the project has been generously supported by the Environmental
Conservation and Research Center of the American University of Armenia and
Vanadzor’s Gugark Forestry Agency. The library offers a growing collection
of books, articles, magazines, journals, encyclopedias, and dictionaries
from various fields of Environmental Science/Ecology, Forestry, Biology,
Botany, Zoology, Ornithology, and other.

Current Organization Donors:

* The Environmental Conservation and Research Center
* Broncoway LLC
* UNDP office in Szentendre, Hungary

For further information, please, contact Ms. Alla Berberyan – the Project
Manager at <mailto:[email protected]> [email protected], mob. 091638571.

Eco-Library Address: Busabanakan str.1, Vanadzor, Lori marz, Republic of
Armenia.

Tel.: 0322-2-21-50