Author: Dabaghian Diana

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address: Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact: Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel: (374 1) 517 163
Fax: (374 1) 517 301
E-Mail: [email protected]
March 12, 2005
JOINT PRESS RELEASE ON THE MEETING OF THE DELEGATIONS OF
THE CATHOLICOSATE OF ALL ARMENIANS
AND
THE CATHOLICOSATE OF THE GREAT HOUSE OF CILICIA
Under the auspices of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and
Catholicos of All Armenians, and His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the
Great House of Cilicia, a meeting of delegations of the Catholicosate of All
Armenians and the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia took place on
March 4-5 in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin with the goal of the
prosperity of the sacred mission of the Armenian Church and the further
strengthening of internal solidarity. The purpose of the meeting was the
preparation of a draft agenda with the theme of “The Imperative for the
Renewal of the Armenian Church”.
The delegation members representing the Catholicosate of All Armenians were:
His Eminence Archbishop Khajag Barsamian (Chairman)
His Grace Bishop Mikael Ajapahian (Secretary)
Mr. Rafael Papayan
Mr. James Kalustian
The delegation members representing the Catholicosate of the Great House of
Cilicia were:
His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan (Chairman)
His Grace Bishop Nareg Alemezian (Secretary)
Mr. Yervand Pamboukian
Mr. Arsen Danielian
Rev. Fr. Vahram Melikian recorded the minutes of the meetings.
On Friday, March 4, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and
Catholicos of All Armenians, received the two delegations in the Mother See.
His Holiness gave his Pontifical blessing to the members of the delegations
and spoke of his and Catholicos Aram I’s expectations of the meeting.
Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan conveyed the warm greetings of love of His
Holiness Aram I and the filial respect of the participants to His Holiness
Karekin II.
Following the Lord’s Prayer and a reading from the Holy Bible (1 Corinthians
12:12-26), the meeting commenced, the result of which was the preparation of
the draft agenda.
Consisting of nine agenda items, it includes the primary spheres of the
identity, life and witness of the Armenian Church:
1. The canonical condition of the Armenian Church – ecclesiological,
administrative and canonical definement.
2. Christian and Armenian education, evangelical mission and preservation
of spiritual and cultural values.
3. Liturgical and ritual life.
4. Preparation of clergy and reactivation of monastic life.
5. Ecumenical and Inter-religious relations.
6. Positions on modern social and moral issues.
7. Relations between Church and State; relations between Church and Social
Institutions.
8. Pursuit of the rights of the Armenian people.
9. Use of modern technologies.
Each aforementioned topic was discussed in detail as an initial step for the
further overall analysis and adoption of appropriate measures. The meetings
were conducted in a warm atmosphere of Christian love, for the vigorous
accomplishment of the multifaceted mission of the Armenian Church in the
Homeland and the Diaspora.
At the end of the meeting it was decided that the draft agenda will be
presented to His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians; and His
Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, for their
consideration and filially petitioning them for the commission’s work to
proceed.

Azerbaijan’s Aliev says no room for compromise on Nagorno-Karabakh
Associated Press Worldstream
March 12, 2005 Saturday 1:20 PM Eastern Time
BAKU, Azerbaijan — President Ilham Aliev emphasized Saturday
that Azerbaijan is not ready for any compromise with Armenia over
Nagorno-Karabakh, saying that land held by ethnic Armenian forces is
occupied Azerbaijani territory and cannot be the subject of bargaining.
Aliev said Azerbaijan will not change its position on the enclave,
which has been in ethnic Armenian hands since a 1994 cease-fire ended
a six-year war that killed some 30,000 people and drove a million
from their homes.
“There can be no talk of mutual compromises. That was a mistaken
thesis,” Aliev told journalists, apparently referring to statements
by international mediators who have said compromise is necessary to
settle the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijani officials fear that a settlement plan could call on
their country to cede territory. In addition to Nagorno-Karabakh,
ethnic Armenian forces hold a swath of Azerbaijani territory outside
the enclave.
Aliev said Azerbaijan is not willing to cede territory he called
occupied. “The only thing we can do” is discuss security guarantees
for ethnic Armenians who would be allowed to live in Nagorno-Karabakh
if it were placed under Azerbaijani control, he said.
No settlement has been reached over Nagorno-Karabakh and
tension remains high, keeping the threat of a new war alive.
Nagorno-Karabakh’s ethnic Armenian government is not recognized
internationally.
Aliev said he would not oppose a new meeting with Armenian President
Robert Kocharian to discuss the dispute, but said that the countries’
foreign ministers would have to make progress toward a potential
solution before a meeting can be held. Progress is contingent on
Armenia taking a “constructive position,” he said.

presstelegram.com
Article Published: Friday, March 11, 2005 – 11:01:01 AM PST
Tongues tied to diversity
L.A. County has some of the most exotic languages in nation.
By Jason Kosareff
Staff writer
Looking for a conversation in Efik? How about Wu? Want to chat over
coffee in the language of Ladino or Frisian?
Good luck finding conversationalists in these exotic languages spoken
by less than 80 people each in Los Angeles County.
There are 135 languages spoken in the county, which ranks first in
the nation for diversity of tongues, according to a study released
this week.
While California has 11.97 percent of the American population, the
state has a majority of the country’s Armenian, Cantonese, Mandarin,
Samoan, Spanish and Tagalog speakers, according to the study by
the U.S. English Foundation, a Washington, D.C.,-based nonpartisan
interest group. A total of 207 languages were counted in the state.
Many of the languages are spoken in the Long Beach area, including
Khmer spoken by Cambodians, Tagalog spoken by Filipinos, and dialects
of India.
Using Census data, researchers counted 321 languages spoken across
the nation.
Rex Chang of Monterey Park speaks Hakka, the 108th most common language
in the county. For the Hakka, anyone who comes from somewhere else
is a part of their culture. They are a people fond of traveling and
the name Hakka simply means “guest,’ Chang said.
The Hakka diaspora reaches around the globe, Chang said. What keeps
everyone on the same page is the language, which originates from
China’s earliest dynasties in the Yellow River region.
“I don’t know about other families, but my family still forces everyone
to learn to speak Hakka,’ Chang said.
The most obscure language in the region is Pennsylvania Dutch, with
just 20 speakers, according to the study. Other exotic languages
include Cajun with 25 speakers, Hopi with 25 speakers, Palau with 30
speakers, while Keres, Ojibwa and Melanesian round out some of the
rarest of tongues here.

WATERTOWNTAB
Volunteer opportunities
Friday, March 11, 2005
Project SAVE interviewers
Project SAVE Armenian Photograph Archives, recipient of funding from
the Watertown/Harvard Community Enrichment and Watertown/O’Neill Properties
Charitable Funds, is beginning to interview elder Armenians for the purpose
of collecting and documenting their photographs. Project SAVE’s grant
project includes an effort to involve community historians of all ages and
ethnicities in learning the techniques of interviewing people and
documenting their photographs.
This training is essential for all types of community preservation
efforts. If you love history, especially people/social history, and love
photographs for what they can tell us about the past and teach us about
ourselves, think about becoming a volunteer. You will have first-hand
experience visiting with people, learning documenting procedures, using the
tape recorder, preparing paperwork for accessioning and archiving
photographs, and making discoveries of long forgotten people and places.
If you are intrigued by this work, and have four to eight hours a month
to devote to it, whether you are a high school student (with parents’
permission), a senior citizen or somewhere in between, please contact Ruth
Thomasian, executive director, at Project SAVE Archives, 617-923-4542, or
[email protected].

Ain Al-Yaqeen, Saudi Arabia
March 11 2005
THE SAUDI LEADERSHIP DISCUSSES WITH AZERBAIJAN’S PRESIDENT THE BASES
AND FUTURE OF COOPERATION AND THE DEVELOPMENTS ON THE ISLAMIC AND
INTERNATIONAL ARENAS.
THE PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN: THE SUPPORT OF SAUDI ARABIA HELPED MY
COUNTRY TO OVERCOME NUMEROUS CRISIS.
WE SUPPORT THE CALL OF PRINCE ABDULLAH TO CONVENE AN ISLAMIC SUMMIT
IN MAKKAH AL MUKKARAMAH.
THE SIGNING OF ECONOMIC BETWEEN SAUDI ARABIA AND AZERBAIJAN.
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz
received at his office at Al Yamamah palace in Riyadh Azerbaijan’s
President Ilham Aliyev and accompanying delegation.
At the outset of the meeting, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques
welcomed President Aliyev, wishing him a good stay in his second
country: the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Then President Aliyev awarded the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques
Azerbaijan’s Independence medal, the country’s most prestigious
honorary decoration, in recognition of the king’s noble services for
Islam and Muslims and his continuous support for the Republic of
Azerbaijan.
On his part, King Fahd decorated President Aliyev with King Abdul
Aziz decoration in recognition of his efforts in enhancing the
relations between the two countries.
Then they discussed the overall situations at the Islamic and
international arenas in addition to the aspects of cooperation
between the two countries and ways of enhancing them in all fields.
On the Saudi side, the meeting was attended by Prince Ahmed Ibn Abdul
Aziz, Deputy Minister of Interior; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Bandar Ibn
Abdul Aziz, Assistant Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Abdul
Aziz Ibn Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz, Minister of State, Member of the
Cabinet and Chief of the Court of the Cabinet’s Presidency; Prince
Faisal Ibn Turki Ibn Abdullah; ministers; senior protocol officials
and Saudi Ambassador to Azerbaijan Ali bin Hasan Jaafar.
On the Azerbaijani side, it was attended by the First Deputy of the
Prime Minister Jacob Ayoobov; Foreign Minister Elmar Mohammed Yarov;
Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to the Kingdom Alman Arasli and senior
officials.
Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister and
Commander of the National Guard, and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham
Aliyev held a meeting at the crown prince’s palace in Riyadh.
At the outset of the meeting, President Aliyev awarded the Crown
Prince Azerbaijan’s Independence medal, the country’s most
prestigious honorary decoration, in recognition of the Crown Prince’s
distinguished role in expanding the economic and cultural relations
between the Kingdom and Azerbaijan.
Aliyev also lauded the efforts of Crown Prince Abdullah for the
service of Islam and Muslims all over the world.
On his part, Crown Prince Abdullah thanked President Aliyev, praising
the firm relations binding the two countries and peoples.
Then they discussed the overall developments at the Islamic and
international arenas in addition to the aspects of cooperation
between the two countries and ways of enhancing them in all fields.
On the Saudi side, the meeting was attended by Prince Mishaal Ibn
Abdul Aziz; Prince Mit’eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, Minister of Municipal and
Rural Affairs; Prince Sattam Ibn Abdul Aziz, Vice Governor of Riyadh
Region; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz, Minister of State,
Member of the Cabinet and Chief of the Court of the Cabinet’s
Presidency; ministers; senior protocol officials and Saudi Ambassador
to Azerbaijan Ali Ibn Hasan Jaafar.
On the Azerbaijani side, it was attended by the First Deputy of the
Prime Minister Jacob Ayoobov; Foreign Minister Elmar Mohammed Yarov;
Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to the Kingdom Alman Arasli and senior
officials.
Crown Prince Abdullah and the Azeri President Ilham Aliyev held
wide-ranging talks that focused on regional and international issues.
Special areas of discussion were Saudi-Azeri cooperation in
political, commercial and cultural fields. The talks were followed by
the signing of three major agreements between Saudi Arabia and the
Muslim-majority Azeri republic.
President Aliyev, during his three-day official trip, witnessed the
signing of an SR67.5 million loan agreement with the Saudi Fund for
Development (SFD), said Azeri diplomat Naghi Jaabbarov. There are
other agreements on boosting cooperation in education and investment
protection.
In the talks, the two leaders shared common views, visions and
approaches on a number of bilateral and international issues. New
developments in the Arab world including Syria and Iraq, the Middle
East peace process, terrorism threats and the status of Azerbaijan’s
conflict with Armenia were high on the agenda.
The talks comes within the framework of the mandate of an MoU signed
by Riyadh and Baku early this year which calls for holding periodic
political consultations.
Azerbaijan seeks to develop ties with Saudi Arabia in the fields of
economy, trade, tourism and health care.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, who witnessed the signing of two
bilateral economic agreements, called for intensifying efforts to
boost political, commercial and cultural relations with Saudi Arabia.
The call was made during his meeting with Saudi businessmen at the
Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) following his talks
with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, Crown Prince
Abdullah and a host of Saudi officials.
Aliyev said that “Baku is looking to Saudi Arabia to support its
regional interests politically and commercially”. He reiterated that
“the Kingdom is, in fact, supporting the Azeri position, at a time
when we have been wrestling with a geopolitical dilemma created
because of the conflict with Armenia”.
The Azeri leader witnessed the signing of an investment protection
agreement prior to his meeting at RCCI. Another agreement for SR67.5
million credit line facility granted by Saudi Fund for Development
(SFD) to Azerbaijan was also signed in the presence of the president.
On behalf of Saudi Arabia, the accords were inked by Finance Minister
Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assaf. Later, Aliyev participated in the RCCI meeting,
which was also attended by Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr.
Hashim Abdullah Yamani.
Azeri diplomat Naghi Jaabbarov said that “two credit agreements will
also be signed by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and Azerbaijan
in Jeddah”.
IDB has agreed to grant $10.4 million credit facility for a road
construction project and another $10.1 million credit for a tunnel
project in that former Soviet republic. Referring to the
progressively growing Riyadh-Baku relations following the meeting of
businessmen at RCCI, Saad ibn Ibrahim Al-Mojel, RCCI’s vice chairman,
said that “the two sides are discussing as how to set up direct
transportation links between the two countries. There is neither a
direct flight to Baku nor a port in the Azeri capital, which are
hampering our business plans and relations”.
“President Aliyev has promised to look into the possibility of
setting set up direct air link to boost tourism and pilgrimage
traffic”, he said. Al-Mojel said that “there is a lot of potential to
forge closer relations in all sectors”.
He said that “the Armenian problem and the geopolitical dilemma with
which Azerbaijan is faced with will not discourage the Saudi leaders
and businessmen”.
Jaabbarov said that the funds will be used for building and expanding
infrastructure in that country.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has reaffirmed the strength of
Saudi-Azeri relationships indicating that his current visit is part
of the constant efforts aimed at enhancing the bilateral trade
exchange and developing economic ties.
In an interview with Saudi Television, President Aliyev praised the
Saudi, to his country which helped in overcoming numerous crises.
He said his talks with Saudi leadership had focused on the bilateral
relations, adding that these talks had been “highly successful.”
He pointed out that the political relations with the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia are at high levels but the economic ones are not at par with
those of the political ties.
“There is a government joint committee which has been working for
years to enhance the economic and trade ties and this committee is
now working to study and analyze these facilities and opportunities,”
Aliyev said.
“In my point of view, the opening of direct flights between the two
countries will help in strengthening the economic ties,” he added.
Answering a question about the call of Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn
Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National
Guard, to convene an Islamic Summit in Makkah, Aliyev said that the
main thing which concern him is the negative social opinion about
Islam in addition to wars and conflicts inside Muslim countries.
“We support this call which will discuss many issues and may handle a
program for future activities and procedures to confront these
challenges,” Aliyev said.
Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister and
Commander of the National Guard, gave a banquet in honor of
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and accompanying delegation.
The function was attended by Prince Mishaal Ibn Abdul Aziz; Prince
Mit’eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs;
Prince Sattam Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Vice Governor of Riyadh Region;
other princes; ministers and senior civil and military officials.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Riyadh for a visit to
the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
At Riyadh air base, he was received by Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn
Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National
Guard; Prince Mit’eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Municipal and
Rural Affairs; Prince Sattam Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Vice Governor of
Riyadh Region; Prince Khalid Ibn Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Assistant
Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General for Military
Affairs; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz, Assistant Chief
of General Intelligence; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abdul
Aziz, Advisor at the Crown Prince’s Court; Prince Dr. Abdul Aziz Ibn
Mohammed Ibn Ayyaf Al Miqrin, Mayor of the city of Riyadh; Dr. Hashim
Ibn Abdullah Yamani, Minister of Commerce and Industry; senior
protocol officials and Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to the Kingdom Alman
Hamied Arasli.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev met with members of board of
directors of Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and a number of Saudi
Businessmen.
Addressing the meeting, Azerbaijan’s President commended the strong
relations between the two countries especially in economic and
investment fields.
Dr Salih Al-Namlah, the Undersecretary of the Culture and Information
Ministry for Foreign Information, met with a delegation comprising a
number of Azerbaijani media men.
They reviewed, at the meeting attended by Saudi ambassador to
Azerbaijan Ali Hassan Jaffar, aspects of information cooperation
between the Kingdom and Azerbaijan.
Meanwhile, the members of the delegation who were briefed on the
development achievements attained in the Kingdom in the various
domains, highlighted the great services being extended by the Kingdom
to Islam and Muslims throughout the world.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev left Riyadh for Jeddah on his way
to Makkah to perform Umrah rituals.
At Riyadh airbase, he was seen off by Prince Sattam Ibn Abdul Aziz,
Deputy Governor of Riyadh region, a number princes and senior
officials.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and his accompanying delegation
performed Umrah rituals.
Upon arrival at the Grand Mosque, they were received by a number of
officials.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Jeddah to perform
Umrah rituals.
He was received at King Abdul Aziz international airport by Prince
Mishaal Ibn Majed Ibn Abdul Aziz, Governor of Jeddah and a number of
officials.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev visited the headquarters of the
Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) in Jeddah.
During the visit, he expressed his country’s support to Islamic
issues praising the steps of reforms undertaken by the OIC to develop
its performance.
He also hailed the OIC’s role to strengthening the economic and
technological cooperation between member states.
Aliyev was accompanied by Minister of Commerce and Industry Hashem
Yamani, who is also the Escorting Minister.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev left the Kingdom after a brief
visit to Saudi Arabia.
At Prince Mohammad Ibn Abdul Aziz Airport in Al Madinah Al
Munawarrah, he was seen off by Dr. Hashim Yamani, Minister of
Commerce and Industry, and senior civil and military officials.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Zaman, Turkey
March 11 2005
Faithful Nation
Uncle Kevork was the only grocer selling alcoholic beverages in our
neighborhood. Hence, my late grandfather wouldn’t go his store for
shopping; however, Uncle Kevork never sold the beverages openly. You
could never see the beverages on the shelves. He used to sell them
under the counter, wrapping them with paper. I cannot recall his
spouse’s name well; but I can still remember that she used to prepare
the traditional dishes of Malatya [an Eastern Turkish city], like
“sour meatballs” and “analý kýzý” (translated literally as “with
mother and daughter”) very well.
She used to serve the soup with yogurt cold. Having that soup cold
was traditional, too. Since there were no refrigerators in those
days, yogurt used to turn sour and become the elusive joy of the
summer days with its soda-like taste. We had two Armenian friends in
my school: Lucie and Arusyak. I think they also experienced the most
beautiful days of their childhood and youth in Malatya.
Aysegul Sonmez of Milliyet [a Turkish daily], had written about an
incident on June 8, 2001 that our photography editor Selahattin Sevi
witnessed, while he was working for the same paper: 150 Americans of
Armenian origin, following the footsteps of Gregorian, arrived in
Kayseri [a city in Central Turkey], yesterday. The aim of the group,
which couldn’t have a good night sleep due to enthusiasm, was to find
where their families used to live and re-live in the past. Mariyen
Sanag is one of them. Mariyen, 42, becomes impatient on seeing her
birthplace. Walking, we try to find her house in Bahcebasi. While
walking in the narrowest streets of Kayseri, someone shouts,
“Mariyen.” This is Aunt Sabiha, who is the daughter of “Butcher” Ali.
She is elderly in her 70s. Mariyen’s mirrored eyeglasses do not
prevent us from seeing the tears she could not control after the
encounter. When Mariyen found her house, she was as devastated as her
house was. Her house she left 32 years ago is now in ruins. She
points at the house, saying: “I used to drink hand-made sour cherry
juice during the hot afternoons. Here is my bedroom.” Some frescos on
the walls still attract attention. Matiyen sighs and says, “Our house
was beautiful, very beautiful.”
In fact, the Ottomans called them the “faithful nation.” We lived on
the same lands for centuries. Nowhere in the world has people of two
different religions been so close to one another. Is there any place,
anywhere where members of two different religions feed from the same
culture, eat the same foods and sing the same songs? I don’t know.
It was towards the end of the Ottoman era. On, one side, a state
collapsing, a nation sending its sons to one front after another, and
on the other side, there was another a community taking part in the
Russian provocation. Russia had occupied our eastern provinces,
taking some nationalist Armenians to its side. Nationalism, Russia
and the Union and Progress Party split two communities, which had
been living together for hundreds of years. Mutual afflictions,
sorrows and troubles occurred after that… Looking at the issue from
the point of “Your losses are less than ours” is a complete mistake.
War and chaos bring equal grief to all.
Even 70 years after experiencing this grief, Uncle Kevork, Lucie, and
Arusyak were part of our lives in Malatya. We shared life in the same
high school and same neighborhood. We miss the humanitarian dimension
of the Armenian issue. The leading Diaspora Armenians bring the
political dimension of the issue to the agenda, not the humanitarian,
and try to make gains out of it. This is the mentality between us and
the Armenians.
All Armenians living in Anatolia did not emigrate from these lands.
Professor Salim Cohce, the head of the History Department at Inonu
University, said only in Malatya, there are 3,500 families of
Armenian origin and they have continued to live there by changing
their names.
Not only the Armenians experienced all the hardships on these lands.
At least the Turks also suffered as much as the Armenians did. I do
not know if there is greater grief than losing an anchient friend.
March 10, 2005
–Boundary_(ID_I937y+ju5GQLQCBgkBa4bg)–

Half a Million Gather for Pro-Syrian Rally to Defy Vision of US
by Robert Fisk in Beirut
Wednesday, March 9, 2005 by the
Independent (UK)
It was a warning. They came in their tens of thousands, Lebanese Shia
Muslim families with babies in arms and children in front, walking past
my Beirut home. They reminded me of the tens of thousands of Iraqi
Shia Muslims who walked with their families to the polls in Iraq,
despite the gunfire and the suicide bombers.
And now they came from southern Lebanon and the Bekaa to say they
rejected America’s plans in Lebanon, and wanted – so they claimed –
to know who killed Rafiq Hariri, the former prime minister murdered
on 14 February, and to reject UN Security Council Resolution 1559
which demands a Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon and the disarmament
of the Hizbollah guerrilla movement, and to express their “thanks”
to Syria. This was a tall order in Lebanon.
But only 100 yards from the Lebanese opposition protests, the
half-million – for that was an approachable figure, given Hizbollah’s
extraordinary organisational abilities – stood for an hour with
Lebanese flags, and posed a challenge to President George Bush’s
project in the Middle East. “America is the source of terrorism”,
one poster proclaimed. “All our disasters come from America”.
Many of those tens of thousands were Hizbollah families who had
fought the Israelis during their occupation of southern Lebanon,
been arrested by the Israelis, imprisoned by the Israelis and feared
that American support for Lebanon meant not “democracy” but an imposed
Israeli-Lebanese peace treaty.
There were Syrians in the crowds – indeed, I saw buses with Syrian
registration plates that had brought families from Damascus – but
almost all the half million were Lebanese Shias and they wanted to
reject 1559 because it called for Hizbollah to be disarmed. They
were perfectly happy to see the Syrians leave (who now remembers
the Syrian massacre of Hizbollah members in Beirut in 1987?) but,
bearing in mind Syria’s transit of weapons from Iran to Lebanon,
Hizbollah wanted to be regarded as a resistance movement, not a
“militia” to be disarmed. What the Shia were saying was that they
were a power, just as they said when they voted in Iraq. In Lebanon,
Shia Muslims are the largest religious community.
Syria is run by a clique of Alawis – who are Shia – and Iraq is now
dominated by Shia Muslims who voted themselves into power, and Iran
is a Shia nation So when President Bush said “the Lebanese people
have the right to determine their future free from domination of a
foreign power”, the power the Shias were thinking of was not Syria
but the United States and Israel.
And 100 yards away, the demonstrators who have bravely protested
against the murder of Rafik Hariri have become factionalised,
courtesy of the Syrians. At night, the opposition protesters are
largely Christian. Yesterday’s Hizbollah rally, while it contained
the usual pro-Syrian Christians, was essentially Shia. And their
message was not one of thanks to President Bush.
“The fleets came in the past and were defeated; and they will be
defeated again,” Hizbollah’s leader, Sayed Hassan Nasrallah, said in
reference to the Americans. Ironically, President Bush was to refer
within hours to the killing of 241 US Marines in Beirut in October
1982, as if their deaths were the responsibility of al-Qa’ida. To the
Israelis, Nasrallah said: “Let go of your dreams for Lebanon. To the
enemy entrenched on our border, occupying our country and imprisoning
our people, ‘There is no place for you here and there is no life for
you among us: Death to Israel’.”
Nasrallah’s take on the 1975-90 Lebanese civil war was predictable.
The crowds were meeting on the front lines that had separated the
Lebanese during the civil war; indeed, on the very location of
the Christian-Muslim trenches of that conflict. “We meet today to
remind the world and our partners in the country,” Nasrallah said,
“that this arena that joins us, or the other one in Martyrs’ Square,
was destroyed by Israel and civil war and was united by Syria and
the blood of its soldiers and officers.”
This was an inventive piece of history. Israel certainly killed many
thousands of Lebanese – more than the Syrians, although their soldiers
took the lives of many hundreds – but the half million roared their
approval.
So what did all this prove? That there was another voice in Lebanon.
That if the Lebanese “opposition” – pro-Hariri and increasingly
Christian – claim to speak for Lebanon and enjoy the support of
President Bush, there is a pro-Syrian, nationalist voice which does not
go along with their anti-Syrian demands but which has identified what
it believes is the true reason for Washington’s support for Lebanon:
Israel’s plans for the Middle East.
The Beirut demonstration yesterday was handled in the usual Hizbollah
way: maximum security, lots of young men in black shirts with two-way
radios, and frightening discipline. No one was allowed to carry a gun
or a Hizbollah flag. There was no violence. When one man brandished a
Syrian flag, it was immediately taken from him. Law and order, not
“terrorism”, was what Hizbollah wished. Syria had spoken. President
Bashar Assad’s sarcastic remark about the Hariri protesters needing a
“zoom lens” to show their numbers had been answered by a demonstration
of Shia power which needed no “zoom”.
And in the mountains above Beirut, still frozen under their winter
snows, few Syrians moved. There were Syrian military trucks on the
international high way to Damascus but no withdrawal, no retreat, no
redeployment. The Taif agreement of 1989 stipulated that the Syrians
should withdraw to the Mdeirej heights above Beirut, which they have
now agreed to do, 14 years later than they should have done.
The official document released by the Lebanese-Syrian military
delegation in Damascus suggests this is a new redeployment and that
in April the Syrian forces, along with their military intelligence
personnel, will withdraw to the Lebanese-Syrian border.
But the question remains: will they retreat to the Syrian side of
the frontier, or sit in the Lebanese-Armenian town of Aanjar, on the
Lebanese side, where Brigadier General Rustum Gazale, the head of
Syrian military intelligence, still maintains his white-painted villa?
Either way, Lebanon can no longer be taken for granted. The “cedar”
revolution now has a larger dimension, one that does not necessarily
favour America’s plans. If the Shia of Iraq can be painted as
defenders of democracy, the Shias of Lebanon cannot be portrayed
as the defenders of “terrorism”. So what does Washington make of
yesterday’s extraordinary events in Beirut?
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

BPNews.Net
Baptist Press
Today is Thursday, Mar 10, 2005
2 tragic anniversaries mark Week of Prayer for Kurds
Mar 9, 2005
By Staff
Memorial garden
The memorial cemetery at Halabja, Iraq, is for victims of the gas attack by
Iraqi troops. The attack of March 16, 1988, on the village has become the
symbol of Saddam Hussein~Rs attempt to exterminate the Kurds from Iraq.
Multiple names on tombstones record family members who died in the attack.
RICHMOND, Va. (BP)–Two tragic anniversaries will fall on the week of March
15-21, marking events that men intended for evil — but that God is using
for good.
One year ago on March 15, anonymous gunmen attacked five Southern Baptist
humanitarian workers near Mosul in northern Iraq. Larry and Jean Elliott,
David McDonnall and Karen Watson died. Carrie McDonnall continues to recover
from multiple wounds.
Seventeen years ago, on March 16, 1988, more than 5,000 men, women and
children were killed in a chemical attack by Saddam Hussein’s regime on
Halabja, also in northern Iraq. It became known as “Black Friday” — the
most infamous of many attacks that destroyed or damaged thousands of
villages in the region and killed more than 100,000 people.
The connection: Both incidents involved the Kurds, the world’s largest
people group without their own homeland. Overwhelmingly Muslim, about 30
million Kurds live in Iraq, Turkey, Iran, Syria, Armenia and other nations
in the region.
The Southern Baptist workers who died last year were trying to help Kurds in
Iraq rebuild their lives, gain access to clean water — and discover that
God deeply loves them.
This March 15-21, Southern Baptists can honor the service of their slain
workers — and help carry it forward — by participating in a Week of Prayer
for the Kurds. Free resources that will help churches or small groups
effectively pray for the Kurds can be downloaded at ,
including: a seven-day prayer guide; a video featuring International Mission
Board President Jerry Rankin; a video tribute to the fallen Southern Baptist
workers featuring a message from Carrie McDonnall; and a PowerPoint “virtual
prayerwalk.”
“This is an important season of the year as we focus on North American
missions and our responsibility to reach our own nation for the Lord,”
Rankin said. “I encourage you to give generously to the Annie Armstrong
Offering that supports the work of our North American Mission Board. But
would you pause and through this week join us in also praying for the Kurds?
As they observe a day of infamy and tragedy in their own history, and as we
remember those of our own mission family who gave their lives, let us pray
that the Kurds might join us in God’s eternal Kingdom and through faith in
Jesus Christ become a part of His family.”
The Kurdish people are the fourth-largest ethnic group in Central Asia and
the Middle East. Only the Arabs, the Persians and the Turks outnumber them.
Yet they have lived a life of conflict and turmoil across the ages. Not
having a country of their own, they have struggled for a sense of identity
and belonging. They have been dominated by the giants of Turkey, Iran, Iraq
and Syria — and subjected to many abuses. “The Kurds have no friends but
the mountains,” a famous Kurdish proverb asserts.
But the Kurds do have a friend: The Lord of the mountains, the God who sent
His Son, Jesus Christ, to free all peoples from their spiritual chains: “…
not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter
3:9b).
The majority of the Kurds have little access to the Gospel. High illiteracy
rates and different Kurdish dialects create additional obstacles. But
Christian workers are creating audio and visual materials to communicate the
Good News to them. As a new wind of spiritual openness sweeps through the
region, small but growing numbers of Kurds are discovering the giver of true
freedom — Jesus Christ – and sharing Him with others.
One young survivor of Saddam’s 1988 chemical attack on the Kurds of Halabja
has become a follower of Jesus. The Southern Baptist workers who were killed
last year befriended him. In an interview soon after their deaths, he
expressed the special relationship he had with them. Tearfully, he told how
the day before their deaths, Larry Elliott hugged him and said, “You are my
son,” while David McDonnall had been “like a brother” to him.
“As you pray, thank God for those who gave their lives in the hope that
these people would one day know our Lord Jesus Christ,” Rankin said. “Pray
especially for the Kurdish people — neglected, oppressed and lost. Christ
died for them as He did for all the peoples of the world, and He desires
that they too have an opportunity to know Him.”

NATIONAL EDUCATION INSTITUTE TO OPEN BRANCHES ACROSS ARMENIA AND IN STEPANAKERT
   YEREVAN, MARCH 9, ARMENPRESS: A senior official of the Armenian
education ministry said branches of the National Education Institute,
an affiliate of the ministry, will open in all Armenian regions and
Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno Karabagh.
   Viktor Martirosian, the Institute director, said branches will be
mainly dealing with teachers training and delivering methodological
support. He said new centers will be instrumental in implementing a
major secondary school teachers’ training program across Armenia in
the next three years.
   The first in the line are teachers of Mathematics and Armenian
language. The training will be conducted in view of a radical change
in the education system that will introduce a12-year secondary
education instead of the current 10-year. He said training models and
manuals were prepared with the help of the UNICEF.
–Boundary_(ID_k7SmpSQmiUtT0jtgQEoKBw)–

ARMENIA DOES NOT ACCEPT BUT ADJUSTS
A1+
09-03-2005
After being ill for about two weeks, the 90% recovered (by his
own words) Minister of Foreign Affairs Vardan Oskanyan has met the
journalists today.
He spoke about four themes, starting from the February 20 visit
to Equator Guinea and the fate of the Armenian pilots. Of course,
Vardan Oskanyan would like to meet the President of Guinea, but no
meeting was programmed.
«They were depressed but did not complain of the physical state»,
said the Minister. By the way, Oskanyan had caught cold in Guinea,
as a result of which was not able no leave for Prague to meet his
Azerbaijani colleague. But the report of the OSCE fact collecting
group has not only been given to the Azerbaijani Minister of Foreign
Affairs in Prague, but also been sent to Armenia to Vardan Oskanyan.
The latter did not want to comment on the report before its official
representation.
At the end of the press conference Vardan Oskanyan referred to the
EU report about Armenia. Although there is the expression «occupied
territories» in it, according to the FA Minister, on the whole «it
is not a bad report». After that, to exclude the possibility of wrong
comments, the Minister explained that Armenia in against this kind
of expressions, but starting from 1993 in the international reports
about Nagorno Karabakh the same expression is used.
According to the Minister, these expressions do not mean that Armenia
is an occupant. «Can’t the Karabakh army occupy a territory? »
Vardan Oskanyan gave a rhetorical question and he himself answered it,
«Of course it can».
–Boundary_(ID_wxx3xt4yV9zRIlmRZpQhKw)–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress