The final tournament of the U-19 European Championship started with the clash between the national teams of Armenia and Spain.
The Spaniards defeated Armenians 4-1.
In another match of the first round of group A, Italy will clash with Portugal.
The Armenian team will hold the second round clash on July 17 against Italians.
The green color of Lake Sevan has decreased and the water levels have increased around 1sm than last year, Armenia’s Minister of Environment Erik Grigoryan told reporters at a briefing on Thursday.
Speaking of the cleaning works, the minister informed that a price quote has been submitted to the government about installment of cleaning stations in three cities – Martuni, Gavar and Vardenis – near the lake. Around 770 ha territory are planned to be cleaned in the course of two years added the minister.
Grigoryan added over the past years the cleaning works in the lake had not been implemented properly
To remind, users on social media and environmentalists have been sounding the alarm since late June after the detection of blue-green algae, which has turned the waterway a soupy pea-green colour.
A documentary about survivors of the Armenian genocide who had to convert to Islam was shot in Amed. ANF talked to the directors.
The documentary film “The Hidden Cross” (Saklı Haç) tells the story of Armenians in the northern Kurdistan province of Amed (Diyarbakır), who have converted to Islam after the genocide. The directors see their film as a work-up in the form of a confrontation with what everyone knew but was not talked about.
The genocide of the Armenians in 1915 in the Ottoman Empire has killed about one and a half million people. A not insignificant part of the survivors has converted to Islam. For over a century, they have kept their identity, their culture and their faith hidden. Especially in rural areas with a predominantly Sunni population, Armenians changed their names and began performing Muslim rituals. Many felt the need to be more Muslim than the Muslims. The Egil district in Amed is home to Armenians who had to hide themselves and their identity. Altan Sancar and Serhat Temel have made a documentary about them. They told ANF what motivated them to write this documentary.
A hidden story
“The Armenian genocide has many facets, including Armenians converted to Islam. They cannot really express themselves and do not speak. We thought that by giving voice to these people, we came one step further in 1915. The title of our documentary summarizes the lives of Armenians converted to Islam. It was created in an interesting way. In the first week of shooting, we visited a woman. She said she wanted to show us something and got a cross out of a chest. It was her grandmother’s cross that passed it on to her mother, and finally to her. She herself will pass it on to one of her daughters. So we got the idea for the title “The hidden cross”. It’s not just about the cross, it’s about identity, culture and beliefs that are hidden. Hiding is not just a symbol, but also a part of the story,” says Altan Sancar.
Gala in Amed
The gala of the documentary took place in Amed on 16 June. More screenings are planned in Istanbul and other cities, according to Sancar: “Our biggest dream would be a gala in Armenia. There will also be screenings in Europe. At the same time, we expect performances at film festivals. Afterwards, the film will be freely accessible on the internet. Our goal is for everyone to see and know what has been done to Armenians, Kurds and other discriminated peoples in the region. We will continue to work on this topic.”
Important is the confrontation
Serhat Temel, the second director, says that he had played as a child with many of the children and grandchildren of the main characters of the documentary: “We grew up with them. We realize how much we hurt them as a child. It is a story we know. We found it necessary that it be worked up and a confrontation with it takes place. There have been many topics that require an apology. However, we are not concerned with a superficial apology, but with a confrontation with reality. What will save and clear us is to confront with what we have done ourselves. Already in our childhood, we knew what it was all about, how these children grew up and how the people who have spoken in the film suffered. And we wanted everyone to see it. It is supposed to be a confrontation for all who lived there and remained silent until today.”
Generational trauma
Although more than a century has passed since the genocide, the people in the film are still traumatized, Temel says: “Actually, we did not talk to the first generation, but to the second and third generations, who did not experience the genocide themselves. In their stories it becomes clear that the trauma has not been overcome. Actually, this is the story of our shame. We first wanted to process the topic in writing, but then we thought it would be more widely used as a documentary. Our main concern is that the stories of these people become known. We’ve been working on the film for about a year, of which we spent three months filming.”
Altan Sancar, who himself is a grandson of converted Armenians, adds, “Perhaps the basis for what Turkey is experiencing today was laid in 1915. If we can deal with the truth of 1915, maybe something can change today.”
https://anfenglish.com/culture/the-hidden-cross-documentary-about-the-armenians-in-amed-35860?fbclid=IwAR2fyZxiBT1mOF2m50cd2F8OCTVfNDlgQU5svop3oh_fLc2EYLQlFlleI6A
PM chairs regular Security Council session
11:56,
YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has chaired a regular session of the Security Council, the PM’s office said in a news release.
“We must record that after our latest session the security environment around Armenia not only didn’t unwind, but on the opposite certain processes are taking place in our environment which force us to be more vigilant in the issue of our security challenges.
In the agenda of today’s session we also have issues concerning the regional situation, and our decisions as a result of discussing them must serve for the duly management of security challenges. Certainly, I am convinced that we will be able to find the necessary toolbox in order for additional risks not to appear for the Republic of Armenia or remain within manageable circles.
The security of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh is certainly the most serious priority for our government. And in this direction we have an objective of solving and discussing not only ongoing, mid-term, but also strategic and long-term issues. These discussions, of course aren’t only taking place in the Security Council format, they also take place in the political arena, in different governmental working discussions and consultation formats, but of course the Security Council is the body where the results of all these discussions must be recapped and transformed into practical results and decisions.
I wish good luck to our today’s work, for these decisions not only to be made but also for us to have a concrete roadmap and perception on implementing these decisions,” the PM said in remarks at the session.
A broad range of issues of the security sector were discussed at the sitting.
Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
Two judges who are hearing the case involving Armenia’s second President Robert Kocharyan have asked for guarantees of their safety. Iravaban.net reports that the judges have applied with the respective request to law enforcement bodies.
“Judges Davit Grigoryan of the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction and Armen Danielyan of the Yerevan Criminal Court of Appeals have applied to the General Department of Combating Organized Crime of the Police of Armenia asking to provide safety guarantees,” the source wrote, adding the Police have approved the requests and has already taken necessary measures.
Armenian shooters Alla Poghosyan and Hrachik Babayan performed in the mixed team 10m air rifle event on Saturday on the second day of the 2nd European Games Belarusian capital Minsk.
As the National Olympic Committee reported, 16 teams take part in each stage of this event.
Poghosyan and Babayan registered 620.0 points in the first stage placing 12th and failing to overcome the qualification round. In the second stage our athletes came 23rd.
YEREVAN, June 20 (Sputnik) – Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan discussed international and regional issues with US Under Secretary of State David Hale, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
Mnatsanakyan is on a trip to Washington where he will meet with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov on Thursday to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs.
“In Washington, Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan met with US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale. The parties discussed a number of topical international and regional issues,” the statement says.
The minister confirmed consistent cooperation of Armenia with world and regional partners aimed at strengthening the country’s security agenda.
Mnatsakanyan also explained Armenia’s position on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue at Hale’s request.
The conflict in Armenian-dominated Nagorno-Karabakh started in 1988 with the autonomous region announcing its secession from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1991, the Armenia-backed region proclaimed independence from Azerbaijan and the creation of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. This move triggered a military conflict, which led to Baku losing control over the region.
The situation in the region is monitored by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group chaired by Russia, the United States and France, within the framework of which negotiations on peace settlement has been conducted since 1992.
An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts said Armenia has made progress in strengthening its regulatory framework for nuclear and radiation safety but still faces challenges, including a shortage of qualified and experienced staff at the regulatory body.
The Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) team on 17 June concluded a seven-day follow-up mission to review Armenia’s implementation of recommendations and suggestions made during an initial IRRS mission in 2015. The follow-up mission was conducted at the request of the Government of Armenia and hosted by the Armenia Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ANRA).
IRRS missions are designed to strengthen the effectiveness of the national nuclear and radiation safety regulatory infrastructure, based on IAEA safety standards and international good practices, while recognizing the responsibility of each country to ensure nuclear and radiation safety.
The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant (ANPP) in Metsamor provides 40% of the country’s electricity. ANPP’s Unit 1 was permanently shut down in 1989, while the operating license for Unit 2 has been extended until 2021 subject to yearly safety demonstrations, with preparations under way for requesting an additional extension until 2026. Armenia also has a dry spent fuel storage facility, a radioactive waste storage facility, and uses radioactive sources in medicine, industry and research.
“Armenia has made substantial progress in developing a policy and a strategy for safety,” said IRRS team leader Hans Wanner, who is Director General of the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate. “However, the regulator faces a critical situation related to human resources. ANRA and its technical and support organization, the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Centre (NRSC), are not financially competitive compared with the industry and ANPP. There is an urgent need to address this issue.”
The team found that Armenia since 2015 has taken key steps forward by adopting a strategy for spent fuel and radioactive waste management, and by intensifying inspections related to emergency preparedness and response. Armenia is still addressing some other recommendations and suggestions from the 2015 mission, in part because the country is undertaking a comprehensive legislative review process, including on a new Atomic Law.
The team acknowledged that ANRA faces many challenges in regulating nuclear safety, including implementation of findings related to a European Union initiative on conducting nuclear power plant stress tests. The initiative, which Armenia has joined, stems from lessons learned from the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident in Japan.
The team provided a new recommendation and suggestion for further enhancing the national legal and regulatory framework for safety, including that ANRA should upgrade its management system in line with IAEA safety standards.
“The findings of the IRRS follow-up mission help ANRA to make decisions towards further improvement of the national regulatory framework for safety, in line with IAEA safety standards,” said Ashot Martirosyan, ANRA chairman. “To cope with this task ANRA should first resolve the staffing problem as confirmed by the IRRS team. Measures are already under way to resolve this issue, which is also in the focus of Armenia’s leadership.”
“In light of ongoing challenges associated with the long-term operation of the Armenia Nuclear Power Plant, the findings made by the IRRS mission to improve regulatory infrastructure for safety are very timely,” said Greg Rzentkowski, Director of the IAEA’s Division of Nuclear Installation Safety. “Recommended improvements, once implemented, will help place appropriate focus on safety, including continued safe and reliable operation of the plant.”
The 12-member IRRS team comprised senior regulatory experts from Argentina, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Egypt, Germany, Romania, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United States of America as well as three IAEA staff members.
The final mission report will be provided to the Government in about three months. The Government plans to make the report public.
Mayor of French city of Bourg-lès-Valence to appeal court’s decision on cancelling friendship declaration signed with Artsakh’s Shushi
10:30,
YEREVAN, JUNE 17, ARMENPRESS. Mayor of the French city of Bourg-lès-Valence Marlène Mourier announced that she is going to appeal the decision of the administrative court on cancelling the friendship declaration signed with Mayor of Shushi of Artsakh Artsvik Sargsyan in October 2014.
“I appeal the interpretation of the administrative court which called this declaration illegal. I am convinced that this declaration is accordance with the legislative order and announce that I will appeal the ruling”, the Mayor said on Facebook, relying on the words of French President Emmanuel Macron who announced during the dinner of the Coordination Council of Armenian Organization of France that the programs relating to education and humanitarian areas, which are the most important parts of declarations, will not be subject to state persecutions.
Mayor Marlène Mourier stated that beyond the legal aspects, her moral commitment towards the residents of Shushi remains intact. “I have visited Shushi for many times and understood what hope the expressions of humanity and friendship awaken in the heart of a population whom the hostile Azerbaijan is trying to quell”, she wrote.
Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan