Author: Emil Lazarian

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 60; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:
August 15, 2006
___________________
DIOCESAN LEADERS BEGIN PLANNING FOR PASSING OF TOURCH TO CHURCH AND HOME
This year the Diocesan theme is focused on youth carrying the flame: “Church
and Home.”
The year’s theme stems from the Diocesan Council’s “statement of intent”
created five years ago, which states: “The Armenian Church is significant in
the life of every Armenian and his or her family.”
“That statement has guided our actions, with each of our assemblies, with a
particular emphasis on one specific ‘focus area,'” said Archbishop Khajag
Barsamian, Primate, as he outlined the work done in the past five years in
the focus areas of leadership, worship, communication, stewardship, and
youth. “By focusing on these areas, we have made a positive impact on our
Diocese. And my impression is that many of you have been able to make a
tangible difference in your home-parish life.”
Last year, the Diocese focused on youth, working to encourage and promote
the next generation to take a leadership role in the life of the church.
This year’s theme was unveiled during the Diocesan Assembly, which took
place in Fair Lawn, NJ, last May.
“That effort — indeed, all our efforts over the past five years — proved
to be a great success,” the Primate said to the delegates. “This year, I
want to bring all of these successes to each and every one of you —
throughout the church, throughout the community, and to every family and
home. That is the meaning of our theme for this year.”
“Who we are is a gift from God. And God wants us to share them with others
— especially with our own,” the Primate added. “During this ‘Year of Church
and Home,’ we want to bring all of our riches into our parishes and
households.”
Delegates to the Assembly met in small groups to discuss ways to make the
theme of the year an actual reality. The clergy also met prior to the
Assembly, during the Clergy Conference, to discuss pastoral interpretations
of the year’s theme.
The discussion continued earlier this summer, when the Primate invited
clergy to the Diocesan Center in New York to talk with the staff of the
Department of Youth and Education and make recommendations on programs and
efforts which would build a united spirit in both church and home while
passing the flame of our Armenian Christian heritage to the next generation.
Since that meeting, the Diocesan staff has been working on the
recommendations from all involved to create a guidebook of ideas and
resources for parishes to use in creating programs.
On July 24, 2006, the Diocesan Council invited young people to join the
Primate, Council, and staff for a meeting to discuss the ideas. The Council
wanted to present to the youth what has been worked on so far, and get input
from the young people, hearing from them how to get other young people
involved in pushing forward with implementing these ideas on a parish level.
“There were good ideas and a consensus to focus on specific, achievable
goals,” said Elise Antreassian, coordinator of Christian education for the
Diocese. “We want to bite off just enough to make a difference, but not so
much that we don’t accomplish our goals.”
One of the focuses of the group was on increasing the number of “Home
Blessing” services conducted throughout the Diocese. The hope was expressed
that young people in the parishes might become involved in organizing and
arranging the visits, and working with their priests to conduct as many
“Home Blessing” services as possible.
The group also focused on the importance of providing trips to Armenia for
young people, and finding ways to make those affordable and accessible.
Also, they identified the importance of having church members mentor the
next generation. The group’s other ideas will be further refined by
Diocesan staff with input from the young people. The Diocese will compile
the ideas and then work to train youth leaders in each parish.
“This meeting was inspiring and provided us with confidence that the
upcoming generation of leaders is so dedicated to the Armenian Church and
culture,” said Oscar Tatosian, vice chair of the Diocesan Council. “They’re
so well prepared with the education and tools they have. They are prepared
because the generations before them laid the foundation.”
Just the step of welcoming ideas from the next generation of Armenian
leaders was a sign of increased bonds between the young faithful and their
church.
“I was pleasantly surprised to see that the members of the DYE and Diocesan
Council take the opinions of the youth so seriously,” said one of the
participating ACYOA Central Council members, Talin Hitik. “I feel as though
my link to the Armenian Church as a member of the youth is highly valued,
which only encourages me to keep doing what I’m doing. The development of
the ‘Church and Home’ theme is important, because it recognizes that our
church is a living, breathing entity, which constantly needs to be reshaped
in order to meet the needs of its members.”
— 8/15/06
E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News and
Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,
PHOTO CAPTION (1): The Primate and members of the Diocesan Council meet
with Diocesan staff and youth from the ACYOA to plan activities and efforts
for the Diocese’s “Year of Church and Home: One in Spirit.”
# # #
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet:
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 16, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
ANCA LAUNCHES 2006 “HYE VOTER TURNOUT” CAMPAIGN
— Campaign Features Candidate Questionnaires,
Congressional Report Cards, Endorsements,
and Increased Grassroots Participation
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)
has launched its 2006 “Hye Voter Turnout” campaign – a nation-wide,
drive to ensure that record numbers of Armenian American voters go
to the polls this November 7th, armed with timely and reliable
information about where the candidates seeking their votes stand on
Armenian American issues.
The campaign took off this week with grassroots volunteers across
the country calling to speak with Congressional campaigns about the
electoral value of the ANCA 2006 Congressional Candidate
Questionnaires. These questionnaires were distributed nation-wide
earlier this year to candidates for each of the 435 House seats and
33 Senate seats being contested this November.
An ANCA tradition for the better part of the past two decades – the
questionnaires provide candidates with the opportunity to outline
their views on issues of special concern to Armenian Americans.
Responses to the questionnaires will be widely distributed to
Armenian Americans prior to Election Day. The policy areas covered
by the questionnaires are the following:
* The Armenian Genocide
* U.S. Support for Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh
* U.S.-Armenia Economic Relations
* U.S. Military Aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan
* Self-Determination for Nagorno Karabagh
* Conditions on U.S. Aid to Azerbaijan
* The Turkish Blockade of Armenia
* Subsidy of a Proposed Caucasus Railway Bypass
The questionnaires are part of the “Hye Voter Turnout” campaign, a
nation-wide grassroots effort to educate Armenian Americans about
the policy issues impacting Armenia, Nagorno Karabagh, and the
surrounding region; provide timely and reliable information on the
records and views of the candidates seeking Armenian American
votes, and; encourage increased civic participation in local,
state, and national elections.
As in years past, a key component of the “Hye Voter Turnout” will
be the ANCA Congressional Report Card, a useful tool for voters
that has proven itself an enduring fixture on the Armenian American
landscape. This rating system, which will be featured on the ANCA
website – – assigns each Congressional incumbent a
grade based on their level of support for a broad range of
legislative initiatives on Armenian American issues. The ANCA will
issue Congressional endorsements later in the election cycle.
“The ANCA is gratified, once again, to offer our Congressional
Candidate Questionnaires as a public service to empower Armenian
Americans as active and informed participants in the coming
election campaigns,” said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the
ANCA. “We encourage everyone to download the questionnaires from
our website, and invite all Armenian Americans who are interested
in getting politically involved this election season to contact us
at [email protected] to find out how to get in touch with their local
ANCA chapter and other area activists.”
Copies of the ANCA 2006 Congressional Candidate Questionnaire are
provided in Adobe PDF format and can be downloaded or printed from
the ANCA website:
pdf
The full text of the ANCA 2006 Congressional Candidate
Questionnaire is provided below.
#####
ANCA 2006 Congressional Candidate Questionnaire:
The Armenian Genocide:
Despite overwhelming evidence, Turkey continues to deny the
Armenian Genocide – the systematic and deliberate massacre of 1.5
million Armenians between 1915-1923.
1) Do you support the adoption of the Congressional
Armenian Genocide Resolution?
U.S. Support for Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh:
U.S. aid has strengthened Armenia’s economy by promoting trade and
investment, and by helping offset the impact of the Turkish and
Azerbaijani blockades.
2) Do you support U.S. aid and other programs to
strengthen Armenia’s self-reliance?
3) Do you support continued U.S. developmental and
humanitarian aid to Nagorno Karabagh?
U.S.-Armenia Economic Relations:
Over the past five years, U.S.-Armenia trade levels have nearly
doubled, creating export, investment and commercial opportunities
for U.S. firms.
4) Do you support actions to expand U.S.-Armenia economic
relations?
U.S. Military Aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan:
Since 2001, based on an agreement between the White House and
Congress to promote peace and regional stabilty, parity has been
maintained in the level of military aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan.
5) Do you support maintaining parity in U.S. military aid
to Armenia and Azerbaijan?
Self-Determination for Nagorno Karabagh:
In 1923 Stalin carved Nagorno Karabagh out of Armenia and placed it
under Soviet Azerbaijani rule, setting the stage for seven decades
of oppression, followed, after 1988, by Azerbaijan’s ethnic
cleansing aggression against the population of this Armenian
territory.
6) Do you support the people of Nagorno Karabagh’s right
to self-determination?
Conditions on U.S. Aid to Azerbaijan:
In 1992 Congress passed Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act to
limit aid to Azerbaijan until it lifts its blockades of Armenia and
Karabagh. In 2001 the Congress reaffirmed its support for this law,
but gave the President limited waiver authority.
7) Do you support maintaining Section 907?
The Turkish Blockade of Armenia:
In 1996 the Congress enacted the Humanitarian Aid Corridor Act in
response to Turkey’s policy of blocking U.S. humanitarian aid to
Armenia.
8) Do you support legislative and other means to urge
Turkey to end its blockade of Armenia?
9) Do you supporting pressing Turkey, as a condition for
purchasing U.S. arms, to end its blockade of Armenia,
occupation of Cyprus, attacks on Kurds, restrictions on
Christians, and rights abuses?
Subsidy of a Proposed Caucasus Railway Bypass:
U.S. taxpayers are being asked to fund the construction of an
unnecessary and costly railroad between Turkey and Georgia, whose
sole purpose is to undermine the economic viability of the existing
railroad going through Armenia.
10) Do you oppose taxpayer subsidies for a politically
motivated new railroad that circumvents Armenia?
#####
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address: Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact: Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel: (374 10) 517 163
Fax: (374 10) 517 301
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website:
August 17, 2006
Conference of the Brotherhood of Holy Etchmiadzin in the Mother See
A three-day conference of clergy convened in the Mother See of Holy
Etchmiadzin on August 16, under the presidency of His Holiness Karekin
II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians. 2006 marks
the fourth such gathering of the members of the Brotherhood of Holy
Etchmiadzin in recent years.
Nearly 70 members of the Brotherhood, comprised of senior
archimandrites, archimandrites and monks, have arrived in the
Mother See from throughout Armenia and the diasporan dioceses
around the world. The participants will discuss issues related to
the responsibilities of the priest as pastor of the people, teacher
of the faith, preacher, counselor, and leader with a mission.
The conference began with the Lord’s Prayer, followed by welcoming
remarks by the Very Reverend Father Sasoon Zumrookhdian, Vicar of the
Diocese of Gugark. Father Sasoon, in his capacity as a member of the
organizing committee for the conference, reflecting on the spiritual
concerns facing societal life today and the challenges placed before
the Church, considered the renewal of the mission of the priest as an
imperative. At the conclusion of his remarks, Father Sasoon once again
affirmed the oath of the members of the Brotherhood to be soldiers of
the spiritual army, and invited His Holiness Karekin II to extend his
pontifical message and blessings to the young generation of priests.
In his message, the Catholicos of All Armenians stated in part,
“It is a great joy for us as pontiff to see our beloved priests
gathered in the Mother See of All Armenians – Holy Etchmiadzin. This
is a wonderful new tradition that has begun in the Mother See,
whereby every few years, members of our Brotherhood convene in Holy
Etchmiadzin to renew their oath toward our cherished holy center,
as well as to spend a few days in each other’s company, to exchange
their pastoral and spiritual experiences with one another, to share
their concerns with their brothers, as well as their vision and dreams
surrounding the future of our Church and our people.”
His Holiness spoke of the issues facing the Church in detail,
especially noting the areas of Christian education, daily preaching,
the necessity for increasing the level of activity of pastoral care,
and the mission of re-establishing a healthy moral atmosphere in the
life of society. “…As long as we fail to fully accomplish this
mission, we shall see manifold negative occurrences accompanying
our life; as long as the Armenian son or daughter is far from God,
then it shall not be the commandments and exhortations of God which
will be directing their lives,” stressed His Holiness.
Reflecting on the calling of the priest, his responsibilities and
mission, the Catholicos of All Armenians encouraged the clergymen
to use this opportunity to its fullest extent, to strengthen their
brotherhood, reinforce their faith and spirit, to live moments of
reflection, to reevaluate their lives and vision, so that they will
return to their service with new strength and vigor. “We believe that
if we devote our time fully and completely to our service, we can
truly perform miracles in the present day, to increase the standing
of our Church before our people, to put an end to all criticisms –
just and unjust – which are directed at the Church, thereby being a
worthy laborer before God, a worthy son of our nation, and a worthy
successor to our forefathers,” concluded His Holiness, wishing success
to the deliberations of the conference.
During the first session of the conference, the participants listened
to the lecture of the Very Reverend Father Haigazoun Najarian, entitled
“The Priest as Pastor of the People”, which was followed by a question
and answer period, as well as a discussion among panelists.
At the conclusion of the first session, His Holiness Karekin II
presided during a requiem service offered in memory of all deceased
members of the Brotherhood of Holy Etchmiadzin.
##
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PUTIN IS TIGHTENING THE CIRCLE OF HIS FRIENDS
Kommersant
ArmRadio.am
16.08.2006 15:54
A regional alternative to the World Trade Organization; An informal
summit of the Euro-Asian Economic Community opens in Sochi today. The
presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and
Belarus have confirmed their attendance. Armenian leader Robert
Kocharjan and new Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych have
been invited.
An informal summit of the Euro-Asian Economic Community opens in
Sochi today. The presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan,
Tajikistan, and Belarus have confirmed their attendance. Armenian
leader Robert Kocharjan and new Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor
Yanukovych have also been invited to Sochi.
The Kremlin attaches considerable importance to the forthcoming
meeting. The Russian authorities want it to demonstrate that they are
not concerned about the failure of World Trade Organization (WTO)
membership talks. When negotiations with the United States broke
down on the eve of the G8 summit in St. Petersburg, Moscow decided
to organize an “alternative WTO” – based on the Euro-Asian Economic
Community (EAEC).
In fact, Russia began demonstrating exactly how it perceives the
future economic integration within the framework of the EAEC even
when preparations for the summit were under way. Mounting mutual
dependance of the neighbor states (with both states’ consent, that
is) for starters. Mounting pressure applied to the neighbors still
resisting as phase two. Expansion into the countries that have so
far escaped being in the focus of Moscow’s attention afterwards.
Traditionally for the Kremlin, energy sphere will become the number
one tool and lever. That is why establishment of the EAEC common
energy market is going to become the central issue of the informal
summit that will end on August 17.
Kazakh media outlets report on the eve of the Sochi summit that a
colossal project of water supply for Central Asia – Moscow’s latest
initiative – will become the most important issue on the agenda.
Water has always been a strategic resource in and for Central Asia.
Almost 80% of the water resources of the region are concentrated in
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan while the major consumers are Uzbekistan
and Kazakhstan. Tension usually mounted in summertime when water was
in a higher than usual demand but Kyrgyzstan began storing it up in
reservoirs for electric power production in winter. Kazakhstan and
Uzbekistan inevitably brought economic leverages into play to bow
Kyrgyzstan, dependent on exported energy as it is, to their will.
The Kremlin is trying to turn the tables now and make use of the
opportunities this situation is presenting. The idea of an Eurasian
water-energy consortium was first conceived of in Moscow in early
summer. Sources in Moscow and Astana imply that the project may be
financed by the Eurasian Bank Russia and Kazakhstan established not
long ago… Inter RAO EES, a subsidiary of the RAO Unified Energy
Systems, is already building the Sangtuda 1 hydroelectric power plant
and Russian Aluminum the Rogun hydroelectric power plant in Tajikistan.
Realization of the water-energy consortium initiative will put in the
Kremlin’s hands a major geopolitical tool that will certainly boost
its positions in Asia. On the other hand, it will pave way to energy
expansion into the Indian, Pakistani, and Chinese markets.
Eager to do its neighbors great favors, Russia has never yet failed
to encounter one and the same old problem. A great deal of CIS
countries are in the focus of Washington’s interests and attention,
and Vladimir Putin will have to have “friendly chats” with the CIS
leaders who seem to be on too intimate terms with the United States.
Russia has several “problematic” countries to deal with in this
respect and Kyrgyzstan is one of them. Encouraged by Moscow, Kyrgyzstan
asked the United States to revise the terms of the presence of Khansi
airbase in Bishkek airport Manas in 2005. In short, Bishkek wanted
$207 million in rent per year. According to our sources, the Kremlin
feared at first that Washington would accept the new terms but the
latter turned the demand down. Moscow expected that it would result in
curtailment of American military presence in Central Asia but Bishkek
let it down. All of a sudden, it abandoned its new demands and let
the Americans stay for a much lower price that it had demanded at
first. The Kyrgyz-American talks ended on July 14. Under the terms
of the new agreement, Washington is expected to pay $150 million per
year for the airbase. Putin will certainly expect an explanation from
President Kurmanbek Bakiyev of Kyrgyzstan now.
One other subject will be raised in Sochi. Russia will do its best
to persuade Kyrgyzstan not to join the HIPC (Heavy Indebted Poor
Countries) program under the aegis of the World Bank and International
Monetary Fund. Kyrgyzstan will be told that membership of the program
will cost it tis sovereignty and place it at the beck and call of
the United States. Moscow will offer Kyrgyzstan dependence on Russia
instead.
Yanukovych as a special guest at the informal summit is the Kremlin’s
other potential headache. According to what information is available at
this point, Putin invited the new Ukrainian prime minister to Moscow
because of the alarming rumors from Kiev that Yanukovych’s contacts
with American negotiators become more and more frequent and that the
sides have all but reached mutual understanding already.
Neither do Yanukovych’s latest statements permit the Kremlin to
relax. The Ukrainian prime minister is resolved to demand a lower
gas price from Russia: $95 per 1,000 cubic meters. This is not
an initiative guaranteed to find Putin or Gazprom particularly
sympathetic. Last but not least, Moscow cannot help noticing that
Yanukovych, the erstwhile “pro-Russian candidate,” isn’t even thinking
of keeping his central pro-Russian campaign promises. (On a working
visit to the Crimea on August 11, Yanukovych announced that making
Russian the second state language is not possible for the time being.)
There are some guests expected in Sochi whose pro-Russian stance
is not something Putin doubts, but even that doesn’t make Russia’s
relations with their respective countries exactly cloudless.
The Russian-Belarusian talks promise to be particularly difficult.
Moscow is resolved to make no more advances to Minsk. Establishment of
a union state is one of the worst problems in the Russian-Belarusian
bilateral relations. Russia wants a common currency introduced in
both countries as soon as possible but Belarus never misses a chance
to delay and impede the process.
Alexander Lukashenko demands from Russia a recompense for the
budget losses the forthcoming unification of the two countries will
entail. Belarusian economists maintain that processes of integration
has cost Belarus almost $2 billion in the last twelve months. Russia,
however, has an ace up its sleeve.
The Kremlin is enraged – and doesn’t bother concealing it – that
Belarus is exporting Russian gas and oil products to the third
countries without compunction. According to official estimates
alone, Belarusian petroleum product exports increased by almost 60%
in January-May 2006, to $3.2 billion. More than ample compensation
for what losses Belarus claims it is suffering.
There is one other factor that doesn’t make Russian-Belarusian
bilateral relations any more easier. When Lukashenko was re-elected
this spring, Gazprom announced that the price of Russian gas sold
to Belarus should be raised to match the European average. Moscow
is even prepared to discuss the matter, as long as Beltransgaz turns
over some elements of the gas transportation framework to Gazprom.
But official Minsk wouldn’t hear of it, so the gas price could soar
from $46 to $180-200 per thousand cubic meters. This would be a
near-fatal blow to the struggling Belarusian economy.
Lukashenko has made some frantic attempts to establish a dialogue
with Iran and Venezuela and even evinced vivid interest in the project
of the pipeline from Iran to Pakistan to India. And yet, it is clear
that all these contacts are merely a show, an attempt to make Moscow
more amenable.
Rapprochement with Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan, another “faithful
friend” of Russia, is not following the script Russia has chartered.
Tashkent found himself in international isolation after the massacre
in Andijan. Russia moved in, supported Karimov wholeheartedly, and
even signed a treaty of the relations of allies with him. Expecting
Uzbekistan to sell Russia its major assets in return. Well,
considerably glitches have developed in the process. Establishment
of an uranium-mining joint venture to develop the Aktau deposit came
to grinding halt because of the Uzbek redtape on the government level.
The future of the American-Uzbek Zarafshan-Newmont is another
unknown. US-based Newmont Mining withdrew from the project when the
Uzbek authorities slapped back tax claims on it ($11 million for 2005
and $37 million for 2002-04). Moscow hoped that Interros would take
the Americans’ place, but no progress at all has been made yet…
In fact, Moscow has a strong argument to be used in the disputes with
Uzbekistan. The matter concerns the group of Uzbeks currently in the
detention cell in the Russian city of Ivanovo. Suspecting them of
organization of the revolt in Andijan, Tashkent has been clamoring
for their extradition for a year now. Russia is prepared to turn the
Uzbeks over to Tashkent but only in return for serious condescensions
on the part of Uzbekistan. After all, the Russian authorities have
already granted the men in question the status of political refugees,
and their extradition to Uzbekistan will almost certainly make trouble
for Moscow’s image in the West (not to mention political problems it
will generate).
On the other hand, damage to its image in the eyes of the international
community is not what worries Moscow that much nowadays. Mad at the
West, the Kremlin is out to nail together a team of its own. Should
it set the West seething, Moscow will be only pleased.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

YAN PORTERFIELD, ARMENIAN NATIONAL TEAM TRAINER
ArmRadio.am
16.08.2006 18:59
During the press conference held today by the Football Federation
of Armenia the President of the Federation Rouben Hairapetian
introduced the new trainer of the National Team Yan Porterfield who
is Scotchman. To the end of the press conference a contract between
the Armenian Football Federation and Yan Porterfield was completed
until the end of 2007. Yan Porterfield will live in Armenia with his
family during his work in Armenia.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

“CICILIA” VESSEL WILL BE IN ARMENIA IN SEPTEMBER
ArmRadio.am
16.08.2006 19:05
The barge will transfer the sailing vessel “Cicilia” from Poti to
Yerevan will be ready to the end of August. It is awaited that the
sailing vessel ” Cicilia” which is now in Volgodon canal at that time
will be in Poti.
The assistant of the Captain of “Cicilia” Areg Nazarian has told
the ” Armenpress” that the vessel will be in Armenia till the 9th
of September and will participate in the celebrations of the 15th
Anniversary of the Independence of our Republic. He mentioned that
although there was no time to renovate ” Cicilia” in spring as it
was in sail, it is in good shape.
After the celebrations of the 15th Anniversary of the Independence
of our Republic “Cicilia” will be transferred to the lake Sevan and
will become a museum.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PARUYR HAYRIKIAN: THERE IS NO POLITICAL FIELD IN ARMENIA, AND ITS CREATION SHOULD BECOME A SUPERTASK OF POLITICAL FORCES
Noyan Tapan
Aug 16 2006
YEREVAN, AUGUST 16, NOYAN TAPAN. Prior to any election, parties
have party-related notions, however, it becomes obvious on the
eve of these elections that there are also concerns above narrow
party interests. Chairman of the National Self-Determination Union
Paruyr Hayrikian expressed this opinion during the round table “The
Role of Ideological Parties in the 2007 Parliamentary Elections”
on August 16. According to him, today “non-ideological groups” are
penetrating the field of “ideological parties”, and these groups become
criminal groupings in the political field. In the speaker’s opinion,
the ideological parties should be able to put aside their personal
political considerations and to struggle jointly. According to him,
at the upcoming parliamentary elections, the political parties’ task
should be not securing certain seats for themselves but “gaining many
seats with the others as a counterbalance to criminal elements with
their criminal mentality.” “There is no political field in Armenia,
and its creation should become a supertask of all political forces,”
P. Hayrikian said. In the opinion of Stepan Zakarian, member of the
People’s Party of Armenia, “the Constitution that did not receive the
people’s votes but was “adopted” is dictating new rules today.” He
noted that the 2007 parliamentary elections are more important than
the previous ones, as under the Constitution currently in force, new
powers are given to the prime minister and the National Assembly. In
his words, “if previously the President was the master of everything
and there was no need for new parties”, now the sitaition has changed,
which is evident from the fact that new parties are being formed. Mher
Shahgaldian, member of Orinats Yerkir Party, in his turn said that
during parliamentary elections, struggle should be conducted around
particular ideas and programs rather than in the interests of political
and nonpolitical groups.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARCHBISHOP MESROP MUTAFIAN DEMANDS PATRIARCHATE BE WITHIN JURISDICTION OF INSPECTION OF RELIGIONS
Noyan Tapan
Aug 16 2006
ANKARA, AUGUST 16, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The Armenian
Partiarchate of Turkey finished discussing the draft regulations
on the Partriarchate’s activities and authorities, bringing the
draft to its final form. A body called the Council on Minorities
Issues submitted this draft to the Patriarchate for consideration,
the newspaper “Marmara” reported, citing the newspaper “Zaman”. The
Patriarchate objectet to an article of the draft, according to which
the Patriarchate is within the jurisdiction and under control of
the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA). (NT: the Patriarchate is
now under the jurisdiction of the MIA). The Armenian Patriarch of
Turkey Archbishop Mesrop Mutafian noted that the Patriarchate is a
religious institution, and the Partriarch is a clergyman, so both
the Partriarch and Patriarchate should be within the jurisdiction
of the Inspection of Religions rather than the Ministry of Internal
Affairs, as the ministry implements control only from the viewpoint
of security issues, whereas the inspection – from a broader viewpoint
including also religious issues. The Patriarch expressed a wish that
the Ministry of Internal Affairs would intervene for the purpose of
making an amendment to that article.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DISPATCHES FROM BEIRUT
Mary Nersessian, CTV.ca News
CTV.ca, Canada
Aug. 16, 2006
After more than a month of conflict between Israeli troops and
Hezbollah mlitants, the residents of Lebanon are trying to rebuild
their lives in the relative calm of a tenuous United Nations-brokered
ceasefire.
Following are first-hand accounts from those who remained in or near
the Lebanese capital throughout the month-long bombardment.
They share with CTV.ca their stories of life under siege and their
concerns for the future as the UN prepares to deploy thousands of
troops on the ground in Lebanon.
Marc J. Sirois, managing editor of the English-language Daily Star
newspaper
The conflict left Beirut largely deserted, although it was not what
he would call a “total ghost town,” Sirois told CTV.ca.
Air strikes started every night at around 1 or 2 a.m. and kept up
for the next five to six hours, he recounted.
It was impossible to shut the windows, to block out some of the noise,
he said because they would shatter from the pressure, if kept closed.
“Like many other people, technically I am displaced,” he told CTV.ca
in a telephone interview from Beirut days before the ceasefire came
into effect.
He was forced to sleep at a co-worker’s home because taxi drivers
refused to drive into his neighbourhood at night.
“I’m still staying with a coworker close to my office (which is located
in the east Beirut neighbourhood of Gemaizeh), largely because I
moved everything in and haven’t had a chance to move it back,” he
told CTV.ca in the days following the introduction of the ceasefire.
He found the conflict stressful as the managing editor of a newspaper
because he has a responsibility to dozens of people, he said.
It was impossible for him to ignore the fact that he could be sending
his staff into danger when he sent them to cover a story.
He found it even harder, he said, to assign reporters who had evacuated
their homes in the southern suburbs to cover stories that could put
them at risk.
“I’ve tried to err on the side of caution, the last thing I want
to feel is that burden, I don’t think I could live with myself,”
he said in the days before the ceasefire was introduced.
“It’s a Catch-22, you want to cover the story, but by the same token
the danger is enormous,” he said.
Though the ceasefire is in effect, life has not returned to normal,
he said.
“The blockade is still in place, there is a serious gasoline shortage,
and the power is only on for about 12 hours a day at best.
It’s better than it was last week, but serious problems remain —
and while the ceasefire has largely held thus far, it’s very fragile,”
he said.
Now it is time to rebuild Lebanon’s devastated infrastructure.
“Entire towns in the South have been levelled. Every single bridge or
overpass of any size (about 80 in all) in the country has been knocked
down or badly damaged. 100,000 (approximately) are homeless,” he said.
“Hezbollah is more influential among its constituents than ever,
especially since the government has yet again failed to help them in
any way.”
Despite the tremendous sense of dread weighing on his shoulders while
the conflict was ongoing, it wasn’t his time to leave the country
where he has made his home for most of the past decade.
“My children are safe, they’re in Canada,” said the father of three.
His oldest 14-year-old daughter lives with her mother in Edmundston,
New Brunswick. His current wife and their twins, who will be five in
September have evacuated to Moncton.
“But I really have no interest in having them grow up without
a father. If I thought I was going to leave my children without a
father, I would leave.”
Rev. Dr. Paul Haidostian, Haigazian University president
With the ceasefire in effect, the university president is hopeful
that life will gradually return to some semblance of normality.
“Right now, many Lebanese from Beirut are in the mountains or outside
the country. Some areas were crowded only because dozens of thousands
of displaced people from the south or the southern suburbs of Beirut
had come closer to the center,” he told CTV.ca from Beirut.
During the conflict, most businesses and stores closed their doors
to the Lebanese, he recounts.
“Note that I am not even referring to certain villages in the South,
where the ill have no access to medical care, and the hungry have
no access to food stores. These types of villages are increasing by
number every day,” wrote the president, who is of Armenian origin,
in a letter to friends on July 19 which was posted on a website read
by the Armenian diaspora.
“Until last week, the Haigazian neighborhood and downtown Beirut were
busy with tourists, students, and businessmen. Now, the whole area
has turned into a relatively safe haven for displaced people from
Southern Beirut and South Lebanon.”
Although supermarkets remained open during the air strike offensives,
their shelves “were being emptied day after day. The well-known brands
of things disappeared first. The shortage of fuel, gas, etc. was the
hardest,” Haidostian told CTV.ca.
“It was deserted throughout. You would see more journalists than
anyone else.”
Even now, after the tenuous ceasefire has taken hold, Haidostian has
encountered only an ice cream shop and a cafe with their doors open.
As the president of a university which suspended his fall semester
until further notice, he is unable to resume his normal routine.
“I am personally in my office every day with some others from the
Haigazian University staff. I have not done most of the normal things,
though. It has been crisis management, communicating with the outside
world, interpreting the situation, encouraging people,” he said.
“Imagine to be a university president and be preoccupied with who
has reported to work and when, whether the four Haigazian University
cars have gas, whether our electricity generators have diesel fuel to
provide energy, whether faculty members are still in the country, etc.”
Despite the ensuing chaos in the days and weeks after the conflict
began, he couldn’t fathom the thought of deserting the city or
his staff.
“It was very clear to me that people in my position cannot and should
not leave. I did not really struggle with the issue. First I am also
a pastor, even though in educational work now,” he said.
“Then I am responsible for a significant institution in the community,
and in uncertain days more leadership is needed than in normal days.”
In a letter to friends dated July 28, Haidostian remarks that the
war’s most dangerous consequences are being observed on the political
landscape.
“This war has created a shift of the Lebanese, Middle Eastern, and
generally Muslim political centre, wherever it existed, to radical
positions. The centrists have found their arguments to be obsolete
and unattractive, while the radicals have found their fundamentalist
reading of the ‘enemy’ and the ‘world’ to be both attractive and
justified,” he writes.
Though the physical landscape of Beirut shows the marks of its
devastation, there are signs of hope.
“The good news of these days comes to us on the billboards of Beirut.
One local bank lists six different times when Lebanon was destroyed
in the past 30 years and says, ‘Those of us who have built before,
will build again!’ Another bank announcement says, ‘Surely the clouds
will give way to sunshine!'” Haidostian writes on August 7.
For his part, Haidostian is cautiously optimistic that the UN-brokered
ceasefire will last.
“It is not the best resolution I would have wanted to see. It is better
than nothing. At least it stopped the bombs as most people would say,
but not much more,” he tells CTV.ca.
Nabil Faris, land developer
The dust has settled but unanswered questions linger in the air,
Faris tells CTV.ca in a telephone interview.
“There is some sort of hidden feeling — where are we heading to? Is
this really peace?” said Faris, from the Aley district of Mount
Lebanon, which overlooks the city of Beirut.
“Everything has been affected, our lifestyle, our work, our family
ties. I had to send my family back to Canada around three weeks ago,”
he said.
Faris, who once lived in Vancouver, returned to Lebanon in 1996 to
launch a land development company.
Whether he will summon his family to return will depend on the
developments in the coming weeks, he said.
Signs of civil unrest within the country have begun to emerge.
“Inside Lebanon, people have become more attached to what they believe
is called resistance, or against occupation, and it seems that neither
the Americans nor the Israelis knew how the handle the situation,”
he said.
In the meantime, the focus is on rebuilding homes and repairing
infrastructure.
“The major problem is with the infrastructure where Israelis tended
to hit,” he says, adding that the bridges were targeted.
Faris recounts a joke that has been making the rounds in Lebanon:
“Anybody that has been to a dentist shouldn’t open his mouth when he
laughs because the Israelis might hit those bridges.”
On a more sombre note, however, Faris says what appeared to be a road
toward democracy before the war began has now been derailed.
“What has been done to us lately is something far from anything that
can be called democratic or even humane,” he said.
/CTVNews/20060816/lebanon_voices_060816/20060816/
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERBAIJAN’S CONSUL GENERAL IN KARS BLASTS PRO-ARMENIAN MAYOR
Today, Azerbaijan
Aug. 16, 2006
A senior Azerbaijani diplomat was reported on Wednesday to have
denounced the mayor of the northeastern Turkish town of Kars for
publicly advocating the reopening of Turkey’s border with Armenia.
Hasan Zeynalov, Azerbaijan’s consul general in Kars, was quoted
by the Day.az news service as branding Mayor Naif Alibeyoglu as a
leading member of pro-Armenian forces in Turkey that stand for an
unconditional normalization of relations between Ankara and Yerevan.
Those forces are acting “to the detriment of not only Azerbaijan but
Turkey,” he said.
Zeynalov also complained that despite his “repeated conversations”
with Alibeyoglu the latter remains adamant in believing that the
Turkish frontier should lift its economic embargo imposed on Armenia
in 1993, at the height of the war with Azerbaijan, out of solidarity
with Azerbaijan.
Alibeyoglu has for years expressed this view in interviews with Turkish
and Western media, arguing that cross-border commerce with Armenia
would breathe a new life into Kars and other economically depressed
parts of eastern Turkey. Kars is less than a hundred kilometers away
from the Armenian frontier.
Turkey was reportedly close to heeding U.S. calls for an unconditional
reopening of the border three years ago but backed off after strong
protests from Azerbaijan. Turkish leaders have said it will remain
closed as long as the Nagorno Karabakh conflict remains unresolved.
“For us, the main thing is the position of Turkey’s leadership,
which is well known,” said Zeynalov. “Turkey is the closest ally of
Azerbaijan and will always support us.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress