Author: Emil Lazarian

ARMEN HOVNANIAN DIES AT 76
AZG Armenian Daily
22/06/2006
On June 2, pharmacist Armen Hovnanian from Farmington Hills, Detroit,
died at the William Beaumont Hospital at 76.
Born in Akron, Ohio, Hovnanian moved to Detroit with his family
while still a child. While working at a drug store as 13-year-old
boy, he firmly decided to become a pharmacist. After graduating high
school in 1947, he attended the Detroit Institute of Technology and
graduated in 1951 with a pharmacy degree. He used that knowledge to
become a leader in one of Michigan’s largest drugstore chains during
the 1970s. He was promoted to executive vice president of the company
in 1971 and was responsible for sales. He helped the store develop
the concept of a one-stop drugstore, which sold pharmacy items along
with other merchandise.
Armen Hovnanian served in the US Army during the World War II for two
years as a lab technician. He loved classical music and was a Detroit
Tigers baseball fan, the Armenian Mirror Spectator weekly reports.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Press Release
From: Mira Yardemian
Public Relations Director
Haigazian University
Rue Mexique – Kantari
P.O. Box 11-1748
Riad El-Solh 1107 2090
Beirut – Lebanon
Haigazian University Recognizes 10 Graduating Students
On June the 21st, 2006, the Haigazian University Student Life Office
recognized 10 graduating students, for being the best contributors
to the culture of the university, represented in its motto of Truth,
freedom and Service, in the presence of the University President,
deans, and parents.
These students have been aware of the moral values of the University
motto, during their 4 years of study, and were very instrumental in
applying them in their everyday life.
Michel Majdalani (Student of the Year), Roubina Karaminassian,
Raffi Feghali, Sami Heneine, Rami Massoud, Karen Abou Ammo,
Mohammad Fakhoury, Mohammad Khaled Kassem, Garen Darakjian, and
Michael Vahejian, all shared the following common characteristics:
Endurance: They have been supportive, active, and contributing to
the University culture from the very first day of their enrollment.
Giving: These students have learned that it~Rs only by giving that
they can take, and grow. Receptive and eager to change: These students
have undergone a process of natural socialization which widened their
horizon and broadened their perception of the world.
In his word, the Director of Student Life, Mr. Antranig Dakessian
expressed his gratitude and satisfaction to the parents: ~SIndeed, dear
parents, we have seen their very first steps into this university, and
have followed their steps into experience, building up social skills,
and self-confidence. We have seen them change, develop and excel. Their
excellence has made us feel accomplished~T, said Dakessian.
The president of the University, Rev. Dr. Paul Haidostian thanked the
parents and families for sharing their children~Rs gifts, noting that
most of these gifts young ones should owe their parents. ~SParents are
very much in the picture and behind the scenes. Through the years
of emotional, physical, financial, social sacrifice, and investment,
they have been there since the birth of these young people. Now what
parents want to have is a sense of fulfillment~T, said Haidostian.
Afterwards, the Students Resource Coordinator, Ms Peggy Bedoyan,
and the Assistant Student Life Director, Mr. Alan Keyrouz, presented
the aforementioned students and their activities through the aid of
a slide show.
Towards the end, recognition tokens were distributed to honored
students, and a reception followed.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

LEBANESE ARTIST BETS ON WOMEN, HORSES AND THE SUN – AND WINS
By Daniella Matar
Special to The Daily Star
The Daily Star. Lebanon
June 22 2006
Hrair’s work, which has made its way to royal families and celebrities,
gets Beirut retrospective
Interview
BEIRUT: “Woman is the mistress, the lover, the mother,” enthuses the
one-name-only, subtly cross-dressing artist known as Hrair. “She is
all these beautiful feelings you have, you know. She is the mother,
she is life for me. She is honored in all my paintings.” Hrair was
born in Lebanon of Armenian origin. He studied art at the Lebanese
Academy of Fine Art (ALBA) and in 1964 he won three gold medals for
a set of tapestries he made for the Presidential Palace in Baabda.
Hrair went on to win numerous accolades and celebrity commissions.
Queen Elizabeth II has one of his paintings and a number of other
royals have collected his work – including the royal families of
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
Hrair’s extensive client list includes Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn
and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, among others. Finally, after so much
fanfare, Hrair’s market savvy work is the subject of a retrospective
in Beirut, at Piece Unique in Saifi Village.
In the gallery, the artist’s thick and vibrant colors practically
jump off his canvases. Figurative horses leap around majestically.
Women gaze beatifically and mysteriously out at the viewer. Welcome
to the world of Hrair.
First and foremost, the artist says, “I’m a colorist. I like colors.
Through colors I can express myself.”
Running through the symbols that are always present but ever-changing
in his work, he continues: “You’ll always see there are the ladies,
the horses. The flowers are new, it’s a still-life, and even the
women have changed. They are more contemporary, more modern.”
Hrair is indeed famed for those horses. “I like horses,” he says
simply. “I think it’s a wonderful subject for any artist. Through this
subject you can express a lot of feeling. You have the movement,
you have the beauty, you have the light, you have the death –
everything. It’s really one of my favorite subjects. And it’s the
symbol of the Arab world.”
It is the women, however, who really draw one’s attention to Hrair’s
paintings. The paleness of their skin contrasts vividly with the bold,
bright colors of their clothes and surroundings, ensuring that the
observer’s eyes are instantly, irresistibly drawn to their serene,
beatific expressions.
A lesser-known symbol, which nevertheless figures in nearly all
Hrair’s work, is the sun.
“There is always the sun in my painting” he confirms. “There is this
round – life, death, life, death, life, death. Life goes round and
round – there’s always hope in my paintings. I’m a very cheerful
person. I’m not negative, and my paintings reflect that. People say
my work is dreamy, but sometimes you need to take [a few] seconds
to dream.”
Hrair’s retrospective has given his an opportunity to reflect on
his career.
“I was born a painter, an artist,” he says. “When I was five, six,
I used to draw and when I was nine I used to paint. I used to do
portraits and I always wanted to be an artist and a painter. The most
difficult [thing] was to have your own style. I’m not influenced by
any other painter or any other artist. I was influenced by my origins,
my orthodox origins, the church, the Arabic origins, the Oriental
decoration, the Islamic art, the sun.
“That’s why I had this success here, because they say it’s like one
thousand and one nights, you know. It has that richness and the colors.
“I was inspired [by] all the civilizations that passed through Lebanon
[and] the Middle East. I was inspired by the icons, the Byzantine art
– there you see that feeling, that precious feeling, [through the use
of] gold leaf. Sometimes the subject is not very important,” he adds,
returning to his favorite theme. “It’s the colors.”
There is one painting at Piece Unique that marks a sharp departure
for Hrair, a depiction of the Beirut skyline.
“It’s the way I see it, the way I know it,” he says. “I was born in
this area and it was in my childhood background.”
The painting in question is bright and beautiful, but unlike most of
his other pieces, it has very blurred edges.
Hrair explains: “I’ve always had this feeling. [The painting is]
in a fog, you know, but [Beirut for me] is like this.”
Hrair’s retrospective at Piece Unique in Saifi Village is on view
through June 24. For more information, please call +961 1 975 655.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CANADIAN PM HARPER APPOINTS NEW AMBASSADORS
Embassy Magazine, Canada
June 21 2006
In what is the largest appointment of heads of missions since the
Conservative government came to power in January, Prime Minister
Stephen Harper selected 26 new ambassadors to serve in destinations
around the world. Most of the new ambassadors are career foreign
service officers with years of experience behind them. Here are the
names of the new envoys and the destinations they will be heading to.
[parts deleted]
Libya
Haig Sarafian takes over from David Viveash as Ambassador to Libya. A
career diplomat, over the past 22 years Mr. Sarafian has worked in
Lima, Baghdad, Sao Paulo, Tunis, Damascus and Paris. He served as
Ambassador to Lebanon from 1998 to 2002. He has worked extensively on
Middle Eastern issues and was director general of the International
Trade Centre in Montreal from 1990 to 1993.
Russia
Ralph Lysyshyn succeeds Christopher Westdal as Ambassador to Russia
and Armenia. Mr. Lysyshyn has served in Lagos, Moscow, Washington
and Brussels and was Minister Counsellor at the Canadian Mission to
NATO from 1990 to 1994. He has also worked on arms control issues
and served as Ambassador to Poland Belarus from 2002 to 2005.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

MHER SHAHGELDYAN IS NO MORE THE HEAD OF THE ARMENIAN DELEGATION TO NATO PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
ArmRadio.am
21.06.2006 17:50
Today Head of the Armenian delegation to NATO Parliamentary Assembly
Mher Shahgeldyan submitted his resignation to NA Speaker Tigran
Torosyan.
According to well-informed sources, this position will be entrusted
to Head of the NA Standing Committee on Defense, Internal Affairs
and National security Aramayis Grigoryan, who was appointed to the
position after Mher Shahgeldyan resigned from the position of the
Head of the same Committee.
To note, Mher Shahgeldyan refused to answer the question of “Radiolur”
correspondent about the issue of resignation.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

STEPAN BARSEGHYAN APPOINTED RA DEPUTY MINISTER OF TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION
ArmRadio.am
21.06.2006 17:55
According to RA Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan’s decree,
Stepan Barseghyan was appointed RA Deputy Minister of Territorial
Administration.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

160 ARMENIAN CHILDREN UNDERGO COURSE OF MEDICAL TREATMENT IN GERMANY UNDER PATRONAGE OF “FRIEDENSDORF” CHARITY ORGANIZATION
Noyan Tapan
Jun 21 2006
VANADZOR, JUNE 21, NOYAN TAPAN. A group of Armenian children undergoing
a course of medical treatment under the patronage of the German
“Friedensdorf” international charity organization will leave for
Germany in August. Children’s removal is implemented by a specially
rented plane expenses of which are incured by the “Friedensdorf.” The
minimal duration of the treatment is 6 months, the maximal one is
3 years.
In total, 160 Armenian children already underwent a course of medical
treatment under the patronage of the “Friedensdorf” organization. This
organization has implemented continuously for 14 years a wide-spread
program of free medical service for children who need it. They are
mainly children up to 13 years old, whose treatment is possible to
implement only in European countries.
The organization implements its mission in different marzes of Armenia.
As Varuzhan Sedrakian, the Chairman of the “Children’s Association of
Armenia” public organization mentioned in the interview to the Noyan
Tapan correspondent, medical examinations were held in the Lori marz
during the previous years only for children living in the city of
Vanadzor. Children of different regions of the marz as well will be
involved in medical examinations this year. Expenses of taking them
to the center of the marz were covered by the Health Care Department
of the Lori Regional Governor’s Office. Those children who will be
taken to Germany for treatment are chosen by doctors after medical
examination and diagnosis of disease.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CATHOLICOS OF ALL ARMENIANS ARRIVES IN ISTANBUL
Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Jun 21 2006
ISTANBUL, JUNE 21, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. Karekin II Catholicos
of All Armenians arrived in Istanbul on late June 20. Radio Liberty
informs about it, mentioning that this Catholicos visit is the 12th
one in number during the whole history.
During the last 50 years heads of the Armenian church visited Turkey
only three times. Vazgen I Catholicos paid an official visit to Turkey
in 1961. He met in Ankara with the authorities of Turkey and laid a
wreath to the grave of Ataturk.
Karekin I Catholicos visited Turkey the next time, in 1996. That visit
was not official: the Armenian community of Turkey received Karekin I.
Ara Gochunian, the editor-in-chief of the “Zhamanak” (time) daily being
published in Istanbul informed that the present visit of Karekin II
is not official, either, but, unlike the previous Catholicos visit,
Karekin II met with t he Istanbul Governor.
The Catholicos of All Armenians will visit the Armenian representation
of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation organization as well. During the
first two days of the visit, His Holiness Patriarch will be received
by the Greek Patriarchate.
38 Armenian churches, 15 colleges function in Istanbul today where
more than 3500 Armenian children study. Two dailies and one monthly
are published.
There are other adjacent publications as well.
Though there is no official statistics about the concrete Armenian
inhabitation’s number, according to calculation of the Armenian church
and numerous Turk officials, 70-80 thousand citizens of Turkey of
Armenian origin live in the country.
Dozens of thousands of Armenians emigrated Turkey from Armenia, after
Armenia’s becoming independent. Foreign Minister of Turkey Abdullah
Gul stated in one of his recent speeches that there are about 40
thousand Armenians in Turkey. But, in the opinion of representatives
of the Armenian community, those numbers are exaggerated.
His Holiness will stay in Turkey for a week.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

BOXER KAREN AYLAZIAN TAKES 3rd PLACE IN EUROPE YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP
Noyan Tapan
Jun 21 2006
TIRANA, JUNE 21, NOYAN TAPAN. Karen Aylazian (Yerevan, 48 kg weight
category) took the 3rd place in the Europe Youth Boxing Championship
held on June 15-20 in the capital of Albania Tirana. 187 delegates
of 28 countries took part in the championship.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EUROPEAN PEACEKEEPERS: THE CAUCASUS UNDER ME?
by Sergei Markedonov, Political and Military Analysis Institute
Translated by Elena Leonova
Source: Izvestia, June 21, 2006, p. 6
Agency WPS
What the Papers Say Part A (Russia)
June 21, 2006 Wednesday
What does the European Union really want in the Caucasus?; The
Europeans are saying that Russia should not only abandon its exclusive
political role in the South Caucasus, but also open up the gates to
European peacekeeping in the North Caucasus. For Russia, such an
approach would be tantamount to admitting its own incompetence as
a state.
Europe has come to the Caucasus. “The Caucasus and Central Asia region
will be among the most important issue for Germany’s forthcoming
period of chairing the European Union. The Caucasus is being called a
‘special region’ which has been overlooked by Europe for some time,”
says Roland Goetz, head of the Russia and CIS group at the German
Institute for International and Security Affairs (an influential
think-tank consulted by the German government).
What kind of significance do the Europeans attach to the Caucasus
region? Its unique natural and geographic significance isn’t the only
reason for their interest. “The Caucasus, with its fairly limited
natural resources, is not a key region,” says Roland Goetz. The
Americans regard the Caucasus as important primarily as a bridge for
their sweeping geopolitical combinations (Iran, the Middle East).
Europe, which is building a “good neighbor” policy, regards the
Caucasus as a political patient suffering an illness known as “ethnic
conflicts.” For European politicians, the priority in the Caucasus
is to overcome ethnic conflicts and disseminate the “European” system
of values.
But the Europeanization of the Caucasus goes back before 2006. The
“special region” has been a focus of attention for European politicians
since the early 1990s. In contrast to the United States, the European
Union’s approach to Caucasus policy emphasizes socio-economic issues,
not military-political issues. The EU’s second priority direction is
promoting stability in the region, as well as striving to ensure that
“European standards” in human rights and democratic liberties are
respected and observed. The common policy plan on South Caucasus
states, adopted by the EU Council in 1995, emphasizes the need
for assisting the former Soviet republics in the Trans-Caucasus
to establish democratic institutions. However, while the EU claims
to uphold universal democratic values, it frequently fails to take
account of ethnic and cultural differences and traditions in Georgia,
Armenia, and Azerbaijan.
Russia plays a special role in the “great game” of the Caucasus
region. Firstly, part of Russia’s own territory is in the Caucasus.
Secondly, Russia is extremely active in the South Caucasus, and its
role in regulating the “frozen conflicts” can hardly be disregarded.
It seems that European experts are now prepared to see the Caucasus as
an integrated region, not isolating the problems of the “independent”
South Caucasus from those of the Russian North Caucasus. But this
approach, which is shared by most Russian politicians and analysts,
is interpreted differently in Europe. The Europeans are saying that
Russia should not only abandon its exclusive political role in the
South Caucasus, but also open up the gates to European peacekeeping
in the North Caucasus.
For Russia, such an approach would be tantamount to admitting its own
incompetence as a state and in government. It isn’t clear exactly
what kind of solutions the countries of Europe are proposing to
Russia. Negotiations with the separatists? In the wake of the Beslan
school hostage siege and the death of Aslan Maskhadov, the “Ichkerian
movement” itself has experienced a severe crisis, becoming fragmented
and essentially giving up calls for secession from Russia. Even when
“Ichkerian President” Maskhadov was still alive, negotiating with him
was no more than a sweetly utopian European idea, since the reality
of Chechnya is such that no separatist leader had his authority
recognized by all the others. These days, the European view of the
Caucasus is a combination of obsolete impressions from the mid-1990s
(that is, the period of active military confrontation between the
federal government and the separatists).
All the same, Europeanization of the Caucasus region is a political
reality that we must learn to live with. We need to be able to defend
our vital national interests in language that is comprehensible in
terms of European political and legal thinking. We need to initiate
not only conservation, but also progressive development of the South
Caucasus countries, recognizing that stability in itself, without
progress, is impossible. Russia is the country that can teach the
Europeans to combine the schemes and formulas of legal theory with
Realpolitik in a rational way. Without that, long-lasting pacification
of the Caucasus is impossible.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress