Author: Emil Lazarian

Le ministre français de la Culture à Jérusalem pour un concert oecuménique
Agence France Presse
25 novembre 2004 jeudi 4:31 PM GMT
JERUSALEM 25 nov — Le ministre français de la Culture Renaud Donnedieu
de Vabres doit présider jeudi soir à Jérusalem un concert intitulé
“D’une seule voix” réunissant des choristes israéliens et palestiniens,
juifs, chrétiens et musulmans, ont indiqué les organisateurs.
Organisé par le producteur indépendant Jean-Yves Labat de Rossi avec le
soutien du ministère des Affaires étrangères français et du Consulat
général de France à Jérusalem, le concert réunit des voix de chacune
des trois grandes religions monothéistes.
Tous les artistes résident en Israël ou dans les territoires
palestiniens. Ils sont juifs ou arabes israéliens, musulmans ou
chrétiens palestiniens, latins, grecs, melkites ou arméniens.
En solo ou en groupe, ils chantent la même terre, la même ville,
Jérusalem, le même désir de vivre en paix.
Aucun répertoire ne permettant aux différents interprètes de chanter
ensemble, ils ont choisi les pièces les plus représentatives de leurs
expressions musicales respectives pour porter “d’une seule voix”
ce message de respect, de dignité et d’espérance.
M. Labat de Rossi a produit un disque de cette chorale, sorti en
France en 2003.
–Boundary_(ID_5IpXIwNNDBbpIRy02ETdmg)–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Secret memo deepens Thatcher link to coup plot
David Leigh and David Pallister
The Guardian
Saturday November 27, 2004
The Obiang regime in Equatorial Guinea yesterday jailed 11 foreign
mercenaries for up to 34 years, as documents surfaced further
implicating Mark Thatcher in a British-led coup attempt which has
caused international embarrassment.A long memo from the Old Etonian
mercenary Simon Mann, said to be at the heart of the plot, has been
seized by authorities in South Africa. A court there ruled this week
that Mark Thatcher will face trial in April.
The memo, written before the coup attempt, refers to “MT”, identified
to the South African prosecutors as Mr Thatcher by a key witness.
The document taken from the plotters’ computer says Mr Thatcher’s role
must be kept secret, or the coup would be at risk: “If involvement
becomes known, rest of us, and project, likely to be screwed as a
side-issue to people screwing him”.
Mann goes on to say that even if mercenaries succeeded in taking over
the oil-rich state, news of Mr Thatcher’s role “would particularly
add to a campaign post-event, to remove us”. He then emphasises:
“Ensure doesn’t happen.”
These disclosures follow the leak of phone records revealing Mr
Thatcher was also in contact with another of the alleged British
plotters, businessman Greg Wales, at a crucial moment before the
coup bid.
Mr Thatcher is facing a further five months on bail, reporting daily
to police from his suburban Capetown villa.
Mr Thatcher, who claims he thought he was financing a helicopter
for an air ambulance, gave an interview to Vanity Fair saying: “I
feel like a corpse that’s going down the Colorado river and there’s
nothing I can do about it.”
The Simon Mann memo now seen by the Guardian does not implicate the
British in the coup. Instead, in what seems to be a detailed plan
for a takeover, the ex-SAS officer seems preoccupied with getting US
backing, to prevent his mercenaries being chased out of Africa once
their role is discovered.
“We must follow plan to ensure that neither US government nor oil
companies feel that their interests are threatened.”
He says the US oil firms, who dominate Equatorial Guinea “must be
made to believe very fast that the thing is in their interest; their
staff safe; and that we are very powerful.”
In Equatorial Guinea yesterday, President Obiang’s regime drew back
from imposing death sentences. Nick du Toit, the South African arms
dealer who this month retracted a confession alleging torture, drew
a 34-year jail sentence.
Four other South Africans whom prosecutors said were mercenaries
received 17 years each in prison. Three others were acquitted.
Six Armenian air crew received jail terms of between 14 and 24
years each.
Would-be president Severo Moto was sentenced in absentia to 63
years. Eight other opposition exiles were similarly sentenced to 52
years each.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian leader names new deputy security chief
Arminfo
26 Nov 04
Yerevan, 26 November: Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has signed
a decree appointing Romik Arutyunyan as deputy head of the National
Security Service under the Armenian president, the press service of
the Armenian president has told Arminfo.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

FACTIONS LEADERS DISAGREE ON SENDING ARMENIAN CONTINGENT TO IRAQ
25.11.2004 18:36
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ G. Sahakian, the head of the Republican Party
of Armenia forming the ruling coalition, stated during today’s
press conference that not only he, but also all Armenian people
are against sending Armenian servicemen to Iraq. Representatives of
Justice and National Unity opposition blocs were also against the
sending while members of Dashnaktsutyun and Orinats Yerkir factions
refrained from expressing their opinion. To remind, on September 6,
2004 Armenian and Polish Presidents Robert Kocharian and Alexander
Kwasniewski signed an agreement on security cooperation according to
which Armenian contingent consisting of 50 medical officers, combat
engineers and drivers are to be sent to Iraq early next year to
join the coalition forced under the Polish command. Both Armenia and
Diaspora are seriously concerned over the issue since this measure
can jeopardize the security of the Armenian communities numbering
many thousands of people in Iraq and other Islamic counties.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Life behind bars in South Africa
By Raymond Whitaker
The Independent – United Kingdom
Nov 26, 2004
LAST CHRISTMAS, the recently widowed Baroness Thatcher enjoyed an
afternoon in the company of her son and some of his friends by the
sun-drenched pool of his luxury home in Cape Town.
Among them was a certain Simon Mann, and several other former crack
soldiers known to Sir Mark. The Iron Lady could have had no idea
that months later, some of those present would be desperately denying
involvement in a mercenaries’ plot to overthrow the dictatorship of
President Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea.
Sir Mark himself faces questioning regarding his alleged role. A
hearing scheduled for today has been postponed for two weeks. The
wait goes on.
But a year ago it was all so different. He and Mann were among the
elite of South African society, luxuriating in the tree-lined avenues
and gardens where as much fine wine sloshed around as there was water
in swimming polls. They had bought into a lifestyle. They had found
Constantia.
Since the demise of apartheid made South Africa fashionable, those
lured to Cape Town by the weather, the wine, the mountains and the
ocean – not to mention a cheap exchange rate – have wanted to live
in one place: Constantia. But they had to have money.
“What we have here is unique,” said a long-time resident as we sat by
his pool, and it was easy to see what he meant. Sheltered from the
south- easterly gales which batter the rest of the Cape Peninsula,
sycamores, planes and centuries-old oaks soar to the azure sky. All
the tracks found on the earliest maps have been preserved as bridle
paths, which wind across the valley untainted by any motor traffic.
Subdivision of properties is banned; in High Constantia, where
the minimum plot size is two acres, millionaires’ mansions form a
contour line of their own, with mountains behind and False Bay in
the distance. It is as though Beverly Hills has been transplanted to
San Francisco.
When the likes of Hugh Grant or Richard Branson are in town, this
is where they are to be found. It is just a pity that so many of
the expatriate crowd who settle here seem to be getting away from
something.
“You can buy a superb lifestyle here,” said the previously mentioned
resident. (Like everyone else I spoke to in this Nirvana, he did not
want to be quoted by name.) “Cape Town does not produce much wealth –
all the minerals and the big financial deals are up north – but this
is where they come to spend their money.”
The secret was long known to some in international high society,
but it began to leak out when Earl Spencer moved here in 1993, just
before South Africa’s first free election, and his royal sister was
seen around Constantia. By the time Mark Thatcher (as he was then)
arrived two years later, the rush was on. European and American
expatriates joined in, buying up languishing wine estates such as
Buitenverwachting and Steenberg and transforming them into luxury hotel
and golf complexes which just happened to produce fine wine as well.
It did not always do to ask where the money came from. One of the
biggest German property buyers in Constantia is in jail back in his
native land. And African dictators have turned up to buy mansions with
suitcases full of cash. Bizarrely, Sir Mark’s stunning home has as
neighbours properties owned by none other than President Obiang and
several other members of the Obiang clan.
The old inhabitants of the Constantia Valley watched with a mixture
of delight at the surging value of their houses, and horror at the
brashness of some of the newcomers. (“That’s the thing about this
place,” said one of them. “We seem to attract all the bad boys.”)
For Constantia has a long and rich history. It first became renowned
in Britain for its wine. The exiled Napoleon Bonaparte on St Helena
had a love of the sweet produce of the vineyards tucked away behind
Table Mountain. Vin de Constance did not maintain its pre-eminence
for long, however.
English tastes moved to sherry and Marsala, which could be shipped in
quantity over shorter sea routes, and by the 1870s Constantia’s fame
had ebbed. Eventually, the South African government had to take over
Groot Constantia, the oldest vineyard in the southern hemisphere, and
turn it into a national museum to stop it going down market or closing.
That has contributed, however, to the sylvan atmosphere which has
again given Constantia name-recognition in Britain and made it one
of the most desirable places to live on earth, attracting a new wave
of wealthy residents.
There was no doubt how Pam Golding, one of Cape Town’s leading estate
agents, felt about the influx of new residents. Shortly after she
sold Sir Mark his 15,000 sq ft house, she gushed: “Yes, Constantia
is a very prestigious address for him. We have all sorts of foreign
investors acquiring at the moment. The most popular ones are what I
call the gentleman’s country estate, with glorious manor houses and
villas. It’s really a millionaire’s pride and joy.”
But, despite the unstinted admiration of many Constantia-ites for his
mother, Mark did not gain automatic acceptance in local society. “We
weren’t impressed,” said a guest at a dinner party Ms Golding gave for
the new arrival. “What really left a sour taste was his boasting about
living the grand life in Cape Town and not having to pay any tax. It
was a very silly thing to say in front of complete strangers who did
have to pay their taxes.” Other rebuffs followed, most notoriously
his failure to gain membership of the Royal Cape Golf Club.
After a scheme to make loans to Cape Town policemen collapsed amid
rancour in 1998, his less-than-glorious past began to be raked up –
how he had left Harrow with three O-levels, failed his accountancy
exams three times, got lost in the Sahara, and decamped to Texas
following complaints about commissions gained in the Middle East
while his mother was prime minister.
Amid all the gleeful bitchiness – it was rumoured that he had first
come to the Cape when his mother sent him here as a teenager to clear
his spots, which had allegedly earned him the nickname “Scratcher” at
Harrow – perhaps it is not surprising that he began to look around for
new friends. If one “Constantia set” rejected him, he found another:
men who, like him, were happier talking about aircraft and fast cars
than world politics or the kind of Third World poverty you can observe
in Cape Town, if you emerge from the Constantia cocoon.
Though he carries himself with a ramrod military bearing, Sir Mark
has never been in the army. But most of his new friends had, notably
the one to whom he seems to have been closest. It is easy to imagine
that the former prime minister’s socially inept son found much to
admire in Simon Mann, an old Etonian his own age – they are both in
their early 50s – who served in the Guards and the SAS before making
a fortune in Africa with Executive Outcomes, the first of the private
military companies which have proliferated in the world’s trouble
spots. With his wealth he acquired a property in Constantia and an
estate in Hampshire.
During poolside barbecues Sir Mark met Mr Mann’s friend David Tremain,
an Anglo-South African and fellow Constantia resident who, like Sir
Mark, was engaged in dealmaking around Africa. There were also former
members of South Africa’s apartheid-era special forces who supplied
the bulk of Executive Outcomes’ muscle, such as Nick du Toit and
Crause Steyl.
Mr Mann was arrested at Harare airport in Zimbabwe with a cache of
arms. He had just met an aircraft which had arrived from Pretoria
with more than 60 former members of South Africa’s special forces
aboard. All were jailed for up to a year on immigration charges, while
Mr Mann is serving seven years for illegal arms buying. Mr du Toit,
seven other South Africans and six Armenian aircrew are on trial in
Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea, where they are due to hear
the verdicts today.
David Tremain, meanwhile, is said to have been on a light aicraft,
flown by Crause Steyl, which was flying to Equatorial Guinea. They
reached Mali before they learned that the coup had collapsed, and
turned back. Mr Tremain denies the allegations, but has not deemed
it prudent to return to South Africa to contest them.
Sir Mark, whose circle had left Constantia, was preparing to leave
himself. Under pressure from Diane to return to Texas, he put the
mansion on the market for just under pounds 2m – though not with Pam
Golding, locals have noticed. But on 25 August, just a day before
he was due to depart, he was arrested.
In the torrent of leaks, allegations and off-the-record briefings
which has poured out since, Ely Calil, a Lebanese-born oil trader
based in London, has been named as the mastermind of the plot,
which he denies. His friend, Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare, has
denied being the “JH Archer” listed as transferring money to one of
Mr Mann’s companies just before the attempted coup. And Sir Mark has
denied being the “Scratcher” named in an intercepted note smuggled
from prison by Mr Mann.
All the allegations will eventually be tested in court, but when and
where remains uncertain. In the meantime, Equatorial Guinea is enjoying
its moment in the spotlight, launching court actions in Britain against
alleged coup backers and in South Africa to question Sir Mark. It has
also charged him in absentia, and is talking of seeking extradition.
The South African authorities, determined to show that they no longer
tolerate mercenary activity, have charged him under the Foreign
Military Assistance Act. On Wednesday, Sir Mark lost a court bid to
stop Equatorial Guinea asking him questions, and is due to return
today to answer them. In a two-minute hearing yesterday at Wynberg
magistrate’s court, next to the police station where he has to report
every day, South Africa’s case against him was postponed until April.
Sir Mark is fighting alone. His passport has been impounded and he is
restricted to the Cape Peninsula area. His wife came back to Constantia
for a visit in October, but says the US school holidays are too short
to return for Christmas. Lady Thatcher, however, will arrive soon to
spend the festive season with him. It will be the first time she has
seen him since she put up his pounds 180,000 bail.
Outside the heavy gates of his thatched residence yesterday, Sir Mark
was all too aware that his legal problems could drag on. “I have heard
of some people waiting more than four years for a court date,” he said.
Although there had been “a lot of interest”, the house has not yet
been sold. He is now a reluctant partaker in the lifestyle that
is Constantia.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Following in the footsteps of Georgia, or Belarus?
The Messenger, Georgia
Nov 26 2004
As the first anniversary of the Rose Revolution passes, a situation
with many parallels to Georgia’s is developing in Ukraine. A liberal,
pro-Western leader with the backing of the majority of the population
loses the presidential election to the Moscow-backed prime minister
amid cries of election falsification. Thousands of people take to the
streets to protest the apparent electoral fraud, and the situation is
balanced on a knife-edge, between peaceful resolution and civil war,
and between Russia and the West.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian Central Election Committee announced the
official results of Sunday’s presidential election, giving pro-Moscow
prime minister Victor Yanukovych 49.46 and opposition leader Victor
Yushchenko 46.61 percent of the vote. However, Yushchenko points to
what he describes as widespread election violations in claiming that
he won the election, his arguments echoed by election observers and
supported by exit polls, which according to The Moscow Times give
Yushchenko 54 percent of the vote compared with 43 for Yanukovych.
The international community has responded in markedly different ways
to the election results. While President Vladimir Putin of Russia
congratulated Yanukovych on his victory even before the results were
announced; in Washington U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said
the United States would not accept the official result, adding that
“there will be consequences” for Ukraine. EU President Jose Manuel
Barroso echoed Powell’s comments, adding that the EU would “make our
position clear” with Putin at an EU-Russia summit on Thursday.
While there are many parallels with the situation in Georgia
twelve months ago, there are several differences, differences
which make the possibility of violence a more real threat. For one,
although Yushchenko appears to have the backing of the majority of
the electorate, Yanukovych also has a great deal of support: across
the whole of Eastern Ukraine the largely Russian-speaking population
support the prime minister’s pro-Moscow politics. Furthermore, Russia
is less prepared to see a pro-Western president in Ukraine, which
is a much larger country, and of greater strategic importance, given
that it stands between Russia and the European Union, than Georgia.
Given the importance of Ukraine, the current developments will have an
enormous influence both on Europe and post-Soviet space. A pro-Russian
president of Ukraine will strengthen President Putin’s position in
the region, while a pro-Western president, with opinions and aims not
dissimilar to Mikheil Saakashvili’s, will inevitably provide Georgia
with a natural ally. Ukraine has historically been a good friend of
Georgia (it was the only country to provide Georgia with aircraft
to ferry refugees out of Abkhazia during the Georgian-Abkhaz war)
and there are huge prospects of collaboration should their internal
and foreign policy priorities coincide.
The president is aware of this, and although in an interview on Tuesday
he said that he as president should maintain neutrality no matter what
his opinions, earlier in the day at the opening of Sameba Cathedral,
the president congratulated the people of Ukraine in their own language
(he speaks fluent Ukrainian from his student days in the country)
and wished them a happy future.
As Saakashvili also noted, some supporters of Yushchenko were
carrying Georgian flags, a sign that the Rose Revolution has set a
precedent of peaceful overthrow of corrupt regimes that they hope to
follow. Indeed, last November’s events in Tbilisi were very significant
for all post-Soviet countries, providing a possible answer to the
questions of what the opposition should do when the state authorities
manipulate election results, and how can the opposition force the
state authorities to retreat and give up.
However, there is no certainty that a Ukrainian ‘Chestnut Revolution’
will follow Georgia’s ‘Rose.’ After all, looking at other post-Soviet
countries, we can see that the same scenario did not happen in
neighboring Armenia, while in Belarus the issue was not even on the
agenda. The President of Kyrgyzstan Askara Kaev even dedicated a
whole book to formulating and defending against the threat posed by
the Georgian Rose Revolution for other post-Soviet countries.
Whether a chestnut revolution brings Yushchenko to power or not remains
to be seen. There is a real possibility that the opposition protests
could lead eventually to open conflict between the sides, which would
be a disaster for the country. As with Georgia, the eventual outcome
may depend more on the role played by external forces – by Russia
and the West.
It is precisely these external forces that are at the root of the
conflict, which is all about, in the end, whether Ukraine is to be
come an authoritarian, Russia-orientated country like Lukashenko’s
Belarus, or whether it is to tread the path, as Georgia hopes to do,
towards democracy and European integration.

Armenian MPs miss Baku-hosted NATO seminar on purpose – Azeri official
ANS TV, Baku
25 Nov 04
Presenter Armenian MPs have not joined the Rose-Roth seminar of NATO’s
Parliamentary Assembly .
Namiq Aliyev, captioned as the head of the Milli Maclis’s international
relations department, shown speaking to reporters As you know, two
Armenian MPs were expected to join the seminar. However, about 30
minutes before their flight from Moscow to Baku, they phoned the NATO
headquarters and said that they were not coming.
Correspondent What were the reasons for their refusal to come?
Aliyev I do not have information about this. But one can judge that
they did not come here because they were afraid of the topics the
seminar was going to discuss. They have nothing to say. They would
be asked about the Karabakh problem. So, they were afraid of this
and chose not to come.
We have talked to their representative. They said that they were
discrediting themselves. This is what they said, what a NATO
representative said. It was just a game. They wanted us to deny
them entry. They wanted to deal a blow to us in this way. But they
themselves got the blow in the end.

Al-Ahram Weekly, Egypt
Nov 25 – Dec 1, 2004
Way to go
It is now eight years since an innovative programme was set up in
Sinai to preserve and nurture the heritage of a local community.
Jenny Jobbins reports on the St Catherine’s Bedouin project
St Catherine’s new Visitor Centre
THIS IMAGE of the Archbishop of Sinai drinking tea with Bedouin in
the garden of the Monastery of Saint Catherine by Bruce White is
one of many unique photographs that grace a new publication from the
American University in Cairo Press. Saint Catherine’s Monastery: Sinai,
Egypt — a Photographic Essay is a handsome book on the Greek Orthodox
monastery and its buildings containing many newly-commissioned colour
photographs. The concise and informative text by Helen C Evans is
preceded by a special introduction by His Eminence Archbishop Damianos
of Sinai, abbot of the monastery. (Published by the Metropolitan
Museum of Art, New York. Distributed in Egypt by AUC Press)
Egypt’s national parks were set up primarily to protect the country’s
natural heritage. St Catherine’s, however, is also safeguarding a
historical and social legacy. The St Catherine’s Bedouin project is
centred at the small village near the famous monastery. It happens
to be the only town or village in Egypt to fall within a national
park, and its advantage of location places it in a special position
vis-ˆ-vis conservation.
When the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) established St
Catherine’s as a protected area, it found itself guardian not only
of the mountains of Sinai but also of the village that had grown up
round the Greek Orthodox monastery, largely peopled by the monastery’s
Bedouin servants and their dependents. Dozens of smaller settlements
also fell within the new park. And like the natural heritage which
the EEAA is fighting so hard to protect, the cultural inheritance
of the South Sinai Bedouin is under threat from the changes brought
about by modernisation and global shrinkage with its consequent influx
of tourists.
St Catherine’s National Park encompasses virtually all the mountainous
area of South Sinai, from the Taba-Mitla road in the north to the
borders of the Ras Mohamed National Park in the south, and from the
inner rim of the coastal plateau in the west to the Taba, Nabq and
Ras Abu Galum Managed Resource Areas in the east and north east (in
all the protected areas encompass 30 per cent of South Sinai). Its
establishment in 1996 came some time after the foundation of the
Ras Mohamed National Park, but while attention there was focussed
on ecosystems and aspects of protecting the coast and coral reefs
from mass diving and recreational fishing, it was realised that
St Catherine’s not only enveloped a stunning landscape and local
biodiversity, but also a huge number of prehistoric sites and a local
population whose way of life was under threat.
The St Catherine’s covers an area of 5,750 squared kilometres, or
20 per cent of South Sinai. It contains Egypt’s highest mountain,
St Catherine’s (2,624 m), as well as Mount Sinai — held sacred as
the place where Moses received the Ten Commandments — Mount Serbal,
Mount Um Shomer and Mount Tarbush. The mountains are composed of
igneous rock between 500 and 1,000 million years old — one of the
most violent periods of activity took place in the Pre-Cambrian era
about 800 million years ago. The towering granite crags overlooking
St Catherine’s Monastery are some of the oldest in the world.
The mountains enclose wadis (dry valleys) studded with acacias and
other vegetation, while higher in the rocks are clefts where water
gathers seasonally, forming pools and nurturing the variety of herbs
and desert shrubs from which the Bedouin draw nutritional supplements
and medicinal remedies. Forty- five per cent of all the plants in
Egypt are found in Sinai: of these 320 species 19 are unique to Sinai
(including a native primrose) and more than 100 have a medicinal use.
Wildlife includes the Nubian ibex, Dorcas gazelle, Striped hyena,
Red fox, Fennec fox, Wolf, Wild cat, Sinai leopard, Rock hyrax,
Rodents, Geckos, Skinks, Hedgehogs and Hares. There are 46 reptile
species, 15 of which are found nowhere else in Egypt, among them
two species of snake, the Sinai banded snake and the Innes cobra,
which are found only in the National Park. There are 150 species of
migrating birds, including about 40 raptor species. Sinai is also
home to the smallest butterfly in the world, the Sinai Baton Blue,
half the size of a fingernail and confined for eternity to the top
of one mountain since it cannot live below a certain altitude, and
its tiny wings cannot carry it as far as the next peak.
The growing popularity of the Red Sea coastal resorts and their
proximity to the monastery has resulted in increasing numbers of
visitors. Protecting the natural and cultural values of the area was
a primary goal in the declaration of the park. A parallel aim was to
enhance the quality of local tourism by promoting its environmental
and cultural aspects.
There are more than 500 historical sites and buildings in Sinai,
dating from the round stone nawamis built about 4,000 BC to structures
from the Bronze Age and Nabatean, Byzantine and Islamic periods. There
are abundant foundations of tombs, houses, storehouses, animal traps,
and evidence of copper smelting. The sites have yielded Bronze Age
jewellery and amulets and tools and pottery from all ages. In 2002
UNESCO declared St Catherine’s a World Heritage Site.
Visitors have long been drawn here. Overlooking the village is a
palace built by the Khedive Abbas II and still used as an official
rest house. Each day 1,000 people visit the St Catherine’s Monastery,
and it is hoped that the new Visitor Centre will encourage many of
them will pause there to learn more about the park and its resources.
To maximise public access, the centre has been built on the main road
close to the village. Designed by architect Hani Manyawi of Adapt
Egypt, and built in local materials by local labour, it is housed
in seven small buildings modelled on houses left in the area 2,000
years ago by Nabatean forebears. The simple buildings in local stone
blend both architecturally and spiritually into the surrounding crags.
Built into the complex is a model of the base of a Bronze Age house,
a small circle of large, flat stone slaps up-ended; these would have
been topped by poles supporting the upper walls and a roof of wood
or palm fronds.
The Visitor Centre took a year to build with funding support from the
EU. Entry is free of charge up to the end of the year, after which
it will cost three dollars for foreign visitors and three pounds
for Egyptians.
Mohamed Nada, a member of the EEAA’s enthusiastic and knowledgeable
team and administrator of the park’s Visitor Management Programme,
guided us round the Visitor Centre. The first of the six small halls
is the Reception room, which offers an explanation of the aims of
the park. From there a path leads to the Geological hall, where we
learn that the Red Sea cleft began to form 25 million years ago,
tearing Sinai from Africa, and that it still widens at the rate of a
centimetre a year. A fascinating geological column in the hall gives
geological timelines and a stylised representation of the rocks,
including the grey granite which formed 800 million years ago and
red granite from 200 million years later.
Birdsong erupts as the door of the next hall is opened. This section
features wildlife, including the Baton Blue Butterfly, and shows the
workings of the camera traps the EEAA has placed in the park. The
trap mechanism triggers a flash — a literal shot in the dark — and
have captured on film among other animals Ibex, Gazelle, Ruppell’s
sand fox, the Fennec fox and Striped hyena.
Local history is featured in another hall, and the Monastery in
another. Here a model of the complex is painted in pastel shades to
represent the periods of construction. A sanctuary was originally
founded here by Queen Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, on
the spot considered to be where Moses came across the burning bush
— the supposed bush is carefully tended in an inner courtyard. The
monastery was built 200 years later — between 527 and 565 — by
the Emperor Justinian to house the remains of St Catherine, who was
martyred in 315 in Alexandria but whose perfectly preserved body (a
sign of her holiness) had only recently been found on the summit of
the nearby mountain which afterwards bore her name. St Catherine’s
may be the oldest continuously inhabited monastery in the world, and
is the second largest repository for illuminated manuscripts after
the Vatican. The collection contains some 3,500 volumes in Greek,
Coptic, Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew, Slavic, Syriac and Georgian. In
the early part of the 11th century the monks escaped the persecution
of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Hakim by incorporating a small mosque into
the complex.
The Bedouin cultural hall contains photographs, costumes and musical
instruments illustrating the lives led by the members of the local
communities. Most of the Bedouin in the area belong to the Jabaliya
tribe, whose original members were installed by the Emperor Justinian
to guard and serve the new monastery. The main local occupation now is
tourism. The Jabaliya and other Bedouin work as tour guides on camel
safaris, one reason why they are keen to preserve their wild animals,
birds and flora.
Local knowledge works both ways. Since the visitor programme involves
the local community, it enhances their awareness of their locality and
this proves useful when they are guiding visitors or archaeologists.
Many members of the community, such as the Community Guards, receive
a salary from the EEAA. The park also employs a dozen rangers from
various backgrounds ranging from a geologist through an anthropologist,
biologists and entomologists to a business studies graduate. They help
run the Bedouin Support Programme, which comprises nine sections:
health, veterinary services, community guards, traditional crafts,
the acacia programme, dam construction, the wildlife and botany
monitoring programme, visitor management and the awareness education
programme. In just one example of the project’s effect, the landscape
management plan — which incorporates the dam construction and clean
water projects — has successfully reduced the number of stone quarries
in operation from 72 to 24.
About 7,000 people live around St Catherine’s. While the largest
number belong to the Jabaliya tribe, others are from the Muzeina,
Gharaja, Sawalha, Aligheit, Awlad Said and Beni Hassan. All are Arabs
— that is, coming originally from the Saudi Peninsula — apart from
the Jabaliya, who were brought to Sinai from the vicinity of Macedonia
in the sixth century to provide security and service to the monks at
the new monastery. Over the generations the Jabaliya married members
of other tribes and gradually converted from Christianity to Islam,
but continued to work at St Catherine’s Monastery.
The park’s founders believed that a sustainable project must have a
built-in source of revenue, and that local support was essential. The
EU’s then representative, John Grainger, deemed it important to
ascertain the Bedouins’ needs, and in 1996 members of the seven local
tribes assembled for a meeting with environmentalists to discuss what
role they might play in the new national park. They asked for dams,
health care, and a women’s craft centre.
The health programme has proved extremely beneficial. A doctor with
a mobile 4×4 clinic travels to all 77 settlements in the park in
rotation, visiting each one every 45 days. Under the women’s health
education programme, women from each settlement are trained to train
others in community nursing and health care. Each representative is
responsible for the rest of the women in her settlement. The veterinary
programme has also proved effective in the care of livestock. All
camels are now inoculated and numbered.
The dam construction — through which rain water is chanelled and
collected to minimise wastage — and acacia rehabilitation projects
involve a large local workforce. Acacias have been so over-harvested
that the lush groves pruned of dead growth for firewood are a thing
of the past. With the aim of regenerating this essential resource,
seeds are collected and, once generated, are replanted in chosen
spots. So far 34,000 seedlings have been planted.
The medicinal plant programme — funded separately by the United
Nations Development Project (UNDP) –runs in cooperation with the
EEAA in growing medicinal plants for local use. Training is given in
cultivating, packaging and marketing the plants, while at the same time
Bedouin and ethno- pharmacologists cooperate in correlating indigenous
knowledge. Fifty-five families work on the acacia and flora programmes.
“The Bedouin themselves are natural conservationists, it’s part
of their heritage,” says Youssreya Hamid, an anthropologist with a
Master’s degree in sustainable development from South Bank University,
London. “They have a system of alliance through which they protect
wild plants and animals. They will close a certain valley for three
to six months to prevent grazing until it has regrown, to respect
sustainability. The health, craft, human and animal medical and acacia
programmes have all been well received by the Bedouin.”
Bedouin are also occupied in tourism, from running and guiding camel
and wilderness camping safaris to operating accommodation services.
These include five hotels, two main tourist camps and the St
Catherine’s Ecolodge, also built to a Nabatean design and run by a
Bedouin cooperative under EEAA supervision. Twenty-six experienced
Bedouin work as Community Guards, policing the wilderness to watch
out for infringements of EEAA rules.
Of all the projects at St Catherine’s, perhaps the best known outside
the park is the women’s cooperative. The 40 women who were initially
involved started with traditional items such as scarves, beading,
necklaces and sugar bags, but gradually they modified these ideas
into fashionable, marketable items. In 2000 the traditional programme
became a separate project under the name of Fansina. Now 350 women
are marketing their handicrafts here and internationally. They still
prefer to work with the raw materials at home in the time-honoured way.
British textile artist Sally Hampson was involved from the very early
stages. “My job was to see what the women were already making and how
they were accessing materials and selling their projects,” Hampson
says. “What was happening was that the women would make things and
the men would be working close to the people at the monastery and
taking tourists on treks, and they would sell them the things the
women made. It was all very ad hoc. When this programme was set up
the women showed a desire for support in their textile production.”
Hampson’s job was to assess what was going on and find out how the
system worked. She had to become acquainted with the crafts including
some unfamiliar to her, such as beadwork.
“The most pressing need they had was accessing materials, and because
of where they were they depended on passing traders — men selling
household goods and sometimes carrying wool and sewing thread. The
women were in the hands of what these vans had on board. The variety
and quality wasn’t there. It seemed important to give the women access
to good quality materials, like colourfast cotton.”
Some of the first items they sewed together were the embroidered sugar
bags they made for their husbands, sons and brothers to take on their
trips into the mountains to graze flocks or gather herbs. The bags
were of white cotton and had a little inside pocket for the tea. “They
drew their inspiration for their embroidery from their surroundings,”
Hampson says. “They stitched little desert plants, camels and other
animals, stars and the sun, fish and flowers, both stylised and
abstract. Tourists wanted to buy them, and it evolved from there.
“I was trying to get them to work with good materials but keep the
narrative. For tourists this becomes part of the story they bring
home — it isn’t just an anonymous bag.”
Everything the women made had a reason and a purpose. “It’s not
that they can just knock up this and that. I was very cautious about
not dictating the design. I know I had things to offer because as a
Westerner I had sensibilities for the people who buy this, so I was
trying the bridge the two. But for myself, I want something genuine.”
A Bedouin woman’s dress is a sign of her social standing, her hairstyle
of her age or marital status. Every unmarried Bedouin girl, for
instance, sports a lock across her forehead, but this is substituted
by a plait in an elderly woman. Married women of the Jabaliya tribe
wear a black shawl ( Al-ghurna ), unmarried girls a white one ,
( Al-malfah ). A married woman wears a long face veil ( Al-burgah
), a bride a short one until she has had her first child. In North
Sinai women wear an open veil, a beaded breastplate ( Al-mallab ),
and metal accessories given by her husband in the first months of
her married life.
Hamid stresses the strong position held by women in Bedouin society.
“From my point of view women are equal to men,” she says. “Each has
her own job, and the women keep their own money.”
While the craft programme has brought new economic strength for the
women, the health programme has also brought benefits, improving
maternity services and reducing the infant mortality rate.
Hamid, a native of Alexandria, has worked at St Catherine’s since 1998,
taking a year off to study in London. She also teaches environmental
education to children at the 30 primary and local secondary schools
within the protected area. As part of the educational programme, a
traditional healer teaches the children how to find, recognise and use
plants. Bedouin knowledge is thus being used to protect the natural and
cultural resources of the area, and transferred down the line. “Being
forgotten because of the interaction with other cultures would be a
tragedy,” Hamid says. “It needs to be transferred to new generations.”
In eight years the EEAA’s care and intervention has meant a great deal
to the area, and the local Bedouin are backing the programme to the
hilt. The village, though founded on the pickings of the monastery,
has taken up a mantle of its own.
However St Catherine’s Park is constantly growing and taking shape.
The national parks recently made the transition from EU to Egyptian
stewardship, and one of the services disrupted by the changeover has
been the Bedouin-staffed mountain rescue service, temporarily suspended
because of logistical use of equipment, notably mobile phones. But
the park staff see such blips are minor. “The programme is working
well, and it serves as an inspiration and a model for similar areas
in Egypt and elsewhere,” Nada says.
–Boundary_(ID_6EHs31K0IPlwk7J7cLVG6w)–

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
11/24/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Azerbaijan's Divisive Campaign at UN Threatens to Derail Karabagh Peace Process 2) Congress Finalizes FY 2005 Foreign Aid Bill 3) UN Vote On Pro-Azeri Karabagh Resolution Delayed 4) Turkey. Cultural Genocide 5) 'Beast on the Moon' to Debut on Broadway 6) Tribute to Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian 7) Gorky Expert Discusses Influence of Armenian Culture, Genocide on Artist's Work 1) Azerbaijan's Divisive Campaign at UN Threatens to Derail Karabagh Peace Process Rep. Pallone speaks out against destructive UN resolution; ANCA leads grassroots campaign to urge the administration to oppose destabilizing measure WASHINGTON, DC--On Tuesday, the ANCA issued an appeal to Secretary of State Colin Powell urging him to "strenuously and publicly oppose" an Azeri-sponsored United Nations resolution, which would seriously undermine the Mountainous Karabagh peace process. The action follows a strongly worded November 19 House floor statement by Congressional Armenian Caucus co-chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and an earlier joint letter by the Armenian Caucus Co-chairs calling the resolution "ill-advised" and urging the US to take decisive action against the measure. Azerbaijan has pressed forward with its resolution, which seeks to condemn the repatriation of Armenians to their ancestral homes in Mountainous Karabagh, despite opposition from the Co-Chairs of the Organization for Security and cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group. The co-chairs have noted that, "introducing this issue to the United Nations General Assembly may have two negative consequences. In light of the situation we have outlined, this will be detrimental to the efforts to find a just and lasting settlement of the issue, particularly at this time. Secondly, it will fail to achieve consensus, a situation that will not be helpful. We advise avoiding this situation." Azeri Ambassador to the UN, Yashar Aliyev, began lobbying in support of the resolution on October 14, the day that he submitted a letter requesting that it be included on the UN General Assembly agenda. Both the UN General Committee and General Assembly have voted to allow the matter to be considered. The United States, along with Minsk Group Co-Chairs France and Russia, have abstained on both votes. In his November 19 remarks, Rep. Pallone expressed alarm that "the United States has thus far failed to compellingly address the resolution…This failure by the Administration now has the potential to undermine US interests and American values in the strategically important Caucasus region." The November 7 letter from the Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone and Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) raised similar concerns, stressing that, "efforts to reinforce stability and reduce the risk of conflict are in the best interests of the US and the South Caucasus region. To this end, we urge that the United States forcefully renounce this proposal, secure its retraction, and impress upon the Azeri government that it should drop such counter-productive tactics in favor of a serious and lasting commitment to the OSCE Minsk Group process." In the days leading up the vote, ANCA chapters around the country have mobilized local activists to urge the US Ambassador to the United Nations to actively oppose the Azeri measure. The ANCA launched a free WebFax campaign on its website-- Secretary Powell and US Ambassador to the UN John Danforth, calling for an unequivocal "no" vote on the resolution. The WebFax letter explains that Azerbaijan's resolution "works at cross-purposes to America's interests, which are best served by continued dialogue. In fact, the only interests served by Azerbaijan's resolution will be those of hardliners in Baku who seek the fragmentation of the OSCE framework, the unraveling of ten year's worth of negotiations, and the resumption of hostilities in the region...The United States, as a co-chair of the Minsk Group and an honest broker to the negotiating process, should strenuously, and publicly oppose this measure at every stage." 2) Congress Finalizes FY 2005 Foreign Aid Bill Reverses administration's effort to break military aid parity for Armenia and Azerbaijan; fails to include Schiff amendment on the Armenian genocide WASHINGTON, DC--The United States Congress this past weekend adopted an Omnibus spending measure including several provisions of special interest to Armenian Americans--including the reversal of a White House proposal to tip the balance of US military aid toward Azerbaijan. The Bush Administration, in the budget it submitted to Congress in February of this year, had proposed sending four times more Foreign Military Financing to Azerbaijan ($8 million) than to Armenia ($2 million). The final version of the foreign aid bill, adopted on November 20 during a lame duck session of Congress, sets the total military aid figures, including three quarters of a million dollars in International Military Education and Training, for both nations at $8.75 million. "It is absolutely critical that the US maintain parity in military assistance to Armenia and Azerbaijan," commented Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman Joe Knollenberg (R-MI). "This is as important as ever, particularly in light of the ongoing dangerous comments by Azeri leaders. I am fully committed to ensuring that this policy continues." Congress--at the urging of Senator Mitch McConell (R-KY) and Rep. Knollenberg, both of whom serve as senior members of their respective chamber's foreign aid subcommittees--earmarked at least $75 million in economic aid for Armenia and an additional $3 million for Mountainous Karabagh. Subcommittee member Steve Rothman (D-NJ) welcomed the final numbers, stating "Armenia, as an emerging democracy with a developing free market economic system, needs continued US assistance to accomplish its objectives: regional peace and stability, a successful transition to a free market economy and a flourishing democracy. I will continue to work with the Administration to push Azerbaijan and Turkey to lift their blockades against Armenia, which are placing oppressive and unjustifiable obstacles in the path of Armenia's continued growth and development." "Armenian Americans value the foresight and vision of Congress in restoring military aid parity, setting a $75 million earmark for Armenia, and continuing direct aid to Mountainous Karabagh," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "Senator McConnell, Congressman Knollenberg and all our friends deserve a great deal of credit for their tireless efforts on this spending measure. We were, at the same time, disappointed that Congressional leaders failed to respect the clearly expressed will of the US House in adopting the Schiff Amendment. In failing to include this provision in the final version of the bill, Congress missed an opportunity to send a clear message to Turkey that the US government will not tolerate its shameful denial of the Armenian genocide." The restoration of military aid parity by the Congress was identified by the ANCA in early 2004 as a major legislative priority following the President's budget request breaking the standing agreement between the White House and the legislative branch that military assistance to Armenia and Azerbaijan remain equal. Following the bill's passage Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ) cited the importance of maintaining military aid parity. "Even though the President waived Section 907 in FY 2002, its principles and the commitments that were made at that time still remain fundamental to US policy towards the South Caucuses. Moreover, because Azerbaijan continues its blockade of Armenia, it is more important than ever for maintaining Foreign Military Funding parity between these two nations." The House version of the foreign aid bill, adopted this July, included a strongly worded amendment, authored by Rep. Adam Schiff, on the Armenian genocide. This measure, approved as an amendment by voice vote on the House floor, aimed to restrict the government of Turkey from using any of the aid it receives from this appropriation to lobby against the adoption of the Congressional Genocide Resolution. The Senate version did not include a counterpart to the Schiff Amendment, nor did the final text that emerged from House-Senate deliberations. Rep. Schiff commented on the removal of the provision from the final bill stating: "Generations of Americans have long waited for Congress to condemn the murder of 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children. Even though the Schiff amendment was not enacted into law, its passage by the House in July was a seminal moment in the effort to recognize the Armenian genocide. While I had hoped that this would be the year Congress would formally speak against the evil perpetrated against the Armenian people almost ninety years ago, we will redouble our efforts in the next year to pass the Schiff Amendment as well as legislation recognizing and condemning all genocides." 3) UN Vote On Pro-Azeri Karabagh Resolution Delayed UNITED NATIONS (RFE/RL-Reuters)--Azerbaijan urged the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to intervene in a long and bitter territorial dispute with neighboring Armenia over the Mountainous Karabagh region. But France, Russia, and the United States, which have been trying to resolve the dispute on behalf of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, asked the assembly to stay on the sidelines and not interfere with their efforts. Azerbaijan has repeatedly accused them of doing little to restore its control over Karabagh. Talks "can only progress in an atmosphere of confidence between the parties. Anything in the direction of building confidence and of avoiding a division of the General Assembly is helpful," said US envoy Susan Moore, speaking on behalf of the OSCE initiative led by Paris, Moscow, and Washington. Azerbaijan's foreign minister, Elmar Mammadyarov, said his government had decided to take the issue to the General Assembly because Armenia was pursuing an "illegal settlement policy" by flooding the disputed area with Armenians, with an eye to annexing the enclave. He called on the assembly to adopt a resolution affirming its "continued strong support" for Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and the right of Azeri refugees to return to their former homes in the enclave. The allegations were rebutted by Armen Martirosian, Armenia's ambassador at the UN. He reportedly reiterated the Armenian position that the seven districts in Azerbaijan proper were occupied as a result of Azerbaijan's attempts to win back Karabagh by force and that their return is conditional on a comprehensive peace accord. He also charged that Azerbaijan itself pioneered ethnic cleansing in the conflict by unleashing pogroms of its ethnic Armenian citizens in 1988-90. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, for his part, warned on Tuesday that the passage of the pro-Azeri resolution would reverse progress which he said he and Mammadyarov made during peace talks earlier this year. The assembly put off a vote on the draft resolution until an unspecified later date. 4) Turkey. Cultural Genocide Calendar documents destruction of Armenian Churches The Research on Armenian Architecture (RAA) organization has published a 2005 calendar depicting the fate of Armenian churches in Turkey, which stood intact at the turn of the of the 20th century, but stand effectively leveled today. The RAA uncovers and researches Armenian architectural monuments in the territory of historical Armenia--primarily Western Armenia and Cilicia, and in the neighboring countries of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Nakhichevan, and Iran. Their goal is to take photographs and map existing strictures in order to rescue them on paper, and present Armenian public and international community--before ultimate eradication. The RAA began its activities at the end of the 1960s, and was established in Germany in 1982. In 1998, it registered and operates as a non-profit organization in Armenia. More detailed information on their activities can be found on 5) 'Beast on the Moon' to Debut on Broadway NEW YORK--Art has once again come to the aid of the Armenian Cause, this time in the form of a play called Beast on the Moon. The beautiful and gripping story by Richard Kalinoski, about two survivors who settle in the United States and seek to start a family in the wake of the genocide of their past, powerfully discloses the true nature of the events of 1915. The play--honored by the American Theatre Critics Association in 1996--has been performed in 16 nations, translated into 11 languages, and won more than 40 awards around the world. Producers of the developing New York production of Kalinoski's play are now aiming the work at Broadway in 2005. On November 12, in New York City, producer David Grillo of Stillwater Productions, spoke at a workshop meant to attract the remaining investors needed to stage Beast on the Moon this spring. The American play about Armenian immigrants still dealing with the shadows of the 1915 Armenian genocide--even as they face hope and opportunity in their new home in Milwaukee"is an absolutely universal tale of love as a healing tool in the aftermath of wartime loss," remarked Grillo. Armenian-Americans will be doubly compelled to see this play. On a purely human level, the audience must grapple with the complexity of how love enables the most deeply unexpressed feelings to emerge and be potentially healed, while an Armenian audience will connect with the pathos of what many grandparents and great-grandparents endured as they struggled to construct a life in the aftermath of witnessing the vicious destruction of their families. The work, billed as "a love story, and an American immigrant story," is set in 1921 Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mr. Aram Tomasian first greets Mrs. Seta Tomasian as a fifteen year-old girl, who has been rescued from Armenia to live as his mail-order bride. As these two very different people go through twelve years of marriage, they confront the challenge of merging their opposite approaches to managing grief. Seta, open and talkative, strives to deal with the loss of her family by sharing with her husband. Fiercely determined to replace his slaughtered family by producing children of his own, Aram is quiet and brooding. Because of the starvation she experienced as a refugee, Seta is unable to bear children. Their relationship comes to an impasse; yet through the darkest moments, it is clear that the marriage is infused with deep love and need for one another. The couple befriends a young Italian orphan boy, whom Seta has welcomed in her home and Aram grows to love. By the play's end, Aram sheds some of his rigidity, and thanks to his extraordinary young wife, discovers the possibility of happiness. By supporting this play, Armenian-Americans will participate in a form of activism guaranteed to be deeply enriching on many levels. Members of the audience will reflect on how love enables traumatized individuals to regenerate their lives through building a family, while they will learn about one of the greatest injustices of the twentieth century. "So much appeals to me about Beast that it is hard to find a place to begin," Grillo previously told Playbill On-Line. "It is an extraordinarily challenging drama with a surprising number of well-earned laughs. The play takes its audiences through an emotional cataclysm and delivers them, at its finish, to joyful redemption. I don't like plays that ask me to jump through emotional hoops and then leave me beaten up by the side of the road. Beast is redemptive. The journey is hard, but one for which the audience is enormously grateful." To learn more about Beast on the Moon, visit <; For those interested in possibly investing in its Broadway production, contact the producer David Grillo at 212-541-4502 or at [email protected]. 6) Tribute to Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian By Anahid M. Ugurlayan An enlarged color photograph of Archbishop Ashjian holding a lamb at the center of the stage near the podium was the setting for what would prove to be an emotional evening. As Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan would later explain, the lamb was a sacrificial one, but Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian had asked that its life be spared and helped take care of it until it grew to be a sheep. A small gesture, perhaps, but it is one that exemplifies Archbishop Ashjian's kindness and charity that would be highlighted throughout the evening. Family, friends, and supporters of the late Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian, who passed away on December 2, 2003, gathered at St. Peter's Church in New York to honor and pay tribute to him. The tribute was organized by the Special Committee of the New York Chapter of the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society under the leadership of Chairperson Arevig Caprielian and under the auspices of Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Armenian Apostolic Church of Eastern US. The program commenced with a video of Archbishop Ashjian's pilgrimage to Western Armenia--vivid images of centuries-old churches destroyed or left to nature's devices with no effort on the part of the Turkish government to preserve Armenia's cultural heritage--Archbishop Ashjian praying for the souls of deceased relatives of pilgrimage-goers. After the video presentation, Arevig Caprielian delivered the opening remarks, welcoming all in attendance and reminding them of Archbishop Ashjian's innumerable achievements for the Church and the Armenian people around the world, especially as the Prelate of Eastern United States and Canada for 20 years and in Armenia, his home during the last six years of his life. Dr. Herand Markarian, the master of ceremonies, remarked that those who mourn the passing of Archbishop Ashjian are also "carriers of his memory," and that his spirit is ever-present as long as "we as a nation live his memory." Dr. Markarian introduced the video, Life and Times of Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian: Road of Achievements, which was shown in two parts. In the first part, His Eminence speaks of the importance of faith--how it guides to become a source of strength in one's life, without which the meaning of life would be lost. He speaks of his childhood and his parents, both orphans of the 1915 Armenian genocide, who instilled strong Armenian values and the spirit of the Church, which would serve as the foundation for his future religious studies. Archbishop Ashjian recounts his theological studies and his service to the community as Dean of the Monastery in Bikfaya, Beirut, as Principal of the Mardikian School in Antelias, Lebanon, as Prelate of New Julfa/Isfahan in Iran, and, finally, as the Prelate of the Eastern United States and Canada for twenty years (1978-1998). As Prelate of the Eastern United States and Canada, his achievements included founding the Land and Culture Organization and educating Armenian youth about Armenian history and religion through the Siamanto Saturday program and the Datevatsi Seminars in Philadelphia each year in July. The video presentation also included excerpts of the 70th anniversary commemoration of the Armenian genocide in Washington, DC, where 800 genocide survivors were in attendance, his placing of a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in honor of Armenian-Americans who served in the military from WWI to the present, as well as a speech on Armenian Independence Day where he spoke as both a clergyman and a patriot, championing our national independence. Despite Archbishop Ashjian's humble demeanor, viewing himself first and always as God's servant, his many achievements and his spiritual guidance left a lasting impression on all who knew and worked with him. One of these individuals, the Honorable Sarkis Teshoian, delivered the English message and spoke of his dear friend, brother, and leader. Judge Teshoian, who served as chairman of the Prelacy's Executive Council during Archbishop Ashjian's tenure in New York, recounted episodes from his many visits with the Archbishop, recalling his wise counsel and his insatiable thirst for knowledge, having authored numerous articles and at least three dozen books in Armenian and English. He spoke of how Archbishop Ashjian's faith, hope, and love were evident in his unwavering commitment to the Church and his parishioners. The program continued with a heartfelt rendition of "Nor Dzaghig" and "Yegeghetsin Haygagan" by mezzo soprano Hasmik Meikhanedjian, accompanied by pianist/organist Janet Marcarian. Following the musical portion of the program, the second part commenced with a video presentation of Archbishop Ashjian's work in Armenia. This chapter of his life began when His Holiness Karekin I Catholicos of All Armenians' offered, and His Eminence later accepted, the position of the Executive Director for the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia. Among his memorable achievements from this commemoration included his organized pilgrimages to Western Armenia to help reintroduce Armenians to their usurped homeland. At one point, His Eminence asks: "How can we celebrate the 1700th anniversary of our Christianity and not visit our homeland?" Among the numerous historic sites Serpazan visited was the Tiridates Stone, where St. Gregory baptized King Tiridates as the first Christian king of Armenia in 301 AD, and is especially noteworthy given that Serpazan presided over the commemorative events marking the 1700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia. Archbishop Ashjian also visited his mother's birthplace, Havav. In a private ceremony of symbolic unification of Sevan and lake Van, he poured water bought from Sevan into the lake Van, and returning to Armenia, he poured "Vana jur" into Sevan. In addition, His Eminence officiated at an Armenian wedding ceremony at Aghtamar's Holy Cross Church. The sound of Armenian prayers was heard once again at this church and among the ruins of other churches and monasteries deserted during the genocide. One wonders what will become of these churches and monasteries in Serpazan's absence. While tending to his duties for the 1700th anniversary of the Armenian Church, Archbishop Ashjian diligently embarked on his charitable work, including the baptism of thousands of adults and children, the renovation of the St. Gevorg of Moughni church and monastery, the building of the Terchounian orphanage in Gyumri, and the publishing of hundreds of historical and literary books. In the video, the pastor of the St. Gevorg of Moughni church recounts how Archbishop Ashjian revitalized the village through the renovation of the church, the building of a community center and other significant improvements. He notes that His Eminence's devotion was not forgotten by the villagers who, when learning of His Eminence's passing, renamed the main street of their village "The Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian poghots." Moreover, the local residents collected $300 and hosted another "hokejash" in his memory on Merelots after Easter Sunday. The video continued with Archbishop Ashjian speaking of his last published book, The Etchmiadzin Chronicles, written on the occasion of the 1700th Anniversary of the Armenia's adoption of Christianity, comprising excerpts of travel journals of those who visited Etchmiadzin over the centuries. Notably, His Eminence spoke of a flower that was mentioned by one of the travelers who visited Etchmiadzin and how the uniqueness of the flower spurred Serpazan to embark on a determined and eventually successful search for it. In fact, the invitation to the evening's Memorial Tribute included a photo of Archbishop Ashjian holding a bunch of the coveted flowers--Iris Elegantissima. The touching nature of this photo is heightened when one learns that this was the last photo taken of Archbishop Ashjian in Armenia. Indeed, the photo reflects both the beauty of Armenia and Archbishop Ashjian's spirit. As His Eminence speaks, one could sense the joy and satisfaction he felt in helping to preserve Armenian culture, as well as improving Armenia's social condition. The video presentation was followed by a message delivered in Armenian by Dr. Ashot Melkonian, Director of the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia. Dr. Melkonian spoke of Archbishop Ashjian's tireless charitable and scholarly work in Armenia and how he regarded Archbishop Ashjian as an invaluable mentor and a friend. Dr. Melkonian, who is a native of Javakhk, Georgia, explained that Archbishop Ashjian was the first clergyman to visit Javakhk in over 20 years and bless the inhabitants. Appropriately, the townspeople considered Archbishop Ashjian's visit one of great significance--as if he were a Catholicos for them. Dr. Melkonian also spoke of a young man's future rescued by Archbishop Ashjian during his visit to a prison. His Eminence baptized the young man, offered him guidance, and provided a home for his family, asking only one thing in return: that he lead a good life and attend church each Sunday. Since then, the young man attends mass at Holy Etchmiadzin each Sunday and visits Archbishop Ashjian's library at the National Academy. Dr. Melkonian recounted how this story illustrates Archbishop Ashjian's view of humanity, namely that everyone is equal in the eyes of God. The personal memories of Archbishop Ashjian continued by Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, who also delivered the benediction. Archbishop Choloyan reminisced of days as a student at the Seminary where he met His Eminence and their enduring friendship, but also touched on the great loss that his death represents for the Church, the Holy See and the Armenian community. He noted that His Eminence's memory will live on, adding that St. Nerces "Parekordzagan" Organization, an organization that helps support orphans of the Karabagh war and other needy children, would be renamed as the "Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian Organization." The program concluded with the singing of "Cilicia" and Archbishop Ashjian's last message in which he spoke of how Christ helped everyone, regardless of social status and age, and how all of us should strive to find the good in all people. In addition, photos of His Eminence were shown on the screen, as well as the final photo of him waving goodbye as he descended a hill in Western Armenia--a symbolic farewell to the Armenian people and historic land. Archbishop Ashjian's work and accomplishments are too numerous too recount--from serving as Dean of the Cilician Seminary, as the principal of the Mardikian School, to Executive Secretary of the 1700th commemorative events of Christianity of Armenia, to his ecumenical appointments such as member of the World Council of Churches' Faith and Order Commission. The sense of shock of Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian's sudden death remains profound and is heightened by watching him in the video, as one could not help but feel that he was still among us. Yet his spirit remains and will endure, and his vocational achievements and charitable work are surpassed only by his boundless humanity. Archbishop Ashjian will forever serve as a role model for all Armenians and as a shining example of the unrelenting resolve of the Armenian people to triumph against all odds. 7) Gorky Expert Discusses Influence of Armenian Culture, Genocide on Artist's Work WASHINGTON, DC--Renowned art historian and specialist on Arshile Gorky, Dr. Melvin Lader, presented his insights at a public lecture at the Armenian Embassy sponsored by the Greater Washington DC Chapter of the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society and under the auspices of the Ambassador and Mrs. Arman Kirakossian. A standing-room-only crowd of over 150 people gathered on November 5 to hear Dr. Lader's talk and slide presentation, titled "Arshile Gorky: the Case of an Unlikely Modernist." Dr. Lader, a professor of art history at George Washington University, is a respected authority on the works of abstract expressionist pioneer Arshile Gorky, having lectured and published extensively on the life and works of the artist. He most recently curated (with Janice C. Lee) an exhibition of Gorky's drawings at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and the Menil Collection in Houston in 2004. Drawing on his research of Gorky's work, the artist's writings as well as side-by-side visual comparisons, Dr. Lader highlighted various influences in Gorky's life that were eventually reflected in the artist's work. These included memories of Gorky's childhood in Khorkom (a village near Lake Van in Armenia), color and imagery from Armenian Christian art, Gorky's haunting sufferings and loss of family during the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923, and his feelings of exile after coming to America. He also cited the influence of other artists such as Cezanne and surrealist Joan Miro. In referring to Gorky's famous Portrait of the Artist and His Mother, Dr. Lader states, "Alone in New York, the memory of his mother, her tragic death, and the genocide weighed heavily on his mind. And he undoubtedly conceived of the painting as a tribute to his mother and her role in his life. As such, it was the first major work he created descending from his Armenian memories which would become a central theme in most of his mature art." The formal presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period and reception in the Embassy, during which Dr. Lader responded to specific inquiries from the audience. In his opening remarks, Amb. Kirakossian stated, "I want to thank Hamazkayin for organizing this event. Obviously we have good cooperation with this society of dedicated people who are doing all their best to preserve Armenian culture." He went on to acknowledge Dr. Lader's contributions to the study of this pioneer in American art. "Dr. Lader's engaging talk brought to light the profound impact of Gorky's Armenian experience on his art, and by extension its impact on expressionism in general," stated Maggie Simonian, Chairwoman of the Hamazkayin Washington Chapter. "We are pleased to have been able to bring Dr. Lader's insights and research to the community and thank the Armenian Embassy for their gracious hospitality and collaboration in this event." Founded in 1928, the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society is dedicated to the preservation and advancement of the history and the cultural heritage of the Armenian nation. Hamazkayin has chapters throughout the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Australia, as well as the Republic of Armenia. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. --Boundary_(ID_Gvx/Hqy3BcUwcEgfSEds8Q)-- From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CIS prosecutors agree joint antiterror fight in Kazakh forum
ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow
24 Nov 04
Almaty, 24 November: A meeting of the coordinating council
of CIS prosecutor-generals was held in Almaty today. Russian
Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov and prosecutor-generals of
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Tajikistan
and the Belarusian and Georgian deputy prosecutor-generals took part
in its work.
Kazakh Prosecutor-General Rashid Tusupbekov said that at the meeting
decisions had been made “on eight issues related to countering
international terrorism, corruption and the illegal circulation of
drugs and psychotropic substances”.
The meeting, Tusupbekov said, also decided “to take comprehensive
measures to prevent and thwart terrorism”, that would stop various
extremist organizations from taking root within the CIS.
“The main focus in the fight against international terrorism will be
interaction, exchange of information, including the sources of its
finance, making quick and clear decisions on all issues related to the
extradition of criminals and giving legal help in criminal cases linked
to terrorism, specific monitoring of which will be conducted and the
most skilful staff will be entrusted to do this,” Tusupbekov stressed.
Russian Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov was unanimously elected
the chairman of the coordinating council of CIS prosecutor-generals
in 2005.