Author: Emil Lazarian

ArmenPress
April 6 2004
POLICE SAYS BOMB ALERT CALL WAS FALSE
YEREVAN, APRIL 6, ARMENPRESS: An unidentified man called today at
noon to police saying a bomb was planted in an open-air market in
Heratsi street in down Yerevan, which he said would explode at 3 pm.
Police arrived at the spot to cordon off the area around the
market and after a thorough check it found no bomb. Police said it is
now working to identify the man who made the false alert.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ArmenPress
April 6 2004
YEREVAN POLICE CHIEF DENIES CHARGES OF INACTIVITY
YEREVAN, APRIL 6, ARMENPRESS: A senior police officer denied today
opposition’s accusations that the police did not prevent attacks of a
group of sturdily-built young men, most of them with shaven heads, on
journalists smashing their cameras and knocking them off their feet
at a Monday rally in central Yerevan, organized by Artashes
Geghamian’s National Unity.
Chief of Yerevan police department, Nerses Nazarian, told a group
of journalists that “as usual, the police took all measures to
maintain order.”
Nazarian argued that the violence occurred 15 minutes before the
rally started, following Geghamian’s requests that the demonstrators
should gather near Nairi cinema house, as a hillside near Matenadaran
depository of old manuscripts, the planned venue of the protest
action, was occupied by police. Nazarian said the movement of
participants raised the indignation of nearby houses’ residents and
owners of shops, who “were dragged into the rally against their
will,” disrupting also the traffic.
He also said police officers were instructed to interfere only in
case of real threats to exclude offensive language and curse directed
at them. The police chief said the fistfight was prompted by
disagreements among participants of the rally. Nazarian said police
will investigate into the reported instances of violence and admitted
also that scores of people, participating in opposition’s rallies,
whom he described as “aggressive”, were summoned to police to be
explained that their demeanor poses threat to public order.
Nazarian said all those participants of future rallies who will
violate public law will be detained and punished in line with law.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian press body condemns attacks on reporters covering opposition rally
Mediamax news agency
6 Apr 04
YEREVAN
The National Press Club of Armenia (NPC) issued a statement today,
condemning attacks on journalists by unidentified people during an
opposition rally in central Yerevan on 5 April.
During the rally, 15 to 20 young people with an athletic build
attacked the filming crews of the Armenian Public TV and the private
TV companies Kentron, HY Noyan Tapan and Shant, and reporters of
Aravot and Aykakan Zhamanak newspapers. They deliberately broke video
and photo cameras that belonged to the abovementioned mass media.
“This odious step is directed against freedom of speech and pursues
one aim – to hamper the reporting of unbiased information about the
developments in Armenia,” the NPC statement read.
The NPC demanded that the Armenian authorities punish the perpetrators
of the attack on the journalists and prevent such incidents in the
future.
The authors of the statement also appealed “to respect their
professional duty” to those journalists who the NPC said “have
distorted facts thus rendering support to the bandits”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CIS countries to hold joint air-defence exercise
ITAR-TASS news agency
6 Apr 04
MOSCOW
Over 100 military units and subunits of the CIS countries’ unified
air-defence system will be taking part in command-and-staff training.
ITAR-TASS was told today by the head of the Russian Air Force press
service, Col Aleksandr Drobyshevskiy, that “on Wednesday 7 April there
will be command-and-staff training under the leadership of
Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Air Force Army Gen Vladimir
Mikhaylov – the chairman of the coordinating committee of the CIS
countries’ air defence – and involving management bodies and duty
forces of the unified air-defence system of the member states of the
CIS”.
The training will be directed from the central command post of the
Russian Air Force.
“During the training, about 10 different points will be practised,
relating to the improvement of the CIS unified air-defence system,”
Drobyshevskiy said. “More than 100 units and subunits of the air
forces and air-defence forces of the CIS countries and 80 aircraft
will be taking part in the training.”
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Ukraine,
Uzbekistan and Russia are taking part in the command-and-staff
training of the CIS unified air-defence system.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian servicemen desert their units in Karabakh
Ayna, Baku
6 Apr 04
By Casur Mammadov
Starting from this year, the number of deserters among Armenian
soldiers stationed in Nagornyy Karabakh and other occupied Azerbaijani
districts has reached yet unseen figures.
According to Armenian sources, over the last two months a total of 94
Armenian servicemen have deserted regiments stationed in Nagornyy
Karabakh. This brings the number of deserters from the “Karabakh army”
to a total of 5,000 people since 1994. The sources say that a
significant portion of the deserters – 1,400 people – have fled to
Iran.
According to another report available to us, the stand-off between the
Nagornyy Karabakh and the Armenian troops stationed in the occupied
Azerbaijani territories has become extremely intense. The report says
that this confrontation is particularly fierce on the
Armenian-occupied part of Azerbaijan’s Fuzuli District. For instance,
a recent exchange of fire registered in this area between two brigades
claimed the lives of several Armenian servicemen. Karabakh Armenians
put the blame for the incident on the Armenian military command.
Passage omitted: minor details
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azeri MPs concerned at possible opening of Turkish-Armenian border
ANS TV, Baku
6 Apr 04
Today’s session of the Azerbaijani parliament discussed the
probability of opening the Turkish-Armenian border.
MPs said they should support Turkey which had come under the West’s
pressure. Baku should invite the Turkish speaker to Baku. The
parliament should appeal to the international public, the European
Union and the Council of Europe over the issue.
Azerbaijani Speaker Murtuz Alasgarov said that the opening of the
border would deal a blow to Turkish-Azerbaijani relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian opposition says police sweep up party members after rally
AP Worldstream
Apr 06, 2004

The opposition leader whose party organized a large protest meeting in
the Armenian capital said Tuesday that police detained 127 members of
his party after the demonstration and that many have been sentenced to
up to a week in jail.
Artashes Gegamian, head of the National Unity party, said the arrests
took place at the party members’ homes or the residences or parents
and friends and that police threatened the members’ relatives and
acquaintances.
The arrests came after an estimated 8,000 protesters gathered in
central Yerevan.
“The deepening confrontations in society understandably makes the
people in power nervous,” he said Tuesday.
The opposition is seeking to oust President Robert Kocharian. He won a
second term in presidential elections a year ago that sparked mass
protests, including nearly daily demonstrations between the first
round of voting in February 2003 and the runoff in early March.
The opposition alleged widespread violations in both rounds of the
election. The election was followed by parliamentary ballot in which
the pro-government party won the most votes.
In April, Armenia’s Constitutional Court confirmed the results of the
presidential vote but suggested that a referendum be held within a
year to gauge the public’s confidence in the nation’s
leaders. Opposition leaders have pressed for the plebiscite.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azeri Speaker warns Turkey against opening Armenian border
Trend news agency
6 Apr 04

BAKU
“If Turkey opens the border with Armenia, it will deal a blow not only
to Azerbaijani-Turkish friendship but also to the entire Turkic
world,” Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Murtuz Alasgarov told a meeting
of the Milli Maclis today, Trend reports.
Alasgarov said that the opening of the border could undermine the
strengthening friendly and fraternal relations between Turkey and
Azerbaijan.
As for the calls for the restoration of Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity militarily, the parliament speaker said there should be no
haste in this issue. We give preference to a negotiated settlement to
the conflict, but if this does not yield any fruit, then “Azerbaijan
is ready to liberate its lands in other ways”, he said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Secretary of the National Security Council and Defense Minister of Armenia Serge Sarkisian arrived today in Tbilisi for a four-day official visit.

The Armenian official will push the issue of restoration of the railway link between Russia and Armenia via Georgia, which has been terminated after the Abkhaz conflict.
“The issue of restoration of the Sochi-Tbilisi-Yerevan railway link is of huge importance for Armenia. So, this issue will top the agenda of talks,” Serge Sarkisian said upon his arrival in Tbilisi.

The Armenian Security Council Secretary and Defense Minister will hold meetings with Secretary of the Georgian Security Council Vano Merabishvili, President Mikheil Saakashvili and Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian opposition to stage protest in Yerevan on 9 April
Mediamax news agency
5 Apr 04

YEREVAN
The [opposition] Justice bloc and the National Unity Party leaders,
Stepan Demirchyan and Artashes Gegamyan, said in Yerevan today that
they “will start mass protest actions on Freedom Square at 1600 [1100
gmt] on 9 April”.
They called on their adherents “to take part in the struggle for
returning power to people”.
Demirchyan and Gegamyan’s joint statement was announced at a briefing
at the Armenian National Assembly today, Mediamax reports.
“One year’s existence of the authorities formed through election fraud
was enough to prove that the existence of an illegal regime threatens
the national interests of Armenia,” Demirchyan and Gegamyan’s
statement reads.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress