Author: Felekian Ara

KOSOVO FORMS NATIONAL SECURITY FORCE

PanARMENIAN.Net
31.03.2008 14:52 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Kosovo has launched formation of national security
force under command of the Albanian authorities of the breakaway
province. The project developed by the KFOR and UNMIK (UN Mission in
Kosovo) supposes formation of 3,3 thousand-strong force (2,5 staff
military and 800 reservists)

The ‘army’ will not possess heavy armament. The training will cost
8 thousand euro.

Formation of security force is provided by Martti Ahtisaari’s plan
recommending "supervised independence" for the breakaway province.

Not approved by the UN Security Council, the plan is not
legitimate. Therefore, KFOR and UNMIK activities may be protested by
Belgrade, ITAR-TASS reports.

RA, NKR PRESIDENTS DISCUSS KARABAKH SETTLEMENT OUTLOOK

PanARMENIAN.Net
31.03.2008 15:14 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On March 31, Armenia’s President Robert Kocharian
arrived in Nagorno Karabakh on a short-term visit.

The Armenian leader met with NKR President Bako Sahakian to discuss the
social and economic situation in the republic as well as perspectives
of the Karabakh conflict settlement, IA Regnum reports.

Agence France Presse
March 30 2008

‘King’ Arthur slays challenger Ayala

KIEL, Germany (AFP) – American Elvin Ayala proved to be no match for
IBF middleweight champion "King" Arthur Abraham who slayed his
challenger with a twelfth round knock-out here on Saturday.

Ayala, 27, is the self-styled "Wrath of God", but he felt the full
force of Abraham taking several hits to the head before the champion
caught him flush of the chin to leave the challenger crumpled on the
canvas with just 25 seconds left in the twelfth.

"Kiel was bigger for me than New York, but now that’s over, I am
looking for a big fight in the United States later this year," said
Abraham who is now hoping for a date at Madison Square Garden, New
York, in June.

Abraham, the unbeaten 28-year-old champion, who now has 21 knock-outs
from 26 fights, had few problems in his seventh defence against Ayala
who was left with a 18-3 record including eight knock-outs.

"That’s boxing," said Ayala after he was helped to his feet following
his defeat.

"I came here to do a job and unfortunately it didn’t come off, but
that’s my job. They call him King Arthur, but I am a king myself and
I have to come back from this."

After Abraham’s last two routine defences against England’s Wayne
Elcock and Armenian Khoren Gevor, Ayala made the champion work hard
with a courageous display, but ultimately gave the champion few
problems.

The American put the champion briefly on the ropes at the end of the
third round which sparked a furious assault from Abraham until the
bell.

Ayala took two big blows to the head in the fifth and the champion
soaked up the blows from the increasingly desperate American before
putting him on the canvas with 30 seconds left in the round.

Abraham raised the pace in the sixth round as Ayala started to tire
and again in the seventh, Abraham soaked up the punches before
unleashing a flurry of combinations and landing several head shots.

In the tenth, Ayala pinned the champ in the corner, but again Abraham
absorbed the shots and hit back with powerful punches.

It was all over in the twelfth when, with less than 30 seconds of the
fight left, Abraham put Ayala in the corner and a upper cut to the
chin left the challenger face down on the canvas.

Boston Globe, MA
March 29 2008

Ex-ADL leader joining Brookline nonprofit

By Hinda Mandell
Globe Correspondent / March 29, 2008

The former regional director of the Anti-Defamation League New
England, who was at the center of a firestorm last year over whether
to fully acknowledge the Armenian Genocide, will join a Brookline
nonprofit that teaches tolerance.

Andrew H. Tarsy will begin his position as chief institutional
advancement officer at Facing History and Ourselves in April. He
accepted the job Tuesday.

"I’ve been an admirer and friend of the organization and the people
there," Tarsy said yesterday.

The move is the latest step in a months-long controversy that saw him
fired and rehired, only to have him resign a few months later. It
began in August when the Watertown Town Council, under pressure from
the town’s large Armenian population, voted to sever its ties with
the ADL’s No Place for Hate antidiscrimination program because the
national ADL’s refused to fully acknowledge the genocide. Tarsy later
broke ranks with the national office, was fired in August, and then
rehired. He left in December.

Margot Stern Strom, executive director and president of the board of
Facing History, said Tarsy will help oversee fund-raising and program
development. Tarsy will be part of the senior leadership team.

"Andy has unique experience in being a leader of a nonprofit," Strom
said. "He has legal experience and tremendous experience in being
able to articulate the work Facing History and Ourselves does."

Facing History and Ourselves offers professional development and
resource guides to educators on genocide, with the goal of fostering
tolerance among students. The international organization has programs
in 120 countries, Strom said.

As part of its educational program, Facing History has published a
book on the Armenian Genocide, "Crimes Against Humanity and
Civilization: The Genocide of the Armenians."

Leaders within the Jewish community expressed excitement for Tarsy’s
next professional venture. "I think he will be able to use his
passion in a very positive way, untethered, at Facing History," said
Nancy K. Kaufman, executive director of Jewish Community Relations
Council of Greater Boston.

A spokeswoman for the ADL in the New York office offered Tarsy her
best wishes. "We wish him well in what he chooses to do with his
life," said Myrna Shinebaum.

A search is currently underway for a regional director at the Boston
office of the ADL.

08/03/29/ex_adl_leader_joining_brookline_nonprofit /

MATTHEW BRYZA: AZERBAIJANI MISSION TO OSCE HAS SENT A LETTER FOR DISSOLVING OF MINSK GROUP

Azeri Press Agency
March 27 2008
Azerbaijan

Baku. Tamara Grigorieva – APA. "I would not speculate on the news
spread by the Armenian newspapers about Azerbaijani refusal from
the OSCE Minsk Group mediation in the process of settlement of the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict", said Matthew Bryza, US co-chairman of
the OSCE Minsk Group in his exclusive interview with APA.

He said Azerbaijani mission to OSCE has sent a letter for the
dissolving of the Minsk Group: "I have no idea that this letter
demonstrates position of the highest level of Azerbaijani government.

It is time for serious diplomats to do serious work and playing around
with gestures that is not intended to have the practical impact on
advancing the negotiation is not constructive. I think that we need
get back to work and I would hope that the government of Azerbaijan
will continue to behave with us as a strong friend, strong partner
with which it has engaged in the issue of strategic importance. What I
can do is to call our strong partner Azerbaijan for rejuvenation all
of the hard work and progress we have been making toward finalizing
the basic principals".

Azerbaijani deputy foreign minister Araz Azimov stated that the
Baku officials have sent a letter to OSCE Secretariat to know the
procedure of changing the countries and persons of Minsk Group
Co-Chairs. A.Azimov has also emphasized that Azerbaijan has not
supported the changing of Minsk Group format. He said it was only
fabricated by Armenia and mediators. Azerbaijani government advocates
for the effective negotiations within this framework. "The co-chairs
could not represent the whole Minsk Group. They are representing
themselves, not the Minsk Group in the negotiations with Azerbaijan and
Armenia. It is not a responsibility of the co-chairs to make statement
on behalf of the Minsk Group", said Araz Azimov and emphasized that
Azerbaijan is continuing cooperation with the co-chairs and at the same
time has sent a letter to the OSCE Secretariat for the researching of
mechanism of recalling or replacing the mediators. "We simply want
to know how to do this in case of necessity, because Azerbaijan is
also a member of the Minsk Group like the US, Russia and France".

US, Russia and France while being the OSCE Minsk Group members voted
against the resolution on "Situation in Occupied Territories of
Azerbaijan" in the 62nd session of the UN General Assembly and have
caused a serious protest in Azerbaijan.

ADVOCACY WEEK GENERATES INCREASED COSPONSORS

armradio.am
26.03.2008 10:39

The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR)
reports that 5 Members of the United States House of Representatives
have recently joined in support of Darfur related legislation as
cosponsors.

Anti-genocide activists from numerous western states traveled to
Washington, D.C. to participate in a joint advocacy week organized by
the Armenian National Committee of America and Genocide Intervention
Network (GIN).

Activists provided informational materials and support for legislation
related to the ongoing crisis in Darfur and the Armenian Genocide
resolution.

"We must stop the genocide in Darfur," stated ANCA-WR Executive
Director Andrew Kzirian. "Activists help to create the will that
supports these important pieces of legislation in the House and Senate
– and together we can educate our elected officials as to why it is so
critically important to act and end the cycle of genocide," he added.

The various areas of legislation discussed included H. Res. 106 (the
Armenian Genocide resolution), H. Res. 1011 and S. Res. 470, which
call for a comprehensive regional strategy for Chad, Central African
Republic and Darfur, Sudan. Also brought up was S. Res. 455, which
calls for peace in Darfur, implementation of the Sudan Accountability
and Divestment Act and supplemental funding for the peacekeeping
mission in Darfur.

During advocacy week, over 100 meetings were held with numerous
congressman and information regarding the Armenian Genocide and key
Darfur legislation was communicated to all Senate and House offices

NEW US AMBASSADOR

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
March 26, 2008

The name of the new US Ambassador has been introduced to Armenian
government, with an anticipation to receive an approval of his
appointment.

Acting Head of the Department of Press and Information of RA
Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan reports the USA has requested the RA
government’s agreement on the appointment of the new Ambassador.

Refusing to publicize the name of the new Ambassador, T. Balayan said
the issue is at the stage of procedural discussions.

It is only after RA government’s approval that the candidacy will be
submitted to the Senate, which can approve or disapprove it.

"California Courier" reports the administration of US President
George Bush introduced the name of the US Ambassador in Kirgizistan
Mary Jovanovich to Armenian Government.

AZERBAIJAN APPRECIATES MALAYSIA’S SUPPORT
Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia General News
March 25, 2008 Tuesday

Azerbaijan appreciates Malaysia’s support on the issue of
Nagorno-Karabakh region, currently under Armenia’s occupation.

Its ambassador to Malaysia, Tahir Karimov said Kuala Lumpur supported
the United Nations General Assembly resolutions on March 14, which
among others reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and called
for the immediate withdrawal of all Armenian forces from the region.

"We are very thankful for Malaysia’s support…Malaysia was among
those states that rendered unequivocal support to the just cause of
Azerbaijan" he told Bernama here today.

He said support from countries such as Malaysia all these years, had
made Azerbaijan more determined to solve the protracted conflict in
a peaceful way.

Following the 1992 occupation, Karimov said there were about one
million displaced people and refugees.

Karimov said that despite Baku and Kuala Lumpur having established
diplomatic ties in 1993, the Malaysian public had no much knowledge
about the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and the history of persecution
and oppression against the Azerbaijanis, at the hands of Armenians,
dating back to 1828.

He said since that year, many Azerbaijanis were killed or expelled,
adding that over 50,000 people were massacred between March 30-April 1,
1918 alone.

Karimov said to commemorate all the tragic acts perpetrated against
the Azerbaijani people and country since 1998, every March 31 would
be proclaimed "The Day of Genocide of the Azerbaijanis".

Located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia,
Azerbaijan, a nation with about 8.6 million people, declared
independence from the then-Soviet Union in October 1991.

About 96 per cent of the Azerbaijan population is Muslim.

PRESIDENTIAL MEETING LIKELY AFTER SARGSYAN’S INAUGURATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.03.2008 15:43 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ I know there has been an inquiry from the Azerbaijani
mission to the OSCE about what would be the procedures were any country
to wish to withdraw from the Minsk Group. But I do not know about
anything that went beyond an inquiry, OSCE Minsk Group U.S. Co-chair
Matthew Bryza said.

"When I read Mr. Oskanian’s statement about Baku’s intention to
dissolve the Minsk Group, it was news to me, and I have not seen
confirmation that the Azerbaijani effort had in fact moved that far,"
he said.

As to Azerbaijani Ambassador to the U.S. Vilayat Guliyev’s description
of the Minsk Group as ‘useless’ and its approach to the conflict as
‘tendentious and one-sided’, Mr Bryza said, "Ambassador Guliyev,
with all due respect, is not participating in negotiations under
the Minsk Group and I would presume is not aware of the details of
what is on the table. And what is on the table is a fair and balanced
compromise that includes elements that are attractive to Azerbaijan,
an interpretation of which was cited in the UN GA resolution, but
there are also many elements that are very attractive to Armenia that
were not cited in that resolution. So I do not think that any of the
people that are out there criticizing the Minsk Group proposals are
aware of what is really in the proposal.

Asked about possibility of a meeting between Armenia’s president-elect
Serzh Sargsyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev during the
upcoming NATO summit in Romania, which both plan to attend, The U.S.

diplomat said, "What we said is that it would be useful for there
to be a meeting between the presidents as soon as they are ready to
meet. I do not know when that is going to happen. It could be at the
NATO summit or just after that. The calendar is a bit complicated in
that President-elect Sargsyan will not be inaugurated until April 9,
and the summit in Romania is from April 2 to 4. So Prime Minister
Sargsyan will not yet be the president. So, there is a protocol
problem, which could lead to a delay, but it is up to them if they
get together there. And if they don’t, they would be able to meet
shortly thereafter."

"In terms of agenda, it is clear now that the president-elect of
Armenia is in favor of continuing on the basis of the proposal on the
table, as it was presented at the OSCE ministerial meeting in Madrid
last November," he said in an interview with The Armenian Reporter.

PRESS RELEASE
Date: March 25, 2008
Armenian National Committee of New York
P.O. Box 770-693, Woodside, NY 11377
Contact: Doug Geogerian
Tel: 646-468-9061

Armenian Genocide Commemoration at New York City Hall

—Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan and Dr. Henry Theriault to
Address New York Armenian Community

New York, NY-The Armenian National Committee of New York will host the
93rd Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide at City Hall Chambers on
April 25th at 5:30 P.M. The evening will feature Professor Henry
Theriault of Worcester State College as the main speaker and
Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, who will address the community and give
the invocation.

"While causing New York’s Armenian community to reflect thoughtfully
on the horrible catastrophe that befell our people, Dr. Theriault will
also connect the Armenian Cause to the broader struggle for advancing
international human rights," said Doug Geogerian of the Armenian
National Committee of New York.

Elected official at the local, state and federal levels will attend
and pay tribute to the systematic murder of 1.5 million Armenians, a
genocide, which the perpetrator, the Turkish government, continues to
deny to this day. The commemoration will also include musical work
performed in memory of the crime committed against the Armenian
nation.

The evening’s main speaker will be Dr. Henry Theriault, who has
written extensively on the subject of genocide and the dispossession
of indigenous peoples. While he has dealt at length with the Armenian
case, which concerns his own ancestry, Theriault’s work is broad and
examines the impact of genocide against Africans, Native Americans and
other victim groups.

Committed under the cover of War War I, the Young Turk government
rounded up hundreds of Armenian intellectuals, artists and civic
leaders on April 24, 1915 only to have them murdered. This massacre
ushered in a state-planned campaign to eradicate the Armenian people
from their traditional homeland of 3,000 years, marking what is
commonly referred to as the first genocide of the 20th century.

The Turkish Government has since gone to extraordinary lengths to deny
this crime against humanity. Its world-wide campaign of public
misinformation has especially focused on influencing media outlets and
governmental bodies in the United States, where Ankara has spent tens
of millions of dollars to distort the historical record and cover up
the "murder of a nation."

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and
most influential Armenian American grassroots political
organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices,
chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated
organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the
concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of
issues.
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