Author: Frangulian Shushan

Turkish Press
May 12 2006

Press Review

CUMHURIYET

DYP LEADER AGAR SPEAKS OUT AGAINST FRANCE’S ARMENIAN BILL

Opposition True Path Party (DYP) leader Mehmet Agar yesterday spoke
about against the French bill to criminalize denial of the so-called
Armenian genocide, saying, `We want to believe that a group of French
parliamentarians’ unfortunate efforts to cast a shadow on Turkish
history won’t resonate in the Parliament.’ He added, `The entire
world is watching and condemning with us the French parliamentarians
behind this move and the situation they put themselves and their
country in before the European Union, which they want to be a leader
of. Turkey finds it unnecessary to remind those behind this bill of
regrettable periods of history such as those in North Africa and
Algeria.’ /Cumhuriyet/

AMBASSADOR OF NIGERIA HANDED HIS CREDENTIALS TO PRESIDNET KOCHARYAN

ArmRadio.am
12.05.2006 14:30

Today the newly appointed Ambassador of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria to Armenia Ibrahim Ganyama Abubackari handed his credentials
to President Robert Kocharyan.

Noting that currently Nigeria restricts its relations with Armenia
to cooperation in the framework of international organizations,
the President expressed confidence that accreditation of the first
Nigerian Ambassador in our country will promote the development of
bilateral relations and clarification of the possible directions
of collaboration.

ARMENIAN PROSECUTORS DEPART FOR SOCHI TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF PLANE CRASH

Armenpress
May 11 2006

YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS: A group of Armenian prosecutors have left
today for Russian resort city Sochi to join Russian counterparts in
the ongoing criminal investigation into the May 3 crash of an Armenian
passenger jet that killed all 113 people aboard. The Armenian team
is led by chief investigator Hakob Gharakhanian.

The office of Armenian chief prosecutor said in line with an agreement
with Russian counterparts Armenian prosecutors will interrogate
some people in Sochi and will also conduct other investigation
actions. Armenian investigators may stay in Sochi for at least two
weeks. Armenian and Russian prosecutors opened separate criminal cases
immediately after the Airbus A320 of the Armavia airline plunged into
the Black Sea.

Meantime a Russian transportation official was quoted by RIA news
agency as saying that recovery teams have about three weeks to locate
and retrieve the flight data recorders of the Armenian airliner.

“We have a time limit, about 30 days from the moment of the crash,”
said Alexander Davydenko, who is coordinating the operation to locate
the black boxes.

He added that batteries of the black boxes, which are thought to be
at the depth of 400-450 meters (1,300- 1,470 feet), would run down
in 30 days.

Earlier wreckage had been reported at 680 meters (2,230ft).

Vladimir Yerygin, who oversees technological support for the operation
, said earlier that specialists from Toulouse-based Airbus were
planning to use advanced hydroacoustic equipment to find the precise
location of the black boxes and later recover them using a deep-sea
vehicle.

He said the main group of French experts, which left the port of Sochi
Wednesday morning, would set up a data-processing center on board one
ship, and another ship with the Kalmar deep-sea craft would continue
scanning the seabed for parts of the A-320.

THE PROGRAM OF RECONSTRUCTION OF MARTAKERT REGION TO BE LAUNCHED IN NKR

ArmRadio.am
11.05.2006 17:50

The project of reconstruction of Martakert region of Nagorno-Karabakh
funded by “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund will be launched.

NKR Minister of Agriculture Vahram Baghdasaryan informs that under
the project a program of agricultural development will be implemented.

“Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund, together with the NKR Agricultural
Fund and Government will found an Association of Farmers, which will
unite the landowners and will provide technologies and facilities at
low prices.

ESB EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH ALEX AND ARTHUR ABRAHAM

EastsideBoxing.com
May 11 2006

11.05.06 – By Izyaslav “Slava” Koza: Picture it if you can: A German
boxing ring, in a crowded auditorium. A tall opponent named Kingsley
Ikeke and the soon to be champ Arthur Abraham still to make his ring
walk. The music begins to play and Abraham, dressed in the traditional
garb of what can best be described as a large smurf (basically just the
white hat) makes his way to the ring. On his face is one of the most
serious, focused scowls I, and many other fans have ever seen. All
the while Pierre Kartner, aka Father Abraham, a guy eerily similar
to jolly old St Nicholas Klause, belts away his European chart topper
“The Smurf Song,” accompanied by three hot chicks, dressed like female
smurfs and painted blue. The best way to define the whole affair is
psychedelically surreal. There was no metal, or rap, no artificial
extra emotion, rather only authentic elation coming from the Armenian
native, who was overjoyed at getting a chance to fight for a major
world title, and wanted to share that moment with all the fans who
came out to support him, by representing the characters, described
in one of Germany’s biggest pop hits..

Though the heavyweight scene is where most observers begin to notice
the dominance of former Soviet fighters, that dominance is not
exclusive to that weight alone. Arthur, as well as his undefeated
younger brother, Alex, along with Roman Karmazin, Sergei Dzindziruk
and a slew of others represent the next class of fighter in the
intermediate weights.

This Saturday Arthur will once again don the Smurf hat, and with
the same joyous determination that won him the belt he will defend,
represent his tiny yet proud homeland of Armenia. His opponent will be
tough power punching Kofi Jantuah a name familiar to American fans,
and a fighter who will take advantage of the bout if Abraham is not
on top of his game.

Last week I spoke with both Arthur, and Alex, on this upcoming fight
as well as other related boxing issues and none boxing issues. Here
is the gist of that conversation.

Arthur Abraham

ESB: Good Evening Arthur! First of all thanks for your time.

Arthur: Sure no problem.

ESB: Tell us how has your life changed after you captured one of the
major titles?

Arthur: Well nothing much has changed, I remained the same person I
was before I won the belt. Earnings changed a bit obviously. The press
bothers me a bit more now, people ask for autographs, newspapers call
more often. This has changed but I am still the same person I was. Oh
and there is more training now (laughs).

ESB: Can you tell us how the preparation for the fight is coming along?

Arthur: Its brutally tough. Every day only sparring, my arms are
almost falling off. Sometimes they hurt so much I don’t have the
strength to punch. I have such a huge work load.

ESB: Can you say who you’re sparring with? How many rounds of sparring
have you done?

Arthur: I have a bunch of different sparring partners not just the
same few. Boxed against somebody from America today but I don’t
know his name. Knocked him out though. Good fighter something like
24 wins in 27 fights. I just can’t remember all their names. Every
day or two I spar with new guys.

As far as rounds well I did eight today, tomorrow I will do eight. So
far something like 6,8 a day.

ESB: Your next opponent, Jantuah, is also from Africa like Ikeke
but unlike Kingsley he has a puncher’s reputation. What do you think
about him as an opponent and fighter?

Arthur: Of course he is a strong opponent, but no matter how strong
they are, I don’t get in the ring, to lose or just win. It doesn’t
matter if he is a puncher or a technical fighter because he will be
standing in my way and whoever does that I have to get around them
and win. His style of fighting is not relevant.

ESB: If you win your next opponent will most likely be Colombian
Edison Miranda? Will this fight take place in Germany as well?

Arthur: Its too early to say if the fight will be in Germany. First
we will try to win this fight and then we will consider how and where
the fight will be set up. To me it doesn’t matter really where the
fight takes place since I am always ready and always have to win.

ESB: It is obvious to most that the capital of boxing, at least for
your weight, is America. Are there any concrete plans or negotiations
with some of our America promoters to set up a fight or fights here?

Arthur: Sure! My manager has already been in contact and negotiating
with HBO. They have been interested for awhile, but also I don’t want
all the exposure and everything right away. I want to build up slowly,
step by step. If you can understand I just don’t want all the fame
right away.

ESB: Well that leads into my next question then, regarding if you would
be ready to face Wright, Taylor or Hopkins right away or would you…~E

Arthur: (interrupting) I am always ready to fight with Taylor or
Hopkins. If they call me tonight and say, “tommorow your fighting
with one of them,” I will be there ready to fight with one of them.

ESB: Well then speaking of the elites can you tell us who you think
will win the following fights: Taylor-Wright?

Arthur: I think Winky Wright will win. He is much more sound
technically and I think he will pressure Taylor constantly and not
give him a good chance to compose himself and fire back. I think
Wright will win.

ESB: How about Tarver Hopkins?

Arthur: Really? When?

ESB: I don’t have the date off the top of my head but it is signed
definitely.

Arthur: Well then I don’t know, but I think Tarver will win. Hopkins
is old already and really he is looking more so to make big money. He
won’t be able to break Tarver with his name.

ESB: If you won’t be able to breakthrough to America in the near
future, then it seems likely you will fight some Kohl fighters. Can
you comment on a fight with Felix Sturm or perhaps your countryman
Khoren Gevorgyan? What do you think about them as boxers?

Arthur: My manager already tried to set up a fight with Sturm. He
offered them one million Euros for the fight with me and they
refused. Now they are negotiating manager to manager, and they will
try to agree to something.

ESB: How about Gevorgyan? Are you friends with him?

Arthur: Gevorgyan? Well he isn’t a champ or that famous yet, so it
won’t be that interesting to fight him now. I am friends with him
though. I know all the Armenians here, we are always in contact. Talk
on the phone often.

ESB: Who do you think is Pound for Pound right now and why?

Arthur: (without hesitation) Mayweather because he is strong, fast,
and a good puncher. He is very good, and I like his style very much.

One has to try really hard to become a fighter like Mayweather. He
is very professional, and he has and knows how to do it all.

ESB: Whenever I, or other writers ask fighters from the former USSR,
if they would like to compete professionally in their homeland, the
answer is always negative due to financial reasons. If you achieve
the necessary success in Germany or America, would you like to fight
in Erevan, even if the money might not be as good?

Arthur: Of course! That is my goal. Of course I want to fight in
Armenia, that is my homeland, and I will fight there one day. However
like I said, I just became champion, and I don’t want to move and do
everything too fast. Little by little we will move towards and fight
in Erevan. If I fight there we will probably gather up a whole stadium
full of people. Everyone loves us at home, my brother and myself,
and that is why we really want to box there.

ESB: At what age did you start boxing and why?

Arthur: I started at 15. When I watched boxing on TV back then, I
saw these champions of the world, and how they were sitting on the
shoulders of their corner men. I always wanted the same to happen
to me. How they cried, and celebrated with pure joy, when they first
became champions. It was very emotional and touching for me inside,
and I always wanted to be there, celebrating just like them. I promised
myself I would became champion of the world before my 25th birthday
and my dream has come true.

ESB: Who were some of your favorite fighters back then, both national
and international?

Arthur: Mike Tyson, but only the young Tyson, when he was killing
everybody. Not the shadow of him now that fought later and recently,
but when he was young.

I also like Kostya Tsyzu. I really respect him and think he was a
terrific boxer.

ESB: Are you acquainted with Kostya?

Arthur: No I am not. Germany is far away from Australia (laughs). I
think we will meet one day, when the time comes we will meet.

ESB: Ok now the important question: who’s idea was it to pick the
Smurf Song for your entrance music?

Arthur: Well my name is Abraham too. The guy who sings it is a musician
called Papa Abraham, and it’s a very popular song in Germany. Everybody
loves it, its how do you say it, like a national sensation. All the
little kids and adults love this song, so it was very good for my
image. So the song was chosen for me, and that is why I am becoming
more of a household name, and why I am popular here.

ESB: Yea its very interesting and funny to see you with the hat and
the blue female smurf entourage. Have you ever watched the cartoon. I
remember it when I was a kid.

Arthur: Yea of course! It’s a cartoon, I watch everything. Thing is
everybody does and goes to see hip hop, or metal, and nobody will put
on the same type of show. It all becomes similar and boring. I am the
only one who does it this way, and that is why its so interesting
(laughs) and why everybody watches, and is delighted. When I enter
the arena everybody stands up and starts to sing and clap and wave
their hands and cheer for me.

ESB: What do you like to do in your free time outside the ring?

Arthur: Good question, in my free time the first thing I don’t want to
do is train, and I don’t want to hear anything about the sport. I fly
to Erevan, there I spend time with my parents, friends, or my brother
or with a girl. I don’t drink, or smoke. I go to places where I can
spend time and be happy.

ESB: What kind of music do you listen to and like?

Arthur: Different stuff, Armenian, Russian lounge pop, Russian techno,
I really like Irina Allegrova. Oh and I like Hip Hop, American black
music. I like 50 cent, not everything, but most of them.

ESB: Tell us about your family. Kids? Girlfriend?

Arthur: No I am not married and don’t have kids, live with my brother
have a few girls I know.

ESB: Alright now I will ask you some questions about your brother
and then after I talk to him I will ask him the same ones about you.

Arthur: Yea sure go ahead.

ESB: When you were small did you fight a lot? If so who got the better
of who?

Arthur: When we were small we did fight, but not a lot. I don’t
remember who won we were small, it wasn’t serious fighting, the way
brothers usually fight when they are young. However, that was then
now we are living in peace. We are together 24/7, only now we sleep
in different rooms (laughs).

ESB: Do you spar against each other now?

Arthur: We have never sparred against each other in our lives. We
will never spar or fight against each other.

ESB: Who’s side did your parents take when you two argued?

Arthur: I don’t remember but usually back then they watched out for
the younger ones, so that the older one doesn’t do something to them.

ESB: Alex is younger then you?

Arthur: Yea my brother is a year and a half younger.

ESB: can you name one habit of your brother that you can’t stand and
that drives you nuts?

Arthur: (laughs) When we are home: Computer, Internet, Television,
Stereo with music, and the phone is on too. PLUS he eats at the same
time. We come home everything goes on right away. He is my brother
though we can live together.

ESB: The Klitschko brothers claim they will never fight against each
other because they promised their mother. Did you make the same sort
of promise?

Arthur: No we didn’t promise anybody we were just raised that way
that we won’t consider it. How can I seriously fight my brother? How
can I hit him?

ESB: No I understand. How about say hypothetically if such a fight
were to happen can you analyze it and give a prediction?

Arthur: No it will never happen there just isn’t an answer to that.

ESB: Arthur thanks for your time. Now if its possible can I speak
with Alex?

Arthur: Sure! No problem. I will get him.

Alex Abraham

ESB: Hey Alex!

Alex: Hey!

ESB: Can you tell us from an independent perspective how your brother
is looking in training?

Alex: He is training superbly. He is feeling really good right now,
and I think the American will feel the result.

ESB: Will you be in his corner for the fight?

Alex: No I will be sitting at ringside, but I will have a chance to
give advice as necessary.

ESB: When will your next fight be?

Alex: My last bout was a week ago when Klitschko fought. Right now
there is no information about my next fight but I think I will fight
next sometime in August.

ESB: The only half blemish on your record is against Silvan Gomis a
fight that ended in a draw. Can you tell us what happened?

Alex: Well I fought him again after that and won. First time we fought
I was really sick and felt terrible the night of the fight.

Then we lined up a repeat and I won without any major problems. I
took all the rounds easily.

ESB: When did you start boxing and what was your amateur record?

Alex: I started at fifteen like Arthur. I had about 70 fights,
something like 62 wins 8 losses.

ESB: Which fighters did you like back then?

Alex: Arthur and I loved Tyson back then he was awesome. Now I like
Joe Calzaghe he is a very good fighter.

ESB: Can you give us your thoughts on who will win between Karmazin
and Spinks? Also who of the elite fighters in your division would
you like to fight if you could?

Alex: I think Karmazin will probably win. If I could I would fight
the WBO champ Sergei Dzindziruk.

ESB: What do you like to do in your free time?

Alex: (laughs) I like to go to Armenia there is a lot to do there.

ESB: What type of music do you like?

Alex: Everything! A lot of the stuff they show on Russian MTV here.

Armenian music, Russian music.

ESB: Can you name some of the artists you like?

Alex: HMmm I like….Allegrova…~E or Pugachova. Oh and Shufutinsky
he sings a lot of good songs.

ESB: What about movies?

Alex: I like movies with John Reno, and also Scarface. Tony Montana
(laughs).

ESB: Ha! Al Pacino.

ESB: I read your trying to help your parents move to Germany how is
that coming along?

Alex: Yea we are trying to help the and hopefully soon they will join
us here. We have to get them German documents and then everything
will be cool.

ESB: Now I will ask you some questions about Arthur if you don’t mind.

Alex: Yea sure.

ESB: When you were younger and fought each other who won?

Alex: Easy. Arthur was bigger I was smaller you get it.

ESB: Who’s side did your parents take in arguments?

Alex: Well parents defended me cause I was smaller (laughs)

ESB: Do you like the song your brother enters the ring to?

Alex: If there is a large crowd and they are into it and like it then
we like it too, if no then it’s a different matter. Its good because
it promotes him, a lot of people in Europe know his name cause of it.

Our first job is to box, but it is also important besides that to
give the viewers a good show.

ESB: Can you name a habit of your brother’s that you don’t like
that much?

Alex: (chuckles) No I like everything about him. We live together
peacefully. We are always together.

ESB: Alex I want to thank you and Arthur for taking the time to talk
with us. I wish him luck on Saturday and you as well in the future.

Alex: Sure! No problem. Thanks for calling.

As always I want to thank Heiko Mallwitz for helping set this interview
up, and another thanks to both Alex and Arthur for talking to us
from training camp. Good luck to Arthur on Saturday and here is to
hoping HBO decides to pick up his fights so everybody in the boxing
world benefits.

p=6904&more=1

RA PRESIDENT TO SPEAK AT THE SPRING SESSION OF NATO PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

ArmRadio.am
11.05.2006 13:18

RA President Robert Kocharyan will deliver a speech at the session
of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, which will be held May 26-30 in
Paris. The official website of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly informs
that speeches will be delivered also by Minister of Internal Affairs
of France Nikola Sarkozi and Defense Minister Michelle Aliot Mary.

Presidents of Georgia and Azerbaijan Ilham Aliev and Mikhail
Sahakashvili are also expected to deliver speeches at the session.

The closing ceremony of the session will be attended by NATO
Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Shcheffer and other high officials of
the alliance.

To remind, last week Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan received
invitations to participate in the spring session from President of
NATO Parliamentary Assembly Pierre Lellouche.

THE AUTHORITIES AND ETHNIC MINORITIES: EXACERBATION IN SPRING

Agency WPS
What the Papers Say Part A (Russia)
May 10, 2006 Wednesday

“It’s hard to tell what is going on: neo-fascism run rampant, or
a full-scale campaign to eradicate it,” said [Newsweek Russia in
early May.

Throughout April, there were regular media reports of crimes being
committed against “aliens.” St. Petersburg took priority, confirming
its notoriety as the capital of Russian neo-fascism. Liana Sisoko,
a half-black nine-year-old girl, stabbed 11 times in the hallway
of her apartment building; Lamsar Samba from Senegal, shot dead;
Desire Da Leko from the Ivory Coast, attacked – that is by no means
a complete list of neo-Nazi victims in St. Petersburg.

“The cleansing of St. Petersburg continues,” said the Freedom Party’s
website after another “feat” by its fighters from the White Patrol
movement. They stabbed two guest-worker women: Ilfuza Babayeva from
Azerbaijan and Ainur Bulekbayeva from Kazakhstan.

The security and law enforcement seem to have become more active as
well, says [Newsweek Russia]: “Whole groups of neo-Nazis are being
arrested, and some of them are even getting prison sentences.”

According to official reports, 13 extremists have been convicted in
Russia since the start of this year (the same period of 2005 produced
four convictions). But a Prosecutor General’s Office source told
[Newsweek Russia] that this doesn’t offer any grounds for optimism:
“It’s a temporary phenomenon. They’re only going after the obvious
targets, those who have drawn police attention to themselves. There’s
no question of any systematic anti-xenophobia efforts – it’s just
another campaign.”

Indeed, says [Newsweek Russia], the number of convictions is growing –
but the sentences are becoming lighter. And this change has happened
in recent months. Only 57 people were convicted of inciting ethnic
hatred in 2005, and only two of them (minors) received suspended
sentences. But when six members of the St. Petersburg neo-Nazi group
Schultz-88 were tried in December for assaulting a man from Azerbaijan,
the court only sent one of them to jail: group leader Dmitri Bobrov,
sentenced to six years. The other gang members went free, with short
suspended sentences. Several months later, a jury found that the
people who killed Tajik girl Khursheda Sultonova were only guilty
of hooliganism.

Moscow has also shown what it is capable of: its subway system,
promoted as “the safest in the world,” was the scene of an attack
in April. Vagen Abramiants, a 17-year-old Armenian Moscow resident,
was stabbed to death.

[Novye Izvestia] reports that witnesses of this murder first said it
was an ethnically-motivated attack, and described the attackers as
typical skinheads: shaved heads, short black jackets, boots. Then
another theory emerged: a fight over a girl. But the only suspect
– Denis Kulagin, a senior student from School No. 674 in Moscow –
retracted his initial evidence and was released unconditionally,
while investigators returned to the hate crime theory.

That same day, the media reported another attack in Moscow on people
of non-Slavic appearance. Some unidentified individuals armed with
knives attacked two 25-year-old Tajiks near the Cherkizovsky market.

One of the Tajiks, stabbed 17 times, died there; the other was
hospitalized. According to [Novye Izvestia], the Prosecutor’s Office
“isn’t inclined to link this incident to ethnic issues.”

[Novye Izvestia] says that neither prosecutors nor rank-and-file
police officers want a conflict with Moscow police chief Vladimir
Pronin, who said recently: “The skinhead websites are outraged:
why does Pronin still refuse to recognize our existence? But I don’t
recognize them. We don’t have any such organization. They’re nothing
more than petty thugs from Moscow and the Moscow region who target
people because of the color of their skins and try to attack them.”

“We have developed a strange tradition,” says Maksim Sokolov in
[Izvestia], “whereby reclassifying a crime as hooliganism is regarded
as condescension, and quite often actually is.”

But according to the Criminal Code, murder motivated by hooliganism
is still aggravated murder (Article 105.2i), and the penalty for it is
no less severe than for ethnically-motivated murder (Article 105.2l):
up to and including capital punishment, although there’s a moratorium
on that.

The “only” difference is the murder motive, says Sokolov: “Specific
proof of ethnic hatred is required, but no one can really know what
another person is thinking. Hooliganism is much easier to prove,
since unmotivated aggression is the distinct qualifying sign.”

Indeed, “if a crime is not prompted by greed or a personal grudge –
that is, if there are no rational motives for the crime – only one
motive remains: obvious disrespect for society as such, the desire
to destroy for destruction’s sake, right up to unmotivated murder.”

Those are the “hooliganism motives” of which common-sense opinion
takes such a condescending view.

However, says Sokolov, from a legal standpoint there shouldn’t
be any grounds for condescension here: “Unmotivated aggression
is much more dangerous than motivated aggression. The latter is
somewhat predictable, at least, so some protective measures can be
taken – but the former is completely unpredictable. In other words,
‘hooliganism motives’ describes the behavior of a rabid animal,”
and the response to such acts should be appropriate.

Nevertheless, says the [Vedomosti] newspaper, Russian legal practice
still treats “ethnic hatred motives” as an aggravating factor in
any crime.

On the other hand, the police find it advantagous to conceal racist
factors in any case: because “ethnically-motivated assault,” for
example, “isn’t just a common brawl, but a serious crime that threatens
the Constitution’s provision of equal rights for all citizens. In
other words, it’s a clear sign of failure for the police.”

Meanwhile, human rights organizations maintain that the killings are
the work of young skinheads, led by more experienced people. Antuan
Arakelian, an analyst with the Strategy Center, describes the murder
of Senegalese student Lamsar Samba as “an object lesson.”

Arakelian told [Novye Izvestia]: “There has been a series of
these demonstrative crimes in Moscow and St. Petersburg. They are
synchronized to some degree, indicating skilful management. The
skinheads are just the tools – and certain groups connected with
official structures are very good at using such tools.”

In Arakelian’s opinion, the climate of fear in society is being created
deliberately: “Russia is witnessing a purposeful campaign to tighten
the screws regarding legislation and its enforcement in the areas of
civil rights and liberties, non-governmental organizations, migrants,
and the Internet. There seems to be an effort to persuade the public
that a hardline approach to all these phenomena is required.”

The increase in ethnic hate crimes has intensified the public debate,
says [Vedomosti]: “Some are scaring ordinary citizens with the
prospect of neo-fascism, while others see a political game in all
this. One thing is clear: the state has all the leverage it needs to
fight crimes of this nature, but those abilities are not being used.”

[Ekspert] magazine takes a similar view: “Ethnically-motivated street
violence – that’s the most conspicuous and the most-discussed aspect
of xenophobia.” However, that is only the most obvious and scandalous
side of the situation, and it could be brought under control quite
quickly, given the political will to do so.

Boris Strugatsky, a prominent writer, says in an interview with
[Novaya Gazeta] that “yet another upswing in violent neo-Nazism is
taking place, and our leaders are either unable or – scary thought –
unwilling to take action against it.”

Of course, “all kinds of political forces” are seeking to take
advantage of the situation for their own purposes.

The situation “looks like an emergency,” says Strugatsky: “Unless
the authorities – at the very top, the presidential level – show some
political will, bloodshed and abominable events await us.”

Strugatsky went on to say: “I don’t rule out the possibility that
‘anti-fascist detachments’ might be established. And then we would
see a repeat of what happened in Germany in the early 1930s: a war
between ‘brown’ and ‘red’ storm-troopers. We remember where that led.

Or have we already forgotten?”

In [Literaturnaya Gazeta], historian Valery Solovei says that contrary
to the assertions of the authorities, “the situation in Russia isn’t
as good or stable as we are led to believe.” Solovei even reports that
“one of the Kremlin’s most well-known political strategists” is known
to “start repeating hysterically that Russia is heading for disaster”
whenever he has too much to drink in the company of friends.

Solovei participated in a [Literaturnaya Gazeta] debate on nationalist
issues in Russia and media coverage of them. In his opinion, Russia
“isn’t experiencing waves of public outrage yet, but the authorities
are seeking to prepare for them in advance by perfecting a system
for harsh suppression of mass protests.” Under the circumstances,
it can be “advantageous” for the authorities to “wave the bugaboo of
‘fascism’ – since ‘fascism’ provides excellent ideological cover for
the very toughest measures.”

And [Ekspert] magazine notes that “fascism-fighting month” on national
television networks in April “seems all the more ambiguous, given
that television broadcasting itself and Russia’s political class have
shown an increasing tolerance for xenophobic propaganda of late.”

[Ekspert] maintains that the “media tsunamis” on this issue “sometimes
resemble a game that’s convenient for everyone involved.”

[Ekspert] says: “In effect, the nationalists get access to television
airtime – if not directly, then via detailed coverage of their
activities. The authorities demonstrate that they’re concerned about
the problem. The opposition gets another opportunity to criticize
the authorities.”

Television networks themselves have an interest in this issue:
according to the laws of the genre, “news programs need at least a
dash of intrigue or suspense, but the political mainstream isn’t very
lively.” So the problem is solved by giving airtime to nationalists:
“since many of them refrain from saying anything too appalling, and
they don’t mention the issues that the Kremlin really dislikes: freedom
of speech, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, and so on.” From this standpoint,
says [Ekspert], the television networks actually prefer Alexander
Prokhanov to Boris Nemtsov, for example.

“Whom do the authorities see as the true enemy: the political
opposition, or neo-fascism?” When [Novaya Gazeta] put this question
to Boris Strugatsky, he replied: “For the authorities, the enemy
is anyone who aspires to power – regardless of their ideological
convictions or preferences.”

However, Strugatsky says that the neo-Nazis are the most dangerous
from that standpoint: “They are better-organized ideologically and
have more support among the masses, who are inclined to xenophobia
and authoritarianism.”

Strugatsky says: “The neo-Nazis are the leading claimants to political
power. We can only hope that the authorities understand this.”

Analyst Alexander Verkhovsky, director of the Sova Center, tells
[Ekspert] that Russia’s nationalists have turned out to be quick
learners. They have fully “mastered the political techniques used
by extreme right-wing groups in Europe, known for their ability
to use propaganda that skirts the boundaries of what is legally
permissible.” From the legal standpoint, there’s nothing actionable
in the statements made by Russian neo-Nazi leaders.

Then again, says [Ekspert], there might not be so much demand for
the issue of nationalism if public politics in Russia “wasn’t so
sterile.” When television broadcasts fail to discuss “many truly
important issues,” we inevitably see “phantom issues” – such as
those raised by the Movement Against Illegal Immigration, which
has managed to “adapt socially-acceptable political language for
xenophobic propaganda.”

These propaganda efforts haven’t been wasted.

The [Vedomosti] newspaper says: “Russia has had, and continues to
have, a favorable political and psychological climate for developing
xenophobic attitudes. Two wars in Chechnya fostered xenophobia among
Russia’s leaders – with the call to ‘wipe them out in the toilets’
being directed at bandits of a specific ethnic group.” Subsequently,
the war on international terrorism has only intensified Islamophobia.

These days, “patriotic” rhetoric at the federal level becomes actual
use of skinhead groups at the regional level: “They have been used
in several regional election campaigns, or even in business conflicts.”

What’s more, the [Kommersant] newspaper reports that during the
May Day holidays in Moscow, young nationalists from the Russian
All-National Union (RONS), with the support of Russian Orthodox
pensioner organizations, made a number of attacks on members of
sexual minorities.

RONS activists disrupted gay events at two Moscow night-clubs. Gay
rights groups have accused the Russian Orthodox Church and the federal
authorities of turning a blind eye to the activities of the RONS,
saying that the authorities are out to “score points in the lead-up
to elections.”

[Kommersant] notes: “Curiously enough, until now the radical
nationalist organizations had confined themselves to the ‘Russia for
Russians’ slogan and taken action against ‘aliens,’ mostly. But now,
according to the RONS, it’s the gays’ turn.”

RONS spokesman Miron Kravchenko described the purpose of the campaign
as follows: “We have to put a stop to promotion of this unnatural
way of life. They (gays) have to think about their behavior.”

Although the RONS claims to be motivated by religious beliefs,
the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church has found it
necessary to emphasize that it has nothing to do with these actions.

Ed Mishin, a leader of Russia’s gay rights movement and
editor, says that the police only made a show of dispersing the
anti-gay activists. Mishin says: “The authorities are still aiming to
suppress dissent: it used to be the Jews, and now it’s us.” All the
same, he maintains that the authorities “will let these nationalists do
as they please for the next six to twelve months, and then start taking
measures against them – scoring points for the next parliamentary
and presidential elections.”

This view is also held by Stanislav Belkovsky, president of
the National Strategy Institute, who told [Kommersant] that “the
authorities are the catalyst for such incidents.” Although “Russia
doesn’t have a substantial skinhead movement – only groups of youths
who gather for specific events,” the authorities aim to use such
incidents as proof that “fascists could take power tomorrow,” and
“citizens need to be shown that the present authorities are the
lesser evil.”

However, Boris Strugatsky says that it isn’t the worst-case scenario
for the authorities to take this attitude to neo-Nazis: “The real
worst-case scenario would be if Nazis (in one form or another)
actually came to power.”

Then again, Strugatsky considers this unlikely: “That place is
taken, and no one’s planning to give it up to anyone, including
the neo-Nazis.”

All the same, when this interview (done shortly before Victory Day)
asked him why the fascism-immunity our country acquired in 1941-45
has turned out to be so weak, Strugatsky replied that our country has
never developed immunity to fascism as such. What it had was hatred
of German fascism: “All those visuals of SS officers, death camps,
murdered civilians, our country’s devastations, the millions who
never came back from the war – all this, taken together, was called
‘the brutal face of German fascism.'” But in the Russian mindset,
all this coexisted easily with “our innate xenophobia, our approval
of strong-man rule and harsh measures, the notorious concept of
‘order,’ and the other attributes of common Nazism – nothing other
than dictatorship of the nationalists.”

These days, opinion polls indicate that xenophobic attitudes are on
the rise: over 50% of respondents approve of the “Russia for Russians”
slogan to some extent. [Ekspert] magazine reports that “over half
of respondents dislike Chechens and Roma; these figures reach 60-70%
among respondents under 25.”

[Novoe Vremya] magazine maintains that xenophobia is “a consequence
of the lawlessness that has come to dominate Russia.”

According to [Novoe Vremya], the prolonged period of Communist rule
produced a “special kind of morality” and a “special, communal type
of person” to go with it: “When those in power can steal openly and
kill with impunity, theft and murder cease to be sins. Everything is
permitted – as long as ‘they’ remain untouched.”

[Novoe Vremya] quotes the radical Petr Yakovlevich Chaadaev from almost
two centuries ago: “In the face of our misfortunes, I believe it is
permissible to refrain from sharing the ambitions of the unbridled
patriotism that has brought our country to the brink of destruction and
now thinks to rescue the country by persisting in its own illusions,
unwilling to acknowledge the desperate situation those illusions
have created.”

The 19th Century writer’s thoughts are echoed by Boris Strugatsky:
“As long as xenophobia and approval of dictatorship exist in Russia,
neo-Nazism will remain a first-degree looming threat.”

These statements appear to be two sides of the same coin.

Airline Industry Information
May 8, 2006

Armavia aircraft lost in fire in Belgium

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-©1997-2006 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

An Armenian official revealed on Friday (5 May) that an Armavia-owned
Airbus A320 had been destroyed in a fire in Belgium.

The aircraft was reportedly identical to the Armavia aircraft that
crashed into the Black Sea on Wednesday (3 May).

According to an Armenian civil aviation spokesperson the aircraft was
made in 1996 and was being serviced by Sabena Technics, Reuters
reported.

A Russian television station reported that four local workers had
been injured as a result of the fire.

A spokesperson for Armavia said that the two aircraft had been
insured.

PanARMENIAN.Net

May 9 – Victory Day and Shushi Liberation Day

08.05.2006 21:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ May 9 Armenia is celebrating the Victory Day and the
Yerkrapah (Union of Volunteers) Day. As RA Defense Minister’s
Spokesman, Colonel Seyran Shahsuraryan told PanARMENIAN.Net, the
Yerablur pantheon will be attended and a solemn sitting will be held
in the Sports and Concert Complex after K. Demirchyan. May 9 wreaths
will be laid to the monument to the Unknown Soldier in the Victory
Park. A military parade will take place in the Republic Square in
Yerevan. In the evening a holiday concert will be finished with
fireworks in the Victory Park.

To note, May 9 is also celebrated as the Day of Liberation of
Shushi. Attendance of the Stepanakert Memorial Complex, meetings with
the veterans of the Great Patriotic War and the Karabakh war as well
as concerts are scheduled. Besides, League of War Reporters NGO will
organize a photo exhibition dedicated to the period of the
Azeri-Karabakh war.

Russia to seek French aid over Armenian plane crash

Agence France Presse — English
May 7, 2006 Sunday 1:43 PM GMT

MOSCOW, May 7 2006 — Moscow is to ask France for help in retrieving
the black box flight recorders of an Armenian aircraft that crashed
in the Black Sea earlier this month, a Russian minister said Sunday.

“The aeronautical safety committee of the (12-nation) Commonwealth
of Independent States will approach French specialists,” said Russian
Transport minister Igor Levitin.

All the passengers and crew aboard died when an Airbus A320 operated
by the Armenian airline Armavia plunged into the sea Wednesday as it
tried to land at Sochi in bad weather on a flight from the Armenian
capital Yerevan.

“We have looked at the French experience at Sharm el-Sheikh,” Levitin
told reporters after a meeting with Emergency Situations Minister
Sergei Shoigu.

In January 2004 after a Flash Airlines Boeing crashed off the Egyptian
resort, a Scorpio robot sent by France recovered the two black boxes
from a depth of more 1,000 metres (3,300 feet).

“French colleagues have told us what equipment they used and French
companies have said they are ready to help us,” Levitin said.

“We can suggest to France that it take part with us in the search
operation and the task of bringing to the surface aircraft parts and
bodies” which have not been recovered, he said.

The plane probably either came down when heavy rain forced a loss
of speed, or was actually struck by lightning, according an aviation
specialist. Parts have been located at a depth of 680 metres (2,200
feet).

The bodies of 32 of the dead passengers have been taken to Yerevan,
Armenian Civil Aviation confirmed, with a further seven due to be
sent on Saturday night.

Rescuers have so far only found 51 bodies and seven of these have
not yet been identified, Sergei Aristov, Russia’s deputy transport
minister, said. neo-uh/sj/cc