Author: Frangulian Shushan

HEART OF POLITICS BEATS IN RALLIES AHEAD OF ELECTIONS

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
May 14 2007

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered in the Aegean province
of Ýzmir in the latest anti-government rally ahead of the upcoming
general elections, slated for July 22.

The rally, attended by three leftist opposition leaders, came a day
after up to 100,000 supporters of the ruling Justice and Development
Party (AK Party) raised gigantic Turkish flags and chanted slogans
denouncing the opposition as they enthusiastically listened to Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul at
a meeting in the eastern province of Erzurum.

Streets and buildings, including army barracks, in Ýzmir — Turkey’s
third-largest city and known to be a bastion of the main opposition
Republican People’s Party (CHP) — were awash with a sea of red
Turkish flags and portraits of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the revered
founder of modern Turkey. Demonstrators chanting slogans in favor
of secularism had expected the rally to be a platform for unity
between the politicians on the left, namely Deniz Baykal of the CHP
and Zeki Sezer of the smaller Democratic Left Party (DSP), which has
recently agreed to an election alliance with the CHP. But the two
leaders did not meet or address the demonstrators, although they
were believed to be among the crowd. A third leftist politician,
Social Democratic People’s Party (SHP) leader Murat Karayalcýn,
also attended the meeting.

The Ýzmir demonstration was the latest in a series of "republican
rallies" that began in Ankara on April 14 and later continued in
Ýstanbul, Manisa and Canakkale, aimed at supporting secularism
and opposing a candidate from the ruling AK Party becoming the
next president of Turkey. The rallies have received praise as a
demonstration of the people striving to make their voices heard.But
the meetings, which intensified after the military issued a strong
statement on April 27 expressing concern over the presidential election
process and warning of intervention, also raised questions over the
demonstrators’ desire to see the military, the die-hard guardian of
Turkey’s secular order, intervening in the country’s politics.

The AK Party, which has overseen the start of accession talks with the
European Union and pushed for radical economic and political reforms
aimed at bringing Turkey closer to the bloc, denies it is pursuing an
Islamist agenda. "Would we have worked that hard to join the EU if we
had a hidden agenda?" Foreign Minister Gul, the AK Party’s presidential
candidate who had to withdraw his bid after the Constitutional Court
annulled the parliamentary vote, has recently asked.

Demonstrators in Ýzmir, gathering in Gundoðdu Square and along the
coastal strip of Kordonboyu, chanted anti-EU and US slogans as well
as ones against the AK Party government. "Neither the US nor the EU,
fully independent Turkey," "Voting for Tayyip kills," "Killer US,
get out of the Middle East" and "International Monetary Fund out,
this is our country," were among the slogans frequently chanted by
protestors. The banners raised by demonstrators called for unity
among the leftist parties in order to counter the AK Party in the
general elections. One banner read "We are all Turks," apparently
in reaction to banners reading "We are all Armenians" raised at a
funeral ceremony in January for Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink,
slain by a teenage hit man in Ýstanbul.

An opinion poll recently published by Vatan daily said some 62 percent
of those who attended the pro-secularist rallies voted for the CHP
in the previous elections, held in 2002.

Retired Gen. Hurþit Tolon, a prominent member of one of the main
organizers of the meeting, the Kemalist Thought Association (ADD) and
Workers’ Party (ÝP) Chairman Doðu Perincek were also in attendance
at the rally. Many demonstrators came from Ýstanbul, Ankara and
other cities.

The rally took place a day after a bomb fastened to a bicycle exploded
at an open-air market in Ýzmir as traders were preparing their stalls
for the day, killing one vendor and injuring 14 other people.

The government is now pushing for constitutional changes to pave the
way for election of the president by public vote after its attempt to
get Gul elected in Parliament was blocked by the Constitutional Court
and the CHP. The latter successfully challenged the election at the
court, based on the claim that there were less than 367 deputies in
attendance when the vote began. CHP leader Baykal said he opposed the
public election of president, saying it would result in "sultanate"
coming back to Turkey and warning that it would lead the public will to
"shatter."

Erdoðan lashed out at Baykal during his visit to Erzurum, which
was organized to hand over houses built by the Public Housing
Authority of Turkey (TOKÝ) to their owners. "We have never lost
our common sense in the face of those who try to stir up tension
[or] create polarization. You know who I am talking about," Erdoðan
told supporters in Erzurum, where a two-kilometer-long Turkish flag
streamer was raised aloft.

"You will teach them the lesson when the time comes," Erdoðan said,
referring to the coming elections. He said that Parliament had elected
the president in the past, but when it came to Gul, his candidacy was
blocked. "My nation would send me to Parliament even with 550 deputies
(the entire Parliament), but you (the opposition) would still make up
excuses to block it," he said, adding: "Here are those who believe
in democracy and the secular republic. But the opposition is afraid
to go to the people."

Banners at the Erzurum gathering read, "Neither in Tandoðan, nor in
Caðlayan, the republic is in Erzurum," referring to past rallies in
Ankara’s Tandoðan and Ýstanbul’s Caðlayan squares.

–Boundary_(ID_iwz7CfqRGht+l/fjBaey4g)–

People’s Daily Online
May 12, 2007
Kosovo issue solution should not set precedent for other areas: Romanian PM

Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu said Friday that Romania does not want the
way in which the Kosovo issue will be solved to set a precedent for other
areas with frozen conflicts, the Rompres news agency reported.
"Our concerns regarding Kosovo may be summed up: firstly, we do not want the
way of settling the Kosovo issue to set a precedent for other areas with
frozen conflicts, and secondly, we do not want the Kosovo solution to hint
at the manner of collectively approaching minorities’ rights," Tariceanu
said in Zagreb, where he was attending the Southeastern Europe Cooperation
Process Summit.
The UN Security Council is to decide on the status of Kosovo, which wishes
to break away from Serbia, on the basis of a plan proposed by UN mediator
Martti Ahtisaari.
This plan provides for the independence of the province, initially
supervised by an international mission led by the European Union.

ARTASHES GEGHAMIAN HOPES THAT PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS TO PROCEED IN
CORRESPONDENCE WITH DEMAND OF LAW

YEREVAN, MAY 12, NOYAN TAPAN. "I think that the parliamentary elections
will proceed in correspondence with the demand of the law," Artashes
Geghamian, the Chairman of the Azgayin Miabanutiun (National Unity)
party informed journalists after voting at his polling station on May
12. He hopes that fair elections will be held in Armenia for the first
time during the last 15 years.

Stratfor
May 12 2007

Armenia: Elections Close
May 12, 2007 21 46 GMT

Armenian parliamentary elections closed May 12 without incident, The
British Broadcasting Corp. reported. Results are expected to be
released within a day; the ruling Republican Party led by Prime
Minister Serzh Sarksyan is expected to win. The last election, held
in 2003, was ruled undemocratic by foreign monitors; monitors from
the Organization for Security and Cooperation of Europe are
monitoring this year’s election closely.

PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

May 10, 2007

NATIONAL FUNERAL FOR K. YERVANT TERZIAN
WILL TAKE PLACE MONDAY IN PHILADELPHIA
The Eastern Prelacy issued the following announcement today on the death
of K. Yervant Terzian.
"It is with heartfelt sorrow that His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan
Choloyan and the Religious and Executive Councils of the Eastern Prelacy of
the Armenian Apostolic Church of America announce the death of Karnig
Yervant Terzian, a beloved son of the Armenian Church and nation, a Prince
of Cilicia, and a former World General Assembly delegate, which took place
on Thursday, May 10, 2007.
"A National Funeral Service will take place on Monday, May, 14, 2007 at
11:00 a.m. at St. Gregory the Illuminator Church, in Philadelphia, PA, with
the Prelate, His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan presiding. Interment will
follow at Calvary Cemetery.
"We honor his memory and pray for his soul to rest in everlasting
peace."
Mr. Terzian is survived by his wife, Helen Shamlian Terzian, and many
relatives.

FUNERAL SERVICES FOR KENNETH KEGHAM ASBEDIAN
Kenneth Kegham Asbedian died on May 6, in Massachusetts where he was
attending a christening. He was 64 years old. Ken, with his family, was a
faithful member of the Sts. Vartanantz Church parish in Ridgefield, New
Jersey, where he served as a trustee for many years. He was the founder of
the church’s endowment fund and was the chairman for the committee
overseeing the funds. He is survived by his wife, Andrea, and daughters,
Jennifer and Katherine, and a brother, Val. Funeral services will take place
tomorrow morning, May 11, at 9:30 a.m., at Sts. Vartanantz Church, 461
Bergen Boulevard, Ridgefield, New Jersey. His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan
Choloyan will preside.

SECOND OF THREE ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS
FOR PRELATE WILL TAKE PLACE SATURDAY
The second of the three regional celebrations marking the 40th
anniversary of Archbishop Oshagan’s ordination to the priesthood, will take
place this Saturday, May 12, at the Marriott at Glenpointe in Teaneck, New
Jersey.
Last Saturday the first of the celebrations successfully took place in
Providence, Rhode Island, where the New England community gathered to honor
Archbishop Oshagan’s milestone anniversary.
The third celebration will take place during the National Representative
Assembly (NRA) which is being hosted by St. Sarkis Church in Dearborn,
Michigan. This will take place on Friday, May 18, at Double Tree Hotel in
Dearborn, with the participation of the parishes in the Mid-West, as well as
the NRA delegates and guests.

ECUMENICAL COMMUNITY COMES FORTH
TO CONGRATULATE ARCHBISHOP OSHAGAN
An Ecumenical Reception took place last Friday, May 4, at the Prelacy
offices in New York City in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the
ordination of His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan. Many ecumenical friends
attended and offered their congratulations to the Prelate.

VICAR ATTENDS INTERNATIONAL PRAYER CONFERENCE
His Grace Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian, Vicar of the Prelacy and
Ecumenical Officer in the United States on behalf of the Catholicosate of
Cilicia, attended a conference organized by the International Prayer Council
(IPC) yesterday, May 9, in New York City. "Prayer leaders" from various
churches attended this meeting in preparation for a gathering in September
2007, which aims to bring together 200 prayer leaders from around the world
to pray for United Nation’s Millennium goals and issues facing the General
Assembly and for New York City. The founder of IPCD, John Robb, has carried
out this noble mission in almost all continents, inviting the faith
communities in general and Christian denominations in particular to
transform the world through prayer.

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I RETURNS FROM GENEVA
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, returned
from Geneva on Monday, May 7, where during the course of a week he
participated in several meetings with prominent officials in ecumenical and
inter-religious cooperation circles. The meetings focused on the planning of
several conferences to be held in Antelias in the future. Communications
Officer of the Catholicosate, V. Rev. Fr. Krikor Chiftjian, accompanied His
Holiness on the visit.

HIS HOLINESS SENDS CONGRATULATIONS TO
NEWLY ELECTED FRENCH PRESIDENT
His Holiness Aram I sent a letter of congratulations to the newly
elected president of France, Nicholas Sarkozy. He Holiness wrote:
"It is with particular joy that we received news of your election as
President of the Republic of France. We welcome your election and
congratulate you on this occasion from the headquarters of the Armenian
Catholicosate of Cilicia, in Antelias, Lebanon.
"As you well know, religious, cultural, social and political ties have
bound the French and Armenian nations together since centuries. This
relationship further developed during the Cilician Kingdom of Armenian
history and have evolved into a contemporary friendship based on shared
values.
"We have high regard for the strong stance of the French nation and
government towards human rights issues, and in this context, towards the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Being familiar with your thoughts on
this issue, we are confident that you will continue on the same path based
on the principles of justice and peace.
"We wish you success in your mission."

GARABED SARKESSIAN ORDAINED SUB-DEACON
Last week we reported that Garabed Sarkessian would be granted the right
to wear the stole (oorar) at St. Gregory Church in Philadelphia. We should
have reported that he was to be ordained a sub-deacon. He had received the
oorar two years ago.

2007 DATEV INSTITUTE SUMMER PROGRAM
The 21st annual St. Gregory of Datev Institute Christian summer studies
program will take place July 1 to 8 in Elverson, Pennsylvania. For details
click

2007 NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY IN DEARBORN
The 2007 National Representative Assembly (NRA) will convene next week
in Dearborn, Michigan, hosted by St. Sarkis Church. For details click

Clergymen should note that the religious conference will begin Tuesday
afternoon, May 15, not Wednesday as previously announced.

PLG MOTHERS DAY IS GREAT SUCCESS
The popular Mothers Day luncheon presented by the Prelacy Ladies Guild
took place last Monday, May 7, at the St. Regis in New York City. The
weather was perfect and spirits were high with good representation from the
New York-New Jersey metropolitan area, as well as Philadelphia and Rhode
Island.

IN CELEBRATION OF THE YEAR OF THE ARMENIAN LANGUAGE.
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, has
designated 2007 as the Year of the Armenian Language. In celebration of this
year-long tribute, each week we will offer an interesting tidbit about the
Armenian language.

THE ARMENIAN LANGUAGE
The Armenian language is an orchard where I walk
under green trees growing in the shadow of the past.
The words are clustered fruit I pick one by one.

My Armenian language is a garden I love, that grows
beside a ruined palace; heavy boughs
alive with the flow of sap and sun.

I walk the shade of fruit trees and admire
their arching branches, their wide roots
amazed how they weathered the storms
that felled the vast countryside.

I hold rounded words, fruits both tart
and sweet with juices uncounted suns made ripe;
words that anoint the lips, bless the palate
and give comfort to the heart.

Written by Vahan Tekeyan
Translated by Diana Der Hovanessian and Marzbed Margossian

To read the message of His Holiness in Armenian click
.
To read the message of His Holiness in English click

DAIL Y BIBLE READINGS
Bible readings for today, May 10, are: Luke 13:10-21; Acts 19:1-20; 1
John 2:24-25; John 8:21-30; Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:31-37.
Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon
towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to
him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to
lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and
put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then
looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, Ephphatha, this is, "Be
opened." And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and
he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he
ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded
beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf
to hear and the mute to speak." Mark 7:31-37.
For listing of the entire week’s Bible readings click

MOTH ER’S DAY AT ST. ILLUMINATOR’S CATHEDRAL
A luncheon and program dedicated to Mother’s Day will take place
following the Divine Liturgy on Sunday, May 20, 2007, at St. Illuminator’s
Cathedral, 221 E. 27th Street, New York City. Honored as the Mothers of the
Year will be Yn. Vartouhi Der Kaloustian, Mrs. Azadouhi Vartanian, and Mrs.
Lusig Khatchadour. For information contact the church, 212-689-5880.

SUNDAY IS MOTHER’S DAY
This Sunday, May 13, is Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day was first conceived
by Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia. Ms. Jarvis vowed at her mother’s funeral
that she would dedicate her life to the wishes of her mother of having a
national holiday in honor of mothers. With financial assistance provided by
John Wanamaker (the department store tycoon) in 1907, she began a seven-year
effort which included letter-writing, speech making, and lobbying in
Washington. In 1914 Congress passed a joint resolution, which President
Woodrow Wilson signed, establishing Mother’s Day as a national holiday.
Mother’s Day has become the most popular day to eat out, and is
generally the day when the most long-distance phone calls are made.

Calendar of Events

May 12-40th anniversary of ordination of Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan in Mid
Atlantic area will take place at the Marriott at Glenpointe, Teaneck, New
Jersey.

May 12-Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, 50th anniversary concert
featuring Onnik Dinkjian and John Berberian.

May 12-Armenian Dance party, St. Gregory Church, Indian Orchard,
Massachusetts.

May 18-40th anniversary of ordination of Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan in
Midwest will take place at the National Representative Assembly.

May 20-"Hello Ellis Island" and Reception, St. Stephen’s Church Hall,
Watertown, Massachusetts. $20 per person. Information, 617-924-7562.

May 20-Divine Liturgy, Luncheon and Program dedicated to Mother’s Day, St.
Illuminator’s Cathedral, New York City, Sunday, May 20. Honored mothers: Yn.
Vartouhi Der Kaloustian, Mrs. Azadouhi Vartanian, and Mrs. Lusig
Khatchadour. For information, 212-689-5880.

July 1-8-St. Gregory of Datev Institute, 21st annual summer Christian
studies program for junior and senior high school students, at St. Mary of
Providence Center in Elverson, Pennsylvania. For information click

July 7-St. Gregory Church, Indian Orchard, Massachusetts, gathering at the
home of the parish priest, Rev. Father Bedros Shetilian.

July 21-Sts. Vartanantz Church Ladies Guild, Providence, Rhode Island, and
ARS Ani Chapter present "A Hye Summer Night 2." For information
401-286-8107.

August 7-Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts, annual golf
tournament at Blackstone Country Club.

August 19-Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts, annual
church picnic.

September 27-Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New Jersey, 5th Annual Golf
Outing at River Vale Country Club, River Vale, New Jersey. Registration
begins at 11 a.m. and tee time at 1 p.m. For information, 201-943-2950.

September 29-Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts, 50th
anniversary banquet at Pleasant Valley.

December 1-Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts, annual
church bazaar.

December 9-St. Stephen’s Church, Watertown, Massachusetts, 50th anniversary
celebration. For information, (617) 924-7562.

Visit our website at

CONFLICT OF INTEREST OR MERE COINCIDENCE? LA TIMES KILLS LEADING STORY ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BY WRITER WITH ARMENIAN ROOTS–CATALYZING CHARGES OF BIAS

Sirius Information, Inc
Bulldog Reporter’s Daily Dog
April 30, 2007 Monday

Rumors are running rampant that the Los Angeles Times killed
a front-page article about the fight over the recognition of the
Armenian genocide because its writer, Mark Arax, is Armenian. It’s
a question LA Times managing editor Douglas Frantz would probably
prefer not to address, the LA Weekly reports.

News broke earlier this week that Frantz killed Arax’s story in a
terse email message to the writer because, Frantz said, Arax had
"a conflict of interest" and a "position on the issue." Frantz was
referring to a 2005 letter in which Arax, four other Armenian Times
staff writers and legal affairs reporter Henry Weinstein reminded the
paper’s top editors to refer to the genocide as genocide, in accordance
with the paper’s style rules. The 2005 letter had been well-received,
acknowledged, and, sources at the paper tell the LA Weekly, forgotten,
reports Weekly writer Daniel Hernandez.

But in his recent email to Arax, obtained by the Weekly, Frantz
characterized the letter as a "petition," as in some form of
activism. He also told Arax that he "went around [the] system" in a
bid to land the story assignment, by dealing with an editor in the
Times Washington bureau, Robert Ourlian, who is Armenian American.

So Frantz reassigned the story to Washington reporter Rich Simon,
who turned around a decorous and somewhat routine take on Turkey’s
ongoing mission to block Congress from recognizing the slaughter of
more than 1 million Armenians by Ottoman Turkey during World War I,
something several Western developed countries have already done. The
revised Times article ran under the headline, "Genocide Resolution
Still Far From Certain" on April 21, four days before Armenian Genocide
Remembrance Day in LA. Arax was given a consolation tagline at the
end of the article for having "contributed" some reporting.

Arax, sounding incensed, sent an email to some of his fellow reporters,
which made its way to the Weekly. "Colleagues, You should know that
I had a Page One story killed this week by Doug Frantz," the letter
began. "His stated rationale for killing the piece had nothing to do
with any problems with the story itself. In an email to me, he cited
no bias, no factual errors, no contextual mishaps, no glaring holes."

Arax then spelled out the holes he saw in Frantz’s objections,
reiterating that the 2005 letter was not a petition, and that the
standard process was used with Ourlian to assign and edit the story.

And he pushed the dispute up a notch, going so far as to suggest that
the only person in the dustup who has a bias or personal stance is
Frantz, who lived in Turkey for years.

He continues: "Because his logic is so illogical, questions must be
raised about Frantz’ own objectivity, his past statements to colleagues
that he personally opposes an Armenian genocide resolution and his
friendship with Turkish government officials, including the consul
general in Los Angeles who’s quoted in my story. Frantz is heavily
involved and invested in defending the policies of Turkey."

Arax ended the note by sharing the news that he has filed a
discrimination complaint against Frantz inside the paper, and that
a Times Human Resources Department inquiry was launched.

INSTITUTION OF CRIMINAL CASE TOWARDS US HAS GOAL TO KEEP OPPOSITION
FIELD IN TERROR, VAHAN SHIRKHANIAN SAYS

YEREVAN, MAY 7, NOYAN TAPAN. Institution of ungrounded criminal case
towards former RA Foreign Minister Alexander Arzumanian and towards
him has the goal to persecute opposition forces and to "keep them in
terror" in the preelection period. Former RA Deputy Defence Minister
Vahan Shirkhanian said on May 7 in his interview to Noyan Tapan
correspondent.

Commenting upon the statement of National Security Service that
allegedly he and A. Arzumanian being in Moscow on April 24-26 "reached
an agreemet with RF citizen Levon Marcos, to organize with their help
moving to Armenia and legalization of sums having doubtful origin,"
V. Shirkhanian said that in the above mentioned period he indeed was
in Moscow. He met with his friends there, whom he asked for money for
organizing his daughter’s coming wedding and covering the expenditures
of Yerevan’s Shanghai Club. "I respect L. Marcos very much, but I have
not received any money from him," the former Deputy Minister said.

The same day in the interview to journalists A. Arzumanian qualified
the incident "as a political order." "I have spent my whole life in
Armenia, I have nothing to conceal, I have been never engaged in
economic activity and I consider the incident and the accusations
brought to us as absurd," he stated. In the words of the former
Foreign Minister, the current regime, which tries to reproduce himself
by all means and plans to commit unprecedented electoral
falsifications for that purpose, is already trying to create an
atmosphere of fear in the country. As A. Arzumanian affirmed, after
the elections the authorities will strengthen the acts of violence for
even more. "They will not manage to do anything, they cannot reduce us
to silence, we will struggle till the end, we call for pan-national
anger," A. Arzumanian stated.

PanARMENIAN.Net

Account of Armenian Genocide wins Minnesota Book Award

07.05.2007 17:44 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ An account of the Armenian Genocide written by Taner
Akcam, a visiting professor at the University of Minnesota won a
Minnesota Book Award this weekend.

Taner Akcam was honored for writing "A Shameful Act: The Armenian
Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility."

Judges called it a "pioneering work" and "scrupulous account of
Turkish responsibility for the killing of 1.5 million Armenians" and
praised Akcam and his publisher, Metropolitan Books, for "challenging
the country’s 90-plus-year denial of intentional genocide."

Akcam left Turkey in the 1970s after being prosecuted, jailed,
threatened, vilified and harassed.

"I’m deeply honored to accept this award," Akcam said, "in the hope of
preventing further genocides."

He dedicated his award for best general nonfiction book to his close
friend, Hrant Dink, a Turkish Armenian newspaper editor who was gunned
down outside his office in Istanbul in January, allegedly by extreme
nationalists, the AP reports.

CHARLES AZNAVOUR: I’D HAVE BEEN MOST FAMOUS TUKISH AND NOT FRENCH
SINGER IF THERE HAD NOT BEEN GENOCIDE

PARIS, MAY 7, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The forld-famous French
singer of Armenian descent Charles Aznavour said that if his ancestors
had not died during the genocide, he would have been the most famous
Turkish singer now. According to Haberler.com, Aznavour stated this
during a program "Vivement Dimanche" broadcast by TV channel
"France-2".

Speaking about the life and activities of Charles Aznavour, the
program presenter Michel Ducker pointed out the fact of the Armenian
Genocide’s recognition by the French parliament and added that while
commenting on Eurovision Song Contest last year, he expressed a hope
that one day Turkey will recognize the Armenian Genocide, and Turks
objected to these words by sending numerous messages.

In response to M. Ducker’s question about whether he is not a Turkish
Armenian, Aznavour replied: "I am a Turkish Armenian. My family was
from Izmir. When Turkey awarded Armenia 10 points at last year’s
Eurovision, I welcomed this step in a sincere way and said that I give
Turkey 12 points, and nobody thanked me for it. But if my ancestors
had not died during the genocide, now I’d have been the most famous
Turkish rather than French singer."

Delegation headed by NA Speaker to leave for NKR

ArmRadio.am
07.05.2007 16:03

On May 8 the delegation headed by the Speaker of the National Assembly
of Armenia Togran Torosyan will leave for the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic to participate in the celebration of the liberation of
Shoushi and the Victory Day, Public Relations Department of RA
National Assembly informs.