Author: Greg Madatian

SYDNEY, Australia—The Armenian National Committee of Australia has criticized the attempted silencing of elected Australian representatives by the petro-dictatorship of Azerbaijan and its representatives, who have used diplomatic channels to formally protest the recent achievements in the area of Artsakh advocacy announced during the visit of a delegation from Stepanakert for meetings in Canberra, Sydney, and Melbourne.

Baku has not taken kindly to the federal, state, and local government welcomes received by the delegation led by Artsakh’s Foreign Minister Masis Mayilyan, as well as the Ryde City-Stepanakert Friendship City relationship announcement, and the launch of the Australian Friends of Artsakh with 40 inaugural signatories—all prominent Australians in politics, academia and civil society— pledging to support the fundamental human right to self-determination for the Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh.

Leyla Abdullayeva, the spokesperson for Azerbaijan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, released a statement to reassure supporters that “the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been seriously in charge of and has taken a number of measures recently with regard to the activities of the Armenian Diaspora organizations of Australia in promoting the illegal separatist regime in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, as well as the statements by the Australian official of Armenian origin.”

She added that the Australia’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan—who is based in Turkey—had been called in to a meeting in Baku to discuss the developments, revealing “the Chargé d’Affaires of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Commonwealth of Australia presented the note verbal to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Australia. Also our protest was brought to the attention of the Ambassador of Australia in the meeting held at the MFA of Azerbaijan.”

Abdullayeva also stated that Azerbaijan’s “Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov has sent an official letter to his Australian counterpart, Marise Payne. In his letter, Minister Mammadyarov refers to the position of the international community on the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”

ANC-AU Executive Director Haig Kayserian called out this attempted interference into Australian affairs.

“We’re talking about the interference into Australian affairs by a country which is a notorious jailer—and kidnapper outside of Azerbaijan—of journalists and opposition figures, a country which is embroiled in an international bribery scandal with the Azerbaijani Laundromat, and which regularly violates the internationally brokered Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire, killing innocent Armenians who are indigenous to the Republic of Artsakh,” stated Kayserian.

“It would seem they have enough issues to deal with before trying to apply pressure on elected Australian officials to discourage them from doing what they know is right—backing the human right of self-determination of the indigenous Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh.”

Mammadyarov’s correspondence to Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne apparently expressed that the successes in Artsakh advocacy announced over the past week “contradict the expressed official position of the Federal Government of Australia and reminded that such steps in relation to the illegal separatist regime were not in line with the well-known international practice and constitute a flagrant violation of the norms of international law.”

“While it is stated that Canberra has reassured Baku that their official, contradictory position of ‘supporting the OSCE Minsk Process while backing Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity’ has not changed, it is clearly not lost on Azerbaijan that the formation of a group of 40 prominent Australians, including a bipartisan collective of Ministers, Shadow Ministers and Parliamentarians, is a significant blow to the smokescreen they have been selling countries like Australia in recent years,” added Kayserian.

“The Armenian-Australian community is made up largely of survivors of the Armenian Genocide, and the Armenia that our ancestors were forced to flee included an Armenian Artsakh, which is why officials we elect have extended their ears and support to our concerns about Azerbaijani aggression and war-mongering. The truth is coming out, and it seems this has brought out the worst in Baku.”

“We encourage Australia’s foreign ministry and the government to outright reject calls from a foreign dictatorship to silence our democratic nation’s freedom of _expression_, which begins with our elected officials,” he said.

The New South Wales Parliament recognized the Republic of Artsakh in 2012 and Ryde City Council followed suit in 2018. Last week, Ryde City unanimously passed a resolution forming a Friendship City relationship with Artsakh’s capital Stepanakert.

This week saw the announcement of the Australian Friends of Artsakh—a newly-formed group of 40 prominent Australians, including Federal Ministers and Parliamentarians, a State Premier and fellow State Parliamentarians, a Mayor and Councillors, academics, thought leaders, and heads of several religious and community institutions.
The Federal contingent of signatories is led by Members of Parliament including Australia’s Communications Minister Paul Fletcher, Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar, Shadow Home Affairs Minister Senator Kristina Keneally and Shadow Agriculture & Resources Minister Joel Fitzgibbon.

Fitzgibbon is the co-convener of the Armenia-Australia Inter-Parliamentary Union along with the Chair of the House of Representatives Committee on Health, Aged Care & Sport and Member of Parliament Trent Zimmerman, who also joined the Australian Friends of Artsakh, along with fellow Chairs of Federal Parliamentary Committees including John Alexander, Julian Leeser, Jason Falinski and Tim Wilson—who is the only Member of Australia’s Federal Parliament with Armenian heritage. Newly elected Member of Parliament Josh Burns is also a friend of Artsakh.

Gladys Berejiklian, who is the most prominent among Armenian-Australians as the Premier of Australia’s largest state of New South Wales, leads the list of State Parliamentarians among the inaugural Australian Friends of Artsakh, which also includes Speaker of NSW Parliament’s House of Representatives Jonathan O’Dea and his fellow convener of the NSW Armenia-Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Shadow Treasurer and Member of Legislative Council Walt Secord.

Member of Parliament Dr. Hugh McDermott and Member of Legislative Rev. Fred Nile are also among the current NSW parliamentarians to join the group, along with former state political representatives including Marie Ficarra and Amanda Fazio.

Among other inaugural signatories to the Australian Friends of Artsakh include Ryde City’s Mayor Jerome Laxale and Councilor Sarkis Yedelian, along with several Councilors from Ryde City and Willoughby City.

A number of academics and civil society leaders have also signed on to support Artsakh, including Professor Peter Stanley, Dr. Sev Ozdowski, Dr. Panayiotis Diamadis, Dr. Brian Owler and Chris Crewther.

Leaders of communities and churches have joined the Australian Friends of Artsakh as inaugural signatories, led by the President of the NSW Ecumenical Council and the President of the Australasian Middle East Christian Apostolic Churches.

GLENDALE—The Armenian National Committee of America–Western Region and the Assyrian American Association of Southern California, during a special ceremony Monday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation in an effort to further deepen and institutionalize relations between the two organizations.

The ceremony took place at the ANCA-WR headquarters in Glendale, with ANCA Western Region Chairperson Nora Hovsepian, Esq. and AAASC President Ramond Takhsh signing the MOU, which went into effect immediately

The Memorandum recognizes the historic relations between both communities, accentuates the importance of collaboration and mutual understanding, and commits both communities to ensure comprehensive cooperation.

“The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation elevates our relationship with the AAASC to a deeper institutional level,” said Hovsepian. “Our nations have lived side by side for millennia, and we’re codifying both traditional as well as novel areas for our extensive collaboration, taking our advocacy work to new heights.”

“We have valued our relationship with the Armenian National Committee of America for several years now,” said Takhsh, the AAASC president. “The Armenian and Assyrian peoples have experienced the best of times together, and, of course, the worst of times. We’ll always continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our Armenian brothers and sisters… in this struggle to fight for justice for what happened to our people”

“In many ways, the struggle continues for both of our peoples, with what’s happening with the Armenians of Artsakh and the Assyrians in the Nineveh Plains. The struggle still persists. There might be different actors, but essentially it’s the same struggle,” added Takhsh.

Following this memorandum, both AAASC and ANCA-WR have agreed to continue in collaboration to undertake joint advocacy measures and public education initiatives promoting human rights, peace, and the rule of the law, and continue their commitment in seeking justice for the Armenian, Assyrian, and Greek Genocide.

In recent years, both groups have worked tirelessly to fight for recognition and justice for the Genocide of 1915 and have garnered the support of elected officials including Congressman Brad Sherman, Congressman Adam Schiff, Senator Scott Wilk, LA City Councilmember Paul Krekorian, and Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garcetti who has been vocal about his support for both communities in their fight for justice.

“The lies that are put out must be answered with truth. Every single time someone says ‘that wasn’t a genocide’ we say ‘Yes it was.’ Or, ‘that didn’t happen’ we say ‘yes it did.’ We all know Ellie Wiesel who said ‘The second death is to forget those that have died’. We will not allow that to happen– we will not allow them to be killed twice” Says Hon. Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles.

Both parties have agreed to continue their collaboration to further strengthen their key messaging relating to the Genocide and will continue to advocate on behalf of their communities in their homelands and abroad.

The ANCA Western Region is the largest and most influential nonpartisan Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues in pursuit of the Armenian Cause.

Founded on August 1964, the Assyrian American Association of Southern California is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization whose broad mission is to serve and advance the Assyrian-American community by concentrating on a wide spectrum of areas such as cultural and linguistic identity, public/governmental outreach and advocacy, education, arts/literature, youth services, and many others.

ANCA Applauds Rules Committee Decision to Allow House Vote on Sherman Amendment Countering Azerbaijani Threat to Civilian Aircraft

WASHINGTON,—The House Rules Committee voted to allow full floor consideration of an amendment, spearheaded by Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA), that would block the transfer of U.S. defense articles that strengthen Azerbaijan’s offensive airstrike capabilities, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA). The initiative aims to limit Baku’s ability to act upon its standing threat to shoot down civilian aircraft operating out of Artsakh’s Stepanakert Airport.

The decision to allow consideration of the ANCA-backed measure came late Monday evening, as Chairman Jim McGovern (D-MA) and the Rules Committee reviewed some 600 amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (H.R.2500).  Rep. Sherman’s measure and the underlying bill are expected to be taken up by the full House this week. Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Jackie Speier (D-CA) and Vice-Chair Adam Schiff (D-CA) also support the amendment.

“This amendment sends a strong message to Azerbaijan that it cannot threaten to shoot down civilian aircraft. Azerbaijan must not be allowed to intimidate its neighbors,” Rep. Sherman told the ANCA, upon learning his amendment was ruled “in order.”  “The last thing we should do is help strengthen Azerbaijan’s air defenses in any way.”

ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian concurred, noting: “We appreciate the leadership of Chairman McGovern to allow House members to cast an up-or-down vote on this common-sense amendment,  sending a clear signal to Azerbaijan that the United States stands unconditionally against any and all threats to destroy civilian aircraft. We look forward to working with Congressman Sherman and his colleagues to ensure the amendment’s thorough consideration and passage.”

In March of 2011, Arif Mamadov, the Director of Azerbaijan’s Civil Aviation Administration, reported that the Azerbaijani government had warned the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that it had not authorized flights to Nagorno Karabakh, explaining that “The law on aviation envisages the physical destruction of airplanes landing in that territory.” The Azerbaijani government has neither withdrawn this threat, nor agreed that its forces will not shoot down civilian aircraft. As a result, the civilian airport in Stepanakert has remained closed for the past eight years, depriving the citizens of Artsakh and others of their universally recognized right to travel.

The text of the Sherman Amendment states that “none of the funds authorized to be appropriated by this Act or otherwise made available to the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2020 may be used to transfer defense articles or services that improve Azerbaijan’s offensive air capabilities or air defense systems, which could threaten civil aviation in the Caucasus region.”

The Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) Ministry of Foreign Affairs hailed the Sherman amendment, stating “the resuming the operation of the Stepanakert airport is a sovereign right of Artsakh and pursues purely civil and humanitarian goals, in particular, the exercise of such an inalienable right as freedom of movement.”