Author: Hakobian Adrine

ARF CLAIMS THAT SURVEY CONDUCTED UNDER SLOGANS AND SYMBOLS OF PARTY IS NOT VIOLATION OF ELECTORAL LAW

Noyan Tapan
Nov 29, 2007

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 29, NOYAN TAPAN. Red tents with symbols of the
ARF appeared in Yerevan streets a few days ago, while young men in
jackets of the same color are calling on by-passers to vote for the
two candidates of the ARF at the presidential elections. The photos
and biographies of the ARF Bureau member Vahan Hovhannesian and
the ARF Armenia Supreme Body representtaive Armen Rustamian have
the heading: "Participate In Our Election, Vote for the Candidate
of Dashnaktsutyun". The authors of the leaflet with the slogans:
"Our Old Friend – New President of the Country" and "Why President
from the Dashnaktsuntyun?" make the following appeal to compatriots:
"On the eve of the presidential elections, we suggest that you think
for a moment about entrusting the helm of the country’s governance
to the candidate of Dashnaktsutyun."

In response to NT correspondent’s question, there was information from
the ARF press service that this event held prior to the start of the
official propaganda campaign is not a violation of the Electoral Code
because it is not a pre-election propaganda but a survey to determine
the ratings of the two candidates. The results of the survey conducted
for a week will be finalized and made public at the November 30 ARF
Supreme Assembly, during which the party will make a final decision
on choosing their canidate for presidency.

WEBSITE CONTAINING INFORMATION ON ARMENIAN BOOKS PUBLISHED IN 1512-1850 TO OPEN IN NEAR FUTURE

Noyan Tapan
Nov 29, 2007

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 29, NOYAN TAPAN. The names of the Armenian books
published in 1512-1850 debited by the "Hakob Meghapart" program, as
well as those of the books translated in English by 1512-1800, will
be put on the internet site in the near future. This
information was provided to a Noyan Tapan correspondent by Rafik
Ghazarian, the Deputy Head of the National Library of Armenia.

In his words, the website will provide an opportunity
to those, invloved in Armenology, and readers to receive detailed
information on the Armenian books published in the above-mentioned
period.

ARMENPRESS

ARMENIA TO DISPATCH NEW SHIFT OF PEACEKEEPERS TO
KOSOVO ON DECEMBER 1

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS: Thirty-four
Armenian peacekeepers will fly to Kosovo December 1 to
replace their friends for another six-month long
shift. This will be the 8-th dispatch of Armenian
peacekeepers to Kosovo who are under the Greek
peacekeeping battalion command.
Armenians are deployed near Kosovo’s capital
Pristina.
A spokesman for Armenian defense ministry, Seyran
Shahsuvarian, told Armenpress that Armenia is ready to
double the number of its peacekeepers in Kosovo. He
said 34 more servicemen have been trained to carry out
peacekeeping mission.
Overall 238 Armenian peacekeepers have served in
Kosovo so far.
Armenia also has a 46-member non-combat platoon of
military medics, sappers and truck drivers in Iraq.

"DASHNAKTSUTIUN" TO BECOME OPPOSITION ONLY IN CASE OF FALSIFICATION OF THE UPCOMING ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA

Mediamax
December 3, 2007

Yerevan /Mediamax/. "Dashnaktsutiun" party, which nominated Vahan
Hovhannissian as a candidate for the position of the Armenian
President, claims to take up the role of one of the poles of the
upcoming electoral campaign.

Mediamax reports that the Spokesman of the Supreme Body of
"Dashnaktsutiun" Spartak Seyranian said this in Yerevan today. He
noted that there is a transition from bipolarity to multi-polarity of
the spectrum of political forces registered in the pre-election race,
which is picking up speed.

Spartak Seyranian stated that the poles of the present campaign have
ideological, rather than personal basis. At that he expressed concern
in connection with the negative influence of the "elements of spite,
which is pregnant with split in the society".

The ideological basis of the pre-election campaign of Vahan
Hovhannissian will not be fundamentally different from the platform,
from which "Dashnaktsutiun" entered the parliamentary elections of
2007, the Spokesman stated.

Spartak Seyranian stated that "Dashnaktsutiun" may transform into
opposition only in case the results of the presidential elections of
February 19 of 2008 are falsified.

JEWISH GROUP BANDS WITH LATINOS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION
By Dianne SolÍs / [email protected]

Dallas Morning News, TX
Nov 15 2007

N. Texans among those at Washington immigration workshop

Leaders of a national Jewish group say the hate being directed at
Mexican immigrants resonates with their own experience. So they’ve
taken up the cause and convened a series of meetings and workshops
with immigrant and Mexican-American leaders, including some from
North Texas.

Laura Gonzalez, a Dallas college professor, and Jacobo Kupersztoch,
a Dallas biologist, were among about three dozen Latinos from around
the country who made the trek to Washington for sessions on organizing,
fundraising and advocacy.

The American Jewish Committee co-sponsored the three-day workshop with
Mexico’s Institute for Mexicans Abroad, which includes an advisory
council established by the country’s Foreign Relations Ministry.

And immigration – an issue that has polarized the nation – took
center stage."The whole immigration debate is not a Latino issue;
it is an American issue," said Dina Siegel Vann, the director of the
Latino and Latin America initiative at the American Jewish Committee.

Ms. Siegel Vann grew up in Mexico City – and was part of the small
but active Jewish community of about 40,000 there.

"From a moral perspective, Jews feel that having successfully
incorporated into the U.S., they now feel a responsibility to help
other minorities," she said.

Beyond that, there are practical motivations, she said. The Jewish
population is in decline in the U.S., she said, and now numbers about
5 million. The Hispanic population is growing and numbers 44 million.

"Both communities have a self-interest in building a coalition," she
said. "The only way you can advance an agenda is through a coalition."

The American Jewish Committee has long been a strong supporter
of immigration. Earlier this year, the AJC supported a broad plan
to overhaul U.S. immigration laws. After the Senate failed to pass
comprehensive immigration reform, the AJC urged Congress to continue
working on a "balanced and bipartisan bill."

"The Senate’s failure to advance the immigration legislation only
prolongs the national crisis in failing to deal humanely with the 12
million undocumented immigrants in our country," said Jeffrey Sinensky,
AJC’s director of domestic policy.

‘Responsibility to lobby’ At the Washington meeting, workshops
focused on everything from effective lobbying and letter-writing to
the power of personal relationships to a point-by-point presentation
on advocating on Capitol Hill.

"Script your meeting – practice speaking. … Don’t be afraid to show
your passion, but don’t let your passion overshadow your credibility,"
read one handout.

The group members met with legislative aides and with Rep. Howard
Berman, a veteran Democratic legislator from Los Angeles who
has supported measures to legalize immigrants who are in the
U.S. unlawfully.

They also met with various leaders of the Jewish community in the
Washington area, and with Mexican Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan, whose
grandfather immigrated to Mexico from Armenia.

"Now, more than ever, we must underscore a self-evident truth:
Migrants are not a threat to the security of the U.S.," he said,
according to a transcript of his remarks. "They are important actors
in the fabric of what makes America great."

Mr. Kupersztoch said he identifies with the plight of illegal
immigrants. "I was exposed to discrimination as a Jew in Mexico and
exposed to discrimination as a Mexican in the U.S.," he said.

And he hopes to use what he learned to set up a network of people,
possibly retirees, who can establish phone trees and e-mail trees to
call on Congress, the state Legislature and municipalities when key
issues arise.

The Jewish community is "so very organized, and I came away very
positively impressed," he said. By comparison, he said, "we are not
organized. The Latino community is not organized."

Another idea calls for developing training plans that would enhance
the skills of the many blue-collar workers from Mexico in North Texas,
he said.

Ms. Gonzalez, who is active in the League of Women Voters of Dallas,
said political advocacy was of keen interest.

"What we share with the Jewish community is discrimination,"
Ms. Gonzalez said.

"They convinced us that it is not only our right and responsibility
to lobby," she said. "We [as] U.S. citizens have the right to go and
lobby for the issues that relate to our interests."

Mr. Kupersztoch and Ms. Gonzalez both served on the first advisory
board of Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry from 2003 through 2005.

Praise and doubt In North Texas, some immigrant leaders praised the
AJC effort.

For years, some have discussed the merits of U.S. Latinos acting
as a lobby on Mexican issues, just as U.S. Jews have done on behalf
of Israel.

And for nearly as many years, Mexico’s halting march toward democracy
impeded such moves because Mexican-Americans wanted little association
with the often-corrupt ruling party of Mexico.

But that political party rules no longer. And the current crackdown
against Mexicans living illegally in the U.S. has served to galvanize
many members of the community.

The Jewish people "have suffered much more than we have, and for
that reason they are stronger than we are," said Jorge Navarrete,
who served on the advisory board of the Institute for Mexicans Abroad.

"That’s why we need to take advantage of them as an example for
ourselves. Hopefully, what these people [who’ve attended AJC seminars]
learned will be shared with others."

Others question the AJC measure.

Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration
Reform, a group that wants restrictions on both legal and illegal
immigration, said many times an organization’s leadership doesn’t
represent the rank and file.

"Jewish opinion on immigration tends to probably be more sympathetic
than the general population," said Mr. Mehlman, who is Jewish and
co-founded the now-dormant American Jewish Immigration Policy
Institute. "But it is not hugely out of step with the general
population."

Mr. Mehlman noted that FAIR also helped form a group of Hispanics
against illegal immigration and African-Americans against illegal
immigration in 2006, as protests for immigrant rights swept through
such U.S. cities as Dallas, Los Angeles and Chicago.

IMMIGRANT STATISTICS 11.6 million The estimated number of "unauthorized
immigrants" living in the U.S. in 2006

6.6 million, or 57% The number of "unauthorized immigrants" from Mexico

1.64 million Unauthorized immigrant population in Texas, which is
second only to California

37.5 million The foreign-born population of the U.S., which includes
those lawfully in the country

221,000 The number of people removed from the U.S. in the fiscal year
that ended in September

261,000 Total number of repatriations, including for the first time
statistics on those who chose a procedure known as voluntary departure,
which differs legally from a deportation

631,000 The number of removals of illegal immigrants over a three-year
period (roughly the population of Fort Worth).

SOURCE: Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration
Statistics, and the U.S. Census Bureau

–Boundary_(ID_XMld9Rl6BFOJLOhpXMFgYw)–

SHOWDOWN FOR ATATURK’S REPUBLIC
By Slater Bakhtavar

NewsBlaze, CA
b/newsblaze/OPINIONS/Opinions.html
Nov 15 2007

"A nation which makes the final sacrifice for life and freedom does not
get beaten." Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Republic of Turkey.

In early October, members of the separatist Kurdish Workers’ Party
("PKK") stationed in northern Iraq, instigated a clandestine military
attack, which led to twelve casualties. This attack is a minuscule
part of a spate of intensified attacks by the Kurdish Workers’ Party.

The Kurdish’ Workers’ Party, whose agenda includes the autonomy of
Turkey’s southeast region and an end to Turkish assimilation, have
infiltrated segments of northern Iraq and Turkey. Their ferocious
tactics include, but are not limited to kidnappings, beheadings,
tactical bombing, and pillaging. This month alone, the Kurds have
racked up a body count of 42 Turks and kidnapped eight others. In
just twenty years, the organization, which is designated a "terrorist
organization" by the United States and Europe, has murdered over
30,000 people.

Feeding on rampant sectarian violence in Iraq, the PKK have intensified
their militaristic approach. Contrary to their glorified public
relations campaign, the PKK is not a heroic counter-interventionist
movement. PKK’s Marxist ideology and treacherous brutality is
an aberration in a society recognized for its tolerance. Turkey’s
ethnic Kurds, the majority of who recently voted for the Justice and
Development Party, oppose PKK’s agenda. The Kurdish people recognize
that the guerrilla escapades have promoted regional and international
political upheaval. Once, isolated and prone to factionalism,
the guerrilla movement is on the rise due to the dire situation in
northern Iraq.

The Turkish government, which believes Turkish citizens should have
no loyalty outside of the state, has responded. On October 17th, the
Turkish parliament voted 507-19 to authorize cross-border raids into
northern Iraq to root out the PKK. Turkish General Yasar Buyukanit
angrily touted, "We are determined to make those who cause this sadness
grieve with an intensity that they cannot imagine," Prime Minister
Erdogen, leader of the moderate Islamic Development Party said "Turkey
shall not be intimidated." Turkey recently massed over 100,000 troops
on the border with Iraq backed up by tanks, artillery, warplanes and
helicopters. Turkish jet fighters and helicopters pounded suspected
rebel hideouts in Turkey and northern Iraq, strategic maneuvers
condemned by U.S. and Iraqi governments. The U.S. and Iraqi government
fear that Turkish intervention could destabilize a moderately tranquil
segment of the volatile region.

The two nations believe Turkish military intervention may deepen
tension between diverse ethnic groups in the region, deteriorate
loose coalitions and trigger a sharp increase in global oil prices.

Neighboring Iran and Syria, which are both home to substantial Kurdish
minorities, may be pressured to intervene. Even minimal ethnic friction
in Iran, a predominately ethnic Persian nation, may escalate the
fragile region. But the United States must balance its desire for
regional stability with steadfast support for and cooperation with
the Turkish government.

Turkey chastised the US-led invasion in Iraq, but it subsequently
provided vital strategic airbases for U.S. flights into Iraq
and Afghanistan. Turkey, a secular Republic with fragments of
institutionalized democracy and constitutionally protected rights is a
natural ally of the United States. But the once-friendly relationship
between the U.S. and Turkey has waned due recent U.S. political
maneuvers seen as threatening to Turkey’s national sovereignty. Turkey,
once a proud US ally with a populace generally supportive of the United
States, is now one of the least America friendly nations in the world,
this according to a recent Pew Research Center poll.

The Turkish public islargely opposed the US government’s unilateral
decision-making in the Middle East, including the Kurdish quandary. A
recent counterproductive resolution by the US congressional committee
condemning the Ottoman Empire for genocide against the Armenians over
ninety years ago further agitated the Turkish public sentiment.

Detrimental and untimely decisions, such as these, undermine our
long-term interests in the middle-east.

Besides an array of rhetorical assurances, the U.S. government, has
done little to pressure provincial, regional and national Kurdish
political heavyweights. Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan
Regional Government in Iraq, must be confronted by the U.S. and the
central Iraqi government. To its credit, the Iraqi government recently
announced it will set up checkpoints to restrict the PKK’s movement
and cut their supply lines to their mountainous hideouts.

Military reports that the U.S. is supplying the Turkish government
with PKK hideout locations is a constructive political maneuver. But
the United States must do more to provide channels of cooperation
and mutual understanding between the Turks and Americans.

Enthusiastically supporting the Turkish government’s justified campaign
against the Marxist-terrorist organization may help mend bridges as
well as ensure victory for a progressive democratic Middle East.

Slater Bakhtavar is president and founder of Republican Youth of
America, a frequent commentator and respected analyst on foreign
policy issues, and an attorney with a post-doctoral degree in
International law.

RUSSIAN AND MUSLIM HISTORY

Assyrian International News Agency
Nov 13 2007

By the time of Putin’s presidency, the Russian state had consolidated
its position and new ideology; and thus a new construction of Russian
history was shaped following the usual pattern, where the new present
usually leads to the creation of a new past.

This new ideology, at least on a semi-official level, is a construction
that could be compared with that of the ideological construction of
late Imperial Russia. Still, it has its own specific nature. While
for most of the Westernized elite of the last years of Romanov rule
Russia was a part of the European order, indicated above all by
Russia’s alliance with France and England, the present-day Russian
Westernized elite is not sure about this. Not just the USA but even
Europe, for all of their attractiveness, are seen by some segments of
the Russian middle class as alien or even hostile entities, despite
all of the friendly gestures of Russians to fellow Europeans.

In this cautious vision of the West, Russian official ideology could
well be seen in the context of the Slavophilism of the 19th century.

However, contrary to the 19th century Slavophiles, present-day Russians
ideologists see no friends among "brother" Slavs, as testified by
the recent brush with pro-Russian Slavic Belorussians.

Still, despite the differences, elements of the ideology of the late
imperial and late Stalin periods could easily be perceived in the
ideological construction of the regime and, consequently, in its
vision of the past. In this picture, Russia has always been a great
nation, a mighty state, that protects/dominates numerous minorities,
including those that historically professed Islam, who lived happily
in the shadow of the broad wings of the Russian eagle.

This historical construction is increasingly challenged by Muslim
intellectuals who have constructed their own vision of the present
and the past, one which resonates among the Muslim masses. They, for
a variety of reasons, are increasingly disinclined to be fused in the
Russian melting pot. One of the major reasons why ethnic minorities
and newcomers – and local Russians – do not usually see much difference
between bona fide citizens of the Federation and foreign nationals who
are not fused with ethnic Russians – is the endless harassment. Even
those members who had not only lived in Russia but also in Moscow
for generations have found themselves in trouble.

While deciding to have my shoes polished during one of my recent
trips to Moscow, I encountered an Assyrian, a member of one of the
small and little-known ethnic groups in Russia. The Russian Assyrians
have historically been engaged in shoe polishing and repair for
generations. A portly Assyrian woman complained to me that life
for her and the entire Assyrian community became uneasy after the
collapse of the USSR. Some of her complaints actually indicated that
the Russian melting pot is still able to absorb some isolated groups of
minorities. She said that Assyrians in Moscow were isolated. She said
that their priest came from Iraq, but that local Assyrians could not
understand him. And she ended her litany with a gloomy statement to the
effect that God had punished them for the brutality of the past. The
isolation of the small Assyrian community seems to be leading to the
natural process of slow assimilation. She said that while she knew
the language, her children and grandchildren were assimilating.

Although the Russian melting pot seems to be working, at least
in the case of the small and isolated Assyrian community, it has
still been unable completely to absorb the Assyrians and other small
minorities, even when they become thoroughly Russified both culturally
and linguistically. The reason for this is the endless harassment by
ethnic Russians. Increasingly, even those ethnic minorities who speak
Russian as their own language find it hard to avoid the notion that it
is blood/race that really counts. The sense of alienation from ethnic
Russians reinforces this mood among the various ethnic groups.They
often have no sense of solidarity and frequently regard one another
with suspicion. My Assyrian interlocutor complained that before the
collapse of the USSR everyone was treated well; but now, she says,
she is taken for Armenian, and harassed. She complains that she is
a grassroots Muscovite and, thus, not just by law but even more by
a sort of informal tradition, has a right to live in Moscow and not
be treated as a newcomer from the Caucasus.

If even the natives and Russian-speaking minorities with no accent
could be harassed, this was even more the case with those people
who came from the ethnic enclaves of the Russian Federation, or what
Russians call the "near abroad", with their limited linguistic skills
and clear differences from Russians in habits and culture. One
of my Moscow market acquaintances of Turkic origin complained
that Russians did not like them and accused them of all kinds of
crimes. In some cases, the harassment turned to actual violence. A
student from India whom I met in Ekaterinburg told me that he "loved"
Russian culture: but he was beaten severely by skinheads and spent
some time in hospital. He was also assaulted in Moscow, and he knew
of several similar cases. The alienation from ethnic Russians is a
powerful incentive for minorities, including those who profess Islam,
to create their own alternative vision of history as the ideological
framework for their conflict with Russians.

Alternative vision of history

The challenge to semi-official and official Russian history came about
in a variety of ways. One of these interpretations, while implying that
Muslims and Orthodox Russian, indeed, lived together for centuries,
stressed that Muslims were not second fiddle. On the contrary,
they played a crucial role in the creation of Russian/Eurasian
civilizations. This reshaping of the past started with a reevaluation
of the beginning of Russian history. In this interpretation, Russian
history did not begin in Orthodox Kievan Russia but actually in Turkic
Muslim Volga Bulgaria, with the ancestors of the Tatar people. It
was the Bulgarians who faced the first onslaught of Mongols and thus
reduced their destruction of the Slavic land on the West and Europe
in general.

At the same time, in another interpretation – and, here, the Mongols
re-emerge as a positive force – it was the Mongols/Tatars who
destroyed the forces of the West that aimed to conquer Russia. It
was the Mongols/Tatars who played the crucial role in defeating the
"dog knights" in the Battle of Ice in 1242. The Golden Horde, the
Tatar-Mongol empire that ruled over Russia for more than 200 years,
was the umbrella that made it possible for Russia to flourish.

These ideologists harken back to the Eurasianist paradigm. Still,
in this interpretation, there are certain unique elements. In this
interpretation, the Tatars/Mongols, of course, actually became a
civilizing and peculiarly europeanizing force. In fact, according to
this paradigm, in future years both Bulgarians and Tatars/Mongols
spread education, industry and tolerance, regardless of creed and
ethnicity. The Tatars emerge here as Europeans on the outskirts
of Europe, shedding a civilizing light on the backward, brutish,
intolerant and – actually – Asiatic Russians who in their political
culture manifested the worst elements of "Asiatism." The Tatars and
other Muslim peoples played a continuously crucial role in protecting
Russia in upheavals and wars from the 17th century to the present day.

Another paradigm implies a different vision of Orthodox Russian/Muslim
relations. This theory discards the notion of peaceful cooperation
between them and emphasizes the Russians’ domination. In this paradigm,
the benign nature of Russia’s actions was totally discarded. Instead
of vicious Asiatics who fell upon the peaceful Russians, a popular
theme among some nationalistic writers for a long time, it was the
vicious Russians who fell upon the peaceful Muslims.

This story began with Russia’s conquest of Kazan in 1552, evolved
with the conquest of Siberia, and reached its climax in the 18th-19th
centuries with the genocidal conquest of the Caucasus, where the
Muslims were massacred en masse. The brutal tactics of the Soviet
regime in this respect were simply a continuation of centuries-old
tradition. The question is, of course, to what degree this intellectual
construction penetrated the minds of the Russian minority masses. One
can assume, at least from the anecdotal evidence, that this did indeed
take place.

Conclusion

What is the practical implication of these different visions of
the past and the present? It clearly indicates that deep problems
exist: the conflict between Russians and the state’s various ethnic
minorities. It might well be argued that these problems could be
ignored or marginalized, for they have always existed. Still, there
is reason for concern. First, these conflicts/tensions could safely be
ignored only if the state were to maintain its absolute authority and
no crisis lay ahead. Secondly, even if the state maintained its grip
over society and dealt quickly with occasional revolts, as in Kondopoga
and Stavropol, the demographics – the increase of the proportion of
minorities in the Russian population – could well lead to problems
in the future, regardless of the viability of Russia. And for this
reason the images of the past and, consequently, of the present,
might be seen in hindsight as a sign of things to come.

By Dr. Dmitry Shlapentokh

Dr. Dmitry Shlapentokh is Associate Professor of History at Indiana
University South Bend, USA, and a regular contributor to Prague
Watchdog.

DON’T JUDGE CANDIDATE BY FIRST APPEARANCE

Northern District Times
November 7, 2007 Wednesday
Australia

WEST Ryde resident Rose Torossian is the first to admit that people
see her as an unlikely Liberal Party candidate for the Federal
seat of Fowler, which includes suburbs in Liverpool, Fairfield and
Cabramatta West.

People who know her migrant, working-class background think she should
be a Labor Party member.

Nor does it faze the 27-year-old that she lives outside the
electorate, a situation she explains away by saying she is "Green
Valley aspirational" because her married sister already lives in the
area and she, too, would like to live in the area.

"When people know my background they think I should be Labor," Ms
Torossian said.

Describing her background as "Armenian by nationality, but born in
Lebanon" the 27-year-old Macquarie University tutor in international
communications lives in Department of Housing accommodation with
her mother.

She sees no disparity in her political ties nor an address that will
see her cast a vote in a far different electorate, that of Bennelong,
held by Prime Minister John Howard.

"I have a working-class background. My family came here from Lebanon
when I was five and we lived in Redfern," she said.

As far as living outside the electorate it was only a matter of time –
and money – before she moved there.

Labor’s Julia Irwin has a 13.3 per cent margin in Fowler, with the
seat the party’s sixth strongest in NSW.

"What I hope to do is bring the margin down into single figures,"
Ms Torossian said.

WE SHOULD DISCUSS MISTAKES ON TIME

KarabakhOpen
13-11-2007 18:40:15

During the latest meeting with builders Prime Minister Ara Harutiunyan
said since the government is the main contractor of building in
Karabakh, the government controls quality and speed. The prime minister
said it is necessary to reconsider the building tariffs and control
performance of commitments of builders to the government. The control
agencies should also be controlled. Ara Harutiunyan said construction
tenders will be open for all the companies.

During the consultation it was mentioned that major breaches are found
in projects and budget documents, as well as in building regulations,
quality of building materials, qualification of specialists,
architectural solutions, tenders.

Most interestingly, accusations were heard from the present minister
of urban planning Alexander Mamunts who used to be the director of
Capital Construction. By the way, most construction was done by this
company. It turns out that the minister is speaking about mistakes
made by the company he used to head. Why did he fail to criticize
low quality building materials when construction was underway? Now
that the buildings have been built, it is too late to accuse anyone.

Apparently, a new practice is emerging in Karabakh – the people voice
concern about the mistake who are responsible for them. Where were
they before?

TEIMUR RADJABOV: WE BELIEVE COMMON SENSE WILL PREVAIL

Chessbase News, Germany
Nov 12 2007

12.11.2007 – At the European Championship Azerbaijan won Bronze behind
Russia and Armenian. The latter are historical enemies of the Azeris,
politically, culturally and in chess. Teimour Radjabov, the star of the
Azerbaijani team, gave vent to his personal feelings in a startling
interview. Now he has written to us to modify his statements. APA
interview and corrections.

Teimur Radjabov: The enemy is the enemy – we all hate Armenians

The head of the Azerbaijani national chess team that won the bronze
medal at the European Team Championship, behind Russia and Armenia,
Teimour Radjabov, gave an exclusive interview to the Russian language
sports news agency APA. It contains some very startling comments.

On the Bronze Medal win at the European Championship: This is of course
a great success. I think our players competed well – we should not
forget that European chess is the strongest in the world. I am sure
that we will achieve more success in future.

On the clash with Russia, after leading until round five: We lost to
the main favorites of the European Championship, the Russian team,
and it had a bad influence on me. We lost three games in round five,
and one ended in a draw. But this score does not reflect the potential
of our players at all. Before competing with the Russians we were
thinking about defeating our rivals. We were scoring well until that
round. The Russians defeated us and won the gold medals.

On the loss to Slovenia in round six: We did not think about losing
to them. We took risks and that led to our defeat, an unexpected
defeat. I think we are to blame, as we did not assess our opponents
correctly. We thought that we would win without any difficulty.

On the draw against Armenia in round eight: Of course we had chance
to win it. But the situation changed gradually. Vladimir Akopian
offered me a draw, after Shahriyar [Mamedyarov] and Rauf [Mamedov]
had finished their games with draws. I did not accept, because by
then Vugar [Gashimov] had a bad position. He lost, so I had to defeat
Akopian to draw the match, and I managed to do it.

On the team’s feelings before this round eight match: I will not deny
that we were very nervous. Regardless of where we meet, the enemy is
the enemy. We all have feelings of hate towards them. But you must
try to suppress those feelings and not let them interfere. Chess must
be played with a sober head.

On the atmosphere in the hall at the time: The Armenians had a lot of
active fans. The Armenian Prime Minister Serge Sarkisian had arrived
there, and I saw him in the hall during most matches. The President
of our federation, Elman Rustamov, also attended our match with the
Armenians and supported us. We understood the importance of the match
and adhered to the principles of the encounter.

On the roots of this first historical success for the national team:
First of all collective fight. Friendship in the team was one of
the main factors. We thought about the team first of all. None of
the sportsmen fought to improve his personal rating. This is very
important. Our failure in the previous competitions worried us,
as we felt that we had the capability to win medals.

On whether the team is capable of winning greater victories: I believe
in it. Though our team has been composed of teenagers, we are known in
the chess world. All teams fear and respect us. We are in the list of
the strongest national teams of the world. For the first time, we have
two Azerbaijani chess player is placed in the top ten in the world,
which shows that our chess occupies a high place. I do not doubt we
will win greater victories in future competitions. The world team
championship is being discussed at the moment. Our team is the bronze
medalist of the European Championship and so should also participate
in this competition, which will involve the ten strongest countries
in the world. But I heard they want to give the right to organize the
competition to Armenia, and in this case, our team will not be able
to take part. If Armenia is commissioned to organize the competition,
our federation will appeal to FIDE.

On his your target at the World Cup in Khanti-Mansiysk, Russia: The
competition will start on November 24. I am still trying to rest
after European Championship. That’s why I will not participate in
the Mikhail Tal Memorial. As the World Cup is held according to the
knockout system, one defeat is decisive. That’s why I will do my best
to be very careful and move forward step-by-step. If I achieve it,
I can expect success there.

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