Author: Hakobian Adrine

FULL SENATE BLOCKS US SUBSIDY FOR KARS-BAKU RAILWAY

PanARMENIAN.Net
04.10.2006 15:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian National Committee of America welcomed
the adoption by the US Senate of legislation protecting US taxpayers
from funding an unnecessary and costly proposed railroad between Turkey
and Georgia that would, if built, circumvent Armenia. The Senate,
during its final day in session before the November 7 mid-term
elections, passed the measure by unanimous consent as part of its
reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank. On September 21 the Senate
Banking Committee, during its consideration of the Export-Import
bill, had agreed to add the railway language, offered initially as an
amendment by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), to the larger measure. The
Menendez Amendment was ultimately accepted as a "manager’s amendment"
by Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Ranking Democrat Paul
Sarbanes (D-MD) and unanimously approved by the panel. "Armenian
Americans welcome the Senate’s strong stand against the efforts of
Turkey and Azerbaijan to institutionalize their blockades of Armenia
and Nagorno Karabakh," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian,
reports asbarez.com.

TURKEY RAPS CHIRAC COMMENTS ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Reuters
Oct 3 2006

Turkey on Tuesday criticized remarks by French President Jacques
Chirac that Ankara must recognize the 1915 massacre of Armenians as
genocide before joining the European Union.

On a visit to Armenia last weekend, Chirac urged Turkey to come to
terms with a dark episode in its history just as Germany had done
with regard to the Holocaust under the Nazis.

Turkey strongly denies claims that Ottoman Turks committed a systematic
genocide against Armenians during World War One, saying that large
numbers of both Christian Armenians and Muslim Turks perished in a
partisan conflict raging at that time.

"We were deeply saddened by the statements supporting the baseless
Armenian claims during the visit by President Chirac to Armenia,"
the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Chirac should instead support Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s
call for a joint commission of Turkish and Armenian historians to
assess what really happened more than 90 years ago, the ministry
said. It noted that last year Chirac said the issue of France’s own
alleged maltreatment of peoples under its former colonial rule should
be left to historians to argue over.

The Armenian issue is especially sensitive in France, which is home
to a large Armenian diaspora and faces presidential elections next
year. The French parliament is due to debate a bill by the Socialists
opposition party proposing to punish anyone denying Armenian genocide
claims on October 12.

Chirac has also promised French voters a chance to vote on
whether Turkey should join the EU after it has completed its entry
negotiations. The talks are expected to last many years.

The EU’s Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said during a visit to
Ankara on Tuesday that recognizing the Armenian massacres as genocide
was not a condition for Turkey’s EU membership. "We want to encourage
a rational, constructive debate (about what happened)," said Rehn,
who said he had welcomed Erdogan’s proposal for a commission.

A NUMBER OF ARMENIAN OPPOSITION PARTIES UNITE INTO UNITED ANTI-CRIMINAL MOVEMENT

Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Sept 28 2006

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, NOYAN TAPAN. "The Armenian people is facing the
danger of losing its statehood. Open criminalization of all spheres,
including political one, is taking place in the country."

This was mentioned in the Anti-criminal Movement Declaration signed
by a number of opposition parites on September 28.

According to the declaration, the criminal bodies that appeared in
the power pyramid started a large-scale process of centralization
of criminogenic financial resources. RA citizens are unprotected
in their country. Innocent people become victims of periodically
committed murders and terrorist acts: "These criminal actions are the
consequence of unconcealed arbitrariness and direct encouragement of
Kocharian-Sargsian duet," the declaration read.

According to the document authors, task number one of the current
authorities is to do everything for reproducing the current regime at
the forthcoming elections. For this purpose Serge Sargsian’s grouping
was formed with R.Kocharian’s direct sponsorship from most corrupted
officials and business leaders having criminal roots. The grouping
"under the cover of the Republican Party of Armenia, by bribing and
blackmailing state officials, intimidating the society, media and
politicians, creates conditions for coup d’etat."

According to the declaration, "the most part of the Armenian citizens
did not give themselves up to the criminal-oligarch elements and will
not permit to endanger the Armenian people’s future." The document
authors are sure that criminal elements can be forced out of the
country’s public and political life only with joint resolute efforts.

The parties having signed the document declared that they united into
a united anti-criminal movement.

As of 16:00 the document was signed by 13 parties, including the
Homeland and Honor, Nor Zhamanakner (New Times), National Unity,
People’s Party of Armenia, Constitutional Law Union, Hanrapetutiun,
Social-Democratic Hnchakian and others. Representatives of the
Democratic Party and the Democratic Homeland party also expressed
willingness to join the document.

Nor Zhamanakner Party Chairman Aram Karapetian told journalists that
the declaration is open for another political forces to sign it and
to join the movement.

AZERBAIJAN LEADER FAVORS ACTIVE POLICY IN KARABAKH SETTLEMENT

Itar-Tass, Russia
Oct 2 2006

BAKU, October 2 (Itar-Tass) – Azerbaijan’s President Ilkham Aliyev
said on Monday he was in favor of an active policy in the settlement
of the conflict around the mostly Armenian populated Azerbaijani
enclave of Nagorno Karabakh.

The president emphasized a need to use all possibilities for a
peaceful settlement of the conflict, noting that "Azerbaijan will
continue cooperation with international organizations on that issue."

He told a parliament session that co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk group
for Nagorno Karabakh arrived on Monday in Baku and stressed that his
country "is not going to reject that format of the settlement".

"However, we believe that the activity of other international
organizations can also contribute to a peace process," Aliyev said.

At the same time he stressed that "Azerbaijan will never allow the
setting up of a second Armenian state on its territory." "Azerbaijan
will never sign a peace agreement that would not meet the national
interests of the country," he said. "As a president, I will never
sign it," he emphasized.

The president also said that under a 2007 draft budget, Azerbaijan’s
defense expenditures will grow 17.8 percent, and will reach 900
million dollars.

He said "The growth of military expenses must not worry anyone".

"This is our sovereign right. Besides, a growth of the military budget
cannot automatically lead to a war. We must ensure our security and
be ready for any development of the events," the president said.

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet:

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

SEN. ENSIGN RAISES CONCERN OVER RECALL OF U.S. AMBASSADOR TO
ARMENIA

WASHINGTON, DC – In remarks delivered on the Senate floor, John
Ensign (R-NV) has shared with his colleagues his "justifiable
concern" regarding the circumstances of the Administration’s
controversial recall of the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John
Marshall Evans, reported the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA).

"We appreciate Senator Ensign’s expression of concern regarding the
circumstances of Ambassador Evans’ recall and value his leadership
in working toward U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide," said
ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "We share the Senator’s
view that it is simply unacceptable to dismiss a U.S. Ambassador
over the failure of our government to officially recognize the
Armenian Genocide."

The Nevada Republican, in a September 29th speech, described as
"unacceptable" reports that, "the recall of Ambassador Evans
revolves around the failure of our Government to officially
recognize the Armenian genocide." A long-time leader of Senate
efforts to secure official recognition of the Armenian Genocide,
the Senator stressed that, "The bigger issue is not that of an
appointment of this or any official who recognizes his duties and
will be diligent in carrying them out but of acknowledging the
genocide as part of an appropriate foreign policy."

The full text of Senator Ensign’s speech is provided below.

#####

NOMINATION OF RICHARD HOAGLAND
Senate – September 29, 2006

Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. President, I rise to speak today about an issue of
great importance to the Armenian community, the nomination of
Richard Hoagland to be the next U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of
Armenia.

I respect the office of the President and the powers that are
granted to appoint individuals that are in support of the
administration’s agenda; however, there is justifiable concern
about the recall of our Ambassador to a regionally important
country and the subsequent nomination of his replacement. The
reported reason for the recall of Ambassador Evans revolves around
the failure of our Government to officially recognize the Armenian
genocide. That is unacceptable.

Once again, I want to go on record as being opposed to the
continued denial of the Armenian genocide. The bigger issue is not
that of an appointment of this or any official who recognizes his
duties and will be diligent in carrying them out but of
acknowledging the genocide as part of an appropriate foreign
policy.

I have long sought to bring recognition to the crimes perpetuated
against the Armenian people as genocide. In fact, I have introduced
S. Res. 320, which affirms the Armenian genocide. The resolution
calls on the President to state that the slaughter of Armenians by
the Ottoman Empire was genocide and to recall the proud history of
U.S. intervention in opposition to the Armenian genocide. It is
important that the U.S. once and for all reaffirms the
incontestable facts of history and allows our representatives to
speak out about the crimes perpetuated against the Armenian people
from 1915 to 1923. It is my sincere hope that this legislation
comes before the full Senate soon.

As we fight to ensure freedom around the globe, we must ensure that
our future reflects the lessons of the past. In this case the facts
are incontestable. Armenians were subjected to deportation,
expropriation, abduction, torture, massacre, and starvation. Yes,
the Armenian people were victims of genocide. Genocide at any time,
at any place, is wrong and needs to be confronted and remembered.

#####

GLASGOW GIRLS RENEW TV BATTLE AGAINST DAWN RAIDS
By Ulla Schott

Sunday Herald, UK
Oct 1 2006

THE Glasgow teenagers who waged a high-profile campaign against
"dawn raids" by the immigration authorities are making and starring
in a new BBC documentary.

The group of girls from Drumchapel High School began their battle for
asylum seekers’ rights when a fellow pupil, Agnesa Murselaj, and her
family were detained by immigration officials during a dawn raid.

Their successful campaign to prevent the family being deported to
Kosovo after their asylum applications failed was the subject of an
award-winning BBC film shown in August 2005, Tales From The Edge:
The Glasgow Girls.

But when the teenagers, now widely known as the Glasgow Girls, became
involved just a month later in the controversial removal of the Vucaj
family, the BBC approached them to make a second film. This time,
however, the documentary will be composed of video diaries kept by
the girls themselves.

Lindsay Hill, the BBC producer behind both films, said: "The first
film was broadcast on BBC Scotland in the Tales From The Edge series
on August 31, 2005. And in the following September the children’s
commissioner for Scotland, Professor Kathleen Marshall, talked on all
the media of the need to make a big public outcry about the scandal
of dawn raids and the brutal treatment of asylum seekers and their
children.

"Shortly after that, the Vucaj family were taken. And I realised I
had to go on and cover that with the camera and keep on filming. So
immediately after the first broadcast it all started off again."

Marshall said the new film will show how the girls developed from
determined teenagers into seasoned campaigners.

"The second film is about the year in which they became politically
aware human rights campaigners. It is an ‘observational documentary’
using fly-on-the-wall methods. It records what actually happens in
the girls’ lives."

The teenagers – Amal Azzudin from Somalia, Kosovan Roma Agnesa
Murselaj, Roza Salih from Kurdistan, Polish Roma Ewelina Siwak and
Scots Emma Clifford, Jennifer McCarron and Toni Henderson – have
become increasingly influential voices. Their intervention in the
Vucaj case led to a national debate on the ethics of dawn raids.

Meanwhile, last December they helped win a reprieve for two
asylum-seeker families facing deportation, the Gorbachovas from
Belarus and the Hakobians from Armenia.

They have now won a clutch of awards for their appeals, including
Best Public Campaign at The Herald Diageo Politician of the Year
Awards last December.

They were also invited to the Scottish parliament, where they met the
first minister and secured an agreement not to deport asylum-seeker
families during examination times.

Glasgow Girl Amal Azzudin said she believed the second film would be
more revealing than the first. "I think that the second film is going
to be even better than the first, because it is going to open the
eyes of the audience even more, as there are a lot of campaigns going
to be in it, like when we went to the parliament and what happened
since we lost the Vucaj family. It is going to educate people to what
is going on in Scotland. I work with a lot of people who don’t know
what’s going on, even people in college don’t know."

Roza Salih added: "In the film we speak about our lives and our
problems. We have two cameras and we share them between us.

"For one year we have been doing this and then we are
taking it to our journalist and she is editing it with us and doing
the voice-overs."

Rosemary Burnett, director of Amnesty International Scotland, said
the girls showed that motivated young people can effect real change.

"The Glasgow Girls’ campaigns raised the issue of the devastating
eff ects of dawn raids on their classmates and on themselves. This
led to more political movement than had been achieved by human rights
NGOs and refugee organisations.

"We look forward to seeing the second film and hope it will inspire
other young people to take action," she said.

The documentary is due to be broadcast at the start of November
on BBC2.

OSCE MG SHOULD TAKE CONCRETE STEPS AND SHOULDN’T HOLD NEUTRAL POSITION – DEP. CHIEF OF AZERI PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE
Author: A.Ismaylova

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
Sept 30 2006

The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group will visit the region at the
beginning of October, the Head of the Foreign Relations Department
of Azerbaijani President’s Executive Apparat Novruz Mammadov briefed
journalists on September 29, Trend reports.

According to Mammadov, at present situation the co-chairs have
something to discuss with the President of Azerbaijan.

"The necessity in this respect emerged after the conducting of the
peaceful negotiations, particularly the situation changed after the
consideration of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the U.N. Assembly
General. It caused dissatisfaction of Armenian side and supporters
of Armenia. In relation with this, the representatives of Armenian
government made senseless statements that as though these initiatives
may negatively affect the situation with the settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Mammmadov stressed.

According to Mammadov, the world public should again familiarize with
the facts of Armenian aggression. "All these create a necessity for
the next meeting of OSCE Minsk Group with the President of Azerbaijan,"
he emphasized.

Commenting on the recent statement of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office
Karel De Gucht that the hopes of seeing decisive progress in
Nagorno-Karabakh have been dashed, Mammadov stressed that the OSCE
Minsk Group should take serious concrete steps and shouldn’t hold a
neutral position. "They should clarify the aggression and use legal
norms, particularly the resolutions of the U.N. Security Council,"
Mammadov underlined.

Replying the questions presented by the journalists, Mammadov said
that the co-chair-countries, including our neighboring country, have
their certain interests in the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh, and
it is not accurate. "The situation is clear for us. We consider that
the conflict is in need of discussions within the UNO and the world
public should again familiarize with the situation. We well understand
the position of all sides in the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict," Mammadov concluded.

The Courier Mail (Australia)
September 29, 2006 Friday
First with the news Edition

Darchinyan’s power trip doesn’t faze Filipino foe in Vegas battle

by Grantlee Kieza

AUSTRALIA’S world flyweight champion Vic Darchinyan has challenged
his hard-hitting opponent Glenn Donaire to stand and trade power
shots with him when they slug it out in Las Vegas next week.

At a heated press conference in Los Angeles yesterday ahead of their
big battle, Donaire, a California-based Filipino, said he was not
intimidated by Darchinyan’s reputation as one of the best punchers in
world boxing.

The unbeaten Armenian-born champion from Sydney has won all five of
his world title fights by knockout and says it will be no different
when he faces Donaire at the Mandalay Bay Casino on Sunday week.

But Donaire fired up Darchinyan yesterday with dismissive comments
about the IBF champion’s lack of technique.

”Darchinyan does not have a style,” said the 26-year-old Filipino
who has 16 wins and a draw from 19 pro fights.

”He waits for the lucky punch with his left hand. He can be strong,
but I will beat him. His past opponents have been intimidated by him.
Not me.”

But Darchinyan, 30, who defends his world title on the same night
that Gold Coast fighter Paul Briggs faces world light-heavyweight
champ Tomasz Adamek in Chicago, says Donaire is in for a shock.

”I have been sparring guys 12kg heavier than me in Los Angeles and I
will knock this guy out, too,” said Darchinyan, who has won all 26
of his fights (21 by KO) since turning professional after the Sydney
Olympics.

Meanwhile, Briggs, who leaves for Chicago with trainer Johnny Lewis
today, says sparring with Melbourne’s Sam Soliman has been the key to
his preparation for revenge against the lanky Pole. Adamek outpointed
him for the world title in Chicago last year.

ARMENIA AND U.S. FORMALLY INAUGURATE $235 MILLION RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Armenpress
Sept 29 2006

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 29, ARMENPRESS: On September 29, 2006, the five year
Millennium Challenge anti-poverty development program agreed to earlier
this year by the United States and Armenia was officially inaugurated
with an exchange of letters. In a ceremony held at the Ministry of
Finance and Economy, Finance Minister Vardan Khachatryan and Alex
Russin of the Millennium Challenge Corporation exchanged letters
which formally inaugurate the $235 million anti-poverty program.

The Armenian Compact is designed to reduce rural poverty through a
sustainable increase in the economic performance of the agricultural
sector. Armenia plans to achieve this goal through a five-year program
of strategic investments in rural roads, irrigation infrastructure
and technical and financial assistance to improve the supply of water
and to support farmers and agribusinesses. The Program will directly
impact approximately 750,000 people, or an estimated 75 percent of
the rural population, and is expected to reduce the rural poverty
rate and boost annual incomes.

The Compact includes a $67 million project to rehabilitate up to 943
kilometers of rural roads, more than a third of Armenia’s proposed
Lifeline road network. When complete, the Lifeline road network will
ensure that every rural community has road access to markets, services,
and the main road network. Under the Compact, the Government of Armenia
will be required to commit additional resources for maintenance of
the road network. The Compact also includes a $146 million project to
increase the productivity of approximately 250,000 farm households (34%
of which are headed by women) through improved water supply, higher
yields, higher-value crops, and a more competitive agricultural sector.

Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. government corporation
designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world, is
based on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces
good governance, economic freedom, and investments in people that
promote economic growth and elimination of extreme poverty.

MEETING WITH NKR PRESIDENT

Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Sept 27 2006

On September 25 NKR President Arkady Ghukassian met with the head of
the regional department of the Ramkavar Party (the Democratic and
Liberal Party of Armenia) of the West Coast and Canada Ara Abrahamian
and the press secretary of the republic department of the Ramkavar
Party of Armenia Karen Kakoian. During the meeting the participants
discussed the problem of carrying out educational, cultural and civil
projects in Artsakh under the auspices of the political party.

Acting Press Secretary Of NKR President