Author: Hovhannisian John

THERE ARE PREREQUSITES BUT NO CONVENIENT MOMENT FOR REVOLUTION IN ARMENIA
YEREVAN, MAY 27. ARMINFO. There are prerequisites but no convenient
moment for revolution in Armenia, says the leader of the New Times
party Aram Karapetyan.
The industry is not working, economic and social crisis is
aggravating, emigration is looming large. But no elections are planned
for the near future to trigger the revolution. People do not know when
they are to go into the streets. Besides the opposition is not
consolidated even though it has been showing signs of uniting over the
idea of government change.
Karapetyan says that his next rally will take place in Yerevan June 2.
Asked if the Armenian authorities may act like their counterparts did
in Uzbekistan Karapetyan says that if Pres Kocharyan goes against his
people he may face the destiny of Romanian dictator Ceausescu.
He says that revolutions are inevitable in Uzbekistan (in the next few
months), then in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Armenia. Belarus is the
only exception – Lukashenko is very popular there despite all.

Massis Weekly Online
MassisWeekly.com –
Vol. 25, No. 20 – May 28, 2005
– Aram Sarkisian To Visit United States
– Armenian Civic Groups Slam Election Law Reform
– Antonio Villaraigosa’s Landslide Victory In Los Angeles
– Back To Yerevan And Reflections On The Armenian Genocide
– Invited By Social Democratic Hunchakian Party, Aram Sarkisian To Visit
United States
YEREVAN — Aram Sarkisian, the leader of Armenia’s `Hanrapetutyun’
opposition party, is scheduled to travel to the U.S. on June 7, at the
invitation of Social Democratic Hunchakian Party.
He will be the keynote speaker at an event dedicated to the 90th
anniversary of the hanging of 20 Hunchak party leaders by the Ottoman
Turks in 1915. The event will be held in Glendale on June 11th.
During his visit to the US, Sarkisian will meet with community leaders,
government officials, as well as members of the U.S. Congress both in
California and Washington DC. Sarkisian, who briefly served as Armenia’s
prime minister in 1999-2000, after the assassination of his brother
Vasken Sarkisian, would not say if meetings with officials from the
White House or the State Department are also planned. But he did put his
visit in the context of recent U.S. calls for democratization in the
South Caucasus and elsewhere in the world. `Why not. It will be within
that framework as well,’ he said. `Western governments are always
elected by the people and that is called democracy,’ he said. `The
Russians, on the other hand, support the likes of Saddam Hussein,
[Belarus President Aleksandr] Lukashenko, [Armenian President Robert]
Kocharian who is totally rejected by our people. That is why Russia is
losing.
`Russia is offering us nothing, while the West is urging us not to rig
elections and to form legitimate judicial, legislative and executive
bodies.’ Sarkisian and other prominent oppositionists have been buoyed
by U.S. support for a series of anti-government revolts across the
former Soviet Union. Visiting Tbilisi earlier this month, President
George W. Bush made an emphatic endorsement of Georgia’s 2003 `rose
revolution,’ saying that it should serve as an example for other, less
democratic nations.
Speaking at the International Republican Institute in Washington on May
18, Bush declared that the revolutions in Georgia, Ukraine and
Kyrgyzstan are `just the beginnings.’ `Across the Caucasus and Central
Asia, hope is stirring at the prospect of change – and change will
come,’he said. `Democratic change can arrive suddenly – and that means
our government must be able to move quickly to provide needed
assistance,’ Bush added, announcing the creation of an `active response
corps’ within the State Department that will deal with such situations.
Sarkisian said his Hanrapetutyun (Republic) party, which is a key member
of Armenia’s largest opposition alliance, will continue to fight for
`regime change through a popular revolt.’ But he would not say when and
how it plans to launch it.
– Armenian Civic Groups Slam Election Law Reform
YEREVAN — Armenia’s leading nongovernmental organizations advocating
political reform described on Tuesday the latest amendments to the
Armenian electoral legislation as a sham, saying that the authorities
will continue to fully control the conduct of all elections.
The Partnership for Open Society, a grouping of some three dozen NGOs,
said the amendments approved by the Armenian parliament last week will
in no way complicate chronic vote rigging in the country. It also
slammed European experts for welcoming the changes as a step forward.
`The Partnership for Open Society is calling on the country’s
authorities to reconsider the adopted law and bring it into full
conformity with international standards for free and fair elections,’ it
said in a statement. The statement singled out legal provisions
regulating the formation of various-level commissions holding elections.
The current Central Election Commission and its territorial divisions
each have nine members, three of whom were appointed by Robert
Kocharian. The other commission seats are controlled by the six Armenian
parties and blocs represented in the National Assembly. Only two of them
are in opposition to Kocharian. Kocharian will now be able to name only
one member of each commission, the two other seats being given to
Armenia’s Court of Appeals and a nonpartisan group of lawmakers loyal to
the head of state.
`The mechanism for the formation of the commission set by the law does
not make the electoral bodies impartial and balanced,’ read the
statement by the Partnership for Open Society.
`Given that the judiciary is still directly dependent on the executive
branch, it is obvious that the president of the republic and the
authorities as a whole will continue to control the entire electoral
process,’ one of the leaders of the NGO coalition, Hrair Tovmasian, told
journalists.
He said Kocharian, whose disputed reelection in 2003 was strongly
criticized by Western monitors, will control at least two thirds of all
commission members. Tovmasian and another coalition leader, Vartan
Poghosian, also argued that giving Armenia’s highest court
representation in the electoral commissions contradicts a constitutional
clause that bans judges from holding any other `state position.’ The two
men further criticized experts from the Council of Europe’s Venice
Commission and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
for reportedly concluding that the amended election is an improvement
over its previous version.
Poghosian complained that the Venice Commission has itself admitted in
its reports that Armenian courts are not independent. `We don’t see any
logic here and we intend to convey our concerns and our statement to the
Council of Europe so that they reconsider their approach and correctly
assess the new mechanism for commission formation,’he said.
This is not the first time that the Partnership for Open Society
criticizes the Council of Europe for its perceived leniency toward the
Armenian authorities. Last year, for example, the NGOs criticized
a resolution by the council’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) which made a
largely positive assessment of Yerevan’s human rights record.
– Antonio Villaraigosa’s Landslide Victory In Los Angeles Mayor’s Race
ACA Congratulates The New Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa romped past incumbent James K. Hahn to make history
last Tuesday, winning election as the first Latino mayor of Los Angeles
since the city’s pioneer days. Riding a huge wave of voter discontent,
the challenger avenged his 2001 loss to Hahn, who possessed an iconic
family name but never connected strongly with voters during a rocky
four-year term.
Villaraigosa’s landslide represented a crowning symbol of Latinos’
growing clout in California, with 25 percent turnout, but his decisive
victory over Mayor James Hahn saw him claim significant
support across a wide range of demographic and geographic groups, an
exit poll found.
Shortly before midnight, a beaming Villaraigosa greeted chanting
supporters to claim victory and restate his campaign’s theme of unity.
`It doesn’t matter whether you grew up on the Eastside or the Westside,
whether you’re from South Los Angeles or Sylmar,’ he said. `It doesn’t
matter whether you go to work in a fancy car or on a bus, or whether you
worship in a cathedral or a synagogue or a mosque.
We are all Angelenos, and we all have a difference to make.’ Antonio
Villaraigosa had received the endorsement of Armenian Council of America
prior to the run-off elections based on his strong commitment to issues
of interest to Armenian-Americans.
Villaraigosa has acknowledged the important role of the community
stating, `the [Armenian] community is playing an increasingly pivotal
role in Los Angeles politics.’
He has promised, if elected, he `will establish regular ties and
communication between the Mayor’s office and the Armenian American
community through town hall meetings, one-on-one sessions,
and appointments to boards and commissions, as well as staff that
includes Armenian-American representation.’
On the occasion of his election the ACA has sent a letter congratulating
the Mayor elect. ACA representatives also attended Antonio
Villaraigosa’s victory party on election night and personally
congratulated him.
– E-mail From The Homeland
“Back To Yerevan And Reflections On The Armenian Genocide”
I am finally back in Yerevan after a two week adventure through Syria,
Western Armenia (Present day Turkey), and Georgia. What can I say… It
has been a great trip. A little emotional at times, but totally worth it.
Our trip started symbolically on April 24th 2005, which was the 90th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. We had spent that evening walking
up Tsitsernakaberd Hill to the Armenian Genocide memorial monument. This
year a million people visited the monument on the 24th, that’s not too
shabby considering that Yerevan has a population of about a million
people. All day long on the Armenian television station thousands and
thousands of people could be seen making the trek to the monument. It is
a tradition for the commemorators to take flowers to the monument and
place them around the eternal flame that burns in the center. We went to
the monument in the evening at about 7 o’clock and a wall of flowers had
been built up so high that the flame was barely visible.
Later that evening at about 11 o’clock we boarded a plane to Haleb
(Aleppo), Syria. Haleb is an important city to Armenians because it was
a starting point for many Genocide survivors that had been on the death
marches through the Syrian Desert. On our second day in Syria, we
visited Der Zor, which is a couple of hundred Kilometers east of Haleb
in the Syrian Desert. This is like the Armenian Genocide’s version of
Auschwitz, where hundreds of thousands of Armenians were housed in
concentration camps and later taken further into the dessert to be
killed. We spent a total of 14 long silent hours driving for only about
an hour of time visiting the sites, but it was well worth the drive. We
went to a place called Mrcada where a small church has been erected in
front of the site where one of the largest massacres took place. Mrcada
is well known as a large burial place where Armenian bones can be dug up
without moving more than a few inches of gravel. We dug up a hand full
of shattered long bones and decided to not dig much further.
Our trip through Eastern Anatolia, which is historic Western Armenia,
was equally moving.
We started the trip by visiting a village called Vakif, which is the
only remaining Armenian Village in Turkey. The village is the home to 11
Armenian families and most of the remaining population is well into
their retirement age. The lack of opportunities in this remote area has
led much of the youth to move either to Istanbul or abroad. This cozy
little village is located just east of Musa Dagh, which is the famous
hill from Franz Warfel’s novel Forty Days of Musa Dagh.
During the 1915 Armenian Genocide 5 thousand Armenians camped at the top
of this hill in order to fight off invading Turks until a passing
French ship rescued them all with the exception of 18 casualties. A
90-year-old Vakif resident, Avedis Demerjian, was born on Musa Dagh
during those forty days. We sat and listened as he told us stories and
sang a few Hunchag (Armenian political party) songs for us. Our tour
guide, who has been doing this for 16 years, told us that he had not
heard of any tourists climbing to the top of Musa Dagh, where Armenians
who had returned during the French occupation after WWI had erected a
monument.
So of coarse, we decided that we had to be the first group to make the
historic hike. It took us seven hours to reach the top of Musa Dagh and
when we got to the top we discovered a mess of concrete blocks, where
once stood a monument in the shape of a ship. It wasn’t much of a
mystery that the Turks had destroyed the monument, much like many other
important Armenian historic sites.Next we visited the village of Antep
where my Vartouhi Nene (grandmother) was from. I think it was in Antep
that it really sunk in that this place was once home to my family. I
noticed that all the food that we saw in the restaurant and bakery
windows were all too familiar. We stopped at one bakery and we ate
subureg, which was one of those dishes famous to Antep. It was weird
because I have eaten subureg at so many Thanksgiving dinners, but I
don’t think that one can buy subureg at a bakery anywhere else in the
world. I found myself asking our Antepsy Turkish bus driver Jemal about
other dishes well known to Antep. His reply was Monte. Monte is a soup
that was my late grandmothers’ famous dish.
At that moment, I was overwhelmed with memories of my grandmother’s
dinner table. Yes, this was definitely the place my family came from.
In Antep we visited a very large Armenian church that has since been
turned into a mosque. In the surrounding neighborhood, which was
predominantly Armenian before 1915, we visited the home of a wealthy
Armenian named Nazaretian. It was once a beautiful two story hotel and
house with a central patio. Since then it has been converted into a
coffee shop. The owner of the shop knows of its Armenian history and
showed us some Armenian writing on the walls. The owner then gave us his
card, which in large letters states `this is the historic place where
Ataturk once stayed’. Ataturk means the father of all Turks and was the
nickname for Mustafa Kemal, the founder of present day Turkey. Ataturk
was also famous for finishing the Armenian Genocide that his
predecessors had started.
>From 1918- 1923 Ataturk went house to house killing the remaining
Armenians in Turkey with the rest of the world looking the other way.
Anyways, I thought it was really ironic how this coffee shop that was
obviously in a beautiful Armenian home made no mention of Armenians.
Instead it made light of the fact that one of the key players in the
Armenian Genocide and Turkey’s current denial campaign of the Genocide
had stayed at this place.
Next we went to the village of Marash, where my Manuel Dede(grandfather)
came from. We went straight to Kuyoujagh, the street where my
grandfather’s house once stood. We had no problem finding the street and
we attracted lots of attention from local Kurds who were now living in
Armenian homes or had destroyed Armenian homes to build newer brick houses.
A group of four of five local residents walked us around and showed us
the unique Armenian homes, which were made of a combination of clay
bricks and wood. Most of the homes were very run down, but some still
had there classic wooden balconies.
We were unable to find my grandfathers house, but we instead visited the
home of the Gherlakians, who where the richest Armenians in Marash at
one time. A Kurdish man now rents the home and he was very proud of its
history. He gave us a tour of the home, which included its own outdoor
oven to bake lavash bread, and a large stepping stone to help mount a
horse.
On our way to the tour bus on Kuyoujagh Street we randomly walked into a
photo print shop to ask about transferring some pictures from a camera
to my friend Shant’s laptop. The place was nothing special, but one
thing stuck out to us in that small shop. On the wall behind the store
clerk was a picture of a group of Turkish chetes with turbans on their
heads and rifles and swords in hand. The chetes were a group consisting
mainly of ex-cons released from prison in order to perform most of the
killing during the genocide. The Turkish military, which is called the
Gendarme, first would go around the villages and search and remove any
weapons from Armenian homes.
Next the Gendarme would round up all unarmed Armenian males and shoot
them all outside the village. Later the women and children would be
rounded up and forced on deportation marches. The chetes would be
waiting along the route to brutally beat, rape, and kill innocent
Armenian women and children. Pregnant women would have their abdomens
ripped open and the fetuses would be killed to ensure completion. It was
the picture of a group of chetes on the wall of this photo shop that was
very disturbing to me. The picture was obviously displayed to show pride
for these individuals and their actions.
The clerk at the shop said he did not know anything about the picture
and that it was not his. During the rest of our trip we visited many
historic Armenian sites, some in better condition than others. But the
one site that left a lasting impression was the Surp Garabed Monastery,
which has a history that dates back to the fourth century ad. But, I
will not remember this place for its beauty. I will remember it because
it’s destruction within the last 90 years was so pronounced. The
monastery is in the middle of a Kurdish hot bed near the city of Mush.
When we approached the village at a security check point we were told
that we would need to have the Turkish Gendarme (Military) escort us to
the village because of Kurdish aggression.
After that point, we had a military vehicle following us to the village
fully armed with automatic weapons and magazines filled with so much
ammunition that they could have wiped out the entire village. Anyways,
we got to the village and we were greeted by large groups of Kurdish
children who were all very excited about getting their pictures taken.
It was a rainy day and the village streets were extremely muddy, that is
how the villagers explained why these village children were not in
school. When we approached the first couple of stone shacks, our tour
guide pointed out that some of the bricks used to build the villagers
houses had Armenian inscriptions on them. It was kind of confusing at
first, but then it all made a lot more sense as we walked through the
village. We saw that these villagers had used bricks from a famous
historic Armenian monastery to build their homes. Some of these bricks
were katchkars, which are carved stone crosses that are unique to
Armenian religious artwork. In some homes large katchkars that probably
date back to 1000 ad were broken into pieces and placed upside down or
sideways in the walls of this shacks. We all went walking from shack to
shack taking pictures of these ancient stone carvings and then we
approached the monastery or what was left of it. There was one 15 foot
long stonewall that looked nothing religious and at the opposite end was
what our tour guide said might have been the main alter because it was
facing east. The rest of the building was gone.
Our entire tour group huddled around the remains of theater and listened
to a sermon given by a couple of deacons from an Armenian church in
Racine, Wisconsin that were on the tour with us. After the service,
Shant began digging up some soil from around the alter to take home as
he had done from most of the important cities and religious sites. At
that point, one of the Gendarme solders told Shant to stop digging and
that he could not take anything out of this area because it was an
official Turkish historic site. Later in the bus, we all got a laugh
about how well the Turks preserve their historic sites.
The last stop on our trip was the Armenian city of Ani, which was the
historic capital of Armenia. Ani was probably the most beautiful place I
have ever seen. It is the city of a thousand and one churches. Today
only a handful of these churches and structures remain and collectively
they are breathtaking. Imagine green rolling hills with scattered
ancient building that seem to be damaged in an almost artistic way.
Perched on the highest peak is a Fortress. Behind the fortress lies a
deep ravine that houses the Arax River. The Arax River is the natural
boarder between Turkey and Armenia and guess what? Ani is on the Turkish
side.
I don’t think that the fact that Turkey has taken the most significant
Armenian historic site right on the border of Armenia upsets me, as much
as, the fact that Turkey tries to pretend that Ani has nothing to do
with Armenia. As you walk through the city all the structures have
placards with information about each, but not a single placard in the
entire place mentions the word Armenia. It is like Turkey wants to erase
anything Armenian from its country. Well I guess that would go well with
the whole genocide thing.
Mano.
—————–
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A1plus
| 18:32:46 | 25-05-2005 | Official |
A LETTER TO ALIEV
The international organization `Human Rights Watch’ has sent a letter to the
Azeri President Ilham Aliev expressing concern about the detentions of the
opposition party members on May 21. The letter reads, `We are writing to
express our deep concern over the recent detentions of opposition party
members and the use of police brutality to stop a peaceful opposition rally
from taking place on May 21, 2005.
These incidents recall the patterns of human rights violations that preceded
the October 2003 Presidential elections and that compromised the integrity
of that process. They highlight the urgent need to take decisive action to
ensure that such abuses are not repeated in the run-up to the November 2005
Parliamentary elections.
Baku city authorities denied the Ugur (Success) opposition election block
permission to hold a rally on May 21 on the grounds that it was to be held
too soon before the May 25 event planned for the opening of the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, to which international dignitaries are
invited. The timing of which denial is especially regrettable. Azerbaijan
has shown that it can take a leading role internationally by committing
itself to transparency principles in the extractive industries. But the
events of May 21 underscore that it has yet to take significant steps to
open up its political processes to ensure that a plurality of groups can
voice their opinions on political and social issues.
You have acknowledged that freedom of assembly and expression are important
elements in a framework for a free and fair elections. The current
restrictions in practice on these freedoms could jeopardize the integrity of
the November elections. Accordingly, we urge you to take further steps to
create an environment in which free and fair elections can take place. In
particular, we urge you to implement the recommendations from the
Presidential Election 15 October 2003 OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation
Mission Report, and the Joint Recommendations on the Electoral Law and the
Electoral Administration in Azerbaijan by the Venice Commission and the
OSCE/ODIHR, 12-13 March 2004.
We thank you for your attention and look forward to a continued dialogue on
these issues.’

Reporters without borders, France
May 25 2005
Call for major amendments to new criminal code that threatens press
freedom
Reporters Without Borders said it shared the concerns of Turkish
journalists over threats to press freedom from a new criminal law
that still needed major amendments before coming into force on 1st
June. . Despite revisions voted by parliament after it was adjourned
on 31 March 2005 following strong media protests, the organisation
repeated its call for the removal of prison sentences for press
offences.
“Far from bringing Turkish law into line with European law on freedom
of expression, some articles of the code on the contrary would
facilitate arbitrary legal action against journalists and entailing a
climate of self-censorship damaging to press freedom”, it said.
Several articles of the new code are particularly perilous. Article
305 which punishes acts that go against “fundamental national
interests” by prison sentences of three to ten years, threatens
journalists and the right of the public to be informed. Any claim to
do with the “Armenian genocide” or “withdrawal of Turkish armed
forces in Cyprus” would be considered as against “fundamental
national interests”.
Dozens of journalists have been imprisoned in the past for having
simply expressed their opinion on this type of subject. Turkish
deputies did nevertheless agree to remove paragraph 2 of the article
which set out a 50 % increase in sentences if the offence was
committed via the press.
Article 301 that is to replace 159 has been used in the past to
severely punish any criticism of parliament, the justice system or
the security forces. It will be termed in future “Humiliation of
Turkish identity, the Republic, state institutions and bodies”. It
will allow wide scope for interpretation and threaten anyone
criticising Turkish identity, the state or parliament with a prison
sentence of six months to three years. Any person who attacks the
government, justice system or the security forces moreover faces six
months to two years in prison.
Article 285 threatens with four and half years in prison anyone
“violating the confidentiality of an investigation”. This could be a
serious threat to the right of journalists to protect their sources.
Article 277 punishes anyone trying to “sway the justice system” with
two to four years in prison and potentially puts in danger
journalists covering court proceedings.
Under Article 267 of the new code, defamation in the press with the
aim of exposing someone to a judicial investigation is liable to a
one to four-year prison sentence.
Article 216, formerly 312, punishes with one to three years in prison
“deliberate incitement of a section of the population to hatred and
hostility through discrimination on the basis of race, region or
membership of a religious group, against another section of the
population” that causes “a clear and direct danger to the public”
(paragraph 1).
“Humiliation of a section of the population due to social, religious,
sexual or regional differences” is liable to a sentence of six months
to one year in prison (paragraph 2). “Overt humiliation of a person
because of their religious principles is liable to six months to one
year in prison if the offence threatens social peace” (Paragraph 3).
This “humiliation”, a very vague legal concept, capable of being
interpreted very widely by jurisprudence, directly threatens freedom
of expression both for journalists and for the general public.
This is not an exhaustive list. Turkish journalists and press freedom
organisations see parliamentary amendments drawn up ahead of 1st June
to the version of the code as it was to have been applied on 1st
April, as very inadequate. They consider that only six of the 20
problematic points have been revised Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
government.

Armenpress
CHARLES AZNAVOUR ARRIVES IN ARMENIA
YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS: World famous French Armenian singer Charles
Aznavour is arriving later this week to Armenia to attend the presentation
of the Armenian language edition of his book-Past Days. Armenian officials
say Aznavour also agreed to join thousands of other Armenian for a circle
dance around Mount Aragats on May 28.
Aznavour is planning also to visit Javakheti region in southern Georgia,
where his parents lived before emigrating to France. Proceeds from the sale
of the book will be transferred to Aznavour pour l’Armenie charity
organization.

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
05/23/2005
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) His Holiness Karekin II's Pontifical Visit to the West Coast 2) Margarian Says Armenia Should Resist Turkish Demands 3) Kassarji, Pakradouni ARF Candidates for Metn and Bakaa Districts 4) Violence Clouds Launch of Major US-Backed Caspian Oil Pipeline 1) His Holiness Karekin II's Pontifical Visit to the West Coast LOS ANGELES--The second Pontifical Visit of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, to the Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, will take place from June 1-20. This particular visit is of historical significance as the foundations of the new Mother Cathedral of the 107-year-old Diocese will be laid during a groundbreaking ceremony. The Pontiff's visit marks a milestone in the life of the Armenian community in North America. During his time in California, the Catholicos will celebrate Divine Liturgy, visit Diocese churches, conduct religious services, meet with organizations and youth, as well as visit hospitals in the area. The Blessing of the Foundation Stones of the Mother Cathedral of the Western Diocese will take place on Saturday, June 4, at 10:00 AM, presided by His Holiness and assisted by Western Diocese Archbishop Hovnan Derderian. The Pontifical banquet welcoming His Holiness will take place later that evening at the Century Plaza Hotel. For reservations or more information, visit the Armenian Church website at or contact the Diocesan office at (818) 558-7474. The Pontifical Divine Liturgy will be held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Angels in Los Angeles on Sunday, June 5 at 3:30 PM. His Holiness will travel up the coast of California visiting the parishes of Central and Northern California from June 11-20. 2) Margarian Says Armenia Should Resist Turkish Demands YEREVAN (Yerkir)--Responding to a question about the Armenian Revolutionary Federation's (ARF) readiness to establish normal relations with Turkey, ARF Bureau representative Hrant Margarian said the ARF believes that Armenia should not give in to the Turkish preconditions to establish relations. "It is not the ARF, but Armenia that is to have normal relations with Turkey. It is the hostile position of the Turkish government toward Armenia that obstructs the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations; since Armenia's independence, Turkey has refused to establish diplomatic relations with Armenia. Moreover, it has imposed a blockade since 1993," said Margarian. In the interview posted on Yerkir's website, Margarian added, "The process of establishing 'normal relations' between the two countries would not succeed unless Turkey recognizes its responsibility for the Armenian Genocide." For full interview, visit Speaking on the issue of government corruption, Margarian said, `The struggle against corruption is a continuous process and requires a hard work...we are relentless in this issue, though we should admit we are not satisfied with the results.' When asked about recent statements made by some government officials on the Karabagh issue, the ARF Bureau representative stated, `Until the Karabagh issue has been settled, our people have the right and should sensitively follow the statements and positions of any politician, but we should know that if you agree to engage in talks you should be ready for concessions. What is important here is what you concede. We began to concede when we accepted the cease-fire and when we put off the declaration on reuniting Karabagh with the Republic of Armenia. But if some wish to agree to give up a part of the homeland or independence, they are going to fail.' 3) Kassarji, Pakradouni ARF Candidates for Metn and Bakaa Districts BEIRUT (Aztagdaily.com)--A week after calling on local Armenians to withhold from voting in Beirut district parliamentary elections, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) of Lebanon announced its candidates for the Metn and Bekaa districts--Hagop Pakradouni and current parliament deputy George Kassarji, respectively. According to the ARF, when Armenians get out their vote in Metn and Bekaa, the absence of votes in heavily Armenian populated electoral districts it has decided to boycott will be even more effective in revealing the actual force of Armenians in the country. "With one area [Beirut] boycotting elections and another voting full-force, Lebanese Armenians will, in any event, prove that their will must be considered by the various forces in the Lebanon's political arena, when shaping the future of Lebanon," the ARF Central Committee announced. The party's decision to not participate in the Beirut elections came after its two candidates were excluded from Saad Hariri, son of the slain former premier Rafik Hariri's electoral list for Beirut's constituencies. The party later pulled its two candidates Stepan Der Bedrossian and Jacques Chookhadarian from the race, calling it a "logical subsequent step" to boycotting the elections--since the ARF's candidates would have garnered victories, considering the party's influence in the area, and the four Armenian seats up for grabs. 4) Violence Clouds Launch of Major US-Backed Caspian Oil Pipeline BAKU (AFX)--The planned launch this Wednesday of the $4 billion Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, a major US-backed global energy initiative, has been clouded by a recent violent crackdown on the opposition in Azerbaijan. British oil giant BP holds a 30 percent stake in the consortium running the pipeline. Other consortium members include Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR, Amerada Hess, ConocoPhillips, Eni, Inpex, Itochu, Statoil, TPAO, and Unocal. A huge 11-year-long undertaking, the pipeline will transform the Caucasus and Turkey into an energy bridge between the Caspian and the rest of the world when it is fully operational six months from now. But much of the gleam of that accomplishment was worn away over the past week by Azerbaijan when police badly beat and arrested scores of people attending a peaceful rally on Saturday as part of a wider crackdown linked to the pipeline's opening. Authorities refused to allow the rally, saying that it fell too close to the opening ceremony on Wednesday, which US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and a host of other foreign dignitaries were due to attend. Police rounded up some 30 opposition members ahead of the protest in what the opposition alleged was an attempt to derail the rally and arrested another 45 during the rally itself as they doled out severe beatings to dozens of pro-democracy protestors. David Woodward, chief executive of BP's Azerbaijan division, criticized the violence and voiced skepticism on the government's stated rationale for the crackdown. "It's very unfortunate," Woodward said, referring to the weekend violence. "I find it rather surprising that they should feel the need to ban a small gathering like that essentially well before any of the VIPs arrive." The crackdown was widely criticized by the West, with Norway's ambassador to Baku, Steinar Gil, saying some guests expected at the opening ceremony may find it embarrassing to take part while opposition activists remain in detention. The 1,770 km-long pipeline, which will ship up to a million barrels of Caspian oil to the Mediterranean daily, was built with financial support from the US. It was initiated in 1994 as part of Azerbaijan's so-called "deal of the century"--a massive oil contract signed in the early 1990s to develop Caspian Sea oil. The US hopes transporting oil from this region will reduce its dependence on fuel from the volatile Middle East. At the same time, the project has loosened Moscow's grip here and bolstered US influence in the region. For Azerbaijan, wracked by corruption and poverty, the project has been a useful political tool with officials lauding it as the answer to all of the country's financial problems. But the crackdown on the opposition has highlighted concerns that the awaited benefits, an estimated $40-60 billion in oil revenues in the next 30 years, will not trickle down to the general population in an atmosphere of general unaccountability. SOCAR, which holds a 25 pct stake in the BP-led pipeline consortium, refused to comment on concerns that a high level of opacity in the company could hamper public accountability to the project. "There is little transparency in the oil industry and a lot of corruption in society, and that's a very bad combination," said Ingilab Ahmedov of Baku's Public Finance Monitoring Center. According to BP's Woodward, the government is trying to deal with the issue. But he said "the old guard," or officials who have remained in power since the death in 2003 of the president, Heydar Aliyev, "don't want to see reforms progress...and wish to pursue their own personal interests." Internationally, too, critics have said that the West and especially the US have been too soft on Azerbaijan in their quest to secure oil supplies. "There is a huge reluctance to make a stink of what's inexcusable and most of that is to do with wanting to maintain the security of supply," said Simon Taylor, a director at Global Witness, the London-based watchdog focused on corruption in resource-rich states. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
May 23 2005
SESSION OF CONGRESS OF WORLD AZERBAIJANIS ENDS
[May 23, 2005, 22:24:41]
As was informed from the State Committee on Work with the
Azerbaijanis Living Abroad, the 8th session of the Congress of World
Azerbaijanis (CWA) has ended in the capital of Sweden, Stockholm.
On the third day of session, the general from Turkey Veli Kichik
Pasha in his statement spoke about problems of the Turkic world, has
noted necessity of joint activity of the organizations of the
Azerbaijan and Turkish Diasporas against the Armenian propagation.
Vice-chairman of CWA Rahim Shahbazi, the representative from Russia
Siyavush Mustafayev, the representative on the CIS countries Khanlar
Abdulov have noted that there is necessity for carrying out of more
serious work directed on activation of structure, support of national
interests of Azerbaijan.
Deputy of Milli Majlis, corresponding member of ANAS, the head of
Ataturk Center in Azerbaijan Nizami Jafarov has analyzed activity of
CWA and political value of the organization in scientific aspect,
having noted, that the Azerbaijan Diaspora plays important role in
protection of national interests and increase of the international
authority of the Country.
The head of the Azerbaijan house in Belgium Bulent Gurjam has told
about activity of structure headed by him, having emphasized that
supports the offer on carrying out of a forum of the Azerbaijan youth
studying in Europe. He informed that in September in Belgium, Day of
Azerbaijan will be marked, and has suggested carrying out next
session of CWA at organizational support of the Belgium-Azerbaijan
house in Brussels.
Upon completion of session, have taken place discussions around the
new Charter of CWA. After discussions, the Charter has been
unanimously adopted in view of remarks and offers.
Javad Derakhti was re-elected as Chairman of CWA. Besides, members of
CWA Majlis had been elected deputies of Milli Majlis Sabir
Rustamkhanli, Gudret Hasanguliyev, Fazail Agamali, the
editor-in-chief of newspaper “Sharg” Akif Ashirli, chairman of the
Azerbaijan society of the students studying at the London Economic
University Taleh Heydarov, from Turkey – Veli Pasha, from Sweden –
Samad Fertash, from the USA – Rahim Shahbazi, from Russia – Ramiz
Abutalibov, Aida Guliyeva and others.
At first session of Majlis of CWA, Sabir Rustamkhanli has been
elected Chairman of Majlis, and Akif Ashirli – the Secretary.
Vice-chairmen of CWA had been appointed the representative of the
structure on the CIS Khanlar Abdulov, the Russian representative
Siyavush Mustafayev, the head of the Azerbaijan house in Belgium
Bulent Gurjam, American representatives Rahim Shahbazi and Huseyn
Vusigi.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Global Politician, NY
May 23 2005
The Concept of Eurasia and Turkey’s Regional Strategies
Prof. Ruben Safrastyan, Ph.D. – 5/24/2005
The concept of Eurasia has occupied an important place in political
discussions in Turkey since the beginning of the 90s of the last
century. It is perceived as one of the main concepts reflecting
Turkey’s geopolitical strategy, international relations and national
security. The regional policy of Turkey is also partly influenced by
this concept.
Definitions of Eurasia
The term Eurasia in the political and ideological discourse of
contemporary Turkey has rather a politicized interpretation than a
scientific definition. Some political scholars and researchers
consider Eurasia as a region settled mainly with Turkic peoples,
including Turkey, the Balkans and part of the Caucasus, the former
Soviet republics of Central Asia, the region of Volga in Russia, and
Northern Afghanistan. Such approaches, which are nothing but
“modernized” editions of the pan-Turkist ideology, were widely spread
in various circles of Turkish elite, especially in the beginning of
1990s.
However, the definition based on this ethnic-and-linguistic
principle, lost its priority in the middle of 1990s, and at present
it is less disseminated than the other versions of “Eurasia”, based
exclusively on geographical or political conceptions. For example,
the web site of Turkish Foreign Ministry presents a geographical
definition of Eurasia as “a large landscape, stretching from Europe
to Central Asia.”1 The current Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul
describes Eurasia as a “continent consisting of Europe and Asia.”2 In
fact, it is an attempt to avoid possible accusations in politicizing
the concept.
The definitions given by the representatives of various wings of
Turkish political elite are more detailed and politicized. For
instance, former president Suleyman Demirel considers the Balkans,
Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq as
parts of this region.3 Former Vice-Premier Minister and Chairmen of
pan-Turkist Party of Nationalist Action (PNA) Devlet Bahceli includes
the Balkans, Caucasus and the Middle East into Eurasia.4
Nevertheless, our numerous meetings with Turkish diplomats for more
then ten years allow us to conclude that in its everyday activity the
Turkish diplomacy prefers not to rely on the official conception of
Ministry of Foreign Affairs or statements of some politicians or
scientists, but uses the very pragmatic, from their point of view,
version limiting Eurasia with the eight newly independent states of
the South Caucasus and Central Asia. It is worth mentioning that
Suleyman Demirel, during his tenure as Prime Minister, had the same
opinion. For instance, in November of 1992 he stated: “With the
disintegration of the Soviet Union, Eurasia was born…”5 Many Turkish
politicians share the same approach.
The problem of definition of Eurasian borders in the Turkish
discourse, which raises just an abstract interest at first sight, has
great importance for revealing the motives of Turkish foreign policy
nowadays.
Eurasian Geopolitical Theories in Turkey
The concept of Eurasia, which is one of the central concepts of
geopolitics, has been studied in Turkey quite recently as a result of
tangible changes in the regional geopolitical environment. Using the
Western classical geopolitical approaches regarding Eurasia (from H.
J. Mackinder and N. J. Spykman up to Z. Brzezinski), Turkish
theorists tried to work out their own concepts. They are operating
with such core notions of classical geopolitics, as Heartland, Inner
Crescent or Outer Crescent.6 But in the meantime, their conclusions
are very different from the Western ones.
The most remarkable and complete geopolitical concept in this sense
was recently worked out by Ramazan Ozey (Professor of Marmara
University). It is entitled “The Theory of Center Domination by
Turks.” The main elements of Ozey’s concept can be summarized in the
following way: Anatolia is the “World Fortress” (Dunya kalesi in
Turkish, or the Heartland in classical sense), and the ruler-country
in Anatolia, Turkey, possessing this acropolis, has an opportunity to
take control over the regions of the “Internal circle” (Ic Cember in
Turkish, compare with Mackinder’s Inner Crescent). According to the
Turkish scientist, they are the Balkans and Eurasia. Turkey will
govern the world (Dis Cember in Turkish, meaning Outer Crescent in
Mackinder’s concept) sooner or later, the author says in conclusion.
7
Thus, Ozey legalizes Turkey’s domination in Balkans and Eurasia
considering it a natural result of that country’s geography. Then, he
considers Turkey’s domination in Eurasia not an end in itself, but a
method of achieving a bigger result – the World Domination.
Other publications by Turkish experts in geopolitics are not so frank
and far-reaching, though majority of them support the ideas of
Turkey’s domination or priority in Eurasia applying “softer”
wordings. Thus, for example, Mustafa Yilmaz (Professor of Hacettepe
University) also describes Turkey as a “natural acropolis” situated
in the middle of the Balkans, Caucuses and the Middle East, which
allows it to apply a number of alternative economic, political and
military approaches.8
To emphasize the priority of Turkey proceeding from the “natural”
geopolitical conditions, another idea of “Central Empire” was put
into scientific and political circulation in 1990s. According to one
of supporters of this approach, Oral Sander, Turkey, yielding to a
number of other countries by its power and being influenced by “world
developments,” at the same time, influences these developments due to
its position of a “Central Empire.”9
Eurasia in Political Discourse
In 1990s the Turkish left wing and right-wing thinkers and
politicians, as well as representatives of a number of pro-Islamic
and pan-Turkist political forces, elaborated a model of Turkey’s
Eurasian policy, to become a complete alternative to the
“traditionally” pro-Western foreign political strategy. This approach
is based on the idea of cooperation of the most important powers of
Eurasia, Turkey, Iran and Russia, against the “Western imperialism.”
Its authors condemn Turkey’s foreign policy for its subordination to
the West and ignoration of the country’s basic interests.
In particular, it has become known recently that one of the country’s
prominent right-wing political figures, Husnu Dogan, even makes steps
towards establishment of “Avrasya” (Eurasia) party.10 Another
supporter of the above view, veteran of the Turkish Socialist
Movement Dogu Perincek, gave one of his books a very symbolic title:
“Eurasia’s choice – independent foreign policy for Turkey”.11
Nowadays, the political and intellectual elite of Turkey remains
mainly adherent to the strategic preference of Ataturk. The
representatives of this wing are pragmatic and well aware that Turkey
is not ready to become the politically dominating power in Eurasia
without the support of the West, either economically or politically.
That is why, they consider the Eurasian direction of Turkey’s foreign
policy subordinated to Turkey-West relations and try to coordinate
their policy with the goals of the West, and, in particular, of the
USA. At the same time, they consider the extension of Turkey’s
influence in the Eurasian region as an important trump card in
bargaining with the West on such issues as Turkey’ admission to the
European Union or the Cyprus problem.
The study of geopolitical and geostrategical opinions of the modern
Turkish high-ranking influential military concerning Eurasia shows
that their approaches are shifting from hard-line Kemalist
pro-Western orientation to diversified ones. They have much in common
with the views of the aforementioned Western-orientated political
elite. Even official military documents now speak of Turkey as a
“country of Eurasia”, committed “to retain and enhance the ties with
both the West and the East.”12 In 1998, Minister of Defense Hikmet
Sami Turk, making his speech at the Washington Institute for Near
East Policy, stressed the following: “Turkey has not only turned its
face to the West, but also enjoys traditional ties with the Islamic
World. She takes her roots from Central Asia, The Middle East,
Anatolia and Europe. In short, Turkey is a Eurasian country.”13
The military traditionally consider Eurasia and, first of all, the
South Caucasus, as an unstable region threatening Turkey’s security.
They are convinced that Russia’s influence and military presence in
that region is the main source of danger. Thus, it is obvious, that
the attention of the military is mainly focused on the three
countries of the South Caucasus. 14 At the same time, they, alongside
with many Turkish politicians, think, that “Turkey is in the middle
of the world.” 15
Within the last two-three years, among the Turkish high-ranking
military appeared a group protesting against integration into
European Union. Its members consider Eurasia as an important
geopolitical privilege for Turkey and not as a source of instability.
Despite their pro-Western orientation, in that region they predict a
strong competition with the European countries, especially with
Germany. 16
In 1999-2002, the period of the previous coalition government headed
by Bulent Ecevit, the Foreign Ministry was controlled by the
Democratic Left-wing Party (DLP), so the views of the party’s leaders
require a special attention. On the whole, they supported the
pro-Western strategy of the Turkish foreign policy, though with some
reservations. For example, in 1995, DLP leader Bulent Ecevit insisted
on the “region-oriented foreign policy.” He thought that the use of
the European and Asian elements would enable setting up the integrity
of the countries situated in the Eurasian super-region, certainly
headed by Turkey. He even uses the term “Eurasiation” (Avrupalasma in
Turkish) – to signify the process of integration between Europe and
Asia. According to him, Turkey is occupying the central place in this
process.17
Foreign Minister of that period Ismail Cem, also the DLP
representative, did not avoid rather openly speaking about
prospective Eurasian plans in public. Thus, once he stated: “We
shall, undoubtedly, join the European Union, but our perspective of
vision is broader. Our goal is to become the decision-making center
in Eurasia.”18
The program of the Justice and Development Party’s (JDP) Government,
which replaced Ecevit’s coalition, points out that the goal of
expanding relations with Russia is based on the aspiration for
“cautiously expanding Eurasia’s prospect.” Meanwhile, before coming
to power, this pro-Islamic party noted in its program that it would
try to expand the “Eurasian direction” of the Turkish foreign
policy19. The latest steps of the JDP Government display the trend of
strengthening the impact of the Eurasian concept on the Turkish
foreign policy. The Foreign Ministry acts within the new framework
redefining the priorities of the Turkish foreign policy in accordance
with the Eurasian concept, which is indicated in the JDP’s program
and considered to be more suitable to the changing regional and
global realities. The Ministry is establishing a new balance between
national interests and those realities and is trying to improve
relations with the neighboring countries.
Different interpretations of Eurasian concept are also present in
official documents of other Turkish political parties. In particular,
the Program of the Social-Democratic People Party (SPP), which had
been playing an important role in the Turkish politics in the first
half of 1990s, describes the “Wide Eurasian” region as a “territory
of our life, our power, apple of the eye” for Turkey.20 Recently
founded Party of New Turkey (PNT) considers Turkey as “The Power
Center” of emerging “Eurasian Entirety”.21
The concept of Eurasia is widely spread also among different circles
of contemporary Turkish society. There are many research centers,
think tanks, NGO’s, foundations, and periodicals, the titles of which
include the word “Avrasya” (Eurasia). Most of them are interested in
advocating Eurasian trend in Turkish political, economical and
cultural life. Only one example: a non-governmental Association of
Cultural and Societal Development of Eurasia stands for strengthening
various relations between Europe, Turkey and other Eurasian
countries, especially, with the Central European ones. Its leaders
are supporters of using the Eurasian direction of Turkey’s foreign
policy as a trump card in the EU accession negotiations. According to
this NGO’s program documents, Turkey has to play “major role” in
Eurasia.22
Conclusion
The above examined theoretical approaches and opinions concerning
Eurasia and the place and role of Turkey, that are widely spread in
the modern Turkey’s public and political life, testify that not only
political elite of the country, but also military and scientific
ones, as well as the segments of emerging civic society share the
idea of Turkey’s domination in that region, bringing different
reasons and bases.
These concepts come from both – left and right wings of the political
spectrum are serving as a theoretical substantiation for the Turkish
foreign policy, one of the most important long-term objectives of
which is becoming a dominating power in the region of Eurasia.
——————————————————————————–
SOURCES
1 See Turkish Foreign Policy. – In:
2 Abdullah Gul. Walking the Tight Rope: Managing Turkey’s Foreign
Relations. Talk given to the Eurasia Summit 2003 “Energy, Economic
Development and Regional Security”, New York, September 24, 2003. –
In:
3 Turkish Daily News, July 8 2003.
4 MHP’nin 6. Kongresi… Bahçeli’nin konu_mas1.  In: Arsiv Belgeler,
BelgeNet ().
5 Prime Minister Suleyman Demirels 12th press conference, Ankara. 
In: Turkish Review, 1992, Vol.: 6, August, p. 89.
6 On these notions in the western interpretation see the brilliant
article of Donald W. Meinig from the University of Utah (US):
Heartland and Rimland in Eurasian History. The Western Political
Quarterly, 1956, Vol.: 9, No.: 3, p. 553-569.
7 See in his book: Ramazan Ozey. Jeopolitik ve Jeostratejik Acidan
Turkiye. Istanbul: Marifet Yayinlari, 1998, p. 57-59.
8 Mustafa Yilmaz. Turkiyenin Jeo-Stratejisi Ac1s1ndan Gunumuz
Olaylar1n1n Degerlendirilmesi.  Ucuncu 1000E Girerken Turkiye:
Kutlu Dogum Sempozyumu  1999. Yayina Hazirlayan: Omer Turan. Ankara,
2000, s. 72.
9 Oral Sander. Turkish Foreign Policy: Forces of Continuity and
Change. – Turkish Review, 1993, Vol.: 7, winter, p. 45-46.
10 Turkish Probe, 12 May 2002.
11 Dogu Perincek. Avrasya Secenegi: Turkiye Icin Bagimsiz Dis
Politika. Istanbul: Kaynak Yayinlari, 1996.
12 Ministry of National Defense: White Paper-Defense 1998. Ankara:
Ministry of National Defense, 1998, p. 5.
13 Hikmet Sami Turk. Turkish Defense Policy. – In: The Washington
Institute For Near East Policy, Wednesday, March 3, 1999
().
14 For the “traditional” approaches of top Turkish military
officials, see Degisen Stratejilerin Odaginda Turkiye. Istanbul: AD
Yayincilik, 1996, written by Necip Torumtay, retired Chief of the
General Staff.
15 Sadi Erguvenc. Turkey’s Strategic Importance in Military
Dimension: A Regional Balance Holder. – In: Turkey at the Threshold
of the 21st Century: Global Encounters and/vs Regional Alternatives.
Ed. By: Mustafa Aydin. Ankara, 1998, p.63.
16 See Kaan Ogut. Avraysa Stratejileri Uzerine. – In: Aydinlanma
1923, Sayi: 21 (). These conclusions were
confirmed by Colonel Nazmi Cizmeci in a lecture during the 1998
workshop entitled “The Importance of Turkey vis-à-vis the Caucasus,
Middle Asia, and Eurasia.”
17 Avrasya Dergisi, II ().
18 See Kaan Ogut, Avraysa Stratejileri Üzerine, in: Aydinlanma 1923,
Sayi: 21 (on-line version). Cem means, surely, the official
definition of Eurasia.
19 See the Section 6 (Foreign Policy) of the Party Program of AKP in:
(in Turkish).
20 Sosyaldemokrat Halk Partisi’nin (SHP) program1, 2002.  In:
Partiler ve Programlar, BelgeNet ().
21 Yeni Türkiye Partisi’nin (YTP) program1.  In: Ibid.
22 See the WWW site of above mentioned NGO:

Prof. Ruben Safrastyan, Ph.D. is a Professor of International
Relations at Acharyan University in Yerevan, Armenia. He’s also the
Director of the Department of Turkish Studies at Institute of
Oriental Studies, Armenian National Academy of Sciences. In the past,
he served as a Counselor of the Armenian Embassy in Germany and was
the Deputy Director of the Department of Political Analysis for the
Office of the President of Armenia.

A1plus
| 13:16:05 | 21-05-2005 | Politics |
GUARANTEE OF LEGALITY ON DEFENDER’S CONSCIENCE
The RA law “On Advocacy” can undergo changes in future. Today some
amendments to the Criminal Code connected with the law are being
worked out.
On the whole the law “On Advocacy does not need being reformed, head
of the reformation department of the Armenian Justice Ministry Nikolay
Arustamyan considers. According to him, there is another reason for
the discrepancies on the formation of the Chamber of Lawyers and the
election of its chairman. “It would be incorrect to motivate it by
the shortcomings of the law. I am tended to suppose that the chaos
was caused by some organizational issues. Perhaps on the new stage
of the system formation the emotions of the lawyers exceeded certain
boundaries”, he said.
What aim was pursued when adopting the law “On Advocacy”? The
law had to keep high the role and importance of a lawyer in the
society. However the situation is quite the contrary. A dispute
emerged on the position on the chairman of the Chamber of Lawyers. 420
Armenian lawyers divided into two camps; they can’t settle their
problems by themselves and appeal to courts. “All this can arouse
negative emotions. The lawyers themselves create their structure,
image and importance within the society”, N. Arustamyan says.
With the help of the law they try to settle the problem of lawyer-legal
structure-state relations basing on the idea that advocacy is a
body of public right, which is independent of the state and secures
guarantees of independence and self-sufficiency. “Certainly absolute
independence of lawyers is impossible under any circumstances. A
suppose that there is nothing to be afraid about of the lawyer is
subordinated to the Chamber of Lawyers”, he says.
He doesn’t share the opinion that the layers themselves can cause
violations. “The mechanisms fixed in the law regulate the process
of providing the free juridical assistance. I do not think it will
help to conceal violations, Everything depends of the lawyer and his
interpersonal skills.
Lena Badeyan

KOCHARIAN MET WITH RUSSIAN TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT MINISTER
Pan Armenian News
21.05.2005 03:22
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today Armenian President Robert Kocharian met
with Russian Minister of Territorial Development Vladimir Yakovlev,
reported the Press Service of the Armenian leader. In the course of
the meeting the parties discussed the reform process in territorial
governance and local self-governance in the countries, as well as
town-planning, housing and communal reforms. The interlocutors also
noted that the solution of similar problems in former soviet states
will be more efficient if they search for mutually favorable methods.