Author: Hovhannisian John

BETWEEN EXISTENCE AND ELIMINATION
A1+
15-03-2005
`The most part of the last century we lived under a regime, which
existed due to the absence of human rights. Before it our the first
genocide of the 20th century befell our people, since the end of the
century will have been struggling for establishing the rights of the
Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh’, Armenian FM Vardan Oskanyan stated
when delivering a speech at the 61-th session of the UN Commission on
Human Rights.
He also stated that the protection and preservation of human rights in
Armenia is not an abstract principle. `It is the difference betweenthe
existence and elimination.’

Tortured minds
By Jean Rafferty
Sunday Herald, UK
13 March 2005
The fluidity in Beyoglu No 2 criminal court in Istanbul borders on
chaos. The judge is away training for the introduction of the Turkish
penal code, his deputy is sick, and it seems nobody wants to take on
the case of dissident writer and publisher, Ragip Zarakolu. Why would
they? There is the Turkish government to answer to if you come up with
the wrong verdict, and world opinion to contend with, in the shape
of eight international observers, a chap from the British Consulate,
two German cameramen and assorted supporters and reporters clogging up
the corridors. Not to mention the wider opinion they represent. For
a government which desperately wants to join the European Union,
the Turks have an unfortunate penchant for arresting their political
opponents. It doesn’t take much to put you on the wrong side of the
law here. One of the charges against Ragip Zarakolu is of insulting the
memory of Kemal Ataturk, founder of the modern Turkish state, who died
in 1938. In mature democracies such as our own, where Blair-baiting
and royalty-ribbing are the media’s favourite bloodsports, half the
nation’s press would be in Pentonville if such a charge existed.
“Can you imagine if there was a law like that about Churchill?” asks
Alexis Krikorian of the International Publishers Association (IPA).
We are in Istanbul to see Zarakolu tried for instigating racial hatred
“in a way dangerous for public security”. He has dared to suggest
that the Kurdish people in Iraq might have the right to determine
their own fate.
On this same day in the Turkish capital, Ankara, Professor Fikret
Baskaya is also standing trial for accusing Turkey of being a “torture
state” in a book written initially in the early 1990s and reprinted
in 2003. A team of international observers is watching his trial too.
Zarakolu’s article in a radical daily newspaper criticised the
Turkish government for suggesting that the Iraqi Kurds’ desire to
form a state was justification for the war. In the end the government
refused to support the war, which makes this whole process somewhat
surreal. Zarakolu is now in court for a political position that the
government itself supports.
A brave judge is eventually prevailed upon to hear the case and those
who can squash into the small courtroom. Its wood veneer-panelled walls
are reminscent of council houses in Glasgow’s east end, and there
is none of the pomp of a British court – nor any of the jury. Judge
and prosecutor sit together under a portrait of Ataturk . They wear
cheap-looking duster coats with red stand-up collars; the defence
lawyer’s collar is green and maroon. They could be janitors from
opposing high schools.
But for all their utilitarian appearance, the Turkish courts are far
more deadly in approach than our own. There are currently 60 writers
facing trial there, including Austrian journalist, Sandra Bakutz, who
simply went to Turkey in February to cover the trial of 100 left-wing
activists. She is charged with membership of a banned organisation
and could face up to 15 years in prison. Other “criminals” include
cartoonist Musa Kart, whose caricature of the Turkish prime minister
with a cat’s head earned him a 5000 lira fine.
It is hard not to see the proceedings in Beyoglu’s court as a
caricature of the law. The judge clearly knows nothing about the case
and has to be given all the details. Ragip Zarakolu stands alone in
the dock and reads a prepared speech. “Being against a war can never
be classed as a crime. Criticising genocide can never be a crime
… I demand acquittal.”
Instead, he is offered postponement until May, even though his defence
lawyer points out that under the new penal code such a charge could
no longer be brought then. As the code comes in on April Fools’ Day,
perhaps the judge is wise not to accept that argument. It turns out
that Zarakolu’s co-defendant, the newspaper’s editor, should have
been in the dock with him, but with 300 charges outstanding against
him he’s had the good sense to abscond to Switzerland.
“It’s Kafkaesque,” says Zarakolu. “Just harassment. It’s like our story
of the wolf and the lamb at the riverside. The wolf says, ‘I will
eat you. You are making my water dirty.’ The lamb replies, ‘That’s
impossible. You are upstream of me. It is only you who could dirty
my water.’ The wolf says, ‘It’s not important. I want to eat you’.”
Ragip Zarakolu has spent a total of two years in prison, some of
it in isolation. His publishing house has been firebombed; he has
had constant financial struggles, but still he carries on, not just
writing his own articles but publishing and distributing radical
literature by others.
He was born in 1948 into the family of a high-ranking bureaucrat,
an intellectual whose liberal-mindedness – and membership of the
democratic party – led to his being sent away from Istanbul and into
the wilds of Anatolia. It was a form of banishment, a probationary
period to ensure his loyalty. The state-owned mansions that the family
lived in clearly provided only limited security.
In 1968, Turkey followed the student protest movement of most of
the Western world. Ragip too listened to Joan Baez and Bob Dylan and
took part in sit-ins, but unlike many of his European and American
contemporaries, he never settled for Coca-Cola consumerism. In 1977,
he and his wife Ayse set up a publishing house to print the works
of independent thinkers. Their range included classic political
theorists such as Tom Paine and John Stuart Mill. They often used
foreign writers to say the things Turkish writers could not.
In the 1980s, after the military coup by General Kenan Evren, the
couple began publishing works by people who had been in prison. “They
were writing their poetry on little pieces of paper, which they sent
secretly, sewn into shirts and other things. Nearly half a million
were imprisoned in five years. A generation of university students
stayed there a long time. My wife and I thought it was very important
to get their voices to the outside. The military authorities thought
all the younger generation were terrorists but we wanted to show
their culture. We published poetry, novels, stories, reportage. Some
of them won awards.”
And some of them were sentenced to death. Turkey takes the written
word very seriously. Zarakolu and his wife were watched the whole
time, their phones tapped. Many other publishers couldn’t take the
pressure. They themselves closed their own publishing houses and
bookshops. Some people even burned books in their own homes. In the
first half of 2004 alone, 15 books were banned.
The Zarakolus did everything openly. Ragip was arrested in 1982;
Ayse two years later. She was tortured. During Ragip’s first prison
term, in 1973, he had learned what that meant through the stories
of fellow-prisoners. “They were hanging people by their hands, using
electric shocks, beating people on the soles of their feet. They also
tied people to the bed, making them stay there a week without going
to the toilet .”
During that period, Ragip Zarakolu collated the information he
received into a book, which was published in Belgium. This time
around he could only support his wife. Ayse was a remarkable woman
who was tried many times and won many humanitarian awards . In 1984,
she was arrested because she had given a job to a student who was
wanted by the police. They tortured her to find out where he was. She
refused to tell them – he was hiding in her mother’s house. “She was
a very courageous woman,” says Ragip. “She always managed not to go
into depression or helplessness. She felt good because she could do
something against power. She felt solidarity with suffering people.”
In 2002, Ayse died of cancer. Her husband was devastated, unable to
speak at her funeral. “I lost half of my existence,” he says. “We
shared everything.” Ayse’s coffin was carried by a group of Kurdish
women, who approached Zarakolu and asked if they could do so.
The “Kurdish question” is one of the country’s most contentious
issues. State repression of the 12 million-strong Kurdish population’s
language and culture resulted in bloody civil war during the 1980s
and 1990s . Both Zarakolus had spoken out openly about human rights
abuses, and about the genocide of a million Armenians from 1915
till the establishment of the Turkish state in 1923. “Everywhere men
carry the coffins,” says Ragip. “But the women said, ‘She gave a very
important struggle for us.’ The Kurdish women carried her coffin a
long way. It was a very hard burden.”
Moved by their gesture, the Zarakolus’ older son, Deniz, made an
emotional speech at the graveside. “I think Kurdish women will be
free some day,” he said. “And they will not forget my mother.”
In Turkey, 40 days is the traditional period of mourning. The
anti-terror team waited 40 days after Deniz spoke out; then they came
to the family home and took him away for interrogation. H e had said
the unforgivable: that Kurdish people might one day be free.
Deniz Zarakolu was acquitted only after legal reforms were
introduced. In recent years, in its bid to make itself acceptable to
Europe, Turkey has been making piecemeal amendments to its laws. These
do not impress the international observers who came to Istanbul.
“What good is a law if it’s not implemented?” asks Alexis Krikorian
of IPA. “In December Ragip Zarakolu was acquitted before the
State Security Court. As soon as he was acquitted he was charged
again. That’s why we’re back again.”
“Turkey keeps saying, ‘We’re a young nation. We need time.’ But
they’ve had a lot of time,” says Eugene Schoulgin of International PEN,
the worldwide writers’ organisation.
The irony is that many observers believe human rights are just an
excuse for the major European nations to keep Turkey out of the
European Union . “They can’t let Turkey in,” insists Professor Hasan
Unal of Ankara’s Bilkent University. “It’s too big, too alien. Once
you let Turkey in you’ll be moving your borders to Iran and Iraq. They
should keep Turkey as a buffer state.”
By the year 2020, Turkey’s population, now 72 million and growing at a
rate of one million a year, would be the biggest in Europe, giving the
country unprecedented influence. Would France and Germany countenance
this? Behind closed doors the diplomatic minuet goes on. Last Sunday
there were alarming scenes of police brutality in Istanbul during a
demonstration for International Women’s Day. Masked police arrested
57 people but it was thei r behaviour that was questioned in the
world’s press.
When Europe’s ministers met the Turkish foreign minister in Ankara on
Monday he assured them that the police would be investigated. They
assured him they were sure that they would. It was cosy, stately if
not statesmanlike, and utterly impenetrable. “They’re melting all
the criticisms into some kind of diplomatic mish-mash,” says Eugene
Schoulgin of International PEN. “It makes it impossible to know what
goes on behind the curtains. The public will never know. That’s what
worries writers and publishers.”
While in Istanbul, Schoulgin attended a dinner for the European
Ambassador, Hansjoerg Kretschmer, thrown by the Marmara group, a
Turkish association including 200 important politicians, academics,
businessmen, generals, journalists. There were speeches and compliments
and empty formalities . Only at the end, did Schoulgin ask how it
was possible for the EU to accept a country with so many taboos, a
country which will accept no criticism of its policies on Armenians,
Kurds, the military, Cyprus or even its founder, Kemal Ataturk.
He got no real answers. Afterwards, many people said that he shouldn’t
ask such questions. “I said, ‘I have a feeling I stepped on everyone’s
toes at once.’ I laughed and they laughed too, but they didn’t
like it.”
In Ankara, Professor Fikret Baskaya was acquitted. Many observers
thought the verdict had been decided before a word was said. But in
Istanbul Ragip Zarakolu has a further trial pending, on Wednesday,
and another book on the Armenian genocide coming out shortly. As it
coincides with the 90th anniversary, he does not expect publication
to go unnoticed.
Zarakolu is a generous-hearted man, a man who loves people, music,
laughter and travel. A man of inexplicable, ineradicable optimism. But
on one issue he is as rigid and inflexible as his opponents: “Whether
it’s a member of the European Community or not, Turkey must reform. The
citizens of Turkey demand their rights.”
Jean Rafferty went to Istanbul as a representative of Scottish PEN,
in conjunction with English PEN
13 March 2005

The Messenger, Georgia
March 11 2005
“Confront Russia”: U.S. Senate told
U.S. analysts advise Senate to stand up to Russia and actively pursue
resolution of frozen conflicts
By James Phillips
The U.S. Senate’s Committee on Foreign Relations heard appeals on
March 8 to stand up to Russia and support countries of the Black Sea
region, including Georgia.
At a hearing on March 8 entitled ‘The Future Of Democracy In The
Black Sea Area,’ the committee heard testimony from the U.S. State
Department’s Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, European and
Eurasian Affairs, John F. Tefft, President of the Project on
Transitional Democracies Bruce P. Jackson, Jamestown Foundation
Fellow Vladimir Socor, and Zeyno Baran, Director of the International
Security and Energy Programs at the Nixon Center.
Outlining the US government’s policy towards Georgia, Tefft stressed
that “we support President Saakashvili’s goal of reuniting the
country, and encourage Georgia to resolve the conflicts in South
Ossetia and Abkhazia in a peaceful manner. We also continue to insist
that Russia fulfill its remaining Istanbul commitments” to withdraw
its military bases from the country.
“The Rose Revolution of 2003 demonstrated that Georgians desire fair
elections and good governance, and are capable of holding their
government accountable,” Tefft said, adding that, “Since the Rose
Revolution, Georgia has made significant internal reforms to fight
official corruption, consolidate bureaucracy and increase revenue
collection in order to provide better services to its own citizens.”
However, the deputy assistant secretary of state warned that
“Progress in Georgia is hampered by ongoing separatist conflicts in
South Ossetia and Abkhazia.”
In his testimony, Vladimir Socor focused on threats to
Western-oriented countries in the region, “mainly from Russia and its
local protégés.”
“The overarching goal,” he explained, “is to thwart these countries’
Euro-Atlantic integration and force them back into a Russian sphere
of dominance. The scope, intensity, and systematic application of
threats has markedly increased over the last year, as part of
President Putin’s contribution to the shaping of Russia’s conduct.”
“Old-type threats stem from troops and bases stationed unlawfully in
other countries, seizures of territories, border changes de facto,
ethnic cleansing, and creation of heavily armed proxy statelets.
Georgia, Moldova, and Azerbaijan are the targets of such blackmail,”
he declared.
“New-type threats,” he continued, “are those associated with illegal
arms and drugs trafficking, rampant contraband, and organized
transnational criminality, all of which use the Russian-protected
secessionist enclaves as safe havens and staging areas. In the Black
Sea region,” he added, “state actors within Russia are often behind
these activities, severely undermining the target countries’
economies and state institutions.”
The need to confront Russia
Bruce Jackson agreed with Socor on the need to stand up to Russian
aggression towards Georgia and other Black Sea region countries.
Referring to the Rose and Orange revolutions in Georgia and Ukraine,
which he said had “changed the structure of politics in Minsk,
Chisinau and as far away as Almaty, Bishkek and Beirut,” Jackson
stated that, “Without doubt, the largest and most dramatic democratic
changes are occurring in this part of the Euro-Atlantic.”
“Sadly, it is not only our hopes that draw our attention to this
region, but also our fears,” he added, explaining that a belt of
frozen conflicts from Transdnestria in eastern Moldova through
Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia to Nagorno-Karabakh continued
to pose threats to the security of the region as a whole.
“In Transdnestria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, transnational crime
has found a home and developed a base for trafficking in weapons,
drugs, women and children,” he warned. “These criminal enterprises
destabilize the governments of the region, threaten Europe with
illicit traffic, and ultimately pose a danger to the United States
with their capability and intent to sell weapons and technology to
our enemies.”
Reporting particularly on Georgia, Jackson stated that the country,
“under the leadership of President Misha Saakashvili, has finished an
extraordinary first year of reform, which saw the breakaway province
of Adjara reunited with the constitutional government in Tbilisi. By
all indicators, such as its qualification for participation within
the Millennium Challenge Account, Georgia is delivering on its
commitments to economic reform and the democratic transformation of
its society and government.”
“Like Ukraine, however,” Jackson added, “Georgia has encountered
serious and continuous obstruction from Russia. The Russian
Government has refused to comply with its international treaty
obligation to withdraw its troops from the Soviet-era bases on
Georgian soil and has consistently supported separatists in the
breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia.”
“Late last year, Russia blocked the OSCE from reinforcing a
peacekeeping mission in South Ossetia in order to protect its ability
to ship prohibited weapons and explosives through the Roki Tunnel to
paramilitary gangs in South Ossetia,” he stated, adding that Russia
had also “forced the OSCE to close the Border Monitoring Operation”
on the Georgian-Russian border.
“Russia’s actions could very well prove to be the death knell for the
OSCE; we must ensure that they are not for democratic Georgia,”
Jackson declared.
Jackson outlined a series of policy objectives for the United States
with regard to the Black Sea region. Among these, he stated, there
was a need to “prioritize the frozen conflicts.”
“President Misha Saakashvili’s enlightened peace plan for South
Ossetia has been greeted by a resounding silence in Brussels and
Washington, which is dumbfounding,” he stated.
Also of importance, he stated, was to “confront Russia.”
“Just because Russian officials become peevish when we point out that
the poison used on Yushchenko and the explosives used in the car
bombing in Gori, Georgia came from Russia, does not mean we should
ignore this conduct,” he said.
Georgia: Inspiration for change
In the final testimony, Zeyno Baran chose to title the first of the
four sections of his testimony as Georgia: Inspiration for Change.
Describing the Rose Revolution, which she witnessed first hand, Baran
categorically refutes the opinion that it “was not a movement led or
even inspired by the United States; it was a domestic uprising
against a corrupt and weak regime that was rotting internally and
could not deliver on any promises to restore stability and economic
growth and bring Georgia closer to the transatlantic community,” she
stated.
Noting that Saakashvili’s first foreign visit after the Rose
Revolution, in January 2004 before his inauguration, was to Kiev,
Baran stated that “over the next year Georgians and Ukrainians, in
government as well as in civil society, worked together to ensure
Ukraine’s democratic triumph.”
“The sustainability of the Georgian and Ukrainian revolutions is
essential for others in the
Black Sea region to follow a reformist trend,” Baran added, warning
that without US and western support, this may not be possible.
The US must do all it can to support Georgia and Ukraine’s
aspirations for NATO and EU membership, Baran said, as well as to
resolve Georgia’s internal conflicts. She also stated that the
continuing presence of Russian military bases in Georgia was a
“hindrance to peace.”
In the second part of her testimony, entitled Russian Energy
Monopoly, Baran argued that “if Russian monopoly power increases
across the Eurasian region, then countries will have difficulty
resisting Russian political and economic pressure.”
This, she said, was of great importance given Russian energy giant
Gazprom’s desire to acquire Georgia’s trunk gas pipeline.
“The difficult economic conditions prevailing in Georgia have given
Gazprom a great opening to try and acquire the title to the Georgian
gas pipelines, thus bolstering its monopoly power,” she said.
“If Tbilisi unintentionally helps Gazprom in this effort, then
Georgia will only be enhancing the company’s long-term leverage over
European gas consumers, and thus discouraging Europeans from taking a
firmer line with Russia on political issues, such as the frozen
conflicts mentioned earlier,” she added.
–Boundary_(ID_2QXNdHxJ/InJ6hxwaFyEiQ)–

Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 9, 2005, Wednesday
DESPITE WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Voyenno-Promyshlenny Kurier, No 8, March 2 – 15, 2005, p. 3
by Samvel Martirosjan
ARMENIA MAY COME TO PLAY AN INSTRUMENTAL ROLE IN MOSCOW’S PLANS OF
PREVENTING AMERICAN STRIKES AT IRAN
Official Yerevan is advancing its contacts with Tehran. Construction
of a gas pipeline from Iran to Armenia began not long ago. Energy
dialogue between the two countries is at twice its former
intensiveness. Powers-that-be are already discussing construction of
a railroad between the two countries. It will become an element of
the North-South transport corridor whose project is actively promoted
by Moscow.
In other words, Yerevan and Tehran are doing what they can to benefit
from their closeness to each other. It would have been hardly
surprising but for a single nuance: all of that is happening against
the background of the quarrel between Iran and the United States
whose intensiveness is mounting too. In the meantime, Yerevan
presents itself as one of Washington’s leading partners in the
Caucasus.
In the meantime, Serzh Sarkisjan, Defense Minister of Armenia and
Secretary of the Presidential Security Council, visited Tehran on
February 7-9 within the framework of bilateral rapprochement. He met
with the president of Iran, foreign and defense ministers, and other
senior officials. Regional security was in the focus of all
negotiations. Sarkisjan suggested to Hasan Rouhani, Secretary of the
Supreme Council of National Security, to arrange regional
negotiations on the level of secretaries of Security Councils and
contemplate cooperation in the sphere of security. Sarkisjan is
convinced that the new facts of life make a security framework like
that a must. Rouhani in his turn is convinced that all regional
security projects must be discussed by all countries of the region.
President Mohamad Hatami assured Sarkisjan that his country intends
to advance and broaden bilateral contacts with Armenia.
Tehran’s position is understandable. American troops have all but
surrounded Iran on all sides. The United States has military bases in
Turkey; it has occupied Iraq and has troops in Afghanistan as well.
All of that cannot help but worry Iran. More and more frequent leaks
to the media indicate that Washington intends to move its troops to
Azerbaijan as well. There is also the possibility that the Americans
will use Azerbaijani airports for air raids against Iran. The
situation being what it is, Armenia remains the only place from which
Tehran does not expect a stab in the back.
Yerevan too is worried by the possibility of an American attack on
Iran. Right upon his return from Tehran Sarkisjan was quoted as
saying to a correspondent of Yerkir newspaper that “We hope that
there will be no hostilities and that new areas of tension will not
appear in the region across our borders. Any tension and particularly
hostilities may play the role of a detonator. We hope that the
American-Iranian relations will improve, all problems settled
peacefully.”
This negative attitude towards potential deterioration is shared by
Kiro Manojan, head of the Political Department of Armenian
Revolutionary Movement Dashnaktsutyun, one of the largest political
structures in the republic and an element of the ruling coalition.
“Dashnaktsutyun regards the Armenian-Iranian relations and
territorial integrity of Iran as very important,” he said in an
on-line interview with Caucasus journalistic Network website. “From
this point of view, potential attacks of America or other countries
against Iran worry us greatly. In this, our party shares the
positions of some United States’ allies in Europe.”
As soon as Sarkisjan left, Rouhani visited Russia. It stands to
reason to expect Armenia to come to play an instrumental role in
Moscow’s plans of prevention of escalation of tension in the Middle
East and American strikes against Iran.

TURKEY STILL REACTING TO OSKANIAN’S RESPONSE
Azg/arm
12 March 05
At the March 9 press conference foreign minister of Armenia, Vartan
Oskanian, rejected Turkish PM Erdogan’s offer “to open archives and
to carry out impartial research with the involvement of Armenian and
Turkish historians” and stated: “Historians had their say long ago,
and Turkey has to work its own approach to this. There is nothing
left to the historians any more”.
Turkey strongly reacted to the minister’s response (see Azg’s March
10 issue). Vartan Oskanian’s Yerevan press conference alongside with
his interview to Reuters was widely covered by Turkish press. Anatolu
agency issued a press release on March 10 on the matter and Turkish
NTV highlighted the issue on March 11. In the interview to Reuters
Oskanian repeated what he said at the press conference and then called
the Armenian Genocide a “political issue” and noted: “It turned into
political issue when Turkey began denying the Genocide. For that
reason the issue demands a political solution”.
Suggesting Armenia to conduct an impartial research in the Genocide
issue, PM Erdogan meanwhile called on states that have recognized the
Genocide on parliamentary level or demand Turkey to recognize it on
the threshold to EU to open their archives.
Germany appeared on the list of such countries lately, and a press
release by German embassy in Turkey responding to Erdogan’s call to
“open archives” was quite expected. Turkish Sansursaz newspaper wrote
on march 11 that the release says: “All documents kept in German
archives, including Foreign Ministry’s official political documents,
are available for researches without any exception. All documents
are available at the Berlin city archive reading hall. They all were
handed over to Armenia and Turkey in 1998 in form of microfilms”.
Thus, the press release by the German embassy turns futile Erdogan’s
accusations to European states. Another Turkish newspaper, Zaman, wrote
yesterday that Yusuf Sarinay, president of the General Directorate of
State Archives of the Prime Ministry, confessed that scientists from
75 countries have applied to the Directorate and asked for documents
but, he emphasized, no documents were demanded about Armenian issue.
It leaves room for Sarinay to say that “They don’t want to be faced
with historical realities”. Prof. Enver Konukcu, head of the History
Chair at the Ataturk University, joined Sarinay in his accusations.
Commenting on Oskanianâ’s response to Erdoganâ’s offer “of joint
research”, he says that the refusal strengthens Turkish historiansâ’
positions and added: “Armenian historians have neither documents at
hand nor knowledge. Armenians always evaded. Turkish historians were
always ready to prove the truth. Armenians evade both, the history
and the truth. But historical truths are inevitable”.
A question arises: whatâ’s that truth? Konukcu thinks that it is the
Turkish genocide of 1915-1919 that claimed lives of 519 thousand Turks
as well as the 185 common graves and 50 thousand archive documents
that though contain 2 thousand papers “denying” the Armenian Genocide
do not attract foreign scholarsâ’ attention.
German embassy’s confronting response to Erdogan’s accusation
and the fact that foreign scientists pass by the documents of
General Directorate of State Archives in indifference not only
confirm Oskanian’s words that “nothing is left to the historians”
and “Erdoganâ’s offer is groundless” but also prove the issue to
be political indeed. In these conditions, Turkey’s new project of
“Standing against Armenian genocide claims” is simply nonsensical
together with Turkish government’s and opposition’s unity around it.
By Hakob Chakrian
–Boundary_(ID_iHkfIcdW/MhhiNjm8YPljQ)–

Armenian-Russian gas company to build segment of pipe from Iran
ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow
11 Mar 05
Yerevan, 11 March: The ArmRosGazprom [Armenian-Russian gas industry]
joint venture between Russia and Armenia has won a tender for the
construction of the Armenian segment of a gas pipeline from Iran
to Armenia, ArmRosGazprom General Director Karen Karapetyan said in
Yerevan on Friday [11 March].
ArmRosGazprom transports and distributes natural gas in Armenia. The
Armenian government and Russia’s Gazprom gas giant have 45 per cent
interest in the joint venture each, while the ITERA international
company has 10 per cent.
The pipeline, whose construction will start in late March – early
April, will supply gas only to Armenia. It will not have capacities
for gas transit. Iran will supply natural gas in exchange for Armenia’s
electricity.
“If Iran and Ukraine agree to lay a transit gas pipeline across
Armenia, we will certainly take part in the project,” Karapetyan said.
“Armenia will have exclusive positions in the regional energy system
if it has an alternative gas pipeline from Iran, an underground gas
storage facility and excess of electricity,” he said.

GIBRAHAYER
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http:/ /gibrahayer.cyprusnewsletter.com
The largest circulation Armenian
online  e-magazine on the WWW
ARAM I IN CYPRUS
Gibrahayer March 7, 2005, Nicosia – Hundreds of Armenian Cypriots
participated in the 75th Anniversary celebrations of the Cilician
Seminary
and the 10th anniversary of the enthronement of Catholicos Aram I of
the
Holy See of Cilicia over the weekend, in Nicosia.
       The main event took place on Saturday March 5, 2005 at
8:00 pm at the
Sourp Asdvadzadzin Church in Nicosia, where the Shnorhali Choir from
Beirut
under Der Bartev Vartabed Guelimian performed.
       Speakers at the event were Sebouh Tavitian, Vartan
Tashdjian and
Archbishop Nourhan of Jerusalem.
       At the end of the event Catholicos Aram I addressed and
thanked the
Armenian community of Cyprus and Archbishop Hergelian for organising
the
two-day celebrations.
       The Holy Mass on Sunday March 6, 2005 and the Karoz by His
Holiness
Catholicos Aram I was followed by a Luncheon at Makedonitissa Palace
at 1:00
pm organised by the Temagan and Varchakan Joghov to which more than
200
community members attended.
       It is important to note that during the Luncheon, Scout
master Artin
Anmahouni presented a Pendant to His Holiness and pledged the amount
of
$5,000 dollars. He also announced that he will donate his home to the
Catholicosate of Cilicia upon his passing away.
OSCE TELLS TURKEY TO LIFT CYPRUS & ARMENIAN BANS
Ankara. Turkish Daily News Friday, March 4, 2005. The Organisation
for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) called on Turkish
authorities to
eliminate all references in official documents suggesting that calls
for
troop withdrawal from Cyprus or claims that Armenians were subject to
a
so-called genocide should be treated as crimes.
       References to Cyprus and Armenian issues are found in an
explanatory
document accompanying Article 305 of the Turkish Penal Code, which
regulates
offences against national interests.
     Officially removing these subjects ca n help eliminate the
impression
that Article 305 allows for the punishment of free speech, the OSCE’s
representative on freedom of the media, Miklos Haraszti, said in a
letter to
Justice Minister Cemil Chickek.
Haraszti also said that reforms in the penal code were generally
welcomed
but complained that there were still some worrying provisions in it,
calling
for the removal of two articles in order to further expand freedom of
speech.
SAVEMELKONIAN.ORG LAUNCH FIERCE ATTACK
Gibrahayer Nicosian March 7, 2005: SaveMelkonian.org launched a
fierce
attack on AGBU veterans and Ramgavar leaders accusing them of the
current
fate of the Melkonian and its imminent closure.
     They accused the Ramgavar Party for using the AGBU as a party
leverage,
mismanaging and squandering funds for decades.
     The website stated, that with the Melkonian case in the
courts, the
Ramgavar leaders are now scared that it is their dirty washing that
will be
hung out in public. The webiste accused them of launching an attack
in the
Armenian press to discredit Archbishop Mutafian of Constantinople.
     Getting more personal and perhaps punching below the belt,
  also revealed that AGBU veterans were seen
gambling
in the casinos of Turkish-occupied north, and gave their own
interpretation
of the visit of Catholicos Karekin II of all Armenians to the United
States.
, in a newsletter to its subscribers on
06/03.05
invited them to read the following Letters and Articles
Letters and Articles
– Harach Editorial
– Give an account of thy stewardship (Luke 16:2)
– Mirror Spectator attacks Mutafian on Behalf of ADL
– From RAGs to riches?
Diary Section
– AGBU stalwarts gambling in Turkish Casinos
– ADL attacks Moutafian
– Catholicos visiting Lou Lou
– Other Catholicos visits Cyprus
JACQUES TOUBON ASKS THE TURKISH DEPUTIES TO RECOGNISE THE ARMENIAN
GENOCIDE
* On raising the question of genocide in the framework of the
EU-Turkey
inter-parliamentary delegation, the European deputy provoked a
violent
reaction form the Turkish officials.
* His remarks were outrageously deformed by the Turkish press
Click here for the complete story
EDITORIAL
THE NEW WORLD
By Jean Ipdjian
     It was my intention to continue building the image of our
communityâ~@~Ys â~@~S
the Armenian Community of Cyprus â~@~S Representative in the House of
Representatives, the Parliament, which I had started a few weeks ago.
However, the recently published report of the US State Department for
Human
Rights derailed me and I had to write my thoughts about it.
     Among a host of countries whose Human Rights record was
reviewed in the
report, there was Cyprus too. And, what the US State Department had
to say
about Cyprus was so full of a total disregard of the sensitivities of
the
majority of the population of this island, that even the traditional
friends
of the US policies in the island found it difficult to accept. All
they
could come up with was to urge the islandâ~@~Ys leadership to seek
some positive
aspects of the report, allegedly hidden between the linesâ~@¦
     One would have thought, that a great defender of democracy,
with the
stated aim to work for the establishment of democracy in all
countries and
with the stated aim to work for the rule of law and respect to the
voice of
the voting polls, would at least have the self respect to uphold
those
principles and apply them in its judgement of others.
     One would have thought, that the actions of a president, Mr.
T.
Papadopoulos, who was elected by the majority of the people in fair
and
valid elections such as are held in Cyprus would at least be
respected, in
these days of American â~@~Xcrusader-shipâ~@~Y for democracy.
     One would have expected, that the will of the people of a
country
expressed by a free, fair and valid referendum would at least be
respected,
in these days of American â~@~Xcrusader-shipâ~@~Y for democracy.
     One would expect that a country like the US would not act
like a spoilt
child who is used to having all its wishes granted, and would accept
the
realities and work accordingly.
     It is amazing how a country like the United States of America
with so
much ease can twist and turn facts, understandings and conceptions to
suit
its strategic aims. It is amazing, and disappointing, that the
self-appointed champion of democracy, human rights and common decency
can,
by the stroke of a pen, distort things so much. It is amazing, that a
country whose very birth was the immediate result of people who had
left
homes, countries, relatives, friends and a life to escape social
injustices
and perceptions, can be so unjust. It is amazing, that decent people,
who
constitute the majority of Americans, can so easily be manipulated
into
backing leaders and governments, who by playing on their basic fears
and
insecurities get away with, practically, almost anything.
     The â~@~XOld Worldâ~@~Y- Europe – with its new set of rules
and behaviours, as
contemplated and applied in the European Union, seem like a breath of
fresh
air compared to the present â~@~XNew Worldâ~@~Y â~@~S the US â~@~S
and its leaders.
     Moreover, it is frightening to think that the only superpower
left in
this world of the 21st century is the United States of America with
its
present leadership. How can countries and peoples, who had put their
trust
in institutions like the United Nations, expect to see their
grievances and
problems fairly addressed when all of these institutions act like the
well
paid and loyal employees of the State Department and Republican Party
of the
US?
Being both an Armenian and a Cypriot, I have the misfortune of
belonging to
peoples who are neighbours to Turkey, of belonging to peoples who
have the
misfortune of having to live with Turks. And it is a misfortune,
because
Turks, as a nation, are excellent examples of people with an
incorrigible
taste for their neighboursâ~@~Y belongings, utter disregard to the
rule of law.
     It is a bigger misfortune yet, since Turkey and by
extensions, Turks,
are one of the â~@~Xchosen friendsâ~@~Y of the modern great empire of
the United
States of America.
     For us, the small nations and peoples of the world, all that
we are
left with is our will to survive, our resolve to persevere and our
unshakable belief in our historical and natural rights.
     We can only hope that the European Union will be able to go
beyond
cosmetic and elected applications of its principles.
     We can only hope that the European Union will prove itself to
be
bastion of fairness and respect of the peopleâ~@~Ys will.
     We can only hope that the European Union will not disappoint
us, but
will work with us to find adequate solutions to the different
problems
facing this country until a final, workable, sustainable and
acceptable
solution is found.
We can only hope that the rejuvenated â~@~XOld worldâ~@~Y will have
the wisdom of
age and rise to the occasions as per its declared principles.
BENON SEVAN ASKS FOR EXTENSION
The New York Times, February 25, 2005. The former head of the
oil-for-food
program, Benon Sevan, has asked the United Nations for more time to
respond
to charges filed
against him two weeks ago, and the request is being considered, said
Fred
Eckhard, the spokesman for Secretary General Kofi Annan. A second
official,
Joseph J. Stephanides, has filed his response, which “will now be
reviewed
according to normal procedures before any action is taken,” Mr.
Eckhard
said.
     The charges arise out of the preliminary report of the
commission
headed by Paul A.  Volcker, which said that Mr. Sevan had tried to
help a
friend’s company obtain contracts under the program and that Mr.
Stephanides
had favoured some companies by improperly furnishing them with
bidding
information.
FIVE STAR ARARAT
After an excellent performance in the Cyprus Futsal Championships
AGBU
Ararat won rivals Parnasos 2-4 away from home and sealed the
championship
title for the fifth time in a row. Goal scorers for AGBU ARARAT were
Raffi
Yazmadjian (1) Alik Sarkissian (2) and Iakovos Papadopoulos (1)
The Table:
1.ARARAT                   59 pts.
2.PARNASOS              50 pts.
3.CYPRUS COLLEGE 38 pts.
4.OMONIA                  35 pts.
Athos Evripidou, the goalkeeper of ARARAT was voted at
as the most popular goalkeeper in Cyprus.
All the news of Ararat’s impressive run at
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REMEMBERING A LEGEND
by Vartkes Sinanian
     As the founder of ANCHA (American National Committee To Aid
Armenians )
George Mardikian had won the gratitude and the love of the Armenian
people.
He was a great philanthropist and a benefactor who had a passion and
unwavering commitment in the mission he had undertaken for his
people.  When
he wanted to make a point  you could feel his voice reverberating in
the
room.
     My fondest memory of him was the day when he arrived in
Cyprus in April
l959 accompanied by Archbishop Khoren Paroyan, the prelate of
Lebanon, who
later became the Catholicos of Cilicia,  Dickran Tosbath, member of
Lebanon’s parliament and editor of “Le Soir” French daily and “Ayk”
Armenian
Daily and his wife Naz.   Mardikian was in Cyprus as the last stop
of his
tour of the Middle East  meeting almost all the political leaders of
the
region including Egypt’s Gamal Abdul Nasser. more: click here
Mihran Keheyian from London sends this two interesting sites.
TATIANA’S CORNER
This corner is reserved for local artist Tatiana Ferahian’s comic
strips
which are amalgamations of Armenian-Cypriot social commentaries,
painted
with her usual wry and ironic humour, to stimulate and encourage
awareness
and interest toward our community’s everyday happenings.
INVITE YOUR FRIENDS TO SUBSCRIBE TO GIBRAHAYER
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NEWS IN BRIEF
One Azeri soldier was killed and one wounded along the tense line
dividing
Azerbaijan and Artsakh after a machine gun fire exchange with
Armenian
border patrols of Artsakh forces. Last year six people lost their
lives in
separate incidents and an additional 13 people were killed and 21
injured on
land mines around Artsakh.
UN experts forecast 500,000 drop in Armenia’s population by 2050.
Population decline will be observed in almost all the CIS countries.
Russia’s will decline from 143 mln to 112 mln while a population 
growth
will be registered in Azerbaijan by 1.2 mln.
Frank Pallone welcomed public statements made by US Ambassador to
Armenia
John Marshall Evans, in which he properly described Ottoman Turkey’s
systematic massacres of the Armenians between 1915-1923 as
“genocide.”
Next round of Armenian-Azeri peace talks have been postponed by at
least
one week because of Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian’s continuing
illness.
Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe
Knollenberg (R-MI) were joined by Representatives Rush Holt (D-NJ),
Carolyn
Maloney (D-NY), and Michael McNulty (D-NY), last week, in
commemorating the
17th anniversary of the Artsakh liberation movement.
The editor of a magazine critical of Azerbaijan’s government was shot
and
killed Wednesday in the lobby of his apartment building.
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that 40,000 Armenians from
Armenia live and works in Constantinople mostly for technical
companies.
Armenian officials have detained seven Russian servicemen stationed
at
Russia’s military base in Gyumri on suspicion of theft and robbery.
In commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide,
40,000
stamps and 700 first day envelopes, will be issued by April in
Armenia.
The ARF Dashnaktsoutiun faction will propose legislation declaring
the
Sumgait massacres a day commemorating the forced deportation of
Armenians
from Azerbaijan.
   g i b r a h a y    c a l e n d a r
  Lecture series dedicated to clergymen that were killed in the
Armenian
Genocide of 1915 will continue every Wednesday after Hsgoum
throughout Medz
Bak with the following schedule.
* Wednesday 9 March 2005 – Nerses Yebisgobos Tanielian (1868 – 1915)
is
presented
by Anahid Eskidjian
* Wednesday 16 March 2005 – Shavarsh Dz.Vart.Sahagian (1881 – 1915)
is
presented by Elsy Utudjian
Carnival Party organised by the Parent’s Association of Nareg
Schools.
March 9, 2005 at The Hall of Nareg School in Nicosia, from 4:00 –
6:00 pm.
Entrance: £4.00 for adults and £3.00 for children.
On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of martyrdom of ARF
Dashnaktsoutiun founder Christapor Mikaelian the following
commemorative
events have been planned: Symposium at 10 & 11 March, with the
participation
of various political figures and academics in Sofia. Pilgrimage to
Christapor Mikaelian’s grave at Sophia Cemetery on March 11. All
wishing to
take part in the pilgrimage, should contact ARF Dashnaktsoutiun
Cyprus.
Armenian Cultural Event â~@~S Dance & Poetry April 8, 2005 at 7:30
p.m., MEI
Auditorium. Organised by the AGBU â~@~S Melkonian Educational
Institute with the
participation of Melkonian Students.
The “Sipan” Dance Group of Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational
Association
of Cyprus will be presenting the Musical Performance of Toumanyian
“Famous
Children’s Stories” on Sunday April 10, 2005 at 8:30 pm at PASIDY
Auditorium.
Armenian Cypriot artist Nanor Tashdjian will be exhibiting her works
in
Cardiff from April 12 – April 21, 2005 at the Temple of Peace,
Cathays Park.
The exhibi tion, entitled “The Battle Field” is partly a reflection
by Nanor
on her background. She was born during the Turkish invasion of
Cyprus. The
exhibition will be held in the foyer of the entrance to the Temple of
Peace,
from April 12 -21 from 9.00 a.m. till 5.00p.m.(not the weekend).The
exhibition will culminate in a Commemorative meeting at The Temple of
Peace
(upstairs Council Committee room) at 7.00 p.m. on Wednesday, 20th
April.
Taking part will Caerphilly Labour Councillor and Human Rights
campaigner
Ray Davies, and the well-known poet Mike Jenkins of Merthyr. He will
read
his poem “Komitas”.
The “Timag” Theatre Company of Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational
Association of Cyprus is getting ready for its annual performance
which will
take place on Saturday May 7, 2005 at 8:30 pm
Armenian musical duo of Jean Davidian and Marie Louise Kouyoumdjian
perform
at Champs every Friday at 9:30 pm. Reservations on 22 873888. They
will also
be performing at the Palm Beach Hotel in Larnaca twice a week
starting from
April 2005.
Arevakal and Hsgoum ceremonies begin from Wednesday 9 February, 2005
as
follows: Every Wednesday and Friday – Arevakal 7:40 am and Hsgoum at
6:00 pm
Opening of a Painting Exhibition of Armenian Cypriot Artists,
organised by
The Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational Association Cyprus Chapter at
The
Utudjian Hall of The Armenian Prelature, on Friday 18 March, 2005 at
7:30
pm. The Exhibition will remain open until the 20th of March, 2005.
Easter Sunday Ma rch 27, 2005. Holy Mass at Sourp Asdvadzadzin Church
followed by Easter Lunch at Laiki Sporting Club organised by The
Armenian
Relief Society Cyprus Sosse Chapter. Details to follow.
Commemoration of The Armenian Genocide â~@~S 90th Anniversary April
20, 2005 at
7:30 p.m., MEI Auditorium. Organised by the AGBU â~@~S Melkonian
Educational
Institute with the participation of Melkonian Students.
Lecture by Peter Balakian on Friday May 20, 2005 organised by The
Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational Association Cyprus Chapter.
Details to
follow.
Cyprus Dart Championships. AYMA/HMEM is participating in the Cyprus
Dart
League with home matches being played every other Thursday at AYMA.
AYF Badanegan Mioutian get-togethers take place on Saturday at 3:30
pm at
AYMA. Contact Vartoog Karageulian on 24-659245.
Practises of the “Sipan” Dance Group of Hamazkayin Cultural and
Educational
Association of Cyprus for the Musical Performance of Toumanyian
“Famous
Children’s Stories” take place as follows: Every Friday and Sunday at
5:30
pm and every Saturday at 4:30 pm
AYMA/HMEM Chicco Football practises take place every Friday from 7:00
–
8:30 pm for children starting from the age of 7. Contact Krikor
Mahdessian
on 99650897.
AYMA/HMEM Table Tennis practises take place every Saturday from 5:30
pm
under the guidance of ex-Cyprus Champion Sirvart Costanian. Classes
for all
ages.
AYF meetings every Wednesday at 9:00 pm at AYMA. This week’s meeting
is
postponed because of three community events on March 2.
AYMA/HMEM Football team practises take place every Th ursday at 7:30
pm.
For more details of the next Bible Study Class organised by the
Armenian
Prelature at the Vahram Utudjian Hall of The Armenian Prelature call
Father
Momik Habeshian direct on 99 307966 or at the Prelature Office on 22
493560
email [email protected]
Armenian Radio Hour on The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation via real
audio
on . Broadcast 17:00-18:00 local Cyprus time
(14:00-15:00
GMT)
The Armenian Prelature announces that the next permit for the
Armenian
Cemetery visitation at Ayios Dhometios on the Green line, is on
Sunday March
13, 2005
Every Wednesday from 7-8 pm (Cyprus time + 2 GMT) on CyBC’s Trito,
Puzant
Nadjarian presents the “History of the Blue”. Internet edition on
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Christian Science Monitor (Boston, MA)
March 7, 2005, Monday
Q&A: What is Syria’s role in Lebanon?
Since the Feb. 14 bombing that killed Rafik Hariri, the popular
opposition leader and Lebanon’s former prime minister, thousands of
Lebanese have poured into the streets to protest Syria’s military
presence in their small Mediterranean country. The world, too, has
turned its attention to Syria’s role there. Correspondent Annia
Ciezadlo looks at the historical roots of the tension between these
two countries.
Q: Why is Syria in Lebanon?
A: The short answer: Syria was invited by Lebanese Christians in 1976
to stop a brewing civil war. But even with 27,000 Syrian troops in
Lebanon, the war that started as skirmishes between Muslims and
Christians continued for 15 years. It eventually involved the
country’s other religious factions, the Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO), Israel, and the United States.
While Syria intervened on the side of the Christians, it switched
allegiances to Yasser Arafat’s PLO, which was using Lebanon as a base
to attack Israel, and the PLO’s Arab nationalist allies, mostly
Muslim and Druze. In the end, Syria aligned itself with the Shiite
Amal and Hizbullah parties. Because Syria is now the main power
broker in Lebanon, these parties have an advantage in the constant
shuffling of Lebanon’s balance of power.
But the long answer to Syrian involvement in Lebanon – like many
issues in the Middle East – goes back to the breakup of the Ottoman
Empire. After World War I, when the European victors divided the
Ottoman territories, the French ended up with what was then called
Greater Syria, which encompassed Syria and Lebanon. The French,
aligned with the Maronite Christians (originally followers of a
4th-century Syrian hermit priest named Maron) of Lebanon and created
an autonomous region for the Maronites in their ancestral home of
Mount Lebanon.
To give Lebanon greater economic viability, the French combined the
predominantly Muslim Bekaa Valley and the ancient coastal cities with
the mostly Christian enclave of Mount Lebanon.
Q: How many religious groups are in Lebanon?
A: The main religious groups are Christian, Muslim, and Druze. Druze
is a secretive sect that some maintain is an offshoot of Islam, but
that also incorporates a belief in reincarnation. These religions are
further subdivided into 18 sects; each gets a certain number of seats
in Parliament under Lebanon’s confessional system. The major
subdivisions among the Muslims are Shiites and Sunnis; among the
Christians they are Maronites, Armenian Catholics, Greek Catholics,
and Greek Orthodox.
Q: What is a confessional system?
A: As of Lebanon’s last official census in 1932, Lebanon was about 51
percent Christian and 49 percent Muslim. When Lebanon declared
independence from France in 1943, this balance was enshrined in the
National Pact, a covenant of understanding that Parliament would have
a 6 to 5 Christian majority, with a Christian president, Sunni prime
minister, and a Shiite speaker of parliament. Because Muslims became
the majority by about the 1950s, the parliamentary makeup caused
political tensions. The Taif Accord changed the Parliament’s ratio to
50/50, but the executive branch remains the same.
Q: Why hasn’t Syria left after all these years?
A: The Syrian government claims that Lebanon needs its troops to
ensure stability. Experts say reasons for maintaining its grip on
Lebanon are economic and political: Syrian guest workers, estimated
at 500,000 to 1 million, send home millions of dollars each year.
Politically, Lebanon is useful to Syria in its efforts to regain the
Golan Heights, territory that was occupied by Israel in 1967.
However, Syria has reduced its troop levels from 40,000 in 2000 to
14,000 today.
Q: What role does Israel play in the tension between Lebanon and
Syria?
A: The Shiite militia Hizbullah is fighting an intermittent guerrilla
border war with Israel over a contested area called Shebaa Farms,
which is Israeli-held territory that the Lebanese government and
Hizbullah claim as Lebanese. But while Israel and Hizbullah skirmish
over Shebaa Farms, the UN has determined it to be part of the Golan
Heights – meaning Syrian territory that is occupied by Israel.
Because of this, many Lebanese feel that Syria is fighting a proxy
war with Israel on Lebanese soil.
Q: What is Hizbullah? How does it factor into Syria’s involvement in
Lebanon?
A: Hizbullah (which means “Party of God” in Arabic) is a Shiite
Muslim militia founded in 1982 after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.
Originally established with help from Iran’s elite Revolutionary
Guards, Hizbullah’s initial goals were to expel Israel from Lebanon
and establish an Islamic state similar to that in Iran. Hizbullah is
widely believed to be responsible for the 1983 suicide bombing of the
US Marine barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 US service members.
>>From 1982 to 2000, Hizbullah fought a guerrilla war against the
Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. When Israeli troops withdrew
in May 2000, many in Lebanon and the Arab world credited Hizbullah
with achieving the first Arab military victory against Israel. But
for years, Hizbullah has also been building a network of schools,
hospitals, and social services that have won it a political
following. The US considers Hizbullah a terrorist organization; so
far, despite American pressure, the European Union does not.
Q: Is what’s happening in Iraq, and other democratic reforms in the
Middle East, important to the anti-Syrian groups in Lebanon?
A: Most of the demonstrators who contributed to bringing down
Lebanon’s government cite the spontaneous revolutions that have swept
former Soviet satellite states, in particular in Georgia and Ukraine,
which were broadcast live on Al Jazeera and other Arabic channels. In
a way, Lebanon has a lot more in common with these countries than
with Iraq, Egypt, or Saudi Arabia because it has a free press and a
vibrant political opposition. Lebanon is the most democratic of all
the Arab countries.
Q: Why was Rafik Hariri’s death a tipping point?
A: The unexpected and shocking death of Mr. Hariri, the popular
businessman and well-connected politician, catalyzed a crisis that
was slowly heating up within Lebanon before his death brought it
international attention. Before his killing, the anti-Syrian
opposition was coming under increasing attack from the pro-Syrian
Lebanese government, which was threatening to prosecute two key
opposition leaders. Many people believe the prosecutions were
politically motivated, meant to eliminate opposition figures before
Lebanon’s spring parliamentary elections.
Q: Why are many of the protest signs in English?
A: Lebanon has always been a cosmopolitan, multilingual country.
Today, it’s not unusual for Beirutis to speak English, French, and
Arabic. But there’s another reason for all the English signs: the
demonstrators’ media savvy and their eagerness to reach the world.
Q: Is Lebanon at risk of slipping back into civil war if Syria
removes its troops?
A: Old resentments still simmer, but most Lebanese are much more
concerned about high unemployment and civil liberties like freedom of
speech. There’s another important difference: Throughout the civil
war, Syria, Iran, Libya, Israel, and other regional players funneled
arms and money to the various militias to keep their proxy wars
burning. Today, that level of outside involvement is unlikely.
Sources: “From Beirut to Jerusalem” by Thomas Friedman, Farrar Straus
Giroux, 1989; “Pity the Nation: Lebanon at War” by Robert Fisk, Andre
Deutsch, 1990; “The Vanished Imam: Musa Al Sadr and the Shia of
Lebanon” by Fouad Ajami, Cornell University Press, 1986; The Daily
Star.

Lebanon is not the land of colored revolutions!
Morning Morning
7 March 05
Great crises and great shocks lead people into perdition because
great crises and great shocks are difficult to assimilate. The
collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989 disquieted those who toppled it
as well as those who lost it. The republics that arose from the ruins
of the Soviet Union remain perplexed even now, and their perplexity
has kept them in a state of impotence as to their options although
they have been independent for more than 10 years. Despite that they
have not in the democratic line, despite the Westâ~@~Ys expectation.
Beginning with the Baltic republics and ending with Georgia, the
latter committed to a line independent of Moscow. For more than 70
years Russia was the focus of an empire with an area of 22,500 square
kilometers, from the Far East of Siberia to Moldavia and Byelorussia
(now Moldova and Belarus). To this day neither Kazakhstan nor
Azerbaijan, for example, has adopted the democratic system. Have
revolutionary elections changed the nomenklatura state in place? This
is the question posed, and it will continue to be because elections
alone are not democracy, which is a heritage before being a practice.
The democratic system was adopted in Greece in the fifth century BC,
and with it public debates. From the Greeks to the Persians, to India
and pharaonic Egypt… before France, England and Germany. Even
before Englandâ~@~Ys Magna Carta in 1215. * * *
Although elections change many things and many people, certainly what
happened in Lebanon on February 14 is related to them. This all the
more true since the next elections in Lebanon will define, as we
know, the Lebanese process in the framework of the delimitation of
the Middle Eastern process, probably in its evolution towards the
Greater Middle East!
Elections change many things and people. Even enmities, friendships
and lines of orientation can be turned upside-down. This is accepted
and sometimes desired.
People change and we still say nothing of those who follow a line and
continue to develop in accordance with it. People change, above all
in the sense that they prefer to adapt themselves to the winds of
change before they blow, whoever the one blowing may be. To the point
that loss of confidence in an authority risks affecting the future of
a nation.
There is in Lebanon something of all this. Those who vote in
elections to modify the prevailing image, have frozen the elections
and their law until light is shed on the crime of February 14.
Nothing is against that, because blood calls for justice in order to
prevent recourse to vengeance. I donâ~@~Yt know how a man of the
stature of General De Gaulle was able one day to say, â~@~Blood
dries rapidlyâ~@~], in reply to a person who was announcing to him
the decease of someone â~@~before his hands are stained with
bloodâ~@~]. But in fact the cry of blood is deafening. The eye of
Cain is an example. The blood of the Duke of Enghien and that of
Hamzé, uncle of the Arab Prophet pursuing Hind, wife of Abi Soufyan
and mother of Moawiya, as well as the blood of Al-Hussein — the
examples are many.
These events are probably forgotten and, with them, the blood that
leaves red stains in the memory, such as the incident of Greenpeace
in the Pacific, facing the islands possessed by France, which was
proceeding to carry out nuclear tests in order to confirm its
presence in the club of the great powers. However, these great powers
have given to small ones among them potentials enabling them to
possess nuclear arms. But now the matter of acquiring nuclear weapons
is closed, and those countries that try to acquire them are described
as â~@~rogue statesâ~@~]. The Greenpeace incident caused the removal
from office of Charles Hernu, French minister of defense during the
mandate of François Mitterrand, his close friend, because the
inquiry in New Zealand established the responsibility of the French
minister in the explosion of the ship Rainbow Warrior. When the man
responsible for intelligence revealed to the French president — who
had governed France for 14 years during which he concealed the fact
that he was suffering from cancer — that Hernu had dealt with the
Soviets and given them NATO secrets, Mitterrand told him, â~@~Take
this dossier and place it among the most inaccessible dossiers in
your office… For we cannot rewrite historyâ~@~].
* * *
Itâ~@~Ys an event that will be forgotten. As for blood, it cannot be
forgotten. But can blood that is shed be a rogue operation… and the
cause of the death of Rafik Hariri? Is it permitted that the
elections in Lebanon be sabotaged in the wait for the results of the
inquiry, with everyone knowing the traps and pitfalls that will
hamper the work of the investigators, making inevitable a delay in
the announcement of the results?
The elections must take place on the dates scheduled. Such is the
challenge which the crime of February 14 has thrown down on the
Lebanese scene, the Arab scene and even the international scene. The
elections will be the word of Lebanon in the Lebanese essence and the
Lebanese color. It being understood, as Stalin once said, that
elections are less a matter of who votes than of who counts the
ballots.
What color will be that of Lebanon?… The Lebanon of the Resistance
or the Lebanon of the Syrianization of the Shebaa Farms and what
followed? What therefore will be the color of Lebanon — the color of
the elections in Palestine and Iraq, where the situation remains
disturbed?
* * *
If the victim were to speak, he would say that the country is the
priority of priorities. And that revolutions of velvet… the
many-hued revolutions, pink in Georgia, orange in Ukraine,
wine-colored in Moldavia, apricot in Armenia and aubergine in
Azerbaijan. Colored revolutions can be exported, but not to Lebanon.
No such revolution can find acceptance here, for Lebanon is
sufficiently colored by wise words, exemplary justice, independence,
sovereignty, true democracy. Not in using democracy to foment coups
dâ~@~Yétat whose final outcome no one can know.
* * *
We say this knowing that great crises, like great shocks, produce a
perdition. De Gaulle, and there is no harm in returning to him, lost
his way after May 5, 1968, a date of great significance in the French
calendar. On that day he saw millions demonstrating in Paris. He lost
his way so far as to fear that the fate of Louis XVI might be his as
well and he went to see General Massu at Baden-Baden, who told him:
Your place is in Paris; return to Paris.
He returned and millions demonstrated while De Gaulle was holding
democratic elections that led to a Gaullist parliamentary majority.
But reason led him to prepare for â~@~lâ~@~Yaprès De Gaulleâ~@~].
Will they hear? We hope so!
–Boundary_(ID_hVVmsvztzsW1v/OJ/5YLIg)–

ArmenPress
March 5 2005
ARMENIAN OFFICIAL QUESTIONS VERACITY OF TURKISH FM’s ANNOUNCEMENT

YEREVAN, MARCH 5, ARMENPRESS: An Armenian government official
questioned today the veracity of an announcement by Turkish foreign
minister Abdullah Gul who was quoted by Turkish daily Hurriyet as
saying last week that some 40,000 Armenian citizens live and work in
Istanbul and other Turkish cities.
Gagik Yeganian, head of a government-affiliated department of
migrants and refugees, said Gul’s announcement was an effort to
exploit this issue in its drive to join the EU and to allege that
even without diplomatic relations between the two countries Armenians
live and work in Turkey freely.
Citing official figures, Yeganian said in the years between
1998-2004 58,839 Armenian citizens went to Turkey and 53,318 of them
came back. According to him, the overwhelming majority of Armenians
traveling to Turkey are either tourists or shuttle-traders. He also
said about 100 Turkish citizens arrive in Armenia a month.