Author: Hovhannisian John

BAKU: Azerbaijan and Israel: look for a black cat until it’s dark

Hovhannisian John
News.az, Azerbaijan

Aug 15 2017

Tue 10:38 GMT | 6:38 Local Time

Confucius said that it is very difficult to find a black cat in a dark room.

Especially if it’s not there. But it is. And it tries to run between Azerbaijan and Israel. Now it is important for Baku and Tel Aviv to find it, until darkness comes.

Azerbaijan has always regarded, and I hope, will long regard Israel as its strategic partner. Azerbaijan has a special attitude to Israel in terms of military cooperation, and close ties between official Baku and Tel Aviv, despite the absence of the Azerbaijani embassy in Israel, and cooperation in the energy sphere, etc. In general, we can’t complain.

Moreover, Israel is supplying Azerbaijan with the best of its weapons, as demonstrated by the success of the Azerbaijani army during last year’s counter-terrorist operation in the occupied territories.

But there is a feeling that someone (and maybe a whole group) is diligently trying to sow discord between the two countries. The attempts are made periodically and they are not always paid attention to… And this is so wrong!

It is clear that there are enemies of Azerbaijan in Israel. And they are obviously closing their ranks. For example, after the 2015 elections in Israel, among the key figures, both in the coalition and in the opposition, were the old supporters of the recognition of the “Armenian genocide”, and they are closing their ranks on this issue.

I think it’s not worth talking about how important is the semantics, both in diplomacy and politics, and in international public opinion. With the easy hand of Armenian nationalists, the word “genocide” was used without any ground, often accusing those who protect their civilians from aggression and terrorism, and presenting the terrorists as victims of genocide.

For example, in Israel, there is the chairman of the Meretz party – a passionate fighter for the recognition of the “Armenian genocide” Zehava Galon. She consistently defends Armenian interests in the Israeli parliament. In addition to the demand for Israel’s formal recognition of the “Armenian genocide,” she demanded that Moshe Ya’alon, then the Defense Minister, halt the supply of UAVs to Azerbaijan unless Baku undertakes to abstain from using drones against Armenian occupiers in Nagorno-Karabakh.

It is obvious that the attacks of the pro-Armenian lobby in Israel in the person of Zehava Galon are the attempts to damage the ever deepening relations between our two countries. In short, there is a sufficient number of enemies in the political establishment of Israel.

INSIDIOUS ARTICLE IN HAARETZ

But not only in the political establishment. Thus, on July 30, the fake version of the Haaretz newspaper published a completely false article about the family of the Azerbaijani president. Baku’s concern was caused by the fact that this information referred to the Minister of Tourism of Israel, Yariv Levin.

The reaction followed. It turned out that it was a fake, and the minister did not make such statements. However, it left an unpleasant sludge. After all, they did not know who was behind this.

ISRAELI WEAPON FOR ARMENIA?

Former Knesset deputy, co-chairman of the public forum “Armenia-Israel” Alexander Zinker spoke about the possibility of delivering Israeli weapons to Armenia. And Israel allegedly had offered it to Yerevan. In an interview with Sputnik-Armenia, Zinker said that bilateral cooperation can develop in any sphere, including military one.

Alexander Zinker is on the “black list” of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry. The Israeli figure got there for being present as an “observer” in the “elections” in the occupied Azerbaijani territories.

It’s no secret that Israel is one of the world’s largest exporters of military equipment. But, as you know, Israeli developments are expensive, so can impoverished Armenia afford buying them?

There is no reliable, official information from the Israeli side on this matter, which once again proves that it was an informational throw-in.

WHO REFUSED TO SEND DRONES TO ARMENIA?

But it was not the last throw-in. The Israeli Defense Ministry is verifying information that the operators of the Israeli company Aeronautics Defense Systems allegedly refused to demonstrate the capabilities of the new unmanned equipment supplied to Azerbaijan on Armenian targets, newsru.com reports citing the  Ma’ariv a-Shavua.

The author of the publication, Yossi Melman writes that the relevant complaint was filed by Azerbaijan to the Ministry of Defense of Israel. Aeronautics Defense Systems dismisses the charges.

According to the source, the incident occurred more than a month ago when the Aeronautics Defense Systems delegation arrived in Baku to discuss a new contract for the supply of unmanned aerial vehicles, including so-called barrage ammunition. The publication says that the Azerbaijani military asked to demonstrate the possibilities of new technology during real military operations against the Armenian army, and were refused. The article states that the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan expected to publish a television broadcast of this attack in order to show the power of its armed forces.

The press service of Aeronautics Defense Systems categorically rejected the allegations in the complaint and stated: “The company delivers its products to customers in 50 countries, exclusively in accordance with the licenses of the Department for Defense Export Control in the Ministry of Defense.” The statement stresses that operational control is always carried out by the buyer and is entirely in his responsibility. “Aeronautics never demonstrates on live targets. The same applies to this case,” the statement said.

INSTEAD OF EPILOGUE

Any provocation, be it a statement of a politician or informational throw-in, gets hard on someone’s ear. Especially if there is trust in the relationship. Azerbaijan’s foreign policy is known all over the world for its balance. Baku, in particular, the Foreign Ministry of the country never make sudden conclusions and quick statements. They wait for the development of events, and sometimes for a meaningful culmination.

Again, provocations are straining, but Baku is trying to find this very black cat. Is Israel looking for her? I think we will find it out in a very short time …

News.Az

Armenian soldier killed in Karabakh by Azeris

Hovhannisian John
ARKA, Armenia

Aug 14 2017

YEREVAN, August 14. /ARKA/. An Armenian serviceman of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) defense army was killed today morning by Azerbaijani fire, the Artsakh defense ministry reported. 

It said on August 14, at about 11:00 am the servicemen, Arman Movsisyan, born in 1998, received a deadly gunshot wound from the enemy fire. To investigate the details of the incident, an investigation is being conducted, it said.

“The Artsakh defense ministry shares the bitter grief of the loss and expresses its support to the members of the family of the killed serviceman, his relatives and colleagues,” the report says. -0-

State senator backs Armenian group’s call for Glendale mall to allow billboard advertising documentary on genocide

Hovhannisian John
Los Angeles Times, CA

Aug 12 2017

Ann Johansson / For The Times
Americana at Brand in Glendale.

After the Americana at Brand rejected billboard space for a film about genocide, state Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) has joined a local Armenian group in asking mall officials to reverse their decision.

Last week, the Glendale chapter of the Armenian National Committee of America requested that the Americana reconsider its denial of billboard space for “Architects of Denial,” a documentary that examines genocides, including the Armenian genocide, through survivor accounts.

In a statement on Thursday, Portantino said he supported the committee’s request.

“I thought to myself that Hollywood has long-celebrated thought-provoking and hard-edged filmmaking that stimulates conversations about historical events,” Portantino said. “It seems like labeling art as ‘too political’ was an odd reason to deny the appropriate free _expression_ of a historical documentary.”

Jackie Levy — executive vice president of operations for Caruso, which owns and operates the Americana — invited the film’s producers to discuss further the proposed film advertisement.

Armenian Economic Development Minister sees no reason for serious concern over US sanctions against Russia

Hovhannisian John 
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
 Thursday
Armenian Economic Development Minister sees no reason for serious
concern over US sanctions against Russia
 Yerevan August 10
Naira Badalyan. For Armenia, there are no serious reasons for concern
in dealing with American sanctions against Russia. The Minister of
Economic Development and Investments of Armenia Suren Karayan stated
this in an interview with journalists after the August 10 meeting of
the Government.
According to him, at this stage Yerevan is studying possible negative
consequences of US sanctions against Russia for Armenia. "Until then,
we can not talk about specific figures, as well as possible negative
impacts on the Armenian economy," he said.
At the same time, according to Karayan, Armenia's economy has already
managed to adapt to the consequences of anti-Russian sanctions. "For
today, I see no reason for serious concern," stressed the head of the
Ministry of Economic Development.
Meanwhile, according to the Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia
Shavarsh Kocharyan, for all it is obvious that when negative phenomena
occur in the Russian economy, they affect all neighbors. "When there
was a crisis in Russia, it also affected the member of the EEU,
Armenia, and the non-member of the EEU Azerbaijan, and Georgia, which
goes to the EU." Countries that are somehow affiliated with Russia,
can feel a negative impact," said Kocharian in an interview with
reporters. As the Deputy Minister noted, in this context, Armenia's
economic policy is to deepen existing economic ties and create new
ones.

The Emergency Situations Ministry to cooperate with Italian «Red Cross»

Hovhannisian John
Public Radio of Armenia

13:01, 28 Jul 2017
Armradio

A cooperation is possible between the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Armenia, Italian “Red Cross”, and Armenian “Red Cross”.

Davit Tonyan, the Minister of Emergency Situations of Armenia received the delegation of the “Red Cross” orgnization of Italy, under the leadership of Leonardo Carmenatti, the special advisor of the organization Chief Secratry, as well as the Presidnent of the Armenian «Red Cross» Mkhitar Mnatsakanyan.

The possibilities of cooperation between the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Italian “Red Cross” and Armenian “Red Cross” were discussed at the meeting, the Ministry Press Service reports. Particularly, the ways of experience exchange in the spheres of civil defence, first medical and psychological aid were discussed.

The possibilities of cooperation in the seismic risk decreasing methods and strategies elaboration were touched upon.

At the end of the meeting the Minister invited the guests to be present at the Armenian-American-British joint tactical exercises at the «Lusakert» eduacational center in Kotayk on July 28.

Armenians File War Crimes Lawsuits Against Azerbaijan

Hovhannisian John
Asbarez Armenian News



A man walks through the ruins of his house in the village of Talish, on April 6, 2016 (AFP Photo by Karen Minasyan)

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)—Hundreds of Armenians have filed government-backed lawsuits in the European Court of Human Rights accusing Azerbaijan of beheading Armenian soldiers and committing other atrocities during last year’s heavy fighting around Nagorno-Karabakh.

Ara Ghazaryan, an Armenian legal expert involved in the unprecedented legal action, said on Tuesday that the Strasbourg-based court has already requested official information from Baku on over 20 of the 359 lawsuits filed from Armenia and Karabakh.

“We expect a just compensation,” Ghazarian told a joint news conference with Armenia’s and Karabakh’s human rights ombudsmen. “It could be both a recognition of the violations [of the European Convention on Human Rights] and subsequent compensation for material and moral damages. But first and foremost, we must ensure that the European Court recognizes that there were violations.”

An elderly couple was brutally murdered by Azerbaijani soldier during last year’s April War (Photo by hetq.am)

The war crimes alleged by the plaintiffs stem from the April 2016 hostilities in and around Karabakh which left least 180 soldiers from both warring sides dead. The authorities in Stepanakert and Yerevan say that three Armenian soldiers were beheaded by Azerbaijani troops at the time. They claim that one of them, the 31-year-old Major Hayk Toroyan, was still alive when his Azerbaijani captors began cutting off his head.

The headless body of another soldier, Kyaram Sloyan, was handed over to his family and buried on April 4, 2016, two days after the Azerbaijani army launched an offensive at two sections of the Karabakh “line of contact.” The family living in a village in central Armenia received the 19-year-old’s severed head later on.

According to Karabakh prosecutors, 15 other Armenian soldiers had their ears cut off after being killed by Azerbaijani forces.

Another Armenian lawsuit filed in Strasbourg stems from the violent deaths of three elderly members of a family in Talish, a village in northern Karabakh that was devastated by Azerbaijani shelling in April 2016. They were reportedly murdered by Azerbaijani commandos that burst into their home located on the outskirts of Talish.


Canadian defence deal with Azerbaijan raises new questions about arms export controls

Hovhannisian John
CBC Canada

By Levon Sevunts – Radio Canada International,
Posted: Jul 24, 2017 2:45 PM ET Last Updated: Jul 24, 2017 2:45 PM ET

A photo of a Canadian-made armoured personnel carrier that are being delivered to Azerbaijan. (Levon Sevunts/Radio Canada International) 

A deal by a Canadian company to export armoured personnel carriers to Azerbaijan and set up a joint production of these military-style vehicles in the oil-rich former Soviet republic is once again raising questions about the efficacy of Canada’s defence export controls.

Toronto-based INKAS Armored Vehicle Manufacturing has signed a deal with Azerbaijan’s interior ministry under which the company has already delivered “a few” Canadian-made armoured personnel carriers (APCs).

The privately owned company has also set up a joint venture with an Azerbaijani firm to produce APCs in Azerbaijan, which has been embroiled in a simmering armed conflict with neighbouring Armenia since the breakup of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, said Roman Shimonov, vice-president of marketing and business development at INKAS.

  • Violence flares up in decades old separatist conflict between Azerbaijan, Armenia

“Azerbaijan is a very unique country in terms of geographic location, in terms of geopolitical challenges, because they are in the middle between Iran and Armenia and Turkey,” said Shimonov, who has also been appointed CEO of the joint venture AZCAN Defence Solutions. “And they have resources, more resources than other countries, and they are looking to be able to have more solutions in terms of defence — and not only defence, they’re looking to protect their borders.”

Shimonov says the company has fully complied with all the government rules for the export of military goods.

“We cannot sell anything without getting a written permit from export control and once we get it, we know that our authorities, our Canadian authorities, have checked and they have approved,” Shimonov said.

The interior of an armoured personnel carrier. A Canadian company has been exporting the vehicle to Azerbaijan, a country with a questionable human rights record. (Levon Sevunts/Radio Canada International)

Global Affairs Canada, the federal department responsible for issuing export permits for military and controlled goods, said “all applications for permits to export dual-use, military and strategic goods are assessed on a case-by-case basis, based on the specific goods and technology being exported, the destination country, and the specific end-use and end-user, amongst other criteria.”

“Regional peace and stability, including civil conflict and human rights, as well as the possibility of unauthorized transfer or diversion of the exported goods and technology, are actively considered,” said Global Affairs spokesperson Natasha Nystrom.

And yet the federal government granted INKAS permits for the export of APCs despite ongoing concerns over Azerbaijan’s poor human rights record.

“Canada and Azerbaijan benefit from cooperation on issues of mutual interest and concern,” Nystrom said. “However, we are concerned with the recurring crackdown on fundamental freedoms in Azerbaijan, particularly with respect to journalists and human rights defenders in the country.”

An explosion of a downed Azerbaijani drone in the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan on April 4, 2016. (Vahram Baghdasaryan/AP)

Groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticized Azerbaijan’s human rights record and accused it of a “thorough crackdown on dissenting voices,” as well as persistent reports of torture and other ill-treatment perpetrated by its law enforcement agencies.

  • Human Rights Watch report: Azerbaijan
  • Amnesty International report on Azerbaijan’s human rights record

In November 2015, Azerbaijani police used Israeli-made armoured personnel carriers similar to those produced by INKAS in a controversial security operation that resulted in the death of six people and dozens of arrests in the town of Nardaran, about 30 kilometres northeast of the capital Baku.

The granting of the export permits also seems to contradict the government’s own export control goals that stipulate among other things that Canadian defence exports “do not contribute to national or regional conflicts or instability.”  

In April 2016, tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia once again erupted into an intense four-day war in contravention of a ceasefire signed in 1994. The Azerbaijani military launched a surprise offensive against Armenian forces that control the breakaway Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas.

A local resident walks past police vehicles after a mass protests in the town of Ismailli, 200 kilometres northwest of the capital Baku. (David Mdzinarishvili/Reuters)

In addition, there are almost daily reports of clashes, sniper fire, artillery exchanges and commando raids along the entire line of contact between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in the disputed region.

According to data collected by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) over the last two decades, Azerbaijan has spent over $30 billion of its oil wealth to rearm and retrain its military, purchasing high-tech weapons and munitions from Russia, Israel, Turkey, Ukraine and Pakistan.

“They feel that part of their land is taken and they want to be competitive in terms of capabilities, and that’s why they’re looking to protect their soldiers and they’re looking for the best product, and when it comes to the best product in our industry, we definitely can offer a lot of solutions, very cost-effective solutions,” Shimonov said.

And yet at the same time, Shimonov claims INKAS doesn’t produce military vehicles.

“We mostly focus on paramilitary and law enforcement solutions,” Shimonov said during an interview at the recent CANSEC defence industry trade show in Ottawa. “Our vehicles are not designed to provide any solution in the military field.”

However, that’s not what the company claims in its sales pitch on its own website.

“The INKAS Sentry APC is designed to be used by military forces, SWAT, and other law enforcement agencies all over the world,” reads the vehicle overview of its Sentry model APC.

“The INKAS Huron APC is a multipurpose tactical vehicle, which is able to protect its passengers in high threat environments within almost any climate condition. The vehicle is designed and equipped to operate in police and military tactical missions, convoy protection and border control all over the world,” reads the overview of its Huron model.

“AZCAN’s new ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) vehicle is armed with a Pitbull light remote weapon stations jointly designed by the Israel based companies IAI and General Robotics,” reads the description of the vehicle published in press release at the ADEX 2016 arms show in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, where Shimonov presented the Sentry APC to President Ilham Aliyev.

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev agreed to purchase armoured personnel vehicles from a Toronto-based company. (Sergei Grits/AP Photo)

“The Pitbull LRWS integrate sensors for automatic detection of enemy targets with accurate and fast counter fire capabilities.”

Cesar Jaramillo, executive director of the peace group Project Ploughshares, said the export permit issued to INKAS illustrates an ongoing problem with Canada’s arms exports control mechanism.

The government needs to take a much closer look at the destination country’s general human rights record and the notion of risk and end use when it makes determinations on issuing export permits for military goods, Jaramillo said.

“Even if it’s on case-by-case basis, I think the general knowledge about problems in a certain country should be again an indicator which cases should merit more scrutiny than others, and I think that countries like Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, perhaps, fall into that category of greater scrutiny,” Jaramillo said.

“If the likely end use of any equipment going to Azerbaijan or anywhere else poses or triggers a certain risk, then the export we believe should not proceed.”

Religion: It is Remembrance Day in Armenia

Hovhannisian John
Public Radio of Armenia

15:08, 24 Jul 2017
Armradio

It is Remembrance Day (Merelots) today in Armenia. Unlike the similar days of the several past years it is a working-day. Yesterday the Armenian Apostolic Church celebrated the Day of the Transfiguration of Jesus (Vardavar). The next day of each of the five Feasts Jesus Christ celebrated by the Armenian Apostolic Church are Remembrance days. Those Feasts are The Nativity and Epiphany, the Resurrection, the Transfiguration, the Assumption of Mary, and the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

 

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 07/19/2017

Hovhannisian John 
                                        Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Karabakh Leader Reelected
July 19, 2017
 . Hovannes Movsisian
Czech Republic - Karabakh President Bako Sahakian gives an interview
to RFE/RL's Armenian service in Prague, 12Jun2016.
Lawmakers in Nagorno-Karabakh voted on Wednesday to extend the
decade-long rule of its president, Bako Sahakian, by three years, a
move criticized by his political opponents.
Sahakian, 56, was reelected at the end of his second five-year term in
office. He was not allowed to stay in power longer before Karabakh
enacted a new constitution in a referendum held in February.
The new constitution calls for the Armenian-populated region's
transition by 2020 to a fully presidential system of government which
will lead to the abolition of the post of prime minister. The
authorities in Stepanakert say this change will put Karabakh in a
better position to cope with the unresolved conflict with
Azerbaijan. Their opponents maintain, however, Sahakian is simply keen
to cling to power.
Karabakh will be governed by an interim president until
2020. Sahakian's candidacy for that post was backed by 28 of the 33
members of the local parliament representing three political parties
allied to him. His sole challenger, former Stepanakert Mayor Eduard
Aghabekian, got four votes.
Addressing the legislature before the vote, Sahakian said that
Karabakh will need continued "stability" during the three-year
transition period. He also defended his track record, saying that his
administration has strengthened democracy and sped up economic growth
in the last ten years.
By contrast, Aghabekian made a case for a leadership change in
Stepanakert, saying that countries stagnate when they are ruled by the
same person or government for too long. The opposition candidate, who
leads a party called Movement-88, also said that the current
authorities have for years ignored his calls for strengthening the
Karabakh Armenian military in the face of a growing military threat
from Azerbaijan. Accordingly, he criticized their handling of the
April 2016 heavy fighting with Azerbaijani forces.
Sahakian countered that Azerbaijani offensives launched at two
sections of the Karabakh "line of contact" last year failed to achieve
their main objectives. He also said that the Karabakh government is
now addressing "problems" exposed by the four-day hostilities and will
continue to strengthen Karabakh's armed forces.
Incidentally, Sahakian met with Armenia's Defense Minister Vigen
Sargsian in Stepanakert on Monday. His press office said that they
discussed "issues related to army building and cooperation between the
two Armenian states in this sphere."
Yerevan Market Bulldozed To Make Way For Luxury Properties
July 19, 2017
 . Sisak Gabrielian
Armenia -- The Table-top Sale in Firdousi street in downtown Yerevan
in beeing demolished. 19July, 2017
Authorities in Yerevan began demolishing an open-air market on
Wednesday as part of a planned redevelopment of a surrounding old
neighborhood in the city center strongly resisted by local residents
and traders.
The market located just a few hundred meters from Yerevan's central
Republic Square has functioned since the early 1990s. Hundreds of
people have sold cheap clothing and other consumer goods on the narrow
Firdousi Street that cuts through the neighborhood made up of mostly
old houses.
In 2007, the Armenian government allowed a private company to tear
down the entire area and construct expensive office and apartment
buildings there. The ensuing global financial crisis, which hit
Armenia's construction sector particularly hard, put those plans on
hold. And the company called Glendale Hills went bankrupt two years
ago.
Last year, the Yerevan Mayor's Office announced that another private
developer is now interested in the project and began preparations for
the demolitions, sparking street protests from the owners of several
dozen local houses. Market traders also joined the protests, saying
that the municipality is depriving them of their livelihood.
The municipality offered the traders commercial space in other markets
in Yerevan. Most of them rejected that offer, saying that they would
have to pay higher rent and earn less revenue.
Municipality officials and workers sent by the still unknown developer
met with fierce resistance from the traders on Wednesday morning when
they arrived at the Firdousi Street market to start the
demolitions. They overcame the resistance only after bringing in heavy
machinery.
The traders protested angrily as their market stalls and small
warehouses were bulldozed in the following hours. "Thank you for
leaving our children's parents without work," cried one woman.
The Firdousi Street houses have been spared demolition for the time
being. Their owners fear that the authorities are preparing the ground
for forcing them to sell their homes at a fraction of their market
value."They are getting to us step by step," one of them told RFE/RL's
Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
Some locals also complained that representatives of the construction
company have still not visited them to discuss the amount of
compensations that could be paid to them. The municipality has not
even disclosed the company's name so far.
Later on Wednesday, Armenia's human rights ombudsman, Arman Tatoyan,
asked the municipality to suspend the demolitions until the traders
are relocated to other markets.
Opposition Gunmen's Trial Still In Turmoil
July 19, 2017
 . Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia - A chaotic scene at the trial of arrested radical opposition
members in Yerevan, 28Jun2017.
The trial of the key members of an armed opposition that seized a
police station in Yerevan last year remained effectively paralyzed on
Wednesday by continuing wrangling between the presiding judge and
defense lawyers.
Two of the lawyers, Arayik Papikian and Mushegh Shushanian, were
unable to attend the latest court hearing in the high-profile trial
after refusing to let court bailiffs check the content of their bags
on security grounds. They and their colleagues say that this amounts
to a search not allowed by Armenian law.
The judge, Artur Gabrielian, sanctioned Papikian and Shushanian and
said he will also ask Armenia's Chamber of Advocates to take
disciplinary action against them for what he considers contempt of
court. Three other attorneys walked out of the courtroom in protest,
leading Gabrielian to again cut short the proceedings.
The judge has regularly clashed with these and other lawyers for
similar reasons since the start of the trial in early June. He has
also barred most of the 14 defendants from the courtroom because of
their refusal stand up and thus show respect for the district
court. The lawyers claim that the authorities deliberately provoked
the turmoil to hold the trial in their and their clients' absence.
Papikian and Shushanian are already facing disciplinary proceedings
launched by the Chamber of Advocates at the request of law-enforcement
authorities. They stem, in part, from Shushanian's characterization of
the Armenian police as an "armed gang" ready to execute "any criminal
order."
Adding to the tensions was the alleged beating by police officers of
four of the arrested gunmen following a court hearing on June
28. Armenia's Special Investigative Service (SIS) pledged to
investigate the incident condemned by local and international human
rights group.
The opposition group seized the police base in Yerevan's Erebuni
district in June 2016. It demanded that President Serzh Sarkisian free
its jailed leader Zhirayr Sefilian and step down. The gunmen laid down
their arms following a two-week standoff with Armenian security forces
which left three police officers dead.
Russia Told To Scrap Ban On Armenian Driving Licenses
July 19, 2017
 . Lusine Musayelian
Russia -- A road police officer blocks off the traffic on the Moscow
Ring Automobile Road (MKAD) on the suburbs of Moscow, December 4, 2015
The executive body of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) has reportedly
told Russia to reverse its controversial decision to stop recognizing
the validity of driving licenses issued by Armenia, a member of the
Russian-led trade bloc.
A Russian law which took effect on June 1 banned foreign nationals
with driving licenses issued by their home countries from working as
drivers in Russia. The State Duma, the Russian lower house of
parliament, passed last week another law which waived the restriction
for citizens of those countries, including EEU members Kyrgyzstan and
Belarus, where the Russian language has an official legal status.
Armenia is not one of those countries, meaning that a large number of
its migrant workers driving trucks, taxis and other vehicles in Russia
now risk losing their jobs. Some of them are said to have already been
forced to return home.
The Armenian parliament speaker, Ara Babloyan, raised the matter with
his Russian counterpart, Vyacheslav Volodin, when they met in Moscow
on Monday. Volodin responded by suggesting that Armenia adopt Russian
as its second official language in order to circumvent the ban.
Volodin's remark caused outrage in Yerevan, with local opposition
politicians, media commentators and intellectuals accusing Moscow of
meddling in Armenia's internal affairs. Armen Ashotian, a senior
lawmaker who accompanied Babloyan on the trip to the Russian capital,
rushed to assure them that Armenian authorities have no intention to
change a constitutional provision stipulating that Armenia is the
country's sole official language.
The Moscow daily "Kommersant" reported afterwards that the Eurasian
Economic Commission, the EEU's executive body, has urged the Russian
government to ensure that the ban on foreign driving licenses does not
apply to any EEU member state, including Armenia. It quoted the head
of the commission, Oleg Pankratov, as saying that it runs counter to
EEU regulations on a common labor market set up by Russia, Armenia,
Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Press Review
July 19, 2017
"Hraparak" reports on controversy sparked by Russian State Duma
speaker Vyacheslav Volodin's calls for Armenia's to give Russian the
status of a second official language in return for Moscow continuing
to recognize Armenian driver licenses. The paper quotes Viktor
Katvalian, director of the Language Institute of Armenian National
Academy of Sciences, as criticizing the suggestion. He says that an
ethnically homogenous country like Armenia does not need a second
official language. It is enough to continue teaching the Russian
language in Armenian schools, says Katvalian. He goes on to denounce
Volodin's proposal as an "inroad on our sovereignty, our language and
our statehood."
"Haykakan Zhamanak" reports, meanwhile, that the executive body of the
Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), has told Moscow to amend
the new Russian law stipulating that driver licenses issued by EEU
member states where Russian is not an official language are no longer
valid in Russia. Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Pankratov,
who also holds a senior position in the Eurasian Economic Commission,
reportedly said that the law runs counter to the EEU's labor
regulations mandatory for Russia and other member states.
According to Lragir.am, Vazgen Manukian, chairman of Armenia's
presidential Public Council, has added his voice to the criticism of
Volodin's statement. "English has spread and become an international
language," Manukian is quoted as saying. "In India, for example, it's
a second official language. But nobody has imposed that. Life has led
to that. It is very ridiculous when one country tries to impose its
language on another with artificial methods, using driver licenses as
an excuse. But although that [statement] was made by a high-ranking
official, it's hard to consider it Russia's official view."
Interviewed by "Hayots Ashkhar," Vazgen Safarian of Armenia's Union of
Domestic Manufacturers, comments on a sharp rise Armenia's imports
from Turkey recorded by the National Statistical Service in the first
five months of this year. "Officially, we have no trade with Turkey
but imports from Turkey are quite large: more than $200 million," says
Safarian. "Why? Because Turkish goods, especially agricultural
products, are cheap." He calls on the Armenian government to impose
additional customs duties on "those imported goods that are also
manufactured in Armenia."
(Tigran Avetisian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2017 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
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The story of a Turkish intellectual’s escape from prison

Hovhannisian John
Al-Monitor

July 20 2017


Author: Sibel Hurtas

Posted July 20, 2017


The Turkish Twitter-sphere went abuzz July 14 with a post that read, “The bird has flown away. Wishing the same for the remaining 80 million.” The tweet belonged to ethnic Armenian linguist and writer Sevan Nisanyan, who had been behind bars since January 2014. True to his flamboyant style, Nisanyan had chosen Twitter to announce he had escaped from prison and was a free person again.

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After years of controversy and trials, Armenian intellectual Sevan Nisanyan dropped a bombshell on Twitter, announcing his escape from a prison in Turkey.
Author: Sibel Hurtas
Posted July 20, 2017

Translator: Sibel Utku Bila

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For years, Nisanyan stood out as a colorful individual on Turkey’s intellectual scene. A Yale and Columbia University alumnus, he is the author of a prominent etymological dictionary and travel guides, but the book that made him a truly controversial figure was the “Wrong Republic,” which questioned taboos about the Turkish Republic and its founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, infuriating secular and nationalist Turks. With his blunt criticism of religion, he also drew the wrath of pious Turks as well.

The chain of events that led to his imprisonment began in 1995, when Nisanyan relocated to the picturesque village of Sirince, near Turkey’s Aegean coast. Sirince was in a state of decay, and Nisanyan began renovating its traditional houses, converting them into stylish hostels known as “pensions.”

Thanks to Nisanyan’s efforts, Sirince soon became a popular tourist destination. Yet, there was a problem. The place was a protected area — off-limits to construction — which meant that Nisanyan had engaged in illegal construction activity. His transgression, however, had more to do with the cumbersome Turkish bureaucracy. After the village was declared a protected area in 1987, the authorities were supposed to revise the area’s zoning plan within a year, which they failed to do. A stone’s throw from the magnificent Ephesus, one of Turkey’s top historical sites, the village fell into a state of disrepair. Exasperated from petitioning the authorities for the new zoning plan, Nisanyan decided to go ahead anyway. In the meantime, he had begun to produce his controversial writings, which, quite tellingly, coincided with a series of demolition orders for the pensions. In one interview, Nisanyan said his troubles began after he became a columnist for the Taraf daily in 2009. “Twenty-three demolition decisions followed in 2010,” he said.

In an illegal construction haven such as Turkey, the authorities’ sternness vis-a-vis Nisanyan and the trials that followed were quite unusual. The most striking example is perhaps President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s gigantic palace, which was erected on a protected area despite a court ruling that had ordered the construction to stop. After the 2014 ruling, Erdogan challenged the court with a memorable comment: “Let them demolish it if they can.”

Nisanyan, too, refused to heed the demolition orders. In a further act of defiance, he erected a tower to “proclaim his own republic.” When word came that the authorities would carry out the demolitions, he said “only over my dead body” and sent out invitations for his own “funeral” to draw public attention to the controversy. Sirince eventually remained intact, but Nisanyan landed behind bars on Jan. 2, 2014, after one of his convictions was upheld.

Before going to prison, he gave an interview to a magazine, for which he posed in a bathtub, holding a glass of wine. “The state cannot ruin my spirits, even if I have to serve another 8½ years in jail,” he said.

Myriad campaigns were organized for Nisanyan’s release, including one involving prominent Turkish mathematician Ali Nesin, who had set up a unique Mathematics Village in Sirince. Nesin, too, faced an investigation on charges of illegal construction, which demonstrates how the judicial stick is being used against intellectuals in Turkey.

While in prison, Nisanyan was convicted in a number of other cases. Keeping track of his trials and jail terms has become quite difficult. According to Nisanyan, the upheld convictions totaled close to 18 years, which, under procedural rules, meant he would spend 6½ years in jail — that is, if no other convictions followed.

Nisanyan was put in an open prison, where inmates are allowed to leave the jail premises on certain days. Nisanyan used this right to escape. He simply did not return to prison this time. Following his Twitter post July 14, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag hurriedly made a statement that an arrest order had been issued for the escapee. Prison officials, meanwhile, faced disciplinary procedures.

Nesin describes his friend as a polyglot who speaks fluent English, French and German, in addition to having skills in Arabic and Latin, not to mention his “terrific” command of the Turkish language and its etymology. Nisanyan’s whereabouts remain unknown, but this outstanding intellectual is believed to be no longer in Turkey.

While Nisanyan was escaping, six leading human rights defenders — Idil Eser, Gunal Kursun, Veli Acu, Ozlem Dalkiran, Peter Steudtner and Ali Gharawi — were rounded up after police raided their training seminar on an Istanbul island without any legal justification. The activists have now joined other prominent colleagues in Turkish prisons, where about 170 journalists as well as parliament members and writers are also languishing — victims of Ankara’s massive crackdown on dissent since last year’s coup attempt. Hundreds of academics, meanwhile, are grappling with trials, in addition to their expulsions from universities. Those who remain free live under the constant threat of judicial action.

This brings us back to Nisanyan’s tweet, in which he seemed to liken all of Turkey to a prison, wishing freedom for all his compatriots. Referring to the clamor his message provoked, he later tweeted, “I guess I put the feelings of the [whole] country into words. Eighty million dream of fleeing the madhouse in which they are locked up.”