Author: Hunanian Jack

THE PRICE OF SURVIVAL
A1+
[04:42 pm] 16 November, 2006
Under the RA Government’s decision, the survivors of 1915 Armenian
Genocide in West Armenia and within the boundaries of Turkey will be
given 25 thousand AMD as additional pension.
FOR THE RESORATION OF THE FORESTS
The RA Government allotted 15 million AMD to the fund engaged in the
restoration and development of the RA forests. Under the same decision,
19 million 800 thousand AMD was allocated for the purification of
the 1.2 km river-bed of Gegharqouniq.

FINLAND GO TOP AFTER BEATING ARMENIA
Reuters, UK
Nov 15 2006
HELSINKI, Nov 15 (Reuters) – Finland moved top of Group A with a 1-0
win over Armenia in their Euro 2008 qualifier on Wednesday after a
fine display by keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.
Midfielder Mika Nurmela gave Finland the lead after 10 minutes with
a free header as he connected with a low cross by Jonatan Johansson,
who was first to the ball after Armenia keeper Gevorg Kasparov could
only parry a long-range strike.
Finland lead the group with 11 points from five games followed by
Serbia who have 10 points from four matches.
The Finns have started well under new coach Roy Hodgson as they bid
to qualify for their first major finals, having beaten Poland and
drawn with World Cup semi-finalists Portugal.
Armenia, who drew 0-0 against Finland last month, came close to
surprising the Finns again and only two superb saves by Jaaskelainen
in the second half kept the home side ahead.

PAINTER TOOK HIS ART AROUND GLOBE
John Goddard, Toronto Star
The Toronto Star
November 15, 2006 Wednesday
Nubar Sabag left a trail of paintings across the world “like a comet,”
his son says.
After a long career as a painter, photographer and lover of the arts,
Sabag died Oct. 30 following a severe stroke at 85.
“He left a band of paintings across different places, in homes
and galleries, from Armenia, across the Mediterranean, to North
America,” says his son and only child Shahe Sabag, president and CEO
of Toronto-based Dumont Nickel Inc.
Sabag, who also signed his name variously as Sabbaghian, Sabbagh and
N.U. Barr, was born of Christian Armenian descent in the desert town
of Aleppo in northern Syria.
His father Fares was from Aleppo. His mother Arousiak arrived there on
foot during World War I fleeing the Armenian genocide by the Turkish
army. When they married, the couple was poor.
“He started playing violin and mandolin when he was very young,
and sang in choirs,” his son says, adding that he would also tutor
others on what he had learned. “Obviously he was driven to learn – a
self-taught, Renaissance person continually absorbing knowledge.” By
the time Sabag was 14, his father had died, prompting the boy to
seek work as a photographer’s assistant to help support his mother
and brothers. He continued the trade in Aleppo as an adult.
“When I was a kid,” his son recalls, “he had a studio and was the
semi-official photographer for dignitaries and visiting heads of
state. I remember these big two-foot-by-three-foot photographs all
over the place.”
Sabag also painted. Exhibitions in Alexandria, Damascus and Leningrad
displayed his work, mostly landscapes, and in some cases awarded him
prizes. Armenian monasteries continue to hang his work in Florence.
His highest accolade came in 1963, at the age of 42, when he was
featured among six prize-winners at the Sao Paulo,Brazil, biennial
art expo.
That same year, he spent time as a guest of Kuwait’s royal family
painting a series of works for an exhibition on the country. The
day before the show was to open, U.S. President John Kennedy was
assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
“All the top dignitaries ended up having to go to special services
elsewhere,” Shahe Sabag recalls of that shocking day. “But the show
opened and it was a success.”
Soon afterward, the family left Syria, increasingly uncomfortable as
Christians in a Muslim country. Sabag, his wife Ida, and their young
son moved to Beirut as a stepping stone to somewhere else. When Canada
granted them immigration papers in 1968, the three came to Toronto.
“We arrived with $300 or $400, and a big crate with a couple of large
carpets and some paintings,” the son recalls.
Within a month or two, Sabag landed a job in the camera department
at Eaton’s department store. For a couple of years, he also taught
art classes at the then Ontario College of Art and for 20 years at
Northern Secondary School.And he continued painting.
“He would paint anywhere,” the son says of Sabag’s lifelong vocation.
“He never had a formal studio.”
Shahe Sabag says he did not inherit his father’s artistic gift but
that art enriched the whole family’s life. His father’s love of the
arts infected others, too, he says.
One day, his parents were having the apartment repainted, the son
recalls. Sabag was working on a canvas in one room. An Italian-born
house painter was working on one of the walls. Both were listening
to opera.
“And at the end of the day, the painter asked if, instead of cash
payment, he could take the painting?
“I love that image,” the son says: Two men working with their
respective paints, and when their jobs were done, bartering their
finished products.
GRAPHIC: Nubar Sabag was awarded many medallions for various
exhibitions from all around the world. His highest accolade came in
1963, at the age of 42, when he was featured among six prizewinners
at the Sao Paulo,Brazil, biennial art expo. Along with a passion
for photography, he specialized in painting landscapes. He left his
artwork in homes and galleries, from Armenia to North America.
Armenian painter Nubar Sabag loved the arts. He died Oct. 30.Along with
a passion for photography, he specialized in painting landscapes. He
left his artwork in homes and galleries, from Armenia to North
America.Armenian painter Nubar Sabag loved the arts. He died Oct. 30.

TURKEY’S GUL GOES TO CYPRUS, CALLS FOR ‘COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTION UNDER UN ROOF’
Anatolia News Agency, Turkey
Nov 15 2006
ANKARA (A.A) -15.11.2006 -“The EU cannot be neutral on Cyprus issue
even if it wants because the Greek Cypriot administration becomes
a part of the union,” Turkish FM and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah
Gul said on Wednesday.
Prior to his departure for Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
(TRNC) to attend the 23rd anniversary celebrations of its foundation,
Gul told reporters that the UN should find a comprehensive solution
(to Cyprus question).
When he was reminded of some news reports which said that Turkey has
been getting prepared to apply to the international law on so-called
Armenian genocide, Gul indicated, “a meticulous work is under way on
this matter.”
“Embargo and restrictions (imposed on Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus) which don’t have a legal ground must be ended as soon as
possible,” Turkish FM and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said
on Wednesday.
Prior to his departure for Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC)
to attend the 23rd anniversary celebrations of its foundation, Gul
told reporters that he would meet TRNC President Mehmet Ali Talat
and other authorities during his visit.
Recalling that PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited TRNC last July and
significant decisions were made to boost TRNC economy during this
visit, Gul indicated, “we are exerting great efforts for Turkish
Cypriot people to live in prosperity and tranquillity.”
“Although TRNC has been experiencing some difficulties in the
international platform, the point that TRNC reached is praiseworthy,”
he underlined.
Replying to a question, Gul noted, “if Finnish authorities have the
capability of finding a comprehensive solution (to Cyprus issue),
we can discuss it. But we always said that a comprehensive solution
should be found under the roof of UN.”

Press Release
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Father Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
Read the Pontifical Message in Armenian here:
Messages/messages46.htm
Armenian version:
THE 28TH ARMENIAN BOOK FAIR IS LAUNCHED IN ANTELIAS
The annual Armenian Book Fair organized by the Catholicosate of Cilicia was
launched on November 12 in Antelias.
After the Holy Mass held in the St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, His
Holiness Aram I headed a procession of the Cilician Brotherhood and the
Seminary students to the Cilicia Museum yard, where the book fair is being
held.
A large number of spirituals, members of Parliament, intellectuals,
students, journalists attended the opening in addition to the believers that
had attended the mass earlier. The representatives of foreign religions who
have come to Antelias to participate in the 3 day Middle East-Asia
inter-faith dialogue were also present at the opening.
A number of local and foreign Armenian publishing houses and authors
participate in the conference alongside the various presses operating within
the Catholicosate. The fair has been organized by the Catholicosate’s
bookstore committee. It includes spiritual, ecclesiastical, philosophical,
literary, pedagogical, musical, cultural and may other types of
publications.
The fair will go on until December 3, opening its doors to book lovers every
day from 10:00 AM till 7:00 PM.
##
View the photos here:
17.htm
os18.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the books
published in the Printing House of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer
to the web page of the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

FACTOR OF GREAT POWERS IS NOT DECIDING
Lragir, Armenia
Nov 13 2006
The factor of the great powers in the parliamentary election 2007
cannot be neglected but people are primary, thinks Stepan Demirchyan,
the leader of the People’s Party of Armenia. During the November 13
news conference at the Friday Club the reporter of the Lragir asked
the leader of the PPA for his opinion on the role of the external
influence on the outcome of the parliamentary election, in particular,
the attitude of the U.S. and Russia, and whether the opposition, which
vows to fight for victory, can win without the support of these powers.
“I have stated and I will repeat that we have relied on people and
we will rely on people. Of course, the external factor cannot be
underestimated, but let us not overestimate it either. We can see
that cheap tricks are being performed, they invite analysts who say
there is no opposition. Are there few people here who state this to
invite more from abroad?” says Stepan Demirchyan.
We will be fighting, he says, adding that they are not going to
underestimate or overestimate the external influence, but they are
not going to consider it deciding either. After all, the leader of
the PPA says, the same great powers have to take into consideration
the will of the people.

LEADER OF ARMENIAN OPPOSITION GLAD TO KNOW THAT UNLIKE 2003 TODAY ROBERT KOCHARYAN SUPPORTS KARABAKH’S INVOLVEMENT IN KARABAKH PEACE TALKS
ArmInfo News Agency, Armenia
Nov 13 2006
“I am glad to know that unlike 2003 today Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan supports Karabakh’s involvement in the Karabakh peace talks,”
the leader of the People’s Party of Armenia Stepan Demirtchyan and
the key rival of Kocharyan during the presidential race 2003 said
during today’s press-conference in the Friday press club.
Asked by an ArmInfo correspondent to comment on the Karabakh peace
process in the context of the Nov 14 meeting of the Armenian and Azeri
FMs, Demirtchyan said that it is hard for him to comment on the process
as he is not aware of the details. In any case, Demirtchyan believes
that real progress in the process is possible only if Karabakh is
involved in it.

AFI Fest coverage presented by AFI DALLAS International Film Festival
Presented by Target, Founding Sponsor Victory Park
by Eugene Hernandez (November 12, 2006)
One week after announcing its U.S. distribution deal at the American Film
Market, Jasmila Zbanic’s “Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams” won the narrative
grand jury prize at AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival. Winner of
the Golden Bear at the Berlinale in February, the film is Bosnia and
Herzegovina’s official entry for the 2006 Best Foreign Language Film Academy
Award and Strand Releasing is planning a 2007 release of the acclaimed
feature film. Set in a contemporary Sarajevo still reeling from the
aftermath of war, the film is the story of a single mother who lives with
her rebellious twelve-year-old daughter in the Grbavica district of
Sarajevo, a neighborhood used as an internment camp during the conflict in
the nineties. Unable to survive on government aid and hoping to provide for
her daughter, she takes a day job in a shoe factory and a night job as a
waitress in order to pay for her daughter’s school trip, and along the way,
her daughter discovers a dark secret. The jury singled out Peter Schonau
Fog’s “The Art of Crying” with a special mention at the festival.
International films and international stories were honored with all of the
feature prizes at a festival that has distinguished itself as a key showcase
for new international work. And on Sunday night in Hollywood the world
premiere of Zhang Yimou’s anticipated “Curse of the Golden Flower” closed
the festival one month prior to its domestic release from Sony Pictures
Classics.
“Foreign language feaures are hard [to bring] to the United States,” said
“Grbavica” director Jasmila Zbanic, thanking the festival for its focus on
foreign language films Sunday, while accepting her prize, “AFI is giving a
chance for people to see foreign language feature films [and] doing a very
great job bringing us together.”
Mark Verkerk’s “Buddha’s Lost Children” was awarded the documentary grand
jury prize. It is the story of a Thai boxing champion’s journey to save
childen from the impoverished Golden Triangle region of the country. The
jury presented a special mention to J.B. Rutagarama’s “Back Home.”
The audience award for best documentary was shared by Carla Garapedian’s
“Screamers” and Lucy Walker’s “Blindsight” (tie, documentary). “Screamers”
looks at rock band System of a Down’s battle to preserve the memory of the
Armenian genocide, while “Blindsight” offers a moving chronicle of a group
of Tibetan blind children’s quest to climb Mt. Everest. The prize will boost
the coming release of “Screamers,” which will be distributed by Maya
Releasing, while Walker’s well-received “Blindsight” is still seeking a U.S.
deal as it lines up other key festival dates for early next year. Among
narrative films, Switzerland’s Oscar foreign language entry “Vitus,” by
Fredi M. Murer, won the audience award.
Short fim award winners included Stephanie Burke’s “Disappearing” winning
the grand jury prize, with a special mention to Chris Shepherd for “Silence
Is Golden” and Michael Dreher’s “Fair Trade” winning the short film audience
award.
Chatting casually with indieWIRE Sunday afternoon shortly after the awards
brunch, Variety correspondent Robert Koehler found it noteworthy that the
American Film Institute’s festival has developed such a distinct focus on
world cinema, given that AFI was founded in 1967, in the words of the
organization, “to train the next generation of filmmakers and to preserve
America’s fast-disappearing film heritage.” In other words, U.S. president
Lyndon Johnson and AFI founders (George Stevens, Jr., Gregory Peck, Francis
Ford Coppola, Jack Valenti and others) sought to counter the rise of cinema
from overseas.
AFI Fest certainly offered an eclectic mix of films, but the sixteen best
foreign langauge Oscar submissions and a handful of documentaries seemed to
be the best received movies on the nearly 150 film roster. The event drew
good-sized crowds to its Hollywood screenings, despite the constant
challenges of making a film event stand out in this busy movie town.
Industry response to the festival, however, was muted at best, with insiders
only appearing for showcase screeings of previously acquired films they were
launching at the fest.
Despite a continually hyped partnership between AFI Fest and the American
Film Market in Santa Monica, industry attendees seemed to stay out west near
Santa Monica, skipping AFI Fest screenings, but catching some of its films
at AFM showings. Finding a way to lure more insiders to events in Hollywood
would seem to be a key challenge for festival organizers, and a number of
observers noted that adding a third screening of competition films or repeat
showings of higher profile new work for the second half of the festival
might lure some industry types once AFM wraps up at AFI Fest’s midpint. This
would offer attendees a chance to catch the films that generated the most
buzz.

Armenpress
ANTI-TRUST BODY QUESTIONS STATISTICS OF MACARONI
IMPORTERS AND PRODUCERS

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS: A state anti-trust
body has questioned the statistics of some local
companies dealing with production and import of
macaroni. The state commission on protection of
economic competition said yesterday it did not believe
that every Armenian consumed last year only 1.8 kg of
macaroni products, as claimed by these companies.
The chairman of the commission, Ashot Shahnazarian,
said according to figures, registered several years
ago, each Armenian consumed at least 5 kg of only
domestically made macaroni let alone the imported
ones. Shahnazarian said the commission will ask the
state customs service to give its explanations.
According to this statistic, 32 percent of all
imported macaronis came last year from Italy, Russia
accounted for 54 percent and other countries for 14
percent. Overall 3,316 tons of macaroni were brought
from other countries and 2,781 tons were produced
locally. The biggest seller of macaroni was a joint
Armenian-American company called AAFPC which accounted
for 30 percent of sales of all imported and home-made
macaroni.

A1+
AZERBAIJANI DEMOCRACY
[02:12 pm] 10 November, 2006
Several Azeri experts think that the period of the
authorizations of the President must be prolonged.
According to the acting Constitution, the period of
the authorizations of the President is five years.
Nevertheless, the experts came to the conclusion that
for a society like the Azeri one five years is too
short a period or the President to manage to realize
all his plans. Of course, the issue must be discussed
in the Parliament and be stipulated in the
Constitution.
`It is convenient to prolong the period of the
authorizations of the President’, announced Parliament
Speaker Mamed Alizade, Azeri Mass Media report.