Author: Hunanian Jack

Armenian paper says authorities in search for “stabilizing factor”
Aravot, Yerevan
6 Apr 04

Text of unattributed report by Armenian newspaper Aravot on 6 April
headlined “Stabilizing factors”
The only thing that is “stable” in our country is the authorities’
arsenal of propaganda cliches. For 12 years there have been two
counter-arguments to any activation of the opposition: a) such
activation is advantageous to Azerbaijan and increases chances to
resume hostilities; b) activation could threaten stability and hinder
investment, economic development, etc.
The first argument can hardly stand up to criticism. There were
moments in the history of independent Armenia when even during the war
the opposition (including Dashnaktsutyun which is “a supporter of
stability”) was fighting against the authorities in a more aggressive
way, but in spite of that, success was registered on the
battlefield. Undoubtedly, today there is a danger of war, but it has
nothing to do with the mass demonstrations being held in Armenia.
One may agree with the second argument. Reasons and effects have
simply been confused there. The situation is really unstable and
tense, but there is one reason for this: unfortunately, in 2003
President Robert Kocharyan was not re-elected to the post of
president. (By the way, he was not elected in 1998 either, but the
results of those elections were in some sense corrected by the
parliamentary elections, in which voters really voted for the Unity
bloc, trusting [late Armenian Speaker] Karen Demirchyan’s legend. The
parliamentary elections of 2003 corrected nothing, as the rating of
the coalition parties was as low as the president’s.)
So, the situation is tense because Robert Kocharyan was not elected,
and it will remain tense irrespective of the opposition’s
activation. This is the diagnosis of the present situation.
What are the ways to relieve tension?
1. The president tenders his resignation, though this is ruled out.
2. A revolution takes place, which is impossible.
3. A palace revolution takes place, as was the case in 1998. This is a
theoretically possible option, but preconditions for it have not yet
been noticed.
4. The National Assembly is dissolved and new “more pleasant for the
people” parliamentary elections are held, as for instance, [leader of
the Christian Democratic Union] Khosrov Arutyunyan suggests. This is
also a possible option but it will hardly be carried out.
So, we may suppose that the status quo will be preserved by means of
arrests and “police” violence. It cannot be ruled out that some
“cosmetic” changes will be simultaneously made. For example, a new
prime minister and government may be appointed. In 1997, Robert
Kocharyan was invited from Karabakh to Yerevan as “a stabilizing
factor”. But first, experience shows that this kind of “stabilizing
factors” very quickly turn into “power changing factors”, and second,
we have not so far noticed a new Robert Kocharyan.

Glendale News Press
LATimes.com
April 5 2004
Town Center site in limbo
Tenants are left to wonder about their futures after another project
is pulled.
DOWNTOWN GLENDALE — For merchants in the 15.5-acre Town Center
project site, another developer losing interest in building a new
retail development is business as usual.
“It’s been an ongoing situation for 20 years,” said Robert Kann, vice
president of Scotty’s & Sons, a hardware store in the area for more
than 40 years. “It seems like every five to seven years, you get all
sorts of people out here with a roll of tape, with official-looking
vests, but then nothing happens.”
Developer Rick Caruso pulled out of the project at Tuesday’s City
Council meeting, citing his frustration with what he called a
procedural issue. Three City Council members would not go along with
an amendment to the city charter that would have allowed a change in
zoning requirements to permit Caruso to build.
Nothing will continue to happen, at least until the Redevelopment
Agency gives some direction on what to do next with the languishing
and blighted property, which, if approved, would have been filled
within two years with a Crate & Barrel, Cheesecake Factory, a
multiplex theater and a host of other upscale tenants.
But as a city relocation plan has come to a halt, everyone from
property owners to tenants are in limbo. The city had been buying
land in the area — $34 million so far — and moving tenants to other
parts of the city.
“I’m concerned now that if they don’t do anything with the property,
what kind of tenant is going to come in and rent?” asked property
owner Ken Kevorkian, who owns property on the site on Orange and
Harvard streets. “There isn’t any foot traffic in the area now. The
whole property has been under an umbrella of possible condemnation,
and I can’t get a good tenant in there. Subsequently, my rent is half
of what it is in other places. If they are not going to develop, it’s
like a blight on the area.”
Complicating matters is that some of the remaining tenants cannot be
relocated until a property on the project site is purchased by the
city for demolition. And property owners are holding out for the best
deal they can from the city, particularly after the city paid $5
million for the Armenian Society of Los Angeles building at 221 S.
Brand Blvd. and relocation to its new site at 117 S. Louise St.
Kevorkian said the city offered him $1 million, but he did not take
the deal.
“When they offered me $1 million, comparatively speaking, that was
nothing,” he said.
Some are happy right where they are.
“We’re making a bit of money here, why get another location?” said
Roger Licup, a manager at Big 5 Sporting Goods. “Market-wise, we’re
doing OK down here. You are not going to get the good value somewhere
else. People know we are here.”

Armenian defence boss praises CIS unified air defence system
ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow
3 Apr 04
YEREVAN
The CIS Unified Air Defence System operates efficiently and has all
possibilities to fulfil the tasks it has been given, Armenian Defence
Minister Serzh Sarkisyan said at a meeting with a group of Russian
journalists in Yerevan today. Sarkisyan voiced his wish that “this
system should be equipped with modern armaments”.
“Armenia’s air defence troops are efficient, and they showed this
during joint military exercises at Russia’s Ashuluk training ground,”
Sarkisyan said.
“The main guarantor of Armenia’s security” are the republic’s armed
forces which have everything necessary to protect the country’s
borders, he said. The armed forces are based on motorized infantry
units headed by regular officers with great war experience. “The
Russian military base is an important component of Armenia’s national
security,” Sarkisyan said.

Associated Press Worldstream
March 30, 2004 Tuesday 3:08 PM Eastern Time
Rights activist beaten in Armenia
YEREVAN, Armenia
A representative of a leading human rights organization was beaten by
assailants on Tuesday and blamed the Armenian authorities for the
attack, which left him hospitalized in serious condition.
Mikael Danielyan, the chairman of the Armenian Helsinki Foundation,
was attacked by four assailants who cornered him in an alley near his
home, according to his wife and the International Helsinki Federation
for Human Rights.
Danielyan was knocked to the ground and beaten for about 10 minutes,
the Vienna-based rights group said. It said it was “very concerned
about (the) brutal physical attack” on Danielyan, who was
hospitalized in serious condition.
Danielyan, whose life was not in danger, said from the hospital that
he blames the authorities for the attack, which came shortly after he
criticized President Robert Kocharian in a published interview.
Kocharian won a second term in presidential elections a year ago that
sparked mass protests, including nearly daily demonstrations between
the first round of voting in February 2003 and the runoff in early
March.
The opposition alleged widespread violations in both rounds of the
election. Armenia’s Constitutional Court confirmed the results of the
presidential vote but suggested that a referendum be held within a
year to gauge the public’s confidence in the nation’s leaders.
Opposition leaders in the economically struggling former Soviet
republic have pressed for the plebiscite, and have been planning for
renewed protests against the Caucasus Mountain nation’s authorities.

The Stamford Advocate, Stamford, Conn.
March 30, 2004, Tuesday
Norwalk, Conn., Firm Sells Documentary Mini-Series to Middle East
Broadcaster
By Richard Lee
A Norwalk media company is making inroads into the Middle East with
the sale of “The Genocide Factor,” a four-hour history of religious
and ethnic persecution through the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11,
2001, to the Middle East Broadcasting Centre.
The documentary mini-series, sold by Norwalk-based CABLEready and
produced by Media Entertainment of Tampa, Fla., will premiere next
month on the pan-Arab network Al-Arabiya TV.
The deal follows the January airing of the series on UKTV History in
Great Britain, where time period ratings jumped 21 percent compared
with year-to-date averages.
It also has run on PBS in the United States, Media Park in Spain and
Portugal, and Odyssey in Australia.
“The Genocide Factor,” introduced by actor Jon Voight, features
interviews, historical drawings, paintings, photos and news footage.
Interviews include segments with Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel and
former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, as well as
testimonials from survivors of some of the world’s most tragic
religious and ethnic massacres, including those in Armenia, Bosnia,
East Timor, Rwanda, the Ukraine and the Nazi Holocaust.
“In my 25 years of distributing TV shows, I can’t think of any deal
more gratifying to me personally than this one with Al-Arabiya TV,”
said Gary Lico, president and chief executive officer of CABLEready.
“Having ‘The Genocide Factor’ run complete and uncensored on free TV
in the Middle East to a potential audience of more than 130 million
people is truly groundbreaking. Educating viewers worldwide about
these horrors inflicted throughout history can be a great tool toward
ending such acts of violence and hatred.”
Launched by Middle East Broadcasting Centre, which owns MBC TV,
Dubai-based Al-Arabiya is seen in 15 to 20 countries in the Middle
East. When Al-Arabiya went on the air last year, its investors from
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the Persian Gulf states promised to provide
objective and quality programming and news content.
“As a company, we have a lot of respect for that,” said Sabrina
Sanchez, director of program marketing for CABLEready. “I’m sure
there will be some negative reaction from audiences, but Al-Arabiya
is pretty good at standing its ground.”
Specializing in news, documentaries and current affairs programs,
Al-Arabiya was organized as a competitor to Qatar-based al-Jazeera
TV. United States officials have criticized both Al-Arabiya’s and
al-Jazeera’s news coverage in Iraq.
Established in 1992, CABLEready has developed as a strong player in
the international market, said Cynthia Turner, publisher of
Stratford-based online television industry trade publication
Cynopsis.com. “Gary has been enormously successful, and he’s
well-respected in the field. In the TV business, your reputation is
everything,” she said. Selling a program on such as serious topic in
the Middle East must have been a challenge, Turner said.
“Nobody will buy a series that nobody wants to see. You can’t
force-feed an audience,” she said.
CABLEready distributes “Inside the Actors Studio,” shown on Bravo in
the United States and airing in more than 100 countries, and
“Forensic Files,” Court TV’s top-rated series, which also has been
shown on NBC. It also has signed a deal with Outdoor Life Network in
Stamford to handle worldwide sales of 595 hours of OLN programs. The
pact covers 1,092 episodes from 41 series and eight specials.
The Norwalk company also will handle sales of future OLN programming
as it becomes available for international distribution. CABLEready
already handles international sales for two other OLN series,
“Mysterious Encounters,” “Samurai Sportsman.”
“It’s the first time that OLN programming has been formally
distributed overseas,” said Sanchez, who next week will attend MIP TV
in Cannes, France, which focuses on the marketing of television
programs.
“We are excited about the international prospects for our
programming,” said Becky Ruthven, senior vice president of affiliate
sales for OLN.

March 31, 2004
CONTACT : Loucia Isaac Seropian
Phone: 961-1-353010 Ext.: 365
Email: [email protected]
Haigazian University-Public Relations Office
PO Box: 11-1748Beirut, Lebanon
Media expert puts US, Arab press in post-Sept. 11 focus
Lecture juxtaposes profit motive with
By Ara Alain Arzoumanian
Special to The Daily Star
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
BEIRUT: The Arab world, which has decried the lack of coverage by the US
and European Union media in the past, found itself in the spotlight
following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks – although mostly in a slanted and
pejorative manner – says Nichan Havandjian, journalism department
chairperson at California Polytechnic State University.
“It should be clear to everyone that the context of the media in the US and
how it operates is in a totally different manner than that in Lebanon and
the Arab world,” Havandjian said during a lecture titled US Media and Arabs
in Post-Sept. 11 America, at Haigazian University in Beirut last week.
“All media in the US are first and foremost considered commercial
enterprises whose main goal is to achieve a financial profit. In contrast,
virtually all the press in the Arab world is heavily subsidized.”
Havandjian said that the US media are owned by conglomerates with no
governmental subsidies or bailouts and whose main concern remains healthy
profits. A 25 percent profit margin is expected and certain editors leave
when the financial targets are not achieved.
The US consumer market of 290 million people has some 457 daily newspapers,
6,700 weeklies, 1,800 TV stations and 14,000 radio stations.
Voice of America, a radio station established after World War II, and the
all new Al-Hurra TV, with an initial budget of $62 million, are the only
government funded media aimed at the international public. They do not
broadcast domestically, as US legislation prohibits the use of government
funds for public broadcasts.
“Media in the US aim basically to inform and entertain, with lots of fluff,
focusing on local politics and news, and definitely not the Middle East,”
explained Havandjian.
“Taxes, unemployment, social security and safety within America’s borders
are US citizens’ main concerns. How to lose 10 pounds in 3 days or live to
be 121 years old attract more attention than what is happening in our part
of the world,” he said.
According to Havandjian, there are only about 600,000 to 700,000 regular
daily CNN viewers in the US, representing some 0.002 percent of the
population. The only time a higher number of viewers tune in CNN is when
there is news of terrorist acts, threats on US soil or when high-profile
individuals, like O. J. Simpson and his trial developments, are aired.
Foreign news is offered mainly in California and New Mexico and is
comprised mostly of excerpts from the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence
France Presse and Itar Tass, he said. This is the only window of the world
offered to the American public. It’s not that the information is not
available – one just has to look for it.
The major networks, following an international incident in a foreign land
where have no correspondents present, will hastily dispatch someone to
cover the event, said Havandjian. This person is expected, within the time
frame of his flight, to become an expert on the destination country and its
internal workings. As such, he called such reporting at best shallow and
highly erroneous.
“People must also rid themselves of misconceptions like all CNN reporters
are CIA or FBI agents,” said Havandjian. “Maybe there are handfuls among
the hundreds of correspondents but definitely not the whole staff.”
Havandjian went on to describe how certain media in the US were blatantly
biased against Arabs and Palestinians. Fox News, owned by Rupert Murdoch,
known for his conservative and anti-Arab stance, has refered to suicide
bombings as homicide bombings. The New York Post, declaring a state of war,
called Arabs the enemy within. The Washington Times, run by Reverend Moon,
has kept up the idea that, according to reliable sources, weapons of mass
destruction are in Syria.
Hamas founder Sheikh Yassin’s death has been described as “another one
bites the dust.” The New York Post has even run a cartoon of Abdel-Aziz
al-Rantissi, the successor to Ahmed Yassin, it’s spiritual leader –
choosing a coffin in a mortuary as his first decision.
“But not all is negative,” said Havandjian. “The New York Times and The LA
Times have been boycotted by Jewish groups for their impartial reporting of
the news. Another unbiased newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor, is one
of the top 10 dailies in the country.”
Havandjian recounted how, following Sept. 11, an EU diplomat told the
Americans to “Get on with it.” After all, the loss of 4,000 lives paled in
comparison to the millions dying around the world. What everyone failed to
comprehend was that this was the first incident since Pearl Harbor where
the US was attacked on its own soil and it left a scar on the American
psyche.
What made matters worse was that it was carried out by individuals who had
received shelter in the US. The twin towers, symbols of US prosperity and
free enterprise were obliterated. The United States suddenly found itself
governed by the Patriot Act, glorifying a new fortress America.
“But the backlash also had its positive sides,” explained Havandjian. “Arab
Americans suddenly became aware of their roots and never-seen or – heard of
Arab art and poetry came under the spotlight.
“And curiously it was the next-door American who first and foremost stood
in defense of his Arab neighbor when things got sour.”
According to Havandjian, it is the Arab youth who are most angry with the
United States.
“To counter this trend successfully, a deep understanding of the American
psyche is necessary,” said Havandjian.
“Americans love winners and hate losers. And unfortunately, to date, the
Arabs have portrayed themselves as losers, attacking prosperity because
they are unable to achieve it themselves.
“Arabs must also take into consideration the opinion of about 70 million
fundamental Christians based mostly in the southern USA, George W. Bush’s
core constituency, who sometimes are more zealous in backing Israel than
Jews and Israelites,” he added.
Havandjian also blamed the Arabs for the current situation. When the Arab
press reports that thousands of Iraqis are dying daily, instead of a few
dozen, they automatically lose credibility. And the fact that the Syrian
ambassador stood alone, with the other couple of dozen Arab ambassadors
conspicuously absent, to protest the Syria Accountability Act, showed the
extent of disunity among the Arabs.
“The solution remains in improving the Arab image by encouraging future
Arab journalists and communications officers through scholarships,” said
Havandjian.
“Sadly, last year only one such scholarship was granted.
“Editors of major regional papers in the US, like those in Kansas or
Oregon, should be invited to Arab countries and given free access to anyone
they wish to meet. These people have the power to shift the Americans’
image of Arabs as they enjoy a huge credibility among their fellow
citizens,” concluded Havandjian.
“Of course not all their reporting would be positive, given the actual real
situation on the ground, but at least the positive aspects will gain
credibility among the US public.”
END

Azat Artsakh – Republic of Nagorno Karabakh (NKR)
March 29, 2004
BROADCASTING IN KOLATAK RESTORED
The population of the village Kolatak could not watch the programs of
the first public TV channel of Armenia and the public TV channel of
Artsakh. The executive director of “Artsakhkap” Souren Mirzoyan
informed that the company placed a transmitter for the communities
Kolatak and Tbkhlu of the region Martakert. In this reference the
director of the secondary school of Kolatak T. Yessayan sent a letter
to “AA” informing that for a long time the village population, and the
staff of the school especially were worried by the fact that instead
of the programs of Armenian TV channels the villagers could watch only
the Azerbaijani TV channels, which broadcast anti-Armenian propaganda
24 hours. Fortunately, due to the new transmitter the population of
the two villages can watch the programs of the first channel of
Armenia. In reference to this problem the executive director of
“Artsakhkap” Souren Mirzoyan said that the problem was not solved
finally as more financial means are required to raise the quality of
transmission. According to him, the problem will be solved in the near
future. “The signals transmitted from Azerbaijan hinder the
transmission of Armenian programs in certain settlements of the
republic. For this reason this year we will exchange broadcasting
frequencies,” mentioned the executive director. He also said he hopes
that this year the Armenian programs will be available in all the
villages of NKR. S. Mirzoyan said that the cause of the problems with
broadcasting is that more than 80 percent of transmitter are old
production and the spare parts are difficult to find in Armenia and
Russia. We hope that soon we will have the opportunity to place modern
transmitters.”
ANAHIT DANIELIAN

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
March 29, 2004
Armenia’s govt plans to raise $130 mln from stake sale in ZCMC
YEREVAN, Mar 29 (Prime-Tass) — Armenia’s government plans to raise
at least U.S. USD 130 million from the sale of the controlling stake
in the Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine (ZCMC), Armenia’s Trade and
Economic Development Minister Karen Chshmarityan told a press
conference Monday.
The government currently plans to auction an unspecified controlling
stake in ZCMC, but if a good offer is received, it may sell a 100%
stake, he noted.
Several foreign companies, including Australia’s Rio Tinto and BHP,
and U.S.’ Phelps Dodge, have already expressed their interests in
ZCMC, he noted.
If a contender transfers USD 25-30 million to the Armenian government
in April it will be granted the right for exclusive negotiations, he
said without elaborating.
If the negotiations succeed the transfer will be included as part of
the payment on the stake, but if they fail it will remain with the
government.
ZCMC accounts for about 3% of the world’s molybdenum concentrate
output. End

ArmeniaNow.com
26 March 2004
Say You Want a Revolution?: Opposition parties say change of power only
weeks away
By Zhanna Alexanyan ArmeniaNow reporter
Armenia ‘s fractured and, so far, politically impotent oppositional parties
are rumbling again with talk of a change of power and comparing their aim
with Armenia ‘s break from Soviet control nearly 16 years ago.
The republic’s 10 or so oppositional parties maintain that President Robert
Kocharyan’s election a year ago was illegitimate. Some are whispering
revolution, and hanging hopes on a resolution adopted by the Constitutional
Court last April 17, which allows for a Referendum of Confidence within a
year of that date.
Since February 2, the Ardarutiun (Justice) oppositional bloc of the National
Assembly has boycotted Assembly meetings in protest of the current
government.
And in something like pre-election campaigns, the bloc, led by secretary of
the Justice faction at the Parliament Victor Dallakyan, has organized
meetings to strategize and even established a headquarters it says will be
used for the eventual change of power.
The coalition of opposition parties strengthened this week, when the
National Unity Party, led by one-time presidential candidate Artashes
Geghamyan added its support to the Justice Bloc.
But, typical of 2003’s pre-presidential campaign, when 16 parties agreed to
form a union, but couldn’t agree on a single candidate to represent the
union, the bloc lacks a unified aim at how to achieve its purpose.
“Some (bloc members) insist it’s still possible to try to pass a law in the
National Assembly and hold a Referendum of Confidence. Others believe it’s
not possible,” says Hanrapetutiun (Republic) party leader Albert Bazeyan.
“The nearest time for the beginning of activities was set for the end of
March and the furthest date is from April 10 to 12.”
The People’s Party of Armenia (PPA) agrees with the Justice Bloc’s
timeframe, however, the National Unity party says May is the time for
action.
In any case, while Kocharyan’s “illegitimate” government has a year of
relative calm on its ledger, oppositional leaders – perhaps still envious of
Georgia ‘s successful opposition that overthrew a president – are calling
for revolution.
“Only one constitutional possibility for change of power is left, which is
mentioned in the second paragraph of the Constitution, ‘In the Republic of
Armenia power belongs to the people’,” says Hanrapetutiun secretary Suren
Surenyants. “People can gain that right only with the help of revolution,
the way it was in 1988.”
Surenyants says former Prime Minister Aram Sargsyan is the man to lead the
revolution. But then adds that another or two might also fulfill the task.
“Our party offers a model of change of power by means of democratic
revolution and we are sure under the leadership of Aram Sargsyan it will be
the best way of bringing that model into life,” Surenyants says. “However,
Hanrapetutiun doesn’t exclude the possibility of having Stepan Demirchyan or
Artashes Geghamyan as a leader because in any case people must decide by
means of elections, who will become president.”
A strategy of action is still somewhat a bloc secret, as it doesn’t want to
tip the administration to its intentions.
It is clear, however, that any groundswell of support will start in the
regions, where oppositional rallies are already routine. In response, in
fact, Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan has urged members of the government
to visit the regions to offset the influence of opposition propaganda.
Press Secretary of the Justice Bloc Ruzan Khachatryan says visits to regions
are very important for the opposition, as during those visits they prepare
people for a change of power. She says April 10 to 13 will be the time for
revolt.
The Justice Bloc is also expected to organize two mass rallies in Yerevan ,
after which it will urge supporters to conduct sit-ins outside the
Presidential Residence.
“Power must be changed,” says leader of the National Democratic Union Vazgen
Manukyan. But he raises questions concerning things which must be done after
the change.
“People will agree to rise in the name of some ideas, in the name of change
of power only in case they know for sure what is taking place,” the former
presidential candidate says.
Manukyan further concludes that the opposition lacks unity and needs a clear
leader.
“We need unity to change the power. Different candidates from the bloc got
different percents (during presidential elections) but the opposition has no
leader as it was in 1988 when the Karabakh Committee was a valuable leader,”
he says. “All of them are ‘black boxes’ for me as none of them are
experienced in political struggle and none of them have strongly pronounced
ideas.”
If revolution is to come, it will count on the opposition’s belief that
there is widespread discontent and a crisis of confidence – claims Kocharyan
rebutted recently in an address at Yerevan State University .
“To say there is a political crisis in the country where there is 13.9
percent of economic growth, where, according to all showings, considerable
developments are obvious, means not to understand quite well what ‘political
crisis’ means,” Kocharyan said.
The President further elaborated the achievements of his first year of his
second term.
“They are unprecedented indexes in our modern history, after declaration of
independence, they are the best accounting among CIS countries,” he said.
A day after the President addressed students, oppositional party leader
Geghamyan met with the same students and countered Kocharyan’s claims.
Armenia is 217 th out of 220 countries in percentage of malnourished,
Geghamyan claimed, and:
“Tens, hundreds of organizations and services sectors don’t pay taxes to the
state budget. Forty to 60 percent of the economy is ‘shadow’. The reason the
President didn’t mention it is because the people in power are the owners of
the shadow economy.”
Ten days ago date, Kocharyan fired his Prosecutor General and replaced him.
He has also held meetings with heads of police – both measures seen by some
as the president preparing for a showdown.
Kocharyan told reporters he would continue measures to increase internal
stability.
“We strengthen these bodies and we strengthen them in all directions,” said
Kocharyan. “The psychology of a bum in the poitical field is dangerous for
the country.”
Next Tuesday, the Justice Bloc is expected to make an announcement calling
on citizens to rally for a change of power.
—

Courtesy: Good Morning America, ABC News
March 25, 2004
>> now to the compulsive gambler suing three detroit casinos. she
argues the casinos are liable for failing to prevent her from gambling
after she signed a contract requiring the casino to keep her
away. we’re joined this morning by that woman, norma astourian and her
attorney, blaise repasky. david stewart, an attorney who frequently
defends the casino industry against claims like norma’s but not
involved in this case, joins us from washington. norma, i want to
start with you.
>> how bad a gambler were you?
astourian: bad. very bad. consumed — three, four times a week.
>> and how much did you lose?
astourian: overall?
>> overall.
astourian: oh, $300,000, $400,000 total.
>> $300,000 or $400,000. over what time period?
astourian: i would say over 10 years.
>> did you try to get help first before taking this action?
astourian: you don’t know that you’re addicted. you think you can quit
any time. but, of course, the withdrawals are terrible. you just have
to go. and you think you’re going to recoup. and just condition on
with life, but it’s impossible.
>> but at some point, did you go to gamblers anonymous or try to
seek some counseling?
astourian: i did go to gamblers anonymous. actually, i was thrown out
of one gamblers’ anonymous meeting.
>> why is that?
astourian: i said my first and last name and they thought i was a
reporter. they were very offended by my presence and asked me to
leave.
>> you eventually decided to register at the casinos as a
disassociated person.
astourian: that’s correct.
>> which means you’re asking the casinos to bar you from entering
and gambling.
astourian: yes.
>> were you aware of the fact that you could be arrested if
you did continue to try and enter the casinos and gamble?
astourian: yes, i did, but it was a desperate measure. there was no
alternative. i mean, i needed to be stopped. and they said, sign this
and we’ll take care of you. we’ll make sure you don’t get in
there. well, i did get in there, many times.
>> blaise, what have you found normally happens after gamblers
register with these casinos? what is supposed to happen?
blaise: what’s supposed to happen is, when they sign up this
disassociated persons form they’re supposed to be kept out of the
casinos. it says they are supposed to be removed. they can be
prosecuted criminally if they’re there. winnings can be confiscated
from them. the casinos ignored that. they’ve let the people come in
and continue to gamble. we believe they know these people were ithere
because they’ve got their pictures there. they have their social
security numbers. we know some people who have actually been paid
jackpots and have to give their social security number to get the
jackpot and pay them knowing they should not be there.
>> isn’t it the duty —
blaise: when we sign this disassociated persons form we believe it’s a
contract and we believe the casinos never intended to enforce the
contracts to begin with. misrepresentation and fraud by the casinos.
the’re doing nothing to stop these people from coming in. they should.
>> but drunk drivers, for example, don’t get to blame liquor companies
for their crimes. why do you think that compulsive gamblers —
blaise: consider, for instance, someone drinking in a bar. we all know
a bartender has an obligation, if he sees somebody becoming
intoxicated to stop serving them so they don’t drive and kill
somebody. these people, too, said we’ve reached rock bottom. they beg
for help. sign the form. the casinos have done nothing to enforce that
contract.
>> why do casinos offer this disassociated persons program if
they are not going to enforce it?
stewart: the purpose of the program and the programs were
designed,really, by people who are experts in the field. treatment
professionals who work with problem gamblers, behavioral scientists
who study it, and former problem gamblers. and they have real
troubles. you can’t hear about their problems without realizing
they’re fighting with a real problem. these people came up with the
notion of self-exclusion because the central issue here is to have the
person take responsibility, to take control of their gambling. and
when you go through a self-exclusion program, you fill out an official
form, you say i acknowledge i’ve got this problem, i want to fight
this problem, i don’t want to get any mail from the casino. i don’t
want to get credit from the casino. and if you find me in the casino,
i want you to show me the door. takes some courage to do that. and the
casino industry has supported that. the problem is, it’s not a police
state. it’s not possible to, you know, control everybody who comes
there. there’s thousands of people on the casino floor.
>> norma, what do you say to people who say you have to take
responsibility for your own behavior. you can’t blame the casino. you
should be bearing that responsibility.
astourian: responsibility? there is no responsibility once you’ve been
addicted by this product. i mean, i entered believing i was having
fun. i never knew there was a line to cross and no turning back. would
one willingly give away their life and their future? i don’t think so.
>> norma astourian, blaise repasky, david stewart, thank you all for
being here this morning. a difficult and controversial issue.
thank you.