Author: Jalatian Sonya

KARABAKH FLAG FLEW IN THE TOURNAMENT
Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
29 April 05
The sanda wushu team of Karabakh (director and chief coach Harutyun
Adamian) participated in the international open tournament of sanda
wushu in Yerevanon April 22 – 24. The four sportsmen from Karabakh
were extremely successful. Davit Grigorian from Stepanakert won the
gold. Garegin Aghabalian (Stepanakert), Nver Aghajanian (Astghashen)
and Aram Martirossian (Noragyugh) respectively took the fourth
places. According to Harutyun Adamian, the victory of Davit Grigorian
is not just a personal achievement. It is first of all the victory of
the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh. He kept the flag of Karabakh flying
at the tournament. In reference to the current and future plans of the
NKR federation of wushu Harutyun Adamian said that the federation has
been operating in the republic since 1988, on a free of charge
basis. The founder and president of the federation was Karo
Kebabchian, in the beginning it had 22 branches but now only 9 of them
are operating because of financial problems involving 350- 400
children. According to the coach of the team, Karen Ghazarian, a week
ago a closed wushu tournament of the federation was held in Noragyugh
dedicated to the memory of Vitaly Petrossian from Noragyugh killed at
war in Artsakh. The Karabakh federation of wushu is going to take part
in the open wushu tournament in Moscow. Besides, after achieving
excellent results in Yerevan the Karabakh sportsmen were invited to
take part in international wushu tournaments abroad. The federation
of wushu plans to hold an open tournament in Nagorno Karabakh to which
the team of the Republic of Armenia will be invited too.
AA.
29-04-2005
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Leaders of 53 states coming to victory day events in Moscow – official
Interfax-AVN military news agency web site
28 Apr 05
MOSCOW
The heads of state and government of 53 countries have so far
confirmed their intention to take part in the events in Moscow [on 9
May] commemorating the 60th anniversary of victory in the Great
Patriotic War.
“Fifty foreign heads of state [as received], the UN secretary general,
the president of the European Commission, and the UNESCO
director-general have so far confirmed their arrival in Moscow,” head
of the Russian presidential property management department Vladimir
Kozhin, who heads the organizing committee for the main events to
celebrate the 60th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War,
told a news conference at the Interfax main office in Moscow on
Thursday [28 April].
Kozhin described the Moscow celebrations as a significant event both
for Russia and the entire civilized world.
According to Kozhin, “the leaders of 53 states are coming to the
festivities in Moscow at the level of presidents or heads of
governments; they are Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Albania,
Armenia, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia Hercegovina, Great
Britain, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Georgia, Denmark, Israel, India,
Ireland, Spain, Italy, Kazakhstan, Canada, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan,
People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Luxembourg,
Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia,
the USA, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Ukraine,
Croatia, Finland, France, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Sweden and
Japan.”
He noted that no confirmations had been received so far from the
leaderships of Georgia and Great Britain. The leaderships of Estonia
and Lithuania have officially declined to take part in the forthcoming
festivities in Moscow, Kozhin said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Turkey says genocide campaign blocks ties with Armenia
Yerevan wants relations normalized without pre-conditions
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Thursday, April 28, 2005
ANKARA: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday an
Armenian campaign to have the massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks
recognized internationally as genocide is an obstacle to establishing
formal relations between the two neighbors.
“Before we make a political decision [on normalizing ties], there is a
very important issue that should be resolved and this is the problems
stemming from history,” Erdogan said.
He was commenting on a letter from Armenian President Robert
Kocharian, who accepted in principal a Turkish proposal to create a
joint committee to study the genocide allegations but said that Ankara
should first normalize relations with Yerevan without pre-conditions.
Turkey demands that Armenia abandon its campaign for the recognition
of the World War I massacres as genocide before formal diplomatic
relations can be established.
In 1993, Turkey also shut its border with Armenia in a show of
solidarity with its close ally Azerbaijan, which was at war with
Armenia, dealing a heavy economic blow on the impoverished nation.
Erdogan stressed Turkey had opened its archives to all historians to
study whether the massacres constituted a genocide, and urged Yerevan
to follow suit.
“Why don’t they open their archives? It is very curious,” he said.
“Let historians and experts work in the archives. If the outcome of
these studies require us to question our history, we will do that,” he
said.
In another development, the Turkish Parliament has unilaterally called
off a series of meetings with lawmakers from the Polish Parliament
next month in protest at the latter’s acknowledgement as genocide of
the killings of Armenians during World War I, a Turkish source said
Wednesday.
Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc also sent a letter to his
Polish counterpart Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz on Wednesday to denounce
the resolution adopted on April 19, which condemned the Armenian
genocide.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen perished in
deportations and orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917.
Ankara argues that 300,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died
when the Armenians took up arms for independence in eastern Anatolia
and sided with Russian troops invading the crumbling Ottoman Empire.
Armenians across the world Sunday marked the 90th anniversary of the
beginning of the massacres, which have already been recognized as
genocide by a number of countries.
Ankara fears that the genocide allegations could fuel anti-Turkish
sentiment in international public opinion at a time when it is vying
for membership in the European Union.
Some EU politicians are also pressing Turkey to address the genocide
claims in what Ankara sees a politically motivated campaign to impede
its EU bid. –

Daily Variety
April 26, 2005, Tuesday
System of a Down
by TROY J. AUGUSTO
(Universal Amphitheater; 6,125 capacity; $ 45)
Presented by KROQ & House of Blues Concerts Band: Serj Tankian, Daron
Malakian, Shavo Odadjian, John Dolmayan. Reviewed April 24, 2005.
Glendale’s System of a Down made clear from the start of this “Souls
2005” benefit show — with proceeds earmarked for various
human-rights groups — that the band’s politics would share the
spotlight equally with its combustible music.
Before the music started, a short film on the Armenian genocide was
shown, eliciting passionate responses from the Armenian-heavy aud.
Boos cascaded when Turkish political figures were pictured, and
cheers erupted when Armenians were pictured.
Quartet then took the stage to a hero’s welcome from the sold-out
house, and launched into a powerful performance of more than two
dozen songs, including a trio from the yet-to-be-released albums
“Mezmorize,” which is due next month, and “Hypnotize,” likely coming
in the third quarter of the year. “B.Y.O.B.,” a frenetic anti-war
rant that is already a hit, was the evening’s opening musical salvo.
Bulk of the perf, however, was a veritable greatest-hits roundup from
SOAD’s three platinum-certified Columbia studio albums, with plenty
of on-topic between-song remarks punctuating the songs. “The Ottoman
Mountains do NOT belong to Turkey,” shouted singer Serj Tankian as
the band ignited “Holy Mountains,” just one of many overtly political
songs in the band’s oeuvre.
Many of the band’s best tracks feature dueling two-part vocals from
Tankian and guitarist Daron Malakian, particularly on “Prison Song,”
the combustible lead-track from the “Toxicity” album, and on the
frenzied “Needles.” Other highlights included “Spiders,” which gained
intense momentum as it progressed, and the mock-boasting of new track
“Cigaro.”
Show closed with the band’s take on “Sardarabad,” a traditional tune
learned by most Armenians of elementary school age that has become
something of an Armenian national anthem.
The onstage action was shown on two large screens over the stage, but
lackluster production and uninspired camerawork made for a
particularly poor display, the only weak part of the show.
This “Souls” benefit supports numerous charity orgs, including
Amnesty Intl., Axis of Justice, Cambodian Student Society and the
Armenian National Committee of America.

Pan Armenian News
ARMENIAN FM WILL NOT MEET OSCE MG CO-CHAIR IN FRANKFURT
26.04.2005 06:35
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian will not got to
Frankfurt to meet with OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs, as there was no such
arrangement, stated Press Secretary of the Armenian Foreign Ministry Hamlet
Gasparian. As of Oskanian’s possible meeting with the mediators after their
trip to Frankfurt, Gasparian noted that there is no concrete agreement on
further meetings either. It should be reminded that OSCE MG Co-Chairs will
meet with Azeri FM Elmar Mamedyarov within «the Prague process» April 27.
Mamedyarov will leave for Germany along with the OSCE MG Co-Chair, American
Ambassador Steven Mann, who is in Baku at present, reported Armenpress.

Boston Globe
April 25, 2005
Obituaries
Gayane Kanayan
Of Watertown April 21, 2005 at the age of 105. Widow of the legendary
Armenian National Hero General Dro Kanayan. Mother of Martin Kanayan and his
wife Alice and Olga Proudian. Loving grandmother to five grandchildren and
three great grandchildren. Funeral services at Saint Stephen’s Armenian
Apostolic Church, 38 Elton Avenue Watertown on Wednesday April 27 at 11 AM.
Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend. Visiting hours at the
Aram Bedrosian Funeral Home, 558 Mount Auburn Street, WATERTOWN on Monday
and Tuesday from 7-9 PM. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to
Saint Stephen’s Armenian Apostolic Church and AFUSA Inc for the General Dro
Institute in Armenia. Interment Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge.
Published in the Boston Globe from 4/24/2005 – 4/25/2005.
Guest Book – Flowers – Gift Shop – Charities

Journal of Turkish Weekly
April 25 2005
Hurriyet
Armenian Radical Poured Wine Over Turkish Professor
Turkish professor not to press charges about poured wine
A recent incident wherein wine was poured over the shirt of Turkish
professor and “Radikal” newspaper journalist Murat Belge in the
Yerevan hotel where he was staying has been revealed to be the work
of a deranged local, and nothing more. Belge characterized the event
as being “ridiculous, nothing to take too seriously,” and said that
he was not going to press any charges against the man.
Belge also noted that the person who poured the wine over him as he
sat in the cafe of the Yerevan Marriot Hotel did not in fact ask him
whether he was Turkish prior to doing so. At the time, Belge was
sitting with a group of Turks and Armenians, including the head
editor of the Armenian “Agos” newspaper, Hurant Dink, as well as with
historian Taner Akcam.
Incident not to prevent dialogue from continuing
Following the incident in Yerevan, the Armenian Foreign Ministry also
expressed sorrow for the unpleasantness, as did the wife of
controversial “Ararat” film director, Arsinee Hanjian. Said Hanjian,
“By coming together with scientists and writers from Turkey, we’ve
tried to open a dialogue on these issues. And we’ve succeeded. So
this incident was a completely personal thing, and it does not
reflect on our relationships at all.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

LEISURE: Kasparov still on top
By by eddie chua
April 23, 2005
GARRY Kasparov, who retired from the chess scene a month ago, is still
the world’s No. 1 player. The latest FIDE rating sees Kasparov on top
with a 2812 Elo. He is also the first player to breach the 2800
benchmark in 1990. Nine years later, he took the 2851 rating.
The next best player is Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand. He is
rated at 2785.
Veselin Topalov is third with 2778 Elo, followed by Peter Leko 2763
and Vladimir Kramnik 2753. This is the second straight time Kramnik
has placedfourth in the past decade. On the local front, IM Mas
Hafizulhelmi Agus Rahman is still Malaysia’s No. 1 player with a
rating of 2413. Next is FM Mok Tze Meng on 2351.
FMs Lim Yee Weng and Wong Zi Jing are rated at 2348 and 2330
respectively.A one-time ace player, IM Jimmy Liew is fifth with 2320
while FM Nicholas Chan is sixth with 2313. Ahmad Maliki is rated at
2244.
Lim Chuing Hoong, the country’s No. 8 player, is rated at 2239 while
Leong Mun Wan scored 2237.
FM Christie Hon, once the national No. 1, is 10th with 2236.
There are 75 rated players in Malaysia. The lowest rated local player
has a benchmark of 1905. The New Straits Times Press (M) Berhad.

SwissInfo
24 April 2005
Armenien: Gedenkveranstaltung im Berner Münster
(Commemoration at Bern Cathedral)
BERN – Gegen 1000 Menschen haben an einer Gedenkveranstaltung im
Berner Münster der Opfer des Völkermords an den Armeniern gedacht.
Der Bundesrat wurde aufgefordert, die Deportationen und Massaker von
1915 als Genozid anzuerkennen.
Im Gegensatz zum Nationalrat lehnt es der Bundesrat bis anhin ab, die
Ermordung Hunderttausender von Armeniern durch das osmanische Reich
als Völkermord zu bezeichnen.
“Wer den Völkermord leugnet oder relativiert, begeht nicht nur eine
Ungeheuerlichkeit gegenüber den Opfern, sondern öffnet auch Tür und
Tor für neue Völkermorde”, sagte Nationalrat Ueli Leuenberger
(Grüne/GE) an der Gedenkveranstaltung zum 90. Jahrestag des Genozids.
Deshalb müsse der Bundesrat unmissverständlich Stellung beziehen und
die “historische Wahrheit” anerkennen, forderte Leuenberger. Die
Berner Gemeinderätin Regula Rytz ergänzte: “Der Völkermord hat
stattgefunden, auch wenn er im kollektiven Gedächtnis Europas noch
nicht stark verankert ist.”
Der armenische Botschafter in der Schweiz, Zohrab Mnatsakanian, gab
seinerseits der Hoffnung Ausdruck, irgendwann einmal mit seinem
türkischen Kollegen gemeinsam der Opfer des Völkermordes gedenken zu
können. Vorher müsse die Türkei aber ihre Vergangenheit beleuchten
und die Verbrechen von 1915 eingestehen.
An der Gedenkveranstaltung im Berner Münster, die musikalisch umrahmt
wurde, nahmen neben Hunderten von Exil-Armenieren auch einige
kirchliche Würdenträger der Schweiz teil.
Die Veranstaltung bildete den Höhepunkt einer Reihe von kulturellen
Anlässen, die in verschiedenen Schweizer Städten von
Armenier-Verbänden aus Anlass des 90. Jahrestages des Beginns der
Völkermordes organisiert worden waren.

PRESIDIUM OF CONFESSION OF EUROPEAN CHURCHES: ARMENIAN GENOCIDE WILL
BE NEVER FORGOTTEN
YEREVAN, APRIL 22. ARMINFO. Presidium of Confession of European
Churches (CEC) made a statement on the occasion of the 90th
anniversary of Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Turkey.
State Commission on organization of actions dedicated to the 90th
anniversary of Armenian Genocide informed ARMINFO that the statement
says that “Apr 24 Armenian people will commemorate the 90th
anniversary of Genocide in Ottoman Empire. Head of Federation of
Protestant Church of France Jan -Arnold de Klermon will represent the
CEC. The statement says that during a meeting with His Holiness
Garegin II Catholicos of All Armenians and Aram I Patriarch of
Cilician House in Sweden the CEC presidium noted that Armenian
Genocide will be never forgotten. Presidium called Turkey to start the
reconciliation process between Armenian and Turkish people.
CEC welcomed a statement of Turkish Prime Minister about an intention
to open Turkish archives. “It is important that both Armenian and
Turkish researchers have a full access to these documents”, the
statement says. As regards Turkey’s aspiration for the EU, CEC
presidium notes that the attitude of Turkish authorities to Armenian
people and christian minority, as well as to other ethnic minorities
living there will be the most important. CEC will watch closely the
negotiation process between Turkish government and the EU, the
statement says. -r-