Author: Jalatian Sonya

CONSERVATIVE PARTY TO MAKE PART OF ARMENIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

Noyan Tapan

Au gust 1, 2008

YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, NOYAN TAPAN. Admitting the topicality of solution of
short-term and current political problems of declaration on creation
of the Armenian National Congress, the Conservative Party, at the
July 31 sitting of its Central Board, unanimously made a decision to
join the Armenian National Congress.

"The current illegitimate government in its essence is not able
to fulfil such priorities, as, we hope, we will manage to fulfil
together with our colleagues from the Armenian National Congress,"
the same day’s statement of the Conservative Party read.

TO BE SIGNED BY THE NUCLEUS

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on Aug 01, 2008
Armenia

According to Levon Zourabyan, the nucleus of the political parties
participating in the movement will sign the declaration on the
establishment of the Armenian National Congress "in solemn conditions",
during the rally which is going to be held today.

In response to the question how many parties are going to sign the
declaration, Levon Zourabyan said, "It is very difficult to mention
a concrete number at the moment, but those who will attend the August
1 rally will be able to familiarize themselves with the situation."

COMMITTEE APPROVES M. JOANOVICH’S CANDIDACY

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on July 31, 2008
Armenia

In a session convened on July 29, the US House of Foreign Affairs
Committee approved Maria Jovanovich’s candidacy for the post of the
US Ambassador in Armenia. The Committee’s decision is still to be
confirmed in the plenary session of the Senate.

The post of the US Ambassador in Armenia has been vacant since
September 2006. After being frozen twice in the Senate, the candidacy
of Richard Hoagland, a diplomat whose views obviously deny the
Genocide, was recalled.

The Bush Administration proposed M. Jovanovich’s candidacy in March
2008.

ISSUES ON BOOSTING COOPERATION WITHIN THE CSTO DISCUSSED

ARMENPRESS
JULY 22

Armenian National Assembly Speaker Tigran Torosian received today
Secretary General of the CSTO Nikolay Bordyuzha.

National Assembly press service told Armenpress that the speaker
said that though the reason of the meeting are "Rubezh 2008" military
exercises, there are many issues to discuss connected with the work
of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, boosting cooperation within the
framework of CSTO, etc.

Torosian underscored the activity of the CSTO PA, referring to the
prospects of the development the basis of which includes clear ideas
and principles, new and direct ways of cooperation. The NA speaker
also noted that Armenia’s parliament has already ratified all the
agreements connected with the work of the CSTO and is ready for
continuation of close cooperation.

Nikolay Bordyuzha highly underscored the military exercises conducted
in Armenia. Referring to the works of the CSTO PA, he underscored the
deepening of cooperation, saying that an effective way of doing it
is to conduct closed meetings of the speakers of parliaments as well
as meetings of the parliamentary delegations in the international
institutions.

Tigran Torosian greeted the direct steps suggested towards the increase
of efficiency of the activity of the CSTO PA and expressed readiness
to support their implementation. According to his assessment, CSTO
is not an organization of collective war but of collective peace
and everything possible must be done towards the cooperation and
maintenance of peace.

The NA speaker underscored the forwarding of concrete issues and
finding mechanisms for their solutions and the role and importance
of parliaments in doing it.

T. Torosian said that "Rubezh 2008" military exercises are
qualitatively new step and open new prospects of cooperation

GOLDEN APRICOT SHOULD BECOME CULTURAL PLATFORM WHERE CREATIVE CONCEPTIONS AND QUALIFIED FILM PRODUCTION WILL BE PERIODICALLY BORN,- CINEMATOGRAPHIC FIGURES THINK

NOYAN TAPAN

JU LY 21

The organizers of the Golden Apricot (Voske Tsiran) 5th International
Film Festival are sure that the suuccessful realization of the newly –
born Pan-Armenian Film Project will create Armenian and Panarmenian
cinematographic environment. Moreover, it is by this very initiative
that Armenia will have a place in the world cinema sphere. Famed
Armenain and abroad – living Armenain cinematographic figures who
take part in the program wish to make the film festival the cultural
platform where creative conceptions and qualified film production
will be periodically born.

On July 19, during the meeting of Armenian film directors cimena
critic Davit Mouradian noted that the Panarmenian Film Project forum
is one of the most interesting and cleverest ways of providing the
progress of Armenian cimena. According to him, "each of the Armenian
directors living and creating in different parts of the world bears
inside not only the Armenian essence but also the experience of the
culture in which he lives and creates".

And celebrated Canadian Armenian film director Atom Egoyan considered
the project realizeable, "The beauty of the project is in the fact
that several individual handwritings can be seen in one film. For us
this project is a challenge. We should think how we can rouse interest
in the world audience.

The problem is how directors will be able to cover their individual
expenditures".

Famous film director Roman Balayan who lives in Russia, sees the main
problem of the project in the script. "The most difficult period will
be when the script is ready: agreements, disagreements". Roman Balayan
didn’t agree to the two names of a feature film and a documentary
decided in advance, "I didn’t like the so-called grave Armenian themes
of "land" and "home". Not long ago a poor man was selling something at
the hotel. I came up to him, talked to him. It was a wonderful person,
a very good man. The film could be shot about him also. Do only the
Armenians have home and land in the world?"

At the end of the meeting Roman Balayan addressed to those who are
going to work at the films, saying, "The world isn’t so interested
in how we cry as it is in how we laugh".

AMB. SMESSOV: FRANCE HAS INITIAL FOUR PRIORITIES FOR SIX-MONTH EU PRESIDENCY

PanARMENIAN.Net
17.07.2008 16:34 GMT+04:00

France’s initial four priorities for the six-month Presidency – energy
and climate change, immigration, defense, and a review of the EU’s
farm policy. A major "energy-climate package" will be presented by
the end of 2008 and then considered during the EU Climate Conference
in Copenhagen in 2009, France’s Ambassador to Armenia Serge Smessov
said in an interview with PanARMENIAN.Net.

"France will also seek to promote nuclear energy as an important energy
source to ensure diversification and security of supply. A key focus
will be on the development of nuclear equipment safety and the issue
of waste management," he said.

"France wants to make progress on a common European immigration policy
during its presidency, with the sensitive issue of illegal immigration
top of its list. The planned "immigration pact" would rely on three
pillars: the refusal of ‘en masse’ regularizations, a harmonization of
asylum policies and rules for the return of illegal immigrants. The
pact will be submitted to the EU heads of state and governments in
October with a purpose to encourage the migration policy."

According to him, amid highly important issues is the farm policy,
which includes food independence, decrease of food expenditure
inequality, sustainable development, ecology protection, high quality
and safety.

As to European security and defense, he said, France doesn’t possess
means for participation in global processes but follows the principle
of compatibility with NATO.

"Problems in Balkans, Middle East, Asia and Oceania will also be in
focus. Besides, the Irish ‘No’ pushed the Lisbon Treaty at the very top
of an already busy agenda. However, these priorities do not restrict
attention to other international issues," the Ambassador resumed.

MY SUGGESTIONS FOR A MORE PERFECT DEMOCRACY

Turkish Daily News
July 16, 2008 Wednesday

Numerous terms have been used to describe the sides of Turkey’s
Civil Cold War: Islamists vs. secularists; Turkey vs. Turkey;
Muslim democrats vs. secular fascists; display (observant) Muslims
vs. secular Muslims; liberal Muslims vs. illiberal seculars, and many
more. Anyone has the liberty to choose his/her favorite branding.But
reading the pieces of the fascinating propaganda war in favor of the
Muslim democrats’ one cannot help inventing a more realistic branding:
Good guys vs. bad guys! Reading the daily propaganda material one
recognizes how amazing it is to see that the AKP and its supporters
do not come close to perfection, but they are in fact perfect, if not
better than perfect! At the opposite end, the AKP’s opponents are so
evil that they can be held responsible for anything one could imagine:
9/11, the 1999 earthquake, Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Kim Jong Il’s
rule, famine in Africa, the 2003 tsunami, the massacre of Armenians
in 1915-1920, HIV, SARS, the tick disease and WW II.

Kemalist nuclear weapons?:

Most recently, a staunchly pro-AKP newspaper, Taraf, claimed that
the Ergenekon gang could have masterminded the activities of all
big names in Turkey’s list of terrorist organizations, including the
Kurdish-Islamist Hizbollah and the PKK. More importantly, according
to that newspaper, Taraf, the Kemalist members of Ergenekon could have
had ambitions to develop nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. We
better cut the nonsense and produce ideas to further perfect
our almost-perfect democracy. Here are my suggestions:1. Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk’s pictures and other memorabilia should be removed
from schools and public offices.2. Journalists critical of the
government should be arrested on charges of terrorism3. A dozen
million or so anti-government protestors who staged pro-secularism
rallies last year should be identified and arrested as part of
the Ergenekon investigation.4. Secularism should be abolished
and declared illegal. 5. The Ulema should decide whether laws are
constitutional. 6. Since the Sunnis are in majority the Alevis should
be told where and how to practice religion. Preferably, the Alevis
should be democratically’ convinced to disband their faith and join
the Sunnis.7. More observant businesses should be granted a 30 percent
tax break. Less observant businesses should not be allowed to bid in
public tenders.8.

The Islamic turban should not be allowed on campus, but it must
be made the compulsory headwear for female students. 9. Having a
wife with the turban and avoidance of pork and alcohol and regular
attendance to Friday prayers should be added to the public employees
act as prerequisites for promotion.10. Bulent Arinc, former Parliament
speaker and the AKP’s number three, made a very good point last
year when he suggested that the secularists were trying to block
the presidency of a religious man. So, I owe the inspiration for
this idea to Mr. Arinc: The Constitution should explicitly say
that the president, the Parliament speaker, the prime minister,
cabinet ministers and senior judges should be religious men. In case
of doubt as to how religious a candidate is, the Ulema should use a
holy Muslim-meter to gauge. 11. Political parties should be banned if
they feature undemocratic doctrines like secularism and Kemalism. Any
party that does not declare full commitment to the Koran should not
be allowed to enter parliamentary elections.12. The Ulema should form
an upper house, the Senate, and give their blessings when laws are
enacted in the lower house.13. Politicians found guilty of corruption
should not stand trial if they had committed this offense in the name
of political Islam.14. Since the AKP won 47 percent of the national
vote in 2007 in what everyone agrees was the most spectacular political
victory for any political party in half a century, the next elections
can be held in 15 years time. And since the CHP has proved to be an
undemocratic party half of its seats should be scrapped and given
to more democratic parties in Parliament, namely the AKP and the
DTP. Better still, the CHP should be banned and its leaders should be
sent to gaol. 15. Needless to say, alcohol and pork should be banned
altogether. Liars, crooks, conmen, rapists, embezzlers, woman-beaters
can be tolerated if they are good Muslims. 16. Islamist columnists,
especially older than 80 years of age, should not be prosecuted if
they sexually abused children. 17. The legal detention period for
anti-government activists should be 12 years with or without an
indictment. 18. The Ulema (the Senate) should also elect military
leaders on the basis of their observance. In the unlikely event that
generals are not pious enough the Ulema can appoint a lieutenant
colonel as chief of General Staff. 19.

The military headquarters and units should be stripped of access to
tanks, ammunition, artillery and other weaponry. Access codes should
be in the possession of the prime minister only.20. For a better
functioning of democracy parliamentary immunities should be maintained
except for opposition members of Parliament. 21. All Turkish families
should be required to have at least three children. Those families
with fewer children should be subject to 25 percent extra tax. Legal
marriage age for girls should be reduced to eight.22. The Constitution
should be amended so as to describe the country as the Muslim
Democratic State of Turkey instead of the Republic of Turkey. That
will give Turkey a more democratic flavor. 23. Opposition newspapers
should be banned. Alternatively, any opposition to the government can
be banned.24. The color of the Turkish flag should be changed from
red to green. That unnecessary Star’ can be scrapped. The Crescent’
is good enough.

25. Less pious citizens should not be allowed to vote. 26. Court
rulings should not become effective before a seal of approval from
the government.

GUAM IS A PROPAGANDISTIC INITIATIVE

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.07.2008 15:21 GMT+04:00

GUAM was formed as an artificial organization pointed at Russia,
a Russian expert said.

"Presently, Moldova tends to Russia; Ukraine is experiencing
serious processes which can introduce changes into its foreign
policy. Azerbaijan and Georgia have nothing in common. I do
not eye GUAM as a threat to Russia. It’s merely a propagandistic
initiative. The states serving on it are not interested in resolution
of conflicting," Mikhail Alexandrov, head of the Caucasus department
at Moscow’s Institute for Commonwealth of Independent States, said
when responding to a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter’s question during a
news conference in Yerevan.

GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova) was formed in 1997
on initiative of Heydar Aliyev and Eduard Shevarnadze. Moldova’s
President Vladimir Voronin did not attend the past three summits of
the organization, his country being represented by Prime Minister or
Foreign Minister.

SUKHOI TRAINS ADDITIONAL CREWS FOR SUKHOI SUPERJET-100 TESTS

Itar-Tass
16.07.2008, 20.45

The Sukhoi Civil Aircraft company has started training additional
crews for certification tests of the Sukhoi SuperJet-100 regional
plane, the company press service said.

"Since four planes will gradually be brought into the programme of
certification tests, the company’s flight service puts additional
crews into operation. Nikolai Pushenko made the first flight on the
plane on June 29," the press service said, adding that the flight
lasted over 30 hours.

The installation of systems on the second plane has been completed. The
third and the fourth planes are being assembled.

The plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur has launched serial production of
the new plane in parallel to its test flying.

SuperJet-100 will in the future provide the basis for a whole family
of planes, including transport and special purpose planes. However now
the main goal is the certification of the plane and serial production
of 60-70 planes annually.

The Sukhoi SuperJet-100 plane went on its maiden flight in May 2008.

Sukhoi considers the production of Sukhoi SuperJet to be priority and
its specialists are working hard to make sure that the plane takes
off the ground for flight-testing.

"The whole testing cycle will take less than a year," First Deputy
Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov sa id earlier.

The aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur had already started serial
production of the plane for Aeroflot.

The delivery of the first Sukhoi SuperJet-100 planes initially
scheduled for the end of 2008 will be delayed due to changes in the
schedule of test flights.

According to the initial plan, the first plane was to be supplied to
Aeroflot at the end of this year.

The project is implemented by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company created
in 2000.

Experts say that the SuperJet-100 project will secure Russia’s
leadership on the market of regional planes. Sukhoi Civil Aircraft is
a subsidiary of the famous Sukhoi combat aircraft manufacturer. It
was created to implement the latter’s civilian projects. The chief
task of the company is to develop a regional Superjet-100 plane that
will replace Tu-134 liners that are now in use.

The Sukhoi Superjet-100 family consists of two types of aircraft of
basic and increased flying ranges with the carrying capacity of 75
and 95 passengers respectively.

The company is trying to make the tow types of plane as universal as
possible in order to increase the number of potential buyers.

The design of the plane meets the requirements applicable in Russia,
the Commonwealth of Independent States and the West.

As of the beginning of 2008, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft had confirmed
contracts for 73 SuperJet-100 planes and 31 options, including first
contracts with Aeroflot (3 0 planes), the Financial Leasing Company
(10 planes), AirUnion (15 planes), DalAvia (6 planes), Italian airline
ItAli (10planes), and the Armenian company Armavia (2 planes).

REGULAR LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN COMMUNITIES ON SEPTEMBER 7 AND 28

NOYAN TAPAN

JU LY 15

Regular self-government elections are scheduled in Yerevan communities
in September. According to the official website of the Central
Electoral Commission, prefect and council of elders members elections
will be held on September 7 in the Erebuni, Kanaker-Zeytun, Arabkir,
Nubarashen communities of Yerevan and regular council of elders
elections will be held in the Malatia-Sebastia, Achapniak communities.

Prefect and council of elders elections will be held on September
28 in the Kentron and Nor Nork communities and council of elders
regular elections will be held in the Nork-Marash, Avan, Davitashen,
Shengavit communities.