ARMENIA’S KAPAN MAYOR HOSPITALIZED WITH ACUTE MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION
news.am
March 26, 2012 | 19:12
YEREVAN. – Armenia’s Kapan City Mayor Arthur Atayan, diagnosed with
acute myocardial infarction, was hospitalized at Erebuni medical center
in Yerevan on Mar. 25, the center informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.
According to doctors, the mayor’s heart has been stent, his condition
is stable and nothing threatens his life. However, the doctors cannot
tell when Atayan may be discharged.
SHAMPOO COMMERCIAL WITH HITLER ANGERS TURKEY’S JEWS (VIDEO)
March 26, 2012 – 16:52 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net – A shampoo commercial on Turkish television has
drawn protests from Turkey’s Jewish community for using Adolf Hitler
to promote the product, Hurriyet Daily News reports.
The Chief Rabbinate of Turkey issued a press statement yesterday to
condemn the commercial and protest the company.
“Despite the discussion we had with the owner of the advertising agency
in which we shared our sadness and disappointment, we regretfully
noticed that the commercial in question still appears in the media,”
read the statement. “We would like to make a reminder once again that
it’s totally unacceptable to make use of Hitler – the most striking
example of cruelty and savagery in history, who caused the death of
millions of people with his perverse mentality and twisted ideology –
in order to make a difference or raise awareness in a commercial. We
reprimand this mindset and emphasize the importance of a public
apology in order to repair the damage that this commercial has caused
to society’s conscience.”
The commercial shows black-and-white footage of Hitler making a speech
dubbed in Turkish with German subtitles. “If you are not wearing
female clothes, do not use shampoo for women. Here it is. If you are
a man, you have to use this shampoo. Real men use it,” Hitler says
in promoting the shampoo which the company claims was produced for
the special needs of men.
Using Hitler, who massacred more than 6 million people – most of
whom were Jews – in an advertisement for any reason is categorically
unacceptable, Chief Rabbi Ä°shak Haleva said.
“This is beyond all ethics, as well as a huge insult to human rights,”
Haleva said in a written statement. “We believe and expect that the
necessary sensitivity will be shown and that a correction will be
made soon.”
TURKEY, US, RUSSIA WANT TO ORGANIZE SARGSYAN-ALIYEV MEETING – OZKAN
Tert.am
26.03.12
The United States, Turkey and Russia want to organize a regular
Armenian-Azerbaijani presidential meeting, Guner Ozkan, political
analyst of the Turkish International Strategic Research Center,
told SalamNews.
In his words, for a fair settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict
Turkey intends to bring the Azerbaijani president, while the United
States and Russia plan to bring the Armenian leader for the talks.
Earlier Al Jazeera reported on a possible meeting, noting that U.S.
Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Foreign Minister of Turkey
Ahmed Davutoglu will be the mediators at the meeting.
ARMENIAN DELEGATION HAS SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT NAGORNO-KARABAKH IN BAKU, MP SAYS
Tert.am
26.03.12
If Armenian MPs are heading to Baku to attend the 2nd plenary
session of the EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly (PA), they have
something to say there about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as well,
Hovhannes Sahakyan, an MP of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA),
told reporters on Monday.
“If we are going to Azerbaijan we have something to say about the
NK issue as well,” he said. He attaches importance to the Armenian
delegation’s participation in EuroNest PA session in Baku.
The MP noted that no resolution unacceptable for the Armenian side
will be adopted at the Baku session. Sahakyan hopes that the Armenian
delegation will work hard not to allow adoption of such a document.
According to him, there are no resolutions posing a potential threat
to Armenia on the session agenda.
Sahakyan noticed the “Azerbaijani internet hysteria,” a threat of
demarches.
As to security guarantees, Sahakyan said Azerbaijan is ready to
provide them.
The Armenian delegation is going to participate in the 2nd plenary
session the EuroNest PA to be held in Baku, April 2 to 4.
“I HOPE ONE DAY NO ONE, INCLUDING RPA, WILL HAVE A REASON TO WEEP…,” VAHAN HOVHANNISYAN SAYS
14:53 . 26/03
“Lists are not our only worry. Our worry is the fate of this country,
which I hope will stop depending on the citizens included in RPA’s
list one day, and in that case, no one, including RPA will have a
reason to weep”.
NA ARF-D faction leader Vahan Hovhannisyan responded in this way to
the recent words of RPA faction leader Galust Sahakyan having said
“let ARF-D weep for its list instead of weeping for RPA’s list”.
According to V. Hovhannisyan, ARF-D’s proportional list positively
differs, which cannot be said about the lists of the coalition forces,
in which there is no freshness. It includes the same officials
following one another in the list.
And the membership to the European People’s Party, which was so much
spoken of by the authority forces as propaganda, will hardly change
the quality of the elections.
“You had better read attentively the names of the candidates in
their majoritarian representation and watch the photos. It is
known that authority forces collect votes through the majoritarian
representation, which shows that it is a little untimely to expect
an uneven Europeanization,” Hovhannisyan said.
Vahan Hovhannisyan considers the opinion polls by the organization
“European Friends of Armenia” on the authority forces as well as on
the president showing high rating are not professional, bringing as
an example at least one result of the poll.
One can like or not like ARF-D. It is understandable. But not to know
about ARF-D or say that only 35% of the public knows about the party…
I think it doesn’t correspond to reality. For that reason, a shadow
is also cast on the other conclusions, ARF-D faction leader said.
ANOTHER SLAP TO TARON
Story from Lragir.am News:
Published: 10:39:08 – 26/03/2012
The mayor of Yerevan Taron Margaryan announces every now and then
that no more buildings will be built at the expense of green parks.
Apparently Taron Margaryan has chosen lie as a work style or nobody
pays attention to him. While he makes his statements, an evergreen
park was destroyed on Azatutyun Avenue and yesterday the trees in
the yard of nursery school 168 in Ajapnyak community were destroyed.
Besides, in the past 10 days, as reported by people living in this
area, Dalma gardens were set to fire twice, all during the night.
Taron Margaryan is loyal to the style of his dear government –
barefaced lies and night “actions”, such as in the case of the
Armenian-Turkish protocols. It is clear that common mortals cannot
destroy parks at night to build the next “facility” there. What other
economic imagination should these people have? The government owes
them for services offered and to offer during the elections.
The government is the government of the night destroyers of the city,
and Taron is trying to cover up their steps and his shame through
bombastic statements about protection of private property.
KARABAKH PRESIDENT VISITS VERATSNUND SQUARE IN CAPITAL STEPANAKERT
news.am
March 26, 2012 | 13:49
STEPANAKERT.- President of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Bako Sahakyan
familiarized himself with restoration of Veratsnund square in capital
Stepanakert on Monday.
Restoration work is held within the frameworks of preparation for
the Triple Victory Day celebrations.
Premier Ara Harutyunyan and other officials accompanied the President.
ARFD MEMBER SAYS ARMENIA SHOULD NOT SEEK OUTSIDE SUPPORT FOR CHANGES
PanARMENIAN.Net
March 26, 2012 – 12:59 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net – Commenting on statements of some political forces,
head of ARF Dashnaktsutyun’s parliamentary group Vahan Hovhannisyan
said he “does not like expectations for positive changes in Armenia
being linked to external pressure”.
Hovhannisyan believes these changes should be achieved through the
struggle of the Armenian civil society. “Foreign pressure never comes
free of charge… if we want changes, we must rely on our own power,”
he noted.
“Some political forces hope for assistance by the West, or a split
in the coalition,” the politician said quoting in this context the
example of Ukraine where revolution caused a breakdown in economy
and jailing of opposition leaders.
SERZH SARGSYAN ADDRESSED THE SEOUL SUMMIT
Story from Lragir.am News:
Published: 14:58:53 – 27/03/2012
The news service of the president reports that Serzh Sargsyan,
currently in Seoul, attended and addressed the Summit on Nuclear
Security.
Nuclear Security is one of the most important tasks for Armenia,
said Serzh Sargsyan. The country fulfills the proposed projects
and undertakes concrete efforts to ensure control over the nuclear
security, he said. Recall Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant is operating
in Armenia.
Jointly with international organizations, trainings of the staff are
held and the program on the customs control is being worked out.
As a country producing nuclear power, Armenia takes part in the
partnership of countries which ensure its safe use and control,
said Serzh Sargsyan. He noted that the MAGATE mission has recently
confirmed the correspondence of the Armenian NPP to the international
requirements.
Serzh Sargsyan noted that his Azerbaijani counterpart issued evident
misinformation about the Armenian NPP in his speech at the Summit. He
determined this fact by Azerbaijan’s wish to defame Armenia and spread
false information. In particular, Serzh Sargsyan said the statement of
the Azerbaijan leaders that Armenia does not fulfill the UN Security
Council requirement on Karabakh, though it is about Azerbaijan itself,
is not true.
Serzh Sargsyan appealed to view the nuclear security issues in
combination with related issues and not to make energy resources
political capital.
Two of Armenia’s four neighbors, for already two decades, breaking
international norms, have been blocking our country without leaving
alternatives for the search of other means of energy independence,
said Serzh Sargsyan.
POPULISTS AREN’T WELCOME IN ARMENIA
Naira Hayrumyan
Story from Lragir.am News:
Published: 12:38:45 – 27/03/2012
Why is the opposition in Armenia not uniting? Raffi Hovhannisian’s
attempts to reach an agreement with other opposition forces – the
Armenian National Congress and Dashnaktsutyun – to have joint nominees
for precincts did not produce any results. Though it was clear from
the very beginning because Dashnaktsutyun would never support the
Congress candidates and vice versa.
It means that Raffi Hovhannisian has not proposed the best platform for
cooperation and it is necessary to seek for others. The observation
of elections can be a platform but the opposition fails to agree on
this issue too.
In case the Congress, ARFD, Heritage and Free Democrats receive
enough votes to be elected to parliament they will hardly form a
united opposition. After the elections, besides the Republican and
Prosperous Armenia Parties, other blocs will be formed as well. In
addition, they will not be formed on the basis of the opposition or
pro-government characteristics but on the decision of the parties
whom to support in the next 2013 presidential elections.
In this relation, the ARFD and Prosperous Armenia may form a bloc
which do not hide their loyalty to Robert Kocharyan. So, there will
be a three-pole parliament.
The inability of the opposition parties to cooperate is not only due to
the presidential elections. The point is the difference understanding
of elections which the traditional Armenian politicians accept as an
anticipatory division of seats. In Armenia, it is always clear from
the beginning how many seats each will get and these predictions
generally come true.
In this connection, it is clear that the ANC and ARFD will not even
try to cooperate – even for the sake of populism. They understand that
decisions are made somewhere else, and populism is luxury in Armenia.
Raffi Hovhannisian is apparently trying to introduce another
methodology – unpredictability of the results of elections and
their dependence on the opinion of voters. His populist steps can be
explained by this. Apparently, he still hopes that this election at
least partly will depend on the voters’ choice.
Populism in Armenia is perceived as something negative though every
party needs to engage in it. Populism is an attempt to attract the
attention of voters to their positive steps and proposals to receive
more votes. But if the opinion of voters does not decide anything,
and the numbers of votes are decided in a different manner, populism
becomes effective.
In Armenia, already some public opinion polls are held to try to guess
the possible outcome of elections but apparently it is necessary to
interview those who made the decision beforehand and write the numbers.