Author: Kajoyan Gevork

ARMENIAN CHURCH UPSET WITH GEORGIAN GOVERNMENT’S ACTIONS ON RELIGION LAW
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze

The Messenger

Georgia
July 14 2011

The law regarding the religious faiths adopted lately by the Parliament
and especially the explanation note of the law has disappointed the
Armenian Church – founder of the Armenian community in Georgia Arnold
Stepanian told The Messenger, on July 13.

“The new amendments leave the registration right to the religious
organizations but deprive them of the wider rights. The law and
especially its explanation note directly says that on any religious
issue we will have to talk with the Georgian church and not with
any other institution. The consensus eased inner tension between
the government and orthodox church, but brought serious damage
to the Armenian church, that will not be able to apply to return
Armenian churches, while we had certain hopes in this direction”,
Stepanian says.

Stepanian also explained the reason why their connection with the
Georgian Government would have been easier, “it is difficult to talk
with the Georgian Church as it has it demands and as far as I know
they are against delivering churches to the Armenian side, that is why
it would be easier for us to deal with the Authorities and not with
the Church, as the Government is a more liberal body than the church.

To my mind, hasty adoption of the law was also related with the
following responses of the law, as if some referendum would have been
held on the issue, the position of the Georgian church and society
would be negative and Georgian authorities knew this, however the
outcome of all this was not in our interests.”

As Stepanian told The Messenger, the anti-Armenian mood has
increased in Georgia in the last four days while the law concerned
other religions too. Namely, Stepanian’s organization registered
38 cases, when representatives of religion, culture and politics
had anti-Armenian protests. Stepanian says he is going to submit an
application to the public prosecutor’s office and to present the facts
to Ilia the Second, “it is the first time we are going to appeal to
the Holy Synod regarding the issue. At the same time, there is a newly
opened Ethic Council within the Georgian Patriarchate (we welcome the
existence of such a body) and we would present the facts against it.

Herewith, we have just completed our report regarding the recent events
and we are going to deliver it to the international organizations.”

As for the Georgian Church’s position, it has several times stated
that the issue needs discussions, the Church representatives have
frequently mentioned that some commission should be created which
will work on identifying which are Armenian churches and which are
Georgian. The Georgian Church was not against adopting such a law,
it demanded preliminary discussions on the issue and the same status
for the Georgian Church in other countries, including Armenia.

As analyst Gia Khukhashvili told The Messenger, the Georgian Church
has clearly fixed its position regarding the Armenian Church and
on the issue, from the beginning, “it has been very clearly stated
by the Georgian Church that it was not against the law, however the
decision should be made based on bilateral agreement, as Georgia also
has the same problem in Armenia where there are Georgian churches. The
Georgian Patriarchate was not against delivering churches if it is
confirmed that they are Armenian, however the Georgian Government with
this law has tried to leave the Patriarchate without its main lever,
to hold negotiations and the issue was to be solved through consensus.

Only the following actions of the society have forced the authorities
to make an unprecedented decision.” It is also unclear for the analyst
which hopes were broken for the Armenian side, when the position of
the Georgian Church was very obvious from the beginning, “I can say
clearly that the Georgian authorities, by their unwise action have
artificially created tension with Armenia, putting themselves in a
hard situation and have also created problems for the Georgian Church.

” The analyst also commented Stepanian’s suggestion that an anti
Armenian mood was surfacing in Georgia, “may be, in some small parts
of Georgian society such a mood is really increasing and its growth,
to my mind is related with the Georgian Government’s unacceptable
action, when they have tried to ignore the Georgian Church. Also, the
actions of the Armenian Patriarch Garegin ll, during the meeting with
Ilia ll irritated Georgian society. However, all this is emotional
as such ill feeling is not in Georgian character and there are very
few Georgian people who expressed protest in this way.”

BUILDING OF ARMENIAN LENGTH OF POWER LINE TO GEORGIA COULD RISE 25%-30% IN PRICE

Interfax
July 13 2011
Russia

The price tag for the construction of the Armenian section of the 400
kWt Razdan (Armenia) to Gardabani (Georgia) power line could increase
by $5-$6 million over the previously announced $20 million, or by 25%
to 30%, Armenia’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Armen Movsisyan
announced at a press conference on Wednesday.

The route most suitable to both countries has been selected, causing
costs to go up, Movsisyan said. Armenia continues planning to raise
a financing loan from the German bank KfW for the building of the
105-km section.

Construction will begin soon, he said.

At present, there are three power lines running between the two
countries – two of 110 kWt and a third of 220 kWt capacity. The fourth
one will for the first time allow for the parallel operation of their
power systems. Iran’s will be connected in the future.

The entire project was appraised earlier at roughly $50 million.

An agreement on building the line was signed early last year
between CJSC Armenian High-voltage Electricity Network and Georgian
International Energy Corporation. During a visit to Yerevan by head
of the board of managers at State Electrical Systems of Georgia
Sulkhan Zumburidze at the beginning of this month, amendments to the
agreement laying out the parties’ rights and responsibilities during
construction were signed.

BRITISH MINISTER OF STATE BACKS MG CO-CHAIRS’ EFFORTS TOWARDS THE NEGOTIATIONS OVER NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Panorama
July 14 2011
Armenia

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting on Wednesday
with William Hague, the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary
of State, and David Lidington, Minister of State for European Issues.

MFA press service informs the highlights of the negotiations were
mutual relations, regional and international stuff.

Edward Nalbandian had comprehensive negotiations with the foreign
diplomats over the improvement of the political dialogue, mutual
relations, and cooperation in the international organizations.

The diplomats have focused on the resolution of regional conflicts. In
this respect Armenian FM introduced the Armenian disposition
over the resolution of Artsakh conflict and expressed hope for the
resolution of the conflict when Azerbaijan performs a political will
and constructivism.

Minister Lidington said the UK supports the negotiations mediated by
the Minsk Group co-chairs, emphasizing that armed resolution of the
conflict is unacceptable.

OSCE CHAIRPERSON DISCUSSES NAGORNO-KARABAKH NEGOTIATIONS WITH MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS

States News Service
July 12, 2011 Tuesday

The following information was released by the Organization for Security
and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE):

The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius
AÅubalis today met the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group: Ambassador
Bernard Fassier of France, Robert Bradtke of the United States, and
Igor Popov of the Russian Federation accompanied by Ambassador Andrzej
Kasprzyk, the Personal Representative of the Chairperson-in-Office
on the conflict dealt with by the OSCE Minsk Conference.

AÅubalis voiced support for the efforts by the Co-Chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group to achieve a breakthrough at the negotiations on
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and called for more civil society
involvement in the implementation of confidence-building measures,
saying: “It will contribute to the resolution of the conflict, and
will strengthen confidence among the societies.”

The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs informed AÅubalis about the trilateral
meeting of Armenian, Azerbaijani and Russian Presidents in Kazan on
24 June, which was an attempt to agree on basic principles as the
framework for a comprehensive settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. They also discussed the prospects of a solution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and planned negotiating initiatives for
the remaining year.

The OSCE Minsk Group was established in 1992 to encourage a peaceful,
negotiated resolution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia
over Nagorno-Karabakh. The negotiation process is headed by the
Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group. Ambassador Kasprzyk represents the
OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in the process, and his office monitors
the ceasefire.

IN ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS BALL IS IN TURKEY’S COURT – US AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA NOMINEE

news.am
July 14 2011
Armenia

WASHINGTON. – In Armenian-Turkish relations the ball is in Turkey’s
court, said US Ambassador to Armenia nominee John Heffern in his
testimony during the hearings in U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations.

“The Administration supports Armenia’s courageous steps to begin a
process with Turkey to address their history, and to find a way to
move forward together in a shared future of security and prosperity,”
said Heffern.

He added that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made it clear that
“the ball is in Turkey’s court.”

John Heffern stressed that if confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia,
he plans to work closely with the U.S. Embassy in Ankara to “strengthen
mutual trust” between two sides.

ARMENIA IS HEADED BY A FRIVOLOUS MAN – ALI HASANOV

news.az
July 13 2011
Azerbaijan

‘Armenia is headed by a man, whose words contradict his actions’,
said Ali Hasanov.

Failure of the June meeting of the presidents of Azerbaijan, Armenia
and Russia in Kazan is due to unconstructive position displayed by
the Armenian side once again.

The remarks came from Ali Hasanov, head of the public and political
department at the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, in an
interview with Azerbaijan newspaper.

The international community should step up pressure on Yerevan so
that the negotiating process will not be fruitless, he said.

‘Diplomatic activity aims to achieve results. Therefore, the three
leading states are engaged in conflict resolution. Of course, they
want to achieve result, establish peace in the South Caucasus so
that a region with a geo-strategic importance for the world would
finally live in peaceful neighborhood conditions which, in turn,
will play an important role to ensure security throughout the world.

And to achieve result, it is required to increase pressure on Armenia
which, in turn, requires these countries [co-chairs] to show a strong
will,’ Hasanov noted.

Unserious people hold the power in Armenia at the moment, the
official added.

‘We should talk about it openly. Pay attention to speeches of the
Armenian president, foreign minister and his deputies. Such views
voiced by the president and ministers of an independent state are
regrettable.

Their speeches consist of frivolous, ridiculous thoughts. We are
dealing with a frivolous country. This unserious policy harms not only
Azerbaijan, but also the people who live in the occupied territories
and keeps the population of Armenia as hostage. The Armenian people
have actually become hostages of the military regime and have remained
on the sidelines of the processes of regional and global development
for years. Armenians are hostages of business interests of a militarist
group. If severe measures are not taken against this group, you can
expect anything from them,’ Hasanov continued.

All the decisions taken by the Armenian president are not serious,
because the statement he voiced in one event contradicts his behavior
at subsequent meetings, the presidential official said.

‘Armenia is headed by a man, whose words contradict his actions,’
Hasanov added.

VATICAN PUBLISHES A DOCUMENTARY PROCLAIMING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AS A HISTORICAL FACT

Panorama
July 13 2011
Armenia

A documentary proclaiming Armenian genocide as a historical fact will
be soon published. The book will cover the records among the Catholic
clergymen of Vatican and Anatolia on massacre of Armenians in Ottoman
Era, “Ermenihaber.am” news website writes.

Referring to the Vatican radio, the website writes the records by
Pope of Rome Benedict 15 will be available in the book addressed to
the Turkish Sultan urging not to be so severe with Armenians.

The documentary will also cover facts according to which Turkish
vandals were cutting pregnant women’s uteruses to see if they had
guessed the sex of the child.

PRESS RELEASE
ARMENIAN ASSOCIATION OF PLASTIC RECONTRUCTIVE AND AESTHETIC SURGEONS
14 Titogradyan St, Yerevan 0087, Armenia
Dr. Gevorg Yaghjyan
Tel +37410 4707 09
FAX +37410 458287
E mail [email protected]
Web www.aaapras,org

The 3rd International AAPRAS Congress on `Unfavorable Results and
Complications in Plastic Surgery’ was successfully launched from the
28th to the 30th of June 2011 in Yerevan Armenia, attended by some of
the most renowned plastic surgeons in the world.

The working sessions of the congress, opened on June 28 with welcome
speeches of the Deputy Minister of Health of Armenia Mr. H. Kushkyan,
of the Rector of Yerevan State Medical University, Mr. Dumanian D., of
the IPRAS President Prof. Marita Eisenmann-Klein (Germany) and of the
ESPRAS President, Prof. Yiacoumettis Andreas (Greece).

After the opening ceremony, a press conference was held, covered by
popular Armenian Media and attended by numerous journalists. During
the press conference, important data like how to identify dangerous
skin tumors and techniques of breast reconstruction and augmentation
with implants or the patient`s own fat were presented. The outstanding
quality of plastic surgery in Armenia was underlined. Furthermore, an
introduction to the aims and scopes of IPRAS was made, stating that
the International Confederation intends to inform the public about
plastic surgery, highlighting also the IPRAS humanitarian missions.

During the last day of the congress, an innovative event was launched:
the Armenian Public Day on Plastic Surgery. The Public Day is an IPRAS
initiative, established on the purpose of inaugurating a dialogue
forum with the Public. For almost two hours, top plastic surgeons
informed and alerted on important issues such as breast reconstruction
with fat or implants-a subject of special interest to women patients
who lost their breast because of cancer or who suffer from breast
asymmetries or deformities, skin tumours, safety of the liposuction
procedure, etc. After their presentations, the plastic surgeons
received questions by the public and a vivid dialogue took place.

The congress was organized by the Armenian Association of Plastic
Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons, co-organized by the Yerevan
State Medical University and held under the auspices of IPRAS (the
International Confederation for Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic
Surgery), ESPRAS (the European Society for Plastic, Reconstructive and
Aesthetic Surgery) and ISAPS (the International Society of Aesthetic
Plastic Surgery).

Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region
104 North Belmont Street, Suite 200
Glendale, California 91206
Phone: 818.500.1918
[email protected]

PRESSf RELEASE July 13, 2011

Contact: Nayiri Baghdassarian
Tel: 818-500-1918

ANCA-WR Makes Donation to Yerevan’s School for Children with Special Needs

Glendale – The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region
(ANCA-WR) has donated two boxes of brand new t-shirts to the Armenian
Relief Society to send to Yerevan’s School for Children with Special
Needs in Armenia. The t-shirts were overstock from ANCA-WR events and
programs that had never been used, so the organization was eager to
give them to a good cause.

`We normally operate in the realm of American politics, however, when
the opportunity came up, the ANCA-WR was very happy to help those in
need in Armenia,’ said Executive Director William Bairamian.’We never
forget that there are Armenians living in bad circumstances and we
take every opportunity to help them when we can.’

Yerevan’s School for Children with Special Needs is a boarding school
in Armenia which provides free living and food to children from ages
six to fourteen. The school teaches their students how to interact
with others and other skills, such as how to use a computer. With
funding from the Ministry of Culture, the school has vocal, piano, and
drama clubs for their students. Also, the school provides Armenian and
Latin American dance classes for their students.

“The donation of these t-shirts will surely benefit students of this
school. We are aware of their needs and a contribution such as this is
another means by which they can connect with the Diaspora. We thank
the ANCA-WR for this donation, as well as their continuous support of
ARS programs and activities,” said Arousyak Melkonian, Chairperson of
the Armenian Relief Society of Western USA’s Regional Executive Board.

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the
largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy
organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination
with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the
Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country,
the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community
on a broad range of issues.

To learn more about the Armenian Relief Society, visit

###

Attached: ARS Logo

STRATEGIE ANTI-KOTCHARIAN ?
Jean Eckian

armenews.com
mercredi 13 juillet 2011

Malgre les apparences voulant que l’ancien president Levon Ter
Petrossian et l’actuel president d’Armenie, Serge Sarkissian, sont a
couteaux tires, force est de constater, selon le politologue Antranig
Tevanyan, chef du Centre de recherche Politeconomia, que Serge
Sarkissian a besoin d’engager un dialogue avec le Congrès National
Armenien (HAK), en vue d’utiliser l’audience de Petrossian. Pour lui,
il n’y a pas d’enormes differences entre les deux forces en termes
de loyaute et d’ideologie, en particulier par rapport aux relations
armeno-turques et armeno-azerbaïdjanaises.

Toujours selon Tevanyan, le dialogue s’etablira parce que Serge
Sarkissian a besoin du soutien de Levon Ter Petrossian. Pourquoi ?

Parce que la politique economique du gouvernement a echoue, que
Serge Sarkissian a egalement echoue dans la fumante diplomatie
du football, plongeant la politique etrangère du pays dans des
consequences negatives. “Je pense que ce dialogue vise aussi a
assurer une consolidation entre les deux hommes en termes du conflit
du Karabagh”, dit-il.

Le politologue explique que la cooperation entre les deux presidents
s’appuie en une strategie contre Robert Kotcharian. Selon lui,
etant donne que Sarkissian et Ter Petrossian n’ont pas de desaccord
concernant la politique etrangère et des affaires domestiques,
il serait preferable qu’ils s’unissent, par exemple, en vue des
prochaines elections. Des elections qui pourraient possiblement etre
anticipees si la situation au Karabagh venait a s’aggraver, creant
de facto un cas de force majeure.