Author: Kajoyan Gevork

THERE WILL BE PROGRESS IF POSITIVE TREND SEEN IN MOSCOW CONTINUES, ARMENIAN FM

Tert.am
14.06.11

The parties managed to bring their positions on some key closer at
the Moscow meeting of the foreign minister, and if this positive trend
continues we will see progress at the Kazan summit of the presidents,
Armenian foreign minister told a news conference today held jointly
with his Swedish counterpart.

He reiterated Armenia’s position that there is no alternative to a
peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict.

Referring to the Karabakh president’s statement about Karabakh’s
participation in the talks, Nalbandyan said he totally agrees with
Bako Sahakyan.

“It will be impossible to pass to the second phase without Karabakh
agreeing on the basis principles. The second phase will involve working
out a settlement agreement, and Nagorno Karabakh should take part in
that process,” he added.

GEVORG GEVORGYAN : DIFFERENTS PAYS SONT INTERESSES AU CINEMA ARMENIEN
Stephane

armenews.com
mardi 14 juin 2011

Le Centre national du cinema armenien a participe au Marche du film
pour la troisième fois d’affilee. Cette fois, le Centre du Cinema
a prepare des cartes postales speciales pour chaque film, ce qui a
permis aux spectateurs de nouer des contacts avec ses auteurs.

Selon le Directeur du Centre National du Cinema Gevorg Gevorgyan de
nombreux pays sont deja interesses par nos films. En consequence, les
accords sur une cooperation pour une distribution internationale ont
ete signes pour la première fois dans l’histoire du cinema armenien.

Soulignant l’importance du marche de Cannes pour les pays avec de
petits budgets pour les films comme l’Armenie, Gevorg Gevorgyan a
note : “La signature d’accords avec differents pays n’est pas la
fonction principale du centre du cinema. Notre tâche est de creer
des conditions favorables pour une cooperation avec differentes
organisations mondiales”.

Dust Control A Topic In Armenia

The Daily Review
BY ERIC HRIN ( Writer)

06-12-2011

ARMENIA TWP. – Township supervisors recently discussed dust control in
the township.

During their meeting this week, supervisors agreed to have supervisor
Leon Putnam contact Talisman to see if the company will again provide
dust control on the roads this year. Talisman covered the main roads
last year, township secretary Mallory Babcock said.

Supervisors agreed to put down a calcium mixture on the roads that would
not be covered by Talisman.

“They’re talking about putting it down about 200 feet in front of each
residence,” Babcock said. The township would pay for this, she said.

It was noted that the erosion problem on Mountain Avenue has been
resolved and the sluice pipe to be put in by the Morgans’ property on
Mountain Avenue has been delivered and it will be installed in the near
future.

Babcock said the township has sent out acceptance letters to Cross
Excavating, which was awarded the bid for gravel, and Matthews Trucking,
which was awarded the bid for cinders.

Babcock noted the township has received a letter announcing the schedule
for environmental review for a natural gas pipeline project in the
township.

The taxpayers’ picnic will be held the last Sunday in July in the
township, but a location hasn’t been decided yet and will be announced
in the future.

Four road crossing permits were issued in May to Tennessee Gas, the
supervisors learned.

Matt Riel of AES told the supervisors that the wind farm operations are
going well. He added that a semi-annual maintenance cycle is done. In
addition, he said that, during the last high winds, the wind generators
shut down, which they are designed to do.

Eric Hrin can be reached at (570) 297-5251; e-mail:
[email protected].

HALF OF ARMENIAN POOR CONSIDER THEY REALLY ARE

news.am
June 13 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN.- Although the number of poor has doubled in Armenia since
2008, only 50% of those in this group consider themselves poor,
said Armenian sociologist Aharon Adibekyan.

“It is a way of psychological protection. People do not want to admit
they are poor psychologically. Thus, no “rebellious social groups”
are formed,” he said.

Sociologist also stressed that the number of optimists in Armenia
prevails.

“Forty percent of respondents are optimists, while only 2% –
pessimists. The group of optimists includes women, young people,
students, unmarried and people with higher education,” he added.

GEORGES KAZAZIAN TO PERFORM IN GENAINA

Al-Ahram

June 13 2011
Egypt

Georges Kazazian, oud player and composer, will perform next Thursday,
16 June at the Genaina Theatre in Azhar ParkAhram Online, Monday 13
Jun 2011

The Cairo-born Georges Kazazian, of Armenian descent, has performed at
some of the most prestigious festivals around the world and composed
soundtracks for several films including Aly Badrakhan’s Al Goua
(The hunger) and Mohamed Khan’s Zawget Ragol Mohem (The Wife of an
Important Man). His music is hard to box into one genre, but it is
sometimes called Egyptian Jazz. However, it also frequently reveals
Indian and Armenian influences.

His albums include Sabil (1991), Sagate (1997), Sajaya (1997), Nil
Sangit (1999), Suite “al Ganûb” (1999), Monaga (2001), Azraq (2002),
Dayra Jazz (2002), Neel Dhun (2008) and Zafir (2008).

The concert will start at 8pm at Al Azhar Park located on Saleh Salem
Road in Cairo.

IRANIAN FILM OPENS ARMENIAN GOLDEN APRICOT FEST

Iranian Students News Agency
June 13 2011
Iran

TEHRAN (ISNA)-The Yerevan-based Golden Apricot Film Festival opens with
“Certified Copy” by Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami.

The 6th edition of the event runs on July 10-17 as it hosts 150
feature films from 45 countries.

Juliette Binoche won Best Actress Award in Cannes Film Festival in
2010 for the Iranian film.

“Certified Copy” has already taken part in film festivals of Rio de
Janeiro, Melbourne, New York, Abu Dhabi and Chicago.

The film narrates story of British writer James Miller (Shimell)
who is in Tuscany (Italy) to give a talk about his new book, titled
“Certified Copy”, which argues that, in art, issues of authenticity
are irrelevant, because every reproduction is itself an original and
even the original is a copy of another form.

A French antiques dealer, whose name is never given (Binoche),
attends the talk with her 11-year-old son in order to have Miller
sign the copies she has bought of the book, but has to leave early
because her son is hungry.

Asian connections

THINK ASIAN

By ANDREW SHENG

As he traces the Armenian exploits in Asia, Andrew Sheng feels
welcoming talents from small countries and giving them space to weave
their webs can impact a host greatly.

What is the connection between Hong Kong, Yangon, Singapore, Penang,
Surabaya, Calcutta and Shell Oil? Answer: The Armenian connection.

In fact, there are Armenian Streets in Singapore, Penang, New Delhi,
Kolkata, Chennai (Madras) and Dhakka (Bangladesh). Armenian Street in
Penang is today also called the street of harmony, because there are
Muslim mosques, Chinese temples and Indian temples all in the same
vicinity. An odd fact of history is that three Armenian churches have
been built on No. 2, Armenian Street in Calcutta, Dacca and Madras. Is
that a coincidence?

My thought for today was inspired by my good friend Bernard Chan’s
reference to Hong Kong street names, particularly Chater Road. Having
worked in Chater House, I had not realized that Sir Catchick Paul
Chater was born of Armenian parents in Calcutta in 1846 and became a
successful businessman in Hong Kong, having co-founded Hongkong Land
with the Keswicks and also a steward at the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Armenians are probably the largest diaspora in the world in relative
terms, as there are 11 million Armenians with 3 million living in
Armenia, compared with 13 million Jewish population worldwide, of
which 5.7 million reside in Israel.

Magic touch: Hong Kong in all its splendour – thanks to a magical
touch in the past by a relatively small community.

Armenians in the Far East came via India, mostly as merchants, the
most famous being Thomas Cana, a rich merchant arriving in Kerala in
780 AD. The earliest reference to an Armenian in the Far East is the
gravestone of Jacob Shameer in Malacca, born in New Julfa, Isfahan,
Persia who died on Jan 3, 1746.

In the 17th and 18th century, Armenians were already important traders
of Indian goods for the Russian and Italian markets. Based from their
foothold of Surat in India, they began the China trade, noting in 1783
that they lost lots of money in a ship from China because of the
Anglo-French war.

In 1797, there is a letter describing Armenian trading from Madras to
Penang, but sailing to Malacca, where they were attacked by three
French frigates and lost all their possessions. But they lived to
trade another day.

There is no doubt that Armenian entrepreneurs played an important
mercantile role in British colonial history in the Far East. Singapore
was founded by Sir Thomas Raffles in 1819. By 1835, the small Armenian
community in Singapore had grown prosperous enough to build the
Armenian Church of Saint Gregory, the second Christian church to be
built in Singapore.

Anyone who has travelled in the Far East would have stayed in the
chain of hotels that the Armenian Sarkies brothers (Martin, Arshak,
Aviet and Tigran) founded in the key commercial cities the Eastern &
Oriental Hotel in Penang (1885), the Strand Hotel in Yangon (1896),
the Raffles Hotel in Singapore (1899) and the Majapahit Hotel in
Surabaya (1910). At one time, the Sarkies family also owned the
Adelphi Hotel in Singapore.

In addition to the church and Raffles Hotel, the Armenian contribution
to Singapore included the founding of the newspaper, Straits Times by
Catchick Moses in 1845 and the orchid Vanda Miss Joaquim, named after
Agnes Joaquim, which is today the national flower of Singapore.

The Royal Dutch Shell plc, today the second largest energy company in
the world, was created in 1907 from the merger of the Royal Dutch
Petroleum Company (1890) and the British Shell Transport and Trading
Company, founded by the Samuel brothers in 1897. From its earliest
days, the history of oil was dominated by global giants.

Shell was formed mainly in the face of competition from the rise of
the Rockefeller owned Standard Oil, which was broken up in 1911 and
its successors became today’s ExxonMobil, Chevron, Amoco and
ConocoPhillips. Royal Dutch Shell made the first oil discovery in East
Sumatra where production began in 1885.

Few people realised that it was the Armenian oil trader Calouste
Sarkis Gulbenkian (1869-1955) who arranged the merger between the two
companies. During his time, he was probably one of the wealthiest men
in the world, starting in the Russian oil industry and being one of
the first to explore oil in Iraq, then part of the Ottoman empire,
through the consortium Turkish Petroleum Company.

Even though he was reputedly offered sole ownership of the Iraqi oil
concession, he believed in partnership with those European companies
which had the ability and capacity to develop the oil fields. He was
famous for being Mr 5%, retaining 5% of all his deals, which included
the Shell merger.

Most people remember him for the Museum Gulbenkian in Lisbon, which
houses his wonderful collection of art. The Museum is a treasure house
full of choice pieces from the whole range of art from Mesopotamia,
Eastern Islamic and a stunning collection of Lalique crystal pieces.

Fans of modern Lalique should go to Lisbon just to see what was
possible when the artist Rene Lalique (1860-1945) was at the height of
his creative powers. There is a whole room in the Gulbenkian museum
dedicated to his glass and jewelry pieces that are a must to visit
when you go to Lisbon.

When you realise that such a small community of immigrants from a
small country in West Asia can make such a footprint in history in the
rest of Asia, you begin to understand the importance and opportunities
of globalisation.

Globalisation is not about quantity, but the quality of
interconnection between different parts of the world. Small
communities of traders have made possible the trading of goods and
services around the world, even in the days when communication was
difficult. Indeed, their foresight and ability to see opportunities
and to create partnerships and mergers of new enterprise in new fields
is their hallmark of success.

These communities thrived on knowledge, research and innovation.

The footprints of Armenian traders and investors, past and present,
suggest to us that talented people from small countries have a lot to
offer the rest of the world. It is no wonder that cities that welcomed
and allowed these communities to flourish became themselves the
centres of trading and commerce in Asia, especially Hong Kong and
Singapore.

Andrew Sheng is author of the book, From Asian to Global Financial Crisis.

85 to15

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 13:51:00 – 11/06/2011

These numbers are discussed backstage in the following context: are
the recent developments and the government-Congress process determined
by external or internal factors. 85 and 15 are the percentages.

Both the Congress and the government deny any intervention or
compulsion from the outside.

The Congress says it does not need the dialogue, the government needs
it. The leader of the Congress announced this.

For its part, the government says there is no need to think on a
format or delegation to start a dialogue. The dialogue could be
conducted through press and roundtables, for instance. It is true that
Serzh Sargsyan has not uttered his stance yet. In fact, the government
says it does not need the dialogue.

Interestingly, each of the parties to the `dialogue’ acts as if it
does not need the dialogue. Here is a touching case of piety: think
for your opponent.

In this case, it is vague why the process was initiated at all if we
believe the authorities and the Congress who claim it was not imposed
from the outside. In other words, 85 percent was an internal
initiative.

New video shows Border Troops on Liberty Square on 1 March 2008

20:39 – 08.06.11

YouTube user, nicknamed as martimek2008, has published a video footage
that shows that Border Troops on Liberty Square during the
post-election unrest on 1-2 March in 2008.

The video, that lasts only six seconds, has subtitles that say that
National Security Border Troops on Liberty Square in the morning of 1
March 2008, armed with machine guns and other weapons.

The National Security Border Troops are part of the Border Troops of
the Russian Federation.

The video can be reached here.

Tert.am

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
June 13 2011

Turkey: challenges and achievements

12 June 2011, Sunday / MOHAMMED AYOUB*

The dawn of progress seems to have arrived for the people of Turkey.
After decades of tumult, unrest, denial of freedom and economic
deprivation Turkey is marching towards liberation. Contrary to the
expectations of `anarchists,’ the `Imam’s army’ is taking the country
to the peaks of prosperity and progress.

For a couple of generations, the Turkish population was under a dark
cloud of fear, paranoia, distrust and despair. People were harassed
and prosecuted for standing up for their rights and freedoms. The
majority Muslim population was taken hostage by ultra-secularist
policies on the pretext of democracy and secularism, denying them the
most fundamental principles of freedom of religion and speech. Under
the guise of separation of `church’ and state, policies were put in to
marginalize the majority of the country.

People who practiced any religion were kept away from positions of
authority in the military, judiciary, civil service and many major
areas of government. After controlling the majority it was very easy
to make minorities obedient by killing important figures in their
communities and blaming such acts on the majority to promote an
environment of terror. The brutal killings of Christian missionaries
Necati Aydın, UÄ?ur Yüksel and Tilman Geske in Malatya are the most
recent examples. The plan to kill Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew
I is another grave instance in that regard. The killing of
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was a similar move to push
Armenians over the edge. The parts of the country worst affected were
the Kurdish regions. They were the epicenter for the start of the
terror campaign. Those regions were affected the most due to this
violence.

Since the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) came into power, it
has made an extraordinary effort to overhaul the system. They have
been very successful so far, though there are still big challenges
ahead of them in gaining the confidence of the people. The majority
Sunni population feels that now they will have the opportunities they
were denied so far. The Armenian initiative put forward by the
government is a major step to alleviate the fears of Armenians. The
inroads the AK Party has made in the Kurdish region is an indication
of how the Kurdish population is starting to trust it. The positive
statements by Kurdish intellectuals about participating in nation
building and the popularity of the party in the Kurdish region are
clear indications of the atmosphere of trust in the country. The
offering of Turkish citizenship to the possible future patriarch of
the Greek Orthodox Church was greatly appreciated by the patriarchate.
This symbolic gesture and other steps taken to dispel the fears of the
Christian community have boosted the confidence of Christians in
believing that real change is happening. Overall every group in the
country is able to feel a sense of security now.

The most significant development is the liberation of the press. The
media, which was overwhelmingly pro-military by default, is freeing
itself from the shackles of military control. Journalists feel free to
tell the truth without fear of being persecuted. Even those who are
trying to portray Ergenekon as conspiracy theory, despite the volumes
of real evidence, can freely opine. It is the liberation of the press
which has exposed the inner workings of the clandestine operations
behind the junta rule.

The transfer of power from military to the civil authority is a major
step even though the military still asserts itself whenever they get a
chance. The expansion of the authority of the Supreme Board of Judges
and Prosecutors (HSYK) is a significant step towards the reform of the
judiciary, but the removal of prosecutor Zekeriya Ã-z from the
Ergenekon trial is an indication that the judiciary is still a long
way from correcting itself. What is entailed in constitutional reforms
is still not very clear. The silence on part of major political
parties regarding the constitutional changes that are going to take
place is deafening.

On the economic front Turkey has made major advances. The economy is
constantly growing despite the fear of recession across the globe. The
announcement of major projects in Ä°stanbul, including the Kanal
Ä°stanbul project, the building of tunnels under the Bosporus, the
creation of two new earthquake-proof cities around Ä°stanbul, will
bring millions of jobs to the city. Similar projects will be needed
soon around all major cities in Turkey to decrease congestion and
stimulate growth. Government also will have to institute policies and
provide financial incentives to promote small businesses and
small-scale industries because they are the foundation of an
innovative and progressive economy. Education should be subsidized and
made easily available at lower cost to encourage people to pursue
higher goals.

Turkey’s internal stability also depends on regional stability. The
Kurdish and Armenian issues are both domestic and regional. The
immediate neighborhood of Turkey is full of conflict and chronic
unresolved disputes. The stabilization of the region is also essential
for the stability of Turkey. With that in mind, the leadership is
actively involved in helping the neighbors resolve their conflicts.
The restoration of the 10th-century Church of Akdamar is an important
gesture in reconciling with Armenia. Turkey is also helping Armenia
and Azerbaijan negotiate a settlement for their territorial disputes.

The stability of a very complex situation in Balkans is also very
essential. Turkey is playing a major role in that region. Its friendly
relationship with all the countries involved in the conflict has been
a great advantage for it to be a mediator. Turkey and Serbia have a
healthy trade relationship, much like other countries in the region
and Turkey. This gives Turkey the leverage it needs to be a mediator.

The recent talk of building strategic relations, including a visa-free
regime, between Ukraine and Turkey completes the full circle of
cooperation of Turkey with all the nations around the Black Sea. This
is the final piece of the puzzle, which will complete the process of
regional cooperation in the Black Sea region. This partnership will
help greatly stabilize both the Balkans and Caucasus regions.

The North Caucasus region is another turbulent part of the landscape.
It has been a battleground for a long time now. The leader of the
Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, in collaboration with the central
Russian authorities is providing very bold and dynamic leadership. He
is creating opportunities for youth to keep them away from terrorism
and bring economic progress for the people. He is emerging as a role
model for the leaders of the other republics to emulate. Turkey has an
opportunity in this region to provide infrastructural and educational
development. This partnership can bring the necessary capital to the
region to create economic and political stability.

The Kurdish issue is also closely connected with all the other Kurdish
regions of Iran, Iraq and Syria. The leadership of the AK Party is
closely working with all the players involved. Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan’s enthusiastic welcome by Kurds in Arbil is an
indication of the trust of Kurds in his leadership. This also brings
us to the recent turmoil in the broader Middle East, which will have a
very significant impact on Turkey. The unrest in Syria is affecting
Turkey directly. Turkey has developed very close bilateral and
multilateral relations with Syria in the region. The outcome in Syria
is very important for the future of these relationships.

The pulse of Prime Minister ErdoÄ?an’s team’s policy as regards Middle
Eastern developments is very palpable. They are very clear in what
their expectations are regarding the outcome. The steps they are
taking and the statements they are issuing show that they know the
major players in the conflict, and the solution has to come from a
consensus between all those who are involved. But they are very clear
that the ultimate goal has to be to give priority to the people of the
region. Any settlement made irrespective of who takes charge, people
should get their dignity, freedom, right to pursue their dreams
without any obstacles and most of all economic prosperity. They are
tirelessly working to achieve these goals and persuading the powers
that be to understand that it is time for change after decades of
deprivation of human dignity, disregard for the will of people, denial
of basic needs and devastation of the fabric of life.

Turkey’s achievements are remarkable, especially when we look at the
challenges it has faced. This will make Turks proud of their choice.

*Mohammed Ayoub is a psychiatrist specializing in child, adolescent
and adult psychiatry and resides in Houston, Texas.