Author: Kajoyan Gevork

AYP FM
Ara Toranian et Mourad Papazian : le voyage de François Hollande en
Turquie et le dîner du CCAF

Ara Toranian et Mourad Papazian, co-présidents du CCAF, sont les
invités de l’émission Cartes sur table, présentée par Hasmig Papazian
et consacrée à la négation du génocide arménien, le voyage de François
Hollande en Turquie. Avec l’intervention de Vartan Kaprielian, envoyé
spécial à Ankara et Istanbul durant le visite du président, qui
témoigne de son vécu sur place. Un autre volet est consacré au dîner
annuel du CCAF avec l’interview de Christiane Taubira et les échos de
la soirée.

En direct ICI Rediffusion dimanche matin à 9h30

Armenia TV au dîner annuel du CCAF

samedi 1er février 2014,
Jean Eckian (c)armenews.com

PEACE NEGOTIATIONS IN PARIS, BORDER SKIRMISHES AT HOME

Today’s Zaman
Jan 31 2014

ZAUR SHIRIYEV

The past ten days have seen escalating border skirmishes between
Armenian and Azerbaijani troops, marking one of the most prolonged
“tit-for-tat” clashes for at least the last three years and with
several fatalities reported on both sides.

Along with the worrying fact that the conflicts seem to be continuing,
the biggest threat is the emergence of biased reports and faked video
footage. This climate of misinformation is contributing the tension
and no one knows how or when it will end.

In the shadow of border skirmishes, on Jan. 24, the foreign ministers
of Azerbaijan and Armenia and the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group
met in Paris to follow up on their meeting in Kiev on Dec. 5, 2013.

The objective was to prepare for a bilateral presidential meeting,
but the only reported agreement reached was for the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairs to travel to the region next month.

An analysis of the border skirmishes will enable a more detailed
assessment of the consequences of these current tensions.

Azerbaijani media reported on the border skirmishes on Jan. 19-20. The
skirmishes did not raise any flags; they were portrayed as typical
behavior by Armenian armed forces. But the situation intensified in
the following days and on the day of the Paris meeting, Azerbaijani
military aircraft flew over the contact line of Azerbaijani and
Armenian troops, signaling the worsening situation. This was followed
by the deaths of Azerbaijani soldiers and officers. The Armenian
media accused the Azerbaijani side of provoking the Jan. 19-20 border
skirmishes.

Local observers from both sides, Armenian experts in particular,
claimed that Azerbaijan provoked the clashes around the time of the
Paris meeting in order to bring the international community’s attention
to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, there are several arguments
against this interpretation:

First of all, the best way to get the international community’s
attention is to make the Paris meeting a success, i.e., by setting
the date for the presidential meeting. Given that at the moment,
the international community is focused on the World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland, the best venue for discussion of the fragile
status of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict would be Davos. Alternatively,
the 50th Munich Security Forum that will bring together diplomats and
politicians would be a good place to highlight the issue. Indeed, it
seems as if the fighting is counterproductive to achieving progress on
a resolution. As OSCE Minsk Group Co-chair and US State Department
Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf emphasized, the recent incidents
undermine negotiations and diminish the prospects for peace.

Second, in terms of understanding the evolution of the situation,
it is helpful to analyze the language of the two statements issued by
the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the Paris meeting
and the day after. The Azerbaijani ministry’s Jan. 24 statement is
quite diplomatic, indicating prospects for a peaceful resolution with
references to “succinct, concrete and intense discussion.” The same
statement stressed that the basis for bilateral negotiations is the
restoration of territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan.

But the very next day, the ministry’s second statement used much
harsher language, declaring that “Armenia continues its provocative
actions, making threats and purposefully worsening the situation,”
while speaking about the confidence and peace-building measures in an
effort to deceive and divert attention. One can argue that this is a
diplomatic maneuver; it is not in Azerbaijan’s interest to highlight
the border skirmishes. On the other hand, if it was a deliberate
“maneuver,” then it doesn’t make sense that the Jan. 24 statement
was relatively positive. Surely the press office would have drafted
something more along the lines of, “Due to Armenia’s unconstructive
position the meeting has not achieved any fruitful results.”

The other claim is that Azerbaijan is using these border skirmishes
to demonstrate official Baku’s military power and that Azerbaijan’s
new minister of defense (appointed in October 2013) has been seeking a
suitable moment to show the Azerbaijani army’s combat readiness under
his command. In reply to this argument, we can say both “yes” and
“no.” “No,” because border skirmishes do not provide a good venue to
showcase military readiness, since in such cases the Azerbaijani army
forces only serve to prevent Armenia’s violations of the ceasefire
conditions. If the idea was to demonstrate military readiness, then
a military operation would be required, as well as greater losses by
the Armenian army.

On the other hand, we could say “yes” on the basis that since Jan. 25,
Azerbaijan has been preparing for possibly more serious clashes, as
the situation continues to intensify. High-level military commanders
in Baku are sending the message to the public that the country is
ready for war if diplomatic negotiations fail. Thus, on Jan. 28,
the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense held a closed discussion on the
army’s combat readiness and the necessary preparation under the Prime
Minister’s chairmanship. Long-term observers can confirm that this
is a fairly unusual measure and leaking the meeting to the media is
probably intended to reassure the public.

In this light, speculation of a worsening situation abounds. The
major consequence of the border skirmishes could be the failure of the
Azerbaijani and Armenian presidential meeting, which is anticipated to
take place around the opening of the Winter Olympics in the Russian
city of Sochi, between Feb. 7 and 23, where numerous countries’
presidents will be in attendance. In relation to Sochi, it should also
be pointed out that the continuation of border skirmishes is not in
the interests of Russia, as recent terrorist attacks in the run-up
to the Olympics have already damaged Russia’s public image. Further
indications of instability in the Caucasus region will likely deter
foreign visitors from going to Sochi. For that reason, it is likely
that Russia will intervene diplomatically to prevent further border
clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

ARMENIAN STUDENT ASSOCIATION STANDS SILENTLY IN REMEMBRANCE OF GENOCIDE

Daily Sundial (CSUN), California
Jan 31 2014

Published on January 30, 2014 By Araceli Castillo

Students of the CSUN Armenian Student Association (ASA) organized a
silent protest in front of the Oviatt Library on Thursday.

Throughout the California State Universities, members of ASA protested
to bring awareness to the Armenian Genocide of 1915, when the Turkish
government sought to deport and massacre the Armenians living in the
Ottoman Empire.

Presently, the Turkish government does not acknowledge these events.

Despite pressure from Armenians and social justice advocates throughout
the world, it is still illegal in Turkey to talk about what happened
to Armenians during this era.

Alina Sarkissian, president of the ASA, said, “We are always fighting
for Justice.”

The annual protest, called the “Stain of Denial,” started three
years ago.

Alpha Gamma Alpha and Alpha Epsilon Omega also participated in the
organization of the protest.

Students of all ethnicities were sitting on Matador Walk holding
posters saying “End the Cycle” and “99 years of Denial”. All
participants had their mouths duct taped.

Hovannes Stepanian, senior, participated in the protest to bring
attention to the genocide.

“We want people to think and start questioning,” he said. “It’s best
if we know the truth.”

Presently, the Turkish government, along with the United States,
does not acknowledge these events.

Syria is the most recent country to recognize the Genocide, bringing
the total to 22.

Hakop Oganasyan, president of Alpha Epsilon Omega explained said the
gag rule in Turkey is not bringing awareness to the genocide.

“We want recognition of not just the Armenian Genocide but of all
genocides past and present,” Oganasyan said.

Gustavo Patino, a sophomore who passed by the protest said, “There was
something that happened in history that many Armenians suffered from
and if there are laws that prevent any human speech, their natural
born rights, the people should be able to abolish the government.”

GLENDALE FIRM USES ARMENIAN WORKERS TO CREATE LIFESTYLE APP CATERED TO WOMEN

Glendale News Press, CA
Jan 31 2014

By Tim Traeger, [email protected]

January 31, 2014 | 12:30 p.m.

A Glendale technology company has launched a lifestyle application
for Apple smartphones designed in the United States, but with much
of its development and coding done by workers in Armenia.

The Inlight App, aimed at women, provides mobile access to articles
and lists on topics such as life, love, family and health, according
to Nishe Modoyan, marketing manager for IconApps, Inc.

Apple featured the app, launched Tuesday, as one of the best new
lifestyle applications nearly immediately, she said.

The company has 14 employees, half of whom work in Armenia.

“Social impact is important to our company identity. Currently
unemployment is extremely high in Armenia and the tech field is a great
sector that can help lower those numbers,” Modoyan said. “These highly
skilled jobs don’t depend on your geographic location and this allows
you to earn a good living in your field without having to leave the
country in which you were born and raised.”

IconApps founder and chief executive Al Eisaian said unemployment
might be high within traditional industries in Armenia, but not
in technology.

“They are the best-paying jobs in the market,” said Eisaian, 49, who
was born in Iran but is of Armenian descent. “As far as employment
in the technology sector, Armenian developers can compete with anyone.

There’s a long tradition of technological innovation and standards
in Armenia, even when it was part of the Soviet Union.”

Eisaian said he’s relying on advertising to support the app, as
Inlight can be downloaded for free at Apple’s App Store.

“If you look at Instagram, they (initially) had no revenue or profit.

Eventually a lot of people used them and they figured out how
to monetize it,” Eisaian said. “It takes awhile to figure out the
business model, but we have a very lucrative audience of tech-savvy
women. A lot of brands would be very interested in getting contextual
and valuable advertising messages across.

“It could be awareness-building,” he said. “A diaper company might
want to sell a diaper service to moms. Safeway might want to sell a
delivery service. The monetization will take care of itself.”

Visit to view the app.

,0,1687741.story

COURT REJECTS CONTROVERSIAL POLICE OFFICER’S REMOVAL OVER NEGLIGENCE IN DINK’S MURDER

Hurriyet Daily News , Turkey
Jan 30 2014

Fevzi KIZILKOYUNANKARA – Hurriyet

Ramazan Akyurek was removed from his position right after the Dec. 17
corruption and graft operation, along with hundreds of other senior
police officers.

An Ankara court rejected the dismissal of Ramazan Akyurek, the head
of Inspection Board in the Police Department.

The Interior Ministry defended its decision on the basis that the
police officer in question tarnished the image and credibility of
the police department over his negligence on Hrant Dink’s murder.

Akyurek was removed from his position right after the Dec. 17
corruption and graft operation, along with hundreds of other senior
police officers.

The Ankara 16th Administrative Court suspended the execution upon
Akyurek’s appeal. The Interior Ministry defended its decision in a
statement to the court that, “allegations about him detracted the
police department’s credibility and image.” The ministry also said,
“The appointment of such a controversial police officer to the head
of Inspection Board was hurting public conscious.”

But the court challenged the ministry’s defense and recalled that
Akyurek received two promotions in the aftermath of Dink’s murder and
said, “As such allegations were not seen as obstacle before giving a
promotion to him, they cannot be shown as a reason for his dismissal
either.”

In its reasoning, the court recalled that Akyurek was first appointed
as the head of the Department of Strategy Development and then as the
head of the Inspection Board in the Police Department Headquarters,
emphasizing allegations about him have never been proven.

Ramazan Akyurek served as the head of the police in the Black Sea
province of Trabzon between Dec. 2003 and May 2006, whereas Father
Andrea Santoro was murdered on Feb. 2006. Officer Akyurek then served
as the head of Police Intelligence between May 2006 and Oct. 2009,
during which time Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was also
murdered in Jan. 2007.

Erhan Tuncel, a former police informant in Trabzon, said he had warned
the local police about Dink’s murder in 2007. It subsequently came
to light, however, that Ramazan Akyurek, the chief of the Trabzon
police at the time, had conveyed only one out of 11 notices to the
Istanbul Police Department.

The Interior Ministry discharged Akyurek from his post in relation
to those accusations in October and appointed him as an expert to the
Department of Strategy Development. Hrant Dink, the former chief editor
of the weekly Agos, a paper published in both Armenian and Turkish,
was shot to death in front of his office on Jan. 19, 2007.

January/30/2014

ARMENIA SHOULD HURRY JOINING CUSTOMS UNION, DEPUTY MINISTER SAYS

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Jan 30 2014

30 January 2014 – 2:53pm

Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharyan told the Cabinet
today that Armenia should not be late joining the Customs Union,
News.am reports.

The official clarified that Armenia should conclude the process in
2014 to become part of the Eurasian Union (a merger of the Customs
Union and the Common Economic Space) by January 1, 2015. Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan said in Moscow on September 3, 2013, that
the goal should be accomplished in 2014.

Armenia’s preparations to join the Customs Union should be completed
by May.

VERDUGO VIEWS: DISTINGUISHED ALUM HAS ARMENIAN HERITAGE

Glendale News Press, CA
Jan 30 2014

January 29, 2014|By Katherine Yamada

Paul Ignatius as Student Body President at Hoover High… (Courtesy
of the…)

Glendale native Paul Ignatius, retired Secretary of the Navy, will
be honored at this year’s Glendale Educational Foundation event as
a distinguished Hoover High alumnus.

Born in 1920, Ignatius grew up on Columbus Avenue in a Spanish-style
house with a red tile roof and five apricot trees in the backyard;
a reminder of a time when the entire area was covered in orchards,
he wrote in his memoirs, published in 2000.

He started school at Field Elementary — a long walk, he recalled. Then
Keppel opened in 1928 and he walked there with neighborhood friends.

Not only did Ignatius attend Eleanor J. Toll Junior High, the woman for
whom the school was named lived across the street on Columbus Avenue.

Growing up, he gave little thought to his Armenian heritage.

“There were no Armenian kids in our school except us,” he said of
himself and his siblings. Nor could he speak the language. It wasn’t
until much later that he focused on his family’s history and learned
that both parents, Elisa Jamgochian and Hovsep Ignatius, were born
in Armenia.

His maternal grandfather, Avedis Jamgochian, brought his family,
including Elisa, to England in 1893 and they prospered there, but
had to leave for health reasons.

They came to California in 1911. Jamgochian built a large house in
Tropico and eventually invested in a soap factory, along with other
business ventures. Elisa befriended a young photographer, Edward
Weston, and gave him one of his first exhibits, “a small affair for
family and neighbors.”

Ignatius’ father was 19 when he came to the United States in 1904,
directly from “the old country,” with his three brothers. They
settled in Pittsburgh, where they dropped the patronymic “ian” from
their names.

When H.B. Ignatius, as he was later known, attended a Shriners’
Convention in Los Angeles in 1912, he looked up Jamgochian, well
known for writing letters and poems in Armenian newspapers published
in the United States. He was introduced to Elisa, decided to move to
Glendale and they married a few years later.

During the aftermath of the massacres of 1915, H.B. Ignatius was asked
to join the Near East Relief Committee, “the only Armenian in this
distinguished group,” his son wrote. “Of all his many fundraising
activities, this one gave him the most satisfaction.”

SCOUTS OF THE RUSSIAN MILITARY BASE IN ARMENIA UNDERGO A SPECIAL COURSE OF RAPID FIRING ON SKIS

DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
January 29, 2014 Wednesday

Source: Website of the Defense Ministry of Russia, January 27, 2014

More than 600 servicemen of reconnaissance units of the Russian
military base in Armenia started field exercises at training center
Kamkhud. The scouts will work out actions for passing through a special
strip, will perform training and control firing in daytime and at
night and will have sparring exercises in hand-to-hand fighting and
knife fighting. A new method will be used during training of scouts
for the first time. This is working out of rapid firing skills during
movement on skis on mountain and rock terrain taking into account
the winter ballistic corrections. In the framework of a special rapid
firing course servicemen will do exercises in correct use of weapons
during movement on skis, as well as in selection and transfer of
firing at group targets.

CALIF. ASSEMBLY UNANIMOUSLY APPROVES GENOCIDE CURRICULUM BILL

Wednesday, January 29th, 2014

Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian speaks on AB 659

SACRAMENTO– Despite heavy opposition by pro-Turkey lobbying groups,
the California State Assembly voted unanimously, today, to pass
Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian’s bill, AB 659, encouraging schools to
use oral histories when teaching about the Armenian Genocide. AB 659
will now move on to State Senate for consideration.

“The unanimous passage of AB 659 sends a strong message that
California officials cannot be bought or bullied into denying truth and
justice. The ANCA WR commends Assemblymembers Nazarian and Achadjian
for spearheading through this important genocide education legislation
and looks forward to working with them in garnering similar support
in the State Senate,” stated Elen Asatryan, Executive Director of
the ANCA-WR.

“AB 659 has enjoyed overwhelming support from my colleagues in
the Assembly,” commented Assemblymember Nazarian, following the
vote. “I look forward to continuing to work with the ANCA-WR to
garner support from our counterparts in the Senate. The personal
testimonies of Genocide survivors will give educators a powerful tool
to engage students in the subject matter in ways they have never been
taught before. If we expect to stop the genocides of the future,
it is important that we strengthen the teaching mechanisms on past
genocides,” he continued.

Joining Nazarian as co-authors AB 659 were State Senator Mark Wyland
(R) and Assemblymembers Katcho Achadjian (R), Steve Fox (D), Mike Gatto
(D), Scott Wilk (R), and Cheryl Brown (D). Other members of the State
Assembly who spoke in support of the measure during the floor session
today were Assemblymembers Tim Donnelly (R) and Diane Harkey (R).

Assemblymember Achadjian, principal co-author on AB 659, worked closely
with his Republican colleagues to secure broad bipartisan support
for the measure, noted, “I am proud to be a principal co-author of
AB 659. Part of ensuring a better world for our children includes
educating them about the past. We must take the initiative to recognize
such tragic acts of violence in order to prevent such events from
happening again. It encourages teachers to educate our students on
the Armenian Genocide.”

Earlier this month, AB 659 was unanimously adopted by the State
Assembly Education and Appropriations Committees. Education Committee
Chairwoman Joan Buchanan explained, “It is important for California
students to understand and learn from the lessons of history, including
the atrocities of genocide around the world. I am proud to support
AB 659, which encourages schools to include the Armenian genocide in
our history courses.”

In the weeks leading up to State Assembly consideration of the
measure, the ANCA Western Region worked closely with legislators to
ensure they learned of the Armenian American community’s enthusiastic
support for the measure. “Grassroots efforts are critical for the
success of such legislation, particularly in light of the increasingly
aggressive lobbying campaigns which are being mounted by Turkey and
Azerbaijan. In these times, it is especially important to activate our
grassroots, because while we may be outspent by our adversaries, active
participation by our community makes a difference,” added Asatryan.

Once adopted by the State Senate and signed into law by the Governor,
AB 659 would encourage the incorporation of oral testimony and teacher
training, such that the Genocide may be more comprehensively taught
in California’s public schools.

The Genocide Education Project (GenEd), a non-profit organization
based in San Francisco which has developed model resources for high
school teachers regarding the Armenian Genocides, hailed the measure.

“With the proper materials and training, teachers can incorporate
the Armenian Genocide into their social studies curriculum in a
meaningful way,” said Roxanne Makasdjian of The Genocide Education
Project. “This resolution reminds education administrators across the
state of California’s commitment to the inclusion of the Armenian
Genocide as an essential part of its courses on world history,
genocide, and human rights.”

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.

LE GENOCIDE ARMENIEN RESTE UN SUJET SENSIBLE

L’Union- France
27 janv. 2014

Le lundi 27 janvier 2014, première journee de sa visite d’Etat en
Turquie, le president e la Republique francaise Francois Hollande, a
exhorte la Turquie a faire son “travail de memoire” sur les massacres
de centaines de milliers d’Armeniens par l’empire ottoman en 1915. “Le
travail de memoire est toujours douloureux, mais doit etre fait”,
a-t-il declare lors d’une conference de presse avec son homologue turc,
Abdullah Gul. La Turquie refuse de qualifier les evenements de 1915 de
“genocide”.

Interroge sur une eventuelle nouvelle loi francaise reprimant la
negation du genocide, le chef de l’Etat a assure que la France “fera
le droit et rien que le droit”.

Les relations franco-turques ont ete emaillees par plusieurs
crises depuis l’adoption en 2001 par le Parlement francais d’une loi
reconnaissant le genocide armenien, suivie de tentatives legislatives
avortees pour en reprimer la negation. La dernière, adoptee en
decembre 2011 par le Parlement avec le soutien de Nicolas Sarkozy,
a ete invalidee en fevrier 2012 par le Conseil constitutionnel. Après
son arrivee a l’Elysee, Francois Hollande avait confirme son engagement
a penaliser la negation du genocide armenien.

“Il ne faut pas faire revivre aux generations futures les souffrances
vecues il y a cent ans”, a declare Abdullah Gul, avant d’ajouter :
“Il faut laisser cette affaire aux historiens”. La Turquie reconnaît le
“massacre” de plusieurs centaines de milliers d’Armeniens en 1915-1916
dans les territoires alors administres par l’Empire ottoman, mais
recuse le terme de genocide. Les Armeniens avancent, le chiffre de
1,5 million de morts et soutiennent qu’il y a bien eu genocide.