Author: Kajoyan Gevork

GENOCIDE DENIAL AT CENTRE OF MASSACHUSETTS JUDICIAL NOMINATION

Thursday, 21 November 2013

Source:Asbarez

Joseph Berman

BOSTON-Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s nominee for a seat on
the Commonwealth’s Superior Court is facing opposition because of his
leadership role in the Anti-Defamation League and that organization’s
refusal to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

The Boston Globe reported Thursday, that Joseph S. Berman’s nomination
is being opposed by members of the eight-person elected panel that
approves judicial nominations.

Councilor Marilyn M. Pettito Devaney, a Democrat from Watertown,
led the opposition to Berman, saying she had the five votes needed
to reject his nomination.

She stood and denounced Berman’s affiliation with the Anti-Defamation
League, as the governor, who chairs the panel, looked on, chagrined,
reported the Boston Globe.

“In 1939, Hitler, carrying out his horrific mission to exterminate the
Jews, said, ‘Who remembers the Armenians?'” Devaney said, her voice
trembling and eyes filling with tears. “I do. And many others do,
too,” according to the Boston Globe.

Devaney said if she belonged to “a group who denied the Holocaust,”
she would resign. Several other councilors agreed that Berman’s ties
to the Anti-Defamation League are a concern, while raising their own
separate objections.

The opposition forced Gov. Patrick to postpone Berman’s approval to
December 4.

Berman’s nominations and the ADL’s Genocide denial took center
stage in 2007 when the organization launched its “No Place for Hate”
campaign, causing backlash from the Armenian-American community in
Massachusetts, which claimed that an organization that unequivocally
denies the Armenian Genocide had no place in public schools promoting
anti-discrimination.

A campaign called “No Place for Denial,” led by the Armenian
National Committee of America Eastern Mass. Chapter and including
a cross-section of the Armenian-American community vocally opposed
ADL’s efforts.

In 2007, the ADL fired its New England regional director, Andrew H.

Tarsy, after he acknowledged the Armenian Genocide in opposition to
the national leadership.

ADL’s national director Abraham Foxman has gone on record to say that
the events of 1915 were “tantamount to Genocide,” but did not label
it as such. He has also actively lobbied against Armenian Genocide
resolutions in Congress.

According to the Boston Globe, Councilor Devaney stood firm on her
opposition, saying: “We’re not going to change our minds. To prolong
this serves no purpose.”

Councilor Terrence W. Kennedy agreed, saying that even though he
supports Berman, a delay will not save the nomination, reported the
Globe. “It’s a democracy, and I don’t think the vote is going to
change,” he told Patrick.

POVERTY RATE IN ARMENIA NEARLY DOUBLES

Tuesday, November 26th, 2013

An elderly man in Armenia next to his makeshift shack

YEREVAN (Arka)-The poverty rate in Armenia climbed 17.4% from 2008 to
32.4% in 2012, according to the Armenian National Statistical Service’s
report, titled, “Poverty and the Social Panorama in Armenia, 2013.”

In its report, the National Statistical Service divides the poor into
three categories – extremely poor, very poor, and poor. The extreme
poverty rate in Armenia rose 1.8 times in the last five years while
the rate of very poor people increased by 7.1%.

According to the statistical report, every third resident of the
country – 32.4% (980,000 people) – lived in poverty in 2012. 13.5%
(408,000) were very poor and 2.8% (85,000) extremely poor.

Poverty rates in urban and rural areas are similar – in cities it stood
at 32.5% in 2012 after rising 17.7% from 2008, while in villages the
rate rose 16.7% to 32.1%.

The lowest poverty rate was recorded in Yerevan – about 25.6%
(1.6 times lower than other urban areas’ indicators). The poverty
rate overall climbed 27.3% over the last five years in Yerevan,
while in other cities it rose by 12.3%. 64.4% of poor people are
urban residents.

The main factor of the 2008-2012 poverty rate increase was a sharp
economic decline in 2009.

Earlier, Finance Minister David Sargsyan said that the poverty rate in
Armenia is gradually decreasing. This slow but sustainable downward
movement will continue along in 2014 thanks to increases in salaries
and pensions, Sargsyan says.

The minimum salary in the country was 32,500 dram in 2012. The average
monthly salary was 113,163 dram.

In July 2013, the minimum salary was raised by 30% to 45,000 dram.

FORCED ISLAMISATION OF ARMENIANS RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT TODAY’S TURKEY

Asia News, Italy
Nov 26 2013

by NAT da Polis

Ethnic and religious cleansing accompanied the genocide
perpetrated by the Young Turks and the construction of Ataturk’s new
Turkey. Millions of Turks are related to Armenians. Crypto-Armenians
and Crypto-Christians are now breaking their silence.

Istanbul (AsiaNews) – Turks are getting ready for a hot election in
March when they will cast their ballot to elect a new parliament
and, for the first time, a new president. Almost certainly, Sunni
ethics will certainly inform the debate. Not much coverage has gone
to a conference held in early November on the forced islamisation of
Armenians before and after the 1915 genocide.

Organised by Istanbul’s Bogazici University and the Hrant Dink
Foundation, which is named after Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink, the editor of the bilingual Turkish-Armenian newspaper Agos. He
was assassinated in 2007 by Turkish nationalists with the tolerance
of elements within the Turkish state.

Although some 600 people from around the world attended the conference,
the Turkish media failed to give the event the attention it deserved.

In their presentations, various speakers noted that forced Islamisation
was not visited only on individual children and women survivors but
on entire families forced to convert in order to survive in the new
Turkey born out of the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.

The founding of the new Turkish Republic was premised on the policies
of Islamisation and genocide pursued by the Young Turks and the
Committee of Union and Progress. This occurred after Armenian members
of the Young Turks and the Committee split from ethnic Turks in 1913.

Based on various reports, the goal of the Committee of Union and
Progress in 1915 was to reduce the Armenian population (5 to 10 per
cent of the empire’s population) where it had its strongest and oldest
roots – the central, southern and eastern regions of the Ottoman
Empire – since its aim was to establish a new Turkey that would
be Sunni Muslim. Even Kemal Ataturk, founder of Turkey’s so-called
secular republic, appealed to Muslim solidarity to consolidate his
power. In short, a real Turk was a Muslim Turk.

Not surprisingly, after the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), Turkish-speaking
Orthodox Christians known as Karamanlis were uprooted from Anatolia
and sent to Greece.

Turkish historian Taner Akcam, who teaches at Clark University in
the United States, is one of the foremost specialist on the Armenian
Genocide. In his address, he spoke of 200,000 Islamised Armenians,
noting that the assets of the genocide victims went to the Turks.

Overall, historians focused on a very important issue. Because of
forced islamisation, millions of Turks have ties to the Armenian
and/or Christian communities. Some call them ‘crypto-Armenians’ or
‘crypto-Christians;.

In her lecture, French sociologist Laurence Ritter presented research
showing that 100 years after the Armenian Genocide, the descendants
of Islamised Armenian survivors, the so-called crypto-Armenians of
Anatolia, are beginning to break their silence.

AyÅ~_e Gul Altınay, who teaches at Sabanci University, a private
college in Istanbul, said that Hrant Dink, the murdered editor of
the Istanbul-based Turkish-Armenian newspaper Armenian Agos, back
in 2004 called for the Armenian Genocide to be revisited in light of
the descendants of Islamised Armenians.

AyÅ~_e Gul Altınay and Fethiye Cetin edited a book, The Grandchildren,
released in 2007, in which they note that the Turkish state knew
about the ethnic make-up of the population. Contrary to the official
ideology, Turks were not as homogenous as the government wanted them
to be.

In light of these steps, Turkey is beginning to question its true
character and the multi-ethnic nature of its population.

‘s-Turkey-29642.html

SWISS AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA LUKAS GASSER: SWITZERLAND WILL TRY TO CONTRIBUTE TO A PEACEFUL SETTLEMENT OF THE NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT WITHOUT QUESTIONING THE ESTABLISHED FORMATS SUCH AS THE OSCE MINSK PROCESS

ArmInfo’s interview with the Ambassador of Switzerland to the Republic
of Armenia

by Marianna Lazarian

Monday, November 25, 17:05

On 1 January 2014 Switzerland will assume OSCE Chairmanship. What
priorities will the Swiss Chairmanship of the OSCE have and what
steps is Switzerland going to take to contribute to settlement of the
frozen conflicts? Would you tell us about the Swiss Foreign Ministry’s
package of new initiatives aimed at stabilizing the situation in the
South Caucasus?

“Creating a Security Community for the Benefit of Everyone” –
under this leitmotif, Switzerland, during its Chairmanship, wants to
contribute to three main objectives: we want to foster security and
stability, to improve people’s lives and we want to strengthen the
OSCE’s capacity to act.

To concretely implement these goals, we have defined several priority
activities such as combating transnational threats, enhancing the
capacity in the OSCE area for the management of natural disasters,
but also strengthening security sector governance, the implementation
of the commitments in the Human Dimension as well as the mediation
capacities of the OSCE, just to name a few. Switzerland will also pay
special attention to the inclusion of civil society into the OSCE
and wants to give young people a voice by organising an OSCE-Model
series of events.

Switzerland’s geographical focus will be on the Western Balkans
and the South Caucasus. Regarding the later, we are looking
into possibilities to promote dialogue and confidence building
measures, all together by actively supporting and strengthening
existing mediation schemes. Furthermore, Switzerland will
further facilitate people to people contacts and support civil
society projects in the region. For more details about the Swiss
priorities:

The Federal Council has conferred on Mr. Angelo Gnädinger the title
of ambassador in view of his upcoming post of Special Representative
for the South Caucasus under the Swiss Chairmanship of the OSCE. What
powers will he have?

Ambassador Gnädinger will take up the post of Special Representative
on 1 January 2014, upon Switzerland’s assumption of the OSCE
chairmanship. Among other responsibilities, he will represent the
OSCE in the Geneva Discussions on security and stability in the South
Caucasus. As previous Special Representatives for the South Caucasus,
he will support the OSCE’s mediation efforts in the region in 2014
and will accompany the activities of the OSCE representations
in the region. From 2002 to 2010, Ambassador Gnädinger was the
director-general of the ICRC. He has many years of experience in
dealing with conflicts, political mediation and international law.

Turkish media outlets report that Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu has asked for Switzerland’s support in the Karabakh peace
process so that Turkey could normalize relations with Yerevan. How
reliable is this information and what is Switzerland going to do?

Facilitating dialogue among the parties involved in the protracted
conflicts of the South Caucasus is a priority of the Swiss
Chairmanship. Switzerland will try to contribute to a peaceful
settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict without questioning
the established formats such as the OSCE Minsk process. During its
Chairmanship, Switzerland hopes to build upon its previous and current
engagement in the South Caucasus.

In the last few months, Federal Councilor Didier Burkhalter presented
the priorities of the Swiss Chairmanship to many high-ranking
representatives of OSCE participating states – among others, to H.E.

Mr Ahmet Davutoglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, during an
official visit on 10 October 2013 in Berne.

Armenia and Switzerland are closely cooperating in the field of
defense, particularly, within the Geneva Centre for the Democratic
Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) and under the Swiss project Capacity
Building in International Relations (CABIR). What tangible results
can you talk about today?

The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF)
was established in 2000 by initiative of the Swiss Government. This
centre is an international foundation with the mission to assist the
international community in pursuing good governance and reform of
the security sector. DCAF cooperates closely with the OSCE Office
in Yerevan on democratic governance, law enforcement and defence
reform issues.

The cooperation with the parliamentary committee on defence and
security, based on an MoU signed at the end of 2012, and supported by
the OSCE Office in Yerevan, has enabled the project partners to hold
international seminars, parliamentary hearings and capacity-building
activities in the fields of best practices in parliamentary oversight
and guidance, defence management, human rights in the security sector,
and defence and police reform. In parallel a review of the security
sector legislation and parliamentary powers was undertaken which will
shortly be discussed in parliament, along with best practices for terms
of reference for parliamentary visits to defence sites. Good progress
has already been made in reforming the curriculum of the Military
Academy. DCAF has further offered a number of capacity-building
activities at different levels of defence management.

DCAF’s local partners in Armenia are the Ministry of Defence, the
National Assembly, and, more recently, the RA Police. Over the last
years, Armenia, along with Georgia and Azerbaijan, has been the focus
of DCAF cooperation with the OSCE and the Partnership for Peace on
the issue of Human Rights in the Armed Forces and Integrity-Building
in Defence Management.

The Capacity Building in International Relations (CABIR) programme is
another key element of Swiss cooperation in the region. Switzerland is
committed to continue the project in the three countries of the South
Caucasus. The project is financed by the Swiss Agency for Development
and Cooperation (SDC) and has been implemented for the last consecutive
twelve years by the Graduate Institute of International and Development
Studies in Geneva. It has managed to contribute to a large extent to
the capacity building of the young government officials in the three
countries. So far, around 450 persons were trained (140 from Armenia
and Azerbaijan respectively, and 170 from Georgia).

The project represents a good example of Switzerland’s long-standing
cooperation with the governments of Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

It has contributed to the strengthening of the countries’ governance
for their effective representation at the regional and international
arena as well as strived to increase accountability and transparency in
the management of public affairs. The courses have been held in such
topics as International Law, International Economics and Negotiation
Techniques, International Trade Policy, International Human Rights
and Humanitarian Law.

We still see a strong need for such trainings in the three countries.

In the project’s next phase, emphasis will be given on training
trainers for continuous education of public servants in the three
countries. The topics of training will be jointly defined with the
three partner governments. A strong network twinning the best academic
and training institutions in Switzerland and the three South Caucasus
countries will provide the foundation for this cooperation.

The key element of the future project, which in the long run will
ensure its sustainability, will be local ownership and commitment:
by the governments and training institutions of the target countries’
as well as their active participation and contribution to the project.

ILHAM ALIVEV, THE ‘FRIEND OF PRESS’ AND AZERBAIJAN

November 25, 2013 – 18:22 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The life in Azerbaijan is full of ‘surprises’. The
shameful presidential polls were recently followed by another blunder:
the country’s ‘independent’ committee on protection of journalists’
rights has bestowed the Friend of Press award upon re-elected President
Ilham Aliyev.

The decision was based on the results of a survey among 93 media
outlets, 89% of which named President Aliyev as a friend of the press,
who ‘supports journalists and provides grants’.

The possibility to give the award to opposition and public figures was
eliminated in 2002, when it the title was conferred on then-president
Heydar Aliyev. The country’s new leader, Aliyev Jr., whose rule is
famous for suppression and murder of journalists, jailing of bloggers
and prosecution of ‘disobedient’ media, has succeeded in creating a
total atmosphere of fear in the media field.

According to the Media Rights Institute, in 2012, journalists
in Azerbaijan were 60 times subject to violence and psychological
pressure, 10 reporters were arrested and 35 defamation lawsuits were
filed. In 2013, the situation got even worse: 47 cases of physical
pressure against journalists were registered, 36 lawsuits were filed
in the first half of the year only, while state bodies refuse requests
for information. All this led Azerbaijan to the list of countries
where press is not free.

The West’s unwillingness to give a proper reaction to the ongoing
suppression of the freedom of speech is also alarming. Nevertheless,
more and more foreign reports tell about ‘caviar diplomacy’, bribery
and beating of those who disagree with the ruling party. This turn is
mostly conditioned by the sharp decrease of oil reserves. Actually,
no one will soon need Azerbaijan as a source of hydrocarbon. Given
the agreement that was finally reached on Tehran’s nuclear program,
Iran will soon kick out Baku as an oil and gas supplier.

Maybe then ‘pleasing’ journalists will have to think what kind of
country they live in.

Karine Ter-Sahakian / PanARMENIAN.Net

28 ROAD ACCIDENTS RECORDED IN ARMENIA IN PAST THREE DAYS

Monday,
November
25

20 of the 32 injury infliction offences recorded in Armenia on November
23-25 were disclosed. Besides, the police disclosed 10 frauds, one
robbery, one embezzlement case, one act of hooliganism, and 10 thefts.

As for crimes committed in the past, the police detected 5 thefts,
one embezzlement case, and one injury infliction offence.

28 road accidents were recorded in Armenia in the indicated period,
as a result of which 2 people died and 32 received injuries.

TODAY, 18:39

Aysor.am

DETENTE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD?: IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL SEEN AS ‘GOOD NEWS’ IN ARMENIA

Analysis | 25.11.13 | 09:58

Photo: State Department photo

The historic agreement on Iran’s disputed nuclear program that was
reached between the Islamic Republic and six leading world powers after
days of talks in Geneva on Sunday has been taken as ‘good news’ in
Yerevan. What was announced as the “first-step” agreement essentially
limits Iran’s uranium enrichment in exchange for the West’s unblocking
Tehran’s nearly $8 billion and lifting some sanctions earlier imposed
on Iran’s oil exports.

Iran is one of the four neighbors of Armenia and, along with Georgia,
one of two countries that have open borders with Armenia. As the
Geneva talks progressed, Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian was
visiting Yerevan. During his meeting with Armenian President Serzh
Sargsyan the Iranian official stated about deepening cooperation
between the two countries in the energy sphere.

The desire of Armenia and Iran to cooperate has, to some extent,
been constrained by the sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic by
the United States and other Western countries. Although the U.S. has
been sympathetic to the desire of landlocked Armenia suffering from
the blockade of Azerbaijan and Turkey to develop relations with Iran,
on two occasions Washington issued quite tough warnings to Armenia
about the use of Iranian banks in Iran as ‘middlemen’.

The Geneva agreement and the lifting of sanctions from Iran could
lead to activation in Iranian-Armenian cooperation. It is not without
reason that Armenia was quick to welcome the Geneva agreement with
a statement issued by Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian.

“Armenia has always advocated a negotiated, peaceful solution of
the issue. Although the agreement reached is of interim nature, it
paves the way for a comprehensive settlement through efforts of all
negotiating parties,” Nalbandian said.

Armenia and Iran have several started, but practically frozen projects
for which it was difficult to attract international investment because
of the sanctions. This includes the construction of a railway,
an oil pipeline, a new high-voltage line and the construction of
a hydroelectric power station on the Arax River. The removal of
international sanctions may lead to activation of these projects. By
the way, this was also discussed during the visit of the Iranian
energy minister to Armenia.

Russia is quite jealous about Armenian-Iranian relations, regarding
them as an alternative to their monopoly on Armenia’s energy and some
other markets. In particular, Russia’s state-run gas giant Gazprom
was quick to take over the Iran-Armenia pipeline that was commissioned
in 2007 to prevent it from becoming an alternative to Russian natural
gas supplies to Armenia.

Besides, after Armenia made a decision to join the Moscow-led Customs
Union in September, it was announced that Russia intended to invest
in the Iran-Armenia railway and motorway, but the statements were so
vague that few people tend to believe in them. Most experts believe
that Russia simply in advance sought to block the possible foreign
investments in these projects.

Besides the economic component the agreement on Iran has a great
significance in terms of the immediate removal of tensions on the
border with Armenia. Air strikes against Iran, on which Israel still
insists, could have dramatically changed the balance of forces in
the region.

SWEDEN: MOLDOVA MAY BECOME THE NEXT IN THE LIST OF THE COUNTRIES WHICH ABANDONED THE EUROPEAN COURSE

by Marianna Lazarian

ARMINFO
Monday, November 25, 15:39

Moldova may become the next in the list of the countries which
abandoned the European course under the pressure of Russia, Foreign
Minister of Sweden, Carl Bildt, said at the international conference
in Washington, as NOI.md reported.

What happened to Armenia and Ukraine, will happen to Moldova too
over the coming days, he said and added that on the threshold of the
Vilnius summit the West should directly tell Moldova just the same
way as it told Georgia, that Moldova has a right to independently
resolve its destiny.

To note, on 21 November the government of Ukraine adopted a decision
to suspend signing of the Association Agreement with EU so that to
adopt the necessary measures on the level of national security and
to restore economic relations with Russia and other CIS countries.

On 3 September in Moscow during the meeting with President of Russia
Vladimir Putin President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan said about Armenia’s
intention to join the Customs Union.

RESISTANCE MOVEMENT AGAINST ARMENIA’S JOINING THE CUSTOMS UNION

In the name of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, and the
sovereignty of the republic enshrined in the Constitution, we make
the following statement:

Serzh Sargsyan is an illegitimate president, who has come to power
outside of the democratic process, and as such, lacks the mandate
to represent the will of the Armenian people. His September 3rd
2013 announcement that Armenia would be joining the Customs Union
and participating in the creation of the Eurasian Union was an act
of national treason, which has put the country’s sovereignty and
independence in danger. Since Serzh Sargsyan lacked the popular consent
of the people, as well as the explicit consent of the RA Government
and National Assembly, his decision in Moscow was nothing more than
a personal opinion, not a national decision.

If Armenia joins the Customs Union and Eurasian Union, our country will
be forced to forfeit its ability to make its own decisions, and will
instead be handing over this right to a supranational entity, a move
which explicitly violates the Armenian Constitution. Moreover, with
this decision, Armenia will be committing itself to an increasingly
tighter relationship with a totalitarian regime, with a complete
disregard for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and a regressive
economic system, based on exploiting natural resources.

We cannot allow the future of our and our coming generations, and our
right to live a dignified life to be undermined by an illegitimate
president’s unconstitutional activities. Based on the absolute powers
of the RA Constitution and the national sovereignty it enshrines and
guarantees, we announce the beginning of a resistance movement.

Sovereign Armenia Initiative Group

12:34 25/11/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:

REVUE DE PRESSE N°2 – 22/11/13 – COLLECTIF VAN

Publié le : 22-11-2013

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN [Vigilance
Arménienne contre le Négationnisme] vous propose une revue de presse
des informations parues dans la presse francophone, sur les thèmes
concernant la Turquie, le génocide arménien, la Shoah, le génocide
des Tutsi, le Darfour, le négationnisme, l’Union européenne, Chypre,
etc… Nous vous suggérons également de prendre le temps de lire ou
de relire les informations et traductions mises en ligne dans notre
rubrique Par
ailleurs, certains articles en anglais, allemand, turc, etc, ne
sont disponibles que dans la newsletter Word que nous générons
chaque jour.

Pour la recevoir, abonnez-vous a la Veille-Média : c’est gratuit !

Vous recevrez le document du lundi au vendredi dans votre boîte email.

Bonne lecture.

Presse arménienne : Revue du 21 novembre 2013 Info Collectif
VAN – – “L’ensemble de la presse commente
le sommet des Présidents d’Arménie et d’Azerbaïdjan a Vienne,
le considérant comme un événement positif, puisqu’il marque la
reprise des négociations de haut niveau interrompues depuis deux
ans. Les quotidiens reproduisent la déclaration du ” Ministère des
AE ” du HK, relevant qu’après une longue interruption, la reprise
des rencontres de haut niveau entre l’Arménie et l’Azerbaïdjan
revêt une importance particulière pour le règlement du conflit ”
azerbaïdjano-karabaghtsi ” et pour le maintien de la paix et de la
stabilité dans la région.

Toutefois, selon le ” MAE ”, un progrès réel dans le règlement
du conflit n’est possible qu’avec la participation directe du HK
aux négociations.” Le Collectif VAN vous présente cette Revue de
Presse parue sur le site de l’Ambassade de France en Arménie le 21
novembre 2013.

Collectif VAN : l’éphéméride du 22 novembre Info Collectif VAN –
РLa rubrique Eph̩m̩ride est a retrouver
quotidiennement sur le site du Collectif VAN. Elle recense la
liste d’événements survenus a une date donnée, a différentes
époques de l’Histoire, sur les thématiques que l’association
suit au quotidien. L’éphéméride du Collectif VAN repose sur
des informations en ligne sur de nombreux sites (les sources sont
spécifiées sous chaque entrée). “22 novembre 1920 — Suisse : a
l’Assemblée de Genève, la question arménienne fut évoquée, dès la
discussion du Rapport sur les travaux du Conseil. Une grande discussion
s’engagea, le 22 novembre, sur ces propositions. Le délégué serbe,
M. Spalaïkovitch, puisant dans les tristes souvenirs laissés dans le
cŔur de sa nation par la domination ottomane, flétrit cette méthode
cynique et froide dans l’extermination des peuples ” que les Turcs ont
appliquée et appliquent encore aux peuples chrétiens ”. Cependant,
si tous les orateurs étaient d’accord avec le délégué serbe
sur la nécessité de secourir immédiatement l’Arménie, un certain
découragement se manifestait dans les discours, provenant de l’absence
de moyens d’action directe a la disposition de la Société des
Nations. C’est pourquoi M. Spalaïkovitch lui-même, comme M. Branting
(Suède), préconisèrent une pression sur les Puissances principales,
tandis que M. Nansen (Norvège), en émettant l’idée d’une expédition
militaire, y joignit l’espérance que l’Amérique ne refuserait pas
son concours devant un appel adressé au monde par l’Assemblée de
la Société des Nations. Le représentant de la Grande-Bretagne,
M. Balfour, donna peut-être la note la plus pessimiste. Il constata
que l’organisation de la Société des Nations, aux termes du Pacte,
n’avait pas prévu une situation telle que celle en face de laquelle on
se trouvait actuellement en Arménie : ” Les auteurs du Pacte avaient
en vue les conditions suivantes : des Ã~Itats bien organisés ayant des
frontières nettement délimitées, où l’action de l’opinion publique
du monde civilisé pourrait se faire sentir et où, en dernier ressort,
pourrait s’exercer la menace d’une pression économique ””

Poutine et Erdogan évoquent la Syrie et l’Iran Les relations entre
la Russie et la Turquie se développent avec succès, a indiqué le
président russe Vladimir Poutine lors d’une rencontre avec le premier
ministre turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan, en visite a Saint-Pétersbourg
pour participer a la quatrième réunion du Conseil de coopération
de haut niveau des deux pays.

Deux événements négationnistes annulés en Australie Les
interventions du Professeur Justin McCarthy, négationniste bien connu
du génocide arménien, qui devait intervenir a Sydney et a Melbourne
ont été annulées. McCarthy devait intervenir a l’Université
de Melbourne et et a la New South Wales Art Gallery cette semaine,
cependant, chaque institution a révoqué l’intervention de McCarthy
après avoir fait connaissances de son point de vue négationniste
odieux sur le génocide arménien.

L’armée soudanaise reprend une zone tenue par les rebelles dans le
Kordofan-Sud Le ministre soudanais de la Défense Abdel-Rahim Mohammed
Hussein a déclaré la semaine dernière une campagne militaire de
grande envergure visant a mettre fin a la rebellion armée dans la
région du Darfour du Soudan ainsi que dans les Etats du Nile Bleu
et du Kordofan du Sud limitrophes du Soudan du Sud.

Sainte-Sophie d’Istanbul peut-elle redevenir une mosquéeâ~@~I?

Sa décision, en 1934, de faire de Sainte-Sophie un musée,
c’est-a-dire un lieu de non-conflit, ni chrétien ni musulman,
protégé par le ministère de la culture et affranchi de
l’administration religieuse, est l’une des plus marquantes. Il avait
également souhaité que soient décrochés les grands panneaux
circulaires islamiques installés au XVIe siècle, a l’époque de
Soliman le Magnifique.

La Russie renforce sa présence militaire en Arménie Le gouvernement
arménien a donné jeudi son feu vert formel au déploiement d’environ
deux douzaines d’hélicoptères de combat russes qui renforceront
considérablement la présence militaire russe en Arménie. Le
gouvernement a alloué a la base militaire russe dans le pays
deux parcelles de terrain qui seront utilisées par son escadron
d’hélicoptères.

Erdogan en Russie: la Syrie et des dossiers économiques au menu “Nos
relations avec la Russie sont surtout économiques. Les échanges
commerciaux entre nos deux pays ont déja atteint 35 milliards de
dollars. Nous souhaitons les porter a 100 milliards de dollars d’ici
2020. Nous en parlerons en Russie. L’autre sujet important que nous
allons examiner est la tragédie syrienne”, a indiqué M.Erdogan
devant les journalistes avant de partir pour la Russie.

Mikati recu par Erdogan a Ankara : Le Liban est contraint de modifier
son approche du dossier des réfugiés Mettant l’accent sur son
souci de maintenir ” des relations prospères entre le Liban et
la Turquie ”, le Premier ministre turc a réaffirmé le soutien de
son gouvernement au Liban pour tout ce qui a trait au règlement du
problème des réfugiés syriens. Il a souligné dans ce cadre que
la Turquie ” déploiera tous les efforts possibles afin d’aider le
Liban a supporter le poids des réfugiés ” syriens.

Le racisme marche encore A l’occasion du trentième anniversaire de
la Marche pour l’égalité et contre le racisme, dite aussi Marche
des beurs, le réalisateur Nabil Ben Yadir sort, le 27 novembre, La
Marche. Ce film revient sur la célèbre manifestation lancée par
une dizaine de personnes dans le quartier de la Cayolle, a Marseille,
le 15 octobre 1983, pour s’achever a Paris le 3 décembre suivant
avec plus de 100 000 participants.

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