Author: Kajoyan Gevork

CÔTE D’AZUR
Décès de Gaspard Kayadjanian

Nous avons appris avec tristesse la mort de Gaspard Kayadjanian,
président du Conseil Communautaire arménien de la Côte d’Azur. Un
militant apprécié pour son dévouement son ouverture d’esprit et son
patriotisme.
Son enterrement aura lieu samedi 16 novembre à 10 heures30 à l’église
apostolique arménienne Sainte-Marie de Nice boulevard de la Madeleine.
La rédaction de NAM et d’Armenews présente à sa famille et à ses
proches ses plus sincères condoléances.

samedi 9 novembre 2013,
Ara ©armenews.co
‘613

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Nov 8 2013

OSCE chief hails positive tendencies in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
resolution process

8 November 2013 – 6:04pm

The Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE), Lamberto Zannier, says there are positive tendencies
in the sphere of the Nagorno-Karabkh conflict resolution.

International efforts are being undertaken now in order to organize a
meeting between the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents, he says.

According to the OSCE chief, the body is doing its best to support the
process of a peaceful resolution of the conflict.

EurasiaNet.org
Nov 8 2013

Armenian Armed Forces Violate Ceasefire In Several Directions

November 8, 2013 – 7:37am, by Joshua Kucera

Nearly every day, the exact same headline pops up in the news feeds of
those who follow conflict n the Caucasus: “Armenian Armed Forces
violate ceasefire in several directions.” And with only slightly less
frequency, and only slightly more variation, another headline appears:
Azerbaijan Violates Ceasefire over X times Last Week.”

The stories — reprinted press releases from the respective ministries
of defense — follow the same numbing pattern. From the Azerbaijani
side, after a couple of paragraphs saying where the alleged shooting
took place, the exact same four paragraphs close out the piece:

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since
1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding
districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The
co-chairs of the The OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are
currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.

The Armenian press releases are even more repetitive, not bothering to
name the sites of the alleged violation. They all follow this form,
nearly verbatim, the only variation being the number of violations
over the past week:

The adversary violated the ceasefire, at the line of contact between
the Karabakh-Azerbaijani opposing forces, around 200 times past week.

During this time, more than 1,000 shots were fired in the direction of
Armenian positions, and by way of different-caliber weapons, informs
the press service of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Ministry of
Defense.

But as a result of the retaliatory actions launched by the vanguard
units of the NKR Defense Army, the `activeness’ of the adversary was
stopped.

(Sometimes the last paragraph varies slightly, such as: “The NKR
Defense Army vanguard units, however, gave an adequate response to the
aggressive operations by the adversary and took necessary steps along
the entire length of the line of contact, to reliably defend the
military positions.”)

Look through the archives of these sites and you find hundreds of
nearly identical stories. On trend.az, there are, as of the time of
this writing, 208 stories that contain the headline “Armenian Armed
Forces violate ceasefire,” dating back to 2007. (Though most headlines
conclude “in several directions” there are variations, “again” being
the most common.) The pace at which these stories are produced seems
to be accelerating, however: there were 15 such stories just in the
last 30 days. In the case of Armenian site news.am, the archives only
go back to the end of 2009, but since that time there are 144 stories
whose headlines begin “Azerbaijan Violates Ceasefire…” Those stories
appear like clockwork every Saturday, as well as a monthly roundup,
e.g. “Azerbaijan violates ceasefire over 1,030 times in October”

Away from the frontlines, a lot is changing between these two enemies:
Azerbaijan’s military spending has rapidly outpaced Armenia’s;
Russia’s role in a potential war is constantly debated; and Armenians
and Azerbaijanis who have fond memories of living together are being
replaced by a younger generation who know only hate for the other
side. The International Crisis Group warned in September that there
was a heightened risk of renewed fighting in the coming weeks and
months.

But that is hidden by the Groundhog Day quality of these stories.
Every day and week is just like the one before, and the days and weeks
after will probably be just the same — until one day when they won’t.

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENTARY SPEAKER HOSTS GUESTS IN SON’S HOTEL AT STATE BUDGET’S EXPENSE

11.08.2013 18:38 epress.am

RA National Assembly President Hovik Abrahamyan often puts up official
guests at the National Hotel, owned by his son, reports local daily
Zhoghovurd.

According to documents signed by the RA National Assembly Chief of
Staff Gurgen Dumanyan in the newspaper’s possession, the Armenian
parliament has allocated 4 million 767 thousand AMD (about $11,745 USD)
to Plaza Systems LLC. According to media reports, both the hotel and
this company belong to the Abrahamyan family.

“This amount has been allocated for hotel expenses for a 7-person
parliamentary delegation from Denmark. It is noteworthy that, according
to the documents, the rendering of services began on Sept.

6, but the delegation met with the [Armenian] parliamentary chair,
then representatives of parliamentary factions only on Sept. 10,”
reports the paper.

Read the full story in today’s issue of Zhoghovurd.

IRAN RESPONDS TO AZERBAIJAN BY CLOSING JOLFA AND BILESAVAR BORDERS

November 08, 2013 | 18:03

Iran strongly denounced the decision of Azerbaijani side to close
its joint Poldasht International Border, and Iranian border guards
closed Jolfa and Bilesavar borders in return, IRNAagency reported.

The decision came in response to useless efforts of the Iranian
officials to reverse the abnormal and undiplomatic move.

An informed source told IRNA on Friday that following a suspicious
shooting event in Poldasht border region, which the Azeri sides
baselessly accuses Iran of being responsible for it, the Azerbaijani
Border Guards on Wednesday, November 6th illegally and undiplomatically
shut down Poldasht border, creating problems for Iranian passengers
and passage of their luggage.

Iran tried to solve the issue by means of talks, but the Azerbaijani
side insisted on keeping its border closed.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

VEGAN LAHMAJUN – ARMENIAN/TURKISH PIZZA

One Green Planet
Nov 7 2013

There are a few Middle Eastern dishes I grew up with that were staples
in our house. One of them was Lahmajun; an Armenian/Turkish pizza
of sorts. Traditionally made with ground lamb or beef and served
with lemon wedges, it is something that we not only ate often, but
something I really enjoyed.

If you have not had Lahmajun before, you should give it a try. If
you have had it, and like me thought it was something you would not
experience again, give this a whirl; if the Lahmujan you ate was
anything like what I did, this will not disappoint!

Lahmajun

INGREDIENTS:

For the dough

5 cups all purpose flour 1 1/2 cups non dairy milk 3 tsp salt 1 tsp
organic unbleached sugar 2 tsp active dry yeast 1/4 cup vegetable
oil Cooking oil spray

For the topping

1 lb frozen soy crumbles, thawed 1 red pepper, seeded, veined and cut
into chunks 1/2 green pepper, seeded, veined and cut into chunks 1/2
medium onion, peeled and cut into chunks 2 tomatoes, cut into chunks
1 tbsp tomato paste 1 handful parsley (about a cup) 1 1/2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika 1/4 cup olive oil Corn meal Lemon wedges

PREPARATION:

To make the dough

Put all ingredients into a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment.

Turn on low and allow to run for five or six minutes until all
ingredients form a loose ball.

The dough may be a bit crumbly, that is OK.

Remove from the stand mixer, form into a ball, place into a bowl spray
lightly with cooking oil spray and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to
sit for two hours.

To make the filling

While the dough is resting, place the peppers, onions, tomatoes,
onion, tomato paste, parsley, cumin, olive oil and paprika into a
food processor. Pulse to combine into a paste. Place in a bowl.

Put the thawed soy crumbles into the emptied food processor bowl.

Pulse until finely crumbled.

Add to the bowl with the vegetable paste ad using your hands combine
until well incorporated.

For the Lahmajun

When the dough is finished resting preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place a pizza stone or baking sheet dusted in corn meal in the oven
Beak off a piece ad roll into a ball. Flatten into a circle on a
floured surface and roll into a very thin circle. The dough should be
cracker thin- no more than a quarter inch deep. You can make them as
large or small as you want in circumference; I made mine about the
size of a personal pan pizza.

Place enough filling on top of the disc to create a thin layer on top.

Place on the pizza stone and cook until crispy, about 7 minutes.

Squeeze fresh lemon juice on warm Lahmajun before eating.

OVER 30 LEGISLATORS URGE WHITE HOUSE TO ALLOW ‘ORPHAN RUG’ DISPLAY

Thursday, November 7th, 2013

Photo: President Calvin Coolidge pictured standing on the rug with
Near East Relief Vice-Chairman, Dr. John Finley. Source: Barton, Story
of Near East Relief, 362. Courtesy: The Missak Kelechian Collection.

As published in “President Calvin Coolidge and the Armenian Orphan
Rug,” by Dr. Hagop Martin Deranian.

WASHINGTON–A bipartisan group of U.S. Representatives – including
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), joined
today with Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and David Valadao (R-CA)
in calling upon the White House to reverse its decision to block
the public display of a rug woven by Armenian orphans and gifted
to President Calvin Coolidge in appreciation for U.S. humanitarian
assistance following the Armenian Genocide, the Armenian National
Committee of America.

The Congressional letter comes in the wake of Washington Post and
National Public Radio reports and a series of Capitol Hill inquiries
regarding the White House’s abrupt and unexplained reversal of its
agreement to lend the rug for a December 16th exhibition at the
Smithsonian Institute, organized in cooperation with the Armenian
Cultural Foundation and the Armenian Rug Society. In an interview
with Public Radio International (PRI), Washington Post Art Critic
Philip Kennicott noted that while the White House has not offered an
explanation for the reversal in decision, it is likely due to the U.S.

government’s deference to Turkey’s international campaign of genocide
denial.

In the Congressional letter they spearheaded, Reps. Valadao and
Schiff, who are the lead sponsors of the Armenian Genocide Resolution
(H.Res.227), noted: “The Armenian Orphan Rug is a shared piece
of American and Armenian history that belongs to the American
people. For over a decade, Armenian-American organizations have
repeatedly asked the White House and the State Department to allow
the rug to be displayed publicly. Unfortunately, these requests have
not been granted. ”

“We join with Armenian Americans from across the country in thanking
Reps. Schiff and Valadao for their leadership and in expressing our
appreciation to each and every supporter of this principled effort
to encourage our White House to reject Turkey’s decades-long veto on
the display of the Armenian Orphan Rug and – more broadly – for our
President to rise above Ankara’s gag-rule on the proper condemnation
and commemoration of this still unpunished crime against all humanity,”
said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian.

In addition to Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and David Valadao (R-CA),
the Valadao-Schiff letter was signed by: Foreign Affairs Committee
Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA); Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita
Lowey (D-NY); Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin
(D-MI); Armenian Caucus Co-Chairmen Michael Grimm (R-NY) and Frank
Pallone (D-NJ); the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Co-Chairmen
Frank Wolf (R-VA) and James McGovern (D-MA); and Representatives
Tony Cardenas (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Jim Costa (D-CA),
Jeff Denham (R-CA), John Dingell (D-MI), Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Raul
Grijalva (D-AZ), Rush Holt (D-NJ), Mike Honda (D-CA), Jim Langevin
(D-RI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Grace Napolitano
(D-CA), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Raul Ruiz (D-CA),
John Sarbanes (D-MD), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Aaron Schock (R-IL),
Brad Sherman (D-CA), Jackie Speier (D-CA), John Tierney (D-MA),
and Dina Titus (D-NV).

The ANCA has, over the past several weeks, organized a grassroots
campaign, worked with Members of Congress, and consulted with the
Administration, making the case to all relevant stakeholders for the
prominent and permanent public display of this historic rug.

The Armenian orphan rug measures 11â~@² 7â~@³ x 18â~@² 5â~@³ and
is comprised of 4,404,206 individual knots. It took Armenian girls
in the Ghazir Orphanage of Near East Relief 10 months to weave. The
rug was delivered to the President Coolidge on December 4, 1925, in
time for Christmas, with a label on the back of the rug, which reads
“IN GOLDEN RULE GRATITUDE TO PRESIDENT COOLIDGE.”

According to Missak Kelechian, an expert on this topic, the gift of
the Armenian Orphan rug was widely covered in U.S. media, including in
the New York Times in 1925 and the Washington Post in 1926. Kelechian
describes the journey of the rug in the CNN clip below.

Additional information about the history of the Armenian Orphan Rug
is available in Dr. Hagop Martin Deranian’s book, “President Coolidge
and the Armenian Orphan Rug,” published on October 20, 2013, by the
Armenian Cultural Foundation and soon to be available on Amazon.com.

EURASIAN UNION ECONOMIC ALLIANCE, NOT USSR REINCARNATION: EEC BOARD CHAIR

November 7, 2013 – 20:09 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Eurasian Union is an economic alliance, rather
than the USSR reincarnation, the board chair of the Eurasian Economic
Commission (EEC) said.

As Viktor Khristenko stated during a meeting with the Yerevan State
University (YSU) students, “Eurasian Union is planned as an economic
alliance, without any political implications. Other organizations,
like CSTO, serve this purpose, being engaged in military and political
integration.”

Khristenko went on to refute suggestions that a Customs Union
membership might lead to loss of sovereignty. As he noted, current
CU members – Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan – have different
economic potentials. Russia has 87% of the total potential; however,
the CU-related decisions are made at the Council level, through a
consensus. Decisions at the Eurasian Economic Commission are passed
with the 2/3 of votes, Novosti-Armenia quoted him as saying.

Earlier President Serzh Sarsgsyan met Khristenko to discussed
Armenia-EEC cooperation.

The parties focus on a memorandum of cooperation inked on November
6, expressing confidence that the document will contribute to
strengthening of Armenia-EEC ties.

As they further stressed, extensive work is to be accomplished
following Armenia’s decision to join the Customs Union, with close
cooperation between the parties necessary.

A memorandum on deepening cooperation with the Eurasian Economic
Commission (EEC) and the Republic of Armenia was signed in Yerevan on
Wednesday, November 6. The document to serve as a basis for Armenia’s
joining the Customs Union was signed by EEC chairman Viktor Khristenko
and Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan.

GROWING NUMBER OF ARMENIAN CITIZENS TRAVEL TO TURKEY

November 07, 2013 | 00:04

ANKARA. – A total of 56,177 citizens of Armenia headed to Turkey from
January to September 2013.

The number of Armenian citizens that visited Turkey from January to
September grew by 4 percent, or by 2,142 people, as compared to the
same time period in the year past, Armenian News-NEWS.am ascertained
from the Culture and Tourism Ministry of Turkey.

A total of 7,345 citizens of Armenia traveled to Turkey in September
alone.

To note, 70,956 Armenia nationals had headed to Turkey in 2012.

CANADIAN MUSEUM FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MUSEUM INSTITUTE SIGN MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

WINNIPEG – November 7, 2013 — Mr. Stuart Murray, President and Chief
Executive Officer of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR), and
Dr. Hayk Demoyan, Director of the Armenian Genocide Museum Institute
(AGMI) of the National Academy of Sciences, signed a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) today that will facilitate collaboration for the
promotion of human rights through joint projects and education.

The CMHR and the AGMI will exchange knowledge and expertise,
educational materials, and exhibitions with respect to human rights,
share research and advice, cooperate to advance the academic study of
human rights and reconciliation, the Armenian Genocide and its effects,
and processes seeking justice and reconciliation, and work together
to educate people on issues of human rights, in both national and
global contexts.

“Respect and protection for human rights is hard to build, but easy to
destroy. Every society that embraces human rights has to be continually
vigilant to promote and protect those human rights,” Mr.

Murray said. “We are very pleased to be joining hands with the Armenian
Genocide Museum Institute to promote education, awareness and dialogue
about human rights.”

The official signing of the MOU between the CMHR and AGMI has been
facilitated by the assistance of the International Institute for
Genocide and Human Rights Studies (A Division of the Zoryan Institute
of Canada) – a Canadian organization which advances scholarship
and public awareness relating to issues of universal human rights,
genocide, and diaspora-homeland relations. Representatives of the
IIGHRS officially witnessed the signing and will serve an ongoing
role as liaison and facilitators.

“The Armenian Genocide is an important human rights story,” said Dr.

Demoyan. “The concept of crimes against humanity was developed in
response to this horrific series of violations against the Armenian
people. The intent of the Ottoman Turkish government to annihilate
its Armenian citizens is not only a crime against humanity, but
also genocide. The denial of the genocide by the inheritors of the
perpetrator state and others is itself a violation of the human
rights of the survivors and their descendants.This partnership will
help bring the story of the Armenian Genocide to a wider audience,
to the benefit of generations to come.”

During and after the First World War, the leaders of the Ottoman
Empire (the forerunner of the modern-day Republic of Turkey) made a
brutal attempt to destroy the empire’s entire Armenian population,
targeting them on ethnic and religious grounds, along with other
Christian subjects-the Assyrians and Greeks. The Genocide began in
1915 with the execution of Armenian leaders. Then authorities rounded
up Armenian men, women and children. The victims were massacred or
forced on death marches through the desert. Many died of starvation.

The perpetrators tried to hide these mass killings from the world.

The first international reaction to the Genocide resulted in a joint
statement by France, Russia and Great Britain, in May 1915, where the
Ottoman Empire atrocities directed against the Armenian people was
defined as “new crimes against humanity and civilization.” In 2004,
the Canadian House of Commons passed a resolution to recognize this
genocide.

“By raising awareness of the Armenian Genocide, we hope to remind
people of the importance of breaking the silence on human rights
violations. We look forward to working with the Canadian Museum for
Human Rights on this goal,” said AGMI Director Demoyan.

There were an estimated two million Armenians living in their
ancestral homeland in the Ottoman Empire on the eve of the First
World War. Approximately one and a half million Armenians perished
between 1915 and 1923. Another half million found shelter abroad.

One of the audience, Jack Garabed, a Manitoban descendant of an
Armenian Genocide survivor, came to see this historic partnership
and shared the story of his father,Garabedi Haroutounian. He spoke of
his grandfather being taken away one night and murdered. They took his
father away and placed him in an orphanage. He believes his Grandmother
escaped into Egypt with some of the younger children. His father
was forced to change religion. The Salvation Army arranged to have
three children in the orphanage, including his father, transported to
Canada. Haroutounian left the other two boys in Montreal and continued
on to Manitoba. He was fascinated by the train ride, and wanted to
extend it as far as he could. The train brought him to Winnipeg,
and from there he was placed with farmers in the Killarney area.

About the Canadian Museum for Human Rights

The CMHR is the first museum in the world solely dedicated to the
evolution, celebration and future of human rights. It is the first
national museum in Canada to be built outside the National Capital
Region. The Museum will use immersive multi-media technology and
other innovative approaches to create an inspiring encounter with
human rights unlike anything visitors have experienced before.

About the Armenian Genocide Museum Institute

The Armenian Genocide Museum & Institute (AGMI) of the National Academy
of Sciences is a non-profit organization based in Yerevan, Republic
of Armenia. The mission of the Museum-Institute is the academic and
scientific study, analysis of the problems as well as exhibition of
the textual and visual documentation related to the first Genocide
of the 20th century.

About the International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies
(A Division of the Zoryan Institute)

The International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (A
Division of the Zoryan Institute), led by President Greg Sarkissian,
Chairman Prof. Roger W. Smith, and Executive Director George Shirinian,
runs an annual course in comparative genocide studies in partnership
with the University of Toronto and is co-publisher of Genocide Studies
International in partnership with the University of Toronto Press. It
is the first non-profit, international center devoted to the research
and documentation of contemporary issues with a focus on Genocide,
Diaspora and Homeland.

For more information, please contact:

Christelle Mekoh

CMHR Manager of Communications

(204) 289-2114

Cell: (204) 299-7095

[email protected]