Author: Kajoyan Gevork

GEORGIA DIVIDED OVER STALIN ‘LOCAL HERO’ STATUS IN GORI

4 March 2013 Last updated at 19:01 ET

By Bethany Bell BBC News, Gori, Georgia

Gori’s giant statue of Stalin was removed in 2010 – but now it is
to reappear On the 60th anniversary of the death of Soviet supreme
ruler Joseph Stalin there is still controversy over how to view his
legacy in his homeland Georgia.

Millions died when Stalin imposed iron discipline and state terror
to root out “enemies of the people” and build a communist state.

But in the town of Gori, where he was born, the city council recently
decided to re-erect a huge statue of Stalin, which the pro-Western
government of President Mikheil Saakashvili took down almost three
years ago. It is a sign, historians say, that the country needs to
confront its Soviet past.

Gori’s main tourist attraction is its museum to Stalin. The ornate
building, with its collection of heroic photographs and Stalin’s
death mask, appears frozen in time – a Soviet shrine to the dictator,
almost untouched since the museum was built in 1957.

But Olga Tochishvili, who has worked as a guide here since the Soviet
era, says attitudes towards Stalin are changing.

“In Georgia, most of the old generation like Stalin. They think he
was a great statesman, with his small mistakes. Young people don’t
like Stalin, of course. Our young people are not interested in history
and they don’t like Stalin.”

Hero or villain?

The Gori museum highlights the Soviet-era Stalin personality cult
But it is not just attitudes. Gori’s cityscape has changed as well.

The main boulevard, Stalin Street, used to be dominated by the huge
statue of the dictator. But it was removed in 2010 by Mr Saakashvili’s
westernising government – a decision that upset many people in Gori.

Nikoloz Kapanadze, who earns tips by helping cars to find parking
places in Stalin Street, told me the statue should be returned.

“Everybody wants that, not only me, but the whole of Gori, the whole
of Georgia wants the monument to be installed where it was before. I
am 65 and I’ve only heard good things about him throughout my life.”

A few weeks ago the city council allocated funds to re-erect the
statue at the Stalin museum.

The decision seems to be partly the result of a political upheaval
in Georgia. Mr Saakashvili’s party was defeated in parliamentary
elections last October by the Georgian Dream coalition, which wants
to repair Georgia’s rocky relations with Russia.

Gori’s new mayor, David Razuadze, from Georgian Dream says Stalin’s
statue will be re-installed by the summer.

Damien McGuinness BBC News, Tbilisi

Visiting the garden of Georgian pensioner Ushangi Davitashvili is
an eerie experience. Life-sized statues of Joseph Stalin poke out
from behind bushes. And the brick walls are lined with hundreds of
photographs of the former dictator. This is a shrine to a man who is
seen in the West as responsible for the deaths of millions of people.

According to a new survey by the Caucasus Research Resource Centers
almost half of Georgians have a positive attitude towards Stalin.

Which doesn’t mean there’s nostalgia for the former Soviet Union or a
risk of a return to authoritarianism. Georgia is a fiercely independent
state. And surveys show that the vast majority of Georgians want to
join Nato and the EU.

But Stalin is Georgia’s most famous son. And in a culture which
reveres strong personalities, that counts for a lot.

“People in Gori have this feeling that the name Stalin is known in
the world and so is their little town… Georgia is known worldwide
because of Stalin. And the position of the previous government,
which was basically an insult, was unbearable. And I say, you can
condemn Stalin’s period, you can condemn political repressions and
the old way of life – but you should not touch personalities.”

The statue seems to have become part of the tug of war between
Georgia’s political parties.

Georgian ‘backsliding’ Over cappuccino in an upmarket cafe in the
capital, Tbilisi, Giorgi Kandelaki, an MP from Mr Saakashvili’s party,
told me the decision to re-erect the statue was a backward step.

“We lost the elections and so unfortunately we have many signs of
democratic backsliding in Georgia or flirtations with the Soviet past.

And the comeback of this statue is one such symbolic but very worrying
sign. And in Gori the decision to allocate funds to reinstate the
statue was made not by some private people but by the city council
and by the local governor, who represents the ruling council. I think
this is a scandalous fact.”

Mr Kandelaki, 31, says the statue should have been removed years ago.

“No country that aspires to become a normal country can have a symbol
that pays tribute to Stalin. Everyone in the world knows Stalin as
the bloodiest dictator in history. And the second reason relates
specifically to Georgia. In 1921, when Georgia was a parliamentary
democracy, Stalin was the initiator of the Soviet Russian invasion
and occupation of Georgia.”

But history in Georgia is a complicated business.

Lasha Bakradze, a professor of Soviet history at Tbilisi University,
recently presented a new survey commissioned by the Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace, which found that 45% of Georgians expressed
a positive attitude to Stalin. He says the poll shows that Georgia
needs to confront and work through its Soviet past.

Even a couple of Stalin’s famous pipes are on display in the Gori
museum “Nothing is done to explain to the population who Stalin was,”
he told me.

“It has not been talked about. Also in school books you don’t find
explanations about what the totalitarian system was. And so it is
understandable why people are still in this Soviet way of thinking,
that Stalin was ‘Our Boy’, a very strong leader.”

“Georgian society has a problem,” he continued.

“On one side they can have sympathy for Stalin and on the other side
the biggest part of Georgians are pro-democracy, freedom and so on. It
is very primitive, patriotic thinking. Somebody was famous and this
somebody was Georgian.”

At the museum, change is coming – if slowly. A small room under the
stairs displays the names of a few dozen local victims of Stalin’s
repressions. But even as further revisions are being discussed, Olga
Tochishvili and her colleagues are looking forward to the return of
the statue – not for political reasons, but for tourism.

“Many foreign visitors asked us, where is Stalin’s statue? I think
it will be better to put up the statue in front of our museum for
our visitors, because they want to see the statue.”

WHAT IS TO BE DONE BY POLICE IS DONE WITH THE HELP OF FASCHISM
Karine Ionesyan

12:38 06/03/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

Interview with the ex-presidential candidate Andrias Ghukasyan

What are your conclusions when you analyze your hunger strike in the
post-electoral period?

The CIS observers ignored, the observers of the Council of Europe too.

I had meetings with the OSCE/ODIHR and the PACE mission. Both
groups ignored my hunger strike in their political statements, and
no proposals followed my demands. The situation in the country is a
little different. I met with the representatives of all the political
forces. As to the issue that I brought up, it did not undergo a
discussion by the political forces. To sum up, this question is
among issues which the other states and our political parties do not
discuss because it is a commonly understood and familiar issue that is
ascribed to the other post-soviet states. In other words, different
groups came to government in the result of an anti-constitutional
process which have formed criminal-oligarchic or autocratic systems
and misuse public and national property, enjoying international
legitimacy and being defined as transition to democracy. However, we
forget that transition cannot last for 20 years. There is, obviously,
a political crisis, people have lost their confidence in the state,
the political parties, international organizations and countries. The
purpose of the hunger strike was to wake up will in people to stop
tolerating everything, and it happened, people woke up.

In other words, did your hunger strike affect the election results?

I wouldn’t like to link the hunger strike to the votes Raffi received
but the climate has changed, and thanks to the hunger strike people
saw the question – should they continue to live in hatred or revolt?

People revolted and continue to revolt. Today people are thinking
about how to come together to rid of the regime. Public activities
meet my expectations. Day after day a more creative and encouraging
climate is created and people feel they are capable of fight.

An interesting situation has occurred because people with different
political views, people who are not members of any party, have united.

Today Raffi can step towards a new political reality but it is obvious
that after Raffi the political figures must be replaced by new people.

There is already confidence in joint action, and the number of votes
received by Raffi empowers people because a unified policy is visible
which the opposition has lacked for a long time. There are concerns
that the ruling party will split the movement with the help of its
propaganda. Everyone has such concerns, and now all the questions
need to be answered: what is revolution, why is it necessary, what
is the goal, the way, the resources? I see no other way for Raffi –
he must do the revolution.

Is this the reason why you applied to the RA Constitutional Court?

My application has an auxiliary role. Serzh Sargsyan’s withdrawal
must be demanded, actions must be taken by April 9 to prevent his
inauguration.

How is it possible to get out of the political crisis?

The ruling political forces have a change to appoint a new election to
relieve the crisis? New elections will enable new arrangements in the
political field, which is a way of getting out of the crisis. If it
is not done in 10 days, it means they accept the challenge and will
prevent the spirit that has awakened people and directed them to a
revolution whose only resource is the media. As long as the vision of
cooperation with the EU is in sight, the regime will try to refrain
from violence or political persecution. These resources are not deemed
sufficient by the regime. Options of using force and buying political
figures must be discussed at some places. This is the toolkit of the
government in revolutionary developments. The government uses violent
force to warn not to revolt. In 10 days the political forces will
decide to take to the side of the regime or people. In other words,
either they board Titanic and sink or take to the side of people. The
other camp will certainly consider this team as titanic.

Will people get disappointed if Raffi Hovannisian decides to stop
the struggle or is there consciousness of the need to struggle?

Raffi is a political symbol today, the embodiment of over 500,000
voters. Today I can see will in Raffi. Raffi came and said people you
won. It means that our political system has gone a step ahead and
puts responsibility on people. The public are not football viewers
to get disappointed with the game of the team.

What is your opinion on the policy of setting young people against
one another, especially at the latest class strike?

The ruling forces worry about the spread of the civic revolt. If you
see 30 activists and 300 policemen, the policemen are not there because
the activists are dangerous. Those 30 are most eminent citizens of
our countries, and one policeman would be enough. 300 policemen are
there to prevent other people from joining. As to hiring groups,
it is an old method. This method was used when they asked people
who they wanted to set free, Jesus or Barabbas, and people hired by
Jewish priests cried the name of Barabbas. The highest expression of
the method is initiation of fascist movements because when there is
no other argument against law, they can say the national interest is
higher than law.

Serzh Sargsyan’s regime has stronger inclination for fascism than
other political forces, which is a paradox. On the one hand, Sargsyan
is more committed to reforms than others. He has a record of foreign
congratulations. On the other hand, Armenia has never been as close
to fascism as now. Serzh refrains from use of force, gets compliments
from the West and has to form fascist forces in the country. What
was to be done through policemen is done with the help of fascism.

Could the consequences be more tragic than March 1?

Definitely! When you are helpless and you want to use force for
self-accomplishment, you artificially create negative forces to destroy
your opponent. But you forget that after the task is complete, the
same people will destroy the president then themselves. It would
be more positive for Armenia to fight against the autocracy than
pseudo-democracy because the first is clear, the second is blurred.

The police are under state control, fascist groups are beyond law and
they can kill anyone. The attempt on Paruir Hairikyan is a typical
expression. The stronger civic activity, the stronger fascism will
become under the aegis of the ruling party. We witnessed this model
a few days ago. The university official, the government official,
the artificially formed group of executors was standing there, and
as one looks at their faces, one feels they have nothing in common
with education. They did not have weapons on that day. On another day
they may have sticks, knives… This can still be prevented if it is
kept in sight because fascism is like mould, cockroaches which like
darkness and they must be kept in the light because they will die if
kept in the light.

AZERBAIJANI-TURKISH MILITARY EXERCISE TO BE HELD

Fri 01 March 2013 08:13 GMT | 8:13 Local Time

There is a plan to hold joint Azerbaijani-Turkish military exercises
in line with the plan of military cooperation.

1news.az reports citing the news service for the Defence ministry of
Azerbaijan that Azerbaijani servicemen will take part in international
military diving courses in Istanbul in period from 3 March until 7
July and in trainings for aviation terminology for air forces in Izmir.

HELENE SEGARA TO GIVE CONCERT IN YEREVAN

10:04, 6 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 6, ARMENPRESS. Within the framework of the Francophonie
month in Armenia prominent French singer Helène Segara will give a
gala concert in Yerevan on March 19. The concert, which is scheduled
to take place in “Aram Khachaturyan” Concert Hall, will be held under
the high auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic
of Armenia in association with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic
of Armenia and the Embassy of France to Armenia.

In a conversation with “Armenpress” the Manager of the Public
Relations Department of Yerevan Brandy Factory Zaruhi Saribekyan
stated: “Presently we are engaged in clarifying the program of the
singer’s stay in Armenia.” Yerevan Brandy Factory is the exclusive
sponsor of the upcoming concert.

Helène Segara was born on 26 February 1971 in Six-Fours-les-Plages
in her grandfather’s farm. Her father is of Italian descent and
mother is Armenian. Then she had many successive jobs including
performances in the piano bars of the French Riviera. At 18, she
gave birth to Raphael, her first son. Her repertoire was expanding,
with many musical influences and over a thousand songs. In 1993,
a first single entitled “Loin” was released, but didn’t meet success.

In 1998, Segara performed with Garou a duet for the album Ensemble
contre le sida (Eng: Together Against AIDS). The song is a cover
version of “L’amour existe encore”, composed by Luc Plamondon and
Richard Cocciante for Celine Dion. Her performance of Armenian popular
song “Dle Yaman” was posted in Youtube in 2011.

UNICEF DECLARED ABOUT MORE THAN 2500 SYRIAN SCHOOLS DESTROYED DURING THE CIVIL WAR

20:59, 5 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 5, ARMENPRESS: Almost two years into the Syria crisis,
the escalating level of violence is threatening the education of
hundreds of thousands of children, a UNICEF assessment says.

As reports Armenpress referring to UNICEF official web site, one fifth
of the country’s schools have suffered direct physical damage or are
being used to shelter displaced persons.

In cities where the conflict has been most intense, some children
have already missed out on almost two years of schooling.

“The education system in Syria is reeling from the impact of violence,”
said Youssouf Abdel-Jelil, UNICEF Syria Representative.

“Syria once prided itself on the quality of its schools. Now it’s
seeing the gains it made over the years rapidly reversed.”

UNICEF’s education assessment – conducted in December 2012 – notes
that many parents are now reluctant to send their children to school,
fearing for their safety.

At least 2,400 schools have been damaged or destroyed, including 772
in Idlib (50 per cent of the total), 300 in Aleppo and another 300
in Deraa; over 1,500 schools are being used as shelters for displaced
persons; more than 110 teachers and other staff have been killed and
many others are no longer reporting for work.

Some schools have been used by armed forces and groups involved in
the conflict.

The assessment says schools in Idlib, Aleppo and Deraa – where fighting
has been particularly severe – are among the worst affected.

As a result, schoolchildren are often failing to turn up for class,
sometimes attending only twice a week.

In areas hosting high numbers of displaced families, classes are
overcrowded, sometimes hosting up to 100 students.

“Being in school makes children feel safe and protected and leaves
parents hopeful about their children’s future”, said Mr. Abdel-Jelil.

“That’s why so many parents we talk to single out education as their
top priority.”

Working to address children’s learning needs inside Syria, UNICEF is
supporting more than 170 school clubs in Homs, Deraa, Rural Damascus,
Tartous, Lattakia, Hama and Quneitra. The clubs allow some 40,000
children to receive much needed remedial education and take part
in recreational activities. UNICEF is also providing teaching and
learning supplies and is rehabilitating damaged schools.

TURQUIE: LA VOIE FERREE TURCO-ARMENIENNE POURRAIT ETRE RE-OUVERTE

Publie le : 06-03-2013

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN vous
propose une traduction de Gilbert Beguian d’un article en anglais de
Serkan Demirtas du site turc Hurriyet Daily News mise en ligne sur
le site de NAM (Nouvelles d’Armenie Magazine) le 23 fevrier 2013.

La Turquie offre un deal a l’Armenie si…

La Turquie offre a l’Armenie de participer a son Projet de Transport
Regional reliant l’Europe a l’Asie, si des progrès concrets sont
faits pour resoudre l’epineuse question du Haut-Karabagh avec Bakou

par Serkan Demirtas – Hurriyet Daily News

23 fevrier 2013

La Turquie a propose a l’Armenie de prendre part a son projet etendu de
transport regional reliant l’Europe a l’Asie, si des developpements
concrets sont realises pour resoudre le conflit du Haut-Karabagh
avec l’Azerbaïdjan, demontrant une volonte politique d’instaurer
une situation gagnant-gagnant pour tous les pays du sud-Caucase,
dans une ère post-conflictuelle.

” Nous nous efforcons de stimuler le Groupe de Minsk de l’OSCE pour la
solution du conflit du Haut-Karabagh. Nous avons presente le Integrated
Transportation Corridors Project [Projet d’Axes de Transport Integres]
au Groupe de Minsk en novembre 2012. Ce projet doit etre developpe en
temps de paix et en particulier après que l’Armenie fasse un geste
dans ce sens relativement a l’occupation de sept regions entourant
le Haut-Karabagh “, ont declare des sources diplomatiques au Hurriyet
Daily News recemment. ” Nous proposons une normalisation complète des
liens entre la Turquie et l’Armenie et l’Armenie et l’Azerbaïdjan “.

L’occupation par l’Armenie du Haut-Karabagh de l’Azerbaïdjan et de
sept regions frontalières du territoire depuis le debut des annees
1990 se dresse comme le principal obstacle devant la stabilite et
la prosperite regionales. La Turquie soutient l’Azerbaïdjan et a
ferme ses frontières avec l’Armenie dans une decision qui a ravive
les relations deja tendues du fait de la campagne de cette dernière
pour faire reconnaître comme un genocide les massacres d’Armeniens
de 1915 des mains de l’Empire ottoman par la communaute internationale.

L’Armenie peut faire partie du reseau international de voies ferrees
Bakou-Tbilissi-Kars si la Turquie ouvre la route existant entre Kars
et la ville armenienne de Gumri.

Le geste recent de la Turquie de reconciliation avec l’Armenie
a ete annihile du fait de la forte reaction azerie en 2010, qui
a cause la suspension de la ratification de deux protocoles clef
pour l’etablissement de relations diplomatiques et l’ouverture de
la frontière fermee. La Turquie s’est depuis lors concentree sur
des efforts pour stimuler le presqu’improductif groupe de Minsk de
l’Organisation pour la Securite et la Cooperation en Europe (OSCE),
pour pousser l’Azerbaïdjan et l’Armenie a se mettre d’accord sur un
plan de paix.

Dans ce cadre, la Turquie a presente son Projet d’Axes de Transport
Integres au cours d’une reunion le 8 novembre 2012 a Vienne a laquelle
assistaient les trois pays co-presidents France, Russie et Etats-Unis.

” Il a ete recu positivement par tous les pays du Groupe de Minsk
“, ont rapporte certaines sources au Daily News. ” Nous leur avons
clairement montre que ce projet tend a creer un contexte de paix pour
le benefice de tous les parties concernees “.

Voies Ferrees, routes, cites

Le projet de transport comporte deux phases. D’un côte, il est concu
pour relier la Turquie, l’Armenie, l’Azerbaïdjan et la Federation
de Russie en remettant en etat des voies non utilisees et en
en construisant des nouvelles. En plus du projet de voie ferree
Kars-Tbilissi-Bakou qu’il est prevu de terminer vers la fin de cette
annee. La voie ferree Turquie-Armenie pourrait etre re-ouverte après
une rehabilitation mineure. En parallèle avec les voies ferrees,
une nouvelle autoroute moderne est etudiee pour accroître les flux
commerciaux et de personnes entre les deux pays.

” Evidemment, nous prevoyons de construire de nouveaux centres
logistiques et des zones residentielles, parallèlement a des projets
de construction de masse le long de ces routes pour creer un nouveau
pôle regional ” ont declare certaines sources. ” Le seul objectif
de ce projet est de susciter un demarrage economique de la region,
dans l’interet de tous les pays et pour la prosperite de leur peuple “.

Considerant les perspectives economiques et l’importance strategique
offertes par le Sud Caucase, le projet de la Turquie aborde en meme
temps la necessite de relier l’Europe a l’Asie. Un axe de transport
entre Londres et Beijing sera bientôt possible avec l’achèvement du
projet Marmara et la voie ferree Bakou-Tbilissi-Kars, tandis que la
normalisation de la situation politique dans la region permettrait a
l’Armenie de rejoindre ce reseau strategique, soutiennent des sources
proches du projet.

L’Azerbaïdjan est informe du projet

Connu pour sa suspicion envers une reconciliation potentielle entre
la Turquie et l’Armenie, l’Azerbaïdjan a ete tenu informe du contenu
du projet par la Turquie. ” Ils savent ce que nous voulons. Nous leur
avons repete qu’il s’agit d’un projet qui ne sera demarre qu’après
que l’Armenie fasse un pas vers la paix “, ont soutenu certaines
sources azerbaïdjanaises.

L’Armenie, jusqu’a present, est restee relativement tiède sur ce projet
de la Turquie, et n’a passe aucun message de reaction a travers le
Groupe de Minsk.

Après la victoire du president Serzh Sargsyan aux elections de la
semaine passee, la Turquie n’espère aucun changement dans l’immediat
dans la politique de l’Armenie envers le Haut-Karabagh. ” Nous
n’attendons aucun changement appreciable dans leur politique avant 2015
“, nous ont declare des sources turques.

L’Armenie et les communautes organisees de sa diaspora mènent une
campagne active de reconnaissance universelle des massacres de 1915
comme genocide pour le centenaire de ces evenements.

mercredi 27 fevrier 2013, Jean Eckian ©armenews.com

Traduction Gilbert Beguian pour Armenews

Titre original:

Turkey eyes Karabakh step from Armenia to open ways

Retour a la rubrique

Source/Lien : NAM

UN PROCUREUR DEMANDE SIX ANS DE PRISON POUR L’ASSASSIN DE SEVAG BALIKCI

Un procureur militaire de Diyarbakýr a demande de deux a six ans
de prison pour un suspect inculpe d'” assassinat avec negligence
consciente “, dans le cas du meurtre de Sevag Balikci, un soldat turc
d’origine armenienne qui a ete tue dans des circonstances suspectes
alors qu’il effectuait son service militaire le 24 avril 2011.

La Cour du Commandement de la Force Aerienne Militaire de Diyarbakýr a
poursuivi le procès du Kývanc Aðaoðlu sur les accusations d’assassinat
et du sous-officier Sabrettin Ersoz pour ” abus de pouvoir par
negligence ” le 28 fevrier.

Cem Halavut, avocat de la famille Balikci, a declare les temoignages
devrait etre entendus le meme jour car ils entrent en conflit les uns
les autres, et a ajoute que l’enquete devrait etre elargie. Toutefois,
le tribunal a rejete ses demandes.

le père de Sevag Balikci, Garabet, et sa mère Ani Balikci ont egalement
assiste a l’audience.

Sevag Balikci a ete abattu dans un poste de la gendarmerie dans la
province de Batman par un autre soldat, Kývanc Aðaoðlu, avec qui il
effectuait son service militaire. L’incident a eu lieu le 24 avril
2011, a la meme date que les Armeniens marquent l’anniversaire du
genocide de 1915.

mercredi 6 mars 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

” VOLONTAIRES ARMENIENS 1914-1916 ”

Le livre ” ” Volontaires Armeniens 1914-1916 ” qui vient d’etre publie
aux editions La Bouquinerie est une mine de documents sur la periode
de la tragedie armenienne de 1915. Images de combattants armeniens,
celebrites -telles qu’Andranik, Tro, Hamazasp, Keri, Njdeh, Vartan-
ou anonymes fixant pour l’eternite l’objectif, cet album-photo
commente en francais, armenien et russe est une preuve accablante
-une de plus- du genocide armenien. Ces groupes d’auto-defense ou
simples combattants de la liberte luttaient a armes inegales avec
pour seule force leur volonte jusqu’au sacrifice, afin de proteger
la population armenienne decimee par l’armee ottomane. Temoignage
d’epoque, les ecrits et photos contenus dans ” Volontaires Armeniens
1914-1916 ” publie pour la première fois a Petrograd (Russie) en 1916
est un veritable document d’epoque. Ce livre-temoignage nous plonge
dans ce passe où la vie de millions d’innocents civils Armeniens qui
vivaient paisiblement sur leurs terres, a bascule dans le neant.

” Volontaires Armeniens ” 19 ~@ grand format a l’italienne : 29 x 21
cm. Environ 100 pages. tirage sur papier bouffant ivoire. Couverture
en couleurs pelliculee.

Editions de la Bouquinerie, 77 Avenue des Baumes, 26 000 Valence.

www. labouquinerie.com, [email protected], tel. 06.88.08.35.96

Krikor Amirzayan

mercredi 6 mars 2013, Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

IWPR: AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES WANT TO TURN ISLAM INTO SOMETHING THAT CAN BE OWNED AND CONTROLLED

19:22 05/03/2013 ” SOCIETY

Azerbaijan has tightened restrictions on religious literature – both
imported and locally published- in a move that reflects official
worries about Sunni radicalism and also about interference by the
Shia theocracy in neighbouring Iran, the IWPR says.

“Legislative amendments passed in December 2011 made it a criminal act
to import, publish or distribute religious material that has not been
approved by the government committee for religious organisations. The
changes passed by Azerbaijan’s parliament on February 22 add to this
by requiring all such items – audio and video material as well as
literature – to carry an official stamp of approval, and confines their
sale to government-designated retail outlets,” the publication says.

Azerbaijan is a predominantly Muslim country with a Shia majority. The
end of the Soviet Union in 1991 brought about a resurgence in Islam,
and the authorities frequently express concern about Tehran’s attempts
to project its influence in the Shia community of Azerbaijan. Among
the Sunni minority, the government takes a dim view of groups like
the Salafis, with roots in the Arab world.

“Azerbaijan has a new generation of believers who are very active,”
Goyushev said. “The government wants to control them and those
[foreign] influences. It wants to make Islam something it owns and
control,” Altay Goyushov, a historian of religion from Baku State
University, says.

According to the article the authorities are especially annoyed when
Islamic figures accuse them of mismanagement and corruption. “In
2011, Movsum Samadov, head of the Islamic Party of Azerbaijan, was
arrested after comparing President Ilham Aliyev to one of the most
hated figures in the Shia tradition,” Sultanova writes.

Limiting access to Muslim literature is opposed by religious figures
like Faiq Mustafa of the Lezgi mosque in the capital Baku, where the
congregation is Sunni. “We need literature just like anyone else,”
he said. “We need it even more, in fact, because Islam is such a
complicated science. Unlike the stereotypical view that we gather in
the mosque for a chat, we have to read a great deal to be aware of
the Islamic rules for marriage, property, income, and so on. Religious
literature is at the core of our community’s development.”

The parliament debate also touched on the external signs of Islamic
observance. One member, Ilham Aliyev (who bears the same name as
Azerbaijan’s president), said he could not stand the sight of the
beards and short trousers favoured by Salafis, and said these people
should be ostracised from society. “International human rights
organisations have documented a number of cases where Salafis have
been harassed. Apart from hinting that they are potential terrorists,
the authorities are unhappy that Salafi congregations tend to avoid
registering with the official body that governs Azerbaijan’s Muslims,
both Shia and Sunni,” the article says.

Source: Panorama.am

WHEN WILL “LISKA”S BE ARRESTED?

2013-03-05 21:18:54

Today in the Court of First Instance of Kentron and Nork-Marash
administrative districts the former head of the Social Security Vazgen
Khachikyan’s and his trials’ criminal case started.

Of course, everybody knew about the work of Pension Fund, but for
many years that knowledge was accepted in the so called Republic of
Armenia as a normal and acceptable reality.

All knew all about the situation, all talked about that, but at the
same time together talking and cursing the state, all confirmed, that
nothing would change. Khachikyan was Andranik Margaryan’s favorite, the
bright representative of the Republican Party’s youth wing (Ashotyan
of that time), he was definitely not alone in that appropriated funds,
which would be paid to the appropriate place, and Ishkhan Zakarian’s
speeches, well, Ishkhan Zakarian’s “performsnces”, which were not
seriously considered, so many people were thinking in this way.

Some time passed, first Khachikyan was fired, but this time there
was no hope of any punishment. “Hopes” disappeared because of Vazgen
Khachikyan’s quite bumptious behaviour. Once Khachikyan was walking,
participating in events, even after left Germany, for allegedly
therapies.

Under Pension Fund case 8300 people were examined, 53 people were
accused and for 13 detention was used as a preventive measure. Vazgen
Khachikyan had charge of “owning a total of 260,956,681 money from
pension in 2006-2010.” Besides, according to the indictment, Vazgen
Khachikian fraudulently stole particularly 29 million AMD from the
state budget.”

Was Vazgen Khachikian panished as an exception, or this is only the
first “flower” in a game with already changed rules.

In case of the first case Vazgen Khachikian’s case, perhaps, is
not even worth of to be interested in, in the second case, a more
interesting situation can be seen in the near future, because the
rules of the game have changed based on equality before the law for
all, perhaps, is not fair and is not acceptable to have V. Khachikyan
in the prison, but Surik Khachatryan the latter was at least charged
with 7 crimes, including a rape …) and other creatures, who is in
any way appeared in the pyramid of power.

It is enough to just change the rules of the game and, in the end,
“Safe Armenia” can be talked about and to walk towards the “secured
Armenia” only with the changed rules of the game. If you steal,
then you are a criminal- “you are in prison”, you kill, the you are
a criminal, if you are a hooligan, you appear in prison, no matter
you are a criminal. There are no privileged, no one who violates law,
neither ordinary people, nor high officials.

Lusine Kesoyan