Author: Kajoyan Gevork

CAMPAIGN FOR CLEAN WATER IN ARTSAKH VILLAGES NEARS 3-DAY DEADLINE

Tuesday, January 29th, 2013

Water is vital for the future generations

New non-profit platform ONEArmenia~Rs online crowd-funding campaign
to build a clean water system in Nagorno Karabagh is speeding toward
its deadline, with 3 days left to raise $22,000.

ONEArmenia Leads Movement Toward Transparent Giving New York funding
platform uses online crowd-funding and social media marketing to
modernize humanitarian projects and shine a light on change-makers
in Armenia.

NEW YORK~WAs Armenia~Rs preparations for next month~Rs presidential
election go into full swing, citizens and the expansive diaspora are
asking questions~Vsome new, some old~Vabout what sort of policy change
it would take to dramatically improve the state of the country. With
multi-sector corruption and extreme socio-economic disparities
continuously driving out its dwindling population in droves, Armenia
is still struggling to adapt to democratic capitalism over 20 years
since the fall of the USSR in the early 1990s.

Kindergarten students in Karabakh

Nevertheless, there is change taking place in the country, and much
of it is driven by enterprising citizens who are taking cues from
grassroots movements all over the world to advocate for justice and
equity from the ground up. The current fight against mining in the
Teghut forest, for instance, has brought the state of Armenia~Rs
environment to the forefront for the first time, while human rights,
freedom of expression, military transparency and economic equality
are also pushed for by a dedicated activist core.

Non-profit funding platform ONEArmenia was founded in September 2012
to stand side-by-side with these individuals and the organizations
they represent, using social media and crowd-funding to involve anyone
with an Internet connection in boosting projects that are geared toward
making tangible change in Armenia now. With Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr
and Instagram dominating the marketing world, ONEArmenia has tailored
its approach to maximize the influence these massively-trafficked
sites have on raising awareness on pertinent issues and bringing
people together.

The non-profit is based on its three-pillar commitment to global
collaboration, efficiency and transparency. This means that the
ONEArmenia network makes it possible to not only raise money for
a project based in Armenia as a worldwide community, but to also
track the progress of said project with complete access to financial
information. ONEArmenia only accepts project proposals from other
non-profits with a proven track record, fundraises for approved
projects via crowd-funding site IndieGoGo, and then continuously
reports on project implementation, process and completion using video,
photo and written documentation that is posted publicly online.

Manhattan-based entrepreneur Patrick Sarkissian founded the
organization with the intention of bringing Armenia~Rs progress
into the digital age and finding a solution to the growing cynicism
around donating to Armenian charities. Well-aware of the numerous
occasions where misused funds have halted development and humanitarian
initiatives in the country, Sarkissian brought together a team of
young Armenian-Americans to establish a funding and reporting model
that is, essentially, fool-proof.

ONEArmenia successfully crowd-funded its first project in October,
raising over $19,000 in 30 days to renovate a kindergarten in
Moshatagh, a remote village in northern Nagorno-Karabagh. The
construction is set to begin in spring 2013, and will create
educational and employment opportunities for hundreds of families in
the area. The project itself was initiated by the Tufenkian foundation,
ONEArmenia~Rs first member organization founded by board member James
Tufenkian (of the eponymous boutique hotel and artisanal rug brands).

Their current campaign is also for a project based in
Nagorno-Karabakh. Three days are left to meet a $22,000 funding goal
to construct a clean water system in and around Karotan village,
where a recent outbreak of water-borne illness has forced residents to
often travel several kilometers by foot to find potable sources. This
effort, along with a consistent social media presence that highlights
change-making people and movements in Armenia, is at the forefront of
the organization~Rs operations. With plans to continuously expand its
reach and the scope of projects it promotes, ONEArmenia is positioning
itself on the cusp of what may very well be a new age in boosting
Armenia~Rs progress.

To learn more about ONEArmenia and donate to the campaign for clean
water in Karotan, visit onearmenia.org/projects.

RUSSIA, KAZAKHSTAN SIGN AIR DEFENSE AGREEMENT

RIA Novosti.

ASTANA, January 30 (RIA Novosti) – Russia and Kazakhstan signed a
deal on Wednesday to create a joint regional air defense system,
Kazakhstan’s Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

“This document will create a platform to secure the defense of
Kazakhstan’s airspace and Russia’s adjacent territory,” the Defense
Ministry said in a statement.

Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who is in Kazakhstan on
an official visit, and his Kazakhstan counterpart Defense Minister
Adilbek Dzhaksybekov signed the agreement in the capital Astana.

Russia has previously had such an air defense agreement only with
Belarus, but has planned to sign a similar one with Armenia, although
the two countries do not share a border.

The two defense ministers also discussed bilateral military issues
including Russia’s proving grounds in Kazakhstan and military
education. Some 600 Kazakhstan military personnel are currentl

AWAKENING

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 09:27

The year of 2013 has fully come into its rights. As you know, it will
pass in the NKR under the slogan of the Karabakh Movement, the 25th
anniversary of which will be publicly marked in February. 25 years
ago, on February 20, 1988, an extraordinary session of the Council of
People’s Deputies of the NKAO of the twentieth convocation took place,
which adopted a resolution on applying to the Supreme Soviets of the
Azerbaijani and Armenian Soviet Socialist Republics for the transfer of
the district from Azerbaijan to Armenia. Simultaneously, the session
applied to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR for approving the issue of
transferring the NKAO from the Azerbaijani SSR to the Armenian SSR.

This truly crucial resolution, which became the culmination of the
national movement, was actually the legal endorsement of the free will
of the people, because it was based on the mass appeals of the NKAO
inhabitants to the supreme power of the USSR on this issue. It is
known that the session was preceded by gathering tens of thousands
of signatures put under the petition addressed to the leadership
of the Soviet Union. In fact, the resolution of the session of the
district Council marked a new stage in the Karabakh Movement. We can
say without any exaggeration that this event became a phenomenon also
in the public-political life of the Soviet Union, as the first time
in its history a parliamentary and democratic resolution was adopted,
which was truly based on the people’s free will and was not vertically
ordered in the best traditions of the “Soviet parliamentarianism”.

To be fair, we should admit that the national awakening of the Armenian
people in the late 80’s of the last century was the result of the
policy of glasnost and perestroika proclaimed by the new Soviet leader,
Mikhail Gorbachev. It is well known that the Karabakh issue as such
had occurred, in fact, since the violent including of the district in
the structure of the Azerbaijani SSR in July 1921, against the will of
the majority of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh. During the Soviet
period, Armenians of the NKAO had repeatedly put before the central
leadership of the Soviet Union the issue of reunification of Artsakh
with Armenia, fairly considering it as salvation from Azerbaijan’s
policy of national discrimination and as a guarantee for safe
development. Unfortunately, the federal authorities did not resolve
the problem; moreover, they drove it deeper with their inaction. And
only in 1988, when as a result of Gorbachev’s “perestroika” some
signs of liberalization of the USSR public-political life appeared,
the people of Nagorno-Karabakh again raised its voice in defense of
its national rights and raised the issue of the withdrawal of the
district from Azerbaijan’s structure.

It should be noted that initially there was a belief in the fairness
of the Union center, the party leadership, and in Gorbachev himself.

The people believed in him and wanted to change for the better, hoping
to solve the crucial issues. It is not accidental that at the initial
stage of the Karabakh Movement the people of Karbakh participated in
mass demonstrations in support of the demands for reunification of the
NKAO with Armenia under the slogans reflecting the unwavering belief
in the justice and sincerity of the Soviet leadership. The greater
was the disappointment with the democratic ideals of “perestroika”.

Deception and hypocrisy were on what was based the “democracy”
of Gorbachev who positioned himself as a reformer of the stagnant
public-political life of the USSR. Looking ahead, we should note that
it was the falsity of Gorbachev’s clique, the inability or rather
unwillingness to resolve long-standing problems, including national
ones, that ultimately led to the collapse of the Soviet Union. The
slogans on the socialist internationalism, on which the communist
ideology was based, devalued and could no longer ensure the unity of
the Soviet people.

Unfortunately, the leadership of the Soviet Union, led by Gorbachev,
took the national movements, including the Karabakh one, as a
threat to its power. With the filing of Gorbachev, the democratic
movement, which developed in strict accordance with the norms of
the then legislation, was assessed as extremism and separatism. (By
the way, this contrived propaganda thesis, which has already become
anachronistic, is used by Azerbaijan even today, after a quarter of
a century). As a result, a tandem of Moscow and Baku was created –
the Union Center did not suppress the aggressive manifestations of
the Azerbaijani nationalism, which turned into pogroms and massacres
of Armenians in Sumgait, Baku, Kirovabad, Mingechaur and other towns;
moreover, it actually encouraged the bloody actions for suppressing
the truly nationwide Karabakh Movement. Life has proven the failure
of Gorbachev’s estimates, as well as the inability to destroy the
freedom-loving spirit of the people of Artsakh.

The Karabakh Movement, which emerged in the late 1980s as a desire for
reunification with Armenia, turned into a struggle for independence
in the new political environment, which occurred as a result of
the collapse of the Soviet Union. The independent Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic has existed for over twenty years, seeking its international
recognition. For the people of Artsakh, the lessons of the severe
struggle against the Soviet totalitarianism and Azerbaijani nationalism
for protecting their own honor and dignity were not in vain. Evolution
of their ideology took place, which led to the understanding of the
truth that only national unity, reliance on their own potential can
lead to the achievement of the higher goal. These lessons are needed
for all of us, but first of all, for the new generation of citizens of
the independent NKR, which should preserve and continue the traditions
of the elders.

Leonid MARTIROSSIAN Editor-in-Chief of Azat Artsakh newspaper

ADEQUATE MEASURES TO BE TAKEN IN CASE OF ILLEGAL FLIGHTS IN KHANKANDI – MOD

Wed 30 January 2013 09:00 GMT | 9:00 Local Time

The statements of CSTO secretary general Nikolay Bordyuzha are not
surprising, he alwys supported Armenia unfairly.

The statement came from spokesman for the Defence Ministry of
Azerbaijan Eldar Sabiroglu.

He said Bordyuzha’s attitude demonstrates his pro-Armenian position.

CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha said in Yerevan on 29 January
that he does not take for serious the possibility of termination of
Armenian airplanes by Azerbaijan in case they fly to Khojaly (the
Armenian side calls it the Stepanakert airport).

“These people likely have their interest in continuous tension in
the region.

On the one hand, they say that the Karabakh conflict must be solved
peacefully, on the other hand, they support Armenia which occupied
Azerbaijani lands with the help of its patrons. This has already
become open”, Sabiroglu said.

He noted that Bordyuzha is a citizen of Russia-the co-chair of the
OSCE Minsk Group.

“If such a situation established in a country close to Bordyuzha,
which position would he have taken? Certainly, he would have said
that this airplane must be knocked down. There are international
conventions that prohibit such illegal actions as illegal flights to
the territory of the state”, Sabiroglu said.

The spokesman noted that no one in Azerbaijan wants the situation to
go strained that far.

“Why don’t they recommend Armenia to give up such actions? Why doesn’t
Bordyuzha say Armenia that in case of the flights the situation in
the region may go strained and provoke military actions?

Azerbaijan is not joking- adequate measures will be taken in case of
illegal flights in Khankandi.

Probably, officials like Bordyuzha want the airplane to be knocked
down and the situation to go strained. That’s clear”, Sabiroglu said.

He noted that if Armenia wants the situation to normalize and the
conflict be settled peacefully, it has to demonstrate an independent
and fair position and not to act under someone’s guidance.

“Otherwise, the implications will be heavy and Azerbaijan will not
bear responsibility for this”, he said.

News.Az

“ZHOGHOVURD”: ONE OF THE RESPONSIBLE OF A CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS OF SERZH SARGSYAN IS SUSPECTED OF MURDER

2013-01-30 10:06:44

On the eve of the murder happened in the Yerevan, Sari Tagh,
one of the suspected is presidential candidate Serzh Sargsyan’s
camapaign headquarders’ head. The fact that a resident of Sari Tagh,
43-years-old Sergey Galstyan haq a quarrel with Edik Hakobyan, known
with the nickname “Odol.”

The quarrel grew into a shootout: Odol shot Sergey. As a result of
the gunshot the latter died. Police are looking for Odol.

Residents of Sari Tagh yesterday in an interview with the newspaper
“Zhohovurd” reported that Odol worked in favor of the Republican
Party for many years and is now responsible of Serzh Sargsyan’s
campaign headquarters. For comments the newspaper appealed to the
parliamentary group of RPA Hovhannes Sahakyan, who, however, said he
did not know the problem and could not give any comments.

OLD COMMUNIST SEES NO SENSE IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN ARMENIA

TERT.AM
12:52 ~U 30.01.13

At its plenary session on December 29, 2012, the Communist Party of
Armenia (CPA) decided against nominating its candidate in the 2013
presidential election or supporting any of the presidential candidates.

“There is no sense in nominating a candidate when all the resources
are employed in the incumbent president’s favor – even Cheburashka
[Topple; Tumbler] is ’employed’. We are not going to waste our money.

Nor do we have money to waste,” Ruben Tovmasyan, CPA Secretary told
journalists on Wednesday.

He is sure that the presidential election will not be of benefit
to Armenia.

“There will not be an end to poverty, unemployment and emigration. We
see the election campaign – one at the barber’s, another promising,
still others not leaving their offices. If the system does not change,
the people are not captives. They must nominate their leader and take
to the streets,” Mr Tovmasyan said.

Asked about the March 1, 2008 events, when people took to the streets,
he said, “The leader was to blame.”

“They feared and ran into their homes. If they had remained with
the people on March 1, everything would have been different on March
2. If you lead the people, why do you leave them?”

STUDENT WINS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MEMORIAL DESIGN CONTEST

12:20 30.01.2013

The Art Center College of Design and the Pasadena Armenian Genocide
Memorial Committee (PASAGMC) jointly announced the winning design
concept for a new memorial whose planned dedication in 2015 will
coincide with 100th anniversary commemorations of the Armenian
Genocide. The concept by Art Center Environmental Design student
Catherine Menard was developed in 2012 as part of the College’s
social impact design program, Designmatters. The proposed site for
the public artwork is Memorial Park in the City of Pasadena, the
Center for Armenian Remembrance reports.

Menard’s concept was one of 17 submissions the committee received,
and one of three finalists chosen by an independent panel of judges
in December. The three-judge panel included Stefanos Polyzoides,
a principal of Moule & Polyzoides, Architects and Urbanists; Ruben
Amirian, an architect/artist who has served on the design review
board and historic commission in Glendale; and Neshan Peroomian,
a contractor and prominent Armenian-American community leader.

In all, six Environmental Design students at ArtCenter developed
memorial proposals last fall during an intensive Design Topic Studio
class and submitted them to the competition. Two of the students-Menard
and her classmate J.D. Clark-were selected as finalists, a particularly
impressive achievement in a field of competitors that included many
seasoned professionals.

Earlier this month, Board members of PASAGMC voted unanimously to
move forward with Menard’s proposal.

The central feature of Menard’s minimalist design-a carved-stone basin
of water straddled by a tripod arrangement of three columns leaning
into one another-is a single drop of water that falls from the highest
point every three seconds, each “teardrop” representing one life lost.

Over the course of one year, 1.5 million tears will fall into the pool,
the estimated number of victims of the Armenian Genocide.

SERZH SARGSYAN: STEPANEKRT AIRPORT TO START OPERATING SOON
Karen Ghazaryan

“Radiolur”
12:30 30.01.2013

“The Stepanekert Airport will start operating soon. There is no
problem,” presidential candidate, incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan
told voters in Tavush marz.

He said works are underway to ensure the full security of the flights.

Serzh Sargsyan is holding meetings with voters in Tavush and Lori
marzes as part of the election campaign.

TURQUIE : LES REBELLES KURDES SERAIENT PRETS A DESARMER (PRESSE)
Stephane

armenews.com
mercredi 30 janvier 2013

Les rebelles separatistes kurdes de Turquie doivent annoncer une treve
puis commencer un desarmement symbolique au printemps dans le cadre
d’un accord conclu entre les autorites turques et le chef emprisonne de
la rebellion, Abdullah Ocalan, rapporte mardi le journal turc Hurriyet.

Selon un calendrier sur lequel les parties seraient tombees d’accord,
le Parti des travailleurs du Kurdistan (PKK, interdit) doit declarer
un cessez-le-feu en fevrier sur ordre de son chef historique, rapporte
le journal a gros tirage Hurriyet sans citer de sources.

Les combattants du PKK attendront ensuite jusqu’au degel au printemps
pour qu’un premier groupe de 100 d’entre-eux depose les armes dans les
montagnes du sud-est de la Turquie, où il sont bases pendant l’hiver,
dans un geste symbolique de “confiance”, selon le quotidien.

Le PKK dispose d’une force estimee entre 4 a 5.000 rebelles dont plus
de la moitie retranches dans le nord de l’Irak.

Un abandon total des armes par le PKK dependra de l’issu final des
pourparlers en cours.

Cette information n’a pas ete confirmee de source officielle.

Sirri Sakik, un influent depute du parti pro-kurde legal, le Parti
pour la paix et la democratie (BDP), interroge par l’AFP, n’a ni
confirme ni dementi l’information mais a souligne que l”‘objectif des
discussions en cours vise a faire en sorte que les militants (du PKK)
renoncent aux armes”.

Les services de renseignements turcs (MIT), mandates par le Premier
ministre Recep Tayyip Erdogan, ont lance en decembre un nouveau
processus de dialogue avec Ocalan, emprisonne en Turquie depuis 1999,
pour faire cesser les hostilites.

Une delegation du MIT doit prochainement se rendre dans le nord de
l’Irak qui abrite le commandement militaire du PKK pour discuter des
modalites d’une treve, ajoute Hurriyet.

M. Erdogan a promis la semaine dernière aux combattants kurdes qu’ils
pourraient quitter librement la Turquie s’ils le souhaitent et deposent
les armes, reaffirmant sa determination a negocier la fin du conflit
qui a fait 45.000 morts en 30 ans.

Le PKK combat le gouvernement d’Ankara depuis 1984 pour obtenir
l’autonomie d’une region dans le sud-est peuplee majoritairement
de Kurdes. Il est considere comme une “organisation terroriste”
par Ankara et de nombreux pays occidentaux.

mercredi 30 janvier 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

POLICE RELEASE CAMERA FOOTAGE OF AMERICAN WOMAN MISSING IN TURKEY

In of the videos released by the police on Tuesday, Sarai Sierra is
seen walking on one of the busiest streets of Ä°stanbul, Ä°stiklal
Street. (Photo: Today’s Zaman) RELATED NEWS

Turkish police intensify search for missing New York woman

29 January 2013 /TODAYSZAMAN.COM, Ä°STANBUL

Turkish police have released camera footage of Sarai Sierra, an
American woman who has been missing in Turkey since Jan. 21.

In one of the videos released by the police on Tuesday, Sierra is
seen wearing blue jeans and a brown leather jacket at a restaurant
in the Beyoglu district of Ä°stanbul. In another video she is seen
walking on one of the busiest streets of Ä°stanbul, Ä°stiklal Street.

Sierra, 33, contacted her family last week on Monday, on what was
supposed to be the final day of her solo trip to Turkey, which began
on Jan. 7. It was the last time Sierra’s family heard from her. She
was expected to land in New York on Jan. 22, but never boarded the
plane in Ä°stanbul.