Author: Kalantarian Kevo

ARMENIE
Lecture, écriture, échecs : Les experts évaluent les progrès de
l’Arménie suite à l’introduction du plus ancien jeu de société dans
les écoles primaires

Cela fait deux ans, que les rois, les reines et les chevaliers sont
associés pour les enfants des écoles arméniennes, non seulement avec
les contes de fées, mais avec des figurines en noir et blanc et la
stratégie.

En incluant les échecs comme une matière obligatoire dans les écoles
primaires depuis l’année scolaire 2011, l’Arménie est devenue le
premier pays au monde à mettre le noble jeu de plateau en tant
qu’outil de formation pour les futures générations de penseurs et
meneurs.

L’Arménie, un pays de 30 grands maîtres, est un champion à trois
reprises des Olympiades d’échecs (2006 à Turin, en 2008, à Dresde,
2012 Istanbul), tandis que son grand maître Levon Aronian a terminé
l’an dernier classé n ° 2 dans le monde.

L’initiative proposé par le gouvernement sur la prise des échecs comme
une partie du programme de l’école élémentaire a été approuvé par le
Président Serge Sarkissian et soutenu par le ministère de l’Éducation,
l’Académie des échecs d’Arménie et de la Fédération arménienne des
échecs. Les échecs en tant que matière est enseignée deux fois par
semaine pour les élèves des niveaux 2 et 4. Plus de e 1,5 million de
dollars ont été consacrés à la réalisation de l’équipement du projet,
des classes et la formation des enseignants.

Selon le ministre de l’Education Armen Ashotyan l’introduction des
échecs comme une matière obligatoire en Arménie est l’une des pierres
angulaires des activités visant à des changements qualitatifs dans le
système éducatif. Tout en décrivant le programme sur sa phase
initiale, le ministre a souligné le caractère unique et symbolique des
phénomènes. Tout au long de son histoire des réformes de l’éducation,
l’Arménie a généralement adopté l’expérience des pays occidentaux et
maintenant de nombreux pays considèrent la possibilité d’adopter
l’initiative du jeu des échecs de l’Arménie.

Contrairement à d’autres réformes éducatives introduites en Arménie au
cours des dernières années, l’idée des échecs n’a pas soulevé de
critiques particulières de la société arménienne, bien que certains
soulèvent leurs inquiétudes sur la mise en `uvre du programme.

Gayane Shaverdyan, docteur en psychologie, a récemment publié un
article en ligne se demandant si « l’échecmitisation » de l’Arménie a
été soigneusement mesurée.

« La personne qui a pris la décision d’introduire les échecs dans les
écoles sait quelque chose sur la psychologie de l’enfant ? » se
demande le docteur. « Il est plus important de former un espace
culturel pour les enfants, ce qui inclut le chant, le dessin, la
poésie. La pensée d’un enfant est imaginative, sa perception sensuelle
et volontaire est formé à travers l’art, tandis que les méthodes
modernes d’enseignement, même sans les échecs développent
unilatéralement l’intellect ».

Certains parents disent qu’ils sont mécontents que les échecs soient
une matière obligatoire et disent que le programme scolaire était déjà
surchargé et compliqué.

« Je préférerais que les enfants, au lieu d’avoir une autre leçon,
même visant à leur développement intellectuel, passent plus de temps à
l’extérieur dans l’air frais pour l’entraînement physique », explique
Anna Saghatelyan, une mère de deux enfants d’une école élémentaire. «
Malheureusement, le sport à l’école est tellement négligée en Arménie,
alors que je crois que l’éducation physique est plus important pour
les enfants de cet ge, que les échecs ».

Mikael Khachatryan, un professeur d’échecs à l’école publique n°130 à
Erevan se déclare préoccupé par le nombre élevé d’étudiants dans les
groupes.

« La section d’échecs classique implique pas plus de 10-12 personnes
dans le groupe, et pendant deux ans, avec trois cours par semaine un
étudiant peut obtenir un bon niveau », dit Mikael Khachatryan, 60 ans.
« Alors qu’il y a jusqu’à 30 enfants à des classes dans les écoles, et
la leçon dure 45 minutes et qui rend l’enseignement des échecs pas
productif comme que je le souhaite ».

Mikael Khachatryan, qui a 30 ans d’expérience de l’enseignement échecs
dans les écoles spécialisées, dit que la solution idéale serait que
les classes soient divisées, comme lors des cours de langues
étrangères, car dans ce cas, l’enseignant aurait plus de temps et de
chances de mettre la leçon en conformité avec le programme.

« Bien sûr, la pratique montre que les enfants aiment jouer aux
échecs, mais je ne peux pas encore parler de haute efficacité et ne
pas m’attendre à de bons résultats en raison du grand nombre
d’étudiants dans le groupe. Il serait souhaitable que davantage de
spécialistes soient formés comme enseignants d’échecs et les écoles
auront plus de chances d’embaucher des spécialistes d’échecs ».

Jusqu’à présent, les groupes pour des leçons d’échecs ne peuvent être
divisés car il y a un manque de professionnels d’échecs et maintenant
la question du personnel est en cours de révision. Certaines écoles
n’ont pas les spécialistes d’échecs, et les échecs sont enseignés par
des professeurs (des autres disciplines) qui ont été formés au cours
de l’année. Seulement la moitié des 1200 enseignants qui ont été
certifiés pour enseigner les échecs sont des professionnels de
l’Académie des échecs arménien.

Le méthodologiste de l’Académie Samvel Misakyan dit que le problème du
personnel sera complètement résolu dans 4 ans, en commençant en
septembre prochain, l’enseignement des échecs sera inclus dans le
curriculum de la faculté d’éducation de l’école primaire à
l’Université pédagogique Khatchatour Abovyan.

« Dans quatre ans, l’Arménie ne manquera plus d’enseignants d’échecs.
Il est évident que le meilleur moyen est quand les échecs sont
enseignés à l’école primaire par le même professeur qui enseigne les
autres matières », dit Misakyan, professeur d’échecs de l’Université
Pédagogique. ( Dans les écoles arméniennes un professeur enseigne tous
les sujets des niveaux 1 à 4).

Entre-temps, l’Académie d’échecs organise des formations trimestriels
pour les enseignants d’Erevan et dans les régions, mais Misakyan dit
que les portes de l’Académie sont ouverts tout le temps pour les
enseignants qui ont besoin d’aide et de consultation.

Quant à la faible efficacité de l’enseignement échecs dans les grands
groupes, Misakyan dit la même critique pourrait être appliquée à
d’autres disciplines scolaires, comme les mathématiques, ou d’autres
sciences exactes.

« Sûrement, le processus de formation peut être plus efficace dans les
petits groupes, mais d’un autre côté, il y aura toujours un certain
pourcentage des enfants qui ne veulent pas apprendre la matière au
niveau que nous aimerions qu’ils l’apprennent même si le groupe est
petit Tous les enfants sont différents et la mission des enseignants
est de donner à tous les étudiants une connaissance de base Il y aura
toujours des enfants qui apprendront mieux la matière que d’autres
indépendamment des circonstances. Une chose est évidente nul ne peut
nier que les échecs ont des effets bénéfiques sur les enfants, le
développement de leur attention, la logique et la mémoire ».

Bien que les spécialistes des échecs arméniens travaillent sur
l’amélioration de l’efficacité de l’enseignement des échecs dans les
écoles, cette petit, mais significative réforme a attiré l’attention
de nombreux pays, alors que les médias internationaux surveillent de
près les progrès réalisés par l’Arménie pour voir où cela mène.

« On dirait que tout le monde parle de génomique chinois et de l’art
de l’ingénierie des bébés géniaux de nos jours. Mais la nation qui est
la plus susceptible de produire une génération de super-intelligents,
résoudre les problèmes des enfants n’est pas un géant mondial de
l’économie qui s’engage actuellement dans une génétique complexe, un
programme a sinistre consonance c’est l’Arménie, un pays enclavé
minuscule, qui est encore embourbé dans l’ombre d’un génocide
dévastateur. Et il va le faire avec les échecs » affirme une histoire
« Pourquoi l’Arménie est plus susceptible de produire des
Super-enfants que la Chine » publié le mois dernier par Motherboard,
un magazine en ligne et une chaîne vidéo dédiée à l’intersection de la
technologie, la science et l’homme . « Alors que la Chine ouvre peut
être la voie à des cerveaux génétiquement optimales dans les
laboratoires de génomique géants, l’Arménie modifie l’intelligence de
sa jeunesse de l’ancienne manière, avec une politique intelligente et
une bonne éducation. En tant que tel, l’Arménie est en fait plus
susceptible d’augmenter le QI de sa jeunesse que la Chine en utilisant
la technologie d’un jeu qui a plus de mille ans ».

Le journal canadien Globe and Mail a aussi parlé des échecs en
Arménie, en essayant de découvrir le lien entre les échecs et les
enfants intelligents. « En effet, les Arméniens peuvent être sur
quelque chose. Une étude récente a montré que la psychologie d’échecs
a été associée à des capacités cognitives supérieures, d’adaptation et
de résoudre des problèmes, et même le développement socio-affectif des
enfants ».

La question arménienne des échecs dans les écoles a été abordée par la
chaîne de télévision arabe Al-Jazira, qui a tenté de révéler le rôle
des échecs dans le développement des enfants. « L’initiative (Arménie)
est d’attirer l’attention d’autres pays. Plus tard cette année, les
échecs seront intégrées dans le programme national des écoles
élémentaires de la Hongrie », affirme Al Jazeera. « Des pays comme la
Moldavie, l’Ukraine et l’Espagne montrent un intérêt dans la gestion
des projets similaires. En Grande-Bretagne, aux Etats-Unis, en Suisse,
en Inde, en Russie et les écoles Cuba ont longtemps offert les échecs
en tant que sujet, mais aucune législation nationale n’a rendu
obligatoire qu’elles existent ».

Selon le président de la Fédération Internationale des Echecs (FIDE),
Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, l’Arménie a obtenu des résultats uniques dans la
mise en `uvre du programme des « échecs dans les écoles ».

En juillet, au cours d’une réunion du conseil présidentiel de la FIDE
dans la station balnéaire de Tsaghkadzor en Arménie, Ilyumzhinov a
déclaré que la décision de tenir la réunion du conseil en Arménie
n’est pas un hasard, parce que « au cours des dernières années, la
Fédération arménienne des échecs sert de modèle pour le développement
et le soutien aux échecs ».

Par Julia Hakobyan

rédacteur en chef adjoint

ArmeniaNow

dimanche 26 janvier 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

Assyrians, Turks in Swedish Municipality on Opposite Ends Regarding
Genocide Memorial

Assyrian International News Agency
2014-01-26 21:51 GMT

Stockholm (AINA) — Tensions are rising in the Swedish municipality of
Botkyrka, south of Stockholm, as Assyrian groups push for a memorial
site for the victims of the Turkish genocide of Assyrians in World War
One, known as Seyfo (sword) in Assyrian. Turkish groups oppose the
initiative, saying they feel offended and stigmatized.

The Genocide claimed the lives of 750,000 Assyrians (75%), as well as
1.5 million Armenians and 500,000 Pontic Greeks.

In an article in the January 20 issue of Svenska Dagbladet, two
Swedish journalists revealed a letter sent by a former senior official
at the Turkish embassy in Stockholm instructing the Turkish
associations in the municipality to object the memorial. “The embassy
can’t become publicly involved but its your obligation to object it,”
the letter said.

“This proves that Assyrians are still being oppressed by the Turkish
state and are not left alone even in a remote country like Sweden,”
said Afram Yakoub, chairman of the Assyrian Federation of Sweden.
“This should make it clear to the council of the municipality that the
true opponent of the memorial is a foreign state trying to impose its
will and not some local Turkish associations.”

Assyrian organizations are preparing a demonstration in front of the
municipality hall on Thursday to show their support and make their
voices heard. “We are united and determined to speak up for our right
to have the memorial,” said Fehmi Barkarmo from Seyfocenter, an
organization working to increase awareness about the genocide of
Assyrians.

A decision by the municipality council is expected within two weeks.

Politkom (in Russian), Russia
Jan 23 2014

Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey: Geopolitical Triangle With Hidden Corners

by Sergey Minasyan, deputy director of the Armenian think tank
Caucasus Institute

On 20 January 2014, as part of his first official visit to Turkey, the
newly elected president of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, will meet
[tense as published; article is dated 23 January] with his
counterpart, Abdullah Gul. During the visit, he is also due to meet
with Prime Minister [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan and other Turkish
officials. This visit, which is likely to be followed shortly
afterwards by the new Georgian president’s official visit to another
neighbouring country, Azerbaijan, again highlights the problem of
analysing the dynamics of relations in the so-called
Ankara-Tbilisi-Baku “geopolitical triangle.”

The three countries already have the format of permanent tripartite
meetings at the level of the presidents, prime ministers, foreign
ministers, and so on, which is one of the most important means of
coordinating their political and economic policies in the region. This
trend was institutionalized around the beginning of 2007, when, during
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s official visit to Georgia, a
trilateral meeting was held between the Azerbaijani and Georgian
presidents, and Prime Minister Erdogan. Subsequently, a few more
productive meetings were held (in June 2012 and March 2013), during
which several documents forming the basis of the countries’ tripartite
activities in the sphere of regional policy were signed.

It should be noted that during almost all such meetings, formal
declarations and statements by the parties contained wording regarding
the Karabakh conflict that suited Azerbaijan, such as references to
its “territorial integrity,” etc. The importance that official Baku
attaches to the Karabakh factor in its dialogue with Tbilisi
manifested itself quite clearly at the end of 2012, when Azerbaijan
reacted very nervously to the new Georgian authorities announcing the
possibility of the Abkhazian railroad being restored and reopened (as
a means of improving relations between Moscow and Tbilisi). This was
due to the fairly obvious fear that the resumption of rail services
through Abkhazia would reduce the scope of the communication blockade
of Armenia and thus strengthen its hand in the Karabakh conflict.

Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan seek to coordinate their positions
during votes and public declarations of their approaches at various
international forums and organizations (the UN General Assembly, PACE
[Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe], the OSCE, BSEC
[Black Sea Economic Cooperation], etc), as well as in the settlement
of regional ethnic-political conflicts and on domestic issues. At the
same time, Turkey and Azerbaijan always try to refrain from strong
language with respect to Russia, which is something the Georgian side
has always insisted on, for example, during votes on the Abkhazian
problem at the UN General Assembly.

However, it should be emphasized that neither in the trilateral
(Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey) format nor multilaterally (for example, as
part of cooperation with NATO) do the three countries’ armed forces
have any commitment to joint deployment and coordination at
operational level. And, of course, there are no mutual security and
mutual defence guarantees between Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Georgia at
the political level (except, to some extent, for some provisions of
the Kars Treaty of 1921, by which Ankara, along with Moscow, is the
guarantor of the status of the Autonomous Republic of Ajaria). Nor are
there any grounds at all, so far, to speak of
Azerbaijani-Turkish-Georgian relations in terms of a fully fledged
strategic military and political alliance with clear objectives and
commitments by the parties, or, even more so, to try to portray these
relations as being at a level that is higher than the current
“strategic partnership.”

Cooperation between the three countries has recently increased in the
tourism sector, which is largely due to the fact that Georgian seaside
resorts attract tourists from Turkey and Azerbaijan more because they
are more affordable. However, the main format of cooperation lies in
the socioeconomic sphere and, quite naturally, concerns the transit of
Azerbaijani energy resources through Georgian territory to Turkey.

The Georgian side seeks to use what in many ways is its monopoly
transit and communication position with respect to Azerbaijan by
trying to derive maximum dividends from the use of its territory to
pump Caspian energy resources. For example, Georgia, in addition to
the actual fees for the transit of energy resources, also receives
part of Azerbaijan’s own share for oil transit through its territory
[sentence as published]. In addition, Georgia is able to pay
preferential rates for gas thanks to the transit of Azerbaijani gas
through the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipeline (approximately $135 per
1,000 cubic meters) and receive some gas as payment for transit.

Among the energy projects being considered for the future is the
construction of a new gas pipeline to supply Azerbaijani gas (as part
of the development of the so-called second stage of the Sah Daniz
[Shah Deniz II] gas field) through Georgia and Turkey to EU countries.
In June 2013, following the failure of the idea to build a bigger gas
pipeline, Nabucco (which was supposed to include Turkmen gas through
the construction of a Trans-Caspian gas pipeline), it was decided to
make do with a less ambitious project, TAP [Trans Adriatic Pipeline],
involving gas only from Azerbaijani gas fields in the Caspian Sea (Sah
Daniz), which raises questions about its profitability.

Another project fitting into the logic of the strategy of the
communication and transport “strangulation” of Armenia, which
Azerbaijan is considering, is the construction of the
Azerbaijani-funded Kars-Akhalkalaki railroad. This involves the
construction of a railroad replacing the existing Kars-Gyumri rail
link (which has been closed since 1993 on Turkey’s initiative) in
order to bypass Armenian territory and connect the transport systems
of Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey.

It was previously announced that the railroad would start operation in
2011, but for various reasons the project kept being delayed.
Following the victory of the opposition Georgian Dream bloc in the
October 2012 parliamentary elections, Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina
Ivanishvili said that since the construction of this railroad could
harm the operation of Georgian ports, he was not sure if it would be
expedient to build the Kars-Akhalkalaki link, which seriously alarmed
the Azerbaijani authorities. However, later, on a visit to Baku in
December 2012, he said that he had changed his mind. Nevertheless, in
the summer of 2013, the then Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili,
said that the completion of the railroad was being delayed for two
years, as a result of which the country “may lose its role as a
regional centre.”

As far as ethnic and religious processes are concerned, it is worth
noting that Turkey is trying to step up its religious and social
activity among Georgia’s Azerbaijanis. In particular, with Turkish
assistance, a mosque has been built not far from Red Bridge on the
border with Azerbaijan, which is a symbol of Turkey and Iran vying
with each other for influence over Georgia’s Azerbaijani community.
Along with this, it is not clear whether or not the activity of
Turkish religious organizations in the Azerbaijani-populated areas of
Georgia is accompanied by the activity of so-called Nursists
[followers of 20th-century Islamic scholar Said Nursi], that is
followers of Fethullah Gulen [US-based Turkish Muslim preacher].

>From time to time, Azerbaijan and Turkey also try to draw official
Tbilisi’s attention to the problems of the Meskhetian Turks and their
return to Georgia. By the way, this issue was again discussed during
the latest meeting between the Turkish and Georgian presidents on 20
January 2014. This is mainly due not just to the factor of ethnic
affinity, but also to the fact that most of these Meskhetians (and
their descendants) wishing to return to Georgia are currently settled
in Azerbaijan following the pogroms and deportations from Central Asia
in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Presently, the number of
Meskhetians in Azerbaijan, including those who have acquired that
country’s citizenship, is approximately 100,000. However, only a few
hundred of them may have a real opportunity to settle in Georgia. The
Georgian side is trying to create various obstacles to the mass
migration of Meskhetians to Georgia (despite its existing commitments
to international organizations), while Azerbaijan is not particularly
putting pressure on the Georgian side over this issue, given that it
would be politically inexpedient to allow issues that are “not of
major importance” to spoil relations with official Tbilisi.

Georgia’s National Security Concept, adopted in 2011, refers to
relations with Azerbaijan as strategic partnership (unlike relations
with Armenia, in whose case the document makes no such references).
However, it is also interesting to note that the Georgian side views
strategic partnership with Azerbaijan almost exclusively in the
context of the implementation of energy and communication projects. It
is also noteworthy that the same document refers to Turkey as
Georgia’s main partner in the region and the regional leader,
relations with which are important to Georgia from both socioeconomic
and military-political viewpoints.

However, we must not forget that Georgia’s current position on the
general format of relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey may change
somewhat. Their sharp intensification during Mikheil Saakashvili’s
rule was due to two most important factors. The first of these was the
construction (or commissioning) of most important energy transit and
communication projects by the two countries. However, the general
dynamic of relations in the energy transit and communication areas
over the next few years suggests that, at best, only the
Kars-Akhalkalaki railroad will be completed at some unspecified point,
as well as the gas transit project TAP in 2019-2020 (providing it is
implemented in reality). The second factor was the previous Georgian
authorities’ tough anti-Russian policy, which, given the benevolent
attitude to it by Ankara and Baku, created a political and even
ideological basis for their development [sentence as published]. It is
quite apparent that the new Georgian authorities will abandon the
overly radical anti-Russian policies, which may also lead to some
softening of their policy towards Armenia.

Finally, it should be noted that concerns about the asymmetry of
Azerbaijani-Georgian and Turkish-Georgian relations are present in the
perceptions of a substantial section of the Georgian political elite
and the public. According to that perception, Azerbaijan and Turkey,
having taken advantage of the anti-Russian policy of former President
Saakashvili, have gained inappropriately strong positions in Georgia’s
domestic and foreign policy as well as its economic life. This is also
compounded by Georgia’s growing geopolitical dependence on the
implementation of Azerbaijani energy and communication projects, even
though, in principle, it is precisely Georgia that should derive more
benefit from its monopoly transit position as regards Azerbaijan and
Turkey (in the case of the latter, this [fear] primarily concerns the
growth of Turkish influence in Ajaria).

The anti-Turkish and anti-Muslim protests and statements that have
been made in Ajaria and Samtskhe-Javakheti Province’s Adigeni District
since Ivanishvili’s supporters came to power in Georgia may be a sign
of such sentiments within the Georgian elite and the public. It
appears that this factor, given a certain course of events, may also
play some role in the future of Azerbaijani-Turkish-Georgian
relations.

[Translated from Russian]

FRANCE
Kurdes assassinées à Paris : le principal suspect nie toujours

(AFP) – Ömer Güney, entendu mercredi par la juge enquêtant sur
l’assassinat de trois militantes kurdes à Paris début 2013, nie
toujours toute implication malgré la diffusion d’un enregistrement sur
internet susceptible de le mettre en cause, a indiqué vendredi une
source proche du dossier.

Ce Turc gé de 30 ans, interrogé sur cet enregistrement récemment
diffusé par des médias de son pays, réfute être l’homme qui s’y
adresse à deux interlocuteurs, présentés comme des agents turcs, a
ajouté cette source.

Une expertise est en cours, à la fois pour analyser les voix mais
aussi pour retracer le cheminement de la vidéo depuis sa mise en
ligne, ont indiqué des sources proches du dossier.

Contacté par l’AFP, un des avocats d’Ömer Güney, Me Xavier Nogueras,
s’est refusé à tout commentaire.

Le service de renseignement turc, le MIT, a démenti toute implication
dans ce triple crime et dénoncé `une opération destinée à mettre en
cause` ce service `qui a joué un rôle important dans le processus de
paix kurde`.

Selon un avertissement diffusé au début de l’enregistrement, il aurait
été mis en ligne par un internaute qui se présente comme un proche
d’Ömer Güney. Ce dernier le lui aurait remis le 17 janvier 2013, avant
son arrestation, en lui demandant de le `rendre public s’il lui
arrivait quelque chose`. Les trois hommes y évoquent l’assassinat à
venir.

Les trois militantes kurdes avaient été tuées par balles le 9 janvier
2013 à Paris. Quelques jours plus tard, la police arrêtait Ömer Güney,
mis en examen `d’assassinats en relation avec une entreprise
terroriste`.

Selon le procureur de Paris, il avait été désigné par le PKK comme le
chauffeur et l’accompagnateur à Paris de Sakine Cansiz, l’une des
victimes.

Le PKK a toutefois démenti que M. Güney était l’un de ses membres. Les
associations kurdes de France défendent la thèse d’un assassinat
politique commandité depuis la Turquie, lié aux pourparlers de paix.

Les policiers français s’intéressent notamment à l’itinéraire de
Güney, en particulier avant son arrivée en France et durant son séjour
en Allemagne. Ils tentent de retracer les nombreux échanges
téléphoniques vers la Turquie d’un homme qui disposait de nombreuses
cartes SIM, y compris turques, selon une source proche du dossier
confirmant des révélations de L’Express. Il avait ainsi été contrôlé
fin 2012 aux Pays-Bas en possession de telles cartes, a-t-on précisé.

Les enquêteurs ont également déterminé que, la veille des assassinats,
Güney avait photographié les fiches des adhérents d’une association
kurde du Val-d’Oise.

dimanche 26 janvier 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

This Struggle Is The Beginning

Interview with Tigran Martirosyan, member of Dem Em Initiative (Dem.am)

During the latest rally the initiative appealed to the Constitutional
Court. What are your expectations from it?

I don’t have big hopes but hope is not altogether zero. Let us see,
four days are left until the decision on postponing the mandatory
component. However, we have always said that we will fight independent
from the decision of the Constitutional Court.

What are the next steps of the initiative? It was announced during the
rally that all the ways of struggle will be used, including the sit-in
and strike.

The idea is civil disobedience. The methods will be chosen on the run.
There are other methods besides a sit-in and a strike. Mechanisms are
being worked out to see what and when we are going to do.

Members of Dem Em Initiative say they will not emigrate but we can see
most people are emigrating or intend to emigrate.

We say the people who are frustrated and have no hopes from the
country emigrate. But people thus lose their identity. If identity is
important to you, you must not emigrate and you must make your country
a country where you want to live. It is true that some people have to
emigrate but the idea of emigrating must be withdrawn from their minds
and help them find other ways to resolve their problems.

Will this movement raise the society’s consciousness and what problems
will later be possible to resolve?

Small objectives cannot bring about global changes. However, a society
is shaped through achievement of small objectives which is able to put
forth and propose solutions for global issues. In order to achieve
solution of global issues and change thinking the society must be able
to resolve small problems. This is the beginning of the fight. A civil
society is shaped which will grow and organize itself and resolve
bigger issues.

How efficient is it to continue the fight with the four parliamentary groups?

The issue must be viewed from different aspects. The issue must be
heard everywhere, including the National Assembly. Cooperation with
political organization will help achieve this goal. In this case, the
four opposition parliamentary groups were that political organization.

Our message to government is: the youth is forming a civil society, is
aware of the responsibility it will assume to walk towards democracy.
This is a very small issue compared with the change that people
expect. Why, this initiative cannot assume a bigger task, such as a
change of government, because it is new and does not have that many
resources. The political organizations should propose the agenda and
have such initiatives support or not support, depending on the agenda.
Youth is becoming more active. This is the key message today.

Siranuysh Papyan,Interviewer
18:53 22/01/2014
Story from Lragir.am News:

FREEDOM HOUSE 2014: ARMENIA AND NAGORNO KARABAKH AGAIN RANKED AS PARTLY FREE COUNTRIES WHILE AZERBAIJAN AS NOT FREE

18:51 24/01/2014 ” ECONOMY

“Freedom in the World 2014” report published on the eve by the
American watchdog organization Freedom House again ranked Armenia
and the Nagorno Karabakh Republic as “partially free” countries. The
rating is available on the official website of the organization.

Political as well as civil liberties in Armenia have a score of
5. It should be noted that the organization assesses the degree of
freedom on a 7- point scale, where the higher the score the worse
the condition of the freedom is.

Azerbaijan is noted by the organization among the countries that
recorded a significant decline in the field of freedoms. The situation
in the country is marked by the deterioration of the atmosphere and
increase in negative rating from the 5th to 6th point. The reason
of this is “the ongoing blatant property rights violations by the
government in a year in which the state also cracked down on the
opposition and civil society in advance of presidential elections”.

Turan Information Agency, Azerbaijan
January 24, 2014 Friday

Freedom House: Azerbaijan has been and remains unfree country

International human rights organization FreedomHouse announced its
traditional annual report on the state of freedom in the world.

Azerbaijan, like all previous years, remained in the list of unfree
countries among 48 countries by the FreedomHouse.

Among the CIS countries unfree countries are recognized: Russia ,
Uzbekistan, Belarus, and Turkmenistan. Georgia and Armenia are
considered partly free.

In Azerbaijan was noted in the past year further deterioration in the
form of restriction of freedoms and rights of citizens, the
suppression and persecution of civil society activists and opponents
of the authorities; in particular, violations of property rights of
citizens. -16-

Interfax, Russia
Jan 24 2014

Armenia will buy long-range weapons from Russia – Defense Ministry

YEREVAN. Jan 24

The new agreements with Russia in the sphere of defense will help
develop military-technical cooperation and to buy weapons at internal
Russian prices, Armenian Defense Minister Seiran Oganyan said.

“The agreements on the purchase by Armenia of long-range weapons
remain in force. We will complete the process of purchasing long-range
weapons from Russia in 2014,” Oganyan told a press conference on
Friday.

“The new weapons supplies will make it possible to use defensive
deterrence mechanisms,” the minister said.

Oganyan also said the situation on the Armenian-Azeri border is under control.

“There is no escalation of tension. We are the punishing party on the
frontline. We only return the enemy’s fire,” the minister said.

The minister also said he does not believe the resumption of military
action is probable.

“There is always a threat of war. Despite the fact that we should
always be ready for war, I consider the current probability of the
resumption of military action to be low,” he said.

av mk

Interfax, Russia
Jan 24 2014

Armenian president has no health issues – spokesman

YEREVAN. Jan 24

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan is healthy and has undergone a
routine therapeutic course, the presidential spokesman Armen
Sagatelian said.

“The information that the Armenian president has health issues is not
true. As to the questions related to the vacations of the president in
early January 2014, it was of private nature, that is why no public
information of its details was provided,” Sagatelian told reporters.

“According to my information, the Armenian president went to a health
center during his vacation, however not with the purpose of treatment
but with the purpose of routine therapeutic measures,” the spokesman
said.

The Armenian president went to the Chaum clinic in South Korea during
his vacation on January 9 to January 17, where he had undergone a
rejuvenation course, South Korea’s english.chosun.com has reported.

ez mk

Interfax, Russia
Jan 24 2014

Azeri servicemen blow up Armenian army vehicle – Baku

BAKU. Jan 24

Azeri servicemen have blown up an Armenian army vehicle, the Azeri
Defense Ministry press service told Interfax on Friday.

The vehicle was blown up “in order to prevent a provocation along the
line of contact between the conflicting sides,” the press service
said.

Other details of the incident were not provided.

Te cm