Author: Kalantarian Kevo

LARISA ALAVERDYAN: BRUTAL MURDER OF GURGEN MARGARYAN SHOULD BE OBSERVED IN CONTEXT OF XENOPHOBIA CARRIED OUT BY AZERBAIJAN

18:46 19/02/2014 >> POLITICS

10 years passed but the murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan by
Azerbaijani Ramil Safarov has not received an adequate international
assessment yet. Larisa Alaverdyan, first Ombudsman of Armenia,
Chairperson of “Against legal arbitrariness” NGO, said about this in
an interview with Panorama.am.

“I believe that the relevant institutions of the Republic of Armenia
should prepare a package of case related documents and appeal to
International organizations: EU, Council of Europe, and UN. This issue
should receive an adequate international assessment, because it is not
only about the murder of Armenian officer but a politics of xenophobia,
including against Armenians, carried out by Azerbaijan,” she said.

According to the first Ombudsman, after Safarov was pardoned the
Armenian side should have immediately sued Azerbaijan.

Alaverdyan strongly believes that Ramil Safarov fulfilled an order
of his state that is why he afterwards got rewarded.

According to her, the absence of adequate international assessment
has brought to the situation when Azerbaijan doesn’t at all feel
vulnerable around the negotiation table over the Nagorno Karabakh
conflict settlement, whereas after the murderer was pardoned many
forums should have become inaccessible to Azerbaijan, she said.

“The Murder of Gurgen Margaryan should be observed in context of
politics of xenophobia. International community should realize that
in case of impunity the axe may rise against the national minorities
of Azerbaijan. This is a threat not only to the Armenians but also
to the security of the region as a whole,” she added.

In 2004, Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan was taking part in
a three-month English course of NATO “Partnership for Peace” in
Budapest. Early in the morning of February 19 he was murdered. The
murderer – Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov – delivered 16 blows
of ax to the face of the sleeping Armenian officer. As a result, the
Hungarian court found him sane and sentenced him to life imprisonment
without a right of pardon for 30 years. The news about the extradition
of Ramil Safarov to his homeland and pardon by the Azerbaijani
president Ilham Aliyev broke out on August 31.

The pardoned murderer Ramil Safarov was greeted as a hero in
Azerbaijan; he was given an apartment and was paid an officer salary
for 8 years spent in detention. Moreover, Safarov was breveted
Major by the Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan, who also wished him
“every success.”

Because of Safarov’s extradition to Azerbaijan the president of Armenia
Serzh Sargsyan announced the suspension of diplomatic relations
with Hungary. Safarov’s extradition, pardon, and glorification in
Azerbaijan was condemned by the US president Barack Obama, US State
Department, Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Russia and France,
Secretary General of Council of Europe, Secretary General of CSTO,
NATO, and international human rights organizations. In addition to
that, European Parliament adopted a condemning resolution on September
13, 2012.

Today, on February 19, is the 10th anniversary of commemoration
of Armenian officer’s death. To the 10th anniversary of Gurgen
Margaryan’s murder in the frameworks of the “Ordinary Genocide” project
a video-footage has been prepared called “Azerbaijan: Racism without
borders.” The video footage is in English and Russian. It concisely
presents the history of the murder that had stunned the world, as well
as the programs following the incident and Safarov’s glorification in
Azerbaijan.It is significant that the authors chose Symphony number 7
(“Leningrad”) by Dmitri Shostakovich known as “the invasion of the
Nazis” as a soundtrack for the footage.

The “Ordinary Genocide” project is being implemented by the Information
and Public Relations Center under the RA President’s administration.

Source: Panorama.am

VIDEOS OF 27 AZERBAIJANI TERRORISTS ELIMINATED IN SYRIA APPEARED ON INTERNET

17:26 19/02/2014 >> SOCIETY

New videos of Azerbaijani terrorists eliminated in Syria are
distributed on the net. As it is stated by Azerbaijani news agency
APA citing the websites of armed fighting groups of Syria, the videos
demonstrate the photos of 27 Azerbaijanis liquidated in Syrian district
of Sham.

“Although Azerbaijani media published about the death of few of those
people featured in the video, no information is currently available
about most of them,” APA reads.

APA notes that after the intensification of the situation in Syria a
group of Azerbaijani citizens voluntarily went to Syria and in various
radical groupings started to take part in military operations. Since
that time “mujahedeens” have spread the photos of more than 100
liquidated Azerbaijani fighters in social networks.

Source: Panorama.am

BAKO SAHAKYAN: DESTRUCTIVE POLICY OF BAKU THE BIGGEST OBSTACLE TO SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH CONFLICT

February 19, 2014 | 14:22

STEPANAKERT. – President oftheNagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) Republic
Bako Sahakyan visited the NKR foreign ministry and participatedin a
consultation summing up the activities of the structure in 2013 and
the 2014 action plan.

Foreign minister Karen Mirzoyan, responsible officers of the ministry’s
different departments delivered corresponding reports.

President Sahakyan noted in his speech that Artsakh Republic would
further conduct multidirectional, balanced foreign policy based
on complementarity with influential states and power centers, NKR
president’s press service reported.

Bako Sahakyan noted that destructive policy of Baku is the biggest
obstacle to the settlement ofAzerbaijani-Karabakh conflict, which
also threatens maintenance of regional peace and stability.

Referring to the peace process, President Sahakyan underlined that
the NKR would be consistent in itsactivities aimed at restoring the
full-fledged negotiation format, by convincing the interested parties
that it would be impossible to achieve comprehensive settlement
without full participation of the official Stepanakert at all stages
of the negotiations.

Touching upon the international recognition process of the Artsakh
Republic, President noted positive developments that are inspiring.

President Sahakyan gave instructions in order to improve efficient
organization of activities and eliminate shortcomings.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

LA CHANTEUSE ARMENO-RUSSE EVA RIVAS VA ATTAQUER EN JUSTICE LA CHAINE DE TELEVISION RUSSE HTB

CHANSON-PEOPLE

La chanteuse et top-modèle Eva Rivas (nee Valeria Alexandrovna
Reshetnikova-Satourian, en Russie le 13 Juillet 1987) qui representa
l’Armenie a l’Eurovision en 2010 va porter une action juridique contre
la chaine de television russe HTB. Cette dernière aurait place la photo
d’Eva Rivas dans la liste des femmes qui auraient recues 40 000 roubles
pour accompagner durant un mois de riches hommes d’affaires dans leur
vie quotidienne. Outree par la presence de son nom dans cette liste,
la chanteuse armeno-russe s’appreterait a porter plainte.

Krikor Amirzayan

mercredi 19 fevrier 2014, Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

DIXIEME ANNIVERSAIRE DE L’ASSASSINAT DE GOURGEN MARGARYAN

OTAN-EUROPE-AZERBAÏDJAN

Il y a juste 10 ans, le 19 fevrier 2004, le lieutenant Gourguen
Margaryan qui participait a un stage de l’OTAN a Budapest etait
retrouve mort dans son lit, decapite. L’auteur de cette veritable
boucherie, le lieutenant azerbaïdjanais Ramil Safarof, avait tranche
la tete de son homologue armenien durant son sommeil. A coups de
hache. Ce monstre vit desormais dans son pays où il est traite en
heros. Malgre sa peine de prison de 30 ans incompressible que lui
avait infligee la justice hongroise en 2006, il a ete libere le 31
août 2012, au terme d’une transaction honteuse entre le gouvernement
Orban et l’Etat azerbaïdjanais. Une fois en Azerbaïdjan, un accueil
officiel a ete reserve a ce barbare qui a beneficie d’une grâce
presidentielle et a ete eleve en grade.

Cette injustice sans nom, qui constitue sans doute l’un des plus
grands scandales judiciaires enregistres en Europe depuis le debut
du siècle, a provoque l’indignation des communautes armeniennes
dans le monde entier. Le lendemain meme de l’extradition de Safarov,
le president armenien Serge Sarkissian convoquait les ambassadeurs
presents a Erevan, en enjoignant leurs Etats a denoncer ce deni
manifeste de justice. Il s’en est suivi une serie de petitions de
principe condamnant l’attitude de l’Azerbaïdjan et de la Hongrie. Mais
aucune mesure concrète.

Ce manque de reactivite et de fermete a encourage l’agressivite de
l’Azerbaïdjan, qui multiplie les violations du cessez-le-feu sur
le front du Haut-Karabagh. Quant aux autorites hongroises, elles se
sont placees avec l’extradition d’un tel criminel en rupture totale
avec les valeurs democratiques. Et leur image est au plus bas dans
l’opinion. Il n’en demeure pas moins qu’elles continuent de beneficier
de tous leurs droits dans les instances europeennes.

A Paris un service commemoratif a l’officier armenien Gourgen Margaryan
a eu lieu a l’eglise Saint-Jean Baptiste de la rue Jean Goujon. La
ceremonie a ete suivie par des representants de l’ambassade d’Armenie
en France, la Representation de la Republique du Haut-Karabakh et un
certain nombre de membres de la communaute armenienne de France.

Etaient presents l’ambassadeur armenien en France Vigen Tchitetchian et
les dirigeants du Conseil de coordination des organisations armeniennes
de France.

Après le service, les participants se sont rendus au Jardin d’Erevan,
où ils ont depose des couronnes de fleurs au pied de la statue de
Komitas au nom des Armeniens d’Armenie, d’Artsakh et de France.

D’autres services commemorant Gourgen Margaryan ont ete offerts dans
les eglises armeniennes de Marseille, Lyon et d’autres villes.

Le 16 fevrier un service commemoratif pour Gourgen Margaryan a
eu lieu a Moscou. La ceremonie a ete suivie par les dirigeants de
l’Union armenienne de Russie, l’ONG de cooperation russo-armenienne,
l’Union culturelle “Ararat”, et un certain nombre d’autres invites.

Le Comite National Armenien du Canada (ANCC) rappelle egalement a la
communaute internationale l’horrible assassinat du lieutenant armenien
Gourgen Margaryan, et appelle les dirigeants des nations a condamne le
mepris flagrant du droit international dont fait preuve l’Azerbaïdjan.

Safarov, libre en Azerbaïdjan Le monument dedie a Gourguen
Margaryan a Erevan La communaute armenienne de Hongrie
mercredi 19 fevrier 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

ARMENIA TO ESTABLISH CONSULATE IN ERBIL, IRAQ

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 18 2014

18 February 2014 – 6:58pm

Armenia is going to establish a consulate in Erbil, the capital of
Iraqi Kurdistan, Armenian Foreign Minister Edvard Nalbandyan said
today during his meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

The Armenian official also said that his country is going to ease
the visa regime with Iraq.

ARMENIAN EXPORT INCREASES

The Messenger, Georgia
Feb 18 2014

By Messenger Staff
Tuesday, February 18
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan stated that Armenia’s becoming
the member of the Customs Union will increase its export. It is
known that in September, 2013 Armenia officially declared about its
decision to enter the Customs Union and accordingly, the Eurasian
Union. The roadmap of the plans for the Eurasian Union was published
and translated in the Armenian language.

FAMILY OF VICTIM KILLED IN SHOOTOUT INTENDS TO APPEAL TO EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

02.17.2014 22:14 epress.am

After four months, the judicial investigation into the three complaints
brought forth by attorney Hayk Alumyan in the criminal case of the
Jun. 1, 2013 murder outside former Syunik governor Surik Khachatryan’s
house was suspended. Alumyan represents the family of the victim,
Avetik Budaghyan.

Recall, on Jun. 1, 2013, former Goris mayoral candidate Avetik
Budaghyan was murdered outside the house of then Syunik regional
governor Surik Khachatryan, while Budaghyan’s brother, Colonel Artak
Budaghyan, was wounded.

Speaking to reporters today, Alumyan said they are disappointed with
the actions of the domestic courts. The Budaghyans’ complaints refer
to investigator Aleksan Ghazaryan’s three decisions which set free
Khachatryan’s son, Tigran, and his bodyguard, Zarzand Nikoghosyan,
and with which the persecution of Avetik Budaghyan was terminated
because of his death. Recall, Khachatryan and Nikoghosyan were charged
with murder, but the investigative body later considered they acted
in self-defense and released them.

During the trial, Alumyan asked that the investigator present in court
all the materials relating to the complaint, which Aleksan Ghazaryan
didn’t do. “The court, accepting that investigation of the case is
impossible without all the materials provided by the investigator,
did not require the investigator, nevertheless, bring the materials
related to the complaint, but rather suspended the investigation. That
is, the court considered the investigator’s folly a force majeure,”
said the attorney.

Alumyan said his clients appealed the Court of First Instance of
Arabkir and Kanaker-Zeytun Administrative Districts of Yerevan’s
decision to discontinue the investigation at the Court of Appeal, and
they are currently preparing to appeal also to the Court of Cassation.

After exhausting the domestic courts, the Budaghyans will appeal to
the European Court of Human Rights.

DO WE HAVE A DREAM?

EDITORIAL | FEBRUARY 17, 2014 2:52 PM

By Edmond Y. Azadian

When nations face overwhelming, burning issues, their citizens resort
to extraordinary measures, if they still possess the instinct of
survival. A case in point may be Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s march
on Washington and his historic speech at the Lincoln Memorial, on
August 28, 1963.

The event was a watershed in the Civil Rights movement in the US and
King’s messianic message still reverberates in the halls of power,
long after his untimely assassination.

Although he advocated change through non-violence, he did not hesitate
to state in his historic “I Have a Dream” speech, “the whirlwinds of
revolt will continue to shake the foundation of our nation until the
bright day of justice emerges.”

His example was followed by other African-American leaders, including
Louis Farrakhan, who organized the Million Man March in 1995 in
Washington.

Now, the question arises: Do we have a dream? Can we mobilize a
million-person march on Washington? In the case of the Armenians,
that “million,” of course, can only be a symbolic number.

The compelling message of the march must be the recognition of the
Genocide in a non-equivocal context and that the destruction of an
entire nation cannot be dealt with simply with a play of words in
the political marketplace.

The centennial of the Genocide is around the corner and only an event
commensurate with its enormity could serve as an adequate undertaking
to mark the occasion.

Armenians cannot expect to stage similar movements in Middle Eastern
countries; only Europe and North America can tolerate and understand
such a massive political action without repercussions, especially in
light of the delicate and frightening situation in that part of the
world at the moment. Armenians in Europe, and especially in France,
are doing their share and those actions are yielding political
dividends. The challenge is for us, the Armenians living in the
United States.

Of course, we cannot be naïve to the point where we expect the media
to give full coverage to us and that the impact of the march will
shake the political world. Much has changed from 1963, when King’s
message resonated through the entire media. In recent years, many
powerful protests at the nation’s capital have received muted coverage
in the media because since the height of the Civil Rights movement,
the Rupert Murdochs of the world have forged an alliance with the
military-industrial complex to cut down to size any movement which is
not considered going along with the day’s favored policies. Therefore,
media access has to be bought ahead of the event to assure some
political impact.

Any such movement requires motivation, political will and above all,
finances. One may ask who will underwrite the cost of such an immense
undertaking, when as a community, we have so many needs to build
half-empty churches all over the country? The answer is obvious:
Forbes magazine just published the names of the 10 richest Armenians,
who certainly will not commit even a penny if they do not see a united
community mobilized and ready to march in Washington.

In the past, the Armenians in the US were polarized. Divisions were
rife. But when the opportunities arose, like in 1946 to appeal to the
United Nations, there was community-wide consensus. Today, people are
less polarized yet more fragmented. Charismatic leadership drove each
segment of the community at the time but today it is almost impossible
to single out leaders who would rise to the occasion and move the
masses to action. That is the enemy within, the one we should tackle,
before we begin criticizing the politicians.

It is tragically symbolic that the Genocide museum project will
certainly miss the centennial mark and there is no discussion about
it throughout the community. Its dedication by 2015 could have served
as a jumping-off-point to a million-person march and movement.

A million-person political march could be coupled with a statement
about the survival of the Armenians by organizing a gala affair in New
York, with the participation of world-class artists and celebrities
who may attract the attention of non-Armenians. There are l efforts
regarding the centennial commemoration in the US, but plans have
not been announced nor finalized. It seems, however, there is no
one overarching entity uniting Armenians across the United States,
much less globally.

One laudable action needs to be mentioned, which may serve as a spark
of inspiration: world-class pianist Vartan Mamikonian has engaged
himself, with a Crusader’s zeal, to organize 100 musical events around
the globe, culminated with a concert on April 24, 2015 in Yerevan.

In terms of scholarship, we have made headway and all the courts and
political forums will be inundated with full documentation of the
Genocide to defy anyone who wants to deny it happened.

The time is already at hand when we have to start.

Do we have a dream for 2015 or is this column merely reminding up
that it will remain a dream?

– See more at:

LIFE UNDERCOVER: LEGENDARY SPY GEVORK VARTANIAN’S 90TH BIRTH ANNIV.

February 17, 2014 – 15:07 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Legendary Soviet spy Gevork Vartanian, who helped
foil a Nazi plot to kill Allied leaders in Tehran during World War
II would have celebrated his 90th birthday today, February 17.

Vartanian died from cancer at the age of 87 in a Moscow hospital on
January 10, 2012.

Vartanian and his wife, Gohar, became a legendary spy couple, working
on numerous missions for Soviet intelligence abroad. In an interview
with RIA Novosti, Ms Vartanian shared her memories and thanked her
friends for their care of her after her husband’s death.

“I wouldn’t have survived the grief of losing my wonderful husband,
my life companion if it were not for the support of our friends.”

As she further noted, after her husband’s death, she continues the
task of passing on the experience of intelligence work to younger
generations. “He gave all of himself to the people and our motherland,
holding nothing back,” she said.

Vartanian, whose father was a Soviet intelligence agent in Tehran
posing as a merchant, began working for Soviet intelligence when he
turned 16. He played a role in foiling a Nazi plot to assassinate
Soviet leader Josef Stalin, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill when they held a conference
in Tehran in November 1943.

Adolf Hitler ordered operation Long Jump after Nazi intelligence
learned of the conference. Vartanian’s group shadowed an advance
team of Nazi agents, who arrived to set the ground for the mission,
helping uncover the plot.

The Foreign Intelligence Service, which goes under its Russian acronym
SVR, said that acting on orders from Moscow, Vartanian also joined a
British intelligence school in Tehran and obtained information about
its graduates sent to the Soviet Union, allowing Soviet authorities
to catch them.

The SVR said Vartanian and his wife worked as intelligence agents in
several countries between the 1950s and 1986, but didn’t name them.

They got married several times in different places as part of their
cover. The ITAR-Tass news agency said they worked in Iran, Italy,
France and Greece among other nations.

After retiring in 1992, Vartanian helped train young intelligence
agents.