Author: Kalantarian Kevo

OLD MARRIED COUPLE DENIED FLAT IN ARMENIA’S GYUMRI

12:36 ~U 04.04.13

Andre Andreyan and Vardanush Zakaryan, a married couple and veterans
of the Great Patriotic War, are living in a makeshift shelter in
Danielyan Str in Gyumri, Armenia.

Although they are on the housing list, Armenia’s Ministry of
Urban Development has declined their application for housing,
Shirakcenter.org reports.

The reason for the refusal is that the couple lost a private house
in the devastating earthquake in Armenia, December 7, 1988. Under
the Armenian government’s decision, housing is only provided to
individuals and families that lost their flats in blocks of flats.

Dozens of families on the housing list are in a similar situation in
Gyumri, Shirakcenter.org reports.

After getting a refusal, the couple agreed to privatize their makeshift
shelter and their only request is that the area be walled in.

However, the local authorities rejected the old couple’s request
as well.

VOTE 2013: OPPOSITION DISMISSES BALLOT RECOUNT AT ONE POLLING STATION REAFFIRMING SARGSYAN WIN
VOTE 2013 | 04.04.13 | 15:28

Photolure

By GOHAR ABRAHAMYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

The opposition Heritage Party has rejected as “absurd” the outcome of
the recount of ballots conducted at one polling station that reaffirmed
the tally of President Serzh Sargsyan, while reducing the number of
votes gained by his top challenger Raffi Hovannisian.

As part of an examination ordered by the Constitutional Court the
Special Investigation Service on Tuesday publicly opened the ballot
box from polling station 17/05 (in the Ararat province) at the
Prosecutor-General’s Office.

The recount showed Sargsyan holding all but one of his stated votes –
828 out of 829 (losing one to inaccuracy), while the number of ballots
actually cast for Hovannisian shrank from 432 to 421 (with at least
five of them marked for Sargsyan).

The unsealing of the bag with the ballots followed allegations of
ballot box stuffing at this particular polling station made by an
observer.

“Only investigative bodies in the Republic of Armenia could have made
up such a delirious thing,” Heritage party spokesman Hovsep Khurshudyan
told ArmeniaNow today, commenting on the outcome of the recount.

Khurshudyan reminded that the matter concerned the polling station
where an observer witnessed a group of men breaking into its premises,
using violence to prevent her from recording the incident on camera
and stuffing the ballot box with hundreds of marked ballots.

On Wednesday, the Heritage party issued a statement condemning
the law-enforcement bodies for “covering up electoral fraud” and
“protecting the criminals”.

“As expected, Serzh Sargsyan’s promises that the government will be
committed to investigating violations in the February 18 elections
and punishing those who committed electoral fraud have proved to be
just part of another show,” the Heritage statement said.

During last month’s proceedings at the Constitutional Court that upheld
Sargsyan’s reelection the opposition insisted that the February 18
ballot was heavily rigged in favor of Sargsyan and demanded that all
ballot boxes from 1,988 polling stations be unsealed.

DOES SHOW CONTINUE? WHY HAVE SOME OF RAFFI HOVHANNISYAN’S BALLOTS BEEN FOUND SPOILED?

April 3 2013

“Show must go on,” Armen Martirosyan, the deputy leader of the Heritage
party, recalled Freddie Mercury’s famous song during a conversation
with , while assessing the fact that as a result of
examination of the documents and the ballot sack at no.

17/05 polling place in the region of Ararat carried out by the Special
Investigative Service (SIS) yesterday, it turned out that in the sack
with ballots cast for R. Hovhannisyan, a candidate for president,
there were 432 ballots, 421 of which were cast for R. Hovhannisyan. In
particular, according to the results of the examination, 5 ballots
cast for Serzh Sargsyan, a candidate for president, 1 ballot cast
for Andrias Ghukasyan, a candidate for president, were also among the
ballots cast for R. Hovhannisyan, and 5 ballots were found spoiled,
since the vote was not taken in accordance with the procedure. While
answering our questions regarding this fact, Mr. Martirosyan stressed
questions whether only that incident was recorded and whether
there had not been ballots cast for other candidates in the sack
with ballots cast for Serzh Sargsyan. Let us note that no official
information about this has been spread yet. As it has been informed,
the SIS has been examining the ballots cast for Serzh Sargsyan since
yesterday. With regard to this fact, A. Martirosyan mocked: “It turns
out that there were so many violations among Serzh Sargsyan’s votes
that they are still counting.” Commenting on this situation, Mr.

Martirosyan stated: “All this proves once again that everything
happened at that polling place, except for voting.” Let us remind that
when the Heritage Party demanded that the ballot sacks at some polling
places be opened, they had fears that because of delaying it for such
a long time, they might arrange the sacks in advance. Therefore,
we inquired of A. Martirosyan whether this fear might prove to be
accurate. He replied: “Everything is possible in the Republic of
Armenia. For example, there is an article on , in which
an old man said in Artik that he had been given 5000 drams to vote
for Serzh Sargsyan, but he had voted for Raffi Hovhannisyan.” Tatev
HARUTYUNYAN

Read more at:

© 1998 – 2013 Aravot – News from Armenia

ZHOGHOVURD: BANKRUPT ARMENIAN BUSINESSMAN TO BUILD AIRPORT IN ROMANIA?

April 04, 2013

YEREVAN. – Zhoghovurd daily’s sources that are close to the
Government of Armenia have informed that Mikhail Baghdasarov, who is
the proprietor of Armenia’s Armavia Airline Company, is preparing to
have a new airport built in Romania, the daily reports.

“To note, Armavia Airline Company recently stopped its flights stating
that it is starting a bankruptcy process.

Zhoghovurd attempted to clarify the information from Nana Avetisova,
the head of Armavia’s Public Relations and Information Department,
but she did not respond to our telephone calls while the news service
informed that the [aforesaid] information is false,” Zhoghovurd writes.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

ALMA TO HOST A PRESENTATION ON SHENGAVIT ARCHAEOLOGICAL CULTURE PRESERVE

11:59 03.04.2013

On April 12, the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA) will
host a presentation titled Stone and Bronze Settlement in Armenia
on the 4th millennium B.C.E. Shengavit Historical and Archaeological
Culture Preserve.

The Shengavit archaeological site dating to the 4th millennium B.C.E.

was home to the “Shengavit/Kura-Arax” culture. Inhabited for 1500 -2000
years, it was part of a cultural and trade network with influences
as far away as eastern Anatolia, Mesopotamia and southern Russia.

The presenters are: Mr. Vladimir Tshagharyan – Director of the
Shengavit Historical and Archaeological Culture Preserve in Yerevan,
will discuss the importance of the excavation (in Armenian with
English translation); Dr. Mitchell Rothman – Archaeologist and Head
of the Anthropology Department, Widener University, PA – excavated
the Shengavit site for 3 seasons; Dr. Susan Pattie – Anthropologist
and Director, Armenian Museum of America, Watertown.

This event is sponsored by the Cambridge – Yerevan Sister City
Association (CYSCA) as part of the Cambridge Science Festival, in
cooperation with the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA)
and the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR).

IS THERE ANY LINK BETWEEN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION AND THE VILLAGE HEADMAN’S ASSASSINATION (VIDEO)

April 2 2013

“He was a very good man, he was a man of the people, he had no enemies,
and his assassination was in no one’s interests. He respected the
people, and the people respected him. He was a hard-working man, he
has done a lot of things for the village: he has improved the streets,
he has landscaped the village etc.,” this is what the residents of
the village of Proshyan, region of Kotayk, said about Hrach Muradyan,
the village headman. The assassination of the village headman is a
mystery for the fellow villagers, but some of them stated one thing;
Hrach Muradyan didn’t have enemies, but the assassination may be linked
with the presidential election that took place in February. Since
Muradyan was an honest man, as the villagers said, he didn’t tolerate
fraud, and Serzh Sargsyan won in the village of Proshyan during the
presidential election. By the way, it was hard for Arsen Sargsyan, the
head of the investigation department of Nairi, to answer the question
whether the assassination had anything to do with the election or not,
he just stated that they were not engaged in politics, and the rest
will be clear during the preliminary investigation. Eva HAKOBYAN

Read more at:

© 1998 – 2013 Aravot – News from Armenia

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY SET FOR NEW TURKEY TOUR

12:40 ~U 03.04.13

US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to visit Turkey this
week as part of a trip to Western Europe and Asia to consult allies
on issues including Syria’s civil war, Reuters reported, citing a
Turkish official.

Washington regards Turkey, which shares a 900 km (560-mile) border
with Syria, as a pivotal player in backing the Syrian opposition and
planning for an era after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

“Mr Kerry will visit Turkey. The date is not clear yet but possibly it
will take place either on Friday or on Saturday,” said the official,
who declined to be named. The US State Department was not immediately
available to comment.

A month ago, on his first visit to Turkey since taking office, Kerry
criticized Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan for a comment likening
Zionism to crimes against humanity, a spat that cast a shadow over
talks between the NATO allies.

US President Barack Obama brokered a tentative reconciliation between
Turkey and Israel during a trip to Israel a few weeks later. Israel
bowed to a long-standing demand by Ankara, once a close strategic
partner, to formally apologize for the killing of nine Turkish citizens
in a 2010 naval raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla.

Armenian News – Tert.am

ASSASSINAT DU MAIRE DE PROSHIAN

Le maire d’un village près d’Erevan affilie a la Federation
revolutionnaire armenienne (FRA) a ete abattu par un un inconnu mardi
2 avril 2013. Hrach Muradian, qui etait maire du village de Proshian
depuis 2005, a ete retrouve mort devant son bureau dans la matinee.

Muradian, âge de 50 ans, a recu une balle dans la tete. Personne n’a
ete immediatement arretee après la fusillade.

La FRA a condamne cet acte. Selon le parti de l’opposition, Hrach
Muradian etait un ” leader exemplaire ” qui etait aime et respecte
par les villageois.

Tout au long de son mandat, il a recu de nombreuses menaces, a annonce
un communique qui ne precise pas la source de ces informations. La
police armenienne a lance une enquete criminelle immediatement après le
meurtre. Aucune arrestation n’a ete signalee dans les heures suivantes.

Certains residents, interviewes par RFE/RL ont insiste sur le fait
que le maire n’avait pas d’ennemis connus dans le village. “C’etait
un grand homme. Il n’avait pas d’ennemis, a declare l’un d’eux. Les
gens l’aimaient et le respectaient, et il a fait du bon travail”,
a declare un habitant de la region.

mercredi 3 avril 2013, Laetitia ©armenews.com

TURQUIE-ARMENIE : UNE LIGNE AERIENNE ANNULEE

Le Monde, France
2 avril 2013

Le Monde.fr | 02.04.2013 a 15h49

Le premier vol devait avoir lieu mercredi 3 avril. Une compagnie
aerienne privee turque, BoraJet, a renonce a la dernière minute
a ouvrir une ligne regulière vers l’Armenie, pays avec lequel la
Turquie a des relations tumultueuses, ont indique mardi des sources
concordantes.

BoraJet, qui devait etre la première compagnie aerienne turque a
assurer une liaison directe entre la Turquie et l’Armenie, a raison
de deux vols de 45 minutes par semaine entre Van et Erevan, a confirme
que les vols ont ete annules, sans en preciser les raisons.

“Nous avions effectivement planifie de tels vols, mais nous les
avons annules car il y avait d’autres dessertes plus importantes”,
a seulement souligne le PDG de la compagnie, Kadir Peker, cite par le
journal turc Haber Turk. Une source au ministère turc des transports a
egalement confirme que ces vols avaient ete suspendus tout en refusant
de donner une quelconque raison.

“INGERENCE POLITIQUE”

Selon les medias turcs, ce revirement serait dû a des pressions
politiques. L’Azerbaïdjan turcophone, proche allie de la Turquie,
aurait fait connaître son opposition au projet.

Cette decision intervient alors que la première compagnie privee
armenienne, Armavia, jusque-la seule entreprise a assurer une liaison
directe entre la Turquie (Istanbul) et l’Armenie (Erevan), a annonce
lundi sa decision de se mettre en faillite.

Pour Harekavank Tour, un tour-operateur d’Erevan qui a passe ces
dernières annees a essayer de monter ce projet avec une agence de
tourisme de Van, la raison est politique. “Nous esperons que les
autorites turques auront assez de bon sens pour revoir leur decision”,
a indique cette compagnie dans un communique publie a Erevan, accusant
Ankara “d’ingerence politique”.

L’Armenie et l’Azerbaïdjan, deux nations forcees a vivre ensemble
dans l’URSS, sont des ennemis jures depuis le conflit sanglant du
debut des annees 1990 autour du Nagorny Karabakh, enclave peuplee
d’Armeniens en territoire azerbaïdjanais.

Outre le soutien d’Ankara a Bakou, la Turquie et l’Armenie sont aussi
divisees sur la question du genocide armenien sous l’empire ottoman
(1915-1917) et entretiennent des relations hostiles.

ON THE ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE: HUNGER STRIKE FOR DEMOCRACY

Ara K. Manoogian, a human rights activist from Burbank, California,
is embarking on a week-long, cross-country road trip to Washington,
D.C., beginning April 2, 2013, the 17th day of his hunger strike, and
culminating his protest in front of the White House on April 9, 2013.

“I would like to congratulate you on your reelection as President
of the Republic of Armenia. I look forward to continuing our work
together as we both begin our second terms.” – President Barack Obama,
2 March 2013 Los Angeles, California (PRWEB) April 02, 2013

Ara K. Manoogian, a human rights activist from Burbank, California, is
embarking on a week-long, cross-country road trip to Washington, D.C.,
beginning on April 2, 2013, the 17th day of his protest hunger strike.

Manoogian articulated his opinion forcefully in an open letter to the
President, and intends to culminate his hunger strike in front of the
White House on April 9, 2013, in anticipation of promised responses
from President Obama and the State Department.

During his trip across the nation, Manoogian aims to share his
viewpoints with the American public. Heading eastward from Los Angeles
to Washington, D.C., community stops will include public meetings in
cities and towns of ten states and the District of Columbia. The trip
ending in the nation’s capital, as well as the gatherings held with
local residents in various locations along the way, will be featured
in a documentary entitled “One-Dollar Democracy”, which is intended
to further enlighten, inform and empower the American public.

It is Manoogian’s opinion that Obama’s congratulatory letter to Serzh
Sargsyan regarding his re-election for a second term as President
of the Republic of Armenia provides convincing evidence that his
communication was premature, having been sent12 days after the polls
were closed on February 18, 2013, and despite the fraud documented
by official international observers, including the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). According to Manoogian’s
perspective, the widespread and well-documented election fraud
was committed to ensure Sargsyan’s second term in office, allowing
Sargsyan to willfully claim electoral legitimacy. The full text of
President Obama’s congratulatory message was posted in an official
press release dated March 2, 2013, and is available on the website
‘President of the Republic of Armenia.’ Another instance supporting
Manoogian’s point of view is U.S.

Ambassador to Armenia, Marie L. Yovanovitch’s unredacted and classified
report, titled ‘The Business of Politics: Leading Enterprises of
Political Elites’, reported on Wikileaks on September 1, 2011, and
available online. In this report, Yovanovitch states,” … Broadly
speaking, almost all the most lucrative sectors and enterprises
are divided into one of two major political/economic pyramids: one
headed by President Serzh Sargsian [sic] and the other by ex-President
Robert Kocharian.”