Author: Kalantarian Kevo

HAIGAZIAN UNIVERSITY
Mira Yardemian – Public Relations Director
Rue Mexique – Kantari
P.O. Box 11-1748
Riad El-Solh 1107 2090
Beirut – Lebanon

Tel: 961-1-353011
Web:
Email: [email protected]

A Joint Conference on Identity by
Yerevan State University and Haigazian University

“Armenian Identity Issues of the 21st Century” was the topic of the
joint conference held at Yerevan State University on March 13 & 14,
2013. The conference was organized by the Diaspora Chair of the
Yerevan State University and the Armenian Diaspora Research Center of
Haigazian University in collaboration with the Diaspora Ministry of
Armenia. This was the second conference that resulted from the
collaboration between the two universities of Armenia and the Diaspora
under the patronage of the Diaspora Minister Mrs. Hranoush Hagopian.
The first conference, entitled “The Armenian Republic and Diaspora
Relations: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” was held in Beirut on 5-7
September 2011 on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the
proclamation of Armenian independence and the 55th anniversary of
Haigazian University. In the assessment session held after the first
conference the necessity and importance of a conference dedicated to
identity issues was raised.
Fourteen papers were presented during the March conference which
covered a broad range of issues pertaining to diverse aspects of
identity:
Rev. Dr. Paul Haidostian (Theologian, and President, Haigazian
University): “Basic Factors of Identity Construction in the Cultural
and Political Context of the Diaspora”
Dr. Armenag Yeghiayan (Scholar, Western Armenian language expert):
“The 100 Year Track of the Western Armenian language and its Identity
Challenges”
Dr. Harutyun Maroutian (Institute of Ethnography, Armenian National
Academy), “Shaping Armenian Identities: The century-old Genocide
Memory”
Dr. Antranik Dakessian (Armenian Diaspora Research Center, Haigazian
University), “Armenian Family Names as Identity Symbols and their
Corruption”
Prof. Khachig Tololyan (Founder & editor of the Diaspora Journal),
“The Mystery of Identity: Variations of Armenian and Other Identities”
Dr. Edward Melkonian (Institute of History, Armenian National
Academy), “The Perception of Patriotism in the Diaspora”
Dr. Arman Yeghiazarian (Diaspora Ministry, Diaspora Chair, YSU),
“Armenian Civilization and the Armenian historic perspective”
Dr. Seyran Zakarian (Philosophy Dept., YSU), “Deserting the Fatherland
as an Expression of Identity Rejection”
Dr. Arda Ekmekji (Arts& Sciences Dean, Haigazian University), “The
Absence of the Armenian Woman from Decision Making Positions: A case
of Identity or Opportunities?”
Dr. Hamlet Bedrosian (YSU), “The Traditional Symbols of Armenian
Identity in Contemporary Form”
Maroun Salhani, MA (Lebanese media activist, blogger), “The Image of
the Lebanese Armenian in Lebanese Cultural Expressions”
Dr. Ardag Movsisian (YSU, History Dept.), Certain national-ideological
issues of Early Armenia”
Dr. Nora Arissian (Damascus State University), “The Arab Perception of
21st Century Armenian-diaspora Identity”
Dr. Tadeos Donoyan (Diaspora Chair, YSU), “Tsenov Hovan: The
acquiescence of statement and text in the Armenian language mindset”.
At the end of the two-day conference the first issue of a new yearbook
by the YSU, Spurkakidutyun: Desutyan yev Badmutyan Hartser (Diaspora
Studies: Issues of theory and history) was launched.
In a short assessment meeting that followed the event, the organizers
found the conference to be very useful and decided to plan for a
second conference on the topic of identity. The proceedings of the
conference will be jointly published in a separate book by October 2013.

SHOES FROM A COBBLER’S HANDS TO HIGH-END MARKET

The Daily Star (Lebanon)
March 19, 2013 Tuesday

Brooke Anderson

Walking past the shoe stores lining the streets of Burj Hammoud,
there is one thing that stands out amid the colorful window displays.

BURJ HAMMOUD, Lebanon: Walking past the shoe stores lining the streets
of Burj Hammoud, there is one thing that stands out amid the colorful
window displays.

Written neatly in the soles are the words that are seen so rarely these
days: “Made in Lebanon.” In an age when most goods around the world are
mass produced in the Far East, and in a country where both handmade
and industrial products have long given way to foreign imports, it
can be a treat to see cobblers working on shoes from start to finish,
some of which make their way to posh department stores abroad.

“It’s all handmade here. It’s an art,” veteran shoemaker Jack Mazmanian
says as he gives an impromptu tour of his workshop on a side street
of Burj Hammoud, where Lebanon’s largest community of Armenians reside.

Burj Hammoud is renowned for its handicrafts, street food and strict
adherence to culture and tradition. Introducing his small but dedicated
staff, Mazmanian demonstrates the four stages of the craft: cutting,
stitching, closing and finishing. “Not everyone can do it.

I’ve been at it since I was 13, and I’m still learning.”

Indeed, the close-knit area is filled with cobblers of all ages,
learning from those with more experience and teaching others in turn.

Shoemaking is one of the last handicrafts in Lebanon that is still
thriving in Burj Hammoud and remote side streets and villages beyond,
although not the way it once was. Every day they work away at their
craft, with relatively little financial return, their biggest reward
being the belief that they are making a superior product.

“Our work is better than what they do in Italy. It’s all handmade
here,” Mazmanian says.

This quality has caught the attention of local shoe lovers who go
directly to the source to get the handmade goods at wholesale prices –
starting at around $50 for a basic pair of shoes. Lebanese expatriates
who return for the summer also visit the area to stock up on a year’s
supply of shoes, as do local designers who have developed long-term
professional relationships with these craftsmen of their own products.

At the boutique of Johnny Farah, a leatherwear designer with a shop
in Saifi Village, locally handmade shoes line the walls.

“One thing that surprised me when I first came [to Lebanon] and saw
Saifi Village was seeing the shops that sold locally made products,”
says Rebecca Carnell, marketing director for Johnny Farah. She moved
to Lebanon from Australia, where she had worked for a designer that
had goods made in China, a practice she notes is common worldwide,
even for labels claiming to sell locally made products.

Now working for a designer who only works with local craftsmen and is
passionate about keeping the leatherwork industry alive in Lebanon,
she has come to see the difference in quality.

“You really don’t know where they’re coming from, and if you have a
problem they can be difficult to fix or replace,” Carnell says. One
great thing about people knowing the shoes are locally made: customer
loyalty.

Lebanon’s independent shoe designers are also using the skills of the
local cobblers to bring comfort and quality to their sleek styles. For
newer operations, it helps that the shoemakers are willing to produce
smaller quantities.

Catherine Nissen, a shoe designer who recently started her own
business, says, “Burj Hammoud is the center of shoemaking in Lebanon.

Everything you could possibly want is there. One advantage is the
very small workshops they have here. You get to know them and you can
build a good friendship. You can create more unique items if you have
that friendship.”

She adds, “Once the relationship is established, it’s so much fun. I’m
learning about shoemaking, and he’s learning about fashion. It’s good
in both directions.”

However, the main disadvantage for her and others in the same field
is the high cost of manufacturing, which affects their own bottom line.

Cobblers for their part are affected by the high cost of generators,
(used for six hours a day on average in Burj Hammoud) and raw
materials, which are then passed onto the designers. If these shoes
are shipped overseas, the prices more than double for the end buyer.

“It’s not a very attractive market,” says Amanda Navai, who got
into shoe designing two years ago when she had extra leather from
the handbags she was making. She sells her shoes to the New York
upscale retailer Bloomingdales, where shipping and packaging costs
significantly add to the price of her product.

For independent designers in Lebanon to make profits, Navai thinks
the best way is to go online, thereby avoiding the costs of overseas
shipping or opening up a local shop. That would allow them to lower
their prices while also having a bigger profit margin.

Still, she worries about the shoemakers in Burj Hammoud whose talent
and hard work are not always being adequately remunerated.

“Is it a social injustice? Or is it something that’s interesting and
creative? Sometimes I do feel bad,” she says.

Moumen Taleb, a longtime shoemaker in Burj Hammoud, says his business
has fallen on hard times, something he blames on Lebanon’s security
situation, which has affected various sectors throughout the country;
he saw his business begin its steady decline following the 2005
assassination of Rafik Hariri. He also blames the government for not
protecting craftsmen like himself.

“I used to think of myself as proud. Now I think of myself as poor,”
he says, walking through his dusty workshop which appears to have
seen better days.

“The government should do something to help.”

Down the street, his neighbor, Abu Rabia, who sells Chinese-made
knockoffs of Western products, says he left the shoemaking business
around five years ago because of slow business. Now, he says work is
slowly picking up again because of the influx of Syrian refugees who
are willing to have lower salaries than their Lebanese counterparts.

But he’s still not enticed to go back.

“I love my work, but I’m not happy. Any craftsman who has to compete
with mass production isn’t happy,” Taleb says.

EU NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY REPORT: ARMENIA HAS MADE PROGRESS

Xinhua General News Service, China
March 21, 2013 Thursday 8:40 AM EST

The European Union (EU) would continue to support the implementation
of reforms in Armenia, the head of an EU Commission delegation said
here Thursday.

Traian Hristea was presenting the EU Neighborhood Policy implementation
report, Armenpress reported.

Hristea said, according to a survey carried out in Armenia, the EU
was viewed as an important partner and further integration with the EU
was expected, adding the EU would consistently support the country’s
reform process.

The 2012 report on the progress made by Armenia covers development
of political dialogue between Armenia and the EU, activation of
high-level meetings, and EU readiness to contribute to the peaceful
resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

The report also notes the positive administration of parliamentary
elections in May 2012 and presidential elections in February 2013. The
document says, overall, freedom of speech and freedom of assembly
were respected in Armenia in 2012.

RUSSIA, ARMENIA TO SIGN MILITARY-TECHNOLOGICAL COOPERATION TREATY

Russia & CIS Military Newswire

Interfax, Russia
March 20, 2013 Wednesday 12:20 PM MSK

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as approved a draft
military-technological cooperation treaty between Russia and Armenia,
which was presented earlier by the Defense Ministry and agreed upon
with the Foreign Ministry and other federal executive bodies.

Medvedev’s directive approving the draft treaty has been published
on the official web-portal of legal information.

The directive instructs the Russian Federal Service for
Military-Technological Cooperation to hold negotiations with Armenia
and, upon reaching an agreement, to sign the treaty on behalf of
Russia, allowing it to make non-fundamental amendments to the draft.

AZERBAIJAN ANGERED BY LITHUANIAN PARLIAMENT’S DECISION TO SET UP GROUP OF FRIENDSHIP WITH KARABAKH

Interfax, Russia
March 19, 2013

Azeri Deputy Foreign Minister Halaf Halafov has informed Lithuanian
Ambassador Arturas Zurauskas about Azerbaijan’s discontent with the
emergence of a group of friendship with the breakaway Republic of
Nagorno-Karabakh in the Lithuanian parliament.

Halafov said, according to the Azeri Foreign Ministry’s press service,
that Nagorno-Karabakh is an internationally recognized integral part
of Azerbaijan and that the Lithuanian parliament’s move cannot be
described other than as encouragement of separatism and disrespect
for international law.

Halafov handed a note of protest to the Lithuanian ambassador, saying
that Lithuania would hopefully respond to it appropriately.

Sd jv

SECRETARY GENERAL OF COUNCIL OF EUROPE TO VISIT ARMENIA IN APRIL

20:50, 22 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 22, ARMENPRESS: Foreign Minister of Armenian Republic
Edward Nalbandian on March 22 hosted delegation of group of rapporteurs
on democracy issues from the Ministers~R Committee of the Council of
Europe. The delegations consisted of Polish, French, German, Swiss
and Irish Ambassadors to Council of Europe.

As Armenpress has been informed from press, informational and public
relations department of MFA, greeting the guests Minister Nalbandian
noted that from the beginning of the membership in the Council
of Europe, Armenia has been actively involved in the activities of
organization, as well as has implemented number of democratic reforms
with the support of different CoE structures, the results of which
have received appropriate esteems in the reports of international
organizations and rankings.

At the meeting interlocutors referred to number of issues regarding
Armenian presidency in Ministers~R Committee of the Council of Europe
which would launch in May. In this regard Minister noted that Secretary
General of Council of Europe would visit Armenia in April.

Priorities and events~R program will be finally developed during
Secretary General~Rs visit. On request of the guests Minister presented
efforts of Armenia and international community aimed at the settlement
of Karabakh issue.

HERITAGE PARTY LEADER STARTS RALLY IN FREEDOM SQUARE – VIDEOS

TERT.AM
18:38 ~U 22.03.13

Chairman of the Heritage party and ex-presidential candidate Raffi
Hovannisian’s rally has kicked off in Yerevan’s Freedom Square.

According to preliminary information, he is expected to present his
final demands, which will then be presented to Armenia’s President
Serzh Sargsyan.

Mr Hovannisian and his supporters called the rally “victorious.”

On Thursday, Mr Hovannisian submitted a Heritage nomination list
in the forthcoming municipal elections in Yerevan. Heritage party
Vice-Chairman Armen Martirosyan tops the list.

18:26 Policemen ordered Raffi Hovannisian to remove the placards from
the monument to Hovannes Tumanyan.

Vice-Chief of Yerevan Police Department, Colonel Valery Osipyan
approached Mr Hovannisian and demanded that he forbid the young
people. In response, Mr Hovannisian said that the young people
expressed their opinion in such a manner.

“If you say I am violating the law, I will approach them in an hour
and ask them to remove the placards,” he said.

19:02 Raffi Hovannisian intends to send two proposals to Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan in a “sealed envelope.”

According to Mr Hovannisian, “if Serzh Sargsyan wants to continue
ruling after rigged and anti-constitutional elections…”

He proposed either snap presidential or parliamentary elections in
Armenia this year.

Armenia’s election law must be amended first, which will put an end
to the first-past-the-post voting system and grant the voting right
to Armenia’s citizens living abroad.

Mr Hovannisian demands that Serzh Sargsyan dismiss the governors
of at least five Armenian regions and appoint persons proposed by
Mr Hovannisian.

“He must appoint executives representing the people and proposed by
Raffi Hovannisian,” he said.

According to him, the executives must be appointed at Armenia’s
National Security Service, Customs Committee, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Ministry of Education and Science, Control Chamber, Council
of Justice and Anticorruption Commission.

“This agreement” is to be signed by both sides.

Mr Hovannisian is ready to “meet Serzh Sargsyan half-way” to resolve
the national problem and reform the country, putting an end to
monopolies, injustice, unemployment and emigration.

According to Mr Hovannisian, the period before April 9 is the most
important in Serzh Sargsyan’s biography.

19:22 Raffi Hovannisian’s father Richard Hovannisian made a speech
at the rally. He is for settling the issue by means of dialogue.

“I should confess I was against his [Raffi Hovannisian’s] nomination.

I was sure they would press his and that meant suicide. But I am
happy I was wrong. With your help we have not only shocked Armenia,
but also the Armenian Diaspora,” he said.

The Armenian nation needs peace and Mr Richard Hovannisian hopes that
constructive work will be possible due to a dialogue and concessions.

19:25 On behalf of about 30 freedom fighters Raffi Hovannisian read
out a message, beginning with Vazgen Sargsyan’s words, “We gave
everything to the Artsakh war and gained pride for that.”

The message calls for remembering this keeping this pride and get rid
of affliction, poverty, emigration and “march toward Freedom Square.”

CONFERENCE SUR LE CLERGE AU SAINT SIEGE D’ETCHMIADZIN

Le 5 fevrier 2013, a l’occasion de la fete du pretre Saint Ghevond et
de ses compagnons, une conference sur le clerge a eu lieu au Saint
Siège d’Etchmiadzin, sous la presidence de Sa Saintete Karekine II,
Patriarche supreme et Catholicos de tous les Armeniens . L’element
principal de la conference etait ” L’organisation et le fonctionnement
de la vie paroissiale et des structures de l’Eglise dans les diocèses
” (conseils paroissiaux, associations de femmes, organisations de
jeunesse, etc …). Parmi les participants figuraient les chefs
religieux des diocèses d’Armenie et de l’Artsakh, les membres de la
Confrerie du Saint Siège d’Etchmiadzine et 169 serviteurs religieux
des diocèses.

Dans la matinee, plus de 220 membres du clerge ont assiste a la Divine
Liturgie a la cathedrale Mère, sous la presidence du Catholicos de tous
les Armeniens. Le celebrant etait le Reverend Père Paren Arakelian,
cure de paroisse dans le diocèse de Shirak, dans la region d’Amassia.

Après la conclusion de la Divine Liturgie, les pretres ont ouvert
leur Conference au centre Theologique. Sa Grâce l’eveque Mikael
Ajapahian, Primat du Diocèse de Shirak, a salue les pretres et a fait
les remarques d’ouverture. Son Excellence a felicite le ministre du
culte a l’occasion de la fete, les encourageant a renouveler leurs
v~ux a l’Eglise et de rester fidèle a l’exemple de Ghevondiants,
de vivre la vie comme un soldat de Jesus-Christ et de la nation.

Le Reverend Père Paren Arakelian (diocèse de Shirak), le Reverend Père
Vrtanes Baghalian (diocèse de Gougark) ont presente des rapports aux
participants de la reunion. Une discussion a ensuite eu lieu sur les
questions relatives aux paroisses diocesaines et aux infrastructures
organisationnelles des paroisses, ainsi que sur les defis actuels
auxquels fait face l’eglise.

À la suite des discussions le clerge a fait la declaration suivante
(extrait) : ” Nous, les saints serviteurs de l’Eglise apostolique
armenienne, rendons grâce a Dieu qui a cree l’occasion de nous reunir
dans le Saint Siège d’Etchmiadzin autour du Catholicos de tous les
Armeniens (…).

Les infrastructures paroissiales y compris les conseils paroissiaux,
les organisations des femmes et de la jeunesse et les ecoles du
dimanche ont l’unique mission de repondre aux besoins religieux de nos
fidèles, d’engager la communaute, et de promouvoir le renouveau de la
spiritualite universelle. À cet egard, nous exhortons les enfants de
l’Eglise apostolique armenienne de soutenir l’Eglise et ses serviteurs
avec leur participation active au benefice de l’efficacite de la
planification et de l’organisation de la vie paroissiale “.

Dans son allocution le Catholicos de tous les Armeniens aborde les
questions de la planification de la vie des communautes religieuses,
en insistant sur l’importance de l’esprit et du devouement du chef
spirituel dans les communautes.

jeudi 21 mars 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

TURQUIE/UE : ERDOGAN TROUVE LE GESTE DE LA FRANCE INSUFFISANT

Le Premier ministre turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan a estime mercredi, dans
un entretien avec un journal danois, que la France avait fait un geste
insuffisant en levant son blocage a l’ouverture d’un nouveau chapitre
dans les negociations d’adhesion de son pays a l’Union europeenne.

“Le fait que la France a recemment leve son blocage sur le chapitre 22
(sur la politique regionale) est une etape positive”, a constate le
chef du gouvernement turc lors d’un entretien au quotidien Politiken
realise avant une visite officielle a Copenhague.

“Cependant, je dois dire aussi que ce n’est pas suffisant ; nous nous
attendons a ce que les negociations d’adhesion, au point mort depuis
les deux dernières annees, soient revitalisees”, a-t-il ajoute.

“Le blocage de plus de la moitie des chapitres de negociations par les
pays membres de l’Union europeenne collectivement ou individuellement
(…) a serieusement nui a nos relations avec l’Union europeenne”,
a deplore M. Erdogan.

Le chapitre 22 porte notamment sur la redistribution des aides de
l’UE aux regions et sur la contribution du pays candidat aux fonds
regionaux. En fevrier, Paris avait annonce vouloir apporter un nouvel
elan aux relations entre l’UE et la Turquie.

La Turquie a entame en 2005 des negociations d’adhesion a l’UE, mais
les pourparlers patinent, en raison de l’hostilite de pays europeens
comme la France et l’Allemagne a cet elargissement mais aussi de
blocages d’Ankara.

La Turquie refuse notamment d’elargir a Chypre, membre de l’UE sous
administration chypriote-grecque, le benefice des accords de libre
circulation qui la lient au bloc europeen. Ce refus a entraîne le gel
de plusieurs chapitres de negociation, si bien que, sur une trentaine,
un seul a ete conclu.

jeudi 21 mars 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

DEUX HABITANTS ARMENIENS TRAVERSENT LA FRONTIÈRE POUR SE RENDRE EN AZERBAIDJAN

Les autorites azerbaïdjanaises ont renvoye deux habitants d’un village
armenien qui ont traverse, ce week-end, la frontière pour se rendre
en Azerbaïdjan. Mnatsakan Karian, un resident de 86 ans du village
de Dovegh dans la province du nord de l’Armenie (Tavush), a franchi
la frontière samedi 16 mars. Anahit Arakelian, une femme de 48 ans
originaire d’un village voisin, a fait de meme dimanche 17 mars. Les
raisons de ces passages restent floues. Les autorites militaires a
Erevan n’ont pas encore commente ces incidents. Karian et Arakelian
ont ete arretes immediatement après leur entree en Azerbaïdjan. Le
Comite international de la Croix-Rouge (CICR) les a rapatries.

” Agissant en tant qu’intermediaire neutre et conformement a son
mandat, le CICR a facilite ce rapatriement en collaboration avec des
autorites azerbaïdjanaises et armeniennes “, a declare la Croix-Rouge.

Il arrive parfois que les residents civils des territoires armeniens
et azerbaïdjanais situes a proximite traversent la frontière. Un
villageois azerbaïdjanais a traverse la frontière pour atteindre la
region de Tavush en novembre dernier et a ete rapatrie deux semaines
plus tard.

Manvel Saribekian a connu un sort plus tragique. Saribekian a ete
retrouve pendu dans une cellule de prison azerbaïdjanaise trois
semaines après avoir ete arrete par les gardes-frontière azerbaïdjanais
en septembre 2010.

Le gouvernement azerbaïdjanais a declare qu’il s’etait suicide. En
revanche, les autorites armeniennes ont affirme que Saribekian a ete
sauvagement torture et assassine par les gardes azerbaïdjanais.

jeudi 21 mars 2013, Laetitia ©armenews.com