Author: Kalashian Nyrie

Reuters, UK
Oct 13 2006
Turkey studying retaliatory measures against France
October 13, 2006

By Paul de Bendern
ANKARA, Oct 13 (Reuters) – Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on
Friday Turkey was studying retaliatory measures against France
following approval of a law making it a crime to deny Armenians
suffered genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks.
“Turkey’s foreign trade volume with France is $10 billion and this is
equal to 1.5 percent of France’s whole foreign trade volume. We’re
going to make the proper calculations and then take necessary steps,”
Erdogan said in a speech.
He did not elaborate, but said the centre-right government would take
measures within Turkey and abroad.
But the ruling AK Party, facing a rise in nationalism ahead of next
year’s parliamentary elections, must tread a careful line not to
damage its success at bringing political and econmic stability to the
Muslim country seeking EU membership.
France’s lower house of parliament voted for the bill on Thursday,
despite warnings from French firms that it would create repercussions
for their business in Turkey, a fast-growing market which imported
4.7 billion euros’ worth of French goods in 2005.
“There are no real threats in current trade, though perhaps (there
could be) with some big contracts,” a French Foreign Ministry
spokesman told reporters at a regular briefing in Paris.
The bill still needs approval from the upper house, the Senate, and
President Jacques Chirac to take effect.
Turkey denies claims that Armenians suffered genocide in Turkey
during World War One, arguing that large numbers of both Muslim Turks
and Christian Armenians died in a partisan conflict that accompanied
the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.
BOYCOTT CALLS
Hundreds of French firms such as Renault and Carrefour have large
investments in Turkey, employing thousands of Turkish workers. This
week Turkish consumer groups and some trade unions called for
boycotts of French products.
The Turkish Consumers Union called on its members to begin boycotting
French products, starting on Friday with energy group Total.
“The boycott will continue increasingly until the law on the
so-called Armenian genocide is annulled,” the union’s chairman Bulent
Deniz said in a press release.
But economists questioned the effectiveness of a boycott on France as
Turkey accounts for only 1.3 percent of France’s exports.
Past Turkish calls for boycotts against other countries had an effect
only for a short time.
Big Turkish business have largely opposed a boycott and Economy
Minister Ali Babacan said on Thursday the government would not
encourage it either.
The controversy over an alleged genocide goes to the heart of modern
Turkey which is struggling to push through EU-inspired reform which
often clash with its own history and customs.
Many Turks also see the genocide vote as a way for the European Union
to keep Muslim Turkey out of the 25-member club.
“In my view the new law is likely to be counterproductive,” EU
Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said in Helsinki.
“We don’t achieve real dialogue and real conciliation through
ultimatums. It will have a negative impact on Turkey coming to terms
with its past,” Rehn said.
(Additional reporting by Brian Rohan in Paris and Tarmo Virki in
Helsinki)

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS INVESTED OVER $50 MLN IN HEALTH SPHERE OF ARMENIA
ARMINFO News Agency
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
At the opening of the fifth “Human Health” Medical Congress, Wednesday,
Armenian Health Minister Norayr Davidyan said that during the last
2 years a number of international organizations have invested over
$50 mln in the health sphere of Armenia.
According to the Minister, long-term programs on malaria and HIV/AIDS
prevention are being implemented. The Global Fund has allocated $7
mln for these programs. A $19 mln grant program on primary health
care reform (PHCR) will be implemented from the beginning of the
next year. It will be financed by the USAID. Within the framework of
another long- term $19 credit project of the World Bank a program on
health sphere modernization is being carried out. To remind, under
this program 10 muli-sectoral medical associations have been organized
on the basis of several hospitals and polyclinics in Armenia. Under
the World Bank’s program 20 ambulance stations and polyclinics with
up-to-date medical equipment will be built.

HOLLAND: ETHNIC TURK MP CANDIDATE RECOGNIZED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
PanARMENIAN.Net
07.10.2006 13:25 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Nebahat Albayrak, in second position on the list
of the main opposition Labour Party (PvdA) candidates, has recognized
the Armenian genocide.
After the main Dutch parties removed three Turkish candidates from
their electoral lists, Albayrak said she backed the parliamentary
motion describing the deaths as genocide, in an interview with the
analysis magazine HP/De Tijd, adding that the form of its occurrence
needs to be investigated. Albayrak, who has served in the parliament
since 1998, in her previous statements said the jurists would determine
the use of “genocide” in response to the Armenian Diaspora’s claims,
and avoided using the definition in her interviews. The media strongly
criticized Albayrak for being indecisive. Meanwhile, Turkish candidates
Ayhan Tonca , Osman Elmaci (CDA) and Erdinc Sacan (PvdA) were removed
from the election list for the general elections, reports the Zaman.

ARMENIA ENTERS NEW ROUND OF DEMOCRACY, CONSTITUTIONAL COURT CHAIRMAN SAYS
Armenpress
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS: The chairman of Armenia’s
Constitutional Court, Gagik Harutunian, argued today that Armenia
has entered a new stage of democracy after two Armenian citizens
sought justice at the Court and managed to defend their rights by
questioning some provisions of the country’s constitution.
Harutunian meant a Constitutional Court ruling that found several
provisions of the law on social security cards unconstitutional. The
appeal had been submitted by two retired women who complained that
because of these provisions which ban those who have no social cards
from receiving old-age pensions they did not receive their pensions
for months.
Speaking to reporters after a seminar on constitutional right in
Yerevan Harutunian said it was very important that the revised
constitution gives ordinary citizens a right to seek justice at the
highest court of the country.
He said the Court has received 300 complaints already and 11 were
being examined. The only problem, according to him, is that now the
Constitutional Court is overloaded with work.

ARMENIAN CHURCH OFFERS BAZAAR
Belmont Citizen-Herald, MA
Oct 5 2006
The First Armenian Church will hold its annual Fall Harvest Bazaar
on Saturday, Oct. 21 from noon to 8 p.m. The church is located at
380 Concord Ave., Belmont.
Traditional Armenian delicacies like the ones “Medz Mama” (grandma)
used to make will be featured. Favorites such as manti, kufte, cheoreg,
cheese beoreg, yalanchi and string cheese have been prepared and
packaged to take out. Armenian and Middle Eastern pastries, including
paklava and kadayif, will be available all day with coffee.
Fresh shish, chicken and losh kebab will be grilled to order.
Dinners will be served all day with homemade rice pilaf, salad, pita
bread and coffee. Ample indoor seating is available, or take-out
meals will be available.
Proceeds from the sale help support the needs of orphans and students
in Armenia and Lebanon, various church programs, and donations to
local food drives throughout the year.
The bazaar will take place rain or shine and all are welcome to
attend. For more information call the church office at 617-484-4779,
or visit

THE MOST EMOTIONAL HUNT OF HIS LIFE
The Herald (Glasgow)
October 4, 2006
David Dickinson is led to Armenia in the search for his natural mother
during tonight’s episode of Who Do You Think You Are? BBC1, 9pm
Who Do You Think You Are?
BBC1, 9pm David Dickinson, the man who found a career in the detritus
of an antiques showroom, is not the product of a meeting between a
Malteser, a road surface and a large steamroller, though his skin
colour might suggest otherwise. He searches for his natural mother in
a complicated but touching story that reveals his links to Armenian
traders.

MAYOR OF PARIS 9TH ARRONDISSEMENT JACQUES BRAVO VISITED TSITSERNAKABERD
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 4 2006
Accompanied by Head of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF)
Bureau’s Hay Dat and Political Affairs Office Kiro Manoyan, Mayor of
Paris 9th arrondissement, representative of the Socialist Party of
France Jacques Bravo visited the Armenian Genocide memorial to pay
a tribute to the memory of 1.5 million innocent victims.
In the Museum-Institute of Genocide Jacques Bravo familiarized himself
with the evidences of atrocities carried out in Ottoman Turkey. “This
morning I bear the excitement of Paris people. A people that does
not want die, will never die,” he wrote in the book.
Jacques Bravo expressed the hope that in the end the Armenian
Genocide will be recognized all over the world. “Twenty years ago I
was also participating in rallies condemning the Armenian Genocide,”
he said, adding that he will do his best to promote the international
recognition of the Genocide.

PREFERENCES IN FINE ART
By Melania Badalian
AZG Armenian Daily
05/10/2006
The exhibition opened at the Albert and Tove Boyajian revealed another
aspect of scholar Aramayis Gevorgian’s talent, i.e his preferences
in painting.
Armamayis Gevorgian has defended a dissertattion in the histroy of
the Armenian Historical-Cultural Monuments of 11-12th Centuries. The
paintings included in the exhibition depicted the history of Armenia
and its neighbours, i.e. battle scenes. Gevorgian doesn’t depict
cultural monuments of his motherland, he tells the story of the foreign
nations’ struggle against their enemies or the heros of the Chinese,
Indian and Polish warriors.
Gevorgian considers the issue of our historical-cultural monuments as
a matter of nation- wide importance, responsibility and attention. “If
an evil force wants destroy an individual, a nation or a phenomenon,
it tempts that vivid force with additional wishes. As the latter
become an aim to attain,” he said.
Aramayis Gevorgian has his private attitude to the tales, as well. He
was also the illustrator of a number of tales. “The tales and eposes
are absolute truth like the philosophy is,” he underscored.

PRIME MINISTER SAYS THE END OF TALKS IS REFERENDUM
Panorama.am
01:49 05/10/06
Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan had difficulty in
forecasting the developments in case the conflict of Nagorno Karabakh
is moved to U.N. at the initiation of GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine,
Azerbaijan, Moldova) states. The prime minister said it has not
yet included in U.N. agenda. “There was a decision connected with
fires which does not relate to the settlement of Karabakh conflict,”
Margaryan said.
In his opinion, package deal is most preferred at the moment, which
will show where they started and where they are going to. “Our end
is the referendum which will decide whether Karabakh is a separate
state or not,” the prime minister said. He considered urgent the
deliberation on the status of Karabakh after which she may cooperate
with international organizations, receive credits and humanitarian
assistance.

AZERBAIJAN DM DENIED THE AGREEMENT ON THE MEETING WITH SERJ SARKISYAN
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Oct 4 2006
“Azerbaijan and Armenian Defense Minister agreed to meet,” Andrzej
Kasprzyk, OSCE chief personal representative told in the press
conference in Yerevan, APA reports. Armenian Arminfo agency reported
that Andrzej Kaspshik said the ministers will take measures for
maintaining ceasefire in the region.
“There is information about casualties from Azerbaijan and Armenian.
We should take immediate steps maintain ceasefire,” he said.
Azerbaijan DM press service officer Ilgar Verdiyev told the APA that
he has no information about Kasprzyk’s statement.
“There is no such kind of agreement. If there had been, Kasprzyk
would have given any information during his visit to Azerbaijan,”
he said.