Author: Kanayan Tamar

ANTRANIK UNLUCKY AGAIN AS BEJJEH WALTZES TO SOUND OF VICTORY
By Kenny Laurie

The Daily Star

Jan 31 2012
Lebanon

BEIRUT: Antranik’s sorry season continued Monday after they were
thrashed 92-66 by newly promoted Bejjeh in the Lebanese Basketball
League.The Armenian side have won just one game all season, losing 11
games so far in a torrid season, although they can rest easy knowing
that Chabab Zahle’s decision to drop out of the league will spare
Antranik a season in the second division next year.

The club’s sense of resignation to a collapsed and pointless season
was plain to see in the first quarter when Bejjeh steamrollered a
moribund Antranik, running out to 30-13 inside the first 10 minutes,
effectively killing off the game before it started.

The home side bucked up their ideas but they were still unable to stop
pouring in points with Arthur Lee particularly influential for the
Jbeil side. Bejjeh were only able to slowly tack points onto the lead.

After opening a 17-point lead at 47-30 8 minutes into the quarter,
Bejjeh conceded three late baskets to go into the half at 50-36.

Bejjeh quickly ripped out into a 57-40 lead 3 minutes into the quarter
before the two sides traded baskets for the rest of the quarter,
eventually finishing 71-53. Bejjeh continued to mount on the pain,
going ahead into a 26-point lead as Antranik’s offense fell apart 5
minutes into the final quarter at 56-82.

The scoring slowed down from both sides until the game petered out at
92-66. Bejjeh’s win move them into fourth place, a stunningly high
position considering they have been in the top flight for just four
months with a limited budget.

Wednesday sees Anibal Zahle and league champions Riyadi in Zahle
while Hoops Club travel to Ghazir to take on Sagesse.

STAIBDANCE’S NAME DAY TAKES MODERN LOOK AT ARMENIAN TRADITION

Creative Loafing Atlanta

Jan 30 2012

Choreographer George Staib’s personal heritage comes to life in dance
by Andrew Alexander

When choreographer George Staib was growing up, he’d ask the adults
around him how old his grandfather was. “Nobody would know,” he says.

“That’s because in the Armenian tradition, children are named after
a saint, and the saint’s day is celebrated. It obscures the birthday
and even the birth year. The Name Day is just a much bigger deal.”

Staib will explore Name Day and other aspects of his mixed heritage in
the new show Name Day, premiering this weekend at Emory’s Schwartz
Center for the Performing Arts. Staib’s American father met his
Armenian mother when he was stationed in Iran with the military. Staib
lived in Iran until he was 10, when his family returned to the States.

“Wherever we lived, there was always this blending of American culture
and Armenian tradition,” he says. “We tried to cling to both.”

The Armenian way of celebrating, of mourning, of rearing children, and
of dancing were all part of the Staib household. “When we had parties,
my sister and I were just thrown into the middle of a circle and we’d
have to dance together. If you went to someone’s house for dinner
and music was played, you’d have to get up and dance. It’s very much
a part of life,” says Staib, who has been a member of Emory’s dance
faculty since 2001.

A visit to Israel last year inspired Staib to create a show on
his family history. There, he was immersed in traditional Armenian
communities in Jerusalem and witnessed innovative modern choreography
in Tel Aviv that incorporated elements of traditional folk dance. “I
dropped into a really old version of Armenian culture in Jerusalem,”
says Staib. “I felt it was an interesting challenge for me to work
with something really old in a contemporary way.”

Name Day is comprised of lively folk-driven group dances interspersed
by more contemplative and introspective solos. The costumes capture
the look of the clothing Staib remembers from his childhood, Western
clothes of the ’60s and ’70s, and the music represents a diverse
soundscape: traditional Armenian music, electronica, Israeli folk,
choral music, and Bach.

The work also prominently features dancer Helen Hale, who has become
a central figure on Atlanta’s independent dance scene. Her recent work
ANTI-MANNERS also blended elements of folk and contemporary movement.

“She really gets this piece,” says Staib. “If I want to do something
that’s a little strange or obscure or highly theatrical, she is the
one to give those moments to because she indulges so fully in that.”

And Staib is determined to dig in: “There’s so much of my family
history that no one would ever talk about,” he says. “You’re expected
to know the traditions, but they’re never explained. You do it ‘just
because’ without knowing why.” With Name Day, Staib may finally
uncover some of the why.

TURKEY HAILS AS ‘GENOCIDE’ BILL IN FRANCE PUT ON HOLD

Hurriyet Daily News
Feb 1 2012
Turkey

Michel Diefenbacher spearheaded the appeal in the Lower House of
Parliament. Turkey has hailed a motion by French legislators to
halt a bill criminalizing denials of Armenian genocide claims after
they produced the 60 signatures required to stop the draft from
becoming law.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan extended “wholehearted thanks”
to the French senators who appealed the law and voiced hope France’s
Constitutional Council would quash the legislation.

“I have no doubt the Constitutional Council will eventually make an
appropriate decision,” President Abdullah Gul said, adding that he
was “not expecting the French from the very beginning to let their
country be overshadowed” by the resolution.

Ankara had reacted furiously last week when the French Senate approved
the law that penalizes anyone in France who denies the 1915 killings
of Armenians amounted to genocide with jail time and a fine.

On Jan. 24 President Nicolas Sarkozy’s office brushed off angry threats
of retaliation by Turkey and vowed to sign the bill into law within
a fortnight.

But a left-wing group of senators said yesterday that they had gathered
76 signatures from colleagues opposed to the law. A group from the
Lower House of Parliament had also gathered 65 signatures yesterday and
had formally requested that the Constitutional Council examine the law.

The move raises the possibility that the law will be dismissed as
unconstitutional. The appeal was spearheaded by Jacques Mezard at
the Senate and Michel Diefenbacher, the head of the Turkish-French
Parliamentary Friendship Group. The groups said they each had
gathered more than the minimum 60 signatures required to ask the
council to test the law’s constitutionality. If the court finds the
law unconstitutional, the legislation will be rejected.

“This is an atomic bomb for the Elysee [Sarkozy’s office], which
didn’t see it coming,” said deputy Lionel Tardy, who said most of the
65 signatories from the Lower House were, like him, from Sarkozy’s
Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party. The council is obliged to
deliver its judgment within a month, but the period could be reduced
to eight days if the government deems the matter urgent.

Turkey welcomes move

Turkish officials were universal in welcoming the development. “The
fact that the application was made with over 60 signatures from both
houses [of the French Parliament] is a significant development. I
extend my wholehearted thanks to those French parliamentarians on
behalf of myself and my nation. They did what they were supposed to
do. I hope that the Constitutional Council will rectify this unjust
process and bring it in line with the values of France,” Erdogan said.

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also hailed the French senators’
move, saying that with this step France embraced its own values.

Turkish EU Minister Egemen BagıÅ~_, meanwhile, said yesterday that
“freedom of expression is one of the most important features in the
EU acquis.” BagıÅ~_ also noted European Commissioner for Enlargement
Stefan Fule’s remarks about the French resolution in which Fule said
illuminating history was the business of historians, not politicians.

France has already officially recognized the killings as genocide,
but the new law would go further by punishing anyone who denies
this with up to a year in jail and a fine of 45,000 euros. Around 20
countries have officially recognized the killings as genocide. Amnesty
International has criticized the French law, saying it would violate
freedom of expression.

Compiled from AFP, AA and Reuters stories by the Daily News staff.

THE FRENCH STRESS TEST

Today’s Zaman
Jan 31 2012
Turkey

The news that France’s new law punishing denial of the Armenian claims
of genocide was put on hold on Tuesday after politicians opposed to
the legislation demanded that its constitutionality be examined will
have come as a big relief to Ankara.

In the same way the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) unanimously
ruled that the recognition of the Armenian genocide cannot be
criminalized in Turkey, as it constitutes a violation of Article 10
(freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights,
the French move is also a violation of the exact same article. Indeed,
if a candidate looking to join the EU adopted such a law, the EU
would condemn it and make its removal a precondition for entry. It is
shameful that a founding member of the EU can so effortlessly violate
such an important European value, particularly when they continue
to chastise other states for doing the exact same thing. And while
Turkey needs to deal with its past, this is not the way to do it.

Stress levels had hit the ceiling in recent days, with Turkish
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu claiming the French tried to “Nazify”
Turkey and to push it out of Europe, while earlier this week Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in an address to the nation, declared
France a state leading the rise of a dark medieval mindset, using
language of separatism and racism. No doubt Turkey’s leadership
feels emboldened following the support offered by US Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton. Clinton stated her disapproval of the French
bill, saying that the US would never follow a path that criminalizes
freedom of expression, warning against using governmental force in
order to resolve historical issues. On the other hand Turkey has been
disappointed by the approach of the EU. Turkey expected Brussels to
have a louder response to Paris. However, Davutoglu’s suggestion that
the EU place sanctions on France was just silly. Rather than following
the example of the US, the EU has not spoken out strongly against
France. Many in the EU may be far from happy with French President
Nicolas Sarkozy, for after all what happens in France also risk
damaging the reputation of the EU as a whole. EU member states have
their plates full with the eurozone crisis. However, the EU will not
want this quarrel to be a long and drawn-out affair, fearing it may
undermine efforts to build a unified approach by the EU and Turkey
on key Middle East issues such as Iran’s nuclear ambitions and the
unrest in Syria. While I doubt warm and friendly relations will be
restored as long as Sarkozy is in office, I also believe that Turkey
would not be so foolish as to base its approach towards EU-Turkish
cooperation in the Middle East region through the prism of Paris. Turks
(and others) have branded President Sarkozy racist. Looking back over
Sarkozy’s term in office, there have been several occasions when he
has acted in a way that has characterized him as such. Sarkozy is no
stranger to virulent and racist scaremongering. He has repeatedly used
the idea of a feral and alien “racaille” (scum) to scare voters into
backing him. While a number of these efforts have targeted France’s
Muslim community, including banning the burqa in 2010, other groups
have also been affected, including the Roma. In 2010 Sarkozy adopted
harsh measures against the Roma, expelling many from France, which
was severally criticized, including by his EU colleagues.

Since and prior to being elected, Sarkozy has pursued a policy aimed
at increasing support from those that traditionally back the National
Front of Marie Le Pen. Rather than dealing with France’s socioeconomic
problems head-on, he has preferred to blame them on certain immigrant
communities. While Sarkozy hopes to scoop up far-right voters, his
actions are more likely to strengthen and legitimize the National
Front.

I would also hope that France’s half a million Armenians will
take other factors into consideration when heading off to vote,
including Sarkozy’s failure to deliver on many of his election
promises, including putting more money in people’s pockets, making
significant tax cuts and making France more competitive. Ankara
continues to fume and to talk about further measures. However, those
already in place have done nothing to deter Paris. Indeed Turkey has
been taking measures (in particular regarding the defense sector)
against France since 2001, when the French National Assembly approved
a bill describing the Armenian killings as genocide, yet today France
remains one of Turkey’s biggest trading partners. Turkey has already
“nuanced” its approach and no longer talks about sanctions against
French companies. Turkey does not want to do anything that would
damage its own economic interests, and last week Economy Minister
Zafer Caglayan stated that measures will not be taken against
French companies operating in Turkey and which employ thousands of
Turks. However, just because the bill has been put on hold, it will
not change anything regarding Turkey’s relationship with its bête
noir, Sarkozy. Indeed President Sarkozy’s office had brushed off
Turkey’s recent talk of new sanctions and had vowed to enforce the
law within a fortnight. So it would seem that whatever happens next,
Turkey’s relations with France are going to remain in an extremely
precarious situation. If Sarkozy is re-elected, the situation will
become even tougher.

PRESIDENTIAL BODY TO SHED LIGHT ON DINK MURDER CASE

Hurriyet Daily News

Jan 28 2012
Turkey

Certain documents went missing while others were tampered with in
the case of murdered journalist Hrant Dink, an upcoming report by
Turkish Presidency is about to reveal.

Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, the editor-in-chief of weekly
Agos, was commemorated on Jan 19 2012, the fifth anniversary of his
murder. More than 30,000 people gathered together to mark the day
and held a protest in Istanbul.

The State Audit Board (DDK) of the Turkish Presidency has determined
that certain documents went missing while others were tampered with
in the case of Hrant Dink, the Turkish-Armenian journalist murdered
in 2007 in front of his newspaper office in Istanbul.

The DDK will be bringing up a number of contentious issues in an
upcoming report, including a notice provided to the gendarmerie by
instigator Yasin Hayal’s brother-in-law, CoÅ~_kun Ä°gci, in July 2006,
which indicated that Hayal would make an attempt on Dink’s life.

Gendarmerie officials, however, had claimed the intelligence in
question was only provided to them after Dink’s assassination.

Claims Another claim that is expected to make its way into the report
concerns an SMS message sent by Tuncay Uzundal to Erhan Tuncel, which
was also brought up in court by Prosecutor Hikmet Usta, allegedly
indicating that Hayal was asking for 7.65 mm caliber shells.

The SMS message was altered at the police headquarters in the Black
Sea province of Trabzon and the part where Hayal was asking for shells
was deleted, according to allegations.

An investigation may subsequently be launched against certain public
servants once the report gets published, according to the daily
Cumhuriyet.

Former claims were directed at former Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler
as well as the Istanbul Police Department’s Intelligence Director
Ahmet Ä°lhan Guler.

Accordingly, the Trabzon chief of police sent a report to the Istanbul
Police Department to warn of an assassination against Dink, but the
intelligence head Ahmet Ä°lhan Guler did not take it seriously.

Attempts to investigate Guler after the murder have been blocked.

The DDK’s report will also include sections about other administrative
proceedings pertaining to the trial, as well as a series of objections
that were raised by Turkey’s Telecommunications Directorate (TÄ°B)
regarding phone and camera records from the crime scene.

Meanwhile, Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy leader Huseyin
Celik said Dink was the victim of a murder but the real target was
the AKP.

“Dink was the victim of the murder, he was bait, but the real target
was the AKP. The mindset that executed Sept. 6 to 7 is the same
mindset that organized the Dink murder. They wanted to create chaos
in Turkey. They wanted to damage the political stability of Turkey,”
Celik said at a press meeting Jan. 27.

ADOPTION PROCEDURE TO SIMPLIFY

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 15:27:31 – 31/01/2012

In the result of a research carried out in the biological families of
children living in orphanages and boarding facilities, it was found
out that many of them have the resources to maintain their children.

So, Zatik orphanage has been discharged and rendered a day care center
for children.

Minister of Labor and Social Issues Arthur Grigoryan says this is a
pilot program, other orphanages are possible to have the same fate.

According to him, the procedure of adoption of children will be
simplified this year. The admission to the orphanage will be difficult
while the adoption – easy.

A National committee for the protection of children will be set up in
Armenia this year to deal with the protection of rights of children
to present the current issues to the ministry.

PARTIES AGREE TO BOYCOTT TRIAL IN KILLED SOLDIER ARTAK NAZARYAN CASE

epress.am
01.31.2012

The family of rifle platoon commander Artak Nazaryan, who died suddenly
while serving in Tavush marz (province) during peacetime on Jul. 27,
2010, and its representatives, as well as the attorneys of the youth
accused in the case issued a joint statement Monday, stating that
they are against the trial being held in Tavush marz.

As previously reported, at the Jan. 18 court hearing, Judge Samvel
Mardanyan ruled to move the trial from Yerevan to Idjevan in Tavush
marz. According to the judge, most of the accused and witnesses are
from Tavush and thus, the hearings will be moved to Idjevan, the
provincial capital. Ironically, in Oct. 2011, the same judge ruled
to move the trial from Tavush to Yerevan.

Mushegh Shushanyan, the attorney representing Artak’s family, offered
his opinion of why the case has been moved to Ijevan: “They want to
wrap up this trial quickly and quietly. I’m convinced that a large
part of the witnesses won’t be present in court. They will submit
applications to the court, asking that their pre-trial testimonies
be the basis [of their testimonies instead]. The court will approve,
simply by making public the pre-trial testimonies and using them as
the basis of the court order to be issued in the future. We can prove
that Judge Mardanyan is not carrying out justice and has no intention
of carrying out justice.”

According to the attorney, one of the reasons the trial was moved is
that in Yerevan’s Shengavit courtroom, open court sessions were being
held, in which several news outlets and civil society representatives
were present, and the process of examining witnesses was very difficult
and unpredictable for the prosecution.

“That which they were expecting, to wrap up the given witness’
examination in one, two sessions… it seems, they were unable to
achieve this goal. I’m referring to witness Arman Mnatsakanyan,
who back in early December was supposed to have been discharged [as
he completed his mandatory 2-year military service], but unlawfully
was being kept in military service. They weren’t discharging him,
since he hadn’t yet finished giving his testimonies in court. Finally,
they were forced to move Arman Mnatsakanyan’s examination to January
of this year, to discharge him, though a new defense measure was
applied to him,” said Shushanyan.

Alvard Mnatsakanyan, the attorney representing accused Adibek
Hovhannisyan, Harutik Kirakosyan and Mkhitar Mkhitaryan, is likewise
opposed to the trial being moved to Ijevan, since it will cause
difficulties for his clients.

Representative of the victim’s family Ruben Martirosyan noted that
the most secretive character (i.e. working in the shadows) in all
this is RA Military Prosecutor Gevorg Kostanyan, who said that it
was a surprise for the judge and the accused that the victim’s family
and the accused would unite. In addition, they weren’t expecting such
active involvement on the part of the victim’s party, which is why,
according to Martirosyan, that the trial was moved to Idjevan.

The next court date is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 31.

LES ECOLOGISTES PROTESTENT CONTRE L’EXPLOITATION D’UNE MINE
Stephane

armenews.com
mardi 31 janvier 2012

Plus 200 militants ecologistes et leurs sympathisants ont marche
au pas dans une foret en Armenie du nord en protestation contre sa
transformation en cours en une vaste fosse ouverte qui va sevèrement
endommager l’ecosystème local.

Les principaux groupes ecologistes du pays ont pendant des annees
fait campagne contre les plans de la societe Armenian Copper Program
(ACP) qui souhaite extraire du cuivre dans la foret du Teghut. Il
est estime qu’elle contiendrait 1,6 million de tonnes de cuivre et
environ 100,000 tonnes de Molybdène.

Le projet, s’il est execute, mènera a la destruction de 128 000 arbres.

La societe ACP a promis de compenser les degâts en plantant de nouveaux
arbres dans le secteur et en creant plus de 1000 nouveaux emplois.

Malgre le tumulte, le gouvernement armenien a donne son feu vert au
projet en 2008. Les ecologistes disent qu’un-cinquième de la foret
de 357 hectares attribuee a la societe enregistree au Liechtenstein
a deja ete elimine dans le cadre de la preparation du debut des
operations d’extraction.

Criant ” Honte ! ” les manifestants dont la plupart d’entre eux des
jeunes gens d’Erevan, ont marche plusieurs kilomètres pour atteindre
la foret placee dans la province du Lori. Un grand nombre de policiers
aussi bien que de gardes charges de la securite au sein de la societe
ACP avait ete deploye pour eviter tout debordement.

Les manifestants ont aussi ete recu par un grand groupe de residants
locaux travaillant pour la societe. Ces derniers en colère ont ecarte
les avertissements des ecologistes que l’extraction sous la forme
d’une fosse ouverte polluerait l’air, l’eau et les terres agricoles.

” Vous les gars ne connaissaient pas la situation critique des gens
ici ” a dit un homme aux protestataires. ” Il y avait un grand besoin
d’une vie et de vivre maintenant comme des gens. Que voulez-vous a
ces gens [de l’ACP ?] ”

” Quand vous avez aime la vie a Erevan, nous etions affames ici ”
a dit un autre mineur.

Cependant, quelques residants de deux villages adjacents ont rejoint
la protestation ecologiste. ” Ils se sont approprie la richesse
populaire et font maintenant ce qu’ils veulent ” a dit un homme a
propos des proprietaires d’ACP. ” Ils donnent du travail aux gens
pour seulement 60000 drams (160 $) par mois. Les gens travaillent
parce qu’ils n’ont aucun autre choix “.

La holding d’ACP, le Groupe Vallex, en attendant, a accuse les
manifestants d’etre entres illegalement dans sa propriete et d’avoir
perturbe les operations d’ACP. ” La societe a subi des degâts
substantiels ” a affirme Vallex dans une declaration, menacant de
procès les organisateurs de la manifestation.

MEMBER OF ARMENIAN PAN-NATIONAL MOVEMENT BOARD: “RAT RACE” OF 400 MEMBERS OF PROSPEROUS ARMENIA PARTY IS A RESULT OF PRESSURE BY RULING RPA

arminfo
Friday, January 27, 18:03

The leaving of 400 members of the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) is
a result of the pressure imposed on them by the ruling Republican
Party of Armenia, a member of the Armenian Pan-National Movement,
Hovanes Igityan, said at today’s press-conference.

“The fact that these people left the PAP to join the RPA is evidence
of their being guided by the RPA members. I cannot say if pressure
was imposed upon them to leave the PAP or they were bribed. However,
one may guess, taking into consideration the fact that we are well
aware of the RPA handwriting”, – he said.

For his part, representative of the PAP, Vardan Bostanjan, said that
there is nothing catastrophic that 400 members of the PAP left it and
joined the RPA, as this is not the problem of the party which they
left. “We do not see any significant difference in such replacements,
especially taking into account the fact that a part of these people
did not leave our party and their applications were counterfeited.

Another part, which has really left the PAP, did not do that stemming
from the ideological soil. Moreover, I can point at least at one
bribed person which was given the position of the head of department
of the Ararat Police”, – Bostanjan said.

The head of the PAP district body in Ararat and Vedi, Karen
Khachatryan, has recently left the PAP and appointed the head of the
Ararat Police department.

EXPERT: TALKS ON TURKEY’S MEDIATING ROLE IN NK ISSUE IN VAIN

Panorama.am
31/01/2012

“Turkish and Russian Foreign Ministers’ statement to assume a firm role
in Karabakh conflict is aimed at balancing French Senate decision,”
expert of Turkish studies Levon Hovsepyan said in a news conference
adding that by those steps Ankara targets some active processes in
Karabakh conflict.

“Turkey, offended from Europe, hopes to find some edges to get closer
to Russia, but Turkey’s efforts are condemned to fail,” expert said.

“Thus, talks about Turkey’s mediating role in Karabakh issue are in
vain,” L. Hovsepyan said adding that Turkey is not the country to
pose ultimatums before France.

Turkey’s desperation may impact on Armenian migrants. “But again
Ankara will again appear in an awkward situation,” said the expert.