Author: Kanayan Tamar

THE MELKONIAN COMPLEX: THE NEW CITY IN THE DIASPORA WILL BE IN YEREVAN

Armenia News Magazine
Issued February 2008
July 29, 2008

It is the greatest gift that AGBU could give to the Armenian youth:
a modern university, located in the city centre and which will hold
the best terms 1000 students per year. We spoke with its designer
Aris Atamian.

Armenian News Magazine: In our previous issue, Alexis Govciyan, new
president of the AGBU in Europe, announced the creation in Yerevan
of a large university. Can you give us more information about this?

Aris Atamian (AA): The AGBU decided to invest in Armenia in three
major projects: summer camps, a city summer around Lake Sévan
Melkonian and complex, which is its flagship program for this
decade. An accomplishment that is especially for the diaspora, but in
Armenia. The aim is to achieve a university city with a capacity of
400 students on cycles of three to six months. So a thousand people
that can be accommodated each year. The decision was taken in October
2007, during a meeting of the Board of the World AGBU. The land, with
an area of one hectare and a half, ideally situated in the centre of
Yerevan, has already been purchased. The complex, located 700 meters
from the Place de la Republique, will be accessible from the second
device. The start of work is scheduled for the end of this year or
at the latest, early 2009.

Their duration is planned for a pe riod of 18 to 24 months.

NAM: Why this project, in particular, was it used?

AA: When you know how much a two-week visit marks strongly youth,
we can imagine the impact of a stay of three or six months. We want
to make a unique experience in the motherland at a key moment in
life. This is not the case of tourism. It is a project that is both
ambitious and realistic, near the youth.

NAM: What are the conditions for the admission of students?

AA: This is welcome young people from throughout the diaspora
who have already started a university course and want to benefit
from a graduate program in Armenia. In recent years, many American
and European universities encourage students to make semesters in
institutions abroad. Our goal is that students get modules equivalency
type Erasmus. Agreements have been engaged with universities Armenian,
American, French and Russian in Armenia.

NAM: This campus is aimed she only students of the diaspora?

AA: Not. We decided to include 20% of students from Armenia
in order that there be harmony among young people from diverse
backgrounds. It will be deserving students who will receive a total
free accommodation. It is a flagship project for the AGBU but it
is also an essential project for Armenia. This programme, which is
intended primarily for young people in the diaspora, will be both
useful to people who are invited in Armenia and also to the Armenians
in Yerevan.

NAM: Why this complicated deals he Melkonian name?

AA: Our project called Melkonian Complex because it will be funded in
large part by funds obtained through a partial disposal of the land
of Cyprus. The dream initial brothers Melkonian was to establish an
academy in Armenia.

This was not possible at that time was today 16 years after
independence: devote himself to the development of the Armenian youth
from around the world. The Institute of Cyprus Melkonian was gradually
closed between 2004 and 2007. At the same time the idea of creating a
major international university in Armenia took shape under the name
Melkonian Complex.complexe-melkonian2.jpg It is a logical sequel
to the original vision Melkonian brothers. It is obvious that the
interest of residence for students of diaspora does not only reside
in their university course. It is this time to carry out a project
in Armenia dedicated to young various diasporas. To those who accuse
the AGBU not finance projects located in Armenia, I remind you that
this is an investment to 80% in the diaspora as a whole. And the
only way to link all elements of the diaspora is in Armenia. I do
not see a better meeting point, without any demagoguery. And for me,
the language should not be a barrier.

NAM: In what spirit did you devise your plans?

AA: It is a totally open on Armenia and the city. This site will
be visible both day and night. We wanted an architectur e of both
contemporary and Armenian. I think that we should perhaps not always
built in a style néopasséiste because it is in Armenia. The complex
is located in a contemporary architecture with reminiscences of the
Armenian symbolic. Thus, one of the many courtyards, a chapel emerge
glass. We hope that our project is exemplary. Of course it will be
the anti-seismic standards and will be as flexible as possible so
that they can evolve over time. The outward appearance of this base
will consist of windows. Today’s technology allows us to avoid the
problems caused by large temperature variations experienced Yerevan.

NAM: How is this complex structured?

AA: As it is on a hill, the slope of 10% allows us to have two levels
of ground floor. In fact, all the functionality will be located on the
double base with over three buildings reserved for the accommodation
of students and teachers. In keeping with the spirit of the City
University of Paris, we organized into three groups of buildings: the
United States, Europe and Russia, rather than by desire to partition
the diaspora because we want to complete a mix, but rather to attract
any grants. They are extremely simple structures for which we use
a rock to which Armenia will not be tuff or basalt. Accommodation
will be held in single or double, of course, totally accessible for
the disabled. Without falling into the luxury, we want to give the
best young

Armenians.

NAM: The university will it host symposiums?

AA: Of course, as well as exhibitions. At the ground floor are superior
reception rooms, exhibition, 3 types of restaurants, not to mention
an international centre of failures as well as the headquarters of
the virtual university underway which will be announced in the near
future. At the lower deck, we allocated the classrooms, language labs,
a library, sports facilities and a meeting room that can accommodate
500 people. Our goal is to create a functional, user-friendly,
without seeking the monumental nor ostentatious.

NAM: What is the cost of such a project?

AA: Costs are being developed. The difficulty is that most of the
supplies coming from outside. During the past ten years, Armenia has
made a colossal effort, we built a high quality, but unfortunately all
that is innovative, finishing work, comes from outside. But things are
changing, I know that there is now a unit of glassmaking in Armenia.

NAM: Is this your first project in Armenia?

AA: Absolutely. Building in Armenia was my dream. Our ambition
at the architectural level is to give a boost to modernity and
sustainable development. The latter concept has not yet penetrated
the Armenia because it had other priorities, but our goal is to
achieve a harmonious development. We can not escape this change. We
are not here to give lessons because even in Europe the concept of
sustainable development is re latively recent. We simply want to show
by this example that another type of construction is possible. Over
the AGBU focus ambitious plans and we will have more successful teams
to be interested.

–Boundary_(ID_EeCFo2qCDAYQeo4Cy8MNrg )–

CHAIRMAN OF PACE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON NAGORNYY KARABAKH LORD RUSSELL JOHNSTON DIED

ArmInfo
2008-07-28 15:40:00

Chairman of PACE special committee on Nagornyy Karabakh Lord Russell
Johnston died, press-service of Council of Europe headquarters told
ArmInfo.

Statement by Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis says
"Everyone in Strasbourg is shocked and distressed by the news of the
death of Lord Russell-Johnston. He made an exceptional contribution
to the Council of Europe as a member of our Parliamentary Assembly
for 23 years and as President from 1999 to 2002. We have lost a great
Parliamentarian who passionately believed in a wider Europe where
everyone would enjoy democracy, human rights and the rule of law".

To recall, Lord Russell Johnston said earlier in an interview with
ArmInfo correspondent that the principle of territorial integrity
directly depends on how acceptable it is for the people living at that
territory. It is clear that for settlement of the conflict people
are more important than the factor of territorial integrity of the
country, he said.

THIS IS MOST EVIDENT

Panorama.am
18:31 26/07/2008

In the beginning of the week Panorama.am covered the instruction N118A
of the Mayor of Yerevan made on 18 June. The instruction is about
controlling the street market in the summer time and to organize the
purchase of watermelon and melon in the correspondent places.

Alfred Hunanyan of the Yerevan Municipality Staff assured the citizens
to wait a few days and the results would be visible.

However a few days later Panorama.am fixed the following.

ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT APPROVES ITS SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR 2008-2012

ARKA
July 25

Armenian government has approved the schedule of events on its activity
program for 2008-2012. Head of the government staff David Sargsyan
said the schedule was approved following a long process consideration
by ministries and departments involved. On the same day the government
approved the schedule of events for 2008.

The government activity program for 2008-2012 approved by the
parliament on April 30 has been developed with consideration of
National Security Strategy of Armenia and Poverty Reduction Strategy
Program, as well as the pre-election program of the president, those
of the ruling coalition four member-parties and the main provisions
of the Agreement on Political Coalition.

In the core of the program lie the following key foci – efficiency and
security in the rapidly growing world, knowledge-based society and
economy, maintenance of spiritual and cultural values, and insuring
freedoms of present-day person. N.H.

ACCORDING TO HMAYAK HOVHANNISIAN, CAUSE OF FAILURE OF AUTHORITIES-OPPOSITION DIALOGUE IS ROBERT KOCHARIAN

NOYAN TAPAN

JU LY 24

The main obstacle of dialogue between the authorities and the
opposition is the disservice done by former President Robert
Kocharian to the current Armenian President. Stating this at the
July 24 press conference, Hmayak Hovhannisian, the Chairman of the
Union of Political Scientists of Armenia, said that Robert Kocharian
did disservice to current President Serzh Sargsyan by opening a fire
at peaceful demonstrants on March 1 and with his further actions, by
emphasizing his patronage over the latter with these actions. While,
according to H.

Hovhannisian, as a President, whose tenure was expiring, R. Kocharian
should have assumed the role of a judge between political forces and
followed elections’ being held freely and fairly, by ensuring home
political stability with that.

According to H. Hovhannisian, for the disservice done to S. Sargsyan R.

Kocharian thrusted his cadre package and a number of other commitments
upon him. In general, the political scientist affirmed that the
second Armenian President is not at all going to take a "time-out"
even if for a few years.

Leaving big policy for some time, according to H. Hovhannisian, is
peculiar of great politicians, such as, for instance, Karen Demirchian
or first President Levon Ter-Petrosian. "And R. Kocharian after leaving
President’s post through telephone talks sends messages to S. Sargsyan
that "inviting Gul to Armenia is wrong, L. Ter-Petrosian should be
arrested and opposition should be suppressed with an iron hand."

According to the Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists,
there can be several reasons for R. Kocharian’s not being able to
leave the political sphere. According to H. Hovhannisian, either
the former President feels himself guilty for the March 1 slaughter
or is afraid of the sad perspective of standing before Hague Court,
or maybe he very much wishes to become a Prime Minister.

ARMENIA IS GOING TO DRAW SERIOUS ATTENTION OF THE WORLD COMMUNITY AT THE FACTS OF VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW NORMS AND IGNORING OF ANY ATTEMPTS TO START COOPERATION FOR HUMANITARIAN PROBLEMS RESOLVING

ArmInfo
2008-07-24 18:04:00

‘Actions of Azerbaijani authorities are beyond the frames of
allowability. This is the howling violation of human rights
and impudent ignoring of the elementary norms of international
humanitarian law’, – the leader of the Working Group under Armenian
State Commission on captives, hostages and miss, Armen Kaprielyan,
told ArmInfo correspondent when commenting on Azerbaijan’s position
on the returning problem of Armenian captives.

‘It is already for more than 4 months since the day when four our
compatriots, by the way, all the four civilians and residents of one of
the regions of Armenia, accidentally found themselves at the territory
of Naxivan Autonomous Region of Azerbaijan and have been still kept
by the Azerbaijani authorities, which have not yet explained what
had happened’, – Armen Kaprielyan said. He recalled that Naxijevan
authorities initiated to extradite the above mentioned four Armenian
citizens to the Armenian party, but at the last moment the process
was disrupted. Thus, one can suppose, here Baku interfered and is
trying to give political color to the case, Kaprielyan said. But
this is unprecedented violation of the norms of International
Humanitarian Law and human rights, since employees of Azerbaijani
office of International Red Cross were not allowed to visit Armenian
hostages for more than a month. ‘Azerbaijanis are trying to present
the incident distorting reality and disseminating disinformation
allegedly about capture of "a group of Armenian spies". Press-service
of Armenian Defense Ministry and me have many times disproved such
statements of official authorities of Azerbaijan. We think this is
a political order of the Azerbaijani authorities, and its purpose
is to mislead first of all certain layer of its own society, to make
look good their own armed forces – look, how effective we are and how
operatively we render the spies of our enemy harmless. I reiterate
once again, all this story with four Armenians is nonsense.

Maybe Azerbaijanis believe they will remain unpunished after such
outrage.

Protracting the negotiations with the ICRC for return of captives
and creating obstacles to elementary access of the International
Humanitarian Organization to Armenian captives, Azerbaijanis probably
hope to gain dividends in future negotiations. Any reasonable person
will assure you how absurd are such tricks. We have already officially
informed the OSCE Office of the developments.

ignores any legal demands of the Armenian authorities and attempts to
establish cooperation with the authorities of Azerbaijan in settling
humanitarian problems’, A. Kaprielyan said. He said the same applies
also to the soldier of Armenian Armed Forces Paruyr Simonyan who fell
captive in May 2008. We have no information on Simonyan except the
fact that ICRC officers managed to visit him. ‘It is not the first
case when return of Armenian soldiers is delayed, which contradicts
Geneva Convention and the agreements between Armenia and Azerbaijan
on return of captives’, he said. Under the agreements, the parties
pledge to return civilians immediately and servicemen within the
shortest period of time after finding out the circumstances of border
crossing. military unit. A conflict arose between the young men and
his fellow servicemen, and " the chaps" came to the unit by several
cars to showdown. A squabble took place. The commander of the unit
fired into the air to stop the squabble, and "the chaps" left the unit.

As the young men knew that place badly, one of the cars made a turn
in the wrong place and crossed the Azeri border. A total of 13 people
took part in the attack on the unit, including those in captivity. A
criminal case under the article "hooliganism" has been instituted.

ONE COMBINE AND TWO TRACTORS FOR SIX RURAL COMMUNITIES

Panorama.am
21:44 22/07/2008

"Armenia" All Armenian foundation has successfully finished a project
implemented in the frames of Development Program for Armenian and
Artsakh bordered rural communities. One combine and two tractors have
been gifted to six rural communities supported by US Eastern Board
Committee, reported the press release of the foundation.

The gifted agricultural equipments will belong to the rural
administration of six rural communities. The communities will make
an agenda to use the equipment equally.

The foundation will have a control over the equipments through
monitoring.

FIFTH COLUMN IN ARMENIA

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on July 22, 2008
Armenia

Statement Made By The "National Democratic Party"

In internal political struggle one shouldn’t cross the border after
which our national interests are jeopardized, two Armenian states the
Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh deteriorate
in the international arena. The collection of signatures about handing
Robert Kocharyan over to Hague Court crosses this border.

Why? Isn’t it the initiative of the citizens that Hague Court is
starting the process of the accusation for committing crime against
the humanity? The judicial process is possible only if one appeals to
a state or an international organization charging the other side for
genocide, ethnic cleansing or military crime. The verdict against
the Sudanese President charged for committing genocide and ethnic
cleansing is the latest proof of the before mentioned.

Azerbaijani leadership has many times announced that they are preparing
a "package of cases" to appeal to Hague Court against Armenian
officials for organizing ethnic cleansing, genocide and military
crimes against Azerbaijanis. The collection of signatures organized
by Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s supporters will definitely contribute to the
initiative of Azerbaijanis, referring to the collection of signatures
as a crime not only against the Azerbaijanis but also Armenians.

As a=2 0result the international court will examine not the Genocide
committed by the Turks in the beginning of the previous century or
ethnic cleansing organized by the Azerbaijanis in the beginning
of this century, but Armenia, in the person of Robert Kocharyan,
gradually involving many other participants of the liberation struggle
as accused.

Thus the collection of the signatures is firstly addressed to our
nation rather than Robert Kocharyan, including those giving their
signatures who don’t understand the danger. The problem is far not
in protecting or not protecting the ex-President.

It is not late to stop this initiative. They can’t come out with a
public announcement regarding that. Otherwise we can think that by
this initiative the organizers intend to contribute to Azerbaijan’s
initiative to appeal to Hague Court against the Republic of Armenia
and Nagorno Karabakh by false accusations.

Administration of National Democratic Party, July 20, 2008

ZHARANGUTIUN GOT INVITATION

A1+
21 July, 2008

"The Zharangutiun (Heritage) Party has received an invitation to
participate in the National Congress. The party is to give an answer
on July 25," Zharangutiun’s Press Secretary Hovsep Khurshudian said
on July 21.

Deputy Chairman of the party’s political board, Movses Aristakessian,
says the Armenian authorities do not meet the PACE resolutions.

They should make a fair enquiry into the March 1 events, release
political prisoners, sanction opposition rallies and dismiss criminal
cases based on policemen’s testimony. Movses Aristakessian doesn’t
inspire great hopes in the NA ad hoc Committee as it is set up under a
wrong format. Besides, the NA agreed to the detention of the Armenian
parliamentarians.

Reminder, the Zharangutiun suggested that MPs Miasnik Malkhassian
and Sasun Mikayelian be involved in the Committee.

Their participation will entirely change the Committee’s activity. If
the authorities do not fear from a fair investigation they should
agree to the "50:50" format.

HADRIAN AND THE WORLD THAT BECAME TURKEY
Frank WHITE

Turkish Daily News
July 21 2008

A much-awaited exhibition is opening in London at the British
Museum on July 24, called "Hadrian: Empire and Conflict" (closes
Oct. 26). Hadrian has many connections with Turkey – that is, with
the lands he governed that Turks now inhabit, Anatolia and Thrace,
or that as Ottomans they also governed: Egypt, Syria, Palestine,
Armenia, North Africa, the Mediterranean, Eastern Europe.

Hadrian’s own dominion, that he ruled as Roman Emperor, 117-138 Common
Era, extended northwesterly to the Scottish border of England, where
he inaugurated the massive 80-mile long wall (in 122) bisecting the
island like a cinch at the waist. Ostensibly it was to protect Roman
British towns and villages and farms from the raids of Celts and other
northern tribes. But some of them may have rather wanted to place
themselves under the shelter of the pax Romana and its system of laws.

Hadrian’s Gate at Antalya:

The monumental edifice is still a showpiece of British sightseeing
and archaeological heritage. The millions who have been schooled on
Hadrian’s Wall or have seen parts of it are a natural target audience
for the colossal summer show at the sprawling Museum in Bloomsbury. One
of the few extant bronze heads of Hadrian was found (without its torso)
in the mud of the River Thames nearby only in the 19th century. Other
surviving sculptures and friezes related to him are mostly of marble,
and have been gathered from collections far-flung.

In Turkey perhaps the most beautiful remaining monument to Hadrian
is the triple marble arch, called Hadrian’s Gate, in Antalya,
to commemorate the emperor’s visit there in 130. The inscription,
in Greek, naming Hadrian and linking him with his predecessor and
adoptive father, Trajan, survives in part in the Ashmoleon Museum at
Oxford. Stone towers still standing on either side of the arches go
back to the founding of the city several hundred years earlier.

Turkey also has its Hadrian’s Walls – one at Samandag in Cukurova
near Antakya/Antioch. Of course in Trakya (Thrace) the city of Edirne
was founded by Hadrian, who gave it his own name, (H)Adrianopolis
(Edirne being a corruption of that Greek appellation). I once supposed
the Adriatic Sea must have been named – or re-named – for Hadrian,
but of course it is more nearly the other way round. His forebears
and family had long been in Roman Spain, but had gone there from the
little city of Hadria on the northeast Italian coast of the Adriatic,
and gave their scion and emperor-to-be the name of their ancestral
seat 300 years later.

Hadrian’s grandfather (one tradition says uncle) actually divined
by oneiromancy (dream revelation) when the lad was but 11 that he
would one day "rule the world." So Marguerite Yourcenar has him do
in the highly critically researched yet most rapturously believable
"self"-presentation of Hadrian in literary form: Mémoires d’Hadrien,
1951; the noble and vigorous English version is by Grace Frick in
collaboration with the author: Hadrian’s Memoirs, 1954; the expressive
Turkish translation (from the English) is by Nili Bilkur: Hadrianus’un
Anıları, 1984; Nili Hanım includes (some English editions don’t)
both the detailed "Author’s Note" on historical sources and the
even more fascinating "Thoughts on the Writing of Hadrian’s Memoirs"
on how she came to conceive and compose – and several times nearly
despaired of completing – the distinguished work.

A woman of prominence:

Largely on the strength of it, Yourcenar (1903-87; her nom de plume,
an almost-anagram of her family name, de Crayencour) became the first
woman ever to be elected to the Forty Immortals of the Académie
Francaise, 1980. For the costume in which to deliver her inaugural
lecture she commissioned the designer Yves St. Laurent – so French
was she (though born in Belgium and living half her life with her
American partner, Frick, on Mt. Desert Island, Maine).

Her masterpiece invents for Hadrian a first-person point of view, as
if writing to his adopted son and imperial heir, Mark (yes, Marcus
Aurelius, who indeed became the famous Stoic philosopher, author,
and emperor, 161-180). By this ruse she can impersonate Hadrian in
the last months or weeks of his 62 years, reviewing his entire life
and lifting out its lessons for the young princeps-in-training. This
Hadrian has no reason or wish to dissimulate – at least no more than
is necessary where self-knowledge is at issue. Yet he has incentive
to articulate both to himself and to his precocious protégé the
mature wine of a life distilled from such choice grapes.

Once you have read – and re-read – Yourcenar’s Hadrian, you can
entertain any other work-up of the figure only as an academic
exercise. Hers is the one that gets under your skin – his skin. Of
course, the book is a prodigy of historical ventriloquism. The rich
and penetrating inner ruminations are as much hers as "his" – rather,
are some unlikely fusion of both "personalities," each investing the
other with a voice. She knows the sources, artifacts, and locations
so well and so shrewdly that she perpetrates no implausibilities,
but building on what can reasonably be known of Hadrian she provides
him with flesh and self-consciousness, a (fictional) coherence that
evades even the most scrupulous biographer-historian. (One full and
careful account in English is Royston Lambert’s Beloved and God: The
Story of Hadrian and Antonius, 1984, with generous illustrations of
the statues, coins, sites, et alia.)

An ‘almost wise’ man:

Yourcenar says her Hadrian is a man "almost wise." He was rare in
individual gifts and application of them, but his outlook and life
were possible only because he came at a brief window in time between
the dying glimmers of the Greek and Roman cults of the gods and just
before one of the eastern salvation-mystery movements, Christianity,
was to transmute the humanism of the classical world into a new
amalgam of it with a purged Hebrew spirituality and morality – an
uneasy yoking the world is still struggling with – or riding on.

Something essentially human expressed itself in Hadrian – and in
the world that produced him, the world he re-shaped, that succeeded
him. It must be sifted and reappropriated in every period.

–Boundary_(ID_m5GAeydMbaANoWpTLxD6IA)–