Author: Kanayan Tamar

Nagorno-Karabakh to continue economic relations with Armenia after
country joins EEU

14:45 * 07.12.14

The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) will continue economic relations
with Armenia, Vardkes Baghryan, a NKR Writers’ Union member, told
Tert.am in response to a question concerning Nagorno-Karabakh
intellectuals’ possible concern over Armenia’s accession to the
Eurasian Economic Union (EEU).

“Nagorno-Karabakh will continue exporting its products through
Armenia. I do not think any customs stations will be operated, which
has repeatedly been stated at the highest level. I do not think any
problems will arise, and Nagorno-Karabakh will be isolated,” Mr
Baghryan said.

“Nagorno-Karabakh only has communication with Armenia. We also have
good-neighborly relations with Iran. If Armenia’s economy grows, it
will have a positive impact on Nagorno-Karabakh,” he said.

Armenia will also mediate any relations between Nagorno-Karabakh and
the EEU member-states.

With respect to the approval of the treaty on Armenia’s accession to
the EEU by Armenia’s Parliament, Mr Baghryan said:

“It is common knowledge that Armenia can settle its security issues by
making this step.”

According to him, it was a well-thought-out decision.

Petition urges Google to set Armenian Genocide doodle on April 24

16:11, 07 Dec 2014

Petition launched on Change.org urges Google to set an Armenian
Genocide doodle on April 24. A Google Doodle is a special, temporary
alteration of the logo on Google’s homepage. The text of the petition
reads:

“The Armenian Genocide was the Ottoman government’s systematic
extermination of its minority Armenian subjects from their historic
homeland within the territory constituting the present-day Republic of
Turkey.

The starting date is conventionally held to be 24 April 1915, the day
Ottoman authorities rounded up and arrested some 250 Armenian
intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople. The total
number of people killed as a result has been estimated at between 1
and 1.5 million.

This is why we have the responsibility of spreading awareness about
the genocide, and why Google should get involved for all humanity.”

Armenia remembers December 7 tragedy

11:01 * 07.12.14

December 7, 1988, is a symbol of sorrow for many Armenian residents.

Today is the 26th anniversary of a devastating earthquake in Spitak
and Leninakan (present-day Gyumri).

According to official data, the death toll reached 25,000, with 19,000
people disabled. A total of 530,000 people left their housing. The
earthquake razed the town of Spitak to the ground.

Moreover, the earthquake destroyed 21 towns, 324 villages, 80% of the
housing stock, social and production sectors of Armenia’s second
largest city, Leninakan.

In Armenia’s third largest city, Kirovakan (present-day Vanadzor), the
earthquake destroyed 40% of industry.

Experts cite a number of reasons for the great tragedy: poor seismic
risk zoning, low professional level of rescue services, low-quality
construction and population’s poor awareness of self-defense.

The housing problem in the earthquake zone has almost been solved due
to the programs implemented in Armenia in recent years.

The town of Spitak has been redeveloped, and new neighborhoods have
been constructed in Gyumri and Vanadzor. People receive housing
certificates.

The appalling tragedy necessitated a revision of construction standards.

AZERBAIDJAN
Le Pape : contre la Turquie, à côté de l’Arménie selon une agence de
presse azérie

Selon Vugar Massimoghlu, du Centre analytique de l’agence de presse
azérie APA ” le pape a commencé à parler de la frontière
turco-arménienne, et ainsi, a ajouté de nouvelles couleurs au
problème. La déclaration unilatérale, insincère et plein de moments
absurdes a deux côtés. Tout d’abord, le pape, avec cette déclaration,
a légalisé qu’il occupe une position contre la Turquie, à côté de
l’Arménie. Le deuxième – une réaction qui va suivre la déclaration
aidera à décrire la > non divulguée de la Turquie
dans sa politique arménienne. Cette déclaration est une intervention
réelle de l’Eglise catholique dans les relations turco-arméniennes.
Bien que le pape représente le pouvoir religieux, l’Eglise catholique
a une force majeure dans le monde, mais la fermeture des frontières
entre la Turquie et l’Arménie – un problème mondial. Logiquement,
l’intervention subjective de la tête du Vatican dans ce processus est
inacceptable et absurde (malgré le fait que l’histoire du Vatican est
pleine de ce genre de faits absurdes). Il est également absurde,
d’accueillir le plus haut niveau de chef d’Etat et de l’église, qui a
reconnu le soi-disant >…”

L’analyste ajoute qu’Ankara “peut répondre à cette déclaration sous
trois formes :

a) position ferme – Turquie peut encore annoncer officiellement les
raisons de la fermeture des frontières avec l’Arménie, et nommer les
conditions dans lesquelles la frontière peut être ouverte, ainsi
qu’accuser le Vatican d’avoir pris une position unilatérale.

b) position souple – Turquie peut annoncer qu’elle est prête à ouvrir
la frontière avec l’Arménie, elle a pris les mesures nécessaires à cet
égard, mais elles ont échoué et l’allusion à des activités possibles à
appliquer pour la normalisation des relations avec l’Arménie.

c) position indirecte – Ankara ne réagit pas à la déclaration du Pape.
Au lieu de cela, elle peut se former l’opinion publique comme >, et en prenant avantage des
médias, elle peut tenter de justifier la nécessité de faciliter les
relations avec l’Arménie, à la veille de l’anniversaire des 100 ans du
soi-disant >.

La démonstration d’une position indirecte montrera qu’Ankara est prêt
à des changements majeurs dans la politique envers l’Arménie. De ce
point de vue, après la déclaration du pape, il est nécessaire de
suivre et surveiller la position des médias”.

dimanche 7 décembre 2014,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

ARMENIE
Une joint-venture entre l’Arménie et la Biélorussie dans le secteur de
l’agriculture devrait voir le jour à Giumry

Une joint-venture arméno-biélorusse dans le secteur de l’agriculture
devrait voir le jour à Giumry vient d’annoncer le co-président de la
commission inter-parlementaire Arméno-Biélorusse Eduard Sharmazanov.

Sharmazanov a également déclaré l’ouverture d’une liaison aérienne au
départ de Giumry vers Minsk a été discuté lors de la réunion.

Les parties ont convenu de développer la coopération économique
bilatérale a dit le vice-Président.

Le Co-président Bélarusse Victor Guminskiy, à son tour, a déclaré que
certains accords sur la coopération ont été conclus

Selon les statistiques, le volume du commerce entre les deux pays
s’élève à environ 16,2 millions de dollars au premier semestre de
cette année.

dimanche 7 décembre 2014,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

NOUVEL AN
Les Arméniens qui partent à l’étranger préfèrent l’Egypte, la Jordanie
et Dubaï pour les fêtes de fin d’année

Quelles sont les destinations privilégiées des citoyens d’Arménie pour
les fêtes de fin d’année ? Selon nombre d’agence de voyages d’Erévan,
interrogées par notre confrère News.am, les destinations favorites des
Arméniens pour le Nouvel an sont l’Egypte, la Jordanie et les Emirats
Arabes Unis. Les citoyens d’Arménie privilégient ainsi les
destinations de pays chauds plutôt que l’Europe. Ainsi pour ces
destinations du soleil pour les fêtes de fin d’année, les citoyens
arméniens déboursent entre 800 et 1700 dollars par personne pour une
moyenne d’une semaine de vacances. Ainsi pour l’Egypte en hôtel trois
étoiles et le repas de fête du Nouvel an, pour une semaine de
vacances, le prix du billet est en moyenne de 1050 dollars. Pour la
Jordanie et Dubaï ces billets vont jusqu’à 1500 à 1600 dollars. Mais
ceux qui ont prévu à l’avance, en septembre dernier, ils pouvaient
négocier ces billets à peine 300 dollars…Une précision importante :
le nombre de touristes d’Arménie pour ces destinations du soleil pour
les fêtes de fin d’année a baissé.

Krikor Amirzayan

dimanche 7 décembre 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
dec 6 2014

The Church from Byzantium to the Ottomans

Niki Gamm

If the Eastern Orthodox Churches had not split from the Roman Catholic
Church in 1054, the Ottoman Turks would have found it much more
difficult to conquer Constantinople

The break between the Eastern Orthodox Churches and the Roman Catholic
Church is dated to 1054, although some believe the circumstances that
led up to the rupture started nearly 900 years earlier. Aside from
doctrine, the claim of the Roman Catholic Church to have precedence
over the Eastern Orthodox Churches contributed the most to the break.
An attempt to settle the differences instead turned out to be the
reverse, thanks to the personalities of the head of a Roman Catholic
delegation that had been sent to Constantinople by the Pope and the
Orthodox Patriarch of the time. The former excommunicated the latter
and then the latter excommunicated the former, basically each cutting
the other off from participating in certain church rituals. The
impasse was not able to be solved, though no one expected the rupture
to be final at the time.

While the actions of the two men in hindsight seem slight, they had
serious consequences ` most importantly the Byzantine emperor could
not appeal to the West for aid against the Turks without alienating
his subjects who were members of the Orthodox Church. The Fourth
Crusade led to the capture and sacking of Constantinople in 1204 and
this was done with such savagery against the Byzantine population and
such desecration of the Orthodox churches that, to this day, the break
with the Roman Catholic Church has remained an open wound.

Pope Innocent III (r. 1198-1216) who accepted some of the gold, jewels
and money taken by the `crusaders’ summed the situation up as follows:
`How, indeed, will the church of the Greeks, no matter how severely
she is beset with afflictions and persecutions, return into
ecclesiastical union and to devotion for the Apostolic See, when she
has seen in the Latins only an example of perdition and the works of
darkness, so that she now, and with reason, detests the Latins more
than dogs? As for those who were supposed to be seeking the ends of
Jesus Christ, not their own ends, who made their swords, which they
were supposed to use against the pagans, drip with Christian blood,
they have spared neither religion, nor age, nor sex.’

Following the re-conquest of Constantinople by the Nicaean Greeks
under Emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus in 1261, there were further
attempts at reuniting the two churches. John V Palaeologus (r.
1341-1391 with breaks) even went so far as to convert to Catholicism
as he sought aid in Western Europe against the Turks, who by now had
started on their road of conquest. But no significant help followed.

Meetings were held, especially a last one in Florence in 1439 resulted
in the signing of a decree of reunion. However, some of the Orthodox
delegation refused to sign, while others withdrew their signatures
after they returned to Constantinople. The people of Byzantium made it
clear that they preferred to remain Orthodox under the rule of the
Turks than accept the supremacy of Rome.

After the 1453 conquest

Several months after the Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmed II
conquered Constantinople, the ruler formally established the supremacy
of the Greek Orthodox Church over the Christians who lived in his
realm. Some months later, he did the same for the Jews by appointing a
hahambaÅ?ı, or chief rabbi. That left out all of the Christians who
were not Greek Orthodox, such as the Armenian Church and the Roman
Catholic Church. The latter were to be found in the Genoese part of
the city ` Galata and Pera. As for the Armenians, the Byzantines had
only allowed them to settle outside the walls of the city, since they
considered their version of Christianity heretical.

Sultan Mehmed II finally established an Armenian patriarchate in 1461,
following his conquest of Trabzon, which put an end to the last
remnant of Byzantium. This patriarchate included all Christians who
were not Greek Orthodox. Although historian Stanford Shaw in his book
`History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey’ lists these
Christians as the Gypsies, Assyrians, the Monophysites of Syria and
Egypt and the Bogomils of Bosnia, he does not mention the Roman
Catholic churches. However, just shortly after the conquest, the pope
of the time, Nicholas V, issued a call to all of Christendom for a
crusade against the Turks. While this possible `threat’ disturbed
Sultan Mehmed II enough to have him strengthen Istanbul’s walls and
carry out campaigns into the Balkans, he does not seem to have been
seriously concerned about the few Roman Catholics remaining in the
city; they would have been granted the same rights and privileges the
other churches were given under the Ottomans.

Of the churches that existed at the time of the conquest, the biggest
were the Church of St. Paul and St. Domenico, which dated from
1323-1337, but Mehmed II had this converted to a mosque. The Cathedral
of St. Michael was torn down between 1544 and 1550 to make room for a
caravanserai. The Church of Santa Maria Draperis was built in 1584,
destroyed by fire and earthquake and rebuilt several times in
different locations. The Church of St, Antony was destroyed in 1606
and replaced with a mosque, while the Church of St. Francisco was
pulled down following a fire in 1660 and replaced by a mosque. The
Church of St. George changed hands several times, but has kept its
historical characteristics. Only the tower remains from the 15th
century St. Benedict Monastery. All of the other Catholic churches
were built in the 19th century, such as the Church of St. Peter and
Paul, whose architect was the renowned Gaspare Fossati. The largest
Catholic church in Istanbul today is that of St. Anthony of Padua and
was built at the beginning of the 20th century.

Although during the time when the Crusaders held the city a Latin
patriarchate was established in Kadıköy, this was eventually abandoned
after the re-conquest by the Byzantines. It was not until 1659 when
the Roman Catholic Church appointed a bishop to oversee affairs in
Istanbul and the Ottomans did not see any problem with that.

A number of other churches in the Ottoman Empire were tied to the
Roman Catholic Church and these included the Armenian Catholics,
Syrian Catholics, Assyrian Catholics, Maronites, the Catholics of
Hungary, Croatia and northern Albania.

As early as the 16th century, the French showed a keen interest in
defending the rights of Christians in the Ottoman Empire. They were
able to obtain concessions from the Ottomans about repairing churches
and granting special rights to the various Catholic orders, such as
the Dominicans and the Jesuits. Although the Greek and Armenian
Orthodox Churches objected, France’s usefulness in diplomatic and
political ways gave it leverage to position itself as the protector of
Christianity. By the end of the Ottoman Empire, all of the larger
Roman Catholic churches were considered French Catholic, even though
the priests conducting the services were much more likely to be
Italian.

December/06/2014

Commentary

Meline Toumani: A Defensive Rebel With a Murky and Meandering Cause
PAGE 4, THE CALIFORNIA COURIER, DECEMBER 4, 2014
By Peter Musurlian

Now that I have read Meline Toumani’s superficial, quasicoming-
of-age, touchy-feely, self-indulgent mess of a book,
“There Was and Their Was Not,” I am even more stunned at her abject
dismissal of attempts by the worldwide Armenian community to continue
to secure genocide recognition by governmental bodies, genocide
scholars, and increasingly Turks.

The genocide was kind of a big deal. And, it continues to be
aggressively and unconscionably denied to this day by those who
inherited that criminal history.

Toumani says she has had enough of the “all-consuming campaign.” She
is ready to move on and screw you if that is all you seem to care
about.

Of course, that is not all Armenians care about. It is at the top of
the list, but has Toumani not seen the incredible diversity of
cultural and social and political interests and expressions in the
Armenian- American community? Her view
of the Armenian community is myopic.

Before reading the book, I was very interested in hearing her speak at
Glendale’s Abril Bookstore in late November 2014.
Kudos to Abril for expanding its great tradition of hosting authors
and speakers.

This particular author is well educated and did something quite
impressive: she lived in Turkey for a couple of years and talked
extensively with Turks and Kurds in an attempt at some solid
journalism and reportage.

The result, though, is a brutal and insensitive rejection of what
Armenians experienced 100 years ago, and what the children and
grandchildren of those victims have fought for: something resembling
justice.

Those of us alive today, under the age of 55, are not genocide
victims, no matter what psychobabble you want to latch onto. Those
alive and dead, from the late 1800s to 1923, are the victims.

And Toumani is certainly not a victim. She has had the privilege of a
comfortable upbringing with two parents, and an enviable American
education.

Why does she whine about her life seemingly surrounded by people who
are obsessed with the genocide and how those people “hate Turks” and
“demonize Turks.” That is much of the thesis of her book. It is a poor
premise and a false foundation upon which she builds a fractured
infrastructure of her “personal journey.”

At Abril bookstore, Toumani’s behavior was pathetic. She articulately
and engagingly read the introduction to her book, which, on the face
of it, was well written. Ultimately, I discovered that it was not
well-reported or wellthought- out. Her logic and lucidness would be
right at home in a Louisiana swamp.

When she was ever-so-softly challenged about her premise or what
exactly she could offer as far as solutions — instead of just
unsupportable criticisms — she became defensive and rude, a quality
of an overly-sensitive person who cannot explain away intellectual
sloppiness and/or dishonesty.

When queried by Asbarez columnist Garen Yegparian, who was
uncharacteristically mild mannered in his questioning, she said
immediately, in full snark mode, that she was familiar with his work
and knows they agree on very little. That is a pretty bold,
in-your-face comment by someone claiming not be be tearing down the
Armenian American community.

She actually snapped at Dr. Levon Marashlian, as he politely asked a
question, looking for the most very basic clarification. Dr.
Marashlian has a UCLA Ph.D., in Armenian Studies, has taught at
Glendale College for more than three decades, and is a Vietnam combat
veteran. He deserves respect.

Her childish outburst at him is a telling personality trait and an
indication she is mentally out-of-her- league or academically suspect
or outright dishonest or doing the bidding for someone other than
herself or all of the above.

I do not know, since I am neither a psychiatrist nor an FBI profiler.
She had read in the intro, “…and most importantly, how to remember a
genocide without perpetuating the kind of hatred that gave rise to it
in the first place.”

Dr. Marashlian wanted to know what that meant. What hatred?
The supposed hatred Armenians have toward Turks? Or, the hatred
Armenians create in today’s Turks by fighting for genocide
recognition? Whatever she meant, he gently suggested, it was
potentially wrong and alarming.

She interrupted him and said, “I’m in charge here.” I would have
actually like such bravado, if she then answered Dr. Marashlian’s
question forcefully and convincingly, but she did not. Instead she
offered-up some insecure ramblings
and ambiguity, something like “my book is nuanced.”

Oh really? If only Dr. Marashlian could someday grasp your “nuanced”
sophistication.

I welcome a contrary examination of the Armenian community.
Everyone and every organization with an opinion in the Armenian
Community is not always correct.
I welcome a good debate where people defend their positions.
People should be called-out to defend their opinions.

I love a good fight between sharp minds.
So, she thinks there is an epidemic of hatred toward Turks here in
America. Really? Prove it, otherwise she is just perpetuating the
stereotype of an ignorant, immature, and angry 16-year-old Armenian
boy. That is not the demographic of the Armenian community.
Not too insightful. It is a crass caricature.

She suggests that Turks and Armenians are “equally fanatical.”
She asks whether the objective of genocide recognition by Armenians is
worth its emotional and intellectual price. Good question, if you work
for the Turkish government.

She wonders why Turkey just can’t admit it? Well, we have known the
answer to that question for a very long time. Why is she asking that
question as if she has some insight to offer?

The Turks do not want to pay for the crime with reparations and
restitution, while also admitting their forefathers are murderers and
thieves! That’s why. Toumani can now stop pondering an
already-answered question. She might serve the community well,
fighting for justice. And, if the fight for genocide recognition has
grown tiresome for her, she can
perhaps write a book about the health benefits of kale.

Toumani focused on herself and her psychological musings. I am not
interested in her feelings and her soul-searching, when they lead to
her rejection of a large majority of good-hearted and well-intentioned
Armenian-Americans.

If she wants to find herself or the meaning of life, she can do it in
a graduate-school-seminar bull session or in group therapy. To attack
the Armenian community in its backyard — and do it so poorly– is a
disgrace.

She is a victim of nothing, except her own First-World self-absorption.

Emmy-award winner Peter Musurlian, has been nominated for seven Los
Angeles Area (News) Emmys and is currently completing two
documentaries: “Historic Armenia” and “The 100-Year-Old Survivor,”
about the political efforts of a now-deceased survivor, and many
Armenian-American activists, seeking genocide recognition.

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Witness Not Invited to Court in order to Protect Government Officials, Says
Expert

12.05.2014 17:19 epress.am

On November 5, 2012, a 19-year-old military conscript, Sargis
Sahakyan, was found dead at a military base in the village of
Tsiranadzor in Syunik marz (province). A witness in the case related
to Sahakyan’s death, Gor Margaryan, did not receive a summons from the
Court of Appeals to present himself in court and give testimony.
Epress.am was told about the latter by Peaceful Dialogue NGO military
expert Ruben Martirosyan (pictured), who is also the representative of
the victim’s legal successor.

According to the expert, the court claims that the notification was
sent but Margaryan for some reason has not received it. Martirosyan is
confident that the court does not wish to have witnesses, especially
Gor Margaryan, to be interrogated because then it would be forced to
send the court materials to the Special Investigation Service (SIS),
which may result in a threat of criminal responsibilities for about 30
officials.

“Due to the witness not coming to court, the November 28 hearing at
the Court of Appeals did not take place, we also, understanding that
Gor was not coming, didn’t attend. The next hearing will take place on
December 18,” said Ruben Martirosyan.

He recalled that Sargis Sahakyan’s death was officially considered a
suicide and that in order to blame two soldiers for the suicide, they
forced Margaryan to give a false testimony against them. Margaryan is
now stating that he was pressured to write a testimony at the Military
Police. Pressure against witness Gor Margaryan continued even during
the Court of First Instance hearings, where the prosecutor publicly
defamed him. The witness came to the human rights defender Ruben
Martirosyan to defend himself.

Recall, that the Court of First Instance’s verdict sentenced the young
servicemen Artur Misakyan to 4 years and Artashes Khachatryan to 4.5
years for leading Sahakyan to suicide.

Armenia joined the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment
Partnership (E5P)

12:53 December 06, 2014

EcoLur

Armenia has joined the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and
Environment Partnership (E5P), as the executive adopted a resolution
on 4 December 2014.

The Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership was
founded in 2009 with the aim of improving energy efficiency and
environmental protection in the Eastern Partnership region. The
membership fee to the find is 1 million Euro during five years, and
it’s expected to get 20 million Euros of grants and around 80-10
million loaning funds in return. The attraction of the funds will
enable to construct energy-efficient stations based on the waste
recycling stations in the communities.