Author: Kanayan Tamar

UN MINISTRE TURC PARLE DE L’HERITAGE ARMENIEN D’ANI… UNE PREMIÈRE !

TURQUIE-ARMENIE

Omer Celik, le ministre turc de la Culture et du tourisme est le
premier haut responsable politique Turc a lier le mot >
a la ville d’Ani, capitale de la dynastie armenienne des Bagratides.

Selon la chaine d’information turque Haberler, Omer Celik a declare
que son ministère d’epargnerait pas ses efforts pour qu’en 2016, Ani,
> entre dans la liste du Patrimoine
mondial de l’Unesco. O. Celik a declare que le peuple armenien etait
parmi les peuples qui avaient laisse sur ces terres un patrimoine
international.

AMMAN JUMELEE AVEC EREVAN

ARMENIE

En marge de la visite de la delegation armenienne conduit par le
president Serge Sarkissian en Jordanie, un accord a ete signe mercredi
29 octobre en vue du jumelage de Erevan et de la capitale jordanienne
Amman. Les maires des deux capitales, Taron Margaryan et Akel Biltaj,
ont signe le document de jumelage lors d’une ceremonie dans les salons
de l’hôtel de ville d’Amman, en presence de representants de l’Armenie
et de la Jordanie.

A cette occasion, Akel Biltaj a donne au maire de Erevan une cle de
la ville d’Amman, symbole de l’amitie et de la cooperation entre les
deux villes. En vertu de cet accord de jumelage, les capitales des
deux Etats pourront developer une cooperation mutuellement benefique,
echanger leur experience en matière de gouvernance locale, dans
des domaines que la gestion des eaux, le traitement des dechets et
d’autres aspects de la politique municipale.

Le president Sarkissian visitait le royaume hachemite a l’invitation
du roi de Jordanie Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein. Le president Sarkisian
et le roi King Abdullah ont eu un entretien prive dans le palais royal
d’Amman, au cours duquel auraient ete evoquees les perspectives de
developpement de la cooperation bilaterale dans le commerce et dans
d’autres domaines. Le president armenien a remercie son hôte jordanien
pour le chaleureux accueil reserve par la Jordanie a sa delegation.

vendredi 31 octobre 2014, Gari (c)armenews.com

BRAZILIAN FILM ‘BOY AND THE WORLD’ ANIMATED FILM – WINNER OF ARMENIAN ANIMATION FESTIVAL REANIMANIA

by Karina Manukyan

Friday, October 31, 12:47

The winners of the 6th edition of the Yerevan / Armenian Animation
Festival ReAnimania were announced Thursday. The winner of the
Festival in the category of Best Animated Film was The Boy And The
World (2013 Brazil) by Ale Abreu.

“Cronopios and Famas” by Julio Luduena received Valentin Podpomogov
Prize.

“Rocks In My Pockets” (2014) by Signe Baumane – Special Mention.

“Dinner For Few” by Nassos Vakalis (Greece/USA) has been recognized
the Best Short Film of the festival.

Robert Lobel’s animated short “Wind” (Germany) – Special Mention.

“City of God” by Alexandra Hetmerova (Czech Republic) – Best Diploma
Work. The 6th edition of the Yerevan / Armenian Animation Festival
ReAnimania kicked off in Yerevan on 25 October. For about 400 films
were demonstrated at the festival. The Festival organized received
over 850 applications from 90 countries. This year ReAnimania will
be held also in Gyumri.

ARMENIA ‘LOSES’ 1500-2000 FUTURE MOTHERS ANNUALLY (VIDEO)

12:35 | October 31,2014 | Social

Since early 1990s the sex-at-birth ratio in Armenia has become skewed
and comprised 114 boys to 100 girls in the past 20 years while the
accepted normal biological ratio is 102-106 boys to 100 girls. The
average ratio was 164 males against 100 females in 2008-2012. The need
for one son in Armenia is stronger than the aversion for girls. As a
result male children outnumber female children by 40 000 among people
under 20. Gender inequality is evident in the country which is largely
due to the perception of gender roles in families. The preference for
sons can also be explained by their mission to continue the generation
and take charge of families.

Official statistics show that the number of abortions in Armenia
increased by roughly 10 percent in 2010 compared with the previous
year. According to the number of sex-selective abortions, Armenia
comes third after China and Azerbaijan.

Details are available in the video.

HRANT DINK MURDER TRIAL TAKES NEW TURN

13:42, 31 Oct 2014

The trial into the murder of the Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink
has taken a significant turn after the court in Istanbul overseeing
the case announced that it will focus on the “criminal organization”
allegations against suspects, a move that lawyers representing the
victim’s family had demanded since the start of the retrial, the
Hurriyet Daily News reports.

Istanbul’s 5th High Criminal Court ruled on Oct. 30 in line with
a previous Supreme Court of Appeals decision that overturned the
verdict of the initial trial process, on the grounds that it overlooked
investigating the murder of the renowned editor-in-chief of the weekly
Agos in the context of a planned and organized crime.

According to the decision, the suspects will be retried on charges
of being a member of a criminal organization.

The Supreme Court of Appeals had also overturned the acquittals
of top suspects including Yasin Hayal, who was charged with being
the instigator of the assassination and the “leader of a terrorist
organization.” Hayal and other suspects, such as Erhan Tuncel and
Ersin Yolcu, are also being retried.

The triggerman Ogun Samast, who was sentenced to 22 years by a
children’s court, is also likely to be tried on new charges, as the
court ruled to associate his case with the main murder trial. Samast
was only 17-years-old when he shot Dink in front of his office in
Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007.

However, lawyers have also been wary of the Supreme Court verdict,
as it defined the aim of the murder as a “political act,” rather
than an act of terrorism, as they have claimed that an armed terror
organization was behind the killing. For a murder to be considered a
“terrorist act,” it would have to be committed with a clear aim against
the state of the public order, according to the Turkish Penal Code.

Lawyers previously said they would try to prove that the activities
of the organization went beyond the assassination of Dink.

The ruling comes only a few days after the Justice Ministry cleared
the path for investigations into nine civil servants, including senior
police officers occupying key posts at the time of the murder, such
as the former Istanbul police chief Celalettin Cerrah. The officers
had been accused of negligence and threatening Dink before his death.

The Friends of Hrant Dink Association hailed the decision in a
statement issued in front of the Istanbul courthouse Oct. 30, while
demanding that the civil servants be charged with “murder.”

Dink’s lawyers have long been demanded that the investigation should
focus on the “real web of connections” that led to Dink’s murder,
while expressing few expectations from the retrial.

The matter was even subject to a review by Turkey’s Constitutional
Court, which ruled that the case had not been efficiently investigated
and the rights of Dink’s family were violated.

ABOUT 63,000 FARMS IN ARMENIA PROVIDED WITH PREFERENTIAL AGRICULTURAL LOANS

Financial Services Monitor Worldwide
October 29, 2014 Wednesday

A total of 60 billion drams were provided to about 63,000 small
farms in Armenia as preferential agricultural loans over the last
three years, Central Bank of Armenia chairman Arthur Javadyan told
a parliamentary hearing today on next year’s budget.

Under a 2011 government decision, Armenian farmers are eligible to
preferential agricultural loans at 14% interest rate, of which 4%
(6% in border villages) are subsidized by the state. The loans are
provided in the national currency, the dram. The average loan size
is 625,000 drams, the grace period is 6 months, after which only
interest are repaid, and the principal sum is to be repaid in the
following 6 months.

Mr. Javadyan said about 10,000 preferential loans had been provided
from April to July and as many in August alone this year. He said
the program is quite successful adding also that the interest rate
on agricultural loans will be lowered.

Mr. Javadyan said there is another agricultural lending program
implemented in cooperation with the German bank KfW in the amount of
15 million euros and $5.5 million. According to him, before the end
of the month another joint program with KfW is to be signed.

Armenian government’s draft budget for 2015 earmarks 1.2 billion drams
for subsidizing agricultural loans. The government has revised the
subsidy rate making it 6 percent for all rural communities irrespective
of their location beginning from 2015.

According to official data, in 2013 the government spent 634.5 million
drams on subsidizing the interests of agricultural loans, up 9.8%
from the previous year.

In late August the total agricultural lending stood at 115.3 billion
drams, having surged by 54 percent from beginning of the year. The
national agricultural GDP in the first eight months of this year
totaled 482.9 billion drams, a 4.9% rise when compared to the same
period last year. 2014 Global Data Point.

State Dept. Spokesperson Psaki Holds Regular News Briefing, Oct 28

CQ Transcriptions
Oct 28 2014

STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON JEN PSAKI HOLDS STATE DEPARTMENT REGULAR
NEWS BRIEFING

October 28, 2014 Tuesday

[parts omitted]

Go ahead, Scott.

QUESTION: Armenia.

PSAKI: Yes.

QUESTION: There are two other baijani citizens who are on trial or
facing charges of sabotage in the self-declared capital of Nagorno-
Karabakh. Baku is demanding the return of their citizens.

You were monitoring this situation and have expressed your concerns
to either the Armenians or the Azerbaijanis?

PSAKI: I do have something on this. One moment.

On these specific cases, we really don’t have a great deal of
information on it. Obviously, they are the experts.

We have continued to convey that it’s important for the sides to
take the necessary steps to lay the basis for a peaceful settlement
to the Nagorno-Karabackh conflict. We call on all sides to redouble
their efforts at the negotiations table to focus on the benefits that
peace will bring to people across the region.

In terms of our engagement in this specific incident, not that I’m
aware of. Let me double-check and make sure that that’s the case.

QUESTION: Is it your opinion that putting on trial Azerbaijan in
the self-declared Nagorno-Karabakh capital, is in line with taking
those moves?

PSAKI: Taking the moves to…

QUESTION: That you’re calling on both sides to take.

PSAKI: I think it’s just a broad point we make. We don’t have the —
all the specifics so I think we just haven’t weighed-in more than that.

6,2 MILLIARDS KWT-HEURE D’ENERGIE ELECTRIQUE ENVOYES DE L’ARMENIE VERS L’IRAN POUR 2 MILLIARDS DE MÈTRES CUBES DE GAZ

ARMENIE

L’Armenie a importe quelque 2 milliards de mètres cubes de gaz naturel
de l’Iran et a exporte 6,2 milliards de kwt-heure d’energie electrique
vers l’Iran en echange depuis 2007, annee où le gazoduc Iran-Armenie
a ete ouvert et le programme d’echange gaz contre electricite a ete
lance a annonce le ministre de l’energie et des Ressources naturelles
Ervand Zakharyan.

“Quelque 220 millions de mètres cubes de gaz ont ete importes et 670
millions kwt-heure d’energie electrique ont ete exportes pendant six
mois de cette annee,” a-t-il dit.

vendredi 31 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

LE PREMIER MINISTRE ARMENIEN EXCLUT DES ELECTIONS ANTICIPEES

ARMENIE

Le Premier ministre armenien Hovik Abrahamian a rejete les appels de
l’opposition pour un changement immediat de gouvernement, en disant
que si un tel changement doit avoir lieu, ce ne sera pas par le biais
d’elections anticipees.

Tous les processus, selon Hovik Abrahamyan, devraient etre “dans le
cadre de la Constitution >> et >.

Les prochaines elections legislatives en Armenie ne tiendront qu’en
2017.

S’adressant a des dizaines de milliers de partisans sur la Place de
la liberte a Erevan le 24 Octobre, Gagik Tsarukian le chef du parti
Armenie prospère a exhorte les dirigeants actuels a se conformer a
leur demande de modification des lois electorales en supprimant les
elections parlementaires a scrutin majoritaire et ne laissant que des
elections avec des listes de parti. Il a averti que sinon l’opposition
“va forcer le gouvernement a demissionner et organiser des elections
anticipees avec des manifestations de rue en presence de centaines
de milliers de personnes”.

Repondant a une question de service armenien de RFE / RL (Azatutyun.am)
le Premier ministre Hovik Abrahamian a souligne que le Parti
republicain d’Armenie (HHK), dont il est un membre eminent, est pret
a discuter des questions “soulevees par tout parti politique. ”

“Nous sommes prets a discuter de toute question. Nous allons en
discuter, venez avec un denominateur commun ; nous allons exprimer la
position de notre parti et ils devraient formuler leurs propositions
“, a-t-il dit.

Le porte-parole du HHK Eduard Sharmazanov, quant a lui, a egalement
parle avec dedain des exigences du BHK et de ses allies de l’opposition
plus radicaux – le Congrès national armenien et le parti Heritage –
pour une transition du pouvoir a travers des elections prematurees.

vendredi 31 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

PROGRESS OVER KARABAKH IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT MEDIATION EFFORTS

12:15 * 30.10.14

In an interview with Tert.am, an expert from the Armenian Center for
Political and International Studies commented upon the latest rounds
of Armenian-Azerbaijani talks over Nagorno-Karabakh, ruling out the
possibility of progress without international mediation.

Ruben Melkonyan said he finds that Azerbaijan’s consistent efforts
to create an enemy image of Armenians greatly disrupt peace efforts,
eliminating the chances of a direct dialogue.

“We eventually see that these diplomats, the co-chairs [of the Minsk
Group], are no longer able to act up to resolving this conflict. And we
see the need for heavy mediation efforts to push for agreements between
the sides. And this too, can be viewed as an indirect pressure upon
the parties. I support this, so I don’t think that a final resolution
is possible without exerting pressure,” he said, adding that decisions
seeming unpopular are not likely to pave way to a final settlement.

Mehrabyan said he doesn’t think that a solution is likely to be
100% satisfactory to both sides. “This will require both countries’
authorities to ensure a certain level of legitimacy and to conduct
explanatory work with the societies,” he added.

Armenian News – Tert.am