Author: Kanayan Tamar

LA COUR CONSTITUTIONNELLE REDUIT LES POUVOIRS DE CENSURE DE LA TIB

TURQUIE

Reporters sans frontières salue l’annulation par la Cour
constitutionnelle turque, le 2 octobre 2014, de certains pouvoirs de
censure et de surveillance d’Internet recemment attribues a la Haute
instance des Telecommunications (TIB).

Après un an d’intensification continue de la censure d’Internet
en Turquie, enfin un signe encourageant. Des amendements votes
en septembre 2014 autorisaient le president de la Haute instance
des Telecommunications (TIB) a ordonner le blocage “preventif”
immediat de sites internet au nom de la “securite nationale”, de
“l’ordre public” ou de la “prevention d’un crime”. L’institution
etait egalement habilitee a collecter les donnees de connexion des
internautes, independamment de toute enquete en cours. Le 2 octobre,
la juridiction supreme a reconnu ces dispositions inconstitutionnelles.

“Cet arret rappelle que les imperatifs de securite nationale doivent
etre contrebalances par le respect de la liberte d’expression,
souligne Johann Bihr, responsable du bureau Europe de l’est et Asie
centrale de Reporters sans frontières. Esperons que cette decision
sera rapidement suivie d’effet par le legislateur. Bien d’autres pas
restent cependant necessaires pour que la liberte de l’information
en ligne soit pleinement garantie : l’abolition de tout pouvoir
de blocage administratif par la TIB, l’arret de la surveillance
generalisee d’Internet par les services de renseignement, une reforme
en profondeur de la loi 5651 sur Internet.”

Meme sans les amendements de septembre 2014, la legislation turque
sur Internet reste liberticide. Le blocage administratif par la TIB
reste possible si des sites internet sont suspectes d'”atteinte a la
vie privee”, de contenus “discriminatoires ou insultants a l’egard
de certains membres de la societe” ou pour “proteger la famille
et l’enfance”.

La Cour constitutionnelle turque avait deja ordonne le deblocage de
Twitter et YouTube, en avril puis en mai 2014, au nom de la liberte
d’expression.

vendredi 10 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

CHARLES AZNAVOUR VICTIME D’UNE INFECTION

Societe

Gen̬ve, 10 oct 2014 (AFP) РLe chanteur francais Charles Aznavour,
90 ans, a ete hospitalise “a titre preventif suite a une infection
contractee ces derniers jours”, a annonce la societe organisatrice
d’un concert prevu vendredi soir a Genève, sans autre precision.

L’artiste et les organisateurs vont chercher une solution “pour
reporter ce concert dans les meilleurs delais”, a ajoute Opus One
dans un communique. La societe a promis de nouvelles informations
“très rapidement”. Le chanteur armenien habite en Suisse. Il a fait
construire une maison a deux pas du Lac Leman, a Saint Sulpice
près de Lausanne, pour se rapprocher de son fils cadet Nicolas,
un scientifique specialiste des mecanismes energetiques du cerveau.

“Tout m’interesse, vraiment tout (…) je lis tous les jours, j’ai
trois bouquins, le bouquin qu’on doit lire, un bouquin où j’apprends
des choses et j’ai des textes en langues etrangères que je travaille
regulièrement”, a assure Charles Aznavour dans.un entretien diffuse
dimanche par la television publique suisse RTS.

“Dans les derniers deux mois on a fait dix capitales, il y a un
critique qui a cru etre malin en disant que je faisais mes adieux,
j’avais dit que je ne faisais plus de tournee (…) je n’ai pas
fait d’adieux c’est un au revoir, je reviendrai la prochaine fois”,
a-t-il explique.

vendredi 10 octobre 2014, Jean Eckian (c)armenews.com

HAYKAKAN ZHAMANAK: UK AMBASSADOR INVITED TO ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT

11:39 10/10/2014 >> DAILY PRESS

The Armenian-British parliamentary friendship group invited UK
Ambassador Katherine Leach to the National Assembly on Thursday in
connection with the recent anti-Armenian measures at the European
institutions, Haykakan Zhamanak writes.

The newspaper notes that British parliamentarians played a big role in
the recent developments at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE). The Armenian lawmakers asked the envoy to convey
their concerns to the British government. According to the newspaper’s
information, Armenia may face negative developments at the European
Parliament and British parliamentarians are involved in that as well.

Source: Panorama.am

AUTHORITIES PREVENT PEOPLE FROM ATTENDING RALLY

13:30 / 10.10.2014

The authorities have started the ‘operation’ to prevent people from
attending today’s rally of three opposition forces in the Freedom
Square.

Few cases have already been registered on Ashtarak-Yerevan highway.

The movement of few cars to Yerevan has been blocked. Gyumri-Yerevan
train is not working today. But people’s flow to Yerevan has already
started.

Nyut.am

HERITAGE PARTY MP ASKS OMBUDSMAN TO MAKE SPEAKER OF THE ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT RESPONSIBLE

Arminfo
Friday, October 10, 15:45

Heritage party MP, Zarui Postanjan, has blamed the speaker of the
Armenian parliament, Galust Sahakyan, for making obstacles on the way
of her activity. The reason of it is Sahakyan’s refusal to put into
circulation the draft statement on reappointment of Surik Khachatryan
as a governor of Syunik region, Postanjan said.

According to the law “On regulations of the National Assembly”, the
speaker should put a draft into circulation. “The speaker had to do
that till 2 October. But the draft statement has not been yet put
into circulation. Taking this into consideration, I should say that
the speaker, Galust Sahakyan, taking advantage of his authorities,
hinders my activity as a member of the parliament”, – Postanjan said.

She asked Ombudsman Karen Andreasyan to take measures for restoration
of her rights, and to make Galust Sahakyan responsible.

To recall, MP Zaruhi Pastanjyan (Heritage opposition party) submitted
a draft statement on biography of Surik Khachatryan, the Syunik
region governor. Postanjyan explains her step with the lawless, as
she thinks, past of the governor, who was reappointed to that post
on 25 September 2014.

Postanjyan says that Surik Khachatryan, known with his nickname “Liska”
passed a ‘glorious’ way serving the interests of Serzh Sargsyan’s
regime. “He was repeatedly officially convicted for various crimes,
particularly, infliction of severe bodily harms, seizure of state
and private property, hijacking and hooliganism,” Postanjyan said.

The draft statement demands the Parliament to condemn inactivity of the
judiciary with regard to Khachatryan. “The Parliament must condemn the
Government’s decision to reappoint Khachatryan as governor, Postanjyan
said asking the Parliament to put the draft decision in circulation,
as stipulated by the law.

To recall, Khachatryan resigned from the post of the Syunik Governor
following shootouts in front of his house on June 2 2013 when the
former candidate for Goris mayor Avo Budaghyan was killed and his
brother Artak Budaghyan, a commander at a military unit in the NKR
was wounded. There was another wounded, Nikolay Arustamyan, a relative
and bodyguard of Governor Suren Khachartyan.

Syunik Governor Suren Khachatryan’s son, Tigran Khachatryan, was
arrested over the shootouts. Earlier, the governor’s bodyguard Zarzand
Nikoghosyan was arrested over the case. However, the Court terminated
the case and set free the Governor’s son and his friend.

To calm down the tensions in Syunik, parliamentarian Vahe Hakobyan,
the son of Zangezour copper and molybdenum plant’s ex-director Maksim
Hakobyan, was appointed as Syunik Governor. However, according to
ArmInfo’s data, Surik Khachatryan, who enjoys the support of the
country’s leadership, put a spoke in the young governor’s wheel.

Actually, Vahe Hakobyan was reluctant to send in his resignation.

BHK LAWMAKER TO RALLY PARTICIPANTS: NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT RISTRICT CITIZENS’ RIGHT TO FREE MOVEMENT

13:47 | October 10,2014 | Politics

Chairperson of the National Assembly Standing Committee on the
Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs has addressed people who
are going to participate in today’s opposition rally in Liberty Square.

“Dear compatriots,

“Article 25 of the Armenian Constitution envisages that everyone
legally residing in the Republic Armenia shall have the right to
freedom of movement and choice of residence in the territory of the
Republic Armenia. All citizens whose movement to Yerevan from regions
will be barred or restricted unnecessarily, are asked to contact the
NA Standing Committee on the Protection of Human Rights and Public
Affairs calling at 011 513 – 314,” Elinar Vardanyan, a lawmaker of
the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), said in her address.

The opposition trio – BHK, Armenian National Congress (HAK) and
Heritage – are holding a joint rally in Yerevan on Friday, October 10.

They call for a change of power and drastic reforms.

SERZH SARGYSAN: LESSONS OF OUR NATIONS’ HEROISM SHOULD BE IMPRINTED IN MEMORY OF FUTURE GENERATIONS

14:37 10/10/2014 >> POLITICS

The condemnation and recognition of already committed crimes is vital
in the prevention of crimes against humanity, Armenian President Serzh
Sargsyan stated at the meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council in
the Belarusian capital Minsk.

“The bloody lessons of the two World Wars in the 20th century and the
lessons of our nations’ heroism should be imprinted in the memory of
the future generations,” said the President.

President Sargsyan also said that the planned events should clearly
outline the priority for the CIS states in the fight against historical
revisionism, heroization of Nazism, racism, xenophobia and intolerance,
prevention of crimes against humanity and upbringing of the youth in
conditions of tolerance, interethnic and interconfessional consent.

Source: Panorama.am

SOLOLEARN WINS SEEDSTARS YEREVAN 2014 FINALE

YEREVAN, October 9. /ARKA/. SoloLearn has won on the finale of
SeedStars Yerevan 2014 and will participate in the international
SeedStars in Geneva, the Microsoft Innovation Center says on its
facebook page.

SeedStars World made its debut in Armenia on October 7, 2014. Some
35 start-up companies presented their business solutions, educational
apps, B2B, B2C and mobile games at a startup competition.

The Seedstars international contest will be held in Geneva on February
4, 2015. The winner will get an opportunity to attract investments
worth from 100,000 to 500,000 euros for his project.

Under an agreement with Armenian VC Granatus Ventures, SoloLearn mobile
learning platform will receive $100,000 and acceleration support. The
funding will be used for the improvement of the platform and attracting
new users.

SoloLearn was founded in June 2013. It is a mobile learning platform
offering 14 interactive and gaming applications in programming,
business and photography. It is available both for Android and Windows
and has been downloaded over 350,000 times.

Seedstars Yerevan 2014 was held by Microsoft Innovation Center,
Seedstars World, Tumo Center for Creative Technologies, supported by
Swiss embassy in Armenia, Azad Pharmaceuticals and Ameria management
consulting service. -0–

GAGIK TSARUKYAN: WE ARE AGAINST ‘MAIDAN,’ BUT INACTIVITY MUST NOT BE ALTERNATIVE TO ‘MAIDAN’

by Nana Martirosyan

Thursday, October 9, 14:21

Large-scale consolidation of public and political forces that would
lead to a multi-party power enjoying truly people’s mandate could
become a success formula for Armenia, Gagik Tsarukyan, Leader of
Prosperous Armenia Party told Nezavisimaya Gazeta. He said numerous
protests and rallies in Armenia show that the Armenian public can
no longer bear injustice and low living standards. “Simultaneously,
there is tangible political consolidation able to form the right
political agenda,” he said.

Tsarukyan said that yet five-six years ago he warned against wrong
economic policy in the country.

“However, my voice did not reach the addressee then and today we have
what we have. The small and mid- sized business was affected the most.

Several thousands of enterprises were closed. In fact, we witness
poverty growth, slump of foreign investments, and slackening of
economic growth rates,” he said. He said the four parliamentary
opposition parties (Armenian National Congress, Heritage, ARFD,
Prosperous Armenia) drafted a package of 12 proposals to settle a
range of burning issues in the country.

“The authorities had enough time to respond in the right way and start
discussing and implementing those proposals. It was a good opportunity
to launch dialogue with political forces. However, they failed to do
it. What remains for the people is to use their constitutional right
and demand fulfillment of those simple proposals,” the politician said.

He came out against ‘maidans.’ At the same time, Tsarukyan is sure
that inactivity must become an alternative to ‘maidans’ as it is also
disastrous for small countries like Armenia.

GOVERNMENT OKS AMENDMENTS TO TURNOVER TAX LAW IN ARMENIA

YEREVAN, October 9. /ARKA/. Armenia’s government approved, at its
Thursday’s meeting, the amendments to the turnover tax law proposed
by the ministry of finance.

Turnover tax rate for economic entities is planned to be lowered
from 3.5% to 1% on October 1, 2014, but particular paperwork will be
made obligatory for small and mid-scale businesses. Along with that,
the inspections of compliance with the demand will be facilitated.

According to the amendment, the paperwork requirement for small and
midsized businesses will come in force on February 1, 2015 (not on
October 1 as per the current law).

The draft amendments have been defined as “urgent” and sent to the
parliament.

Small and midsized enterprises are not happy about the mandatory
paperwork provision and hold protests outside the buildings of the
government and the parliament. -0–