Author: Kanayan Tamar

Troy Record, NY
May 31 2014

Five Questions for Rafi Topalian: May 31

Rafi Topalian: 46, is the owner of Top Custom Jewelry Inc. in
Watervliet, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Rafi
is also known as “The Singing Jeweler” and he will be performing the
National Anthem, “God Bless America” and other songs at the Albany
Metro Mallers home games this season.

1 How have you managed to stay in business for so long?

I’ve managed to stay in business for so long because of my faith in
God and the support of my wife and family. As a business, I have a low
overhead, high buying power and I’m not a greedy person. The customers
want quality work at a quality price. They want everything, so we are
able to do that for them. We don’t do a lot of advertising, a lot of
business is done through word of mouth. Customers bring their friends
and families and we have grown. It’s all about networking.

2 How did you get into singing at sports games?

I came to this country when I was eight from Turkey. I remember
studying the National Anthem and I always had confidence in my
singing. I’ve been singing my whole life and now I sing at different
events for Veterans Day, Flag Day and different 9/11 events and I
started performing for the ValleyCats about nine or 10 years ago. They
have an audition once a year and I went and they liked what they heard
and they invited me back. I take it very seriously and I also have a
lot of fun with it. I never say no to any performance, it’s great
publicity for my store and my church, the St. Peter’s Armenian
Apostolic Church in Watervliet and it also helps the sports teams
advertise as well.

3 What do you believe in your biggest accomplishment in life?

I’m very proud of my marriage. I’ve been married to Marianna for seven
years now. I also have a step-daughter named Sarah.

4 How do feel about your nickname, “The Singing Jeweler?”

It just came together one day. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve
been singing and I just happened to be in the jewelry business. It was
like peanut butter and chocolate in Reese’s, it just happened. You
won’t forget “The Singing Jeweler.”

5 If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it
make a sound?

I believe yes, absolutely yes. I believe in the Omnipresence of God.

— Kevin Leibach

DigitalJournal.com
May 31 2014

A year after Turkey’s Gezi Park protests, freedom elusive

By Lonna Lisa Williams

Istanbul – A year ago, I covered Turkey’s Gezi Park protests
first-hand. I took photos, videos, interviewed protesters, got
attacked by the Turkish police, and was almost arrested for a photo
I’d published. As Turkey prepares new protests, is freedom possible?
I spent 2.5 years teaching English in Turkey, at private language
schools and universities. I traveled around that beautiful country and
saw historic sights, amazing landscapes, and interesting people. I did
award-winning photo essays about Turkey for Digital Journal and put
those essays into a Kindle eBook. I married a Turkish man who has a
Muslim mother and an Armenian Christian-descended father. I visited
active Christian churches in Istanbul, Izmit, and Antalya and heard
about more congregations in other cities. I learned about Muslim
minorities like the Alevi who are persecuted by the Sunni majority
controlled by Islamist Prime Minister Erdogan and his Ak Party. I
covered the Gezi Park freedom protests first-hand, beginning on May
31, 2013. I took photos, videos, and interviewed protesters. On a
Sunday afternoon, along with a group of Istanbul tourists, I was
attacked by the Turkish police.

At least 7 of the 8 civilians killed during the Gezi Park protests
were Alevis, including a 15-year-old boy police shot in the head with
a tear gas canister as he was on his way to buy bread for his family.
The boy was in a coma for several months before he died, and his death
sparked new protests. One Turkish police officer also died during the
Gezi Park protests when he fell off a ledge.
I saw fear in everyone’s eyes when I lived in Turkey. People knew that
they could be arrested (like so many protesters were, including
doctors and lawyers who helped the protesters). Hundreds of people
were injured, and several were blinded. Yet the protests continued,
blocked out by state-controlled Turkish media and barely covered by
the world after the first Istanbul protests stretched into follow-up
protests. Then scandal hit Turkey’s Ak Party elite (even Erdogan’s own
son Bilal was implicated), and Turks again took to the streets in
January, calling Erdogan a thief and demanding, again, his
resignation. He survived a debated election in which the Ak Party held
a 42% “majority.” Now he has his eyes on running for President, with
more power given by a new constitution.
Ironically, on the eve of the One Year Gezi Park Protests anniversary,
Erdogan announced that he plans to convert the famous Haggia Sophia
into a mosque. Ayasofya, as it’s called in Turkish, was build in the
5th Century and stood for nearly a thousand years as the world’s
tallest Christian cathedral. When an Ottoman sultan conquered Istanbul
in 1453, it was defaced and changed into a mosque. When Ataturk
disbanded the Ottoman Empire in favor of a modern Turkish secular
democracy in the 20th Century, Ayasofya was, wisely, turned into a
museum. After all, the majestic Blue Mosque is just a few steps across
a park from Ayasofya, and there are over 3000 mosques in Istanbul with
expensive new ones being built every day.
There are over 80,000 mosques in Turkey, and only a handful of
Christian churches. Erdogan has converted many ancient churches and
monasteries into mosques. Erdogan does not recognize Christians as
being part of Turkey, although their history there dates back to the
1st Century travels of Paul the Apostle, and the Seven Churches
mentioned in the Book of Revelation were all located in Turkey.
Recently, Erdogan refused to give permission to a Christian group to
build a church in Ankara, the capital, which has no Christian churches
except on the grounds of foreign embassies.
Erdogan also does not recognize the right for Turks to be atheist or
gay. He passed recent laws that target women’s rights and everyday
freedoms like when you can drink alcohol or how bakers make bread.
Like all dictators, Erdogan sees himself as all-powerful, a sultan.
This attitude cost him dearly when he slapped a mine worker and his
aide kicked a protester after the recent tragic mine explosion that
killed 301 Turkish miners, the worst mining incident in Turkish
history. Erdogan had to take refuge in a supermarket as grieving
families and minors protested his insensitive arrogance.
I received a warning email from the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, advising
all Americans to stay away from the Gezi Park Anniversary Protests
that will occur throughout Turkey later today. You see, I am writing
this from northeast China where I now teach English, and our time is
earlier than in Turkey. My Turkish husband and I had to leave Turkey
because he was tortured by police who threatened me, his “Christian
wife.” A few days after I arrived in China, I found out that police
had gone to my old apartment near Istanbul to arrest me for a photo
I’d published.
Turkey has more journalists in prison than any other country. After
the January scandal, thousands of police officers and judges were
relocated, fired, or arrested. How long can Erdogan maintain
dictatorship over Turkey? Turks are resilient people who love freedom.
They will not be restricted forever. It will be interesting to see how
much media coverage the new protests receive and if the world cares
about the future of Turkey, which Ataturk established as a modern
secular democracy, and which Erdogan wants to return to a medieval
Islamist state.
“There have been so many protests all over Turkey,” a Turkish man told
me recently on the telephone. “People remember what has been happening
this past year, starting with Gezi Park. I don’t see how Erdogan can
keep ignoring the people’s pleas for freedom. The media barely covers
what’s been happening. Please get the word out for us.”
The latest news to come out of Turkey is that Erdogan has deployed
tens of thousands of police to prevent any Gezi Park Anniversary
protests. We will see what happens.

Khachatryan: We should reduce use of Sevan water for irrigation

Sunday, June 01, 2014

“Over a third of Lake Sevan’s water is used for agricultural needs of
the country. The level of artesian water has declined both in Ararat
Valley and in Kotayk and Aragatsotn provinces. We will face shortages
of drinking and irrigation water unless urgent measures are taken,”
the deputy of Prosperous Armenia (BHK) faction Lyova Khachatryan told
Nature Protection Minister Aramais Grigoryan today during discussions
of the 2013 state budget execution report in the Armenian parliament
today.

The minister agreed that it is an urgent problem, noting that the
ministry is taking the necessary measures which have already produced
results.

“An interdepartmental commission will be set up soon. We will involve
deputies as well. On the prime minister’s instruction, checks are now
underway in fish farms to reduce water consumption,” Grigoryan said.

In his words, they also plan to create a scientific council that will
consist of NGO representatives and experts.

31.05.2014, 16:59
Aysor.am

“Nazarbayev is one of the leaders of Pan-Turkism ideology.”

May 31 2014

“This statement was expected,” announced political scientist Levon
Melik-Shahnazaryan, in the conversation with Aravot.am, on May 29,
referring to the condition put forward by the President of Kazakhstan
Nursultan Nazarbayev at the panel session of the Supreme Eurasian
Economic Council in Astana. He said that this is not the first time
that Nazarbayev had spoken about it, and we need to know that
Nazarbayev is one of the leaders of Pan-Turkism ideology, and he
himself does not hide it. “What he said yesterday, he did not say to
our president, he has said it to Aliyev, i.e., Aliyev, who yesterday
has turned to President Lukashenko and Putin, one should have
responded. Nazarbayev took it on himself for two reasons, the first
one is that he is the host of the house (the meeting took place in
Astana), secondly, he is in the same organization with Aliyev. He had
answered him, i.e., “I did what you said, what will happen next? I
have made a cock-a-doodle-doo, whether the dawn will come or not, it’s
not my business.” Mr. Melik-Shahnazaryan believes that Nazarbayev
demonstrated his contempt to Aliyev by saying that some neighbors are
filled with indignation. He believes that if this word has
continuation, then it would not be Armenia’s problem. “Let Putin
resolves this problem with Nazarbayev, because we, our people, and I
also hope our government, are not so helpless, in other words, we have
another choice, let those who need us think. We also need them, I do
now argue, but we know our importance and we know our importance not
only for the East but also the West.” To our question of how Serzh
Sargsyan’s silence is conditioned by, Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan replied
that it was unexpected for the president. “This kind of thing,
usually, are not said before the cameras, when the cameras are turned
off, then such kind of conversations are held, but since Nazarbayev
has said these words to Ilham Aliyev, Nazarbayev has preferred saying
this in the presence of cameras, which are beyond diplomatic etudes.”
Referring to Nazarbayev’s suggestion to join the Eurasian Union by the
UN-recognized borders, Mr. Melik-Shahnazaryan thinks that there is a
misunderstanding in the sentence. “The UN does not draw state border,
the UN does not approve state borders, and when the UN accepts a
state, it does not look whether the border passes by this village or
by that mountain, it accepts the state in general. Any country has the
right to draw it customs borders, Armenia is entitled to withdraw a
large segment from the customs border and create a custom border-free
zone, if the neighboring state allows it.”

Ami CHICHAKYAN
Read more at:

International Friendly: Algeria 3 Armenia 1

22:07 31.05.2014

The Armenian national team lost 1-3 to Algeria in a friendly held in
Syon, Switzerland.

All of Algeria’s goals came in the first half, defender Essaid
Belkalem putting them in front early with a scrappy close-range
finish.

Nabil Ghilas then doubled the advantage before Islam Slimani
effectively made sure of victory with Algeria’s third.

Armenia, 33rd in the FIFA rankings compared to Algeria’s 25, pulled
one back within a minute of the re-start when halftime substitute
Artur Sarkisov burst clear and beat Mohamed Lamine Zemmamouche with a
low shot.

Armenian National Committee of Canada
130 Albert St., Suite 1007
Ottawa, ON KIP 5G4
Tel: 613-235-2622
Fax: 613-238-2622
E-mail: [email protected]

Minister Jason Kenney joined MP Harold Albrecht and Members of Canada’s
Armenian Community to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the passage of
Motion M-380 as well as the founding of the First Armenian Republic

On May 27, 2014 Minister Kenney was pleased to join his colleague Harold
Albrecht, Member of Parliament for Kitchener-Conestoga and Chair of the
Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group in welcoming members of
Canada’s Armenian Community to Parliament Hill to commemorate two important
anniversaries:

– The 10th anniversary of the passage of parliamentary motion M-380,
which recognized the tragic events of 1915 as a Genocide and a crime
against humanity; and

– The 96th anniversary of the establishment of the First Republic of
Armenia.

MP Harold Albrecht delivered a statement in the House of Commons
acknowledging these two significant anniversaries, and acknowledging
the significant contributions that Armenian Canadians have made to the
building of our country. For video of MP Albrecht’s statement, please
click here:

In the evening, the Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC) hosted a
reception for Parliamentarians, where the Minister had the opportunity to
speak with Archbishop Meghrig Parikian, Dr. Girair Basmadjian, President of
the Armenian National Committee of Canada, and many other members of the
Armenian Community. He was also honoured to receive a commemorative
certificate thanking him for his personal support of M-380 in 2004.

Photos:

Le Ministre Jason Kenney s’est joint au député Harold Albrecht et des
membres de la communauté arménienne du Canada pour commémorer le 10e
anniversaire de l’adoption de la motion M-380, ainsi que la fondation de la
Première République d’Arménie

Le 27 mai 2014, le Ministre Kenney a eu le plaisir de se joindre à son
collègue Harold Albrecht, député de Kitchener-Conestoga et Président du
Groupe d’amitié parlementaire Canada-Arménie pour accueillir des membres de
la communauté arménienne du Canada sur la Colline du Parlement pour
célébrer deux anniversaires importants :

– Le 10e anniversaire de l’adoption de la motion parlementaire M-380, qui
a reconnu les tragiques événements de 1915 comme un génocide et un crime
contre l’humanité; et

– Le 96e anniversaire de la création de la Première République d’Arménie.

Le député Harold Albrecht a fait une déclaration à la Chambre des communes
reconnaissant ces deux anniversaires importants et reconnaissant les
contributions importantes que les Canadiens arméniens ont apportées à la
construction de notre pays. Pour la vidéo de la déclaration du député
Albrecht, s’il vous plaît cliquez ici :

Dans la soirée, le Comité National Arménien du Canada (CNAC) a organisé une
réception pour les parlementaires, où le ministre a eu l’occasion de parler
avec l’archevêque Meghrig Parikian, le Dr Girair Basmadjian, le Président
du Comité National Arménien du Canada, et de nombreux autres membres de la
communauté arménienne. Il a également été honoré de recevoir un certificat
commémoratif pour le remercier de son soutien personnel de M-380 en 2004.

Photos:

1. L’archevêque Meghrig Parikian et l’Hon. Jason Kenney, Ministre de
l’Emploi et du Développement social et Ministre responsable du
Multiculturalisme, avec un certificat commémorant le 10e anniversaire de
la motion M-380. / Archbishop Meghrig Parikian and the Hon. Jason
Kenney, Minster of Employment & Social Development & Minister for
Multiculturalism, with a certificate commemorating the 10th Anniversary
of motion M-380.

2. Le député Harold Albrecht et le Dr Girair Basmadjian, président du
Comité National Arménien du Canada. / MP Harold Albrecht and Dr. Girair
Basmadjian, President of the Armenian National Committee of Canada.

3. Le Ministre Kenney et le député Harold Albrecht avec des
membres du CNAC. / Minister Kenney and MP Harold Albrecht with members
of the ANCC.

4. Archbishop Meghrig Parikian, le Ministre Kenney, le député Harold
Albrecht et des membres de la communauté arménienne. / Archbishop Meghrig
Parikian, Minister Kenney, MP Harold Albrecht, and members of the Armenian
Community.

5. Le Sénateur Leo Housakos, le député Harold Albrecht, l’archevêque
Meghrig Parikian, le Ministre Kenney et des membres de la communauté
arménienne. / Senator Leo Housakos, MP Harold Albrecht, Archbishop
Meghrig Parikian, Minister Kenney and members of the Armenian Community

Pour obtenir des exemplaires individuels de ces photos, s’il vous plait
écrivez un courriel à [email protected]
To request high resolution copies of these photographs please e-mail
[email protected]

As always, I invite you to share this with your friends and family.
Sincerely, Hon. Jason Kenney, PC, MP
[image: cid:[email protected]]
[image:
cid:[email protected]] [image:
cid:[email protected]]
[image:
cid:[email protected]]

President Hollande has made concrete proposal to the sides: Ambassador

16:12 31.05.2014

The main purpose of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs’ visit to Baku is
to introduce the newly-appointed French Co-Chair Pierre Andrieux to
the President of Azerbaijan, said the French Ambassador to Azerbaijan
Pascal Meunier, APA reports.

Meunier added that concrete steps should be taken to reach the
peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict after 20-year
ceasefire. He said “peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia will have a
positive effect on stability in the region.”

“President François Hollande has said he’s ready to receive the
presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia together with the co-chairs in
France. And the presidents just need to accept this proposal. Hollande
has made concrete proposal to the sides to achieve peace, and
presidents may discuss these proposals in France,” the Ambassador
said.

Touching upon the recent ceasefire violations on the front line, the
diplomat said he is seriously concerned about what’s going on. “We
remain loyal to the acquisition of peace between Azerbaijan and
Armenia, and are trying to create grounds for the two countries to
live in peace, not war.”

The Minsk Group Co-Chairs met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev today.

Lacking major natural resources Armenia should focus on IT industry,
Ripple Labs Inc.

YEREVAN, May 31. / ARKA /. Lacking major natural resources Armenia
should place focus on information technology development, Stefan
Thomas from Ripple Labs Inc., told ARKA. Stefan

Thomas has been invited to participate in the sixth “BarCamp Yerevan-
2014” informal gathering.

In this context, he highlighted the importance of events like
BarCamps, which represent the potential of Armenia’s IT industry. He
also praised the organizers of this event saying the participating
young people are well informed.

About two thousand IT specialists, including programmers, bloggers,
online journalists, have gathered in Yerevan for the event.

Armenia’s information technology industry has been growing 20 percent
on average over the last years. Some 380 IT firms are said to employ
over 10,000 mostly well-paid engineers and other specialists. Of them
159 are foreign-owned or act as representative offices of large
international companies.

The IT industry accounts today for 3.8 percent of the national GDP.
According to an IT development strategy, its turnover is to surge to
$1 billion by 2018.

BarCamp is a series of events initiated first in the U.S. Silicon
Valley in 2005. BarCamp events focuse on information technology,
global network and media. It is often called an unofficial meeting
with a series of informal presentations and reports.

The participants place various issues on the agenda and jot down the
topics of their reports and their schedules on a blackboard. The first
post-Soviet state to organize a BarCamp was Ukraine in 2007.

In February 2008, BarCamp Baltics took place in Riga, followed by
BarCamp Caucasus in Tbilisi in June 2008. The first BarCamp Yerevan
took place in 2009 April. -0-

– See more at:

ARMENIE
La dissidence silencieuse : les partis non-gouvernementaux
s’abstiennent de voter sur le plan du RPA

Le Parti républicain d’Arménie devra procéder à son plan de
gouvernement seul et prendre la responsabilité en cas d’erreurs, parce
que les quatre partis non-gouvernementaux ainsi que le parti Orinats
Yerkir, ont refusé d’y participer.

> a déclaré
l’analyste politique Armen Badalyan à ArmeniaNow.

Les partis d’opposition – Arménie Prospère, Héritage, la Fédération
Révolutionnaire Arménienne, l’ANC – et le parti OrinatsYerkir, qui a
récemment rejoint les rangs politiques des partis hors gouvernement,
n’ont pas participé au vote sur le plan lors de la session de
l’Assemblée nationale.

Le porte-parole du RPA Eduard Sharmazanov a déclaré aux journalistes
que le RPA ne pouvait pas obliger ou inciter les partis non
gouvernementaux à voter pour leur projet > ajoute Badalyan.

samedi 31 mai 2014,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

168 Hours: Why Serzh Sargsyan didn’t respond to Nazarbayev?

Saturday, May 31, 2014

“Various officials have already made numerous comments on your
questions,” Armenian president’s spokesman Arman Saghatelyan said in
response to the written questions of ‘168 Hours’ paper.

The paper asked him why during the Astana meeting of Supreme Eurasian
Economic Council Serzh Sargsyan did not react, or to be more precise,
did not respond to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s remark and
his quotes from Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s letter and if
Nazarbayev’s statement came as a surprise to Serzh Sargsyan.

In response to the paper’s another question “If the member states of
the Customs Union/Eurasian Economic Union (EaEU) – Russia, Belarus and
Kazakhstan continue to insist on Nazarbayev’s condition, is Armenia
ready to join EaEU on such conditions”, Arman Saghatelyan wrote: “As
for other questions related to Armenia’s accession to Eurasian
Economic Union, I want to inform you that President Serzh Sargsyan
will soon have an occasion to address them”.

TODAY, 10:59
Aysor.am