Author: Kanayan Tamar

Articolotre, Italia
24 aprile 2014

Olocausto armeno. Prima volta per le scuse di un premier turco

Per la prima volta un premier turco ha fatto le condoglianze alla
popolazione armena a seguito delle numerose morti avvenute nel 1915.

-Redazione- Il premier turco Recep Tayyip Erdogan ha fatto le
condoglianze della Turchia alla popolazione armena a seguito
dell’olocausto avvenuto nel 1915 sul suolo dell’impero ottomano. Si è
trattato di una prima volta in assoluto da parte di un primo ministro
dello stato anatolico.

Il gesto ha una importanza simbolica rilevante, visto che mai fino a
oggi era stato effettuato un simile segno, ma soprattutto è stato
evidenziato con un comunicato diffuso in nove diverse lingue, tra le
quali anche lo stesso armeno, altro aspetto estremamente importante.

“E’ un dovere umano capire e condividere la volontà degli armeni di
commemorare le loro sofferenze durante quel periodo”.

Journal of Turkish Weekly
May 2 2014

Erdogan’s historic statement on 1915 killings pleases both sides

2 May 2014

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent statement of condolences
for the 1915 mass killings of Armenians, the first such statement by
the Turkish government, was welcomed by Armenians, Turks and the
European Union.

After Erdogan’s statement was published in nine languages, EU
Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule sent out a tweet saying
“reconciliation is a key EU value” and expressing hope that “steps in
this spirit would follow.”

Erdogan called the events of 1915 “inhumane.”

“The incidents of the First World War are our shared pain. To evaluate
this painful period of history through a perspective of just memory is
a humane and scholarly responsibility. Millions of people of all
religions and ethnicities lost their lives in the First World War.
Having experienced events which had inhumane consequences — such as
expulsion — during the First World War, should not prevent Turks and
Armenians from establishing compassion and mutually humane attitudes
toward one another,” the statement read.

The deaths of more than 1 million people, primarily Armenians at the
hands of Ottomans, are considered genocide by Armenia and some
international organisations. Turkey disputes the characterisation.

Professor Ayhan Kaya, director of the European Institute in Istanbul
Bilgi University, said the prime minister’s statement should be
perceived as a major step for Turkey in terms of normalising relations
with Armenia. “Actually, since the AKP [Justice and Development Party]
came to power, there were attempts on the part of the Turkish state
and society to come to terms with the past. These attempts were going
in parallel with the Europeanisation of Turkey,” Kaya told SES
Türkiye.

Hundreds of people, including Armenians, gathered in Istanbul’s Taksim
Square to show solidarity on April 23rd.

The Armenian Patriarchate in Istanbul released a statement on the same
day, saying Erdogan’s statement was encouraging for Armenian and
Turkish people to take positive steps in the future, and that it
helped to ease the pain of Armenians.

In his statement on April 24th, Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan did
not refer to Erdogan’s remarks but emphasised that Armenia believes
that “the denial of a crime constitutes direct continuation of that
very crime; and only recognition and condemnation can prevent the
repetition of such crimes in the future.”

“We do not consider the Turkish society as our enemy. Bowing to the
memory of the innocent victims we remember all those Turks and Turkish
families who lent a helping hand to their Armenian neighbours,” he
added.

Last December, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid Turkey’s first
high-level state visit to Armenia in five years. The visit was
considered as a significant step for the rapprochement between the two
neighbours. The territorial border has been closed since Turkey shut
its border with Armenia in 1993 in support of Azerbaijan, which was in
a dispute with Armenia over the control of the Nagorno-Karabakh
region. Kevork Gallosyan, an Armenian citizen living in Istanbul and
working as the project co-ordinator of Fair Memory Initiative,
congratulated Erdogan for his courage but added that more needs to be
done.

“It is just the beginning of a process. There is still a widespread
lack of knowledge and prejudice in the Turkish society toward Armenian
people,” Gallosyan told SES Türkiye. “We need to shape our common
future by combating such approaches and preventing extreme animosities
on both sides through a fair memory.”

Aghavni Karakhanian, director of Yerevan-based Institute for Civil
Society and Regional Development, said Turkey should recognise the
deaths as genocide.

“The new conceptualisation of Armenian-Turkish relations can occur
only with recognition by Turkey the fact of Armenian genocide.
Erdogan’s statement lacks something that’s vital for the Armenians
issue: recognition,” she said.

2 May 2014

SES Türkiye

Human Rights Watch
May 2 2014

Azerbaijan: Stop Harassing Rights Defender

Hollande, Council of Europe Leadership Should Speak Out

Berlin) – Azerbaijani authorities are harassing and engaging in
oppressive tactics against a prominent human rights defender. The
Azerbaijani government should end the harassment against rights
defender Leyla Yunus and her husband, Arif.

Azerbaijan’s international partners, in particular fellow members of
the Council of Europe, should make clear that continued harassment of
human rights defenders, and the Yunuses in particular, will affect
their relationships with Azerbaijan’s government.

“Leyla and Arif Yunus are among many people the Azerbaijani
authorities find ‘inconvenient,'” said Rachel Denber, deputy Europe
and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “No government should
be allowed to get away with targeting human rights defenders while
it’s seeking to boost its international prestige.”

On April 28, 2014, Baku airport police prevented the couple from
leaving the country, confiscated their passports, and subjected them
to a 24-hour ordeal that led to Arif Yunus’s hospitalization. The
prosecutor’s office subsequently designated them as witnesses in a
treason investigation against Azerbaijani journalist and civic
activist Rauf Mirgadirov, who was deported from Turkey on April 19 and
then arrested in Baku.

The authorities should immediately return the Yunuses’ passports and
stop the arbitrary interference with their freedom of movement and
right to leave their country, Human Rights Watch said. There is no
provision in Azerbaijani law to bar people who are designated
witnesses in a criminal investigation from leaving the country.

President Francois Hollande of France is scheduled to visit Azerbaijan
on May 11 and 12, and it is expected that Leyla Yunus may meet with
him when he is in Baku. In 2013 the French ambassador for human rights
awarded Yunus France’s Legion of Honor award (Ordre National de la
Légion d’honneur) – the highest French decoration – for her courage
and promotion of human rights. Hollandeshould insist on seeing the
Yunuses while in Baku and make clear that their freedom, and
Mirgadirov’s, is of great importance to him, and to French-Azerbaijani
relations.

On May 15, Azerbaijan will take over the rotating chairmanship of the
Council of Europe, Europe’s foremost human rights body. The body’s
secretary-general, Thorbjorn Jagland, should express urgent concern
about harassment of the Yunuses and the treatment of Mirgadirov, as
well as the wider crackdown on civic activists and journalists under
way for the past year in Azerbaijan, which has intensified in recent
months.

“The harassment against the Yunuses is only the latest example of the
Azerbaijani government’s efforts to muzzle critics,” Denber said. “The
Council of Europe’s top leadership should step in immediately and say
that this conduct is utterly inappropriate for a government that is
about to take over the organization’s chairmanship.”

Leyla Yunus is the director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy,
a human rights group formed in 1995 that has focused on combating
politically motivated prosecutions, corruption, violence against
women, and unlawful house evictions. It has also been involved in
projects aimed at improving people-to-people dialogue between people
in Azerbaijan and Armenia, against the background of the unresolved
conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily ethnic Armenian-populated
autonomous enclave in Azerbaijan.

In the April 28 incident, airport police at about 11 p.m. stopped the
Yunuses from boarding a plane, searched their belongings, and
confiscated a laptop computer and documents. Yunus told Human Rights
Watch that the National Security Ministry and officials from the
prosecutor general’s office questioned the couple at the airport,
refusing to allow their lawyer access to them.

At about 3 a.m., law enforcement agents accompanied the couple to
their apartment and attempted to search it. Because the officials
refused to show Leyla Yunus a search warrant, she refused to allow
them to enter. During the exchange at the apartment, Arif Yunus, who
had been hospitalized the week before with high blood pressure and a
heart condition, fell ill and was rushed to the hospital again. He is
in intensive care.

The next morning, after a sleepless night, Leyla Yunus was questioned
for hours at the prosecutor general’s office, this time in the
presence of her lawyer. At about 4 p.m., she was released without
charge. That evening police, producing a warrant, searched her home
and her office, confiscating, among other things, books by Arif Yunus,
a book in Armenian, a photocopy of Mirgadirov’s ID, and computers.

Yunus’s lawyer told Human Rights Watch that all of the prosecutor’s
questions related to their work on building dialogue with Armenians
and her relationship with Mirgadirov, who is facing charges of spying
for Armenia in connection with trips he made to Armenia, Georgia, and
Turkey in 2008 and 2009.

Mirgadirov had been involved in “second track diplomacy” between
Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. He participated in
meetings organized by nongovernmental organizations in Armenia aimed
at improving people-to-people dialogue between the conflicting sides.
The Institute for Peace and Democracy co-organized some of those
programs.

In an April 29 news article, the press service for the prosecutor
general’s office said that the Yunuses were witnesses to a criminal
investigation and alleged that they had previously ignored an attempt
to be served with an interrogation summons and follow-up phone calls
asking them to appear for questioning.

Yunus’s lawyer told Human Rights Watch that on April 24 an official
came to the Yunuses’ home to deliver a summons to appear for
interrogation in several hours, which Leyla Yunus refused, saying she
had not received adequate notice. Another person close to the case
told Human Rights Watch that this incident had resulted in Arif
Yunus’s earlier hospitalization with hypertension.

Azerbaijan has a long history of using bogus charges to imprison its
critics, including on treason charges, Human Rights Watch said.

In August 2011, violating a court injunction, the Baku authorities
demolished without warning a building owned by Leyla Yunus as part of
a government land clearance to make way for a park and business area.
The building housed the Institute for Peace and Democracy and two
other human rights groups. Yunus had repeatedly criticized the
government’s redevelopment plans for the area.

“The ordeal the authorities subjected the Yunuses to bears all the
marks of a government getting ready to pounce on two people it has
long had in its crosshairs,” Denber said. “The government needs to
back off and both President Hollande and the Council of Europe need to
make that clear.”

Fars News Agency, Iran
May 2 2014

Armenian Envoy Calls for Broadening Economic Ties with Iran

TEHRAN (FNA)- Armenian Ambassador to Iran Grigor Arakelian underlined
abundant commonalities of the two nations, and said the ground is
prepared for the further expansion of economic relations between
Tehran and Yerevan.

“The opportunities for presence of foreign investors, particularly
Armenians, have risen as a result of the new Iranian government’s
policies,” Arakelian said in a meeting attended by 12 representatives
of foreign countries in Salafchagan Special Economic Zone in Qom
province on Thursday.

Arakelian pointed to Armenia-Iran cordial relations, and said, “The
two countries should make use of their potentialities to enhance ties
in various sectors.”

He noted that Iran and Armenia also enjoy very close cooperation at
the international organizations.

In recent years, Iran and its Northern neighbor Armenia have boosted
cooperation, signed agreements on energy cooperation and agreed to
cooperate in technology and research and enhance ties in commerce and
economy.

In August, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani and his Armenian
counterpart Serzh Sargsian, in a meeting in Tehran, hailed the
friendly relations between the two neighboring states, and called for
the expansion of mutual cooperation in all arenas.

During the meeting, the Iranian president said that relations between
Iran and Armenia have been friendly based on mutual interests and
there is no doubt that the same trend will be continued in future to
help enhance the current level of relations and cooperation.

“Iran has always called for expansion of relations and cooperation
with Armenia thanks to both sides cultural and civilization
commonalities,” Rouhani added.

“Armenia at international conferences has always adopted a very close
and friendly stand with Iran, which helps meet both sides’ interests,”
Rouhani said.

The Armenian president, for his part, said that Iran and Armenia have
kept abreast of developments throughout history and in the past 20
years they developed economic cooperation.

“There is no doubt that ties and cooperation between the two countries
will be bolstered in line with the expansion of economic cooperation
during the tenure of president Rouhani,” he said.

According to the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC), around 1.5
billion cubic meters of natural gas has been traded with Armenian
electricity from 2007 to 2012.

Azerbaijani radio has undergone obstruction because of airing Armenian songs

21:02 02/05/2014 » LAW

National Council on Television and Radio of Azerbaijan (NCTR) claimed
the leadership of the ANS FM radio station for constant propaganda of
Armenian songs within the frameworks of the music program “Caucasus
Top 20”, reported NCTR Chairman Nushiravan Magerramli to Azerbaijani
news agency “APA.”

According to Magerramli, the NCTR employee was requested to contact
with the leadership of ANS FM in connection with the airing of
Armenian songs: “I requested to clarify this issue, and such a
broadcast was not allowed, as it plays on people’s feelings.
Unfortunately, the response of the ANS FM leadership given to the
employee of NCTR, causes regret.”

Magerramli stated that Armenia and Azerbaijan are in war, and they
should be very careful in these issues.

“The logic of the leadership of ANS FM “Culture has no borders” is
incorrect. By this logic, we should perform Armenian movies in
Azerbaijan, sell Armenian goods, hold exhibitions of their artists,”
stated Magerramli.

According to the Azerbaijani news portal “Minval.az”, according to
Tavakkyula Dadasheva, the head of the Examination, Programming and
Monitoring Division of the NCTR, in connection with the broadcast of
Armenian songs on the ANS FM a reference letter was sent to the
leadership.

“A reference letter was prepared and directed to the leadership,
stating that the ANS FM broadcasts Armenian songs and the anchorperson
publicly announces this. Measures will be undertaken in accordance
with the law,” stated Dadashev.

Source: Panorama.am

GenEd Republishes Landmark Book of Armenian Genocide News Reports

Friday, May 2nd, 2014

‘The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the American Press: 1915-1922′

SAN FRANCISCO’The Genocide Education Project has republished the
seminal book, `The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the American
Press: 1915-1922.’ Originally edited and published in 1980 by Richard
Kloian, the founder of the Armenian Genocide Resource Center who
passed away in 2010, the 400 page book is a compilation of New York
Times articles, magazine stories, eyewitness accounts, and official
documents about the Armenian Genocide, as they were first published in
the American press of the day. The Genocide Education Project (GenEd)
was given the rights to the book by Mrs. Toni Kloian, in order for the
book to remain in publication and continue to provide scholars,
educators, and policy makers access to this valuable resource.

“The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the American Press’ is an
essential work of scholarship,’ writes author and Colgate University
professor, Peter Balakian. `Kloian meticulously presents the vast and
rich coverage of the Armenian Genocide in the major American press,
especially the New York Times, and in doing so provides us with an
important way of understanding the scope and magnitude of the Armenian
Genocide in its historical moment ‘ a moment that still has large
ramifications nearly a century later.’

`The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the American Press’ is a
compelling chronicle of the Armenian Genocide, the systematic
deportations and massacres of the Armenians of the Ottoman Empire,
perpetrated by the Turkish government between 1915 and 1922. Reports
in U.S. newspapers of the 1890-1909 massacres and the 1915 genocide
galvanized the entire nation, spawning the first international human
rights movement in the United States, including protests and
unprecedented national relief efforts.

Editor and publisher of the book, Richard Kloian

Included in the book are:
¢ 200 articles from The New York Times, 1890-1915
¢ 68 articles from fourteen American journals
¢ American Ambassador Morgenthau’s personal account of the genocide
¢ Lord Bryce’s report on Turkish atrocities in Armenia
¢ Accounts by German, Turkish, Italian & Danish eyewitnesses
¢ Scores of eyewitness survivor accounts
¢ Telegrams by the Turkish Interior Minister, Talaat Pasha, admitting genocide
¢ Transcript of the Ottoman Military Court trial indictment and death
sentences for the former leaders for war crimes
¢ Photographs of the deportations and massacres

Alan Whitehorn, emeritus professor of political science at the Royal
Military College of Canada, recently wrote in the Armenian Weekly,
`The most innovative and path-breaking work on newspaper coverage of
the genocide was conducted by Richard Kloian in his 1980 monumental
book, `The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts From the American Press
(1915-1922).’ Working for many years to gather diverse material and
employing far less advanced technology, Kloian surveyed the American
press for the key seven-year period¦The volume he delivered at nearly
400 pages was epic and pioneering¦ It is an essential reference work
for anyone doing sustained research on the Armenian Genocide.’

The American Book Review stated it is `a must for all libraries that
have sections devoted to the Middle East, Armenia, and the phenomenon
of genocide.’

`The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the American Press:
1915-1922′ is available for $25 plus shipping from The Genocide
Education Project.

The Genocide Education Project is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, tax-exempt
501(c)(3) educational organization that assists educators in teaching
about human rights and genocide, particularly the Armenian Genocide,
by developing and distributing instructional materials, providing
access to teaching resources and organizing educational workshops. For
more information about The Genocide Education Project, go to

ARMENIE
Les communistes arméniens se rassemblent en soutien à l’Union douanière

Des centaines de partisans du Parti communiste arménien (HKK) ont
exigé une rapide adhésion de l’Arménie à l’union dirigée par la Russie
alors qu’ils défilaient dans le centre d’Erevan lors de la célébration
de la Journée du 1er mai.

Le cortège s’est terminé devant l’ambassade de Russie dans la capitale
arménienne où les dirigeants du HKK ont lu une pétition exprimant un
soutien fort pour le `processus d’intégration à grande échelle` du
président russe Vladimir Poutine pour l’ex-Union soviétique. `Russie !
Russie ! ` scandait la foule brandissant des drapeaux rouges et des
banderoles.

`S’il y a eu une bonne chose de faite par Serge Sarkissian, c’est sa
décision de rejoindre l’Union douanière,` a dit un manifestant gé au
service arménien de RFE / RL (Azatutyun.am). Il a dit que les
négociations d’adhésion en cours entre l’Arménie et la Russie, la
Biélorussie et le Kazakhstan doivent être conclues dès que possible.

« Je suis très reconnaissant à Vladimir Poutine pour la mise en place
de l’Union douanière`, a déclaré un autre, plus jeune.

Le Premier secrétaire du HKK, Tachat Sarkissian, a affirmé que
l’adhésion au sein du bloc, que Poutine veut transformer en une Union
eurasienne, est essentiel pour mettre fin aux malheurs
socio-économiques de l’Arménie. Il s’est opposé aux critiques que cela
mettrait la souveraineté du pays en danger. `Au contraire, nous allons
nous sentir encore plus en sécurité après avoir rejoint l’Union
douanière,` a-t-il déclaré.

Beaucoup de soutiens au HKK marquent cette Journée du 1er avec leur
vie plus prospère dans l’ex-URSS. « Ã l’époque, nous allions aux
célébrations du premier mai avec des chansons et beaucoup de joie.
Maintenant, les gens se réveillent le matin et pensent ce qu’ils vont
faire jusqu’au soir `, a déclaré une retraité.

Bien que le 1er mai est un jour férié en Arménie, le HKK était le seul
groupe politique à le célébrer avec un événement de grande envergure.
Les communistes arméniens étaient une force politique majeure dans les
années 1990, remportant environ 10 pour cent des voix aux élections
présidentielles et législatives. Cependant, leur influence a depuis
diminué de façon spectaculaire. Le HKK n’est pas représenté au
Parlement arménien depuis 2003.

vendredi 2 mai 2014,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

A CALL FOR HELP FOR ARMENIA’S FENCING TEAM

Thursday, May 1st, 2014

Students of the Grigoryan Fencing School in Yerevan, Armenia, with
school director Samvel Grigoryan (center)

BY ALEXANDER AZIZIAN

YEREVAN–Emil is one of our top fencers here in Armenia. He comes to
practice everyday (except Sundays) along with the other handful of
students at the Albert Grigoryan Fencing School – one of the seven
fencing schools in Armenia. Conditions at the Armenian schools are,
however, far below what would be considered a minimum standard for
fencing practice.

As I am also a fencer in America, I have seen first-hand how schools
there usually have 8 to 16 fencing strips (where as, in Armenia,
we have only one). Air conditioning is also missing here (only half
of the windows at our school open fully). The fencing schools in
The USA all have fully-lit rooms, while just a few of the electrical
circuits in our ceiling work here. American fencing schools also have
fully working equipment which is always available to all students –
both old and new. Here, at our Armenian school, we need to take turns
using the same equipment every few minutes.

The fencing equipment that our school in Armenia currently owns is
of the worst quality, which is also the most dangerous to have. The
poor quality is the result of shortcuts that were made to cut down on
material and labor expenses. The wood floors of our school actually
have nails sticking out from them. We’ve memorized where the nails
are so that we can try to avoid stepping on them when we practice.

Despite all of this, our boys are still motivated to train as hard
as the current fencing Olympians in other countries. When Armenia
was part of The USSR, the Armenian fencers on the Soviet team always
did extremely well. The championships were won then, however, for
the Soviet Union and not for the Republic of Armenia. Now we have the
opportunity to represent the Republic of Armenia as fencing champions,
but due to a lack of funding, Armenia does not have even a small
fighting chance to prove its valor. Armenians possess the historical
record of being able to win in many sports, and now is the time for
us to win for our own country, not for others.

A young student is instructed by his trainer at the Yerevan fencing
school

The importance of sports to Armenian culture and society is crucial.

The morale and spirits of our citizens, our soldiers, and the seven
million Armenians living abroad were raised higher when it was seen
that Armenia had won the latest sport competition. Sadly, winning
a championship is something that is rarely seen nowadays, and after
living for more than half a year in Armenia, I understand why.

Due to the blockade, the war, and mass migration, we have been denied
a fighting chance to prove to the world that we are just as powerful
in sports as the bigger nations.

Sports politics play a major role in all of our lives. Armenians can
easily recall the Armenia vs. Azerbaijan wrestling match during the
last Olympics; after our boy won, remember how relieved we all felt?

We felt the same relief as we would have felt winning a war! Two
people were fighting to win, with different citizenships – one person
was victorious, but without the price of death.

I have been to the front-lines of Karabakh where I had the opportunity
to talk to the soldiers to see what kind of a mindset they have about
the current situation. They told me that when the Azeri’s violate the
ceasefire and kill one of our soldiers, we retaliate and take 5 of
theirs. I came away from that thinking how different it is in sports.

High tensions can be released and rivalries resolved in a friendly and
respectful sports match without people dying. Imagine fighting to win –
imagine an undisputed victory – without the need for someone to die!

I have no control over or the ability to change the political system.

Neither can I run to the front-line and take over Baku or convince
the millions living abroad to return to Armenia. But I do have the
conviction that Armenia can and will be victorious in the many sports
competitions to come.

We are now in a position to boost the spirits and raise the
morale of the Armenian people all over the world – just from sports
competitions. This is what I am devoting my life to training Armenian
fencing students to achieve that most noble goal – and I am asking
for others to join me in doing so.

The Republic of Armenia is only 20 years old; if we do not take
good care of our country, it will slowly disappear – culturally,
spiritually, and politically. There are over 6,000 ethnic languages
spoken by different people across the globe, but there are only about
200 countries in the entire world. The Armenian people cannot be one of
those people without a country. Our “ace up our sleeve” is our passion
for sports – and to unite the Armenian people, it’s time to use it.

Students practice at the Grigoryan Fencing School in Yerevan

Albert Susseramart NGO is all about our fencing students in Armenia.

Our Number One Goal is to help guarantee Armenia a Gold Medal in the
2016 Olympics. Albert Grigoryan established fencing as a recognized
sport in Armenia many years ago. He passed away recently, but we are
now finally making his dreams come true.

Providing better equipment for the athletes, renovating the fencing
schools, and recruiting more students to join the schools will make up
the primary activities of the NGO. This will not come about without
cost. We will also need to pay for transporting the fencing team
to competitions both regionally and globally. Our NGO will need to
enlist the aid of the Armenian people around the world to help us
achieve our goals.

Our first goal is to raise $7,500 (USD) to purchase gear for the entire
school, which will be considered safe by international standards. From
there, we will be able to move on to renovating the schools and
purchasing our travel tickets to the next World Competition. Once
Armenia has competed in enough competitions, we will be invited to
also compete in the Olympics. Ultimately, we will be hosting our own
World Cup!

In order to ensure the correct, fully appropriate, and unquestionably
legitimate use of all NGO funds, I will personally be taking on the
responsibility of providing direct oversight and financial stewardship
to guarantee that all contributions are applied in the best possible
manner to fulfill our Olympic dreams.

It has been said that there is sometimes a problem concerning some
organizations in Armenia and that some people misuse words such as
“Charity” or “Orphanage” as a way of making a profit. This need not be
the case. All that is required is that there be a small but dedicated
and committed group of knowledgeable overseers on hand to make sure
that all funding goes to the right place – and measurable progress
will be accomplished. For all donations made to our fencing school
and our team, there will be a daily tracker on our website that will
show clearly the specific details of where the donations are going
and how they are being used.

Please help us to bring to the Armenian people across the globe – and
to the 20-year old Republic of Armenia – the honor and recognition
that can be rightfully ours through the victories we can achieve in
the global sports arena.

My heartfelt and most sincere thanks in advance go to all for your
attention, your support, and your confidence in our athletes.

Now is the time to inspire and lift up our youth and our talented
athletes so that they can make it to the Olympics and represent
Armenia as champions!

For more information and to donate to our cause, please visit our
Indiegogo page and our website.

ITALIAN EDITION OF VARUJAN VOSGANIAN’S “BOOK OF WHISPERS” PRESENTED IN THE VATICAN

18:29 29.04.2014

The presentation of Itaian edition of Romanilan Armenian writer,
politician, Senator Varujan Vosganian’s “Book of Whispers” was held
at Centro Russia Ecumenica cultural center in Vatican. The event was
organized by the Armenian Embassy in the Holy See.

In his opening remarks Armenian Ambassador to Vatican Mikael Minasyan
stressed the importance of presenting the memories of the ancestors
that have survived the Armenian Genocide to the world.

Attending the event were the Vatican ‘Chief of Justice’ Cardinal
Francesco Coccopalmero, other high-ranking representatives of
the Holy See, the Ambassadors of Peru, Russia, Romania, Uruguay,
Croatia, Bulgaria and other countries accredited to the Vatican,
culture figures, scholars, representatives of the Armenian community.

YEREVAN MALL EMPLOYEES QUIT WORK – NEWSPAPER

May 01, 2014 | 08:51

YEREVAN. – The activities of Yerevan Mall shopping center, which
recently opened in Armenia’s capital city, are not going that well,
Zhamanak daily reported.

“The salesmen and the saleswomen, who were hired by the numerous
stores-shops in the shopping center, are quitting, since the management
does not fulfill the preliminary agreement in terms of salaries.

“An employee, who likewise had quit work, told Zhamanak that there
was an agreement [on the salary] when being hired, but, recently,
he and numerous other employees were informed that the salaries were
reduced because there is no business,” Zhamanak wrote.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am