Author: Kanayan Tamar

CONSTRUCTION WORKS RESUME ON KOMITAS AVENUE

August 30, 2013 | 15:12

YEREVAN. – Construction work resumed in Komitas Avenue on Friday
morning, director Tigran Khzmalyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

However, later the workers left after local residents explained
the situation.

Construction of a high-rise began a few years ago. As a result of
numerous protests of local residents, construction was suspended. The
works resumed two weeks ago, which persuaded residents to continue
picketing. The rallies were accompanied by clashes with police.

Several protestors were detained and suffered bodily injuries.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

States News Service
August 31, 2013 Saturday

ETHNIC ARMENIANS IN SYRIA BRACE FOR MISSILE STRIKES

PRAGUE, Czech Republic

The following information was released by Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty:

As the United States and its allies lay plans for what many believe
will be a sustained missile strike inside Syria, the sizable ethnic
Armenian community in that country is bracing for the worst.

Zhirayr Reisian, a spokesman for the Syrian diocese of the Armenian
Apostolic Church, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service that the estimated
100,000 ethnic Syrians in Aleppo were aware of the dangers that could
lie ahead but were trying to continue with normal life.

“After all, we are residents of this city and this country. We are
part of the people of this country,” Reisian said. “If something is
going to happen to all, it will also happen to us. If something
happens, we are sure to use our means to be helpful with whatever we
can to anyone who suffers and is in need of help.”

Syrian Armenians interviewed by RFE/RL’s Armenian Service say they
have begun preparing for possible missile strikes, and many say they
will take shelter in the basement of their buildings, if necessary.

Armenians first arrived en masse in Syria in the early 20th century,
after the Ottoman government uprooted and forced thousands of them out
of what is now Turkey and marched them into the Syrian desert. Aleppo,
in the northwest of the country, soon swelled with fleeing Armenians.
In the decades that followed, the community took root and prospered.

No Way Out

In modern times, ethnic Armenians in Syria have been treated
benevolently by the two successive regimes of Hafez al-Assad and his
son, Bashar. As minorities themselves — they belong to the Alawite
sect — the ruling Assad family has long courted Syria’s other ethnic
minorities to strengthen their hand against the country’s majority
Sunni population.

But the 30-month-old civil war in Syria has exacted a toll on all
Syrians, no matter which side they are on.

“The Armenian community is neutral, but it is concerned, because this
possible strike will be delivered against the whole country and
everyone without exception will suffer,” says Zarmik Poghikian, who
works at the Aleppo-based “Gandzasar” magazine.

“Leaders of the Armenian community have urged people to remain
cautious during these days and refrain from attempting to leave the
city, but even if someone wanted to do so, there is no opportunity
anymore, as all roads are closed.”

Armenian residents of Aleppo say they couldn’t leave if they wanted
to, with roads and airport closed.

Poghikian says the community is not in a state of panic, but even if
it were, fleeing is no longer possible because the roads leading out
of Aleppo are too dangerous and the airport has not been operational
since late last year.

Many Syrian Armenians have already fled. According to Armenian
government data, 6,248 left the country and came to Armenia in the
first six months of 2012.

Now they are worried about families and friends still there. “I keep
asking why they preferred staying there, why did they not leave when
conditions were appropriate for that? What was there?” asks
businessman Raffi Tashchian, who has a daughter in Aleppo. “At least
they could have taken the child out of there. If they wanted to stay
there, they should at least have taken the child to a safe place. I
don’t want to imagine my child in such conditions.”

‘We Don’t Need A Second Genocide’

Harutiun Ustakarayan, a Syrian Armenian also in Armenia, says everyone
is hoping the United States and its allies won’t launch a military
strike. “Armenians do not believe that America will strike cities, but
they will go down to the basements fearing that chemical weapons could
be used [like in the August 21] sarin gas attack in Damascus,” he
says.

READ ALSO: Syrian Civil War — A Timeline Of Tragedy

The Armenian government is officially neutral in the Syrian civil war
and has not formally evacuated ethnic Armenians from the country.
Eurasianet.com reported last year that the government was allowing
Syrian citizens to obtain Armenian visas at the border and Armenian
passports within Syria, rather than in Yerevan alone.

Some Syrian Armenians, like Ustakarayan, think Armenian officials
should be doing more, now that Western powers have signaled their
readiness to join the battle. He says the situation has parallels to
what happened when as many as 1.5 million Armenians died at Ottoman
hands from during World War I.

“The situation is getting increasingly worse for Armenians. If I were
in a position to decide for the Armenian government, I would have
asked the United States [for help] or ensured in some other way that
[ethnic Armenians] are evacuated from there,” Ustakarayan says. “I
don’t know how, but evacuated from there somehow, because Armenians
have no fault in this whole war and we don’t need a second genocide
within just 100 years.”

PRESS RELEASE
KNIGHTS OF VARTAN, Inc.
Contact: Grand Council
P.O. Box 25
Belmont, MA 02478
Tel: 617-359-0413
Email: [email protected]
Web:

Knights Of Vartan Holds 95th Convocation

LAS VEGAS – On July 10-13, the members of the Knights of Vartan
delegates from all over United State and Canada gathered here for
their 95th annual convocation, which took place at Harrah’s Hotel,
organized by Knights and Daughters of Vartan chapters of Fresno,
Calif.

During the convocation, which also marked the gathering of the
Daughters of Vartan, a new Grand Council was elected. The members are
Grand Commander Nigoghos Atinizian II, Nelson Stepanian, Armen
Mahserejian, Michael Guleserian, Robert Avakian, Kevork Marashlian and
Jean-Jacques Hajjar.

Since its founding in 1916, the brotherhood has donated millions of
dollars to various Armenian organizations in the diaspora, as well as
specific programs in Armenia and Karabagh, and its members have been
mentors in, leaders of and volunteers at all Armenian churches,
charities and organizations, working in a unified fashion for the
benefit of the greater community all over United States.

The members of the Fresno brotherhood organized the four-day
convocation in Las Vegas.

The flagship event of the convocation was the establishment of a new
lodge in Las Vegas. There is a growing Armenian community in that
city, with three churches and several organizations starting chapters
there.

The convocation re-elected Nigoghos Atinizian II as Grand Commander of
Knights of Vartan. During his speeches at the convocation, Atinizian
stressed the importance of the role the Knights and Daughters play in
the community and urged for the recruitment of young members to fully
serve its mission. Said Atinizian, `I have found an overwhelming
commitment to the mission and purposes to the Knights of Vartan –
putting territorial issues aside – most of the lodges are having a
unique impact on their community and making their presence known and
respected. However, much work needs to be done. We must be more
ambitious in selecting members of our community to join the
Knights. The Knights must be perceived as a cadre of focused men of
high integrity and dedication to the Armenian cause. While making the
Knights more inclusive and recruiting new members, regardless of their
social or economic standing in the community, we must also be first in
raising the bar and selecting men of high character and integrity, who
understand not only the privileges of membership but also the
responsibilities inherent in that membership.’

He continued, `We must be more astute in reaching out to members that
have perhaps not been consulted and have not been called to
participate and we must use the modern methods of electronic
communications and social media to communicate with all members, so
that these members immediately know what their lodges are up to and
what specific time commitments and resources are required to implement
the projects and programs of the lodge.’ Atinizian noted that he has
been a Knight for 13 years and relishes the `positive outlook’ of the
organization.

Many programs and activities were planned for the visiting Knights and
Daughters, including tours of the Hoover Dam and the Mob Museum.
There was also a Kef Night Las Vegas on Friday night, with music by
Richard Hagopian and a grand banquet on Saturday night featuring the
Knights’ Man of the Year, Mark Geragos.

In addition to the lighthearted activities, the Knights and Daughters
held workshops on how to maximize their effectiveness through online
outreach as well as specific subcommittees that had been formed. One
of them had been formed earlier in the year, called ALIP or Armenian
Leadership Project, which will help college and university students to
find jobs in their specialties. Hajjar is going to be the point person
for this effort.

`At its core it is a youth development program with a national
scope. The objective is to engage the youth in the community, namely
the 17 to 27 year olds, through a variety of programs and services,’
explained Hajjar. `

These include but are not limited to the following programs: home away
from home [welcome out of town youth into local Armenian community],
academic/professional counseling as well as networking and mentorship
initiatives. These may originate at the local Knights of Vartan and
Daughters of Vartan chapters, respectively, but broadened nationwide
through the extended national membership.’

He continued, `There is consensus among the brothers and sisters that
the only way to preserve the community is to invest in its
youth. This, we trust, will be driving force behind this project.’

Hajjar was happy with the convocation. `The Grand Convocation was very
well attended. Two days of meeting saw a lot of debates on both the
internal operations of the organization as well as its community
outreach mission.

There was an additional day spend on workshops which were focused on
new programs and also improvement initiatives. The venue, which as
you well know was Las Vegas, added to the excitement and vigor of all
the participants.’ Knight Ken Nahigian was delighted with the
direction of the convocation and said it was well-organized. `I
thought the meetings were very well done.

We are working toward finding a new purpose for the Knights,’ Nahigian
said. He explained that for the past 95 years or so since the founding
of the Knights of Vartan in the US, the goal has been solidifying the
Armenian-American community. `We have achieved that,’ he said. `Now
we are focused and energized on new ways of serving the Armenian
community.’

Among those new ways, he said, is helping the Armenian-Americans get
together socially and `helping them in any way possible.’

One of the organizations that the Knights and Daughters are supporting
is Children of Armenia Sponsorship Program (CASP), based in
Connecticut. The program supports orphans in Armenia. Nahigian’s
chapter, in Providence, RI, has supported a child through CASP for
many years. In fact, the child just reached the age of 18 and the
lodge is supporting a new child in an orphanage.

Nahigian said that the organization is not only initiating programs
for the betterment of Armenians in the US, Armenia and Artsakh, but
also encouraged individual members to `supply the people power to
support other organizations as well. We can be the unsung heroes of
the Armenian community, even if we don’t get the recognition.’

Nahigian is a third-generation Knight. His grandfather, the late
Thomas Nahigian, was a Knight in the Providence chapter, as is his
father, Leon Nahigian.

New Daughters of Vartan Board

Lisa Kradjian, the newly-elected Grand Matron, or the leader of the
Daughters of Vartan, replacing Agnes Sahagian, was thrilled with her
experience.

`I have attended the convocations for 10 years now, and they are
always an opportunity to create lifelong friendships, to hear the
ideas and activities of fellow members and chapters across the county
and to be reinvigorated culturally, spiritually, emotionally. We look
forward to it every year,’ she said.

The new members of the Grand Council of the Daughters of Vartan in
addition to Kradjian are Naira Serobyan, Sonia Serpekian, Marilou
Gostanian, Tanya Yerevanian, Renata Sahagian and Anahit Antonyan, all
from the San Diego chapter.

There are 22 Daughters of Vartan chapters around the US, and most of
them had representation at the convocation, Kradjian noted.

Kradjian is excited about the organization and exhorts all Armenian
men and women to consider joining the Knights or Daughters. Among her
many reasons for joining, she said, is that it is a thrill `to be part
of an organization that is passionate about developing leaders,
sustaining our heritage, cultivating friendships and assisting our
people in the US, Armenia and around the world. Some might say that
many Armenian organizations do this, but none do it with the mix of
educational, spiritual and cultural activity that the Knights and
Daughters of Vartan offer. And it is still the only Armenian
organization I know where I have experienced true Armenian unity –
Armenians from all the different church and political backgrounds, all
ages from 20s to 80s, and from all countries of origin, and also some
non-Armenians, all participating.’

Mark Geragos Speaks

Famed attorney Mark Geragos was the speaker at the main banquet on
Saturday night, at which time he received the Knights’ Man of the Year
Award.

Geragos spoke about his involvement in community affairs, such as the
annual Armenia Fund telethon. He also discussed his rebuttal to the
claims about the involvement of Armenians made by the alleged Boston
Marathon bombers’ uncle on CNN.

His talk was a hit with the Knights and Daughters. Atinizian said he
was ` a great speaker who really inspired the people attending the
convocation with his wit and wonderful stories.’

Added Kradjian, `He is always an engaging speaker and person. My
family has known him for many years. He has a myriad of stories from
his professional experience that are not only compelling but speak to
his ethics and passion for defending an individual [or a nation like
Armenia] from attack. He was well deserving of the Knights’ Man of the
Year Award.’

One of the areas that the Knights are going to focus on is Armenian
border towns and impoverished areas. Said Kradjian, `During this
year’s convocation I heard my first presentation on the situation in
the Tavush region and what is being done there. Past Matron Eva
Medzorian’s film on the region’s challenges was also quite moving. The
Knights and Daughters are passionate about supporting Armenian
charities – our members make contributions in the amount of seven
figures to a variety of charities around the world.’

At the dinner, the invocation was given by Rev. Yeghia Hairabedian of
St. Gregory the Illuminator in Fowler, Calif., also a Knight.

Introductions at the dinner were made by convocation co-chairs, Past
Commanders Steve Adams and Kevork Oflazian was master of
ceremonies. Welcoming remarks were made by co-chair Past Commander
Mark Der Matoian and Past Matron Roberta Hairabedian.

Grand Associate Commander Nelson Stepanian gave the scholarships
awards. Atinizian recognized and gave special rewards to the
following for their outstanding devotion to the brotherhood: Grand
District Representative Vicken Mouradian; Commander of Mamigonian
Lodge Ari Minnetian and Past Commander Gary Baboian of the
newly-formed lodge in Las Vegas.

At the banquet, music was performed by Lucine Zirekyants, soprano and
violinist, and her pianist, Daughters member Rouzan Vanesian.

While the latest convocation may just be over, plans are already
underway for next year’s convocation, which will be held July 2-6,
2014 in San Diego.

`The San Diego Knights and Daughters of Vartan promises a wonderful
convocation at the Grand Hyatt downtown with some special new
additions: a Mixer for Young Professionals, and the first-ever
national Armenian Art Event to support the Armenian School Support
Project (to rebuild schools in Armenia with a World Bank 95/5 match)
and to feature Armenian artists from around the world,’ said Kradjian,
whose chapter will co-host the 2014 Convocation. The Knights of
Vartan, along with its sister organization The Daughters of Vartan, is
a non-political, non-dominical Armenian fraternal organization founded
in 1916. For more information, visit

Half of cement produced in Armenia is consumed in Georgia

15:11, 31 August, 2013

YEREVAN, AUGUST 31, ARMENPRESS: Cement production in the Republic of
Armenia during January-July of 2013 has increased by
6.2 percent compared with the same period of previous year and lime
production has increased by 13.9 percent. According to
information from National Statistics Service during the first seven
months of current year in Armenia have been produced 235 600
tones of cement and 16 722 tones of lime (correspondingly 221 900 and
14 676 tones in the first months of 2012). `Armenpress’
reports that in the first half of this year the whole volume if
exported cement has been sent to Georgia (92 500 tones).

HRAPARAK: FORMER GYUMRI MAYOR CREATING ‘MUNICIPALITY’ IN OLD COURT BUILDING

10:33 30/08/2013 ” DAILY PRESS

Former mayor of Gyumri, Vardan Ghukasyan, fails to get used to his
current status, Hraparak daily says.

According to the paper, Ghukasyan is looking for alternative ways
to establish control of the city. During his tenure as Gyumri
mayor, Ghukasyan bought the old building of Gyumri court, which is
currently being renovated. Ghukasyan plans to turn it into a second
‘municipality’ in the city, where he will organize receptions, hold
meetings and assist needy people.

Source: Panorama.am

LES HABITANTS DE LA RUE KOMITAS CONTINUENT A PROTESTER

ARMENIE

Les quotidiens rendent compte de l’action de protestation, pour la
deuxième journee consecutive, des habitants de l’avenue Komitas,
afin d’empecher la construction d’un grand immeuble dans une cour
interieure. Un policier qui, lors de la rixe survenue la veille, avait
maltraite une des manifestantes, s’est vu renvoyer. Selon RFE/RL, le
directeur de la societe en charge de la construction a accepte, a la
suite de ces manifestations de reduire la hauteur du futur bâtiment
de 14 a 7 etages afin de satisfaire les doleances des residents.

Extrait de la revue de presse de l’Ambassade de France en Armenie en
date du 23 août 2013

vendredi 30 août 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

Drole De Chauffeur De Bus Armenien En Russie

russie

Le bus de Usub Kochoyan est devenu populaire a Volgograd, en Russie.

Yusub, qui est d’origine armenienne, a mis en place son propre système
de rabais pour les differentes categories de passagers.

Les femmes enceintes peuvent utiliser le bus gratuitement, tout
comme les soldats et ceux celebrant leur anniversaire ce jour-la. Les
soldats fournissent la preuve de leur appartenance a l’armee au travers
de leur uniforme, tandis que les personnes ayant leur anniversaire
montrent leur passeport comme preuve.

Si le conducteur est accueilli poliment, passager peut obtenir une
reduction de 3 roubles.

L’homme ne recoit pas de profits de ces rabais.

vendredi 30 août 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

ATOM EGOYAN’S ‘DEVIL’S KNOT’ ADDED TO SAN SEBASTIAN LINEUP

Hollywood Reporter
Aug 21 2013

The film with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon about the West Memphis
Three murders joins the official selection of the Spanish festival.

Madrid – Academy Award-nominated director Atom Egoyan’s film Devil’s
Knot will be judged in the official section of next month’s San
Sebastian film festival, organizers announced on Wednesday.

About the 1993 “West Memphis Three” murders and starring Colin
Firth and Reese Witherspoon, the film joins Bosnian director Jasmila
ŽbaniÄ~G’s For Those Who Can Tell No Tales and Austrian director
Götz Spielmann’s Oktober November as the festival’s latest picks.

PHOTOS: Inside Reese Witherspoon’s Ojai Estate

A few remaining films in the section, plus the closer, have yet to
be announced.

Previously announced for the official section are Las Brujas de
Zugarramurdi by Alex de la Iglesia, Canibal by Manuel Martin, Enemy
by Denis Villeneuve, La Herida by Fernando Franco, Vivir Es Facil
con los Ojos Cerrados by David Trueba, Club Sandwich by Fernando
Eimbcke, Mon Ame par Toi Guerie by Francois Dupeyron, Pelo Malo by
Mariana Rondon, Quai d’Orsay by Bertrand Tavernier, The Railway Man
by Jonathan Teplitzky and Le Week-End by Roger Michell.

Las Brujas stars veteran Spanish actress Carmen Maura, best-known in
the U.S. for her role in Pedro Almodovar’s Women on the Verge of a
Nervous Breakdown, who will receive a Donostia Lifetime Achievement
Award during the festival.

The festival will run from Sept. 20-28.

O’FARRELL FACES GALLIPOLI THREAT

Fairfield Champion, Australia
August 28, 2013 Wednesday
First Edition

byBianca Martins

PREMIER Barry O’Farrell and all NSW Parliament members may be banned
from the centenary commemorations in Gallipoli in 2015, the Turkish
Government has warned.

The announcement was made after a motion officially recognising the
genocide of Assyrian people at the hands of the then Turkish Ottoman
was passed unanimously by the NSW Legislative Council in May.

The Turkish government has strongly condemned the motion and says it
is not compatible with historical facts.

Members of the local Assyrian community argue otherwise.

Recently they successfully lobbied Fairfield Council to change
the wording on a monument in Bonnyrigg and a plaque in Fairfield
commemorating what they call the Assyrian genocide.

Fairfield councillor Ninos Khoshaba, who raised the motion in
Parliament when he was the Smithfield MP, said he was disappointed by
the Turkish threat to ban NSW MPs from attending the Gallipoli service.

“I think they are being a little unreasonable and it’s disappointing to
take that stance, but it’s a decision they need to live with,” he said.

“This is something that happened 100 years ago. It’s not a reflection
of the current government or the Turkish people here in Australia.

“This genocide was committed by the then Ottoman Empire and it was
their own people who overthrew the Ottoman Empire during that time.”

Cr Khoshaba said it was also disappointing that people were trying
to defend the genocide.

“As for being barred, it was their decision,” he said.

“I’m not going to lose any sleep over not being allowed to go to
Turkey.”

But the local Turkish community disagree with the Assyrian
interpretation of the incident, which took place during World War I.

Turkish community spokesman Adem Cetinay said he supported the decision
made by the Turkish government.

“I think it’s too soft,” he said.

“You can’t be someone’s friend and then not their friend at the same
time. It was both sides of Parliament that passed this motion, which
was even sadder.

“There’s no evidence than genocide took place. It’s all fabricated
evidence.”

But the Assyrian Universal Alliance’s deputy secretary-general, Hermiz
Shahen, said millions of Christians perished because of the genocide.

“The Ottoman Empire carried out ethnic cleansing against all the
Christian nations – the Greeks, Armenians and Assyrians,” he said.

“This is a fact that they cannot deny – millions of indigenous ethnic
people perished because of it. It’s unfortunate that they are trying
to deny the facts. We want to forget the past, but how can we forget
it when Turkey aren’t apologising for what happened and giving relief
for people to leave history behind.

“They are threatening sovereignty to do what they think is the right
thing. And it’s not right.”

ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF FUNDING UNIVERSITIES

Along with rise in tuition fees the problem of funding comes up as a
more urgent issue of public concern. Obviously, limited state funding
can cover only a very small part of operation of universities. Tuition
fees remain the dominant source of revenues of universities. It is
equally evident that funding required for normal functioning and
development of universities is not something static and grows over
time which inevitably leads to rise in tuition fees.

These issues make us focus on the search for alternative sources of
funding universities. One option could be endowment. An essential
difference of endowment from other benevolent foundations is that
the university does not spend the donated sum but profit that it
generates. Nobel Fund is the best-known example of endowment. Awards
are paid from interest earned on shares and investments. The endowment
foundations for universities of the United States and England are
sometimes amazing, they may even exceed our country’s state budget.

Such endowment foundations cover a significant part of the annual
budget of such famous American universities as Princeton (47% of
the annual budget) or Harvard (38% of the annual budget). In some
countries of Eastern Europe, such as the Czech Republic had a law
according to which 5% of each privatization deal was directed at any
of the foundations established for meeting the needs of the given area.

The experience of our post-soviet peers which inherited similar
education systems and had to face adjustment to the new conditions
shows that they also understood the opportunities that this option
will open up and take steps.

For example, in Russia the law on target capital of non-commercial
organizations adopted in 2007 provided legal grounds for introducing
this mechanism of funding. Hence, currently there are 40 endowment
foundations with a threshold of 3 million rubles (about 900,000 USD).

Thanks to good management of financial flows endowment foundations can
cover up to 50% of the annual budget of universities. The state tax
policy is highly important to ensure effectiveness. In many countries
endowment foundations are exempt from tax.

I think this brief overview is enough to understand that development
of such foundations may be a good choice to identification of
alternative mechanisms of funding of the universities of Armenia,
especially considering that universities all over the world view
such foundations as a way of development of research. Meanwhile,
the traditional funding schemes hardly save any money for research.

Zhanna Andreasyan, candidate of sciences in
sociology 14:49 29/08/2013 Story from Lragir.am News: