Author: Karagyozian Lena

La Croix
24 août 2004
Les saints du jour. Saint Barthélemy (Ier siècle). Saint Ouen.
Saint Barthélemy (Ier siècle). Originaire de Cana (Galilée), il est
un des 12 apôtres.
Plusieurs pays lui attribuent leur évangélisation, tels l’Arménie,
l’Ethiopie, la Perse et l’Inde.
On fête également saint Ouen (v. 600-684), évêque de Rouen durant 44
ans.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
WCC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TO MEET FOR FIRST TIME IN KOREA
WCC – Geneva – The vitality of the churches and the ecumenical movement in
Korea and the region will be at the centre of attention during a 24-27
August 2004 World Council of Churches (WCC) executive committee meeting in
Seoul. The meeting will be preceded by a special programme for WCC executive
committee members from 21-23 August 2004.
Peace and reconciliation in the divided peninsula has received particular
attention from the churches and the WCC for decades; it will be the focus of
a statement by the executive committee on Korea. . The committee will
address other situations of international concern, including events in
Sudan, Zimbabwe, and Somalia.
Preparations for the WCC’s 9th assembly, to be held in Brazil in February
2006, will also receive priority attention. In addition, the committee will
review applications for membership from several churches, and a series of
proposed amendments to membership rules.
Also on the agenda are a review of the WCC’s Pacific office, a progress
report on relations with partner organizations, a detailed programme report
for the first half of 2004, and an update on the council’s finances.
For the first time, the executive committee will be using a consensus method
of decision-making as a new methodology of work to be applied at major WCC
meetings. This approach to decision-making was proposed by the Special
Commission on Orthodox Participation in the WCC, and is seen as a more
inclusive and conciliar way of working.
A special programme (21-23 August) for the members of the executive
committee will include a visit to the demilitarized zone that divides North
and South Korea.
The programme also includes worship in local church communities, as well as
a reception hosted by the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and
the Korean ministry of culture. An audience with the president of the
Republic of Korea, H.E. Roh Moo-hyun, is also foreseen.
On 23 August, the NCCK will organize a seminar on the future of ecumenism
which will be addressed by WCC leadership.
The executive committee meeting is being hosted by the NCCK and the four WCC
member churches in the country: the Anglican Church of Korea, the Korean
Methodist Church, the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea, and the
Presbyterian Church of Korea.
The 25-member executive committee is the highest governing body between
meetings of the WCC central committee, and it usually meets twice-yearly.
Its moderator is Catholicos Aram I, head of the Armenian Apostolic Church
(Cilicia).
##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Ecumenical
activities of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician Catholicosate, the
administrative center of the church is located in Antelias, Lebanon.

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:
PRESS RELEASE
August 19, 2004
CONTACT: David Zenian
E-mail: [email protected]
REP. CARDOZA COMMITTS TO JOIN ARMENIAN CAUCUS
MODESTO, California – The Armenian Assembly thanked first term Congressman
Dennis Cardoza (D-CA) for his commitment Thursday to join the Congressional
Caucus on Armenian Issues during a meeting with Armenian Assembly activists
at his Modesto district office.
Cardoza, who has often demonstrated his support on issues of importance to
American-Armenians, asked his visitors to tell the community that he was
sympathetic to their cause.
“I was pleased today to meet with several members of the Armenian Assembly
of America. I look forward to working with them in the future and supporting
their efforts, particularly through the Armenian Caucus, which I intend to
join,” Cardoza said after the meeting which was attended by Assembly Western
Office Director Lena Kaimian along with activists Dick Shahenian, Hagop
Karakashian, Levon and Violet Apelian, Haig Arakelian and Daniel Ayvazian.
Kaimian said the discussions with Congressman Cardoza covered a wide range
of issues, including U.S.-Armenia trade, military parity and other issues of
importance to Armenia and the American-Armenian community.
“We thanked the Congressman for his involvement, understanding and support
of Armenian issues, not only since joining the House of Representatives, but
also earlier in the California State Assembly where he stood up in support
of legislation to include the Armenian Genocide in the school curriculum,”
Kaimian said.
As a Congressman, Cardoza has signed the Congressional letter in the past
two years to President George W. Bush urging him to properly acknowledge the
Armenian Genocide in his annual April 24 commemorative statement. He is
also a co-sponsor of H.R. 528, a measure that would grant Armenia permanent
normal trade relations (PNTR) status, and of H.R. 193 – the Armenian
Genocide Resolution.
Cardoza’s announced commitment to join the Caucus came on the heels of a
similar decision by Congressman Sam Farr (D-CA) at an earlier meeting this
week in Salina, CA which was also attended by Assembly Affiliate member
David Nikssarian, who is also a representative of the Armenian Apostolic
Church of Monterey County.
Congressman Farr, now serving his sixth term, is a member of the
Appropriations Committee. He has on more than one occasion commemorated the
Armenian Genocide with statements before Congress, has repeatedly signed the
Congressional letter to President Bush urging him to properly recognize the
Armenian Genocide, and is a co-sponsor of the Humanitarian Aid Corridor Act,
H.R. 942 which was introduced in February 1995.
The imminent joining of Congressmen Cardoza and Farr will bring the
membership in the ever-growing Caucus to 135.
The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-074
Photograph available on the Assembly’s Web site at the following link:
Caption: L to R: Daniel Ayzenian, Haig Arakelian, Dick Shahenian, Hagop
Karakshian, Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), Violet and Levon Apelian and
Western Office Director Lena Kaimian in Modesto, CA on August 19.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Olympic Weightlifting Results
.c The Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece (AP) – Results Monday from the Olympic weightlifting
competition:
Men
62Kg
1. Shi Zhiyong, China, (1, 152.50-336; 2, 172.50-380), 325.00 kg.-717 pounds.
2. le Maosheng, China, (3, 140.00-309; 1, 172.50-380), 312.50-689.
3. Leonidas Sampanis, Greece, (2, 145.00-320; 3, 167.50-369), 312.50-689.
4. Israel Jose Rubio Rivero, Venezuela, (8, 132.50-292; 4, 162.50-358),
295.00-650.
5. Armen Ghazaryan, Armenia, (6, 135.00-298; 9, 160.00-353), 295.00-650.
6. Gustar Junianto, Indonesia, (7, 132.50-292; 5, 160.00-353), 292.50-645.
7. Samson Ndicka, France, (10, 127.50-281; 6, 160.00-353), 287.50-634.
8. Umurbek Bazarbayev, Turkmenistan, (9, 130.00-287; 10, 157.50-347),
287.50-634.
9. Sunarto Sunarto, Indonesia, (11, 125.00-276; 8, 160.00-353), 285.00-628.
10. Sheng Hsiung Yang, Taiwan, (14, 120.00-265; 7, 160.00-353), 280.00-617.
11. Manuel Minginfel, Micronesia, (12, 120.00-265; 11, 152.50-336),
272.50-601.
12. Toshio Imamura, Japan, (13, 120.00-265; 13, 150.00-331), 270.00-595.
13. Asif Malikov, Azerbaijan, (15, 115.00-254; 12, 150.00-331), 265.00-584.
14. Gert Trasha, Albania, (16, 115.00-254; 14, 140.00-309), 255.00-562.
15. Ioan Florin Veliciu, Romania, (17, 110.00-243; 15, 135.00-298),
245.00-540.
16. Yacine Zouaki, Morocco, (18, 95.00-209; 16, 130.00-287), 225.00-496.
NR. Kamran Panjavi, Britain, 0.00-0.
NR. Sevdalin Angelov, Bulgaria, 0.00-0.
NR. Im Yong Su, North Korea, 0.00-0.
NR. Diego Fernando Salazar Quintero, Colombia, 0.00-0.
Women
58Kg
1. Chen Yanqing, China, (1, 107.50; 1, 130.00), 237.50 kg..
2. Ri Song Hui, North Korea, (2, 102.50; 2, 130.00), 232.50.
3. Wandee Kameaim, Thailand, (3, 102.50; 3, 127.50), 230.00.
4. Aylin Dasdelen, Turkey, (4, 100.00; 4, 125.00), 225.00.
5. Aleksandra Klejnowska, Poland, (5, 97.50; 5, 122.50), 220.00.
6. Pak Hyon Suk, North Korea, (9, 95.00; 6, 122.50), 217.50.
7. Alexandra Escobar, Ecuador, (6, 95.00; 7, 120.00), 215.00.
8. Patmawati Patmawati, Indonesia, (7, 95.00; 10, 117.50), 212.50.
9. Michaela Breeze, Britain, (10, 92.50; 9, 120.00), 212.50.
10. Franca Gbodo, Nigeria, (8, 95.00; 11, 117.50), 212.50.
11. Maryse Turcotte, Canada, (11, 90.00; 8, 120.00), 210.00.
12. Zlatina Atanasova, Bulgaria, (13, 90.00; 12, 115.00), 205.00.
13. Charikleia Kastritsi, Greece, (12, 90.00; 13, 110.00), 200.00.
14. Bayarmaa Namkhaidorj, Mongolia, (14, 87.50; 14, 107.50), 195.00.
08/16/04 15:29 EDT
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CHILDREN ALSO SUFFER FROM FAMILY VIOLENCE
VANADZOR, August 13 (Noyan Tapan). The research on 400 cases of family
violence has been conducted in nine marzes of Armenia since October
2002. The research results were presented during the August 13 seminar
in Vanadzor organized by the Helsinki Association of Armenia (HAA) and
the “Tsovinar” public organization. HAA Chairman Mikael Danielian
noted that family violence is not limited to cases when husbands
batter their wives. According to him, one motive for family violence
is the fact of being a sexual minority member either by husband or by
wife. At the same time, M. Danielian noted that the Association
undertakes protective measures with respect to victims only if they
seek the organization’s help. It was also mentioned that the research
done in the Lori marz revealed that not only women but also children
suffered from family violence. Anna Hakobian, Chairwoman of the
“Tsovinar” organization, reported that their interference in the cases
of family violence does not pursue the goal to dissolve marriages, and
they intervene in these conflicts only when the case gets to court and
the victims need free legal defense.

“SYUNIK-ZANGEZUR” FUND FINANCES NUMBER OF PROGRAMS
KAPAN, August 12 (Noyan Tapan). The “Syunik-Zangezur” benevolent fund,
which was established this April, finances a number of programs
implemented in the region, which were impossible to implement many
years because of the absence of the financial means. Surik Kachatrian,
Head of the administration of Syunik, is the Chairman of the
Council. Work on the repairs of a sport school and flat roofs of
tenement houses in Kapan is carried out now, for which the fund
allocated 20 mln drams (about 39,000 dollars) and 40 mln drams,
respectively. The fund allocated 18 mln drams for the overhaul of the
building of the dramatic theater of Goris, as well as 27 mln drams for
the completion of the work on the construction of the
Shorjur-Spandarian mudflow pipeline of Goris. The fund also financed
the work on the repairs of the kindergartens in Sisian and the station
on filtration of potable water in the town of Agarak. In the future
the fund will allocate sums for the construction of the sewerage
system of the town of Meghri.

Eurasianet Organization
Aug 10 2004
IRAN-AZERBAIJAN RELATIONS: ON A BETTER FOOTING AFTER KHATAMI’S BAKU
VISIT
Shahin Abbasov: 8/10/04
A recent visit by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami to Azerbaijan
seems to have put bilateral relations on a better footing. However,
the Iranian leader’s trip did not succeed in resolving the
fundamental issue separating the two nations: the territorial
division of the Caspian Sea.
Khatami held talks in Baku with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham
Aliyev, and other top officials during his August 5-7 visit. It was
the Iranian chief executive’s first trip to neighboring Azerbaijan
since his election in 1997 – evidence of the chill that has marked
bilateral ties since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Besides the Caspian question, the issue of ethnic Azeris in Iran has
been a significant source of tension. Geopolitics has also come into
play: Azerbaijan has been wary about Iran’s strong economic and
political ties with Armenia, while Tehran has been suspicious of
Baku’s close relationship with the United States.
Upon his arrival in Baku, Khatami spoke of “great opportunities and
tremendous potential for the development of bilateral relations.”
Aliyev expressed similar sentiments, and accepted an invitation to
make a state visit to Iran at a time to be determined. The most
significant development to arise from Khatami’s visit was an Iranian
commitment to allow Azerbaijan to open consular offices in Tabriz, a
hub for ethnic Azeris living in northern Iran.
There are an estimated 30-35 million Azeris in Iran, most of them in
northern areas of the country. The pending opening of an Azerbaijani
consulate in Tabriz has generated hope in Baku that the Iranian
government is adopting a more tolerant stance towards ethnic Azeris
in Iran.
In addition, Khatami reiterated Iran’s commitment to Azerbaijan’s
territorial integrity, effectively signaling that Tehran supported
Baku’s negotiating position in the stalled Nagorno-Karabakh peace
talks. [For additional information see the Eurasia Insight archive].
In a follow-up development, Iran’s Export Development Bank extended a
$75 million loan to improve the power grid in the Azerbaijani exclave
of Nakhichevan, which straddles the Iranian frontier, the Bilik
Dunyasi news agency reported.
Azerbaijan, in turn, has expressed support for Iran’s participation
in a transit system connecting Europe and Asia, known as TRACECA.
Baku additionally endorsed the creation of a tripartite railway and
road network, involving Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia. Such projects
could potentially be of enormous economic benefit for Iran by opening
new export routes.
As widely anticipated, Khatami’s visit was unable to produce a
breakthrough on the Caspian Sea question. Iran and Azerbaijan have
long been unable to agree on a formula to divide the sea. The
bickering at some points has even threatened to turn violent. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. The lack of a deal has
hampered the development of the region’s ample natural resources.
[For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
During his Baku visit, Khatami tried to stir hope that a near-term
breakthrough was possible. Yet no participants in the stalemated
Caspian Sea talks have given any indication of making a significant
concession. Iran believes the five Caspian littoral states should
receive equal 20 percent shares of the sea. Azerbaijan, along with
Kazakhstan and Russia, favor a formula that would leave Iran with
roughly a 13 percent share. Turkmenistan’s stance in the process has
proven hard to pin down.
Despite the lack of progress on the Caspian issue, state-controlled
media in Azerbaijan generally trumpeted Khatami’s visit as a success.
“There is great potential to develop Azerbaijani-Iranian relations in
all fields,” said a headline in the August 7 edition of the official
Khalq Gazeti.
Some observers say that bolstering bilateral ties marks a pragmatic
step for both sides. Azerbaijan of late has expressed frustration
with Western institutions, in particular the OSCE Minsk Group, over
the lack of progress on a Karabakh settlement. [For background see
the Eurasia Insight archive]. Closer Azerbaijani-Iranian ties, or at
least the appearance of such, could be a way to get Minsk Group
members, especially the United States, to push harder for a Karabakh
settlement, some Azerbaijani officials believe. The Bush
administration has been keen to promote Iran’s diplomatic isolation.
[For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. “Rapprochement with
Iran would allow Azerbaijan to create great potential for political
maneuvering vis a vis the West,” said a commentary published by the
Zaman newspaper.
Other Azerbaijani experts, meanwhile, feel that Iran desperately
needs friendlier relations with Baku. “Khatami realizes very well
that from a geopolitical point of view, Iran is currently in a
situation with no prospects,” said a commentary published by the
Zerkalo daily. [See related story] “Iran is sliding into a dangerous
area of geopolitical isolation.”
Editor’s Note: Shahin Abbasov is a freelance contributor to
EurasiaNet. He also serves as the deputy editor-in-chief of the Echo
newspaper in Baku.

ACCEPTANCE OF GREEN MASS OF TOBACCO BEGINS IN TAVISH
YEREVAN, August 6 (Noyan Tapan). It’s already 5 days that the
“International Masis Tabak” company has begun acceptance of green mass
of tobacco of the “Virginia” sort in Tavush. 1 kg of the mass is
accepted at the price of 55 drams (about $0.1) in the acceptance point
situated 8 km far from Ijevan and the payment for the stored
raw-materials is made within 10 days. The accepted raw-materials are
dried with hot air in 4 rooms with a capacity of 5-6 tons within a
week. This year it’s planned to accept about 200 tons of green mass of
tobacco. To recap, at present 300 hectares of tobacco are processed
in the Tavush region, and tobacco of the “Virginia” sort makes 14
hectares out of them.

‘Long, Emotional Battle’ Over for Local Descendant of Genocide
La Cañada Valley Sun
August 5, 2004
By Jane Napier Neely
La Cañada resident Martin Marootian, principal plaintiff in a class
action suit against New York Life Insurance Company, says he’s tired
but pleased the case has been settled, forcing the insurance giant to
pay death benefits owed descendants of those killed by the Turkish
Ottoman Empire during the Armenian Genocide.
The judgment was handed down on July 30 by federal court judge
Christina Snyder. Marootian will receive $250,000. About $11 million
will be set aside for potential claims by heirs of 2,400 policy
holders. Some $3 million will be spread out among nine Armenian
charitable organizations, including the Armenian Educational
Foundation in Glendale. The remaining payout will be used for
attorneys’ fees and administrative costs.
“This has been a long and emotional battle for my family with New York
Life Insurance Company, Marootian said Wednesday. “My mother, who
actually had in hand the original policy bought by her brother in
1910, first inquired about payment of death benefits in 1923, but her
request was ignored by New York Life Insurance Company personnel.”
Since 1999, Marootian has carried the standard for all Armenian people
who had not received death benefits from New York Life. Twelve other
plaintiffs joined him later in the class action suit.
“I’m glad that this is finally over. My prime object was to seek a
fair settlement for Armenian policy holders with New York Life and
secondly I wanted this to bring exposure to the Armenian Genocide,
which occurred between 1915 to 1923, which has so long been ignored by
the American government as wellas the Turkish government,” Marootian
said.
Marootian said that his mother continued to request death benefits
from New York Life throughout the remainder of her life and the
company continually refused to make payment. Her daughter then took up
the fight and she, too,was refused payment.
“I’m glad that Marty lived to see this settlement made. Over all
these years, since his mother began to seek death payments from New
York Life, he felt like it was his responsibility to bring the issue
to a head,” said Marootian’s wife, Seda. “I was really hoping the case
would go to trial by a jury, but I’m sure that it would have taken
many years before decision was made.”
According to Marootian, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) recently pushed
a bill through the House that acknowledged the Armenian Genocide for
the first time. He said the Bush administration is fighting it because
they are afraid of offending the Turkish government, which continues
to deny the genocide. Between the years of 1915 to 1923, 1.5 million
Armenians were systematically killed by the government of the Ottoman
Empire.
“I wish our government would have the courage to stand up and
acknowledge the genocide,” Marootian said. “My uncle was taken out
into the woods and shot and the women and children in the family were
sent into the desert to die because they were not given provisions or
shelter.”
Marootian was the only one of the 12 people in the class action suit
to be in possession of an original New York Life policy. The policy,
about the size of a small bath towel, was issued to his uncle in
1910. He said his uncle had a premonition that things might not be
going well for the Armenian people in Turkey and, in order to
safeguard the policy, sent it with his sister when she left the
country for New York in 1914 – one year before the killings began.
The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) stated, “We applaud
the efforts of Martin and the plaintiffs for leading the campaign to
hold New York Life accountable – even if only in small measure – for
failing to meet its obligations toward policy holders who perished in
the Armenian genocide. This case marks a significant milestone for the
Armenian nation in that the lawsuit was the first of its kind to seek
the return of genocide-era assets long thought lost, denied, and
forgotten.”
Additionally, the ANCA statement said, “To place this settlement in
its proper context, it is important to note that, while the heirs and
grandchildren of genocide-era policy holders will now receive some
portion of those funds, we should remember that those monies were not
available when these orphansof genocide needed them the most. Instead
they were collecting interest in New York Life’s coffers and remained
there for some 89 years until this actionwas taken. It is truly
unfortunate that a company that Armenian policy holders trusted was
only compelled to do the right thing after special laws were enacted
in California and a group of tenacious Armenians were able to wrestle
those funds free.”
A team of four law firms worked this case for the plaintiffs,
including Shelley Kaufman, from the law firm of Geragos & Geragos. The
law firm was founded by Paul Geragos, a longtime La Cañada Flintridge
resident whose heritageis Armenian. Also working on the case from the
Geragos firm was Mark Geragos and Mark Kassabian.
Marootian said that Kaufman was with him for five straight days while
the local man was grilled by attorneys representing New York Life in a
deposition held in their Los Angeles office. “I think I told them my
entire life story.” He said that each day he would come home from the
offices where the deposition was being taken, exhausted.
“What bothers me the most about the case,” said his wife, “is that the
United States government has never recognized that this genocide ever
happened even though the countries of France and Russia have done
so. When Marty and I began this process we never dreamed that the
efforts we have expended would be such a strain.”
Her husband added, “After the many years my mother and her sister’s
pleas went unheard and were dismissed by New York Life personnel, it
wasn’t until I stepped in with legal backing that the company would
even talk with us.”
Vartkes Yeghiayan, a Glendal-based attorney who first worked with
Marootian said, “This case proves anew that the past is not dead and
not even past. I know that this settlement will not bring back the
life of even one Armenian child, but this settlement is important
because it symbolizes our resolve to achieve justice for our ancestors
who were massacred in the Armenian genocide. We are hopeful that the
case will encourage more entities and states, which have wrongfully
withheld genocide-era assets to act appropriately.”
Harut Sassounian, publisher of the weekly California Courier, said,
“There is no question every Armenian is outraged at New York Life’s
behavior overthe past 90 years. For $20 million they are buying
silence and goodwill.”
Martin and Seda Marootian are at last feeling some peace from the
stress they have been through. “I just want to call it a day, this is
a good settlement,” Martin said.
Marootian’s says his most fervent wish is that this single case will
bring awareness to all people, especially the United State government,
to the fact that indeed there was a genocide.

Transitions Online, Czech Republic
Aug 5 2004
Light and Dark in the Pankisi Gorge
by Elvira Goryukhina
The classroom is the only psychological haven where one person helps
another to leave war behind, a Russian psychologist finds on a visit
to Chechen schools in Georgia’s Pankisi Gorge.
Editor’s note: This article is a short extract from an account by a
Russian educational psychologist of a visit to the Pankisi Gorge in
Georgia, home to several thousand Chechen refugees. Since its
publication in mid-2003 in the human rights publication
Pravozashchitnik, some things have changed. President Eduard
Shevardnadze of Georgia has been removed and his successor, Mikheil
Saakashvili, has been exerting greater pressure on the Chechen
community. Russia is seeking the return of all refugees to Chechnya,
arguing that the republic is now safe to return to. Many refugees
have left the Pankisi Gorge, heading elsewhere but not north, into
Chechnya. The experiences captured by Elvira Goryukhina, a professor
of psychology at Novosibirsk Pedagogical University, will not have
changed.
For the past three years, schools in three villages in the Pankisi
Gorge-Duisi, Omalo and Jokolo-have, as Georgian law requires,
provided schooling in Russian as well as Georgian. For three years
these schools in what is known as the Russian sector have been
issuing school-leaving certificates enabling refugees to enter
universities. In those three years, the teachers have not received a
single kopeck.
Who works in the Russian sector? Chechen refugees. Teachers who share
a life of exile with their pupils.
I have visited many schools in places of rubble and ash: Samashki,
Grozny, Achkho-Martan, Orekhovo, [all of which are in Chechnya]
Shusha, Mardakert, Stepanakert, Karintag [in Nagorno-Karabakh]… And
there is one thing I know for sure: the classroom is the one area in
our world where no one would let a child be broken. It is the only
psychological haven where the world continues to function according
to natural laws, where one person helps another to leave war behind.
To return to life.
I once asked Suren Nalbandyan from a school in Shusha, in
Nagorno-Karabakh, how he could teach tangents and cotangents when he
knew the burden of experience on the children’s shoulders.
`I beguile them,’ Suren answered without a second’s thought. `A
teacher has no other option.’
I entered the secondary school in Duisi relying on my experiences of
establishing contact with teachers in other conflict areas. I thought
I could trust those experiences. Reality proved otherwise.
Very slowly, one by one, they filed into the teachers room, glancing
mistrustfully toward us, fresh arrivals from Moscow. Beside me stood
the deputy director of the Russian sector, Tuta Jabrailovna. A
physicist. A blue-eyed beauty. It seemed as if tears were waiting to
roll. No, she was not crying; it just seemed the tears would not go
away. A sense of unspilled tears: that, it seemed, united all these
teachers. It was the first time I had seen such a thing in my life.
They had not been killed, but their wings had been clipped. They were
caged-bird teachers. How can one enter a classroom in such a state?
What made them different from other teachers, from teachers such as
those in ransacked Samashki [in Chechnya]? The answer did not occur
to me immediately: those teachers were at home, in their own country,
near their ruined homes. One’s native environment offers protection
simply by being there.
These teachers were exiles, in a strange land, away from home.
There is something ambiguous in the very name, `the Russian sector.’
The parents had not, I heard, initially wanted to send their children
here. They preferred them to be taught in Georgian. But then they
changed their minds. Every subject here is now in Russian.
Madina Aldamova from Starye Atagy, a mother of three, teaches a
third-form class with 22 refugees. Of the 17 boys, five are named
Mohammed.
Madina is a mover, a shaker. She deals with the distribution of
humanitarian aid. A relative of Khizri Aldamov, who represents Aslan
Maskhadov’s government in Georgia, Madina speaks for many when she
exclaims: `Going back to Chechnya is impossible! We don’t need
anything from Russia! We’re not going anywhere! Where should we go
back to? To filtration camps? To be mopped up [a reference to Russian
troops’ `mopping-up operations’ within Chechnya]? There are people
who went back and were dispatched to the next world. And we know
their names.’
We mumble something about guarantees. But our words, said with
conviction, lose their strength, become emptied of meaning, become
nothing. Our partners in conversation have different criteria. The
experience of false words in war zones makes it a torture for anyone
who attempts to use words to bring change. They can puncture your
phrases with the only weapon that cannot be disarmed-their
experience, their burden of suffering. They peel away from words all
approximations, all looseness of phrasing.
The atmosphere in the teachers room is becoming tense. My
professional experience suggests no way out of this deadlock.
I tell them about pupils of mine who are reading Hadji-Murat by Leo
Tolstoy.
`I’d be interested to know how Russian children look on events here.’
Madina, the teacher with the harshest words about Russia, has taken a
little step toward dialogue.
I tell them about Samashki, Grozny, Bamut, Orekhovo, Davydenko …
`One would think you were born in Chechnya,’ says the same voice. One
more step toward us …
I ask them how the children like Russian books. Again Madina takes
the floor:
`What does the language have to do with it? The language committed no
crime. If I said bad words about Russia, do you really think that I
meant you, personally? I make no claims about you as a person.’
I seized the opportunity and asked to sit in on a lesson.
`Tomorrow at 10 o’clock I will be waiting for you in the teachers
room,’ she said.
And from that point on, I was dealing with a different Madina. Not a
soapbox speaker, not a provocateur (as we had thought of her), but a
master opening the door for us into a sanctuary-her classroom.
Madina is waiting for us in the teachers room. We did not come to the
school with empty hands. We give Madina our gift-a beautiful edition
of a Chechen language textbook. She slowly leafs through the book,
now and again stopping to linger on a particular phrase. Her
appearance, her voice, her movements change completely. Without
taking her eyes from the book, she says in a trembling voice the
words for which we had come to the Gorge, for which we had cleared
every hurdle:
`You have already brought us back to Chechnya. …’
Our former iron conviction that no one would ever go back to Chechnya
begins to melt. They could go back! They want to go back. What is
needed is not a public relations campaign, but a support system for
those who have become refugees.
Just consider: one book, just one book, had suddenly transformed the
teacher’s entire state of mind. The book was passed from hand to
hand. It reached the physicist Tuta Jabrailovna. Her ultramarine eyes
again seem full of unspilled tears.
The lesson. I ask the children something through their teacher.
Madina talks to them in Russian and suddenly senses the absurdity of
the situation: she is translating from Russian into Russian. She
makes a gesture inviting me to the blackboard and steps aside. The
classroom falls silent. I am the first Russian they have seen in
three years.
On the teacher’s desk I spot an open book. Nekrasov’s poems.
In war zones, one can bear a lot. Only not this-to stand face to face
with children who have plumbed the depths of misfortune in war.
I will never forget my baptism as a teacher in 3-a.
When I ask about returning to Chechnya, they answer readily and
swiftly. `We will go back when there are no Russians left.’
`Imagine that I live in Grozny. I’m a Russian. For you to be able to
live in Grozny, would you need to kill me?’ I ask the Mohammed
sitting at the front desk.
The boy falls silent, embarrassed. God, forgive me. Why does a child
need to solve a problem like that, a question thought up by imbecilic
grown-ups? Why?
I cannot remember now how I found a way out. We began to read poems,
poems we know and love. Pushkin took the victor’s laurels.
Another Mohammed takes the floor. He solemnly recites the very long
name of The Fairytale about Tsar Saltan, His Son Gvidon etc.
`The crescent moon is wan at night and, through the mist, pours
silver upon the field. …’ The poem proves hard to pronounce, but a
third Mohammed masters the difficulties.
After that, dainty, doll-like Asya took the floor in front of the
blackboard and recited a poem about old Babarikha [a character in
Pushkin’s fairy tale The Tale of Tsar Saltan]. It was not quite a
poem. The poetic rhythm was interrupted by a prosaic element. It
seemed as if Asya was retelling the fairy tale. There was a magic to
it, though. The rhythm was different, but it was a rhythm. This
rhythm, this intonation, so unexpected to everyone, so intoxicated
Asya that it was impossible to interrupt her.
In the middle of this poetic `recital,’ it became clear that it had
become a form of dialogue. And sitting behind a desk at the back my
friend Tamara Duishvili let the tears roll; she knew what the
children are talking about. …
But we talked directly as well. About the war. It all started with
making wishes. I am pretending to be a golden fish that the children
have netted. `So, what are your three wishes?’ Dead silence. Not a
single hand goes up. They don’t know what it is-to wish for
something. I suggest some kind of food. Some children limply mention
Snickers. Finally the whole class settles on a collective desire-for
a bicycle.
Our tiresome wishing game comes to an end when Ibrahim from the third
desk utters, `I wish there were no war.’ This is where the core of
these children’s emotions is-the war. One word blocks the children’s
wishes and drags behind it a gloomy train of memories.
They recount how they had needed to shelter from the bombers. They
are 8 or 9 years old.
`When they bomb, one should run to a trench,’ says blond-haired
Aminat, the smallest girl in the class. She says it as a soldier
would, in a running rhythm. The rhythm of running to a trench.
My throat is parched. Aminat continues in a businesslike voice:
`Of course, it is better to run to a basement. But we had no
basement. We dug out a trench.’
They recount that they had flown over Shatili by helicopter.
`Did you like that?’ I ask stupidly. The class cries out in one voice
`No!’
They hate helicopters. They hate planes. Nobody wants to be a pilot.
Or a soldier. Musa says he’d like to have a gun and immediately adds
in a frightened voice:
`A toy gun, you understand? I only want a toy gun.’
And at this, the children break. They remember what it is to have
wishes. The talk is all about toys. Girls talk about dolls. Boys,
about cars.
These are children who have not had enough time to play. Any
psychologist would tell you that is a dangerous portent for
adulthood.
Through a broken window, the mountains of Georgia are visible, but
the children are homesick for their own mountains, back in Chechnya.
They want to go home.
Putin’s name crops up in our class.
`Who’s he?’ I ask.
`The Russian president,’ Musa answers.
`And your president is Shevardnadze now?’
`Our president is Maskhadov [the elected president of Chechnya before
the second Chechen war began in 1999 and now a rebel leader].’
The bell had already rung long ago. Children from other classes kept
bursting into the classroom. 3-a did not want to leave. I aid goodbye
to the children in Chechen. They answered in Russian.
Mohammed from the front desk rose to his feet. He straightened his
back and pronounced distinctly, `Thank you for coming.’
The intonation of the phrase came from a different life. Not from a
life where wars are waged and children hide in trenches. It is from
the world where the ethics of how one person treats another are
taught in childhood.
His words felled me.
I would like to know how the habits and rules that make us human are
preserved (or born) in a human being. There, in class 3-a in the
Pankisi Gorge, I remember Josef Brodsky’s words: `A life without
standards is second-rate and not worth the labor.’
Our lesson had begun with a phrase, `when there are no Russians.’ One
can only guess what mental labor had gone into that `Thank you!’
Mohammed had brought us all up to the standard there ought to be.
`Come back again! Please come back sometime!’ I left the school
accompanied by a chorus of children’s voices.
I would like to go back to 3-a. With a bicycle.
AM NOT AFRAID!
In the evening when a single kerosene lamp burns and a stove crackles
in the middle of the kitchen, the children and I gather together. Our
favorite game is a word game, a language game.
Unlike me, the children speak three languages-Russian, Chechen, and
Georgian. Those who came to the gorge from Chechnya a year ago speak
Georgian fluently and willingly.
I wondered which of three phrases the children would choose:
So kier-I am afraid (in Chechen).
So tsakier-I am not afraid.
Ma kier-Don’t be afraid!
Me meshinia-I am afraid (in Georgian).
Me ar meshinia-I am not afraid.
Nu geshinia-Don’t be afraid!
The children immediately crossed out `I am afraid’ in all languages.
Ten-year-old Ruslan, a refugee from Grozny, makes his choice at once:
`I am not afraid!’
We tried out the word war, for its taste, for its color. In Chechen
and in Kistini [the language of Chechen Georgians] it is tom. In
Georgian it is omi. The children squeal with joy: the Georgian word
is as short as the Chechen.
Malika is 11. She is Ruslan’s sister.
`Our languages are alike. Only the Georgians make their sounds last.
They probably like them. We Chechens have already pronounced a word
and the Georgians will still be dragging it out.’
Somewhere in the middle of the game a most banal thing occurs to me.
My God! This is the Caucasus. Peoples of the Caucasus. Languages of
the Caucasus. This is a family.
Puri, bepig, korzhum mean bread in the three languages. The children
are truly convinced that the words sound the same, and what happiness
there is that the word father sounds in Kistini like mother in
Georgian.
We are not just pronouncing words. We are communicating. This is a
special kind of a conversation I first came across in
Nagorno-Karabakh. A language offers protection against a horror once
experienced. It refuses to call things their proper names. But the
necessity to share one’s experience with others remains. So people
choose the best option available: they take neutral words, give them
a different intonation, a different rhythm-and a conversation will
inevitably begin about one’s inmost feelings, without one word about
them being pronounced.
Perhaps we are subconsciously sparing our psyche, perhaps the tongue,
perhaps language resists sheer hell. Which is most important, I don’t
know. In our game even the word war is stripped of its fearsome
meaning. We control that word.
We devote the second evening to the proverbs and sayings of the three
peoples. We come across a Chechen proverb: He who answers evil with
good becomes a blood enemy.
Is this `an eye for eye’? Even if one answers evil with good? What
does it mean, this talk of `becomes a blood enemy’?
We chose this proverb from a book published specially for refugees.
The book is in three languages, Russian, Chechen, and Georgian. The
publisher is Kavkazskii dom (House of the Caucasus). The Russian part
of the book is the weakest. The Wahhabites [followers of the austere
form of Islam particularly widely practiced in Saudi Arabia and only
recently introduced in Chechnya] were unhappy with the book, because
they found the pagan aspects of the folklore blasphemous. They had
apparently burnt some of the books.
The book has a foreword, written in keeping with the Chechens’
deepest spiritual and cultural traditions. There is not one bad word
about the country these children have had to flee as refugees. There
are no accusations. It expresses compassion for and a sense of guilt
toward children whose fate it is to live outside their homeland.
`In the world created by God only a spiritual victory is a real
victory and a spiritual defeat is a real defeat. Please forgive us
for your fate.’
I leaf through a textbook for the Russian sector photocopied by a
Norwegian refugee center. I leaf through the book published by
Kavkazskii dom, and I am filled with shame. Where have we been all
this time? If we could not spare these children from bombings, what
at least have we written for them?
Malika and I are preparing a lesson in Russian literature. A strange
selection of texts. There is barely a lighthearted page in them. How
can one go through the desert of puberty with such a textbook? As if
on purpose the authors selected the gloomiest pages from Bunin,
Andreev, Kazakov, Abramov. The final sentence of the textbook reads,
`At dawn a policeman ran into his corpse lying in the snow.’
I wonder: What concept of childhood is it that lies at the heart of
this textbook of literature?
The youngest member of the family, Zarema, decides to take a serious
step: she gives a book as a gift. I resist. The book is already in my
bag. Zarema throws up her arms as she would in a Chechen dance and
says solemnly:
`I gave her a book that has all the languages in the world!’