Author: Karakhanian Suren

THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY OF THE USA HAS A BITTER EXPERIENCE OF PRE-ELECTION PROMISES REGARDING THE ISSUE OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

PanARMENIAN.Net
08.04.2008 GMT+04:00

It is very unlikely that the future Administration in Washington
will take such a step, because in this case the direction of the
foreign policy of the USA carried out in the Near East must undergo
many changes.

Resolution 106 of the US House of Representatives has never been
withdrawn from the Agenda of the US Congress. The truth is, long months
have passed since October 2007 and that would be enough to forget
about the Resolution. However the representatives of influential
Armenian Diaspora Organizations in the USA, and not only them, are
certain that sooner or later the Resolution will be approved.

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ It should be reminded that Resolution 106 is called
"House Resolution" and the approval of the Senate and the signature of
the President of the country aren’t needed for its adoption. However,
it says that "the House calls upon the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide in the Ottoman Empire and calls to use the term "Genocide"
in the President’s annual message to the Armenian Community on April
24. "I think that the voting will be held before the US Congress goes
on holiday," said the head of "Hay Dat" Office Kiro Manoyan. In his
turn the Regional Director of the Armenian Assembly of America (AAA)
in Armenia and in Nagorno-Karabakh Arpi Vardanyan mentioned that the
speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi is ready to put
the resolution to discussion but is waiting for the necessary support
from the American Congressmen. Now the Resolution is supported by 211
congressmen in the House of Representatives and 218 votes are needed
for the Resolution to be passed.

It is most likely, that the current Administration will not put
the Resolution to vote because of the White House’s rather explicit
support of Turkey. The truth is that there is no certainty that if
the Presidential Elections in the USA in November Democrats win, the
Resolution will immediately be passed. The Armenian Community of the
USA has a bitter experience of pre-election promises regarding the
issue of the Armenian Genocide. And this is certainly not something
to expect for the near future. Nobody knows when the American troops
will leave Iraq.

Another thing that cannot be predicted is when the Near Eastern
conflict, where besides Israel and Palestine, Syria and Lebanon are
also involved, will be regulated. In short, the USA will have no time
for the Armenian issue for the moment. Although the Congressmen can
take this step; firstly out of their own interests in the elections in
the Congress and Senate, and secondly out of the wish to show Turkey
its right place. These two factors in the end may overbalance, after
all both the war, and the conflicts are in the other hemisphere. And
the Americans do not actually care about what happened thousand
years ago.

The interesting thing is that the issue of the Genocide has "very
suddenly" started being discussed in Israel. It is quite possible
that the Israeli parliamentarians have been "forced" to go for it
by the unique unification of the Armenian and Jewish Community in
the USA, who have for the first time spoken for the issue of the
Armenian Genocide. "The discussion of the Armenian Genocide in the
Israeli Knesset is indeed unusual and we hope that this discussion
will have its logical outcome," thinks Kiro Manoyan. According to
him, at present all the parties, introduced in Knesset, voted for
the issue being involved in the Agenda. "After the holidays, in May
the discussion of the issue will start. It is quite possible that the
issue will be taken to the Commission on Security from the Commission
on Education. The Deputy Haim Auron and the Office of "Hay Dat" in
Jerusalem is working on this," mentioned Manoyan. He also emphasized
that many deputies of Knesset are assured that the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide is also the moral imperative of Israel.

Meanwhile, Turkey has already started blackmailing Israel. The Head of
the Delegation of the Great National Assembly of Turkey, the Chairman
for Foreign Relations Murad Merdjan is sure that the bill on the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, which is introduced in Knesset,
will not be passed. "All the plenipotentiary persons in Israel,
including the President of the country Shimon Peres, have assured that
the attempts of discussions of any document on "the Armenian Genocide"
in the parliament are never successful," he declared.

SARKISYAN SWORN IN AS ARMENIAN PRESIDENT

RIA Novosti
April 9 2008
Russia

YEREVAN, April 9 (RIA Novosti) – Serzh Sarkisyan was sworn in as
Armenian president on Wednesday as the former Soviet republic looked
to put recent electoral violence behind it.

Thousands of supporters of Levon Ter-Petrosyan, who was defeated
by then Prime Minister Sarkisyan in the February 19 presidential
elections, rallied the day after the polls, claiming that they had
been rigged and demanding a rerun and access to national television.

Sarkisyan denied the allegations, insisting that he had won the
presidential elections fairly.

On March 1, when protests turned violent, President Robert Kocharyan
declared a state of emergency which lasted until March 20. Armenian
authorities said last Wednesday that eight people had been killed
and 265 wounded in the protests.

Sarkisyan’s inauguration was attended by Armenian government officials,
MPs, representatives of 12 international organizations and delegations
from 58 countries. The Russian delegation was led by State Duma
Speaker Boris Gryzlov.

Matthew Bryza, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and
Eurasian Affairs, also took part.

"A political coalition has been formed and the candidacy of prime
minister chosen on the initiative of Armenian President Serzh
Sarkisyan, and the country’s government will be formed next week,"
said Tigran Torosyan, speaker of the National Assembly.

At a meeting on Tuesday the Council of Armenia’s ruling Republican
Party voted unanimously in favor of Tigran Sarkisyan, the Central
Bank chief, for premier.

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address: Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact: Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel: +374-10-517163
Fax: +374-10-517301
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website:
April 9, 2008

Evening Christian Education Classes in Holy Etchmiadzin

In order to meet the needs of our faithful who cannot attend daytime or
weekend classes, the Grand Sacristan of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin
announced this week that Christian Education classes will be offered every
Wednesday evening, from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm in the Mother Cathedral.

The classes will commence immediately following Vespers (Evening Services)
and cover a wide range of topics, including Bible Studies, theological
discussions, spiritual instruction and liturgical music lessons. The
classes will be conducted by the members of the Brotherhood of Holy
Etchmiadzin. All of our faithful are welcome to participate. Class sizes
are limited, therefore, we encourage those interested to arrive early.

ARMENIA TO SEND MORE PEACEKEEPERS TO KOSOVO

RIA Novosti
April 8 2008
Russia

YEREVAN, April 8 (RIA Novosti) – Armenia’s Constitutional Court has
approved an increase in the country’s peacekeeping forces in Kosovo.

Thirty-four Armenian peacekeepers have been serving in Serbia’s
breakaway province since February 12, 2004 as part of a Greek
peacekeeping battalion.

An Armenian infantry regiment will now be sent to Kosovo.

Kosovo, with a 90% ethnic Albanian majority, declared its unilateral
independence from Serbia on February 17. The U.S. and the vast majority
of European Union states have since acknowledged its sovereignty.

Armenia, a former Soviet republic and a UN member state, has not so
far recognized Kosovo’s independence.

Russia, Serbia’s traditional ally, has refused to recognize the
"world’s newest state" and has pledged to block any attempt by Kosovo
to seek UN membership.

SERZH SARKISIAN CONGRATULATES WOMEN ON MATERNITY AND BEAUTY DAY

ARMENPRESS
April 7, 2008

YEREVAN, APRIL 7, ARMENPRESS: President-elect, prime minister Serzh
Sarkisian congratulated today in a message Armenian women on the
occasion of Maternity and Beauty Day.

The government press office said Serzh Sarkisian’s message reads
as follows.

"Dear women, I congratulate you on the occasion of Maternity and
Beauty Day. This day is one of those symbolic occasions when each of
us wishes to convey the words of love, gratitude and appreciation
to our mothers, sisters and wives who give rise to beauty and good
through their children.

We wish to convey these words to our women for passing the feeling
and devotion of loving our homeland from generation to generation.

On this beautiful spring day I wish all of you happiness, health,
love and new achievements "

AK PARTY REVITALIZES EUROPEAN UNION BID

Today’s Zaman
April 4 2008
Turkey

In the wake of the Constitutional Court’s approval of a closure
case against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party),
the government has stepped up reform efforts related to Turkey’s EU
bid, with the infamous Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK)
leading the reform to-do list.

According to many observers, the government’s progress on EU accession
reforms has significantly lagged in the past two years, but the recent
closure case has spurred it back into action.

One of the government’s top priorities is an amendment to Article 301,
which criminalizes "insulting Turkishness." The article is regarded by
the EU as a violation of freedom of speech and as a serious obstacle
on the way to Turkey’s accession to the bloc. A number of the country’s
leading intellectuals and writers, such as Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk,
assassinated Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and novelist Elif
Þafak, have been put on trial for violating 301.

The government’s change of heart has been attributed to the fact that
the harshest reaction to the closure against the AK Party has come
from EU officials. During a recent visit to Sweden, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdoðan noted that after the passage of a social security
reform bill that is currently under discussion in Parliament the
government will amend Article 301, hinting at an acceleration in the
government’s EU reform initiatives. The text of an amendment to the
article drafted by the Justice Ministry will be distributed to members
of the AK Party’s administrative board, which will meet next Monday.

The amendment has been shelved since November due to disagreements
among senior AK Party executives. Nihat Ergun, the deputy chairman
of the AK Party’s parliamentary group, has said, "We have completed
our preparations and we will soon introduce it to Parliament."

Final touches made

The text of the amendment drafted by Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Þahin
requires prosecutors to obtain authorization from the justice minister
before opening cases on violations of Article 301. The procedure for
authorizing 301 cases has long been a source of controversy within the
ruling party. Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek argued that placing
the responsibility for authorizing such cases on the justice minister
would make him a target of criticism and that, instead, a special
commission should be set up for such authorizations.

In the text drafted by Þahin, "insulting Turkishness" is replaced with
"insulting the Turkish nation," and the element of intent has been
included. The intention to insult, rather than criticize, would be
required for a remark to constitute a violation of Article 301.

Also, the maximum sentence for a violation of Article 301 would be
decreased from three years to two.

The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), the Republican People’s Party
(CHP) and the Democratic Left Party (DSP) have objected to the
proposed changes. Only the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP)
has voiced support. The MHP’s opposition to this amendment has forced
the government to defer it until the constitutional amendments to
lift the headscarf ban on university campuses were passed with the
backing of the MHP.

Schedule set for mini package

By speeding the country’s EU process with its mini reform package,
the AK Party is hoping to reward the EU for its strong support in
connection with the closure case. The government has already set a
loose schedule for the reforms and expects the amendment to article
301 to be passed in April.

The government’s mini reform package will also include the ombudsman
bill, which was previously vetoed by former President Ahmet Necdet
Sezer on grounds that the Constitution of 1982 does not contain
provisions on it. By amending the Constitution, the AK Party will
overcome this objection.

While the government is planning to pass these two bills as soon
as possible, a revised Turkish Commercial Code and a set of judicial
reforms will be delayed until October. Revision of the code is expected
to pass smoothly, as no party has expressed opposition to it. However,
as it consists of 1,535 articles, it will keep Parliament busy for
a considerable period of time, so it will be brought to Parliament
after passage of the mini package.

Bills to reform two high courts, the Supreme Court of Appeals and
the Supreme Court of Accounts, will be the last of the package.

–Boundary_(ID_XMkAxyl3r83wfu958CSbdA)–

ARMENIA SHOULD ADOPT NEW DEVELOPMENT MODEL SINCE 2008, RPA DEPUTY CONSIDERS

Noyan Tapan
April 4, 2008

YEREVAN, APRIL 4, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenia should adopt a new development
model since 2008, with which it can secure a new quality or flight
in different spheres. As Armen Ashotian, a member of the RA National
Assembly RPA faction, said at the April 4 press conference, part of
society has some discontent over the past 10 years, for which there
were some objective bases. They are characteristic of the development
model adopted by the country in the past years, which has already
exhausted itself. According to the deputy, already from this year we
should try to secure "state-society" proportionate development.

In A. Ashotian’s opinion, the events that happened in connection with
the presidential elections in Armenia are developments peculiar of
countries’ democracies. The problems of society’s discontented part
were not of social nature. "It was the lack of justice that caused
such manifestations among some parts of society, which can be called
extremism henceforth," A. Ashotian said.

According to him, it is obvious that after the March 1 events
Armenia’s international positions have been shaken to some extent. The
main problem the real organizers of those events tried to solve
(A. Ashotian means foreign forces) was to weaken the country from
inside making it more vulnerable outside. One of the goals was also
to distract Armenia’s and Karabakh’s attention from the possibility
to use Kosovo’s precedent. "Since Kosovo’s independence Armenia
and Nagorno Karabakh proceeding from the formed situation fail to
gain maximum political dividends from that precedent so far, as our
attention is distracted to another direction," the RPA deputy said.

BUSH’S ARMENIA NOMINEE MAY FACE GENOCIDE QUESTION
by Michael Doyle Bee Washington Bureau

Fresno Bee
April 2, 2008 Wednesday
California

President Bush is trying again to fill a long-vacant ambassador’s seat
to Armenia — a posting that has become entangled in U.S. politics.

In a move that could either revive a Capitol Hill conflict or reveal
that passions have cooled, Bush has announced plans to nominate career
diplomat Marie L. Yovanovitch as the ambassador to Armenia.

If she is confirmed, she will replace the previous ambassador, John
Evans, who was recalled in 2006 after he gave speeches in California
endorsing claims of an Armenian genocide at the hands of the Ottoman
Empire.

Those claims inflame sentiment in Turkey.

Last fall, Turkish officials protested bitterly after the House Foreign
Affairs Committee approved a resolution that condemned the killings of
Armenians from 1915 to 1923 as genocide. Democrats withdrew support for
the resolution after President Bush called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
to ask that it not be considered by the full House of Representatives.

The collapse of the House resolution means that the Yovanovitch
nomination may become this year’s highest-profile issue for
Armenian-Americans who have championed the genocide issue for decades.

It also could become mired in the U.S. presidential campaign.

Armenian-Americans make up sizable voting blocs in California and
New Jersey, and Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois
is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which will
consider Yovanovitch’s nomination.

A 1980 graduate of Princeton who later earned a master’s degree at
the National War College, Yovanovitch has been serving since the
summer of 2005 as the U.S. ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic. She
previously served in Russia.

The United States last had a permanent representative in Armenia two
years ago. Evans said he was recalled from the post early after he
told audiences in Fresno, Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area
that Armenians were the victims of genocide.

Evans said his characterization displeased Turkey and his State
Department superiors. Turkey maintains that the word "genocide"
mischaracterizes a complicated war in which many people died on
both sides.

"Armenian-Americans have attempted to extricate and isolate their
history from the complex circumstances in which their ancestors were
embroiled," the Turkish Embassy declared in a statement last year.

"In so doing, they describe a world populated only by white-hatted
heroes and black-hatted villains."

The unsettled question for Yovanovitch is whether she can avoid the
fate of Bush’s last nominee, career diplomat Richard Hoagland.

Armenian-American activists and their Capitol Hill allies stymied
Hoagland’s nomination. He repeatedly ducked the word "genocide"
during his June 2006 Senate confirmation hearing, opting instead for
words such as "tragedy" and "horrific."

OSCE MG, ALIYEV HOLD STRAINED MEETING

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.04.2008 12:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, currently in
Bucharest for NATO summit, received the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs,
said the head of foreign relations department at the Azeri president’s
office.

Novruz Mammadov said that the Azerbaijani President "resolutely
presented his position" on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement and
requested the co-chairs to explain their opposition to the resolution
"On the situation in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan."

The intermediaries said they support the territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan. As to their position, it will be clearly explained in a
statement they will issue in the near future, 1news.az reports.

EX-ADVISER OF NKR PRESIDENT: OSCE MINSK GROUP REFLECTS INTERESTS OF EUROPE

arminfo
2008-04-02 14:45:00

ArmInfo. OSCE Minsk Group reflects the interests of Europe,
the ex-adviser of the NKR President, ex-Foreign Minister of NKR,
ex-candidate for president of Armenia Arman Melikyan said at Hayatsk
Debate Club, Wednesday.

He said these interests contradict the interests of the USA and
Russia in the region. In particular, the ‘security belt’ territories
around NKR are in question. Nether of the super powers is interested
in yielding these territories. Melikyan says the statements by local
politicians, particularly, by ex-president Levon Ter- Petrosyan, on
the readiness to yield these territories deprive them of the support
of the USA and Russia.

The lessons leant must be reflected in practice and become basis
for elaboration of relevant politics. Melikyan says. At the same
time, he is sure that the format of OSCE MG is rather balanced. It
is another matter that it is necessary to involve Nagony Karabakh
into the negotiations and prepare a basis for recognition of Nagorny
Karabakh. Melikyan believes that Azerbaijan’s threats to break up OSCE
MG will not be realized and the negotiations will continue. However,
no real progress should be expected before the presidential election
in Azerbaijan.