Author: Karakhanian Suren

ENCYCLOPEDIA “ARTSAKH-KARABAKH” PRESENTED IN STEPANAKERT
STEPANAKERT, JULY 7. ARMINFO. The encyclopedia “Artsakh-Karabakh,”
the Petropolis printing house (St.Petersburg, Russia) has been
presented in Stepanakert.
The author of the encyclopedia, professor Sergey Sarkissyan was born
in Karabakh but lives in Moscow. He says that in his book he tried to
present the life of Artsakh-Karabakh and the activities of well-known
Karabakh natives living worldwide. The encyclopedia is also to provide
moral support to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in its way towards
international recognition. “I have hurried with the book as Azerbaijan
is steadily whipping up its propaganda war. So this encyclopedia is
also of ideological importance,” says Sarkissyan noting that he is
going to have the book translated into English.-0

AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383, x137
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:
PRESS RELEASE
Tuesday, July 5, 2005
AGBU LEBANON DISTRICT HONORS GARBIS MARKARIAN
New York, NY – AGBU Lebanon District recognized Garbis Markarian for
five decades of distinguished service to the Armenian Lebanese
community at a special event organized in his honor on May 20,
2005. Markarian, AGBU District Committee of Lebanon Vice Chairperson,
was presented with the Order of St. Nerses Shnorhali and an encyclical
from His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians. This
special evening was attended by over 300 local dignitaries, community
leaders, AGBU members and friends.
The guest of honor received congratulatory messages from Armenia’s
Ambassador to Lebanon Areg Hovhannisian, AGBU President Berge
Setrakian, AGBU District Committee of Lebanon and AGBU Antranik Youth
Association (AYA). Markarian also received plaques from AGBU and the
Union of Manufacturers of Lebanon. In his remarks, Avedis Demirdjian,
AGBU District Committee of Lebanon Chairperson, said the District
Committee and the entire AGBU family were proud to honor Markarian who
has dedicated his life to serving AGBU and AYA, where he served as
Chairperson for many years.
“This event is a well-deserved appreciation for your selfless service
and contribution to the Lebanese Armenian community and to AGBU,” said
AGBU President Berge Setrakian in his congratulatory message, thanking
Markarian’s family, wife Aida Markarian and children, for their
enormous support.
In his closing remarks, Markarian, deeply moved, said, “At this
moment, I live… perhaps the most special moment in my life…I can
proudly say that I am happy to have served my Union and my nation,
remaining faithful to Lebanon, Armenia and Holy Etchmiadzin…”

AGBU Lebanon District is dedicated to preserving and promoting the
Armenian heritage and culture through humanitarian, educational and
cultural programs. For more information on AGBU Lebanon District,
please email [email protected] or visit
For more information on AGBU and its worldwide chapters, please visit

A1plus
| 14:54:39 | 01-07-2005 | Official |
ARMAVIA APOLOGIZES
For the last few days because of technical reasons some flights realized by
the company «Armavia» are realized with delay which causes the righteous
complaints of the passengers.
The company «Armavia» apologizes for the delays and asks to approach the
temporary problems with understanding. In the closes future all the
technical problems will be solved and «Armavia» will represent itself newly
in the market.

The Messenger, Georgia
July 1 2005
NATO-Russia: new balance in the South Caucasus
The balance of power in the South Caucasus is shifting. The agreement
reached regarding the withdrawal of the Russian military bases from
the territory of Georgia along with Georgia and Azerbaijan
intensifying their efforts to integrate into NATO suggest that
Russian military influence is on the wane while NATO is gaining
influence.
Speaking in Moscow on June 24, NATO General Secretary Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer responded to questions as to whether Georgia and Ukraine
will become NATO members by saying, “the door of NATO is open for
everybody,” but the integration of Georgia and Ukraine “will not be
fulfilled as quickly as Georgia and Ukraine want because these
countries are not ready for NATO yet.” Scheffer denied rumors that as
soon as the Russian military bases leave Georgia they will be rapidly
replaced by NATO military forces. “We do not have such plans,
intentions or desires. NATO simply does not have enough military
forces to be stationed everywhere,” he said.
Nevertheless, despite repeated statements of Georgian and NATO
officials that NATO bases will not be deployed in Georgia, it is
clear that in parallel with the weakening of Russian military
influence, NATO’s cooperation with the South Caucasus countries is
deepening. It is clear too that this greatly irritates Russia. “The
increased attention that NATO is paying to the South Caucasus and
Central Asia cannot but irritate Russia,” Deputy Speaker of the
Russian Duma Liubov Sliska stated during a meeting with Scheffer.
Sliska added that NATO’s increasing influence in the region could
jeopardize the peaceful resolution of conflicts in the southern
Caucasus. “There is the possibility that the appearance of this new
strong military-political player in these countries could complicate
the elaboration of those formats that were established during the
negotiation processes. This could create a serious risk,” he said as
quoted by Rezonansi.
This should be of little concern as the ongoing conflicts are highly
unlikely ever to be resolved through “the established formats of the
negotiations” which are intended primarily to maintain Russia’s
influence in the region. Indeed, it is widely accepted in Georgia
that the peaceful resolution of the conflicts in Abkhazia and South
Ossetia requires the internationalization of the peace process.
Although NATO has repeatedly stressed that it will not intervene
directly in the conflicts, the increased attention it is paying to
the region is to be welcomed.
This increased attention can be seen in a statement by Robert
Simmons, the special representative of NATO to the South Caucasus and
Asia, who said last week that if Armenia did not want Russian
military bases to remain on its territory, NATO would be happy to
assist. Few analysts expect Yerevan to respond to this offer, not
only because of the long-established alliance between Russia and
Armenia, but also Moscow’s support of Yerevan in Nagorno-Karabakh,
but the statement does raise the possibility of deepening
collaboration with the west.
Furthermore, on June 16, Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vardan
Oskanian presented the NATO Council with a program of individual
collaboration between Armenia and NATO. Oskanian named this document
a “turning point” in NATO-Armenian relations, suggesting that Armenia
is following Georgia and Azerbaijan in their efforts to join NATO. It
remains to be seen whether Yerevan will be able to achieve this while
retaining good relations with Russia.
Georgian membership of NATO remains some way off, while membership of
the European Union lies even further. Nevertheless, it is a fact that
Georgian and Ukrainian velvet revolutions have led to a shift in the
balance of power in the region, particularly in leading to an
acceleration in NATO’s eastward expansion.

Euro-reporters, Belgium
June 30 2005
OSCE’s future
Written by Brussels journalist David Ferguson
Thursday, 30 June 2005
“What the 55 States of the OSCE need to do is to rediscover a sense
of common purpose in addressing issues that are common to them all. I
hope that the recommendations contained in this report will help to
work towards that end,” says OSCE Chair-in-Office, and Slovenian
Foreign Minister, Dimitrij Rupel. An all-male ‘Panel of Eminent
Persons’ today presented a 32-page report on strengthening the
55-nation security Organization.
The report, entitled ‘Common Purpose’, comes just ahead of a meeting
in Washington of nearly 300 parliamentarians from the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe (1-5 July). Since enlargement
of the European Union in May 2004 to include Central European and
Baltic states, as well as Cyprus and Malta, pan-European and regional
organizations like the Council of Europe and the OSCE have been
forced to consider major rethinks.
Other pressure came from Russia. The Kremlin earlier this year put
pressure on the OSCE by holding up payments to the ~@168 million
budget. The spat with Moscow was less about money but more about the
30-year old OSCE redefining itself as a democratic quality assurance
authority. OSCE election monitoring in Georgia and Ukraine, and
complaints about rigged Belarus polls, were seen by the Kremlin as
allowing pro-Western opposition parties sweep to power following
rigged elections. “Russia wants to make a point. It wants less of
human rights and human security and more focus on military, economic
and environmental issues,” Dutch ambassador to the OSCE Daan Everts
told the International Herald Tribune.
For Russian Duma deputy Leonid Ivanchenko, the OSCE has engaged in
too much finger-pointing only at former Communist countries in
Eastern Europe and Central Asia. “Out of 20 OSCE missions functioning
today six operate in the Balkans, five in Central Asia, three in the
Caucasus, and six in Eastern Europe,” notes Ivanchenko. “There is not
a single mission west of Vienna – as if there exist no Northern
Ireland, Cyprus, the Basque Country or Corsica with their problems.”
Too often, Ivanchenko feels, the OSCE fails to criticize abuse of
human rights and democratic freedoms in the US or other Western
members of the OSCE.
Ivanchenko’s views, together with those of other OSCE
parliamentarians, were handed over last Friday in a report on the
‘Future of the OSCE’ by OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President,
Florida Congressman Alcee L. Hastings to OSCE chair Dimitrij Rupel.
One of the rapporteurs with views diametrically opposed to those of
Ivanchenko was Flemish MP Pieter De Crem. “During the last decade of
the twentieth century, the Balkans were the OSCE’s main area of
operation,” states De Crem.
“Now that other institutions ~V the UN, the EU and NATO ~V are
increasingly involved in reconstruction, state building and security,
we feel that the OSCE could increasingly shift its attention and
resources towards areas where the OSCE space, the former Soviet Union
and the Muslim cultural spheres meet and overlap each other: Central
Asia and the Caucasus,” continues De Crem, whose report will also be
discussed at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Washington.
Like many of the other 300 OSCE parliamentarians, De Crem also wants
more democratic accountability from the OSCE chair and secretariat in
Vienna. “We not only need the willingness of the executive branch of
the OSCE to accept that the PA, like any parliamentary assembly, asks
the OSCE-chairmanship and the OSCE-agencies to justify its actions on
a number of policy issues, but also to give the PA the appropriate
instruments to do so,” he notes.
De Crem also wants a debate on whether the name ‘Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe’ is too euro-centric. “Given the
Cold War background of the Helsinki initiative and the CSCE~Rs initial
quality of meeting platform for NATO and Warsaw Pact states, and as
long as the OSCE~Rs operational focus was on the Balkans and
Southeastern Europe, the emphasis on Europe in the OSCE~Rs name made
sense,” he writes.
“Almost one and a half decade after the demise of the Soviet Union,
the OSCE groups eight member states that are technically situated in
Asia and one key player, the Russian Federation, that is genuinely
Eurasian,” continues De Crem. “Moreover, the southern ex-Soviet
republics border the Middle East and face situations that are
increasingly infulenced by developments in the latter region.
Therefore, we could consider whether after 30 years, ‘from Vancouver
to Vladivostok’ reflects a Atlantic-Eurasian more than a strictly
European cooperation.”
OSCE parliamentarians’ meeting in Washington will be addressed by top
officials including US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and OSCE
Chair-in-Office, Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel. Also on
the agenda are issues ranging from anti-semitism, gender equality,
election observations, Nagorno-Karabakh, the continued Russian
occupation of Abkhazia (Georgia) and Transnistria (Moldova), human
trafficking, and democratic rights.

FULL-SCALE INTRODUCTION OF CONSTITUTIONAL REFORMS PROJECT TO ARMENIAN
PEOPLE TO ENSURE SUCCESS TO THE REFERENDUM
YEREVAN, June 29. /ARKA/. Full-scale introduction of constitutional
reforms project to Armenian people will ensure success to the
referendum, Armenian President Robert Kocharyan said Tuesday during
his meeting with Roland Wegener, the head of the Ministerial Committee
of the Council of Europe, Ago Group and German Ambassador to the
CE. Kocharyan said Armenia passed a long road of reforms that derive
from Armenia’s commitments toward the CE and intends to summarize
what has been done by the end of the year.
Wegener, in turn, noted that Armenia has accomplished a great deal in
fulfillment of its CE commitments. In his words, considerable progress
is seen in constitutional reforms implementation. He attached great
importance to creating climate of mutual understanding over the
worked-out document. M.V. -0–

Turkish Press
June 28 2005
Press Scan
HURRIYET
“TURKEY’S REQUEST CANNOT BE MET”
President Robert Kocharian of Armenia said that Turkey wanted them
to give up Upper Karabakh and allegations of genocide, adding that
those requests could not be met. He stressed that they could sit at
the negotiation table with Turkey unconditionally.

Pendant la crise, la Turquie bosse fort; Europe
par Demetz Jean-Michel; Ortaq Nukte V.
L’Express
27 juin 2005
Loin de baisser les bras, a l’heure où la zizanie règne au sein de
l’Union, les dirigeants d’Ankara s’efforcent d’etre au rendez-vous de
l’adhesion
TEXTE-ARTICLE:
Depuis la terrasse du Besinci Kat, ce cafe branche de Taksim, la vue
s’etale, genereuse, sur le Bosphore aux eaux vives. En face, sur la
rive encore boisee commence l’Asie et, pour beaucoup d’Europeens –
Francais en tete – le problème. “Les non francais et neerlandais
ont confirme l’apprehension des Turcs, analyse l’universitaire
Cengiz Aktar. Nous sommes très favorables a l’adhesion de la
Turquie a l’Union europeenne, mais en meme temps nous doutons que
nous en ferons un jour partie.” Ce francophile qui travaille sur la
candidature d’Istanbul au titre de “capitale culturelle europeenne”
en 2010 ne cache pas sa lassitude, face a cet Occident complique.
“L’Europe ne peut pas etre une grande Suisse, en paix et prospère,
quand ses frontières brûlent, argumente-t-il. Une Turquie dans l’Union,
c’est l’espoir de la rue arabo-musulmane, qui voit dans ce voisinage
europeen un gage de stabilite et de prosperite. C’est a l’Europe,
pas a l’Amerique, de dessiner le Grand Moyen-Orient de demain!”
Mais l’Europe est-elle prete a relever un defi dont l’ampleur
l’effraie? En decembre 2004, les Vingt-Cinq avaient fixe au 3 octobre
l’ouverture des negociations en vue de l’adhesion d’Ankara. A
Bruxelles, pourtant, lors du sommet europeen des 16 et 17 juin,
Jacques Chirac et le president de la Commission europeenne,
Jose Manuel Barroso, ont affirme qu’il fallait reflechir sur les
frontières de l’Europe tout en tenant les engagements deja pris.
Comprenne qui pourra… Il est vrai que la candidature turque se
heurte a l’opposition d’une majorite de l’opinion dans cinq pays
(France, Allemagne, Pays-Bas, Autriche, Danemark). Surtout, les
victoires annoncees d’Angela Merkel, la candidate de la CDU allemande
a la chancellerie, cet automne, et de Nicolas Sarkozy a l’Elysee, en
2007, inquiètent: contrairement au duo Chirac-Schroder, favorable a
une pleine adhesion d’Ankara, les deux dirigeants ont claironne leur
preference pour un “partenariat privilegie” aux contours encore flous.
La position officielle du gouvernement turc, elle, ne varie pas. “Le
“partenariat privilegie” existe deja, resume Ahmet Sever, conseiller
du ministre des Affaires etrangères, Abdullah Gul. Le lancement des
negociations en vue de l’adhesion est irreversible, mais nous savons
que les discussions seront longues et difficiles. D’ici a dix ans,
toutefois, si la Turquie a persevere sur la voie des reformes,
la perception de notre pays aura change.” Le depute Salih Kapusuz
(AK Parti) rencherit: “La France a toujours eu des problèmes avec
l’elargissement, avec le Royaume-Uni d’abord, puis avec l’Espagne. A
la fin, l’Union a reussi son integration regionale mais, pour reussir
son integration globale, elle aura besoin de la Turquie.” Tout juste
nomme negociateur en chef pour le dossier d’adhesion, le ministre
de l’Economie, Ali Babacan, affiche un zèle reformiste impeccable:
“Nous allons passer tout notre système en revue de A a Z.” L’elite
politique veut encore croire qu’une democratisation des institutions
et une forte croissance de l’economie pourront rendre acceptable la
candidature turque a l’horizon 2015-2020. Le syndicat patronal turc ne
prevoit-il pas de 4,5 a 6% de croissance annuelle pour les dix a douze
ans a venir, avec une inflation maîtrisee a 5%? En 2004, d’ailleurs,
l’economie a fait un bond de 9,7% de croissance – mieux que la Chine!
Le train des reformes ne ralentit pas. Voila trois ans que Pinar
Ilkkaracan discutait, en amont, avec les deputes, pour preparer le
travail des commissions sur les droits de la femme. Le Code penal,
qui datait des annees 1920, etait inspire de celui de l’Italie
fasciste. Sous la pression des Europeens, un Code modernise a vu le
jour le 1er juin. “Le nouveau texte est une revolution pour la femme,
s’enthousiasme cette avocate du feminisme turc. Une reconnaissance
de l’autonomie du sujet.” Elle liste les avancees: le viol conjugal
est desormais criminalise (il ne l’est pas encore en Grèce); la
definition du viol et des abus sexuels est elargie – ce n’est plus
un crime contre la chastete mais contre le corps de l’individu. Toute
une terminologie sur l’honneur, la virginite, la honte a ete effacee.
Les circonstances attenuantes prevues pour les crimes d’honneur ont
disparu; des circonstances aggravantes ont ete introduites pour les
“crimes coutumiers”. “Tous les crimes sexuels etaient consideres
jusqu’alors comme des crimes contre la societe, poursuit-elle. Ils
sont desormais reconnus comme des crimes contre la personne. Le
vieux système patriarcal a vole en eclats.” Pinar Ilkkaracan n’a pas
tout obtenu. La loi ne punit pas les discriminations sur la base de
l’orientation sexuelle et l’avortement (legal en Turquie depuis 1972,
deux avant la France) n’est possible que pendant les dix premières
semaines de la grossesse (et pas douze comme en France depuis 1992
et comme les feministes turques le souhaiteraient). Surtout, beaucoup
dependra desormais de l’application du Code par les juges.
C’est la principale source d’inquietude des partisans de la reforme.
Comment changer vite les vieilles habitudes de la bureaucratie,
des policiers, des magistrats? Un immense travail de formation
reste a mener. Excusees, dans un premier temps, par le ministre de
la Justice, les brutalites policières contre une manifestation de
femmes, ce printemps, a Istanbul, ont choque. Comme l’oukase pris par
un sous-prefet de faire retirer des bibliothèques publiques de sa
juridiction les oeuvres du romancier Orhan Pamuk, coupable d’avoir
evoque le tabou des massacres d’Armeniens et de Kurdes de 1915. Des
universitaires, qui preparaient une conference sur la question du
“genocide armenien”, ont decide de la reporter a la suite de menaces
et de l’attaque d’un ministre (“Un coup de poignard”, a-t-il fulmine,
avant d’etre desavoue par le chef du gouvernement). “Tout cela est
regrettable, reconnaît Akif Gulle, vice-president du groupe des deputes
de l’AK Parti, la formation conservatrice musulmane au pouvoir. Mais ce
sont des accidents de la circulation. Aussi tristes qu’ils soient, ils
n’interrompent pas notre voyage sur la route des reformes.” La societe
civile manifeste un dynamisme qui contraste avec l’apathie des societes
balkaniques. A chaque incident, medias et organisations protestent et
obtiennent gain de cause. Le sous-prefet a fait l’objet d’une enquete
interne; des policiers ont ete suspendus; les universitaires ont
deja fixe une nouvelle date pour leur colloque. Reste que le Premier
ministre, le reformiste Recep Tayyip Erdogan, lui-meme, n’echappe pas
aux mauvaises manières. Il a poursuivi en justice et fait condamner
a une amende un caricaturiste coupable de l’avoir represente sous
les traits d’un chat empetre dans une pelote de laine… Y a-t-il un
chef de gouvernement en Europe qui oserait aujourd’hui poursuivre
un caricaturiste? La Turquie continue d’avoir un problème avec la
liberte de la presse. “Le nouveau Code penal maintient des peines
de prison pour les journalistes s’ils publient des insultes ou
des obscenites, denonce Ercan Ipekci, president du Syndicat des
journalistes turcs. Et des limitations de la liberte d’expression ont
ete introduites concernant la question armenienne ou le retrait des
soldats turcs de Chypre.” Qui plus est, un regime rigoureux de droit
au respect de la vie privee fait peser le risque d’une multiplication
des procès. “Dans le contexte d’une societe liberale, ces clauses
ne poseraient pas de problème, explique Deniz Vardar, professeur de
sciences politiques au departement francophone de l’universite de
Marmara. Dans un autre contexte, on est dans l’inconnu.”
Depuis 2002, ce pays a connu plus de reformes que dans les dix
annees precedentes. “Ce processus doit desormais continuer au rythme
des negociations sur l’adhesion”, soutient un diplomate europeen
conscient que tout ne peut pas etre fait tout de suite. Les services
de Bruxelles assurent, de leur côte, une part du travail legislatif
de conserve avec les deputes turcs. Avant l’echeance du 3 octobre,
le Parlement devra ainsi voter une loi complexe redigee avec les
experts bruxellois sur les fondations religieuses afin de donner plus
de droits aux minorites et ratifier l’extension du traite d’union
douanière a Chypre. “L’Europe doit continuer a aider les reformateurs,
conclut le diplomate. Il en va de notre interet.”
–Boundary_(ID_xJH2Wiftlnmhy1KFGIu8qg)–

RA PRIME MINISTER AND PRESIDENT OF STORTING OF NORWAY DUSCUSS
PERSPECTIVE SPHERES OF COOPERATION BETWEEN TWO COUNTRIES
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, NOYAN TAPAN. At the June 22 meeting, Andranik
Margarian, the RA Prime Minister and Jurgeb Kosmo, the President of
the Storting of the Kingdom of Norway emphasized the tendency of
activization of the Armenian-Norwegian relations and spoke for their
being developed even more. The participants of the meeting attached
importance to strengthening of legal-agreement basis bewteen the two
countries, expressing anxiety with the fact that onle one
Armenian-Norwegian agreement has been signed at present, and another
is at the stage of discussion. Andranik Margarian mentioned that the
Government of Armenia is ready to present draft agreements on
cooperation in mutual security and stimulation of investments, in
avoid of double tax evasion, in the spheres of culture, science and
education and a number of other drafts to discussion by the Norwegian
party. The Prime Minister presented to the Norwegian Storting
President the authorities’ position concerning the relations with the
European Union. He, particularly, attached importance to the
invovlement of the South Caucasuian countries in the “European
Neighbourhood” policy. As for issues of the regional cooperation,
Andranik Margarian stated that Armenia agrees with the approach of the
European Union, according to which, present conflicts obstacle the
stable development of countries of the region. Presenting Armenia’s
position, he secured the veiwpoint that implementation of different
programs of cooperation among all parties, without pre-conditions will
greatly support their settlement. The Prime Minister mentioned that in
the context of its regional policy, Armenia attempts consistently to
improve relations with all neighboring states, including Turkey as
well, without any pre-condition. Jurgen Kosmo emphasized that Armenia,
as a country of cultural values, having Christian traditions of
centuries, can have its deserving contribution in the development of
the international cooperation. He especially mentioned the necessity
of the establishment of peace in the region, security of a stable
safety. As Noyan Tapan was informed by the RA Government’s Information
and Public Relations Department, among the perspective spheres of the
bilateral cooperation, the parties mentioned the spheres of
information technologies, energy (especially, hydroenergy),
agriculture, science and education, culture. Andranik Margarian
thanked the Armenian Office of the Norwegian Refugee Council for
active works, owing to which hundreds of flats for those suffered of
the earthquake and refugees, medical rehabilitation centers,
water-pipes, community centers, etc. have been built in the marzes of
Armenia since 1988.

Sacramento Bee, CA
June 23 2005
Books: An ‘Essential’ first
By Dixie Reid — Bee Staff Writer
William Saroyan left Fresno in 1928, but it never left his thoughts.
He mined his memories of the Central Valley town for his writings,
although the folks back home didn’t always like his portrayal of
them.
Saroyan, who in 1940 won – and refused to accept – a Pulitzer Prize
for his play “The Time of Your Life,” is the subject of the first
volume in the Essential Collection, a series of titles from
Berkeley’s Heyday Books showcasing internationally known California
writers.
“I think Saroyan is essential now because there’s something about the
simple joy of his view of humanity that has gotten lost but is still
true,” said William E. Justice, who edited and wrote the introduction
to “Essential Saroyan” (Heyday Books and Santa Clara University, 208
pages, $11.95 paperback).
“As our culture gets more fractured and chaotic, and we become more
isolated, the commonness of his vision of what people really are like
speaks to a lonely and estranged current population,” Justice said.
For the book, Justice chose excerpts from Saroyan’s writings,
including “The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze,” “Radio Play”
and “The Human Comedy.”
“Time has treated William Saroyan poorly,” said Justice, who is 25.
“People who are in charge of saying what should be preserved feel
that he has had his day, and almost anyone under (age) 35 has never
heard of him. Those I’ve shown his work take to it immediately and
are baffled as to why they’ve never heard of him.
“So there’s a tremendous new audience that would eat up the work if
they found it.”
Justice also is working on a vast Saroyan omnibus, to be published in
2008, the 100th anniversary of Saroyan’s birth.
Saroyan, who was of Armenian heritage, returned to Fresno in his
later years and died there in 1981, at age 72.
“The Valley has kept his memory alive,” Justice said, “and the
Armenians are tireless supporters of his work. He lives on in the
community he wrote about, but the rest of the country doesn’t pay him
any attention. Many of his books are out of print, so the Essential
Collection is nice, taking something from the best of his works you
can’t find in stores anymore.”
Future editions of the Essential Collection will feature John Muir
and Mary Austin.
“It’s not just redoing ‘Daring Young Man’ or ‘Human Comedy,’ ” Heyday
Books founder and publisher Malcolm Margolin said of launching the
Essential series with Saroyan. “It’s throwing out something that
lures someone to look at the best of Saroyan, to let someone like
William Justice write an introduction that redefines him, to get him
into bookstores once again.”
– Dixie Reid