Author: Khondkarian Raffi

570 News, Canada
Dec 7 2007

Que. couple asks RCMP for apology after human trafficking charge
dropped

December 6, 2007 – 19:06
By: Sidhartha Banerjee, THE CANADIAN PRESS

MONTREAL – In the months since they were arrested by the RCMP as
alleged human traffickers, a Quebec couple say they’ve lived a
hellish existence, shunned by some and tried globally by rumour.

Vindicated Thursday after the Crown decided to withdraw criminal
charges against them, Nichan Manoukian, 60, and his wife Manoudshag
Saryboyadijan, 48, are now demanding the Mounties make reparations.

And they want the federal force to begin by publicly apologizing to
them for thrusting them into the public spotlight.

The Laval, Que., couple said in an interview in Montreal Thursday
they were made out to be criminals without the RCMP conducting a
proper investigation into the allegations of an Ethiopian nanny who
had lived with them for eight years.

"They came to my door and treated me like a big criminal in front of
my children, my wife," Manoukian said at his lawyer’s office in
Westmount, Que., a stone’s throw away from the RCMP’s headquarters in
the province.

"I’ve been sick for the last two years. I’ve never cried before in my
life but I’m crying from the heart now," an emotional Manoukian
added, the toll of spending almost two years trying to clear his
family’s name apparent.

But the Mounties say the were just doing their job.

RCMP spokesman Cpl. Luc Bessette said the decision to lay charges is
up to the Crown and not the police force.

"We presented the file to Crown prosecutors who decided to lay
charges, and our job was done," Bessette said.

"After that, what they do with the file is up to them, because it’s
before the courts."

It’s up to the Crown to make clear why the charges weren’t pursued,
Bessette said.

The charges had been laid last May after RCMP investigators concluded
the couple treated their nanny like a prisoner.

"Whose fault was it?" asked Saryboyadijan, adding the couple was
humiliated after being fingerprinted and having their mugshots taken.

Crown prosecutor Jonathan Meunier said the charges were dropped
because new elements were introduced since his office decided to lay
charges.

"There’s no question, we would not file any (new) charges with the
information we were given," Meunier said. "We feel that a good
decision was made in this case."

The Manoukian family says they still aren’t sure why the nanny, 29,
filed the complaint with police and are adamant that she was treated
"like family."

But they strongly believe the woman was coerced into filing the
charge to secure her status in the country and did not act on her
own. The woman gained status in Canada following the police
intervention.

The Manoukians had hired a lawyer to help her iron out her
immigration woes.

"We were already getting the paperwork for her, I don’t know why she
did it," said Arvine Manoukian, the couple’s 21-year-old daughter.
"We were even trying to help her bring her fiancee over here."

In May, the Mounties said the Manoukian’s arrests were the first of
their kind in Canada since criminal laws on human trafficking were
introduced in November 2005.

Nichan Manoukian said his family was tried by rumours in the local
Armenian and Lebanese communities. A newspaper in Lebanon listed the
couple as being jailed. The family couldn’t sit in restaurants
without having people staring at them and hearing whispering about
them.

"How could I explain to them that I was innocent," lamented Nichan
Manoukian.

The nanny lived with the couple beginning in 1997 in Lebanon.
Manoukian and his wife are both Canadian citizens and lived in
Lebanon before returning to Canada with the Ethiopian woman in tow in
2004.

She was removed from the Manoukian home in January 2006.

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IT IS ENVISAGED TO INTRODUCE SPECIAL CIVIL SERVICE INSTITUTION IN RA POLICE

Noyan Tapan
Dec 04 2007

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 4, NOYAN TAPAN. On December 4, the RA National
Assembly adopted the bills discussed the previous day. The prevailing
majority of them envisages to make amendments and addenda to a number
of laws in force.

In particular, the amendment adopted to the law On Population’s State
Register in the first reading envisages to accumulate data on dual
citizens in the register, which will give a possibility to ensure
dual citizens’ registration.

The package of amendments and addenda to the valid laws On Service
in Police and On Social Security of Servicemen and Their Family
Members was adopted in the first reading. Its goal is to introduce an
institution of special civil service in subdivisions not performing
the main functions of the Police. In particular, employees of economic
and legal subdivisions of Police, who do not deal with use of arms,
will be considered civil servants.

The parliament also in the second reading adopted the bill On Railway
Transport and proceeding from it, made an addendum to the law On
Public Services Regulatory Body.

The bill On Giving Privileges on the Line of Tax and Compulsory Social
Insurance Payments to Water Using Companies was adopted in the second
reading. The bill envisages to relieve these companies of a number
of taxes and registered and non-paid fines as a result of financial
and technical activity carried out till January 1, 2007.

Russia & CIS Business and Financial Newswire
December 3, 2007 Monday

Inflation in Armenia at 2.1% in Nov

YEREVAN Dec 3

Consumer price inflation in Armenia was 2.1% in November, bringing
inflation in the first eleven months of 2007 to 4.2%, the National
Statistics Service reported.

Prices in November jumped 3% for foodstuffs, including alcoholic
beverages and tobacco, while prices for non-food goods dropped 1.2%
and prices for services went up 0.9%.

Central Bank chief Tigran Sarkisian was reported as saying earlier
that inflation could exceed the targeted 2.5-5.5%, and reach as high
as 7.5% this year.

Inflation was 5.2% in 2006.

TER-PETROSIAN CAMP DEMANDS SARKISIAN RESIGNATION
By Ruzanna Stepanian

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Dec 4 2007

Former President Levon Ter-Petrosian appeared to have launched a new
offensive against Armenia’s government on Tuesday when his political
allies demanded that Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian step down ahead
of the upcoming presidential election.

A new umbrella structure uniting pro-Ter-Petrosian political parties
and individuals said Sarkisian’s resignation is essential for creating
a level playing field for all presidential candidates and ensuring
that the February 19 vote is democratic.

"If the candidates holding one or another [government] post want to
participate in a free and fair election and are concerned with the
country’s future, they must resign their posts," said Garnik Markarian,
a leader of the grouping called Legitimate President-2008.

"This primarily applies to Serzh Sarkisian."

Sarkisian and his Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) are certain to
dismiss the call. The HHK heavily relied on its tight control of
many government bodies to secure a landslide victory in last May’s
parliamentary elections and is widely expected to resort to the
so-called "administrative resources" during the presidential vote
as well.

Markarian, who leads one of a dozen opposition parties supporting
Ter-Petrosian’s return to power, said the new opposition movement will
stage rallies in a bid to force Sarkisian to quit as prime minister. He
said it will also take actions aimed at preventing possible vote
rigging. In particular, Armenians will be urged to "rise up" and
"break the hand attempting to rig" the election, he added.

In the words of Lyudmila Sargsian, another Legitimate President-2008
leader, the movement will also launch a public relations campaign
aimed at persuading people not to sell their votes to pro-government
candidates. She said other opposition candidates should also join
the new grouping if they are interested in a clean vote.

"If they want to get elected, they have to join us because the other
camp shows no desire to hold a free and fair election," Sargsian told
a news conference.

HHK leaders say the Armenian government is committed to ensuring the
freedom and fairness of the presidential ballot. They point to its
conduct of the May elections which was praised by Western observers.

ARMENIA DOESN’T SEE ALTERNATIVE TO PEACEFUL RESOLUTION OF KARABAKH CONFLICT

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.11.2007 13:40 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "We don’t see alternative to a peaceful resolution
of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

I am confident that we perform our mission well enough but we want a
peaceful solution to the conflict," Armenian Defense Minister Mikael
Harutyunyan said in Astana upon completion of the session of CIS
Defense Ministers.

According to him, Safar Abiyev’s statement on inevitability of war
between Armenia and Azerbaijan is ‘too categorical’.

"Minister of Defense has no right to make statements when Supreme
Commanders in Chief – the Presidents of the two states – are holding
peaceful talks. No one can frighten Armenia with military operations,"
Harutyunyan said, KAZINFORM reports.

FOREIGN STUDENTS OF ARMENIAN UNIVERSITIES NOT TO PAY STATE TAX

2007-11-28 14:08:00

ArmInfo. Today deputies of the National Assembly adopted in the second
and final reading the draft law on alterations and amendments to the
law on state tax

As one of the authors of the draft law, deputy Hranush Hakopyan said,
amendments were made to the acting law in September 2006, according
to which foreign students of Armenian universities were given an
opportunity of getting free education till 31 December 2006. When
the law became valid, such students had to pay 105 thsd drams state
tax. This caused anxiety of foreign students. For this reason it was
suggested to return to the order that functioned till 31 December
2006. Hakopyan said that Bologna process foresees creation of such
conditions when free movement of students is ensured, one of the main
conditions of which is resolving of their finance problems. After
adoption of the draft law foreign students, among which there are
many representatives of Armenian Diaspora, will not pay state taxes
for education. The law is regarding foreign teachers too.

AUTHOR TO SIGN BOOKS

Bradenton Herald, FL
l
Nov 28 2007

SARASOTA – East Manatee author and illustrator Ann Stephanian Kale
will sign copies of her new book, "Going to College with Grandma,"
from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Dec. 8 at Circle Books, 478 John Ringling Blvd.,
St. Armands Circle, Sarasota.

The book tells the shared college experiences the author had with
her grandson, Scott Kale. The author was a member of the May 2007
graduating class of the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee.

All proceeds from Kale’s books go to the Gyumri Orphanage in Armenia.

OSCE MINISTERIAL COUNCIL SET TO START IN MADRID

A1+
[01:40 pm] 29 November, 2007

Foreign ministers and high-level representatives from the 56 OSCE
countries gather in Madrid tomorrow for the start of the annual
Ministerial Council, with bids for the OSCE Chairmanship, sideline
negotiations on a key European arms control treaty and the role of
the OSCE in Kosovo topping this year’s agenda.

"The Ministerial Council comes once a year, it is the most important
moment in the Chairmanship," said Jose Maria Pons, the Spanish Foreign
Ministry’s Director General of Foreign Policy for Europe and North
America, at a press briefing held today ahead of the meeting.

Spain, which holds the OSCE Chairmanship for 2007, is hosting the
two-day gathering. The Ministerial Council will open Thursday with
an address by Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero
and the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel
Angel Moratinos.

Ambassador Pons said that the heads of delegations would hold a
working lunch on Thursday covering the main issues on the agenda,
including the OSCE’s Mission in Kosovo, engagement with Afghanistan
and the legal character of the Organization.

He emphasized the importance of extending the mandate of the Mission
in Kosovo, which expires at the end of the year. The Mission is the
Organization’s largest field operation with 1,000 staff.

Decisions expected to be taken in Madrid address, among other matters,
public-private partnerships to counter terrorism; protecting energy
infrastructure from terrorist attack; environment and security; and
promoting mutual respect and understanding as well as strengthening
engagement with human rights defenders.

These reflect the Spanish Chairmanship’s priorities focusing on the
fight against terrorism, protecting the environment, encouraging
participation in pluralistic societies and strengthening the OSCE’s
role as a forum for dialogue and co-operation.

The participating States will decide who will hold the OSCE
Chairmanship after Finland’s term in 2008. A decision on Kazakhstan’s
bid to chair the Organization was postponed at the 2006 Ministerial
Council in Brussels and will be taken this year.

The activities of the Office for Democratic Institutions and
Human Rights, the OSCE’s election monitoring body, will also be
addressed. Discussions on the future of the Treaty on Conventional
Forces in Europe (CFE) are taking place on the sidelines of the
Ministerial Council.

The annual Ministerial Council provides the 56 OSCE participating
States the opportunity to review and assess the Organization’s
activities during the past year, as well as to approve a series of
decisions for action and possible declarations on a range of subjects.

RUSSIAN DIPLOMAT DENIES WEAPONS DEPLOYMENT IN NAGORNY KARABAKH

RIA Novosti
17:12 | 29/ 11/ 2007

BAKU, November 29 (RIA Novosti) – Russia is not deploying weaponry
in the disputed Nagorny Karabakh territory, scene of a 1988-1994
conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia that left 30,000 people dead,
a Russian diplomat said on Thursday.

Moscow recently withdrew from a Soviet-era military base in Georgia,
transferring military equipment and staff to Armenia, yet Azerbaijan
officials and media have accused Russia of subsequently deploying
these weapons in the Nagorny Karabakh conflict zone.

However, the Russian ambassador in Azerbaijan, Vasily Istratov, told
a RIA Novosti news conference that, "Military equipment transferred
to a Russian military base in Armenia remains in the hands of Russian
servicemen."

"Russian and Azeri defense ministers discussed this issue [the
deployment of weaponry in Nagorny Karabakh] on numerous occasions,"
he went on, adding that Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov
was currently on a two-day visit to Azerbaijan where he had signed
a plan of bilateral military cooperation for 2008 with the country’s
leadership.

The Russian 102nd military base in Gyumri, about 120 kilometers
(75 miles) from the Armenian capital Yerevan, is part of a joint air
defense system of the Commonwealth of Independent States, which was
deployed in Armenia in 1995.

The 5,000-personnel base operates under the authority of the Russian
group of forces in the South Caucasus, and is equipped with S-300
(SA-10 Grumble) air defense systems and MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters.

The Russian diplomat also reaffirmed that Moscow did not have plans
to build a second military base in Armenia.

The conflict between the two former Soviet republics over Nagorny
Karabakh first erupted in 1988 when the territory proclaimed
independence from Azerbaijan in order to join Armenia.

A ceasefire was announced in 1994, and Nagorny Karabakh remained in
Armenian hands. However, tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia have
persisted, with some 100 people having died since the ceasefire came
into effect.

Istratov also said the future of the Gabala radar Russia leases from
Azerbaijan until 2012 would be decided by Azeri leadership.

"This [the future of the radar] depends on several factors…But the
most important is that the radar belongs to Azerbaijan, and if anyone
has the right to decide what to do with the [radar] station, it is,
first and foremost, the owner – Azerbaijan," the Russian diplomat said,
adding that the radar could remain operational beyond 2012.

Russia had earlier offered the U.S. the use of Gabala radar as an
alternative to Washington’s plans to deploy interceptor missiles in
Poland and a radar in the Czech Republic.

The Gabala radar, located near the town of Minchegaur, 120 kilometers
(75 miles) from the capital Baku, was leased to Russia for 10 years
in 2002.

It has been operational since early 1985. Russia says that its range
of 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) makes it the most powerful in the
region and able to detect missile launches in Asia, the Middle East
and parts of Africa.

However, the U.S. has insisted that the Gabala radar could only be
used as an addition to the European missile shield.

VAHAN HOVHANNISSIAN ELECTED AS CANDIDATE FROM DASHNAKTSUTIUN FOR THE POSITION OF THE ARMENIAN PRESIDENT

Mediamax
November 30, 2007

Yerevan /Mediamax/. The Supreme gathering of "Dashnaktsutiun" party
elected the Vice-Speaker of the Armenian parliament Vahan Hovhannissian
as a candidate from the party for the upcoming presidential elections.

Mediamax reports that 60 out of 82 delegates of the Supreme gathering
gave their votes to Vahan Hovhannissian, 16 delegates – for his only
rival, representative of the party Bureau, MP Armen Rustamian.

Earlier, the results of the national voting were publicized,
according to which, 288 697 citizens participated in the voting
process. 53% gave their votes to Vahan Hovhannissian, 47% – to Armen
Rustamian. The latter announced rejection and urged the party members
to vote for Vahan Hovhannissian as a candidate from Dashnaktsutiun
for the presidential elections.