Author: Mamian George

March 14, 2008
Press Release
Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
H.E. Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate
6252 Honolulu Avenue
La Crescenta, CA 91214
Tel: (818) 248-7737
Fax: (818) 248-7745
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

PRELATE RETURNS FROM ANTELIAS

On Thursday, March 13th, H.E. Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian,
Prelate, returned from Lebanon where, upon the invitation of H.E. Aram I,
Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, he celebrated Divine Liturgy on
Sunday, March 9th on the occasion of the Feast of St. Gregory the
Illuminator’s Descent into the Pit which is the Pilgrimage Day of the
Cathedral in Antelias.
Upon his return, the Prelate taped an interview about his trip which
will air on the Prelacy weekly religious television program on Sunday, March
16th, at 9:00 a.m. on Horizon Armenian Television.

PRELATE TO CELEBRATE PALM SUNDAY
AT HOLY MARTYRS CHURCH IN ENCINO

On Sunday, March 16th, all Prelacy Churches will celebrate the
triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, Palm Sunday, with Divine Liturgy
and the traditional Children’s Procession. At the conclusion of Liturgy the
Opening of the Portals service will be conducted.
On this occasion, H.E. Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate,
will celebrate Divine Liturgy and deliver the sermon at Holy Martyrs Church
in Encino.
H.E. Archbishop Souren Kataroyan will celebrate Divine Liturgy at
St. Gregory Church in San Francisco, while H.E. Archbishop Yeprem Tabakian
will conduct services at St. Sarkis Church in Pasadena.
Very Rev. Fathers Muron Aznikian and Barthev Gulumian will be at
Holy Cross Cathedral in Montebello and St. Mary’s Church in Glendale
respectively.

PRELATE’S HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE

Monday, March 17th, is the start of Holy Week during which the
Prelate will conduct services in various Prelacy Churches. Below is the
Prelate’s Holy Week schedule.

. Holy Tuesday-Remembrance of the Ten Virgins: St. Garabed Church, Hollywood
. Maundy Thursday – Washing of the Feet: St. Mary’s Church, Glendale
Vigil: Holy Martyrs Church, Encino
. Good Friday – Crucifixion and Burial: Forty Martyrs Church, Orange County
. Easter Eve-Lighting of Candles (Jrakalooyts): Holy Cross Cathedral,
Montebello
. Easter: St. Mary’s Church, Glendale

PRELATE VISITS AZTAG DAILY IN LEBANON

On Monday, March 10th, the Prelate visited the office of Aztag
newspaper in Lebanon where he met with the editor Mr. Shahan Kandaharian.
The Prelate highly commended the efforts of the editorial staff and
their website which has been well received and of great value to the
communities in the Western United States. He also expressed appreciation
that the newspaper regularly reports on activities of the Western Prelacy
and our community.
Mr. Kandaharian conveyed to the Prelate details of their current
endeavors and thanked him for the Prelacy’s donation to the Aztag fund. In
an interview done for the paper, the Prelate spoke of the various projects
and activities of the Prelacy in its mission to provide for the needs of
Armenian living in California and nearby communities.

45TH ANNUAL GLENDALE MAYOR’S PRAYER BREAKFAST

On the morning of Thursday, March 13th, the 45th annual Glendale
Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast took place at the Hilton Hotel in Glendale.
Rev. Fr. Vazken Atmajian represented the Prelate at the breakfast.

5TH ANNUAL BANQUET OF SHUSHI MUSIC SCHOOL

On the evening of Friday, March 14th, the 5th annual dinner banquet
of the Daniel Ghazaryan Music School of Shushi will take place at the
Deukmejian Hall of Ararat Home in Mission Hills.
Rev. Fr. Vicken Vassilian will attend on behalf of the Prelate and
convey his blessings.

15TH ANNIVERSARYOF HAIRENIK ASSOCIATION

On the evening of Saturday, March 15th, the 15th anniversary of the
Hairenik Association will be celebrated at Ojakh Restaurant in North
Hollywood.
Very Rev. Fr. Muron Aznikian and Rev. Fr. Nareg Pehlivanian will
represent the Prelate at the event.

EU PRESIDENCY CALLS UPON THE ARMENIAN AUTHORITIES TO "REFRAIN FROM FURTHER ARRESTS OF OPPOSITION LEADERS"

Mediamax
March 13, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. The Presidency of the EU is concerned about the
situation in Armenia, and calls on the Armenian authorities to lift
the State of Emergency.

EU Presidency Statement on the Situation in Armenia reads this,
Mediamax reports.

"The Presidency of the EU is concerned about the situation in
Armenia, and calls on the Armenian authorities to lift the State of
Emergency. The Presidency is particularly concerned about reports of
continuing arrests.

The Presidency welcomes the positive decision of the Armenian
authorities to lift two provisions of the declaration of the State
of Emergency on the activities of political parties and NGOs, and
the announcement that the lifting of the restrictions on the media
is being considered.

The Presidency calls again upon the Armenian authorities to release
citizens detained in connection with their political activities and
to refrain from further arrests of opposition leaders.

The Presidency reiterates its recommendation to conduct an independent
investigation of the events of 1 March and what led to them. It
welcomes the statement of the Human Rights Defender of the Republic
of Armenia on the events of 1 March and calls upon the Armenian
authorities to respond.

The Presidency calls on both the Armenian authorities and opposition
leaders to take all necessary steps to reduce tensions, and to refrain
from any action that could exacerbate the current situation.

The Presidency reiterates its call to all political parties to engage
faithfully in political dialogue based on mutual understanding and
trust, which is the only way to arrive at a political solution to
the present situation", the statement reads.

ARMENIA DOES NOT EXCLUDE RECOGNIZING KOSOVO

New Kosova Report
Politics/Armenia-does-not-exclude-recognizing-Koso vo.html
March 13 2008
Sweden

Current prime minister and president-elect of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan,
has not excluded the possibility of recognizing Kosovo independence,
while hoping that this will not undermine the relations with Russia.

"Armenia is dedicated to the realization of the right of people
for self-determination and from this perspective we welcome the
independence of Kosovo," said Sargsyan, adding that the relations with
Russia will not deteriorate if Armenia recognizes Kosovo independence.

According to him, Armenia will not damage its interests, just so it
does not offend its friends. "If we are friends, then we must consider
the interests of both sides," concluded Sargsyan.

Prime minister of Armenia has also stated that he does not see Kosovo
as a precedent for the Armenian-populated enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh,
officially part of Azerbaijan, for which he said Armenia does not
intend to recognize in the near future.

KHAZAR IBRAGIM: "ANNOUNCEMENTS MADE BY NORWEGIAN AND US EMBASSIES IN AZERBAIJAN INDICATE APPLICATION OF DOUBLE STANDARDS"

Today
litics/43639.html
March 11 2008
Azerbaijan

Harsh announcements of Norwegian and US embassies in Azerbaijan
regarding the court decision on Ganimat Zahid’s case are frustrating.

The due announcement was made by spokesman for Azerbaijan’s Foreign
Ministry Khazar Ibragim at a press conference today.

He noted that the aforementioned countries and the world community,
on the whole, did not demonstrate an adequate reaction on bloody
events in Armenia.

"Considering the inadequate reaction on events, which occurred in
Armenia, such harsh reaction to the events in Azerbaijan is unclear.

This is an indicator of double standards", he said.

SOPRANO RETURNS, BELLINI AND KOMITAS IN TOW
By Allan Kozinn

New York Times
/11isab.html?ref=arts
March 11 2008
NY

Isabel Bayrakdarian’s latest major appearance in New York was to
have been singing Susanna in the Metropolitan Opera’s production of
"Le Nozze di Figaro" in October. But Ms. Bayrakdarian, very pregnant
at the time, bowed out. On Saturday evening, five months later and
one child lighter, this Armenian-Canadian soprano, supported by her
husband and pianist, Serouj Kradjian, was in fighting trim, or at
least fine voice, in a recital at Zankel Hall.

Ms. Bayrakdarian seems fond of balancing standard repertory with
rarities. In a 2006 recital at the Morgan Library & Museum, she offered
selections by Pauline Viardot, Rossini art songs and flamenco-tinged
pieces by Fernando Obradors. This time, she retained elements of that
formula. The Italian-opera-composer-as-miniaturist slot was given
to Bellini. In place of Viardot, the underexposed curiosity was the
Armenian composer Komitas. And Obradors was back, represented by a
different group of works.

Ms. Bayrakdarian began with an alluringly dark-hued rendering of
Bellini’s "Vaga luna, che inargenti," and more extroverted readings
of "Per pieta, bell’idol mio" and "La Ricordanza." In the last,
her dynamics were fluid, particularly in her upper range. She took
risks, but they paid off: her performance, subtle on the surface,
had an electrifying undercurrent.

She also took an unusual approach to Poulenc’s "Banalites," opting
for bright timbres and crisp enunciation instead of the smoky, muted
tone singers typically bring to 20th-century French music. Usually,
the smoky approach works just fine; both the texts and the music seem
to suggest it. But Ms. Bayrakdarian’s altered perspective put these
songs in a fresh light.

She closed the first half of her program with two visions of
Shakespeare’s Ophelia. Jake Heggie’s accessible "Songs and Sonnets
to Ophelia" (1999) wraps a dramatic, shapely cloak around four poems
by Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Ms. Bayrakdarian made them sound
graceful and likable. But she did Mr. Heggie no favor by putting his
work beside her thoughtfully shaped, trenchant account of Berlioz’s
"Mort d’Ophelie."

Ms. Bayrakdarian made a strong case for five invitingly modal songs by
Komitas, among them the pained "Call to the Sea" and a sweetly turned
lullaby. She also did a lovely job of highlighting the folkloric
accents within Ravel’s "Five Popular Greek Melodies," and closed her
program with five endearingly melismatic, sun-drenched Obradors songs.

NAGORNO-KARABAKH DISMISSES ACCUSATION OF FIRINGS ON AZERI VILLAGES

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS
March 10, 2008 Monday
Russia

The Defense Ministry of the breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh
have dismissed Azerbaijan’s accusations of firings on border villages
in the Agdami district on March 8 – 9, in which two were killed and
two more were wounded.

"Such disinformation is political speculations of official Baku,
which pursue apparently destructive goals," spokesman for the Defense
Ministry Senor Astratian told Interfax on Monday.

In general, the situation along the contact line of Nagorno-Karabakh
and Azerbaijan forces is calm; however, there have been violations
of the ceasefire agreement on behalf of Azerbaijan, the spokesman said.

"Karabakh forces fully control the situation in the border zone
and will offer an adequate response to any Azeri provocation,"
Astratian said.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT-ELECT TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS OF USERS OF "LIVE JOURNAL"

Mediamax
March 10, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Today, in the web "Live Journal" a blog
appeared.

Mediamax reports that there is only one post in the blog yet:

"On March 13 of 2008, Prime Minister, newly-elected Armenian
President Serzh Sarkisian will answer the citizens’ questions, which
may be sent by means of , ,
http://serzhsargsyan.livejournal. com websites or to 080099999
telephone number.

Questions are accepted starting from March 11 at 10:00 up till March
12 of 21:00"

According to Mediamax’s information, Serzh Sarkisian will answer the
received questions on March 13 in the course of a TV interview.

Reuters
March 9 2008

Armenia kills 2 Azeri in disupted area- Azeri TV
Sun Mar 9, 2008 10:24am EDT

BAKU, March 9 (Reuters) – Armenian soldiers killed two Azeri citizens
in Nagorno-Karabakh on Saturday, Azerbaijan’s ANS television station
reported on Sunday, five days after one of the worst breaches of a
1994 ceasefire in the disputed region.

Neither the Azeri or Armenian government could be reached to confirm
or deny the report.

Muslim Azerbaijan and Christian Armenia fought a 1992-94 war over
Nagorno-Karabakh which killed around 35,000 people.

The two sides are still technically at war and diplomatic ties have
been cut.

On Wednesday Azerbaijan and Armenia accused each other of triggering
one of the worst breeches of the ceasefire.

Azerbaijan said an Armenian attack killed 12 of their own soldiers
and four Azeri soldiers. Armenia said Azerbaijan had triggered an
attacked which killed eight Azeri soldiers.

Armenia accused Azerbaijan of trying to take advantage of its
unsettled domestic situation by attacking during the state of
emergency. Azerbaijan said Armenia had launched the attacks to
deflect attention away from its domestic problems.

Armenian president Robert Kocharyan last week ordered emergency laws
in the capital Yerevan after street battles between protesters and
police killed eight people. The protesters say he rigged a Feb. 19
election. (Reporting by Lada Yevgrashina, writing by James Kilner in
Moscow; Editing by Jon Boyle)

U.S. Administration concerned by tension existing in Armenia, Matthew
Bryza stated

March 7, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Armenian President Robert Kocharian met in Yerevan
today with U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, U.S. Co-chair of
OSCE Minsk Group Matthew Bryza.

As Mediamax was told in the press service of the President today, the
basic topic of talk was the situation in Armenia in post-election
period.

Stressing the responsibility of Armenian authorities for stability,
security and maintenance of order in the country, Robert Kocharian
stated that all the measures taken up were dictated by the existing
situation. According to the President, those measures aim at
stabilizing the situation, neutralizing threats and returning the
processes to their normal course.

Matthew Bryza stated that the USA attentively follows the development
of events in Armenia. The U.S. diplomat noted that Washington has
understanding attitude towards the steps of Armenian authorities on
reestablishment of order, but the U.S. Administration is concerned by
the tension existing. He stated that it is important that all sides
demonstrate responsibility and that tension soon eases.

`Matthew Bryza also discussed with Robert Kocharian the issues of
certain limitations, conditioned by the situation’, the presidential
press service informed.

Robert Simmons: NATO deeply concerned about recent incident on
contact-line of Armenian and Azerbaijani armed forces

2008-03-07 17:43:00

ArmInfo-TURAN. Robert Simmons, NATO’s special representative to
Caucasus and Central Asia told journalists in Baku that NATO is "deeply
concerned" about the latest violation of the ceasefire on the
contact-line Armenian and Azerbaijani armed forces. He expressed hope
that the sides will behave "more carefully" and violation of cease will
not upset the talks within the framework of OSCE Minsk Group. Speaking
about the situation in Armenia, Simmons stressed that "these events
cause concern," but during his visit to Baku he would not like to
discuss situation in "another country".