Author: Maral Chavushian

Lusine Avanesyan
Public Radio of Armenia
Stepanakert

The issue of protection of the cultural heritage in unrecognized republics should be on the agenda, head of the Tigranakert archaeological excavation group Hamlet Petrosyan said at the sitting of the Intergovernmental Archaeological Commission in Stepanakert.

He said the documents adopted by UNESCO ignore the cultural rights of the people living in unrecognized republics.

Despite the legislative difficulties, foreign specialists participate in Artsakh expeditions, Petrosyan said.

He added that the Azokh expedition is international, and specialists form 22 universities of the world are involved in the research on the items discovered in Azokh. The 15-volume work on excavation works will be published this year.

The Commission traditionally holds its annual sittings on April 18, the International Day for Monuments and Sites. This year plans could change because of the military actions unleashed by Azerbaijan. However, the archaeological findings unearthed by soldier digging new trenches prompted the decision not to delay the meeting.

Heavy fighting continues in the northern and southern directions of the line of contact of armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, Spokesman for the Armenian Ministry of Defense Artsrun Hovhannisyan said. He added, however, that the Armenian side holds the initiative and there can be no talk about Azerbaijan’s success.

“We continue to take measures to restrain the actions of the rival, and are dictating the situation on many sections of the frontline. It should be noted, however, that the heavy fighting continues at some parts of the line of contact, where the rival has accumulated a large amount of armaments,” he said.

The Spokesman advises to ignore Azeri reports on the loss of Armenian troops and combat equipment and notes that the information is meant to create panic, as information war is an indispensable part of contemporary war.

The Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee of Merrimack Valley (AGCCMV) will join with the Armenian National Committee (ANC) of Merrimack Valley in jointly sponsoring its 101^st observance, the  reports.

The combined event will take place Sat., April 23, beginning at 10 a.m. with a procession along downtown Lowell to City Hall, where events will take place.

A proclamation will be issued by the mayor with pertinent remarks from government and state officials. A flag-raising ceremony will be conducted by the youth.

A light luncheon and cultural program will follow at the historic Masonic Center, across from City Hall. Children from the various church schools will combine their talents.

“Please join us and let your voices be heard for genocide recognition and justice and to celebrate our priceless Armenian heritage that will be so beautifully expressed in the youthful voices of our children,” said Sossy Jeknavorian, AGCCMV chairman.

Armenia has welcomed the liberation of Palmyra.

“We welcome the liberation of ‪Palmyra‬. World Cultural heritage should be preserved,” teh Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a facebook post.

Syrian government forces backed by heavy Russian air support drove Islamic State out of Palmyra on Sunday, inflicting what the army called a mortal blow to militants who seized the city last year and dynamited its ancient temples.

The army general command said that its forces took over the city with support from Russian and Syrian air strikes, opening up the huge expanse of desert leading east to the Islamic State strongholds of Raqqa and Deir al-Zor.

A celebration was held on March 22 in Buenos Aires for the 25 years of Episcopate of Archbishop Kissag Mouradian, Primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church for Argentina and Chile, reports.

Pope Francis, an of the Armenian Archbishop, sent him a letter for the occasion.

“Dear brother,” said the letter of the Pope. “On March 22 the Armenian community celebrate your 25 years of episcopate. From here I join this celebration and prayer of thanksgiving. May the Lord reward all the good you did and keep doing. I thank God for your ministry and pray that it remains fruitful. And please, I ask that you do not forget to pray for me.Please give my greetings to the beloved members of the Armenian community.”

The celebration was attended by national government authorities, representatives of other Armenian churches, representatives of the Armenian Embassy in Argentina and members of the Armenian community.

Alberto Djeredjian, member of the Administrative Institution of the Armenian Church, said that Mouradian is “the backbone of our community.” In turn, the Archbishop said: “I was sent to Argentina for five years, but after I fulfilled that period and having full mutual agreement, I decided to stay. I hope we continue to work together for the welfare of the Armenian Nation and the Armenian Church.”

March 24, Holy Thursday, the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church commemorated the Last Supper our Lord Jesus Christ, and the establishment of the sacrament of Holy Communion.

His Grace Bishop Hovnan Hagopyan, Grand Sacristan of the Mother See, offered the Morning Service and the Karg Apashkharoghats (Service for those who are fasting).

Following Morning Services, a solemn Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the Mother Cathedral by Rev. Fr. Aghan Yernjakyan, Staff Bearer of His Holiness.

During the Divine Liturgy the sermon of St. Basil of Caesarea was read.

 

 

 

The 30-minute program of the Yazidi service of Public Radio of Armenia has always played an important role in helping the Yazidi people preserve their national identity, religion and traditions, but it’s high time to improve the program. The leadership of Public Radio of Armenia intends to update the Yazidi service. Executive Director Arman Saghatelyan met with representatives of the Yazidi community of Armenia today to listen to their opinions and proposals.

A country with a world-spread Diaspora could not stay indifferent towards its own ethnic minorities. With this in mind, the Public Radio of Armenia has given voice to the Yazidi community by airing a 30-minute program every day for 26 years now.

“We’ll try to fill the gaps, by providing listeners with information related to Yazidis of the world, launching discussions on issues of concern featuring Armenian and international experts,” said Gayane Gasparyan, head of the Overseas Service of the Public Radio of Armenia. According to her, the “program will refer to the Yazidi communities all over the world and reflect the problems they face in different countries of the world.

On Wednesday, 16 March 2016, the Federal Member for Bennelong, Mr. John Alexander, spoke in the Federation Chamber of Australia’s Parliament to commemorate the 28^th anniversary of the Sumgait Pogroms that took place in February 1988, the Armenian National Assembly of Australia reports.

During his address, Alexander spoke of the oppressive history of the region towards Armenians, stemming from the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923 by the former Ottoman Empire, to the anti-Armenian Sumgait Pogroms, and how Azerbaijan’s poor human rights record has continued today.

Alexander talked about the history of the Sumgait Pogroms and how peaceful demonstrations held by the Armenian people living in Azerbaijan and in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh to re-unite with Armenia, turned sour as violence broke out “as an act of collective punishment”. He then went on to mention the manner of which destruction was brought about by Azerbaijani mobs, through systematic attacks and assaults on the Armenians of Sumgait, as well as brutal murders, tortures, burning, and rape of women and young girls.

Alexander stressed that the crimes committed in Sumgait “were never adequately prosecuted by the then Soviet or Azerbaijani authorities” and led to his explanation of Azerbaijan’s poor human rights record, and specifically mentioning the case of Ramil Safarov.

“This year the world will celebrate the 25^th Anniversary of Independence of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, and next month we will commemorate 101 years since the start of the Armenian Genocide,” stated Alexander.

In the conclusion of his speech, Alexander mentioned the lack of attention these cases have had in the media, in Parliament and in the history classes of schools. He then commented on how Armenians have been able to “flourish” and have been able to “proudly celebrate their cultural traditions”.

ANC Australia’s Executive Administrator, Arin Markarian said: “We thank Mr. Alexander for the heartfelt speech he made, remembering the innocent Armenian victims of the Sumgait Pogroms, while highlighting the chain effect that has occurred as a result of not condemning human rights violations and anti-Armenian behaviour by the Azerbaijani government.”

Armenia fully supports efforts to solve the Cyprus problem on the basis of United Nations’ resolutions, President Serzh Sargsyan said on Tuesday.

The Armenian president headed a delegation on an official visit to Cyprus.

Following a tete-a-tete meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades, three agreements between the two countries were signed.

The first was an intergovernmental agreement for the mutual recognition of diplomas of study, while the other two were cooperation programmes for Education and Sciences, as well as Culture, for the period 2016-2020.

The agreements were signed by Cypriot Education minister Costas Kadis, and Armenian Education minister Levon Mkrtchyan and Culture minister Hasmik Poghosyan.

Speaking after the signing, both Anastasiades and Sargsyan praised the level of bilateral relations between the two countries.

The Armenian president welcomed the support Cyprus has shown his country, evident in the visits by both Anastasiades and House Speaker Yiannakis Omirou, as well as the voting of a resolution by Cypriot parliament for the criminalisation of denying the Armenian genocide.

Sargsyan also thanked the people of Cyprus for reaffirming their support and solidarity to the Armenian people on the centennial anniversary of the Armenian genocide last year.

He added that he appreciates Cyprus’ position on the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh, and noted that his country supports a solution of the Cyprus problem on the basis of UN resolutions.

“I hope there won’t be any obtrusive interfering, and that President Anastasiades’ systematic efforts will yield results soon,” Sargsyan said.

Anastasiades said the two men informed each other on the Cyprus problem and the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

“What we are after is a solution that is imbued by the principles of the European Union, fully protecting the human rights of all its residents, Greek Cypriot or Turkish Cypriot,” Anastasiades said.

“What is being sought is not a solution that leaves winners and losers, but one that creates prospects for the future of everyone living in Cyprus.”

Anastasiades pointed out that the brotherly bonds between Cyprus and Armenia are primarily affirmed by the active presence of the Armenian community in Cyprus, which, although harmoniously assimilated into Cypriot culture, continues to honour its own culture, heritage, language and religious identity.

He added that Cyprus is a steadfast supporter of the strengthening of Armenia’s ties with the European Union in every aspect of cooperation.

Anastasiades assured his Armenian counterpart that Cyprus looks forward to further strengthening relations between Cyprus and Armenia, which are “not merely close and sincere, but primarily fraternal”.

Following the speeches, Anastasiades hosted a dinner in honour of the Armenian president.

Photo: Valery Sharifulin/TASS    

The first group of Russian planes has left the Hmeimim air base in Syria for their permanent locations, TASS reports, quoting the Russian Defense Ministry.

“The group consists of the leader plane – a Tupolev-154 liner and multi-role Sukhoi-34 bombers,” the ministry specified.

The Kremlin press service released a statement on Monday evening that the Russian and Syrian presidents, Vladimir Putin and Bashar Assad, agreed to start withdrawing the main part of the Russian aviation task force from Syria because the Russian Aerospace Forces had fulfilled the fundamental tasks assigned to them.
Russia will leave an air flight control center in the Syrian territory that will monitor the observation of the Syrian ceasefire.