Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

CHINA, ARMENIA SIGN AGREEMENT TO FURTHER INTER-PARLIAMENT COOPERATION

Xinhua Economic News Service
December 15, 2008 Monday 9:10 AM EST

China and Armenia signed a memorandum of understanding here on Monday
on exchange and cooperation between the two parliaments.

"The signing of the memo marks a new era for the relationship between
the two parliaments", Chinese top legislator Wu Bangguo said when
witnessing the signing ceremony with visiting chairman of the Armenian
National Assembly Ovik Abramyan, according to a press release from
the news office of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s
Congress (NPC), China’s top legislature.

In his meeting with Abramyan, Wu, Chairman of NPC Standing Committee,
highlighted the roles that the two parliaments play in promoting
Sino-Armenian relations as "highly important", expressing his hope
that the two sides could maintain the exchange at various levels and
cement cooperation in fields such as legislation and legal supervision.

China highly values its ties with Armenia, Wu told Abramyan, saying
that the country is willing to promote relations with Armenia to
a higher level based on the principles of mutual respect, equality
and reciprocity.

Echoing Wu’s views on the ties between the two nations and the two
parliaments, Abramyan said Armenia was committed to developing its ties
with China especially in the fields of trade, science and technology,
and education.

The Armenian National Assembly would regard the signing of the
agreement memo as an opportunity to boost friendly exchange and
pragmatic cooperation and inject new vigor into relations, said
Abramyan.

He said that Armenia would continue to adhere to the one-China policy.

NKR FM: ATTEMPT TO PULL KARABAKH BACK TO PAST DOOMED TO FAILURE

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.12.2008 18:30 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The current status quo is the result of aggression
and consequent hostilities of Azerbaijan against NKR and its people,
the NKR Foreign Minister said.

"As an initiator of the war, Azerbaijan carries full responsibility
for the consequences. The existing status quo is the minimum that
allowed guaranteeing the security and independence of NKR and its
people under Azerbaijani aggression," Georgy Petrossian said.

"The policy of the NKR authorities is directed to maintaining peace
and guaranteeing the irreversibility of the process of establishment
of long-time stability in the region. Changing the status quo,
as we see it, will inevitably lead to destabilization of the
situation and escalation of tensions with a possible resumption
of hostilities. During the years of Soviet rule, the leadership of
the Azerbaijani SSR, including "national leader" Heydar Aliyev, was
trying to make Nagorno Karabakh not self-sufficient and dependent
on Baku, first of all with their attempts to change the demographic
composition of the population. This was also the case while drawing
the borders of the former Nagorno Karabakh autonomous region. Today,
they are trying to return Nagorno Karabakh into the past. However
these attempts are doomed to failure," he said.

"The readiness to risk regional peace, a basic precondition for
social-economic development and realization of international investment
projects, makes the policy of official Baku a serious threat not
only to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, but also to regional peace
and security," the Minister added.

EUROPEAN COURT TO EXAMINE TWO ARMENIANS’ COMPLAINTS AGAINST AZERBAIJAN

TREND News Agency
Dec 11 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 11 Dec /Trend News corr. K.Zarbaliyeva/ The European
Court is examining 1,000 complaints against Azerbaijan, part of which
came from Azerbaijani citizens of Armenian origin, Azerbaijani judge
at the European Court Khanlar Hajiyev told reporters in Baku on 11 Dec.

The European Court is considering several complaints from the citizens
displaced from the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, with two of them
from Armenians against Azerbaijan. There are six complaints against
Armenia from the people displaced from Lachin region, he said.

It will take a long time to make a final decision on these cases,
he said.

"Decisions which courts will take on these complaints will be
pilot. Following the decisions, the number of such complaints to
the European Court will increase. This issue also has political
overtones. The European Court carefully takes the judicial decisions
on the above complaints," said Hajiev.

Currently there are 40 complaints against Azerbaijan on the agenda of
the European Court, which examination will commence next year, he said.

"Complaints against Azerbaijan are mainly related to property,
non-enforcement of judicial decisions, violation of the right to a
fair trial, the right to freedom of assembly and election rights,"
said Hajiev.

According to Hajiyev, the European Court will expedite examination
of complaints on Azerbaijan, as the number of lawyers handling these
cases has increased.

So far, the European court has made 16 decisions against Azerbaijan.

ONE PERSON CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

A1+
[04:02 pm] 09 December, 2008

They didn’t ask us for experts. If they do, we will definitely
investigate," told journalists today U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Mari
Yovanovich regarding the issue of engaging experts in the March 1
fact-finding group.

The Ambassador underscored the willingness of the U.S. and noted that
experts had come to Armenia two months ago for September 11 and they
had consulted with members of the NA commission.

"Their visit was not aimed at participating in the investigation on
the March 1 case, but rather to share experience. The September 11
commission helped Americans recover and move on."

Since journalists had the chance to meet with the Ambassador during
the conference on "Investigation of corruption crimes and effective
means of criminal persecution", "A1+" asked Yovanovich if she knew
about the judicial system of Armenia and justice for that matter.

"I have not been here long enough," said Mrs. Ambassador. She believes
that the justice sphere must always be in action and is proud that
that recently the U.S. managed to put an end to huge corruption crimes
the participants of which were high-ranking officials.

"I believe that each country must start from where it is. Recently,
a group of U.S. officials were persecuted and punished. The fight
against corruption requires a great deal of work and political
will. The U.S. has managed to register progress and that instills
the hope that it is possible in other countries as well."

Of course, the Ambassador also pictures the difficulties of the
fight against corruption and recalls that in 1920, there was only
one prosecutor in Chicago who made a difference.

"One person can make a difference, if he is consistent. One person
can also make a difference in Armenia, if he has the will."

COE OFFICE IN ARMENIA ORGANIZES A PUPPET PLAY IN YEREVAN

armradio.am
09.12.2008 14:31

The protection of children from violence and promoting children rights
is one of the key Council of Europe activities aimed at constructing
a violence-free Europe. To raise public awareness in the European
societies and alert the CoE member states about the need to combat
violence against children, the Council of Europe initiated Building
a Europe for and with Children campaign. Launched in April 2005
at the Monaco conference, the campaign aims to bring to the fore
the Council of Europe children rights protection instruments and
encourage debates on the issue at various fora on international,
regional and local levels.

In this context, the Council of Europe Information office in Armenia,
in cooperation with the the Armenian Centre of the International
Association of Puppeteers and "The Future is Yours!" NGO has prepared
a thematic interactive play that views children rights violation in
the Armenian context. The play displays scenes from school, home and
playground and encourages children to raise and analyze important
issues affecting their everyday life. The Special Representative
of the Council of Europe Secretary General to Armenia, Silvia Zehe,
will make opening remarks at the event.

The play will be performed on 10 December, at N.1 boarding school
for children.

ARMENIAN PREMIER OFFERS CONDOLENCES ON ALEXY II’S DEATH

ARKA
Dec 8, 2008

MOSCOW, December 8. /ARKA/. At a briefing held jointly with his Russian
counterpart Vladimir Putin RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan offered
condolences on the death of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy
II on behalf of the Armenian president, Government and people.

"I would like to offer condolences on the death of Patriarch Alexy II.

This is grief not only for Russians, but also for Armenians. We
have always shown a warm attitude to the Patriarch because the
interconfessional relations were always in his highlight," Sargsyan
said.

According to him, Alexy II’s patriarchate was marked by the formation
of very warm relations with the Armenian Apostolic Church.

"I am sure that the whole Armenian people shares the Russian people’s
grief over the patriarch’s death," T. Sargsyan said.

Armenian Assembly of America
1140 19th Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE

December 7, 2008
Contact: Michael A Zachariades
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (202) 393-3434

ASSEMBLY COMMEMORATES 20th ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIA’s EARTHQUAKE

Washington, DC – On the 20th anniversary of the earthquake that
devastated much of Northern Armenia, the Armenian Assembly of America
(Assembly) once again thanks the private American organizations, U.S.
Members of Congress and Administration officials of the time for
contributing to an unprecedented effort to provide for the needs of the
hundreds of thousands of survivors.

`On this solemn occasion, we pause to remember the victims and the
survivors of the devastating earthquake that claimed the lives of so
many,’ said Assembly Chairman of the Board of Trustees Hirair
Hovnanian. `We also recall the tremendous outpouring of support and
compassion from people in America and abroad. The emergency response of
the U.S. Government was immediate and generous.’

The 1988 earthquake registered 6.9 on the Richter Scale and struck
without warning, resulting in at least 25,000 deaths and an estimated
50,000 injured. The disaster affected 20 cities and over 350 villages,
completely destroying 58 villages and leaving 1 in 7 Armenians homeless.

During this critical time, the Assembly joined other organizations in
providing assistance to the people of Armenia and established a special
earthquake relief fund, swiftly raising over $4 million in
contributions. The Assembly led a delegation of medical personnel to
Armenia to view the destruction firsthand and determine ways in which
the U.S. could provide additional assistance.

With 80 percent of Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia,
destroyed, the U.S. government sent nearly $9.5 million in aid to
Armenia and private U.S. organizations contributed over $40 million.
Damage was estimated to be $16.2 billion.

The Assembly’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees Hirair Hovnanian made
several trips to Armenia after the earthquake to meet with government
officials and assess the needs. The Assembly made the decision to build
a factory complex to construct prefabricated housing for the earthquake
victims and opened its first office in Yerevan on February 4, 1989, to
help coordinate relief efforts.

Hovnanian is in Armenia and will be participating in several
commemorative events in honor of the victims and survivors of the
earthquake. He will be accompanied by Arpi Vartanian, Assembly Country
Director for Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh. `We can never forget the
massive destruction and despair that rocked Armenia 20 years ago and we
must also look to the future as we continue to support efforts to
rebuild Armenia and to develop its economy,’ said Vartanian. `Since
the earthquake, much work has been done to rebuild the
earthquake-ravaged areas and to heal the trauma of the survivors. While
for many, the rebuilding was not fast enough, and in fact, work still
continues, the worldwide efforts to address the overwhelming and
immediate needs must be commended. Every individual who contributed is a
hero.’

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding
and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
membership organization.

###

Editor’s Note

To read the 1991 Armenian Earthquake Fact Sheet, please follow the link
below:
c/pdf_2008_recent/1988_Earthquake_Fact_Sheet.pdf

WILL ARMEENIA’S FINACIAL SYSTEM RESIST CRISIS?

A1+
[05:55 pm] 05 December, 2008

Serzh Sargsyan held a consultation with the directors of the Armenian
commercial banks. According to the press office of the president,
the purpose of the consultation was to define the actions under the
aggravation of the global economic crisis, taking into consideration
the opinion of the banks as well. Serzh Sargsyan commended that the
banks were able to resist the first surge of the crisis without major
losses, which he finds to be the result of a wise policy. "Now that the
financial crisis has been followed by the economic crisis, we should
undertake action to be able to nourish the branches of economy which
will generate profit, develop and create new jobs," he said noting
that there are a number of programmes which will come true if there is
finance. Serzh Sargsyan pointed to small and medium-size businesses,
reiterating the assistance of the state to the banks in implementing
those programmes. He also underscored promotion of exports. For his
part, the president of the Central Bank Arthur Javadyan told about
development and current tendencies in the banking system in 2008. He
pointed to the high level of liquidity which makes the banks stable and
able to resist risks. The president of the Central Bank said deposits
by physical persons have increased over the past few months, and the
relations of commercial banks with international organizations have
improved. Over the past months contracts of 80 billion drams were
signed which all include long-term financial assets.

INTER-CULTURAL DIALOGUE IN THE GRAVEYARD OF CULTURES
Vardan Grigoryan

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
04 Dec 08
Armenia

The two-days International Conference "Inter-Cultural Dialogue as
Basis of Stable Development and Peace in Europe and the Neighboring
Regions" between the Ministers of Culture of COE member states, which
took place in Baku on December 2-3, as it was expected, served as a
regular chance for the Azerbaijani authorities to conduct anti-Armenian
campaign in the international arena.

Whereas the occasion was very proper for Armenia as well and the fact
that our authorities missed it over again one more time testifies
that our officials who take pride in the millennial culture of our
people, regrettably, by now are not able to comprehend the importance
of participating in similar events and expressing their personal
opinion. Not only did the Ministers of Culture of COE member states,
but also representatives of authoritative cultural organizations of
the USA, Council of Europe, and UNESCO participated in the conference.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe Terry Davis honored the
conference by his presence and in his opening speech Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliev used the occasion to complain about the
"aggression" of Armenia against Azerbaijan and even managed to
boast about Azerbaijan’s success in the "development of national and
religious tolerance".

The choice of the place and title of the conference demonstrates that
the Council of Europe and its leader Terry Davis far not accidentally
chose the capital of Azerbaijan. It is evident that here we deal with
certain projects to turn Baku, like Turkish Istanbul into a center
of intersection of European and Islamic cultures.

The announcements made by the Official on Academic and Cultural
Exchange Issues of the US State Secretariat Alina Romanovsky and
representative of the Russian Federation Michael Shvedko regarding
the importance of cultural dialogues and turning Azerbaijan into
the bridge of cultures between Europe and the East testifies to the
before mentioned.

Thus the Baku conference held under the auspices of the Council of
Europe was not only an advocacy event for Azerbaijan, in the framework
of which their leaders shed crocodile tears on the topic of the
"annihilation of Azerbaijani cultural memorials" they even managed
to show a movie regarding "Khojalu Genocide". On the background of
similar regular events and the pro-Azerbaijani announcements made
by the Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis, in reality
they solved the political issue of turning Baku into the center of
"cultural dialogues".

Independent of what type of relations we have with Azerbaijan at the
moment Armenian Minister of Culture must have participated in that
event. The Azerbaijani party could never make obstacles, because it
would have contradicted the main essence of the conference.

Moreover it was here that Armenia could demonstrate to the whole
world which country should really become the center of inter-cultural
dialogues of great significance in the 21st century. We don’t have
any intentions to elucidate the ridiculous fact that by mocking at
the main idea of inter-cultural dialogue they convened a conference
of Ministers of Culture in the framework of the Council of Europe,
in the country, which has annihilated the Khachkars of Jugha.

The presence of the Armenian party during the conference was important
for the simple reason that the latter was taking place in the center
of Armenian culture during the recent two centuries, that is to say in
Baku. The Armenian Minister of Culture must have recorded with pride
that he is in the city where all the basic elements of the European
culture – architecture, educational centers, theatres, and libraries
are founded by the Armenians who constructed Baku in the second half
of 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century.

Thus the conference on the topic of inter-cultural dialogue held
under the auspices of the Council of Europe was held in the city
where the tats (still in the 19th century they made up 2/3rd of the
population of Baku) the representatives of the real middle-age culture
were forcibly assimilated to Turkish-Azerbaijanis and the Armenians
where forced20to live the city that they have built. That is to say
the inter-culture dialogue is organized in a city, where the main
subjects of that dialogue, the founders of the middle age Iranian
and modern Armenian architecture and culture are simply absent.

We must have had courage to deliver a speech in the conference and
to pay tribute to the founders of the Iranian and Armenian culture
in Baku.

ACTIONS OF PROTEST AGAINST ENCROACHMENTS ON ARMENIAN CHURCHES IN GEORGIA BEING HELD IN YEREVAN

De Facto
Dec 2, 2008

YEREVAN, 03.12.08. DE FACTO. An action of protest against encroachments
committed against Armenian cultural-historical monuments, in part,
churches situated on the territory of Georgia, started this morning in
front of the U. N. representation in the center of Yerevan. Students
of various higher educational institutions of Armenia participate in
the action of protest.

To note, the attempts of desecration of Armenian Surb Norashen Church
have been recently made in Georgia.

Father Tariel, a clergyman of a Georgian church situated in the
vicinity of Surb Norashen, initiated the construction of a fence,
using symbols peculiar of Georgian Orthodox Church. After holding
talks with Georgian authorities, under the pressure of Armenian party
and Georgia’s Armenian public Tbilisi City Hall rendered a decision
on the construction’s illegality and fence’s dismantling. However,
the directions were not followed.

Moreover, some time later father Tariel made new encroachments,
in part, an attempt of moving the graves of patrons of art
Tamamshevs. Georgian Eparchy of Armenian Apostolic Church also
protested against encroachments on Surb Norashen.

The attempt of defilement of two graves of the Tamamshevs was again
made in Tbilisi on November 16. The act of defilement was made
under the guidance of father Tariel Sikinchelashvili, who did it,
in his =0 Awords, "within the frames of his private program on
improvement of the territory adjoining the Armenian Church". The
Ombudsman’s representatives and patrol were called to the place of
incident. Under the pressure of those present, father Tariel and a
group of workers-accessories had to put the tombstones back.