Author: Nalchajian Markos

ARAM RETIRING AFTER 50 YEARS

Sarnia Observer
June 30 2008
Canada

You heard it here first! Aram Dermentjian will retire this year!

Forget about all the other times he considered retirement and held
a big sale. Forget about the storefront sign that’s been posted for
many months at his downtown carpet store thanking Sarnians for their
patronage.

This is really it!

Over the last 50 years, Dermentjian has proven his staying power
through good times and bad in the oriental rug and broadloom business.

Many might say he’s been advertising a perennial retirement sale
without really meaning to retire. But he flatly denies it.

What he will admit, however, is that he’s now 82 and has been trying
to take a back seat to the business since 1990. That’s the year his
son, Diran, took over. At that point, the advertisements started
announcing big sales in honour of Dermentjian’s retirement.

In fact, for the next 12 years, he says he was semi-retired. But a
few years ago, Diran left for Vancouver to pursue another venture
and his father took back full possession of the business.

"That’s why there have been so many retirement sales," Dermentjian
insisted during an interview a few days ago. "I was always thinking
about retirement. Yet I never did it."

Then he looked me straight in the eye and said, "Cathy, you are
the first I’m going to tell. I have decided. I will retire this
year. Before I was just thinking about it. Now I’ve decided."

Barring any unforeseen changes, his retirement will coincide with
the 50th anniversary of Aram’s Oriental Rug Gallery, an institution
in Sarnia’s downtown since 1958.

Dermentjian arrived in Canada from Greece in 1953. As a new immigrant,
he was sponsored by a rug dealer in London and started working for him.

In Greece, Dermentjian — who is of Armenian origin — had worked at
his father’s silk factory and was a trained textiles engineer.

While working in London, one of his customers was Marshall Gowland,
the mayor of Sarnia at the time.

"He invited me to Sarnia. He told me it was Canada’s booming city
with Imperial Oil and Dow," Dermentjian said. "I wanted to open my
own store without competing with my sponsor in London so I moved here."

Besides, he said the blue water of the St. Clair and Lake Huron
reminded him of Greece.

"I had no money but I had terrific faith," he said of his early days
in business.

Initially, he took ownership of Hakimian Rugs on Davis Street.

Sales were always good in the 1950s, he said. "I knew the broadloom
and oriental rug business and I’m a good salesman."

Sarnia’s downtown was flourishing. Those were the days when all the
stores remained open Friday nights and the sidewalks were crowded
with shoppers.

Soon, he moved to the corner of Front and Lochiel streets on the
riverside and renamed the business Aram’s. Ten years later, he
relocated to Christina street.

Over the years, the business switched addresses a number of times
before moving into the current location at 174, 176 and 178 Christina
in 1995.

By that time, the commercial area was rapidly growing in the east
end of the city and downtown was struggling, said Dermentjian.

He’s always been a strong proponent of getting the bus transfer
stations off Christina and building a terminal.

Now, as he plans to retire, the city

is undertaking a major reconstruction of Christina, something
Dermentjian welcomes and believes will be good for the downtown.

"I’ve never regretted a day in this business," he said. "But it’s
time to retire." He intends to continue his oriental rug appraisal
business and former customers will still be able to get their rugs
professionally cleaned.

But sales will soon be over and all those proclamations that Aram is
retiring will finally come true.

He plans to do some travelling with his wife and enjoy time with
his family.

Some may be skeptical when they notice the retirement sales this
summer.

But this time, he says he’s not just thinking about it. He’s decided.

RA MERITED ARTIST HOVHANNES BABAKHANIAN LIKES TO BE DARING ON STAGE

YEREVAN, JUNE 28, NOYAN TAPAN. RA Merited Artist, laureate of
international contests Hovhannes Babakhanian will turn 40 on July 1. It
is the 25th year the talented artist is on the stage. The actor is not
going to mark none of these jubilees, as he does not like official and
solemn events connected with his personality. Hovhannes Babakhanian
said at the June 27 meeting with journalists.

The talented artist is guided by Christian commandments and is very
strict to himself on the stage, extremely responsible to the spectator,
and does not accept compromises in the art.

"I do not wish people to say when speaking about me: "he is not bad as
an Armenian actor." I do not wish it. I like to be daring to my name,
to my spectator," the actor said.

Artist Hovhannes Babakhanian does not stop surprising his spectator: he
continues acting in other branches of art. He successfully plays at the
theater and sings and paints as much successfully. The actor has
graduated from Yerevan Art and Theater Institute, Moscow Academy of
Art, Opera Song Department of Yerevan Conservatory. These three art
trends, according to the artist, do not complete but continue one
another.

The actor often plays Jesus Christ’s role in the theater and cinema.
According to him, these roles are very binding for him. "The role of
Jesus is not just a role. One should live, feel it and then convey it
to the hall. Harmony between actor’s inner world and belief is
important in this respect. I try to believe till the end and
completely. Otherwise it is not possible to carry it out," the actor is
convinced.

H. Babakhanian also has another hobby, tailoring. Few people know that
he has been the fashion designer of Dramatic Theater’s costumes for
already ten years.

The actor does not at all agree to the opinion that the theater has
died. According to him, the expression "the theater is dead" is
insulting for the very theatrical figures. He is convinced that "those
making an attempt upon theater’s life are the very professional killers
who are inside the theater." According to him, the theater was born
with the mankind and will live for ever as mankind.

SHUT THE GOLDEN DOOR
Dimitri Vassilaros

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
June 27 2008
PA

Immigrants to America have not changed much. But their new homeland
sure has.

That’s why Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for
Immigration Studies, says the golden door must be slammed shut to
illegal and legal aliens.

In his just-published book, "The New Case Against Immigration,"
Mr. Krikorian, the grandson of Armenian immigrants, says he’s looking
at the entire elephant in America’s living room with his eyes wide
open — as opposed to blind people examining one part each of the
beast to guess what stands before them.

"Many critics of immigration are scattershot; they pick something from
column one or two," Krikorian says. For example, some claim illegal
immigration has created a crushing burden on hospitals that don’t
refuse to treat anyone in need, even though many illegals don’t pay
for the "free" health care.

"They are all facets of the same problem," Krikorian says. "Immigration
(legal and illegal) is not compatible with modern society," he says. In
this post-industrial age, a high level of education trumps a strong
back carrying a good work ethic.

Yes, so-called grunt work is there for those who want it. But there’s
precious little opportunity for advancement. "It’s a mismatch of 19th
century-style workers in a 21st-century economy," he says.

But what about second-generation immigrants? Surely they will catch up.

The second generation does do better than their parents, Krikorian
says. As before, there are similar increases in income rates from
first- to second-generation families. However, now immigrants start
so much further behind that even their kids’ progress is not enough
to help them catch up, he says.

They are starting further and further behind, so they are that much
further behind than the rest of America, Krikorian says.

And while it’s self-evident the immigrant is motivated to be in
America, he’s not necessarily motivated to be an American, Krikorian
says. When in Rome, … .

"Assimilation is different today," he says. Even a very poor immigrant
does not have to say adios to the old country, thanks to phones, e-mail
and other technology. There are immigrants who do what Krikorian calls
"transnational living," living in two countries during the same time —
for example, coming to America to work part of the year and spending
the rest of it in, say, Mexico with family and friends.

"People never lose touch the way they used to," Krikorian says.

"We have lost our cultural self-confidence to persuade people to join
and assimilate," he says. "My mom is the daughter of immigrants. The
Massachusetts public schools taught her to be an American. But what
are kids learning now? It sure as heck is not memorizing the Gettysburg
Address or ‘Hail, Columbia.’

"Now they are learning, at best, to be ambivalent about America and,
at worst, that it’s a terrible place. Why would kids want to join
that?" Krikorian says.

The mind-numbing array of government programs offered "free"
to seemingly every alien, legal or not, is another reason to end
immigration before the welfare state bankrupts the United States,
he says.

Krikorian wants his book to remind Americans what Abraham Lincoln
said: "As our case is new, so must we think anew and act anew. We
must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country."

CO-REPORTERS SUBMIT NEW BILL

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
June 25, 2008
Armenia

During the session of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe, the co-reporters on Armenian
issue submitted a bill of a new resolution, which touches upon the
statements in resolution 1609 on "the activity of the democratic
institutions in Armenia", the process of its implementation and the
problems faced by Armenia.

Head of PACE Armenian Delegation Davit Harutyunyan said the document
gives special emphases to the fact that the terms envisaged by the
resolution was extremely short, however the authorities managed to take
certain steps, but there are still lots of gaps. The Committee and
the Parliamentary Assembly will touch upon this issue, most probably
during PACE January session.

The document gives special attention to all the issues included
in resolution 1609, especially to the law on "Holding rallies,
demonstration marches and protests", which is considered an implemented
step, but it is mentioned that it should be properly put into action.

"The bill of the resolution touches upon the persons under criminal
persecution, proposals are being made to settle that situation. There
are certain proposals regarding the effectiveness of the activity of
NA Temporary Committee, aimed at raising public trust, ensuring the
transparency of the Committee’s activity and the possible assistance
of the Council of Europe in those works," Davit Harutyunyan said.

The document also underscores, in case, before the January 2009
session it is considered that Armenia failed to fulfill certain
obligations enshrined in 1609 and the new resolution, the Assembly
will most probably quit the competencies of RA delegation.

Armenian delegation has submitted more than twenty proposals regarding
the bill of the resolution, which will firstly be discussed on June
25, during the session of PACE Monitoring Committee, after which the
issue will be submitted to the Assembly.

ARMENIAN PM: 85% OF COMMODITY TURNOVER IN ARMENIA MADE THROUGH CASH REGISTERS

ArmInfo
2008-06-24

Eighty-five percent of commodity turnover in Armenia is carried
out through cash registers, which destabilizes the situation in
the market, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said at a meeting with
businessmen Tuesday.

The country’s business circles initiated the meeting to discuss
tax reforms.

‘You will not see such situation in any other country when 85% of
commodity turnover is carried out through cash registers or a plant
producing building materials sells its produce through cash registers>,
the premier said. He underlined that such situation creates obstacles
to tax administration. As a result, the Government banned wholesale
through cash registers a month ago.

The premier urged businessmen to work with shops also through invoices
in order revenue services are able to register the volume of commodity
turnover.

The problem of cash registers was the key topic of the meeting with
the prime minister. Businessmen assured the premier that after
tax reforms the commodity turnover and consumption has sharply
decreased over the last two months. As a result, the Government may
short-receive state taxes, Chairman of the Union of Industrialists
and Businessmen of Armenia Arsen Ghazaryan said. Businessmen share
his opinion and complained also of tax inspections and insufficient
government support to local producers. Businessmen proposed exempting
import of raw-materials and equipment of VAT as a real support to
local business. The prime ministers assured businessmen that the
commodity turnover has not decreased for the last two months and even
shows upward trends. As regards inspections, they meet the program of
tax reforms and aim to reveal risks in the highly profitable sectors
and enterprises where tax collection is low. ‘As long as there is
problem with tax collection in the country, the administration will
be toughened>, T. Sargsyan said. As regards exemption of equipment
import from VAT, the premier proposed submitting the topic to public
discussion.

RUSSIAN, ARMENIAN PRESIDENTS CALL FOR REFORMING CIS, UN

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire June 24, 2008

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his Armenian counterpart Serzh
Sargsyan called Tuesday for reforming the U.N. and the Commonwealth
of Independent States (CIS), ITAR-TASS reported.

The presidents said at a meeting that they sought to make the
organizations more efficient. They did not elaborate.

YENI AZERBAIJAN PARTY SENDS PROTEST LETTER TO US CONGRESSMEN

Today.Az
June 23 2008
Azerbaijan

Yeni Azerbaijan party has sent a letter of protest to the House of
Representatives of the US congress due to their position, demonstrated
during the hearings "Caucasus: frozen conflicts and closed borders",
reports Day.Az with reference to the press service for the party.

The letter says that US Congress members Noward Berman, Nollenberg,
Brad Sherman, Adam Schiff and Frank Pallone highly evaluated the
strategic cooperation between Azerbaijan and the United States.

Yet the Yeni Azerbaijan Party and Azerbaijani community voices deep
regret with the speeches of some congressmen.

Particularly, they did not give objective assessment to Nagorno
Karabakh conflict and voiced opinion, which does not correspond
to reality.

The party hopes that position of these congressmen was connected
with their being not too well-aware of the resolution of the UN
Security Council.

The message states that it would be logical to speak against the
occupation policy of Armenia, which occupied 20% of the territory of
Azerbaijan, leaving about a million of refugees.

The Yeni Azerbaijan party considers that congressmen will further
voice an unbiased position.

CONCERT-ACTION DEDICATED TO 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF NELSON MANDELA TO OPEN WITH PERFORMANCE OF JIVAN GASPARIAN IN LONDON

Noyan Tapan

Ju ne 23, 2008

YEREVAN, JUNE 23, NOYAN TAPAN. The concert-action dedicated to the
90th anniversary of Nelson Mandela to be held on June 27 in the London
famous Hyde Park will open with the solo performance of world-famous
duduk player Jivan Gasparian. The famous mucisian will perform
Armenian national tunes during that concert, which is dedicated to the
anniversary of the former President of the Republic of South Africa.

According to the information provided to a Noyan Tapan correspondent
by the RA Ministry of Culture, many rock and pop stars of the world
will take part in the concert.

According to the same source, Bill Klinton, the former President of
the United States of America, Gorden Brown, the Prime Minister of
England, world-famous actors Robert de Niro, as well as many others
will attend the concert. 30 million inhabitants of the world will
watch the charity concert-action by satellite broadcast.

1,100 FOREIGNERS APPLY FOR ASYLUM IN ARMENIA OVER PAST SIX YEARS

YEREVAN, JUNE 21, NOYAN TAPAN. 1,100 foreigners, including from Turkey,
Iraq, Lebanon, and Cuba, have applied for asylum in Armenia since 2002.
The head of the Migration Agency of the RA Ministry of Territorial
Administration Gagik Yeganian said at the June 20 press conference that
160 of them applied for refugee status, the rest – for temporary
asylum. In 2007, the agency received 289 applications, including 271
for temporary asylum and 18 for refugee status.

According to G. Yeganian, almost all temporary asylum seekers, most of
them Iraqi citizens, were given the right of one-year asylum. Only 13%
of those who applied for refugee status have been granted such status.
The examination of their cases shows that these persons leave their
places of residence due to hard socioeconomic conditions, civil war,
armed conflicts and mainly choose Armenia as a transit country for
moving to the West.

The agency head said that asylum seekers are placed in special lodgings
created in 2000 – in order to undergo medical examination and document
checks within a month. Then they are placed in temporary lodgings until
the issue of applications for refugee status is discussed. Asylum
seekers receive a certificate of a refugee status seeker, a one-off
pecuniary aid of 10 thousand drams (about ) and free translation and
legal services.

US OFFICIAL URGES TURKEY TO FACE PAST REGARDING ARMENIANS

Today’s Zaman
June 20 2008
Turkey

A top US diplomat has urged Turkey to come to terms with its painful
history regarding the suffering of Anatolian Armenians during World
War I, also calling on Armenia to relinquish its territorial claims
on Turkey.

Remarks by Ambassador Dan Fried, US assistant secretary of state
for European affairs, came on Wednesday during a hearing at the US
House Foreign Affairs Committee. The senior diplomat also hinted
that the US administration rejects the use of the term "genocide"
to describe the early 20th century deaths of Ottoman Armenians for
political considerations.

The United States supports the normalization of relations between
Armenia and Turkey, Fried noted, giving an address at an event titled
"The Caucasus: Frozen Conflicts and Closed Borders." When he was
insistently asked by pro-Armenian members of Congress Adam Schiff
and Diane Watson why he didn’t use the term "genocide," Fried said
the US administration hasn’t used that term as a policy, although
acknowledging presence of painful incidents. He also noted that usage
of this term would not make any contributions to Turkish-Armenian
relations or to Turkey’s come to terms with its history, the Anatolia
news agency reported.

"Reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey, however, will require
dealing with sensitive, painful issues. Turkey needs to come to terms
with a dark chapter in its history: the mass killings and forced exile
of up to 1.5 million Armenians at the end of the Ottoman Empire. That
will not be easy, just as it has not been easy for the United States
to come to terms with dark periods of our own past. For its part,
Armenia must be ready to acknowledge the existing border and disavow
any claim on the territory of modern Turkey, and respond constructively
to any efforts Turkey may make," Fried told the committee in remarks
aired on the US State Department’s Web page.

Armenia claims Ottoman Turks killed up to 1.5 million Armenians
during World War I, toward the end of the Ottoman Empire, and labels
the killings genocide. Turkey says the killings occurred at a time
of civil conflict in which both Armenians and Turks were killed and
that the casualty figures are inflated.

Earlier this week, President Abdullah Gul said that Turkey is a
country at peace with its history, while noting that Turkey has
opened all of its archives to researchers seeking to investigate the
controversial episode.

Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 during a war between
Armenia and Azerbaijan, an ally of Ankara. The move hurt the economy
of the small and landlocked Armenia.

In 2005 Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to
then-Armenian President Robert Kocharian, inviting him to establish a
joint commission of historians and experts from both Turkey and Armenia
to study the events of 1915 in the archives of Turkey, Armenia and
any other country believed to have played a part in the issue around
the world. No positive response has yet been made to this offer.