Author: Nanijanian Alex

Aztag, Lebanon
Oct 13 2006

Armenians Rally Against Turkish Participation in U.N. Peacekeeping
Force in Lebanon

Thousands of Lebanon’s Armenians rallied in Beirut Thursday against
Turkish troops taking part in a U.N. peacekeeping force there, on the
same day France moved to make denial of the Ottoman genocide of
Armenians a crime.
Armenian political and religious leaders attended the demonstration,
which came just two days after the first contingent of Turkish
peacekeepers arrived to police a ceasefire between Israel and
Hizbullah.

The rally took place on Beirut’s downtown Place des Martyrs, which
honors six Lebanese nationalists who were hanged by the Ottomans
during World War I.

The crowd, drawn from an Armenian community of about 140,000 people,
held high banners denouncing the presence of Turkish troops as "an
insult to the collective memory of the Armenian people", while waving
Armenian, Lebanese and French flags.

"Genocide, massacre, deportation: Turkey’s definition of peace," read
another banner.

Earlier Thursday, French deputies approved a bill making it a crime
to deny that the 1915-1917 massacre of Armenians by the Ottomans was
genocide, provoking the fury of Turkey, the modern state that emerged
from the Ottoman Empire.

"What France has done is very good. The Lebanese government should do
the same instead of welcoming Turkish troops," said an elderly
demonstrator who gave his name as Taurus.

"Chirac is on the right track," said one of the organizers, Sarkis
Katchadorian, referring to French President Jacques Chirac.

Overriding widespread opposition, the Turkish parliament approved a
government motion on September 5 to contribute troops to the U.N.
Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) following a ceasefire that ended 34
days of fighting.

In total, Turkey is to deploy some 700 soldiers in Lebanon, including
troops aboard naval ships. Those that landed on Tuesday were the
first Muslim peacekeepers to arrive in the war-scarred country.

Turkey contests the term "genocide" and strongly opposed the French
bill.

It says 300,000 Armenians, and at least as many Turks, died in civil
strife when Armenians took up arms for independence and sided with
invading Russian troops as the Ottoman Empire fell apart during World
War I.

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their ancestors were slaughtered
in orchestrated killings, which they maintain can only be seen as
genocide.

The French bill must now go to the Senate, or upper house of
parliament, for another vote.(AFP-AP photo shows Lebanese Armenian
demonstrators waving Lebanese and Armenian flags and holding placards
at the rally)

ANDRANIK MANUKIAN: OTE GREEK COMPANY IS GOING TO REPRESENT THE RESULTS OF TENDER FOR SALE OF ARMENTEL SHARES

AZG Armenian Daily
13/10/2006

Andranik Manukian, RA Transport and Communication Minister, informed
that this week, OTE Greek company is going to represent the results of
tender announced for sale of 90% of ArmenTel shares. He said this at
today’s briefing. The minister stated that OTE and the British HSBC
bank, that takes the role of consultant, are currently discussing
the price suggestions of the tender participants. He added that the
companies have submitted their price applications of September 18.

One of the companies is an Arabian one, while the second is from
Russia. Manukian stated that the Arabian ETISALAT company has become
the winner of the tender, according to the press release received
from the contest.

FRENCH SOCIALISTS CALL THE POLICE TO BAN ANTI ARMENIAN BILL DEMONSTRATIONS IN LYON

Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
Oct 12 2006

PARIS – The French Socialist who played a crucial role in banning
the Turkish approach regarding the Armenian issue in France, called
the state authorities to prevent the civil demonstrations in Lyon.

Rene Rouquet argued that the French State has the right to ban such
demonstrations. The Turkish people and some French protest the Armenian
bill which makes crime rejecting the Armenian claims.

Dr. Nilgun Gulcan, Turkish EU expert, said "the French socialists
are really strange socialists. Theye are against freedom of speech
and demonstrations. If they oppose the elections tomorrow, it will
not make me surprised".

SPEAKER MEETS WITH UNITED KINGDOM’S DELEGATION TO IPU

TREND, Azerbaijan
Oct 9 2006

Chairman of Azerbaijan’s Parliament Oqtay Asadov met October 9 with the
delegation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
to the Inter-Parliamentary Union – an international organization of
the Parliaments of sovereign States.

Mr. Asadov spoke of the history of Azerbaijan’s relationship with
Great Britain, and stressed the role of both countries’ leaders in
development of the bilateral ties.

Oqtay Asadov informed the guests about progress made by Azerbaijan
as well as the reforms conducted in the country.

The Speaker also spoke of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh, adding Azerbaijan highly appreciates Great Britain’s
stance on this dispute.

"We believe that as a permanent member of the United Nations Security
Council, Great Britain will seek implementation of UN resolutions",
Mr. Asadov noted.

Head of the delegation Jenkins Brian said this is his first visit to
Azerbaijan, stressing he was impressed at what he saw in this country.

He said members of his delegation, who are representatives of various
political parties, are also pleased to be in Azerbaijan.

Oqtay Asadov and the guests also discussed a wide range of other
issues of mutual concern.

SUREN ABRAHAMYAN HAS BEEN BEATEN UP

A1+
[02:00 pm] 09 October, 2006

Suren Abrahamyan, former Minister of Internal Affairs, former mayor
of Yerevan, and member of the Republican party political council,
was attacked yesterday. Two people attacked him, threw him down to
the ground and started to kick him, the Republican party informs. The
details of the case will be revealed during today’s press conference.

Let us remind you that Suren Abrahamyan had made a speech within the
framework of the "Anti-criminal movement". When the journalists asked
him to mention names, he mentioned that of Prime Minister Andranik
Margaryan.

The Yerevan police informed that on October 8 at 01:30 p.m. citizen of
Yerevan Suren Abrahamyan (b. 1947) turned to the police and informed
that the same day about 10:20 a.m. he was attacked by two unknown
people and beaten up.

The police took measures to find out the criminals.

Preliminary investigation is under way.

SWISS JUSTICE MINISTER’S COMMENTS DURING VISIT TO TURKEY CAUSE OUTCRY AT HOME

International Herald Tribune, France
The Associated Press
Oct 5 2006

GENEVA The Swiss justice minister’s comments during an official trip
to Turkey have caused an outcry at home after he appeared to criticize
the Alpine country’s anti-racism laws.

According to Turkey’s state-owned Anatolia news agency, Christoph
Blocher told his counterpart, Cemil Cicek, on Wednesday that a law
under which a Turkish historian is being prosecuted in Switzerland
for saying "the Armenian genocide did not take place" was "a headache."

Blocher then went on to say that he had invited Cicek to visit
Switzerland. When Cicek asked whether he would get into trouble if
he repeated the historian’s comments, Blocher replied: "Nothing will
happen. But if it does, I’ll go to prison with him."

A billionaire industrialist, Blocher has regularly rocked the boat
of unity in the coalition government with his outspoken positions
since he joined the seven-member Cabinet in 2003 after years on the
outside. As a leader of the nationalist Swiss People’s Party, he
has taken strong positions against asylum seekers and Switzerland’s
membership in the U.N. and other international bodies.

President Moritz Leuenberger, a Social Democrat, expressed surprised at
Blocher’s remarks Thursday, while Interior Minister Pascal Couchepin, a
center-right Radical Democrat, said it was wrong for a justice minister
to complain about his own country’s laws while on a foreign visit.

Blocher, who was in Ankara to mark the 80th anniversary of Turkey
adopting Swiss laws as a basis for its own penal code, said he would
hold a news conference on his arrival at Zurich airport Friday morning.

Anatolia reported that Blocher had expressed support for a Turkish
proposal to draw up a commission made up of historians to research
the Armenian issue.

"In countries like Switzerland … freedom of expression is necessary
for democracy to exist. No matter how much we say that freedom of
expression is important, the legislation which was adopted in 1994,
unfortunately, is an obstacle to this," Anatolia quoted the minister
as saying.

"This law was in fact one that was passed with the punishment of
those who deny the World War II genocide against Jews in mind. No one
thought at the time that it would be used against a professor from
Turkey for remarks he made during a speech to Turks in Switzerland."

"But this law does exist and it is a headache for us."

"My ministry will examine what can be done independently of the case
against Halacoglu and Perincek."

Turkish historian Yusuf Halacoglu is being investigated by Swiss
prosecutors for comments he made during a speech in Winterthur, near
Zurich, in 2004. Prosecutors said this week that they have not been
able to interview Halacoglu in person. Another case, brought against
the Turkish left-wing politician Dogu Perincek, will be decided in
March 2007.

Perincek had made similar comments about Armenians during a speaking
tour of Switzerland in 2005.

Under Switzerland’s 1994 anti-racism law, which was originally
intended to prevent Holocaust denial, it is to illegal to "deny,
minimize or justify genocide or other crimes against humanity." At
the time, Blocher voted for the legislation.

Armenians say that as many as 1.5 million of their ancestors were
killed in 1915-1923 in an organized campaign and have pushed for
recognition around the world of the killings as genocide. Turkey
rejects the claim that a mass evacuation and related deaths of
Armenians was genocide and says the death toll is inflated.

GENEVA The Swiss justice minister’s comments during an official trip
to Turkey have caused an outcry at home after he appeared to criticize
the Alpine country’s anti-racism laws.

According to Turkey’s state-owned Anatolia news agency, Christoph
Blocher told his counterpart, Cemil Cicek, on Wednesday that a law
under which a Turkish historian is being prosecuted in Switzerland
for saying "the Armenian genocide did not take place" was "a headache."

Blocher then went on to say that he had invited Cicek to visit
Switzerland. When Cicek asked whether he would get into trouble if
he repeated the historian’s comments, Blocher replied: "Nothing will
happen. But if it does, I’ll go to prison with him."

A billionaire industrialist, Blocher has regularly rocked the boat
of unity in the coalition government with his outspoken positions
since he joined the seven-member Cabinet in 2003 after years on the
outside. As a leader of the nationalist Swiss People’s Party, he
has taken strong positions against asylum seekers and Switzerland’s
membership in the U.N. and other international bodies.

President Moritz Leuenberger, a Social Democrat, expressed surprised at
Blocher’s remarks Thursday, while Interior Minister Pascal Couchepin, a
center-right Radical Democrat, said it was wrong for a justice minister
to complain about his own country’s laws while on a foreign visit.

Blocher, who was in Ankara to mark the 80th anniversary of Turkey
adopting Swiss laws as a basis for its own penal code, said he would
hold a news conference on his arrival at Zurich airport Friday morning.

Anatolia reported that Blocher had expressed support for a Turkish
proposal to draw up a commission made up of historians to research
the Armenian issue.

"In countries like Switzerland … freedom of expression is necessary
for democracy to exist. No matter how much we say that freedom of
expression is important, the legislation which was adopted in 1994,
unfortunately, is an obstacle to this," Anatolia quoted the minister
as saying.

"This law was in fact one that was passed with the punishment of
those who deny the World War II genocide against Jews in mind. No one
thought at the time that it would be used against a professor from
Turkey for remarks he made during a speech to Turks in Switzerland."

"But this law does exist and it is a headache for us."

"My ministry will examine what can be done independently of the case
against Halacoglu and Perincek."

Turkish historian Yusuf Halacoglu is being investigated by Swiss
prosecutors for comments he made during a speech in Winterthur, near
Zurich, in 2004. Prosecutors said this week that they have not been
able to interview Halacoglu in person. Another case, brought against
the Turkish left-wing politician Dogu Perincek, will be decided in
March 2007.

Perincek had made similar comments about Armenians during a speaking
tour of Switzerland in 2005.

Under Switzerland’s 1994 anti-racism law, which was originally
intended to prevent Holocaust denial, it is to illegal to "deny,
minimize or justify genocide or other crimes against humanity." At
the time, Blocher voted for the legislation.

Armenians say that as many as 1.5 million of their ancestors were
killed in 1915-1923 in an organized campaign and have pushed for
recognition around the world of the killings as genocide. Turkey
rejects the claim that a mass evacuation and related deaths of
Armenians was genocide and says the death toll is inflated.

TURKISH RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE NOT A CONDITION FOR EU MEMBERSHIP

Hemscott, UK
Oct 3 2006

ANKARA (AFX) – Turkey’s recognition of the World War I Armenian
massacres as genocide is not a condition for its membership in the
European Union, EU Enlargement Commissioner Ollie Rehn said here.

‘The European Union’s view on the matter is that the recognition of
the Armenian genocide is not a condition of accession to the European
Union,’ Rehn told reporters.

French President Jacques Chirac said during a visit to Armenia at the
weekend that Ankara should recognize the massacres committed under
the Ottoman Empire as genocide if it wants to join the EU.

Some members of the European Parliament have also irked Ankara by
seeking to impose recognition of the genocide label as a condition
for entry into the EU.

Rehn said the EU encouraged ‘an open and rational debate’ on the
killings, which Turks have only recently begun to openly discuss.

‘Only finding the historical truth in the spirit of dialogue can
bring a lasting reconciliation’ between Turkey and Armenia, Rehn said.

He also backed a Turkish proposal to set up a joint committee of
Turkish and Armenian historians to study the massacres, ‘because it’s a
much better way of dealing with this very sensitive historical issue
than sending ultimatums.’

The Turkish foreign ministry, meanwhile, harshly criticised Chirac,
charging that his acknowledgement of the massacres as genocide was
‘unacceptable’.

‘President Chirac’s remarks which give the impression that Armenian
allegations (of a genocide) is among the criteria for our EU accession
have deeply hurt the Turkish people,’ the ministry said in a statement.

Armenians claim up to 1.5 mln of their kin were slaughtered in
orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917 and want the massacres
to be internationally recognized as genocide.

Turkey argues that 300,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in
civil strife when Armenians took up arms for independence in eastern
Anatolia and sided with Russian troops invading the crumbling Ottoman
Empire, the predecessor of modern Turkey.

item.do?newsId=36483599868656

EU WARNS TURKEY TO STEP UP REFORMS TO AVOID ‘TRAIN CRASH’
by Sibel Utku Bila

Agence France Presse — English
October 3, 2006 Tuesday 4:30 PM GMT

Turkey faces a "train crash" in its relations with the European Union
if it fails to step up democratic reforms and resolve a trade row
with Cyprus, EU enlargement chief Olli Rehn said here Tuesday.

The stern warning came on the first anniversary of the inauguration
of Turkey’s accession talks and just weeks before the EU issues
on November 8 a crucial report on the country’s progress towards
membership.

"I want to make sure that the first anniversary (of the talks) is
not the last one," Rehn told a news conference. "I want to work for
avoiding a train crash in Turkey-EU relations."

Highlighting the benefits of Turkey’s EU membership, the enlargement
commissioner said it would ease mounting tensions between the West
and Muslim countries if Turkey carries out the necessary reforms and
meets all EU criteria.

"In the current situation when… relations between Europe and Islam
is the greatest challenge of our time, it simply won’t make sense to
allow the things to lead to a train crash," he said.

Rehn urged Ankara to pass reforms to ensure freedom of speech,
a major area of concern after dozens of intellectuals were charged
with denigrating the Turkish nation under a penal code article, and
to grant trade priviliges to Cyprus under a customs union agreement.

"Freedom of expression is a cornerstone of our common democratic
values. I cannot even imagine a member of the EU that will not
respect such a fundamental European principle," Rehn said earlier at
a conference on trade union rights.

A string of intellectuals, including best-selling writers Orhan Pamuk
and Elif Shafak, have stood trial under Article 301 of the penal code,
which envisages up to three years in jail for insulting "Turkishness"
and state institutions.

No one has yet been imprisoned under the provision, but the
appeals court in July upheld the suspended six-month sentence of
a Turkish-Armenian journalist, setting an alarming precedent for
pending cases.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he is open to proposals
to amend the article, but no action has been taken so far amid vocal
opposition by nationalist-minded Justice Minister Cemil Cicek.

Speaking after talks with Rehn, Cicek rejected EU pressure to
amend Article 301 before the crucial November 8 report, arguing that
"parliament is not under the government’s command," and that an upsurge
in Kurdish rebel violence this year was making it harder for Ankara
to expand freedoms.

He also charged that freedom of speech was being breached in EU
countries, pointing to a French draft law that would make it a
punishable offense to deny that the massacres of Armenians under the
Ottoman Empire amounted to genocide.

"While asking why freedom of expression is being restricted in Turkey,
one cannot turn a blind eye to a draft law that will be taken up on
October 12 in an EU country," he said.

On the row over Cyprus, Rehn said he was hopeful that a formula
proposed by the EU’s Finnish presidency would resolve the stalemate.

Turkey is under pressure to open its air and sea ports to the
internationally recognised Cyprus government under a customs union
agreement with the EU, or face a suspension of its membership talks.

Ankara insists that Cypriot ships and planes will remain barred from
Turkish ports unless the EU unless delivers on its promise to ease
trade restrictions on the island’s breakaway Turkish Cypriot state,
recognized only by Turkey.

"The Finnish formula has not been rejected by any of the parties so
far, including Turkey," Rehn said. "I trust all parties sense the
seriousness of the issue and try their best to find a solution."

He also called on Ankara to improve the rights of women and non-Muslim
religious communities as "other very important issues of urgency."

In another sticking point, Rehn urged the government to keep up reforms
to strengthen civilian control over the influential Turkish military
"like in any European democracy."

On Monday, chief of staff Yasar Buyukanit angrily rejected EU criticism
of its influence in politics, saying that the charges had exceeded
"the limits of tolerance," and asserted the army’s right to have
a say on issues concerning national security and the protection of
Turkey’s strictly secular system.

Rehn was scheduled to meet with Erdogan, Foreign Minister Abdullah
Gul as well as other officials before he wraps up his visit Thursday.

FASSIER CONSIDERS STATEMENTS ON KARABAKH PARTICIPATION IN TALKS "GROUNDLESS"

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.10.2006 18:12 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "Statements of the Armenian party on the need to
join Karabakh to talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan are groundless,"
OSCE MG French Co-Chair Bernard Fassier said in Baku. "Talks proceed
in the current format and change of format is out of question,"
he underscored.

The French mediator also denied the opinion the Nagorno Karabakh talks
have no prospects. "We travel too much and our governments are not
so rich to waste money on our trips," Fassier believes, Day.az reports.

ANKARA RESOLUTE OVER ARMENIAN BILL, SOLE CONCERN TIES WITH FRANCE
EmÝne Kart

Turkish Daily News
Sept 30 2006

‘The Armenian lobby should abandon backstage games and come up
with concrete arguments supported by historical facts,’ say Turkish
diplomatic sources

The French National Assembly has decided to vote in the coming
days on a highly contentious bill — shelved last spring, leading
to dismay and anger among the Armenian diaspora in France — that
penalizes any denial of an alleged Armenian genocide at the hands of
the Ottoman Empire.

The assembly’s decision for the vote, scheduled for Oct. 12, came
at the request from the main opposition Socialist Party, the bill’s
architect.

When the bill first appeared on the agenda in May, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdoðan, backed by Turkish business leaders and unions,
appealed to France to block the contentious item, warning of the
potential threat to bilateral relations.

As of yesterday the Turkish capital didn’t feel the need to release
an official response to the recent development in France, which comes
at a time when the atmosphere in domestic French politics is heating
up with the approach of presidential and parliamentary elections,
both slated for next year.

Yet diplomatic sources at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, speaking with
the Turkish Daily News, underlined the importance Turkey attributes to
bilateral relations with France and expressed concern that adoption of
such a controversial bill would harm relations between the two peoples
as well as French businessmen doing business in and with Turkey.

"Even if this bill is adopted, it is not possible for Turkey to accept
such a theory," the same sources said, while noting that Ankara
has been contacting French officials at every level to prevent the
bill’s adoption.

Turkish officials drew attention to the fact that Armenia, with its aim
of having genocide accusations against Turkey accepted by third-party
countries, is trying to damage bilateral relations between Turkey
and other countries to secure an advantage in the political arena.

"The Armenian lobby should abandon backstage games and should come up
with concrete arguments supported by historical facts," the diplomatic
sources said, referring to Ankara’s proposal last year to establish a
joint committee of Turkish and Armenian experts to study allegations
of an Armenian genocide in the final days of the Ottoman Empire.

Earlier this month, during talks with his French counterpart, Philippe
Douste-Blazy, as part of a visit to France, Foreign Minister Abdullah
Gul suggested that France participate in such a body.

Gul said at the time that other countries, including France, could
join the proposed committee of Turkish and Armenian academics to
study the allegations.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan sent a letter to Armenian President
Robert Kocharian proposing the establishment of such a committee,
but his proposal was turned down by Kocharian, who instead offered
an intergovernmental commission that would study ways of resolving
problems between the two neighboring countries. Turkey says its
proposal is still on the table.

During talks with Douste-Blazy, Gul also raised Ankara’s uneasiness
over the French bill penalizing any denial of the alleged genocide.

Gul told Douste-Blazy it was a contradiction to hold a parliamentary
debate on a bill that restricts freedom of expression, while the
European Union presses Ankara to amend Article 301 of the Turkish
Penal Code (TCK) under which a wave of authors and journalists has
been tried. "We cannot accept a historical issue being dragged onto
a political platform," he said at the time.

Chirac’s first trip to Armenia:

Ahead of his first official visit to Armenia at the invitation of
Kocharian, Chirac used the phrase "the Armenian genocide committed
by the Ottoman Empire."

Chirac employed the wording during an interview with an Armenian
journal; the transcript was translated into Turkish by the French
Embassy in Ankara.

"Europe is first of all an effort of reconciliation, peace, respect
and openness to others. I believe in Turkey’s ability to pay historical
tribute, as the spirit of Europe lies in that," he said.

Chirac, who was scheduled to depart on Friday for the official two-day
visit, is also scheduled to visit a monument dedicated to the killings
of Anatolian Armenians called the "Memorial to Armenian Genocide."

Today, Chirac and Kocharian will attend a concert by the renowned
Charles Aznavour that will be performed to mark the beginning of the
Year of Armenia in France, called "Armenia, My Friend."

–Boundary_(ID_qhVD+TQMXVFwxShB8754 4A)–