Author: Nanijanian Alex

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Director
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Watch our latest videos on YouTube here:

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I REORGANIZES THE
DER ZOR GENOCIDE MEMORIAL CHURCH FOR PILGRIMAGE

Eight years ago, His Holiness declared the Church and the Genocide Monument
in the Syrian Desert a place for pilgrimage. He wanted Armenians to visit
the place and pay their homage to the memory of the martyrs. In order to
make the place spiritually conducive and physically comfortable, he
established an office with a Director. The Director Very Rev. Vahan
Berberian will operate under the leadership of a committee.

##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

U.S. SUSPECTS CHINA OF HACKING

News.am
18:11 / 01/25/2010

Chinese authorities reject accusations of implications with hacking
attacks on Google. China says these accusations are "groundless and
aim to denigrate China," The New York Times reports.

Earlier, Chinese authorities severely criticized U.S. government,
threatening to deteriorate relations between the states. U.S.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated about necessity to abolish
Internet censorship in certain countries, singling out China’s one
‘as a threat to the free flow of information," the source says.

The experts of Armenian largest internet provider – Armenian Datacom
Company told NEWS.am-Innovation that Armenia is more frequently
attacked by Chinese hackers.

30 THOUSAND PATIENTS WITH SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES RECORDED EACH YEAR IN ARMENIA

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
25.01.2010 17:58 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "Every year 30 thousand patients with sexually
transmitted diseases recorded in Armenia. However, this figure is only
40 per cent of the actual number of cases, since very often doctors
provide treatment without informing our center," Gurgen Porsughyan
, head of organization and methodology department of the Armenian
Medical Center of Dermatology and Venereology told a press conference
on January 25.

According to Vrezh Shahramyan , doctor, sexologist, lecturer at
the Yerevan State Medical University, the only absolute protection
from sexually transmitted diseases is responsibility of people for
their actions.

Experts also mentioned that people’s attitude to the treatment of
sexually transmitted diseases recently changed. "If such diseases were
treated almost by force before, now people are applying us voluntarily,
" Gurgen Porsughyan said.

Turkish Ministers Council Did Not Discuss Armenian Constitutional
Court’s Decision

Tert.am
11:31 – 22.01.10

A ministers council meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, took place in Turkey yesterday. As previously reported,
discussed during the meeting, among other issues, was to be the RA
Constitutional Court’s decision on the Armenian-Turkish Protocols.

Turkish government spokesperson Cemil Cicek stated that, during the
meeting, no assessments were made on the RA Consitutional Court’s
decision, adding that Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had already
issued a statement on the issue, reports Anadolu Ajansi.

`That is a decision which hinders [our] efforts. If the Armenian
authorities find that it’s useful to implement the Protocols and if
they are sincere in that issue, then they should make a statement that
will satisfy not only Turkey, but also the international community,’
said Cicek.

MEDVEDEV MET WITH RUSSIAN AND ARMENIAN TOP CLERICS

news.am
Jan 21 2010
Armenia

January 21, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with the Patriarch
of Moscow and all Russia Kirill and the Catholicos of All Armenians
Karekin II.

The meeting was held prior to the awarding ceremony of the
International Foundation for the Unity of Orthodox Christian Nations
(IFUOCN). Spiritual leader of all the Armenians and RF President were
awarded the prizes for 2009.

The sides discussed development of Armenian-Russian ties, including
interfaith relations.

Patriarch Kirill plans to visit Yerevan in March 2010.

THEN, NOW AND LATER: THE LEGACY OF HRANT DINK
By Liana Aghajanian

ianyan magazine – Independent Armenian Magazine
Jan 21 2010

Three years ago today, Hrant Dink was brutally gunned down near the
headquarters of his Turkish Armenian newspaper Agos by a 17-year-old
Turkish nationalist. As any Diasporan can attest to, it’s very easy to
be so unaware of what is going on outside the bubble of your adopted
homeland, thousands of miles away from where you originated from.

When Hrant Dink died, I was a wide-eyed journalism student who had
just recently become acquainted with him, a man with ideals I felt I
had been searching for for so many years, a man who I felt somehow
managed to extract the thoughts I had in my head and form the most
eloquent, admirable and respectable sayings and speeches, a man who
didn’t have an agenda, who wasn’t blinded by ulterior motives or
fanaticism. When Hrant Dink died, a part of me died.

To put it in the most understandable of terms, Hrant Dink was the
Armenian equivalent of Martin Luther King Jr. He strongly held on
to his unconventional beliefs and made no apologies for them. He
was someone who understood that communication was the only way to
understanding and peace. He was the one who poignantly declared that
"Turkish-Armenian relations should be taken out of a 1915 meters-deep
well."

He, unlike a majority of Diasporans lived and breathed and worked
among Turks. Here was a man who tried to bridge the gap between two
groups with an unfortunate history, a man who suggested that diaspora
Armenians free themselves of the deep seated hatred against Turks
without never stopping to fight for human and minority rights. To
Dink, hatred and violence were not synonymous with recognizing
discrimination. To him, they were counterproductive to it all.

Though he had critics, one only has to look as far as his funeral,
in which two hundred thousand people marched in protest of his
assassination chanting "We are all Hrant Drink" to see the amazing
impact he made on both Armenians and Turks. This alone should be
enough for both sides to understand that in order to succeed, you
need to climb out of the aforementioned well.

At the time, Joel Simon, the Executive Director of the Committee to
Protect Journalists said that one of Turkey’s most courageous voices
had been silenced. Hrant Dink died three years ago and a part of me
died. After much reflection, I brought that part back to life again
and I would be lying if I said that the man who risked his life to
bring about change did not have a hand in convincing me to finally
start this site which you are reading now.

Last year on the anniversary of his death, a campaign was started to
show support for Dink by declaring "I am Hrant Dink." Shortly after,
Patrick Azadian wrote a reflective piece questioning the validity of
that statement on both sides.

"Are we really Hrant Dink?," he wrote."Dink is still not fully
understood in Turkey nor the Diaspora. So forgive me for feeling that
the slogan "We are all Hrant Dink" can ring hollow at times.I leave
you with a few simple thoughts: To my Armenian brothers and sisters:
"Are we willing to free ourselves of our genocide-centric identity?

How long will we allow an outside entity to dictate our actions? "To
my Turkish cousins: "Is your collective conscience clear? Are you
proud of what your ancestors did to mine?"

We are not Hrant Dink."

I don’t think I can say it any better, so I will refrain from doing
so, but what I will say is that I hope his dreams of understanding,
communication and the ability to forge relationships free of
hate, ignorance and bigotry from both sides can one day come to
fruition. We owe it to him to see that it does. See you on the other
side, Mr. Dink and lastly, thank you. Thank you for making such an
enormous, progressive contribution to this collective culture. You,
not the uncompromisable, flag yielding, blind masses are one the many
reasons why I am proud to call myself Armenian as well as a journalist.

Further Reading:

Hrant Dink – Three Years After the Murder

Documentary About Hrant Dink to be Shown in Istanbul

ARMENIAN WOMEN PROVED TO BE GREAT MANAGEMENT LEADERS

ArmInfo
2010-01-21 13:20:00

ArmInfo. VivaCell-MTS, a subsidiary of "Mobile TeleSystems" OJSC,
announces that the members of the Association of Young Women of
Armenia non-governmental organization and those who took courses in
leadership with the help of the organization had an opportunity to get
acquainted to the experience of Armenia’s leading mobile operator. The
Association of Young Women of Armenia pays particular importance to
giving women opportunities to express in their private lives, and
equally in their social activities, and also the opportunities to
develop skills in management – to be more self-confident and be able
to take down-to-earth steps. This attitude is one of the major factors
underlying the cooperation between the organization and VivaCell-MTS.

VivaCell-MTS General Manager Ralph Yirikian says the road to efficient
management starts from the introduction of a civilized system of
management away from any discrimination and based on moral values
inside the Company and stretches to careful attitude to everyone.

Appreciation, encouragement, and opportunities for development, as
well as exclusion of any kind of discrimination – is another core
value on which this model is relies upon. "Independent of the status
and the share of responsibility, respect is an absolute value for all.

Demanding without giving has no perspective. We all believe respect
gives rise to the feeling of responsibility, devotion and willingness
to reach the unreachable to ensure the progress of the Company.

Obviously, the efforts made by the employees should be appreciated
regardless of their age or gender," underlined VivaCell-MTS General
Manager Ralph Yirikian. The discussion during the meeting was a good
chance to hear candid response to open answers. Be ready for more!

VivaCell-MTS – more than operator!

MUCH-ANTICIPATED MEETING TO TAKE PLACE IN SOCHI ON JANUARY 25

Tert.am
15:29 ~U 21.01.10

As announced by the President of the Republic of Armenia press office,
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan will meet with Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in the Russian
city of Sochi in Krasnodar on January 25.

The trilateral meeting is dedicated to the settlement process of
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and is taking place upon Medvedev’s
initiative.

RA AUTHORITIES HAVE TO ENSURE INVESTIGATIONS INTO MARCH 1 EVENTS: HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

news.am
Jan 21 2010
Armenia

International Human Rights Watch organization issued an annual world
report on human rights in 90 countries. NEWS.am posts the passages
devoted to Armenia.

"The Armenian authorities have yet to ensure meaningful investigations
into excessive use of police force during March 2008 clashes with
opposition supporters protesting alleged fraud in the previous month’s
presidential election, and address related allegations of abuse in
police custody. A number of opposition supporters reportedly remain
imprisoned in connection with the March 2008 events.

During May 2009 municipal elections in the capital, Yerevan,
international observers reported intimidation and attacks on domestic
observers and journalists.

Broadcasting law amendments bring greater transparency to the licensing
process, but an independent television station that has been off
air for over seven years remains without a new license despite a
European Court of Human Rights ruling in its favor. Authorities have
failed to conclusively investigate physical attacks on journalists,"
the report reads.

The following incidents are described, "While monitoring the May
Yerevan City Council elections, Arshaluys Hakobyan of the Armenian
Helsinki Association was expelled from a polling station. A few days
after filing a complaint about this incident with the authorities,
police appeared at his home to summon him for questioning. After
an argument over his signature on the summons, police arrested
Hakobyan for allegedly resisting authority. Hakobyan alleges he
was then beaten and ill-treated in custody. Although he filed a
complaint and testified to his ill-treatment during his September
trial on the charge of resisting authority, the police have failed
to comprehensively investigate the claim. Hakobyan remains in custody.

Mariam Sukhudyan, whose activism primarily relates to environmental
concerns, in November 2008 publicized on a national television
program the case of two girls who alleged sexual harassment at their
Yerevan school. Police charged Sukhudyan with falsely reporting a
crime. Human rights activists believe the charges are designed to
intimidate Sukhidyan in retaliation for her environmental work."

PETITIONERS URGE AZERBAIJAN TO FREE EYNULLA FATULLAYEV

Committee to Protect Journalists
Jan 20 2010

His Excellency Ilham Aliyev
President of Azerbaijan
19 Istiqlaliyyat Street
Baku 370066, Azerbaijan

Hand-delivered to Charge d’Affaires Khazar Ibrahim at the Azerbaijani
Embassy in Washington Also via facsimile: +994 12 492 0625 and +994
12 492 3543

Your Excellency,

The Committee to Protect Journalists urges you to open a new page
in your government’s policies toward the independent and opposition
press, one that would demonstrate tolerance for the critical role of
media in a democracy. No other action would contribute to this goal
as much as the immediate release of Eynulla Fatullayev, editor of the
now-closed independent Russian-language weekly Realny Azerbaijan and
the Azeri-language daily Gundalik Azarbaycan, who has been imprisoned
since April 2007 on charges that range from defamation to terrorism.

Our research shows that the charges were not based on factual evidence
and were pursued, instead, to retaliate against Fatullayev and silence
his critical journalism.

The persecution of Fatullayev began after he wrote an article marking
the second anniversary of the March 2005 murder of his former editor
and mentor Elmar Huseynov. The piece, published in Realny Azerbaijan
and headlined "Lead and Roses," accused Azerbaijani authorities of
deliberately obstructing the investigation into Huseynov’s killing,
and ignoring evidence that could lead to the masterminds. Fatullayev
said the assassination was carried out by a criminal group that
included several Georgian citizens who had been hired by an unnamed
official in Baku. Although Azerbaijani officials publicly claimed
to be seeking Georgian citizens in the case, Fatullayev wrote that
they had not provided authorities in Georgia with arrest warrants or
supporting evidence. Huseynov’s killing remains unsolved.

Four days after Fatullayev’s piece was published, on March 6, 2007,
his mother received an anonymous phone call. As a "wise woman," the
caller said, she should "talk sense" into her son or "we will send
him to Elmar." Fatullayev reported the threat to police, but it was
he who came under intense investigation.

In April 2007, a Yasamal District Court judge convicted Fatullayev
of defaming Azerbaijanis in an Internet posting that was falsely
attributed to him. The posting, published on several Web sites,
said Azerbaijanis bore some responsibility for the 1992 killings of
residents of the restive Nagorno-Karabakh region, according to local
news reports. Fatullayev was sentenced to a 30-month term and taken
into custody immediately. With Fatullayev jailed, authorities evicted
Realny Azerbaijan and Gundalik Azarbaycan from their Baku offices,
citing purported fire safety and building code violations. Both soon
stopped publishing.

More charges followed against Fatullayev. In October 2007, a judge
in the Azerbaijani Court of Serious Crimes found Fatullayev guilty of
terrorism, incitement to ethnic hatred, and tax evasion. Fatullayev’s
sentences were consolidated, and he was ordered to serve a total of
eight years and six months in prison.

The terrorism and incitement charges stemmed from a Realny Azerbaijan
commentary headlined "The Aliyevs Go to War," which analyzed
possible consequences for Azerbaijan if the United States were
to wage war with Iran. The piece sharply criticized your foreign
policy. Although Fatullayev’s article was similar to many others
published on the subject, only Fatullayev was charged and tried. The
indictment alleged that international business people and diplomats
had complained about the story, claiming to have been "frightened"
by it. Yet no such witnesses ever testified in court, according to
trial monitors. The tax case was filed after Fatullayev was jailed on
other charges and his newspapers had been ousted from their offices,
making it impossible to collect the records needed to mount a defense.

The Supreme Court of Azerbaijan denied Fatullayev’s appeal in June
2008, ending domestic legal avenues. Fatullayev appealed to the
Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights, which began reviewing
the case in September 2008. The case is pending.

In a very disturbing development, authorities with the Azerbaijani
Penitentiary Service searched Fatullayev’s cell on December 29,
2009, and claimed to have found 0.22 grams of heroin. Fatullayev,
who was charged with drug possession and moved into isolation,
has denied possessing any drugs. Based on Fatullayev’s account, as
relayed to us by his attorney, and based on the government’s long
record of persecuting the editor, CPJ believes this new drug charge
to be fabricated.

The timing of the new charge points to manipulation. The charge
was filed as the European Court was expected to set a hearing date
in Fatullayev’s case. The journalist’s supporters believe this new
charge was trumped up to ensure Fatullayev would remain in jail no
matter what the European Court found. The drug possession charge
could bring up to three years in prison.

Our research shows that Fatullayev has committed no criminal offense,
and that he is being persecuted in reprisal for reporting that
challenged the official investigation into Huseynov’s unsolved murder.

In November 2009, the Committee to Protect Journalists recognized
Fatullayev’s courageous journalism by awarding him one of our
International Press Freedom Awards. Hundreds of international
journalists gathered to honor him and sign petitions seeking his
release. You will find their names below.

We were relieved to hear of the December 26, 2009, release on
humanitarian grounds of Bizim Yol reporter Mushfig Huseynov, whose
health had deteriorated in state custody. We call upon Your Excellency
to build on this positive step and to free Eynulla Fatullayev.

Releasing our unjustly imprisoned colleague will reflect your
commitment to the rule of law and to a just and tolerant democratic
society.

Sincerely, Joel Simon Executive Director

Paul Steiger Chairman, Committee to Protect Journalists

Petitioners:

(see list at
free-eynulla-fatullayev.php)