Author: nina hovnanian

ACTOR, ACTIVIST SOS SARGSYAN DIES AT 84

Thursday, September 26th, 2013

Sos Sargsyan

YEREVAN-Renowned Armenian actor, playwright, People’s Artist and
political activist Sos Sargsyan passed away Thursday. He was 84.

Sargsyan was born in Stevanavan, in the Lori Region of Armenia and
moved to Yerevan in 1948 and worked as an actor in Armenia’s Youth
Theater.

He graduated from the Yerevan Fine Arts and Theatre Institute in 1954.

>From 1954 he performed at the Sundukyan Drama Theatre of Yerevan.

In 1992 he established and until his death in 2013 headed the
Hamazkayin Theater.

>From 1997 to 2005 he was the director of Yerevan Institute of Theater
and Cinema. From 2006 until his death he served as a member of the
board of directors of the institute.

Throughout his brilliant career, Sargsyan has starred in 20 Armenian
films and has worked in the Russian cinema, most notably in the 1972
film, Solaris, directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.

In 2000, His Holiness Karekin II awarded Sargsyan the Armenian
Apostolic Church’s St. Sahag-St. Mesrob medal, honoring the actor’s
extraordinary 70-year career in the arts.

He is famous for his roles in such Armenian classics at “Gikor,”
“Dzori Miron,” “Khatabala” and “Menk enk, Mer Sarere.”

After Armenia’s independence Sargsyan also played a crucial role in
the political life of the country as an activist and intellectual. He
was a candidate for president in 1991, Armenia’s first presidential
elections, representing the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. In
2009 he was elected to parliament as a member of the ARF bloc.

SEPT 26 MARKS 144TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY OF KOMITAS (VIDEO)

September 26, 2013 – 11:12 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – September 26 marks the 144th birth anniversary of
Armenian priest, composer, choir leader, singer, music ethnologist
and teacher Komitas Vardapet (by Western Armenian transliteration
also Gomidas Vartabed).

Komitas was born in 1869, in Kutahya, Ottoman Empire, into a family
whose members were deeply involved in music and were monolingual
in Turkish. His mother died when he was one, and his father died
ten years later. His grandmother looked after him until 1881, when
a prelate of the local Armenian diocese went to Etchmiadzin to be
consecrated a bishop. Catholicos Gevork IV ordered him to bring one
orphaned child to be educated at the Etchmiadzin Seminary. Soghomon
was chosen among 20 candidates and admitted into the seminary (where
he impressed the Catholicos with his singing talent) and graduated
in 1893, after which he became a monk. According to church tradition,
newly ordained priests are given new names, and Soghomon was renamed
Komitas (named after the seventh-century Armenian Catholicos who
was also a hymn writer). Two years later, he became a priest and
obtained the title Vardapet (or Vartabed), meaning a “priest” or a
“church scholar.”

He established and conducted the monastery choir until 1896, when he
went to Berlin, enrolled in the Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm University
and studied music at the private conservatory of Prof. Richard
Schmidt. In 1899, he acquired the title Doctor of Musicology and
returned to Etchmiadzin, where he took over conducting a polyphonic
male choir. He traveled extensively around the country, listening to
and recording details about Armenian folk songs and dances performed
in various villages. This way, he collected and published some 3000
songs, many of them adapted to choir singing.

Komitas was the first non-European to be admitted into the
International Music Society, of which he was a co-founder. He gave
many lectures and performances throughout Europe, Turkey and Egypt,
thus presenting till then very little known Armenian music.

>From 1910, he lived and worked in Istanbul. There, he established
a 300-member choir, Gusan. On April 24, 1915, the official date when
the Armenian Genocide began, he was arrested and put on a train the
next day together with 180 other Armenian notables and sent to the
city of Cankırı in northern Central Anatolia, at a distance of some
300 miles.

In the autumn of 1916, he was taken to a hospital in Constantinople,
Hôpital de la paix, and then moved to Paris in 1919, where he died
in a psychiatric clinic in Villejuif in 1935. Next year, his ashes
were transferred to Yerevan and buried in the Pantheon that was named
after him.

ARMENIAN PRIMATE OF CYPRUS: ‘I REALLY CAN’T SAY IF THE BISHOPS SYNOD WILL DISCUSS THE KJOYAN OFFSHORE SCANDAL STORY’

Marine Martirosyan

15:12, September 26, 2013

Hetq speaks with Archbishop Varujan Hergelian about the challenges
facing Armenia and the role of the Church in resolving them. The
Cypriot Primate is in Armenia to attend the Bishops Synod in
Etchmiadzin.

– Your Holiness, what’s you opinion of the situation in Armenia today.

– It’s not good. We visited the border villages in Tavoush Province
and met with the people and students of the main schools. We saw the
reality on the ground – the roads, the water shortages. The government,
with the leverage of the Church, must provide more improvements so
that the people’s concerns are addressed. Those people are prey
to Turkish bullets. They have electricity issues, school and job
problems. The schools should be free. The government, along with the
Church, must improve social conditions so that people don’t leave
their communities. It’s our border. I saw that in some areas almost
75% of villages have been emptied. If such a trend continues, only
grandmas and grandpas will be left to defend the border.

– What are the mistakes that have caused such a situation?

– We all know it’s a result of the government and its policies
regarding the homeland. We must put a stop to all those monopolies
that have been given to some people. People must be free to work.

Anyone who lives in the homeland must be free to conduct business and
work, but they also have certain obligations, like paying taxes, etc.

This is the meaning of freedom. Otherwise our people will leave the
homeland. And we are seeing this happen.

– Has the Cypriot Armenian community discussed the offshore
scandal here in Armenia in which Archbishop Navasard Kjoyan has
been implicated?

– No. We have no idea about what happened. We only know as much as you
do. We didn’t even know that some people conducted such transactions in
Cyprus. We don’t know the amounts that were transferred and deposited
in Cypriot banks, two of which have gone bankrupt. Our church held
reserves funds in them and we also incurred losses.

– Armenians in Cyprus generally don’t have close connections to the
Church. It’s only a small circle of concerned faithful that attend
services. The number of mixed marriages has also increased.

– Your Holiness, I had asked you about a certain high ranking Church
clergyman. Did you ever meet him in Cyprus?

– Never. The only people that visited the Diocese were His Holiness
Bozabalyan and Martikyan. Recently, His Holiness Parkev and some
priests came to visit.

– In other words, our diaspora clergymen aren’t interested in
developments in Armenia, especially church matters.

– We only get information via the television or from individuals
visiting Cyprus. And we don’t know if what they tell us is true or
not. These issues must be discussed on both sides. We’ve never had
such an opportunity and I think I never will. I am here in Armenia
now and no one has approached me in this direction.

– Don’t you think that the matter should be raised in the Bishops
Synod? Why hasn’t the offshore scandal matter been discussed at
the meeting?

– We still have time. There are two main issues for us to debate –
the sanctification procedure and the meaning of baptism. During the
first session we will discuss the challenges facing the Church. If
that specific issue is raised or not, I can’t say.

EX-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE’S CAR CATCHES FIRE

September 26, 2013 | 18:23

YEREVAN. – The vehicle of former presidential hopeful, National Accord
party Chairman Aram Harutyunyan has caught fire.

Talking to the a1+ correspondent, Aram Harutyunyan said he had no
doubts that the fire could be caused by external interference.

“Firefighters inspected the car and said that the fire was caused
by external interference. Now experts have come to find out what
has happened. I’m also wondering why the fire started,” he said,
explaining that the fire broke out on his way to Nork district.

Ex-presidential candidate said he had already appealed to law
enforcers, adding that he had no enemies.

OPPOSITION PARTY DECRIES INCIDENT WITH RUSSIAN BORDER GUARDS AS ‘EXTERNAL INTERFERENCE’

The opposition Heritage party has condemned the incident in which its
members, while being on an election campaign trip, were stopped by
Russian border guards in the southern Syunik province. In a statement
issued today it called it a “gross external interference in domestic
political processes.”

The incident occurred Wednesday evening when Russian border guards
deployed in Syunik to protect the Armenian state frontier under an
interstate Armenian-Russian agreement stopped the car with Heritage
members, including MP Zaruhi Postanjyan, and began to search it. In the
altercation that ensued one of the Russian servicemen reportedly broke
the camera with which a Heritage member tried to record the incident.

Postanjyan told media that the Russian servicemen did not explain
their actions at first. Only afterwards they said they had stopped the
car as part of a search for a wanted person. They did not let the car
proceed until they learned that there was a member of parliament in it.

The Heritage team was in Syunik as part of a campaign in the September
29 parliamentary by-election in which the opposition party has fielded
a candidate against a ruling party member.

In the statement Heritage contended that the incident happened
“with the connivance of the Republican Party of Armenia and de-facto
president Serzh Sargsyan, if not their immediate participation.”

“We demand that the Russian authorities in Armenia formally apologize
and provide explanations in connection with the inadmissible incident,
and also demand that the Armenian law-enforcement and judicial bodies
properly investigate the incident and bring those responsible to
justice,” concluded Heritage.

SYUNIK GOVERNOR PLANS TO DEVELOP SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESS

September 26, 2013 | 17:31

The governor of Syunik Region Vahe Hakobyan believes the region needs
to diversify its economy.

“As you know, the economy of Syunik Region relies heavily on mining
companies. They provide about 85 percent of the gross product of
the region, another 10 percent falls on hydropower and 5 percent on
services,” Hakobyan told reporters on Thursday when the region was
visited by President Serzh Sargsyan.

Hakobyan said the goal envisaged by the 2014-17 program of economic
development is to promote the development of small and medium-sized
business.

“President visited a number of new business entities today and
yesterday,” he said.

The region has a comparative advantage in agriculture and food
industry, mechanics, alternative energy.

“We are getting ready to make the investment proposals and submit them
to the private sector. Perhaps, we will organize an investment forum,”
he concluded.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

ARMENIAN PREPARLIAMENT MEMBER URGES FREEDOM FIGHTERS TO ‘AWAKE’

15:35 ~U 26.09.13

The Preparliament member Zhirair Sefilyan calls on Armenian
freedom-fighters [participants in the Nagorno-Karabakh war] to “awake.”

Speaking of oligarchs, he said: “They share the responsibility for
the oppression of our people. We have not forgotten anything.”

“We remember March 1, the ones that raised their hand against the
people,” Sefilyan added.

We would remind readers that Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP)
parliamentary group members headed by PAP Chairman Gagik Tsarukyan
held a meeting with freedom fighters to discuss ways of resolving
their social problems.

With respect to the latest political developments and civil
activities, Sefilyan said that the “chief administrator” has lost
control of them. In this context, he singled out the ‘Paying 100
drams’ movement. Sefilyan pointed out different civil initiatives’
active cooperation.

With respect to social struggle, Sefilyan said that Armenia’s
authorities employ the following principle: first, they try to bribe
the groups or individuals out of their control; if they fail, they
offer more money; if it does not help, they use physical force or
resort to prosecution.

Armenian News – Tert.am

PASHINIAN INSISTS ON EXPLANATION ABOUT RUSSIAN SPECIAL SERVICE ACTIONS

Thursday,
September
26

Deputy of the opposition Armenian National Congress (HAK) parliamentary
faction Nikol Pashinian has condemned the actions of employees of
Russian special services concerning Heritage faction deputy Ms. Zaruhi
Postanjian.

Let us remind you that Zaruhi Postanjian said yesterday that a
representative of Russian frontier troops impeded their free movement
and broke their video camera in Syunik province of Armenia.

“I expect the respective bodies of Armenia to give an explanation about
activities of persons, who wear a uniform with differential signs of
foreign special services, in the territory of Armenia. I will son take
actions stemming from my powers as Armenian parliamentary deputy,”
is said in a statement of Pashinian who had a phone conversation with
Z. Postanjian.

TODAY, 13:07

Aysor.am

PRESS RELEASE
Caucasus Environmental NGO Network
28, Chovelidze street
Tbilisi, 380008, GEORGIA
Tel: ++ 995 32 99 63 28, 995 99 57 77 22
E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
Web:

25-09-2013

INOGATE holds sustainable energy policy workshop for Eastern Partners

Sharing knowledge and useful experience in the field of sustainable
energy policy is one of the key aims of an INOGATE workshop which is
taking place this week (22 – 28 September) in Riga, Latvia, and
Vilnius, Lithuania. This capacity building event has brought together
medium and senior level managers of relevant ministries, energy
regulators and energy efficiency agencies from Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.

To read more visit:
&id=34559&lang_id=450

Kind regards,

EU Neighbourhood Info Centre

.

ARMENIA TO DIRECTLY PURCHASE WEAPONS, AMMUNITION AND MILITARY EQUIPMENTS FROM RUSSIAN ENTERPRISES AT LOW PRICES

APA, Azerbaijan
Sept 25 2013

[ 25 September 2013 14:51 ]
The two countries have signed a unique contract in this regard

Baku. Rashad Suleymanov – APA. Armenia will directly purchase weapons,
ammunition and military equipments from Russian enterprises.

APA reports that Armenia’s “Qraparak” newspaper made this report
quoting its sources in the Parliament.

The Armenian Parliament will confirm the contract on direct purchases
from the Russian military factories signed between Armenia and Russia
in the near future. Thus, Armenia will be the only country having
such a contract with Russia.

Currently, Russia is carrying out the sales of weapons and military
equipments to Armenia and its close ally Belarus via Rosoboronexport
State Corporation that is responsible for foreign sales. The Russian
Armed Forces and security agencies sign procurement contracts with
manufacturing enterprises directly without a mediator.

The contract let the Ministry of Defense of Armenia purchase weapons
from Russia at low prices as one of the country’s own military
structures.