Author: nina hovnanian

SA SAINTETE ARAM IER A RECU LE PREMIER MINISTRE DU KARABAGH

Mercredi 20 mars 2013, Sa Saintete Aram I a recu le Premier ministre,
Ara Haroutiounian, et sa delegation, en visite au Liban pour discuter
de nouveaux partenariats d’affaires. Le Premier ministre a informe
des realisations economiques au Karabagh et des strategies futures.

Sa Saintete Aram Ier a honore ses invites avec une reception au cours
de laquelle ils ont rencontre les membres du Conseil executif du
Catholicossat, les representants des trois partis politiques armeniens
et près de 200 personnes du monde des affaires.

Dans son discours de bienvenue, le Catholicos a informe la communaute
des affaires locales des mesures prises par le President et le Premier
ministre pour renforcer l’economie du Karabagh et les a encourages
a les aider de toutes les manières possibles.

mardi 26 mars 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

SERJ TANKIAN ET TIGRAN AMASYAN INTERPRÈTENT ” GARUNA ” POUR L’ARMENIE

Les deux remarquables musiciens que sont Serj Tankian et Tigran Amasyan
viennent d’enregistrer la celèbre ode au printemps de Komitas ” Garuna
“.

Serj Tankian la dedie a tous ceux qui luttent pour un changement
positif en Armenie.

Le titre sera inclus dans un prochain album a paraître cet ete,
intitule ” Jazz-iz-Christ “.

Ecouter

La version classique par Armen Manassian

(Prix du President de la Republique 2012)

mardi 26 mars 2013, Jean Eckian ©armenews.com

SIT CROOKED, TALK STRAIGHT: ANCA-WR ADVOCACY DAY 2013

Monday, March 25th, 2013

Patrick Bairamian prepares for last year’s Adocacy Day

BY PATRICK BAIRAMIAN AND LARA GARIBIAN

Be the Voice It’s 9 am on a Friday. I have just tossed my third cup
of coffee in the trash bin outside of the Capitol building and I am
about to enter into the office of Assemblyman Portantino with three
strangers who have become friends in the long hours we spent on the
bus ride from Los Angeles to Sacramento.

Before I knock on the solid ten foot oak door towering in front of me,
I adjust my black skirt and mechanically brush off non-existent lint
from my blazer. “So,” I think to myself, “this is how far we’ve come.”

I’m still debating if this is the right choice for me. To be standing
in front of this door, with these people, about to enter an office
and meet a man who influences the creation of laws and mandates that
regulate the American lifestyle I have been afforded by the founding
fathers of this nation that I call my home. “We’re going to go in there
and what…advocate? How does one advocate?” I attempt to stifle my
conscience from straying too far from concentration and not fill my
voice with doubt and nervousness before I greet the assembly member.

Before I shake off my uncertainty, I reach into my pocket to turn off
my phone as to not be interrupted by a vibrating phone call. I have
an unread text message. Before I ignore it and turn off my phone,
curiosity gets the better of me and I open the text. It’s from Aram
Hamparian, one of our leaders in Washington DC, who has been the
colossal driving force behind this effort. The text reads short
and simply:

“We’re Armenians, and we stand together, as proud sons and daughters of
our ancient tribe, in believing in and building a bright and brilliant
future for ourselves and all of humanity.”

Lara Garibian with former Assemblymember Anthony Portantino during
last year’s Advocacy Day

I smile at the boost of confidence the words have augmented within me.

I turn my phone off, smile to my colleagues, and open the door,
entering as an advocate.

Activism Activism. Activism. Activism. A message that has been
communicated to us for generations by our forefathers, by our families,
by our community. But, what does it mean? As an old Armenian saying
states: “Let’s sit crooked and talk straight.”

Before anything, take that word: “Activism,” and roll it around on your
tongue for a minute. Honestly, what does that mean to you? Not as an
Armenian, not as an American, not as an anything, just…what does
that mean? Okay, now that you’ve discovered what it means for you,
what can you do with it?

Since the Armenian Genocide of 1915, it has been the continuous message
of activism and the importance of community participation that has
gotten us to achieve such milestones in our fight for recognition,
our building of a stronger community, and ensuring a unity remains
among the Diaspora of our people. You hear the importance of activism
conveyed through our community’s most politically active organization,
the Armenian National Committee of America. The ANCA’s successes show
their true face when we as a community rallied together to promote the
sacred preservation of Armenian churches crumbling in Western Armenia
at the hands of the Turkish Government, during the nomination of
Azerbaijan’s ambassador Matt Bryza, and countless local campaigns that
preserve the very core of what we consider our culture and ethnicity.

But what do all of these campaigns mean? Is there message only:
“Please donate to our cause?” Do they mean attend “our” events? Is
it about networking, creating memories, or just having a good time?

Activism can be all those things, but it’s more. How? Activism is about
passion and action. Activism is about unity and progress. It is about
reaching out to something that lies at the core of your identity and
doing something to strengthen that core and the sum of it’s parts.

Activism is about letting your voice be heard not just for yourself,
but for your community, your people, the mutual cause, and the change
it creates. To be the change that you want to see in the world, as
Gandhi – the world’s greatest advocate – said, we can no longer claim
to be “involved.” An activist is a humanitarian, not for one cause,
but for equal justice among all people. He is he, she is she, and in
activism, there is no difference. We are that particle of light that
streams through the darkness, never abandoning hope in place of fatigue
or failure. We do not falter, and although in our battles we may be
challenged endlessly; and our faith in the cause may be questioned, we,
as an advocate never allow doubt to supersede the message of equality,
and human justice to which we have allied our core values with. Be
the change, don’t settle for superficial advocacy. Be the voice of
your community, for our ranks need leaders indeed! Unite with your
people, yet more importantly, allow for the people that are in your
grasp to unite with each other and be the cause as one.

My first experience of attending the California Advocacy Day was
something that shaped my definition of activism greatly. I volunteered
endless hours emailing the offices of Assembly members and State
Senators to arrange meetings so that our community members would have
the ability to meet and speak to their community leaders about what
issues were current and important to them. I remember being awake until
three in the morning along side my friend and partner in organizing
this event, and wanting to make sure that each constituent was fully
prepared for their meetings and the day ahead. I also remember the
flood of self doubt that accompanied my own responsibilities as a
team leader. However, in the end, I realized how much I valued the
entire experience and the confidence it gave me to continue being
active. I realized my definition of activism was to make sure I was
heard and to realize that my participation, whether I was new to the
game or not, was making a difference on an individual and community
level. I understood the power one voice carried.

However, it was up to me to take those risks and involve myself in
something at such a large level.

The forum to be heard and the opportunities to be active are ever
present. Take this opportunity and be the activist by taking part in
this year’s Advocacy Day on April 15th. Join the Armenian National
Committee of America and represent your community. Represent your
cause. Represent your needs and your identity! Let your local and
State officials see who you are and that you matter, that your people
matter, that your community matters. And along the way, make those
memories, meet new people, build and strengthen your connections,
and above all else, take action!

Those interested in attending should register at itsmyseat.com/ancawr.

Registration includes transportation to and from Sacramento and hotel
accommodations. Space is limited. If you have questions regarding
accommodations or any other details, please contact ANCA-WR External
Affairs Deputy Tereza Yerimyan, at (818) 500-1918 or [email protected].

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the
largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy
organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination
with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the
Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country,
the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community
on a broad range of issues.

IRIS STATION (US) INSTALLED AT GARNI GEOPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY TO ALSO REGISTER SECRET NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS IN THE REGION

ARMINFO
Monday, March 25, 21:32

“It may be no accident that under the program of the Incorporated
Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS), the USA has established
its station at the Garni Geophysical Observatory. Besides the earth
shocks, the station will also register the secret nuclear explosions
along the perimeter of 12 thsd km”, Levon Hakhverdyan, Director of
the Garni Geophysical Observatory, said when replying to ArmInfo
correspondent’s question.

Armen Yeritsyan, Minister of Emergency Situations of Armenia, who
visited the station on March 25, pointed out that the modernization
project of the Observatory will be implemented within a year.

Afterwards the Observatory will become an international seismological
center. He said that the network of the seismic activity monitoring
includes 150 observing points, which will send the information to both
the Crisis Management Center of the Armenian Ministry of Emergency
Situations and the Garni Geophysical Observatory for processing. A
unique strainmeter, which is 375 meters long, is installed at the
Observatory at the maximum depth of 67 meters. He added that the
data from the station installed at the Observatory under the IRIS
project, as well as from the seismological station in Yeghegnadzor
(which operates with the support of France) will be collected at
the Observatory.

When asked if Armenia can gain dividends from the activities in the
seismic studies sphere, Levon Hakhverdyan said that it will be possible
to talk about it only in case of the Observatory’s normal operation.

In the meantime, the Observatory should regularly provide the Armenian
Nuclear Power Plant with information about the geomorphologic
situation. Hakhverdyan thinks that in order to ensure the proper
work of the strainmeter, it is necessary to equip it with a digital
system of data transmission. There are also tiltmeters, radonometric
and magnetometric stations. Later it is envisaged to launch a laser
interferometer. In addition, the operations at one of the deepest wells
in Armenia, which is located at the Garni Geophysical Observatory,
will define the specifications of the subterranean waters, and analyze
the biochemical and ecochemical state of the subsurface. In seismic
activities, the Garni Geophysical Observatory will cooperate with the
Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory and the Institute of Mechanics of
the Armenian National Academy of Sciences.

Artur Baghdasaryan, Secretary of the National Security Council under
the President of Armenia, who also visited the Garni Geophysical
Observatory today, said that after the modernization of the
Observatory, Armenia may become an exporter of knowledge in the sphere
of seismology and seismic security. He recalled that the Observatory
operates as part of the Armenian Ministry of Emergency Situations,
due to which the country has already become an exporter of rescue
services. Baghdasaryan pointed out that the Observatory is a unique
complex (there is a similar complex in Japan) that registers earth
shocks within a radius of 12 thsd km. He assured that the Security
Council will support full modernization of the Observatory in every
possible way, as it is hard to overestimate the practical importance
of the Observatory. It is also planned to involve international
organizations in the modernization process. “We expect a high
ranking delegation of the Russian Security Council to visit Armenia,
and the delegation will include responsible persons in the sphere of
seismic security. We have effective ties with Russia”, he stressed. He
expressed hope that the USA and the EU will also take an active part
in the process in terms of financial and technical assistance.

Baghdasaryan recalled that under the seismic security concept approved
by the Security Council, essential steps have been taken in Armenia
over the past two years. He said that effective cooperation has been
established with Roskosmos, and the structures of Roskosmos cooperate
with Armenia in implementation of a 5 mln EUR modernization project
of the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory.

The Minister of Emergency Situations, in turn, recalled that the
Observatory was transferred to the Ministry of Emergency Situations
in March 2012, and no modernizations operations had been carried out
there before.

To note, the Garni Geophysical Observatory was built in 1977-82. The
project cost 3 mln Soviet rubles. The Observatory registers all the
big and medium earthquakes, as well as the secret nuclear explosions.

The data of the Observatory are transmitted to the seismological
centers of the USA and Austria. The Institute of Physics of the Earth,
Russian Academy of Sciences, has expressed willingness to contribute
to the re-launch of the Observatory’s equipment designed by the
former employees of the Observatory, who are currently working at
the Institute of Physics of the Earth.

CRISIS IN CYPRUS IS NEGATIVE FACTOR FOR RATINGS OF ALL EUROZONE COUNTRIES. MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE

18:50, 25 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 25, ARMENPRESS: Crisis in Cyprus was credit negative
for all sovereign ratings in the euro area, reports Armenpress,
referring to the statement of Moody’s Investors Service.

“Even if negotiations are successful and Cyprus remains within the
euro area, policy makers’ recent decisions raise the risk of deposit
outflows, capital flight, increased bank and sovereign-funding costs
and broader financial market dislocation, even if those decisions
don’t disrupt financial market calm in the present,” the credit
ratings agency said in a statement.

As reports Armenpress, referring to BBC, two Cypriot banks based in
the UK have sought to reassure customers about the security of their
deposits. The Bank of Cyprus UK, which has 50,000 UK customers, said
there would be no effect on deposits, as it is a UK bank and subject
to UK financial regulation.

But the Cyprus Popular Bank or Laiki Bank, which has 13,000 account
holders in Britain, is not incorporated under UK banking law.

It said deposits would be guaranteed at least up to £85,000. Following
the agreement between EU finance ministers and the Cyprus government,
anyone with savings above 100,000 euros (£85,150) in Cyprus may lose
a proportion of their money.

So it is not yet clear whether customers with more than £85,000 in
their Laiki accounts in the UK may have to forfeit some of their
savings.

A spokesman for the bank said they were waiting to hear whether sums
greater than that limit would be guaranteed. But otherwise, he said,
they were trading normally. The Bank of Cyprus (UK) is separately
capitalized from its parent company and its customers are included
within the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

“There is no effect on deposits with Bank of Cyprus UK Limited,
which is a UK bank,” said a spokesman.

The situation with customers of Laiki Bank is different, as it is
not part of the UK compensation scheme, which guarantees deposits up
to £85,000.

Nevertheless, it has insisted that customers can take out as much
cash as necessary, if withdrawals are allowed on their account.

“We have money available to give out. We have a sea of cash,” said
a spokesperson.

Nevertheless, it admitted that discussions were continuing with the
Financial Services Authority, the Bank of England and Laiki’s parent
company in Cyprus. Should UK depositors lose money, the government
would have to decide whether to compensate them directly. After the
Icelandic bank Landsbanki collapsed in October 2008, both the British
and Dutch governments decided to compensate more than 340,000 customers
who had lost money.

GARNI GEOPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY TO REOPEN AND GET EQUIPPED

16:58 25/03/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

Secretary of the National Security Council Artur Baghdasaryan and the
Minister of Emergency Situations Armen Yeritsyan visited the unique
research center of Garni.

Artur Baghdasryan said that re-operation of Garni Geophysical
Observatory has strategic importance for Armenia since it is the second
best in the world, which enables predicting earthquakes within a range
of 12,000 km 18 hours in advance. He added that financial resources
will be invested to modernize and equip the observatory.

DERELICT TZIRANAVOR CHURCH NOT SLATED FOR RENOVATION
Sona Avagyan

16:08, March 25, 2013

The Tziranavor Church (5th-6th centuries) in the vicinity of the town
of Ashtarak isn’t included in the list of cultural monuments to be
restored by the Armenian government.

The Agency for the Preservation of Historical and Cultural Monuments,
attached to the Ministry of Culture, informed Hetq that government
funds are mainly being allocated to sites that are currently undergoing
either renovation or those on the verge of collapse.

The church is a rectangular schemed basilica, with the horseshoe-like
altar, and there are two chambers to the left and the right side. It
was built by Catholicos Nerses II of Bagrevand.

It has been renovated several times over the centuries.

During the later centuries, the northern and western walls were doubled
and strengthened. The inside is a remarkable double window. On the
eastern facade of the church there are remnants of a teeth-like
lattice.

The old basilica was surrounded by walls, which made the whole
construction mansion-shape looking. Because the church was built at
the edge of the Kasagh River canyon, it also played a defensive role.

Today, the church is crumbling and lacks a roof.

This is a Soviet-era descriptive plaque that still stands on the
church wall.

Rubbish and graffiti mar the inside and walls of the church.

The Kasagh Bridge and river as seen from the church above.

VAHAGN CHAKHALYAN: SAAKASHVILI’S ACCUSATIONS IS A RESULT OF FAILURE OF ALL HIS POLITICAL INITIATIVES

ARMINFO
Monday, March 25, 15:38

Javahkh activist Vahagn Chakhalyan reflected on the statements which
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has recently made against him.

“The slanderous accusations, which Saakashvili is making against me
after my release from prison, come to prove yet again that I was
imprisoned for solely political considerations, for the fact that
I pacifically and lawfully fought for the protection of the rights
of the Armenian population of Georgia. Saakashvili is attempting to
cover up the simple fact that his political course has failed.

My release was a manifestation of goodwill by the new Georgian
authorities but, also, it was greatly due to the continuous calls
by the population of Javakhk and the pressure by the international
public opinion.

To recall, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who spoke on
the air of Imedi television, also had reflected on the release of
Georgian-Armenian activist Vahagn Chakhalyan. “Chakhalyan should not
have been released from prison. He destroyed the Georgian university
and the Georgian diocese. He would have left prison in six years,” the
Georgian president said He also had depicted what would have happened
in those six years. During this period Javakhk would have become one
of the key railway hubs of Europe, the standard of living would have
increased 2-3 times, and, “the absolute majority of the population
of Javakhk would have spoken Georgian,” Mikheil Saakashvili said,
and asked: “If Chakhalyan was a common criminal, what was he doing
in the parliament yesterday?”.

Chakhalyan was arrested on 21 July 2008 and accused for illegal
acquisition and keeping of weapon, as well as for organizing
mass disorders. On 7 April 2009 he was sentenced to 10 years of
imprisonment. Chakhalyan was released on 24 January 2013 within the
frames of amnesty in Georgia.

THE TRUTH SHOULD HAVE ITS FISTS

Monday, 25 March 2013 17:35

We’ll not disclose a secret, noting that the conflict between
Azerbaijan on the one hand and Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh – on
the other hand, which has long and permanently moved to actually
all the spheres – political, economic, cultural, and humanitarian,
has also spilled into the international arena. It’s not the
internationalization of the conflict that took place still in the
war period, when the corresponding international organizations
were involved in its settlement. It’s the policy of Azerbaijan on
“exporting” the conflict to all the above mentioned spheres of the
public-political life, with far-reaching goals – to distort the essence
of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict, to achieve the international
isolation of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh through their discredit,
and to eventually resolve the conflict in its own interests. Armed
with the famous Machiavellian principle of “the goal justifies the
means”, Azerbaijan does not shun anything and uses any international
platform for misinforming the international community.

If we follow the latest, I may say, diplomatic initiatives of
Azerbaijan, we can see that it has moved the focus of its efforts to
the parliaments of some countries. In order to avoid the responsibility
for the genocide of the Armenian population in Sumgait, Baku, Kirovabad
Mingechaur, Maragha and other settlements, Azerbaijan is increasingly
spinning the flywheel of the propaganda campaign on charging Armenians
of the commitment of its own crime – “khojalu”.

Using the ignorance of politicians in some countries, as well as
resorting to outright bribery, the Baku regime has managed to push
through a number of parliaments the resolutions on the “khojalu
genocide”, which it has inflated for many years. Thus, on March 18,
a similar resolution was adopted by the House of Representatives of
the U.S. state of Tennessee; it was previously done by the legislative
bodies of the states of Mississippi, Maine, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma,
and New Mexico.

We’d also note that similar resolutions were adopted by the Parliaments
of Romania and the Czech Republic. The position of Bucharest can be,
actually, explained. Supporting Moldova in the international arena,
which has a problem with Transdniestria, Romania is committed to
solidarity with Azerbaijan on the issue of “territorial integrity”,
even without going into the details of the anti-Armenian steps of
the latter. With regard to the Czech Republic, later its Foreign
Ministry actually disavowed the decision of the Commission on Foreign
Relations, Defense and Security of the Chamber of Deputies of the
Parliament. In its letter to the Forum of Armenian Associations of
Europe, the Foreign Ministry stated that it had not been informed
of the unacceptable and improper step, from the point of view of
international law, and correspondingly, the Commission’s decision to
recognize the events in Khojalu as “genocide” could not be considered
the official position of the Czech Republic. Some of the Czech MPs
acknowledged that the resolution on the events in Khojalu had been
adopted in haste, without due consideration of the issue.

However…

I must say, the NKR is also successfully acting at the level of
parliaments of other countries, which may have also caused Azerbaijan
to launch a “game” in the same field. As we know, the corresponding
resolutions of the Parliaments of the U.S. states of Massachusetts
and Rhode Island, as well as the Legislative Council of the Australian
state of New South Wales recognized the right of Nagorno Karabakh to
self-determination and independence. On March 13, an event dedicated
to the 25th anniversary of the Karabakh Movement was held at the U.S.

Congress, with the participation of NKR Minister of Culture and Youth
Affairs Narine Aghabalyan. On March 14, the Lithuanian Parliament
officially announced the creation of the inter-parliamentary group of
friendship with the NKR; on March 19, in Paris, a group of political
figures, Members of Parliament and Senators of France announced the
creation of the Circle of Friendship with the NKR.

All this indicates that currently, a fight for votes is actually
going on as well, but first of all – for the “minds and conscience”
of parliamentarians of different countries, with the only difference
that in this struggle, we rely on the truth, while Azerbaijan relies
on lie. But, the paradox is that having such an impressive folder
of factual materials denouncing the criminal nature of Azerbaijan,
we haven’t managed to fully present to the world the truth about the
conflict for over the last two decades, while Azerbaijan has managed
to impose its false interpretation of the Karabakh events on the
international community. I think the reason is that we, rightly
believing that the truth is on our side, were kindly inactive,
while it was necessary to consistently uphold the truth and make
it available to the international community. Paraphrasing a famous
proverb, we should note that the truth should have its fists.

Especially that Azerbaijan is afraid of this truth like of fire. This
explains its policy on the international isolation of the NKR, which
includes its creation of lies, its efforts on preventing the visits
of representatives of foreign countries to the NKR – political and
public figures, journalists, and artists who, God forbid, will see
the real picture of Nagorno-Karabakh. This leads to its aggressive
reaction to someone’s steps on recognizing not only the right of the
NKR to self-determination, but even the very fact of its existence.

An eloquent detail: on her return from Washington, Narine Aghabalyan
informed that members of the Azerbaijani protest action against the
festive event, dedicated to the anniversary of the Artsakh Movement
and held at the U.S. Congress, had not hidden their concerns that
such events would eventually lead to the international recognition
of the NKR. Significant revelation…

Leonid MARTIROSSIAN Editor-in-Chief of Azat Artsakh newspaper

MOST IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT IS THAT PROCESSES HAVE BECOME PUBLIC

16:06 26/03/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

Deputy Chairwoman of Free Democrats Party Anush Sedrakyan said
during today’s press conference that government-people, king-people
correspondence is one and a half centuries old, and the political
activities in this genre are becoming unserious.

According to her, the most important achievement is the fact that
these processes have become public. The public, now, is able to follow
it and express opinions analyzing each word, so it is necessary to
be cautious: the opposition should make sure it won’t be defamed,
as to the authorities, they are already defamed.

Anush Sedrakyan says that Serzh Sargsyan will go to Freedom Square
which will be a good start for the destruction of the wall between
his people and the enemies.