Author: nina hovnanian

Edward Nalbandian to visit Georgia

16:25, 9 February, 2013

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, ARMENPRESS: Foreign Minister of the Republic of
Armenia Edward Nalbandian will visit Georgia on February 11-13, where
he is going to participate in Eastern Partnership Foreign Ministers
Meeting held in Georgia. As Armenpress was informed from the press
service of Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, meeting of Foreign
Ministers of Armenia and Georgia is scheduled for the first day,
including discussion of issues of bilateral issues.

250 violations of ceasefire in a week

13:21, 9 February, 2013

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, ARMENPRESS: In accordance with data of Defence
Army of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, opponent has violated ceasefire
regime on Karabakh-Azerbaijani border for 250 times during period from
February 3 till February 9. More than 1100 bullets of different
diameters were fired towards Armenian side. As Armenpress was informed
from press service of NKR Defence Ministry, Defence Army remained
faithful to ceasefire regime and implemented military vigilance along
the entire length of the contact line.

Christian hamlet escapes Syria war but falls prey to looters

Saturday, 09 February 2013

By AFP
AL-YAKUBIYE

The bibles lie untouched on the carved wooden stands but the
chandeliers have been dumped upside down on the altar; the Christian
village of Al-Yakubiye may have escaped the full ravages of Syria’s
civil war but it could not avoid the plundering of the fighters.

Along the main road of this agricultural village in Syria’s
northwestern province of Idlib, an old cemetery with stone crosses
adjoins an Apostolic Orthodox Armenian church whose door lies open,
buffeted by the winds.

Those who swept through here seized anything of value, plundering even
the chancel and the sacristy. Under a portrait of a benevolent Virgin
Mary, a thief stole the chalice from the tabernacle.

Al-Yakubiye, nestled in a lush mountain overlooking the Orontes
valley, fell to the rebels two weeks ago after fighting that lasted
for several days.

The bulk of the clashes were around a fortified army post at the
entrance to the village, until the troops pulled out hastily and
headed to Jisr al-Shugur, further south.

President Bashar al-Assad’s soldiers spared the village, which boasts
one Catholic and two Armenian churches, from street battles that would
have inevitably turned it into ruins.

Of a population of around 600 during the winter, only a few men, a
handful of elderly and a Catholic priest, stayed back during the
fighting.

`Christians and Muslims have lived together as brothers here for
centuries,’ says Georges, a pensioner who boasts that his family roots
in the village go back `one thousand years.’

Sited in the heart of a majority Sunni Muslim region of Syria,
Al-Yakubiye with its `half Armenian, half Catholic’ population,
according to Georges, serves as a summer resort for Christians of
Aleppo, the main city in the north and one-time flourishing economic
center.

On this rainy day, the few who venture out onto the streets are
confronted by heavy mist. Street corners are piled high with garbage.
Many houses are closed up but some doors and shutters show signs of
having been forced open.

Before beating a hasty retreat, Assad’s forces had parked themselves
with their tanks and armored vehicles in the garden of an Armenian
church.

The soldiers did not enter the church itself, which remained shut, but
turned its courtyard into a dumping ground for open sand bags,
leftover food and filth.

In `liberated’ Al-Yakubiye, rebels of the Free Syrian Army, mostly
from nearby Sunni villages, have taken over several houses along the
central road. The owners gave their approval, they say.

Mussa Beidaq, the 27-year-old chief of the rebel battalion, has set
himself up in a house close to the Catholic church. The keys to the
house were handed to him by the priest on condition that it suffers no
damage.

Nothing has been moved – not the icons nor the crucifixes nor the
paintings on the walls depicting the Archangel Saint Michael.

`We will soon be gone,’ says Beidaq. `There was no violence against
the village and we will not tolerate it either.’

`Not a single villager was killed,’ adds Joseph, a resident in his
40s, who is quick to say that relations with the rebel FSA have been
`correct.’

He said it was the Catholics who stayed behind, while many Armenians,
some of whom agreed to help regime troops, had fled for fear of
reprisals.

`We Catholics refused to take arms given by the army,’ he says.

Some families have begun returning to the village, only to find their
homes looted.

`Soldiers forced their way into empty houses,’ says Beidaq while
acknowledging that insurgents too flocked in after the village fell.

`Do not look for the guilty in one or the other camp,’ says Georges.

`There are good and bad people everywhere.’

Feedback of international community wrapped off Azerbaijani `bluff’ on
striking airplanes

11:20, 9 February, 2013

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, ARMENPRESS: Discussions over Azerbaijani willing
to strike Armenian civil airplanes in case of exploitation of
Stepanakert airport have been activated recently. International
community is obviously showing its position not to let Azerbaijan
implementing brutal threats which are unacceptable for international
practice. After Safarov’s case international community saw inadequate
and not predictable behavior of Azerbaijan. Nowadays another reason
for Azerbaijani hysteria has appeared.

Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in
Georgia Philippe Lefort arrived in Azerbaijan on February 5.

During the meeting with Azerbaijani officials Philippe Lefort
discussed settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and exploitation
of Stepanakert airport. It is hard to image that EU representative
might encourage Azerbaijan to strike civil airplanes. By the way,
Lefort didn’t visit Armenia this time. Concluding from the concern of
international community, Azerbaijani threats are unacceptable.

CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha does not take Azerbaijani
statements for serous. ”We do know examples of striking civil
aircraft in the history; definitely we do know the counter response by
international community. I do not think any state would intend to take
such a step, so I do not take that information for granted. Secretary
General Nikolay Bordyuzha has one assessment regarding that news
calling it either unsuccessful comment or lame joke.

Change of Azerbaijani firm position is visible. Azerbaijani deputy
Foreign Minister Araz Azimov noted made a statement on February 4,
saying Azerbaijan would not strike civil aircrafts. Azimov also
reminded some rules of Chicago convention, adopted by Azerbaijan. From
this feedback we may conclude that Azerbaijani threats were nothing
but a `bluff’.

Serzh Sargsyan has also assured Stepanakert airport will be opened in
near future. Serzh Sargsyan noted all issues concerning airport had
been resolved. `We are already ready for the flight. Airport with its
necessary equipment is needed to make the plane fly; we have got all
these. After resolving some issue over the exploitation of airport it
will start to operate,’ Serzh Sargsyan underlined.

Azerbaijan is likely to make right decisions and not appear in
shameful situation in international arena.

ARMENIE
La Commission électorale centrale exhorte le candidat Ghukasyan à
arrêter sa grève de la faim

La Commission électorale centrale a exprimé ses préoccupations au
sujet de la grève de la faim continue du candidat à la présidence
Andrias Ghukasyan dont l’état de santé s’est aggravée récemment, et a
exhorté le candidat à arrêter sa grève de la faim.

Andrias Ghoukassian a lancé une grève de la faim illimitée depuis le
21 Janvier exigeant des élections justes. Il affirme que les
prochaines élections sont illégitimes car le Parti Républicain
d’Arménie fait usage des ressources administratives.

Mercredi matin l’état de santé de M.Ghukasyan a empiré, sa tension
artérielle a chuté et une ambulance a été appelée.

Actuellement Ghukasyan est sous surveillance médicale. Le candidat a
déclaré qu’il poursuivrait sa grève de la faim.

`Nous exprimons nos inquiétudes sur la santé du candidat à la
présidentielle Andrias Ghukasyan et lui conseillons de cesser la grève
de la faim et de prendre des mesures pour éviter les complications de
santé` indique la déclaration de la commission.

La commission a également suggéré que le ministère de la santé
maintienne un contrôle spécial sur l’état de santé du candidat à la
présidence.

samedi 9 février 2013,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

ARMENIE-SOCIAL
En Arménie, Naré et David sont les prénoms les plus utilisés pour les
naissances en 2012

L’an dernier les prénoms les plus utilisés lors des naissances furent
Naré pour les filles et David pour les garçons. Des 19 618 filles, 945
portèrent le prénom de Naré et des 22 715 garçons, 1 283 furent
prénommés David. En deuxième position arrivent Milena pour les filles
et Narég pour les garçons avec respectivement 868 et 1 129 fois. Puis
Marie (773) et Gor (813) sont en troisième position devant Mané et
Haïg. Suivent ensuite en cinquième place Annie pour les filles et Eric
pour les garçons. En sixième position on trouve Alex (garçons) et
Anahid (filles). En septième Hélène (ou Elen pour les filles) et
Dikran (ou Tigrane pour les garçons). Mariam et Arman sont huitième,
Anna et Samvel neuvième et Maria et Alain dixième.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 9 février 2013,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

DISMANTLING OF PROSHYAN WALL CONTINUES; YEREVAN MUNICIPALITY SAYS IT’S TEMPORARY
Narek Aleksanyan

;-yerevan-municipality-says-its-temporary.html
17:05, February 8, 2013

Workers are continuing to dismantle another unique piece of Yerevan’s
architecture – the wall that runs along a section of Proshyan Street.

Today, the section in the vicinity of the Children’s Railway came down,
ripped apart by the steel teeth of a bulldozer.

Workers said they didn’t know why they were tearing down the wall and
were only following orders. The crew chief told me that only a section
abutting the site earmarked for a new building would be dismantled.

Artour Gevorgyan, who heads the Yerevan Municipality’s Public Affairs
Unit, assured us that the dismantling was a temporary measure. A
construction permit for a multi-residential complex was given to
Aviatrans Ltd.

Gevorgyan said the company is obligated to restore the wall after
the completion of construction.

OSCE/ODIHR PUBLISHES SECOND INTERIM REPORT ON ARMENIA ELECTIONS

15:45 08.02.2013

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights has
published the second interim report on the presidential elections in
Armenia. The report notes that “the campaign of incumbent President
Serzh Sargsyan is the most visible, although some of the other
candidates also campaign actively.

“On 31 January, candidate Paruyr Hayrikyan was shot and injured by an
unknown assailant in central Yerevan. The authorities are investigating
the crime. While the law provides for a candidate to request the
Constitutional Court to postpone the election by two weeks in case
of “insurmountable obstacles” to his or her campaign, on 5 February
Mr. Hayrikyan announced that he will not ask for such a delay.”

“Administrative preparations for the election are proceeding
according to legal deadlines. The CEC continues to work in an open and
transparent manner. Precinct Election Commissions (PECs) were formed
by 24 January, but not all parties entitled to do so nominated members
for each PEC. The PEC members are being trained and the OSCE/ODIHR
EOM LTOs positively assessed the trainings they have attended,”
the report reads.

“Initial OSCE/ODIHR EOM media monitoring results indicate that the
media focus on political and election-related information. Media
regularly cover the contestants, with the coverage of the incumbent
president and of candidate Raffi Hovannisyan dominating most channels.

All contestants are using their free air time on public media,”
the OSCE/ODIHR notes.

According to interim report, “the CEC and the courts have received a
limited number of complaints, all of which were rejected or declared
inadmissible. The Prosecutor General’s office has launched a public
campaign encouraging citizens to report vote-buying without facing
repercussions.”

UNIQUE SITUATION AROUND ARMENIA’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS ON SOCIAL NETWORKS

YEREVAN, February 7. /ARKA/. Armenian social networks users,
particularly those of Facebook, have created some unique situation
around the upcoming presidential elections on February 18, Samvel
Martirosyan, an information security expert and blogger, implies.

“Today we see some unique situation on social networks, particularly
Facebook which is the most active discussion platform in Armenia.

There is much ado about elections, but users do not actually discuss
elections,” he said at a news conference on Thursday.

Thus, internet community evaluates some statements and actions of
the candidates rather than their political platforms, according to him.

He added that political debates do not prompt disputes and discussions
as much now as it was during the parliamentary elections last May.

Martirosyan noted youth organizations of a number of parties were
applying to such debates to sink the opponents.

However, as matters are now, when the leaders of oppositional
Armenian National Congress and Prosperous Armenia refused from
running for president, there is no need in such debates anymore,
the expert explained.

Presidential elections of Armenia are scheduled for February 18.

The following candidates will be leading the race: current president
Serzh Sargsyan, former prime minister and leader of Freedom party
Hrant Bagratyan, former foreign minister and head of Heritage party
Raffi Hovannisian, famous Soviet dissident and leader of National
Self-Determination party Paruyr Hayrikyan, former foreign minister
of Nagorno-Karabakh Arman Melikyan, political scientist and head of
Radio Hay Andrias Ghukasyan, philologist Vardan Sedrakyan. -0-

EQUALIZER: BRITISH DANCE TROUPE WORKS WITH ARMENIAN IMPAIRED DANCERS

Features | 07.02.13 | 14:31

NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow

By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter

There are no sounds in their world, only silence, but they dance
selflessly, feeling every beat of music with other senses. This feeling
turns into rhythmic movements, they dance together, communicate with
facial expression, agree with their eyes.

“If someone is physically challenged, it still cannot be an obstacle to
dance…A human being can have any kind of body built, but if he or she
wants to dance, and does it with love, there can be no issues,” says
Welly O’Brian, member of Candoco dance troupe visiting Yerevan from the
United Kingdom, and continues her master class with Armenian dancers.

O’Brian is an above knee amputee. She is also an excellent dancer.

With her dance partner Chris Owen she demonstrates the next element.

The British Council has invited them to hold workshops for dancers
with impaired hearing and Mihr dance troupe in Yerevan and Gyumri.

There are also hearing dancers among the workshop participants,
who communicate easily with their challenged colleagues via dance.

Rima Pipoyan, dance instructor at Yerevan State Institute of Theater
and Cinematography, is among the group of Armenian dancers. She
says such projects are a wonderful means to better understand people
with disabilities.

“We prompt, speak and all that through dance moves. We understand
with the help of movements, hands, eyes. As the workshop commenced,
15 minutes later we forgot who among us could hear and who couldn’t,
because the atmosphere was so welcoming. In our realities we are
always much more distant from each other, we do not communicate,
and it is through this kind of projects that the complexity of our
society is challenged and can be gradually overcome,” says Pipoyan.

The dancers are trying to do the same exercise. Music starts. Bodies
start moving, flexible movements of hands and legs, the artistic play
of glances become words and need no translation…

“They let the other party feel the weight of their body, so that they
understand and get to know the physical capacity of their own bodies,
and it is a great method for deaf and hearing dancers to understand
one another,” O’Brian explains.

Narek Tovmasyan, Arts Project Manager at the British Council, says the
dance workshop is part of the council’s “Equal Rights for All” program.

“They are surprised how quickly the connection was established between
their and our dancers. Our participants are from different groups –
with both healthy and impaired hearing. We tried to keep that balance
to give them a chance to work and develop the new skills together,”
says Tovmasyan, introducing the project. “Such workshops give hope to
our children, making them realize that even with disabilities they
are no different from those who are not challenged. These people
are marvelous examples and role models in how to overcome complexes
and lead a fulfilling life. This workshop is an effective therapy,
a healing balm for the soul.”

Candoco inclusive dance company was founded in 1991 and has people
with disabilities. Candoco’s dance performances break the long-formed
ideas about the human body and trough the power of art make people
believe that human capacities are, in fact, unlimited.

Elen Khachatryan, 24, has severely impaired hearing. She has a flexible
body. Elen attentively follows O’Brian’s and Owen’s movements and
tries to repeat.

“After Armenian dances it was easy for us to adjust to these foreign
moves. Certainly, it was difficult in the beginning, but after warm-up
it got easier, we go used to them. I follow the music,” says Elen.

Marianna Poghosyan from the Armenian National Ballet says this workshop
to her is an opportunity for a dialogue with different types of people.

“In our daily life we usually communicate with a limited number of
people from our regular surrounding. Such projects give us a chance
to get to know people we do not often meet and can be useful to. It
is the first time I am dancing with physically challenged people:
it teaches to be more tactful, more considerate. We understand each
other, after all we are human beings, but with different physical
capacities,” she says.

The ballet dancer confesses that hearing dancers learn a lot form
the non-hearing ones.

“They are carriers of a whole different world, of other impulses that
often do not reach us because there is a lot of noise around us which
they do not hear, hence their perception is more filtered, purer. I
believe different worlds have to be able to establish a dialogue,
because that is the token of harmony,” she says.

Among the dancers from Gyumri there is psychologist Christine
Aghanyan. She says every person is equal in the project, regardless
of their physical capacities and challenges.

“In this freedom people feel at ease to demonstrate their abilities,
discover themselves. The atmosphere is favorable for that, it prompts
you to be free, because nobody is staring at them, hence they abandon
their complexes,” says Aghanyan.

The British instructors O’Brian and Owen have traveled to Armenia from
Georgia were they held a similar workshop. They say in both countries
they taught modern dance techniques giving a chance to discover
new ideas and stage their own performances. After the workshop is
completed, in March, the British inclusive dance troupe will perform
in Yerevan.