Author: nina hovnanian

FRENCH GUNMAN DEAD AFTER JUMPING FROM WINDOW

ARMENPRESS
MARCH 22, 2012
TOULOUSE

TOULOUSE, MARCH 22, ARMENPRESS: An al Qaeda-inspired gunman who killed
seven people in France died on Thursday after jumping out of a window
of his apartment, where he had been holed up for some 30 hours in a
standoff with police, reports Armenpress citing Reuters.

Mohamed Merah, a 23-year-old Frenchman of Algerian origin, had been
silent for hours but opened fire on special forces who stormed the
building and was killed in the ensuing gunbattle.

“At the moment when a video probe was sent into the bathroom, the
killer came out of the bathroom, firing with extreme violence,”
Gueant told reporters at the scene, adding that Merah was firing
several guns at once.

“In the end, Mohamed Merah jumped from the window with his gun in his
hand, continuing to fire. He was found dead on the ground,” he said.

Two police commandos were injured in the operation.

BAKU ILLEGALLY ATTEMPTS TO QUESTION NKR’S SOVEREIGNTY – OFFICIAL

PanARMENIAN.Net
March 23, 2012 – 18:32 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – On March 21, an international scientific-practical
round table entitled “The Turkish Factor in the Middle East and in
the Post-Soviet Space” took place in Moscow, at the Russian Institute
of Strategic Studies (RISS).

At the event, adviser to Nagorno Karabakh Republic Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Candidate of Historical Sciences Ruben Zargarian delivered
a report titled “Nagorno Karabakh and Russia in Integration Projects
and Turkey’s Position on the Karabakh Conflict.”

In his report, Zargarian dwelled on the basic issues of the
Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict settlement, the destructive and
aggressive policy of Azerbaijan, and the international legal position
of the NKR. The speaker noted that Azerbaijan’s territorial claims
for seven reintegrated regions of the NKR should be regarded as
unacceptable, inappropriate, and hampering the achievement of a
peace agreement between the NKR and Azerbaijan. According to him,
the lesson of the unresolved Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict, the
increasing threats of the Baku administration to resume the aggression,
and the systematic Azerbaijani military provocations on the border
is that negotiations are not enough to ensure peace and settlement,
and a responsible attitude to international law is needed.

“The Baku administration is openly ignoring international law by taking
illegal attempts to question the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of the NKR”, said the Adviser to the NKR Foreign Minister, noting that
a civilized and stable settlement of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict
must be based on the following five principles: determination of the
NKR status is the exclusive right of the people of Nagorno Karabakh;
final recognition of the NKR state independence by the international
community; mutual recognition of the independence of the NKR and
the Azerbaijani Republic; restoration of the territorial integrity
of Nagorno Karabakh; peaceful resolution of disputes and non-use of
force or threat of force.

The report emphasized the need for the final recognition of the NKR
independence as a factor of establishing peace and stability not
only in the Caucasus region, but also in the region of the Eastern
Mediterranean Neo-Byzantine Civilization, NKR Foreign Ministry press
service reported.

BERGEN COMMUNITY COLLEGE HOSTS ARMENIAN ART EXHIBITION APRIL 3 TO 26, 2012

ARMENPRESS
MARCH 23, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, MARCH 23, ARMENPRESS: Bergen Community College’s Gallery
Bergen, in cooperation with the College’s Center for Peace, Justice
and Reconciliation will host the exhibition titled “Fractured History,
Reconstructing Identity: Degrees of Westernization in Armenian Painting
and Other Mediums.”, reports Armenpress citing The Paramus Post. The
exhibit’s curator Vicki ShoghagHovanessian is an avid collector of
Western and Armenian art for more than 30 years. The gallery will
open the exhibit with a ceremony on Tuesday, April 3, 2012 from 5 to
8 p.m. The exhibit will remain on display until Thursday, April 26,
2012 in Gallery Bergen in West Hall on the College’s main campus
in Paramus.Peter Balakian, an author and scholar, will speak at a
closing gallery ceremony on April 26 at 6 p.m. in Room A-113 in the
Pitkin Education Center. Despite the turbulent historical phases of
Armenia during the first quarter of the twentieth century, followed
by the suppression of Armenian culture’s national identity within
the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic that persisted until 1990,
a succinct glimpse at artworks of the past two decades provides
signs of introspection, ambition, innovation, diversity, optimism and
progress within Armenian culture.Founded at Bergen Community College
in 2009, the Center for Peace, Justice and Reconciliation (CPJR)
exists to develop the passion and skills needed to work for peace,
justice, and reconciliation, with a special focus on the Armenian
historical and cultural context.Within the sphere of today’s rapidly
changing aesthetic boundaries, this exhibition of Hovanessian’s pays a
long-standing and essential tribute to the accomplishments of a group
of Armenian artists whose fractured history and reconstructed identity
remains to be universally assessed and culturally recognized.Bergen
Community College ( ) based in Paramus is a public
two-year coeducational college, enrolling more than 17,000 students
at locations in Paramus.

WHO MAKES DECISIONS IN ARMENIA
Naira Hayrumyan

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 15:27:47 – 23/03/2012

The election list of the Republican Party, which, despite the
assurances host oligarchs, criminals, functionaries and generals,
made wonder the society: so who controls the situation in Armenia.

Who decides? No strategy and tactics can be worked out without the
answer to this question?

There are two main versions: either Serzh Sargsyan fully controls the
situation but does not want reforms, or the situation in the country
is uncontrolled and decisions are taken under the influence of the
momentary pressure by all the sides.

If Serzh Sargsyan is really the decision maker and, despite his
promises not to include the oligarchs into the election list, did it
anyway, it means that he does not need a reformed parliament, and all
the talks on modernization are false and he is the main defender of
the oligarchs in the country.

The second version is when Serzh Sargsyan doesn’t control the
situation. If any oligarch can go to the president and threaten to join
Robert Kocharyan’s team, or maybe threaten an angry call from Moscow
if he is not included into the list, means, fictive dictatorship is
in the country which is worse than real dictatorship.

If the constitutional mechanisms don’t function, the power passes to
one person. If this person has enough power, he becomes the decision
maker establishing his diktat.

When he is not strong enough to establish a dictatorship, either
everyone understands this situation and start dictating themselves,
like it is happening in Armenia, or the president resorts to the
Constitution.

Anyway, no matter if Serzh Sargsyan wanted such lists or if he was
forced to make such, the parliament in the previous composition will
become the end to his presidential tenure. If Sargsyan decided to
continue relying on the criminal oligarchy, and if division of seats
has really been carried out between the main parties, Serzh Sargsyan
won’t have any guarantees to re-election next February. The society
may completely reject him, the same society, which he tried to attract
through the fight against the oligarchy.

And if Serzh Sargsyan was really unable to resist and the lists were
formed against his will, then, he again has no guarantees that those
who forced him to involve the oligarchs into the lists will fulfill
his orders. Rather, they will start looking for those who accepts
their decisions.

The only chance to win real votes at the upcoming presidential
elections for Serzh Sargsyan would be the implementation of the
promise not to include oligarchs into the lists. The chance has not
been yet lost in the sense that not everyone on the list will enter
the parliament. As an example take Eduard Madatyan.

The answer to the question who decides in Armenia is important also
for the opposition which should build its strategy taking this fact
into account.

L’OFFICIER ARDAK CHAHBAZIAN ENTERRE LE JOUR DE LA NAISSANCE DE SON ENFANT
Krikor Amirzayan

armenews.com
vendredi 23 mars 2012

Terrible information rapportee par le journal armenien ” Hayatsk
“. Le lieutenant Ardak Chahbazian (37 ans) tue la semaine dernière par
un tir d’un sniper azeri près de Goghpk dans la region de Tavouche
a ete enterre le jour le la naissance de son enfant. Le militaire
etait parti près de la ligne frontalière de Garmir plour (colline
rouge) pour inspecter les positions armeniennes a bord d’un vehicule
militaire lorsqu’il a ete atteint d’une balle mortelle. Selon ” Hayatsk
“, Ardak Chahbazian avait demande au commandant Noraïr Amirkhanian
une journee de permission afin d’etre present près de son epouse
qui accouchait ce jour-la. Mais le commandant aurait refuse cette
permission. Mais ” son fils naîtra le jour de son enterrement ” ecrit
” Hayatsk “. Destin tragique.

LA TROIKA DU GROUPE DE MINSK DE L’OSCE APPELLE A UN REGLEMENT DU CONFLIT DU KARABAGH
Gari

armenews.com
vendredi 23 mars 2012

Les ministres des affaires etrangères des trois pays qui copresident
le Groupe de Minsk de l’OSCE ont rendu publique une declaration le
22 mars appelant l’Azerbaïdjan et l’Armenie a parvenir au plus vite
a un accord sur le Haut Karabagh.

Le chef de la diplomatie de la Federation de Russie Sergey Lavrov,
la Secretaire d’Etat americaine Hillary Rodham Clinton, et le
ministre francais des affaires etrangères Alain Juppe, ont fait cette
declaration ” a l’occasion du 20e anniversaire de la demande officielle
en vue de la tenue d’une conference sur le conflit du Haut-Karabagh “.

” Les ministres des affaires etrangères des pays copresidant le
Groupe de Minsk de l’OSCE appellent les parties a demontrer la
volonte politique necessaire a un règlement durable et pacifique ”
dit notamment le texte de la declaration qui rappelle le communique
commun des presidents Medvedev, Obama, et Sarkozy diffuse a Deauville
le 24 mai 2011, en marge du sommet du G8 selon lequel ” seul un accord
de règlement negocie peut conduire a la paix, a la stabilite et a la
reconciliation…, toute tentative de recours a la force pour resoudre
le conflit ne pouvant apporter que des souffrances supplementaires a
la region qui est en proie depuis trop longtemps a l’incertitude et
a l’insecurite “.

La declaration ” rappelle que les peuples de la region ont beaucoup
souffert des consequences de la guerre, et qu’en differant la
conclusion d’un accord, on ne peut que prolonger leurs souffrances “.

“Une nouvelle generation est apparue dans la Region qui n’a pas
connu la coexistence entre Armeniens et Azeris, et en entretenant
ces divisions artificielles, on ne fait que creuser les plaies de
la guerre. Pour cette raison, nous appelons les leaders des parties
concernees a preparer leurs populations a la paix, non a la guerre”,
poursuit le texte de la declaration qui fait etat neanmoins de ”
progrès accomplis sur le chemin de la paix “, illustres par les ”
declarations communes de nos trois presidents a L’Aquila en 2009, a
Muskoka en 2010, et a Deauville en 2011 “, qui forment les fondations
d’un ” accord de paix durable ” a venir.

” Le 23 janvier 2012, dans une declaration commune a Sotchi, en
Russie, les presidents Aliyev, Sarkissian et Medvedev avaient exprime
l’engagement des deux parties a accelerer la conclusion d’un accord sur
les ” principes de base ” d’un plan de paix “, rappelle la declaration
qui appelle donc les leaders concernes a ” terminer le travail le
plus vite possible sur ces principes et sur un règlement final –
fonde sur les principes de l’Acte final d’Helsinki et le non-recours
a la menace de la force des armes, de l’integrite territoriale, de
l’autodetermination et des droits egaux pour les peuples, mais aussi
conformement a la Charte des Nations unies et aux normes et principes
de la legislation internationale – ce qui permettra a l’ensemble de
la region d’evoluer du statu quo vers un avenir plus sûr et prospère “.

ONLY SASHIK TRUSTED SERZH
Haik Aramyan

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 10:45:51 – 23/03/2012

On the last day of the parliamentary nominations Ruben Hairapetyan and
Jonik Abrahamyan, ex-speaker Hovik Abrahamyan’s brother, submitted
applications for their nomination for parliament. The chain closed,
and the picture is full. In fact, all the outstanding representatives
of the system are running for parliament except for Serzh Sargsyan’s
brother, Sashik.

They all will eventually become members of parliament. They will get
there with money, intimidation, all the other traditional methods. The
new parliament will be deprived of legitimacy, required qualifications,
compliance with the Constitution which states that the parliament
is a representational body. Even the appearance of the opposition,
namely the Congress in parliament will not be helpful, even if the
opposition accepts the results of the election.

The government assured till the last day that the criminal and
oligarchic segment will be kept away from the parliament. Most
representatives of the system announced not to run for parliament,
referring to Serzh Sargsyan. However, the proportional and majority
lists of the Republican Party showed that these statements have no
value, and the representatives of the system will not walk away.

What not will they do to appear in parliament, from swindling,
vulgarism, cynicism to public violation of their dignity? The society
will witness and listen to the complexes of these anti-hygienic
so-called figures, barefaced criminals, pickpockets and embezzlers
with serious physiological and psychological defects which will be
imposed on us and presented as legislative activity.

Now it is not interesting what happened in the past one or two weeks.

The important thing is that this hopelessly aged system has gathered
in one place, as a pile of garbage, which can be swept away at once.

This is already the issue of the Armenian society which is absolutely
possible. Since there are no more illusions and myths, instead there
is a problem and awareness of the mechanisms of its solution.

HAYATSK: GRAND TOBACCO OWNER LEAVING ARMENIA

Tert.am
23.03.12

Hrant Vardanyan, owner of the Grand Tobacco Company is going to leave
Armenia along with his family soon.

His sons, Karen and Mikael, were members of Armenia’s parliament (the
former from the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Dashnaktsutyun –
ARFD, the latter from the Republican Party of Armenia – RPA).

This time, neither of Hrant Vardanyan’s sons is running for parliament
now. Grand Tobacco has nominated Susanna Abrahamyan and Marina
Marabyan, with neither of them known in the constituencies. Both
local residents and the RPA were shocked.

Moreover, Yervand Chilingaryan, ex-chief of the Noyemberyan police
department, and Varuzhan Babajanyan are running for parliament from
the same constituency.

TONINO GUERRA WAS A GREAT FRIEND OF ARMENIA, PRESIDENT SARGSYAN SAYS IN A LETTER OF CONDOLENCES

armradio.am
22.03.2012 10:53

President Serzh Sargsyan sent a letter of condolences on the demise
of the world famous poet, writer and screenwriter Tonino Guerra,
President’s press Office reported. The letter of condolences addressed
to the family of Tonino Guerra reads,

“I learned with pain the news on the demise of Tonino Guerra. We
have lost a sturdy branch at the huge oak of the world cinema. We
have lost an artist whose works have been radiating joy, rapture and
kindness not only in his native Italy but all over the world. This
genius and wonderful Italian was a great friend of Armenia and the
Armenian nation. His visits to our country left marks in the hearts
and souls of our creative people. Reciprocally, Armenia inspired and
touched the great Tonino to a degree that he dedicated a wonderful
poem to our country and our people.

On behalf of the Armenian people, I express heartfelt condolences to
you, your family, and the Italian people. The loss is tremendous and
painful. At this moment, Tonino Guerra’s masterpieces are the only
consolation; they are with us now and are heading toward Eternity.”

GEORGIE : AMENDE DE PLUS D’UN MILLION D’EUROS POUR UN OPPOSANT MILLIARDAIRE
Stephane

armenews.com
jeudi 22 mars 2012

Un milliardaire georgien s’est vu infliger mardi une amende de
1,25 million d’euros pour avoir finance illegalement son mouvement
d’opposition en vue des legislatives d’octobre dans cette ex-republique
sovietique.

La Chambre de contrôle des financements politiques a estime que
l’homme d’affaires Bidzina Ivanichvili avait enfreint la legislation
en effectuant un don au mouvement “Le Reve georgien” qui s’oppose au
pouvoir du president Mikheïl Saakachvili.

Deux societes de M. Ivanichvili s’etaient deja vu infliger au total
1,5 million d’euros d’amende la semaine dernière pour avoir effectue
un don a cette coalition politique, ce qu’interdit la legislation.

L’ONG Amnesty International a fait part de sa preoccupation la semaine
dernière après les recents interrogatoires de sympathisants de M.

Ivanichvili par la Chambre de contrôle, estimant que ces convocations
pouvaient avoir une motivation politique.

L’institution a rejete ces accusations.

M. Ivanichvili, dont la fortune est evaluee a 4,8 milliards d’euros par
le magazine Forbes, accuse le president Saakachvili d’avoir commis des
“erreurs impardonnables” et l’appelle a demissionner.

L’an passe, le milliardaire s’est vu retirer la nationalite georgienne
après s’etre lance dans la vie politique. Le service de l’etat
civil georgien avait alors explique qu’il s’agissait d’une mesure
automatique, M. Ivanichvili ayant obtenu la nationalite francaise.

Mikheïl Saakachvili, un pro-occidental, elu pour un deuxième mandat en
janvier 2008 après avoir ete porte au pouvoir a la fin 2003 a l’issue
d’une mobilisation pacifique baptisee “Revolution de la rose”, doit
rester a la tete de la Georgie jusqu’en 2013.

Le chef de l’Etat a vu sa reputation ternie ces dernières annees,
l’opposition l’accusant notamment de derive autoritaire.