Author: Tatoyan Vazgen

ARMENIAN FM MEETS HEAD OF US DEMOCRATIC PARTY’S NATIONAL COMMITTEE
Armenpress
YEREVAN, AUGUST 19, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Foreign Affairs Minister
Vartan Oskanian received today head of the USA Democratic Party’s
National Committee Howard Din.
Armenian Foreign Affairs Ministry press service informed during the
meeting the sides underscored the Armenian-US cooperation and its
further expansion as one of the important guarantors for the Armenian
economic development and regional stability. In this respect it was
noted that the issue on establishing peace and prosperity in the
region is under the limelight of US.
During the meeting the sides referred to the issues on current state
of the South Caucasus, prospects for political and economic development
and Armenian-Turkish relations.

CIS countries owe $3.28 bln to Russia as of Jan 1, down on yr
Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
August 18, 2005
MOSCOW, Aug 18 (Prime-Tass) — The governments of the CIS countries
owed U.S. USD 3.284 billion dollars to the Russian government as
of January 1, down from USD 3.330 billion as of January 1, 2004,
Russia’s Finance Ministry said Thursday.
The total includes both principals and outstanding interest.
As of January 1, Russia’s largest debtor was Ukraine with USD 1.583
billion owed, followed by Uzbekistan with USD 655.343 million, which
includes USD 153.73 million of unpaid interest on loans.
As of January 1, Tajikistan owed Russia USD 305.73 million, Kyrgyzstan
owed USD 181.81 million, while Georgia owed USD 158.04 million. Belarus
owed USD 258.39 million, Moldova’s debt stood at USD 140.74 million,
and Armenia’s debt stood at USD 1.88 million as of January 1. End

AZG Armenian Daily #146, 19/08/2005
Culture
SIX MONUMENTS TO BE RESTORED WITH STATE RESOURCES
Artyom Grigorian, head of RA State Agency of Monument Preservation,
informed that 6 historical monuments will be restored with $1
million allocated from the state resources. The castle of Dashtadem,
several constructions of the Amberd castle, the church of Voskevaz,
the Spitakavor monastery, Vahanavank and Hnevank will be restored
very soon.
The layouts for the restoration works are to be completed soon. A
competition will be announced for the construction companies to launch
the reconstruction works.
Mr. Grigorian stated that the restoration works of some of these
monuments will last several years and each year they will be provided
with financial sources from the state budget for the construction
works.
By Ruzan Poghosian

Reuters, UK
Aug 17 2005
The UMCOR Hotline
16 Aug 2005 19:12:00 GMT
Source: NGO latest
Rosita Cortez
United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) – USA
Website:
August 16, 2005
In Today’s Hotline:
Africa: All Africa Famine Relief;
Mexico: Health Kits Help;
India: Helping the Most Vulnerable; Armenia: Brave Heart is Healthy.
AFRICA: ALL AFRICA FAMINE RELIEF As news of famine in Niger continues
to grab world headlines, the numbers of starving people throughout
the African continent continues to grow. According to the Famine
Early Warning network and USAID, seven countries in Africa are facing
severe food shortages: Niger, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia,
and Zimbabwe.
UMCOR is working to relieve suffering in several of these areas either
directly or through partner agencies such as ACT International. UMCOR
is providing immediate relief by supporting feeding centers and
is looking to prevent future food shortages through long-term
solutions. Your gifts to UMCOR Advance #101250, All Africa Drought
and Famine Relief will support this important work of providing food
for the hungry.
MEXICO: HEALTH KITS HELP Hurricane Emily wreaked havoc on villages in
northern Mexico late last month. People in small towns and with few
resources lost their homes, livelihoods and property in the storm.
The McAllen District in southern Texas is organizing United Methodists
to bring relief to Carboneras, a particularly hard-hit fishing village
in Mexico. UMCOR assisted their efforts by providing health kits
that were sent by UMCOR Sager Brown and distributed to residents in
Caroberas and another town.
Health kits are in high demand this year. They help people who
have lost their homes and possessions to keep themselves clean and
healthy. You can help UMCOR meet the many requests for this helpful
item and other material resources by giving to UMCOR Advance #901440,
Material Resources. To learn more about how you can make and send
health kits go to the UMCOR website.
INDIA: HELPING THE MOST VULNERABLE UMCOR and Churches Auxiliary for
Social Action (CASA) are partnering to deliver aid to the thousands of
people affected by the unprecedented floods in Mumbai and surrounding
areas of western India. Mumbai is one of India’s cosmopolitan cities
where the country’s financial and movie industries are located.
The 37 inches of rain that fell in 24 hours caused massive flooding
that took nearly a thousand lives and wiped out the livelihoods and
homes of many more people. Roughly 10,000 homes have collapsed in
the affected districts. Through this partnership food, potable water,
clothing, and other necessary items are being delivered to the most
vulnerable people.
Your prayers and gifts to UMCOR Advance #982450, International Disaster
Response, India Floods, will assist in a meaningful way.
ARMENIA: BRAVE HEART IS HEALTHY Today Qajik (meaning “Brave Heart”)
is running and playing with his friends in his village in Armenia. He
was not always that way. When he was just over a year old, Qajik was
not developing at the same rate as the other children. His family had
to borrow money to bring him to a pediatrician. The doctor said that
Qajik had a severe vitamin deficiency and needed a special diet and
multivitamins without knowing that this was financially out of reach
for them.
When they returned brokenhearted to the village they learned about a
local health post that could provide Qajik with the vitamins he needs
at no cost. Because of UMCOR’s support, this health center carries
vitamins and medicines that can be supplied at low or no cost to its
patients. Thanks to the multivitamins he received from UMCOR, Qajik is
now able to run and play with his friends and is living a normal life.
Your gifts to UMCOR Advance #250225, Armenia Emergency, support
UMCOR’s important work there.
UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out
more about UMCOR’s ministries, please visit umcor.org. You can donate
to any project by placing a contribution in the offering plate at a
local United Methodist church; by sending a check to UMCOR, PO Box
9068, New York, NY 10087-9068; or by calling 1-800-554-8583, where
credit card donations are accepted. UMCOR is exempt from tax under
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and
qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors.
And, please pray for those who are hungry, displaced, sick or in
poverty because of these and other natural and human-made disasters,
and for the workers who minister to them.

EDUCATING MINORITY CHILDREN
By Onnik Krikorian /UNICEF Armenia
FIOLETOVO, Lori Region – It’s not often that you encounter a village
that makes you feel like an `outsider’ in Armenia but this is one of the
few that do, and in every sense of the word. It’s not that the residents
of this ethnically homogenous village made up of Russian Molokans don’t
like visitors. It’s simply that their presence is not considered
essential for Fioletovo to survive and prosper.
The Molokans are Russians that split from the Russian Orthodox Church in
the 17th Century. Fioletovo, a village inhabited by less than 1,500
people, is the largest community outside of Yerevan. Their total
population in Armenia stands at just 5,000 although 14 years earlier,
when independence was declared, there were approximately 12,000 Molokans
living in the republic. Since then, most have left.
To call the community “closed” isn’t something of an overstatement. In
fact, it’s not too far from the truth. Apart from venturing out of
Fioletovo and nearby Lermontovo to sell their famous sauerkraut at
market, the village instead resembles a traditional Russian enclave cut
off from the rest of Armenia. You might even be forgiven for thinking
you had entered a settlement somewhere deep in the heart of Russia.
Many consider the Molokans as something akin to the Amish in the United
States.
True, the Molokans use motorized vehicles but otherwise, alcohol is
forbidden as is marriage outside the community. And, for the more strict
adherents to the faith, so is television. Streets are impeccably clean
with every other house sporting a fresh coat of paint. The men wear long
beards that haven’t been cut in years while most of the women cover
their heads.
Their fiercely blonde and blue-eyed children are unable to communicate
in any language other than Russian.
And herein lies the problem. As idyllic and refreshing as the scene
might be, the situation in terms of education is just the opposite. In
fact, according to a recent survey of education in national minority
communities by the Hazarashen Armenian Centre of Ethnological Studies,
“Molokans continue retaining [their] virtues over education and thus,
the inertia of perceiving education as secondary continues.”
The report, conducted for The Ministry of Education and the National
Statistics Service of the Republic of Armenia was made possible through
the financial and technical support of UNICEF. It follows a generic
survey on education in Armenia held during 2001. Then, UNICEF discovered
that school drop out rates for national minority communities, in
addition to those made up of refugees, were twice the national average.
As a result, one of the recommendations from that 2001 report was to
conduct a new assessment but specifically focusing on national minority
communities. Although Armenia is considered a largely mono-ethnic
country, 2.2 percent of the population comprises ethnic groups such as
Yezidis, Assyrians, Russians and Jews. The report chose to focus on the
three largest in the republic – the Yezidis and Kurds, the Assyrians,
and the Russian Molokans.
“We discovered that there were no problems whatsoever in the Assyrian
community,” says Marine Soukhudyan, UNICEF’s Education Project Officer.
“Historically, as well as culturally, the Assyrian community values
education highly and does everything it can to ensure that their
children receive a normal education. Of course, there is still a problem
with the availability of textbooks and this is a serious issue for every
minority community in Armenia.”
Like the Molokans, the Assyrians receive much of their own education in
Russian but the textbooks that exist are mainly leftover from the soviet
era and do not comply with the requirements of the new curriculum. There
is also an insufficient quantity of teaching materials in minority
languages but Soukhudyan says that the National Institute of Education
in Armenia is currently contacting intellectuals within each community
to address this problem.
However, she says that there are more serious concerns. “For example,
during the last 15 years, only a handful of children from minority
communities entered higher education,” she explains. “We also discovered
that in Yezidi communities, children attend school for two to five
months on average per year. At first, we thought this was connected to
poverty but later, we discovered that this reflected an attitude within
the community towards education.”
“With the exception of the Assyrians, the Molokan and Yezidi communities
prioritize labor,” continues Soukhudyan. “There is also a great
difference between attitudes towards education for girls compared to
boys. In many communities, grade 8 is considered the end of the
education cycle. This is mandatory under Armenian law but the real
picture is hidden away by many other factors.”
Children from national minority communities are instead expected to tend
the fields and shepherd livestock rather than attend school. The
UNICEF-funded report also noted that some Molokan families have even
been known to pull their children out of school as early as the second
or third grade.
“Parents think that 3 years of education is enough for a child to know
how to sell milk, cabbage and count 10 eggs which means that the child
will be able to earn money,” says the report, summarizing the attitude
of Molokans in Lermontovo towards education. “Having a full stomach is
better than having an education.”
Education in minority communities is therefore seasonal and governed by
the agricultural calendar. At the same time, because teachers in rural
communities are also engaged in farming, they have no interest in
recording low attendance figures because they too are absent. Soukhudyan
calls it a `mutually beneficial situation for both teachers and the
families of schoolchildren.”
Indeed, when the survey team for the report visited Lermontovo in August
during harvest time, there was not a single child in the village. Even
pre-school children had been sent to help their parents in the fields.
Every year, they work there until mid October and sometimes, the
beginning of November.
Even so, school work is still marked as “satisfactory” although children
have learned little or next to nothing. In some cases, especially in
Yezidi communities, pupils and teachers cannot even communicate with
each other. In these communities, while the teachers are Armenian, each
new intake of children from Yezidi families can hardly understand
anything other than their mother tongue.
“Textbooks are also in Armenian but it takes two or three years before
Yezidi children can understand the language,” says Soukhudyan. “Until
then, the child’s development is frustrated and, actually, prevented.
There are some Yezidi teachers, of course, but as they generally come
from other villages, there is also the problem of transportation,
especially during the winter months.”
Instead, Armenian teachers sometimes use body language instead of words
to “explain and impart knowledge to students.”
And while adverse socio-economic conditions faced by rural settlements,
as well as the poor upkeep of village schools, are detrimental to
education, the main problem is cultural. This is especially true for
females. “There are those who even consider education dangerous for a
girl,” says the report. “They reason that an educated woman may have
ideas and not be as obedient to men.”
However, despite these obstacles, there are children in minority
communities that would like to enter higher education. In the Yezidi
village of Zovuni, for example, one girl cries as she tells of her
inability to study French when she finishes school. Another Yezidi girl
says that if given the opportunity, she would like to study, and later
teach, Armenian language and literature.
Key to effectively addressing this issue, however, will be to launch a
public awareness campaign highlighting the importance of education among
national minority communities. The Governor of the Aragatsotn region in
Armenia has already committed himself to supporting UNICEF in this
endeavor. In particular, there will be a specific focus on teaching
Yezidi and Molokan children the Armenian language from an early age,
especially in pre-schools.
UNICEF will also supply 100 schools in 5 regions of Armenia with “school
in a box” kits that contain essential supplies to meet the needs of
8,000 schoolchildren. The kits will also be supplied to vulnerable
Armenian communities, especially those situated in depressed border regions.
“It is my dream to become a doctor,” says one girl in Lermontovo,” but
how can a Molokan enter university? We can’t receive a higher education
because we don’t know Armenian. Nobody here does.”
For more information:
Emil Sahakyan, Communication Officer,UNICEF Armenia
Tel: (374 1) 523-546,
E-Mail: [email protected]
—

Schweiz-Türkei: Briner stellt klar
swissinfo 11. August 2005 21:33
Die Ständeräte Peter Briner (rechts) und Thomas Pfisterer in der kleinen
Kammer in Bern. (Keystone)
Der Präsident der APK des Ständerates, Peter Briner, relativiert seine
Aussage der Völkermord an den Armeniern werde kein Thema im Rat sein.
Briner sagte kürzlich, dass es nicht Sache anderer Länder sei, 90 Jahre nach
den Geschehnissen über die Türkei zu richten.
Nachdem die Türkei kürzlich den Schweizer Wirtschaftsminister Joseph Deiss –
offiziell wegen Terminproblemen – ausgeladen hat, will sich die
Aussenpolitischen Kommission des Ständerates (APK) mit der Absage des
Besuchs befassen. Dabei wird vermutlich auch der Völkermord an den Armeniern
zur Sprache kommen – und ob dieser vors Plenum soll.
Bislang habe es keinen Grund gegeben, in der APK auf das Thema
zurückzukommen, sagte APK-Präsident Peter Briner am Donnerstag. Er sei zwar
nach wie vor der Meinung, es sei problematisch, als Richter über andere
Länder und ihre Vergangenheit aufzutreten.
Die Deiss-Ausladung gebe nun aber Anlass zur Diskussion, sagte Briner und
differenzierte sich von seiner in der vergangenen Woche gemachten Aussage,
der Armenier-Genozid werde im Ständerat kein Thema sein.
Im Gegensatz zu Ständerat und der Regierung hat die grosse Parlamentskammer,
der Nationalrat, den Mord an bis 1,8 Mio. Armeniern als Völkermord
bezeichnet. Die Beziehungen zwischen der Schweiz und der Türkei sind
deswegen seit einiger Zeit belastet.
swissinfo: Herr Briner, Sie sagen, dass der Ständerat nie über das Gemetzel
der Türkei an der armenischen Bevölkerung, welches der Nationalrat als
Völkermord anerkannte, sprechen werde. Wie stellt sich der Ständerat zu
diesen Vorgängen?
Peter Briner: Was ich gesagt habe, wurde entweder falsch zitiert oder beruht
auf einem Missverständnis, das ist zu bedauern. Gesagt habe ich, dass zum
Zeitpunkt, als der Nationalrat den Völkermord anerkannte, das Thema im
Ständerat nicht zur Debatte stand.
Die Politik unserer Regierung und der Aussenpolitischen Kommission des
Ständerates ist, dass die beiden an den schrecklichen Ereignissen von 1915
beteiligten und betroffenen Parteien diese durch eine unabhängige
Historiker-Kommission untersuchen lassen sollten.
swissinfo: Es ist nun zwei Jahre her, seit der Nationalrat den Völkermord
anerkannt hat. Warum kam das Thema in dieser Zeit im Ständerat nie zur
Sprache?
P.B.:Im Nationalrat wurde aufgrund einer parlamentarischen Eingabe darüber
diskutiert. Wir haben den Entscheid des Rates zu Kenntnis genommen und
fanden, die Politik der Regierung sei der klügere Kurs.
swissinfo: Ist demnach die Armenien-Frage im Ständerat noch ein Thema?
P.B.: Ich kann nicht in aller Sicherheit wissen, was auf der Tagesordnung
des Ständerates sein wird. Die Absage des Besuchs von Wirtschaftsminister
Joseph Deiss durch die türkische Regierung wird aber in der Sitzung der APK
am 23. August sicher zur Sprache kommen.
swissinfo: Sollte der Ständerat nicht schon allein aus moralischen Gründen,
den Mord an der armenischen Bevölkerung als Völkermord anerkennen, wie das
andere Länder ja auch tun?
P.B.: Ich denke, dass die Position der Schweizer Regierung die bessere ist.
Mir ist es einfach nicht wohl, Richter in einer Sache zu sein, die vor so
langer Zeit geschah.
Da sind zweifellos schreckliche Dinge geschehen und sie sollten untersucht
werden. Aber in erster Linie von den damals betroffenen Partein.
swissinfo: Wie würden Sie die schweizerisch-türkischen Beziehungen im Moment
charakterisieren?
Normalerweise sind sie gut. Wir spürten das, als eine Delegation der
Aussenpolitischen Kommission im vergangenen September dem türkischen
Parlament einen Besuch abstattete. Anschliessend weilte eine türkische
Delegation diesen Sommer bei uns. Wir haben diese Fragen angesprochen und
zwar in freundschaftlichem Ton.
Die Beziehungen sind natürlich durch die Ereignisse der letzten Zeit
angespannter geworden. Doch denke ich, dass längerfristig gesehen, die
Beziehungen zwischen den beiden Ländern gut bleiben und weiter gedeihen
werden, wie das in der Vergangenheit der Fall war.
swissinfo-Interview: Thomas Stephens
URL dieses Artikels
;sid=6003323
Links
Aussenpolitische Kommission Ständerat:
Nation alrat: Anerkennung des Völkermordes an den Armeniern:
4701_95679_95803.htm
EDA: Treffen des türkischen Botschafters mit dem Chef der Politischen
Abteilung I:
Eidg. Departement für auswärtige Angelegenheiten (EDA):
Ges ellschaft Schweiz-Armenien:
Türkische Gemeinschaft in der Schweiz:
;contentid=211

ARMENIAN-GREEK COOPERATION INCLUDES NEW SPHERES
YEREVAN, AUGUST 9, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian-Greek relations are
developing dynamically including new spheres of cooperation. Besides,
among a set of towns of both countries fraternity memorandums have
been signed.
Verona mayor Nicolas Khartalias and Noyemberian mayor Levon
Mkrtchian called today a press conference at ARF’s Supreme body’s
office during whichthey noted that the cooperation between Verona and
Noyemberian towns started in 2000 and since then the friendly
relations between the towns have been deepening and strengthening more
and more on economic and cultural basis. Verona mayor said that being
in Armenia for the second time he was once again convinced that the
cooperation between the towns will be maintained. He said Verona is
ready to support Noyemberian in solution of the issues it is facing.
Last year with their support the Noyemberian park and this year the
central Zoravar Andranik street were renovated. It has provided 15,000
USD and is going to give another 25,000 for the construction of gym
and a cafe in the town.
On its part the Greek side benefits by importing Armenian culture: the
sides agreed on sending Armenian singing and dancing groups to
Verona. Nikolas Khartalias said besides, Verona benefits from the
contributions of the local Armenian community.
The leader of the Greek Diocese of Armenia, representative of the
Armenian Central Committee Gaspar Karapetian said that September 23 a
memorandum of fraternity will be signed between Greek Nika and
Armenian Ijevan and in October such like memorandum will be signed
between Armenian Alaverdi and Greek Rendis. Karapetian said that in
September the reconstruction of Dilijan hospital which is implemented
with the support of the Greek Foreign Affairs Ministrywhich provided
500,000 euros to Armenia will be finished.
This year with the efforts of the ARF’s Greek central committee the
Greek side will provide 1.6 million euros for the implementation of 4
programs – construction of maternity hospital in Akhurian,
construction of school for Greek in Yerevan, organization of training
program for teachers in Gyumri and repair of agricultural engineering
in Armavir province. For the next year the Greek Foreign Affairs
Ministry will provide 1.5-2 million euros which will be directed
towards creation of working places.

MAMMADYAROV ON KARABAKH ISSUE: «LIGHT AT END OF TUNNEL»
PanArmenian News Network
Aug 6 2005
06.08.2005 03:47
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Within his visit to the US Azeri Foreign Minister
(FM) E. Mammadyarov delivered a speech in the Carnegie Foundation.
Speaking of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Mammadyarov noted that
the Armenian and Azeri leaders and the two FMs hold meet periodically.
“The talks are held in a very hard situation, however I am cautiously
optimistic over the coming meetings. I think there is light seen at
the end of the tunnel, but we have to pass a long way to achieve it,”
the Azeri FM said. “We will always be guided by the principle of
territorial integrity in the talks,” he stated. Having noted that
“different signals” from Yerevan reach Baku, E.
Mammadyarov added, “Sometimes it seems we are moving forward,
sometimes like we make no headway, as the development of the process
depends on Armenia. They should understand that it is good time now
for settlement of the conflict and they should seize the opportunity.”
–Boundary_(ID_6SxlGOG/iaWsNemahTucxw)–

ARMENIA WILL HAVE TO CONVEY HOME ILLEGAL MIGRANTS FROM GERMANY AT ITS OWN EXPENSE
PanArmenian News Network
Aug 5 2005
05.08.2005 05:59
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ August 1-5 the Armenian Foreign Ministry held the
second round of the discussions of the agreement “On persecution and
transit conveyance of illegal migrants” (agreement on readmission),
RA MFA press center reported. The German governmental delegation
lead by the permanent representative of the department of migration,
refugees and integration of the German Foreign Ministry Cornelia
Rogal-Grote. The Armenian party was represented by officials from
the Foreign Ministry, passport and visa department of the police,
department of migration and refugees under the RA government. The
first round of the negotiations took place in August 2004. During
the current negotiations the parties agreed on continuing and
completing the talks in 2005. The signing of the agreement on
readmission is one of the conditions for the integration into the
European structures. Such agreements regulate the mechanisms of
returning illegal migrants at the expense of the country they arrived
from. Presently Armenia has signed similar agreements with Denmark,
Lithuania and Switzerland. Agreements with Germany, Benelux states,
Norway, Czechia, Poland and Russia are still being discussed.

KARABAGH FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTRY SAYS KARABAGH CONFLICT SHOULD BE SOLVED ON BASIS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
ArmenPress
Aug 3 2005
STEPANAKERT, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS: Nagorno Karabagh Foreign
Affairs Ministry disseminated yesterday a statement claiming that
the representatives of Azerbaijani mass media “without knowing the
details of the pace of peaceful regulation of the Karabagh conflict
issue articles not properly commenting Stepanakert’s information.”
“As a result, Azerbaijani public gets wrong information which hinders
the understanding of humans’ values and continuation of discussions
of alternative means,” says the statement.
“It is beyond any doubt that only by establishing effective contacts
between Karabagh and Azerbaijan it will be possible to find proper
resolution of the conflict.” “Azerbaijani leadership is responsible
for unbridling military actions as well as for their results. The
Karabagh conflict must be regulated on the basis of international law,”
concluded the statement.