Author: Tatoyan Vazgen

Armenia registers Jehovah’s Witnesses after years of debate
By AVET DEMOURIAN
AP Worldstream
Oct 13, 2004
Authorities in Armenia registered the Jehovah’s Witnesses on Wednesday,
allowing the religious group to operate in the Caucasus Mountain
nation after years of debate and denial.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses first appeared in Armenia in 1988, after
a devastating earthquake in what was then still a Soviet republic,
but had been unable to register after the nation became independent
in the 1991 Soviet collapse.
Legalizing the Jehovah’s Witnesses group was one of the main conditions
set out by the Council of Europe when the continent’s leading human
rights organization granted Armenia membership two years ago.
Deputy Justice Minister Tigran Mukuchian told The Associated Press a
major obstacle to registration had been members’ refusal to serve in
the military, which in the past led to arrests and prison sentences. A
law institution alternative service has removed that obstacle, he said.
The leader of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Armenia, Grach Heshishian,
expressed surprise at the Justice Ministry’s decision, while the
dominant Armenian Apostolic Church denounced it, calling the group
“anti-Christian.”
An Armenian Apostolic Church statement accused the Jehovah’s Witnesses
and other unspecified organizations of having missions that involve
“hunting for human souls, destroying families and creating a split
in society.”
Seeking to soothe church opposition to the registration, Justice
Ministry spokesman said the authorities would watch closely to make
sure the Jehovah’s Witnesses were acting legally, adding that “the
sect will have to respect the laws and rights of Armenian citizens.”
Official figures put the number of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Armenia
at more than 4,000; one of the requirements for registration of a
religious group is that it have at least 200 followers in the nation.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses have faced pressure from authorities in Russia.
Courts in Moscow outlawed the group’s activities in the capital
earlier this year under a law allowing bans on religious groups that
are considered to be inciting hatred or intolerant behavior.

Russia Pledges To Lobby For Renewed Rail Link With Armenia
By Atom Markarian 14/10/2004 10:48
Radio Free Europe, Czech republic
Oct 14 2004
Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin pledged on Wednesday to lobby
for the resumption of Armenia’s rail communication with Russia through
neighboring Georgia and Azerbaijan.
But he did not comment on Moscow’s decision to close its border with
the two ex-Soviet republics which disrupted one of Armenia’s main
supply lines.
“Our delegation will fly from Armenia to Azerbaijan – and then on
to Georgia in order to try to reopen [rail] traffic throughout the
entire territory of the Transcaucasus,” Levitin told a Russian-Armenian
business forum in Yerevan.
“We do realize what a difficult task it is. We must try to solve
it together with you,” he added, referring to the conflicts over
Nagorno-Karabakh and Abkhazia that left Armenia without rail access
to the outside world more than a decade ago.
Armenia has mainly relied since then on Georgia’s Black Sea ports
as well as a Georgian-Russian border crossing to ship and receive
commercial cargos. Last month’s closure of that crossing, announced
immediately after the terrorist attack on a Russian school, thus
further complicated its external trade.
Armenian leaders have tried hard in recent weeks to get the Russians to
lift the blockade amid mounting criticism of Moscow’s policy voiced by
the Armenian press and prominent politicians. The issue was expected
to top the agenda of Levitin’s talks with officials in Yerevan that
began on Wednesday.
Levitin, who co-chairs a Russian-Armenian commission on economic
cooperation with Defense Minister Serzh Sarkisian, did not mention
the border crisis in his speech at the business forum. He instead
criticized the Georgian government for its reluctance to agree to the
reopening of a key railway connecting the South Caucasus to Russia
via the breakaway republic of Abkhazia. Tbilisi links it with the
repatriation of Abkhazia’s ethnic Georgian residents displaced in 1993.
Levitin sought to convince Armenians that Russia too has been
suffering from the closed borders in the volatile region. He said
Russian companies could have used it as a lucrative transit route
for shipping up to 15 million tons of freight to other parts of the
world every year.

Nominating Committee Announces Final Selections for Key Leadership Positions Within ICANN
MARINA DEL REY, Calif., Oct. 11 /PRNewswire/ — After an intense
period of outreach, consultation, recruitment, and evaluation,
the Nominating Committee (NomCom) of the Internet Corporation
for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced today its final
selection of four ‘slates’ of Nominees for four of ICANN’s leadership
bodies: the Board of Directors, the Council of the Country Code Names
Supporting Organization (ccNSO), the Council of the Generic Names
Supporting Organization (GNSO) and the Interim At Large Advisory
Committee (ALAC). The Nominees will join the already seated members
of these bodies at the conclusion of the ICANN Meeting in Cape Town,
South Africa, December 1 – 5.
ICANN is a non-profit organization responsible for coordinating
the global Internet’s systems of unique identifiers, including the
systems of domain names and numeric addresses that are used to reach
all computers on the Internet.
ICANN’s mission is to ensure the stable and secure operation of
these unique identifier systems, which are vital to the Internet’s
operation. In addition, ICANN coordinates policy development related
to these technical functions.
“We are very pleased that so many excellent Candidates from all five
geographic regions participated in this second NomCom Process,”
said Nominating Committee Chair and spokesperson Jean-Jacques
Damlamian. “This global participation reflects the Internet community’s
impressive array of talent, experience, and willingness to undertake
these volunteer leadership roles essential to ICANN’s evolution and
performance goals.”
The Nominees:
ICANN Board
Vinton G. Cerf (U.S.A. – North America)
Joichi Ito (Japan – Asia/Australia/Pacific)
Vanda Scartezini (Brazil – Latin America/Caribbean Islands)
Terms: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2007
ccNSO Council
Yassin Mshana (Tanzania – Africa)
Term: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2005
Eva Frolich (Sweden – Europe)
Term: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2006
Charles Shaban (Jordan – Asia/Australia/Pacific)
Term: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2007
GNSO Council
Maureen Cubberley (Canada – North America)
Term: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2006
Interim At Large Advisory Committee
Roberto Gaetano (Italy – Europe)
Jean Armour Polly (U.S.A. – North America)
Terms: Conclusion of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2004 until conclusion
of ICANN Annual Meeting for 2006
Biographical information on the Nominees will soon be posted on the
NomCom web page.
In response to its June 30th Formal Call, the NomCom received 102
recommendations of potential candidates from all over the world. Out
of 84 individuals who subsequently submitted a Statement of Interest,
NomCom selected 9 outstanding individuals for staggered terms in these
leadership roles in ICANN. The terms range from twelve to thirty-six
months in length. Three individuals were selected to serve on the Board
of Directors; two individuals were selected to fill seats designated
for individuals from the North American and European regions on the
Interim At-Large Advisory Committee (which coordinates participation
by individual Internet users in ICANN’s activities); three individuals
were selected for the Council of the new Country Code Names Supporting
Organisation (which administers and coordinates the affairs of the
ccNSO and manages the policy development process of the ccNSO); and one
individual was selected for the Council of the Generic Names Supporting
Organization (which develops policy concerning domain names in generic
top-level domains such as .com, .net, .org, .info, and .biz).
The NomCom was asked to find high-caliber, experienced, open-minded
women and men with integrity, sound judgment, and objectivity. “Using
a holistic approach, the NomCom focused on the careful selection
of slates of Candidates with complementary skills and perspectives
who fulfilled the ICANN criteria and eligibility requirements for
each of the four roles to be filled, keeping all the Candidates in
consideration until the final slates were chosen,” Damlamian explained.
Through these strategies the NomCom pursued its dual charge: to
balance the other ICANN leadership selection processes which are based
on Supporting Organizations and Constituencies and to help ensure
that ICANN can benefit from the leadership of the women and men of
the highest integrity and capability who place the interest of the
global Internet community ahead of any particular interests. These
carefully selected slates will help ICANN ensure functional, cultural,
and geographic diversity in its policy development and decision-making
as the Internet itself evolves.
The Nominating Committee:
An independent Nominating Committee is a key element of the ICANN
structure. It is composed of a diverse set of individuals chosen by
the groups and entities that make up ICANN. The NomCom is charged to
act in the interests of the global Internet community rather than in
accord with specific interests. NomCom is presently responsible for
selecting 8 of fifteen Board Directors, 5 of fifteen Interim ALAC
Members, 3 of eighteen ccNSO Council Members and 3 of fifteen GNSO
Council Members. In the current process, nine of these positions
needed to be filled.
For more information about the Nominating Committee, its
Members, Formal Call and Procedures please visit its web page at
Further questions or
requests for information can be sent via e-mail to Kieran Baker
([email protected]).
NomCom Selection Statistics:
Total Number of Candidates: 84
Geographic Distribution Geographic Distribution of
of Candidates Selected Nominees
Africa 11% 13%
Asia/Australia/
Pacific 24% 24%
Europe 29% 13%
Latin America/Caribbean
Islands 10% 13%
North America 26% 37%
Total: 100% 100%
Citizenship of Candidates:
34 Countries:
Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Canada,
China, Congo, France, Germany, Hong Kong S.A.R, India, Italy, Japan,
Jordan, Kenya, Mauritius, Morocco, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan,
Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Serbia and Montenegro, Singapore, Spain,
Sudan, Sweden, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, USA.
Citizenship of Selected Nominees:
8 Countries:
Brazil, Canada, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Sweden, Tanzania, USA.
Gender Distribution of Gender Distribution of Selected
Candidates Nominees
Male: 74% 56%
Female: 26% 44%
Recommendations Received:
Total Number of Recommendations: 102
Total Number of Recommendees: 90
Total Number of Recommendees who submitted
a Statement of Interest 54
Percentage of Candidates who are Recommendees 60%
About ICANN
The mission of ICANN is to coordinate, at the overall level, the
global Internet’s systems of unique identifiers, and in particular
to ensure the stable and secure operation of the Internet’s unique
identifier systems. In particular, ICANN:
1. Coordinates the allocation and assignment of the three sets of
unique identifiers for the Internet, which are
a. Domain names (forming a system referred to as “DNS”);
b. Internet protocol (“IP”) addresses and autonomous system (“AS”)
numbers; and
c. Protocol port and parameter numbers.
2. Coordinates the operation and evolution of the DNS root name
server system.
3. Coordinates policy development reasonably and appropriately related
to these technical functions.
SOURCE Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
CO: Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers; ICANN
ST: California
SU: PER NPT
Web site:
10/11/2004 18:10 EDT

Turkish ambassador to France says religion behind Turkey’s trouble joining EU
AP Worldstream
Oct 11, 2004
Turkey’s ambassador to France said in an interview published Monday
that his country’s would have “no problem” joining the European Union
if it were Christian and that its Muslim heritage is the real issue
behind the current debate.
“The real motive for this reticence, especially in France, is
religion,” Uluc Ozulker told the daily Le Parisien. “If Turkey were
Christian, there would be no problem. But, voila, we are a Muslim
country.”
The ambassador noted that Turkey is a secular state and has been for
more than eight decades since the nation’s founding father, Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk, instituted reforms.
Ozulker spoke as debate rose in France over Turkey’s eventual
membership in the European Union, which currently counts 25 members.
President Jacques Chirac reiterated on Sunday that “it is the French
people who will have the last word,” a reference to his plan for
France to hold a referendum on the subject. That could be a potentially
fatal blow to Turkey’s aspirations since EU members must unanimously
approve any nation’s application for membership.
Chirac supports Turkey’s membership but thinks it will take up to 15
years for it to join.
The French parliament is to debate the issue before the EU summit
Dec. 17 when leaders are to finalize an initial approval of membership
talks.
Ozulker said Europe “is not a Christian enclave” and Turkey’s joining
the EU “will not denature Europe” despite its some 70 million-strong
population.
“We share the same democratic values as the 25,” he said, adding that
Turkey is already part of the customs union.
Turkey has carried out some needed reforms such as abolishing the
death penalty and cutting back the power of the military in politics.
Asked if Turkey would recognize the Armenian genocide, the ambassador
said that it has yet to be proven.
“It’s up to international and impartial historians to meet and decide,”
he said. “We will accept the results of their work.”

Kopple to Direct Kevorkian Pic
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Tuesday, October 5, 2004
By Gregg Kilday
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the advocate of
doctor-assisted suicide who is serving a 10- to 25-year prison term,
will be the subject of a feature film.
The project marks the first time that the doctor, who was convicted of
second-degree murder in 1999 and is serving his sentence in a
maximum-security prison in Michigan, has authorized any media-based
project surrounding his life and efforts in assisted suicide.
Barbara Kopple will direct the film for producer Steve Jones, whose Bee
Holder Prods. has acquired rights to an unpublished biography. Kevorkian
is cooperating with Neal Nicol, his assistant of 25 years, and Harry
Wylie, a longtime friend, on the book. The filmmakers are seeking a
screenwriter for the project.
Kevorkian assisted in more than 150 cases of suicide and had beaten the
state court system in Michigan numerous times, but he was convicted
after he willingly sent a videotape of himself euthanizing a terminally
ill man to “60 Minutes.”
Kopple, an Oscar winner for her documentaries “Harlan County, U.S.A.”
and “American Dream,” recently completed filming her narrative feature
debut, “Havoc,” starring Anne Hathaway and Bijou Phillips.
;u=/nm/20041005/film_nm/film_kevorkian_dc
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Exxon Abandons Flagship Azeri Well
Reuters
October 4, 2004
BAKU (Reuters) – U.S. oil major ExxonMobil’s hopes of a big oil strike
on its flagship Azeri offshore field faded on Monday after it said it
had shut down the first ultradeep well there after failing to find
commercial deposits.
“We discovered that the first well on Zafar-Mashal does not contain
commercial hydrocarbon reserves and we decided to shut it down,” Exxon’s
spokeswoman Leila Rzakuliyeva told Reuters.
“It’s premature to talk about drilling new wells on the field,” she added.
At 7,087 meters, the well was the deepest in the Caspian and Azeri
geologists have said it was the most expensive too, costing Exxon more
than $100 million.
The results of drilling on the Zafar-Mashal field had been expected to
give a big clue as to whether the Caspian country’s shelf contained more
significant reserves or whether its potential has been overestimated.
Exxon’s block is currently the only active new exploration project on
the Azeri shelf, despite the existence of over 20 production-sharing
agreements between Baku and multinationals.
The Azeri oil boom was fueled by the “contract of the century,” when a
BP-led group agreed 10 years ago to develop three mammoth offshore
fields, known as Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG), set to become a major
source of crude for a pipeline to Turkey.
Oil will start flowing next year with shipments gradually rising to over
one million barrels per day.
The confirmation of ACG’s reserves prompted many experts and Azeri
officials to forecast further multi-billion barrel discoveries. But
investors have found only one big offshore gas field in the past decade,
Shakh-Deniz, while a number of projects were shut down after having
failed to strike oil.
Many investors have postponed tapping their blocks, partly due to the
scarcity of drilling equipment on the land-locked sea. Further gas
discoveries will also raise questions about the import capacity of the
only potentially attractive neighboring market, Turkey.
Exxon leads the $3 billion Zafar-Mashal (Victory Torch) project with a
30 percent interest. State Azeri firm SOCAR holds 50 percent and U.S.
ConocoPhillips owns the remaining 20 percent. The block is 100 km (62.14
miles) offshore from Baku.
Exxon is involved in four Azeri projects and has already invested around
$1.5 billion.
One of the projects is a 50/50 PSA with SOCAR on the neighboring
Nakhichevan field, where the first well discovered only gas several
years ago.
Zafar-Mashal is the only Azeri block which was supposed to produce major
exploration news this year.
After having completed drilling on Zafar-Mashal, Exxon will send a
$250-million newly-built Lider platform to Russian oil major LUKOIL,
which will operate it closer to the Russian border, with exploration
expected to last at least six months.

Two small explosions damage stores in Russian city
AP Worldstream
Oct 04, 2004

Two small explosions damaged stores overnight in the city of
Yekaterinburg in the Ural Mountains, regional police said Monday. No
one was injured.
The explosions went off about 30 minutes apart outside two Italian
clothes shops located about two kilometers (one mile) from each other,
said the press service of Yekaterinburg’s regional Interior Ministry.
Russia’s NTV television broadcast footage of broken glass and damaged
storefronts, and said the explosive devices contained about 200 grams
(seven ounces) of TNT.
The stores were both privately owned by different people in the city,
about 1,500 kilometers (935 miles) east of Moscow, Ekho Moskvy radio
said.
Regional police said the explosions appeared to be linked to a dispute
between rival criminal gangs made up of ethnic Russians and people
from the ex-Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus
mountains. But members of the Armenian Diaspora denied any involvement
and called the explosion an attempt to whip up interethnic tension.
Russian media said investigators were on the scene and that all
possible motives were being considered.
Criminal and commercial disputes in Russia have often led to bombings,
arson attacks and even killings.

Armenia nuclear power plant re-launched
TASS
October 4, 2004 Monday
By Tigran Liloyan
YEREVAN
The Armenian nuclear power plant has been successfully re-launched
after 65 days of overhaul and replacement of fuel.
The plant’s reactor has been started overnight, the director-general
of the plant, Gagik Markosyan, told Itar-Tass on Monday. Tuning
operations and physical experiments are being carried out.
The plant will join Armenia’s energy system in the night to Tuesday,
he said.
The Armenian nuclear power plant was shut down on July 31 for the
overhaul, which was the largest during its whole history.
All spent fuel was unloaded. The steel jacket of the reactor was
examined and fresh fuel loaded.
Specialists of Russia’s Research Institute of Nuclear Power Plants and
the Czech Republic’s company Skoda carried out this work.
Russia’s holding company InterRAO EES bought and delivered to the
plant 100 cassettes with nuclear fuel worth 12 million dollars.
The Armenian nuclear power plant was opened in 1979 and stopped in
1989 after a destructive earthquake.
It was reopened in 1996 with assistance from Russian specialists who
re-launched the second reactor.
The plant’s electric output last year accounted for 38 percent of
Armenia’s total energy supply.
According to a Russian-Armenian intergovernmental accord, financial
management of the nuclear power plant was turned over to InterRAO EES,
the daughter firm of Russia’s national electricity utility RAO EES.
Meanwhile, the European Union urges for closure of the Armenian
nuclear power plant that is located 40 kilometres west of Yerevan.
Armenian authorities say such step is only possible if alternative
sources of energy become available.

SOUTH CAUCASIAN CULTURE ANALYZED IN MOSCOW
RIA Novosti
October 02, 2004
MOSCOW, October 2 (RIA Novosti) – The plan of cooperation for
2004-2005 was adopted at the two-day 4th conference of culture
ministers entitled “Variety of cultures and European unity: dialogue
in the name of demographic stability”, which closed in Moscow on
Friday, Catherine Roth, Council of Europe’s director for culture,
cultural and natural heritage, told journalists in Moscow.
The conference was held within the Council of Europe’s Stage project
and was dedicated to the analysis of culture of the three South
Caucasian countries, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.
Representatives of Austria, Germany, Greece, Russia, Switzerland,
Turkey and Ukraine also took part in the conference.
According to Catherine Roth, the sides agreed to help each other
develop museums and libraries and promote cultural policy of cities.
The conferees adopted a declaration saying that culture is making an
important contribution in the building of peaceful, stable and open
Europe free from conflicts and violence, the director said.
On his part, Azerbaijan’s Culture Minister Polad Byul-byul ogly said
in a RIA Novosti interview that “cultural dialogue was useful and
necessary”.
“Contacts are highly important. This is a possibility to get
acquainted with European cultural values, exchange cultural riches and
talk about each other’s problems,” the minister noted.
Speaking about the development of culture in Azerbaijan, the minister
pointed out with satisfaction that the state kept paying more and more
attention to cultural problems and increased state financing of this
sphere.
According to Polad Byul-byul ogly, in 2005 24% more money will be
allocated on culture development from Azerbaijan’s state budget than
in 2004.

Russia-Armenia regions cooperation centre opened in Yerevan
TASS
October 2, 2004 Saturday 6:02 AM Eastern Time
By Lyudmila Yermakova, Tigran Liloyan
YEREVAN
Russian Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov and Armenian
parliament head Artur Bagdasaryan opened the Russian-Armenian regional
cooperation centre in a ceremony in Yerevan on Saturday.
The objective of the centre is promoting development of cooperation
between Russian and Armenian regions.
The agreement to set up the centre was reached at the conference on
“Russian-Armenia interregional cooperation – the state and prospects”
that took place in Samara last May.
Mironov expressed the hope activities of the centre would be effective
and beneficial for contacts between Russian and Armenian regions.
The head of the Russian parliament’s upper house said that during his
visit to Yerevan he agreed with his Armenian counterpart on the format
to finance the centre.
The centre is situated in the student town territory near Armenian
French University, whose administrative board chairman is the Armenian
parliament head.
An agreement on cooperation between Russian and Armenian regions was
signed during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s official visit to
Yerevan in September 2001.
Seventy Russian regions maintain direct ties with Armenia at present,
and 15 agreements between regions of the two countries are in force,
Mironov noted.