Author: Tavakalian Edgar

Mediamax, Armenia
Jan 31 2007

Mobile operator VivaCell allocated $100 thousand to support the
National Immunization Campaign against measles and rubella

Yerevan, January 31 /Mediamax/. The Millenium Armenian Children’s
Vaccine Fund (MACVF) and the mobile operator VivaCell announced a
partnership in the struggle against measles and rubella – the eighth
leading cause of death among people of all ages worldwide.

Mediamax reports that VivaCell allocated to the Millenium Armenian
Children’s Vaccine Fund $100 thousand to support the Naitonal
Supplementary Immunization Campaign against measles and rubella.

`The greatness of a company should be measured not by its size or
revenues, but its long-term positive impact on the life of the public
it serves. Our operations are based on this very principle’, said
Ralph Yirikian, General Manager of VivaCell.

Naitonal Supplementary Immunization Campaign against measles and
rubella, which is to be launched in spring of 2007, is part of the
Measles Elimination Strategy to be submitted to the Armenian
government, which will act in response to the WHO strategy for
Eliminating Measles and Rubella from the European Region.

Despite its routine measles-immunization efforts in recent decades,
Armenia remains on the list of countries susceptible to measles
outbreaks, which strike between 30 and 40 million children every year
and result in some 9 million deaths internationally.

As the MACVF’s Project Manager Narine Hayrapetyan noted, `our
partnership with VivaCell will help save children’s lives and
safeguard the future well-being of several generations of Armenians’.

`VivaCell’s generous contribution will enable us to obtain
critically-needed supplies of the measles-mumps (MR) vaccine for the
children of Armenia’, Narine Hayrapetyan stated.

MASS PRODUCTION OF HELIOSYSTEMS WITH CAPACITY OF 3.5 KW TO START IN
ARMENIA SOON

YEREVAN, JANUARY 30, NOYAN TAPAN. Mass production of DVH-2.3
heliosystems with the capacity of 3.5 kw will start in Armenia in the
spring. These heliosystems are used to get hot water in households and
for agriculatural food processing. The inventor of the device,
Candidate of Technical Sciences Vahan Hamazaspian said during the
January 30 discussion of the problem of heliofication of Armenia’s
rural communities that these devices can be operated in parallel with
biogas reactors and photovoltaic panels.

According to him, mass production of solar water heaters with the
capacity of 50-200 kw for schools and hospitals is now on the agenda.

V. Hamazaspian considered it possible to install such devices in the
village of Sarnaghbyur (Shirak marz) this spring, which will allow to
save electricity by 40% and 1,200 cubic meters of gas annually.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Release

Armenian Revolutionary Federation
3401 Olivar-Asselin
Montreal, Quebec
Contact: Harout Tavitian
Tel.: 514 331-5777
Email: [email protected]

Armenian Democratic Liberal Party
825 Rue Manoogian
Saint-Laurent, Quebec
Contact: Diran Avedian
Tel. : 514 747-6680

Montreal Armenians commemorate Hrant Dink

MONTREAL JANUARY 24, 2007

On Tuesday January 23rd 2007 a rally was held in Dorchester Square
in the heart of Montreal; to commemorate Hrant Dink and to protest
the brutal murder that led to his untimely death. The protest was
organized jointly by the Armenian Revolutionary Party (Tashnagtsoutoun)
and the Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar).

The rally was attended by more then 400 people who had gathered
to express their outrage and sorrow for the latest victim of the
Armenian Genocide.

Representatives from both political parties addressed the crowd
and emphasized the importance of unmasking the real perpetrators
of this crime. They also emphasized the necessity for Turkey to
end its denialist policies and for her to recognize the Armenian
Genocide. The rally also expressed its sympathies to Rachel Dink the
widow of Hrant Dink.

The local media in Montreal (print, radio and TV) covered the rally
as well as the impact of Hrant Dink’s murder on the Armenian Community
of Quebec.

#

Armenian Delegation Departed For Istanbul To Take Part in Dink’s Funeral

PanARMENIAN.Net
23.01.2007 13:14 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian official delegation at the head of Deputy
Foreign Minister Arman Kirakosian in the night of January 23 departed
for Turkey to take part in ‘Agos’ editor-in-chief Hrant Dink’s funeral,
who was gunned down in Istanbul January 19. Also in attendance will be
General Secretary of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Foundation,
Karen Mirzoyan and other officials, the PanARMENIAN.Net journalist
was told in the RA MFA. It is worth mentioning that earlier RA MFA
acting Press Officer Vladimir Karapetyan told Yerevan had not received
invitation to take part in Dink’s funeral.

A lot of representatives will take part in Dink’s funeral from
Armenian Diaspora worldwide, particularly he head of the French
Armenian Foundation, Alexi Govcian and Patriarch Hajak Barsamian,
the Orthodox leader of Armenians living on the East Coast of the US.

Armenian National Committee of Canada
130 Albert St., Suite 1007
Ottawa, ON
KIP 5G4
Tel. (613) 235-2622 Fax (613) 238-2622
E-mail:[email protected]
www .anccanada.org

For Immediate Release

January 22, 2007
Contact Kevork Manguelian

Tel. (613) 235-2622

Toothless Statement from the Canadian Embassy

OTTAWA–The statement of mourning by the Canadian Embassy in Turkey
for the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink last
Friday has been described as toothless by the president of the Armenian
National Committee of Canada (ANCC).

The committee said that a "stronger" and a "clearer" message should
have been sent to the Turkish government, whose policies have
created an unrelenting hate atmosphere towards Armenians living in
that country.

"Unfortunately, the embassy’s ambiguous statement does not render
justice to Hrant Dink’s memory and his lifelong mission as a human
rights’ advocate and a builder of bridges between Armenians and Turks,"
said Jean Meguerditchian, president of ANCC. It is ironic that at a
time when Foreign Minister Peter Mackay has called for a historians’
commission and a dialogue between Armenians and Turks, the proponent
of such a dialogue is assassinated, added the president of ANCC.

"Hrant Dink paid with his life and blood for what our Foreign Minister
Peter Mackay called for last November," said Meguerditchian. "This
despicable murder is an assault not only for what the minister called
for but also an attack on the freedom of speech, a principle which
we hold dearly, and the safety of the Armenian community in Turkey.

"A stronger and clearer condemnation from our government would have
sent a clear message to the Turkish government that the Canadian
government and the people of Canada will not tolerate any more
hypocrisy from Ankara. After all, it is the Turkish government’s
Armenian Genocide denial policy, indoctrinated over decades in the
school system, judicial intimidation (through article 301 of the
penal code), and political blackmail (of countries which recognized
the Armenian Genocide) which created this unrelenting hate atmosphere
that led to the murder of Hrant Dink," concluded Meguerditchian.

-30-

The Canadian Embassy Statement: "We deeply regret the tragic
killing of Hrant Dink, a respected journalist and human rights
advocate. On behalf of Canadians, we extend our deepest condolences
to his family and friends, and express our strong hope that his
murderer will be brought to justice as quickly as possible."

_________________________________ _________________________________-

The ANCC is the largest and the most influential Canadian-Armenian
grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a
network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout Canada and
affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCC actively advances
the concerns of the Canadian-Armenian community on a broad range
of issues.

Regional Chapters Montreal – Laval – Ottawa – Toronto – Hamilton –
Cambridge – St. Catharines – Windsor – Vancouver

YEREVAN PRESS CLUB: SOCIETY MOST SHARPLY ACCEPTS LOSS OF THOSE WHO,
SERVING TRUTH, ARE NOT HONOURED WITH ADEQUATE SYMPATHY AND ASSISTANCE
DURING THEIR LIFETIME

YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. "We, the
Yerevan Press Club members, are deeply upset with famous journalist,
"Akos" newspaper editor-in-chief Hrant Dink’s murder," is said in
the statement spread by the Yerevan Press Club on January 20. The
statement text is completely presented below: "This terrible action is
addressed against the freedom of expression, democracy, normalization
of the Armenian-Turkish relations. It once more proves: there are
still very dark, regressive, rough forces which do not want that
our region proceeds in the way of progress. Hrant’s journalism and
public activity is addressed to protect the person’s right of freely
expressing ideas and overcoming traditional stereotypes which hinder
people to communicate, understand and love each other. Both paassing
over in silence the crime committed in 1915 by the Turkish Government
towards the Armenian population and the criminal pursuit for denial of
the Armenian Genocide which is envisaged in the draft approved by the
French Parliament was inadmissible for him. Being one of few people
in Turkey who dared to speak about the genocide, Hrant Dink observed
any person’s condemnation for having other views as a violation of
the human rights. He was one of those people who was supposed to be
a simbol of renovation of Turkey: a process which is contradictory
and collide with powerful resistance and numerous inner and foreign
obstacles. People like Hrant who strive for overcoming their own
and retainers’ fear, complexes, those who are open for every new and
light thing, are most defenceless. His murder, and earlier the Turkish
authorities’ political pursuit and prosecution affirm this sad reality.

Watching the unprecedented response in the world and just in Turkey
on the occasion of our partner’s death, one unwillingly thinks of the
following paradox: the society most sharply and with exclusive feeling
of sin accepts loss of just those representatives who, serving the
truth and justice, were more vulnerable and were not honoured with
adequate sympathy and assistance during their lifetime. Let it be
another lesson for all those countries where journalists are killed,
subjected to violences and pursuits. By feeling deep sorrow, we can
not stand expressing sorrow on the occasion of a number of statements
the authors of which attempt to speculate the tradegy taken place
in Istanbul, spreading ideas alien to Hrant Dink, displaying by it
disrespectful attitude towards his memory. The journalist’s and public
figure’s murder was, surely, a consequence of the political collisions
existing in the Turkish society, and we called to confront using of
the crime for deepening the abyss of imperceptiblity and hatred. We
want to believe that those values in which Hrant Dink believed, the
goals he strived for, will find more and more supporters in Turkey,
Armenia, all our region.

The Yerevan Press Club has been and remains one of them."

Le Figaro, France
20 janvier 2007

Fethiye Cetin : "Les extrémistes veulent semer le trouble avant la
présidentielle"

Propos recueillis par STÉPHANE KOVACS

AVOCATE turque de renom, Fethiye Cetin, 56 ans, était le défenseur du
journaliste arménien Hrant Dink. Militante des droits de l’homme,
elle a écrit, en 2004, Le livre de ma grand-mère * , pour raconter
que son aïeule, née arménienne, avait été convertie de force au
moment des massacres de 1915. Un témoignage brut, sans volonté de
propagande, qui a suscité de vives polémiques en Turquie, où il a
cependant été réédité cinq fois. Fethiye Cetin était hier à Paris
pour présenter son ouvrage, à l’invitation d’AYP FM, la radio de la
communauté arménienne d’Île-de-France.

LE FIGARO. – Quel est le contexte de cet assassinat ? Y a-t-il une
résurgence du nationalisme en Turquie ? Pourquoi l’affaire arménienne
provoque-t-elle tant de telles crispations actuellement ? Fethiye
CETIN. – Nous approchons de l’élection présidentielle turque, qui
aura lieu au printemps prochain. Les différents courants politiques
veulent semer le trouble et créer une situation de conflit avec le
gouvernement islamiste. L’ « État profond » , cette structure occulte
dirigée par les militaires, est très influent en ce moment et essaie
de faire pression sur le gouvernement. L’idée des groupuscules
extrémistes est de remettre en question l’image de la Turquie dans le
cadre de sa candidature à l’Union européenne. Hrant Dink était le
symbole de l’ouverture du dialogue arméno-turc. Hrant Dink venait de
recevoir de nombreuses menaces de mort écrites, que j’ai transmises à
la justice, il y a tout juste 48 heures. Il avait même écrit, dans
son journal bilingue turco-arménien Agos , plusieurs articles pour
expliquer la manière dont il serait assassiné : il était persuadé
qu’il serait victime d’un attentat ! Vous-même, vous sentez-vous
menacée ? Pas du tout, bien que je me sois affichée comme le
défenseur de Hrant Dink et d’un certain nombre de contestataires. Je
n’ai d’ailleurs reçu aucune menace. L’article 301 du Code pénal turc,
qui réprime « l’insulte à l’identité nationale turque » , et dont ont
été victimes Hrant Dink ainsi qu’une cinquantaine d’intellectuels,
va-t-il être supprimé, comme le réclame Bruxelles ? À terme, cet
article sera modifié, mais le contexte – la proximité du scrutin
présidentiel – n’est pas favorable à cette réforme. Les extrémistes
nationalistes, très influents en Turquie, ne se laisseront pas faire.
* Paru en français en 2006 (Éditions de l’Aube).

Anatolia News Agency, Turkey
Jan 19 2007

Turkish Foreign Ministry condemns journalist’s assassination

Ankara, 19 January: The Turkish Foreign Ministry strongly condemned
the assassination of Turkish journalist of Armenian descent Hrant
Dink, editor-in-chief of bilingual Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, on
Friday [19 January].

The ministry expressed sorrow over death of Dink, and stated,
"Security forces launched initiatives to arrest the assassin or
assassins."

The ministry offered condolences to family and relatives of Dink, as
well as staff of Agos weekly and Turkish people of Armenian descent.

Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran
Jan 20 2007

German EU Presidency condemns murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist

Berlin, Jan 20, IRNA
Germany-Turkey-Assassination

The German European Union Presidency on Saturday condemned the murder
of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was gunned down by an
unknown assailant in Istanbul.

"The presidency was shocked to learn of the assassination of the
respected Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in Istanbul. The
presidency is appalled by this abominable killing and would like to
express its deepest sympathy to the victim’s family and friends,"
said the German EU Presidency’s press statement.

"Hrant Dink was a courageous man whose journalism was marked by his
strong commitment to democracy and freedom of expression and who was
prepared to take great personal risks for his work," it added.

The EU communique hailed Dink as "a staunch supporter of democratic
reforms in Turkey."
Dink, who was the editor of the Turkish-Armenian Agos newspaper, was
killed as he left the newspaper’s office Friday afternoon.

PRO-ARMENIAN DEPUTY YURI SHTERN FROM ISREALI KNESSET PASSES AWAY

Noyan Tapan
Jan 18 2007

TEL AVIV. JANUARY 18, NOYAN TAPAN. Yuri Shtern, a deputy of the
Isreali Knesset, long-year head of the Israel-Armenia parliamentary
friendship group passed away at the age of 57 on January 16.

According to Radio Liberty, Shtern was a Knesset deputy since 1996. He
was an author of numerous drafts, he also headed the Israeli Christian
Allies Causus in the staff of the 17th convention of the Knesset.

Yu.Shtern visited Armenia few times. He was one of supporters of
the necessity of deepening of the Armenian-Israeli mutual relations,
discussing the Armenian Genocide issue in the legislative and executive
bodies of the country.