Author: Tigranian Ani

Turkish Daily News
June 8, 2007 Friday

WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE OUR ARMENIANS!

I wish I had Armenian neighbors living in my block of flats. I wish I
could see a Turkish colonel of ethnic Greek origin in the Turkish
military talking about the relations between the Turkish and Greek
militaries. I wish I could hear a Jewish judge in a Turkish courtroom
reading her judgment with a Jewish accent.

If I move to Istanbul I may have Armenian neighbors, but my latter
two wishes seem unlikely to be granted in the near future. Once,
Armenians lived all over this country and we had a huge population of
Jewish and Greek Ottoman/Turkish citizens. They seemingly vanished
and now we are facing the risk of losing even the remaining handful
of non-Muslim citizens of this country.

After the murder of Hrant Dink threats against our non-Muslim
citizens have intensified. Reportedly youths from these communities
have started preferring new lives in foreign countries. I am afraid
that new attacks and new murders, which unfortunately are not
unlikely, will speed up this migration.

I would like to bring to your attention a new kind of threat
especially directed towards Armenian schools, which evidently aims at
scaring away Armenians from Turkey. I would like to quote from a
recent threat letter received by Armenian schools.

The following text was on the first page of the message: "This was
sent to all institutions concerned with the matter. This movement was
started for the sake of Turkey’s future and its unity."

The following pages featured a long text, entitled "The Last Warning
and Ultimatum," accusing Turkish Armenians of separatism and efforts
to ruin the Turkish state.

The message also mentioned the murder of Hrant Dink: "exclamations
saying We are all Armenians, we are all Hrant Dink’ are examples of
extreme chauvinism and summons for revolution. Do not forget that
besides the Armenian citizens of Turkey, there are also Armenians
from Armenia in our land, and they number over one hundred thousand.
Both their addresses and their workplaces are well known. Henceforth
we hope to see our Armenian citizens as advocates of truth,
concerning the Armenian genocide or any other matter, and as
defenders of the Turkish statehood."

"We shall keep an eye on how the Armenians are playing this role.
Otherwise, the Armenians shall be those to lie in the grave and count
how many Armenians and how many Turks there were in the ages long
past’. This land has never pardoned treachery and shall not. Who does
not stand for our paradise homeland is against us and shall be
vanquished."

The text ends with the following words: "There is no defense line.
That line is the entire territory. Anything else is just a trifle
when the fate of the homeland is concerned. Mustafa Kemal AtaturkThis
is the last ultimatum. It is not to be repeated."

It is a shameful insult to Kemalists that such a racist hate speech
document refers to Ataturk’s remarks. Kemalists should take into
account that some "sheep" among them may be turning into "wolves" in
the night!

Recognizing and excluding these racists from their circles is the
most urgent and foremost duty of the Kemalists in this country. They
should be on high alert for racist rhetoric among their members.

It is also quite thought provoking, isn’t it, that this racist letter
threatens Armenians with a total extinction if they talk about the
Armenian genocide"Do not talk about genocide or you may be the victim
of a new one!"

In the face of these threats we see no serious preparation to protect
our citizens of Armenian origins. There are very urgent steps that
the Turkish government should take to protect their lives and
well-being.

I would like to urge the government and state officials that we
cannot stand any new attack on these vulnerable groups. Protecting
them is the highest moral obligation of the Turkish Republic and no
other priority should prevent Turkey from fulfilling this
responsibility.

Our minorities are not able to take public positions. We do not see
them as police officers, as soldiers, or as judges. What a pity! They
are forced to live an isolated life in their ghettos.

Already long ago we lost the richness the minorities contributed to
our lives. But losing even the last members of these communities to
foreign countries would be unbearable.

For some, homogenization of Turkey might be the final goal, but I
assure you the side effects of achieving it will make this country
unlivable, unlovable and primitive.

I also believe that security measures provide only a temporary
relief, not a cure, for this racist disease. In the long term we need
to take a lot of other serious steps.

One of these steps is that Turkey must start confronting its past.
Without this, without having an honest and open discussion about our
history, we will never heal and we will never able to put a mirror in
front of these racists, which means that we will be seeing the same
nightmares again and again.

See you next week!

"ARMENIA WITHOUT CIGARETTES" ALLIANCE PROPOSES TO IMPLEMENT PRODUCTIVE PRICE POLICY TO CIGARETTE PRODUCTS

Noyan Tapan
Jun 08 2007

YEREVAN, JUNE 8, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenia Without Cigarettes
alliance that unites 28 NGOs sent a message to the deputies of
NA of the fourth convocation. As it is mentioned in the massage
provided to Noyan Tapan the alliance calls for bringing to life
the theses of the Frame Anti-tobacco Convention of the World Health
Organization (WHO). Particularly, to protect each citizen’s right
of healthy environment, making all the closed public places and
jobs 100% free from cigarette smoke, to prohibit all the promotion
and sponsorship ways of cigarette advertisement and sale. Besides,
the alliance proposes to implement a productive price policy with
regard to cigarette products by increasing cigarette taxes, which will
contribute to the decrease of cigarette use especially among the youth.

TSARUKYAN GUARANTEES HIS PRESENCE AT NA SESSIONS

A1+
[02:41 pm] 07 June, 2007

Gagik Tsarukyan, head of the "Prosperous Armenia Party", talked to
the journalists for the first time after the NA elections. However,
he agreed to answer only to three questions. He promised to answer
to all questions of journalists in Tsakhadzor, where he invited them.

He confirmed the news that the "PAP" was offered the posts of ministers
of Health and Territorial Administration, as well as the post of
minister of Sports and Youth Affairs. Mr. Tsarukyan expressed hope
that their ministers would justify the voters’ expectations. Artyom
Qushkyan will be appointed in the position of Health Minister. "He
promised that his work would be focused on villages and regions where
health care is a first priority issue", said Gagik Tsarukyan.

Gagik Tsarukyan assured that they did no come to the political field
for posts. "We nominated our people only for those positions where
we are convinced we will have success", pointed Mr. Tsarukyan.

To the question whether Tsarukyan was pleased with the votes he
answered: "I have always had great expectations and I want to be
useful and take adequate measures for the sustainable development in
the country, for the improvement of the social situation of the nation
and to contribute to the country’s prosperity. And it is time to work".

According to him, the ""Prosperous Armenia Party" has more than 400
thousand members. To the question what he intended to do together
with his fraction, Gagik Tsarukyan stated: "I was alone, when I was
a deputy, now when we are a potent fraction, the best specialists
of all fields are with us and everyone will present projects on his
sphere. I will participate in all NA sessions and make sure that our
plans are implemented properly".

PARTIES APPPEAL OPPOSITION TO PUT DOWN MANDATES

Panorama.am
17:52 05/06/2007

"The results of the National Assembly elections are totally faked
and the parliament is not legitimate," a statement released by
Conservative and Democratic Motherland parties says. Both parties
are part of a bigger Impeachment block. The statement suggests two
ways out of the situation: either the Constitutional Court annuls
the elections or "the parties which call themselves opposition put
down their mandates and create a vacuum for the establishment of the
legislative and the executive."

The appealing parties are not very optimistic about the first
option. They say those forces which will put up with the results of
the elections will be part of a "conspiracy program of the authorities
in power to bring the country into a logic of terrorism."

OSCE MG FRENCH CO-CHAIR BERNARD FASSIER HAS ARRIVED IN BAKU

ArmInfo
2007-06-05 13:17:00

The French Co-chair of OSCE Minsk Group Bernard Fassier has arrived
in Baku the day before. As APA reports, he will stay in Baku till
June 6 Mr.Fassier said the co-chairs will meet Azerbaijani Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and leave for meeting with Armenian Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanian in Yerevan. Following that, the mediators
will leave for St. Petersburg on June 8 due to the planed meeting of
the Presidents [of Azerbaijan and Armenia] for the settlement of the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict on June 9.

The French Co-chair said they have interesting proposals to
present. "There are well-balanced proposals and a base for an
agreement on the table." He again called for the parties to the
conflict to demonstrate political will and make trade-off. US
Co-chair of Minsk Group Matthew Bryza also arrived in Baku last
night. OSCE Chairman-in-Office Miguel Angel Moratinos has already
been in Azerbaijan. Today, he will arrive in Yerevan.

FUTURE OF KARABAKH TO BE DECIDED IN ST.PETERSBURG
by Sohbet Mamedov, Yuri Simonjan

Source: Nezavisimaya Gazeta, May 30, 2007, p. 9
Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
June 1, 2007 Friday

Aliyev and Kocharjan will meet in the northern capital

NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN ALIYEV AND ROBERT KOCHARJAN IN ST.PETERSBURG WILL
SHOW PROGRESS OR LACK THEREOF IN THE MATTER OF KARABAKH CONFLICT
SETTLEMENT; Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia will meet in
St.Petersburg to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh.

Yuri Merzlyakov and Bernard Fassiet, chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group
supervising the Azerbaijani-Armenian talks, are fairly optimistic on
the subject of the meeting between the Presidents of Armenia Robert
Kocharjan and Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev scheduled to take place in
St.Petersburg on June 9. Kocharjan and Aliyev are expected to meet
within the framework of the informal CIS summit.

The intermediaries’ optimism stems from the recent trips to Yerevan and
Baku where they met with the leaders of the states and representatives
of their political establishments. Merzlyakov and Fassiet told
journalists afterwards that they had every reason to expect their
mission to succeed.

As far as Alpai Ahmed, the political scientist from Baku, is concerned,
the frequency of visits to the region from international organizations
proves that the dialogue is constructive indeed and that there exists
some particular action plan whose contours will become clear after
the presidents’ meeting in St.Petersburg. Ahmed is convinced that
Azerbaijan and Armenia are about to come to an agreement concerning
the basic principles of conflict settlement. It is already known at
the very least that the matter concerns the gradual Armenian pullout
from seven districts of Azerbaijan.

"Chairmen admit, however, that the Lachi Corridor connecting
Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia poses a problem," Ahmed said. "Aliyev
and Kocharjan will certainly discuss the matter at the meeting as
one of the most important on the agenda."

Yerevan is less exultant. Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanjan
is convinced that the St.Petersburg talks will only show progress or
the lack thereof in the conflict settlement. "Preparations for the
meeting are under way. Should the tendency remain unchanged, Armenia
will agree that there is nothing to prevent a meeting between the
presidents," Oskanjan said. Sources in Yerevan admit, however, that
Armenia is prepared to make some "concessions". It is an oblique way
of saying that Armenia may withdraw from seven districts of Azerbaijan
bordering on Nagorno-Karabakh. Jirair Sefiljan, a Karabakh war hero and
an adamant enemy of all and any withdrawals, was recently arrested in
Armenia. It may be taken as an indirect confirmation of the existence
of this plan.

Analyst Boris Navasardjan (Yerevan) claims that a compromise
solution to the problem of Nagorno-Karabakh must exist. It even
apparently includes a provision on so important an issue as the lot
of the Azerbaijani territories beyond Nagorno-Karabakh held by the
Armenians. "In the meantime, Karabakh talks within the framework
of the OSCE Minsk Group are quite detached from the Real Politik
charted and promoted by Baku and Yerevan," Navasardjan said. "Hence
the optimistic statements from OSCE Minsk Group chairmen. They have
to show the world at least something, don’t they? The same goes for
the agreement on the next meeting between Aliyev and Kocharjan. They
play into the intermediaries’ hands, helping them latter create an
illusion of progress."

SUN MICROSYSTEMS INTENDS TO BECOME LEADER OF ARMENIAN MARKET OF SERVER-RELATED RISK MANAGEMENT

Noyan Tapan
May 31 2007

YEREVAN, MAY 31, NOYAN TAPAN. Sun Microsystems company (US) intends
to become the leader of the Armenian market of server-related
risk management. Pavel Ani, Sun Microsystems’ manager for Eastern
Europe, CIS, Middle East and African countries, stated this at
the May 31 presentation of cooperation between Sun Microsystems
and Armenian-Greek joint company Innova Solutions. In his words,
demand for Sun’s telecommunication, especially billing, services and
equipment is great in regions near Armenia.

P. Ani explained that in the international server-related risk
management market Sun Microsystems occupies a position equal to those
of IBM and Hewlett-Packard (HP), and Sun’s part in this market of
CIS countries is considerable.

He expressed a hope that such a proportion will form in the Armenian
market as well. In his opinion, the above mentioned segments of
information technologies are at the stage of development.

Deputy chairman of Innova Solutions Armen Khudinian noted that the
company is an authorized partner of Sun Microsystems and will provide
guarantee and after-guarantee services for Sun’s equipment-based
systems. Innova Solutions was set up in October 2006 and is a member
of Innova group (Greece), whose members opetrate in Romania. Bularia,
Cyprus, Luxemburg and Albania.

EVERY YEAR NEARLY 5 MLN PEOPLE DIE AS A RESULT OF SMOKING IN THE WORLD

Noyan Tapan
May 31 2007

YEREVAN, MAY 31, NOYAN TAPAN. RA Ministry of Health with the motto
"Environment Free of Smoke: Create and Enjoy" joined the world
day Without Smoking marked on May 31. As UN Resident Coordinator
Consuelo Vidal said at the press conference held the same day, the
danger of secondary smoke of cigarette for non-smokers is almost
equal to smoking. In her words, smoking causes cancer, as well
as serious respiratory and cardiovascular diseases among children
and adults. Studies showed that today the half of regular smokers,
over 650 million people, will become a victim of smoking. C. Vidal
mentioned as alarming the circumstance that every year hundreds of
thousands of non-smoking people die from diseases caused by secondary
smoke of cigarettes.

C. Vidal said that smoking is the second main cause of death in
the world.

Every year more people die from smoking than in general from accidents,
suicides, AIDS and drugs.

The accounts presented by the World Health Organization mention that
nearly 5 million people die as a result of smoking every year and if
it continues like this, this number will reach 10 million in 2020.

TURKEY TO BRIBE U.S. CONGRESSMEN

DeFacto Agency, Armenia
June 1 2007

U.S. Department of Justice files obtained this week by the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA) reveal details about Turkey’s
new lobbying contract with DLA Piper, including a controversial –
although not entirely surprising – provision that seeks to prevent
even "debate" in the United States on legislation "that harms Turkey’s
interests or image."

According to the contract, Turkey is to pay DLA Piper $1.2 million
for the year and an additional $750,000 to The Livingston Group,
headed by Robert Livingston, a former Congressional leader, who
resigned in 1998 after a personal scandal.

"These new Department of Justice filings reveal just how deeply Dick
Gephardt has sunk, compromising his integrity by turning against a
human rights issue he energetically supported as an elected Member
of Congress," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "We are
especially troubled by the provision in the contract that seeks to
export Turkey’s Criminal Code Article 301 to the United States by
requiring DLA Piper to prevent even ‘debate’ on issues Turkey considers
harmful to its image. This requirement, which falls far outside the
American democratic tradition, is, sadly, entirely consistent with
Turkish government’s efforts to suppress freedom of expression by
criminalizing speech that ‘insults Turkishness.’ Earlier this month,
Gephardt’s willingness to work as a part of Turkey’s denial campaign
stirred controversy across Capitol Hill. In a letter, three leading
Democratic supporters of the Armenian Genocide Resolution informed
their fellow Members that the his opposition to this human rights
legislation stood in sharp contrast to his strong record of supporting
this measure during his years in Congress. The letter, written by
Representatives Anna Eshoo (D-CA), the only Armenian American in
Congress, Frank Pallone (D-NJ), the Co-Chairman of the Armenian
Caucus, and Adam Schiff (D-CA), the lead sponsor of the Armenian
Genocide Resolution, was accompanied by a copy of a September 2000
letter signed by then- Representative Gephardt in support of the
timely adoption of the Armenian Genocide Resolution.

As a member of the House, Gephardt cosponsored legislation recognizing
the Armenian Genocide, as recently as H.Res.193 in 2003, and dating all
the way back to H.J.Res.192, more than 20 years ago, during the 99th
Congress. In 1998, he offered remarks at the ANCA Armenian Genocide
Observance on Capitol Hill.

CONGRESSMAN SCHIFF AND CONGRESSMAN BECERRA MEET WITH ANCA-WR TO DISCUSS KEY LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES

ArmRadio.am
01.06.2007 10:30

The largest Armenian American public affairs organization in the
western United States, the Armenian National Committee of America –
Western Region (ANCA-WR), met with the author of the Armenian Genocide
Resolution (H.Res. 106) Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA-29) and with
Assistant to the Speaker of the House Congressman Xavier Becerra
(D-CA-31) this week to discuss issues of importance to the Armenian
American community. The Armenian Genocide Resolution currently is
pending in the House Foreign Affairs Committee and enjoys the strong
broad bipartisan support of 196 Members of Congress from across the
United States.

"We value the strong moral leadership of Congressman Schiff and
Congressman Becerra on issues of concern to our community," noted
Andrew Kzirian, Executive Director of the ANCA-WR. "After meeting with
both Representatives we are more confident than ever that America’s
complicity in Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide is coming to
an end," Kzirian added.

The ANCA-WR, in coordination with local ANC chapters throughout
the western United States, has worked to promote awareness of
H. Res. 106. The measure acknowledges the heroic and historic
humanitarian relief effort of the United States in assisting the
victims of the Armenian Genocide during the early part of the 20th
century.

The meeting with Congressman Xavier Becerra included the participation
of ANC activist and constituent Maurice Soudjian, ANCA-WR Board
Members Raffi Hamparian and Steve Dadaian and Kzirian. The meeting
with Congressman Adam Schiff included the participation of Hamparian,
Kzirian, ANCA-WR Board Member Aida Dimejian and longtime ANC leader
Karo Khanjian. Both meetings provided an opportunity to share
legislative priorities and strategies and further strengthened the
relationships between the local community and the Congressmen.

"Meeting with Congressman Becerra provided yet another great chance
to work together on issues that matter to Armenian Americans," stated
Eagle Rock resident and ANC supporter Maurice Soudjian. "The ANC works
hard to cultivate positive relationships with Members of the Congress
– I sincerely appreciate the organization and the wonderful work it
does in the community," he added. " We always welcome the opportunity
to sit down with Congressman Schiff to discuss important issues,"
stated ANCA-WR Board Member Aida Dimejian. "There is much work to be
done and we are counting down the days to when H. Res. 106 will make
it to the House floor," she added.