Author: Torgomian Varazdat

HAYASTAN ALL-ARMENIAN FUND’S TELETHON 2008 TO START ON NOVEMBER 27 IN LOS ANGELES

Noyan Tapan

Nov 26, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 26, NOYAN TAPAN. Hayastan All-Armenian Fund’s
Telethon 2008 will be held on November 27 in Los Angeles. This year
also the raised funds will be aimed at Armenian and Artsakh rural
development programs.

As Noyan Tapan correspondent was informed by Fund’s Public Relations
Department, more than 50m families, 40m out of which in the U.S.,
will have a possibility to follow telethon’s broadcasting all over the
world. It was mentioned that the amount of money raised as a result
of the telethon carried out since 1996 grows year by year. During the
17 years of its activity the Fund has implemented programs amounting
to over 185m dollars.

The general sponsor of Telethon 2008 is VivaCell-MTS, the sponsors are
Ardshininvestbank, Haypost, ACBA-CREDIT AGRICOLE BANK, the information
sponsor is the Public Television of Armenia.

It should be mentioned that a promise of donation of 1.2m euros
was given in the European phonethon preceding the telethon, held on
November 13-16 in France, which exceeded phonethon’s previous year’s
index by 80 thousand euros.

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address:  Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact:  Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel:  +374-10-517163
Fax:  +374-10-517301
E-Mail:  [email protected]
Website: 
November 26, 2008

His Holiness Karekin II visits Dhaka, Bangladesh

On Sunday, November 16, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and
Catholicos of All Armenians, paid a one-day visit to the Armenian Church of
the Holy Resurrection, located in Dhaka, Bangladesh.  The historic church is
located in a district of the city – Armanitola, named after the large
Armenian community that once lived there.

The church and cemetery were established in 1781 by the Armenians of Bengal,
who were primarily merchants prominent in the jute, textile and silk
trades.  The community of Dhaka was closely linked to the other Armenian
communities of Bengal, including Calcutta (present-day Kolkata), Chinsurah
and Saidabad.

During his visit to the church and cemetery, His Holiness met with Mr.
Michael Martin, the last permanent Armenian resident of Dhaka, who has been
maintaining the church complex for the past few decades.  The trip to Dhaka
was made during His Holiness’ pontifical visit to India.

Accompanying His Holiness to Dhaka were Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian and the
Wardens of the Armenian Church Committee of Calcutta – Mr. Sunil Sobti and
Mrs. Susan Reuben.

##

ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY CONGRATULATES ARMENIAN CAUCUS MEMBERS IN HOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP

armradio.am
25.11.2008 12:55

The House Republican Conference met last week to select its leaders
for the 111th Congress, reported the Armenian Assembly of America
(Assembly).

Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA), a member of the Congressional
Caucus on Armenian Issues and a cosponsor of H.Res. 106, the Armenian
Genocide resolution, was elected to serve as Republican Whip. As the
second highest ranking person in Republican Leadership, Rep. Cantor
is responsible for mobilizing votes, coordinating strategy and acting
as a liaison between rank and file Members and the leadership.

At the 2005 Armenian Genocide Commemoration event on Capitol Hill,
Rep. Cantor stated, "April 24th marks the anniversary of one of the
most horrible tragedies of the 20th century, the genocide that was
committed against the Armenian people by the Ottoman Empire. Over
the years many Armenian-Americans have helped to enrich and enhance
our Nation’s character; we have remained committed to peace in the
region and will continue to help Armenia with its economic prosperity
and strengthening of its democracy."

Minority Whip Cantor replaces outgoing Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO), who
voted against H.Res. 106 in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs
in October of 2007.

Armenian Caucus Member and H.Res. 106 cosponor, Representative
Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), will also serve in the House Republican
leadership. Rep.

McCotter was re-elected as Chairman of the Republican Policy
Committee. In this role, McCotter will be responsible in crafting
winning policies that can help the Republicans regain control of the
House, which they lost in 2006.

In addition to cosponsoring H.Res. 106, McCotter also supported
H..Res.102, honoring the life and legacy of slain Turkish-Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink and calling for the repeal of Article 301
of Turkey’s Penal Code that effectively punishes discussion of the
Armenian Genocide.

Representative Cathy McMorris (R-WA), cosponsor of the H.Res.106
and cosigner of the 2006 Armenian Genocide letter, will serve as
Republican Conference Vice-Chair.

Rounding out the other posts, Representative John Boehner (R-OH) won
re-election as Republican Leader and followed the Administration’s
opposition to H.Res. 106; Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), who voted against
H.Res.

106 in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, will serve as Republican
Conference Chairman; Rep. John Carter (R-TX) will be Republican
Conference Secretary and Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) will serve as
National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman.

"The new Congress and Administration will provide important
opportunities on a wide variety of issues. We look forward to working
with the incoming leadership, and in particular, Armenian Caucus
members and supporters Reps.

Cantor, McCotter and McMorris, especially as we gear up for our March
2009 Advocacy Conference," stated Bryan Ardouny, Executive Director
of the Assembly.

AZERBAIJANI DELEGATION COMES OUT WITH REGULAR ARTIFICIAL ACCUSATIONS TO ARMENIA AT CONFERENCE IN TBILISI

ArmInfo
2008-11-24 13:04:00

ArmInfo. International Conference, dedicated to the issues of
judicial-legal reforms in the South Caucasus countries, was held
in Tbilisi on November 19-20 with participation of delegations from
Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan under the auspices of these countries’
justice ministers. (Azerbaijan was represented by the first deputy
justice minister).

The delegation included representatives of the judicial authority,
the Bar and Prosecutor’s Office. The three countries’ ombudsmen were
also invited to the conference, which was conducted by Council of
Europe deputy Secretary General Maud de Boer-Buquicchio. Each party
at the conference presented a report on the course of implementation
of judicial-legal reforms. The issues of efficiency enhancement
and strengthening of independence of the South Caucasus countries’
judicial system were also discussed. After the conference, Maud de
Boer-Buquicchio met heads of the delegations and discussed some issues
of the prospects of implementation of judicial- legal reforms.

As the Justice Ministry spokeswoman Lana Mshetsyan told ArmInfo,
during the conference, the Azerbaijani party came out with statements
against Armenia and emphasized that "aggression by Armenia hinders the
Azerbaijan authorities to assure supremacy of law at the territory
of the". The Armenian party replied and explained in details that
Azerbaijan is trying to discredit Armenia every time at different
conferences speaking on a template and distorting the facts. Armenia’s
Justice Minister Gevork Danielyan also emphasized that both aggressive
actions and violations of international standards and principles were
made just by Azerbaijan, in particular, mass killing of people by
ethnic signs, disregard of the nation’s right for self-determination,
etc.

Now, he said, when the presidents of both republics take serious
steps on the way of general settlement of the conflict, such methods
of Azerbaijan on artificial aggravation of international relations
confirm that some Azerbaijani forces are not interested in civilized
methods of the problem solution. It was resolved that the statements by
the Azerbaijani delegation will not be included in the final document
of the conference. Only a reference will be made to the Azerbaijani
party’s special opinion. It has been emphasized in this special
opinion that aggression took place in the territory of Azerbaijan
and it rules out assurance of supremacy of the law.

At the suit of G. Danielyan a reference to the special opinion of
Armenia, where the above-mentioned arguments of the Armenian party
were given in details, was also included.

CONFERENCE ON KARABAKH ISSUE HELD IN FRANCE

De Facto
Nov 24, 2008

STEPANAKERT, 24.11.08. DE FACTO. On November 21 a conference entitled
"The Role of the International Law in the Karabakh Conflict Settlement
Process" took place in the mayor’s office of Alforville, one of the
suburbs of Paris, densely-populated with Armenians. The conference was
held by the NKR Permanent Representative in France Hovhannes Gevorgian.

Mayor of Alforville, member of the French Assembly Rene Rouquet,
members of the local self-governing bodies, French deputies,
journalists, and members of the Armenian political and public
organizations, as well as citizens of Alforville participated in
the conference.

During the event, organized with the support of the mayor’s office
of Alforville, a documentary film on Nagorno Karabakh was shown. At
the end of the event Hovhannes Gevorgian presented book entitled
"Artsakh", published by the NKR Permanent Representation in France. DE
FACTO received the information at the NKR MFA Press Office.

Classical CD releases
Stephen Pritchard and Guy Dammann

Sunday November 23 2008
The Observer,UK

Schubert – Lieder Elizabeth Watts (soprano), Roger Vignoles (piano)
(RCA Red Seal 88697 329322) £13.99

Rising star Elizabeth Watts makes her recording debut with this
collection of 20 Schubert songs and immediately makes plain why she is
one of today’s most talked-about young sopranos. Her beautiful,
honey-toned voice, perfect intonation and innate understanding of this
repertoire make this a stand-out CD. She charms with the moonlight of
‘An den Mond’, glows with the sunset of ‘Im Abendrot’ and breaks our
hearts with the sadness of ‘Lambertine’. Roger Vignoles has been
playing these songs for years, yet sounds as fresh as his young
companion, who must surely have a glittering career ahead. SP

Various – Tangos and Fantasies Cadence Ensemble (Signum SIGCD140) £11.99

The land-locked former Soviet nation of Armenia is thousands of miles
from the birthplace of the tango, but the Cadence Ensemble from Yerevan
steams with appropriate Latin passion when it performs the work of
Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla. Under the leadership of pianist
Armen Babakhanian, they play Piazzolla’s wildly infectious music with
style and hauteur and introduce us to more tangos by lesser-known
masters (including an Armenian) before winding up with a delightful
arrangement of themes from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess. Refreshingly
different. SP
=0
A
Beethoven – The Five Piano Concertos Mikhail Pletnev (piano), Russian
National Orchestra/ Gansch (DG 477 7575 – 5CDs) £27.99

Listening to Mikhail Pletnev in a bad mood can be infuriating,
especially when he rips to shreds beloved pre-impressions of well-known
works. Lucky then that he is so attuned to the burning lust for life of
Beethoven’s middle period that bad moods are impossible. Recorded live
at the 2006 Beethovenfest, the Russian National Orchestra shows the
same dark fire as in the recent symphony recordings and Pletnev
dazzles, delights and – most important – convinces totally. GD

IN GALUST SAHAKIAN’S OPINION, IF THERE WERE SNIPERS ON MARCH 1, THEY ACTED ON OPPOSITION’S PART

Noyan Tapan

Nov 21, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. "I think the people, who
created the March 1 situation, who wanted to seize the power by
the non-constitutional way, had snipers, if there were such." Galust
Sahakian, the head of the RA NA RPA faction, stated at the November 21
press conference commenting upon the recording spread by the opposition
on November 20, according to which faction Secretary Samvel Nikoyan
confirms that the Police used a sniper on March 1.

According to G. Sahakian, it was not beneficial for the authorities
to use snipers during the March 1 events: the authorities called for
consolidation, and some people tried to settle some issues inside the
country. He affirmed that the March 1 events were ruled by foreign
forces, which wanted to see Armenia as a semi-state.

Touching upon temporary stopping of opposition rallies, G. Sahakian
said that this decision of the opposition is positive for supporting
the authorities in the issue of negotiations over the Nagorno Karabakh
settlement. According to him, opposition’s silence also means that
the latters agree to the approach adopted by the authorities over
the problem settlement. "The authorities were able to present to
the international community that irrespective of anything everybody
holds the same opinion over the Nagorno Karabakh problem in Armenia,"
G. Sahakian said.

APPROACHES OF ARMENIA AND KARABAKH TO ISSUE OF KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT WERE AND REMAIN DIFFERENT, VAHRAM ATANESIAN SAYS

Noyan Tapan

Nov 21, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. The political discussions on the
Karabakh problem, which have been launched in Armenia, have no relation
to the discussions held in Karabakh since May, the chairman of the
Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s National Assembly Standing Committee
of Foreign Relations Vahram Atanesian said at the November 21 press
conference. Assessing positively the discussions with various political
forces that the Armenian president initiated, he at the same time noted
that the NKR president started holding such discussions earlier and
they have regular character. It was stated that there is only one issue
– the issue of international recognition of the NKR – on the agenda
of the discussions held in Karabakh. The discussions are continuing
and the political forces will come to a common conclusion by late 2008.

V. Atanesian expressed an apprehension that the discussions organized
in Armenia may create an impression for the outside world that the
country’s society lacks a united approach to solution of the Karabakh
problem.

Whereas, they in the NKR have a clear idea about the way of solving
the problem, as well as what kind of agreement should be signed and
how it should be implemented. The Karabak side’s formula of solving
the problem is the international recognition of the NKR within the
borders acceptable to the republic’s population and under conditions
of supremacy of national security.

According to V. Atanesian, the approaches of Armenia and Karabakh to
the conflict’s settlement were and remain different. For example, the
territorial issue cannot be an agenda issue for Nagorno Karabakh today,
and it is one of the differences. In response to the question about
whether it is possible that at some moment of negotiations Armenia
will start being guided by its own interests, he replied that no
decision can be imposed on Karabakh.

V. Atanesian said that the Mayendorf Declaration signed by the
presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia is not a document
that predetermines the Karabakh conflict’s settlement. He expressed
confidence that if ever such a document is signed, it will without
fail bear the signature of the Karabakh side.

V. Atanesian does not consider Karabakh’s participation in negotiations
in 1994-1997 as effective because the then foreign minister of the NKR
had to sit at the negotiation table together with the representative of
the Azerbaijani community. Today when the NKR is a successful state,
it is unacceptable to participate in negotiations in this format. At
the same time he reminded that in those years the presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan regularly met, and the real negotiations on
the problem were conducted between them.

In the opinion of V. Atanesian, no immediate solution to the Karabakh
problem should be expected. He considered the latest visit of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs as one of the visits envisaged by the schedule.

TOOMAS HENDRIK ILVES: ESTONIA WILL SUPPORT ARMENIA THROUGH IMPLEMENTATION OF JOINT PROJECTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
21.11.2008 17:59 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met
in Tallinn with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves to discuss
bilateral relations and the situation in the South Caucasus.

"Being a member of the European Union, Estonia strands for secure and
stable Caucasus and peaceful resolution of regional conflicts," the
Estonian President said, adding that his country will support Armenia
through implementation of joint projects, novosti.err.ee reports.

TURKISH FM SAYS NEW CLIMATE IN CAUCASUS TO SOLVE DISPUTES

Hurriyet
Nov 20 2008
Turkey

There is new climate in the Caucasus to solve the ongoing disputes,
Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said Thursday.

"There is a new environment in the region to solve ongoing
disputes. This is a significant opportunity we should well-assess,"
he told a joint news conference with Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu
after their meeting in Ankara.

Babacan said Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian would visit
Istanbul on Nov. 24 and that they would meet over dinner on the
same night.

"Our goal in the Turkey-Armenia dialogue process is full
normalization. However, we need to take mutual steps to reach that
point," Babacan said.

"On the other hand, the talks in the region have two separate
lines. One of them is between Turkey and Armenia, and the other between
Azerbaijan and Armenia. Tripartite meetings will take place from time
to time to secure coordination between these two separate lines,"
he added.

There is no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey over
Armenia’s aggression toward Azerbaijan. But a warmer period began
between Turkey and Armenia after Gul paid a landmark visit to Armenia
early September.

Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders met in Moscow earlier this month
and signed a declaration calling for a "peaceful resolution" to
their dispute over the province of Nagorno-Karabakh on the basis of
"binding international guarantees", taking a step further towards
resolution of the conflict.

The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in 1988 on Armenian
territorial claims over Azerbaijan.

Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20 percent of
Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven
surrounding districts, displacing 10 percent of the Azeri population
in the series of bloody clashes both between and within the two
neighboring countries.

In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which
time the active hostilities ended. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group are currently holding peaceful negotiations. Nearly 30,000 were
killed in the 1990s war over the enclave and soldiers on both sides
continue to exchange sporadic fire, claiming lives.