Author: Torgomian Varazdat

Back to the future in the Caspian corridor
Russia’s attempts to re-establish its Soviet-era spheres of influence
seem to have caught the US on the hop

Simon Tisdall
guardian.co.uk,
Thursday October 30 2008 16.30 GMT

Russia’s efforts to control oil and gas supplies to Europe from the
Caspian basin and central Asia could advance significantly at the
weekend when the Kremlin hosts a summit meeting of the leaders of
long-time south Caucasus rivals Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The talks, convened by President Dmitri Medvedev, are primarily aimed
at settling the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh, one of the region’s
so-called frozen conflicts. In the early 1990s the two neighbours went
to war over the enclave, which Azerbaijan regards as sovereign
territory and which is currently controlled by ethnic Armenian forces.

Russia’s altruism should obviously be applauded. But Moscow’s
peacemakers are probably more concerned with increasing their political
and economic influence in the crucial energy corridor connecting Baku,
Azerbaijan’s capital, with Georgia, Turkey and the west. This effort is
seen by some regional experts as part of Russia’s broader attempt to
re-establish Soviet era spheres of influence beyond its borders.

The Kremlin has been tirelessly wooing Azerbaijan’s Moscow-educated
president, Ilham Aliyev. Earlier this year Gazprom, the Russian gas
monopoly, informed Azerbaijan as well as Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and
Kazakhstan that it was ready to pay higher European market prices for
their gas.

The offer stripped away much of the economic rationale for the proposed
US and EU-backed Nabucco pipeline that, if built, would transport gas
direct to Europe from the Caspian. It would also reduce producer
countries’ transit costs.

"Some experts in Baku believe the Gazprom gambit will be successful in
achieving its main aim – to frustrate American and EU efforts to
establish an alternative export network that would circumvent Russia,"
said industry writer Khadija Ismayilova on Eurasianet.org.

Russia’s summer conflict with Georgia, though which key oil and gas
pipelines to Turkey pass, and Europe’s vacillating response have also
left Azerbaijan reconsidering its westward-leaning stance. After the
Soviet Union’s collapse, Baku pursued links with the EU, encouraged
investment by companies such as BP, and built ties to Nato.

But resentment about recent western neglect, particularly by the US,
coupled with concerns about its reassertive northern neighbour and the
impasse over Nagorno-Karabakh, is enticing Azerbaijan towards a
Russian-dominated "Eurasian" sphere, said regional experts Borut Grgic
and Alexandros Petersen in the Wall Street Journal.

"Azerbaijanis were disappointed by the west’s reaction to events in
Georgia and the growing inclination in many European capitals to
capitulate to Russia in the broader Black Sea region," they said. "Now
Moscow, a long-time friend of Armenia in the Karabakh conflict, has
begun quietly supporting Azerbaijan’s position in the hopes of securing
a deal for all of [its] available natural gas exports.

"In the absence of incentives or even attention from the west, Baku is
seriously considering a major foreign policy reversal." And if the
shift into Russia’s camp came about, Grgic and Petersen warned, a
"strategic chunk" of central Asia would likely follow suit.

Russia is working hard to keep Armenia on board, too. Medvedev went to
Yerevan earlier this month and signed a sheaf of cooperation
agreements. After meeting President Serge Sarkisian, the Russian leader
said talks on settling Nagorno-Karabakh were at "an advanced stage".

Russia’s diplomatic and economic offensive in the south Caucasus has
not gone wholly unanswered. Turkey, with its own energy and security
interests at stake, is in effect leading western mediation efforts over
Nagorno-Karabakh – though getting little credit for it. President
Abdullah Gul made a landmark visit to Armenia earlier this year in a
bid to mend fences with an historic enemy. US envoys have also joined
the fray.

But western attempts to stay in the game are hampered by factors
ranging from the absence of common EU policies on Caspian energy, the
south Caucasus conflicts and Turkey to the US Congress’s lopsided
grandstanding on the Armenian genocide and the political transition in
Washington. Criticism of Azerbaijan over human rights and this month’s
presidential election, won by Aliyev by a suspiciously large margin
amid an opposition boycott, is also something Baku does not have to put
up with from Moscow.

Alarmed that the regional balance is shifting, the US vice-president
and former oilman Dick Cheney dashed to Baku in September after
visiting Georgia. He did not stay long and it is unclear what, if
anything, he achieved. No sooner had Aliyev bidden Cheney goodbye than
he flew to Moscow for consultations. It was a good indicator of where
the power lies.

Cheney’s sudden appearance prompted wry questions in Baku about why it
took him eight years to make the trip. It also left some observers
suggesting the Bush administration has already "lost the Caspian" – and
only just realised.

AT LEAST WE’LL GET TO SASUN AND ENTER VAN

Lragir.am
15:21:04 – 31/10/2008

The deputy speaker of Parliament Hrair Karapetyan, member of the
ARF Dashnaktsutyun, stated October 31 that the Azerbaijani army is
not stronger than our army, our army is effective, and if Azerbaijan
launches a war, it should be mindful that this time Armenia may advance
so as to set up land communication with Russia. No doubt, Hrair
Karapetyan means that our force may reach the Azerbaijani-Russian
border and take it under control. Besides, Hrair Karapetyan also
said that when facing the danger of war our society should not fly
into a panic and take the defensive side but know that we are able
to solve greater problems, including not only our military but also
economic security, getting an outlet to the sea to solve the problem
of lifting the blockade, getting new territories.

Hrair Karapetyan said "we gave a chance to Turkey and Azerbaijan
with the football diplomacy, which was not used, however." In answer
to Hrair Karapetyan’s statements that we will be able to achieve a
major goal in the form of having border with Russia and an outlet to
the sea, the reporters asked what in that case we are waiting for,
and why we do not start solving our problems, since they will not
get solved unless someone declares a war on us.

"No, I am not joking. Let us remember now, who would think before the
liberation war in Artsakh that Artsakh and the adjacent territories
would be Armenian? Only the members of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun, their
supporters or people with national mindset. And who can guarantee
that in five or ten years what I said plus the rest of Armenia will
not come true," Hrair Karapetyan says. The reporters noted that this
is why they are saying that maybe it is time we launched the war and
solved problems.

"No, you see, we did not launch the war in Artsakh. We defended
ourselves, we launched a national liberation movement. Azerbaijan
attacked," Hrair Karapetyan says. "Azerbaijan attacked. We cannot
be an aggressor because this situation favors us. If it is set down
internationally, if this situation is set down, it fully favors us
in terms of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. But we
must also respond to those militaristic statements for our people to
realize that we are able to advance if the rival tries to exterminate
Armenians in Armenia. And by saying Armenia I mean Karabakh. And the
experience of Georgia should also be taken into account, today the
international situation is such that the aggressor loses," said the
member of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun.

GROWING AZERI DEFENSE BUDGET BUILD-UP – IN EARNEST OR FOR SHOW?
By John C. K. Daly

Eurasia Daily Monitor
le_id=2373496
Oct 31 2008
DC

Last August the long-frozen conflict between Georgia and Russia
suddenly defrosted, erupting in a bitter, five-day military clash. Now
a sudden rise in defense spending by Azerbaijan may be a seismic
precursor to a possible thawing of a second unresolved Caucasian
conflict, the standoff between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

After a careful study of defense spending, 525-IA Gazeta concluded that
next year Azerbaijan’s military budget would increase by 343 million
manats ($424 million) over its 2008 level, a 24.8 percent increase
in a single year (Informatsionnoe agentstvo Regnum, October 28).

Nor is this a one-time occurrence. Surging on a sea of rising
oil revenue, next year’s increase is modest compared to previous
years. Baku has poured a substantial amount of its new-found
petrodollars into its defense budget, which has increased by more than
1,000 percent over the past five years, an investment of $4.5 billion
(ANS-PRESS, October 29). The massive increase in military spending is
raising regional concerns that Azeri President Ilham Aliyev, fresh
from his victory in the presidential elections earlier this month,
will be in an enhanced position militarily to recover territories lost
during the harsh 1988-1994 war over the disputed Karabakh enclave,
previously administered by Baku.

By May of 1994, when Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire
ending active hostilities, thousands were dead, with hundreds of
thousands of refugees on both sides. Most galling for Azerbaijan,
Armenian Armed Forces were left occupying swaths of Azeri territory,
including Karabakh and seven neighboring districts.

As dark as 1994 looked in military terms, thanks to the efforts of
the current president’s father the year would provide the basis for
the dynamic surge of the Azeri economy over the next decade and a
half. The year that ceasefire was signed Azerbaijan’s then-President
Gaidar Aliyev signed the "Contract of the Century," a $7.4 billion
production-sharing agreement with Western oil companies to develop
Azerbaijan’s Caspian Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli fields. Three years later
the Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline opened to export Azeri oil from the
Black Sea to Western markets, but initial throughput was limited to
40,000 barrels per day (bpd). In 1999 Baku’s export options broadened
with the opening of the $600 million, 515-mile-long Baku-Supsa 100,000
bpd pipeline.

In May 2006, when the $3.6 billion, 1,092-mile-long million bpd
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline came online, Azerbaijan was able
to cut itself adrift from Russia’s pipeline monopoly. The BTC was
the culmination of Washington’s dream of a Caspian export route that
bypassed both Russia and Iran.

The surge in oil revenues is fueling Azerbaijan’s $21 billion economy,
the fastest growing economy in the world, currently expanding at
more than triple the rate of China’s. Last year the International
Monetary Fund pegged its growth rate at 29 percent, while the CIA
estimated that Azerbaijan’s GDP grew by 31 percent, more than twice
Armenia’s 13.7 percent growth rate. Since 2004 Azerbaijan’s state
budget has quadrupled and its economic planners have won praise from
the international financial community for establishing a State Oil
Fund to invest a large portion of oil revenues for the benefit of
future generations (UPI, June 12). Now a significant portion of the
revenue is being diverted to the military.

Aliyev has not hidden his consideration of possibly using his new
military might to redress the country’s territorial losses. On June
26 a military parade commemorating the 90th anniversary of the Armed
Forces of Azerbaijan was held in Baku’s Azadliq Square. Addressing
the crowd, Aliyev discussed the military spending increases and said,
"Some of the international community is concerned about this issue. But
I want to point out that the costs have increased not only in the
military but also in other areas. In five years Azerbaijan’s (state)
budget has (also) grown by 10 times." After placing the military
expenditures in context he added, and not as an afterthought, "Also, do
not forget that the war is not over, only its first phase is completed"
(Ekho, No. 115(1837), June 28). The proposed military spending,
while onerous, would not unduly drain the Azeri economy. On September
4 the State Oil Fund of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOFAZ) announced
that its funds had reached $10.21 billion ().

Those seeking to read inevitably bellicose intentions into the buildup
of Azeri military capabilities may be missing the point, however. At
the parade Aliyev directly addressed the military’s usefulness in
diplomacy by observing, "A mighty army increases its capacity to
influence negotiations. We want to restore justice!"

Aliyev again addressed the issue of the country’s military expenditures
on October 14, when he said, "Living in the midst of war, we must first
strengthen our military potential… This is our sovereign right. In
doing so, Azerbaijan will continue its policy of isolating Armenia
until it ends its occupation of Azerbaijani lands" (Fineko, ,
October 14). Putting the military expenditures into perspective,
Aliyev later noted, "$44 billion has been invested in the economy of
Azerbaijan in the past five years, which accounts for 77 percent of
the overall amount of investment the republic has received since it
gained independence. Azerbaijan is attractive for foreign investors"
(Interfax, October 24).

It is this last statement that is perhaps the key to Baku’s policy. The
August five-day conflict between Russia and Georgia was very costly to
Azerbaijan; while it suffered no physical damage within its borders,
the explosion on the BTC pipeline two days before hostilities broke
out and the subsequent closure of Baku-Supsa by its operator BP saw
Azerbaijan lose more than $1 billion in oil revenue (UPI, October
15). For Azerbaijan, military action against Armenia could quickly
entail far higher losses. But the military saber-rattling and the
increased defense spending could actually be intended to stimulate
European consuming nations to redouble their efforts to find a
diplomatic resolution to the impasse.

Baku can also look forward to a new administration in Washington
amenable to fresh diplomatic initiatives. In a largely forgotten
American diplomatic initiative, Washington’s interest in resolving the
stalemate in April 2001 led the new administration of U.S. President
George W. Bush to convene a diplomatic summit in Key West under
OSCE auspices between Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and Azeri
President Gaidar Aliyev; but the talks went nowhere. Change, however,
is in the air; and Azeri oil is a far greater player in the global
economy than it was seven years ago.

In attempting to resolve his country’s 13 year-old dispute with
Armenia, Aliyev seems to have taken a leaf out of the book of John
McCain’s hero, Theodore Roosevelt, speaking softly while acquiring a
bigger stick. If he finally decides to use it, then he has already had
a foretaste of the shock that will accompany the loss of Azerbaijan’s
oil revenues.

ARMENIA HIGHLIGHTS DEVELOPMENT OF RELATIONS WITH EU

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.10.2008 20:10 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met today with EU
Envoy for South Caucasus Peter Semneby to discuss regional processes,
Armenian-Turkish relations and the Karabkh process, the RA leader’s
press office reported.

"Armenia highlights relations with the European Union and hopes for
further cooperation," the RA President said.

For his part, Mr. Semneby noted that the coming visit of the Armenian
President to Brussels will offer a possibility to assess the Armenia-EU
relations and outline the cooperation agenda.

Touching on the Karabakh problem, President Sargsyan stated that the
only format for the conflict resolution is the OSCE Minsk Group and
its Co-chairs.

The EU Envoy welcomed Armenia’s initiatives to normalize relations
with Turley and said that the EU is willing to help normalization of
relations between Armenia and Turkey.

He also appreciated highly formation of an expert group for
investigation of the March 1 events.

AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383, x118
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:

PRESS RELEASE

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Masterful Production of Dikran Tchouhadjian’s "Zemire" Completes Trilogy
of 19th-Century Composer’s Works

Over 5,000 Southland Armenians Attend Three Performances

The weekend of May 30-June 2, 2008 will long stand out in the memory of
Southern California Armenians as the three-day period when the AGBU
Ardavazt Theater Company and the Lark Musical Society collaborated for
the third time to present the comic operetta "Zemire" by Dikran
Tchouhadjian at the 3000-seat Pasadena Civic Auditorium. This
collaboration resulted from the joint vision and talent of Ardavazt
director Krikor Satamian and Lark conductor Vatsche Barsoumian (who also
wrote the score), who, according to the Nor Gyank Armenian newspaper of
Los Angeles, "added new laurels to the ones already gained from their
two previous collaborations." The operetta was originally written in
1890 and had languished in obscurity for over a century before the
recent California revival.

In "Zemire," a love story based on an Arabian Nights motif, tribal
custom clashes against true love, with the latter triumphing in the end
(aided by fountain water turned into a love elixir). Although the story
took place in the 13th century in the Hijaz region of what is today
Saudi Arabia, the scene of the action was shifted to Persia by the
above-mentioned creative team.

This was the first modern production of "Zemire" in four acts, since its
inaugural French-language performance in Constantinople in 1891
(libretto in Turkish by Dikran Kalemjian), in a completely new Armenian
translation from four languages (Turkish, French, Italian and Russian)
by Maestro Barsoumian, inasmuch as the original manuscript’s whereabouts
were not known until recently. Armenian productions of two of
Tchouhadjian’s three other operettas, "Zvart" and "Leblebiji Hor-Hor
Agha," were previously introduced to Southern Californian Armenian
audiences in 2003 and 2004. Tchouhadjian had turned to the genre of
operetta in the 1870’s after composing the first Armenian opera, "Arshag
II," which was patterned after European opera.

Dikran Tchouhadjian, the founder of Armenian – and Turkish – opera, is
considered one of the giants of Armenian music, along with Komitas,
Alexander Spendiarian and Aram Khachaturian. He was the first Armenian
composer to introduce professionalism into the composition and
performance of Armenian music. Although Tchouhadjian lived under the
unfavorable conditions of Ottoman Turkey, he waged a courageous struggle
for the development of Armenian national culture; actively participated
in the Armenian Musical Association of Constantinople, musical
monthlies, the formation of a symphony orchestra, as well as the
founding and subsequent activity of musical-theatrical groups.

Considered to be a highly artistic work, this performance of "Zemire"
involved the participation of not only the 50-member Lark Chorus, 15
members of the Ardavazt Theater Company, 20 dancers, and a 60-member
Pasadena Symphony Orchestra, but also such prominent and talented
soloists as mezzo-soprano Shoushik Barsoumian (in the role of Suheile),
mezzo-soprano Anahid Halabi (Mediha), baritone Artashes Hayriyan (Grand
Wizard Ebudia), baritone Bakur Kalantaryan (Benezar), contralto Shoghig
Koushakjian (Rebia),soprano Ani Maldjian (Zemire), tenor Suren
Mkrtichian (El Santur), tenor Heibert Sarian (Nadare), bass Rafael
Telunts (Ebulgana) and baritone Ruben Telunts (Atalmuk).

Sona Avetisyan was the choreographer; Felix Yeghiazarian created the set
concepts; Raffi Musakhanyan was the scenic artist and executor; singer
Anahid Halabi doubled as the costume designer; Sevag Bekmezian was
responsible for the lighting design; Nazareth Achabahian and Andrea
Wiersma did the makeup. Sylva Manoogian and Armen Aroyan created the
English-language text that was shown on the screen during the
performances.

Several months in advance, seven committees, including public relations,
protocol, advertising and design, technical, accounting and tickets,
fundraising, logistics and support, and several other auxiliary groups,
were formed in order to successfully mount this lavish production, which
cost over $350,000. Co-chairmen of the executive committee were Steve
Azadian and Samuel Ilandjian, former president of Ardavazt and the man
who decided to bring Lark Conservatory and AGBU together to produce the
operetta.

The fundraising committee, in particular, managed to collect a
significant amount of donations to mount the production: almost
one-third was generated through ticket sales; the Jack Munushian
Charitable Trust and Mr. and Mrs. Jerry and Pat Turpanjian, TF
Foundation, each gave $50,000; approximately $100,000 was collected from
sponsors, donors, contributors, supporters and friends.

Pre- and post-event publicity regarding "Zemire" represented the most
extensive campaign mounted in the United States for a cultural event,
since the San Francisco Opera’s production of "Arshak II" in 2002. At
least a dozen most favorable reviews, in addition to letters to the
editor, appeared in the Armenian- and English-language press, in which
the production was described in the following words: "impeccable" (The
Armenian Observer, June 4, 2008)… "not a gold but a diamond page was
added to the rich history of Armenian culture in Los Angeles"…
"acting, singing, instrumental music, and a marvelous harmony of
costumes paraded before our eyes, demonstrating a stupendous degree of
organization" (Nor Or, June 7, 2008); "a professional production with
all the necessary details" (letter, The Armenian Observer, June 11,
2008).

The following is a sampling of opinions from reviews of "Zemire" in the
Armenian American press:

"The other performances which are given on practically a weekly basis in
Los Angeles aren’t to be compared with ‘Zemire,’ which was different in
terms of quality, visual presentation, color and the courage to mount
such a production." (Kevork Bedigian, "Mdorumner ‘Zemire"n Vayelelov
[Contemplations While Enjoying "Zemire"], Asbarez, June 7, 2008).

"We were literally transported into a magical world… The presentation
of ‘Zemire’ was in almost no way inferior to the productions of European
or American professional outfits." (Haroutiun Saghrian, "Zemire,"
Massis, June 7, 2008).

"Soprano Ani Maldjian played Zemire, and her uncompromising talent stole
the show, her mastery of the vocals commanding the audience’s
attention…When watching tenor Suren Lazarian, one can’t help but be
reminded of a young Pavarotti, as if Lazarian were channeling the
legendary singer." (Armine Iknadossian, "Zemire Concludes Tchouhadjian
Series," The Armenian Reporter Arts & Culture, June 14, 2008).

"The applause and exclamations of admiration from the standing audience,
which lasted for five minutes, were the best expression and appreciation
of the satisfaction and warm feelings of the 1,500 attendees." (Sarkis
Majarian, "’Zemire’ – Barzabess Skancheli" ["Zemire" — Simply
Magnificent], Nor Hayastan/New Armenia, June 3, 2008; Nor Or, June 14,
2008).

"I wonder if Tchouhadjian could have imagined that it would take all of
120 years for his ‘Zemire’ to shine, during the days of whose creation,
in abject poverty, he had to pawn off all his manuscripts, even his
watch, and then he departed from this earth." (Ankine
Keshishian-Mouradian, "Tchouhadjiani ‘Zemire’n Veragentanatsav"
[Tchouhadjian’s "Zemire" Was Revived], Nor Gyank, June 12, 2008; Nor
Hayastan/New Armenia, June 17, 2008)

"While watching this performance, I became filled with admiration on
various occasions but the main thing is that throughout the performance,
a feeling of amazement remained with me over Tchouhadjian’s having
penetrated the depths of the operatic genre and his immense experience
and skill in mastering that." (Composer Tigran Mansurian, "Grarumner
Tchouhadjiani ‘Zemire’yi Artiv" [Jottings on the Occasion of
Tchouhadjian’s ‘Zemire], Massis, June 28, 2008; "Khenkarkumi
Tsuntsutiun. 117 Tarva Undmidjumits Heto Los Angelesum Bemadrvets T.
Tchouhadjiani ‘Zemire’ Operan [Exultation of Flattery: T. Tchouhadjian’s
"Zemire" Is Staged after a 117-year Interruption], Nor Gyank, July 17
and 24, 2008).

Karine Ter Grigorian, in her article entitled "’Zemireyi Yeluytits Heto"
[After the Production of "Zemire"] (Asbarez, June 19, 2008), gives a
sampling of attendee reaction: "the beauty of the music gradually became
apparent (Dikran Arpiarian)"; "there was unanimity about the splendor
and magnificence of the sets." The author mentions that one viewer said,
"Such a thing could only be done in Armenia," then points out that the
roles have now been reversed, due to the emigration of artists and the
conditions in the homeland. The author concludes her article by pointing
out the historical impact of the production: "The aim of this production
was to prevent ‘Zemire,’ which had been rendered into oblivion, from
getting permanently lost, 117 years after it was written…Another 117
years from now, the historical record will contain the line: ‘In 2008,
‘Zemire’ was presented in Los Angeles by Lark Musical Society and AGBU
Ardavazt Theater Company.’"

Founded in 1979, the AGBU Ardavazt Theater Company is the only full-time
Armenian theater company serving the LA community. The ATC was named
after Ardavazt II, king of Armenia during the first century B.C.
Ardavazt was considered a champion and supporter of the theater arts.
Ardavazt has performed in many cities across North America, including
Boston, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Montreal and Toronto. For more
information about AGBU and its cultural programs, visit AGBU online at

PRESS RELEASE
"YERKIR", UNION OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS FOR REPATRIATION AND
SETTLEMENT
12 Sayat-Nova ave., apt. 4, Yerevan, Armenia

Contact: Robert Tatoyan,
Tel. +(374 10) 46 48 28
+(374 94) 36 17 93
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

October 24, 2008
Yerevan, Armenia

THE NEW FACTS OF VIOLATION OF ARMENIAN MINORITY RIGHTS BY THE GEORGIAN
AUTHORITIES

Despite international obligations assumed by the Georgian government for
the protection of the rights of ethnic minorities in Georgia, despite
numerous recommendations and appeals by international organizations,
including the UN Human rights commission and human rights NGO-s to respect
these obligations, the Georgian authorities continue to ignore and disregard
issues of concern to the Armenian minority, contributing moreover, by a
number of new steps, to the aggravation of tensions and the increase of
discontent.

Within this context, the Georgian authorities have not only continued to
disregard repeated demands by the Georgian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic
Church asking to be handed over Armenian churches of Georgia and
particularly the Norashen church in Tbilisi, confiscated in the soviet era,
but have also tacitly encouraged and sometimes even actively helped hostile
actions on behalf of the Georgian clergy which is actively embarked for a
certain time now in the process of self-appropriation of the Armenian
churches in Georgia. In this line of action, the Georgian authorities
recently provided once again construction permits to the clergy of the
Georgian church neighboring Norashen, allowing it to build around Norashen a
surrounding wall carrying Georgian religious ornaments, considerably
complicating in this way the access to the Armenian church.

Due to protest actions of the Armenian community of Tbilisi and to appeals
emanating from Armenian Apostolic Church authorities, several Armenian NGOs,
including "Yerkir" Organization, it was possible to temporarily halt in May
of the current year the hostile activities of Georgian priests, but
construction works around the Armenian Norashen church resumed on a wide
scale a few days ago (see attached photos).

In addition to this hostile policy towards the Armenian Apostolic Church in
Georgia, while dealing with the Armenian minority in their country,
Georgian authorities continue to violate basic international human rights’
and democratic norms pertaining to this field. Thus, among other
shortcomings within this context, they continue to maintain
politically-motivated criminal charges against the political activists of
the Armenian populated Javakheti region and their family members, lately
arrested and imprisoned without real foundations.

Thus, Arthur Poghosyan, an activist of the political movement "Democratic
Alliance "United Javakhk", was recently sentenced to 2.5 years of
imprisonment on the basis of fabricated charges. Another activist of the
movement, Gurgen Shirinyan, has a search warrant issued against him by the
authorities, while his father and aunt are detained and waiting trial. The
leader of "United Javakhk", Vahagn Chakahlyan, in turn, as well as his
juvenile brother, are also in detention in Tbilisi, while their father,
Rouben Chakhalyan, has been set free on bail.

Other issues which are a matter of concern for the Armenian minority still
remain unresolved:
– the Armenian Apostolic Church continues to be deprived of a status of
legal entity;
– the Armenian Minority in Georgia, particularly the part of it living
compactly in the Javakheti region, continues to be under-represented in all
spheres of public life;
– the Georgian central Government continues to enforce the laws obliging
minorities to use exclusively the Georgian language in all fields of public
activity, and particularly in the local administrations and local
educational system within the context of regional self-government.
– posts in the local administration, educational sphere or any other post
for the holders of professional diplomas continue to be contingent on the
knowledge of the Georgian language.

Under the actual circumstances, while Georgia is still recovering with
difficulty from the consequences of the recent armed conflict with Russia
and is announcing the launching of a wave of democratization reforms and the
enforcement of the rule of law, such a treatment by the Georgian authorities
of its Armenian minority looks in fact much more irrational.

Taking into consideration the above mentioned facts, "Yerkir" Union calls
upon the appropriate and specialized structures of the United Nations, the
European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the
Council of Europe, as well as of all other concerned international
organizations and human rights bodies, to take immediate and direct measures
to restrain Georgia’s negative current behavior against its Armenian
minority, to put an end to the political persecutions in Javakheti, and to
facilitate the emergence of a solution for the Armenian community of
Georgia, as far as its minority rights are the issue, and in particular, to
ensure this result by obtaining from the Georgian authorities to:
1.. Set free all political prisoners recently detained in Javakheti and
withdraw all politically motivated criminal charges against them;
2.. Implement the rule of law and guarantee the security of the Armenian
population of Javakheti;
3.. Ensure the freedom of faith in the country and register the Armenian
Apostolic Church as a legal entity in Georgia;
4.. Return all confiscated places of worship to their legitimate owners;
5.. Allow by law the use of the Armenian language in all spheres of public
life in the local administrations of all regions where Armenians represent a
majority.

The international community must act now to avoid further aggravation of the
situation and prevent the emergence of a new seat of conflict.

24 BASE STATIONS OF KOMSTAR OTS’ WiMAX NETWORK PUT INTO OPERATION IN ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
Oct 22, 2008

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 22, NOYAN TAPAN. Komstar-OTS OJSC (Russia) and its
Armenian subsidiary Cornet-AM company have launched a WiMAX network
of 24 base stations that covers Yerevan (6 stations) and another 18
cities in Armenia, the president of Komstar-OTS Sergei Pridantsev
and the director general of Cornet-AM Boris Demirkhanian announced
at a joint press conference on October 21.

According to S. Pridantsev, this is the first network in the world
to be completely built based on WiMAX technologies. It covers an area
where 60% of Armenia’s population lives.

B. Demirkhanian said that it is envisaged increasing the number
of stations to 40 in order to expand the area covered by the
network. Investments of 4.6 million dollars have been made in the
construction of the currently operating network. The amount of
future investments will be determined based on the results of the
network’s operation in 2008 and the development tendencies of Armenian
telecommunication market. The base stations of the network are linked
to each other by fiber-optic and radio relay lines which are either
rented lines or Komstar OTS’s own ones. Komstar-OTS conducts a policy
of ensuring similarity of the prices of services provided in Armenia.

Komstar OTS’s network in Armenia enables to deliver complex services:
digital phone connection, conference connection, and organization
of corporate networks. The company currently offers its services to
corporate users, but it has the strategic goal of servicing private
users as well.

The director general of Cornet-AM informed those present that the
company currently has more than 600 subscribers and over 1,000
connection points that ensure the connection of their services. The
company plans to increase the number of subscribers by at least
400 until late 2008. S. Pridantsev pointed out the development
disproportion between the capital city and marzes (provinces) from
the viewpoint of Internet access. Only 4% of the country’s population
has an Internet access now. In his opinion, taking into account the
fact that "the region is developing normally, the level of access may
reach at least the current level of fixed-line phone connection access
which is over 20%". The matter concerns broadband Internet access.

In the words of B. Demirkhanian, in the summer of 2008, Cornet-AM
submitted a bid to the RA Public Services Regulatory Commission with
the request to receive permission for provision of fixed-line phone
services for 60 thousand phone numbers.

It is noteworthy that Komstar-OTS is the biggest operator of fixed-line
phone communication in Moscow. Using the base network of fixed-line
communication, it provides phone, data transfer, Internet access,
digital television and other services to retail operators, corporate
customers and private users. In addition to the indicated base
network, a WiMAX network will be launched soon. The ultimate users
of the company’s services provided by fixed phone lines make up 97%
of Moscow households. Besides, the company provides telecommunication
services in 67 cities in five okrugs (regions) of Russia, as well as
in Ukraine. Komstar-OTS is likely to enter Kazakhstan’s market as well.

ICON COMMUNICATIONS PLANS TO COVER ARMENIA WITH ITS WIMAX NETWORK IN 2010

Noyan Tapan
Oct 21, 2008

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. iCon Communications company, which
was registered in Armenia in late 2007, plans to start operating in
January 2009 and provide Internet services by WiMAX technology in
Yerevan starting from April of the same year and througout Armenia
starting from 2010. Through its network, the company will offer
broadband wireless Internet services, Internet phone connection
services, as well as services on construction and operation of separate
corporate virtual networks. Aram Kablanian – the CEO of the company,
the founder of Virage Logic company (U.S), which has an Armenian
subsidiary – stated this at the October 20 press conference.

He said that 4 million dollars has already been invested for the
construction of a wireless network in Yerevan with equipment of
Alcatel-Lucent and Siemens, which will also be used for ensuring a
connection with a speed of up to 20 megabits/sec between the network
and ultimate users. The total amount of investments for the network’s
installation will make about 10 million dollars.

In response to questions of NT correspondent, A. Kablanian said iCON
Communications will use international channels of ArmenTel and Fibernet
as an international access communication line. According to him,
the prices of iCON Communications’ services will be announced after
some additional studies necessary for the determination of the speed
of services to be included in various packages. The company envisages
having 10 thousand users at the end of the first year after starting
the provision of Internet access services. It intends to operate for
all groups of users, also rendering Internet access services by a
prepayment/limitless use scheme and for resale.

Studies conducted by iCON Communications show that although the number
of Internet users in Armenia grew in 2007 by 909% as compared with
2003 and made 172.8 thousand users, the index of users per capita
makes 5.8%, whereas the same index makes 9.8% in Azerbaijan, 7.8%
in Georgia and 21.9% worldwide.

According to the studies, 80% of about 700 private users surveyed use
a dial-up connection when receiving Internet services. 50% of them
use the Internet every day, 60% – at home, 16% – at work, another 16%
– at Internet clubs. They would like the speed of Internet access
services to increase, while connection interruptions and prices
to decline. 24% of about 200 corporate users of the Internet said
that the availability of a second (independent) Internet connection
line is preferable for their organization, while 46% considered it
necessary. The share of organizations having a reserve connection line
does not exceed 30%. Corporate users expect positive changes related
to Internet speed, interruptions of the connection, and prices. In
the opinion of 41% of corporate users, today the prices are not in
line with the quality of services provided.

AZERBAIJAN: ARMY HAZING SCANDAL

Human Rights Tribune
24 October 08
Switzerland

Violence in the Azerbaijani army, from a video posted on You Tube

– Two video-clips posted on the Internet showing brutality in the
ranks of the Azerbaijani army have fueled allegations that hazing is
rife, despite unprecedented increases on spending on the military in
recent years.

Jasur Sumerenli*/IWPR, Baku – Azerbaijani prosecutors have made
arrests and launched an enquiry after two video clips were posted on
Internet showing brutality in the army. They initially denied that
the clips were authentic. In one of the videos, recorded on a mobile
phone, a soldier who has completed most of his military service –
still known in Azerbaijan by the Russian word "dembel" – forces five
younger conscripts into a contest in which they are forced to beat
each other in pairs.

The video shows how one soldier has lost his hearing because of a sharp
blow and is clutching his ears with pain on his face, while another
has a big bruise on his face. The dembel watches them, laughing. The
soldiers’ clothing suggests that all this is happening in a military
hospital or in the medical facility of a military unit.

An earlier clip posted on YouTube on October 4 shows two dembels
savagely beating 20 or 25 new recruits lined up in front of their
beds in a barracks. The clip caused outrage and angry reactions in
the Azerbaijani press.

The security agencies and military prosecutors began to investigate
the incident and it was revealed that the clip had been filmed in
an interior ministry forces unit in the Hajigabul region. This was
confirmed to IWPR by the interior ministry press office.

The press office said that the soldiers who were beaten up had been
called up in July this year. Two sergeants, Vugar Agayev and Eldaniz
Ragimov, who allegedly carried out the beatings have been arrested
and are now in Baili prison in Baku. The commander of the unit,
lieutenant-colonel Gamlet Gurbanov and his deputy responsible for
education, Beiler Eminov, have been reprimanded and relieved of
their posts.

The military prosecutor’s office has also opened a criminal case into
the staged fights recorded on the other clip. It said one person had
been arrested and an investigation was underway.

Before this scandal broke, the security structures had consistently
denied that hazing was a problem in the Azerbaijani armed forces. When
the first film appeared on the Internet, defence ministry spokesman
Eldar Sabirogly said it was a fabrication and a "provocation".

Yet independent research suggests that these kinds of incidents are
actually on the rise. According to a study conducted by the military
think-tank Doktrina in the first nine months of 2008, around 50
military servicemen died in Azerbaijan, with 35 of those deaths
occurring off the battlefield. The centre says that the number of
suicides and irregular deaths is greater than last year – and this
at a time when the military budget has been increasing by more than
50 per cent a year and now stands at over one billion dollars.

Military analyst Uzeir Jafarov says that there are three main reasons
why hazing is rife in the army.

"The first reason is that the conscription age has been raised to
35," he said. "People with such a big age gap between them are very
different both physically and in their outlook. And that leads to
illegal actions by the strong over the weak. A 35-year-old draftee
instantly becomes a figure of authority in a military unit."

The second reason, he said, was that there is no protection of the
rights of soldiers written into military legal documents. He also
blamed the poor food conscripts are given. "Soldiers often resort to
breaking the law because they are so badly fed," he said.

Another military expert, retired colonel Ildyrym Mamedov said that
the Azerbaijani army had inherited hazing from Soviet times.

"This problem was here before – it is now and it will continue to
exist," said Mamedov, who said that the army was still working "under
the laws of the old Soviet Union".

"There is a double centre of power in the Azerbaijan army nowadays," he
said. "Everyone knows that our country when it became a member of the
Council of Europe took on obligations with regard to human rights. And
Azerbaijan also signed international human rights conventions. But
today despite all the international conventions, commanders in the army
have the right to detain servicemen subordinate to them for ten days."

The Public Union of Officers, which comprises officers who are in
reserve or retirement, has also issued a report which is strongly
critical of hazing and corruption in the army and an official failure
to combat them.

The head of the organisation, Yashar Jafarli, said that in the past
five years more soldiers had died as a result of irregular behaviour
in the army than on the ceasefire line near Nagorny Karabakh that
divides Armenian and Azerbaijani forces.

"In the last few years, cases of suicide in the army have sharply
increased," said Jafarli. "It is quite possible that hazing is at the
root of this. The reasons for the absolute majority of suicides that
take place in the army since the truce [over Nagorny Karabakh in 1994]
are unknown. But we can suppose that in most cases soldiers are pushed
to suicide by the men they are serving with."

Jafarli said that there was evidence that hazing had "national
characteristics", in other words being linked to discrimination
against different ethnic groups.

The military prosecutor’s office says that a series of meetings will
be held to discuss the state of the army and that the procedures
whereby servicemen could lodge complaints would be simplified.

For the past few years, the telephone numbers of military prosecutors
have been hung on the walls of most military units. Every soldier
has been told that if he complains about a problem, it will be
investigated. But soldiers have been afraid to do so. The new proposal
is for soldiers to be able to lodge their complaints anonymously.

*Jasur Sumerenli is editor-in-chief of the military website,
, and a military observer with the Aina and Zerkalo
newspapers in Baku.

ARMEN ASHOTYAN CONCERNED WITH ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN HUMANITARIAN BLOCK

Panorama.am
19:55 23/10/2008

The foreign political agendas of Armenia and Russia mostly
coincide with each other, said Deputy Armen Ashotyan in a TV Bridge
today. Russian experts have also shared his opinion. Konstantin
Zatulin, the Deputy of State Duma of Russia agreed that Armenian and
Russian interests in many regional, international questions coincide,
besides the sides have common doings to meet Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

Note that A. Ashotyan, K. Zatulin, Alexander Iskandaryan, the director
of Mass Media Caucasus Institute, professor Vladimir Zakharov of
Moscow International Relations State University were taking part in
Yerevan-Moscow TV Bridge. The discussion covered the visit of the
President of Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev to Armenia.