Author: Vanyan Gary

1.5 MILLION AMD FOR EVERY CITIZEN OF ARMENIA KILLED IN THE AIR ACCIDENT
Lusine Vasilyan

"Radilur"
16.07.2009 16:35

The Armenian Government today made the decision to allocate means
from the state budget to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in
assistance to the families of the victims of the crashed TU 154 plane.

RA Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Gevorg Petrosyan said 1.5
million AMD would be paid for every citizen of the Republic of Armenia
killed in the accident. Another 675 thousand AMD will be allocated
to the Yerevan City Hall for a number of expenses.

A special commission has been established headed by Deputy Prime
Minister, Minister of Territorial Administration Armen Gevorgyan,
which has already conducted several sittings. It has organized
the transportation of the relatives to the site of the disaster,
has settled a number of issues connected with funeral expenses and
insurances.

Head of the Civil Aviation Department Artyom Movsisyan reported
that the commission had worked over the night to finally clarify the
passenger lists.

"According to the final data, there were 36 Armenians in the plane,
5 of which were citizens of the Republic of Armenia," Artyom Movsisyan
said.

According to the Head of the Civil Aviation Department, eleven
commissions are investigating the accidence from the Iranian side.

PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Center for National and International Studies
75 Yerznkian Street
Yerevan 0033, Armenia
Tel: (+374 – 10) 52.87.80 or 27.48.18
Fax: (+374 – 10) 52.48.46
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
Website:

July 16, 2009

ACNIS Holds Seminar on `Rural Poverty and Democracy in Armenia’

Yerevan–The Armenian Center for National and International Studies
(ACNIS), together with the `Farmers’ Movement’ non-governmental
organization convened a roundtable discussion today, entitled `Rural
Poverty and Democracy in Armenia,’ assessing the current situation in
Armenia’s towns and villages, with a focus on the need for a more
balanced policy of regional development that meets the needs of the
country’s rural population and that seeks to bolster support for
farmers and others engaged in the Armenian agricultural sector. The
conference included representatives from each of Armenia’s regions,
and was attended by several analysts, experts, foreign diplomatic
representatives and journalists.

After welcoming the participants and attendees to the joint event,
ACNIS Director Richard Giragosian explained that the seminar was the
first in a series of events to be organized jointly between the Center
and the `Farmers Movement’ aimed at `drawing attention to the serious
situation now facing Armenian farmers.’ He added that `farmers are
now under new pressure from rising prices for water and other
essential farming products, while at the same time, broader economic
problems, such as declining remittances and money from abroad, have
contributed to a decline in consumer demand for Armenian agricultural
products.’ Giragosian also highlighted the `inherent vulnerability of
Armenia’s farmers, who receive little assistance and even less
attention or concern for the Armenian authorities.’

Giragosian then noted the `financial difficulties that have recently
put new pressure on Armenian families, including recent storms and
flooding that have damaged crops, often with little or no response
from the state.’ He further warned that `farmers are now burdened by
serious levels of debt and are increasingly unable to sustain their
livelihoods.’ Part of this problem, he said, also `stems from the
import of greater amounts of produce and agricultural products from
both Iran and Turkey, often selling for cheaper prices but of much
lower quality than comparable Armenian products.’

The president of the `Farmers’ Movement,’ Sargis Sedrakyan, presented
a formal report detailing the specific state of agriculture and local
economic issues in each of Armenia’s regions. The report was based on
extensive field research conducted by the `Farmers’ Movement’ that
provided the most recent assessment of conditions in terms of rural
poverty, economic activity and agricultural production. The report,
published by the Armenian Center for National and International
Studies (ACNIS), is available for download from the ACNIS website
() or by calling ACNIS at the contact information below.

Founded in 1996, the `Farmers’ Movement’ is a non-governmental
organization consisting of private farmers throughout Armenia engaged
in various aspects of the agricultural sector that promotes the
development of agricultural industry, protects the rights and benefits
of its members, and represents the interests of farmers in Armenia.
The seminar was then closed with a series of questions and answers, as
well as a lively exchange among the participants, including a brief
summary report on conditions in each region by their representatives.

——————————– ————————————-

The Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS) is
a leading independent strategic research center located in Yerevan,
Armenia. As an independent, objective institution committed to
conducting professional policy research and analysis, ACNIS strives to
raise the level of public debate and seeks to broaden public
engagement in the public policy process, as well as fostering greater
and more inclusive public knowledge. Founded in 1994, ACNIS is the
institutional initiative of Raffi K. Hovannisian, Armenia’s first
Minister of Foreign Affairs. Over the past fifteen years, ACNIS has
acquired a prominent reputation as a primary source of professional
independent research and analysis covering a wide range of national
and international policy issues.

For further information on the Center call (37410) 52-87-80 or
27-48-18; fax (37410) 52-48-46; email [email protected] or [email protected];
or visit

CURRENT POLITICAL REGIME IN AZERBAIJAN IS A SHAME FOR THE WHOLE CIVILIZED WORLD, AS WELL AS A SOURCE OF VIOLATION OF RIGHTS OF PEOPLES LIVING ON THEIR LAND FOR MILLENNIUMS

ArmInfo
2009-07-15 14:07:00

The current political regime in Azerbaijan is a shame for the whole
civilized world in XXI century, as well as a source of violation
of the rights of the peoples living on their land for millenniums,
the statement of Talish movement, placed at Eurasia.ru in view of
release of the Karabakh conflict settlement principles, says.

‘There is no doubt that this criminal regime was created not without
assistance of the world superpowers, which are concerned over the
geopolitical interests and energy needs of the peoples rather than
their fortune. Neither Heydar Aliyev nor Ilham Aliyev could create such
an anti-people criminal regime if not assisted by these countries! We
are sure that the world will reach the moment sooner or later when
the dictators, committing similar crimes against the peoples, seat
on the bench’, the statement says.

In view of this, the Talishs call on the superpowers to come to
senses before advancing new versions of settlement of the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict. Since, it should be noted that the standards
of the international law, developed by the imposing international
organizations, suppose, first of all, each people’s right for
self-determination and not just a territorial integrity of one or
another state, that is secondary as compared to the world peoples’
rights.

‘Let the heads of these states not violate the rule of the law
they develop, but focus, first of all, on creation of efficient
international mechanisms preventing suppression of a citizen’s and the
peoples’ will, that is observed in some states. It is this to change
the image of the world, and not solution of one or another conflict
in order to please the geopolitical interests!’, the statement says.

To note, the OSCE site reports that the presidents of OSCE
MG co-chair-countries made a joint statement on the Nagorno
Karabakh Conflict at the L’Aquila Summit of the Eight, July 10,
2009.The statement also says that the Basic Principles reflect a
reasonable compromise based on the Helsinki Final Act principles
of Non-Use of Force, Territorial Integrity, and the Equal Rights
and Self-Determination of Peoples. The Basic Principles include, in
particular: return of the territories surrounding Nagorno- Karabakh to
Azerbaijani control; an interim status for Nagorno-Karabakh providing
guarantees for security and self-governance; a corridor linking Armenia
to Nagorno- Karabakh; future determination of the final legal status
of Nagorno-Karabakh through a legally binding expression of will;
the right of all internally displaced persons and refugees to return
to their former places of residence; and international security
guarantees that would include a peacekeeping operation.

PRESS RELEASE
National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR)
395 Concord Ave.
Belmont, MA 02478
Tel.: 617-489-1610
Email: [email protected]
Web:

DIRECTOR OF ONLINE ARMENIAN LEXICON AND LIBRARY TO SPEAK AT NAASR

Dr. Michele Sigler, founder and director of the Armenian Lexicon and
Library Online and a visiting research fellow at the Centre for
Computing in the Humanities at King’s College, London, will give a
presentation entitled "Digital Western Armenian: The Armenian Lexicon
Project" on Thursday, July 23, 2009, at 8:00 p.m., at the National
Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) Center, 395
Concord Ave., Belmont, MA.

The Armenian Lexicon Project is the work of a group of scholars from the
U.S., Lebanon, and Armenia. It is based at the Center for Computing in
the Humanities at King’s College, University of London, and also
involves other experts in Armenian linguistics.

The project’s immediate goal is to create two online resources for
Western Armenian: a Western Armenian-English lexicon and a digital
library of Western Armenian texts. Unlike dictionaries in print, the
project’s lexicon will be comprehensive, detailed, accessible, and free.
The library will likewise be free to users, and will contain digitized
versions of works of Western Armenian literature. The website is
designed to be used by language learners, teachers, translators, and
academic researchers.

Dr. Sigler has a BA in philosophy from Princeton, and a Ph.D. in
linguistics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she
encountered a Western Armenian-speaking graduate student completely by
chance. The language has remained the focus of her research since that
fortuitous encounter.

In addition to her research interests-syntax, morphology, and lexical
semantics-Sigler is committed to helping to document and revitalize
Western Armenian. She is inspired by the work of her advisor at MIT,
Kenneth Hale, who devoted his life to endangered languages. A native of
Chicago, Michele has lived in London for twelve years with her husband
and two sons.

Admission to the lecture at NAASR is free. The NAASR Center is located
opposite the First Armenian Church and next to the U.S. Post Office.
Ample parking is available around the building and in adjacent areas.
The lecture will begin promptly at 8:00 p.m.

More information about the lecture is available by calling 617-489-1610,
faxing 617-484-1759, e-mailing [email protected], or writing to NAASR, 395
Concord Ave., Belmont, MA 02478.

OSCE SECRETARY GENERAL MARC PERRIN DE BRICHAMBAUT: "THE OSCE STANDS READY TO FURTHER SUPPORT THE AZERBAIJAN’S EFFORTS TO CONTINUE DEMOCRATIC REFORMS"

APA
July 14 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku. Victoria Dementyeva – APA. Interview with OSCE Secretary General
Marc Perrin de Brichambaut

– What role OSCE plays in the context of international relations at
the time?

– The OSCE, which is the world’s largest regional security organization
with 56 participating States, continues to play a key role in
helping to build security and stability in its area. In this regard
the Organization has an important role to play in taking forward the
dialogue on the future of European security. As the OSCE participating
States have agreed, the time has come to take stock of how far we have
come in building a Europe "whole, free and at peace with itself." We
have seen tremendous progress in the two decades since the end of
the Cold War, but many challenges remain unresolved.

There is a need for an open, sustained, wide-ranging and inclusive
dialogue on security and the OSCE is a natural forum to anchor this
dialogue, thanks to its inclusiveness, its comprehensive security
concept and its long experience. The OSCE also remains the only
regional organization bringing together all states in the Euro-Atlantic
and Eurasian areas on an equal footing.

– The Chairman of OSCE Ms. Dora Bakoyyanis planned to hold OSCE
Summit in 2009. Is there any news on that issue? If it will be held,
what will be the topic?

– The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Greek Foreign Minister Dora
Bakoyannis, recently hosted an informal meeting of OSCE foreign
ministers on the Greek island of Corfu on 27 and 28 June. This meeting
brought together the 56 OSCE states as well as representatives of
international organizations to launch the "Corfu Process" for a
renewed dialogue on European security.

The "Corfu process" represents an opportunity for all states of
our region to come together to assess where there are gaps in their
common security, and to craft more effective responses to remaining
challenges. It does not seek to replace Europe’s existing network of
security institutions, but rather to strengthen them in dealing with
outstanding challenges, and to encourage greater co-operation.

– What OSCE is going to undertake to for resolving the frozen conflict,
and Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in particular? How do you think, if any
opportunities for resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict this year?

The co-chairs of Minsk group OSCE told that they were planning
the Nagorno-Karabakh summit with the participation of 3 presidents
OSCE Minsk group countries. Will the OSCE officials participate in
it? What’s your attitude towards that?

-The OSCE is committed to the existing structures to addressing the
region’s protracted conflicts and fully supports the work of the OSCE
Minsk Group Co-Chairs. The meetings that have taken place between the
Presidents and Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia are critical
to the progress we have seen recently, and the OSCE fully supports
this dialogue. The upcoming meeting between the Presidents in Moscow
on July 17 will mark another step in the negotiation process. As the
OSCE Chairperson said when she was in Baku at the start of July, the
latest developments in the negotiation process and the constructive
discussions that have taken place are encouraging. There is a positive
momentum in the discussions, and it is important to build on this.

The intensified mediation efforts of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs
as well as the confidence-building work of the Chairperson’s
Personal Representative Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, are also very
important. The statement by the presidents of the Minsk Group Co-Chair
countries – France, Russia and the United States – at the G-8 summit
are further indications of both the importance the international
community places on achieving a peaceful, negotiated settlement,
and of the fact that we believe there is an opportunity to make
further progress. The statement announced that the Presidents of
the Co-Chair countries are instructing the mediators to present an
updated version of the 2007 Madrid document, which I hope will also
help bring us closer to a comprehensive settlement.

– How do you estimate the development of democratic institutions in
Azerbaijan and situation with media in our country?

Vibrant political competition, a strong civil society and a free
press are critical to the democratic process and represent key
commitments. The Parliament’s recent decision to help ensure that
amendments to the law on NGOs do not restrict the activities of
civil society was a positive one in this regard. I also welcome the
dialogue that Azerbaijan is pursuing with the OSCE Representative on
Freedom of the Media, and I strongly believe we can further cooperate
to improve the legal media environment.

The OSCE supports participating States in their efforts to fulfil their
commitments, and the Organization, in particular its Office in Baku,
stands ready to further support the country’s efforts to continue
democratic reforms. The Office has enjoyed excellent co-operation
with Azerbaijan in a wide range of activities, from community policing
to trial monitoring. The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media
and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights can
also support Azerbaijan in fulfilling its commitments with respect
to media freedom, and to build on the progress shown in last year’s
presidential election ahead of the municipal elections in December
and the parliamentary elections next year.

Azerbaijan has enjoyed robust economic growth in recent years, and
despite the negative effects of the financial crisis, will continue
the positive trend this year. This also represents an opportunity to
deepen reforms. I fully support the State Programme on Socio-Economic
Development of Regions to accelerate development of the non-oil sector
and diversify the economy, achieve balanced regional and sustainable
socio-economic development and further improve the welfare of all
people in the country.

– As we know you are planning visit to Azerbaijan. What is the main
aim of your visit to Azerbaijan? When are you planning to come and
what issues are to be discussed?

– I am pleased to be visiting Azerbaijan on the invitation of the
Azerbaijani authorities. During my visit I will meet President
Aliyev and representatives of the foreign, internal affairs,
justice and economic development ministries and of parliament, as
well as Ambassadors from OSCE participating States and Partners for
Co-operation and the Head and staff of the OSCE Office in Baku. I
am very much looking forward to learning more about the latest
developments in the country, and to discuss how the OSCE can further
enhance its cooperation with Azerbaijan.

AMERICAN DIRECTOR ANDJEY KRAKOVSKY TO SHOOT A FILM IN ARMENIA

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
13.07.2009 16:04 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ American director Andjey Krakovksy, Polish by
nationality, intends to shoot a film in Armenia. Film scenario
according to him, will be based upon a real history from the lives
of his father and uncle. It will tell about the lives of two elderly
brothers, one of them a former communist left without a single penny
and the other – a shoemaker who managed to save money for a rainy day.

"I decided to shoot the film in Armenia because I don’t want it to
bear the imprint of Polish cinematography," the director said.

Andjey Krakovsky visited Armenia for participating in "Golden Apricot"
film festival. One of his films – "Looking Paladin", is nominated for
"International Film" award within festival frameworks. Dismissed
from Poland because of his Jewish origin, the Polish director has
been living and working in US for more than 41 years.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I AND THE AMBASSADOR OF ITALY TO LEBANON
DISCUSS POST ROME MEETING OF RELIGIOUS HEADS

Following the meeting of the G8 Preparatory Meeting of Religious Leaders in
Rome 16-18 June 2008, organized by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and the Roman Catholic Church, Ambassador Gabriele Checcia visited his
Holiness Aram I to hear his thoughts and hopes on the meeting and the
Declaration forwarded to the G8 Heads of States. They also discussed the
situation in Lebanon and the official talks around forming of a new Cabinet
by the Prime Minister.

At the end of their long meeting, the Ambassador was the guest for dinner of
Catholicos Aram I.

##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

The National, UAE
July 12 2009

Turkey urges Chinese government to take action over violence

Danny Vincent, Foreign Correspondent

Last Updated: July 11. 2009 11:21PM UAE / July 11. 2009 7:21PM GMT
BEIJING // Turkey’s prime minister called the Chinese leadership
spectators in a `kind a genocide’ of Uighur Muslims, killed in the
ethnic violence that has gripped China’s north-west Xinjiang region.

`There is no other way of commenting on this event,’ Recep Tayyip
Erdogan told reporters in Turkey’s capital, Ankara, on Friday.

`There are atrocities there, hundreds of people have been killed and
1,000 hurt. We have difficulty understanding how China’s leadership
can remain a spectator in the face of these events,’ he said urging
the Chinese leadership to `address the question of human rights and do
what is necessary to prosecute the guilty’.

Mr Erdogan’s condemnation of the unrest follows calls from Turkish
trade and industry minister, Nihat Ergun, for Turks to boycott Chinese
goods.

Protests have been staged daily in Turkey, the mostly Muslim nation
which has a cultural bond with Uighurs. The Chinese leadership is yet
to release a response to the Turkish prime minister’s
comments. Turkey’s leaders have reacted strongly to claims that the
Ottoman Empire’s massacres of Armenians should be branded as a
genocide.

State media reported that the death toll from the violence had risen
from 156 to 184 in Xinjiang and have released statistics detailing the
ethnicity and sex of the victims of the riots.

According to Xinhua, the official news agency, 137 of the dead,
including 111 men and 26 women, were Han Chinese, China’s predominant
ethnic group, which outnumber Urumqi in much of the region.

Forty-six of the dead were members the Uighur ethnic group, while
state media reported that one member of the Hui Muslim group, a
minority that has cultural ties with the Han Chinese, was killed in
the unrest.

The latest statistics failed to provide details on the nature or
timings of the deaths.

Hospital staff in Urumqi reported that Uighur who died from Han
Chinese vengeance attacks were not being added to the death toll.

International Uighur representatives claim the number of dead is much
higher than figures released.

Rebiya Kadeer, a US-based Uighur exile, who the Chinese authorities
hold directly responsible for the riots, claimed the death toll is as
high as 500 and has accused the government of covering up the number
of dead.

Thousands of anti-riot troops carrying automatic weapons continued to
patrol the streets of Urumqi yesterday. Security closed streets and
closely monitored Uighur districts.

Urumqi was placed under night-time curfew on Friday for the second
time since last week’s riots to try to contain the violence that took
to the streets a week ago.

The release of the statistics did little to curb tensions in the city.

`That’s the Han people’s number. We have our own number,’ a Uighur
identifying himself as Akumjia, told Reuters.

`Maybe many, many more Uighur died. The police were scared and lost
control,’ he said.

`This [new number] at least shows that the victims weren’t only Han
people,’ Zhao Hong, a Han resident told Reuters.

`Uighurs also died. But then they blame Han for being so angry about
the killing and looting.’

The large show of force has brought some security to residents. But
there remained distrust between Han and Uighur. The cause of the riots
is still disputed.

Uighur representatives said that armed security opened fire on
peaceful protests. Groups of Uighur and Han Chinese both see
themselves as the victims of the violence that ripped through the
streets on July 5.

Thousands have been reportedly fleeing the regional capital in search
of safety.

`Urumqi is still open,’ said one student by text message travelling to
Xinjiang from Beijing by train. `My family are safe,’ she said.

The bustle of many businesses has returned to the streets, but it is
the armed troops which are preventing continued unrest.

Paramilitary vehicles blared orders through loudspeaker in Uighur
neighbourhoods yesterday telling Muslims to stay home to worship
because of the `complicated situation’.

Small groups of Uighur Muslims protested on Friday after officials
posted notices and padlocked mosques in the city preventing them from
honouring their most holy day.

The riots in Urumqi erupted a week ago when demonstrators took to the
streets in protest to ethnic violence which killed two Uighur in south
China last month following rumours that factory workers had raped two
Han Chinese girls.

The riots in the resource-rich region forced Hu Jintao, the president,
to abandon plans to attend the G8 summit in Italy. The unrest is
comparable to unrest in Tibet last March.

Both are politically sensitive regions where the Chinese government
blames external influences on the unrest, while playing down ethnic
tension.

Beijing has blamed what it calls the Dalai Lama clique for the
uprising 18 months ago in Lhasa.

Officials are using increasingly strong language to denounce Ms
Kadeer, linking her to the violence in Urumqi.

`If Kadeer and the separatist `World Uighur Congress’ wanted to take
ethnic relations as an excuse to sabotage China’s unification, we must
be vigilant and firmly crush their plot,’ Ismail Amat, a former
official in Xinjiang told Xinhua news.

`How can such a person represent the Uighur people?’ he said.

FOREIGN/707119852/1002

STUDIES FROM YEREVAN STATE UNIVERSITY YIELD NEW DATA ON FLUIDS RESEARCH

Science Letter
July 7, 2009

"Complex dielectric spectra of diethylsulfoxide (DESO)/water mixtures
at 25C over the entire concentration range of DESO, in the frequency
range 0.2 /GHz 89 have been measured. In general, a description of the
complex permittivity spectra requires a consideration of different
types of relaxation processes depending upon DESO concentration,"
scientists writing in the journal Physics and Chemistry of Liquids
report (see also Fluids Research).

"For the lower DESO concentration range the relaxation contribution
to the spectrum is described by two Debye terms, whereas for higher
concentration three Debye terms are used. For both at mol fraction
equals to 0.9 and pure DESO as well Cole-Davidson type is valid. In
addition, the data on the dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO)/water system
obtained in this work well agree with those known from literature,"
wrote S.A. Markarian and colleagues, Yerevan State University.

The researchers concluded: "The concentration dependent excess
dielectric constant, excess inverse relaxation time and Kirkwood
correlation factor of the mixtures have been determined.."

Markarian and colleagues published their study in Physics and Chemistry
of Liquids (Dielectric relaxation study of diethylsulfoxide/water
mixtures. Physics and Chemistry of Liquids, 2009;47(3):311-321).

Additional information can be obtained by contacting S.A. Markarian,
Yerevan State University, Dept. of Chemical, Yerevan 375049, Armenia.

The publisher of the journal Physics and Chemistry of Liquids can
be contacted at: Taylor & Francis Ltd., 4 Park Square, Milton Park,
Abingdon OX14 4RN, Oxon, England.

ARMENIA ALREADY MET TURKEY HALFWAY

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
10.07.2009 12:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey wants to see Armenia a weak and economically
undeveloped country, said Kiro Manoyan, ARF Dashnaktsutyun Bureau’s
Hay Dat and Political Affairs Office Director.

"Ankara has set preconditions to Armenia for 20 years already,"
he told a conference in Stepanakert.

"How will Armenia benefit by establishment of diplomatic relations
with Turkey? It will have the opportunity to pursue an independent
policy in the region and will gain political advantage over Azerbaijan
in the Karabakh issue," he said.

Armenia met Turkey halfway, when it refrained from imposing conditions,
according to Mr. Manoyan.

"We should have told Ankara that we will not agree to open dialogue
unless it recognized the Armenian Genocide," he said, adding that
Armenians should not sacrifice the unity of nation to normalize
relations with Turkey.

"We must never lose our national values for the sake of temporary
achievement," he said.