Author: Vardanian Garo

Pan Armenian News

MINISTERS OF CULTURE OF SOUTH CAUCASIAN STATES SIT IN KYEV

16.09.2005 04:18

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The 5-th colloquium of the Ministers of Culture of the
South Caucasian states started today in Kyev within the framework of STAGE
project targeted at cultural exchange between Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Georgia and support of democratic processes. When delivering a speech at the
opening ceremony Maud de Boer Buquicchio, Deputy Secretary General of the
Council of Europe stated that the implementation of the project will
strengthen the cultural dialogue contributing to tolerance, mutual
understanding and stability in the South Caucasus. Upon completion of the
colloquium on September 18 a declaration will be adopted, IA Regnum
reported.

JOINT POST

A1+
| 14:25:31 | 14-09-2005 | Official |

Robert Kocharyan signed decree on appointing RA Ambassador
extraordinary and plenipotentiary to UK Vahe Gabrielyan pluralistically
RA Ambassador to Ireland (residence in London).

Russia struggles to keep grip in Caucasus

By Fred Weir, Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

Tue Sep 13, 2005

Murat Zyazikov, the pro-Kremlin president of the southern Russian republic
of Ingushetia, is a hunted man.

Since taking office in 2003, he has narrowly escaped assassination at the
hands of a suicide car-bomber and a sniper, allegedly sent by local Islamic
militants. In the past month alone, insurgents have bombed the motorcade of
his deputy premier and opened fire on his security chief. A year ago,
fighters loyal to Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev briefly seized the Ingush
capital of Nazran, killing almost 100 police officers and government
officials.

Mr. Zyazikov, a former general of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB),
shrugs all that off. “Things here are calm and peaceful,” he told
journalists at a meeting in his plush, golden-domed presidential palace.
“These attacks against me and my officials are the work of desperate men who
want to destabilize the situation in southern Russia. They hate the fact
that we are building a worthy life for our people.”

As the war in neighboring Chechnya grinds into its seventh year with no
resolution in sight, conflicts are metastasizing around the troubled north
Caucasus, which has been a zone of tension since it was conquered by Russia
in the 19th century. The region is a patchwork quilt of warring ethnic
groups and rival religions that makes Europe’s other tangled knot, the
Balkans, look tame by comparison.

Many experts say the Kremlin’s grip, iron-hard in Soviet times, has slipped
disastrously in recent years. “The Chechen conflict is spilling into
neighboring republics, escalating the process of destabilization,” says
Alexei Malashenko, an analyst with the Carnegie Center in Moscow.

Zhairakhsky, a sparsely populated district amid the high, snow-capped
mountains of southern Ingushetia, has remained relatively untouched by
conflict. But, says local administrator Yakhya Mamilov, “if you stand on a
mountaintop here and look around, you’ll see wars flaring or brewing in
every direction. It’s impossible to build for the future with any confidence
while these conditions last.”

Rebel fighters from Chechnya, a few kilometers to the east, often take
refuge among their Ingush ethnic kin in Zhairakhsky, locals say.

Further east is the Caspian Sea republic of Dagestan, with 32 constituent
ethnic groups, where Islamist rebels stage almost daily bombings and
ambushes against Russian security forces.

To the south and west two breakaway republics, South Ossetia and Abkhazia,
are locked in long-simmering wars of independence against the post-Soviet
state of Georgia. Just next door on another side is traditionally Christian
North Ossetia, hereditary enemy of the mainly Muslim Ingush, with whom they
fought a savage border war in 1992.

Moscow has tried to maintain its authority by phasing out “unreliable” local
leaders, and replacing them with loyalists like Zyazikov. “This tactic is
not working,” says Alexander Iskanderyan, head of the Center for Caucasian
Studies. “Moscow imagines that exchanging ‘bad’ officials with ‘good’ ones
will change things, but the main trend we see is a steady loss of control.”

Passions in Ingushetia and N. Ossetia are still seething over the Beslan
school massacre a year ago. On Sept. 1, 2004, a squad of 32 terrorists, most
of them ethnic Ingush, drove from Ingushetia and seized 1,200 hostages in
Beslan’s School No. 1, just across the border in N. Ossetia. Three days
later Russian security forces launched a massive assault on the building,
leaving 331 people dead, half of them children.

Zyazikov, and other pro-Kremlin officials, blame the outrage on
“international terrorism.” North Ossetia’s acting president, Taimuraz
Mamsurov, says the Beslan school siege was a deliberate attempt by “certain
forces” to stir up ethnic war between Ingush and Ossetians. “Tensions have
increased (since Beslan), that’s natural,” he says. “But I think we’ve
succeeded in restraining our people from fulfilling that scenario.”

Others doubt the danger has passed. “Everyone here is always talking about
getting ready for war with the Ingush, to get even with them,” says Madina
Pedatova, a teacher at Beslan’s spanking new School No. 8. “I’m terrified of
it, but I’m sure it’s coming.”

Just across the heavily fortified Ingush-N. Ossetian border thousands of
Ingush refugees forced from their homes in N. Ossetia in 1992 live in a
sprawling, squalid refugee camp. Here the hatred is palpable. “The Ossetians
are like Nazis. They drove us from our homes (in 1992) like cattle, showing
no humanity,” says Umar Khadziyev, unemployed, who lives in a small hut with
his wife and three children.

Mr. Khadziyev says he condemns the Beslan attack, with its terrible death
toll of children. But then he adds: “Do you know why the fighters drove past
two Ossetian schools before taking School No. 1 in Beslan? It’s because the
Ossetians used that very school as a prison for our people in 1992. Yes, our
women and children were held there, in that same gym, beaten up and denied
food and water. Nobody talks about that, do they?”

For Moscow, the spreading unrest, fuelled by Islamic extremists in some
republics and ancient ethnic antagonisms in others, poses an almost
nightmarish challenge. After Beslan, President Vladimir Putin warned that
the cost of failure could be “the destruction of Russia.” Says Khadziyev,
the Ingush refugee: “Our grandfathers told us the USSR would collapse one
day. I’m sure that Russia is going to fall apart too.”

Copyright © 2005 The Christian Science Monitor

ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER LEAVES FOR NEW YORK

Armenpress
Sept 12, 2005

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS: Armenian prime minister Andranik
Margarian left today for New York to participate in the 60-th session
of the UN General Assembly. The largest gathering of world leaders in
history begins on Sept. 14 with 191 U.N. member nations. The summit
is to map out new approaches to poverty, global security and human
rights in the 21st century.

Armenian prime minister will participate in a special session on
development the draft document of which sets timetables to halve
poverty for the poorest of the poor, provide elementary education
to all, cut maternal deaths and halve the spread of AIDS by 2015,
among others. Margarian will address the General Assembly session on
September 16. On the sidelines of the visit Armenian prime minister
is scheduled to have meetings with several UN high officials.

Margarian and his wife will also participate in a reception to be
given by US president George W. Bush. He will come back to Armenia
on September 18.

Jordan News Agency – Petra, Jordan
Sept 9 2005

Majali Presides Over the Primary Session of the World Parliament
Speakers in New York

Pet0168 4 0165 Majali Presides Over the Primary Session of the World
Parliament Speakers in New York New York, Sep. 9 (Petra) — Speaker
of the Lower House of Parliament Abdul Hadi Majali presided over the
primary session of the Second Conference of World Parliament
Speakers, currently being held at the headquarters of the United
Nations in New York. Majali met, on the sidelines of the conference,
with speakers of the Armenian and Hungarian parliaments and exchanged
with them views on issues on the conference agenda in addition to the
parliamentary relations between Jordan and the two countries. Majali
also met with a number of parliament speakers and heads of
delegations participating in the conference. //Petra// 091916 Local
SEP 2005 

The Sunday Times (UK)

September 11, 2005

Booker novelists denounce Turkey for charging author

Tom Pattinson and Alice Jones

TURKEY has been condemned by Kazuo Ishiguro, the novelist, and fellow
Man Booker prize nominees over a threat to imprison one of its leading
writers for highlighting his country’s role in the 1915 Armenian genocide.

Orhan Pamuk, 53, who has written several award-winning books, was
charged last week with `denigrating national identity’ with comments in
a Swiss newspaper. If found guilty at his trial, set for December 16, he
could be jailed for up to three years.

Publicity surrounding the case has thrown the spotlight on Turkey’s
human rights record as it prepares to begin negotiations next month on
joining the European Union.

Ishiguro, who won the Booker prize in 1989 for The Remains of the Day
and is on this year’s shortlist for Never Let Me Go, said: `I’m
astonished and horrified to discover such a situation can arise in
Turkey today – and to a writer who has done so much to enhance his
country’s reputation. I hope the Turkish government does all in its
power to bring this misguided prosecution to an end.’

John Banville, nominated this year for The Sea, said Pamuk was right to
remind compatriots of past crimes committed in their name. `It will be a
disgrace if Pamuk is jailed, and Turkey should realise the damage that
will be done to its reputation if it goes ahead with this injustice,’ he
said.

Sebastian Barry, shortlisted for A Long Long Way, agreed. `A grown-up
country like Turkey can afford to open the book fully on every aspect of
its interesting and challenging history,’ he said.

John Sutherland, chairman of the Man Booker judges, said: `It seems
wholly inappropriate that statements of political opinion should be
regarded like that. You can deny it (Pamuk’s comment) but you should not
deny their freedom.’

The charges against Pamuk followed remarks made in February to a Zurich
newspaper. `Thirty thousand Kurds and a million Armenians were killed in
these lands and no one dares to speak out on this but me,’ he said.

Turkey is extremely sensitive over its role in what is known as the
Armenian genocide. Between 600,000 and 1.2m Armenians are thought to
have been killed between 1915 and 1917 during a forced evacuation. The
Turks say the figure is much lower and was the result of ethnic
conflict, the first world war, disease and famine.

Pamuk’s case has been an embarrassment for the Turkish government, which
is fighting opposition, especially in France and Germany, to its
attempts to join the EU.

Abdullah Gul, the foreign minister, said of the charges: `There is no
decision yet. I would like to announce to the world that there is
freedom of expression in Turkey. People voice their opinions comfortably
as long as they do not promote violence.’

Additional reporting: Gareth Jenkins, Istanbul

MINSK GROUP IS NOT DEAD

Azat Artsakh Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
09 Sept 05

According to him, it is waiting for the instructions of the presidents
of Armenia and Azerbajan. After the meetings with the presidents of RA
and NKR on September 6 the chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group met with
the foreign minister of Armenia Vartan Oskanian. As Mr. Rupel said he
had a lot of questions to discuss with his old friend Vartan Oskanian.
Certainly, the issue of resolution of the Nagorno-Karbakh conflict was
the most interesting of all. According to the OSCE Chairman-in-Office,
there are already points in common in the standpoints of the both
parties, which is commendable. Dimitrij Rupel said he is not partial
and tries to understand and support the process. Accoding to the
European diplomat, to assist to the process he is ready to meet with
all the parties, be it Armenia, Azerbaijan or Nagorno Karabakh. He
described the position of the chairman-in-action as an administrative
official whose task is to listen to the parties and his visit to the
region is the evidence to this. I visited the region to listen rather
than to speak, he mentioned. In fact, In Baku and Yerevan D. Rupel
listened to many, and relying on what he had heard, told the journalists
that there are more points in common between the standpoints of the
parties concerning the Karabakh resolution. However, he noticed that
the similarities are only in principle issues, whereas problems occur
connected with the details. The foreign minister of Armenia Vartan
Oscanian also asserted this idea. `If we start to open these
ideantical principles and go into detail, we shall face serious
difficulties. We cannot discuss any variant of resolution which does
not provide for the right of self-determination of the people of
Nagorno Karabakh,’ stated V. Oskanian. As to the weakening of the
Minsk Group and the rumours about taking away the issue of resolution
from the Minsk Group and solving it under the auspices of another
organization, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office denied these. According to
him, the Minsk group is not dead. What is more, Dimitrij Rupel is
convinced that the meetings of the conflict sides in the framework of
the OSCE Minsk Group will resume. The chairman explained the silence
of the Minsk group by the lack of instructions on the part of the
presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. Vartan Oscanian added that when
we reach some level in discussing the details, it will be necessary to
resume the Minsk process in which the Karabakh government will be
involved automatically. In the end the foreign minister of Armenia
touched upon the recent militaristic statements of Azerbaijan (which,
by the way, the OSCE Chairman said not to have ever heard), once again
warned the present government of Azerbaijan and the authors of the
statements. Even if Azerbaijan increases its military budget, it will
not be able to bias the balance with Armenia. We are not afraid of
this way because we have once won already.

CHRISTINE MNATSAKANIAN.
09-09-2005

KATRINA – THE AFTERMATH BUSH’S MOTHER SPARKS ANGER WITH COMMENTS

Townsville Bulletin/Townsville Sun (Australia)
September 8, 2005 Thursday

FORMER first lady Barbara Bush has fueled anger by saying Hurricane
Katrina victims in Houston, Texas were ‘underprivileged anyway’.

Mrs Bush also said life in the Astrodome sports arena is ‘working
very well for them’.

The comments by the mother of President George W Bush have added
weight to claims the Bushes are out-of-touch patricians.

“Almost everyone I’ve talked to says ‘we’re going to move to Houston’,”
Mrs Bush said in a radio interview after visiting evacuees at the
Astrodome with her husband, former president George Bush.

“What I’m hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay
in Texas.

“Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality.

“And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were
underprivileged anyway, so this — this is working very well for them.”

Her comments were aired late on Monday on Marketplace, an American
Public Radio show broadcast nationwide.

They triggered a flood of negative messages on the Huffington Post,
a popular left-leaning web page.

“Cold hearted witch,” read one of the more polite comments, signed
by IowaDem. “No wonder her son remained on vacation, playing guitar
and eating cake instead of seeing that aid and rescue operations
were well-managed.”

Another writer found the comments hard to believe. “Did she really
say that?” wrote ‘Stephen.’ “My God! What or who have we become?”

WHO GAVE WHAT… A list of international government aid offers

Afghanistan — $US100,000 ($A131,388)

Armenia — $US100,000 ($A131,388)

Australia — $US7.6 million ($A9.99 million)

Azerbaijan — $US500,000 ($A656,943)

Bahamas — $US50,000 ($A65,694)

Bahrain — $US5 million ($A6.57 million)

Bangladesh — $US1 ($A1.31 million)

Belgium — Medical/logistics teams to Red Cross

Britain — Military food rations

Canada — two helicopters, 32-person rescue team, Air Canada evacuation

flights, medical supplies

China — $US5.1 million ($A6.7 million) and relief supplies

Djibouti — $US50,000 ($A65,694.39)

Finland — three logistics experts to help Red Cross

France — tents, tarps, military food rations, water treatment supplies

Gabon — $US500,000 ($A656,943)

Georgia — $US50,000 ($A65,694)

Germany — military rations and high speed pumps

Greece — cruise ships to house survivors (private offer)

India — $US5 million ($A6.57 million)

Israel — tents, first aid kits, baby formula

Italy — generators, water pumps/purifiers, tents, medical supplies

Japan — $US1 million ($A1.31 million), generators, tents, blankets,
bottled

water

Kuwait — $US400 million ($A525.56 million) in oil, $US100 million

($A131.39 million) in cash

Maldives — $US25,000 ($A32,847.19)

Mexico — bedding, military rations, baby care items, personal
hygiene kits

Norway — $US1.54 million ($A2.02 million) in relief supplies

Qatar — $US100 million ($A131.39 million) cash

Saudi Arabia — $US5.25 million ($A6.9 million)

Singapore — three helicopters

South Korea — $US30 million ($A39.42 million) cash and donations

Sri Lanka — $US25,000 ($A32,847.19) cash

Taiwan — $US2 million ($A2.63 million) plus medical supplies

Thailand — Large amounts of food

United Arab Emirates — $US100 million ($A131.39 million)

Venezuela — Up to $US1.0 million ($A1.31 million) to Red Cross

Organisations:

International Committee of the Red Cross — web-based tracing system

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation — coordinating European assistance
offers Organisation of American States — $US25,000 ($A32,847)

UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs — disaster
assessment and coordination team/logisitics support

UN World Health Organisation — Public health officers and logistics
experts.

ARMENIA’S ARMENTEL PAYS 159 MLN DRAMS FOR ANTITRUST VIOLATION

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
September 6, 2005

YEREVAN, Sept 6 (Prime-Tass) — Armenian national telecom company
ArmenTel has paid 158.6 million dram to the state budget for violations
of antitrust laws, Armine Udumyan, press secretary of Armenia’s State
Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition, said Tuesday.

On August 12, the commission set a fine at 1% of ArmenTel’s 2004
revenue from GSM mobile services.

ArmenTel failed to provide stable and high-quality communications
in June-July.

Earlier ArmenTel held a monopoly to provide GSM services in Armenia.
However, in November 2004 the Armenian government decided to make
amendments to ArmenTel’s license, depriving the company of its
exclusive right to provide GSM, mobile satellite and mobile radio
communication services in the country.

Greece’s OTE holds a 90% stake in ArmenTel, with the Armenian
government holding the remaining 10% stake. (463.27 dram – U.S. USD
1) End

PURPOSE IS TO DEFEND RIGHTS OF NKR CITIZENS
Evika Babayan

Azat Artsakh Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
05 Sept 05

In the Soviet Union the first non-governmental association for
the rights of citizens was founded in 1969. One of the founders
of the civic action group for human rights in the USSR was Henry
Altunyan. Human Rights Artsakh Association NGO was registered in
NKR on June 28, 2002. At present 8 persons are involved in the
organization, seven of them are lawyers. They are judges, lawyers
and businessmen. Two members of the association live in the United
States. The goal of the organization is to defend the rights, freedoms
and legal interests of man and citizen as one of the indivisible and
superior values, guided by the principles of legality and humanism. The
objectives of the organizations are provision and defence of the rights
and legal interests of NKR and foreign citizens, holding seminars,
trainings and consultations widely involving people in order to improve
awareness, exchange of experience of supporting human rights and legal
interests with local and international organizations Our interview
is with the chairman of the Human Rights Artsakh Association, Georgy
Safaryan. Evika Babayan: “Mr. Safaryan, how did the idea of founding
an association occur?” Georgy Safaryan: “The idea, in fact, came to
many members of our organization. Karabakh is an unrecognized state,
and human rights are often violated here. We want to help people in
some way and therefore decided to set up an NGO to support human
rights and freedoms, help them defend their rights. Access to our
organization is free and people know this very well. Many turn to
us for help. The help is, actually, free of charge though there is a
nuance, but it is not already human rights but services of a lawyer. We
work out projects for protection of certain groups of citizens and
organize the work in accordance with them.” E.B.: “What projects is
the organization working on at present?” G.S.: “We have three projects
that we are going to implement. We try to struggle against corruption
We have broken the project into three stages. In the!

first stage we will conduct an opinion poll to find out what people
know about corruption generally and if they ever faced this phenomenon
or not. In the second stage we will sum up the results of the survey
and conduct a round-table meeting on TV and in press for people, the
authorities, political parties and set this topic for discussion. The
third stage of the project is to look for ways and methods of struggle
against corruption. I know that it is impossible to eliminate it
but at least we may try to prevent it. The second project concerns
the rights of workers. It refers to the labour code.” E.B.: “But
labour unions were set up for defending the rights of workers. What
is your role then?” G.S.: “I know about the labour unions and it is
good that they are there. It often happens that people are employed
without signing a labour contract. As a result the person works but
the period when he works is not added to his years of service. On
the one hand, this is violation of their rights, on the other hand,
it spurs black economy. As a result the citizens’ rights are violated
and taxes are not paid to the government. The project is divided into
three stages. In the first stage it is planned to find facts, persons
and companies whose rights were violated. In the second stage the
whole material should be put together and extended to relevant bodies
(public prosecutor, tax agency, etc.) to take necessary measures. In
the third stage we will extend our conclusion to the relevant bodies
of the government and the National Assembly. Te third project refers
to the health sector. We know that a number of laws concerning health
were adopted but we would like to find out if these laws are effective
and if the workers of the health sector follow them. The reason is
that we receive a lot of complaints that in some hospitals people are
asked to pay for free services. Those who are granted allowances are
also asked to pay. There were also complaints from people who were
granted allowances but could not get med!

icine for free. Li ke the other two, the third project is also divided
into three stages: fact finding, summary and conclusion to be extended
to relevant bodies. We hope to finish the project by the end of the
year.” E.B.: “Do you have relationships with similar organizations of
Armenia and the CIS?” G.S.: “Yes, we set up relationships with the
ombudsman of Armenia Larissa Alaverdyan and proposed a project of
cooperation. Through our members in America we set up relationships
with the Global Exchange. By the way, the representatives of this
organization monitored the recent parliamentary election.” E.B.:
“Mr. Safaryan, could you bring concrete cases when the rights of the
citizens were defended by the organization?” G.S.: “First I want
to remind that our organization defends human rights. We cannot
take part in the work of courts, police if it is not a case of
violation of human rights, i.e. illegal arrest, violence, etc. As
to concrete cases, in 2003 a doctor of the mental hospital turned
to us for help. The police had sent a person to the hospital for
examination. He suffered from alcohol addiction and had neurotic and
mental problems. After the treatment the person could be discharged
but the police did not permit to. Our investigation revealed a case
of violation of human rights, when he was illegally forced to stay
at the mental hospital. We immediately prepared a letter addressed to
relevant bodies, including the director of public prosecutions and the
Ministry of Health, and the person was immediately discharged from the
mental hospital and sent to his place of residence.” E.B.: “Did the
ethnic minorities ever turn to you for protecting their rights?” G.S.:
“Ethnic minorities did not turn to us, and the reason may be their
small number. As to religious minorities, some of them complained that
their organizations could not be registered, and we helped them.” E.B.:
“Mr. Safaryan, what would you like to add in the end?” G.S.: “We are
hopeful to start cooperation with all the relevant org!

anizations and we believe that both as an organization and individuals
we will be able to accomplish NKR as a lawful country and promote
democratic institutions, one of them being human rights.”