Author: Varosian Antranik

LIFE IN AZERBAIJAN TURNS OUT CHEAPER THAN IN ARMENIA AND GEORGIA

Today, Azerbaijan
Dec 18 2007

The World Bank has compared consumer prices in 146 countries of
the world.

Thus, the consumer prices are the lowest in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Ethiopia, Gambia and Bolivia.

The report "International Comparison Program Preliminary Global Report
Compares Size of Economie" compares indicators as of 2005.

According to the report, the GDP of the world made up $55 trillion in
2005. At the same time, 2/3 of the world GDP are ensured only by 12
countries, including the United States, Japan, Germany, Great Britain,
France, Italy, Spain, China, India, Russia, Brazil and Mexico.

The leaders among the countries by a relatively high purchasing
capacity are the United States, China, Japan, Germany and India,
while Russia provides for 3/4 part of the post-Soviet countries’ GDP.

The five countries which are the most expensive for living and
establishing business included Iceland (154 points), Denmark,
Switzerland, Norway and Ireland. The United States (100 points)
occupied the 20th place on the list, lagging behind France (114),
Germany (111), Japan and Great Britain (118 points each).

The expensiveness of living in Russia is estimated at 45 points,
Kazakhstan-43 points, Georgia 41, Armenia-39, Belarus-36, Azerbaijan
and Moldova-35. Ukraine-33.

Latvia and Estonia got 53 points each and Estonia 62 points. Life is
the cheapest in Tajikistan (24 points), Ethiopia, Gambia, Kyrgyzstan
(28 points) and Bolivia.

LEVON ARONYAN AND GABRIEL SARGSYAN TO PARTAKE IN THE "CORUS" INTERNATIONAL CHESS TOURNAMENT

armradio.am
17.12.2007 11:57

Armenian Grand Masters Levon Aronyan and Gabriel Sargsyan, as well as
Sergey Movsisyan of Slovenia will participate in the renowned "Corus"
international chess tournament to be held in the Dutch city of Wijk
aan Zee January 11-27. The tournament will feature also Grand Masters
Vishvanathan Anand, Vladimir Kramnik, Vessekin Topalov, Peter Leko,
Vasili Ivanchuk and Temur Rajabov.

U.S. OFFERS TO FUND FIRST-EVER EXIT POLL IN ARMENIA
By Anna Saghabalian

Radio LIberty, Czech Rep.
Dec 17 2007

The United States has proposed to sponsor a first-ever exit poll in
Armenia as part of its efforts to facilitate the proper conduct of
next February’s presidential election, the U.S. charge d’affaires in
Yerevan said on Monday.

Joseph Pennington confirmed reports that he floated the idea at a
December 4 meeting with Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian and that the
latter approved it. "We presented that idea to the prime minister and
the prime minister was very enthusiastic, as he said so publicly,"
he said. "We were very pleased at the prime minister’s very positive
response and we hope to be able to do this."

But the diplomat cautioned that despite Sarkisian’s support for the
idea the Armenian authorities have yet to make the "final decision"
on the U.S. offer.

Most national elections held in Armenia since independence were judged
to be undemocratic by Western observers and fraudulent by opposition
groups. Their official results gave victory to incumbent presidents
and governing parties.

Speaking at a news conference, Pennington argued that exit polls
"enhance the credibility" of election results all over the world and
that Armenia would be no exception to that rule. "They give people
more confidence that the election was fair," he said. "The second
benefit that they have is that they give a lot of information on who
it was that voted in an election, the demographic segments of the
population that took part and also try to get to the question of why
the people voted the way they did."

Pennington argued that the U.S. government would commission
the U.S. International Republican Institute (IRI) to organize the
proposed exit poll. He did not specify if the IRI would also do the
necessary fieldwork for the poll or outsource the job to Armenian
polling organizations.

The IRI has until now relied on one such organization, the Armenian
Sociological Association (ASA), in handling U.S.-funded opinion polls
held in Armenia. The ASA chairman, Gevorg Poghosian, is reputed to have
close ties to the government. Hence, widespread opposition distrust
in the findings of those polls relating to the approval ratings of
the country’s leading politicians and political parties.

Pennington also said that Washington expects the Armenian presidential
ballot to be "an improvement" over last May’s parliamentary elections
which were positively assessed by Western monitors. He said an
objective and unbiased media coverage of the vote is essential for
its freedom and fairness.

"This is also one reason why we are such a strong supporter of Radio
Liberty," he said. "Radio Liberty was cited by the OSCE as one of the
positive examples in which an electronic media outlet gave voice to
opposition and served as a platform for all kinds of different voices
in Armenia."

PRESS RELEASE
Children of Armenia Fund (COAF) – Yerevan Office
53-55 Pavstos Buzand Street, 0010
Yerevan, Republic of Armenia
Contact: Inessa Grigoryan
Tel: (+374 10) 522076; 562068
Fax: (+374 10) 522076
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

Children of Armenia Fund – New York Office
162 Fifth Avenue, Suite 900,
New York, NY 10010, USA
Contact: Tracy Mazza
Tel: 212 – 994 – 8234
Fax: 212 – 994 – 8299
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

Karakert and Shenik Celebrate the Completion of their

Community Center and School & Sports Complex Respectively

Completion of these projects will benefit over 5,500 village residents

Armavir District, Republic of Armenia – On December 14, 2007 the
Children of Armenia Fund (COAF), United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
joined the people of Karakert and Shenik to celebrate the completion of
two very important reconstruction projects. The Karakert Community
Center and Shenik School & Sports Complex were completely renovated
under a COAF, UNDP and USAID Global Development Alliance implemented by
UNDP. Program components not covered under this Alliance ¾ including
the Shenik Sports Complex, furniture and equipment, and development of
both Karakert and Shenik grounds ¾ were funded and implemented by
COAF.

The inaugural ceremonies of the Karakert Community Center and Shenik
School & Sports Complex were attended by a number of dignitaries
representing the Regional Government of Armavir, the diplomatic
community, and more than a dozen international organizations that have
partnered with COAF in various projects. The residents of Karakert and
Shenik came in large numbers to witness these revitalization
celebrations in their respective communities.

Speaking at the events were Mr. Alexandr Avanesov, UNDP Deputy Resident
Representative and Ms. Cynthia Pruett, USAID Deputy Mission Director.
In his remarks, Mr. Avanesov spoke of the rewards realized with this
UNDP, COAF and USAID partnership, emphasizing the significance of such
partnerships for the development of Armenia. "One of the biggest
rewards of my job is to see the joy of Armenian citizens as they breathe
new life into their communities," he concluded. In turn, Ms. Pruett
spoke of the enhanced impact of this development project, which
mobilized the ideas, efforts and resources of COAF, USAID, and UNDP, a
partnership between the public sector and a private voluntary
organization (PVO).

The last two speakers were Mr. Ashot Ghahramanyan, Governor of Armavir
and Dr. Garo Armen, COAF Founder and Chairman. Mr. Ghahramanyan praised
the activities of COAF and congratulated the villagers of Karakert and
Shenik on the completion of two important projects. In his words, these
will provide the local communities with new and vital opportunities for
developing cultural potential in Armavir and creating ground for raising
education standards in rural schools.

Similarly, Dr. Armen spoke about how this partnership was initiated.
"When we first spoke of COAF’s initiative to revitalize Armenian
villages, it was UNDP and USAID that joined us without a moment of
hesitation. We are grateful to them for this act of trust and we are
happy today to witness the tremendous achievements that our partnership
has made in the last three years." Between addresses, the vocal
renditions by the young and talented Arman Lazryan, lyric tenor, brought
much enthusiasm into the performance hall.

Speaking on behalf of the team, Ms. Ovsanna Yeghoyan, Manager of
Infrastructure and Economic Development stated "This was a very
interesting project whereby all interested parties, including our
partners and the local community, came together and worked hand in hand
to realize the reconstruction of the Shenik School and Sports Complex,
which was just a dream a year ago." Similarly, Mr. Vrej Jijyan, UNDP
Community Development Project Coordinator noted, "We highly value this
cooperative framework as it has proved really instrumental in addressing
the development needs of the people of Shenik and Karakert." "I hope
this new building will be a catalyst to offer the children of Shenik new
opportunities for growth and excellence in whatever they undertake in
their careers," continued Hovhannes Mesropyan, COAF Construction
Projects Coordinator.

# # #

Karakert Community Center:

The capital reconstruction of the Karakert Community Center began in
February 2006 as part of the Model Village project implemented under the
auspices of COAF, UNDP, USAID Global Development Alliance. The
completed Community Center covers an area of 1,600 sq. m. effectively
allotted to include the community library, Internet club, gymnasium for
dance and martial arts, leisure room for chess, table tennis and
billiard, management offices and performance hall with a 320 seating
capacity. The Center is fully refurnished and equipped to offer the
community a full range of services and leisure activities.

The reconstruction of the Karakert Community Center was completed by
Gyughtntshinmontazh Ltd.

Shenik School and Sports Complex:

The capital reconstruction of the Shenik School began in May 2007 as the
amended part of the Model Village project implemented under the auspices
of COAF, UNDP, USAID Global Development Alliance. Reconstruction costs
not covered under this alliance ¾ including the Shenik Sports Complex,
furniture and equipment, and development of both Karakert and Shenik
grounds ¾ were funded and implemented by COAF within the framework of
its Model Cluster Participatory Integrated Rural Development Program in
Armenia.

The revitalized Shenik School & Sports Complex covers an area of 1,800
sq. m. and has 11 heated classrooms, 10 lavatories for children and
teachers, 2 laboratories, a computer room, an equipped workshop, a
health room and nurse’s station, a music room, a library, a teachers’
conference room and a performance hall. The Sports Complex offers 2
gyms, ensured with cloak-rooms and coaches’ rooms, 10 showers and
lavatories with hot water, and 2 health rooms.

The Shenik School will open its doors to 175 students and staff. The
children of Shenik will grow in a safe environment, guided by teachers
recently retrained in instruction methodology including child centered
classrooms, cooperative learning, thematic teaching, lesson planning and
other related topics. The Sports Complex will benefit the Shenik
community and the neighboring communities of the Model Cluster.

The reconstruction of the Shenik School and Sports Complex was
implemented by Akhuryan Coopshin Ltd., a Gyumri-based company with
extensive experience in reconstruction. COAF, UNDP and the contractor
have worked closely with the local community in all phases of the
planning and implementation of the project. About 45 percent of the
workforce in this project came from the local community.

Los Angeles Times, CA
Dec 15 2007

‘Lost in Hollywood’ System of a Down | 2005

by Geoff Boucher, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
December 14, 2007

In the mid-1980s, Daron Malakian was a shy youngster living in an
apartment near the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Vine
Street, and his parents spent much of their time trying to shield his
eyes from the seedy parade of Hollywood’s sidewalks.

"From the playground of my school," Malakian recalled, "we would see
prostitutes and transvestites, guys holding hands, the homeless
people, all these things my parents really didn’t want me to see."

That playground was at the Rose and Alex Philibos Armenian School,
the same campus where two other future members of the metal band
System of a Down went to class. There, all of the boys were immersed
in the traditions of their shared Armenian heritage, but when they
rode their bikes home they passed through that chaotic asphalt
theater of Hollywood.

"It was only as I got older that I realized that not everybody grows
up like that," Malakian said.

His home life, meanwhile, was a study in artistic expression; he is
the only child of Vartan Malakian, a highly regarded painter who was
also a key choreographer in the 1970s dance community of his native
Iraq, and Zepur Malakian, a sculptor born in Iran. By 2005, Hollywood
was less scruffy, but those old memories lingered in the mind of
Malakian’s mind. By then, he had become famous to metal fans as the
guitarist and songwriter in System, the deeply eccentric L.A. band
whose sound veers from fever-dream mutter to wailing thunder, often
in the same song. "I wanted to write a song," he said, "about the way
Hollywood was." The result was the moody "Lost in Hollywood," which
he calls "the System song I’m most proud of."

I’ll wait here, you’re crazy Those vicious streets are filled with
strays You should have never gone to Hollywood They find you,
two-time you Say you’re the best they’ve ever seen You should have
never trusted Hollywood.

The lyrics are "about the broken dreams, all the people that come
here and don’t make it," he said, and it’s a collage of images
regarding the music industry, the vapid people who come to L.A. to
exploit others and the beautiful dreamers who are promised fame but
end up "out on a street corner, alone, smoking cigarettes."

As a kids, Malakian and his friends would scale a cement wall that
took them to a low rooftop with wood planks and a view looking south
on a corner of Santa Monica Boulevard. Years later, the shy boy wrote
with jagged emotions about that view from the past.

I was standing on the wall Feeling ten feet tall All you maggots
smoking fags on Santa Monica Boulevard This is my front page This is
my new age

KOCHARIAN RECEIVES HEADS OF TAX SERVICES

A1+
[04:53 pm] 14 December, 2007

Today President Robert Kocharian received the Heads of Tax Services
of CIS member states, who are in Yerevan to participate in the 46th
sitting of the Council of Heads of Tax Services.

During the meeting Robert Kocharian stressed the importance of
expansion of cooperation between Tax Services, noting that the exchange
of experience and information provides an extra opportunity to improve
the work of the structures under question.

Referring to issues of fighting contraband, the participants
of the meeting emphasized the importance of application of
contemporary technologies at customs clearance offices, which raises
the transparency of the activity of tax services and reduces the
corruption risks.

Robert Kocharian wished success to the participants of the meeting,
noting that in any country the state of the business environment
greatly depends on the tax services whether they promote or hinder
the entrepreneurship.

MEMORY WON’T BE DENIED, BUT DON’T LEGISLATE HISTORY
By Ian Buruma

Daily Star – Lebanon
ition_id=1&categ_id=5&article_id=87444
Dec 13 2007

In October, the Spanish Parliament passed a Law on Historical Memory,
which bans rallies and memorials celebrating the late dictator
Francisco Franco. His regime will be officially denounced and its
victims honored.

There are plausible reasons for enacting such a law. Many people killed
by the Fascists during the Spanish civil war lie unremembered in mass
graves. There is still a certain degree of nostalgia on the far right
for Franco’s dictatorship. People gathered at his tomb earlier this
year chanted "We won the civil war!" while denouncing socialists and
foreigners, especially Muslims. Reason enough, one might think, for
Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to use the law
to exorcize the demons of dictatorship for the sake of democracy’s
good health.

But legislation is a blunt instrument for dealing with history. While
historical discussion won’t be out of bounds in Spain, even banning
ceremonies celebrating bygone days may go a step too far. The desire
to control both past and present is, of course, a common feature of
dictatorships. This can be done through false propaganda, distorting
the truth, or suppressing the facts. Anyone in China who mentions
what happened at Tiananmen Square (and other places) in June 1989
will soon find himself in the less-than-tender embrace of the State
Security Police. Indeed, addressing what happened under Chairman Mao
remains taboo.

Spain, however, is a democracy. Sometimes the wounds of the past are
so fresh that even democratic governments deliberately impose silence
in order to foster unity. When Charles de Gaulle revived the French
Republic after World War II, he ignored the history of Vichy France
and Nazi collaboration by pretending that all French citizens had
been good republican patriots.

More truthful accounts, such as Marcel Ophuls’ magisterial
documentary "The Sorrow and the Pity" (1968) were, to say the least,
unwelcome. Ophuls’ film was not shown on French state television
until 1981. After Franco’s death in 1975, Spain, too, treated its
recent history with remarkable discretion.

But memory won’t be denied. A new generation in France, born after
the war, broke the public silence with a torrent of books and films on
French collaboration in the Holocaust, as well as the collaborationist
Vichy regime, sometimes in an almost inquisitorial spirit. The French
historian Henri Russo dubbed this new attitude "the Vichy Syndrome."

Spain seems to be going through a similar process. Children of
Franco’s victims are making up for their parents’ silence. Suddenly,
Spain’s civil war is everywhere, in books, television shows, movies,
academic seminars, and now in the legislature, too.

This is not only a European phenomenon. Nor is it a sign of
creeping authoritarianism. On the contrary, it often comes with
more democracy. When South Korea was ruled by military strongmen,
Korean collaboration with Japanese colonial rule in the first half
of the 20th century was not discussed – partly because some of those
strongmen, notably the late Park Chung Hee, had been collaborators
themselves. Now, under President Roh Moo-hyun, a new Truth and
Reconciliation Law has not only stimulated a thorough airing
of historical grievances, but has also led to a hunt for past
collaborators.

Lists have been drawn up of people who played a significant role
in the Japanese colonial regime, ranging from university professors
to police chiefs – and extending even to their children, reflecting
the Confucian belief that families are responsible for the behavior
of their individual members. The fact that many family members,
including Park Chung Hee’s daughter, Geon-hye, support the conservative
opposition party is surely no coincidence.

Opening up the past to public scrutiny is part of maintaining an
open society. But when governments do so, history can easily become a
weapon to be used against political opponents – and thus be as damaging
as banning historical inquiries. This is a good reason for leaving
historical debates to writers, journalists, filmmakers, and historians.

Government intervention is justified only in a very limited sense.

Many countries enact legislation to stop people from inciting others to
commit violent acts, though some go further. For example, Nazi ideology
and symbols are banned in Germany and Austria, and Holocaust denial is
a crime in 13 countries, including France, Poland, and Belgium. Last
year, the French Parliament introduced a bill to proscribe denial of
the Armenian genocide, too.

But even if extreme caution is sometimes understandable, it may not be
wise as a matter of general principle to ban abhorrent or simply cranky
views of the past. Banning certain opinions, no matter how perverse,
has the effect of elevating their proponents into dissidents. Last
month, the British writer David Irving, who was jailed in Austria
for Holocaust denial, had the bizarre distinction of defending free
speech in a debate at the Oxford Union.

While the Spanish civil war was not on a par with the Holocaust, even
bitter history leaves room for interpretation. Truth can be found
only if people are free to pursue it. Many brave people have risked
– or lost – their lives in defense of this freedom. It is right for
a democracy to repudiate a dictatorship, and the new Spanish law is
cautiously drafted, but it is better to leave people free to express
even unsavory political sympathies, for legal bans don’t foster free
thinking, they impede them.

Ian Buruma is a professor of human rights at Bard College. His most
recent book is "Murder in Amsterdam: The Killing of Theo van Gogh
and the Limits of Tolerance."

DAYS OF ARMENIAN CULTURE IN CHINA
Translated by L.H.

AZG Armenian Daily #229
12/12/2007

Culture

On December 21-27, Days of Armenian Culture is to held in Pekin,
China, in the framework of "Armenian-Chinese Cultural Cooperation in
2005-2010" agreement.

It is informed that Pantomime State Theatre actors, soloists, laureates
of international festivals Barsegh Tumanian and Irina Zakian, "Kadans"
string orchestra led by pianist Armen Babakhanian, also pianist Arus
Achemian will leave for Pekin to participate in the Days of Armenian
Culture..

In October of this year Chdzoun Puppet Theatre of Funtsdzan state of
China was first time on tour in Yerevan.

AZG Armenian Daily #227, 08/12/2007

Genocide

"GENOCIDE RESPONSIBILITY ACT" ADOPTED

The Armenian Assembly of America reports that the Representatives
Chamber of the US Congress adopted a legislation bill, entitled,
"Genocide Responsibility Act". According to the bill, the US law
enforcement structures are to be empowered to detain any foreign
citizens on the territory of US, guilty of perpetrating genocide.

The Genocide Responsibility Act is an effort to ensure legal
persecution of genocidal actions, says Republican John Conyers and
assures that it won’t be the last measure.

AAA Director Executive Brian Arouni believes that the next step is to
be the adoption of H. Resolution 106 and complete victory over
negationism.

Translated by A.M

REFORMS ARE OF IMITATION CHARACTER IN ARMENIA, DIRECTOR OF CAUCASIAN MEDIA INSTITUTE CONSIDERS

Noyan Tapan
Dec 6, 2007

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 6, NOYAN TAPAN. Cosmetic reforms have become a
tradition in the recent years in Armenia, and that circumstance has
given a negative inertia to the work of country’s government. Karen
Bekarian, the Chairman of the European Integration NGO, expressed
such an opinion at the December 6 discussion under the title Reforms’
Monitoring in Armenia Within the Framework of the European Neighborhood
Policy. In his words, the cause of this negative inertia is not only
government’s, but also society’s fault, which permits the government
to work badly.

K. Bekarian said that in general, monitorings’ goal is to check
whether governmental bodies compile programs correctly, proceeding
from problems important for the country, as well as to check how much
efficiently the respective funds are spent for implementation of the
given programs.

According to K. Bekarian, these goals of the monitoring are not
fulfilled, as society treats sceptically to any kinds of monitorings
considering them as espionage, and the officials think: "we will
write something and throw into the shelves."

Politician Alexander Iskandarian added that after the collapse of the
USSR, "throwing itself into Europe’s lap," Armenia looked like the
pupil, who is periodically set a lesson. And whether Armenia-pupil
will cram that lesson or "will copy from its neighbors" and will
imitate learning, this depends only on Armenia. At the same time,
he mentioned that the reforms being implemented in Armenia are often
of imitation character.