Author: Vasilian Manouk

PARLIAMENT TO DECIDE ON THE ARREST OF HHK MEMBER

Panorama.am
16:34 12/10/06

The government approved shortly the mediation submitted by Prosecutor
General Aghvan Hovsepyan to call an extraordinary session of parliament
tomorrow in order to decide on the arrest o Hakob Hakobyan, member of
Armenian Republican Party (HHK) and a member of parliament. A criminal
case is instituted against Hakobyan for hooliganism on October 8 near
Haianist village.

Our sources say NA Speaker Vahan Hovhannisyan paid a visit to the
government today probably to deliver the disposition of Armenian
Revolutionary Federation (Dashnakcutiun) on the issue.

CONGRESSMAN RENZI JOINS US CONGRESS ARMENIAN CAUCUS

PanARMENIAN.Net
12.10.2006 14:42 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ At the urging of the Armenian Assembly of America
(AAA), Congressman Rick Renzi (R-AZ) joined the Congressional Caucus
on Armenian Issues and signed on as a cosponsor of H. R. 3361, a
bill that would prohibit funding for a rail link connecting Turkey,
Georgia and Azerbaijan while bypassing Armenia, reports the AAA. "The
Armenian Assembly appreciates Congressman Renzi’s support of the rail
legislation and welcomes him to the Armenian Caucus," said Assembly
Executive Director Bryan Ardouny. "We look forward to working with
him to strengthen the U.S.-Armenia relationship."

The South Caucasus Integration and Open Railroads Act, introduced by
Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), along with Co-Chair
Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Caucus Member George Radanovich (R-CA),
is supported by nearly 100 lawmakers to date. Last month, the House
approved the Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Act of 2006, which
included an amendment which was strongly supported by the Assembly
and sponsored by Representatives Joseph Crowley (D-NY), together
with Congressmen Edward Royce (R-CA) and Brad Sherman (D-CA). The
provision ensures that no Export-Import funding is used for a costly
and unnecessary rail line that would exclude Armenia from economic
and regional transportation opportunities.

Renzi is the second member from the state of Arizona to join the
Armenian Caucus. He serves on the House Financial Services Committee,
the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Resources
Committee.

RAILWAY IN RUSSIA: CARGO TRANSIT FROM ARMENIA TO RUSSIA VIA GEORGIA TO CONTINUE

Railway Market Magazine, Poland
Oct 10 2006

Cargo transit from Armenia to Russia through Georgia and back will
not be stopped, Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan said.

Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin said cargoes would go to and
from Armenia through the ports of Novorossiisk and Kavkaz.

The parties said cargo turnover between Russia and Armenia would double
this year to 363.9 million U.S. dollars. Russia supplies machinery,
equipment, nuclear fuel, and surface transport to Armenia in exchange
for food and agricultural products, alcohol, previous and semi-precious
metals and stones.

Two railway ferries will run between Novorossiisk and Kavkaz by the
end of the year. Currently there is only one ferry for 20 railway
carriages.

According to Levitin, the ferry is not efficient and it will be
replaced with two ferries, each capable of carrying 52 railway
carriages.

Armenia’s National Statistics Service said Russia was the third largest
investor in Armenia in 2005 after Germany and Turkey, having invested
67.5 million U.S. dollars.

The ministers said 589 joint ventures with Russian capital were
registered in Armenia. About 300 of them are doing well, including
Armenal at the Kanaker Aluminium Plant that makes foil. It plans to
make up to 2.5 percent of foil in the world by 2008.

TURKISH ANGER AHEAD FRENCH PARLIAMENT’S DEBATE ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL

Arabesques, Algeria
Oct 10 2006

There is growing anger in Turkey at a bill to be debated by the French
Parliament on Thursday which will make denial of the mass killing of
Armenians under the Turkish Ottoman empire a criminal offense. Turkish
government officials have warned about the political and economic
repercussions if the bill passes and becomes law.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan at a meeting of his party
on the weekend asked sarcastically whether French officials would put
him in jail if he were to cast doubt on the Armenian genocide during
a visit to France.

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul has warned that if the bill is passed,
it could jeopardise French participation in major economic projects,
including the planned construction of a nuclear plant in Turkey.

Both Gul and Turkish president Ahmet Necdet Sezer sent letters to their
counterparts, respectively Philippe Douste-Blazy and Jacques Chirac,
stressing the possible negative consequences of passing the bill.

Turkey’s powerful military establishment has also joined the growing
chorus of protests against France. The country’ top military commander,
the Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit said Turkey would
cut military ties with France if the bill was adopted.

Also ahead of the French Parliament’s debate on the bill, the Turkish
Parliament are set to discuss a bill on Wednesday that would foresee
penalties for any denial of the killings of Algerians under French
colonial rule.

Business chambers and consumer associations have also called for a
boycott of French products.

Zafer Caglayan, the chairman of Ankara Chamber of Industry declared
that he would say "there is no Armenian genocide" on his scheduled
speech to the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 12 October.

"I will be the first to be penalised on that bill," said Caglayan
who also proposed visas for French nationals visiting Turkey.

But Turkey has not been alone in raising objections to the French bill.

The EU’s Enlargement Commisioner Olli Rehn said in Brussels that
while France asks for more freedom of expression in Turkey, the
French parliament itself will debate a bill that will limit freedom
of expression in France.

According to some estimates over a million Armenians died during
1915- 1917 through forced removals and planned massacres by the
Turkish authorities.

The Turkish government and several international historians reject
the label "genocide," and claim that the deaths among the Armenians
were not a result of a state-sponsored plan of mass extermination,
but of inter-ethnic strife, disease and famine during the turmoil of
World War I.

In Turkey it is a criminal offence to label the killing as a genocide.

France is Turkey’s fifth biggest partner in exports and imports.

Turkey’s exports to France last year totalled 3.7 billion dollars
while iimports reached 5.8 billion dollars. Major French companies
including Renault, Axa, Danone and BNP Paribas and Carrefour have
great amounts of investments in Turkey.

PM ERDOGAN WARNS FRANCE OF ECONOMIC RESULTS OF ITS ‘ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL’

The New Anatolian, Turkey
Oct 9 2006

"Turkish people will consider the proposal of France as a hostile act,"
said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan regarding the resolution
which envisions penal sanctions to denial of so-called Armenian
genocide and to be debated at French Parliament.

Erdoðan met in Ýstanbul executives of French companies which have large
operations in Turkey as well as representatives from Turkish-French
Commercial Association, TUSÝAD, TOBB, Foreign Economic Relations Board
(DEÝK) and Turkish-French Chamber of Commerce on Saturday.

Speaking at the meeting, Erdoðan said that Turkey-France relations
should be eliminated from mortgage of third parties.

Erdoðan expressed uneasiness about the draft law to be debated at
French Parliament.

Stressing that the resolution will consider denial of so-called
Armenian genocide as crime, Erdoðan said, "so where is freedom of
thought? Where are Copenhagen political criteria?"

"Our people will consider this draft law as a hostile act of France,"
he added.

"Unfortunately, I think the adoption of this draft law will strike
down our political and commercial relations. Our warning should not
be underestimated," he noted.

Drawing attention to the trade partnership of Turkey and France,
Erdoðan recalled that the two countries are together in organizations
like EU and NATO.

Stressing that this current situation can interrupt the economic
relations between the two countries, Erdoðan asked the French
executives to exert every type of effort to prevent this.

Under the bill, people who contest that there was no Armenian genocide
would risk up to a year in prison and fines of up to ~@45,000.

Armenians claim that as many as 1.5 million of their ancestors were
killed in 1915-1923 in an organized campaign to force them out of
eastern Turkey, and have pushed for recognition of the killings around
the world as genocide.

Turkey acknowledges that large numbers of Armenians died, but says
the overall figure is inflated and that the deaths occurred in the
civil unrest during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. But Ankara
is facing increasing pressure to fully acknowledge the killings,
particularly as it seeks membership in the European Union.

French companies in Turkey under business risk On the other hand,
French executives expressed their sensitivity about the issue. French
companies represented at the meeting included Carrefour, AXA, Total,
BNP, Danone, Peugeot, Renault and Lafarge.

Members of Turkish-French Commerce Association said that they sent
letters to senators and parliamentarians in France expressing that
the draft law would not be appropriate in many aspects, and would
give permanent harm to the interests of France.

French executives said that even if the draft law is adopted at
parliament, it will probably not adopted at French senate.

–Boundary_(ID_e1Czm09TNkKW9DFQsthTTQ)–

MAKING DENIAL OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE A CRIME MEANS FRANCE GOES BACK TO MEDIAVAL AGES, HISARCIKLIOGLU

Turkish Press
Oct 9 2006

KAYSERI – "Making denial of the so-called Armenian genocide a crime
in France, means this country goes back to Medieval ages," Turkish
Chambers & Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) President Rifat Hisarciklioglu
said on Monday.

Replying to questions of reporters on the issue, Hisarciklioglu said,
"France has pioneered freedoms since 1789. We have suggested resolving
this problem in a scientific platform by examining archives of Turkey
and Armenia. Armenia rejected our proposal."

Asked what would be the reaction of business circles in case of
approval of the resolution, Hisarciklioglu said, "there are reactions
from all over Turkey. We hope French parliament will not adopt the
resolution."

On the other hand Bulent Deniz, Chairman of the Turkish Consumers Union
released a written statement on Monday and said, "If the resolution
submitted to French parliament to make denial of so-called Armenian
genocide a crime is approved, we will start to boycott one French
product every week beginning, on October 12th."

"Our boycott will continue until the law on so-called Armenian genocide
will get annulled," noted Deniz.

Bulent Deniz added that Turkey must place a ban on all French firms
so that they cannot participate in tenders organized by Turkish
corporations.

Turken blijven CDA en PvdA toch trouw

Apeldoornse Courant, Netherland
October 6, 2006

De Turkse kiezer lijkt voorlopig CDA en PvdA trouw te blijven,
ondanks het schrappen van Turkse kandidaat-Kamerleden van hun lijst
voor de Tweede Kamerverkiezingen van 22 november. Dat blijkt uit de
tweewekelijkse Stemindex Allochtonen van onderzoeksbureau Foquz
Etnomarketing. Wel is de woede onder Turken nog steeds groot.

Ondanks woede over schrappen Turkse kandidaat-Kamerleden die
volkerenmoord op Armeniers niet erkennen

van onze redactie binnenland

DEN HAAG – Gisteren demonstreerden enkele tientallen Turkse jongeren
bij het partijkantoor van de PvdA in Amsterdam. Ze brachten hun
onvrede over aan het PvdA-Tweede Kamerlid Frans Timmermans. De meeste
aanwezige jongeren lieten blijken bij de verkiezingen niet meer op de
PvdA te willen stemmen.

De Turken in Nederland zijn verontwaardigd dat CDA en PvdA Turkse
kandidaat-Kamerleden hebben geschrapt omdat zij de Turkse
volkerenmoord op Armeniers in 1915 niet als een genocide en dus
doelbewuste actie willen erkennen. CDA en PvdA hebben, net als de
rest van de Tweede Kamer, de genocide wel in een motie vastgelegd in
2004.

Gevoel

‘Vooral onder jonge mensen leeft het gevoel dat er bij politieke
partijen geen ruimte is voor andere meningen’, zei Ahmet Azdural,
directeur van het Inspraakorgaan Turken in Nederland (IOT) donderdag.

Zondag komen landelijke Turkse organisaties en politici bijeen in
Capelle aan den IJssel. Ze willen dan een gezamenlijke gedragslijn
opstellen ‘om te voorkomen dat de Armeense kwestie schade toebrengt
aan de relatief grote participatie van de Turkse gemeenschap en in
het bijzonder de deelname aan de komende verkiezingen’.

‘Heel veel mensen bellen ons. Ze vragen zich af waarom PvdA en CDA
dit hebben gedaan. In een volwassen democratie moet je de dialoog,
het debat opzoeken en niet denken in zwart-wittegenstellingen’, aldus
Azdural.

Druk

CDA en PvdA zitten flink met de kwestie in hun maag. Ook de druk op
het PvdA-Tweede Kamerlid Nebahat Albayrak, zelf van Turkse afkomst,
is groot. Zij zei eerder dat terecht gesproken wordt over een
genocide. Ze vindt dat ook de Turken die in ons land en de rest van
Europa wonen, het debat moeten aandurven over het uitmoorden van de
Armeense bevolking.

A. KHALATYAN HAS BEEN SUFFOCATED (new information)

A1+
[08:24 pm] 06 October, 2006

The preliminary investigation of the criminal case initiated in
connection with the murder of A. Khalatyan is still under way.

According to the statement made by the office of the Public Prosecutor,
the investigation revealed that the murder was committed by RA citizen
R. Sargsyan who agreeing with his cousin H. Hovnikyan and friend T.
Mirzoyan tried to appropriate A. Khalatyan’s flat by fabricating
documents.

After making the necessary documents, T. Mirzoyan and R. Sargsyan
took A. Khalatyan to Avetisyan street in order to make the payment
after which they killed him and took the body to village Zar.

On their way there noting that A. Khalatyan was still alive
H. Hovnikyan suffocated him.

The police have been given a task to find and arrest H. Hovnikyan
and R. Sargsyan.

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:

October 5, 2006

ACNIS Celebrates Twelve Years of Leadership With a Public Accounting

Yerevan–Today the Armenian Center for National and International Studies
(ACNIS) marked its 12th anniversary of public service and award-winning
policy research. On the occasion and in the presence of the Center’s
professional staff, political scientists and analysts, media representatives
and others, its officials presented an open report on ACNIS’s
accomplishments to date.

ACNIS public affairs specialist Lilit Sarukhanian greeted the invited guests
with opening remarks. "Today we will neither delve into academic discussions
nor make geopolitical and domestic analyses; we will simply congratulate one
another and jointly celebrate the birthday of our and your Center," she
said.

Next to congratulate everyone involved in the process was ACNIS director of
administration Karapet Kalenchian. "Twelve years, clearly, is not a long
time, but if we consider that our independent country is just fifteen years
old, then that amount seems not quite as short," Kalenchian noted. He also
underscored that the fruits of ACNIS’s analytical mind are primarily aimed
at unveiling and scrutinizing the developments taking place in, and the
challenges faced by, Armenia and its neighborhood, previewing potential
geopolitical scenarios and, in light of all these, planning a comprehensive
strategy.

ACNIS director of research Stiopa Safarian likewise offered his heartfelt
words, and continued with a brief accounting of ACNIS’s twelve-year track
record. "Our policy deliberations and analyses, whose key attribute is their
transparency, have treated a vast range of realms and topics including
global and regional developments; environmental and educational policy; the
rights of the former residents of Yerevan’s Northern Avenue and Biuzand
Street; conflict management and the Mountainous Karabagh process; the
macroeconomic reality of Armenia and the family business; the nation’s
minorities; and other societal imperatives," Safarian said. In his words,
the ACNIS-based National Public Opinion Service, which was launched a couple
of years ago, has already conducted more than twenty professional public and
expert surveys throughout Armenia, with their results publicized around the
world in multiple languages.

"It is beyond any doubt that the Center’s founder, owing to his distinction
and the prominence of his reputation, could have turned ACNIS into a one-man
show, a phenomenon which we see around us very often. Instead, he built this
institution from the bottom up, refusing to interfere with or put
limitations on the independence and individuality of the human mind, and by
his own example encouraging comprehensive, cutting-edge thinking and a free
competition of concepts and options," Safarian continued. He concluded that
ACNIS has humbly served the highest interests of Armenia, its liberty and
political culture, and every good idea that has arisen from the depths of
society.

The invited guests and public participants then joined their ACNIS
colleagues in a festive reception and a round of well wishes.

Founded in 1994 by Armenia’s first Minister of Foreign Affairs Raffi K.

Hovannisian and supported by a global network of contributors, ACNIS serves
as a link between innovative scholarship and the public policy challenges
facing Armenia and the Armenian people in the post-Soviet world. It also
aspires to be a catalyst for creative, strategic thinking and a wider
understanding of the new global environment. In 2006, the Center focuses
primarily on civic education, conflict resolution, and applied research on
critical domestic and foreign policy issues for the state and the nation.

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

ROMANIAN PRESIDENT RETURNS FROM ARMENIA

Rompres news agency, Bucharest,
5 Oct 2006

Bucharest, 5 October: President Traian Basescu arrived back home on
Thursday [5 October] from a two-day official visit to Yerevan paid
at the invitation of Armenian counterpart Robert Kocharyan.

Basescu told reporters at Bucharest’s Henri Coanda International
Airport that the visit had been part of several such visits paid
to the Black Sea states, being aimed at strengthening the bilateral
relations with the Black Sea countries with a view to establishing
a security space conducive to the area’s development.

The talks held in Yerevan had focused on the need to implement the
project on setting up the Black Sea Euro-region, the president said;
the visit was an opportunity to adjust the bilateral Romanian-Armenian
agreements to Romania’s new status of a European Union member,
he added.

During talks with the Armenian president, Basescu said Romanian
backs unreservedly Armenia’s moves to get closer to the European and
Euro-Atlantic structures.

The two leaders also tackled the trade between Romania and Armenia
and discussed a range of projects that might be achieved by the
two countries such as Armenia using the Romanian Black Sea port
of Constanta, the opening of a direct airline between Yerevan and
Bucharest and the establishment of joint chambers of commerce.

Basescu also had talks with the Armenian premier and met the students
and professors of the Yerevan State University, to whom he spoke
about Romania’s transition from communism to capitalism, about the
costs paid by the Romanians on this road and the implications of
Romania’s EU membership, which – he said – is an as long road as the
one of transition.

The Romanian leader was awarded the Doctor Honouris Causa honorary
title by the Yerevan State University and the university’s honorary
diploma and gold medal.

Basescu laid a wreath at the Memorial to the Victims of the Genocide
in Armenia and planted a tree to the memory of nearly 1.5 million
Armenians killed in 1915.