Author: Vorskanian Yeghisabet

ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING GATHERING IN STRASBOURG

A1+
[06:01 pm] 14 February, 2007

>From 21 to 23 February the Council of Europe will be hosting the
first joint meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the
Council of Europe Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money
Laundering Measures (MONEYVAL).

With the aim of strengthening international co-operation in the fight
against money laundering and terrorist financing, the approximately
400 participants will study the FATF’s mutual evaluation report on
Turkey, MONEYVAL’s third-round mutual evaluation report on Georgia
and a progress report submitted by Cyprus. Reports from Armenia and
Azerbaijan will be considered also by MONEYVAL.

Other items on the agenda are abuse of Value Added Tax systems for
money laundering and money-laundering in South America.

Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, will open
the meeting at 9 a.m. on Wednesday 21 February (only this part of
the meeting is open to the press).

FATF President, Frank Swedlove, and MONEYVAL Chairman, Vasil Kirov,
as well as the acting Director General of Legal Affairs of the Council
of Europe, Philippe Boillat, will hold a media briefing at 1 p.m. on
Friday 23 February in Room 1 of the Palais de l’Europe (2nd floor).

Twenty-seven of the 46 member states of the Council of Europe are
currently members of the MONEYVAL Committee . The FATF has 33 members.

POPULATION OF ARMENIA 3.2 MILLION IN 2006

RIA Novosti, Russia
February 14, 2007

YEREVAN, February 14 (RIA Novosti) – Armenia’s population stood at
3.2 million people at the end of 2006, the former Soviet republic’s
statistics service said Wednesday.

"The population of Armenia grew by an estimated 4,000 in 2006,"
the head of the country’s statistics service said.

TEACHERS COLLEGE LOSES THREE IMPORTANT FIGURES FROM ITS PAST

TC Columbia University, NY
Feb 14 2007

Paul Vahanian, alumnus and Professor of Psychology, died in October.

The son of a cobbler who had emigrated from Armenia to escape the
genocide there, Vahanian was a much-decorated World War II veteran who
earned an M.A. in Marital and Family Relations from Teachers College
in 1952 and a Doctorate in Education in 1957. He is remembered as
an innovative educator who taught the first TC course in family
therapy and group dynamics. Repeatedly rated as a favorite by TC
students, he was a humanist who promoted spirited discussions among
his students and brought the cognitive therapist Albert Ellis and
other leading-edge thinkers to visit his classroom. As a marital
therapist he was influenced by an eclectic mix of thinkers, from
Freud and Jung to Rogers, Ernest "Lank" Osborne and Fritz Perls.

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THREATS IMPOSED BY THE TURKISH INTERNET "SPECIAL BUREAU"
By H. Chaqrian

AZG Armenian Daily
14/02/2007

Turkey’s Campaign Against Armenian Genocide Recognition

Recently "Azg" received a message from the so-called "Special Bureau"
organization from Turkey. The message says that the internet
organization was established in order to discover and prevent
any intention to harm Turkey’s reputation, its state institutions,
Constitution, and territorial integrity. The message also said that the
group was formed from Kemalist nationalists. One of the organization’s
main goals is striving against all terrorist groups led by PKK, the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the Armenian lobbyist groups.

We also came to know that the "Bureau" is split up in certain groups:
projecting, dispatching and hacking.

Those groups ("Committees") consist of 6214 persons, who are at
present engaged in distributing worldwide messages against the
Armenian genocide in 6 languages – French, English, German, Spanish,
Italian and Yiddish. The hacking group is engaged in attacking and
getting information from PKK sub-organizations, and Armenian social
and political organizations.

KARABAKH CONFLICT IS A PART OF INTERESTS OF SUPERPOWERS IN REGION

PanARMENIAN.Net
13.02.2007 16:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Nagorno Karabakh, as many say, is a "frozen
conflict", which still does not have solution. For me the only
acceptable solution is OSCE Minsk Group format, stated German
Home Office State Secretary, deputy and member of Caucasus group
of Bundestag Christoph Bergner. In his words, there is no other
alternative. "But we must confess that despite the OSCE Minsk Group
long activity period over the conflict settlement, the structure
has not reached results. But I am in favor of continuing OSCE MG’s
activity, simultaneously holding negotiations between presidents and
other officials," Bergner underlined.

Alongside he noticed that in fact this conflict is a part of interests
of superpowers in the region. "Iran and Turkey also have interests in
the region. All this has big influence and complicates the settlement
process not only of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict but also of the
other problem in the South Caucasus – the conflict of Abkhazia. "I
suppose Russia and the U.S.A. do not want to see the "frozen conflicts"
re-launched.

But they fear to lose their stances in the process of settlement. This
is one of the main causes of difficulties in the solution of
conflicts. Any interference in any form, any support can result in
a situation when Russia and the U.S.A. can create not only problems
but also will become destructive for both sides. Currently Russia
backs Armenia. But I am sure that irrespective of Russia’s will,
if the sides are interested in settling the problem, they can come
to an agreement and solve the problem," underscored the deputy of
German Bundestag, APA reports.

GOURGEN DALIBALTAYAN DISMISSED FROM THE POST

A1+
[02:53 pm] 13 February, 2007

Under February 12 decree of President Robert Kocharian, general-colonel
Gurgen Dalibaltayan was dismissed from the post of President’s
councilor and chief military inspector.

FOUR NEW CASES OF HIV REGISTERED THIS YEAR

Armenpress
Feb 12 2007

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 12, ARMENPRESS: Armenian doctors have diagnosed four
new cases of HIV this year, all carriers are citizens of Armenia. Last
year 66 such cases were reported.

According to the latest data of Armenian health authorities, out of
the officially registered 433 HIV/AIDS carriers 419 are Armenian
citizens. The majority of these people are men between 20-29, 145
were diagnosed with AIDS. The first case of AIDS was registered in
Armenia in 1988. Since then tens of AIDS carriers died.

Most infection comes about through the intravenous injection of drugs
and through heterosexual contacts. The economic crisis, unemployment,
labor migration and the rapid growth of HIV rates in the region
contribute to the spread of HIV/AIDS in Armenia.

AMERICANS HOST DYP MEMBERS IN ANKARA

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Feb 10 2007

Nancy Mc Eldowney, the deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in
Ankara, hosted True Path Party (DYP) officials at a working dinner
on Thursday.

DYP deputy chairmen Nedim Bilgic, Gultekin Uysal, Umut Arýk, Hatay
deputy Mehmet Eraslan, Denizli deputy Ummet Kandoðan and Ankara
provincial chairman Bulent Kuþoðlu were in attendance.

Issues ranging from the Armenian genocide resolution, the Kurdistan
Workers’ Party (PKK) and Iraq to the rise of nationalism and the
murder of Hrant Dink were discussed. The Americans asked about DYP
leader Mehmet Aðar’s new policy of "politics on the plain," upon
which the DYP’s top-ranking officials expounded.

Mc Eldowney stated that the US administration was doing its best
to halt the Armenian genocide resolution. "Although the current
administration is against the Armenian resolution, it does not have the
majority. So there is a risk. We will do our best. The resolution was
introduced by the Democrats, and they are currently in the majority,"
she said.

Turkish-American relations would be disrupted in the event the
resolution passes, the DYP officials warned. If the US fails to keep
its promises concerning the PKK, passage of the resolution might
increase anti-American sentiment in Turkey, they cautioned.

–Boundary_(ID_VyyU3vZRzZAUtiL9i4AzJA) —

ARMENIA WILL BE DEPRIVED OF RIGHT TO HAVE DEPUTY DELEGATION IN PACE IF
ELECTORAL RIGGINGS ARE COMMITTED AGAIN, CE ARMENIAN REPRESENTATIVE
SAYS

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, NOYAN TAPAN. The powers of the Armenian
delegation in the PACE will be suspended in case of riggings during
the parliamentary elections. Boyana Urumova, Special Representative of
Council of Europe (CE) Secretary General to Armenia, stated this at
the February 9 press conference. She quoted the Council of Europe
resolution on the commitments and obligations of Armenia, according to
which "none of the elections held in Armenia since the country’s
joining the Council of Europe has been free and fair." B. Urumova said
that the CE waits for the Armenian authorities’ invitation to send an
observer group. According to her, this time the observer group intends
to start its mission before the elections – in April and to follow the
process of pre-electoral campaign. Besides, as B. Urumova underlined,
the CE wants to cooperate with the RA Central Electoral Commission,
having an international expert in his body. In her words, the CE
attaches importance to the existence of equal conditions for all
political organizations and figures participating in elections in
terms of expressing their views in the mass media. She noted that now
the CE Armenia Office together with the Caucasian Media Institute is
conducting a monitoring of independent mass media. Commenting on the
RA defence minister Serge Sargsian’s statement that "it is not a good
thing that the army supports its minister", B. Urumova noted that
"S. Sargsian also said that he is in favor of holding free and fair
elections."

WORK WAS ASSESSED AS GOOD

Azat Artsakh Daily – Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
08-02-2007

The NKR Rescue Service reported a few days ago on the work of the
service in 2006. It became known that last year trainings were held
for the population in the capital and rural areas on the prevention of
disasters and protection of people. It was noted that no outbreaks of
epidemic had been reported, a few cases of dead domestic and wild
birds were reported, caused by food poisoning and other bird diseases
known in NKR before. The new fire brigades of the NKR Rescue Service
in Askeran and Hadrut were provided with equipment and training. `The
fire brigades are ready to carry out fire security tasks,’ said Ashot
Verdian, the head of the operational department. In the end the
director of the Rescue Service Vyacheslav Arustamian assessed the work
of the service as `good’ and pointed to the shortcomings.

LAURA GRIGORIAN.
08-02-2007