Author: Vorskanian Yeghisabet

RA AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY TO ITALY RUBEN
SHUGARIAN STARTS PERFORMING HIS DUTIES
ROME, MARCH 24, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary to Italy Ruben Shugarian presented on March 24 a copy
of his credentials to the Head of Protocol of the Italian Foreign
Ministry Ambassador P. Puci di Beniziki. According to the RA Foreign
Ministry Press and Information Department, following the ceremony,
the bilateral relations, developments and prospects of the European
Union, as well as issues of Armenia’s Eurointegration were dicussed
during a talk. In accordance with the protocol, Ambassador Shugarian
has started performing his duties.

OSCE to hold frontline monitoring in Goranboy
Baku, March 24, AssA-Irada
Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
March 25 2005
Under the mandate of the OSCE chairman’s special envoy, monitoring
will be held on the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian military
troops in Borsunlu village of Goranboy District on Friday, the Ministry
of Defense told AssA-Irada.
The monitoring will be held on the Azerbaijani side by the OSCE
special envoy’s field assistants Imre Palatinus and Aleksandr Samarski.
The envoy’s field assistants Miroslav Vimetal, Peter Key and Torsten
Ahren will be in charge of the monitoring on the Armenian side.*
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Turkey to fight genocide claims
>>From correspondents in Ankara, Turkey
Advertiser Adelaide, Australia
Australian, Australia
March 25 2005
TURKEY has enlisted the help of a United States historian today as
part of its campaign to counter damaging, decades-old claims Armenians
suffered genocide at Ottoman Turkish hands during and after World
War I.
Turkey is worried the 90th anniversary of the alleged genocide on
April 24 will trigger a fresh outpouring of sympathy for the Armenians
which could harm Turkey’s image and even derail the planned start of
European Union entry talks in October.
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan went on the offensive earlier this month,
calling for an impartial study of the genocide claims and declaring
Turkey’s archives open to all scholars.
Invited to address the Ankara parliament today, Justin McCarthy,
an expert on the Ottoman period, argued a complex historical tragedy
had been manipulated for ideological reasons, becoming a vehicle for
anti-Muslim, anti-Turkish prejudice.
“The Armenian question has from the start been a political
campaign… Yes, many Armenians were killed by Turks at this time and
many Turks were killed by Armenians, but this was war, not genocide,”
Mr McCarthy said.
“Many politicians use the Armenian genocide not so much because
they believe it but because they see it as a means to prevent Turkey
joining the European Union,” said Mr McCarthy.
Armenia says 1.5 million of its people died between 1915 and 1923
on Ottoman territory in a systematic genocide and says the decision
to carry it out was taken by the political party then in power in
Istanbul, popularly known as the Young Turks.
Turkey denies genocide, saying the Armenians were victims of
a partisan war during World War I which claimed even more Turkish
Muslim lives. Turkey accuses Armenians of carrying out massacres
while siding with invading Russian troops.
Mr McCarthy urged Turkey to fund translations from Turkish into English
and other European languages of historical records and books providing
documentary evidence there was no genocide.
Foreign diplomats said Turkey’s support for an impartial study of
the genocide issue, possibly under the aegis of the United Nations,
was a positive development.
But they said inviting an opponent of the genocide claims to address
lawmakers who largely shared his views would merely reconfirm, not
challenge, people’s firmly held views.
It would have been more fruitful to invite people of differing opinions
on the subject to the parliament, said one.
“They are still very timid,” the diplomat said.
Armenia, a tiny ex-Soviet republic which has no diplomatic relations
with Turkey, has rejected Mr Erdogan’s proposal for an impartial
investigation, saying scholars had already established the genocide
as indisputable fact.
The European Parliament and several national assemblies from France to
Canada have also backed the claims in recent years, passing resolutions
urging Turkey to accept its past misdeeds.
Some EU politicians, notably in France, home to Europe’s largest
community in the Armenian diaspora, say Turkey must accept the genocide
claims before it can start talks to join the wealthy bloc.

CONFLICTS BETWEEN COSSACKS AND ARMENIANS IN NOVOROSSIYSK
NOVOROSSIYSK, MARCH 23. ARMINFO. Some 200 Cossacks have organized
pogroms in one of the districts in Novorrosiysk.
According to the newspaper “Yerkramas,” persons of Armenian nationality
as well as their cars, cafes and shops were subjected to pogroms. The
reason of the conflict was a quarrel in a cafe between Armenians,
Greeks who celebrated a birthday, and Cossacks who approached
them headed by Ataman of the local Cossacks Community Vladimir
Petrushin. The latter was taken to hospital wherein he underwent
surgical operation. The health stated is assessed as stable at
present. A criminal case was initiated on Article 282 (stirring
up of national, racial and religious enmity) of the CC of RF.
Novorossiysk Mayor Vladimir Sinyagovskiy held an extreme discussion
with representatives of national communities of the city and stated
that those guilty would be exposed and punished. An agreement was
reached not to aggravate the tension and restrain the emotions of the
conflicting parties. The local Armenian cultural society “Luys” states
that the Armenian party strictly observed these agreements calling
its compatriots for calmness and guarantying that the law-enforcement
structures control over the situation.

YEREVAN AUTHORITIES INTEND TO PLANT 30,000 TREES THIS YEAR
YEREVAN, MARCH 21. ARMINFO. Plantation of threes will start on April
16 2005 in Yerevan, Head of Nature Protection Department of Yerevan
Municipality Romik Kosemyan informs journalists today.
He says that the capital’s authorities intend to plant 30,000 trees
and 41,000 bushes this year. Besides, within the frameworks of a
preliminary agreement with CJSC “Armles” (Armforest), 60-80,000 trees
will be planted. In its turn, “Tsaratunk” charity organization intends
to plant 4-5,000 trees and bushes.

Montreal Gazette
Fresh from Easter ovens
Tsoureki, chorek, folar de Pascoa: Around Montreal this week, bakers are
creating special breads that symbolize the resurrection
SUSAN SEMENAK
The Gazette
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
When I was a little girl, there was no running, jumping or frolicking in the
house on Good Friday.
For Christians, it is the most solemn day of the year, marking the
anniversary of Christ’s death.
My mother’s Good Friday edicts, however, had more to do with the massive tub
of paska dough that was left to rise – like a baby swaddled in layers of
dishcloths, towels and woollen blankets – in a bedroom with the door closed
and a space heater cranked to full blast.
Mixing, kneading and baking the traditional Ukrainian Easter bread was an
all-day affair that called for 10 pounds of flour and a dozen eggs and
relied on a hand-scrawled, oil-stained recipe handed down over several
generations. The next day, the paskas, along with boiled eggs, horseradish,
butter, cheese, eggs and kielbasa sausage, would be transferred to decorated
baskets lined with embroidered linens, and brought to the church hall for
blessing.
In many Christian traditions, special Easter breads are baked to symbolize
Christ’s resurrection. Some cultures bake whole eggs, ancient symbols of
spring and fertility, into their breads. Others shape theirs into the form
of birds or animals.
The Greeks have their tsourekia – rich, brioche-like braided breads,
seasoned with the spices mahlepi and mastiha and with red-dyed, hard-boiled
eggs baked into them.
“You can’t have Easter without tsoureki,” said Christos Hatzimarkos, head
pastry chef at Afroditi, the Greek bakery and pastry shop in Park Extension.
In the old days, everybody made their own, but now they are just as likely
to order it from his bakery.
“After going through all of Lent without sweets, a slice of tsoureki is
delicious with coffee right after midnight mass or on Easter morning. And
then again after supper.”
Armenians have their own version, called chorek, also a spiced sweet-dough
bread braided around an egg. Khatchik Merdjanian, who owns Armenia Bakery in
north-end Montreal, likes his chorek for Easter brunch, along with a
traditional egg, onion and parsley omelette called ekee, and yogurt and
spinach.
In Portugal, they dream throughout Lent of folar de Pascoa, a fat,
pumpkin-shaped bread studded with coloured hard-boiled eggs. Sometimes it’s
flavoured with raisins and cinnamon, or anise.
Italians eat special breads at Easter, too, a savoury loaf called a corona
pasquale or a dove-shaped loaf called a colomba. And for Easter Monday, when
Italians in and around Rome head outdoors for a picnic, there’s torta salata
pasquale, Easter bread with prosciutto, olives and parmesan cheese.
For Montrealers without the time or inclination to bake their own Easter
bread, there is a wealth of bakeries whose shelves are filled with seasonal
sweets and savouries:
Afroditi Bakery has an assortment of Greek Easter treats. Tsourekia are
traditional brioche-like braided loaves with red-dyed eggs (from $7 to $25
depending on the size). Also try the koulourakia shortbread cookies for
Easter ($8 for a 500-gram box).
756 St. Roch St. in Park Extension. (514) 274-5302.

Congressional Record: March 17, 2005
>>From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
AFFIRMING THE TRUTH ABOUT THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
HON. MICHAEL BILIRAKIS
of florida
in the house of representatives
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John
Evans, in public forums with the Armenian community, recently
characterized what President George W. Bush has described as an
“appalling tragedy of the 20th century, the massacre of as many as 1.5
million Armenians through forced exile and murder at the end of the
Ottoman Empire,” as Genocide.
I rise today to join with Ambassador Evans and other public officials
who have affirmed the truth and recognize that reconciling with the
past is an important first step in creating a better future.
Recognition of the Armenian Genocide is widely acknowledged. One
hundred and twenty-six Holocaust scholars publicly affirmed the
incontestable fact of the Armenian Genocide during the 30th Anniversary
of the Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches. And in
1981, former President Ronald Reagan stated: “Like the genocide of the
Armenians before it, and the genocide of the Cambodians which followed
it–and like too many other such persecutions of too many other
peoples–the lessons of the Holocaust must never be forgotten.”
In addition, a recent study released by the International Center for
Transitional Justice (ICTJ) on the use of the term Armenian Genocide
and the applicability of the 1948 Genocide Convention to events which
occurred during the early twentieth century in Ottoman Turkey, found
that “the Events, viewed collectively, can thus be said to include all
of the elements of the crime of genocide as defined in the Convention,
and legal scholars as well as historians, politicians, journalists and
other people would be justified in continuing to so describe them.”
As we approach the 90th commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, we
must ensure that we do not forget the lessons of the past. Archbishop
Desmond Tutu, in the Preface to the Encyclopedia of Genocide, published
in 1999 by the Institute on the Holocaust and Genocide in Jerusalem,
writes: “It is sadly true what a cynic has said, that we learn from
the history that we do not learn from history. And yet it is possible
that if the world had been conscious of the genocide that was committed
by the Ottoman Turks against the Armenians, the first genocide of the
twentieth century, then perhaps humanity might have been more alert to
the warning signs that were being given before Hitler’s madness was
unleashed on an unbelieving world.”
Mr. Speaker, let us never forget and let us affirm the truth.
____________________

PRNewswire
United Business Media
Epygi and Content Directions Break New Ground to Launch World’s First
Interactive, Multilink-Driven Ad
New Ad Unit from Content Directions Promises Superior User Experience,
Superior Advertiser Results
NEW YORK and DALLAS, March 21 /PRNewswire/ — Epygi Technologies, a
leader
in SIP based VoIP technology and manufacturer of Quadro telecom products for
the small to medium sized business market, has become the first advertiser
to
deploy Content Directions Inc.’s next generation online ad based on the
Digital Object Identifier (DOI). Placed initially on the telecom portal
TMCnet.com, the ad provides customers with immediate access to all of
Epygi’s
current product information from within a single, rich MultiLink(TM)
dropdown
menu, without having to leave the page on which the ad is displayed and then
navigate through the Epygi website hunting for product information. (See
and roll your mouse
over the banner ad at the top or on the right side of the screen.) The
MultiLink menu is automatically refreshed with current product info via a
central update process managed by Content Directions based on Epygi’s ever-
current product and distribution channel data.
Epygi CEO/President, Jeff Kirchner, explains, “CDI’s implementation of
DOI
technology allows Epygi to syndicate our marketing and sales information
globally in real time ads and information updates all over the Web. We can
instantly update information in every channel, keeping pace with an
accelerating business. Knowing that public information and channel
information is updated automatically via CDI’s MultiLink creation and
maintenance process represents a breakthrough in sales support and channel
development for Epygi. The same MultiLink can also be disseminated as a
contextual link within product reviews, white papers, news articles,
electronic feeds, blog entries, and downloadable marketing brochures. It is
a
permanent link that always brings customers back to our most current product
information.”
Hugh Brownstone, CEO of Content Directions, adds, “We are delighted to
help Epygi maximize the effectiveness of its online ad budget. We believe
DOI-enabled ads represent a breakthrough in interactive advertising. Our
custom-tailored MultiLinks allow advertisers to define the boundaries of a
highly flexible, tuned ad campaign which remains a user-driven interaction.
Our technology and the superior user experience it enables yield
improvements
in click-throughs and conversion rates at levels beyond anything else
currently available.”
To view other examples of MultiLinks for Epygi products, see:
— IP PBXs
00000002 — Gateways
00000003 —
Conference
Servers
— Vonage
Services
About Epygi
Epygi Technologies, Ltd. Is a privately held US company headquartered in
Plano, Texas (North Dallas). Founded in 2000, Epygi designs and
manufactures
the expanding product line that includes IP PBXs, conference servers and
voice
gateways. Epygi products benefit from extensive knowledge in
telecommunications, DSP voice processing and data networking.
With over 200 employees worldwide, Epygi is building a global
distribution
network of distributors and resellers. Sales and Development offices are
in
the United States, Canada, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, United Kingdom,
Armenia and Japan. The company utilizes a sales organization of
distributors
and resellers. Epygi products operate as standalone products, interoperate
with a large number of existing analog and IP products and provide reliable
service to carriers offering IP voice services. The products are positioned
to serve the large SMB and SOHO markets, teleworkers, and branch offices of
large corporations and organizations.
About Content Directions, Inc. (CDI)
CDI helps companies maximize the commercial effectiveness of their web
presence by applying next generation web navigation tools and techniques.
It
is the industry leader in Digital Object Identifier (DOI) technology, the
next
generation in Web navigation developed by the primary inventor of the
Internet
and recent recipient of the Turing Award, Dr. Robert Kahn. More information
about CDI’s products and services can be found at
, including live customer examples and
numerous ROI studies which have documented how CDI’s unique, patent-pending
implementation of the DOI standard radically accelerates its customers’ top-
line revenue growth.
For more information, click on the DOI for this press release
() or contact:
Epygi Technologies, Ltd.
6900 North Dallas Parkway
Two Town Center, Suite 850
Plano, Texas 75024

Anthony Knape
Mobile Phone: 214-680-6942
Phone: 972-692-1166 x33
Email: [email protected]
Epygi / Sales Force Europe
General Castanos 9-2D
Madrid 28004 Spain
Jennifer Sundquist
Phone: +34 666 751 344
Email: [email protected]
or
Tina Aridas
Deputy Manager, Marketing & Press Relations
CONTENT DIRECTIONS, INC.
phone: 718-965-8490 or 917-514-5364
fax: 718-768-7542
email: [email protected]

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT TO RECOGNIZE INDEPENDENCE OF NAGORNY KARABAKH:
RESOLUTION OF OPPOSITION JUSTICE BLOC
YEREVAN, MARCH 18. ARMINFO. Armenian National Assembly must
immediately recognize the independence of Nagorny Karabakh, says a
resolution adopted at today’s conference on problem of peaceful
settlement of Karabakh’s conflict organized by the opposition Justice
bloc. The resolution was read out by Leader of Armenian Democratic
Party Aram G. Sargsyan.
Representatives of both the opposition and the ruling parties
participated at the conference. The resolution says that the Karabakh
problem’s essence in various international instances has been
distorted recently and now it is presented as an especially
territorial quarrel between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The recent
resolution adopted by the PACE proves it.
As a result, the independence of Karabakh from Azerbaijan found itself
doubtful. There are high-rank officials in Armenia continuing to
insist with dangerous optimism that Narogny Karabakh is in no
danger. The authorities have to submit to the international community
the full-value (diplomatic note) consisting the state position of
Armenia on Karabakh problem.
Besides, it is necessary to have a common concept and the program of
actions concerning the settlement problem, as well as to establish a
Center coordinating its realization. An active propagandistic activity
aimed to introduce the international community the Karabakh problem’s
essence is also necessary, resolution stresses.
To note, conference participants addressed a letter to the Council of
Europe. They stated the history of Nagorny Karabakh, its involving
into the structure of Azerbaijan and the Karabakh conflict based on
the historical facts. -r-
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

57.3-KM SECTOR OF 160-KM “NORTH-SOUTH” ARTSAKH ROAD ALREADY BUILT,
CONSTRUCTION OF 40.2 KM UNDERWAY
YEREVAN, MARCH 17, NOYAN TAPAN. The construction of 57.3-km sector of
the “North-South” Artsakh road lasted 5 years, the 40.2-km sector is
still being built. According to the Executive Committee of “Hayastan”
(“Armenia”) pan-Armenian fund, the construction in the “Vanki
Khachmeruk – Kichan,” “Kichan – Drmbon,” “Stepanakert – Chanakhi
Khachmeruk,” “Azokh – Tsakuri,” “Tsakuri – Hadrut” road sectors is
underway. And the construction of the “Drmbon – Martakert” and
“Chanakhi Khachmeruk – Sarushen” sectors will begin in April-May. A
tender has been announced for the construction of the above-mentioned
2 sectors.