Author: Yeghisabet Arthur

Turkish press: Christianity in Turkey and the Middle East

Yeghisabet Arthur
 JAN 04, 2022 – 12:05 AM GMT+3

An interior view of the Church of St. Anthony of Padua on Istiklal Avenue, Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey, July 31, 2020. (Photo by Getty Images)

Christian minorities living in the Middle East, the birthplace of the religion, aim to maintain their culture on the axis of the Muslim majority. With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, they attempted to obtain their social rights while being divided into scattered communities. Christians, who reside in various places from Turkey to Egypt, are sometimes exposed to the reality of immigration, but sometimes, on the contrary, they may encounter a climate of tolerance.

A study conducted in 1893 during the reign of Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamid II revealed that Muslims constituted more than 80% of the Ottoman population of approximately 21 million, while the population of Christians was estimated to be around 15%. Towards the end of the 19th century, Armenian Apostolic, Syriac, Assyrian, Chaldean and “Rum” (Greek) communities formed the leading Christian communities and sects living under Ottoman rule and settled around Turkey, the Balkans and the Levant. The Ottoman Empire had long followed a policy of tolerance towards the communities within its borders that felt they belonged to different ethnicities, religions and sects, and the interaction between Muslim-Christian subjects, which increased rapidly after Istanbul’s transition to Ottoman patronage, reached high levels.

Perhaps one of the most striking aspects of the Ottoman period was that, apart from the nationalist regimes during its collapse, it contained many different identities, Christian, Jewish, Circassian, Georgian, Kurdish and more, within the scope of a system called “millet.” Although the term “millet” is understood as “a nation” in today’s Turkish society, when its Arabic origins are examined, it means a community belonging to a sect. However, with the integration of many different religious, ethnic and cultural groups into the empire, the word lost its old meaning and became the name of the system that aimed to ensure a peaceful society within the framework of tolerance. It was so successful that, before the era of nationalism put pressure on all empires, Armenians were called “millet-i sadıka,” which means “the loyal nation,” as few nations would associate with each other, and Armenian guilds and communities often had a positive reputation in the eyes of the public before certain unfortunate incidents occurred.

With the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey (Oct. 29, 1923) and the transition to the multi-party system, Turkey became a country where Christians could be represented at the parliamentary level and freedom of religion and belief was guaranteed by the Constitution. Articles 24 and 25 of the Constitution contain the following sentences: “Everyone has the freedom of conscience, religious belief and conviction. No one can be compelled to participate in worship, religious rites and ceremonies, or to reveal their religious beliefs and convictions; He cannot be condemned or accused because of his religious beliefs and convictions.” In this context, regardless of their religion or denomination, Christians and other religious groups in Turkey had the right to officially establish churches, associations and places of worship and were able to freely practice their religion.

Recently, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited two important churches, the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church and the newly opened Syriac Orthodox St. Ephrem (Mor Efrem) Church, religious sites he described as a new wealth for Istanbul.

A total of 20 million Christians live in the Middle East, mostly in Lebanon, Egypt, Israel, Iraq, Turkey and Syria. Considering the fact that there are few Christians in the Gulf region, it is possible to say that large portions of the Christian population in Syria and Iraq migrated to Western countries due to the prevalence of terrorism at home.

While more than 15 million Copts, Egypt’s indigenous Christian ethno-religious community, live in relative peace as the state tries to prevent them from being persecuted by radical groups like Daesh, in Palestine and Israel, Christians are ignored in the conflict between the two sides. Thus, in another part of the Middle East, Christians have to emigrate, succumbing to the unfortunate luck of being born in Iraq and Syria. In light of this adversity, the population of Palestinian Christians alone has declined by 50% since the 1990s.

Apart from the island of Cyprus, the country with the highest percentage of Christians in the Middle East is Lebanon, which is in economic and political turmoil. In Lebanon, where 30% of the people believe in Christianity and mostly adopt the Maronite sect, the presidential election system is determined according to the Christian president-Muslim prime minister method, similar to the Kurdish president-Arab prime minister system in Iraq, and thus the social rights of minorities are established and widely accepted. Lebanese people emigrated far from the sociopolitical polarization of the Lebanese Civil War, which took place between 1975-1990 and saw hundreds of thousands of people die, with Christian Maronites and Muslims fighting relentlessly. Today, they are striving to put their identity conflicts aside and emerge from the crisis the entire country is in together.

Although the number of Christians in the Middle East remains the same today as 100 years ago, members of the faith are able to live their lives in certain countries that they feel show more tolerance. This is especially true in Turkey, where there are miraculous structures from the Sümela Monastery to the St. Anthony of Padua and St. Peter Orthodox churches. The fact that such religious institutions can be protected is an important source of hope for the future of Christianity in the region.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former minister of EU Affairs in Poland, member of the European Parliament

Opposition MP: Armenian authorities trying to create political crisis in Artsakh

Yeghisabet Arthur
panorama>>am
Dec 27 2021

The Armenian authorities are attempting to create a political crisis in Artsakh using the “trap” they have set, according to MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition With Honor faction.

In a Facebook post on Monday, the lawmaker stressed the need for all major forces in Artsakh to get back to the post-war period of political consultations to establish political stability in the country.

“Immediately after the war there was a preliminary consensus between the ruling force and the parliamentary opposition that the president and the ruling party acting within the framework of the Constitution and the laws of Artsakh should cede the key positions and spheres to several political forces, which in their turn would form a stable majority by coalition or other principle and lead the country not only out of the domestic political crisis but also out of the difficult situation created by the war.

“This scenario did not succeed, because the Armenian authorities intervened and created a “balance” in Artsakh, which could change at any moment according to their preferences.

“Using the “trap” they have set, the Armenian authorities are now trying to create an internal political crisis in Artsakh, which, thanks to the prudence and efforts of the parliamentary opposition, is not allowed at this stage.

“Pashinyan’s government aims to provoke instability and crisis in Artsakh in order to deprive Artsakh of its entity. That is why these behind-the-scenes actions are accompanied by aggressive conduct of Pashinyan and his political/propaganda team, whose main goal is to show that Artsakh cannot remain Armenian and the struggle is senseless and to move the process to the field of Turkish-Azerbaijani logic,” Abrahamyan said.

Armenian premier: We hope it will be possible to create completely new moods in Armenia and Artsakh in 2022

Yeghisabet Arthur
News.am, Armenia
Dec 27 2021
23:59, 27.12.2021

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan took part in a reception organized at the Central Bank on the occasion of the New Year and Christmas. Nikol Pashinyan congratulated the personnel of the Central Bank and the banking sector of Armenia on the coming holidays, wishing them success and all the best.

In his speech the Prime Minister particularly said.

“Distinguished Chairman of the Central Bank,

Dear representatives of the executive power and the banking sector,

Our economy has gone through very difficult times, I hope we can already say it this way, because the coronavirus pandemic hit since 2020, which was a strong blow to the financial and economic system, followed by the second blow in the form of the war, and then the third blow – the domestic political crisis. We should state that during this entire period the banking sector of the Republic of Armenia, which had previously been able to withstand serious trials, successfully overcame this challenge, and this is extremely important not only for economic, but also for political and psychological stability.

In this regard, I think we should express words of appreciation to the banking sector of Armenia, to the Central Bank for its policy during this difficult period. After all, following the war and the coronavirus we needed a great resource of resistance, serious professionalism in order to be able to maintain the stable situation we have. Especially given the next challenge that came after the coronavirus outbreak, the global challenge of inflation which continues to this day.

In contrast to the banking sector of other countries, our banking sector, in fact, went through double, triple shocks. It’s important to record that the banking sector is not only a very important partner for the Government, but also an indicator, because modern economies, especially the banking sector, are the mirror of moods and in many cases this is a guideline for the Government to develop and implement policies.

I think the dialogue that exists between the Government and the Central Bank is very important in terms of developing and implementing our future strategies. Yes, we should admit that, like in many countries, in many cases in Armenia attempts are made to create certain negative moods around the banking sector, because it is clear that people always take money with pleasure, but returning is not always a pleasant process, mostly due to interest rates.

I recently had the opportunity to say during a discussion about banking sectors. In fact, the modern world is the world created by banks, and this should be recorded with all its disadvantages and advantages. There are many projects that characterize modern civilization, which are growing, evolving, changing the world with huge steps. It should be noted that these mega-projects could not exist in the world if the banking system did not exist.

We have seen such effects in Armenia as well, but I hope that we will be able to implement an agenda of cooperation between the political, economic and financial systems, which will allow to make Armenia a country that meets all modern standards. In this regard, I attach importance to the agenda adopted by the Government to open an era of peaceful development for Armenia and the region, which, I must say, is cadjusted by signals coming from the economy and the banking system, which are often not expressed in texts, but are expressed in numbers, digital signs, statistical data. In this context, I would like to hope that the link between the Government policies and the financial and economic system will be more organic, because that system is the most sensitive indicator that senses risks the earliest, sees opportunities the earliest, which helps the Government to be more operative.

Once again, I want to thank you for the resistance shown over the last two years. I hope that at the state and national level we will finally be able to overcome this situation of survival, procrastination, or short-term thinking, and get out into an era of long-term, stable, peaceful strategic development. In this regard, of course, the role of the banking system is extremely difficult to overestimate. I reiterate, the Central Bank and the banking system are key and essential partners for the Government.

In terms of overcoming the problems caused by the coronavirus, the post-war situation, we have been in a very close partnership, I appreciate that partnership.

Congratulations to all of you, to your families on the coming New Year; we hope it will be really possible to create completely new moods in Armenia and Artsakh in 2022, which will be reflected in the reduction of interest rates, prices, exchange rate stability and better moods for investment, working and spending. The Government, of course, is willing to spend, to invest, to point out that strategic perspective by its own example. But all the same, the private sector, the banking system are a very important teammate in this respect, so that we all succeed in that team game and process.”

Turkey announces one of its preconditions for normalization of relations with Armenia

Yeghisabet Arthur
 News.am 
Dec 30 2021
10:29, 30.12.2021

The vice-chairman of the ruling party of Turkey has touched upon the matter of normalization of relations with Armenia.

Regarding the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations, Omer Celik stressed that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has several principal views on this matter: Azerbaijan’s positive attitude to the process, opening of archives, removal of the Armenian Genocide issue from political tribunes and leaving it to historians, Anadolu Agency reported.

“The initiative to normalize relations with Armenia can take place on the condition that Armenia abandons its aggressive and invasive policy against Azerbaijan. Besides, the most sensitive point for President Erdogan is that our Azerbaijani brothers and [Azerbaijan president] Mr. [Ilham] Aliyev look positively on the normalization of Turkey’s relations with Armenia,” Celik said.

Artur Vanetsyan: Law enforcement literally turned into henchmen of the authorities

Yeghisabet Arthur
panorama
Armenia – Dec 30 2021

“The Armenian authorities try to silence the opposition through fabricated criminal cases and arrests instead of addressing their legitimate concerns,” Artur Vanetsyan, the Leader of Homeland party told an interview with Hraparak daily. Armenia, per Vanetsyan, thus is backtracking from democratic values. 

“On one hand, law enforcement bodies have literally turned into henchmen of the authorities. I call on those officers, who are serving in the law enforcement structures today, to remind that nothing lasts forever, the current leadership in Armenia as well. The time for accountability will come, and all should claim responsibility for their actions or criminal inaction,” Vanetsyan said. 

At a question how long the arbitrariness of the authorities may last, Vanetsyan responded: “I can clearly state that as long as Nikol and his team are in power. Violence and hatred are integral part of their essence and their work-style. As a proof to that I can mention the recent local elections and the illegalities by the authorities,” Vanetsyan said, pointing to the fabricated criminal case launched against elected member of  Vanadzor City Council Mamikon Aslanyan who was arrested right after the victory in the local self-governmental elections. 

Armenia PM responds to criticism from Karabakh officials in regard to his statements

Yeghisabet Arthur
News.am, Armenia
Dec 26 2021
23:26, 26.12.2021

Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan responded to the responses of officials of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) to the statements that he made during his online press conference on Dec. 24. He particularly wrote the following on his Facebook page:

“Certain responses to and comments on my interview on Dec. 24 are bewildering, to say the least, and here are the reasons why:

1. During the interview, I talked about the content of the negotiations that existed before I became Prime Minister in 2018. Consequently, I couldn’t have had any impact on the emergence of that content.

2. In response to a question, I refuted the statement of former President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan according to which the content for negotiations left by the former authorities guaranteed that Nagorno-Karabakh would remain Armenian. I refuted this because during those negotiations it was recorded that the Azerbaijanis having resided in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast during the Soviet era had the right to participate in making the decision on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh as residents of Nagorno-Karabakh. Consequently, if they are residents of Nagorno-Karabakh according to the content of the negotiations, they should have resided in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the Armenian side has never objected this content before the revolution in 2018.

3. As for the status that Nagorno-Karabakh had before the potential referendum on status, in this interview, I said in 2016 the mediators had presented three packages for negotiations (one before the Four-Day Artsakh War in April 2016, and the other two — later) where, unlike the Kazan document of 2011, the phrase “Nagorno-Karabakh shall obtain an interim status” was missing. In the third of those three documents, which was presented in August 2016, there was a provision stating that the decision on the legal and practical mechanisms for organizing life in Nagorno-Karabakh would be made by the United Nations Security Council, consulting with the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office. This is what I considered a catastrophe in the process of negotiations because it is clear that the United Nations Security Council would make all decisions with the logic of the resolutions that it had previously adopted with regard to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue where Nagorno-Karabakh was recognized as a part of Azerbaijan.

4. By taking this and several other major problems into consideration I claimed from the podium of the National Assembly that before I became Prime Minister in 2018, with the existing content of the negotiations and realities, Artsakh had lost the opportunities to not be a part of Azerbaijan, both in theory and in practice.

5. When I became Prime Minister, I didn’t adapt to this, but fought against it. This is also why the war broke out.

6. Today the people who are telling me I shouldn’t negotiate on behalf of Nagorno-Karabakh are the people who had been criticizing me for saying that I don’t have the mandate to negotiate on behalf of Nagorno-Karabakh since 2018.

7. I understand that many respected people are complaining about the content of the negotiations that served as a cause and effect of the war in 2016 now. At the time, they were either unaware or had no right to complain. I am also complaining about that content, and I did everything I could to fight against that. I am sorry, but I can’t conceal the truth,” he wrote.


If Armenian cargo does not pass through Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani cargo will not pass through Armenia – Pashinyan

Yeghisabet Arthur

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 20:49,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 24, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan emphasized that if the security of cargo transportation through the territory of Azerbaijan is not ensured, cargo transportation will not be carried out, ARMENPRESS reports PM Pashinyan said in an online press conference, answering the question how much will cost the construction of the Armenian section of the Azerbaijan-Nakhichevan railway and if the railway communication is restored for Armenia, will the cargo transportation be secured.

“If in those conditions, suppose the Armenian cargo does not pass through the territory of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani cargo will not pass through the Armenian territory. Of course, when we discuss these issues, this issue is also included. Imagine how illogical it would be if we open a railway and it cannot be used. And here a question will arise: why were so many investments made? ” Pashinyan said.

As for the estimates on the cost of construction of the railway, the Prime Minister said that according to preliminary data, the cost of construction of the railway is $ 200 million.

“All these numbers are very approximate,” the Prime MInister added.




Newspaper: Another bonus pay distributed in Armenia parliament

Yeghisabet Arthur
News.am, Armenia
Dec 22 2021
10:14, 22.12.2021

YEREVAN. – Hraparak daily of the Republic of Armenia writes: Although back in October the NA opposition “Armenia” Faction petitioned to the Constitutional Court on the issue of bonuses, the NA leadership continues to distribute bonuses.

Yesterday the NA president Alen Simonyan signed another order, according to which he has decided to “encourage the NA MPs, the civil servants and employees of the NA staff with a one-time monetary award, according to the appendices.”

By the way, according to the custom, the appendices are not put in the order, and the amount [of the bonuses] is unknown.

Several opposition MPs informed us yesterday that they had not received a bonus.

Let us recall that the [aforesaid] petition of the “Armenia” Faction completely disputes the system of awarding state political officials (RA president, prime minister, deputy prime ministers, ministers, deputy ministers, MPs).


Asbarez: Yerevan is Committed to Normalize Ties with Ankara

Yeghisabet Arthur
by Asbarez Staff

 

 

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Main, Latest, News, Top Stories

The Armenia-Turkey border

Yerevan will hold more discussion to normalize relations between Armenia and Turkey, however, if there are opportunities to discuss the Ankara-proposed “3+3” scheme, Armenia will use that opportunity to have contacts with its Turkish counterpart.

Armenia’s Security Council Chief Armen Grigoryan said in an interview with Armenia’s Public Television on Wednesday that participating in “3+3” talks will enable Yerevan to clarify positions with Ankara and make the process more “accessible.”

Asked if this means that Armenia’s representatives will go to Ankara since Turkey’s foreign minister announced that the next meeting will be held in Turkey and then in Baku and the representatives of Turkey and Azerbaijan will visit Armenia, Grigoryan responded, “If there is an opportunity, we are ready to go, and we are also ready to host the representatives of those countries to organize discussions on our regional issues.”

The proposal made by Ankara after last year’s war, and wholeheartedly backed by Baku, envisions creating a regional bloc with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Russia and Iran. Georgia has officially refused to take part in the process.

Grigoryan said in the interview that an agenda has not been set for Armenia-Turkey normalization process, however, both Ankara and Yerevan believe that “it is mainly about sitting around a table, understanding position of the sides and understanding how to normalize the relations.”

“We see that there are such opportunities in the region, for instance, the possible opening of the Kars-Gyumri railway which will create big opportunities for Armenia and Turkey and will help make Armenia and Turkey economically dependent,” Grigoryan stated.

Asked why is it that the Turkish side constantly says what has to happen and Armenia does whatever the Turkish side says, Grigoryan noted the following: “The Turkish side isn’t saying what has to happen. It makes public statements, and we respond to almost all of them. Currently, we believe the important thing is to sit at the table and discuss the issues. We have yet to sit at the table and understand what Turkey is referring to and what Armenia is referring to.”

Armenia and Turkey have appointed special envoys to lead the talks. Turkey has appointed Armenian Genocide denier and former ambassador to the United States Serder Kilic, while Yerevan has named Ruben Rubinyan, a deputy parliament speaker of Armenia.

IDBank issued another tranche of dollar bonds of 2021

Yeghisabet Arthur

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YEREVAN, DECEMBER 21, ARMENPRESS. On December 21 of this year, IDBank, through a public offer, issued another tranche of nominal coupon bonds under the abbreviation AMANLBB2EER3.

The total amount of the nominal coupon bonds of the third issue of 2021 is USD 5 million. The bonds have a circulation period of 27 months, the annual interest rate is 4%, and the bonds will be paid quarterly.

The bonds will be placed from to March 18, 2022 inclusive. After the placement, the bonds will be listed in the “Armenian Stock Exchange” OJSC. The bonds will be quoted through the Marketmaker.

To get IDBank bonds it is necessary to fill in the form and present it to the Bank, then the bonds will immediately become visible in Idram&IDBank application. To view the bonds, it is necessary to enter the “Banking” section in Idram&IDBank application, choose the “Bonds” section where all necessary information about the bonds is presented: the abbreviation, quantity, nominal value, annual coupon interest rate, payout date and the date of redemption.

You can get the detailed information about the bonds of the Bank here.

The Bank informs also that the funds attracted by means of nominal bonds are considered to be guaranteed bank deposits and are guaranteed by the Deposit Guarantee Fund of Armenia.

The Bond prospectus was registered by the CBA, resolution N1/392A of the Chairman of the CBA from July 23, 2021. The electronic version of the prospectus and the final terms of issue are available on the official 

THE BANK IS CONTROLLED BY CBA