Author: Zaminian Bedik

ARMENIA TO PRACTICE MICRO-INSURANCE TO AID SOCIALLY VULNERABLE

/ARKA/
April 28, 2009
YEREVAN

The U.S. Micro-Insurance Center fir the Central and Eastern Europe
and CIS and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
plan to implement in Armenia the micro-insurance model to assist the
socially vulnerable.

According to Levon Mamikonyan, chairman of the Association of Insurance
Market Participants, micro-insurance enables low-income individuals
get insured against fire, earthquake, accidents, diseases and death.

"Insurance was affordable only for the solvent part of the population,
whereas now services of insurance companies are accessible for people
with low income," Mamikonyan said. The service prices range from 60
drams to 1,500 drams (from $0.2 to $4), he added.

"People sometimes save money for a rainy day, but, as a rule, they
lack money in hard times. The purpose of micro-insurance is to help
people in difficult situations," Mamikonyan was quoted saying.

According to the official, micro-insurance is an attempt to aid the
socially vulnerable.

"We have offered 11 insurance companies to cooperate with us and only
two of them have taken up the call. The program’s pilot project will
be implemented in Armenia’s Kotayk region. Trainings and seminars
will be organized in the region to raise public awareness of the
micro-insurance system," Mamikonyan concluded.

Armenuhi Mkrt chyan, head of the Department for the Protection
of Consumer Rights and Market Behavior, Central Bank of Armenia
(CBA), the Central Bank hails implementation of micro-insurance in
Armenia. She stressed the need for raising public awareness of the
system and providing enough financial education to the population.

ARMENIAN REVOLUTIONARY FEDERATION STATEMENT

Yerevan

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation announces the cessation of its
participation in the political coalition.

We deem it necessary to explain this step in view of its political
significance and consequences, and the public’s interest.

First of all, the ARF-Dashnaktsutyun joined the coalition in order
to overcome through the unity of forces the crisis facing the
country following the presidential elections and the threats to the
independence and security of the two Armenian states, and with the
aim of making coordinated reforms.

During this period there were certain achievements, but insurmountable
disagreements on matters of principle emerged with respect to the
direction of the foreign policy.

It has always been our conviction that one of the main directions of
the the state’s national security strategy is the universal recognition
and condemnation, especially by Turkey, of the Armenian Genocide. This
is seen not only in the context of the restoration of historical
justice, but also as a way to improve the overall environment of
mutual trust in the region, while also preventing similar crimes
in the future. In this sense, as we have already announced, we find
unacceptable and condemn the agreement by Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign
Affairs to join the April 22 joint statement with Turkey, on the eve of
April 24 and when the leaders of Turkey are=0 D making anti-Armenian
announcements and restating preconditions for the normalization of
relations. We also have principled disagreements with the position
of the authorities of Armenia on certain issues being discussed in
the Armenia-Turkey negotiations. We will publicize our positions
regarding those issues when they are discussed in public.

Henceforth, in the political landscape of Armenia the
ARF-Dashnaktsutyun will assume a new role, that of an opposition
force. Our main priorities will be:

1. To become a full-fledged alternative to the authorities, proposing
our own programs and solutions on all major issues.

2. As opposition to assume the role of effectively counterbalancing
and restraining the authorities.

3. To take the necessary actions to heal and crystallize the political
landscape, to form civilized relations between the authorities and the
opposition, to establish social justice and to strengthen democracy.

4. To carry on comprehensive activities emanating from electoral
promises, showcasing the ARF-Dashnkatsutyun’s ideological and political
character.

5. In the processes of normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations
and the resolution of the Karabagh conflict, to be guided exclusively
by our state-national interests and goals.

We appreciate the work carried out jointly with our coalition partners
and we wish them success in their endeavors in the interest of our
state and people.

ARMENIAN REVOLUTIONARY FEDERATION SUPREME BODY OF ARMENIA 27 A
pril 2009

AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383, x118
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:

PRESS RELEASE

Monday, April 27, 2009

AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian Alumnus Harnesses His Passion for Mountain
Climbing & Raises Money for His Alma Mater

What started as a casual decision to climb Mt. Whitney in 2007 became a
passion for adventurer and AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School Alumnus
Raffi Arslanian Jr., as he decided to climb Mt. Aconcagua in the Andes
of Western Argentina near the Chilean border, the highest peak in the
Americas and fundraise for his alma mater along the way.

Arslanian traveled to Argentina to accomplish what he considered a
personal goal. "I wanted to prove that with just a spark of faith in
yourself, ordinary people like you and me can overcome major obstacles,"
Raffi says.

After recognizing his growing interest in mountain climbing, Raffi
figured he should harness his passion to make a positive impact on the
Armenian community. "I hope to influence other young Armenians to pursue
their dreams and perhaps do fundraisers themselves for organizations
they believe in. I think it’s imperative for everyone to break away from
their comfortable environment and explore other countries, peoples, and
cultures," he says.

Before his climb, he asked friends and family to sponsor his trek and he
was able to raise hundreds of dollars for his alma mater, where his
mother works as a pre-school teacher and which his sister also attended.

Arslanian reached the summit of Mt. Aconcagua – a height of 22,841 feet
(6,962 meters) — on Dec. 29, 2008. The money he raised from his climb
will benefit MDS and hopefully inspire a new generation of alumni to
give back to their local Armenian community.

Established in 1906, the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) is the
world’s largest non-profit Armenian organization. Headquartered in New
York City, AGBU () preserves and promotes the Armenian
identity and heritage through educational, cultural and humanitarian
programs, annually touching the lives of some 400,000 Armenians on six
continents.

RA GOVERNMENT COMMISSION ON COORDINATION OF CHARITABLE PROGRAMS MET, CHAIRED BY COMMISSION HEAD SIMON TER-SIMONYAN.

/
Thursday, 23 April 2009

The commission has discussed 5 programs, including a Hayastan
All-Armenian Fund-implemented project, entitled "Reinforcement
of "Meghvik" NGO’s Unfinished Building in Gyumri Town of Shirak
marz," the Healthy Way of Life charity-sponsored medical center
construction project, as well as 3 projects carried out by World Vision
International, referred to as: "Upgrading of daytime care centers
in Gorhaik and Sarnakunk villages of Syunik marz," "Organization of
theatrical performances for children in rural communities of Talin
region of Aragatsotni Marz" and the For Women’s Health program. The
latter targets Shirak marz population and seeks to raise women’s
awareness of reproductive health.

The meeting has also discussed and approved several sub-programs
under the standing ones, as well as projects on import of charitable
freight destined to various organizations operational in Armenia.

PanArmenian News, Armenia
April 24 2009

USA should have acted with the same conviction on Genocide issue as
Canadian government

25.04.2009 19:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Congress of Canadian Armenians (CCA) expresses
its disappointment with the statement issued earlier today by United
States President Barack Obama, which failed to label the crimes
committed against the Armenian people in 1915 as genocide. His
omitting to use the word is in stark contrast to the views he
expressed during the election campaign when he stated: "As President I
will recognize the Armenian Genocide."

President Obama used the Armenian term "Meds Yeghern" or Great
Calamity. Although this is an important step, the CCA joins with
American Armenians and other Armenians around the world in urging him
to take the final step by recognizing the Genocide decisively at the
earliest possible opportunity.

Here in Canada, both Houses of Parliament have voted to affirm that
the atrocities of the early part of the 20th Century were
genocide. The House of Commons passed the following resolution on
April 21, 2004: "That this house acknowledge the Armenian Genocide of
1915 and condemn this act as a crime against humanity."

In his April 21, 2009 letter to the CCA on the occasion of an event in
Ottawa to commemorate the House of Commons vote, Prime Minister
Stephen Harper reaffirmed his government’s support of the resolution,
stating: "I am honored to have this opportunity to extend my warmest
greetings to all those attending the Congress of Canadian Armenians
event to mark the 5th anniversary.

The United States stands in an ever-diminishing group of countries
that have yet to officially acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. The CCA
is disappointed that President Obama did not act with the same
conviction on this issue as the Canadian government.

States News Service
April 24, 2009 Friday

RADANOVICH EXPRESSES DISAPPOINTMENT IN OBAMA’S REFUSAL TO ACKNOWLEDGE
ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

WASHINGTON

The following information was released by the office of California
Rep. George P. Radanovich:

Congressman George Radanovich (R-Mariposa) today released the
following statement after President Barack Obama refused to properly
characterize the systematic destruction of 1.5 million Armenians in
1915 as "genocide."

"I am outraged that after establishing an unequivocal record of
understanding for the history of the Armenian Genocide, the President
chose, for political reasons, to abandon his commitment to the
Armenian people.

"I am truly saddened and disappointed that the President continued our
government’s denial of the truth and refused to acknowledge the
Armenian Genocide – and in so doing fully abandoned another of his
campaign promises.

"Like the President, I am very pleased with the recent announcement of
a roadmap towards normalization of relations between Armenia and
Turkey. This will be beneficial to both countries and is something I
hope to see progress expeditiously. However, it has absolutely nothing
to do with the fact that genocide was perpetrated on the Armenian
people 94 years ago. For the President to refer to it in his Armenian
Remembrance Day statement and implicitly use this modern day
occurrence as an excuse to go back on the promises he made as a
candidate about appropriately acknowledging the past is dishonest and
disrespectful to Armenians around the world.

"The truth is not political and should not be used for political
purposes. If we are to have any of hope of affecting genocide and
other atrocities occurring today, we must show the conviction to
acknowledge those in the past. Otherwise, those perpetrating genocide
will be given strength from our unwillingness to embrace the truth.

"While the President’s statement is unfortunate, it does not affect my
commitment to seeing the House pass H. Res 252 and recognize the
Genocide. If anything, the President’s statement only further
highlights the need for Congress to demonstrate the strength that the
President’s statement lacks – and tell the world that the truth will
not be silenced."

ANALYSIS-PITFALLS ON THE ROAD TO TURKISH-ARMENIAN THAW
Ibon Villelabeitia

The Seminal
leId=48512304&buyerId=theseminalcom&channe lId=11804
April 24 2009

ANKARA, April 24 (Reuters) – Turkey and Armenia’s plan to restore
relations is a diplomatic breakthrough, but a dispute over "genocide"
and Turkish unease over a backlash from Azerbaijan may still derail
a final agreement.

Ankara and Yerevan worked for months on establishing formal ties
and opening their border, agreeing a "road map" shortly before
U.S. President Barack Obama was to make a statement on Friday on mass
killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in 1915.

The deal gives Obama time to hold off on a U.S. Congress resolution
describing the killings as genocide. But analysts warn nothing has
been signed and many pitfalls lie ahead, including one of the last
frozen conflicts in Europe — over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.

"It is a road map and because it is a road map there could be road
accidents," Faruk Logoglu, a former Turkish ambassador to Washington,
told Reuters.

Muslim Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks in 1915, but strongly denies that up to 1.5 million
died and that it amounted to genocide.

A Western diplomat said the road map committed the sides to
establishing a joint history commission to look into the 1915 events,
a taboo subject in Turkey.

Armenian lobby groups have long pushed for a recognition of
genocide. But such an admission may infuriate nationalist public
opinion in Turkey.

GEOPOLITICAL ALLEGIANCES

Further complicating a solution to a Turkey-Armenian thaw are the
complex geopolitical allegiances in a region with strategic energy
reserves.

Azerbaijan, Turkey’s Muslim ally and Europe’s key hope as a supplier
of gas for the planned multi-billion dollar Nabucco pipeline that
would run through Turkey and cut Europe’s reliance on Russian gas,
fears losing leverage over Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute. The
conflict remains unresolved.

Turkey closed its frontier with Armenia in 1993, in solidarity with
Azerbaijan in its war with Armenian-backed separatists in breakaway
Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia would have to recognise Turkey’s territorial integrity,
giving up historical claims to areas cleansed of Armenians during
the World War One killings and deportations.

"Both sides are going to have to bite hard bullets," said Semih Idiz, a
columnist for Turkey’s daily Radikal who follows international affairs.

"It is not going to be an easy sell for public opinions in either of
the two countries," Idiz said.

While the road map appears to show Ankara wants to separate the
two issues, Turkish official have been at pains to reiterate they
will normalise ties only in parallel with a process to settle
Nagorno-Karabakh.

"All the work being done is in line with the interests of both Turkish
and Azeri sides. There is no problem in this regard," Turkish President
Abdullah Gul said in Ankara before heading for an energy security
conference in Sofia on Friday.

Azerbaijan has been courted by Russia and has indicated it might
revise its energy policy towards Turkey.

"Armenia must use this opportunity and look not only to Turkey but
also to Azerbaijan and take steps to give assurances that it wants
progress in Nagorno-Karabakh," Logoglu said.

An open border would bring huge benefits to both sides.

NATO member Turkey would increase its sway in the Caucasus, where
a brief Russia-Georgia war last summer has heightened its desire
for stability.

It would extend its influence into Central Asia and win plaudits from
the European Union, which it wants to join, and the United States.

Landlocked Armenia, an impoverished country of three million people
which has always looked to Russia for protection, would gain key
access to Turkish and European markets.

"We are not at the end of the process, we are at the beginning," said
a political source close to the negotiations. (Additional reporting
by Matt Robinson in Yerevan; editing by Andrew Roche)

OBAMA MARKS ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

RTT News
April 24 2009

President Barack Obama marked the 94th anniversary of the Armenian
genocide Friday, calling the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians during
World War I "one of the great atrocities of the 20th century."

"History, unresolved, can be a heavy weight," Obama said. "Just as
the terrible events of 1915 remind us of the dark prospect of man’s
inhumanity to man, reckoning with the past holds out the powerful
promise of reconciliation."

"I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and
my view of that history has not changed," he continued. "My interest
remains the achievement of a full, frank and just acknowledgment of
the facts."

Obama said that the best way to achieve that goal is to support the
efforts of the Turkish and Armenian people to work through their
"painful history."

"Together, Armenia and Turkey can forge a relationship that is
peaceful, productive and prosperous," he said. "And together, the
Armenian and Turkish people will be stronger as they acknowledge
their common history and recognize their common humanity."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, also commented on the anniversary
of the massacre, which took place in the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to
1923, urging the United States to formally recognize the genocide.

"It is long past time for the U.S. Government to formally recognize
the Armenian Genocide," she said.

"If we ignore history then we are destined to repeat the mistakes of
the past," Pelosi added, referencing Rwanda and Darfur.

TURKEY RECALLED ITS AMBASSADOR FROM CANADA, ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IS THE REASON

PanArmenian News
April 22 2009
Armenia

Turkey recalled its Ambassador from Canada, greatly concerned over of
governmental representatives’ participation in 1915 Armenian Genocide
commemoration event. Turkish Ambassador Rafet Akgynai returned to
Ankara for consultations, Associated Press reported.

Canadian Parliament recognized the Armenian Genocide in 2008.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: "MOSCOW DECLARATION IS A BASIS FOR THE SETTLEMENT OF NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT"

APA
April 22 2009
Azerbaijan

Moscow – APA. "Our discussions on the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict are going the right way.

The meetings I held, as well as my meeting with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev proved that the parties are ready to move
toward constructive direction to solve this complicated problem. I
think these improvements are promising," Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev said after meeting with Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian,
APA reports quoting RIA Novosti. He said the parties were taking
small, but significant steps towards each other and mentioned
Moscow Declaration signed on November 2, 2008. Medvedev said Moscow
Declaration was all-round basis for the settlement of the conflict.