Author: Zargarian Hambik

YERKIR UNION: STRUGGLE FOR JAVAKHK ARMENIANS’ LEGAL RIGHTS IS ALL-ARMENIAN

Noyan Tapan
June 24, 2009

YEREVAN, JUNE 24, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. On June 23, the Yerkir
Union spread a statement on new manifestations of policy of violation
of Javakhk Armenians’ rights. Below is the statement completely:

"The consistent policy of violation of Javakhk Armenians’ rights
carried out by the Georgian authorities has got new, more rude and
evident manifestations. Thus,

Javakhk Armenian teachers, who were leaving for Armenia within the
framework of the retraining program, were called to the Georgian
Security Service and interrogated,

the rights of Javakhk Armenian activist Vahagn Chakhalian continue
to be rudely violated. He was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment by
the Georgian court with the charge of organizing rallies and meetings
on April 7 2009,

on June 19 of the current year RA National Assembly deputy Shirak
Torosian, who is known for his public speeches on problems of Javakhk
Armenians, was prohibited to enter Georgia without any explanation.

The Georgian authorities being concerned that protest to their policy
of violation of Javakhk Armenians’ rights gradually increases in
Armenia, Diaspora, and among the international community, on the eve
of Georgian President M. Saakashvili’s visit to Armenia, by increasing
anti-Armenian persecutions try to achieve the following main purposes:

to once more show their unyielding position in the issue of Javakhk
Armenians’ rights,

to move the Javakhk problem to the sphere of Armenian-Georgian
interstate relations and by exerting economic pressure upon the
Armenian authorities to force them to make new concessions.

The Yerkir Union calls the Georgian authorities for understanding that
persecutions only deepen the current discontent by further increasing
the realization in Armenia and Diaspora that the struggle for Javakhk
Armenians’ legal rights is an all-Armenian struggle. Therefore,
Georgian authorities’ efforts to move the problem of Javakhk Armenians
to the sphere of interstate relations and to give a "solution" to it by
using economic levers of pressure on that plane are doomed to failure.

There is no alternative to stopping the persecutions, dialogue with
public-political circles representing the Armenians of Javakhk and
giving a real solution to language, educational, religious, and
cultural problems faced by the Armenians of Javakhk.

The Armenian authorities, Armenian and Diasporan structures,
international organizations are obliged to undertake active steps to
stop the crisis gradually deepening in Javakhk and to give a solution
to Javakhk Armenians’ problems in correspondence with international
norms of human rights and minorities rights.

GEORGIA NOT TO HINDER TRANSPORTATION OF ARMENIAN COMMODITIES TO UPPER LARS CHECK-POINT

ArmInfo
2009-06-24 23:25:00

ArmInfo. In September 2005 Russia closed the Upper Lars check-point
and created difficulties for Armenia. However, the goal of Georgia
is to carry out free cargo transportation without any problems,
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said during June 24 joint
press-conference with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

‘Georgia does not see any problem in the matter of our neighbors’ cargo
transportation. Geogria is ready to open the road at its territory,
only the consent of Russian party is needed’,- he stressed.

TURKISH STATE TV READIES TO AIR ARMENIAN

armradio.am
24.06.2009 11:54

The signal remains strong for reconciliation between Turkey and Armenia
as the Turkish state broadcaster’s head of radio reveals plans to begin
TV broadcasts in the Armenian-language within a year. "I sincerely
am working for the common future of the two peoples," says a member
of the broadcasting team.

Just months since it began radio broadcasts in Armenian, state-owned
Turkish Radio and Broadcasting Corporation, or TRT, is now preparing
to launch an Armenian television channel, the Hurriyet Daily News
reported.

According to a source, who declined to be named, initial efforts to
broadcast in Armenian began after a meeting between President Abdullah
Gul and his Armenian counterpart Serge Sargsyan last September when
Gul visited Yerevan for a football match between the national teams
of both countries.

One team will prepare the television and radio broadcasts together.

TRT Radio Bureau and Foreign Broadcasts Director Å~^enol Göka
confirmed that Armenian television broadcasts would begin within a
year. Göka refused to provide any details on preparations, but did
say the rate of work was accelerating.

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION DECRIES "FOOTBALL DIPLOMACY" WITH TURKEY

Mediamax
June 23 2009
Armenia

Yerevan, 23 June: A "football diplomacy", initiated by Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan to normalize the Armenian-Turkish relations,
has "failed disgracefully," David Shahnazaryan of the Armenian National
Congress (ANC) said in Yerevan today, Mediamax reports.

Obtaining Armenia’s consent to the establishment of a commission of
historians, Ankara, in essence, stepped back from the fulfilment of
the other provisions of the "road-map", and now it tries to bring
up the Karabakh problem for discussion by UN Security Council",
Shahnazaryan said.

Before the settlement of the Karabakh conflict, Turkey will not
normalize relations with Armenia and it will hardly step back from
other preconditions, Shahnazaryan said.

CRIMEA COMMEMORATES DISPLACED ARMENIANS, BULGARIANS, GREEKS

NRCU – Ukrainian Radio
;listi d=93570
June 24 2009

Crimea has today commemorated the Armenians, Bulgarians and Greeks
that were forcibly displaced from the peninsula 65 years ago.

Representatives of the Armenian, Bulgarian and Greek national and
cultural communities, as well as the Crimean residents have gathered
together at the Simferopol railway station to commemorate the victims
of the deportation 1944 and lay flowers to a memorable plaque. On May
18, 1944, the Stalin regime forcibly displaced about 200,000 of the
Crimea Tatars from Crimea. They were accused of collaboration with
the fascists. On June 24, 1944 the same happened to the Armenians,
Bulgarians and Greeks.

PRESENTATION OF RESEARCH "THE TRADE AND ECONOMIC PROBLEMS OF REOPENING THE ROADS BETWEEN ARMENIA AND TURKEY" HELD

Noyan Tapan
June 23, 2009

YEREVAN, JUNE 23, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenia should form its stance and
a negotiation position on reopening the Armenian-Turkish border,
develop the respective package of reforms and their implementation
strategy and then implement these reforms consistently. This in its
turn may be useful for the improvement of Armenia’s legislative and
institutional system, which is necessary for sustainable economic
development and efficient participation in the international trade
and economic environment. The authors of the extensive research "The
Trade and Economic Problems of Reopening the Roads between Armenia
and Turkey" done on the initiative of the ARF Bureau have come to
this conclusion.

The member of the ARF Bureau, leader of the National Assembly "ARF"
faction Vahan Hovhannisian said at the June 23 discussion at the ARF
Kristopor Mikaelian Center that the work has "no political context". It
will be submitted to the prime minister and government for discussion
soon. Starting from September, it will become a guide for the faction
to work out legislative initiatives.

The head of the working group on the research, ARF Bureau member
David Lokian informed in detail the representatives of NA factions,
economists and experts present at the discussion on the conditions
affecting the import and export of Armenia and Turkey, as well as on
the results of a comparative analysis of the agriculture, industry,
tourism, transport and communication sectors.

It was mentioned that Turkey has quite a high level of the protection
of domestic manufacturers, uses numerous measures to encourage its
manufacturers and exporters, and the indicated measures create even
more unequal conditions for Armenian and Turkish economic entities
in favor of the Turkish ones. Therefore it is necessary to improve
the business support system in Armenia as much as possible, as well
as promote the activities of the control and protection systems in
the market.

U.S. AMBASSADOR VISITS GORIS ON MAY 18

US State News
June 22, 2009 Monday 5:13 PM EST

YEREVAN, Armenia, May 18 — The U.S. Embassy issued the following
press release:

U.S. Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch visited Goris on May 18, 2009. She
met with Mayor Nelson Voskanian to learn about the current social and
economic situation and to discuss U.S. government assistance programs
in the region. She commented on the cultural richness of the area and
the importance of preserving historic monuments. The Ambassador visited
the Tatev Scholarly Center and Monastery, the former of which has been
partially restored with support from the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural
Preservation. She held meetings with civil society representatives
and Peace Corps volunteers and gave an interview to Last TV Station’s
program "Good Evening Goris," during which she shared her impressions
of the region.For more information please contact: Sarabjit Jagirdar,
Email:- [email protected]

ARMENIAN BAR ASSOCIATION’S 20TH ANNUAL MEETING WITH GOVERNOR GEORGE DEUKMEJIAN

AZG Armenian Daily
23/06/2009

Diaspora

Several hundred legal heavyweights and dignitaries, along friends
and family, celebrated the Armenian Bar Association’s (ArmenBar)
20th Anniversary at a gala on May 9, 2009 at the Glendale, Hilton. The
banquet culminated a spectacular weekend complete with legal seminars,
a pro bono community workshop, a star studded luncheon, and receptions.

"This was a fabulous meeting," said Armen Hovannisian, past Chairman
of ArmenBar, and the meeting organizer. "After 20 years, we reaffirmed
our wide relevance, special community role, and dynamic vibrancy. Our
report card shows that we continue to make a positive difference for
Armenian communities throughout the world," said Hovannisian.

Governor George Deukmejian, one of an elite group of ArmenBar Honorary
Members, was the keynote speaker at the gala dinner banquet . He wowed
the crowd with the delivery of a true statesman and also with his
comical anecdotes from the annuls of Nasreddin Hodja. Four hundred
enthusiastic supporters were on-hand to witness the recognition and
awarding of distinguished ArmenBar members.

Raffi K. Hovannisian received the highly coveted Hrant Dink Freedom
Award for his principled stand on Genocide recognition throughout the
world. He is the founder of ArmenBar, the First Foreign Minister of
the Republic of Armenia, and the first Armenian from the Diaspora to
become a member of the Armenian Parliament.

Professor Ann Lousin, the only three term Chair of ArmenBar, and
a professor at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago received a
Lifetime Achievement Award for her extensive service and mentoring
to lawyers and law students. Vicken Simonian, the longest-serving
Board member of ArmenBar, received a Public Service Award for years
of pro bono service to the Armenian community and for his sustained
volunteerism in the Los Angeles County court system as a judge pro tem,
mediator, arbitrator and settlement officer.

California Supreme Court Justice Ming Chin was the main luncheon
speaker, and was introduced by fellow California Supreme Court Justice
Marvin Baxter, a founding and Honorary Member of the Armenian Bar
Association. After drawing parallels between his own family’s immigrant
past and the experiences of the Armenian community, Chin praised the
outreach efforts of ArmenBar and encouraged the group to promote and
help preserve impartiality in the judiciary.

A panel on human and civil rights in Armenia, and the role of the
courts in protecting such rights , was an important part of the
legal seminars. Renowned Armenian civil rights attorney and Member
of Parliament Zaruhi Postanjyan was the guest speaker. She was joined
by Raffi K. Hovannisian on the panel.

Nicholas Koumjian, a prosecutor in several international criminal
tribunals and currently working at the Hague, was a special guest
speaker in a panel focusing on the prosecution of war crimes and
crimes against humanity. Koumjian is the chief prosecutor in the highly
publicized, current trial of Charles Taylor, the former President of
Liberia. The trial is taking place in The Hague, and Taylor is the
first former African head of state to appear before an international
tribunal for crimes against humanity.

Phillip Lynch, an Assistant U.S. Attorney who was appointed by the
U.S. Department of Justice to be the Rule of Law Coordinator in
Baghdad, Iraq in 2007, joined Koumjian on the panel. Lynch has had
the unique experience of helping to establish Iraq’s legal system
following the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime, and shared some of
those experiences. He discussed his first-hand involvement relating
to the trial of Saddam Hussein, which resulted in a death sentence
and execution. The panel was moderated by John Lulejian, an Assistant
United States Attorney who prosecutes violent and organized crime,
and is a Board Member of ArmenBar.

Garo Ghazarian, Dean of the People’s College of Law, lead a panel
discussion on "Crime and Justice in the Armenian Community." The panel
included Steven Lubell a Commissioner in the City of Burbank, Thomas
Lorenz and Tigran Topadzhikyan, both Seargents with the Glendale Police
Department and Fred Mesropi, a Deputy District Attorney with the County
of Los Angeles. The topics included the perception of Armenians within
the local communities, helping the community with rulings from the
bench and certain types of crimes including those related to traffic,
alcohol, identity theft and health and welfare fraud.

During the celebratory weekend, ArmenBar held a pro bono workshop
for the community at the St. Mary’s Armenian Apostolic Church
in Glendale. The workshop featured a number of outstanding local
attorneys giving practical, and where possible, one-on-one, advice
to community members on issues of interest such as immigration,
domestic violence, landlord/tenant disputes and criminal matters. The
panelists included Alice Yardum Hunter, Lucy Avedissian, Hagop
Tashjian, Betty Jamgotchian, Victor Hairapetian, Raymond Hovsepian,
Raymond Zakari, Vicken Simonian, Varoujan Agemian, Sarkis Babachanian,
Theresa Gibbons, Azniv Ksachikian, Nigol Manoukian, Garo Ghazarian
and Dorine Martirossian.

The meeting was presided over by Armenbar Chair Sonya Nersessian from
Boston, Massachusetts.

All of the Officers of the organization were installed to a second
term, including Nersessian as Chair, Edvin Minassian from Glendale
as Vice-Chair, Sara Bedirian from Beverly Hills as Treasurer and
Christine Engustian from Providence, Rhode Island as Secretary.

"The strength and vitality of the Armenian Bar Association during
this celebratory weekend is a springboard for the future growth and
continued success of this organization," said Nersessian.

The group will next meet in Toronto in early October for its mid-year
meeting. More information can be obtained by visiting the ArmenBar
website at

ARMENIAN COMPLEMENTARISM HAS COME TO THE END: ACNIS DIRECTOR

ArmInfo
2009-06-22 16:59:00

ArmInfo. Armenian complementarism has come to the end, Richard
Giragosian, Director of the Armenian Center for National and
International Studies (ACNIS), said at the conference ‘Armenia at
the crossroad of communications’ at the Armenian resort town of
Tsakhadazor on Monday.

He said that the situation has changed and Armenia is no longer
considered even an outpost by Moscow. It is perceived just as
a military base, Giragosian said. He believes that the reason of
such situation is the policy of the Armenian authorities. To prove
his words, ACNIS Director mentioned that during opening of the
Russian Square in Yerevan President of Armenia and Yerevan Mayor
talked in Russian for some unknown reason. ‘I don’t think it would
be possible if a square of China or France is opened in Yerevan’,
he said. Nevertheless, R. Giragosian called such approach to the
country inadmissible especially in the context of the post-August
realities since Armenia’s role in the region has considerably grown
after Georgia’s weakening like the role of Azerbaijan. R. Giragosian
highlighted three imperatives in the policy with regard to Armenia:
the situation after the August war; the USA’s refusal from practicing
color revolutions that proved ineffective; and the Eastern Partnership
Project, which Russia considers an analogue to NATO though it is not
right. For conclusion, R. Giragosian underlined Armenia’s role as a
link between the states in the region.

TURKEY WILL MAKE RA PRESIDENT CONTINUE THE GAME WITH ANKARA

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
19.06.2009 14:48 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkish diplomacy will find ways to make the
Armenian President continue the game it started with Turkey and attend
Armenia-Turkish return match in October 2009, said Kiro Manoyan, ARF
Dashnaktsutyun Bureau’s Hay Dat and Political Affairs Office Director.

"I am confident that no agreement will be signed before this visit. The
Turkish-Armenian border may be opened for 2 or 3 days, not more,"
he said.

Serzh Sargsyan will not suspend talks with Turkey, according to
Mr. Manoyan.

"Continuing the negotiation process, Armenia wants to prove the
international community and superpowers that it’s ready to normalize
relations without preconditions," he said.