Author: Zargarian Hambik

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

Monday, March 9, 2009

AGBU Generation Next Mentorship Program Raises $40,000 during its
10th-Anniversary Gala

On Friday, February 27, 2009, the Castaway Starlight Ballroom shined as
over 200 mentors, supporters and community leaders gathered to celebrate
the 10th anniversary of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU)
Generation Next Mentorship Program (GenNext) with the "Stars of
Tomorrow" gala in Burbank, CA. The event honored Carla Garapedian,
director of Screamers and former BBC World News anchor, and Shavo
Odadjian, activist and bassist of the world-renowned rock band System of
a Down. The evening raised $40,000, which will support the program’s
growth and allow it to serve more Armenian-American youth in the Los
Angeles area.

Revelers celebrated GenNext’s decade of service while enjoying a
beautiful view of the San Fernando Valley from the hilltop banquet hall.
The evening’s honorees were presented with GenNext’s Community Hero
award. Carla Garapedian accepted the award for her film Screamers, a
critically acclaimed documentary about System of a Down’s efforts to
raise Armenian Genocide awareness in the minds of mainstream audiences.
During her acceptance speech, Garapedian said: "There is always that one
person, that angel, that mentor, who is there for you at that crucial
juncture of your life. I know how important it is to have a mentorship
program. It really mattered to me to have a mentor and I know it matters
to our young people."

Shavo Odadjian was also presented with an award for his outstanding work
as a role model for young Armenian Americans. During his acceptance
speech, he highlighted the importance of being active in your local
community: "If anyone has a voice in today’s society, they should use
that voice righteously and benevolently. That is what the AGBU stands
for and, with the Generation Next Program, it has gone to a new level."

During his speech, Odadjian recognized his own mentor who accompanied
him to the event, world-famous rapper and producer Rza, who is one of
the driving forces behind one of the greatest rap groups of all time, Wu
Tang Clan. Odadjian and Rza are currently collaborating on a
philosophical cosmic rap group called Achozen.

Other special guests at the GenNext gala were California State Senator
Carol Liu, who presented the program with a Certificate of Recognition,
and Assistant Majority Leader of the California State Assembly Paul
Krekorian, who commended GenNext’s work by presenting it with a
California State Resolution recognizing the positive impact the program
has made on the local community. Members of the Glendale Unified School
District (GUSD), including Superintendent Dr. Michael Escalante,
attended the event to show their continued support of GenNext, which
works closely with many of Glendale’s middle schools and high schools.
Alice Petrossian, Chief Educational Officer of Pasadena Unified School
District and longtime supporter of the program, was also in attendance.

The "Stars of Tomorrow" gala was made possible through the tireless
efforts of the GenNext Fundraising Committee, which included Narine
Galstian, committee chair, and Vrej Hovsepian, GenNext task force chair.
Both of them were on hand to receive an award for "Exemplary Leadership
and Service" from the AGBU Central Board of Directors, which was
presented to the program by Southern California District Committee
(SCDC) Chairman Berj Shahbazian. During the program, Haig Messerlian,
SCDC member and former director of AGBU USA, spoke about the history of
the AGBU and how the mentorship program fit into the organization’s
youth outreach. Shahbazian also commended the program for its hard work
at reconnecting youth to their heritage and encouraging them to take an
active role in their local community.

Drawing a diverse crowd, the GenNext gala highlighted the breadth and
strength of AGBU’s presence in Southern California. Since 1998, GenNext
has worked diligently to create community by bringing youth and adults
together in relationships where those adults act as guides through the
perilous journey of adolescence. The strong support of the community was
felt as school board members, elected and appointed officials, program
volunteers and community activists joined together to celebrate the
program and support the community’s future.

Since its establishment in 1998, AGBU Generation
Next() mentors and staff have served Armenian
students from seventh to eleventh grades. Adult volunteers from AGBU
Generation Next assist students with issues involving academics,
behavior, and acculturation. By providing positive role models,
volunteer mentors help these young Armenians become responsible,
self-sufficient young adults. For more information, email
[email protected].

For more information about AGBU and its youth programs, visit

Focus News Agency, Bulgaria
March 8 2009

Turkish foreign minister warned Barak Obama not to recognize Armenian
genocide

8 March 2009 | 20:36 | FOCUS News Agency

Ankara. Turkish foreign minister Ali Babacan said American President
Barak Obama could recognize mass killing of Armenians during the
Ottoman Empire, AFP informs.
In an interview with Turkish television NTV Babacan warned such move
will embarrass attempts Turkey and Armenia to get close.
American President, who is expected to visit Ankara in April said
several times during his elections campaign he will recognize mass
killing of Armenians is the time term as of 1915-1917 for genocide.

urkey/index.html

ANKARA, Turkey (CNN) — President Obama plans to visit Turkey in about a month, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday.

Clinton was holding talks in Ankara with officials "to emphasize
the work the United States and Turkey must do together on behalf of
peace, prosperity and progress," she said. Obama had said he was
going to deliver a speech in a Muslim capital within the first hundred
days of his presidency. Clinton did not say that Obama would be making
such a speech during this visit. A senior Obama administration
official confirmed that Turkey will be the president’s first visit to a
Muslim nation since taking office, but did not provide dates for the
president’s upcoming visit to Turkey. This official did say the visit
would be "an important opportunity to visit a NATO ally and discuss shared
challenges."
The official added that "it will also provide an opportunity to
continue the president’s dialogue with the Muslim world, a dialogue he
started immediately and intends to maintain throughout his presidency."

The State Department on Saturday issued a joint statement from Clinton
and Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan reaffirming the close
U.S.-Turkish relationship. Both countries pledged to pursue an
Arab-Israeli peace settlement, peace in the southern Caucasus region,
normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations and a settlement of the
Cyprus question — a dispute between Greek and Turkish Cypriots over
territory. They vowed to enhance the fight against terror groups
such as al Qaeda and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and work to expand
the natural gas and oil infrastructure to help Caspian basin and Iraqi
energy producers reach European and world markets. Turkey is a
secular country and predominantly Muslim. It is a NATO member and has
been a longtime ally of the United States. It is one of the few Muslim
countries to have full diplomatic relations with Israel and has long
been the Jewish state’s closest military and economic partner in the
region.

ALROSA MAKES PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE LARGE CREDIT LINE TO ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan

M arch 4, 2009

YEREVAN, MARCH 4, NOYAN TAPAN. During the March 4 meeting of Armenian
prime minister Tigran Sargsyan and chairman of Alrosa diamond mining
company (Russia) Sergei Vybornov, issues of further cooperation with
Alrosa under conditions of the current global financial and economic
crisis, the opportunities and prospects of assistance to Armenian
companies engaged in diamond cutting sector were discussed.

The chairman of Alrosa made a proposal to provide a large credit line
to Armenia, which will allow obtaining rough diamonds from Alrosa
and supplying Armenian diamond cutting enterprises with the necessary
raw material in the next few years.

According to the press service of the Armenian government, the sides
agreed to hold more discussions on the conditions of this mutually
beneficial credit and the risks of both the lender and the borrower,
taking into account the possible manifestations and impact of the
global crisis in the future.

ARMENIA RALLY MARKS DEADLY RIOTS

BBC NEWS
urope/7918467.stm
2009/03/02 10:06:24 GMT

Thousands of opposition supporters in Armenia attended a rally on
Sunday to mark the first anniversary of its worst political violence
since independence.

The protesters in the capital, Yerevan, demanded early elections and
the release of "political prisoners".

Opposition leader and former President Levon Ter-Petrosian said the
government needed to change its methods and open a dialogue with
the opposition.

Last year’s clashes between police and opposition activists left
10 dead.

They broke out after police tried to end protests by thousands of Mr
Ter-Petrosian’s supporters at the result of the presidential election,
which saw him defeated by Serzh Sarkisian, then prime minister.

More than 100 people were arrested during a state of emergency imposed
after the violence.

‘Not frightened’

During Sunday’s demonstration, tens of thousands of protestors marched
through central Yerevan carrying banners painted with the words
"Freedom for political prisoners".

Dozens of police officers looked on as people chanted "victory" and
"freedom" and laid flowers where the worst clashes took place.

"The authorities have drawn no conclusions from these tragic events
and have done nothing to establish democracy in the country," Mr
Ter-Petrosian told the crowd.

"Despite constant pressure from the government, the people are
stronger, are not frightened and are ready to continue the struggle,"
he said, adding that another opposition rally would be held on 1 May.

The BBC’s Tom Esslemont in Yerevan says that one year after the
violence, deep divisions remain in Armenian society.

More than 40 people have received jail sentences and some are still
on trial, including the former foreign minister, Alexander Arzoumanian.

The government has come under mounting pressure to address what some
organisations see as urgent human rights concerns, our correspondent
says.

Last week, Human Rights Watch said the authorities were conducting
"politically motivated" trials against members of the opposition
while failing to investigate the excessive use of force by police
during the clashes.

Yerevan’s mayor had refused to sanction Sunday’s protest, but decided
at the last minute to allow people to gather peacefully.

The president’s office said Mr Sarkisian had lit candles at a church
in memory of those killed last March, who included two police officers.

The Fresno Bee Editorial Opinion Blog
February 25, 2009 Wednesday 9:20 PM EST

Mark Arax’s new book sees California through the Arax lens his
subjects have come to love and fear

by Jim Boren
Feb. 25, 2009

I just learned that Fresno writer Mark Arax’s latest book will be out
in mid April, and that should be another treat for the followers of
his writings. The title is "West of the West." The subtitle,
"Dreamers, Believers, Builders and Killers in the Golden State," seems
to sum up nicely the subjects in his crosshairs.

Publishers Weekly has an excellent review of the new book, saying
Arax’s series of essays move "past mere reportage to a high literary
enterprise that beautifully integrates the private and idiosyncratic
with the sweep of great historical forces." Now they’re selling me on
this book.

Arax, the former reporter for the Los Angeles Times, understands this
Valley and state as well as any journalist I know. Fresno is his
hometown, and he sees our community in ways that make you question the
validity of your deeply held convictions about Fresno. You may come to
a different conclusion, but you’d be naive not to factor Arax’s take
into your thinking.

His previous books include "In My Father’s Name," and "The King of
California: J.G. Boswell and the Making of a Secret American Empire,"
which Arax co-authored with Rick Wartzman. The latest book is
published by PublicAffairs, which is a member of the Perseus Books
Group. It will sell for $26.95.

Click herefor the complete review from Publishers Weekly. Here’s
another tidbit from that review: "Expect the unexpected from Arax’s
reports up and down the state: on the last of the okies, the latest
migrants from Mexico, the treesitters of Berkeley, Bay Area conspiracy
theorists, an Armenian chicken giant’s infamous fall or the mammoth
marijuana economy of Humboldt County, among much else."

And we can’t leave this subject without repeating something else from
the Publishers Weekly review. It says the Arax essays "take the
measure of contemporary California with a sure and supple hand,
consciously but deservedly taking its place alongside Didion’s and
Saroyan’s great social portraits."

Wow. Put that on the book jacket and watch the cash registers start
ringing at Barnes & Noble. (NYSE:BKS) I’m there.

U.S. ACCUSES TURKEY OVER MEDIA FREEDOM

Reuters
Feb 26 2009
UK

* Journalists fear reprisals if criticise govt
* Media group in row over govt graft allegations
* Media freedoms rise as part of EU membership drive

ANKARA, Feb 26 (Reuters) – The United States accused Turkey of
limiting freedom of expression in its annual human rights report and
said journalists feared reprisals if they criticised Prime Minister
Tayyip Erdogan’s government.

The report, published on Thursday in Washington, comes amid an
escalating row between Turkey’s largest media company Dogan Yayin
(DYHOL.IS) and the government.

Last week, Dogan Yayin was fined nearly $500 million in penalties
and back-taxes following an investigation by tax authorities, which
Turkey’s leading press association said was aimed at silencing
critical reporting.

Erdogan has sharply criticised Dogan, which owns top selling dailies
Hurriyet, a news agency and broadcasters, and has called on supporters
not to buy the group’s newspapers after they ran stories alleging
government corruption.

"Several large holding companies which owned news agencies in the
country were concerned over losing business opportunities if their
journalists wrote articles critical of the government," the State
Department report said without naming any group.

"Senior government officials, including Prime Minister Erdogan, made
statements during the year strongly criticizing the press and media
business figures, particularly following the publishing of reports
on alleged corruption in entities in Germany connected to the ruling
party," it said.

Dogan Yayin, which controls almost half of Turkey’s print and
broadcasting media, reported on a trial in Germany last year involving
an Islamic charity accused of embezzling donations and sending funds
to a Turkish pro-government media outlet.

Erdogan has denied the graft allegations and the Finance Ministry
has said the Dogan fine was the result of a routine tax inspection
and was not politically motivated.

As part of negotiations to join the European Union, Ankara has expanded
free speech and eased restrictions on the media, including amending
a penal code article which punished Turks for "insulting Turkishness".

The article was changed, replacing "Turkishness" with "the Turkish
nation", but the State Department report noted that restrictions
still existed despite the amendment, particularly over the sensitive
subjects of mass killings of Armenians during World War One and
minority ethnic Kurds.

The report also found evidence of curbs on the Internet.

Hundreds of internet websites, including the popular YouTube, have
been blocked in Turkey. The majority of sites in Turkey closed by
court order are due to allegations sites encourage suicide, child
pornography, help users access drugs, promote prostitution or insult
the founder of modern Turkey. (Editing by Jon Boyle)

HFHA, ARMENIA’S MINISTRY OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT SIGN AN AGREEMENT OF COOPERATION

armradio.am
26.02.2009 18:08

Habitat for Humanity Armenia and the Republic of Armenia Ministry of
Urban Development signed an Agreement of Cooperation. The Agreement
provides a framework for collaborative efforts on programs and
activities aiming towards the improvement of housing conditions in
the Republic of Armenia.

"Over the past year, the RA Ministry of Urban Development has built
up a cooperative relationship with Habitat for Humanity Armenia. This
Agreement is one of the first steps to initiate the implementation of
joint projects," says Karlen Gevorgyan, RA Deputy Minister of Urban
Development. "There are many young families who are currently living in
poor housing conditions, but are capable and willing to improve their
situation with their own means; all they need is a hand up. The input
of Habitat for Humanity Armenia in improving the housing conditions
in our country is already visible. We hope that HFHA activities will
expand in our country and are willing to support them."

The collaboration between HFHA and the RA Ministry of Urban Development
will focus on provision of affordable housing opportunities,
development of policies and programs aiming at the introduction
of housing institute, and housing intervention aiming at disaster
response and disaster risk reduction.

Within the circles of this collabora tion and following to the
initiative of HFHA, the RA Ministry of Urban Development forwarded
a request to all the regional governments in Armenia to receive
information on the need for simple, decent, and affordable housing
in their regions and communities.

"All of ten regions submitted the information on housing needs in their
regions. This only highlights the high level of the need for simple,
decent, and affordable homes throughout our country," says Irina
Vanyan, the Executive Director for HFHA. "It is based upon the received
information that we intend discussing the priorities of further joint
projects to eliminate poverty housing in the regions of Armenia."

SYRIAN PRESIDENT PROMISED TO VISIT ARMENIA IN NEAR FUTURE

PanARMENIAN.Net
26.02.2009 19:17 GMT+04:00

President Bashar al-Assad received on Thursday Armenian Foreign
Minister, Edward Nalbandian, who handed him an invitation extended
by Armenian President, Serzh Sargsyan to visit Armenia.

The president promised to visit Armenia as soon as possible, according
to a Presidential statement.

The statement said that the talks during the meeting dealt with
bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and ways of
boosting them further.

President al-Assad was briefed by Nalbandian on the Armenian-Turkish
dialogue which aims at normalization of relations between Turkey and
Armenia, reflecting positively on the region.

The issue of Nagorno-Karabakh and the efforts exerted in this framework
were also discussed, United News Network reported.

ASSOCIATION: PACKAGE OF MEASURES SHOULD BE DEVELOPED FOR PROTECTION OF CONSUMER RIGHTS IN ARMENIA

ARKA
Feb 25, 2009

YEREVAN, February 25. /ARKA/. Under conditions of periodic increase
in prices in Armenia effective measures should be taken and a social
protection package should be developed for mitigating impact on family
budgets, says the Association of Consumers of Armenia.

Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission is to consider three
price increase issues at its meeting on February 27 – increase in
prices for water supply, electricity and gas, says the statement of
the Association.

In particular, ArmRosgasprom company has applied to the Commission
for raising the gas price from the current monthly of 84,000Drams per
1,000 cubic meters including VAT to 99,000Drams per 1,000 cubic meters
including VAT for consumers of up to 10,000 cubic meters per month,
whereas the Commission suggests it to be 96,000 Drams per 1,000 cubic
meters including VAT. The price review is expected to come into force
as from April 1 2009.

The Association is surprised at the Commission’s decision to hold
a hasty meeting as, according to Armenian law about energy sector,
the regulating body is to review prices in the sector within 90 days
after the receipt of an application, whereas in this case it is only
20-25 days. The statement also stresses that the Commission has the
right to establish prices for electricity under its own in itiative.

It is difficult to imagine what would be the impact of the price
increase on modest family budgets of citizens with foodstuffs
constituting 52% of their consumer basket public services making 29%
of the basket, says the statement.

The Association reminds that the state share has reduced from 45%
down to 37% and then down to 20% in the authorized stock of the
biggest enterprise in Armenia – ArmRosgasprom.

ArmRosgasprom closed joint stock company holds the monopoly for
supply and distribution of the Russian gas on the domestic market
of Armenia. The company was founded in 1997 with Gasprom ojsc and
Armenian Ministry of Energy owning 45% of the shares each and with
the remaining 10% belonging to Itera.

While implementing two out of three planned stages of investments
(after purchase of additional shares of ArmRosgasprom cjsc in 2006
and 2008), the share of Gasprom went up to 75.55%. The government
share is 20% and Itera owns 4.44% now.

Similar process was under way in ArmenTel company, where the state
share went down from 10% to 0% making Armenia lose the opportunity
to participate in the management of the company and get dividends.

ArmenTel cjsc is a daughter enterprise of VimpelCom (Beeline trademark)
that obtained 100% of the company’s shares in April 2007. ArmenTel is
providing fixe-line telephone services to about 650,000 subscribers
and mobile services to over 784,000 subscribers.

The statement of the Association also draws the attention of the
country’s president and the premier to Armenia’s exclusive advantage
in terms of regional competition – great potential for exporting
electricity.