Author: Zargarian Hambik

SHEVKET SHAYDULLIN CONSIDERS STATE OF ARMENIAN RAILWAY AS SATISFACTORY

Noyan Tapan

F eb 25, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 25, NOYAN TAPAN. At the present time the state of
the Armenian railway is satisfactory, the head of South Caucasus
Railways Shevket Shaydullin declared at the February 25 press
conference. According to him, South Caucasus Railways is considered
one of the biggest companies.

The company operates under conditions of competition and provides 29%
of transportation services in Armenia. It is taking steps to improve
the quality and conditions of its services and aims to repair old
railway lines.

S. Shaydullin announced that no rise in tariffs is envisaged in
2009. In his words, in 2008 the company operated at a loss, and the
same is forecast for 2009 – because of investments. It was mentioned
that the passenger traffic made 21 thousand in January 2009 as compared
with 10 thousand in the same month of 2008.

ARMENIA: DESTINATION UNDISCOVERED

Tourism Review
ll.php?id=1418
Feb 23 2009
Czech Republic

Armenia is a developing tourism destination with numerous sights. It
is also home to three UNESCO world heritage sites and as such lures
cultural tourists as well as history lovers.

Armenia is a small country located in South Caucasus. It has a
population of approximately 3 million and also one of the world’s
oldest histories. They were the first country to adopt Christianity
in 301 AD. This post soviet country is mostly remembered in
connection with the Nagorno-Karabakh war between Armenians and
Azerbaijanis. Nevertheless, they also have an expanding tourism
industry.

The country certainly has lots to offer to tourists. Thanks to the
long history of Christianity in this country, there are numerous
religious buildings that lure tourists. For example monasteries
of Haghpat and Sanahin were important centers of learning. These
monasteries are listed as UNESCO world heritage sites as well as the
Cathedral and Churches of Echmiatsin and the Archaeological Site of
Zvartnots. The third UNESCO site is the Monastery of Geghard and the
Upper Azat Valley.

Besides the UNESCO sites there are numerous other places drawing the
attention of international tourists. For example, the Armenian capital
Yerevan is a vibrant 1.2 million city with museums and galleries. There
are also the popular water resorts of Lake Sevan. It is one of the
largest high-altitude lakes in the world and it occupies approximately
five per cent of Armenia"s surface area.

ther interesting attractions are the hot springs of Arzni
and Jermuk. There is also a popular ski resort in the city of
Tsaghkadzor. Another popular destination is Dilijan known by locals
as "Armenian Switzerland" because of the forests surrounding the
city. The country perhaps lacks some tourism infrastructure but it
certainly provides a visitor with a unique experience.

The majority of tourists coming to the country (62 per cent) are
Armenians living abroad. The rest of visitors comes from Russia,
Georgia, EU countries, the USA and Iran. Some 510,300 tourists visited
the country in 2007.

DO NOT TELL LIES!

A1+
[01:13 pm] 23 February, 2009

Today marks the Great Lent, the period starting from the day following
the Great Barekendan and lasting till the Feast of the Glorious
Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

In the period of the Great Lent, people, refraining from bodily
pleasures and sins, get prepared for the Feast of the Glorious
Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ by means of abstinence and
repentance. Both spiritual and moral and bodily abstinence are
considered to be important.

This period of the Great Lent is also called "Salt and bread", as in
the past during the period of the Great Lent people have eaten only
salt and bread.

In the New and old Testaments there are many testimonies concerning
the period of Great Lent. Moses fasted for forty days and only then
received the Lord’s rules and canons. However, this period is related
to 40-day period of temptation of Christ in the desert, following
which our Church fathers established this period of fasting.

Fasting may be of three kinds: usual fasting, rigorous abstinence and
absolute fasting. In case of usual fasting people can eat only food
of vegetable origin. In case of rigorous fasting people refuse to eat
any food even of vegetable origin. And in case of absolute fasting
people refuse to eat any kind of food, including even bread and water.

It is also recommended that people give up their bad habits: loquacity,
deceitfulness, bad language, etc.

During the period of the Great Lent curtains in the churches are closed
in commemoration of the fact that after sinning Adam was exiled from
Eden and the doors were closed before him.

Armenia intends to open center for diagnosing and treating cancer

YEREVAN, February 20. /ARKA/. Armenian Government has approved the
program of establishment of an oncology center.

Armenian Economy Minister Nerses Yeritsyan, presenting the project to
the Government on Thursday, said it costs about ?¬30 million, of which
19 million will be spent for installation of cyclotron radionuclide
accelerator for diagnosing and treating cancer.

He said that Belgian Government pledged ?¬17 million as preferential
credit with zero interest under guarantees.

The remaining 19 million will be attracted as private investments.

The minister said that ?¬11 million will be targeted for a clinic
diagnosing and treating cancer.
Negotiations with international organizations and private investors
interested in this project are under way now.

`New progress is expected in nuclear medicine soon, and cyclotron will
give us new opportunities in physics and other fundamental sciences’,
Yeritsyan said.

He said that it will be useful also for development of related areas,
such as pharmaceutics, nature protection and agriculture.

The minister also said that to avoid additional risks in drawing a
business plan, dealing with investors and running the program, the
Government will cooperate with Grant Thornton Amyot, audit and
consulting company.

Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, in his turn, said that the
establishment of20the nuclear medicine center in Armenia will be a step
toward developing the country into the regional healthcare center.

`The financing we will receive from Belgian Government will ensure
crucial development in this area’, he said adding that the program will
be implemented in cooperation with private sector.

The premier thinks that production of isotopes with using cyclotron
will change the whole healthcare area and will make it possible to
establish an up-to-international-standards center of nuclear medicine
in Armenia.

Health Minister Harutyun Kushkyan said that radionuclide is effective
for its ability to find out malignant tumors at initial stage.
He also said that radionuclide has a short-term effect.

This minimizes it negative impact on human organism. Kushkyan said CAT
scanner will be installed for early diagnostics.

According to the Health Ministry, 30,000 people suffer from cancer and
7,500 take treatments in national oncology center every year.

The cyclotron nuclear center for producing isotopes as part of the
project worked out by Yerevan institute of physics and united institute
of nuclear studies in Dubno, Russia.-0-

PanARMENIAN.Net

Armenian futsal team suffers crushing defeat from Latvia
21.02.2009 14:34 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian futsal team suffered a crushing defeat
from Latvia in the 2nd European Championship 2010 elimination match.

The Armenian team was drubbed 0-7, losing all chances to reach the
European Championship 2010 qualifying games.

The Bulgarian team drubbed Estonians, scoring 4 goals.

After two games, the Armenian team is the third in the team event,
gaining 1 point.

Latvian team is leading with 6 points. Hosting Bulgarians come second
in the team event with 4 points. Estonian team came last, losing both
games.

On Feb. 22, Armenians will play their last game against Estonians.

In case of victory, there is a chance the Armenian team will get
through to the EC 2010 qualifying round if it appears among the two
best teams winning the 2nd place.

CRIMINAL CHARGES FOR DISPLAY OF RACIAL SIGN

Hurriyet
Feb 20 2009
Turkey

ISTANBUL – A prosecutor has sought a one-year prison term for a man who
has been charged with racist behavior, a newspaper reported Tuesday.

Niyazi Capa, chairperson of the Osmangazi Cultural Foundations
Federation, is facing a possible one-year prison term, daily Radikal
reported yesterday.

Capa was charged with a racist offense following an incident last
month when he released a press statement in the presence of members
of his foundation who each held a dog on their laps and banners that
read "Jews and Armenians cannot enter" and "Entrance is free for dogs."

Racial discrimination The prosecutor’s office in the Anatolian city of
EskiÅ~_ehir, where the incident occurred, has filed a case against Capa
charging him with "discrimination against people based on language,
race, color, sex, political ideas, philosophical beliefs, religion
and other similar reasons." The case is set to be heard in May. Capa
will not be detained for the period leading to his trial.

In his defense, Capa released a statement to the prosecutor that said
he did not act in a racist manner. "The banners that read ‘Jews and
Armenians cannot enter’ and ‘Entrance is free for dogs’ were hung on
the foundation’s gates at the same time but weren’t related. But the
media interpreted this as ‘Dogs can enter, but Jews and Armenians
cannot.’ "

Actions a response Capa also said his press statement was in response
to Israel’s attacks on Palestine and the apology campaign to Armenians
for the events of 1915. "I did this to protest the Armenian-American
rock band, "System of a Down," which put up a banner at their concert
in France that read, ‘Turks and dogs cannot enter,’" he said. Capa
claimed that he had no problems with Jewish or Armenian people.

The accusation regarding the banner displayed by the American band,
whose members are of Armenian origin, is considered to be a fabricated
tale made up in Turkey and the same accusation was leveled at European
bands such as Saxon and Sodom in the past. The existence of such
banners were never witnessed or photographed in any event by any of
the three bands.

EX-WBO CHAMPION ARTHUR GRIGORYAN TO FIGHT AGAIN

PanARMENIAN.Net
17.02.2009 16:25 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Ex-WBO lightweight champion Arthur Grigoryan, who
finished his career in 2004, will be fighting at 25th Anniversary
Show of Universum Promotion Company. Arthur Grigoryan will rival
Bulgaria’s Kirkor Kirkorov in a six-round match.

World Boxing champions Suzy Ketikyan, Ina Menzer, Alesia Graf and
Regina Halmich will adopt unusual roles of ring card girls to announce
the start of rounds.

Grigoryan, who’ll become 42 this year, carried the belt of WBO Champion
from 1996 to 2004. Arthur is an Uzbek boxer of Armenian descent. He
was an amateur competition champion at Goodwill Games in Seattle, won
a silver medal at 1991 World Boxing Championship and was awarded with
USSR Honored Master of Sports title. He came out victorious against
such famous professionals as Leonardo Dorin and Shane Mosley. During
his professional career, he had 37 winning combats, losing only once –
to Brazilia’s unbeatable Acelino Freitas.

After termination of his sports career Artur Grigoryan stayed at
Universum Company in the capacity of a coach.

THE ONLY ARMENIAN IN DHAKA WORRIED ABOUT FURTHER FATE OF OLD ARMENIAN CHURCH

Noyan Tapan
Feb 17, 2009

DHAKA, FEBRUARY 17, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The large Armenian
church in the old quarter of Dhaka, the Bangladeshi capital, may
become neglected.

According to Jakarta Globe (Indonesia), this worry was expressed by
the only Armenian living in the city – Michael Joseph Martin who now
lives alone in an enormous mansion on the church grounds. Martin,
whose full name is Mikel Housep Martirossian, looks after the church
and its graveyard where 400 of his compatriots are buried, including
his wife, who died three years ago.

Michael Joseph Martin is guarded about his exact age and is reluctant
to accept he will be the last in a long line of Armenians to make a
major contribution to the history of Bangladesh.

Dhaka was once home to thousands of migrants from the former Soviet
republic who grew to dominate the city’s trade and business life. But
Martin, in his 70s, is now the only one left. "When I die, maybe one of
my three daughters will fly in from Canada to keep our presence here
alive," Martin said hopefully, speaking broken Bengali with a thick
accent. "Or perhaps other Armenians will come from somewhere else".

Martin came to Dhaka in 1942 during World War II, following in
the footsteps of his father, who had settled in the region decades
earlier. They joined an Armenian community in Bangladesh dating back
to the 16th century.

COLONEL TO BE TRIED FOR NEGLECT IN TURKISH-ARMENIAN JOURNALIST’S MURDER

Hurriyet
Feb 17 2009
Turkey

A Turkish court will try a retired colonel and five soldiers for
covering up warnings ahead of the assassination of Turkish-Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink.

A High Criminal Court in the northwestern province of Trabzon ruled
Tuesday that Retired Colonel Albay Oz and five other soldiers face up
to two years in prison on the charge of "neglect of duty" for their
role in the death of Dink, Dogan News Agency reported.

A Criminal Court of Peace in the province had earlier ruled to dismiss
the charges against the six accused.

Dink, editor in chief of the Agos newspaper, was shot dead outside
the offices of the paper in Istanbul in January 2007.

The teenager accused in the murder was quickly apprehended trying to
make his way to his hometown of Trabzon on the Black Sea coast. Police
later arrested Erhan Tuncel and Yasin Hayal for inciting the teenager
to carry out the attack. A total of 20 suspects are currently standing
trial for Dink’s murder.

It was later revealed that Tuncel, who was a police informant, had
alerted Trabzon security forces about plans to murder Dink.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry delivered a diplomatic note to
Israel concerning the harsh remarks of an Israeli general, broadcaster
NTV reported Saturday. In a separate statement, the Turkish army said
the remarks are in an extent that could harm the bilateral relations.

The broadcaster NTV said the note was delivered to Gabi Levy, Israeli
Ambassador to Ankara, on Saturday.

On Friday, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that Maj. Gen. Avi
Mizrahi, a veteran professional officer, called on Turkish Prime
Minister Tayyip Erdogan to look in the mirror.

The Israeli General took a step further and accused Turkey of
"committing massacre of the Armenians as well as the suppression of
the Kurds". Mizrahi also mentioned the so-called Turkish occupation of
northern Cyprus, according to the report.

ARMY¢S STATEMENT
The Turkish army issued a statement on Saturday to slam Mizrahi over
his words.

"These
remarks, as the way they were published in the media reports, are
considered to be misleading the facts, unfortunate, unacceptable and
more importantly in an extent that could harm the national interests
between two countries," the army said in a statement posted on its Web
site.

The
military also called on the Israeli army, "which is considered to be
attaching great importance to its relations with the Turkish Armed
Forces", to clarify Mizrahi’s statement.

Erdogan has harshly criticized Israel¢s operations in Gaza which
killed more than 1,300 people dead. The relations strained after
Erdogan stormed out of a Gaza debate in Davos with Israeli President
Shimon Peres.

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