Category: 2017

The Valley’s Armenia: Commemorating the Battle of Sardarapat

Christine Harutyunian
Your Central Valley

By: Stefani Booroojian                                   

YEREVAN, Armenia –   Towering bulls made of stone, with a bell tower reaching high into the sky.

  It’s a sight to behold in Armenia’s Amavir province.  A monument to mark an important victory that set the stage for future independence. “This is the 99th commemoration of the Battle of Sardarapat.  It was Armenia’s last ditch effort to fight back against the Ottoman Turks and this battle was seen as the final effort to prevent the destruction of the Armenian people,” says Raffi Hovannisian, a Yerevan resident and Fresno native. “Every year Sardarapat is a pilgrimage for the Armenian nation worldwide.  From Armenia, from Artsakh, and from the diaspora,  as well from Fresno to New York, from Beirut to Tehran, all around the world because it is a memorial to our survival,” he says.

  We walked the steps of this massive stone monument with Raffi and Armine Hovannisian.  Raffi was born in Fresno, but has called Armenia home for 26 years. He explained the significance of the battle and the yearly commemoration.  “It set the foundations for future Armenia.  The future Armenia that was initially a soviet state for 70 years and the current republic of Armenia which was declared independent in September Of 1991,” Hovanissian says.

  Armenians from Yerevan and surrounding villages converged here to pay their respects to those who fought and died. Manik Kajajyan lost her husband in the independence movement in of 1988.  She now tends the flowers at the monument– a beautiful show of love and support.  “May the souls rest in peace of those who have passed away.  And I congratulate everyone on this occasion,” she says.

  Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan and religious leaders addressed the gathering crowd as the Military put on a display of precision and strength.

  Celebrating the victory of a battle 99 years ago that lead to a brief two and a half year independence and 70 years of Soviet rule,  but opened the door to a future and much longer lasting independence in the years to come.
                                                     

Kebobs, Hummus, Pilaf and More at Armenian Fest

Emil Lazarian
Shepherd Express, WI



By David Luhrssen

Nowadays you can buy factory-produced hummus and stuffed grape leaves in most supermarkets, but homemade? It’s hard to find—unless you visit Armenian Fest this Sunday at 7825 W. Layton Ave. 

Armenian food belongs to the family of cuisine found across the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East. The menu at this year’s Armenian Fest draws from old family recipes and includes chicken or beef kebob dinners and such side orders as cheese and spinach boreg (an open-face version of the Greek spanakopita), lahmajoon (think “Armenian pizza”) and—yes!—hummus and yalanjee (bulghur-stuffed grape leaves). There will also be desserts, including paklava and other pastries.

Armenian Fest runs Sunday, July 23, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., rain or shine. Live music will be provided by The Mid-East Beat, a Racine-based band specializing in traditional Armenian music. There will be performances by Chicago’s Hamazkayin Sardarabad Dance Ensemble. CDs, books, artifacts and Armenian beer and pomegranate wine will be on sale.

Admission and parking are free. Visit armenianfest.com for more information about the festival. 

There can be only one official language in Armenia

Jhanna Virabian
Vestnik Kavkaza

19 Jul in 14:54 Mamikon Babayan, exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza

Last week, Russian media published a statement of Armenian National Assembly speaker Ara Babloyan on the issue of giving Russian language status of the second state language. He noted that this issue is not on the agenda of Armenian parliament. Earlier, at a meeting with Babloyan, State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin suggested that Yerevan should make Russian language an official language, arguing that it would be great for Armenian citizens to get a job related to driving in Russia without Russian driver’s licenses.

However, this initiative was not supported by Armenia’s political establishment, which referred to the country’s constitution, as was confirmed by vice speaker of Armenian parliament Edward Sharmazanov, as well as to the cultural and educational state of Russian language in Armenian schools.

Nevertheless, after a deeper examination of the issue, it can be assumed that Yerevan simply considered that the decision to review Russian language’s status incomparable to Russian side’s proposal. Allowing citizens of the republic to drive in Russia without Russian driver’s licenses is not enough. Making Russian an official language will inevitably lead to significant changes in many spheres of the country’s life.

This also concerns paperwork, which will be done in several languages. It will also affect educational system in Armenian universities, where teaching in Russian may become mandatory. Another problem concerns names of streets and buildings in Armenia, which will be quite expensive for the republic, considering well-known poor economic situation. It seems that these and many other factors have influenced the position of Armenian parliamentarians, considering pretty good relations between Armenia and Russia, both as neighbors and strategically partners. However, negotiations with Russian side about driver’s licenses are likely to continue in other formats. 

Yerevan in talks with Moscow on new loan to buy Russian weapons

Dabaghian Diana
TASS, Russia

World

July 20, 2:53 UTC+3 YEREVAN

YEREVAN, July 19. /TASS/. Armenia is in talks with Russia on a new loan to buy Russian-made weapons, Armenian Finance Minister Vardan Aramyan said on Wednesday.

“Discussion of the issue of a new defense-related loan started with Russia this year and will go along for quite a time,” he said, adding that the two countries had earlier reached a top-level agreement on buying Russian-made defense-related products at Russia’s domestic prices. “As a strategic partner, Russia agreed. Negotiations are now underway,” he noted.

According to the Armenian finance minister, his country is having such talks only with Russia from among other countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). “We are also discussing how to avoid problems linked with the loan repayment,” Aramyan said.

In his words, Armenia has not yet completely used the first export loan of 200 million U.S. dollars meant to buy Russia-made defense-related products. “We have 30 million U.S. dollars left,” he said.

The two countries signed an agreement on that loan on June 25, 2015. It came into effect on February 10, 2016.

AGBU Armenian Virtual College expands focus on Armenian language education

Garnik Tadevosian
Public Radio of Armenia
10:25, 19 Jul 2017

In April, the AGBU Armenian Virtual College (AVC) launched its Armenian language e-Hangouts as a way for e-learners to practice their language skills. Founded in 2009, the Armenian Virtual College has addressed the demand for Armenian language instruction worldwide with its online courses in Eastern and Western Armenian, along with courses in Armenian history, culture and chess. The establishment of the e-Hangouts, open to all AVC students past and present, marks an expansion of the program by providing opportunities for learners to practice and forge bonds with this innovative platform.

For the past two months, AVC alumni with intermediate and advanced Armenian language skills e-meet fellow e-learners during the e-Hangout sessions and discuss various topics, such as philosophy, art and cooking. “Communicating in Armenian through the AVC e-Hangouts is not only important as a forum to our e-learners, but it is also very effective in connecting global Armenians,” said AGBU Central Board member and AVC founder Yervant Zorian.

The idea for this global communication platform was proposed in February during a series of events in honor of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) International Mother Language Day that was dedicated to Armenian language preservation in Armenia and in the diaspora. Since 1999, the UNESCO International Mother Language Day-held each year on February 21-has supported mother language and multilingual education to raise awareness about linguistic and cultural diversity through global language education and intercultural communication.

The opening event of the series was the 13th Yerevan Book Fair-Expo at the Khnko Aper National Children’s Library, which took place from February 18 to 21. In the AVC and the Armenian Ministry of Diaspora joint pavilion, AVC showcased its multimedia e-Book series and Armenian language course materials to demonstrate the innovative capabilities developed to meet the needs of young e-learners. During this Fair-Expo, the Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan commended AVC and its methods: “This unique institution always stands out with its innovative offerings. The e-publications are what we have been missing today for a new generation of readers. The Ministry will support AVC to further raise awareness and participation.”

A roundtable discussion, entitled “The Armenian Language in Textbooks,” was held on February 20 and co-organized by AVC, the Armenian Ministry of Diaspora and the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia. During the discussion, AVC detailed its approaches for disseminating the Armenian language and AVC Hybrid Education coordinator Arpine Tavakalyan shared AVC’s online experience in preparing e-learning materials. “Distance learning and applying the latest technologies need to have a special place in the development of new language policy and new textbooks need to be accessible to the Armenian diaspora as well,” she said.

The Armenia-Lebanon virtual conference held on February 24 was devoted to the preservation of Western Armenian. During the event, AVC Academic director Hasmik Khalapyan and online Western Armenian instructor Zepur Kheblikian reemphasized the significance of using e-learning methods to teach today’s generations and AVC’s proactive efforts in preserving Western Armenian.

To conclude the series, AVC held an e-Hangout session on March 2 to join the AGBU Lazar Najarian-Calouste Gulbenkian School in Aleppo with the #150 Public School after F. Nansen in Yerevan. The topic of discussion was language learning in Armenia and in the diaspora.

AVC continues to provide a unique method of learning for its e-learners to ensure progress in their conversation and comprehension skills as well as in creating bonds within the global Armenian community.

"Great Shame" – Lawmaker Garo Paylan angered by Turkey’s oppression against activists

Maral Chavushian 
Armenpress News Agency , Armenia
 Tuesday
"Great Shame" – Lawmaker Garo Paylan angered by Turkey's oppression
against activists
YEREVAN, JULY 18, ARMENPRESS. A Turkish Court didn’t allow Garo
Paylan, the lawmaker of Armenian origin, to be present at the trials
of the 10 human rights activists.
Paylan said on Twitter that he was forced to listen to the
developments from behind the door.
After the trial ended, Paylan said : “ Great Shame: Activists Idil
Eser, Özlem Dalkıran, Veli Acu, Günal Kurşun, Ali Gharaviand Peter
Steudtner have been jailed. Human rights have been jailed”.
With great sorrow Paylan said that Turkey has reached the same level
as North Korea.
He also shared a photo which was taken with the activists as they were
leaving the courtroom.
On July 5, 10 activists were arrested in Istanbul. Four have been released.
The activists are accused for being members of terrorist groups. The
jailed includes Amnesty International Turkey office head Idil Eser.
Amnesty International urged to pressure Turkey to immediately stop the
prosecution and release them.
The US has also expressed concern.

ARMENPRESS named Best Media Of The Year by Armenian PR Association

Chmshkian Vicken 
Armenpress News Agency , Armenia
 Tuesday
ARMENPRESS named Best Media Of The Year by Armenian PR Association
YEREVAN, JULY 18, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian PR Awards named ARMENPRESS
state news agency the best media of the year on July 18.
Naghash Martirosyan, the dean of YSU’s Faculty of Journalism bestowed
the award to Aram Ananyan, director of ARMENPRESS.
“This award is the result of our entire team's work. I am grateful to
our team, the organizers, and members of the jury for the high
assessment”, Aram Ananyan said.
The awarding event was organized by the “Armenian PR Association”
scientific-informational NGO, with the support of Beeline.
In addition to ARMENPRESS, Sputnik Armenia and Traveler weekly were
also nominated for the Best Media of The Year award.
Astghik Avetisyan, director of the Armenian PR Association said
they’ve scrutinized all ministries, the private sector, banking system
and generally nearly all sectors that deal with the public and use
communication as a method of management.
“We’ve delivered 2025 questionnaires to experts, we’ve monitored the
work of the media outlets, analyzed the issues and made proposals,
Avetisyan said.
Two new nominations were introduced this year, Innovative PR and PR
Technologies.
Beeline’s CEO Andrei Pyatakhin also received a special award for
valuing public relations and using literate communications
technologies.
The guests of the event included Diaspora minister Hranush Hakobyan,
Culture minister Armen Amiryan, politicians, diplomats and others.
Germany’s Ambassador H.E. Matthias Kiesler won the “Friend of Armenia” award.
Artak Beglaryan, the press secretary of Artsakh’s Prime Minister was
also among the laureates.
Armenian foreign ministry spokesman Tigran Balayan was named Press
Secretary of the Year.
Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia was named the Event of the Year.
Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan was named Public Figure Of the Year,
while Opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan won in the Politician of The Year
category.
The Aurora Humanitarian Award was named Initiative Of The Year, State
Agency Of The Year – the ministry of emergency situations, Innovative
PR of The Year – Tumo Center for creative technologies, Cultural PR of
The Year – Yerevan Prospects International Music Festival, PR
Technology Of the Year – Love Armenia – RPA.

Irreversibility of strengthening Artsakh’s statehood causes nervous reaction in Azerbaijan – Artsakh MFA

Torgomian Varazdat 
Armenpress News Agency, Armenia
 Tuesday
Irreversibility of strengthening Artsakh's statehood causes nervous
reaction in Azerbaijan – Artsakh MFA
YEREVAN, JULY 18, ARMENPRESS. The irreversibility of strengthening the
statehood of Artsakh and its institutions causes a nervous reaction in
Azerbaijan, Artak Nersisyan - Head of the Information and Public
Relations Department of the Foreign Ministry of Artsakh, told News.am,
commenting on the statement of Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry
spokesperson who said the upcoming presidential election in Artsakh is
an attempt to undermine the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs,
reports Armenpress.
“As we have stated for many times, free, fair, transparent and
competitive elections, as an integral part of ongoing political
processes in Artsakh, aim at organizing the Republic’s public life and
forming government through democratic means. They can in no way have a
negative effect on the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group aimed at
peacefully settling the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict. This stance has
been confirmed by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs in their numerous
statements.
Moreover, the mediators also emphasized the role of the Artsakh people
in determining their future within the frames of the settlement of the
Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict. We believe that elections are one of
the ways to express the will of the people, therefore their holding is
in accordance with the logic of the peaceful settlement of the
conflict.
Azerbaijan’s negative reaction to the political processes of Artsakh
is caused not by the concern for the efforts of the Minsk Group
Co-Chairs which Baku itself hinders in any possible way, but the
desire to exclude the very existence of Artsakh.
It’s obvious that the irreversibility of strengthening the statehood
of Artsakh and its institutions causes nervous reaction in Azerbaijan.
Moreover, Azerbaijan’s rejection of the objective reality is one of
the main obstacles for the settlement of the conflict”, Artak
Nersisyan said.

Azerbaijan decries rebel region vote as Armenian ‘provocation’

Andranik Taslakhchian 
Agence France Presse
 Wednesday 1:03 PM GMT
Azerbaijan decries rebel region vote as Armenian 'provocation'
Yerevan, 
The parliament of Azerbaijan's separatist Nagorny Karabakh region on
Wednesday elected leader Bako Sahakyan for a third term, sparking
condemnation from Baku as a "blatant violation of international law."
The disputed territory has been under Armenian control since it was
seized during a bloody conflict in the early 1990s after the break-up
of the Soviet Union.
Azerbaijan and Armenia remain locked in a bitter dispute with frequent
exchanges of fire along the volatile frontline nearly spiralling back
into all-out war last year.
Nagorny Karabakh's 33-member legislature backed another three-year
term for Sahakyan to remain as president of the self-declared state.
Despite claiming independence, the separatist authorities are
controlled by Armenia.
The international community still views it as part of Azerbaijan and
no country has recognised it as an independent nation.
"The illegal and fraudulent 'presidential election' is a blatant
violation of Azerbaijan's constitution and of international law,"
Azerbaijan's foreign ministry spokesman, Hikmet Hajiyev, told AFP.
"This is yet another provocation by Armenia," he said.
Energy-rich Azerbaijan, whose military spending exceeds Armenia's
entire state budget, has repeatedly threatened to take back the
breakaway region by force.
Moscow-allied Armenia has vowed to crush any military offensive.
mkh-eg-im/del/ach

Armenian healthcare minister, Czech counterpart discuss enhancing cooperation

Hovhannisian John 
Armenpress News Agency, Armenia
 Wednesday
Armenian healthcare minister, Czech counterpart discuss enhancing cooperation
YEREVAN, JULY 19, ARMENPRESS. Armenian healthcare minister Levon
Altunyan had a meeting with his Czech counterpart Miloslav Ludvic.
The ministers discussed the opportunities for expanding cooperation,
namely in the directions of information-analysis, improvement of
e-healthcare systems, development of medical tourism and others.
They also discussed the results of the Chinese Investment Forum 2017,
which was organized in Prague.
The Armenian delegation visited Prague’s Hematology and Blood
Transfusion Institute and the Motol University Clinic, toured the
hospitals and got acquainted with the scientific potential.
Back in 2014, when Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan visited Czech
Republic, the Hematology and Blood Transfusion Institute of Prague and
Armenia’s Yolyan Hematology Center signed a memorandum of cooperation.
Under the memorandum, 10 Armenian doctors trained in the clinic during
the last 3 years. As a result, a rare stem cell recruitment and
successful bone marrow transfusion of two patients was carried out in
Armenia’s Hematology Center.
Afterwards the Armenian delegation participated in the official
gala-dinner of the Czech President.