Category: 2018

ArmenPress, Armenia

March 7 2018

Church entitled with rights to its property in Israel – Armenian Patriarchate weighs in on Jerusalem tax motion

YEREVAN, MARCH 7, ARMENPRESS. A commission has been created to deal with the solution of the problems which were caused after the Jerusalem Municipality’s decision on charging real estate taxes from church-owned properties and the new bill on the properties. Representatives of Christian spiritual institutions will also work with the commission, Archimandrite Koryun Baghdasaryan, chancellor of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem told ARMENPRESS.

Please tell us at what phase are the latest developments, what resolution did the problem get?

In the end of February the three spiritual leaders who hold custody decided to open the doors of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, because the day before the office of the Israeli Prime Minister released a statement. It concerned the municipality’s decision on charging taxes from churches and monasteries, and the bill which has been introduced in the Knesset, according to which if any church-owned property would be given for lease the government would be entitled to expropriate this property by paying compensation to the church. According to the statement from the Prime Minister’s office, these two – the decision and the bill – have been suspended. The Prime Minister set up a commission including municipality, finance ministry, internal and foreign affairs ministry officials. In addition, representatives from all Christian spiritual institutions should participate in negotiations to reach a common decision.

Obviously this issue didn’t surface all of a sudden. Overall how long has the issue related to the church-owned lands existed in Jerusalem?

We can say that the bill regarding the properties in Jerusalem has been undergoing the preparation phase for already a year. The reason is the following: Since 2010 the Greek Patriarchate had signed contracts with a company recognized by the state. This company , which had rented a church-owned property for 99 years, had refused from this right at some phase and was ready to sell its right of rent to a third party. Factually, the Greek Patriarch had agreed since 2010 that this third party can be any individual company. And since then the right of rent of many properties were transferred to the ownership of individual organizations. This is the reason that this bill was introduced.

This was the reason, but what is the general policy towards church-owned properties?

The rights of church-owned properties belong to the church, this is clearly recorded. These properties serve as income source for the implementation of the church’s mission, the church’s maintenance. There were cases when the state’s church-owned properties were declared “green zones” or a public park. When a “green zone” is declared for a church-owned property, the church cannot do anything there. The state can’t do anything also without the agreement of the given church. Such cases exist, definitely this causes great harm to the church, because today it is impossible to realize any program or project concerning these properties. And as we know, the more projects the more revenues will be ensured for church institutions. And in case of income, the mission can be carried out more effectively.

The Municipality explained its decision by saying that the budget has a gap and they can’t collect sufficient resources. How would you comment this argument?

Churches and monasteries have been exempt from paying taxes for many centuries. We will never agree for taxes to be introduced against churches and monasteries. This can’t be considered as means for the municipality to fill the gap in the budget. They must find another way. The Mayor had addressed the finance minister, and only when he got a rejection he took this step. In any case, when they say debt, we don’t consider it a debt because for many centuries we have been exempt from taxes, such kind of a debt is unacceptable for us. All those church-owned properties which are on lease pay taxes. We oppose defining taxes for churches and monasteries, while outside of this the Christian institutions pay taxes for all profit-generating properties.

How does the US President’s statement on acknowledging Jerusalem to be Israel’s capital and the developments related to the bill and the municipality decision impact tourism flow?

Certainly a decrease of tourism numbers is noticed since the US President’s statement as well as closing the doors of the church. Because violence took place after the US President’s statement, the conflict seemingly awakened, many cancelled their visits. The same after closing the door of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, when a pilgrim is coming to the Holy Land the first destination is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. And if the pilgrim thinks that when he arrives to Jerusalem he won’t see the main holy site, he will think about cancelling the trip.

If I am not mistaken, representatives of the Armenian community are mostly involved in the service sector – trade, rendering services. I believe that the drop in visits is also making economic impact on locals, including the Armenian community.

Yes, you are correct, Armenians are mostly [involved] in the service sector. The decrease of the number of visitors of the city certainly impacts the residents, including Armenians. But the locals are seemingly used to the fact that a long-term calm situation doesn’t happen here. Some kind of incidents or actions happen all the time, which negatively impacts the service sector, and the situation is restored after some time. 3000 Armenians live in the Armenian district of Jerusalem alone. Overall 8000 Armenians live in the Holy Land, I mean both Israel and sections of Palestine. All our projects and initiatives are implemented through a united committee where all unions are represented. There is an active collaboration.

Interview by Anna Gziryan

English –translator/editor: Stepan Kocharyan

ArmenPress, Armenia

March 7 2018

Armenian and Russian peoples’ friendship is anchored on Christian values – Eduard Sharmazanov

YEREVAN, MARCH 7, ARMENPRESS. The Vice President of the National Assembly of Armenia Eduard Sharmazanov met on March 7 with the RF delegation led by the Executive Director of the History of the Motherland Foundation Konstantin Mogilevsky and the Director of the Russian Centre for Science and Culture in Yerevan Sergey Rybinsky, to take part in the Conference dedicated to the 190thanniversary of the Treaty of Turkmenchay.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the parliament of Armenia, Eduard Sharmazanov offered condolences on the Russian An-26 aircraft crash while landing at Hmeymim Airport of Syria that claimed lives of over 3 dozens.

The parliament Vice President highlighted the holding of the Conference with the heading “The Treaty of Turkmenchay: 190 Years. The History and the Presentin Yerevan”, underlining that such events are important not only in terms of once again evaluating the past, but also informing the youth about the Armenian-Russian centuries-old friendship and common past.

“The victory in the Great Patriotic War is our peoples’ common victory, and the new generation should be well aware of that and recognize heroes. The Armenian and the Russian peoples’ friendship is anchored on Christian values. We have common values and we should preserve them,” he underscored.

Eduard Sharmazanov proposed them to organize an Armenian-Russian scientific-educational conference dedicated to the Battle of Kursk, noting that the Chief of Marshal of Tank Troops of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Great Patriotic War Hamazasp Babajanyan was the hero of that Battle. He proposed also to discuss the issue of also organizing the exhibition in the Russian Federation with the heading“Parliamentarians against Genocides”dedicated to the 70thjubilee year of the adoption ofthe Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocideby the UN.

In terms of the implementation of the initiatives and theprogrammes the guests underlined the support of the History of the Motherland Foundation and the Russian Centre for Science and Culture in Yerevan.

The perspectives of the activation of the two peoples’ political, military, educational and scientific ties were discussed. It has been noted that the further development and deepening of the bilateral relations stems from the interests of the two states.

English –translator/editor:Tigran Sirekanyan

ArmenPress, Armenia

March 7 2018

30th anniversary of tragic events of Sumgayit commemorated at parliament of Australia’s New South Wales state

YEREVAN, MARCH 7, ARMENPRESS. Following meetings with the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU), two Members of Parliament in Australia’s largest state of New South Wales (NSW), Jonathan O’Dea of the Liberal Government and Hugh McDermott of the Labor Opposition, rose in the Legislative Assembly to commemorate the 30thAnniversary of the Sumgait Massacres, ARMENPRESS was informed from the official website of the Armenian National Committee of Australia.

On Tuesday, 6th March 2018, the Chair of the NSW Armenia-Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Jonathan O’Dea began by congratulating the Armenian Youth Federation of Australia (AYF-AU) – many of whom are constituents in his electorate of Davidson – for donating blood to the Red Cross in memory of the 38 soldiers, who died as a result of Azerbaijani conflict in the previous year. O’Dea continued by recalling the dire situation the Armenians of Artsakh faced under prospect of continued Azerbaijani rule. He added: “Historically a part of Armenia, Artsakh declared its independence around the same time that most countries in the old Soviet Union were declaring independence, fearing they would not survive if they continued under Azeri rule as Stalin had determined. These fears were well placed.” “Last week, on 27 February, marked the thirtieth anniversary of the Sumgait Massacres, when 200 Armenians died essentially because of their resolve to exercise a right to self-determination.” O’Dea stressed the importance of recognising these historical crimes, noting the ongoing violence that has resulted from the absence of justice for the victims of these crimes against humanity. Hugh McDermott followed O’Dea, recalling that in 2012 the NSW Parliament recognised the right to self-determination for the Armenian people in the Republic of Artsakh.

“Sadly, the shellings continue and are causing ongoing deaths, despite an internationally brokered ceasefire involving both Azerbaijan and Armenia,” McDermott said. McDermott, Member for Prospect, urged both domestic parliaments and international human rights organisations condemn the genocidal acts committed against the Armenians of Azerbaijan. He added: “The Azeris responded to this desire for the Artsakh Armenians’ rights of determination with brutal force. Pogroms were organised and massacres of women, children and young men occurred.” “On 27 February 2018 the Armenian-Australian community joined the rest of the Free World in condemning the thirtieth anniversary of the Sumgait Massacres of 1988, when rampaging criminal mobs looted Armenian homes and hunted for Armenians. It is estimated that the official death toll was more than 200; however, thousands more fled or were deported.” McDermott went on to praise the bravery of the Armenians of Artsakh in exercising their right to self-determination, reiterating his support for the recognition of the Republic of Artsakh. “The Armenians—men, women and children—fought back heroically to protect their historic motherland. Eventually—amongst a flurry of referendums by countries, including Armenia and Azerbaijan—breaking away from the Soviet Union, the Armenians of Artsakh exercised their right to self-determination,” McDermott continued. “They sought freedom and democracy. They held a referendum and declared independence, with more than 98 per cent voting for the republic, which was recently renamed to its historical title of the Republic of Artsakh. This independence has been recognised by New South Wales, and I stand proudly in support of that and recognise the Republic of Artsakh. Ultimately, the atrocities committed in the city of Sumgait 30 years ago reignited the memory of the atrocities committed in 1915 by the Ottoman Empire.” ANC-AU Executive Director Haig Kayserian thanked O’Dea and McDermott for their statements. “For Armenian-Australians, Artsakh is part of the motherland our ancestors were forced to surrender, and the Sumgait Massacres were an extension of the same genocidal policy of trying to prevent Armenians from living and thriving on land that was always theirs,” said Kayserian. “Our community is eternally grateful to Mr. Jonathan O’Dea and Dr. Hugh McDermott for continuing the proud tradition of the NSW Parliament in bringing non-partisan awarenessto important issues of human rights, and in this case, for the rights to self-determination for the Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh.”

English –translator/editor:Tigran Sirekanyan

March 7, 2018

USNEWS.com

March 7, 2018 Wednesday

 

by Sintia Radu

 

These are the places outside the U.S. that have the most women researchers.

 

 

The role of women is a topic of discussion in many societies around the globe, be it because of a stereotype associated with what activities women can or cannot perform compared to their male counterparts, or because of a lack of equal access.

 

Science and research have traditionally been an environment where women have struggled to battle all these stereotypes. According to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, in the U.S. alone, women held 47 percent of all jobs in 2015, but only 24 percent of these were in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Yet while some countries still have a long way to go to ensure women are integrated and represented in STEM fields, others are winning the gender battle. Here are the top five countries outside of the U.S. where women constitute the majority of workers in science.

 

 

Known for its wonderful beaches and often ranking high among the top vacation spots around the world. Thailand is more than what your favorite relaxation resort has to offer. According to a 2017 UNESCO Institute for Statistics report that looked at data from 2014, this Southeast Asian country does a good job at welcoming women in science. To be precise, 53.3 percent of people in research in the country are women. What’s more, according to the BBC, Thai scientists take pride in their jobs in academia that also accommodate their family needs.

 

 

Another country on the list that looks after its women in science, this time a small one at the border of Europe and Asia, is Armenia. Known for its rich cuisine and for its national symbol of Mount Ararat, which is in eastern Turkey, Armenia boasts having women leading the science sector in numbers. According to the same UNESCO report that looked at 2014 data, 53.7 percent of those working in research are women. Its neighbor Georgia also seems to like women scientists. The report mentions 51.2 percent of researchers in that country are women.

 

 

Ranked third on the list of countries with high numbers of women working in science, Tunisia is also one of the countries most advanced in terms of women’s rights overall. Women can hold any position in any professional field, and also have the right to initiate divorce proceedings. According to the UNESCO report, in 2014 a share of 53.9 percent of the total workforce in research in the North African country were women. These figures are also much higher than the region’s average, with UNESCO reporting that around 40 percent of people working in research in the Arab World in 2014 were women.

 

 

Azerbaijan is another country in the Caucasus that values women’s knowledge and social involvement. The No. 2 country in our top five borders No. 4 Armenia, and is working on boosting its economy following falling oil prices. While the country is still fighting inflation and the aftermath of an economic crisis, it can boast that 54.3 percent of its researchers is comprised of women, the legacy of the former Soviet era that encouraged sciences as the foundation of society.

 

 

Vacation is written all over any images you might have of the Caribbean, yet one of the island-nations in the region is actually the country that most boasts the highest percentage of women researchers. Trinidad and Tobago ranks first in the countries listed in the same UNESCO report in 2014. A share of 54.6 percent of people working in research in this Caribbean country are women. The Caribbean and Latin America combined ranked second as a region, after Central Asia, for having the highest share of women working in STEM, with a 44.7 share.

 

Sintia Radu covers international affairs and technology for U.S. News & World Report.