The press service of the Ministry of Defense reports that from April 1 to 4, the Multinational Inspection Panel of the Republic of Turkey, within the framework of the Vienna Document, will carry out a “Inspection of the Region” in the territory of the Republic of Armenia.
Category: 2019
“Artsakh FA” won “Gandzasar-Kapan” and no longer last in standings
In the last game of the 24th round of the Armenian Premier League today, “Artsakh FA” won “Gandzasar-Kapan” with a score of 2: 0. Eduard Avagyan (38th minute) and Vardan Baqalyan (80) were those who scored goals.
After this victory, “Artsakh FA” scored 17 points and took the 8th place. “Gandzasar-Kapan” is the 7th place with 23 points.
Asbarez: AYF Marks Women’s History Month with “Armenian Women: Breaking Barriers” Event
Distinguished author Sona Zeitlian speaking about influential Armenian women
BURBANK—In celebration of Women’s History Month, the United Human Rights Council, a committee of the Armenian Youth Federation – Western United States and California State University, Northridge’s Alpha Gamma Alpha co-hosted “Armenian Women: Breaking Barriers” at the Burbank Youth Center on Saturday, March 9th. The program portrayed Armenian women who have made significant contributions to Armenia and the Armenian people, and served to empower young Armenian women as community leaders and organizers.
The event included presentations from three distinguished speakers. Dr. Houri Berberian, the Meghrouni Family Presidential Chair in Armenian Studies at the University of California, Irvine, began the program with introducing the lives of Armenian women during the Iranian and Ottoman empires, as well as the instrumental roles they played in the opening Armenian schools during the second half of the 19th century.
State Representative Mari Manoogian speaking about her path towards politics
Author Sona Zeitlian told stories of three female Armenian figures who played major roles in the sociopolitical realm of the Armenian nation. Zeitlian first spoke about Armenia’s ambassador to Japan during the first republic (also recognized as the first female ambassador), Diana Abkar. She also spoke of Hripsime (Lola) Sassouni, who organized women’s groups for defense and relief work and committed herself to raise the standard of living of refugees and orphans. Lastly, Zeitlian told the story of Siran (Seza) Zarifian, the editor/publisher of Beirut’s first women’s journal, Yeridasart Hayouhi (Young Armenian Woman), who specified the need for women in decision making bodies and involvement in community social, political, and educational organizations.
Houri Berberian, the Meghrouni Family Presidential Chair in Armenian Studies at UCI, presenting the lives of Armenian Women in the Iranian and Ottomnan Empires
After a brief intermission, the Lernazang Ensemble, a band of young artists dedicated to preserving Armenian folk music, took the audience on a journey through the villages of Western Armenia using a duduk and drum, with the was accompaniment of traditional dances that depicted the spirits of the Armenian women from those regions. They performed songs and dances to Madzoun Em Trel, Altalla, and Dasnergu Vodk (12-steps). “Lernazang Ensemble’s flawless performance captured the energy of Armenian women,” said attendee Preny Alaverdian, “The sounds of our traditional musical instruments and footwork was inspiring to hear and watch.”
Once the band concluded with their final piece, the program’s last speaker was invited to the stage. State Representative Mari Manoogian of the Michigan House of Representatives spoke about her path towards a career in politics, highlighting the challenges she faced as an Armenian democratic running for a position typically filled by republican candidates, and encouraged the need for young Armenians to become civically engaged and take part in the political process.
A performance by Lernazang Ensemble
To close the program, the UHRC expressed words of gratitude for the contributions of all the speakers and performers. “The UHRC will continue to work on women’s rights issues both in our local communities and in the homeland,” said UHRC chairperson Hasmik Burushyan, “we will organize to bring gender equality into a growing existence.”
The United Human Rights Council (UHRC) is a committee of the Armenian Youth Federation – Western United States (AYF-WUS). By means of action on a grassroots level, the UHRC works towards exposing and correcting human rights violations of governments worldwide, and aims to foster dialogue and collaboration between peoples who share this common vision.
Founded in 1933 with organizational structures in over 17 regions around the world and a legacy of over eighty years of community involvement, the Armenian Youth Federation is the largest and most influential Armenian-American youth organization in the world, working to advance the social, political, educational, and cultural awareness of Armenian youth.
Asbarez: Georgia on My Mind
Garen Yegparian
BY GAREN YEGPARIAN
With apologies to Ray Charles for using the title of his song, I have to confess that I, too, have Georgia on my mind. Of course, it’s a different Georgia, not the one in the U.S., but the one north of Armenia, on the eastern shores of the Black Sea. And, it’s not an “old sweet song” that keeps it on my mind, but concern.
While I think (perhaps erroneously and presumptuously) that I understand the motivations of other nations and the states/governments they maintain, somehow, I cannot say the same for Georgians (with all their constituent peoples) or Tbilisi/Tiflis. I’d like to think I know, broadly, what drives policy in Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkey (Armenians’ immediate neighbors) and more broadly Russia, the “Middle East”, European countries, and the United States of America, at least as it relates to the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh, I cannot say the same of Georgia.
We do not read to much about our northern neighbor in the Armenian media, either, at least not in the Diaspora. So it seems worthwhile to occasionally review developments, even if they are scattered, perhaps even unrepresentative. They at least keep us aware of the importance of the northern access we have to the rest of the world.
In July of 2018, Georgia’s Constitutional Court ruled that exempting only the Georgian Orthodox Church, but not other religious institutions, from the country’s VAT (“value added tax”, similar to the “sales tax” used in some states in the U.S.) was unconstitutional. The news report I encountered mentioned that eight religious groups had brought this suit, without specifying which ones. I have not researched further, so I do not know if the Armenian church was one of them, but it does have problems in Georgia.
These problems are long running. The Georgian church has taken ownership of many Armenian churches, and this is a matter that has not yet been resolved. Where the fault lies is not clear to me. Is it a remnant of Soviet times? Is it just the Georgian church being greedy? Does it have popular and/or government support in the property grabs? Regardless, the persistence and currency of the issue is borne out by an October report in Asbarez (Armenian language), about the Armenian church in Teeghom. It seems that Armenian inscriptions on it, observed at least as recently as 2003, had been scraped off or plastered over recently to hide the church’s true origins.
On the non-Armenian, international, front we have the beginnings of the closure of International Black Sea University. Just three weeks before classes started for the 2018-19 academic year, Georgia’s National Center for Education Quality Enhancement’s “Authorization Board” annulled the enrollment of first year students in that institution. This is from a piece titled “Georgia’s awkward neighbors” by George Mchedishvili which raises concerns about the sustainability of democratic governments surrounded by less or non-democratic neighbors. He posits that this action was a result of Turkish pressure because IBSU is “Gulenist” institution. The pressure is part of Turkish President Erdogan’s worldwide campaign against institutions associated with his former ally, Fethullah Gulen, whom he now accuses of being a “terrorist” mastermind. The fact that Georgia buckled and acted against IBSU is attributed to the dependency of the country on its trade with Turkey. This may be a a bad sign from an Armenian perspective because its exposes Georgia’s susceptibility to Turkish pressure. Conversely, it might be a good sign because the Gulenists have been engaged in extensive pro-Turkey propaganda over the years, burnishing its image worldwide. Of course this is all assuming that IBSU can indeed be considered a Gulenist institution, the only fact supporting this affiliation presented in the article is that it was started with funding, in part, from the Gulenists.
In what strikes me as an example “opposite” to the preceding one, in December, the Georgian government rejected the newly appointed U.S. ambassador to the country. According to a “Foreign Policy” article, this happened because she was perceived as being too favorably inclined towards former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili. The same piece reports that Saakashvili is living with a relative in the Bronx, NY, having been stripped of two citizenships, Georgian and Ukrainian (the latter happening after he served as a government minister in Kiev), and currently sentenced (in absentia) to six years in prison for abuse of power while president. How is it that the Georgian government responds to Ankara favorably, but finds the backbone to resist Washington?
I hope these examples show why Georgia and the policies it pursues are unclear to me. But that makes it all the more important to try to understand what drives policy there. Be aware of and alert to developments in this country that is so important to the Armenian republics.
Asbarez: 350 Supporters in Artsakh Join ABMDR to Help Save Lives
LOS ANGELES—During a series of recruitment events held in Artsakh from March 26 and 27, a total of 350 supporters joined the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry, for a chance to help save the lives of patients in need of bone marrow stem cell transplants. The recruitments, held in collaboration with the Health Ministry of Artsakh, took place at the police headquarters of the republic, Artsakh State University, Shushi College of Technology, Stepanakert Medical College, and Artsakh State Medical Center.
Artsakh Health Minister Arayik Baghryan registering as a donor
Following the recruitments, on March 28, Artsakh Health Minister Arayik Baghryan, who himself joined ABMDR as a potential bone marrow stem cell donor, met with the registry’s Executive Director, Dr. Sevak Avagyan, at the Health Ministry. During the meeting, Dr. Avagyan conveyed his gratitude to Minister Baghryan for facilitating and supporting ABMDR’s donor recruitments, as well as outreach events, throughout Artsakh. On his part, Minister Baghryan thanked Dr. Avagyan for continuing to encompass Artsakh in ABMDR’s life-saving mission, and stressed the far-reaching significance of maintaining a robust registry of potential bone marrow stem cell donors.
“As always, the enthusiasm and dedication shown by Artsakh residents during our latest recruitments were truly impressive,” Dr. Avagyan told reporters. He added, “By joining the ranks of ABMDR, young men and women in Artsakh are in effect extending a helping hand to patients in Artsakh, Armenia, and across the world, whose only chance of survival depends on receiving bone marrow stem cell transplants through matched donors.”
Established in 1999, ABMDR, a nonprofit organization, helps Armenians and non-Armenians worldwide survive life-threatening blood-related illnesses by recruiting and matching donors to those requiring bone marrow stem cell transplants. To date, the registry has recruited over 30,000 donors in 31 countries across four continents, identified over 9,000 patients, and facilitated 32 bone marrow transplants. For more information, call (323) 663-3609 or visit abmdr.am.
168: Boris Yengibaryan conferred the rank of major-general
Category
Official
On 1 April President Bako Sahakyan signed a decree on conferring the rank of major-general to Police colonel Boris Yengibaryan, deputy head – chief of the staff of the Artsakh Republic Police.
Central Information Department of the Office of Artsakh Republic President stated.
USC Institute of Armenian Studies Announces Chitjian Researcher Archivist
For Immediate Release April 1, 2019 USC INSTITUTE OF ARMENIAN STUDIES University of Southern California Los Angeles, California, USA Contact: Syuzanna Petrosyan, Associate Director [email protected] | 213.821.3943 USC Institute of Armenian Studies Announces Chitjian Researcher Archivist Los Angeles, Calif. –The USC Institute of Armenian Studies has named Gegham Mughnetsyan as the Institute’s Chitjian Researcher Archivist. The naming is in honor of long-time Institute donor, philanthropist and distinguished community member Sara Chitjian. She was one of the Institute’s first donors and supporters. Miss Chitjian believes in the value of education and scholarship to achieve fairness and justice. She taught that as a teacher, she supports that as a philanthropist. Sara Chitjian was born in Mexico City in the family of Ovsanna and Hampartzoum Chitjians who were survivors of the genocide. The family relocated to East Los Angeles in 1935. Miss Chitjian graduated from UCLA in 1956 and began a teaching career at the Los Angeles Unified School District which lasted for 34 years. In retirement Miss Chitjian has dedicated her time to the archiving of the Armenian Genocide, specifically through the documentation of a rich and complex family history. Her father Hampartzoum was a great storyteller and one of those who told his family story countless times to various scholars, journalists, photographers and filmmakers. He was also a regular in Miss Chitjian’s elementary school classes where he helped children from a variety of backgrounds begin to understand genocide. It helped that Mr. Chitjian was a child survivor and his memories were those of a child, making his stories very relatable to children and young people. Gegham Mughnetsyan, Institute research associate since 2016, received his undergraduate degree from University of California, Berkeley in Peace and Conflict studies where his focus was on US foreign policy toward Nagorno Karabakh. Mr. Mughnetsyan went on to complete his graduate degree at the American University, in Washington DC, where he studied International Affairs. At USC, Mr. Mughnetsyan works with post-genocide diasporan archival materials. The work entails documentation, translation and collection building. Since February of 2018, Mr. Mughnetsyan has been leading an oral history initiative tasked with recording, translating, transcribing the stories, and digitizing archival documents about the community of Armenian displaced persons who, in the course of World War II, were uprooted from their homes in the Nazi-occupied regions of the Soviet Union, ended up in a refugee camp in Germany and, after the war, found refuge in the United States. These are just two of the more-than-dozen programs at the USC Institute of Armenian Studies. “The current work of the researcher archivist at the Institute reflects the spirit of Sara Chitjian’s life-long dedication to Armenian archives – especially as they relate to genocide and the post-genocide period -- and the naming of the position is a fitting tribute to her legacy,” said Institute Director Salpi Ghazarian whose relationship with Miss Chitjian goes back decades. “Miss Chitjian was my 6th grade math teacher; her father was one of the first to tell his life story first to J. Michael Hagopian, then to me as a student in Professor Richard Hovannisian’s UCLA class, later again to our team at the Zoryan Institute. Each of these interviews was more extensive than the last. Miss Chitjian’s mother’s journey, too, is invaluable. Recognizing the importance of remembering that generation and their stories, Miss Chitjian has dedicated her life to helping others remember. We are indebted to her.” About the Institute Established in 2005, the USC Institute of Armenian Studies supports multidisciplinary scholarship to re-define, explore and study the complex issues that make up the contemporary Armenian experience—from post-genocide to the developing Republic of Armenia to the evolving diaspora. The institute encourages research, publications and public service, and promotes links among the global academic and Armenian communities. For inquiries, write to [email protected] or call 213.821.3943
RFE/RL Armenian Report – 04/01/2019
Monday,
Pashinian Rebukes Aliyev After Fresh Summit
• Emil Danielyan
Austria -- Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian greets the U.S., Russian and
French co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group before talks with Azerbaijan's
President Ilham Aliyev, Vienna March 29, 2019.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on Monday accused Azerbaijan’s
leadership of making misleading statements on his latest meeting with
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Pashinian at the same time stood by his largely positive assessment of the
peace talks held in Vienna on Friday.
“I think that we have a new atmosphere, a new situation, new messages, new
prospects and new understandings in the negotiations, and it is not clear why
the Azerbaijani side should avoid or be afraid of accepting these facts,” he
said in a live Facebook broadcast.
Pashinian was specifically upset with Aliyev’s claim that “the format of
negotiations remained unchanged” as a result of the Vienna summit. The
Azerbaijani leader referred to Pashinian’s regular calls for Nagorno-Karabakh’s
direct involvement in Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks which have been rejected
by Baku.
“When the Azerbaijani side says ‘the important thing is that the negotiating
format remains unchanged’ they mean to imply that they emerged victorious from
these discussions,” complained Pashinian. “This is first and foremost incorrect
within the framework of the logic which we have agreed upon. Namely, not to
look for winners and losers.”
Ever since he swept to power in May last year, Pashinian has repeatedly said
that he does not have a mandate to negotiate on behalf of Karabakh’s ethnic
Armenian leadership and that the latter should therefore become a full-fledged
negotiating party.
He again claimed on Monday that this does not mean Yerevan is seeking changes
to the negotiating format, arguing that the Karabakh Armenians were directly
involved in the peace process in the 1990s. He said he and Aliyev discussed the
matter at Vienna but failed to reach any agreements.
“Does this mean that the issue has been removed from [the agenda of]
discussions?” the Armenian premier went on. “Of course not. It means that we
are going to continue discussions on this topic.”
Austria -- Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (L) and Armenian Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian meet in Vienna, March 29, 2019.
The Vienna summit, which lasted for over three hours, was Pashinian’s and
Aliyev’s fourth face-to-face contact since September. In a joint statement with
the U.S., Russian and French mediators, the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign
ministers described it as “positive and constructive.” The two leaders
discussed “key issues of the settlement process and ideas of substance” and
“recommitted to strengthening the ceasefire,” according to the statement.
Pashinian and Aliyev echoed that assessment in their public comments made in
the Austrian capital. “The negotiating process has been given new impetus,” the
Azerbaijani president told the TASS news agency.
It remains unclear whether two sides made any progress towards a compromise
settlement favored by the United States, Russia and France. A framework peace
accord drafted by the three mediating powers over a decade ago calls for
Armenian withdrawal from virtually all seven districts around Karabakh. In
return, Karabakh’s predominantly ethnic Armenian population would be able to
determine Karabakh’s internationally recognized status in a future referendum.
The U.S., Russian and French diplomats co-heading the OSCE Minsk Group
reaffirmed this peace formula, also known as the Madrid Principles, in a joint
statement issued on March 9. They said “any fair and lasting settlement” must
involve “return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani
control; an interim status for Nagorno-Karabakh providing guarantees for
security and self-governance; a corridor linking Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh;
future determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh through a
legally binding expression of will.”
Speaking at a March 19 news conference in Yerevan, Pashinian said that the
Madrid Principles are open to different interpretations and therefore need to
be clarified. He said on Monday that he raised the matter with Aliyev and the
mediators at the Vienna meeting.
“Can we say at this point that we received those clarifications and answers to
our questions?” added the prime minister. “No because these are very extensive
questions, and unfortunately it was not possible to get answers to those
questions as a result of a single discussion.”
Nevertheless, Pashinian said, he and Aliyev agreed to continue discussions on
the proposed settlement, including through their foreign ministers.
Armenian Vice-Minister Held For ‘Bribery’
Armenia -- The main entrance to the National Security Service building in
Yerevan.
An Armenian deputy minister of health was arrested while allegedly receiving a
hefty bribe over the weekend.
Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) said on Monday that the official,
Arsen Davtian, was caught red-handed in his office. It claimed that the unnamed
director of a medical institution paid Davtian a “particularly large amount of
money” in return for securing greater government funding for his hospital.
An NSS statement said both men will be prosecuted on corruption charges. It
said that unlike Davtian, the hospital chief was not arrested because of his
old age and poor health.
The security service added that it is continuing to investigate possible
corrupt practices in payment of government subsidies to state-owned and private
hospitals, a process which has been overseen by Davtian.
Health Minister Arsen Torosian, who helped Davtian become vice-minister in May,
said later on Monday that his deputy will deserve “strict” punishment if
convicted. “Such [corrupt] practices are inadmissible and condemnable,” he
wrote on Facebook.
“We voice our support for law-enforcement bodies in their fight against
corruption,” Torosian added on behalf of his staff. “We sincerely believe that
disclosure of corruption and other illegal practices in the [healthcare] system
will help to root them out and make the system healthy.”
Davtian was detained one month after Torosian effectively engineered the arrest
of two government officials accused of attempting to personally benefit from
government-funded supplies of medical equipment to three hospitals.
The indicted officials held senior positions at the State Oversight Service
(SOS), a government agency tasked with combatting financial irregularities in
the public sector. They both deny the corruption charges.
Torosian has repeatedly pledged to eliminate widespread corruption in the
Armenian healthcare system. In July, the minister sacked Ara Minasian, the
longtime director of Yerevan’s Surb Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center, after
accusing him of embezzling at least 545 million drams ($1.1 million) in public
funds.
Law-enforcement authorities brought corruption charges against Minasian shortly
afterwards. The latter rejected them as baseless and politically motivated.
A prominent doctor, Minasian is the father of former President Serzh
Sarkisian’s son-in-law Mikael Minasian, who enjoyed considerable political and
economic influence in Armenia until last spring’s “velvet revolution.”
Sacking Of Armenian Opera Chief Sparks Protests
• Anush Mkrtchian
Armenia - Artists of the Armenian national opera theater protest outside the
main government building in Yerevan, April 1, 2019.
Amid continuing angry protests against the sacking of the acclaimed
Armenian-American director of Armenia’s national opera theater, the government
pledged to at least delay the appointment of his successor on Monday.
Constantine Orbelian, a San Francisco-born conductor and pianist, was named as
artistic director of the Alexander Spendiarian National Opera and Ballet
Theater in Yerevan in 2016 and became its director general as well a year
later. He is widely credited with breathing a new life into one of the
country’s most important cultural institutions chronically underfunded by
successive post-Soviet governments.
Acting Culture Minister Nazeni Gharibian dismissed Orbelian as chief executive
on Thursday, saying that he is not legally allowed to combine the two
leadership positions. She also argued that the 62-year-old U.S. citizen is not
fluent in Armenian.
Orbelian rejected the decision as illegal and said he will challenge it in
court. Most actors and musicians of the state-run theater also condemned his
dismissal, demanding that Gharibian be sacked instead.
Armenia- Artists of the nationla opera theater stage a protest action in
support of Constantine Orbelian, 30Mar2019.
In an unprecedented protest, many of them walked on stage just before a ballet
performance on Sunday to voice their indignation in front of hundreds of
spectators. They threatened to go on strike if Orbelian is not reinstated. The
audience responded with applause.
Scores of other artists, among them the directors of other state-run theaters,
voiced support for the protesting staff by signing an open letter to Prime
Minister Nikol Pashinian.
Dozens of opera and ballet staffers rallied outside outside the main government
building in Yerevan on Monday, leading Pashinian to meet with their
representatives.
Pashinian defended the legality of Orbelian’s dismissal at the meeting. He also
pointed to the latter’s frequent trips abroad and, citing the Armenian Finance
Ministry, alleged financial irregularities committed by the theater
administration in 2017.
Armenia - Constantine Orbelian, the director of the national opera theater
controversially sacked by the government, Yerevan, March 29, 2019.
Pashinian at the same time made clear that he is open to hearing the artists’
counterarguments. In that regard, he announced that the theater will be run by
one of Orbelian’s deputies for the time being.
“Keep working as usual,” the premier told them. “I will wait for your arguments
and we will jointly make decisions.”
Gharibian said on Friday that she has already appointed a new opera director
and will introduce him or her to the theater staff on Monday. The acting
minister did not attend Pashinian’s meeting with the protesters’
representatives even though she was seen entering the prime minister’s office.
The protest leaders seemed satisfied with the meeting. One of them, conductor
Harutiun Arzumanian, said they will study written justifications for Orbelian’s
sacking and respond to Pashinian in writing.
“The prime minister said if it turns out that even one of the submitted
[government] arguments is false the official who submitted them will be
immediately fired,” Arzumanian told reporters.
Russia ‘Thanked’ For Karabakh Mediation
Russia -- Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Armenian Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian (L) in the Kremlin, December 27, 2018.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin on the
latest Armenian-Azerbaijani summit and reportedly praised Russia’s efforts to
help resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict during a phone call on Monday.
In a statement, the Kremlin said Pashinian “informed” Putin about the results
of his March 29 talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held in Vienna
and “expressed gratitude to the Russian side for its weighty mediating role in
the negotiation process.”
“Vladimir Putin reaffirmed Russia’s readiness to further assist in the search
for solutions to the key aspects of the [Karabakh] settlement, including in the
OSCE Minsk Group framework,” added the statement.
Russia has long been co-heading the Minsk Group with the United States and
France. Diplomats from the three mediating powers were present at the Vienna
summit along with the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers.
An Armenian newspaper claimed last week that Foreign Minister Zohrab
Mnatsakanian paid a confidential visit to Moscow ahead of the summit. The
Foreign Ministry in Yerevan did not deny the report.
Pashinian’s press office likewise said that the prime minister discussed the
Vienna talks with Putin. It did not elaborate.
The two leaders also discussed Russian-Armenian ties, the office said, adding
that they stressed the importance of the upcoming meeting in Moscow of a
Russian-Armenian intergovernmental commission on bilateral cooperation. The
commission mainly deals with economic issues.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org
The California Courier Online, April 4, 2019
The California Courier Online, April 4, 2019
1 – Armenia’s Leaders Take Strong
Positions Against US & Azerbaijan
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian nominated to receive fourth
star, head USAFE
3 – Lawyer Mark Geragos linked to Avenatti extortion case
4- Commentary: The problem with Turkish nationalism and the
Armenian Genocide
By Sofia Demirturk
5- Papazian Aims to Oust Ocasio-Cortez from Bronx Seat
6- Amid criticism, Montebello council selects Hadjinian as Mayor
By Mike Sprague
*****************************************
******************************************
1 – Armenia’s Leaders Take Strong
Positions Against US & Azerbaijan
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
The most noteworthy Armenian foreign policy development of the week
was supposed to be the first negotiating session between Armenia’s
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev
over the Artsakh conflict. But since there was no breakthrough in
these negotiations, we shall focus our attention on important related
issues.
On March 28, 2019, while addressing the Armenian Parliament, Prime
Minister Pashinyan criticized the United States government’s lack of
reaction to last year’s democratic changes in Armenia, dubbed the
“Velvet Revolution.”
This is the first time in a year that Pashinyan has used such strong
language in referring to the United States. “The U.S. has long been
acting as the most ardent defender of democracy in the entire world,”
Pashinyan stated. “I want to ask all of us a question: how did the
U.S. react to the unprecedented democratic change in Armenia? It was a
profoundly and quintessentially democratic change and nobody can doubt
this. I, for example, have told America’s representatives that I
believe that they basically came up with zero reaction. Why?”
Pashinyan then went on to defend Armenia’s independent political line
regardless of the pressures exerted on Yerevan by major powers. “When
we say that our country’s sovereignty is of paramount importance to us
we don’t mean that we need to replace dependence on point A [Russia]
by dependence on point B [the United States]. We take our sovereignty
very seriously and I want to assure you … that our government is
strongly committed to protecting our country’s and people’s
sovereignty in all directions.”
Pres. Trump’s administration has so far paid only lip service to the
dramatic and peaceful changes in Armenia. Pres. Trump sent a
congratulatory message to Pashinyan last September praising the
“Velvet Revolution” and expressing readiness to help the new
government implement sweeping reforms. Likewise, Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo saluted the “remarkable changes” in Armenia. However,
these beautiful words have remained on paper. No concrete steps were
taken to assist Armenia. That is partly due to the fact that the Trump
administration can care less about democratic developments in foreign
countries and also due to Pres. Trump being self-absorbed with his own
ego and personal interests.
Prime Minister Pashinyan’s declaration is a very positive development
for Armenia’s foreign policy and a sharp departure from the previous
Armenian leaders’ position. So far, most of the pressure on Armenia
has come from Russia. This is an inevitable fact given Armenia’s
economic, political and military reliance on Russia. The new
development is that Armenia’s leaders are no longer willing to blindly
succumb to Russia’s desires and orders trampling upon their country’s
sovereignty. When Armenia’s interests are in question, Pashinyan has
neither shied away from criticizing the European Union nor reasserting
Armenia’s sovereignty in his discussions with Russian President
Vladimir Putin.
If the United States wants to win over Armenia, it has to offer a
carrot rather than a stick. As the saying goes, you can catch more
flies with honey than vinegar.
The second most astounding development last week was the declaration
of Armenia’s Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan during his visit to the
United States. “As the minister of defense, I state we have
reformulated the ‘territories in exchange for peace’ approach to ‘new
war in exchange for new territories’ approach,” Tonoyan announced on
March 29 in New York at a meeting with members of the Armenian
community. “We will get rid of the trenches and persistent defensive
stance. We will increase the number of military units capable of
transferring military operations to the territory of the adversary,”
Tonoyan stated. “We will not give up anything.”
While some may interpret the Armenian Defense Minister’s words as
war-mongering, in reality, Tonoyan is responding in kind to the
thousands of threats issued over the years by Pres. Aliyev to conquer
Meghri and even Yerevan, Armenia’s capital. It is time that Armenia’s
leaders speak from a position of strength, not weakness.
Clearly, Aliyev is not ready for war. Otherwise, he would have already
attacked. His threats should not be taken seriously. It is proper to
silence him through counter-threats, and if needs be, preemptive
attacks.
Armenia’s Defense Minister is sending a clear message to Azerbaijan’s
President not to embark on a foolish adventure. Otherwise, his
pipelines and oil wells will come under attack, devastating the
country’s economy and toppling his regime. It is significant that such
a hard-hitting message is being sent to Azerbaijan while Armenia’s
Defense Minister is on U.S. soil.
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2 – Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian nominated to receive fourth
star, head USAFE
By: Stephen Losey
Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, an Armenian-American, now the deputy
commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa, has been
nominated to receive his fourth star and to lead the command.
If confirmed by Congress, Harrigian would succeed Gen. Tod Wolters,
who on March 15 was nominated to be the next supreme allied commander
of NATO.
The Senate received Harrigian’s nomination for his fourth star Monday.
Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek confirmed he has been nominated to
command USAFE.
Harrigian is a fighter pilot who graduated from the Air Force Academy
in 1985. He has more than 4,100 hours flying the F-22, F-15C and MQ-1
Predator, and flew combat missions to support the invasion of Panama,
Operation Desert Storm and Operation Inherent Resolve.
Harrigian has been USAFE’s deputy commander since last September.
He previously headed U.S. Air Forces Central Command and the combined
forces air component of U.S. Central Command for two years, where he
oversaw the air wars against the Taliban and ISIS. And he served as
the director of the F-35 Integration Office at Air Force headquarters
in the Pentagon from April 2015 to July 2016.
During his time in the Middle East, Harrigian closely watched how
Russian military forces operated in Syria. Shortly before leaving
AFCENT last August, Harrigian said in an interview with Defense News
that the Russians used their Syria mission as an opportunity to test
their newest military capabilities, and also to get a chance to
observe American aircraft such as the F-22. But the Air Force also
gathered information on how Russia used assets such as their Su-34 and
Su-35 fighter jets.
“Certainly, we’ve learned a lot about some of the capabilities that
the Russians have brought to Syria,” Harrigian said.
USAFE-AFAFRICA has a wide area of responsibility. As its commander,
Harrigian will oversee operations to support combatant commanders
operating across 104 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle
East, as well as in the Arctic and Atlantic oceans.
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3 – Lawyer Mark Geragos linked to Avenatti extortion case
By Christopher Weber
LOS ANGELES (AP)—Attorney Mark Geragos has had a long career
representing high-profile clients including Michael Jackson, Colin
Kaepernick and Jussie Smollett. Now Geragos might need a defense
attorney himself after being named in a case accusing lawyer Michael
Avenatti of trying to extort Nike.
Geragos is not charged with a crime but two people familiar with the
investigation confirmed Monday that he is the unidentified
co-conspirator in court papers charging Avenatti with attempting to
shake down Nike for $25 million by threatening the company with bad
publicity. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the
information was not made public by prosecutors.
Geragos, 61, didn’t respond to requests for comment.
For decades the media savvy attorney has defended headline-grabbing
cases involving troubled Hollywood stars like Winona Ryder and Chris
Brown and wife killer Scott Peterson.
A longtime CNN contributor, Geragos appeared on the network this month
to discuss the case against his client Jussie Smollett, the “Empire”
actor accused of fabricating a racist, anti-gay attack in Chicago.
Within hours of the extortion case breaking, CNN cut ties with him.
Prosecutors in Chicago on Tuesday abruptly dropped all charges against
Smollett, although there was no indication it had anything to do with
the latest development involving Geragos.
“He is in many ways the face of the legal profession because of his
years on CNN,” said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School
in Los Angeles, where Geragos earned his law degree. “For people who
are in the know in Los Angeles, they can name a couple of lawyers, and
he is one of them.”
Levinson said she was surprised by Geragos’ connection to the
extortion case. He has a solid reputation in the profession and no
history of misconduct, she said.
Last year, Geragos helped negotiate a multiyear, multimillion-dollar
deal between Nike and Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL player known
for inspiring other players to protest police brutality, racial
inequality and other social issues. In announcing the agreement on
Twitter, Geragos called Kaepernick an “All American Icon.”
Geragos’ website bio describes him as “the only lawyer besides Johnnie
Cochran ever named ‘Lawyer of the Year’ in both Criminal and Civil
arenas.”
He was admitted to the bar in 1983 and made his name in the 1990s when
he got an acquittal in an embezzlement case against Susan McDougal,
who was previously convicted in the Whitewater scandal involving
President Bill Clinton. A few years later he represented Clinton’s
brother, Roger Clinton, in a drunken-driving case.
He got probation for Winona Ryder after the actress was convicted by a
jury in a felony grand theft case, and for Chris Brown, the singer who
pleaded guilty to assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna.
Perhaps most prominently, Geragos represented Michael Jackson after
the pop superstar was accused of child molestation. Jackson ultimately
replaced Geragos, saying he wanted a lawyer who would devote his full
time to the case.
Geragos was simultaneously representing Scott Peterson, a California
fertilizer salesman who was eventually found guilty of murdering his
pregnant wife.
He later represented Jackson in a separate case and settled a lawsuit
for $2.5 million against the owner of a charter jet company that
secretly recorded the singer while he flew on a private plane. A Los
Angeles native with Armenian roots, he’s been a champion of efforts to
have the 1915 Armenian Genocide recognized at the national level. It’s
unclear what his connection is with Avenatti, the bellicose attorney
best known for representing porn actress Stormy Daniels in lawsuits
against President Donald Trump. Avenatti said he’s confident he’ll be
“fully exonerated” after being arrested last week on charges including
extortion and bank and wire fraud.
*****************************************************************************************************
4- Commentary: The problem with Turkish nationalism and the
Armenian genocide
By Sofia Demirturk
Being born in an ultra nationalist Turkish family, the Armenian
genocide was once a story about an imperialist conspiracy against our
sovereignty, how Armenia had their eyes on our country, and how
ungrateful they were for all the years we spent together in the lands
of Anatolia.
My father used to tell me about the lies that Armenians told to the
world, and how we Turks should never trust anyone, as every other
nation is busy conspiring against us. The history classes we had back
in school were no different, telling us about the impaled pregnant
Turkish women and the villagers killed by Armenian militias. This
would create an image of Armenians like that of monsters from
mythology books — a depiction of ultimate evil. No wonder millions of
Turkish citizens are in denial about the tragedy that happened 104
years ago at the hands of our ancestors, which cost 1.5 million lives.
I was in college when I had my moment of epiphany. It was my first
year of economics and we had a compulsory social sciences class, which
no one seemed to care about ( we attended it just to receive credits).
I was astonished when the tutor, a young lady of 26-27, asked us how
we felt about the Armenian genocide. Being a small town girl, I knew
that Armenians had faced problems in history, but we were taught that
it was not a genocide but deportation, it was the condition of the
desert, it was anything but the state’s fault.
Welcome to Being Turkish 101 – the state is above everything, and
everything that happened in the past is the fault of others, never the
state itself. Living in a country whose pillars, whose very foundation
is based on nationalism and a lighter form of xenophobia, it is never
easy to question the credibility of what you have been taught, even if
this challenges almost everything you have seen and heard.
Numbers being necessary for a solid hypothesis, harsh statistics are
usually used to show reality, rather than making people feel the
actual stories behind them. However, I am never fond of studying
atrocities based on numbers, but prefer to study through the
experiences of those who actually faced the consequences. I came to
know of families, grandchildren of survivors, how families were torn
apart and how, sadly, our history is about the sorrow and misery of so
many.
Each family I met has their own share of it: grandparents witnessing
the deaths of their family members; a young Ottoman-Armenian soldier
fighting in the campaign of the Dardenelles, only to come back to his
village to see nothing left; siblings meeting decades after the
genocide only to discover one of them is now a Muslim and the other a
proud Christian.
Of all these stories, one reality touched me the most — that I have
dozens of cousins, uncles and aunts, able to have big family dinners
on special occasions, whilst my Armenian friends were simply robbed of
this opportunity, having their families scattered here and there and
mourning for their close relatives.
Denial is not just being indifferent to the first genocide of the 20th
century, but it is also making the survivors go through their trauma
again and again in their quest of honouring the memory of their loved
ones. Armenians all over the world, be it the Armenian diaspora in
Marseilles or a young Armenian girl in Yerevan, Armenia, should now
get the apology they deserve, and talk about the lives their ancestors
had here before 1915.
After 104 years, we are still stubborn and indifferent, making
campaigns and spending millions of dollars to argue, “But it was The
Ottoman Empire”, “ASALA (Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of
Armenia) killed Turkish diplomats” — anything to justify the silence
we had for all of these 101 years.
I know that saying “I am sorry” would never bring back the ones who
are long gone, but this is the least we can do to remember the
victims. It could be a very small piece of justice and a fresh start
in repairing the bonds between Armenian and Turkish societies.
Gulnur “Sofia” Demirturk is your average Turkish accountant based in
Istanbul. Apart from worrying about balance sheets and income
statements, she is interested in financial crimes, politics, feminism,
Abrahamic religions and Bollywood. She is an ex Muslim but still feels
Islam is an important part of her identity.
**********************************************************************************************************************************************
5- Papazian Aims to Oust Ocasio-Cortez from Bronx Seat
A Republican from the East Bronx who said she is fed up with Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) spoke exclusively to Martha
MacCallum about her new 2020 campaign to unseat the democratic
socialist. MacCallum said that Ocasio-Cortez’ successful bid to keep
Amazon out of the New York City borough of Queens was the last straw
for medical magazine writer Ruth Papazian.
Papazian, a lifelong Bronxite and daughter of Egyptian immigrants,
said that if Ocasio-Cortez was set on “fighting to keep Amazon out of
Queens, she should’ve been fighting to bring Amazon to the Bronx.”
Papazian said Ocasio-Cortez “parachuted” into Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s
(D-N.Y.) neighboring Congressional district and succeeded in killing
the Amazon deal in Long Island City, Queens. She said that
Ocasio-Cortez, who is also from the Bronx, should know how important
the borough’s warehousing industry is to working-class people in her
district. “What about all those construction jobs that went bye-bye?”
Papazian asked. “She wants to defund ICE, open the border to all
comers, and unionized Americans now need to compete with illegal
aliens for construction jobs.”
Papazian called the Green New Deal a “jobs killer” and said that she
is ready to take on Ocasio-Cortez in the 2020 election, despite a
large deficit in the number of Republican-to-Democratic voters in the
district.
She told MacCallum that although Republicans are widely outnumbered
and out-represented—there are no Congressional Republicans in the
Bronx, and Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. is a Democrat—she believes
she has a chance to beat the 29-year-old former bartender.
Papazian said that there are a large number of “Reagan Democrats” in
her part of the Bronx and Queens, voter turnout is low in the borough
and that many Republicans “secretly” register as Democrats.
She added that, of Donald Trump’s small cache of Bronx Republican
votes in the 2016 election, most came from her home district, which
includes City Island, East Tremont and Westchester Square. The New
York Post spoke to several members of the community about Papazian,
including a man from the Throggs Neck neighborhood who said that he
would vote for Papazian over Ocasio-Cortez even if he did not know the
challenger’s name. Papazian is also the administrator of a Facebook
page devoted to criticizing Ocasio-Cortez, called the Bronx Bolshevik
Bulletin, according to the Daily News.
This article appeared in Fox News Insider on March 28, 2019.
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6- Amid criticism, Montebello council selects Hadjinian as Mayor
By Mike Sprague
After more than seven months without a mayor, Montebello City Council
finally found one Wednesday, March 27. But it came only after
Councilman Salvador Melendez turned down his own nomination and then
provided the key vote to select Councilman Jack Hadjinian for the
honorary post. Since Mayor Vanessa Delgado resigned in August to
become a state senator, the council has been mayor-less. Hadjinian,
who was then mayor pro tem, ran the meetings.
Then on Election Day in November, all three incumbents lost. In March,
another newcomer, David Torres, was elected to Delgado’s seat. But
until he took his seat this week, the council was down a member,
creating the possibility of a tie.
On Wednesday, Councilwoman Kimberly Cobos-Cawthorne—who supported
Melendez for mayor in December as the council deadlocked—again
nominated him, and with Torres, voted against Hadjinian. Councilwoman
Angie Jimenez, who supported Hadjinian in December, kept her vote the
same. Melendez turned down his nomination, offering Hadjinian for the
job. As he put it, he’s afraid of dividing the city.
“That’s something I won’t tolerate,” Melendez said. “We have bigger
issues we need to address. This is more of a ceremonial position. We
need to work together.”‘
As Melendez made his comments, members of the public—who earlier told
the council that one of the newcomers should be mayor—booed him.
“We are looking for change,” Montebello activist Maribel Briseno said,
referencing a state audit released in December that said the city of
Montebello is on unsure financial footing. The audit questioned the
Montebello’s reliance on one-time sources of money, a lack of
competitive bidding and its enterprises in running a golf course,
hotels and a water system—all of which may need subsidizing. “We want
to have a new mayor and mayor pro tem,” Briseno said. “It’s the only
way our city will move forward. We do not need the same ol’, same ol’.
What’s going on has brought us the audit.”
In December, Cobos-Cawthorne said she nominated Melendez because he
received the most votes in November’s election. She nominated him
again, she said, because the community clearly wants change.
This will be the second time that Hadjinian has served as mayor. He
was tapped in December 2014, becoming the first Armenian-American to
be selected to that position.
Hadjinian said he is honored to be serve again and is looking forward
to the responsibilities. And he’s also ready for any challenges.
“If there’s nobody there to challenge you, it takes all of the fun
out of it,” he said.
This article appeared in Whittier Daily News on March 29, 2019.
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Yerevan Brandy Company to pay higher price for 29,000 metric tons of grape this year
ARKA, Armenia
April 1 2019