Monday,
Armenian Minister Looks Forward To Impact Of Trade Deal With Iran
• Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenia - Economic Development Minister Tigran Khachatrian speaks at a meeting
in Yerevan, March 4, 2019.
Economic Development Minister Tigran Khachatrian touted on Monday a
preferential trade agreement signed by Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union
(EEU) last year, saying that it could greatly benefit Armenian exporters.
The agreement signed in Kazakhstan’s capital Astana will be valid for the next
three years. It will abolish or lower import duties for around 300 types of
products traded between Iran and Russia, Armenia and three other ex-Soviet
states making up the trade bloc. The signatories pledged to work out a
permanent free-trade arrangement during the three-year period.
The deal has since been ratified by the parliaments of Russia, Belarus and
Kyrgyzstan. Armenia’s National Assembly is expected to follow suit soon.
Khachatrian said he is looking forward to the deal’s entry into force. “Iran’s
simplified trade agreement with the EEU will give major opportunities to
companies operating in the EEU -- and Armenia in the first instance -- in terms
of better access to the Iranian market,” he told reporters.
“It will also create opportunities for Iranian manufacturers for whom the
Russian, Armenian, Belarusian and Kazakh markets are not insignificant at all,
especially given the current state of the Iranian economy,” he said.
The minister argued that many of the 300 items covered by the deal are exported
by Armenia to Iran. Armenian manufacturers will also be in a much better
position to sell other products such as beef and mineral water in the vast
Iranian market, he said.
According to official Armenian statistics, Armenia’s trade with Iran soared by
over 40 percent, to almost $364 million, in 2018. However, Armenian exports to
the Islamic Republic accounted for only one-quarter of that turnover. Armenian
companies have long complained that Tehran’s protectionist policies seriously
limit their access to the Iranian market.
Khachatrian admitted that U.S. economic sanctions re-imposed on Tehran last
year could hamper greater trade between Iran and the EEU member states. But he
also said: “The sanctions are temporary, while the agreement is long-term.”
Economic issues were high on the agenda of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s
talks with Iran’s leaders held in Tehran last week. The two sides pledged to
deepen bilateral commercial ties despite the U.S. sanctions.
Attack On Armenian Blogger Investigated
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia - Office of the Prosecutor-General, Undated
Law-enforcement authorities on Monday pledged to investigate an overnight
attack on a video blogger highly critical of Armenia’s government, which was
reportedly carried out by a youth group at loggerheads with him.
The blogger, Narek Malian, was confronted outside his home in downtown Yerevan
by members of the group called Restart shortly after midnight. A YouTube video
of the incident showed the Restart leader, Davit Petrosian, and several other
men forcibly carrying Malian along an adjacent street before being stopped by
police officers.
Petrosian posted the video on his Facebook page, writing: “There are moments in
life when you can’t choose between the good and the bad and just have to listen
to your conscience.”
In a statement, Restart said it wanted to throw Malian into a trash container.
Petrosian likewise explained that he and his comrades tried “put the garbage in
its place” in response to what he called Malian’s offensive and slanderous
statements about their activities.
Malian, Petrosian, and four other men were detained on the spot but set free a
few hours later. The Armenian police said afterwards that they are “preparing
materials” for an inquiry.
The Office of the Prosecutor-General reported later on Monday that it has
opened a formal criminal case in connection with the incident. It said the
investigation will be conducted under an article of the Criminal Code dealing
with “hooliganism.”
Malian, who worked until last year as an adviser to former police chief
Vladimir Gasparian, described the assault as a “kidnapping attempt” and blamed
the Armenian branch of U.S. philanthropist George Soros’s Open Society
Foundations (OSF) for it. He said that Restart is financed by the OSF. The
latter did not immediately react to the accusation.
Malian linked the incident to his vocal efforts to prevent the sacking of the
long-serving rector of Yerevan State University (YSU), Aram Simonian, which is
sought by the government. The former police official last week staged a lone
protest at a meeting of YSU’s supervisory board that narrowly failed to fire
Simonian.
Restart has on the contrary been campaigning for the controversial rector’s
ouster since last year’s “velvet revolution” in Armenia. The youth group
comprising current and former YSU students actively participated in the
revolution.
By contrast, Malian has been very scathing about the dramatic regime change in
the country. He regularly attacks Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and other
government officials and pours scorn on their supporters on his Facebook page.
Incidentally, Pashinian was quick to condemn the assault. “Any attempt to solve
issues in Armenia through violence must meet with a tough legal reaction,” he
said in a statement. “In the New Armenia all those who follow the logic of
violence, deceit and spread of lies act against Armenia, against democracy and
against the people.”
Funding Secured For New Armenian Power Plant
Armenia - A thermal power plant in Yerevan.
A German-Italian consortium planning to build a new thermal power plant in
Armenia has secured over $200 million in funding from the World Bank Group and
other multilateral lenders.
The ArmPower consortium consists of a subsidiary of Germany’s Siemens group and
two Italian companies. One of them, Renco, will also act as the engineering,
procurement and construction contractor for the new Yerevan-based plant that
will further diversify foreign ownership in the Armenian energy sector.
Renco had supposedly launched the project with a ground-breaking ceremony in
March 2017 attended by then President Serzh Sarkisian. The start of the
construction was delayed, however.
Armenia’s current government froze Renco’s contract with the Sarkisian
administration shortly after taking office in May 2018. It said the deal is not
beneficial for the Armenian side and must be renegotiated.
The two sides signed a revised deal in November. Energy Minister Garegin
Baghramian said concessions made by the Italian firm will allow Armenia to save
$160 million in energy expenses over the next 25 years.
Baghramian also said that electricity to be generated by the new plant will be
cheaper than power supplies coming from two other gas-powered facilities that
currently meet roughly one-third of the country’s energy needs.
Armenia - Armenian Energy Minister Garegin Baghramian (R) and Giovanni Rubini,
chief executive of the Italian company Renco, at a news conference in Yerevan,
13 November 2018.
The Washington-based International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the
World Bank Group, also stressed the project’s economic importance for Armenia
on Monday. “A modern 250-megawatt combined-cycle gas turbine power plant in the
south of Yerevan will help increase efficiency for gas-fired electricity
generation,” it said in a statement.
The statement said the funding for the project includes a “$42 million loan for
IFC’s own account” as well as “$121 million from IFC’s innovative syndications
platform … plus parallel loans from the Asian Development Bank, the OPEC Fund
for International Development, and the German development finance institution
DEG.”
In addition, it said, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA),
which is also part of the World Bank Group, will provide up to $39 million in
loan guarantees to “help Renco manage non-commercial risks.”
“We are committed to starting the work as soon as possible to complete the
commissioning of the plant within schedule,” Renco’s chief executive, Giovanni
Rubini, was quoted as saying.
Rubini said in November that the construction will take just over two years.
Renco has done business in Armenia since the early 2000s. It has not been
involved in the local energy sector until now, investing instead in luxury
housing, hotels and office buildings. But the company has built, installed or
operated power generation and distribution facilities in other parts of the
world.
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
Category: 2019
“New Roads” – A New Podcast Channel from the USC Institute of Armenian Studies
For Immediate Release March 4, 2019 USC INSTITUTE OF ARMENIAN STUDIES University of Southern California Los Angeles, California, USA Contact: Syuzanna Petrosyan, Associate Director [email protected] | 213.821.3943 “New Roads” - A New Podcast Channel from the USC Institute of Armenian Studies The USC Institute of Armenian Studies podcast channel, “New Roads”, is a new avenue for promoting scholarship that addresses national and global challenges that, in turn, impact policy, development, and progress. “These public discussions about history, politics, health and every other area of research take scholarship to the public square, where it can impact decision making and strategic planning within communities and especially in the Republic of Armenia,” said Institute Director Salpi Ghazarian. The podcast channel has a growing number of different series, such as Unpacking Armenia Studies, The Quake, and Inch by Inch. Others are planned. Unpacking Armenian Studies, hosted by Ghazarian, is home to interviews with academics, journalists and policymakers in the field of - and on the fringes of - Armenian Studies. It seeks to understand and make accessible the conversations about who these scholars are, what they do and why it matters. It’s an effort to humanize Armenian Studies, make it more accessible, and show it for the broad, varied field that it has become. It is important and relevant in understanding the Armenian experience today. You will hear from Rober Koptas about running an Armenian publishing house in Turkey. There is Dr. Anna Ohanyan of Stonehill College talking about non-traditional conflicts and complicated geo-political agendas in the Caucasus and in the Balkans. You will hear from Dr. Kristin Cavoukian of the University of Toronto as she discusses Armenian-ness, identity, and exclusion as both personal and academic questions. Dr. Tom Catena, a Catholic missionary and the only resident surgeon practicing under harrowing conditions in the Nuba Mountains in southern Sudan, is also a guest on the show. He talks about humanitarian work, his work in Nuba and about his role as the 2017 Aurora Prize Laureate. Dr. Houri Berberian, Meghrouni Family Presidential Chair in Armenian Studies at UC Irvine, who has written about Armenian involvement in Iran’s Constitutional Revolution, talks about everything from life in Lebanon during the Civil War to undergraduate studies at UC Berkeley where she came to appreciate the connectedness of the peoples and issues of the greater Middle East and the Armenian role in regional processes. “The people, the graduate students, the young scholars who are doing Armenian History now are doing it very differently. They are doing it within regional and global contexts, and are looking at connections, and transnationalism, and gender and sexuality - things that no Armenian scholars have touched until now, and that's very important.” said Dr. Berberian to USC Institute of Armenian Studies Director, Salpi Ghazarian. “Armenian studies is about 50 years behind in these things and we have a lot of catching up to do.” Dr. Sebouh Aslanian talks discusses the Armenian merchants from Iran’s New Julfa region who operated simultaneously and successfully across all the major empires of the 17th and18th centuries. These merchants were the original transnational, global Armenians, and their legacy is visible throughout South and East Asia in the form of churches and cultural monuments. Their philanthropy bankrolled Armenian printing capacity in Venice, Amsterdam, Livorno, Madras, Calcutta, Lvov and New Julfa. Dr. Christina Maranci, Professor of Armenian Art at Tufts University, is the author of a chapter in the Armenia! exhibit catalogue on Armenian art, religion, and trade in the Middle Ages. She talks about her research that places art, architecture, and the material objects of Armenia and Armenians within a critical and historical context. UCLA's Dr. Shant Shekherdimian discusses about Armenia's and Karabakh's health care systems and the Diaspora's role. Dr. Katy Pearce, a professor of communications at the University of Washington, talks about Armenia, Azerbaijan, social media, and the study of societal transformation. Dr. Georgi Derluguian of NYU Abu Dhabi, discusses 'normal' life in the Soviet Union, Armenia's post-Soviet evolution, revolution, and the "New Armenia." In The Quake, the Institute’s Chitjian Research Archivist Gegham Mughnetsyan explores the very personal and public history of the powerful Spitak earthquake that devastated the northern region of Armenia and his hometown Gyumri on December 7, 1988. He delves into the challenges that complicated the region’s recovery process and that buried the future and promise of an entire generation. “Podcasts are like your own private radio station. You can just click and listen to conversations that interest you,” explains Ghazarian. You can listen to the podcasts by searching for New Roads on iTunes, Spotify, SoundCloud ( or anywhere you get your podcasts or by visiting armenian.usc.edu. 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.
The California Courier Online, March 7, 2019
The California Courier Online, March 7, 2019
1 – Azerbaijan Enlists Infamous Congressman
Hastings in its Anti-Armenian Propaganda
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- Surp Hreshdagabet Church in Istanbul vandalized in possible
hate crime
3 – 106-year-old Genocide survivor dies in Argentina
4 – Pashinyan Remembers 2008 Police Brutality Victims
5- AECP Sponsors Eye Surgeon Performing from Armenia for
Florida Conference
6- Tekeyan Metro LA Remembers Rescuer of Armenian Orphans Roupen Herian
******************************************
******************************************
1 – Azerbaijan Enlists Infamous Congressman
Hastings in its Anti-Armenian Propaganda
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
Cong. Alcee L. Hastings (D-Fla.) is the latest transmitter of Azeri
propaganda. He issued a statement on February 25, 2019, which he
entered in the Congressional Record, accusing Armenians of killing 613
Azeri men, women, and children on Feb. 26, 1992, in the Khojaly
village of Azerbaijan during the height of the Artsakh (Karabagh) war.
Human Rights Watch placed the number of Azeri dead at 161.
Nevertheless, even the single loss of life is regrettable be it Azeri
or Armenian. Cong. Hastings, a member of Azerbaijan Congressional
Caucus, called the alleged killings “the Khojaly Massacre.”
These killings are controversial with Armenians and Azeris blaming
each other for the deaths. In recent years, the government of
Azerbaijan has made these killings a cause celebre, organizing
observances in various countries and accusing Armenians not only of
committing a massacre, but a genocide. These propaganda observances
are funded by what is known as “caviar diplomacy,” meaning that
Azerbaijan bribes government officials around the world to block
decisions critical of Azerbaijan or adopt resolutions in its favor.
It is ironic that while Azerbaijan describes the alleged killing of
613 Azeris a genocide, it shamelessly denies the actual genocide of
1.5 million Armenians from 1915 to 1923.
On March 3, 1997, the Armenian Foreign Ministry circulated a statement
to members of the United Nations General Assembly and Security
Council, rejecting the statement issued by Azerbaijan on February 22,
1997 on “the Khojalu event.” Armenia quoted the words of the then
President of Azerbaijan Ayaz Mutalibov who had stated that the
Azerbaijani National Front “actively obstructed and actually prevented
the exodus of the local [Azeri] population through the mountain
passages specifically left open by Karabakh Armenians to facilitate
the flight of the civilian population.” Mutalibov had made that
statement in the days following “the Khojalu event” in an interview
with Czech journalist Dana Mazalova published in the April 2, 1992
issue of the Russian newspaper Nizavisimaya Gazeta.
By organizing such propaganda observances, Azerbaijan’s officials have
found a convenient way of countering the mass murder of Armenians in
the Azeri towns of Sumgait (Feb. 28, 1988), Gyanja (November 1988),
and Baku (January 1990) as well as the Armenian genocide by Ottoman
Turkey.
Azerbaijan could not have found a more infamous member of U.S.
Congress to carry out its propaganda war against Armenia. Prior to
becoming a member of Congress, Hastings served as a United States
District or Federal Judge from 1979 to 1989, at which time he was
impeached and removed from office!
According to Wikipedia, “In 1981, [Judge] Hastings was charged with
accepting a $150,000 bribe in exchange for a lenient sentence and a
return of seized assets for 21 counts of racketeering by Frank and
Thomas Romano, and of perjury in his testimony about the case. In
1983, he was acquitted by a jury after his alleged co-conspirator,
William Borders, refused to testify in court, resulting in a jail
sentence for Borders.”
“In 1988, the Democratic-controlled United States House of
Representatives took up the case, and Hastings was impeached for
bribery and perjury by a vote of 413–3. He was then convicted on
October 20, 1989, by the United States Senate, becoming the sixth
federal judge in the history of the United States to be removed from
office by the Senate. The Senate, in two hours of roll calls, voted on
11 of the 17 articles of impeachment. It convicted Hastings of eight
of the 11 articles. The vote on the first article was 69 for and 26
opposed….”
Cong. Hastings was disgraced for the second time when a staff member
of the Helsinki Commission for which he was the Chairman, accused him
of inappropriate sexual behavior. The Roll Call newspaper reported on
December 8, 2017 that the U.S. Treasury Department secretly paid the
staffer $220,000 to settle an alleged sexual harassment case against
Cong. Hastings.
Winsome Packer, the staff member of the congressional commission,
stated in a written document that Cong. Hastings touched her, made
unwanted sexual advances, and threatened her job. In her lawsuit,
Packer stated “that Hastings repeatedly asked to stay at her apartment
or to visit her hotel room. Packer also said he frequently hugged her,
and once asked her what kind of underwear she was wearing,” according
to Roll Call. Cong. Hastings denied the accusation.
Finally, it appears that Cong. Hastings has maintained extensive
contacts with the BGR Group, a major U.S. firm that is paid $50,000 a
month to lobby for Azerbaijan in Washington.
Under the federal FARA (Foreign Agents Registration Act) laws, every
lobbying firm has to register with the U.S. Justice Department,
disclosing the contract signed with the foreign entity. More
importantly, the lobbying firm’s employees are required to report to
the Justice Department every contact they make with outsiders on
behalf of their clients, whether by email, phone call, or personal
meeting.
For example, during the six-month period of December 1, 2017 to May
30, 2018, BGR reported contacting congressional offices hundreds of
times. Each time the subject matter was listed as “U.S.-Azerbaijan
Relations.” Cleverly, BGR had hidden the name of the Congressman or
Senator, mentioning only his or her staff member’s name.
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) conducted a lengthy
investigation to identify the names of the Congress members for whom
these staff members worked. The ANCA investigation disclosed that on
Nov. 17, 2017, Feb. 27, March 5, March 12, April 30, May 22, May 23,
and May 30, 2018 BGR lobbyists emailed Tom Carnes, a staff member of
Cong. Hastings. BGR also had a meeting with Tom Carnes on May 30,
2018. In addition, on May 22, 2018, lobbyists from BGR e-mailed
Susannah Jackson of Cong. Hastings office. In addition, on Nov. 2,
2017, Rob Mangas, Tim Hutchinson, K. Laurie McKay, Killoran Long, and
Albert Wynn on behalf of a lobbying firm for Turkey, Greenberg
Traurig, had discussions with Lale Morrison from the office of Cong.
Hastings regarding U.S.-Turkish relations. Finally, on Oct. 27, 2017,
Lydia Borland on behalf of another lobbying firm for Turkey, LB
International Solutions, LLC, met with Lale Morrison from the office
of Cong. Hastings regarding U.S.-Turkey relations.
No wonder that Cong. Hastings was given the low grade of D and D plus
in recent years by the ANCA for not supporting various Armenian issues
in Congress.
Azerbaijan has tried to cover up its crimes against Armenians and
human rights violations of its deprived citizens by bribing foreign
officials around the world and blaming others for its own wrongdoing.
**************************************************************************************************
2- Surp Hreshdagabet Church in Istanbul vandalized in possible
hate crime
(AHVAL News)— Vandals have marked the Balat Surp Hreshdagabet Armenian
Church in Istanbul with graffiti saying “You are finish”, the Armenian
newspaper Agos reported on Monday, February 25.
The church foundation board in a statement said it had delivered all
surveillance recordings to the police and filed a criminal complaint.
Minority Foundations Representative Moris Levi condemned the attack,
according to Turkish news site Sendika.org.
“These acts are a clear hate crime and our communities are still being
subjected to such attacks,” Levi said.
Armenian opposition lawmaker Garo Paylan posted pictures of the
graffiti on Twitter and said authorities should shed light on the
people behind the attack.
“A hate crime has been committed against Balat Surp Hreshdagabet
Armenian Church. Hate crimes against churches and synagogues take
place several times every year. Not only the perpetrators but the
powers behind (the attacks) should be addressed. Above all,
hate-generating policies should be ended,” said Paylan.
Armenian writer Murad Mıhçı also commented on the attack on Twitter.
Sharing the images of the church, Mıhçı said:
“The walls and the door of the Balat Surp Armenian Church. Its
entrance was built with the rocks from the historical church in İznik
(Nicaea), where the council met. The church opens one day a year. It
is believed to heal people. As they say, “ARE YOU FINISH?”, there are
no local people left. “New Turkey.”
This is not the first incident, in which Armenian institutions have
been the target of graffiti and vandalism in Istanbul in recent years.
Recently, the walls of the Armenian Surb Astvatsatsin Church in
Istanbul’s Zeinlink district were vandalized with hate graffiti.
In April 2018 photos of graffiti reading “This homeland is ours”
spray-painted on the exterior wall of the Armenian Surp Takavor Church
and a pile of trash dumped in front of the church’s door began
circulating on social media and various Turkish news outlets.
In 2016, the exterior walls of the Bomonti Mkhitarian Armenian School
of Istanbul were vandalized with anti-Armenian graffiti reading “One
night, we suddenly will be in Karabakh.”
*********************************************************************************************
3 – 106-year-old Genocide survivor dies in Argentina
(News.am)—Lucin Beredjiklian de Khatcherian one of the last survivors
of the Armenian Genocide, died on Thursday, February 21, at the age of
106, Prensa Armenia reported.
She lived in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina practically all
her life and was one of the active members of the local Armenian
community.
According to the documents, Lusine Beredzhikl was born in 1909 in the
city of Ayntap.
During the Genocide, their family fled to Syria. In exile, she lost
her mother, as well as father.
“It is better not to remember the Genocide. I cannot sleep because of
these memories,” said Lucin Beredjiklian in an interview with Clarín
in 2015.
**************************************************************************************************
4 – Pashinyan Remembers 2008 Police Brutality Victims
YEREVAN—Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, in a televised address to the
nation, issued an apology to the victims of the March 1, 2008
post-election protests, during which eight civilians and two police
officers were killed by security officials who were ordered to quell
opposition revolt against the presidential election results.
The case has gained new impetus since Pashinyan came to power after
last spring’s popular protests that overthrew the previous regime.
Judicial inquiries and investigations have led to the arrest of former
president Robert Kocharian who is custody awaiting trial.
Investigators have also questions the two other presidents, Serzh
Sargsyan and Levon Ter-Petrosian in connection with the incidents but
have not filed charges against them.
“Today, on March 1, 2019, I would like to clearly state that there
cannot be a return to the morals and relationships of the past.
Armenia will not return to the times of corruption, political
persecutions, political violence, violations of rights, impunity and
obscenity,” Pashinyan said.
“Also to affirm our universal commitment to the values of the
non-violent, velvet, people’s revolution that took place in spring of
2018, as leader of the Republic of Armenia, on behalf of the state I
apologize to all victims of March 1, 2008, all victims of political
murders that took place in Armenia since independence, all citizens
and political powers that were subjected to political persecutions,”
said Pashinyan.
“The victims of March 1 aren’t only Gor Kliyan, Armen Farmanyan,
Tigran Khachatryan, Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, Davit Petrosyan, Zakar
Hovhannisyan, Grigor Gevorgyan, Samvel Harutyunyan, Hamlet Tadevosyan
and Tigran Abgaryan, but also every citizen of the Republic of
Armenia, every protester fighting for their rights,” Pashinyan said
ahead of issuing the apology.
In response to Pashinyan’s call to hold a commemorations rally for
March 1, 2008 victims, on Friday, thousands turned out in Liberty
Square to joined the Prime Minister in a silent march through the
streets of Yerevan to the site of the killings 11 years ago.
Pashinyan called for all citizens to join him in remembering the
victims of the attacks and pledged that the issue would receive its
due assessment.
“11 years after these events it is extremely important to provide a
political assessment to what happened. And now I find it important to
say for the record that in 2008 the actions of the then ruling elite
weren’t at all aimed against an individual power, group or person, but
the main and perhaps the only targets of this violence and unlawful
actions were the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, their rights,
dignity and freedom.”
*****************************************************************************************************
5- AECP Sponsors Eye Surgeon Performing from Armenia for
Florida Conference
Many in Armenia know Dr. Asatur Hovsepyan as the “man behind the
Mobile Eye Hospital”, the primary eye surgeon who has been treating
patients aboard the Armenian EyeCare Project’s mobile clinic since it
was delivered to Armenia in 2002.
Since being named Chief Surgeon and Medical Director of the AECP
Mobile Eye Hospital by AECP Founder and President Dr. Roger Ohanesian,
Hovsepyan has performed over 10,000 surgeries—most of them
cataracts—aboard the famous “eye clinic on wheels.”
As the physician who undeniably performs the most cataract surgeries
in Armenia, it was clear to the EyeCare Project that Hovsepyan—and by
association the patients in Armenia that he treats—could benefit
tremendously from learning of the industry’s latest updates and
advancements in cataract surgery and eye care.
With sponsorship provided by the Armenian EyeCare Project, Hovsepyan
had the opportunity to attend “Cataract Surgery: Telling It Like It
Is,” a medical conference on his specialty of cataracts held in Lake
Buena Vista, Florida from February 6 to 10, 2019.
“In our continued effort to keep Armenia’s eye specialists up to date
in modern treatments of ophthalmic care, the Armenian EyeCare Project
brought Asatur Hovsepyan to Florida to attend a well-known conference
that deals in realities associated with cataract surgery,” said Dr.
Ohanesian. “‘Dr Asatur,’ as he is known throughout Armenia, is one of
the most well-known ophthalmic surgeons for his work on the Mobile Eye
Hospital and has been vital to the program’s success.”
The conference, which has been running for nearly a decade, was put
together to provide top-quality, cutting-edge medical education to
ophthalmologists and medical residents alike through what it calls its
“greatest asset”—over 50 expert faculty and teachers who deliver
updates and perspective on cataracts to attendees while also offering
insight and useful pearls geared toward making conference-goers more
knowledgeable and confident surgeons.
Hovsepyan agrees that the wealth of knowledge available at the event
was its greatest strength. “The speakers and attendees are some of the
best in this industry so I felt very fortunate to be in the same room
as them and to be able to learn from them,” the Armenian
ophthalmologist says. “I was able to learn more about the latest
advancements in cataract surgery and how I can adopt those new
practices. I also learned more on what not to do, which is just as
important. And best of all, I am able to take all this new knowledge
back with me to Armenia.”
Here, Hovsepyan reflects on a phrase he recently learned. “What is
that American saying?” he asks. “‘The best is the enemy of the
better.’ We, as the doctors of Armenia, have to do what we can to get
to the best.”
The Mobile Eye Hospital has long been considered the hallmark of the
Armenian EyeCare Project. It’s the massive piece of machinery that
brings eye care to the most vulnerable populations in Armenia: those
on the poverty list who often live in the outlying regions of the
country and cannot travel to the capital for care. The “eye bus,” as
it is lovingly called among Armenia’s residents, travels throughout
Armenia—to its many towns and provinces—and provides eye screenings
and treatment to those who would otherwise be without. With its
state-of-the-art operating room and two fully equipped exam rooms, to
date, the mobile clinic has helped screen over 400,000 patients and
has allowed over 20,000 Armenians to receive sight-saving surgery at
no cost.
As its chief surgeon, Hovsepyan performs most of these surgeries and
travels where the Mobile Eye Hospital does, often having to leave his
wife and four children in Yerevan for months at a time so he can
provide care to thousands across the country. “There are moments when
I miss my family terribly… but the need for eye care and cataract
surgeries in particular is great in Armenia so we have to get it
done,” he says. He is humbled by the public support of the Mobile Eye
Hospital. “I’m extremely touched that people think so fondly of the
Mobile Eye Hospital. Most of all, I’m happy that what I do is
working.”
He remembers one case in particular, when a middle-aged man from the
town of Goris visited the mobile clinic. The man had already gone
blind in one eye and could barely see out of the other. “We knew the
results would not be ideal but we told him we’d do the best we could,”
Hovsepyan says. “We performed the surgery and were able to get some
vision back in one eye. When we removed the bandage, he was so
grateful to be able to see from that small area of his eye, it was as
if all his vision had returned. That pure gratitude he projected has
stayed with me until now.”
Hovsepyan is grateful himself—for the opportunity to serve his fellow
countrymen in Armenia through the Mobile Eye Hospital and also for the
advanced medical education available to him through the Armenian
EyeCare Project. “I’m extremely thankful I had the opportunity to
attend this event,” says Hovsepyan. “These conferences make a big
difference in the quality of care us Armenian ophthalmologists are
able to provide in Armenia.”
Medical education and training has always been the cornerstone of the
EyeCare Project and its many programs. The ultimate goal: to have
physicians in Armenia deliver the same quality care equal to that
which is available in the United States and other developed countries.
With opportunities like this, Armenia gets closer every day.
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6- Tekeyan Metro LA Remembers Rescuer of Armenian Orphans Roupen Herian
ALTADENA, Calif.—The Tekeyan Cultural Association Metro Los Angeles
Chapter hosted a bilingual program titled Roupen Herian: Rescuer of
Armenian Orphans on February 17 at the Tekeyan Center in Altadena.
Boston-based scholar Aram Arkun, Executive Director of the Tekeyan
Cultural Association of the United States and Canada and Assistant
Editor of the Armenian Mirror-Spectator, served as the keynote speaker
and presented the fascinating life of Herian, who dedicated himself to
the herculean task of locating kidnapped Armenian women and children
during and immediately after the Armenian Genocide.
The master of ceremonies, Carl Bardakian, chairman of the Tekeyan
Metro Los Angeles chapter, offered brief welcoming remarks. He
introduced Kana Hovhannisyan, Second Secretary of the Republic of
Armenia’s Consulate General in Los Angeles, who spoke poignantly about
Herian and the importance of his great sacrifices.Bardakian then
introduced Aram Arkun, who presented a detailed overview of the
incredible life Herian lived. In particular, he noted that Herian was
not driven by narrow political ideology. He started out as a member of
the Hnchag Party, became a Reformed Hnchag, and then a member of the
Armenian Democratic Party. Though a dedicated member of his party, he
worked with many other organizations for the betterment of the
Armenian people and nation. Arkun noted that Herian was born in Tokat
sometime between 1868 and 1872, and later worked in Constantinople,
before immigrating to Boston and afterwards moving to New York City.
He became a successful businessman in the tobacco industry, while
continuing to be deeply involved in Armenian political activities. In
1916 he carried out a secret war mission for the British government.
Herian helped arrange the transportation of many of the 1,200
Armenian-Americans who joined the Armenian Legion, which successfully
defeated the Turkish and German forces at the Battle of Arara in
Palestine in September 1918, and himself later enrolled as a
legionnaire though he was older than most of the other volunteers. In
fact, he was often called the “grey-haired youth” due to his
enthusiasm and energy. Herian served as the director of an infirmary
in Egypt for the legionnaires, and participated in an abortive
expedition to help the besieged city of Hadjin in Cilicia. He also
played a role in the defense of the Cilician city of Dört Yol
(Chork-Marzban). As representative of the Armenian General Benevolent
Union (AGBU), Egyptian Armenian Relief, and [Armenian] United Orphan
Care, with additional financial support from the Armenian Church, the
Armenian Democratic Party (predecessor of the Armenian Democratic
Liberal Party), various other Armenian relief organizations, and, most
strikingly, many individual Armenians who themselves barely had enough
money to live after the Genocide, Herian tried to rescue kidnapped
Armenian woman and children from Bedouins, Turks, Kurds and their
harems. Using his adept linguistic skills, Herian disguised himself as
needed as an American missionary, British official or Bedouin,
primarily in the Aleppo, Der Zor and Mosul regions, to carry out his
mission. Despite threats of death and robbery and facing great
resistance from those who did not want to easily relinquish Armenian
women and children from their hold, Herian remained valiant. Herian
used persuasion, money and sometimes threats to rescue Armenian women
and children from their captors. Arkun noted that Herian was a moving
and effective speaker who participated in fundraising activities in
the United States, France, the Ottoman Empire and Egypt with the
intent to rescue more women and orphans. His untimely death in Cairo,
Egypt on July 7, 1921, prevented him from fulfilling those plans. He
was to have gotten married only a few days earlier.
Recognized at the program was Hratch Manoukian, whose father Nazaret
Manoukian, was a member of the Armenian Legion and fought at the
Battle of Arara. He also was a military policeman in Adana. Two others
recognized were Hagop Mardirossian, whose father was saved by Roupen
Herian and taken to an orphanage in Jerusalem, and Irena Varjabedian,
whose grandmother was born in the town of Aksehir in the province of
Konya, and saved by Herian.
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“Wine is the most democratic drink,” says Turkey’s wine expert Levon Bağış
Ahval News
March 2 2019
“Wine is the most democratic drink,” says Turkey’s wine expert Levon Bağış
Wine has been a part of our lives for thousands of years. It adorns our dinner tables, and many decisions that changed the world have been made over a glass of wine. War victories are celebrated with wine; the drink has been the subject of countless poems, and many great loves have started and ended with a bottle of wine. In mythology, wine is indispensable as an elixir, and almost every culture in the world has a god of wine.
Wine expert Levon Bağış feels that Turkey’s wine culture is sorely lacking.
“The French have a nice saying, which is that wine needs time,” Bağış tells Ahval. “But in Turkey when we say this, it doesn’t seem right. Why? Our land is the motherland of wine. Put a compass into Mount Ararat and draw a circle around it; within that region—Georgia, Armenia, and Eastern Anatolia—these were the first places to grow grapes. Wine’s history is thought to be 8,000 years old. There’s been a wine culture in Turkey since ancient times. Some regions were world famous for wine going back to the Ottomans, and to the Byzantines before that.”
A Turkish fine dining restaurant in Istanbul.
Although it varies from year to year, Turkey produces approximately 50-60 million litres of wine a year.
Turkey’s coastal areas along the Aegean and Mediterranean, mostly known today as holiday spots, have always produced wine and sold it around the world. In Roman times, the wine from Tenedos Island (Bozcaada, off Turkey’s north-eastern coast) was world famous.
So what happened to Turkey’s deeply rooted wine legacy?
“This started happening around 1915, with the Armenian genocide and the population exchanges following the First World War. We lost a big part of our wine culture along with the non-Muslim people disappearing from Anatolia because under the Ottoman system, the Greeks and Armenians were the ones producing and selling the wine. During the systematic murder and removal of Armenians and Pontic Greeks, 8,000-year-old vineyards were cut down,” Bağış explains.
The events of 1920 were the death knell for wine in Turkey. One of the first actions during the 1st Parliament was to ban wine production. This law remained in place for six years. After 1926, according to Bağış, the nascent state’s approach to wine underwent some major changes. Wine-tasting houses started to appear, and the Vinikol Winery in İstanbul’s Galata neighbourhood became Turkey’s first winemaker, supported by grape growers across Turkey’s interior.
“There was a logical reason for this,” according to Bağış. “All over there were these huge vineyards with no owners, and the state couldn’t generate any income from them. But wine is tremendously profitable. After 1926, wine production was subsidised by the state because the industry was so lucrative. You need one kilo of grapes to make a bottle of wine. If this bottle is good quality, people want it and it’s a very valuable product.”
Climate change is also negatively affecting Turkish agriculture, its vineyards in particular. Bağış points out that changing climate conditions are changing the quality of wine and increasing its alcohol content.
“We’re a hot country, but much of what we’re facing now is our own doing. Backwards politicians came up with ideas like ‘We’ll bring the sea to Central Anatolia’ and then built a giant dam. After the dam, the colour of Turkey’s longest river, Kızılırmak, changed. It’s just still water now. The climate is different, too. It used to be that there was no humidity in Cappadocia, but now the wine producers there are struggling with the damp. Famous winemakers all over the world are talking about using different grapes because of climate change.”
There are a few up and coming domestic brands producing wine; labels such as Eski Bağlar of eastern Turkey’s Elazığ, Maadra from northwestern Turkey’s Kaz Mountains and Asmadan from Eceabat in northwestern Turkey are increasingly finding their way on shelves.
At 44 litres per person each year, France leads the world in wine consumption. Although Turkey is the world’s sixth-leading producer of grapes, the annual Turkish wine consumption rate hovers around just 0.07 litres per person. Bağış points out that actual per capita consumption is actually less, however.
“The sad thing is that about half of the wine consumed in Turkey is at the seaside tourist resorts. Food and drink culture has become fashionable here, but people have been drinking less wine in Turkey because of various government policies over the last decade. Alcohol is heavily taxed, and it’s much harder to get a license to open a liquor store or sell alcohol at a restaurant. We know alcohol won’t get banned. We know how much people drink in countries where alcohol is illegal—bans just make it more attractive. For us, a ban would be too difficult. Instead, they raise the price and make it hard to access, and this is effective enough,” he explains.
The expert notes that in Turkey, there’s some confusion about the difference between alcohol and alcoholism.
While it’s natural for a government to take on alcoholism, he says, fighting alcohol and fighting alcoholism aren’t the same thing, adding, “They forget how valuable wine is. We talk about how we’re a tourist country, but walk down a main street in Istanbul or Budapest and you can’t even tell you’re in a different country. It’s the cuisine that makes them different, the different flavours and delicacies. Wine isn’t just wine. It’s our wealth and our cultural heritage.”
I asked Bağış if he’d ever seen a Turkish politician with a glass of wine.
“I don’t know of any that drink wine,” he answers. “Our concept of wine is a bit strange. We’ve been drinking bad wine for such a long time that we now associate it with being unpolished or uncouth. We think of things like low-quality rotgut wine. We call people ‘wino’ to humiliate them or call their character into question. That’s why I’ve seen politicians drinking rakı but never wine—they’re afraid people will start talking about their religion or ethnicity. But I don’t think you can say that wine is good and rakı is bad. They both have their place. Wine is a drink of the working class and the aristocrats because there’s always a wine that suits what you can pay. If you buy it and drink it, it’s good wine. The best wine of all is the wine in your glass.”
Armenian student sets third world record
News.am, Armenia
March 4 2019
Armenian student sets third world record (PHOTO) Armenian student sets third world record (PHOTO)
16:09, 04.03.2019
Music: Armenia-Azerbaijan: how music brings nations together
Vestnik Kavkaza
March 4 2019
It is believed that from all art forms, music has the greatest impact on a person’s perception, on his emotional state. While Azerbaijani and Armenian diplomats prepare peoples for peace, they need to pay attention to the points of contact between two cultures, which can be traced in music of famous singers and composers. This is especially important if one considers that for more than a quarter of a century the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has ceased to be a purely political problem, and its consequences affect the mental perception of the conflicting parties.
During the years of the deepest emotional crisis, by criticizing each other, the parties repeatedly challenged the historical past and legacy of peoples, ranging from archeological monuments to the gastronomic heritage. However, folk art cannot be divided and can become part of the spiritual world of any nation.
With the development of modern digital technologies in the Internet era, it becomes much easier to learn about musical cultures and participate in intensive information sharing than a quarter of a century ago. The current ideas about music can form a multicultural space that allows you to incorporate knowledge about various cultural environments and traditions that can smooth sharp corners in relations between nations.
Speaking about the Armenian-Azerbaijani musical traditions, it is worth noting that quite recently, common taste preferences could be found in masterpieces of composers known all over the Soviet Union. The ‘Golden Fund’ of Armenia and Azerbaijan contains immortal works created in the creative unions of prominent figures of the Soviet creative intelligentsia Andrei Babayev, Rashid Beybutov, Muslim Magomayev, Arno Babajanyan. Andrei Babayev – a Karabakh Armenian who worked at the Baku Philharmonic in the late 1940s, even after moving to Moscow, he continued to actively cooperate with Azerbaijani performers, in particular with Beybutov. As for the Babajanyan-Magamaev creative tandem, it is considered to be a gold standard in the entire post-Soviet space.
But there was also music not broadcast by Soviet television, for which no place had been found on the radio, but nevertheless which can be rightly heralded as “common property”. We are talking about “Baku chanson”, which could be heard at weddings and restaurants. One of the brightest representatives of this genre was Boris Davidyan, better known as Boka. Comic, rather rude, sometimes not meaningful musical compositions with a colorful accent could not be heard from the official Soviet scene. But they were often coming out of tape recorders in the courtyards of South Caucasian cities. Even today, Boris Davidian’s songs are not alien to the present generation of Azerbaijanis – Boka remains a Baku Armenian, who repeatedly declared his love to his native Baku in his songs.
Creative collaboration can contribute to overcoming the negative cultural consequences of the conflict, can act as a kind of language mediator. Meanings laid into music serve as the basis for intercultural communication, while language mediators (melodies, performance, accompaniment) build appropriate cultural reference points, using which you can turn to the listener. Language mediation should not be confused with the practice of text translation, since in language mediation the participation of two or more languages contributes to intercultural enrichment and the formation of a common value perception.
Finally, creating an atmosphere of cultural tolerance in the context of unresolved conflict stimulates the restoration of international relations. It is impossible to prepare nations for peace without paying attention to the socio-psychological factor that prompts interpersonal relations to cooperation, connects nations with each other, facilitating the making of compromise decisions. Thus, with the help of persuasion, attraction and creative cooperation, culture, including folk art, acts as “soft power” in international relations.
Culture: Today marks great Armenian architect Alexander Tamanian’s birthday
Culture 13:52 04/03/2019 Armenia
March 4 marks the 141st birthday anniversary of renowned Soviet Armenian architect Alexander Tamanian, who was the author of the general plan of the Armenian capital, Yerevan. Up to now, numerous buildings designed by Tamanian adorn the city and preserve the memory about the great architect.
Tamanian was born in the Russian city of Yekaterinodar (now Krasnodar) in 1878 to the family of banker Hovhhannes Mironovich. He graduated from the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts in 1904. His works portrayed sensitive and artistic neoclassical trends popular in those years. Some of his early works included the mansion of V. P. Kochubey in Tsarskoye Selo, 1911–1912; the house of Prince S. A. Scherbatov in Novinsky Boulevard in Moscow, 1911–1913; the village railway employees housing and the tuberculosis sanatorium at the Prozorovskaya station (now Kratovo) near Moscow, 1913–1923; central workshops of Kazan railway in Lyubertsy, 1916.
He became an Academician of Architecture in 1914, being elected as the Vice-President of the Academy of Arts in 1917.
In 1923 Tamanian moved to Yerevan, heading the new construction effort in the republic. He was the chief engineer of the local Council of People’s Commissars and was a member of the CEC of Soviet Armenia (1925–1936), sponsored the construction industry, designed the layouts of towns and villages including Leninakan (now Gyumri) (1925), Stepanakert (1926), Nor-Bayazet (now Gavar) and Ahta-ahpara (both in 1927), Etchmiadzin (1927–1928), and others. Tamanian created the first general plan of the modern city of Yerevan which was approved in 1924.
Tamanian’s style was instrumental in transforming what was essentially a small provincial city into the modern Armenian capital, a major industrial and cultural center. Neoclassicism dominated his designs but Tamanian also implemented a national flavor (red linings of tuff, traditional decorative carvings on stone etc.).
Among his most famous designs in Yerevan are the hydroelectric station (1926), the Opera and Ballet Theater named after A. Spendiarian (1926–1953), the Republic Square (1926–1941) and others. He also played a major role in the development of restoration projects of historical landmarks in the country, chairing the Committee for the Protection of Historic Monuments in Armenia.
Tamanian was married to Camilla Edwards, a member of the Benois family. Their sons Gevorg (Georgi) and Yulius Tamanians also became noted architects and continued their father’s work.
Tamanian died in Yerevan on February 20, 1936 and is buried at the Komitas Pantheon which is located in the city center of Yerevan.
Sports: Premier League: Mkhitaryan among best XI for February
News.am, Armenia
March 4 2019
Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan is on Whoscored.com’s English Premier League best XI for February.
In the month that passed, the captain of the Armenian national squad netted 2 goals and made 3 assists in 2 appearances for the Gunners, so far in the current season of the Premier League.
As reported earlier, the 30-year-old Armenia international became the first Arsenal player to both score and assist a goal in consecutive Premier League appearances since Spain midfielder Santi Cazorla in February 2015.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has scored 6 goals and made 4 assists in 16 appearances for the Gunners, so far in the current season of the top tier in the English football league system.
Sports: Armenian Judoka Styopa Darbinyan claims bronze in international tournament in Turkey
Panorama, Armenia
March 4 2019
18:15 04/03/2019
The Armenian Judo adults’ team are participating in the Judo World Cup in Antalya, Turkey headed by head coach Hovhannes Davtyan. Around 500 participants representing 16 countries took part in the event. As the National Olympic Committee reports, Armenian judoka Styopa Darbinyan has scored five victories and took the third sport, claiming bronze.
PM Pashinyan to leave for Brussels on official visit
PM Pashinyan to leave for Brussels on official visit
18:32, 1 March, 2019
YEREVAN, MARCH 1, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan will visit Brussels on March 4, Pashinyan told in a meeting with President Armen Sarkissian.
‘I plan to pay an official visit to Brussels on Monday to discuss future steps with our partners from the EU’, ARMENPRESS reports Pashinyan as saying.
This will be Nikol Pashinyan’s 2nd visit to Brussels as Prime Minister. The first one took place in July, 2018.
Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan