Category: 2020

Armenian Church pays tribute to Pontiff St. Sahak Partev

Emil Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 14 2020
Society 10:09 15/02/2020 Armenia

The Armenian Apostolic Church commemorates on Saturday, February 15, Pontiff St. Sahak Partev, Qahana.am reports.

St. Sahak Partev was the elder son of Catholicos St. Nersess the Great, and the last Catholicos of the Armenian Church who descended from the lineage of St. Gregory the Illuminator. He became Catholicos of All Armenians in 387 A.D., and reigned for an astounding 52 years. Being talented in music and educated in the rhetorical arts, philosophy and linguistics, St. Sahak greatly contributed to the development of Armenian national culture. He was the strongest advocate for the creation of an Armenian Alphabet, and became its chief patron.

Following the creation of the Armenian alphabet, St. Sahak and St. Mesrop opened a school for translators in the city of Vagharshapat (Etchmiadzin). There they begin the translation of the Holy Bible into Armenian and did it so perfectly, that centuries hence the Armenian translation is called the “Queen Translation of the Breath of God”. The first sentence translated from the Holy Bible is the opening verse of the Book of Proverbs: "To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding."

Activist Narek Samsonyan charged over false crime reporting, Adekvad member says

Emil Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 15 2020
Politics 17:10 15/02/2020 Armenia

Adekvad party member Lilit Tumanyan denounced the summoning of Chairman of the Civil Consciousness NGO, activist Narek Samsonyan to the Special Investigative Service as “political repression”.

The opposition activist was summoned for questioning on Saturday following an article published on Antifake.am.

Speaking to reporters, Lilit Tumanyan said the activist has been charged as part of an investigation into an alleged false crime reporting case.

Tumanyan stated such charges have been levelled against no one in Armenia so far. She described the law-enforcement authorities’ move as ‘historical’ in negative sense.

“Now we need to understand whose interests we defend – the state, society, or government. Today we have ended up in a situation when these are different phenomena,” she said.

In Tumanyan’s words, not only Narek Samsonyan, but also other opposition figures who dare to criticize Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his government are facing political persecution in Armenia.

"Any authoritarian regime that seeks to concentrate power in its hands and exercise total control will never tolerate free and independent media,” she said. “After the overthrow of the legislative, executive and judicial powers, the next in line is mass media.”

Armenia sees increase in cases of acute intestinal infections, salmonellosis in two years

Babken Chilingarian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 15 2020

Cases of both acute intestinal infections and Salmonella infection (salmonellosis) increased in Armenia in 2016-2018, according to a study carried out by Doctor of Nutrition David Pipoyan, the head of the Food Chain Risk Assessment Center of Armenia’s National Academy of Sciences.

"Cases of intestinal infections have grown to 11,123 from 9,092, while salmonellosis cases have increased to 537 from 361. In January-December 2019, we already recorded 793 cases of salmonellosis,” Pipoyan said in a Facebook post.

“The negative dynamics are obvious. Food safety and public health are closely and inextricably linked. The risk-based decision making also contributes to shedding light on the country's priority issues,” he wrote. 

Sports: European Championships: Armenian wrestler Mihran Jaburyan advances to semifinals

Garnik Tadevosian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 15 2020
Sport 13:26 15/02/2020 Armenia

Armenian freestyle wrestler Mihran Jaburyan (57 kg) has made it to the semifinals of the 2020 European Championships underway in Rome, Italy.

The Armenian athlete beat his rival from Moldova 5-0 in the quarter finals to advance to the semifinals of the championship, the National Olympic Committee reported.

Jaburyan had started the struggle in the 1/8 finals, where he had defeated his Bulgarian opponent 6-4.

Music: Armenia’s Hover State Chamber Choir to present choral arrangements of popular songs

Christine Harutyunian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 15 2020
Culture 11:16 15/02/2020 World

Armenia’s Hover State Chamber Choir will perform a unique concert at Komitas Chamber Music Hall in Yerevan on February 15, at 7pm.

The choir will present choral arrangements of popular songs during the concert. In particular, the concert program features The Beatles, Take 6, as well as arrangements of the songs by Randy Newman, Sammy Fain and Hugo Peretti, the National Center of Chamber Music reported.

The choir will also perform pieces arranged by Armenian musicians, including A. Hyusnunts, V. Babloyan, A. Manukyan and Artur-Alek.

Such a concert is aimed at presenting popular songs in a different and unique way. 

Sports: European Championships: Armenian wrestlers continue to clinch victories

Manouk Vasilian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 15 2020
Sport 17:50 15/02/2020 Armenia

Armenian freestyle wrestler Gevorg Mkheyan (70 kg) has captured a bronze medal at the 2020 European Championships underway in Rome, Italy.

The Armenian athlete took a 7-3 win over Oleksey Borutan of Ukraine in the fight for the third place, the National Olympic Committee reported.

Meanwhile, wrestler Arsen Harutyunyan (61 kg) beat Macedonia's Vladimir Egorov 6-0 in the qualifying round to make it to the quarter finals, where he is set to face Ivan Bileychuk of Ukraine.

Freestyle wrestler Hovhannes Mkhitaryan (86 kg) celebrated a victory in the 1/8 finals. The Armenian athlete defeated Ukraine's Ilya Archaya 7-5. 

Eurovision: Armenia: Athena Manoukian wins Depi Evratesil 2020 and will fly to Rotterdam!

Emil Lazarian
ESC United
Feb 15 2020
By Sean Tarbuck

Armenia’s Depi Evratesil has concluded this evening and we have a winner – Athena Manoukian has been chosen to represent the country at Eurovision 2020 in Rotterdam!

Twelve acts performed in tonight’s national selection as Depi Evratesil returned from a year break, after the internal selection of Srbuk in 2019. Following the combination of international jury votes, Armenian jury votes and those of the Armenian public in tonight’s show, it was chosen that “Chains on You” would be the entry for Armenia this year.

How did the show unfold? Report

The show began with a montage of Armenia’s previous performances in Eurovision before showcasing the twelve acts taking part in Depi Evratesil this year.

First up was Agop who gave us a colourful, fun performance of “Butterflies” to kick off the show, before Karina EVN mirrored herself multiple times on screen during her performance of “Why?”.

Hayk Music performed third with a passionate performance of “What It Is To Be In Love”, before ERNA and Eva Rida gave strong solo performances with “Life Faces” and “No Love”, respectfully.

Athena Manoukian, one of the favourites in this contest, performed sixth with a strong choreography and a stage show featuring diamond backdrops and a throne for “Chains on You”, before a break in proceedings to interview ERNA and Eva Rida in the green room.

A neon-bright performance from Gabriel Jeeg and his two dancers with “It’s Your Turn” got us going again in the second half, before two fiery, fierce performances from Sergey & Nikolay Harutyunov’s “Ha, Take a Step” and Miriam Baghdassarian’s “Run Away”, both well received in the studio.

Next up was the return of Vladimir Arzumanyan, Armenia’s sole Junior Eurovision winner now eligible for Eurovision at the age of 21. His performance of “What’s Going On Mama” featured a living room setup on stage as he interacted with a visual of a woman on the backdrop. Arthur Aleq followed with “Heaven”, accompanied by a flashy backdrop and a solid vocal performance.

Last up to perform was TOKIONINE with “Save Me”, another favourite going into the competition. Part of Srbuk’s team for Tel Aviv, TOKIONINE stepped into the limelight himself this year, and closed the show with a choreographed space-age routine with four female dancers.

After all of the performances, there was an interval act from Karina Ignatyan, who represented Armenia in Junior Eurovision 2019 with “Colours of Your Dream”, and a green room interview with Iveta Mukuchyan who represented Armenia in Eurovision 2016, followed by Mukuchyan performing. All 12 participants then performed a cover of Duncan Laurence’s “Arcade”.

What next?

Athena will go to Rotterdam for Armenia, and will be hoping to bring Armenia to the Eurovision final for the first time since 2017, when Artsvik performed “Fly With Me” in Kyiv.

Eurovision: Athena Manukyan is going to Rotterdam for Armenia

Tambiyan Samvel
ESC Daily
Feb 15 2020
Brandon McCann (Northern Ireland)

Athena Manukyan has won Depi Evratesil, the Armenian national final to select their entrant for Eurovision 2020. Athena won the final with the pop-RnB song ‘Chains on You’

Twelve songs competed in Yerevan, the Armenian capital for the honour of representing Armenia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam.

Athena Manoukian is a Greek singer/songwriter of Armenian descent. She previously attempted to represent Greece at Junior Eurovision Song Contest back in 2008 but placed seventh in the national selection that year. Athena has written a Platinum-selling song for ESC 2005 winner, Helena Paparizou entitled “Palia Mou Agapi”. Athena has previously been on X Factor UK back in 2018.

The two big favourites prior to the show were Athena Manukyan and Tokionine who closed the first and second half of the entries respectively.

Results of Depi Evratesil 2020:

  1. Athena Manukyan – Chains On You (168 points)
  2. Erna Tamazyan – Life Faces (120 points)
  3. Vladimir Arzumanyan – What’s Going On Mama? (118 points)
  4. Miriam Baghdsaryan – Run Away (108 points)
  5. Gabriel Jegg –It’s Your Turn (99 points)
  6. Tokionine – Save Me (96 points)
  7. Sergey and Nikolay Harutyunov – Ha, Take a Step (96 points)
  8. Eva Rida – No Love (84 points)
  9. Karina EVN – Why? (84 points)
  10. Agop – Butterflies (75 points)
  11. Arthur Aleq – Heaven (65 points)
  12. Hayk Music – What It Is To Be In Love (57 points)

Armenia’s representative for JESC 2019, Karina Ignatyan performed during the interval. Her entry “Colors Of Your Dream” placed ninth in the contest. Iveta Mukuchyan also performed a medley of her hits including LoveWave which she sang for Armenia in Eurovision 2016 placing seventh.



Eurovision: Armenia: Athena Manoukian wins Depi Evratesil 2020 with “Chains On You”

Emil Lazarian
WiwiBloggs
Feb 15 2020
  • Posted on
  • by Antranig Shokayan

Twelve acts took to the stage tonight in Armenia for the grand final of Depi Evratesil — Armenia’s Eurovision 2020 selection. There was only one ticket to Rotterdam up for grabs and the battle was fierce. In the end, Athena Manoukian emerged victorious with “Chains On You”. She took the Depi Evratesil 2020 crown and will represent Armenia at Eurovision 2020.

2020

  1. Athena Manoukian – 168 points
  2. ERNA – 120 points
  3. Vladimir Arzumanyan – 118 points
  4. Miriam Baghdassarian – 108 points
  5. Gabriel Jeeg – 99 points
  6. TOKIONINE – 96 points
  7. Sergey & Nikolay – 96 points
  8. EVA Rida – 84 points
  9. Karina EVN – 84 points
  10. Agop – 75 points
  11. Arthur Aleq – 65 points
  12. Hayk Music – 57 points

This year, the result of Depi Evratesil was once again determined by both jury and televote. However, this year, the jury was comprised of both a panel of international jurors as well as an Armenian panel.

Athena Manoukian was the resounding favourite of both juries. The international jury awarded her 60 points while the Armenian jury gave her 58 points. Athena only placed third with the televote, receiving a further 50 points. Vladimir Arzumanyan and ERNA were preferred by the public, who received 60 and 55 points respectively. However, it wasn’t enough to dethrone the Greek-Armenian goddess.

Armenian Eurovision royalty was also on the scene. Iveta Mukuchyan was on hand to provide some advice for the contestants and the winner ahead of their Eurovision journey. She also performed a medley of her music, including “Rich Bitch” and “LoveWave”. Junior Eurovision contestant Karina Ignatyan was also featured in the show. The contestants all combined for a collaborative performance of the reigning Eurovision winning song, “Arcade”.

Athena Manoukian will perform in the second semi-final of Eurovision 2020 in Rotterdam on May 14, looking to secure a spot for Armenia in the grand final for the first time since 2017.

What do you think of the results? Did the right song win tonight? How will Armenia go at Eurovision in May? Let us know in the comments below.


Turkish Press: Upper Karabakh conflict can be ‘resolved in phases’

Arbi Tashjian
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
Feb 15 2020
 
 
Upper Karabakh conflict can be ‘resolved in phases’
 
Conflict cannot be resolved in one day, says Azerbaijan’s president
 
Büşra Nur Bilgiç Çakmak   | 15.02.2020
Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan (L) and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (R) attend the 56th Munich Security Conference at Bayerischer Hof Hotel in Munich, Germany on . ( Abdulhamid Hoşbaş – Anadolu Agency )
 
ANKARA
 
Azerbaijan’s president on Saturday said the Upper Karabakh issue cannot be resolved in a day and there is a need to resolve the conflict in phases.
 
“It's clear that we need to resolve this conflict in phases. We cannot resolve it in one […] day,” Ilham Aliyev said at a session — titled An Update on Nagorno-Karabakh — along with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, during the 56th Munich Security Conference
 
“The first phase should be, as Russian proposal [suggested], liberation of part of the occupied territories, return of Azerbaijani IDPs to those territories, resettlement […] and in the meantime, the process of normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Aliyev said, adding the status of Upper Karabakh can be discussed later.
 
For his part, Pashinyan said that there cannot be a military solution to the conflict in the region.
 
Upper Karabakh is the internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan illegally occupied by Armenia through military aggression since 1991.
 
Four UN Security Council and two General Assembly resolutions, as well as decisions by many other international organizations, refer to this fact and demand withdrawal of the occupational Armenian forces from Upper Karabakh and seven other occupied regions of Azerbaijan.
 
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk group — co-chaired by France, Russia and the U.S. — was formed to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but has not reached any results yet.