Category: 2020

New Armenian school set to open in Valence, France, in September 2020

Antonian Lara
Public Radio of Armenia
June 6 2020

     

The French-Armenian Kevork Arabian School in Valence, France will officially open in September, Zartonk Media reports.

It is the first everyday Armenians school to open in the diaspora for years.

This project is undertaken by the CCAV (French-Armenian Cultural Center of Valence, France). It is co-chaired by Archbishop Norvan Zakarian and Mr. Andre Hasbanian and was initiated by the AGEFAV (Management Association of the Future School). The school will be named after the main benefactor Kevork Arabian.

The premises will accommodate a school group consisting of a kindergarten, a primary school, and rooms dedicated to the cultural center.

The AGEFAV (Management Association of the Future School), founding group of this school, has the mission of ensuring a good administrative and pedagogical management of the school. 

AGEFAV aims to offer a high quality school (kindergarten and primary school) providing an excellent education. To make this happen, the pedagogical team will adapt the teaching methodology to the psychology of each pupil, taking into consideration their social and cognitive development.

The educational and pedagogical project of this school will be based on six key principles: 

  1. Development of pupils’ sense of belonging through the learning of Armenian language, culture and history. 
  2. Compliance with the French National Education program to ensure all basics are acquired before going on to secondary school. 
  3. Training pupils to learn English with the goal to achieve an elementary level as fluent as the Armenian language. 
  4. Promotion of extracurricular activities (initiation to computers, chess, theater …), essential to personal development and make them grow. 
  5. Initiation of pupils to Christian education through pastoral activities. 
  6. Pupils awareness to environmental and societal issues, to prepare them for the challenges of the future.

Sergei Parajanov’s widow dies in Kyiv

Elizabeth Jabejian
Public Radio of Armenia
June 6 2020


Legendary film director Sergei Parajanov’s widow Svetlana Shcherbatyuk-Parajanova died in Kyiv today aged 82, the Ukrainian Lira cinema informs.

In recent years, she lived with her son Suren Parajanov in the center of Kyiv.

Svetlana Shcherbatyuk-Parajanova was a philologist and teacher.

According to Russian film expert Vyacheslav Shmyrov, a repeated stroke was the cause of death.

She lived with  Parajanov for 30 years.

We’ve stepped into hell, but are not living a humanitarian crisis – PM

Liana Toganian
Public Radio of Armenia
June 6 2020

Armenia has run out of hospital beds, and 200 citizens with coronavirus are waiting to be hospitalized, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told a daily briefing today.

“The heath system is so overloaded that we don’t manage to accept patients that need hospitalization,” Pashinya said.

He added that a patient has died due to belated medical assistance. The family provided information about the patient’s condition too late, and the health system failed to respond properly.

The Prime Minister said the Commandant’s Office considers the option of imposing a total lockdown, but added that the measure would hardly lead to a desirable result.

“It’s not a desirable decision – not only because the economic results will be too heavy, but also because we are not confident the quarantine will be observed properly,” he said.

“The monitoring of the past days shows that after the lockdown is lifted, we’ll return to 500-600 cases a day,” Pashinyan stated.

According to the Prime Minister, “we have reached a critical stage and are passing through hell.” He believes that only a universal anti-epidemic movement in the Republic of Armenia, can be a solution, at least a mid-term one.

He underlined that WHO has reviewed its recommendations related to wearing of masks “and the advice fully corresponds to the decisions we have made.”

“We have crossed the line, beyond which there is the hell,” the Prime Minister said, adding that the government is taking two steps in this situation.

First, he said, the authorities are frankly and sincerely communicating with the public and resenting precise information.

 Second, the PM added, all measures are being taken to increase the hospital capacities.

Pashinyan stated that a total of 2,500 beds have been reserved for coronavirus patients in nine medical institutions since the beginning of the crisis. He added that new intensive care units are being built and a number of beds are being launched at medical centers and will be available in 1.5 months.

Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian resigns from board

Maghakian Mike
Panorama, Armenia
June 6 2020
Society 18:42 06/06/2020World

Armenian-American entrepreneur, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian is resigning from the company’s board and asking that he be replaced with a more diverse choice.

In a series of tweets Friday, Ohanian urged Reddit to fill his seat with a black candidate, CNN reported. Ohanian, who is married to tennis star Serena Williams, cited his family as one of the reasons for his decision. He tweeted: “I’m saying this as a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: ‘What did you do?’”

He also pledged $1 million to Colin Kaepernick’s nonprofit Know Your Rights Camp. “I will use future gains on my Reddit stock to serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate,” Ohanian tweeted.

Reddit said it would honor Ohanian’s request. “I want to take responsibility for the history of our policies over the years that got us here, and we still have work to do,” Reddit CEO and cofounder Steve Huffman wrote on Reddit.

"Yerevan Perspectives" International Music Festival receives EFFE Label 2019-2020

Dabaghian Diana
Panorama, Armenia
June 6 2020
Culture 18:59 06/06/2020Armenia

The renowned international jury has chosen the “Yerevan Perspectives” Music Festival to receive the prestigious “EFFE Label 2019-2020” of the “Europe for Festivals, Festivals for Europe” organization.

As the Festival press service said in a statement,  “EFFE Label 2019-2020” is awarded under the auspices of the European Union.

To note, the EFFE Label is Europe’s quality stamp for remarkable arts festivals showing their engagement in the field of the arts, community involvement and international openness.

“Yerevan Perspectives” International Music Festival is an annual, year-round festival that along with inviting prominent musicians to Armenia organizes special projects in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture of Armenia. The festival was founded in 2000 by composer Prof. Stepan Rostomyan as “Perspectives XXI” (was renamed to “Yerevan Perspectives” in 2010) – as the first art festival in Armenia after the independence from Soviet Union.

Armenia PM: As of June 1, 2020 we have several hundred fewer deaths than as of June 1, 2019

Ani Basmajian
News.am, Armenia
June 6 2020

11:52, 06.06.2020

YEREVAN. – As of June 1, 2020, we have several hundred fewer deaths than as of June 1, 2019. Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced this on his Facebook livestream Saturday morning.

“There is a very interesting reason for that. First, as of June 1 last year, 2,307 people [in Armenia] had died of cancer, whereas this year—2,213; almost 100 less. What is the explanation? The explanation is that a quite large percentage of those who die from potential cancer are infected with the coronavirus, and the coronavirus did not allow the cancer to become the cause of death, it [COVID-19] became the cause of death. If we believe these statistics, it turns out that if it weren’t for the coronavirus, some cancer patients [in Armenia] infected with the coronavirus would have died from cancer.

The same is [true] in the case of respiratory diseases. Last year, 1,448 people [in Armenia] died from these diseases, whereas this year—1,062 people; that is, about 400 fewer people died. The reason is again the same.

Since some people with this disease have received more intensive medical assistance because of the coronavirus, as they could have applied late last year, they have been hospitalized earlier this year; as a result, they have recovered from the coronavirus, and their respiratory condition has improved; that is, ‘thanks to’ the coronavirus, the person has been cured of his other illness, or his condition has improved.

The situation is approximately the same for endocrine diseases, less infectious and parasitic diseases.

That is, as of June 1 [of this year], we [Armenia] have a much better mortality indicator than as of June 1, 2019,” Pashinyan said.

https://news.am/eng/news/583461.html

Newspaper: Karabakh newly appointed national security chief trying to strengthen his position

Hambardsumian Paul
News.am, Armenia
June 6 2020

09:27, 06.06.2020
                  

Newspaper: Processes on judicial vetting in Armenia have deep roots

Hambik Zargarian
News.am, Armenia
June 6 2020

10:02, 06.06.2020
                          

YEREVAN. – Zhoghovurd newspaper of Armenia writes: Discussions have been going on in the judiciary for a long time about whether or not carrying out vetting among the judges.

According to Zhoghovurd daily’s information, the processes taking place on the topic of vetting in the judiciary have deep roots. In particular, there are judges who have health problems and want to leave the system, but do not take that step, and comment to their colleagues that the reason is the situation around the vetting, and the misunderstanding that exists around the process.

They also comment that submitting a letter of resignation at this time can be perceived differently—as a retreat or a fear. And that’s why, according to our information, although many judges are in poor health, they continue to work and wait until when, ultimately, there will be clarity in the vetting process.

Music: Today marks Aram Khachaturian’s birthday anniversary

Arpi Talalian
Panorama, Armenia
June 6 2020
Topic of the day 10:38 06/06/2020

June 6 Marks the 117th birthday anniversary of world-famous Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian.The 16th edition of the Khachaturian International Competition is set to kick off on the great musician’s birthday, bringing together musicians from 13 countries.

As reported earlier, this year’s competition is specialized in violin. Ahead of the launch of the competition, the members of the organizing committee will visit Komitas pantheon and lay flowers at the tomb of the composer.

On this day, Yerevan residents can expect number of surprises to mark the composer’s birthday anniversary. As Aram Khachaturian museum-house reported earlier, citizens can enjoy ten works by Khachaturian in different locations of the capital with ARLOOPA App. 

As people pass the mural right beside the composer’s museum in Yerevan, they can just scan the wall with the ARLOOPA app and enjoy the maestro’s famous “Waltz the Masquerade Suite” along with his virtuoso conducting performance.