Friday, May 6, 2022
Armenian Speaker Explains Mother’s Middle-Finger Salute To Protesters
• Naira Nalbandian
Armenia -- A screenshot of a video that shows the mother of parliament speaker
Alen Simonian giving opposition protesters the middle finger, Yerevan, May 6,
2022
Parliament speaker Alen Simonian defended his mother on Friday after cameras
caught her showing the middle finger to opposition protesters demanding Prime
Minister Nikol Pashinian’s resignation.
A video circulated on social media showed a middle-aged woman repeatedly making
the offensive gesture and spitting at the protesters from the balcony of an
apartment in downtown Yerevan.
RFE/RL’s Armenian Service established that the apartment is the place of
residence of Simonian’s mother, Mariam Hovannisian.
Simonian confirmed later in the day Hovannisian was the one who stuck her middle
fingers out at the demonstrators. He claimed that she did so because some of
them recognized and insulted her.
Armenia - Parliament speaker Alen Simonian at a session of the National
Assembly, September 13, 2021.
“Knowing that this is our apartment, protesters shouted insults addressed to me
and my family,” he said. “In response to that, my mom lost her temper.”
There is no evidence in support of Simonian’s claim in the publicized video of
the incident.
The protesters were led by two opposition lawmakers. Simonian insisted that his
mother’s gestures were directed not at the lawmakers but at some of their
supporters. He suggested that she therefore cannot be prosecuted under a
controversial law passed by the Armenian parliament last year.
Armenia - Opposition protesters block a street in Yerevan, May 6, 2022.
The law made it a crime to gravely insult state officials and public figures.
Law-enforcement authorities have used it to prosecute dozens of government
critics in recent months.
RFE/RL journalists stumbled upon Simonian’s mother’s apartment last October as
they looked for the offices of an obscure construction firm managed by the
speaker’s brother. They discovered that the apartment matches one of the
company’s two officially registered addresses.
The company called Euroasphalt won earlier in 2021 two government contracts
worth a combined $1.4 million, raising suspicions of a conflict of interest and
even corruption. Simonian, who is a figure close to Pashinian, condemned
Armenian media outlets for questioning the integrity of those deals.
Armenian Police Try To Arrest Former Chief At Anti-Government Protest
• Robert Zargarian
Armenia - Security forces try to arrest former Armenian police chief Valeri
Osipian during an opposition demonstration in Yerevan, May 6, 2022.
The Armenian police attempted to arrest their former chief on Friday as he
participated in continuing anti-government protests organized by the country’s
leading opposition groups.
General Valeri Osipian joined one of four large groups of opposition supporters
who simultaneously marched to various parts of the city from its France Square,
the epicenter of the daily protests, early in the afternoon. The demonstrators
continued to condemn Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s policy on the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and demand his resignation.
One of the marching crowds was confronted by riot police after stopping at a
busy street intersection and blocking traffic through it. The police officers
jostled with the several hundred protesters and began arresting some of them.
Several officers dragged away Osipian, meeting with strong resistance from other
protesters, who tried to prevent the arrest. In ensuing chaotic scenes, it was
not clear whether they managed to take him into custody.
The police refused to clarify afterwards whether Osipian was among at least 59
opposition supporters detained on Friday.
The former police chief did not answer phone calls. He spoke to some media
outlets in France Square a couple of hours after the incident.
“They didn’t manage to take me away,” Osipian told the Hraparak daily. “People
didn’t let them do that.”
Armenia -- Armenian opposition leader Nikol Pashinian talks to police Colonel
Valeri Osipian during a rally in Yerevan, April 29, 2018.
Pashinian named Osipian to run the national police service in May 2018 two days
after being elected prime minister following weeks of anti-government protests
led by him. Osipian was until then a deputy head of Yerevan’s police department
responsible for public order and crowd control.
He personally monitored many anti-government rallies staged in the Armenian
capital during former President Serzh Sarkisian’s rule. Osipian frequently
warned and argued with Pashinian during the 2018 “Velvet Revolution” that
toppled Sarkisian.
Osipian was sacked in September 2019. He publicly voiced support for former
President Robert Kocharian in the run-up to last year’s snap parliamentary
elections.
Kocharian is the top leader of the Hayastan alliance, one of the two opposition
forces that launched the “civil disobedience” campaign aimed at toppling
Pashinian.
The ex-president’s younger son, Levon, was among demonstrators that marched
through other parts of Yerevan on Friday. They nearly clashed with riot police
at one point.
Levon Kocharian accused the police of trying to intimidate the opposition and
its supporters. “But I can definitely that that is having the opposite effect,”
he told reporters.
Court Refuses To Free Armenia’s Former Top Prosecutor
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia - Outgoing Prosecutor-General Aghvan Hovsepian speaks with journalists,
Yerevan, September 13, 2013.
A court in Yerevan on Friday refused to grant bail to former Prosecutor-General
Aghvan Hovsepian who was arrested last September on a string of corruption
charges denied by him.
Hovsepian served as Armenia’s chief prosecutor from 1998-1999 and 2004-2013. He
went on to become the first head of a newly created law-enforcement agency, the
Investigative Committee, in 2014. He ran the committee until the 2018 “velvet
revolution” that brought Nikol Pashinian to power.
Hovsepian was one of Armenia’s most powerful state officials during his tenure.
The 69-year-old now stands accused of bribery, money laundering and illegal
entrepreneurial activity. The Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC) claims that he
also misappropriated several properties while in office.
An ACC official leading the criminal investigation told RFE/RL’s Armenian
Service last month that Hovsepian abused his powers to earn roughly 6.8 billion
drams ($14.5 million) through various businesses controlled by him. His lawyer
insisted that the businesses belonged to his adult sons and that the
ex-prosecutor had nothing to do with them.
Hovsepian again denied the charges at the start of his trial earlier this week.
He said they are based on false testimony given by two individuals.
Hovsepian also hit out at ACC chief Sasun Khachatrian, who also used to work as
a prosecutor. He claimed that Khachatrian is taking revenge for his refusal to
give him a job in the Investigative Committee.
Defense lawyers petitioned the court to free their client from custody on bail.
The presiding judge, Mnatsakan Martirosian, rejected the request. The lawyers
said they will appeal against the decision.
The veteran judge is notorious for rarely making decisions going against the
current and former Armenian authorities’ wishes.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
Category: 2022
Policeman hits woman during protest action in Yerevan
NEWS.am
Armenia – May 6 2022
15:56, 06.05.2022
A policeman in a red beret hit a woman during Friday protest action near Victory Bridge in Yerevan.
The procession led by Ishkhan Saghatelyan, deputy speaker of the opposition parliament, reached the Victory Bridge.
They decided to block this section of the road, but police officers in red berets appeared and used brute force to free the roadway, apprehending several citizens.
Resistance Movement to hold rally tomorrow in Vanadzor, women’s march to take place in Yerevan
NEWS.am
Armenia – May 6 2022
Resistance Movement to hold rally tomorrow in Vanadzor, women’s march to take place in Yerevan
21:06, 06.05.2022
The resistance movement will hold disobedience actions in four directions in the coming days, Resistance Movement moderator, deputy parliament speaker from the opposition bloc “Armenia” Ishkhan Saghatelyan said.
According to him, in the coming days, the participants of the disobedience action “will take all of Yerevan.” “We will organize the movement first by 4 groups, then by 8 groups, then by 12 groups, and as a result, on the same day, we will take the whole city… Today we showed that there are no closed streets for us, no closed squares,” Saghatelyan said.
He noted that these days the attention of the international press is focused on this square, on the events taking place in Yerevan. He told fellow citizens who have not yet joined the acts of disobedience about what Armenia will become after Nikol Pashinyan leaves. “There will be solidarity in Armenia without Nikol, and the citizen will live safely, freely and well,” assured the deputy speaker of the National Assembly.
According to him, the set tasks are 60-70% completed and they should continue their progress. Saghatelyan highlighted the rally to be held in Vanadzor tomorrow, as well as the rally at 13:00 in that city. A women’s procession and car rally with music will be held in Yerevan at 12:00, followed by a cultural program with a rally and a procession in the evening (18:00-20:00). The opposition activist closed his speech with the slogan “Struggle! Unity! Victory!”.
This Armenian pizzeria in Toronto is the home of a nearly century-old recipe
Toronto – May 6 2022
For some, comfort food is a grilled cheese oozing with cheddar plunged into ketchup or a bottomless bowl of steaming hot ramen. For others, it’s lahmajoun.
“It’s quote, unquote Armenian pizza,” Mihran Boudakian, owner of Mamajoun in Scarborough, told CTV News Toronto. “Essentially, a flatbread with a meat topping.”
While lahmajoun shares the characteristic of a dough base with Italian pizza, its overlap ends there.
With lahmajoun, the dough is dusted with flour, soft to the touch, but crispy around the edges. Spiced meat is carefully patted across the surface, only leaving the outer edges of the dough naked. To eat, lemon juice is squeezed on top before the dough is butterflied inward.
“It’s in my blood, my father did it, my grandfather did it,” Boudakian said.
His family’s lahmajoun recipe dates back nearly a century to two bakeries his grandfather owned in Lebanon and Syria. At the time, the dough was mixed and portioned by hand before it was thrust into a wood-fire oven.
Growing up, Boudakian’s mother mixed the meat while his father opened the dough and evenly spread the mixture across the base. Since they could only fit three or four in the oven at a time, the process was a day-long affair.
At Mamajoun, Boudakian has commercial mixers to expedite the lengthy process, but he still spreads the spiced meat by hand, pressing it with his fingertips until the mixture is evenly distributed. Each movement is a purposeful, artistic act.
The name of his establishment, Mamajoun, is an ode to his late mother by binding “Mama” with the “joun” from lahmajoun.
“If my mom was still alive right now, she would be losing her mind. The last thing she would want me to do is open a restaurant,” he said.
Despite her disapproval, he opened the doors of their space at Warden Avenue and Ellesmere Road in 2014 with his wife Natasha Koumayan.
“When you’re joining a family-run business, all your eggs are kind of in the same basket,” Boudakian said. “This last year has been the toughest because it’s been one after another, every time I go to buy something,” he said.
Before pandemic-era disruptions strangled supply chains, Boudakian said he paid $75 for a pale of tahini. Now, that cost has climbed to $95. He said a bag of flour that once cost him $13 is now $22. “When you go through 25 bags a week,” he said. “It really, really adds up.”
Until three months ago, he resisted hiking his prices but it became impossible to hold them down. “Constantly, prices are going up. I can’t change the price of my food at that same rate,” he said.
To survive, he started venturing outside of his own establishment to showcase his food at other venues like the Oud and Fuzz in Kensington Market to attract new customers.
Some days, he said he questions if he should have travelled down the path his mother warned him against. “[But] then you have a family come in and they have a little kid and they love your food and they tell you that,” Boudakian said.
“You’re touching families and people come together at a table and you are supplying them with the food and they are having their moment and you’re part of it, even though you’re not actually there, but a little part of you is there. I guess that’s what makes it worthwhile.”
Armenpress: Edited by President Khachaturyan, Armenian translation of R. Thaler’s Misbehaving out now
Edited by President Khachaturyan, Armenian translation of R. Thaler’s Misbehaving out now
09:39, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian translation of Richard Thaler’s Misbehaving is already available to readers.
Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics is a book by Richard Thaler, economist and professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. He won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2017.
The Armenian-language version was translated by Nune Gabrielyan, and edited by the President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan himself, who is an economist by profession.
Vahagn Khachaturyan began working on the book around two years ago, back when he wasn’t serving as President.
During the presentation ceremony, President Khachaturyan said the Armenian translation of the book is of high significance for him and other economists.
“Misbehaving is an interesting story about revising academic disciplines, economics, and changing our way of thinking about ourselves and the world. This translation would be a great read for economists and businessmen, for their everyday economic activities, where they will find many answers to their questions, such as why some business ventures fail and others succeed,” the President said.
Praising the initiative, the Rector of the National Polytechnic University of Armenia Gor Vardanyan said that Thaler’s book includes approaches that are not formal and were born as a result of combining science, philosophy and psychology.
He added that each professional has its philosophy and psychology and that the book will benefit many young engineers.
The Armenian-version of the book was published by Antares Publishing House and sponsored by Arsen Ghazaryan, the Chairman of the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia and Director of the Apaven Company.
US state of Mississippi recognizes Armenian Genocide
10:50, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. The US state of Mississippi recognized the Armenian Genocide, the Armenian National Committee of America reported.
Governor of Mississippi Tate Reeves proclaimed April as Genocide Awareness and Prevention Month.
Mississippi became the 50th US state to recognize the Armenian Genocide.
FM Mirzoyan presents Armenia’s position on NK conflict’s peaceful settlement to US Senator Menendez
11:16, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan met with US Senator, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Bob Menendez during his working visit in Washington D.C., the foreign ministry said in a press release.
Member of the Committee, Senator Jim Risch also attended the meeting.
The sides touched upon the agenda of the Armenian-American relations, as well as the security situation around Armenia and Artsakh, and a number of issues relating to regional security.
The sides praised also the achievements registered in the Armenian-American diplomatic relations over the past 30 years. The Armenian FM highlighted the importance of the US support to Armenia’s ongoing reforms, strengthening of democracy, economy development, as well as touched upon the significance of the agreements reached during the visit.
At the meeting FM Mirzoyan also highly valued the contribution of Senator Menendez to the adoption of the Senate resolution on the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
The Armenian FM also presented the humanitarian situation in Nagorno Karabakh and the position of Armenia over the peaceful settlement of the NK conflict. In this context the impermissibility of provocation of tension by Azerbaijan was emphasized.
The sides stressed the necessity for repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives held in Azerbaijan.
Ararat Mirzoyan also presented the latest developments in the Armenia-Turkey normalization process.
Ararat Mirzoyan handed over the Friendship Order to Bob Menendez, who was awarded on the 30th anniversary of the establishment of Armenia-US diplomatic relations, for his significant contributions to the development and strengthening of the Armenian-American friendly relations.
Armenian FM meets with IRI Eurasia Director Stephen Nix in Washington
11:19, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. During his visit to the United States the Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan had a meeting with the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Regional Director for Eurasia Stephen Nix in Washington, the foreign ministry said in a press release.
FM Mirzoyan attached importance to the IRI’s programs in Armenia that seek to support the reforms agenda in various areas of public administration.
Nix said that the IRI will continue its work aimed at support and development of capabilities of Armenia’s democratic institutions.
FM Mirzoyan said that strengthening of democracy and the rule of law and the continuous fight against corruption are among the priorities of the Armenian government. He added that Armenia is taking consistent steps to increase transparency and accountability of state bodies and human rights-based inclusive development.
Justice Minister favors keeping parliamentary system, implementing reforms and corrections
11:25, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Justice Karen Andreasyan says he favors the parliamentary system of government.
Speaking at the first joint session of the Constitutional Reforms Council and Commission, Andreasyan said at some point the members of the council should make a choice on which system of government they favor.
“It is clear that we as experts understand that there could be various types of parliamentary systems, but at some point a choice must be made and we must choose what the basis should be, and then go for the mixed modern models and solutions. On this occasion I am officially announcing on behalf of myself and the ministry that I am in favor of maintaining the parliamentary model and making corrections and reforms to this model,” Andreasyan said, emphasizing that this position is not the official government position yet.
He added that preliminarily, 4 members of the council are in favor with some reservations for the parliamentary system, 1 member favors the presidential system, while 3 others are absent from the discussion and another 3 refused to express an opinion at this moment.
“This summary doesn’t predetermine anything. I simply want us to periodically make some summaries for ourselves so that the public sees how our approaches change after specialized discussions,” Andreasyan said.
US Department of Justice seeks forfeiture of LA mansion allegedly paid for with bribes involving Gagik Khachatryan
12:26, 6 May, 2022
YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. The United States government is seeking the forfeiture of a mansion in Holmby Hills, LA, alleging the home was purchased with bribes paid by an Armenian businessman to the family of former Armenian Minister of Finance and former State Revenue Committee Chairman Gagik Khachatryan, who is currently facing criminal charges in Armenia, the US Department of Justice announced Thursday.
In the complaint, filed Monday in federal court in Los Angeles, the DOJ alleges that businessman Sedrak Arustamyan paid Khachatryan, 66, and his family more than $20 million in bribes in exchange for favorable tax treatment of his businesses. The bribe payments allegedly were used to purchase the Holmby Hills property on South Mapleton Drive, which had been recently listed for sale for $63.5 million.