2022 – Page 996 – Armenian Directory & News

Armenian President Forced to Resign Over SKN Citizenship

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 David Nargizian

Jan 25 2022

YEREVAN, January 25. /ARKA/. The Office of Armenia’s Prosecutor General said it has forwarded a publication by the Hetq investigative outlet claiming that President Armen Sarkisian, who announced his resignation on January 23, was a citizen of another country before he became president in 2018, to the National Security Service (NSS).

The Office of Prosecutor General recalled that in April 2021 a criminal investigation had been launched into allegations that Armen Sarkissian forged documents to conceal his dual citizenship. Gor Abrahamyan, an advisor to Prosecutor General said the Hetq story will be studied in the context of this very case.

On Monday, Hetq.am published an article entitled “Armen Sarkissian. The Pyramid of Lies Collapsed: President to Resign” The article says in particular that when Armen Sarkissian was elected as President of the Republic of Armenia, he was not an Armenian citizen, (as required by the law) but had the citizenship of St. Kitts and Nevis, a country consisting of two islands in the Caribbean Sea.

“In his statement yesterday, Armen Sarkissian noted some reasons for his abrupt departure from the presidency, but we believe they have little to do with his resignation. We think the reason for his resignation is just the one: he was a citizen of another country before he became the president,” Hetq.am writes.

Hetq.am writes: ‘When the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP)) asked President Armen Sarkissian if he was a citizen of another country, he asked for evidence to support the allegation.

The country in question is not Great Britain. Armen Sarkissian was a British citizen and this was known before he was elected president in March 2018. The country in question is a small island country in the Caribbean – St. Kitts and Nevis.

Given Sarkissian’s British connections, it’s no surprise that the country is a Commonwealth realm, with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.

We had information that the president had a St. Kitts and Nevis passport, which was confirmed in correspondence with Sarkissian. We cannot provide many details of the investigation at this stage as it is a cross border investigation and not yet complete.

Yesterday, the president of Armenia announced his resignation. But there is a noteworthy fact here. Right before the resignation, he answered a series of our questions about his St. Kitts and Nevis citizenship. Sarkissian was on an official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He left the UAE and went on vacation because of health problems. And he resigned without returning to Armenia.

When we sent Sarkissian his St. Kitts and Nevis passport details, he began to put forth the following argument.

Sarkissian said he had made investments in St. Kitts and Nevis. According to our correspondence with Armen Sarkissian, he had a share in one of the hotels in St. Kitts and Nevis and transferred it on to one of his family members before he became ambassador of Armenia to the UK in 2013.

Saint Kitts has a program (Citizenship-by-Investment) whereby people can be granted citizenship in return for making investment. Sarkissian claimed that he thus became a citizen without his knowledge. “…the investment was the driving factor. I was not interested in the passport at all,” he told Hetq.

He allegedly wrote a letter to the company that organized his investment after receiving citizenship and, according to Sarkissian, asked the company to put his citizenship “on hold”.

According to Sarkissian, before being appointed Ambassador of Armenia to the United Kingdom in 2013, he instructed his solicitor to return his passport to St. Kitts and Nevis.

In 2017, when he was soon to become president, he discovered that his above-mentioned instruction hadn’t been dealt with. It was revealed the person who was supposed to deal with his request (not his attorney) had died. Later, he wrote a letter to the son of the deceased who worked at the same company, explained the situation, and repeated his request.

The fact is that Armen Sarkissian started the official process of renouncing his citizenship in St. Kitts and Nevis not long before he was elected president in March 2018.

According to the Armenia’s Constitution, he thus wasn’t eligible to be elected president. Hence, all the decrees he signed, including various laws, the appointments of officials, the elections, even the appointment of the prime minister, are illegal.

Sarkissian told us that he believed that he was no longer a citizen of St. Kitts and Nevis from the moment he requested to put his citizenship on hold after he received it in return for investments.

President Armen Sarkissian is unlikely to return to Armenia since he could be prosecuted for forging official documents.”

Armen Sarkissian was elected as President in 2018 spring for a seven-year term by the parliament that was dominated at that time by the Republican Party of ex-president Serzh Sargsyan, who became earlier the country’s prime minister after serving two presidential terms following Armenia’s transition to a parliamentary system of government.

Armen Sarkissian was sworn in as President just two weeks before Serzh Sargsyan resigned as prime minister amid Pashinyan-led mass protests that eventually brought the latter to power. -0-

https://www.thestkittsnevisobserver.com/armenian-president-forced-to-resign-over-skn-citizenship/

Investigation: Armenian President was ineligible for post due to secret second citizenship

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Greg Madatian

Jan 25 2022

25 January 2022

ByAni Avetisyan

Armen Sarkissian. Official photo.

Former deputy minister elected Armenia’s new human rights defender

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Yeghisabet Vorskanian

Jan 25 2022

25 January 2022

ByAni Avetisyan

Kristine Grigoryan. Photo via Armenian Public Radio.

Former Deputy Minister of Justice Kristine Grigoryan has been elected to be Armenia's new Human Rights Defender, as the tenure of Arman Tatoyan — a frequent critic of the government — comes to an end.

Grigoryan has been working in the political field since 2009 she became a parliamentary staffer at age 29. Following the 2018 revolution, she worked as an adviser to Deputy Prime Minister Ararat Mirzoyan before being appointed Deputy Minister of Justice in July 2019.

As Deputy Minister of Justice, Grigoryan was one of the key figures of the recent police reforms — which included the creation of a dedicated traffic patrol service.

Speaking with OC Media, Daniel Ioannisyan, a project coordinator for the Union of Informed Citizens NGO, an Armenia-based democracy watchdog who had previously worked with Grigoryan on police reform, praised the appointment of a woman to such a position of ‘responsibility’.

He added that Grigoryan had the benefit of previously ‘being responsible for the implementation of the government’s human right’s policies’.

Despite his praise, Ioannisyan also noted that the appointment of a state official as Human Rights Defender ‘was worrying’, especially when ‘there are many established human rights activists in the country who might be suitable for the post’.

Some figures among Armenia’s opposition have been even less sanguine in their reception of the incoming Human Rights Defender.

As she was elected with votes solely from the ruling Civil Contract party and has served as a deputy minister under the Pashinyan administration, they contend she could be ‘constrained’ in her ability to perform her duties without bias.

During the discussion in parliament preceding the vote to appoint Grigoryan, she delivered comments in which she promised not to stifle herself in addressing human rights issues in the country, and to be ‘sharp’ in her assessments.

Arman Tatoyan’s six-year term as Human Rights Defender expires on 23 February. Grigoryan will officially replace him in the position the following day. Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract party announced its intention not to renew Tatoyan’s tenure in October 2021, after he harshly criticised the government’s handling of border disputes with Azerbaijan.

In response, the head of the country’s National Security Service, Armen Grigoryan, accused Tatoyan of being biased and ‘speaking against’ the revolution.

[Read more: Armenia’s Human Rights Defender faces off with government]

Arman Tatoyan, who was elected under the country’s pre-revolutionary authorities, has criticised the government and its actions since 2018 but became particularly cutting since Armenia’s defeat in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh war. Much of his criticism has focused on the government’s alleged failure to protect the rights of residents living on Armenia’s eastern border with Azerbaijan.

Armenia ratified the Convention 108+ on data protection

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Emil Lazarian

Council of Europe

Jan 25 2022

STRASBOURG 25/01/2022

On 25 January 2022, Ambassador Arman KHACHATRYAN, Permanent Representative of Armenia to the Council of Europe, in the office of the Deputy Secretary General and in his presence, deposited the instrument of ratification of the Protocol amending the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (CETS No. 223), known as Convention 108+, bringing the number of ratifications to 16.

The Protocol aims to modernise and improve the Convention 108, the only binding international instrument with global relevance in this field. It addresses the new challenges to the protection of privacy resulting from the use of new information and communication technologies having emerged since the adoption of the Convention in 1980.

The Protocol strengthens the Convention’s mechanism to ensure its effective implementation by introducing innovations, such as:

Mandatory application of the principle “privacy by design”
Stronger accountability of data controllers
The obligation to declare data breaches
Greater transparency of data processing
The establishment of a clear regime for transborder data flows
Stronger requirements regarding the proportionality and data minimisation principles, and lawfulness of the processing
Extension of the types of sensitive data, which will now include genetic and biometric data, trade union membership and ethnic origin
New rights for the persons in an algorithmic decision-making context, particularly relevant in connection with the development of artificial intelligence
Application of the data protection principles to all processing activities, including for national security reasons, with possible exceptions and restrictions subject to the conditions set by the Convention, and in any case with independent and effective review and supervision
Reinforced powers and independence of the data protection authorities and enhancing legal basis for international cooperation.

The protocol constitutes a bridge between different regions of the world and different normative frameworks, including the new European Union’s legislation in the context of transborder data flows.

More information:

Protocol amending the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (CETS No. 223)
Council of Europe’s work in the field of data protection

Armenians – stop searching for a saviour-messiah, team up and work hard instead!

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Shushan Frangulian

Jan 25 2022

Vahram Ayvazyan

On Sunday, Armen Sarkissian announced his resignation as the fourth president of the Republic of Armenia.

A controversial figure – much accepted outside of Armenia and lacking popularity within the Republic, Sarkissian signaled a new wave of a deepening political and psychological crisis in Armenia and within the Armenian Diaspora.

Different political analysts and activists in Armenia and Diaspora have already managed to put forward different theories and explanations of Sarkissian’s resignation.

Some say that Sarkissian could not afford himself being a head of a state that would [legally] lead a collective CSTO invasion into Ukraine at the upcoming Russia-Ukraine war.

Others say he would initiate a pan-Armenian corporation or a Diaspora-led organisation.

Also there are people who say that he will simply be back to the United Kingdom.

Under any circumstances, in his resignation text, Sarkissian warned Armenians of an upcoming big hazard that the country will face very soon.

History speaks eloquently though. This is Sarkissian’s second resignation from a high-level post: he resigned as a prime minister of Armenia 25 years ago, in 1997, after which Armenia ended up into a political crisis which has never left Armenia since.

The 30-year period after the collapse of the Soviet Union proved to be insufficient for the Armenian nation to build up institutions instead of individuals.

It seemed that the Armenian nation, which regained its independence in 1991 (having lost it in 1920), would team up and work hard. But see, the political virus of saviour-messiah syndrome has been rooted very deep among the nation of tens of millennia.

A nation that once defeated the Roman empire and competed with the British East India company, has now been sunk into deep apathy and utter hopelessness after the 2020 Turkish-Azeri aggression against Armenia and Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

It is now clear that the loss of the beautiful capital Ani and the fall of the Bagratuni (Bagratid) kingdom a millennia ago, in 1045, played a major role in developing that “saviour-messiah” syndrome within the Armenian nation.

First, losing the independent kingdom, then losing ministries – then the political elite of the Armenians, the nation started looking for a solution to its problems outside of itself.

Notable Armenians of the late Middle Ages would go to this or that European royal palaces seeking for military help from a “saviour-messiah” foreign ruler who would come to the Armenian Highlands and fight the oppressors – the notorious Ottoman Empire.

It did not take the nation to anywhere good and it was not until 1918 when the Armenian nation, surviving the first major genocide of the 20th century, teamed up and regained its independence.

The very 1918 events, which are called May heroics, are an excellent vindication of an adamant success: once a nation relies on itself, succeeds – this is a political axiom that the majority of Armenians seem to have forgotten now.

On a political level, most Armenians are now longing for a “saviour-messiah” who will come and save the country from collapse.

The most common excuse is “I do not trust this guy, that guy, this initiative, that movement” which is fatal and sucks the energy of the nation from within.

READ MORE: Armenia’s colours light up Greece to commemorate 30th anniversary of Athens-Yerevan diplomatic ties.

There is no magic stick in politics, rather the latter loves everyday hard work. A nation becomes independent, keeps its independence and sovereignty once its people self-determine and self organise – they believe in themselves and their collective power.

1918 was one example, 1990s – the first Artsakh War, is another example.

In business terms, it is like you pitch your right to self-determination, sovereignty, independence and prosperity to the others in the global business club.

If you show consistency, strong team-up record and “rely-only-on-yourself” philosophy, you are then accepted into the global club.

This new 2022 is full of challenges but offers tons of opportunities for the global Armenian nation to stage a remarkable comeback and strengthen its place in the aforementioned club.

Armenians’ forefather Hayk did install that mentality of independence, self-determination, and sovereignty into the Armenian people several millennia ago.

Now is the perfect time to show forefather Hayk that the nation has learnt the lesson.

Armenians, stop bringing up excuses for not working hard for the homeland and the nation.

No outsider is going to work for Armenia unless Armenians work first and hard.

Armenians, stop searching for a saviour-messiah, team up and work hard instead!

Vahram Ayvazyan is the founder of the Armenian Network State. He is an International Relations and Genocide scholar, startup founder and a Climate Reality Leader, personally trained by former US vice president Al Gore.

Keeping Up With The Digital World: Armenian-Language Literature Now More Accessible Than Ever

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Andranik Taslakhchian

PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Avenida de 
Berna 45-A, 1067-001 Lisboa, Portugal
Contact: Vera Cunha
Telf: (+351) 21 782 3658
Web: gulbenkian.pt


ՀԱՅ ԳՐԱԿԱՆՈՒԹԻՒՆԸ ԺԱՄԱՆԱԿԱԿԻՑ ՁԵՒԱՉԱՓՈՎ 
 
VLUME.COM հայ գրականութիւնը աւելի քան հասանելի 
 
Գալուստ Կիւլպէնկեան Հիմնարկութեան Հայկական Բաժանմունքը ուրախութեամբ կը յայտարարէ 
որ Vlume-ի հետ իր համագործակցութիւնը կը շարունակուի, ընդլայնելով այս մեծ թուային 
գրադարանը:
 
Vlume թուային գրադարանը ել-գիրքերու եւ ձայնագիրքերու հարուստ հաւաքածոյ մը ունի 
թէ՛ արեւմտահայերէնով եւ թէ՛ արեւելահայերէնով. Vlume միեւնոյն ժամանակ հայ 
գրականութիւնը ժամանակակից ձեւաչափով ըմբոշխնելու հնարաւորութիւնը կ՚ընծայէ 
ընթերցողին։

Այս համագործակցութեան շնորհիւ արդէն իսկ հրատարակուած են բազմաթիւ ել-գիրքեր ու 
ձայնագիրքեր, ինչպէս նաեւ մանկապատանեկան ամբողջական ֆիլմաշար մը։ Առկայ ծրագիրով 
նախատեսուած է գրադարանը հարստացնել յաւելեալ 180 ել-գիրքերով եւ 125 ձայնագիրքերով 
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Vlume-ը բաժանորդներուն հնարաւորութիւն կու տայ կարդալու եւ լսելու հայերէն գիրքեր 
որեւէ արդի գործիքով. հարթակին ծանօթանալու համար այցելել՝ 
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 ։
 
Հիմնարկութեան ներկայ ինչպէս նաեւ այլ ծրագիրներու մասին կարդալու եւ տեղեկանալու 
համար այցելել՝ 

  կայքէջը եւ արձանագրուիլ լրատուին։
 
--

KEEPING UP WITH THE DIGITAL WORLD 
 
Armenian-Language Literature, Now More Accessible Than Ever 
Vlume, a vast Armenian digital library, is becoming a go-to address for readers 
around the world
 
The Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is 
happy to announce the continuation of its partnership with Vlume. The 
Foundation’s support will enhance Vlume’s electronic library to include more 
works of Armenian literature — both in the Eastern and Western branches of the 
language. 
 
The Department continues to collaborate with Vlume to breathe new life into 
Armenian literature by sponsoring digitization efforts as well as the creation 
of new content. Under the banner of this partnership various e-books and 
audiobooks, as well as one animated series have already been published. Through 
the current collaboration, 180 more e-books and 125 audiobooks will be added to 
the library by 2023.
 
Vlume enables users to read and listen to Armenian books on their smartphones, 
tablets and computers; to learn more about the platform please visit: 
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For further information on the programmes of the Armenian Communities Department 
of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation please visit: 

  and subscribe to our newsletter.
 
--END--

MASSACHUSETTS MANDATES PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO COVER ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Hovsep Chakrian

Tampa Dispatch

Jan 25 2022

Massachusetts will require its public schools to cover the Armenian Genocide of the early 20th century following a decision by state legislators. This makes Massachusetts the sixth state in the United States to mandate education on the genocide, during which the Ottoman Empire killed or displaced around 2 million Armenian Christians.

Despite much advocacy from Armenian groups regarding the addition of the Armenian Genocide to Massachusetts’ curriculum, some Turkish groups fought against the new mandate. The Turkish government continues to undertake a campaign of denial surrounding the genocide, and has been known to spread disinformation surrounding the atrocity.

Last year, President Joe Biden became only the second United States president to affirm the existence of the genocide, greatly angering his Turkish counterparts and adding to the already tense U.S.-Turkey alliance.

Although the Armenian Genocide occurred more than a century ago, education about the atrocity is still vital to continue. In the 2020 Karabakh War, Turkish-paid mercenaries and Azerbaijani soldiers committed several war crimes against the Armenian Christian population of Nagorno-Karabakh (Armenian: Artsakh) in manners reminiscent of the genocide.

In order to preserve the memory of the rich Christian heritage of Armenia, the first Christian nation in the world, and prevent such future atrocities from happening, institutions must continue to educate future generations on the devastation of the Armenian genocide.

Report: Turkey looking to establish more air routes with Armenia

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Lena Karagyozian

Jan 25 2022

January 25, 2022 – 16:40 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - The possible launch of flights from Armenia to the cities of Van and Kars in Turkey is under discussion, according to Hurriyet daily news, which has obtained details from a recent briefing held at the country's Presidency.

Turkey and Armenia held their first meeting at the level of special envoys in Moscow in mid-January and agreed to continue talks for reconciling and establishing diplomatic and economic bonds after three decades. As part of confidence-building measures, they have also agreed to start reciprocal charter flights between Istanbul and Yerevan.

According to the information obtained from the briefing, it has been agreed that further studies should be made to launch flights between different cities, including Kars and Van, the cities hosting important religious and historical sites for Armenians. Especially Van, where a historical Armenian Church on Akdamar Island is located, can turn into a touristic spot for the Armenians, noted the briefing.

Plus, participants of the meeting discussed the need for a restoration campaign of some historical architectural structures near Kars, including bridges and buildings that are of importance to Armenians. In addition, increasing trade and economic activities with Armenia would ease up the Armenian diaspora, which seems to be skeptical about normalizing ties with Turkey.

Armenia, Greece, Jordan placed 58th in fresh corruption index

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Emil Lazarian

Jan 25 2022

January 25, 2022 – 13:51 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia has scored 49 points out of 100 (where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean) in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2021, to take the 58th place. Greece, Jordan and Namibia have similar standings.

The CPI ranks 180 countries and territories around the world by their perceived levels of public sector corruption.

The situation has slightly deteriorated in neighboring Georgia, which has scored 55 to rank the 45th, while Azerbaijan's score is unchanged at 30, with a ranking of 128.

In the previous edition too Armenia had scored 49 points.

This year, the global average remains unchanged for the tenth year in a row, at just 43 out of a possible 100 points. Despite multiple commitments, 131 countries have made no significant progress against corruption in the last decade. Two-thirds of countries score below 50, indicating that they have serious corruption problems, while 27 countries are at their lowest score ever.

Armenian entrepreneur Stepan Aslanyan joins Forbes Business Council

January 31, 2022January 31, 2022 Toneyan Mark

Public Radio of Armenia

Jan 25 2022

January 25, 2022, 16:17

1 minute read

Armenian entrepreneur Stepan Aslanyan has joined the Forbes Business Council.

“We’re pleased to recognize Laurie Sewell with Servicon Systems Inc., Natasha Miller with Entire Productions, and Stepan Aslanyan with Hexact, Inc. as outstanding leaders and new members of Forbes Business Council,” the Council said in a post on LinkedIn.

Forbes Councils is an invitation-only organization where top executives and entrepreneurs build professional skills and gain connections and visibility on Forbes.com. Members are grouped into relevant councils to ensure maximum benefit for the community as a whole.

Stepan Aslanyan is a serial entrepreneur with 20+ years of experience and multiple successful exits in different geographical markets.

Trained as a medical doctor, Stepan found his true calling in the technology sector heading companies including Smart Systems and Menu Group UK, a pioneer in the food delivery service popularized by the likes of Uber eats.

After a successful exit, Stepan then founded Hexact in 2019 where he is serving as CEO with a mission to empower anyone with the true power of the cloud + AI to save time and scale like never before.