Category: News

armenianow.com
August 6, 2004
Demonstration Art: Fourth festival hopes to bring international attention to
Gyumri
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter
The fourth Gyumri International Biennial begins tomorrow
(August 7) and for the next three weeks will fill the city’s four museums
with contemporary and even avante garde art. And for the fourth time since
1998, spectators will have their chance to be surprised, engrossed, shocked
perhaps, and will no doubt exercise their rights as art “critics”.
Tadevosyan wants to bring international attention to Gyumri art
“In Armenia people are not ready for avant garde art, because of many years
of totalitarian and closed regime,” says Biennial founder Vazgen Pahlavouni
Tadevosyan. And, while Gyumri is a traditional center of art in Armenia, it
was also a center of traditional art.
Gyumri residents, however, like to “make defects in to effects,” Tadevosyan
says. “There is a thrust for art here . . .”
No other CIS country has such an art festival. And, when it was conceived
six years ago, organizers themselves were not sure how it would be received
in a place yet marked by Gyumri’s tragedy from the earthquake of 1988.
“But we were sure that especially in these ruins things will work,”
Tadevosyan says. “Advanced art is very dynamic, not petrified and
traditional. It can work in ruins, because it has many alternatives and
different methods.”
The first festival, called “Time, Territory, Research”, was a form of art
therapy for Gyumri. And it was a surprise for visitors from outside Armenia.
But the main goal, Tadevosyan says, was to give Gyumri a holiday.
The idea of course is not original. The first biennial was in Venice, 100
years ago. Armenian artist Martiros Saryan was among international artists
who participated in Venice.
“At the time when the USSR was collapsing, we already had such ideas,”
Tadevosyan says. “Gyumri was a flourishing city and there was a possibility
to make it an art center on an international level.”
But such dreams were shelved when Gyumri was destroyed by earthquake and
soon after the war in Karabakh broke out.
But the founders of the biennial were determined to take either a brave step
or a foolish one, and decided to inaugurate an international festival in the
ruins of a city.
“We have to do something according to international standards, otherwise
there is no meaning, but thanks God, the calculations were right and people
came,” Tadevosyan says.
“Critics” will get a chance to define “art”
This year the festival will include 60 to 70 artists from England, Ireland,
Russia, Iran, Austria, Italy, Germany, France and USA.
“We must make Armenia a country of international art,” Tadevosyan says.
“Through the biennial people started to know Gyumri. Our city is in a
healing process now and it is getting better with this art dialogue. ”
This year’s festival will be financed by United Nationals Developmental
Program, the British Council and “Ararat” Brandy Company. Different
embassies help participants from their countries.
Tadevosyan says:” We know that we are on the long road, and we will not see
the end, because other generations will continue our work. We also know that
we’ll not have an international reputation in soon. When you plant a tree,
you can only eat the fruit after some years. Gyumri`s biennial is very
important, because we have things to say to the world and to say them
bravely and proudly.”

armenianow.com
August 6, 2004
The Greek Connection: Descendents (if only a few) of first generation still
call Armenia home
By Vahan Ishkhanyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
During Soviet times, Hankavan was home to 120 Greek families, descendents of
the six families who founded the village in 1828. The Greeks came to Armenia
to work in gold and copper mines. At one time there were about 5,000 Greeks
throughout Soviet Armenia.
But when the mines closed in the early 20 th century, the Greeks – like the
Armenians – turned to cattle breeding.
Hankavan: The Greeks call it home
In the 1990s almost all the Greeks of Hankavan returned to Greece. Today,
after migration and immigration, the Greek community in Hankavan is only
about 15 residents.
Seventy-nine-year old Apolstle Chakhirov was among the Greek residents who,
in 1992, moved back his native country.
But, like others, Greece didn’t live up to expectations, so he came back to
Hankavan just three years later. His family convinced him to give Greece
another try. So he moved a second time. And moved back to Armenia a second
time, in 2002. He says he has no intention of moving again.
“First, I came back because this is my homeland and second, because of my
age I couldn’t find any job and it was impossible to continue my bee-keeping
in Salonica,” Apostle says.
Like most of the older generation, Apostle’s wife and three sisters also
weren’t satisfied in Greece, and came back to Hankavan. (All the women are
Greek citizens, and get pensions of about 200 Euro per month.)
Apostle is the unofficial leader of the Greek community. He is also a member
of the Armenian Communist Party, a follower of Marxism and Leninism. At the
same time he is a spiritual leader of sorts and the manager of Greek
Orthodox Church in the village. In the early 20 th century the church had a
priest, but he was shot, in 1937 during Stalin’s repressions.
As soon as Apostle came back from Greece he repaired the inner parts of the
church.
“I am both communist and believer in God. I like Christ, he was very clever
person. But when our priests say that he (Christ) will be back, I don’t
believe. He is dead and so, can’t be back,” Apostle says.
Apostle, a Marxist, makes candles for the church
He puts candles in the church which are made by him from bees-wax from his
very own bees.
“Priests’ candles are false. Things that bees create are created by God,”
the beekeeper says.
Maria, Apostle’s 83 year old sister, is the oldest resident of Hankavan.
Maria remembers when she was 15, and her father engaged her to an Armenian
boy. But she didn’t want to marry an Armenian, so her father gave permission
to marry a Greek.
When her husband died several years ago, her children took her to Greece.
“Greece is good, but it is not for me. Armenia is better,” she says. She
says she will never go to Greece again. Now her children come to see her.
Maria lives alone next to sister Natalie’s home, who also came back with her
husband to the village, leaving her children in Greece.
“Greeks in Greece are not like Armenian Greeks, we don’t like them,” says
Natalie. “In Greece we went to Armenian restaurant and our sons were crying
under the Armenian music. We will die here in Armenia; we will not go to
Greece. But here in Armenia there is nobody who cares about us: neither
telephone, nor roads . . .”
Before, there was a telephone in the village, but 10 years ago some people
cut the wires and took them. Just days ago, Natalie’s husband suffered pain
all night, but they had no possibility to take him to hospital. The next
morning, by chance, Natalie’s nephew, who was back from Greece to visit
relatives, came to the village and took him to hospital. But as of the next
day, none of them had news about Natalie’s husband.
Two years ago Donara Avgirova’s parents persuaded to come back to Hankavan
from Greece. Over the course of the two years, both parents died, leaving
her alone in the village, where she manages the hardship of poor living
conditions.
Some have come back from Greece for eternal rest in Armenia
She first lived in Yerevan, but now faces the village life of collecting
firewood, and trying to find a means to get running water in her house.
She says that when she moved to Greece, she too coerced her parents into
going. “We took them like birds in a coup,” she says. “They wanted to live
here.”
Donara has children in Greece, but says she wants to continue living in
Hankavan.
“My blood doesn’t flow in Greece,” she says. “My homeland is Armenia and we
got used to that life.”
Donara, who is in her 50s, says there are several reasons why life for her
is more comfortable in Hankavan. For example, she says that it is difficult
to establish relations. She says she wants to get married, but that in
Greece, the men “who only want to take you to bed right away.”
Language is also an obstacle for her in Greece, because her family speaks a
different dialect among themselves here, than in her native community in
Greece.
Spiridon Kerasov’s mother has returned to Hankavan, but later than she might
have wished.
Natalie came back after moving to Greece.
“Twelve years ago my four brothers and I went back to Greece and took mother
with us,” Spiridon says. “Mother asked us to let her stay in the village,
but we didn’t allow it, saying that she is an old woman and can’t stay
alone.
“We promised to bring her remains back to Hankavan if something should
happen to her in Greece.”
In 1998, six years after leaving Hankavan, the mother died.
Two weeks ago Spiridon brought his mother’s ashes back to be buried in
Armenian soil. An Armenian priest conducted the interment.
In Greece, the family had rented a grave for their mother, which had to be
vacated after six years. It was after that time that the sons remembered
their mother’s request.
Now she lies in a free grave under her portrait, and next to Spiridon’s
father. In an Armenian village the Greeks call home.
Spiridon keeps his house in Hankavan and doesn’t want to sell it, because
prices are too low. At the same time, he isn’t eager to move back to
Armenia. Unlike his compatriot Donara, Spiridon isn’t ready to make a
permanent home here.
Yes, this is our country, but this is not the right way to live,” he says.
“Who knows? Maybe one day it will be better.”

armenianow.com
August 6, 2004
Culture Shock: Survey reveals bleak outlook among social/political experts
By Zhanna Alexanyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
A survey of sociologists and political scientists has found that only 16
percent of the specialists believe the republic is “going toward democracy”.
Over the past several months, the Armenian Center for National and
International studies, ACNIS, has conducted a series of such surveys. The
most recent, released last week concerned “The Challenges of Culture and
Value System in Armenia”.
Fifty experts participated in the survey, the results of which were
summarized in a seminar at the center in Yerevan July 29.
Armenia, the majority of experts concluded, is leaning more toward
authoritarianism than democracy.
According to experts the results of the study show that, after 13 years of
independence, the public has not formulated a value system. And everyday
life is orientated more toward the past than the future.
“In the presence of today’s conditions we are inclined toward anti-popular
regime politics,” said the center’s Styopa Safaryan, a political analyst,
who presented the study results.
According to the experts (who represent a variety of political persuasions),
democracy in Armenia will be strengthened in five to 25 years. Eight percent
were completely pessimistic, saying it will be 100 years before democracy
flourishes.
The study asked specialists to identify obstacles, if any, that hamper the
democratic process.
The onus for change, the experts say, is on government officials.
“If 30% is the result of this or that peculiarity of the public, the rest is
the result of government actions,” Safaryan said. “This all can be explained
as follows: Changes in Armenia come from above and it is natural that the
solution of such a problem is seen to come from a vertical direction (from
high to low).”
Some of the 31 questions addressed cultural/spiritual attitudes. Here, too,
the experts do not paint an optimistic picture. (Find complete results on
)
Safaryan said opinions of experts in this category were driven by the
“changes from above” model and that spiritual/cultural change must also
start from the top.
“In my opinion, this can offer significant thought for our cultural elite,”
Safaryan said.
Yerevan State University professor Vardan Khachatryan said such ideologies
“can only be built on real existing classes. But nowadays, there are not any
classes in our reality.”
Khachatryan disagreed that the study reflects “dispair” and said Armenian
history favors recovery.
“I am sure that it will not go this way, because a nation which has
centuries-old culture and which passes through genocide cannot be negative,”
Khachatryan said.
ACNIS expert Hovsep Khurshudyan said the main aim of the study was to prove
already existing theories and make clear the positive and negative opinions.
We think that the situation in our cultural value system is too bad,” he
said. “But there is hope and experts see that and nobody behaves like
ostrich, hiding the head in the sand. In the discussions some ways out were
found and we must work on them.”

armenianow.com
August 6, 2004
Street of Sites and Smells: A tasty visit to ” Khorovats Street”
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter
Like so many steam liners puffing on the sea of good eating, the khorovats
(barbecue) cafés of Proshyan Street have turned the thoroughfare into an
entity all to itself in Yerevan.
>From Baghramian to Paronyan streets, about 50 restaurants line the 1,450
meters of “Barbecue Street”, and send their smoky advertisement of greasy
pork and mutton on an aromatic sells pitch that thousands find irresistible.
”A few years ago there was nothing here except for private houses and
several char grills. Today it turned into one of the richest streets of the
city,” says Yerevan resident Zaven Hambardzumyan.
The Proshyan day begins at night. Not so long ago, the fires of burning
grapevines (the kindling for khorovats) were the street’s beacon. Today,
however, it is a parade of neon, as what started as small family cafes has
turned into big business restaurants competing for attention by announcing
themselves through gaudy displays.
”In afternoons we mainly have rest,” say Hov Hotel employee Mary Sargsyan.
“Through the whole night I stand and wash dishes. It is hard at nights, but
it is harder today to find work.”
Now known as ” Barbecue Street”, the khorovats boom began on Proshyan in the
1990s.
Zhudex Sargsayn, a geologist by profession, was among the first to start a
café in his home.
”’If there was a place where I could work using my profession I would leave
everything and go there to work. This doesn’t suit me and it is also a
question of ambitions,” Sargsyan says. “There was a time when I had a good
job and I lived very well. But I also realize that people continue not to
appreciate geology and I have to maintain my family.”
Viva Las Proshyan
And what is a necessity for some, becomes an indulgence for others. Ranging
from modest street-side cafes with little more than a box of fire and some
plastic dishes, to elaborate Vegas-like (one is called Ceasar’s Palace)
megaliths, Proshyan attracts tourists as well as locals and is a favorite
address for wedding parties and other celebrations.
Sargsyan, who named his place “At Zhudex” has a clientele built on former
classmates and associates.
Almost everyone in Proshyan Street remember how khorovats first appeared
here.
”There were two garages at the place, where Golden Fork’ restaurant is now
located,” Zhudex recalls. “People began making khorovats in those garages.
They were making thousands of khorovats slabs and those days meat was more
expensive. In the beginning they were only selling, and they almost didn’t
even have places where visitors could sit and eat. Everything began from
that place.”
Next to At Zhudex, Lianna Khalatyan owns ”Hatsarat” (Plentiful Food).
”We began slowly. First we placed one char grill then we constructed a
small room then we built the rest and today I have this small restaurant,”
she says.
Like everybody Lianna also insist that khorovats made in her restaurant
differs from khorovats prepared in other places of Proshyan Street.
All restaurants and snack bars of the street try to remain unique. But in
every restaurant one can find the mandatory khoravats menu: skewers of
roasted meet, complemented by greens, tomatoes, lavash, and plenty of vodka
to wash it down.
It’s all about the meat . . .
”You need several things for making good khorovats – good meat, a person
who can make good basturma and finally a person, who can professionally keep
the meat over the fire,” explains Yegor Arakelyan of Hov Hotel. “Several
hours before starting making khorovats it is necessary to put meat in
basturma (marinade) using only Armenian spices. It should be done on a heavy
fire but try to avoid bursts of flame. You must constantly turn spits with
meat over fire so that it doesn’t burn.”
Arakelyan doesn’t talk about professional subtleties saying that it is his
secret. According to him, the best basturma is the one that came to us from
our ancestors and which consists of onions, salt and pepper.
Zhudex says Armenians usually preferred lamb khorovats but now they mainly
prefer pork.
”Armenians from Diaspora come and say, ‘we came to Proshyan to eat tasty
khorovats.’ Here people mainly order lamb khorovats, real Armenian
khashlama. Also they order khorovats called ”Iki bir”. When they order
”Iki bir” we put meat potatoes and onions on spits,” says director of Hov
Hotel’ Ruzanna Hambaryan.
Prices in Proshyan Street don’t differ too much. Pork chops cost 2000 drams
(about $3.80), tender mater cost 1800 drams (about $3.40) and lamb khorovats
1900 drams (about $3.60). Kibab is cheaper. It costs 500 drams (about 95
cents).
The biggest restaurants of the street are Dzoraberd, Caesar’s Palace,
Urartu. But next to them, small stalls serve their peculiar clientele.
. . . and fire
“My business is small and I’m not even interested in a big one,” Lianna
says. “Big restaurants are not standing on the way of the smaller ones, they
have their business, we have ours. Weddings and parties with a lot of people
are done there and if there are a few people they prefer going to a smaller
place. Two or three people will definitely not go there.”
Summer is off season for Proshyan. It is the time, merchants say, when
people prefer going out of the city to do their barbecue dining.
And, new summertime restaurants in the Hrazdan Gorge (twice as expensive)
have taken a bite out of Proshyan. But not enough to devour its colorful
environment.
And on Proshyan Street businessmen also know very well the man whose name
the street bears.
“He who doesn’t know the great writer Pertch Proshyan has no right to live
and work on Proshyan Street,” says Ruzanna.

GIBRAHAYER
e-newsletter
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http ://gibrahayer.cyprusnewsletter.com
ARMENIAN CHURCH IN IRAQ ATTACKED BY CAR BOMB
CHRISTIAN COMMUNITIES IN IRAQ WORK TO RECOVER FROM BLASTS
Iraqi Christians, including Armenians, worked this week to recover
from the blasts on Sunday that targeted their sanctuaries during
services.
The first car bomb went off on Sunday (8/1) outside an Armenian
Catholic church in Baghdad just 15 minutes into its evening
service. Five churches in Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul were
hit, killing at least 12 and injuring dozens more. Fortunately, no
Armenians were among those killed or seriously injured.
Amid fears of future violence and possible assassination of religious
leaders, Christian churches are taking precautions against future
attack, by posting armed guards, closing nearby streets, and
installing barbed wire barriers. Others are scaling back services.
“I don’t think we’ll have mass next Sunday,” Nubar Antoine, a member
of the Armenian Catholic leadership council, said in one news report.
The Armenian Church community in Iraq has not made any special plea
for international financial or material aid. The Diocese of the
Armenian Church of America (Eastern) remains in contact with Armenian
community leaders in Iraq and will keep you informed.
To learn more about these attacks, click on the following link at:
newsid=456&selmonth=8&selyear=2004
(Source: Associated Press, 8/01/04; New York Sun, 8/3/04, Diocese of
the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), 8/5/04)
CATHOLICOS SENDS SYMPATHIES TO POPE
On Wednesday His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos
of All Armenians, sent a letter of sympathy and support to Pope John
Paul II, following the bombings of churches in Iraq.
The letter states, in part: “We are saddened that some extreme
elements are attempting to endanger the centuries of friendship and
peaceful co-existence among the Christian and Muslim peoples of the
East, and offer our prayers to the Almighty that the love of our Lord
Jesus Christ will enter into the hearts of men, reconcile them one to
another, and that violence and war will be eliminated from the region
and all of humanity.”
The Catholicos of All Armenians has sent a similar letter to the
patriarch of the Armenian Catholics, His Beatitude Nerses Bedros
XIX. (Source: Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, 8/4/04)
Present estimates place the Christian population of Iraq at around
800,000, mostly concentrated in Baghdad. The Armenian community
numbers itself at around 20,000, more than half of whom reside in and
around Baghdad.
KALAYDJIAN ACCUSED
Nicosia 3 August 2004. (Gibrahayer):- Armenian representative in the
Cyprus House of Representatives Bedros Kalaydjian was accused by
Cypriot Cultural Association representatives for indifference towards
accommodating the needs of “Kevork Marzbedouni” Dance Ensemble that
arrived from Gyumri Armenia two weeks ago and toured the island.
A representative of Xylotympou Cultural Association that invited the
Group who wanted to keep anonymity said that they were “disappointed
by the attitude of the Armenian representative who rejected all
suggestions made by the Cultural Association. We told Kalaydjian
about the arrival of the Group two months ago and unfortunately we
could not arrange anything for them.”
“We wanted the members of the prestigious Armenian Dance Group to tour
the island, meet members of the Armenian community specially the young
generation, perform for them and provide them with the opportunity to
interact with their brothers and sisters in Cyprus”, said the
spokesman for the Xylotympou organisation. “Unfortunately all our
suggestions were turned down with excuses that cannot be explained by
us”, he said.
As a result of this, most of the Armenian community heard about the
performances of the Ensemble, through a local radio station, literally
hours before the event.
Community members were trying to find more information about the
schedule of the tour but could find nothing. Kalaydjian was
unavailable for comment as he was in England.
The Armenian Ensemble dazzled audiences with their disciplined and
quality performance in separate performances in Xylotympou on Friday,
Platres on Saturday and Ayia Napa on Sunday. Community attendance – as
a result of lack of information about the tour – was at an all time
low. Ten Armenian Cypriots attended the event on Friday, two
accidentally bumped into the event in Platres (and sent images to
Gibrahayer – thank you!) while thirty Armenians – in a last minute
effort to support the group – specially made the trip from Nicosia and
Larnaca to Ayia Napa to see their Group perform on Sunday.
After the Dance Group was “traced” by the community and news of their
whereabouts revealed, The Armenian Club of Larnaca organised an
express community get-together last Monday, which turned out to be an
unforgettable evening for both the members of the group and their
entourage as well as for the members of our community who had gathered
in Larnaca. More than 150 attended the event.
Images of the performance of the Ensemble and the Larnaca get-together
at:
FIRST CONVENTION OF EUROPEAN ARMENIANS TO TAKE PLACE AT THE EUROPEAN
PARLIAMENT
Brussels, Belgium – The first Convention of European Armenians will
take place at the European Parliament, Brussels, on October 18-19,
2004.
Organized by the European Armenian Federation, this pan-European
meeting will be a forum for sharing ideas and concerns on topics of
importance to the Armenian communities across Europe.
European citizens of Armenian descent now number more than two
million, stemming from three large waves of immigration that resulted
from the Genocide perpetrated by Ottoman Turkey (1915), war in the
middle-east (1975) and the fall of the USSR (1991). Though well
integrated in the economic, social and cultural life of their new
countries, they have kept their identity and their interest in
Armenian issues.
This convention will allow participants to come together on various
topical themes linked to recent geopolitical events or global
socio-economic developments.
Convention speakers will express themselves within the framework of
three sessions:
– Armenian culture and identity in Europe
– Relations between the European Union and Armenia
– The Stakes involved in European Union Enlargement
“All European Armenian associations, groups, and organisations are
invited, whatever their activities and their political or religious
trends may be,” declared Hilda Tchoboian, chairwoman of the European
Armenian Federation.
“With this first European Convention, we are not aiming to establish
any superstructure that would replace the various organisations
dealing with Armenian issues in Europe. Rather, we aim to create a
framework for free expression that will enable the shared positions
and opinions of the European communities to emerge,” she stated.
The European Armenian Federation will soon send hundreds of
invitations to the European Armenian associations and encourage the
leaders who wish to attend the convention to begin registering now by
mail or via the website.
Associations that may be not known to the Federation and that
therefore might not receive the invitation are requested to get in
touch with the Federation. The European Armenian Federation calls on
everyone to widely broadcast this event as an outstanding opportunity
to raise awareness about issues of European Armenians concern, among
European policy-makers, both members of the European Parliament and
officers of the European Commission.
ARMENIA WARNS BAKU OVER WAR THREATS
In a special statement issued last week, the Armenian Foreign Ministry
warned Azerbaijan that it would face “disastrous consequences” should
its leaders again resort to military force in the Karabakh
conflict. The warning came after President Ilham Aliyev told his
diplomatic envoys posted abroad that should Azerbaijan fail to regain
Karabakh through negotiations, it would “use… the military option.”
The Armenian statement further questioned Azerbaijan’s commitment to
ongoing negotiations, with yet another summit between Aliyev and
Armenia’s President Robert Kocharian planned for September.
Armenian officials chose to react this time since unlike typical war
rhetoric for domestic consumption, the most recent threat came in what
was supposed to be President Aliyev’s policy speech to the Azeri
diplomatic corps. It also appears that Azerbaijan is beginning to
accelerate its military preparedness. Last month, Aliyev gave an
average of a 50 percent salary raise to the Azeri military and
security forces. Azeri officials have also indicated plans to begin
new weapons purchases in Russia, Ukraine and Pakistan.
Separately, Azerbaijan is beefing up its border security forces, which
received a $19 million aid package from the U.S. last week. The
program, known as the Caspian Guard, focuses on Azeri ability to
defend the Caspian oil infrastructure and on
counter-proliferation. But it does appear to have special operations
and air components that could potentially be used against Armenia,
which would in turn violate U.S. law.
The Azeris have also stepped up provocations along the Line of Contact
this year. The Armenian army reported six deaths from enemy fire so
far this year, with Azeris reporting about a dozen. This week,
Karabakh forces began their annual manoeuvres, which this year will
also test their inter-operability with forces from Armenia proper.
THE DAY THE MELKONIAN WAS BOMBED
By Athena Karsera – Azg/am 29 July 2004:- A man who lived through the
bombing of the Melkonian as a recently graduated pupil was in Nicosia
this week to battle for the school’ s survival. One of Nicosia’s
best-known landmarks for over 77 years and the pride of the region’s
Armenian community faces closure.
The 1926 stone building and its surrounding land of 125,000 square
meters is estimated to be worth at least CYP 40 million.
Raffi Zinzalian had just graduated from the Melkonian and had a
university place waiting for him in Lebanon when the 1974 troubles
began. He had spent the day before the invasion on the beaches of
Famagusta and was in the school building when the Turkish planes flew
overhead on July 20, 1974.
“We were happy because the cease-fire would begin at 3pm and then at
2.45pm we saw the Turkish jets overhead. We thought they were headed
for the radio station (Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation-CyBC) but they
circled round and we heard a deafening noise, we had been bombed,” he
said.
Zinzalian said that even his years in war-torn Lebanon could not
compare to the fear he felt on that day. Thirty years later, and now a
married father of three, he still has nightmares of the bombing.
“The roof in the dormitories was about to cave in and we couldn’t
breath. We knew we had to escape, the roof was on fire and so we ran
outside to the principal’s residence. The fire brigade was called, but
the roof had collapsed,” Zinzalian said.
The students and teachers left at the Melkonian made for the
mountains. Turkish troops had surrounded Nicosia and the only way out
was on the road to Larnaca. For 6-7 weeks communication and travel was
almost impossible and Zinzalian was able to leave the island on a
Soviet cargo ship to take up his place in Lebanon. “Two years later,
the war started there,” he said.
Following his studies, Zinzalian was employed at the Press Information
Office (PIO) as a Turkish-English translator. “I saw Makarios
(then-President, Archbishop) everyday,” he said.
Zinzalian then left for the USA to study photojournalism and media and
is now a publisher at the University of LaVerne Press and on the board
of Armenia International Magazine (AIM). He is also the president of
the Melkonian Alumni and Friends in California.
“We are all very sad that the school may be closed. All the alumni I
have spoken to, in LA, in Ontario, in Cyprus, in Greece, in Lebanon,
in Turkey, all feel the same,” he said.
Zinzalian has spent the last few weeks on self-financed travels to
lobby members of the alumni. “There are 1300 members of the alumni all
around the world,” he said.
Having had meetings with the Cyprus alumni of the school and
representatives of the Armenian community on the island, Zinzalian
said that the passion for keeping the Melkonian up and running will be
hard to beat.
“We are also looking into the archives of the school because the
Melkonian brothers who founded the school made provisions before they
died for it never to close. Before they died, they put the school in
the care of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU),” he said.
The Melkonian Institute was built as an orphanage by Krikor and
Garabed Melkonian soon after the massacres of the Armenians in Turkey.
Zinzalian said that the closing of the school was “totally
unacceptable” not only because of the Melkonian’s important cultural
role and lengthy history, but also for the potential practical
problems faced by the 170 students continuing their studies at the
school following the graduation of a further 30 this past year.
“There are students at the school from all over the world who may not
be able to continue their studies as they have up until now,” he said.
“It seems ironic that the Melkonian school survived bombing and a war
and now is in peril from the people supposed to be protecting it,”
Zinzalian said.
He said that the alumni were prepared to keep up their peaceful fight
for as long as necessary, fund-raising – the California Alumni has
raised over $370,000 for the school over the past five years – and
meeting with people able to help the situation. “The Cypriot
government has been very supportive,” he said: “and the Cyprus alumni
is the best we have.”
Zinzalian also said that he believed the AGBU did not expect to have
as large scale a fight on their hands. “I think they expected to sell
off the school and take the money back to the USA without much
reaction.”
He also criticized the AGBU for sending a non-Armenian to manage the
planned closure of the school. US national Gordon Anderson has been
sent to take the place of the school’s headmaster and oversee the
school’s future.
“Feeling the way we do about the school, I feel that closing it will
be impossible,” Zinzalian said.
– The Central Bank has agreed to provide a license to ArmSwiss Invest
& Trust Bank, founded by Swiss citizens of Armenian origin. Sarkisian
said that the initial charter capital of the bank amounts to $6
million.
– FIFA released the Rankings of national teams for August (previous
rank in parentheses). Enclosed, the rankings of some countries that
could be of interest to our readers. 1. Brazil, 849 points (1).
2. France, 809 (2). 3. Spain, 790 (3). 10. Turkey, 719 (10).
14. Greece, 710 (14). 104. Cyprus, 440 (104). 108. Lebanon, 429
(109). 116. Armenia, 406 (118). 118. Azerbaijan, 400 (119).
– Initiated by His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia and
organized by the Catholicosate of Cilicia, a Pan-Diaspora Conference
on Armenian Education began on Thursday 5 August (yesterday) 2004
– A businessman and former lawmaker who police claim was an
authoritative criminal figure was shot to death along with his son,
authorities in Armenia said on Wednesday.
– The exchange of fire across the cease-fire line is a regular
phenomenon on the Armenian Azeri border and this week was no
exception. The incident took place at Azerbaijan’s northwestern Qazax
District.
WEBSITES OF THE WEEK
g i b r a h a y c a l e n d a r
. The Armenian Youth Federation is organising its 17th Annual Summer
Camp at the Camp Site of Morphou Prelature at Kalopanayiotis from 9-15
August 2004. A rich educational and fun programme including Martial
Arts, Swimming, Trekking, Treasure Hunt, and Kisherayin Arshav. To
receive more information or to register please contact the following:
Nareg Tavitian 99488926, Nora Sarian 99439956 or Simon Aynedjian
99437073.
All participants of Panagoum must attend the final meeting before
departure that will take place on Friday 6 August, 2004 at 7:30
p.m. at AYMA.
. Khanasor commemoration took place on Sunday July 25, 2004, at
“Loumada ton Aeton” in Troodos. Images from the event at:
. A Tour to Armenia is being organised by the Central Executive of
Hamazkayin from August 20-September 3, 2004 with the participation of
members and friends from Armenian diaspora communities. Trips to
Karabagh are also scheduled. To receive more info and to apply for the
trip please contact the Cyprus Hamazkayin Committee members.
. POSTPONED The Annual General Meeting of The Hamazkayin Cultural and
Educational Association “Oshakan” Cyprus Chapter has been postponed
for Tuesday September 14, 2004.
The Armenian Prelature announces that the next permit for the Armenian
Cemetery visitation at Ayios Dhometios on the Green line, is scheduled
for Sunday 8 August, 2004.
. Armenian Radio Hour on The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation can be
heard via real audio on . Broadcast times 17:00-18:00
local Cyprus time (14:00-15:00 GMT) News bulletins at 17:15 local time
on Sundays, Tuesdays, Fridays. Armenian Cypriots can also tune in on
the following radio frequencies 91.1 FM (Mount Olympus – for Nicosia
listeners) 94.2 FM (Paralimni/Protaras/Agia Napa) 92.4 FM (Larnaca)
96.5 FM (Paphos).
Gibrahayer is an independent electronic environment, now in its fifth
year, disseminating news & posting upcoming events about the Armenian
community of Cyprus, Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora. The list also
promotes the discussion of issues brought forward by its members. The
subscription to this service is free. To subscribe to Gibrahayer
e-newsletter, follow the instructions at
To contact the listmaster send
an email to [email protected]

ArmenPress
Aug 6 2004
ILHAM ALIEV SAYS AZERBAIJAN TO LIBERATE ITS LANDS
BAKU, AUGUST 6, ARMENPRESS: “Peace should be shortly established
in South Caucasus but Karabakh conflict is the major impediment to
it,” Ilham Aliev, Azeri president said yesterday in a joint news
conference with Iranian president Muhammad Khatami. He reiterated
that Armenia has occupied 20 per cent of its land and therefore
cooperation can not be achieved under such conditions.
Aliev said the aggression can not take long and Azerbaijan will
liberate its lands. “Azerbaijan wants to reach this aim by peaceful
means and therefore participates in negotiations insisting that the
conflict be regulated based on international norms, respecting the
right of territorial integrity,” Azeri president said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ArmenPress
Aug 6 2004
PM RECEIVED SYRIAN MINISTER OF ECONOMY AND TRADE
YEREVAN, AUGUST 6, ARMENPRESS: Armenian PM Andranik Margarian
received yesterday Syrian Minister of Economy and Trade Ghassan
al-Rifai and the delegation headed by him who are in Armenia to
participate in the third session of Armenian-Syrian intergovernmental
joint committee.
According to government press services, PM noted that Armenia
attaches great importance to boosting relations with Syria as part of
its policy in Middle East.. He also said, that despite of joint
efforts to develop economic and cultural- scientific cooperation, its
size is far from being satisfactory. He therefore underscored
Armenian-Syrian intergovernmental sessions to which Ghassan al-Rifai
is a co-chair. Syrian Minister of Trade and Economy told the Armenian
PM about the pace of work of the committee’s third session noting
that a number of documents have been signed in the field of health,
communication, tourism and others. Attaching importance to their
implementation, the minister told that the Syrian side intends to
create a working group which will monitor it.
The Armenian PM and minister Ghassan al-Rifai expressed readiness
to increase size of trade turnover in the near future. The sides also
praised several cooperation projects in the fields of education and
culture as part of agreements in previous intergovernmental sessions.
The sides underscored the need for exchange of information through
such entities as Armenian Development Agency, Armenian Chamber of
Commerce and Industry and respective bodies in Syria.
Armenian PM thanked the Syrian side for providing wheat and potato
seeds as an aid and as part of cooperation in the field of
agriculture. At the end of the meeting the sides voiced their hope
that the visit of Syrian PM Naji Utri will give a new boost to
Armenian-Syrian relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

zaway
Aug 6, 2004
WASHINGTON, Aug 05, 2004 (United Press International via COMTEX) — Insider
notes from United Press International for Aug. 5:
Since March the Bush administration has frantically tried to keep “coalition
of the willing” members from voting with their feet and leaving Iraq. Now a
new nation may be preparing to send troops to the strife-ridden country.
According to reports in the local press, Armenia may be readying to send
troops to Iraq. The Armenian government has approved the decision by the
country’s Defense Ministry supporting the memorandum, “On commanding and
regulating the work of the multi-national stabilization force in Iraq.”
Armenia had earlier announced that it was ready to send trucks, 10 field
engineers and three military doctors to Iraq. The decision is not popular
with sections of Armenian society; the Armenian Communist Party called the
decision “an anti-Armenian step, endangering not only the lives and security
of dozens of our specialists, but also the large Armenian community in a
country we are in friendly relations with;” the secretary of the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of Armenia, Ruben Tovmasyan, labeled the
decision “immoral.” Cynics looking for cause and effect might note that
President George W. Bush recently selected Armenia as a potential recipient
of assistance from the Millennium Challenge Account, a new bilateral
development program established in 2002 as a new channel for development
assistance.
Copyright 2004 by United Press International.

Nagorno-Karabakh dismisses Council of Europe’s warning
AP Worldstream
Aug 06, 2004

The Nagorno-Karabakh enclave on Friday bristled at the Council of
Europe’s advice to refrain from holding local elections, saying it
would run its own affairs.
Walter Schwimmer, the secretary general of the 45-nation Council, has
voiced regret that the enclave, that has broken off from Azerbaijan,
would hold municipal elections set for Sunday.
“One sided actions are counter-productive,” Schwimmer said in a
statement, adding that the status of Nagorno-Karabakh should should be
decided through talks.
The Nagorno-Karabakh authorities responded Friday, saying that they
need to have a full-fledged government. “We don’t think that the
international community and the European organizations in particular
would be interested in the absense of authority in Nagorno-Karabakh,”
they said in a statement.
Earlier this week, Nagorno-Karabakh launched a 10-day military
exercise that drew angry criticism from Azerbaijan, which said the
maneuvers could hamper the peace process.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry returned the criticism Friday, saying
that the “bellicose Azerbaijani statements” were fueling tensions.
Armenian-backed forces won control of Nagorno-Karabakh, a largely
ethnic Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan, in a 1988-94 war that killed
some 30,000 people and drove a million from their homes.
Despite a cease-fire, the two countries continue to face off across a
demilitarized zone, and shooting occasionally erupts. No final
settlement has been reached, and the conflict continues to aggravate
economic troubles and threaten unrest in Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The Russia Journal
Ukraine outpaces Russia in economic growth
August 06, 2004 Posted: 15:10 Moscow time (11:10 GMT)
Ukraine and Tajikistan have outpaced Russia in economic growth. The Russian
Federation ranks 7th among the CIS members in GDP growth rate shown in the
first half of this year, according to the data released today by the
Interstate Statistics Committee of the CIS. The Russian economy expanded at
a 7.9-percent annual rate over the first six months of 2004.
Ukraine showed the largest growth of 12.7 percent. Tajikistan ranked second
benefiting 11.1-percent growth. Azerbaijan followed Tajikistan with
10.6-percent growth. Belarus, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan outpaced Russia as
well, benefiting from a 10.3-percent, a 9.4-percent and a 9.2-percent
expansion respectively. Data on Moldovan and Kazakhstani GDP growth has not
been released as yet.
The economic growth among the CIS members averaged 9 percent in the first
half of this year. At the same time the inflation rate averaged 10 percent
in the CIS in the first half of 2004. Belarus showed the highest inflation
rate of 20.8 percent. Kyrgyzstani 4.1-percent inflation was the most
moderate among other CIS members. Russia ranked third in the increase in the
Consumer Price Index (CPI) in the first six months of 2004. Consumer prices
in Russia advanced 10.4 percent. Moldova showed the second highest inflation
rate of 13.6 percent. CPI index jumped 7.5 percent in Armenia. Ukraine
showed a 7.4-percent increase in the CPI. Kazakhstani consumer prices
advanced 6.6 percent over the first half of 2004. Azerbaijani consumer
prices increased 6 percent. Georgia showed a 5.5-percent increase in the
CPI. Tajikistan showed a 5.2-percent increase.
As Russian Economy Minister German Gref announced yesterday, one should not
rule out the possibility of Russian economy showing 6.8-7.1 percent
expansion if oil prices average over $30.4 a barrel this year. According to
Gref, the average monthly rate of economic growth is forecasted to decrease
by 0.2 percent in the second half of this year. Thus, it is expected to fall
to 0.5 percent from 0.7 percent in the first half of this year. However, the
Russian Economy Minister considers this rate to be high. Experts with the
Russian Economy Ministry forecast a 6.7-percent economic expansion for this
year. The Russian Economy Ministry has revised upward its estimates of the
Russian economic growth for 2005, Gref said. It forecasts a 6-percent
expansion compared to earlier estimates of a 5.9-percent economic growth.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress