Category: News

PARTICIPANTS OF 9 DETACHMENTS OF ARTSAKH LIBERATION MOVEMENT GO ON
TERMLESS SIT-STRIKE IN YERABLUR ON AUGUST 3
YEREVAN, August 3 (Noyan Tapan). On August 3, the participants of the
Artsakh liberation movement went on a termless sit-strike in
Yerablur. They, in particular, demand to carry out allocations from
the state budget for the purpose of providing them with apartments.
Armen Avetisian, the Chairman of the Armenian Aryan Unity, told Noyan
Tapan that the Commission compiled by the RA Ministry of Defence
submitted a special list, in which it’s mentioned that the families of
the perished freedom-fighters and the disabled freedom-fighters should
be provided with apartments. But, according to him, the government of
Armenia doesn’t carry out any allocations for this purpose. The
participants of the sit-strike demand that the government of Armenia
and the NA should adopt a law on conferment of the status of a
freedom-fighter to the volunteers who were at war in advanced
detachments for 6 months and more, as well as should restore the
privileges and rights of all the freedom-fighters by the law. One of
the demands is equating of the pension of the disabled freedom-fighters
of the 3rd group with the pension of a warrant officer. Armen
Avetisian also said that the government and parliament were informed
about the sit-strike and the strike will stop only after the
government and the freedom-fighters come to an agreement.

ISSUE OF ARMENIAN-GERMAN MILITARY COOPERATION DISCUSSED
YEREVAN, August 3 (Noyan Tapan). On August 2, RA Minister of Defense
Serge Sargsian received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
of Germany to Armenia Hans Wolf Burtels, whose mission in Armenia
draws to an end. The interlocutors discussed issues of the
Armenian-German military cooperation, exchanged opinions about the
recent military-political processes in the region and the
world. According to the Information and Propaganda Department of the
RA Ministry of Defense, the same day, Minister Serge Sargsian,
Secretary of the National Security Council attached to the RA
President, Co-Chairman of the Armenian-Russian Inter-Governmental
Commission on Economic Cooperation, also received President of the
Republic of Komi of Russia Vladimir Torlopov and a delegation headed
by him.

ARMENIAN CHESS-PLAYERS AMONG LEADERS IN EUROPEAN JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP
HELD IN TURKEY
YEREVAN, August 3 (Noyan Tapan). 670 young chess-players from
different countries of the world participate in European Junior
Championship held in the Turkish city of Urgup. 14 Armenian
chess-players are among them, they perform in all five age
groups. Robert Aghasarian and Khachatur Yeranian successfully perform
in the 10-year group. They earned four points each after four rounds.
12-year-old Areg Arakelian earned 3.5 points. Five Armenian
chess-players earned three points each and lead the tournament table
in their age groups. Five rounds are left until the end of the
championship.

ARMENIAN CHURCH TO BE CONSTRUCTED IN CAPITAL OF REPUBLIC OF KOMI
YEREVAN, August 3 (Noyan Tapan). According to the Information System
of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Catholicos of All Armenians
Karekin II received President of the Republic of Komi of Russia
Vladimir Torlopov and a delegation headed by him in his residence in
Etchmiadzin on August 3. The Catholicos of All Armenians touched upon
the centuries-old friendship of the Armenian and Russian peoples, the
mission of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the life of our people and
the warm relations between the Armenian Apostolic and Russian Orthodox
Churches. During the meeting Torlopov spoke with admiration about the
Armenians living in Komi, according to him, they are worthy citizens
and contribute to the prosperity of the Republic of Komi. The
President of the Republic of Komi told Karekin II that an Armenian
church will be constructed in the capital of the Republic of Komi
soon.

Yerevan, July 30, 2004
Re: Bi-Annual Progress Report, Summer 2004
Dear friends, active NGOs, concerned businesses, and government
agencies:
We are sending this letter to inform you of CENN’s current activities in
Armenia. We are sending an official progress report twice a year to
keep all interested parties informed of CENN activities with a
localized, specific focus on development in Armenia. We are pleased and
excited to report our activities since the opening of our Yerevan office
in March in the Environmental Conservation Research Center (ECRC) at the
American University of Armenia (AUA):
Environmental Panel Discussions at the American University of Armenia
(AUA)
CENN and ECRC have joined to create a series of Environmental Panel
Discussions to present urgent environmental issues and to allow for
public discussion with the panel experts. The first panel discussion
was held in April regarding solid waste management, and the second was
held in July regarding water supply and water quality in Armenia.
Building upon the interest and success of the first two, CENN plans to
continue this program with ECRC indefinitely. Before each event an
invitation will be sent out and the media will be invited. Future
potential topics include deforestation from the regional viewpoint, the
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in the South Caucasus, and current
agricultural practices in Armenia.
Pre-training Seminar on the Hazards of Metzamor and Emergency Response
CENN, in partnership with Muskee alum Edward Safaryan, has recently
received a grant to present a seminar to leaders from throughout the
regions on the environmental health risks of living near a nuclear power
plant, with a special focus on the particular problems of the Metzamor
plant. The goal of the seminar will be to pre-train these leaders and
to empower them to train their communities to be aware of the issues, to
know the best ways to handle the risks, and to feel more involved in
public affairs regarding the plant. The keynote speaker will be Olga
Denyshchyk, Executive Director of the Ukrainian NGO `Mama-86,’ an
organization devoted to the issues affecting children born after the
Chernobyl accident in 1986.
We are currently seeking 30-40 participants from throughout the regions.
If you know of any NGOs or individuals who may be interested, please
have them contact [email protected]. The seminar will be held in
October.
Kanach Janabarh Foundation
CENN in Armenia has been working directly with other NGOs in the
formation of an Environmental Media Coalition, which has been named
`Kanach Janabarh,’ or `Green Paths Foundation.’ The group has recently
become a project of the Kanach Foundation, and will be launching its
website as well as its first environmental campaign shortly. The latter
offers an alternative to plastic bags, using canvas bags instead.
Kanach Janabarh Foundation plans to use media tools such as television,
radio, and print ads as well as the internet to advertise environmental
problems in Armenia and to encourage and foster public awareness on
these issues. The first issue chosen was waste management, and will
focus on individual behavior patterns that can be modified to be more
sustainable and environmentally-friendly. We are currently seeking
funding for this project, and new partners are always welcome. You can
contact [email protected] or alternatively
[email protected] for more information.
Expect an announcement of the Kanach Janabarh website and further
activities soon!
CENN in Armenia Website
In recognition of the rapidly expanding nature of the CENN Armenia
office, it was decided to create a website specifically devoted to the
Armenian projects of CENN. Here will be hosted many interactive
activities of CENN, such as the internship program for local university
students and the environmental panel discussions presented in
partnership with the Environmental Conservation and Research Center
(ECRC) at AUA. This website is still under construction but should be
active within the next few months.
CENN in the future
In addition to the projects listed above currently being implemented,
future projects include the Caucasus Explorer Video Magazine project in
partnership with Bars Media Documentary Film Studio in Yerevan
(described in the last Bi-Annual progress report), an internship program
in the environmental field for local university students, a student
exchange program between Georgian , Armenian and Azeri students, and a
newsletter in each Caucasus country presenting both national and
regional environmental issues. If you have any ideas or would like to
collaborate with CENN on a project, please contact us at
[email protected]!
We look forward to hearing from you!
Best wishes,
Ursula Kazarian – CENN Armenia Country Director
[email protected]
Irina Kitiashvili – CENN Regional Coordinator
[email protected]
—
*******************************************
CENN INFO
Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN)
Tel: ++995 32 92 39 46
Fax: ++995 32 92 39 47
E-mail: [email protected]
URL:

Iranian president inaugurates 184 telecommunication projects
IRNA web site, Tehran
3 Aug 04
Tabriz, East Azarbayjan Province, 3 August: President Mohammad Khatami
here Monday 2 August inaugurated 184 telecommunication projects in
this northwestern province.
Over 20bn rials has been spent on the projects which include a major
one providing audio and visual telecommunication facilities between
Iran and Armenia through the use of optic fibres.
The project with a cost of over 4bn rials, covers a distance of 140 km
of which 71 km is within the Iranian territory.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the launching of the projects, the
president referred to the contract to have a second operator in
country’s telecommunications system as a very well-calculated and
valuable plan.
He said the contract will make it possible to offer an extra 5m
telephone lines within two years.
Pointing to the exclusive geo-strategic and geo-political situation of
Iran, Khatami described the country as the linking point of East and
West and said making investments in telecommunications and information
is very important and valuable.
Talking in the same ceremony, Minister of Communications and
Information Technology (CIT) Ahmad Mo’tamedi said his ministry was
aiming at updating the communications system in all parts of the
country.
He said 15,340,000 telephone lines were currently used by people while
3,450,000 cell phone numbers have been sold in the country so far.

ARMENIAN VETERANS DEMAND FREE FLATS
Noyan Tapan news agency
3 Aug 04
YEREVAN
Members of the Artsakh liberation movement went on an open-ended
sit-in in Yerablur today. The protesters are demanding that funds be
allocated from the budget so as to provide them with flats.
Armen Avetisyan, leader of the Armenian Aryan Union, told Noyan Tapan
that a commission of the Armenian Defence Ministry has prepared a
special list which says that the families of killed azatamartiks
(freedom fighters) and disabled azatamartiks must be provided with
flats. However, he said, the Armenian government has not started
allocating money for these purposes yet.
The protesters are demanding that the government and the National
Assembly pass a law on granting the status of volunteer azatamartiks
to people who fought in the front line for six and more months and
also to restore privileges and the rights of all the
azatamartiks. They want pensions paid to disabled azatamartiks of the
third degree to be equalled to pensions of warrant officers.
Avetisyan also said that the government and parliament have been
informed about the sit-in which will be halted only when an agreement
is reached between the protesters and the government.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERBAIJAN CONDEMNS ARMENIA’S MILITARY EXERCISES IN KARABAKH
ANS TV, Baku
3 Aug 04
The heads of the Armenian community of Karabakh and the Armenian armed
forces started joint military exercises in Nagornyy Karabakh
today. Reserve officers are also taking part in the exercises which
will continue until 12 August.
(Passage omitted: Russian news agency RIA is quoted)
We condemn these exercises as the aggressor country is staging them on
the occupied territory. We know the level of the Armenian armed
forces, and therefore, we know that the exercises will not be
successful, the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry press service has said.

ISLAMIC CONFERENCE CONDEMNS LOCAL POLLS IN BREAKAWAY KARABAKH
Turan news agency
3 Aug 04
BAKU
The secretary-general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference
(OIC), Abdelouahed Belkeziz, has sent a letter to the Azerbaijani
foreign minister, condemning the “local elections” in Nagornyy
Karabakh scheduled for 8 August.
The press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reports that in
his letter, the OIC head confirms the OIC resolutions demanding that
Armenia vacate the occupied Azerbaijani territories, including
Nagornyy Karabakh.
The letter says further that the “illegal elections” in Nagornyy
Karabakh will have a “negative” impact on a negotiated settlement to
the conflict.

AZERI, ARMENIAN LEADERS TO MEET IN SEPTEMBER SUMMIT OF CIS
Bilik Dunyasi news agency
3 Aug 04
BAKU
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will meet Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan in the Kazakh capital, Astana. The meeting will be joined by
Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the meeting will be
part of the CIS summit due in September.
Political circles in Azerbaijan explain Putin’s participation in the
meeting by Russia’s desire not to lag behind Turkey in resolving the
Karabakh conflict.
The main topic on the agenda of the Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian
presidents’ meeting will be regional stability. In addition to that,
the sides are expected to discuss new recommendations of the OSCE
Minsk Group.