Category: News

Czech News Agency
November 15, 2004
GROUP OF PEOPLE SMUGGLERS SENTENCED
PRAGUE, Nov 15 (CTK) – Fourteen people of a 16-member gang of people
smugglers were today convicted by the Prague 5 District Court and
received from suspended sentences to four years in prison.
According to the prosecutor, the group, led by Chechen man Ilyas
Muzayev, illegally transported over 1,000 refugees to Austria and the
Benelux countries between August 2002 and last October.
Ten men faced charges of criminal conspiracy and illegal border
crossing, while the rest only committed the latter crime, the court
ruled.
The sentences have not yet taken effect.
The highest, four-year penalty, was meted out for Muzayev and another
foreign organiser.
They also have to pay 400,000 crowns, or else they will have to serve
one more year in prison.
Three years in prison will have to be spent by three foreign members
of the gang, who also have to pay a fine of 250,000 to 300,000
crowns.
According to the police, the group, composed of Muzayev, a number of
Armenians, a Romanian, an Egyptian and Czech drivers and taxi
drivers, was linked with similar organisations in Austria and
Germany. At first, the people smugglers organised the transit of
displaced people from India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Egypt, while in
recent months they focused on the people from the former Soviet
Union.
The police said that when the group had been shadowed, it had
smuggled at least 1,500 migrants, earning roughly one million euros.
Along with accomplices from Austria and Germany, it may have smuggled
a total of 4,000 people for 2.5 million euros.
According to the Austrian police, the gang demanded about 1,000 euros
per head for its services.
pv/dr/vv

Racing Post
November 16, 2004, Tuesday
TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE
by ALASTAIR DOWN
DAVID ASHFORTH was most kind in last Saturday’s column when reviewing
my recent obituary in The Times, and having now been dead for three
weeks – I hope Martin Clunes did okay when standing in for me on
Channel 4 at Cheltenham – it is only fair to clear up a few points.
You could call this a message from beyond the grave to an old friend,
whose greying locks and penchant for buying his clothes from the
Distressed Gentlefolk’s Association suggest that he may already have
one be-sandalled foot in his own.
David mentioned that I had never referred to the occasion that I lost
an eye fighting at Sidi Barrani and was subsequently awarded the
Military Cross. Well, all I can say was that it was a thoroughly bad
business. No quarter was asked or given in the desert and Rommel’s
Afrika Corps were no pushover, but I would just like to say that in
fact I lost my eye in a separate incident while staying at the famed
Gezira Sporting Club in Cairo.
As for the MC, I never spoke about it but used the thing for many
years as it looked uncannily like the old members’ badge at Ludlow
and over several decades it saved me a packet.
During the war, the Gezira Sporting Club was one of the best in the
world with polo, golf, tennis, squash, swimming pool, bowls, croquet,
cricket and football; although in those days we called it soccer, of
course.
Above all, the Gezira had a very fine racecourse and there was
nothing better after weeks on patrol near Mersa Matruh than to get
back to the club, have a cold beer, a shower and then head off to the
course for lunch and a punt.
Cairo was a ruinously expensive city in the war, but luckily a few of
us had befriended a very astute and rather civilised trainer called
Mustapha Plott, who knew the time of day.
Young Mustapha had an insatiable appetite for Wrens, though he was no
bird watcher, and after we introduced him to a particularly obliging
and well-upholstered one called Joy, who hailed from Leamington Spa –
and could have heated all the waters therein – life was a bowl of
cherries.
The sight of Joy unconfined must have been spectacular and Ahmed
certainly thought so. He marked our card most accurately and in May
’42 we had it off big time at Gezira when he trained the winners of
the six-furlong sprint and mile handicap on the same afternoon.
I backed both and had a greedy double with the result that we made an
absolute killing, and so it was off to The Golden Horn, a very
exclusive establishment run by an ancient and overweight Armenian
lady called Grizelda who, as luck would have it, always seemed to
have at least 20 stunning female cousins staying with her.
IT WAS as I came downstairs next morning that I slipped on an empty
Bollinger bottle, took a shocking tumble and put out my right eye on
a bronze statue of Aphrodite at the base of the stairs. Such is life,
I suppose.
For some years I affected a black eyepatch but eventually, in the
early Fifties, opted for a glass one as it was much more fun to whip
out at dinner parties, in much the same way as Fergie Sutherland used
to take his false leg off at dances. It never failed.
David referred to my chairmanship of BP and discovery of oil in
Alaska, both of which I am rather proud of.
I had gone to Alaska having fallen in love with an Inuit princess,
who I had met when she was serving behind the bar at the George Inn
at Stamford in Lincolnshire.
One day, when dynamiting out a new latrine outside her wooden hut
hundreds of miles north of Anchorage, I pressed the plunger and when
the ice and snow had settled, there was this huge puddle of black
stuff – and the rest is history, profit and Wild Bean Cafes.
You mentioned, in passing, my marriage to Bunny Mellon, who certainly
lived up to her surname and didn’t get her nickname as a result of
having long ears. A marvellous woman and I am proud to have served
under her.
You will be pleased to hear, David, that being up here is very
pleasant. There is no virtual racing or prunes, the two things I
could not abide down on Earth.
All the stewards’ inquiries go your way and nothing gets beaten in a
photo. I have never been happier and have even managed to track down
some of Grizelda’s cousins, who haven’t aged a bit.
Grizelda herself has, sadly, been relegated to the other place. Life
is great. Heavenly, in fact.

Associated Press Worldstream
November 16, 2004 Tuesday 7:50 AM Eastern Time
Minority demands for rights calls into question Turkish national
identity
by SELCAN HACAOGLU; Associated Press Writer
ANKARA, Turkey
As a child, Hrant Dink dreamed of becoming a detective, a hope that
was shattered by Turkey’s unwritten rule that Jews and Christians may
not join the police, the Foreign Ministry or become officers in the
military.
But Dink’s dream is now at the center of a growing debate in Turkey
over minority rights sparked after European Union officials
recommended that the bloc begin membership talks with Turkey but
insisted that the country must improve its treatment of minorities.
The debate, which is being carried out in newspapers, on television
and in the streets, calls into question the very definition of what
it is to be a Turk, a national identity that many regard as the glue
that holds the country together.
Is being Turkish a matter of ethnicity, religion, or simply
citizenship?
The controversy is so emotional that nationalists have been accusing
supporters of minority rights of “treason” and attempting to break
apart the country, while liberals are saying that nationalists are
“violating freedom of thought.”
At the heart of the conflict is whether all of the nation’s Muslims
must consider themselves Turks, regardless of their backgrounds, and
whether non-Muslim minorities can have equal rights.
For some eight decades, the Turkish state insisted that all of the
nation’s Muslims were Turks. Kurds, for example, were considered
Turks and speaking Kurdish was illegal until 1991. Non-Muslims like
Dink – an Armenian Christian journalist – have been blocked from key
offices, including the national intelligence agency, amid questions
of their loyalty.
The debate almost came to blows this month at a press conference
called by an official human rights body. A man grabbed a statement
out of the hand of a professor and tore it up after the academic
suggested equal treatment for minorities, including Muslim groups.
“We don’t recognize this report, it is aimed at dividing the
country,” Fahrettin Yokus shouted after he ripped the statement into
pieces. “We are also against demands by the EU that are threatening
our unity.”
Ibrahim Kaboglu, chairman of the rights body, which was created by
the Prime Ministry, was so shaken that he asked for police protection
saying that he could be targeted by extremists.
“What the EU is saying is that we should treat all subcultures
equally,” said Baskin Oran, who prepared the minority report for the
prime minister’s office. “Civilization is multicultural.”
Nationalists quickly petitioned the prosecutor’s office to file
treason charges against Kaboglu and several other academics and
activists who signed the statement that he read.
The European Union report said that Turkey, “has to comply with basic
EU standards, which include the protection of minorities.”
It also urged Turkey to grant more rights to ethnic Kurds and
recognize Alawites, a religious sect rooted in Islam, as an ethnic
minority, explosive suggestions in a nation where children open the
school day by saying “Happy is the man who says ‘I am a Turk.”‘
More than a quarter of Turkey’s 71 million people are either Kurds,
Alawites or share both identities.
“The nation is a whole. It cannot be seen as made up of pieces,” Gen.
Ilker Basbug, deputy chief of the military said, reading from a
statement about whether Muslim groups could be considered minorities.
“If it is seen so … this would open the way to the breakup of the
state.”
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer dismissed the debate over minority
rights as “destructive” and reminded people that the constitution
states that “everyone bound to the Turkish state through the bond of
citizenship is a Turk.”
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul ruled out any official recognition of
Muslim minorities.
“We shall never accept things such as this is minority, that is
majority which could bring political consequences,” Gul told the
Cumhuriyet newspaper in an interview.
Gul, however, said the government was trying to address “possible
snags” in granting rights to non-Muslims.
The issue goes back to the founding of the Turkish state in 1923 on
the ashes of the Ottoman Empire, a theocratic state that considered
all Muslims within its territory as subjects and Jews and Christians
as protected minorities.
The new Turkish state that was created was based on Turkish
nationalism and its founders considered all Muslims within its
territory – regardless of their backgrounds – as Turks. That avoided
tensions between Anatolian Turks and the hundreds of thousands of
Ottoman refugees from places like Greece, Bulgaria and Arab countries
who fled to Turkey as the empire disintegrated.
Many Turkish Muslims continued to regard Christians and Jews as
foreigners and guests in their new state and there was deep
suspicions toward Greeks and Armenians, the main Christian
communities, who rose up against the Ottoman Empire as it collapsed.
Those uprisings led to the forced expulsion of most of Anatolia’s
Greeks as part of a population exchange with Greece. They also were
the trigger for one of the darkest chapters of modern Turkish
history: The mass killings of Armenians, which Armenians say amounted
to genocide. Turkey denies the genocide allegation.
The new definition of “Turkishness” was strictly enforced and there
were repeated rebellions by Kurds, a group that dominates the
southeast and speaks a language related to Persian.
Since 1984 the Turkish army has been battling autonomy seeking
Kurdish rebels in the southeast, a fight that has left 37,000 dead.
Many Turks fear that recognizing Kurds or Alawites as minorities
could lead to the disintegration of the state into ethnic enclaves.
They also continue to suspect that Greeks and Armenians – who
together number about 65,000 – might not be loyal citizens. There are
a total of 130,000 non-Muslims in Turkey, making up less than 0.2
percent of Turkey’s population.
Sectarian clashes between Alawites and Sunnis – who form about 80
percent of the country – took place in the late 1970s and again in
the 1990s. Many Alawites say they are discriminated against by Sunnis
and that compulsory religion classes in schools have a Sunni
curriculum. Many Sunnis consider Alawites to be heretics.
For Dink, the issue was just about becoming a detective.
“In my childhood, I dreamed of becoming a homicide detective. I would
capture the murderers quickly,” Dink said on private NTV television.
“But I was barred from becoming a detective in this country because I
am seen as a security concern.”
Dink said he was sad to see that Turkey was only recognizing its
“multicultural identity and differences” due to foreign pressure.
“Why don’t we solve our internal problems on our own?” he asked.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARKA News Agency
Nov 15 2004
Armenian Foreign Ministry expressed condolences to Ashot Kochartan,
the Press Secretary of RA President in connection with the decease of
his mother
Members of Ago Group meet the Armenian delegation in PACE
*********************************************************************
ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY EXPRESSED CONDOLENCES TO ASHOT KOCHARTAN,
THE PRESS SECRETARY OF RA PRESIDENT IN CONNECTION WITH THE DECEASE OF
HIS MOTHER
YEREVAN, November 15. /ARKA/. The RA Foreign Ministry expressed
condolences to Ashot Kocharyan, the Press Secretary of RA President
on the part of the managerial personnel of RA Foreign Ministry and
diplomatic representations of Armenia abroad in connection with the
decease of his mother, Lora Kocharyan, according to the Department of
Information and Press of RA Foreign Ministry. The press release
states that Lora Kocharyan died of a serious illness on the night of
November 15. L.V.-0 –
*********************************************************************
MEMBERS OF AGO GROUP MEET THE ARMENIAN DELEGATION IN PACE
YEREVAN, November 15. /ARKA/. The monitoring group of the European
Council Committee of Ministers, `Ago Group’ at the head of the German
Ambassador in the Council of Europe Roland Vegener met the Armenian
delegation to PACE in RA NA on November 13. According to RA NA Press
Service Department, the delegation included the Ambassadors of
Switzerland, Sweden and Turkey to the Council of Europe. The resident
representative of Armenia in the Council of Europe Christian
Ter-Stepanian participated in the meeting.
The Head of the Armenian delegation in PACE, Vice -Speaker of RA NA
Tigran Torosyan introduced the procedure of compliance with the
commitments in details, as well as the schedule of adoption of some
laws. It was noted that the Election Code was adopted in the first
reading, and joint conclusions of experts from Venetian commission
and those from OSCE were received. All of 30 suggestions, contained
in the conclusion, are admissible for Armenia, according to Torosyan.
At the beginning of December, discussions of draft laws with the
participation of experts from Venetian commission and OSCE are
planned to be held in Yerevan. After that, the draft laws will be
discussed in the Parliament in the second reading.
Speaking of the process of constitutional reforms, Torosyan noted
that three drafts of the Constitution are under consideration. All of
the drafts are sent to the Venetian Commission for expertise.
Irrespective of the package of constitutional amendments submitted to
the referendum in 2003, the present package of amendments will
undergo three readings in the Parliament. The new referendum on
constitutional amendments is supposed to be held in June 2005.
“Ago Group” noted the importance of cooperation between the
opposition and the coalition around two main documents. Expressing
his consent about it, Torosyan noted that the political majority
stated of their readiness to approve constitutional reforms and the
Election Code by consensus, which is rejected by the opposition.
Nevertheless, according to the participants of the meeting, it’s not
late to begin cooperation in the framework of two documents of
special importance for the country.
`Ago Group’ was founded in Jan 2001 simultaneously with Armenia’s
becoming a member of the Council of Europe. Ago Group is engaged in
monitoring of the procedure of Armenia’s complying with the
commitments to the Council of Europe and it operates in the framework
of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. The group is
coordinated by the Ambassador of Italy to the Council of Europe
Pietro Ercole Ago. The last visit of Ago Group to Armenia was in
February 2004. A.H. -0–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRESS RELEASE
November 15, 2004
Contact: Sarkis Kotanjian
818.243.6222
[email protected]

Telethon 2004 Domestic and International Broadcast Info

Glendale, CA (November 15) – Armenia Fund (AFI) announced today both
domestic and international broadcast viewing information for its
annual Thanksgiving Day fundraising event – Telethon 2004 Make It
Happen – scheduled for Thursday, November 25, 2004 from 8:00 a.m. to
8:00 p.m.
Telethon 2004, live from Glendale, California, is a 12-hour event
airing throughout the United States, Europe, South America, the Middle
East, the CIS and Armenia. Telethon 2004’s goal is to raise funds to
complete the remaining 56 miles of the North-South “Backbone” Highway
in Karabakh. Upon completion, the US$25 million, 105-mile highway will
link 150 towns and villages and provide crucial economic, trade and
development opportunities.Telethon 2004 will also provide continued
assistance in the areas of health care, education and infrastructure
development in the Republic of Armenia.
The following is a list of US/Canada broadcast information. All
broadcast information is listed in viewer local time. Refer to local
listings for detailed information, or call AFI at 800.888.8897.
Berkeley, CA
Comcast Ch. 8 12pm-6pm
Boston, MA
Game Show Ch. 8pm-11pm
Denver, CO
Comcast Ch. 15 12pm-6pm
Detroit, MI
WPXD Ch. 31 4pm-6pm
Chicago, IL
WJYS Ch. 34/62 7pm-10pm
Fresno, CA
KJEO Ch. 32 8am-8pm
Comcast Ch. 14 8am-8pm
Houston, TX
KTBU Ch. 55 12pm-6pm
Time Warner 55 12pm-6pm
Las Vegas, NV
Cox Cable Ch. 48 12pm-7pm
Los Angeles, CA
KSCI Ch. 18 8am-8pm
Oakland, CA
Comcast Ch. 8 12pm-6pm
Milwaukee, WI
Time Warner 95 7pm-10pm
Minneapolis, MN
Time Warner 99 10am-10pm
New York Tri State
WMBC Ch. 58 2pm-6pm
Philadelphia, PA
WPPX Ch. 61 4pm-6pm
Providence, RI
WPXQ Ch. 69 4pm-6pm
Salt Lake City, UT
KJZZ Ch. 14 9am-1pm
Comcast Ch 14 9am-1pm
San Diego, CA
KSCI Ch. 18 8am-8pm
San Francisco, CA
KTSF Ch. 26 12pm-6pm
San Jose, CA
Comcast Ch. 8 12pm-6pm
Seattle, WA
KBCB Ch. 24 12pm-8pm
Comcast Ch 14 12pm-8pm
St. Louis, MO
Charter Ch. 8 11am-6:30pm
Vancouver, BC
KBCB Ch. 24 12pm-8pm
West Palm Beach, FL
WHDT Ch. 59 8pm-11am

International viewers in Europe, the CIS, the Middle East and portions
of South America (Argentina) may watch and participate in Telethon
2004 via a live satellite feed from Armenia’s H1 TV Channel from 7:00
pm – 7:00a.m. (Armenia time – Greenwich Mean Time plus three).
Viewers may also watch Telethon 2004 on both MGN/Paradise and Horizon
Armenian TV via cable and/or satellite television. Telethon 2004 will
also be available in full-motion web-cast on
Internet users will be able to view and make
secure contributions online.
The broadcast will feature live entertainment, interviews with
numerous celebrities and political leaders, development and
construction footage from Armenia and Karabakh and stories of
individuals impacted by AFI projects.
For more information on Telethon 2004, call AFI at 800.888.8897 or
visit
Armenia Fund, Inc., a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation, is
the US West coast affiliate of the `Hayastan’ All-Armenia Fund
(HAAF). Established in 1994 to facilitate humanitarian assistance to
Armenia and Karabakh, HAAF has administered over $100 million in
humanitarian, rehabilitation and construction aid through the united
efforts of Armenian communities internationally.
###041110

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
11/16/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) ARF Reps Attend Socialist International Council, Women's Bureau 2) Paris Rally to Demand Vote on Turkey's EU Accession 3) Kocharian Inspects Armenian Frontline Troops 4) No Armenian Electricity to Nakhichevan 1) ARF Reps Attend Socialist International Council, Women's Bureau YEREVAN (ARF press office)--Representatives of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) participated in Socialist International's (SI) Council meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, hosted by the African National Congress (ANC). On November 15 and 16, leaders and delegates from 100 member parties and organizations from 70 countries, gathered to discuss the Council's main theme, "The Progressive Agenda: priorities for our movement today." The gathering of the Council, SI's highest decision-making body during the inter-Congress period, underlined the commitment of SI to address the concerns of the African people and SI's strong presence in the continent. Representing the sole party from the South Caucasus, ARF Bureau member and the organization's representative in Socialist International Mario Nalbandian, and ARF Armenia member Maria Titizian, also participated in the three panel debates. Titizian partook in Socialist International Women's Bureau meeting: "Women Speak out on The UN Millennium Development Goals," which took place November 12 and 13. The Women's Bureau addressed UN development goals, its effects on the eradication of poverty and hunger, and examined means to developing global partnerships. At the heart of discussions was the dire need to promote gender equality and empower women to occupy center stage in the development of the human race. The meeting also reviewed increases in gender-based violence--from sexual abuse to systematic rape, forced pregnancies, and continuous violation of women's rights. Titizian had the opportunity to present ARF Armenia's political and social undertakings to empower the women of that country. On the eve of the Council, SI's leadership conducted a working meeting with the President of the Republic of South Africa and of the ANC, Thabo Mbeki, to discuss SI's Africa priorities, evaluate the outcome of US elections, and review current Mid East developments. The plenary session of the Council opened with SI President António Guterres's address that defined certain tasks and priorities for social democracy. On Monday, November 15, in the afternoon and on Tuesday, November 16, in the morning, the panel discussions took place with a broad representation of participants. On each subject addressed by the panels, the Council agreed on specific resolutions reflecting the outcome of the debates. The Council also addressed the urgent and critical developments in the Middle East and the serious situation in Côte d'Ivoire. The SI Secretary General gave a report on the activities of Socialist International and presented an outline of the organization's work for the forthcoming months. "Our task, as we adjourn here today, is to return to our towns and cities, to our countries, and to our regions--to pursue with ever greater vigor and confidence the program of progressive action we have deliberated on," stressed ANC Secretary General of the Kgalema Motlanthe in closing the meeting. On the sidelines of the Council, the ARF representatives were both able to hold numerous meetings with members of various organizations to review issues of concern to Armenia and Armenians. 2) Paris Rally to Demand Vote on Turkey's EU Accession PARIS--French-Armenians will hold a rally Wednesday at the Palais Bourbon, home to the French National Assembly, to demand that the country's Parliament vote on Turkey's accession to the European Union. The rally has the support of the French-Armenian Coordinating Council and is being organized by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, the Armenian Democratic League (Ramgavar party), and the Hai Tahd Committee of France. The National Assembly on October 14 had discussed the issue of Turkish accession--but did not hold a vote, despite the demand of a large number of political parties and parliamentarians to do so. The French government, particularly President Jacques Chirac, opposed such a vote, fearing that a majority of the Assembly, including Chirac's own party members, might reject Turkish accession. That result would have undermined Chirac's authority and likely isolated France within Europe. The French-Armenian rally on Wednesday is scheduled for exactly a month before the European Union's December 17 summit, which will set the date on when the EU would begin formal accession talks with Turkey. At the rally, scores of French parliamentarians are expected to cast symbolic votes as a sign of protest against the denial of their right to vote in the National Assembly regarding Turkish accession. They will also demand that in the next month a formal vote actually be held in the Assembly. The vast majority of French voters are opposed to Turkey's accession to the European Union, and rally organizers hope to put pressure on President Chirac to heed public opinion. They are also seeking to make Turkey's recognition of the Armenian genocide a precondition for Turkish entry into the EU. 3) Kocharian Inspects Armenian Frontline Troops YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--President Robert Kocharian conducted a four-day inspection of Armenian troops stationed along the volatile frontline with Azerbaijan, ordering their commanders to further boost their combat-readiness, his office revealed on Tuesday. A statement by the presidential press service said Kocharian, accompanied by Defense Minister Serge Sarkisian, visited "a number of frontier army bases" from November 9-12. "The purpose of the visit was to take a close look at the combat and technical readiness of the units, the implementation of training programs and social conditions of the personnel," the statement said. It added that Kocharian inspected Armenian defense fortifications and inaugurated a new "army barracks complex." There was no word on the precise location of the Armenian army positions visited. The statement did say that while Kocharian was largely satisfied with what he saw, he urged top army commanders "not to content themselves with the achieved results" and to continue to strengthen their troops. 4) No Armenian Electricity to Nakhichevan BAKU (Combined Sources)Armenia's proposal to provide electricity to the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan was skimmed over during a ministerial conference on energy cooperation between the European Union (EU) and the Caspian region, held in Baku on November 13. Energy and fuel ministers from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Moldova, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine, joined representatives of the European Commission, international financial structures, and the TRACECA program to examine potential for cooperation. Pointing to the importance of expanding collaboration utilizing the Caspian's hydrocarbon resources, Hugues Mingarelli of the EU Directorate General for External Relations noted that with the addition of 10 new states to the union, the organization's borders have moved much closer to the countries of the Caspian and Black Sea regions. In presenting Armenia's energy potential, energy ministry official Levon Vartanian offered to supply electricity to the historically Armenian region of Nakhichevan, which was forcibly attached to Soviet Azerbaijan in 1921, and subsequently cleansed of its entire Armenian population. An exclave of Azerbaijan, Nakhichevan borders Iran and Turkey on the south and Armenia on the north. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.

ARMENIA THIS WEEK
Monday, November 15, 2004
In this issue:
U.S.-Armenian security cooperation
Millennium Challenge program
Azeri propaganda and military build-up
Economist on Armenian Genocide and Turkey

ARMENIA CONFIRMS PLEDGE TO U.S. AMID FRESH ANTI-ARMENIAN TERRORISM IN IRAQ
Armenian leaders reaffirmed their commitment to contribute to the
U.S.-led forces in Iraq despite anti-Armenian terrorism in Iraq,
significant domestic opposition and delays associated with rotation of
the U.S.-allied forces out of Iraq. Last week, a car bomb went off
outside the Armenian school in Baghdad. While no casualties were
reported, the school which has 200 students has been closed
indefinitely. Iraqi Armenian community leaders have appealed to the
Armenian government against sending servicemen that would be seen as
helping U.S. forces, fearing new, more deadly attacks. While sharing
these concerns, Armenian officials argued that Armenia could not expect
to benefit from stability accorded by the U.S., without contributing to
it even in modest ways.
Peacekeeping and other cooperation issues were high on the agenda of
Armenia’s Chief of General Staff General Mikael Harutiunian who just
completed a week-long visit to the United States. Gen. Harutiunian held
talks with the Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff General Richard
Myers and other Department of Defense officials. He also visited the
National Defense University in Washington, DC, the U.S. Joint Forces
Command and NATO Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, Virginia,
U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Florida and the state of Kansas whose
National Guard is cooperating with the Armenian military. During the
visit, the U.S. awarded Gen. Harutiunian with the Legion of Merit, a
prestigious U.S. medal given to foreign officials and officers who have
made a significant contribution to bilateral relations.
Earlier this year, the Armenian government made a decision to send a
military transportation company, engineers and medics to Iraq, a move
that must receive parliamentary endorsement. In an interview last week,
Prime Minister Andranik Margarian said that the government has not yet
requested parliamentary approval due to recently announced changes in
the Polish-led international division where the Armenian unit is due to
serve. Poland, which after the U.S. and Britain has the third largest
force in Iraq, is planning to scale back its deployment, while Hungarian
forces, which are part of the Polish-led division, are due to be fully
withdrawn. (Sources: Armenia This Week 8-2, 10-4; Armenian Embassy in
U.S. 11-9; R&I Report 11-4; Nezavisimaya Gazeta 11-11; RFE/RL Arm.
Report 11-11)

ARMENIA’S MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE AID ELIGIBILITY RENEWED
The U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) last week renewed
Armenia’s eligibility to receive Fiscal Year (FY) 2005 funds under the
performance-based foreign assistance program. Armenia and Georgia remain
the only former Soviet countries eligible and their governments’ reform
efforts are considered sufficiently advanced to qualify under MCC rules.
None of the $1 billion slated for FY 2004 have been disbursed since
Armenia and fourteen other countries were first selected last May.
Armenia’s Finance Ministry submitted a draft of its proposal to the MCC
last month and is currently updating it with input from non-government
experts. MCC’s Stephen Groff, who was in Yerevan this Monday, said the
Corporation urges all eligible countries to take their time and prepare
quality proposals. (Sources: ; Armenia This Week 5-7,
9-20; Noyan Tapan 11-15)

NO PROGRESS ON NK, AS AZERBAIJAN DUE TO STEP UP “INFORMATION WAR”
Armenia’s President Robert Kocharian this week expressed pessimism over
the potential progress in talks with Azerbaijan on the future status of
Karabakh. He said that Azerbaijan’s refusal to negotiate directly with
Karabakh’s duly elected leadership or to work towards building mutual
confidence in the region might present insurmountable obstacles for the
peace process. Last week, Azerbaijan again declined Armenia’s offer to
sell electricity to Nakhichevan, the Azeri-controlled exclave
experiencing severe energy shortages. Instead, Azerbaijan is stepping up
what its officials have described as “information war” over Karabakh.
Benefiting from high oil prices, Azerbaijan is also increasing its
military spending, budgeting close to $250 million for defense next
year. Armenia’s defense budget for 2005 is projected at just under $100
million. Karabakh Army Commander General Seyran Ohanian said this week
that while the Azeri army was continuing to improve and was hiring
outside advisors, NKR had the necessary capability to monitor and
balance these efforts and, should it become necessary, undertake
operations across the Line of Contact.
Azeri officials last week dismissed U.S., French and Russian criticism
of its efforts to force a debate on the Karabakh conflict in the United
Nations’ General Assembly (UN GA) with support from Turkey, Pakistan and
other members of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC). Meeting
last week with Ambassadors of OIC states accredited in Baku, Azeri
President Ilham Aliyev thanked them for their support against Armenia.
Aliyev is also reaching out to African countries to win their support.
According to an investigative report in an independent Azeri news
magazine, Aliyev, following unexpected rendezvous’ with Presidents of
Djibouti and Gambia, last month hosted the Ivory Coast’s embattled
President Laurent Gbagbo. According to the magazine’s sources, Gbagbo
flew into Baku to discuss arms purchases there in circumvention of UN
sanctions.
Aliyev’s Yeni Azerbaycan Party and Parliament member Samed Seyidov,
speaking in Washington last week, attempted to justify his government’s
tactics by claiming that Azeris displaced in the Karabakh war were
“pushing” his government to be more aggressive. He then repeated his
government’s propaganda figure of “1 million” displaced and presented a
fictitious map showing Azerbaijan’s entire territory covered in refugee
camps.
In fact, Azerbaijan’s own statistics show that the number of its
internally displaced (IDPs) is well below half a million. Tens of
thousands of them were long kept in squalid conditions to be showcased
to visiting foreign delegations. U.S. officials have urged the Azeri
government to “allow IDPs to leave squalid camps, integrate locally, and
begin building a new life.” Finally last month, the Azeri Deputy Prime
Minister Ali Hassanov announced that the five remaining IDP camps are
due to be closed next year. (Sources: Armenia This Week 6-17-03, 6-14,
7-19, 11-1; Azerbaijan Central Election Committee Oct. 03; Monitor
10-23; Regnum.ru 10-29; Day.az 10-30; U.S. Mission to OSCE 11-4; Arminfo
11-8, 9, 12, 13, 15; Azertag.com 11-10; R&I Report 11-5; RFE/RL Armenia
Report 11-15)
Visit the Armenia This Week archive dating back to 1997 at
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<; ry.cfm?story_id=3379889 The Economist November 11, 2004 Human rights in Turkey Haunted by the past A human-rights commission embarrasses the government ANKARA - "HAPPY is he who calls himself a Turk!" That breezy slogan, emblazoned on mountainsides and offices from the Aegean to the Euphrates, was devised by Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, as he set about forging a fresh identity for his people. The idea was that former subjects of the Ottoman empire - whose native language might be Arabic, Albanian or Kurdish-would find a new togetherness as citizens of a unitary republic. And in case people hesitated to embrace the joys of Turkishness, there were harsh penalties for those who asserted any other sort of identity. For most of the past 80 years, these principles have been sacrosanct. But if Turkey is to have any hope of joining the European Union, some taboo topics of history, identity and language must be discussed openly, without fear of prosecution. In a burst of zeal three years ago, the government-led by former Islamists-set up a panel to take a broad look at questions of human rights and identity, and to suggest how things could be improved. But Turkey's masters got more than they expected. The board's report, released this month, said things that were almost unsayable, triggering a sharp backlash. For example, the report implies that if the Lausanne treaty of 1923-the basis of the Turkish state and its foreign relations-had been fully implemented, bloodshed between Turks and Kurds might have been avoided. To justify this argument, which is explosive in Turkey, however mild it might seem elsewhere, the report cites article 39 of the treaty, which allows Turkish nationals to use "any language they wish in commerce, in public and private meetings and all types of press and publication." It also says that articles which supposedly protect non-Muslim minorities have been read too narrowly: as well as covering Jews, Armenians and Greeks, these articles should have been applied, for example, to Syrian Orthodox Christians. More controversially still, it suggests replacing the term "Turk" with a more inclusive word to cover all ethnicities and faiths, such as "Turkiyeli"-"of Turkey". It was more than some Turks could bear. Even as Ibrahim Kaboglu, the jurist who heads the board, was reading the report at a press conference, a fellow member snatched it and tore it into shreds. Both Mr Kaboglu and Baskin Oran, a political scientist who wrote the report, have been bombarded with threatening phone calls and mail. "Fraternal blood will be spilled," warned one. Another called for a military coup. Prosecutors in Ankara are investigating claims that both academics may have committed treason. Ilker Basbug, a top general, has joined the fray, saying Turkey's unity should not be tampered with. The government, frightened by the reaction, has washed its hands of the report and denied commissioning it. It is possible, though unlikely, says Husnu Ondul, a human-rights lawyer, that the two authors may be prosecuted under an article of the new penal code approved in September, which provides for up to ten years' jail for those who engage in unspecified "activities" against the "national interest". What might such activities be? In a footnote, the law deems "anti-national" anyone who advocates withdrawing Turkish troops from Cyprus, or terming "genocide" the killing of hundreds of thousands of Armenians in 1915. If the aim was to stifle discussion of this second issue, it failed: at a conference in Venice last month, historians from all countries involved took a broader, more cool-headed look at the 1915 tragedy than would be possible in Turkey-now or, it seems, any time soon. And what about the 100,000 Turkish-Cypriots who voted (vainly) in April for a UN plan that would have removed most Turkish troops from Cyprus: was that a crime?

Witness Against Thatcher’s Son Recants
By RODRIGO ANGUE NGEUMA MBA
.c The Associated Press
MALABO, Equatorial Guinea (AP) – The prime witness in an alleged coup
plot in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea repudiated his confession Tuesday,
saying it was coerced by interrogators who threatened him with death.
Equatorial Guinea now intends to seek the extradition of the most
prominent figure in the case – Mark Thatcher, the 51-year-old son of
former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, a legal official
close to the prosecution told The Associated Press.
Thatcher is charged as an alleged bankroller in the plot, defense
attorney Fabian Nsue Nguema told reporters.
However, no new charges were announced in court Tuesday, when the coup
trial resumed after a two-month break. Thatcher’s lawyer maintains his
innocence.
Equatorial Guinea already has charged 19 Africans and Armenians as
alleged mercenaries in the purported conspiracy to overthrow the
regime of President Teodoro Obiang. The government claims Thatcher and
other, mostly British financiers intended to install an exiled
opposition figure, Severo Moto, as the figurehead leader of Africa’s
No. 3 oil-producing nation.
Attorney General Jose Olo Obono closed arguments Tuesday by renewing
his request for the death penalty against his own top witness, South
African arms dealer Nick du Toit.
Du Toit is accused of leading an advance team for the alleged plot,
foiled in March when South African intelligence exposed the alleged
conspiracy, leading to the arrests of scores of suspected mercenaries
here and at a stopover point in Zimbabwe.
Former British special forces member Simon Mann – accused by
Equatorial Guinea of being a go-between connecting bankrollers to
mercenaries – was convicted by Zimbabwe in September with 67 others on
weapons and other charges.
Du Toit, testifying in shackles throughout the trial, has outlined
alleged details of the plot and meetings with Mann, Thatcher and
others.
He has insisted his 18 co-defendants here knew nothing of any plot.
On Tuesday, he testified his confession was coerced.
Police interrogators “threatened to kill me if I did not maintain the
account of attempted coup d’etat,” du Toit said.
“If anyone has evidence of a coup attempt, they should show the
evidence,” du Toit added.
His co-defendants, all of whom denied knowledge of a plot, showed the
court what they said were scars of torture when the trial opened in
August.
Thatcher was arrested at his home in South Africa in August as the
trial was in its first weeks. Prosecutors suspended it soon after,
saying they wanted to review emerging evidence that linked Thatcher
and others to the case.
Information Minister Alfonso Nsue Mokuy referred questions about new
charges or Thatcher’s extradition to Obono, the attorney
general. Calls to Obono’s phone went unanswered.
Thatcher attorney Allan Bruce Brand in Cape Town, South Africa,
declined comment.
Equatorial Guinea’s legal team claims it has evidence connecting
Thatcher to the alleged plot, including an aircraft leased by a
company in which he allegedly had a joint venture.
The aircraft was used to fly Moto and some financiers from the Canary
Islands to Bamako, Mali, on March 7, allegedly positioning them for
the coup, the legal official close to the government said.
Seven other people besides Thatcher have been newly charged, Nguema
told reporters. He said they include exiled opposition figures.
Associated Press writers Ellen Knickmeyer and Nafi Diouf in Dakar,
Senegal, and Terry Leonard in Johannesburg, South Africa, contributed
to this report.
11/16/04 15:25 EST

US plans prompt Iran to improve relations with Azerbaijan – Baku paper
Ayna, Baku
16 Nov 04

Text of Sumarinli report by Azerbaijani newspaper Ayna on 16 November
headlined “The US threat brings Iran and Azerbaijan closer” and
subheaded “Tehran’s objective is to eliminate the possibility of
Americans using Azerbaijan’s territory against Iran”
The US choice of Iran as the next target after Iraq has prompted
Tehran to review its foreign policy priorities. Experts reckon that
this is the reason behind Iran’s efforts at rebuilding bilateral
relations with neighbouring countries. This mainly means resolving the
existing problems with Azerbaijan and Turkey and turning the two
countries into Iran’s partners in the resolution of certain issues.
Azerbaijan is regarded as the main transit country for US strikes
against Tehran. Recent reports in local and Western mass media about
stationing mobile American forces in Azerbaijan were bound to irritate
Tehran.
Some experts do not rule out that Iran may soon display a “warmer
attitude” to Azerbaijan regarding the Karabakh issue. This probably is
the only way for Iran to turn Azerbaijan into its ally. However,
nobody has any doubts about the longevity of such an “attitude”.
There was a telephone conversation between Iranian President Sayyid
Mohammad Khatami and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev last
week [on 13 November]. Khatami congratulated Aliyev on the holiday of
Ramadan [Id al-Fitr], the president’s press service has
reported. Bilateral relations have thrived in recent years in all
spheres, the sides noted during the meeting. The presidents described
the existing political dialogue between the countries as satisfactory
and said that effective steps were taken to implement economic
projects.
The visit of Khatami to Baku has given “strong” impetus to
Azerbaijan-Iran relations, Aliyev said. Khatami, in turn, confirmed
that he invites Aliyev to pay an official visit to Iran. Khatami hoped
that the visit will take place soon and congratulated Aliyev on the
opening of the Azerbaijani consulate in Tabriz. Aliyev thanked Khatami
and the sides discussed some other topics of mutual interest.
On the next day [14 November], Lt-Gen Elcin Quliyev, head of
Azerbaijan’s State Border Service, received the Iranian ambassador to
Azerbaijan, Afshar Soleymani. IRNA news agency reports that the
ambassador informed Quliyev of Tehran’s willingness to expand
cooperation with Azerbaijan in border regions. Soleymani advocated
facilitation of Iranian and Azeri nationals’ movement through the two
countries’ borders, the agency said. “We welcome any activity which
suits the interests of both countries,” Soleymani said. He also
thanked the Azerbaijani State Border Service for preventing smuggling
to Iran.
In turn, Quliyev said that Baku is ready to expand border cooperation
with Iran. During the conversation the sides touched on illegal border
crossings and smuggling.

IAGS Energy Security
Institute for the Analysis of Global Security
Nov 16 2004
A strategic approach to pipeline security
The most important infrastructure project in the Caucasus,
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline, is about to be completed.
Next year, the 1,000 mile long $3 billion pipeline, passing through
the territories of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, will be able to
export up to 1 million barrels a day of crude oil from the
Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli offshore oil fields in the Caspian Sea
(reserves of 4.3 billion barrels) to the Western markets. Along with
the currently existing Baku-Supsa (Georgian port on the Black sea)
oil pipeline, BTC will be a valuable tool for reducing Western
dependence on Middle Eastern energy and will serve as a geopolitical
binder of the Caucasus to the Europe.
Aside from BTC, a consortium of Western energy companies has already
started the construction of the South Caucasus Gas Pipeline, which
will enable the export of natural gas from the large gas field of
`Shah Deniz’ in the Caspian sea through Azerbaijan and Georgia to the
Turkish city of Erzurum. It will be $1 billion worth, 425 mile long
pipeline and will have the capacity to export up to 7 billion cubic
meters of gas (if upgraded even double that volume).
Given the unstable nature of the Caucasus, much has been said about
the threats to these pipelines. Indeed, most of the statements have
been valid. Located in a troublesome part of the world, Azerbaijan
and Georgia face major threats of terror on a daily basis. Some of
these threats are related to international terrorism (both Azerbaijan
and Georgia are members of the US-led war on terror). International
terror groups such as PKK and Al-Qaida have threatened to destroy oil
pipelines, should their political demands not be met. Additionally,
the unresolved conflicts in Nagorno-Karabakh, Chechnya, South Osetia
and Abkhazia as well as the presence of criminal gangs in the
Northern Caucasus increase the risk of attacks on the pipelines.
Although both pipelines will be buried underground, recent history
shows that this does not secure pipelines from petty thieves and
minor explosions.
Thus far the host countries of the pipelines along with the Western
energy companies have taken responsibility for the protection of the
critical energy infrastructure. Yet, it is clear that by sole
attention to the military aspects of the pipeline protection it will
be impossible to guarantee their full protection. The host countries
can upgrade their pipeline protection units and patrol teams and
purchase the most advanced technology in the world, yet experts argue
that it is also vital that the communities along which the pipelines
will pass be involved in the protection process.
BTC and South Caucasus Gas Pipeline pass through rural communities
where thousands of people have been living for centuries. Shepherds
move their herds and children pass the pipeline on the way to their
schools. Farmers irrigate the land and villagers hurry to their
relatives across the village. And all of these happen on a daily
basis. The majority of residents of the communities along the
pipelines are excited about the projects. Some of them have been
employed directly or indirectly in the construction process. Others
have big hopes and expectations that the pipelines will bring much
desired social and economic improvements to their empowered areas. In
some villages, the construction of the pipelines has already brought
in some social investment as well, such as the repair of the local
schools and hospitals, installation of the water and sewerage lines
as well as mobilization and creation of community groups and
associations. It is imperative that the communities see the economic
and social benefit of the pipelines and that these benefits trickle
down to ordinary households. This would significantly reduce the risk
of social unrest, a major threat to the pipelines.
More than 70 years of Soviet rule and centralized economy have
created a mentality in which ordinary people do not feel
responsibility for public property. Absence of initiative and
mobilization skills at the grassroots level discourages people from
joining their resources to help protect the pipeline. This, in turn,
creates perhaps the most dangerous threat to the pipelines- lack of a
feeling of ownership among the people.
In many ways, BTC and South Caucasus Gas Pipeline will become a test
for a new method of protection of critical energy infrastructure.
Traditional methods of utilizing high-tech hardware and military
units to safeguard the pipelines often do not yield desired results.
It is the involvement of the communities into the decision making and
protection process that can ensure the long-term safety of the
pipelines. Feeling ownership over the pipelines and being sure about
the positive impact to their communities can encourage people to take
an active role in the protection of the pipeline and serve as a
support resource to the government’s para-military protection units.
The resources of ordinary people should not be underestimated in this
case.
Fariz Ismailzade is a Baku based analyst focusing on Caucasus
politics and economics.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress