Category: News

Armenian Assembly of America
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Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
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PRESS RELEASE
April 20, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]
ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES SUPPORT FOR KEY U.S.-ARMENIA TRADE BILL
State Department Official Delivers News at Pan-Armenian, Non-Partisan
Conference
Washington, DC – The drive to extend trade benefits to Armenia gained a
major boost yesterday as the Bush Administration publicly announced its
strong support for a pending bill that would deepen the U.S.-Armenia trade
relationship during a national Armenian-American conference organized by the
Armenian Assembly of America.
Ambassador Elizabeth Jones, Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of European
and Eurasian Affairs addressed her remarks to Armenian-American activists
participating in a three-day conference sponsored by the Armenian Assembly,
the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and the Eastern and Western
Diocese of the Armenian Church.
“We want Armenia to benefit from WTO membership and to do that we are
working toward permanent normal trade relations [PNTR] with Armenia, which
we will try to push through Congress,” Ambassador Jones said.
The keynote luncheon speaker that same day, Senate Majority Whip Mitch
McConnell (R-KY), and ardent supporter of closer U.S.-Armenia relations
said, “I hope we are able to move this legislation in the near future.”
Senator McConnell, together with Senator Sarbanes (D-MD) and Senator Barbara
Boxer (D-CA), last summer introduced S.1557, which would authorize the
extension of PNTR to Armenia.

Senator Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) who gave the keynote address at the National
Conference that evening said: “This is of course good news for all of us,
but now we must continue to press the Administration and the relevant
committees in Congress to expedite action on this important issue. We need
to carry through on this proposal.”
The bill, which has a counterpart in the House already passed as an
amendment to a larger tax bill, calls for the termination of the
Jackson-Vanik Amendment with respect to Armenia. If enacted, it would
remove the nearly 30-year-old provision requiring Armenia to periodically
obtain presidential approval for continued access to low tariffs.
“The argument we make is that the purpose of Jackson-Vanik was to encourage
religious freedom and free immigration,” Ambassador Jones said. “Obviously
there is no issue with Armenian compliance with that.”
The bill’s passage would also herald other benefits, such as strengthening
bilateral relations and allowing Armenia to fully avail itself of its
membership in the WTO. Increased U.S.-Armenia trade and investment will
also help offset the damaging impact of Turkey’s and Azerbaijan’s decade-old
blockade.
“One of the Assembly’s highest legislative priorities this year was to ask
Congress to extend PNTR to Armenia and we thank Ambassador Jones and the
Bush Administration for this long sought for news,” said Executive Director
Ross Vartian. He added that “the Administration’s choice of venue for this
announcement underscores the significant impact the National Conference has
had on U.S. policymakers.”
“Given the overwhelming bi-partisan and bi-cameral support of this bill, and
now the public call from the Administration for passage, we look forward to
Congress acting expeditiously and send this bill to the President,”
continued Vartian.
The three-day Conference was an opportunity for the Assembly, AGBU and
Eastern and Western Diocese of the Armenian Church and their respective
constituencies to speak for the first time with a collective, non-partisan
voice on issues of concern before the Administration and Congress.
The AGBU is the world’s largest non-profit, philanthropic organization
devoted to education, cultural and humanitarian programs. Headquartered in
New York, the organization has a budget of $28 million and serves some
400,000 Armenians annually.
The Diocese of the Armenian Church (Eastern) is the spiritual and
administrative head of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the Eastern U.S.
Together with the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church, it exists under
the authority of the ancient Mother See of the worldwide Armenian Church,
Holy Etchmiadzin, in Armenia.
The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.
NR#2004-041
Photographs available on the Assembly’s Web site at the following link:
Caption: Ambassador Elizabeth Jones speaking at the Armenian Assembly’s
National Conference and Banquet in Washington DC on April 19.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azerbaijan foreign minister calls for dialogue over war on Karabakh
Azad Azarbaycan TV, Baku
19 Apr 04

[Presenter Namiq Aliyev] Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov has said that the Prague meeting [with Armenian Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanyan] was of a fact-finding character. In an
exclusive interview with Azad Azarbaycan TV, Mr Mammadyarov spoke
about the importance of meetings of this kind for a peaceful
settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.
[Correspondent, over archive footage of Prague] The main result of the
Prague meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers
is that the sides have agreed to continue the talks, Mammadyarov
said. The minister said that at the meeting the US president’s Caspian
envoy, Steven Mann, received a mandate [as OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairman] from his predecessor, Rudolf Perina. Mammadyarov said
that Mr Mann made a good impression. No specific proposals were
discussed at the meeting, he added.
[Mammadyarov] No, there are no new proposals for the time being. We
finished our fact-finding meeting.
[Correspondent] We should note that Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan said before the talks that Nagornyy Karabakh will never be
part of Azerbaijan and that its security will be guaranteed only in
two cases, either through Nagornyy Karabakh’s operation as an
independent state or its annexation to Armenia. But Mammadyarov said
that the Azerbaijani government stood firm on the issue.
[Mammadyarov] Every meeting certainly brings more hope. You are aware
of Azerbaijan’s position. We stand firm on this.
[Correspondent] Mammadyarov commented on bellicose statements from
both sides. The Azerbaijani government is going to solve the problem
peacefully and is confident that this is the most suitable way,
Mammadyarov said. He said priority will be given not to the military
option but dialogue.
[Mammadyarov] It is too early to speak about peace or war. For the
time being 20 per cent of the Azerbaijani lands are under
occupation. The point is what option should be used to liberate these
lands.
[Correspondent] Mammadyarov also said that the date of the foreign
ministers’ next meeting had not been specified in Prague. He said the
sides will decide on the issue depending on the situation.
Rasad Huseynov, Emil Aliyarli, “Son Xabar”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Daily warns of attempts to incite ethnic discord in Azerbaijan
Zerkalo, Baku
20 Apr 04

Azerbaijani newspaper Zerkalo has reported that some forces might
attempt to incite ethnic discord in the country. The Russian special
services are planning to use the ethnic minorities in the north of
Azerbaijan as a destabilizing factor, the newspaper
reported. Conflicts on religious grounds cannot be ruled out either,
Zerkalo said. It warned of a possible attack by Wahabbi militants from
Dagestan and said that Iran’s policy was to blame for the upsurge in
Islamic organizations in Azerbaijan. The following is an excerpt from
A. Rasidoglu report by Azerbaijani newspaper Zerkalo on 20 April
headlined “Are Iran and Russia sowing ethnic discord in Azerbaijan?”
and subheaded “Certain forces benefit from drawing parallels between
‘Armenian separatism’ and ‘ethnic minorities'”; subheadings inserted
editorially:
The movement For Azerbaijan (it’s noteworthy that two groups claim to
have this name) has held a round table attended by the so-called
representatives of ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan. An obscure
criterion was used, for instance, to define that the editor of Axsam
newspaper, Valid Qardasli, was a “representative of the Talis people”,
this was how he was introduced at the round table. As is known,
neither he nor other “representatives” of ethnic minorities were
entitled to speak on behalf of these people. Well, there are other
more interesting issues.
Russian intelligence to inflame ethnic discord in Azerbaijan
For instance, what prompted Russia’s justice Gen Ilqar Qasimov to
(suddenly) hold a round table on the subject “Ethnic minorities in
Azerbaijan and the Nagornyy Karabakh problem”? Is someone, as
previously, “cannot afford to relax” or is trying to play the ethnic
card purposefully drawing parallels between “Armenian separatism” and
the so-called “problem” of ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan? We know
how easy it is to incite an ethnic conflict.
There is another interesting coincidence. Round tables of this kind
coincided with information circulated in a few mass media that the
Russian special services have started to actively operate to fan the
flames of ethnic discord in our country. Are these coincidences
incidental or planned? Are there not too many of them?
According to sources, the Russian special services are currently
looking into the implementation of “work” among Kurds, Talises,
Lezgins and Avars.
[Passage omitted: more details of Russian plans]
As we have learnt, new cultural centres of ethnic minorities will be
set up and these bodies will publish their own newspapers in the near
future. As a result of these centres’ “activities”, problems might
gradually arise among the ethnic minorities living in Azerbaijan,
which will give them a cue that they have a common enemy – an
Azerbaijani Turk.
According to the sources, at the first stage they will count on a
social basis of Russian ideologists in Quba-Qusar Districts [northern
Azerbaijan] with a mainly Lezgin population, as the Russian special
services report. Moreover, there are reports that the Kurdish Workers’
Party, which also seems to have major claims to the Azerbaijani state,
has intensified its work in a northern [Azerbaijani] district.
It goes without saying that what is going on is far from being
children’s war games.
Conflicts on religious grounds not ruled out
There is another aspect of the issue. Conflicts on religious grounds
are not ruled out either. According to some reports, a militant
Wahhabi group is currently in Dagestan, in a district bordering on
Azerbaijan, and is waiting for the right time.
The Azerbaijani coast of the Caspian Sea is rather a large area
populated also by non-Turks. It is early to make conclusions about the
role of Islam in the movement of these ethnic groups. However, one
should not disregard this, especially as the Russian special services
have long been viewing them as the “fifth column”, or to put it
simply, a destabilizing factor.
Iran’s policy to blame
Finally, here is the last remark. The main factor responsible for the
development of the leading Islamic organizations in Azerbaijan is
precisely the policy pursued by Iran. Our biggest neighbour opposes
the western oil export route and Azerbaijan’s entrance into the sphere
of the West’s interests.
One should bear in mind that Azerbaijan is a multi-ethnic
country. This fact has always been in the focus of the foreign and
internal forces interested in the escalation of tension in our
country.

Armenian president denies plan to dismiss parliament or prime minister
AP Online
Apr 20, 2004

President Robert Kocharian on Tuesday denied he had plans to dismiss
either his prime minister or his fractionalized parliament.
Kocharian told a briefing that “such rumors are spread deliberately to
create an atmosphere of distrust in the relations between the
president and the premiere and also within the ranks of the ruling
coalition.”
In a clear reference to the opposition, which has held a series of
large rallies in recent weeks demanding his resignation, Kocharian
said “despite the attempts of certain circles to disrupt us” the
authorities are working normally.
Kocharian won a second term in presidential elections a year ago that
sparked mass protests, including nearly daily demonstrations between
the first round and the runoff.
Opposition groups alleged widespread violations in both rounds of the
election, which was followed by a parliamentary ballot in which the
pro-government party won the most votes.

Renegade Georgian general accuses defence minister of “smear campaign”
Imedi TV, Tbilisi
20 Apr 04

[Presenter] Defence Minister Gela Bezhuashvili has made another
comment about the statement of the former commander of the 25th
Brigade [Roman Dumbadze who said that he took orders only from the
Ajarian leader].
Bezhuashvili has described Dumbadze as a traitor of Georgia. Dumbadze
has not confirmed the reports about a defence ministry being
established in Ajaria. He has blamed Gela Bezhuashvili for organizing
a campaign against him.
[Bezhuashvili, speaking to journalists] We should punish traitors of
Motherland with the full severity of the law.
Now, what is this about? As I said today, how can a man betray this
aspiration for the sake of selfish interest? How can he betray these
young boys, 17-18-year-old children who today spoke about the
country’s strength, the country’ future, the country’s present? This
is what it is all about. These are the values upon which our society
rests. I think that society should condemn all incidents of this kind.
[Dumbadze, interviewed] This is a total lie. Absolutely. I have not
heard such a thing in 14 years. Gela Bezhuashvili is the seventh
minister, but I have not heard such a thing from anyone, even from the
former president I have not heard such a thing. Absolutely.
I will never be a traitor. A traitor is someone who betrays his
origin, his nation. The defence minister himself is such a man. He
changed his surname and betrayed his nation. He was an ethnic
Armenian.
[Journalist] Are you speaking about Bezhuashvili?
[Dumbadze] Yes, I am speaking about Bezhuashvili.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian foreign minister says next meeting with Azerbaijan over disputed
enclave will be in May
AP Online
Apr 19, 2004

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian said Monday that he planned
to meet with his Azerbaijani counterpart in May to continue
discussions on resolving the countries’ dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh.
Oskanian said that the meeting he held last week in Prague with
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov was useful but did not
break new ground.
Nagorno-Karabakh is an ethnic Armenian enclave within
Azerbaijan. Ethnic Armenian forces drove out Azerbaijan’s army from
the region in the 1990s and ethnic Azeris fled. Since a 1994
cease-fire, Nagorno-Karabakh has been run by an internationally
unrecognized government.
Despite the cease-fire, shooting still breaks out sporadically across
the so-called “line of control,” a demilitarized strip separating
Azeri and Armenian forces.
The unresolved status of Nagorno-Karabakh keeps tensions high between
the countries and apparently discourages foreign investors fearful of
a new outbreak of fighting and instability.
The Armenian and Azerbaijani officials met under the auspices of the
“Minsk Group,” an arm of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe devoted to resolving the dispute. The Minsk Group is led by
a troika of diplomats from the United States, France and Russia.
The newly appointed top U.S. official for the group, Stephen Mann, met
on Monday with Armenian officials.
“What I will be doing in this position is representing the
U.S. national interests and it is in the American national interest to
work for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue,” Mann told reporters.

Armenian National Committee of New York
PO Box 693
Woodside, NY 11377
[email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
April 20, 2004
Contact: Tony Vartanian
[email protected]
CONGRESSMAN JOSEPH CROWLEY AND
ANC OF NEW YORK DISCUSS CURRENT ISSUES
— Current events in Armenia, Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, and
US Aid to Armenia among other issues discussed
Woodside, NY–The Armenian National Committee (ANC) of New York met with
Congressman Joseph Crowley (D-NY 7) on Thursday, April 15 to discuss issues
of concern to the Armenian American community. The meeting also provided the
ANC with an opportunity to express the community’s appreciation for the
Congressman’s record of support for Armenian American issues.
During the meeting, Congressman Crowley talked about his ANC sponsored visit
to the Republic of Armenia last summer. The Congressman was also apprised
of current events in Armenia, expressing his desire to once again travel to
Armenia and make his first visit to the Republic of Nagorno Karabagh. The
ANC was also briefed on Congressman Crowley’s recent meeting with the
European Parliament.
“The Armenian American community of the Seventh Congressional District is
grateful to be represented by Congressman Crowley,” stated Tony Vartanian,
Chairman of the ANC of New York. “Throughout his tenure in Congress,
Representative Crowley had led and supported a number of issues of
particularly concern to the Armenian American community. This annual
meeting with the Congressman and his staff allows us to discuss issues of
mutual concern,” concluded Vartanian.
Congressman Crowley is a current cosponsor of House Resolution 193
(H.Res.193), legislation commemorating the 15th anniversary of the US
implementation of the UN Genocide Convention. In addition, he recently
co-signed a Congressional letter–initiated by the Congressional Caucus on
Armenian Issues–urging President George W. Bush to properly characterize
the Armenian Genocide as “genocide” in his April 24th statement.
He is a co-host of the 10th Annual ANCA Capitol Hill Observance of the
Armenian Genocide Observance, which will be held on April 28. The
Congressman has also been a leading voice in criticizing the exclusion of
Armenia from the routing of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil and gas pipeline.
In August 2003, the Congressman visited the Republic of Armenia where he
held various meetings and visited several cultural and historic sites. Upon
his return, the ANC sponsored a public forum for Congressman Crowley to
share his thoughts on his trip with the Armenian American community.
Finally, in 2003, Congressman Crowley cosponsored H.R.528, legislation that
would provide permanent normal trade relations status to the Republic of
Armenia. The PNTR resolution language was adopted in November 2003, as part
of HR 3521–the Tax Relief Extension Act of 2003–by a voice vote.
To thank Congressman Crowley for his long record of support, the ANC of New
York recently concluded a community-wide fundraiser for the Representative.
The Armenian National Committee (ANC) is the largest Armenian American
grassroots political organization in New York and nationwide. The ANC
actively advances a broad range of issues of concern to the Armenian
American community.
####

PRESS OFFICE
Armenian Holy Apostolic Church Canadian Diocese
Contact; Deacon Hagop Arslanian, Assistant to the Primate
615 Stuart Avenue, Outremont Quebec H2V 3H2
Tel; 514-276-9479, Fax; 514-276-9960
Email; [email protected] Website;
Bishop Galstanian urges Canadian Parliamentarians to vote for M-380
On Tuesday April 20 2004, the Primate of the Armenian Holy Apostolic
Church Canadian Diocese addressed a letter to the members of the House
of Commons of Canada urging them to vote in favor of M-380 Armenian
Genocide.
Upon the directive of His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian the
Diocesan faithful contacted Members of Parliament in their areas to
urge them to vote for M-380.
During telephone conversations with Ministers and Parliamentarians,
Bishop Galstanian expressed gratitude and thanks for their attention
and urged them to vote for the Armenian Genocide resolution. Serpazan
told the MP’s “If the Canadian parliament recognizes the Genocide of
April 24, 1915 the Armenian community in Canada will warmly welcome
and deeply appreciate the wisdom and courageous act of the Government
of Canada, which will be a clear expression of Canada’s strong
commitment to human rights and justice”.
The copy of His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian’s letter is attached
ARMENIAN HOLY APOSTOLIC CHURCH CANADIAN DIOCESE
615 Stuart Avenue, Outremont, Quebec, Canada H2V 3H2
Tel: (514) 276-9479 Fax: (514) 276-9960
Email: [email protected] Web:
House of Commons
Ottawa
Honorable members of the Canadian Parliament,
As the Primate and the spiritual leader of the Armenian Church of
Canada, I have the unique privilege and the pleasure to extend sincere
salutations to all distinguished members of the Canadian House of
Commons, and to express on behalf of all Canadian Armenians our
heartfelt appreciation of your resolve to debate in the Canadian
Parliament openly and objectively the recognition of the historical
fact of the Armenian Genocide.
Three generations after that fateful event, the Genocide remains a
deeply imbedded wound in the Armenian psyche. The wound has not
healed, because this injustice of unprecedented magnitude has not been
recognized and acknowledged by the perpetrator and by the
international community as a crime against mankind and a violation of
a fundamental standard of humanity.
Moreover, in a cruel campaign of denial, the perpetrator continues the
genocide by killing the memory of the victims. Indeed, as genocide
scholar Professor Deborah Lipstadt of Emory University states, “denial
is the final stage of genocide, because it strives to reshape history
in order to demonize the victims and rehabilitate the perpetrators.”
There are no two sides of this story. Hundreds of news accounts
published in the international media during the First World War,
numerous eye witness accounts of foreign missions and survivors –
including our parents and grandparents, thousands of state archives
around the world, scores of declarations by esteemed historians have
repeatedly established beyond a shred of a doubt, that a
state-sponsored, premeditated, meticulously planned and brutally
executed scheme of ethnic cleansing was carried out in 1915 through
1923 by the Ottoman Turkish government over its Armenian citizens
living on their ancestral homeland, who aspired only the dignity of
living like a human being. The 1915 genocide of the Armenians was the
culmination of 600 years of oppression and a diabolic attempt for a
final solution by the Ottoman authorities to the European insistence
of introducing reforms that would guarantee the most basic human
rights of minorities in Ottoman Turkey.
Dear parliamentarians,
You do not have to look far for an evidence of the Armenian
Genocide. Look at the galleries of this House, full of representatives
of the Canadian Armenian community. There are hundreds of similar
communities dispersed around the world, from the far-east to the far
west, members of the Armenian Diaspora that was created as a result of
the Genocide. The throbbing pain they have inherited from their
tormented parents and grandparents, yearns for recognition of the
truth and for justice.
France and Switzerland were the latest of more than 15 states, who
courageously defied threats and blackmail, and sided with the truth
and justice.
Honorable members of the House of Commons,
Show to the world once more that Canada upholds international ethics,
believes in human and social rights and strives for consolidation of
peace based on justice. Vote for the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide. God bless you all.
Prayerfully,
Bishop Bagrat Galstanian Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church
of Canada
DIVAN OF THE DIOCESE
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
04/20/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Opposition Moves Strengthen Coalition Says Kocharian 2) Russian Mediator Says Prague Meeting Raises Optimism 3) Ghulian Tells Mann Karabagh Must Be Active Participant 4) US Envoy Meets Armenian Opposition Leaders 5) Holy Mass and Requiem Service in Memory of the Victims of the Armenian Genocide 1) Opposition Moves Strengthen Coalition Says Kocharian YEREVAN (Combined Sources)--Meeting with reporters at the National Picture Gallery on Tuesday, President Robert Kocharian dismissed allegations that he plans to disband parliament and appoint a new cabinet. "I can say for certain that I do not have such intentions," Kocharian told reporters. "We are able to work effectively with this political team. We are going to work together at least until the next parliamentary elections, which is for three more years." He pointed to the absurdity of such assertions especially when considering Armenia's economic growth and smooth implementation of the national budget. "Dissolution of a government that provides economic growth is nonsense," he said. Rumors of internal dissentions emerged last week when coalition government members, in a joint statement, announced they would not be attending parliament sessions, so as to avoid possible clashes between their supporters and the opposition crowd. Referring to those rumors, Kocharian insisted that the governing coalition partners have not boycotted parliament sessions, and plan to resume work next week. "The previous session did not take place because of the demonstration and threats specifically addressed to the parliament." He suggested that the coalition has even strengthened and begun to work more effectively, in having to face the opposition. "The concept of having to work within a coalition has not yet developed in our country; this [was perhaps] the incentive necessary for the political forces in the coalition to work more closely and in a coordinated manner." Asked about the opposition's pledge to continue to seek his resignation, he said that as long as the opposition organizes its meetings and demonstrations without closing the streets and without unlawful actions, they are allowed to do so. He cautioned that though it is natural for the opposition to seek to replace those in power, it is also natural for the leadership of any country, to take steps to provide stability. "We are doing our job; we have done it, and will continue doing it, while the opposition shirks its duties in parliament, and gathers meetings in the streets." 2) Russian Mediator Says Prague Meeting Raises Optimism YEREVAN (Armenpress)--The Russian co-chairman of the Minsk Group Yuri Merzlyakov, told Azeri ATV that new ideas on resolving the Mountainous Karabagh conflict were put forth during the meeting between Armenian foreign minister Vartan Oskanian and his new Azeri counterpart Elmar Mamedyarov. The meeting which took place in Prague was mediated by the US, Russian, and French co-chairs of the Minsk Group, which spearheads the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe's (OSCE) efforts to find a political solution to this conflict. Merzlyakov called the meeting "useful," and disclosed that the co-chairmen presented fresh ideas and suggestions on how to end the conflict. Merzlyakov also said that the Prague meeting has roused certain optimism about future prospects fore a settlement--a sentiment shared by the foreign ministers of the countries, who conferred they were satisfied with the meeting. The group's co-chairman, along with Oskanian and Mamedyarov, will be drafting a joint statement on the results of their latest meeting to present to the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. "The new venue of the meeting can be decided only after the presidents of the two countries are fully informed about the Prague meeting," Merzlyakov said. According to the Baku-based 525 Gazet, Mamedyarov said that the Prague meeting's end result was to set a tentative agreement to meet again next month, and that the meeting did not discuss the new proposals put forth by the mediators. 3) Ghulian Tells Mann Karabagh Must Be Active Participant YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Mountainous Karabagh Republic's (MKR) Foreign Minister Ashot Ghulian and the new American co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk group Steven Mann met on April 19 at the MKR permanent representation in Yerevan. In presenting MKR's official position on regulating the conflict, Ghulian stressed that Karabagh, as a side to the conflict, must directly participate in peace talks. Ghulian also summarized the economic and political situation of the country. Mann confirmed the determination of the US to continue the regulation process, working within the framework of OSCE Minsk group. Mann's next visit will include meetings in Stepanakert with MKR authorities. 4) US Envoy Meets Armenian Opposition Leaders YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--US Ambassador John Ordway met on Tuesday with the two most senior leaders of Armenia's opposition, but did not comment on his separate meetings with Stepan Demirchian of the Artarutyun alliance and Artashes Geghamian of the National Unity Party (AMK). Demirchian and Geghamian did not provide details either. Geghamian said only that both the United States and the European Union would like to see a peaceful end to the Armenian political crisis. "The ambassadors of both the United States and the European Union are calling for all contentious issues to be resolved through negotiations," he said. The US State Department urged both sides last week to embark on a "dialogue." Anther opposition rally is planed for Wednesday in Yerevan. 5) Holy Mass and Requiem Service in Memory of the Victims of the Armenian Genocide On the 89th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Armenians all over the world will commemorate the tragic events, and will attend church services to exalt the sacred memory of our martyrs. On this occasion, a special requiem service will be held on Saturday, April 24, at St. Mary's Apostolic Church in Glendale with the participation of the spiritual leadership of the three Armenian religious denominations in the Western United States. The ceremony will be held under the auspices of the Prelate His Eminence Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian. Very Rev. Vrouyr Demirjian, the Pastor of Forty Martyrs Church will conduct the Holy Mass. Very Rev. Rafael Minassian, the spiritual leader of the Armenian Catholic Community in California, and Rev. Apraham Chaparian of the Armenian Evangelical Church will participate in the ceremony. Also present will be the spiritual leaders of sister Churches who will deliver their word of blessing. After the 9:30 AM Holy Mass, a requiem service will be held in the churchyard, in front of the monument dedicated to the 1.5 million victims of the Genocide. His Eminence the Prelate will deliver his message during the ceremony. 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.

NEWLY ESTABLISHED NATION’S REDEMPTION PARTY INTENDS TO SAVE NATION IN THREE
MONTHS
YEREVAN, April 20 (Noyan Tapan). Newly established Nation’s
Redemption party intends to settle all problems the Armenian people
are facing at least within three months. Sargis Karapetian, chairman
of the party registered at the Justice Miniistry two days ago, said
during the April 20 press conference.
According to Karapetian, both the authorities and the opposition are
opposed to the people. According to him, the authorities should have
welcomed the people going to the President’s residence instead of
exerting violence against the unarmed participants of the
rally. Sargis Karapetian stated that all the people responsible for
that should be punished. The chairman of the Nation’s Redemtion party
criticises the opposition, as well, considering, that taking advantage
of the people’s discontent wishes to attain the power. Sargis
Karapetian himself seeks no power. The party he leads intends solely
to save the Armenian people solely and return the wealth stolen from
them. If luxurious mansions, restaurants and casinos are being built
in some country, it means that this country is rich: “Justice lacks in
Armenia: one should save the body of the Armenian people and then its
soul.” “We’ll make it and you’ll see,” Karapetian promised, refusing
to dwell on the program for the nation’s rescue. He also refused to
tell the number of the party’s members and the names of his
allies. The leader of the party also said that the organization the
members of which are the azatamartiks (freedom fighters) has its
structures in all the regions. The party cooperates nither with
Yerkrapah Union of Volunteers nor with other organizations of
azatamartiks nor with the opposition or pro-governmental
parties. Sargis Karapetian, in his own words, is a former ARF
Dashnaktsiutiun member and was expelled from the party in 2001 for
“the speeches against the authorities.”