Category: News

Azeri-Armenian Strife Has Been Set in Stone
By Chloe Arnold
Tuesday, Apr. 13, 2004.
BAKU, Azerbaijan — I had never seen people queuing to get into a
cemetery until last Saturday. Some brought their children, others
brought their grandparents. Still others, who were making a day of it,
carried video cameras and bags full of sandwiches.
There’s only one person who could attract such crowds in Azerbaijan,
even after his death. And sure enough, everyone was heading to the
center of the graveyard, where Heidar Aliyev, the last president, is
now buried. Aliyev died of heart failure last year at the age of 80,
after leading the country for more than 30 years.
His grave is a lavish affair. A flight of white marble steps leads you
to a wide terrace patrolled by an armed guard. Around it, there are
benches scattered around where the hordes can rest their feet.
At the center is a massive easel bearing a photograph of Aliyev,
looking as round and cheery as the Pillsbury Doughboy. Beneath it are
dozens of bouquets of fresh flowers that are replaced every few hours.
The other graves in the cemetery — Azerbaijan’s celebrated scholars,
politicians and statesmen — are almost as flash. Some have life-size
marble statues of the deceased, others have surreal sculptures made of
glass or metal perched on top of them. One features a jungle of
plastic flowers and fronds — there are even strings of rubber grapes
slung between the trees over the gravestone.
It’s all a little different on the other side of town in the rundown
cemetery for ordinary folk. There’s no guard at the gate — there
isn’t even a gate — and one section has been completely
destroyed. The flowerbeds have been trampled, there’s graffiti and
broken glass everywhere and someone has taken a sledgehammer to the
graves, leaving nothing but fragments of stone.
It’s here that many of Baku’s Armenians are buried, in what used to be
one of the capital’s Armenian quarters. That was when Azeris and
Armenians lived side by side, and Armenians were buried just a stone’s
throw from the graves of the hundreds of Azeri soldiers killed during
World War II.
But then that was before the war over Nagorny Karabakh, which
destroyed the friendship between the two neighboring countries. The
international community has urged the two sides to reach some sort of
agreement over the disputed territory. But when hatred runs so deep
that even the dead are drawn into the conflict, there’s little hope of
reconciliation.
Ironically, Aliyev’s son Ilham, the new president, now lives just
behind the desecrated Armenian cemetery. He regularly visits his
father’s grave. But in the current climate, he’s unlikely to do
anything about the shattered gravestones on the other side of his
garden wall.
Chloe Arnold is a freelance journalist based in Baku, Azerbaijan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Zob Keeper Terms Counterpart Mirzapour Goal a Fluke
Tehran Times
13 April 2004
ISFAHAN (IRNA) — Zob Ahan’s Armenian keeper Armenak Petrossian here
Sunday said the goal scored by national goalie of Fulad, Ebrahim
Mirzapur, was just a stroke of good luck.
Talking to IRNA, the in-form keeper added Mirzapur did not believe his
punt would find the net.
“The slippery field caused the ball to dodge me,” the mass-circulation
Persian-language sports daily Khabar-e Varzeshi quoted the Armenian as
saying in its Monday’s edition. Mirzapur kicked a dropped ball in the
51st minute past arrogant Petrossian, who declined to apologize and
said, “I would not like to apologize because I believe in my abilities
and saved my team in different occasions to compensate for my
blunder.”
The 1-0 home victory in Takhti stadium of Ahvaz, southern Iran, helped
Fulad lie in the third spot of Pro League on 43 points out of 24
games.
Zob Ahan, one of the two representatives of the country in the Asian
Champions League, is in the fourth place on 39 points.

Itar-Tass Russia and CIS news summary for Saturday, Sunday: 2
April 12, 2004 Monday 1:47 AM Eastern Time
TBILISI – Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania and Secretary of the
Georgian Security Council Vano Merabishili will come to Batumi on
Tuesday, April 13, for “a new round of negotiations on the settlement
of relations between the central and republican authorities,”
Adzharian leader Aslan Abashidze said on the republican television on
Sunday.
He said they would discuss the implementation of agreements reached at
his meeting with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili in Batumi on
March 18.
The sides will consider a draft law on the division of powers between
Tbilisi and Batumi, which has been urged by the Georgian central
authorities, the Adzharian administration and the Council of Europe.
BATUMI – The Russian base in Batumi, Adzharia, will remain neutral if
tension in the relations between the Georgian central authorities and
the autonomous republic escalates. “The Russian servicemen in Georgia
were and will be neutral. They will not interfere in internal affairs
of this nation,” sources in the Batumi base told Itar-Tass on Sunday.
“The base in Adzharia tightened security as soon as the confrontation
between Batumi and Tbilisi had begun,” the sources said. “Protection
of the base infrastructure was reinforced, and the security of
checkpoints was tightened. The base has self-defense plans in case of
the worst developments.”
Russia has two military bases in Georgia, one in Batumi and another in
Akhalkalaki, near the Georgian-Turkish border.
KIEV – Ukraine’s nuclear power plants have cut their output due to the
excess of electricity in the country because of warm weather.
The situation forced the management of the Zaporozhye nuclear power
plant to stop reactor No. 4 for planned repairs last night ahead of
schedule.
In addition, reactor No. 1 at the Rovno atomic power station was
deenergised for repairs on Saturday. Repairs on both reactors will be
completed in the second half of May.
KRASNOYARSK – The head of Russia’s Federal Atomic Energy Agency,
Alexander Rumyantsev, said he was “very optimistic” about reforms in
the industry.
He believes that the reforms “will make it possible to concentrate on
the resolution of problems facing our industry in regions”.
In his words, the Agency’s central staff will be cut from 623 to 500
people and his three deputies will be named on Monday.
Rumyantsev also called for “continuity in forging an open and
constructive dialogue with environmental organisations, including
radical ones.”
YEREVAN – The Armenian opposition threatened on Saturday to fight till
President Robert Kocharyan resigned.
The head of the Republic party and parliament member Albert Bazeyan
said at an opposition rally on Saturday, “Armenian authorities
outlawed themselves by refusing to hold a referendum on the
president’s credibility.”
The head of the opposition Justice faction in the parliament, Stepan
Demirchyan, held authorities responsible for the consequences of the
opposition’s actions.
“The regime is doomed and no steps will save it,” he warned.
BAKU – The Azerbaijan leadership does not examine the question on
pulling out Azerbaijan peacekeepers from Iraq or slashing their
numerical strength, Azerbaijan Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov said
in an exclusive interview with Tass on Sunday.
There are now in Iraq 150 Azeri servicemen who perform their mission
in the country’s south as part of the international coalition
force. Mamedyarov emphasized that Azerbaijan joined the anti-terrorist
coalition, mindful of the fact what threat terror represents for the
world.
DONETSK – The first unit of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was
disconnected from the power network last night for planned
repairs. The repairs will last for more than two months, sources in
the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant’s information center told
Itar-Tass.
The fourth unit of the nuclear power plant was disconnected from the
power network a day before. It will be idle till May 15.
At present four of six VVER-1000 units of the Zaporozhye nuclear power
plant are functioning and their total produce is 3,535 megawatt.
Only 9 of 13 units of Ukrainian nuclear power plants are currently at
work. Their output has been limited since March 20 because of the
overproduction of electricity.

Armenia opposition preparing large-scale protests
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 12, 2004 Monday 5:33 AM Eastern Time
By Tigrain Liloyan
Water cannons and trailers with barbed wire were moved to the
presidential palace in the Armenian capital Yerevan on Monday.
The opposition, which urges for the resignation of President Robert
Kocharyan, is going to begin a meeting in the afternoon and march to
the parliament’s building and offices of the presidential
administration.
The opposition accuses Kocharyan of “seizure of power as a result of
rigged elections” in 2003.
The Armenian Constitutional Court has review a plea from the
opposition about legitimacy of the presidential elections last year
and ruled that the final count of votes was correct, simultaneously
recommending the conduction of a referendum on confidence in
authorities within a year.
Now that this timeline is gone, the opposition demands the referendum,
but the parliament has rejected the idea.
Having failed to rally large numbers of people for protests on Friday
and Saturday, which were not permitted by authorities, the opposition
pins much hopes of Monday’ actions.
“This is a decisive day,” a secretary of the oppositionist
parliamentary faction Justice, Viktor Dallakyam, told Itar-Tass.
He said columns of members of the opposition would march to provinces
in order to “break through police cordons” and to lead provincial
oppositionists to the capital.
Meanwhile, the president said authorities “have enough resources in
order to curb political extremism in the country with political
means”.
The parliamentary majority declared on Monday that it would not attend
plenary sittings of the National Assembly on April12-14.
Parliament leader Artur Bagdasaryan said the decision was made “in
order to avoid an artificial exacerbation of the political situation”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Defence minister briefs Putin on CIS air defence exercises
By Viktoria Sokolova
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 12, 2004 Monday 8:08 AM Eastern Time
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov informed President Vladimir
Putin about results of air defence exercises of CIS countries.
Russia’s airborne early warning and guidance aircraft A-50 equipped
with the Shmel radar was used during the joint exercises for guiding
planes of Russia, Belarus and Armenia to targets, he said.
The plane can track 50 air targets at a 230-kilometre distance and
guide to them up to ten jets.
Another feature of the exercises was manoeuvres of planes of three
states – Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, Ivanov said.
The planes landed at airfields of other CIS countries and later
returned to their own bases.
More than 50 sorties were flown during the exercises.
The main task of the command and staff exercises was to drill
repulsing an air attack and preventing the seizure of aircraft by
terrorists.
“The conducted exercises have allowed strengthening the air defence
system at the scale of the CIS and Russia’s own security,” Ivanov
said.
General Alexander Mikhailov commanded the exercises that engaged
Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan. Uzbekistan, Belarus and Ukraine.
Air force units of eight CIS states took part in the exercises that
involved 50 command posts and 60 aircraft, including fighter jets
Su-29, MiG-29, MiG-31, assault planes Su-25, combat bombers S-24 and
long-haul bombers Tu-22 M3.
Russia’s air force base located in Kyrgyzstan’s city of Kant took part
in the exercises for the first time.

Armenia pro-president coalition urges opposition negotiate situatn
By Tigran Liloyan
Tass, YEREVAN
April 12, 2004
The Armenian pro-presidential coalition urged the opposition to
discuss the political situation through talks. Head of the Armenian
presidential administration Artashes Tumanyan made the statement in an
interview to the Armenian Public Television.
“Accentuated revolutionary radicalism is the weak chain in the stand
of opposition,” he emphasized. In his view, “such approach extremely
reduces possibilities for negotiations practically leaving no space
for maneuvering.”
Meanwhile several thousands of participants of the rally of the
Armenian opposition who were stopped by police on Bagramyan Avenue 200
metres from the presidential palace in Yerevan resumed the
demonstration. The avenue is blocked by two lines of barbed-tape
obstacles, water jets are ready for using.
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan is currently in his cabinet in the
presidential palace, and the state authorities are functioning well in
the republic, deputy chief of the presidential press service Armine
Balyan said.
The opposition demands to provide the air to it on all Armenian
television channels and meet with Parliament Speaker Artur Bagdasaryan
and police chief Gaik Arutyunyan. Secretary of the parliamentary
faction Justice Viktor Dallakyan made public these requirements at the
rally.
Meanwhile some Yerevan television channels reported about the meeting
that took place between the speaker and some deputies from the
opposition.
Rally partakers called on the parliament’s speaker “to go out to
people and share the requirement of Robert Kocharyan’s dismissal.”
Police who blocked Bagramyan Avenue do not take any force actions
against the demonstrators.
The opposition blamed Robert Kocharyan for “seizure of power as a
result of the falsified election in 2003.” Meanwhile the Armenian
Constitutional Court confirmed the validity of the official returns of
the election already last year but at the same time recommended to
hold a referendum on trust to authorities in the course of the
year. At present when this term expired the opposition demands to hold
the referendum but the parliament did not support this question.
The ruling majority of the Armenian parliament announced on Monday
that it would not participate in the plenary session of the National
Assembly on April 12-14. This decision is taken “to avoid the
artificial deterioration of the political situation,” Parliament
Speaker Artur Bagdasaryan pointed out.
The Armenian president said Sunday “Armenian authorities have enough
resources to curb political extremism in the country by legal means.”
Meanwhile he noted that police are instructed to show restraint.

Armenia opposition rally partakers to stay for night by parliament
By Tigran Liloyan
Tass, YEREVAN
April 12, 2004
Partakers of the opposition rally intend to stay for a night near the
Armenian parliament building, deputy from the opposition Shavarsh
Kocharyan said. He called on demonstrators “to go home, have a rest
and then return with other people.”
About 1,500 action participants are listening to music and cry out
slogans with demands of Robert Kocharyan’s dismissal from time to
time. Meanwhile policemen in helmets, with shields and sticks blocked
Bagramyan Avenue, two lines of barbed-tape obstacles are set and water
jets are brought.
Alongside the Armenian pro-presidential coalition urged the opposition
to discuss the political situation through talks. Head of the Armenian
presidential administration Artashes Tumanyan made the statement in an
interview to the Armenian Public Television.
“Accentuated revolutionary radicalism is the weak chain in the stand
of opposition,” he emphasized. In his view, “such approach extremely
reduces possibilities for negotiations practically leaving no space
for maneuvering.”
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan is currently in his cabinet in the
presidential palace, and the state authorities are functioning well in
the republic, deputy chief of the presidential press service Armine
Balyan said.
The opposition demands to provide the air to it on all Armenian
television channels and meet with Parliament Speaker Artur Bagdasaryan
and police chief Gaik Arutyunyan. Secretary of the parliamentary
faction Justice Viktor Dallakyan made public these requirements at the
rally.
Meanwhile some Yerevan television channels reported about the meeting
that took place between the speaker and some deputies from the
opposition.
Rally partakers called on the parliament’s speaker “to go out to
people and share the requirement of Robert Kocharyan’s dismissal.”
Police who blocked Bagramyan Avenue do not take any force actions
against the demonstrators.
The opposition blamed Robert Kocharyan for “seizure of power as a
result of the falsified election in 2003.” Meanwhile the Armenian
Constitutional Court confirmed the validity of the official returns of
the election already last year but at the same time recommended to
hold a referendum on trust to authorities in the course of the
year. At present when this term expired the opposition demands to hold
the referendum but the parliament did not support this question.
Meanwhile the Constitutional Court confirmed Monday that its proposal
put forth last year to hold a referendum on trust to the president in
the course of the year “is not imperative and does not envision any
legal consequences,” the court ruling said.
The proposal pursued the goal to defuse the domestic political
situation on the eve of the parliamentary election and the referendum
on constitutional reforms that were held on May 25 2003. Taking this
into account the Constitutional Court urged “not to use this proposal
for political speculations.”
The court ruling also confirmed that by its decision on April 16, 2003
the Constitutional Court remained in effect the decision of the
Armenian Central Election Commission on March 11, 2003 on the victory
of Robert Kocharyan at the presidential election on March 5 2003. This
decision is final and imperative, the ruling emphasized.
The ruling majority of the Armenian parliament announced on Monday
that it would not participate in the plenary session of the National
Assembly on April 12-14. This decision is taken “to avoid the
artificial deterioration of the political situation,” Parliament
Speaker Artur Bagdasaryan pointed out.
The Armenian president said Sunday “Armenian authorities have enough
resources to curb political extremism in the country by legal means.”
Meanwhile he noted that police are instructed to show restraint.

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION MP PLANNED ACT OF TERROR, SAYS PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE
Mediamax news agency
12 Apr 04
YEREVAN
The Armenian Prosecutor-General’s Office today reported that “one of
the opposition deputies in the National Assembly and his supporters”
had organized an act of terrorism at the beginning of April.
Moscow residents Gevorg Mesropyan and Artur Mangasarov, who have
previous convictions, were arrested for illegally carrying weapons
during the rally organized by the Justice bloc and National Unity
Party on 9 April, the press service of the Prosecutor-General’s Office
told Mediamax today.
“For a large sum of money a criminal group recruited the two
terrorists, who were to have opened fire amongst the rally-goers at
1600 on 9 April in order to create panic and carry out a terrorist
act,” the statement from the Armenian Prosecutor-General’s Office
says.
“Gevorg Mesropyan and Artur Mangasarov have been arrested and have
confessed,” the press service of the Prosecutor-General’s Office told
Mediamax today.

ARMENIAN LEADER PAYS FARM VISIT, AS OPPOSITION RALLIES AGAINST HIM
Public Television of Armenia
10 Apr 04
(Presenter) President Kocharyan today visited the Agroservice farm,
which he first visited when he was prime minister. Agroservice is one
of the republic’s largest farms and keeps pure-bred Caucasus Grey
cows.
(Correspondent over video of farm) Agroservice is one the largest of
six farms in the republic which survived the transition period’s
experiments and by reorganizing continues to breed pure-bred Caucasus
cows. The company, which was formed on the basis of the old one, is
implementing economic programmes and has successful results. When
President Kocharyan was prime minister, he visited the farm for the
first time and promised the farmers he would visit again.
Improving the stock of native cows for more than 15 years, Agroservice
has today started an artificial insemination programme with the
American Schmidt breed. Agriculture Minister David Lokyan is pleased
with the results.
(Agriculture Minister David Lokyan, captioned at the farm) I think
that we shall have one more joint programme with the United Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization by the end of the year, called the
Improvement of the Genetic Resources of Caucasus Grey Cows, as a
result of which we shall provide small farms with pure-bred cows,
which is a basis for reducing poverty in our rural areas.
(Passage omitted: farmers speak about the farm, increasing the milk
yield)
(Robert Kocharyan, captioned at the farm) This was the first farm that
I visited when I was prime minister. This was the first and only such
farm. But similar farms are developing today with technology and have
a promising future. We have discussed possible programmes connected
with energy. If we try to consider a pilot programme and attempt to
implement it, we shall have interesting results.
(Correspondent over video of opening ceremony on Araks river) A
construction project for the century was commissioned today in Armavir
Region. This is the reconstruction of the Armavir main water reservoir
on the Araks river. As it is a border river, according to
international law Armenia and Turkey should use the water equally. The
water reservoir was reconstructed through joint financing, 870,000
dollars, by the Armenian government and World Bank.
(Robert Kocharyan) It is sufficient to look at the map to see the
whole length of the water reservoir. This is a serious construction
project, which means saving energy and it will also give farmers the
opportunity to use the river water, which is very useful. Construction
work will also be continued, we have a programme worth more than 3m
dollars.
(Correspondent) Experts say that the reconstruction of the water
reservoir, which was built in the 1930s, has resolved the problem of
more than 35,000 hectares of land in Armavir Region. It will allow the
irrigation of salt areas and in spring, when the three blocs at
Metsamor (nuclear power station) will be closed, it will be possible
to produce more than 6m kW of energy.
Lilit Setrakyan, “Aylur”.

Up to 5,000 people rally in heart of Yerevan With
12 April 2004
AVET DEMOURYAN; Associated Press Writer
MOSCOW
About 5,000 people marched through the center of the Armenian capital
on Monday, the latest in a series of demonstrations against the
country’s leadership.
The march toward the presidential palace was halted about 200 meters
from the compound by police and the building housing Armenia’s
parliament. Leaders of the protest vowed to stay in that position
through the night.
Protest leaders urged president Robert Kocharyan and the ruling
coalition in parliament to appear in television debates to face other
politicians’ challenges.
They also called on authorities to allow the opposition free movement
to hold protests outside Yerevan.
Kocharian won a second term in presidential elections a year ago that
sparked mass protests, including nearly daily demonstrations between
the first round of voting in February 2003 and the runoff in early
March.
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.
In April, Armenia’s Constitutional Court confirmed the results of the
presidential vote but suggested that a referendum be held within a
year to gauge the public’s confidence in the nation’s leaders.