Category: News

Photo: Sputnik/ Sergey Malgavko

Speaker of the People’s Council of Syria, the country’s legislative authority, Hadiya Khalaf Abbas, told she considered Crimea an integral part of Russia which rejoined the country following expression of free will in referendum.

“Due to the events which unfolded after the collapse of the Soviet Union until present times, this [federal] subject returned to its roots [Russia] after the expression of free will of the people at a Crimean referendum… We accept that Crimea is an integral part of Russia,” Abbas said.

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) shared the lessons drawn from more than a century of Armenian-American efforts to foster a culture of caring and building durable, resilient and responsive community institutions at a Diaspora in Development forum in Washington, DC, that attracted hundreds of American diasporan civic, development and economic leaders with roots across Asia, Africa, the Americas, the Middle East, and Europe.

The day-long forum, held in the Knight Conference Center of the iconic Newseum in the nation’s capital, was jointly hosted by the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the International Organization for Migration, and the George Washington University.

ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian participated in the conference, taking part in a panel discussion titled “Case Study: Creating Powerful Diaspora Networks.”  He spoke alongside two internationally respected experts in diasporan development, Jo Addy of the African Diaspora Network and Magalie Emile-Backer of Haitian Renewal Alliance.

The panel was moderated by Nicolas Bassey, USAID’s innovative Division Chief for Frontier Partnerships.  Among the themes stressed by Hamparian were the long-term benefits of constructively managing diversity and consensus building, standing up sustainable, multi-generational models of community engagement, and developing smart solutions to transform the challenges of diasporan life into opportunities to promote more robust community engagement and civic advocacy.  The panel discussion was held in an open, interactive format, featuring an open discussion among the participants and panelists.

Photo: Getty Images

 

A Saudi Arabian prince has been executed for shooting dead a man during a brawl three years ago in the capital Riyadh, the interior ministry has said, the BBC reports.

Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was put to death in the capital. No details were given as to how he was executed – most condemned people are beheaded.

The prince is the 134th person to be put to death this year, according to a list compiled by the AFP news agency. But it is rare for royal family members to be executed

The prince had pleaded guilty to shooting his compatriot, the interior ministry statement said.

Announcing the execution, the ministry said it would assure everyone the government was “keen to preserve security and achieve justice.”

By Harut Sassounian
The California Courier

Both Houses of the French Legislature have once again adopted a law that penalizes the denial of genocides recognized by French or international courts, or the denial, minimization or extreme trivialization of other genocides or Crimes Against Humanity, if accompanied by incitement to violence or hatred. The French Senate approved the new law by a vote of 156 to 146 on October 14, following the Parliament’s approval by a vote of 305-157 on July 6. The law will go into effect after President François Hollande signs it, which he is committed to do.

The question now is whether the Constitutional Council of France will approve the proposed law or find it unconstitutional, as it did back in 2012, arguing that it violated freedom of speech. Here is the background of this tortuous saga:

The French Parliament first recognized the Armenian Genocide on May 29, 1998, followed by the Senate on Nov. 7, 2000. However, due to intervening elections between the two votes, the Parliament had to approve it a second time, which it did on January 18, 2001, declaring that “France publicly recognizes the Armenian Genocide of 1915.” Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and President Jacques Chirac signed the legislature’s recognition into law on January 29, 2001. In response, the Turkish government withdrew its Ambassador from Paris.

Given the fact that several members of the French media and some Turks in France and their cohorts continued to deny the Armenian Genocide, the French-Armenian community sought to penalize the denialists, as was the case with the Jewish Holocaust. French-Armenians demanded equal protection under the law, rightfully contending that there should be no discrimination among genocide victims!

After 10 years of lobbying, French Armenians and their supporters finally succeeded in having the Parliament adopt a proposed law on December 22, 2011 which set a penalty of a year in prison and $50,000 fine for anyone denying the Armenian Genocide. The Senate followed suit on January 23, 2012, prompting Turkey once again to withdraw its Ambassador from Paris!

The French Constitutional Council decided on Feb. 28, 2012, that the proposed law was unconstitutional as it violated freedom of speech. The Council’s decision was highly scandalous. Several of its 11 members had serious conflicts of interest because their families had business ties to Turkey or had opposed this bill during their years in the legislature! Most amazingly, one of Council members was on the Board of the Bosphorus Institute, a Turkish Think Tank that was lobbying against this law! After a French newspaper exposed these unethical affiliations, two members of the Council recused themselves from the case.

The current Constitutional Council is now composed of 10 members — three are leftovers from the 2012 Council that rejected a similar law. Fortunately, several of the new members are more favorably disposed toward the proposed legislation.

More importantly, the newly adopted law, called “Equality and Citizenship,” is considerably different from the 2012 version. President Hollande along with the legislature and the French-Armenian community went to great lengths to ensure that the new language complies with the right to free speech.

Although the freedom of expression is a cherished right in all democracies, there are several important factors that must be kept in mind:

1. Freedom of speech is more of an absolute right in the United States than in Europe where there are many laws that restrict it. Even in the U.S., there are some limitations on one’s ability to say or write whatever one pleases, such as libel and defamation laws.
2. In countries where denial of the Jewish Holocaust is banned, so should denial of all other genocides, including the Armenian Genocide. No double standard among Genocide victims!
3. Since France has a law that recognizes the Armenian Genocide, there should be a penalty for violating it, as is the case with all laws!
4. Anti-denial laws would prevent Turkey from exporting its denialist policies to other countries.
5. In democratic France, it is now against the law to lie about the Armenian Genocide, while in despotic Turkey it is against the law to tell the truth!

Photo: AP

 

Thousands of people have fled the Mosul area and more are expected as Iraqi troops move on the city to liberate it from the so-called Islamic State (IS), the BBC reports.

Some 5,000 people have crossed the border into Syria in the last 10 days, the aid agency Save the Children says.

They have arrived at the al-Hol refugee camp where conditions are already reported to be filthy and overcrowded.

Up to 1.5 million civilians are thought to still be in Mosul, with up to 5,000 IS fighters.

The UN is preparing for what it fears could be the biggest man-made humanitarian crisis in recent times.

Jose Mourinho is closer to fielding Henrikh Mkhitaryan for only the sixth time in a competitive match after reporting Manchester United’s first Armenian star is now fit and training well, Manchester United’s official website reports.

Mkhitaryan has been unavailable since making his solitary start for the Reds in the Manchester City match at Old Trafford – prior to that, he had come on as a substitute in the Community Shield triumph against Leicester City and opening three Premier League victories over Bournemouth, Southampton and Hull City.

When asked at his pre-match press conference if Henrikh could return in Thursday’s Europa League clash at home to Fenerbahce, the United manager replied:

“He was injured and he was injured for quite a long time. Now, he’s not injured anymore.

“He’s training with the team without any limitation. I cannot confirm if he’s [ready] for tomorrow or not, but he’s fit and it’s now time for him to go back to the levels we know that he can achieve.”

Arthur Petrosyan will head the Armenian national team from November 1, 2016, the Football Federation of Armenia said after completing talks on the appointment of the head coach.

Arthur Petrosyan previously played for the Armenian national team and is currently coaching the Swiss “Zurich-2.”

Varuzhan Sukiasyan quit as head coach after the unsuccessful start of the 2018 World Cup qualification campaign.

President Serzh Sargsyan received today students and schoolchildren – recipients of the RA Presidential Educational Awards for year 2016 in the area of information technologies (IT). At the award ceremony, which took place at the Presidential Palace, Serzh Sargsyan handed the awards received in different nominations. Together with each certificate, the young people received also souvenirs and monetary awards.

This year, the annual Presidential Award was bestowed on 28 students and 15 schoolchildren from 5 higher education institutions and 8 high schools. Until now, the RA Presidential Award in the IT area in different nominations has been given to 409 students and schoolchildren.

At the award ceremony President Serzh Sargsyan congratulated the students and schoolchildren who excelled in their studies and received Presidential Awards for year 2016 and wished them success.

President Serzh Sargsyan’s message at the ceremony of handing Presidential Educational Awards in the area of Information Technologies

Dear Students and Schoolchildren,
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to once again congratulate you on receiving the RA Presidential Educational Award in the area of information technologies. One of the pleasing duties for President is to hand over awards but for me it’s a double pleasure because first of all, the awards are given to young people who will be shaping Armenia’s tomorrow, also because this is the area which is extremely important and prospective for Armenia. I am happy not only for you; and I am also happy for your teachers, your professors, your families, for our entire society because this proves in a way that we are moving along the right way. The Armenia of tomorrow must be better educated, moving in step with the time, in the hands of knowledgeable and creative citizens. The Armenia of tomorrow must be in the realm of the information-wise developed world. We have no other way to go. It’s a well-charted road. Throughout the millennia our people recognized, took in and accepted the progressive, made it their and thanks to that very ability have been able to exist, and we have to continue to go down this road.

Dear young people,

Your success inspires us with optimism and joy. Be more proactive, very daring in your initiatives and diligent in your studies. The 21st century is developing rapidly; we are living in a rapidly developing world. When we were your age, we didn’t know what would be the professions in the age of developed technologies, in the age of internet. The same will happen 20 or 30 years later. We need to be ready for that, and I am confident that you will be ready.

I once again congratulate you and express gratitude for your service, and service it is. Be assured that good performance in studies is a service to your country. I would like to thank the organizers of this event, thank you. And certainly I thank the award commission.

About 35 cases of ceasefire violation by the Azerbaijani side were registered at the line of contact with the Karabakh forces last night.

The rival used firearms of different calibers as it fired over 6,100 shots in the direction of the Armenian positions, the NKR Defense Ministry reports.

The Azerbaijani side used DShK large-caliber machine guns (1,160 shots) in the southern direction.

The front divisions of the NKR Defense Army resorted to response actions to pressure the activeness of the rival and confidently continued with their military duty.

A plane transporting members of Fenerbahce was forced to make an emergency landing in Hungary on Oct. 19 after a crack appeared in the front window, according to the club’s official Twitter said.

The club said in a statement that the plane made an emergency landing after it collided with a bird, adding that the situation was not worrying, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.

A second plane meanwhile took off from Istanbul to take the team to Manchester.

The team is scheduled to play against English giants Manchester United at Old Trafford on Oct. 20 in the Europa League.