FRENCH MPS TO DEBATE ARMENIA ‘GENOCIDE’ BILL, ANGERING TURKEY
by Marc Burleigh
Agence France Presse — English
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
French MPs are set to debate Thursday a bill on the 1915-1917 massacres
of Armenians by the Ottomans which, if passed into law, could gravely
threaten France’s economic relations with Turkey.
Tabled by the left-wing opposition, the draft law would make it a
crime in France to deny that the massacres constituted genocide,
hitting violators with a prison term of up to one year and a fine of
up to 45,000 euros (57,000 dollars).
Turkey, the modern state which emerged from a sprawling Ottoman Empire
that included Armenia, contests the term “genocide” for the killings
and strongly opposes the bill’s provisions.
It says 300,000 Armenians, and at least as many Turks, died in civil
strife when Armenians took up arms for independence and sided with
invading Russian troops as the Ottoman Empire fell apart during World
War I.
Armenians claim up to 1.5 million of their ancestors were slaughtered
in orchestrated killings.
Around 400,000 people of Armenian origin are estimated to live in
France, the most famous being the singer Charles Aznavour, born
Chahnour Varinag Aznavourian to immigrant parents.
In 2001 France adopted a law calling the massacres a genocide,
but the new bill would, in addition, make it illegal to deny that
genocide took place, much in the way denial of the Holocaust during
World War II is a crime.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday warned that
passage of the bill would be a mistake bearing serious consequences
for French investors in Turkey.
“We expect Paris to avoid this blunder, this political accident that
will harm Turkish-French relations,” he told members of his party.
Erdogan claimed the criminalisation of those who challenged the
use of “genocide” for the Armenian killings ran counter to freedom
of expression in the European Union, which Turkey itself is under
pressure to respect as it seeks membership.
Ankara has warned France that its companies will be barred from
potentially lucrative economic projects in Turkey, including a planned
nuclear power plant, if the bill is adopted.
The Ankara Chamber of Commerce, which groups some 3,200 businesses,
has also threatened to boycott French goods.
At stake is bilateral trade that totalled 8.2 billion euros (10
billion dollars) in 2005.
But observers warned that any economic retaliation could prove worse
for Turkey than for France.
France plays a leading role in foreign direct investment in Turkey,
with 2.1 billion dollars (1.7 billion euros) last year and 328 million
dollars in the first seven months of this year. About 250 French firms
are active in Turkey, providing employment for about 65,000 people.
Nevertheless, Chirac’s ruling Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party
has been unsettled by the intensity of the Turkish backlash over the
proposed law, which was entered by the opposition Socialist Party.
On Tuesday, French foreign ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei
told reporters that the bill “does not implicate the government” and
“in our view, it is not necessary”.
The head of the UMP majority in parliament, Bernard Accoyer, said
a “large number” of the party’s MPs would abstain from voting on
the bill.
“The law is not the best tool to write history,” he said.
The furore also plays out against the context of Turkey’s EU membership
bid, and France’s key role in deciding its fate.
Chirac has championed Turkey’s ambition to join the European Union,
but domestic opposition — including within the UMP — has since
prompted him to add conditions and qualifications.
On a recent trip to Armenia, he said Turkey should recognise the
Armenian killings as a genocide before being allowed to join the EU.
But he also called the opposition bill “deliberately controversial”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

SIXTEEN FILMS TO COMPETE IN ROME’S FIRST ANNUAL FILM FESTIVAL
Agence France Presse — English
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Sixteen films are in competition in Rome’s first annual film festival
opening Friday and running through October 21, and RomeFilmFest will
host the world premieres of several films:
– “A Casa Nostra” by Francesca Comencini (Italy)
– “Nightmare Detective” by Shinya Tsukamoto (Japan)
– “Salt Air” by Alessandro Angelini (Italy)
– “Times and Winds” by Reha Erdem (Turkey)
– “Cages” by Olivier Masset-Depasse (Belgium-France)
– “A Few Days Later” by Niki Karimi (Iran)
– “After This Our Exile” by Patrick Tam (Hong Kong)
– “The Legacy” by Temur and Gela Babluani (France-Georgia)
– “Playing the Victim” by Kirill Serebrennikov (Russia)
– “Gardens in Autumn” by Otar Iosseliani (France-Italy-Russia)
– “The Colonel” by Laurent Herbiet (France-Belgium)
– “Born and Raised” by Pablo Trapero (Argentina-Italy-Britain)
– “Primo Levi’s Journey” by Davide Ferrario (Italy)
– “This Is England” by Shane Meadows (Britain)
– “Armenia” by Robert Guediguian (France-Armenia)
– “The Go Master” by Tian Zhuangzhuang (China)
The main world premieres:
– “Fur, An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus” by US director Steven
Shainberg, with Nicole Kidman
– “Napoleon and Me” by Italy’s Paolo Virzi, with Daniel Auteuil and
Monica Bellucci
– “The Namesake” by India’s Mira Nair, with Tabu and Irfan Khan
– “The Stone Council” by Guillaume Nicloux of France, with Monica
Bellucci and Catherine Deneuve
– “The Hoax” by Sweden’s Lasse Hallstrom, with Richard Gere

RA FOREIGN MINISTER RECEIVED DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE LEGAL AFFAIRS OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 10 2006
October 11 RA Minister of Foreign Affairs received the delegation
headed by Guy de Vel, Director General of the Legal Affairs of the
Council of Europe.
Te Director General arrived in Armenia to participate in the 27th
conference of Council of Europe Justice Ministers.
The interlocutors discussed RA legal field, the process of
accomplishment of Armenia’s obligations in the legal sphere, and
issues related to Armenia’s participation in forthcoming events in
the framework of the Council of Europe.
At the reguest of the guest, the Minister presented the current stage
of setlement of the Karabakh conflict.

ROME INAUGURATES STAR-STUDDED FILM FESTIVAL FRIDAY
by Katia Dolmadjian
Agence France Presse — English
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Rome kicks off the first edition of its film festival on Friday with
16 movies in competition, several high-profile world premieres and a
galaxy of stars including Nicole Kidman, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo
di Caprio.
Despite demure denials by the organizers, the event is seen as a
potentially serious rival to the venerable Mostra of Venice.
Kidman will be on hand to unveil “Fur, An Imaginary Portrait of
Diane Arbus,” a film expected to make waves with its departure
from biographical fact and the sheer originality of director Steven
Shainberg’s approach to the life of the controversial photographer
of freaks.
To run from Friday until October 21, the RomeFilmFest will also
feature appearances by Monica Bellucci, George Clooney, Robert De Niro,
Harvey Keitel, Sean Connery and Luc Besson.
Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni, the festival’s mastermind, said he wants it
to be “a great popular fete entirely dedicated to the cinematic art.”
The ardent cinephile has rejected any talk of a rivalry between the
RomeFilmFest and the decades-old Mostra, saying the two cities and
their respective festivals “help each other with reciprocal love
and respect.”
The Rome program is in fact less flamboyant than the Mostra, but it
enjoys a much larger budget — by several million euros (dollars) —
thanks to private donations.
Many big stars jumped at the invitation to attend.
The feature-length films in competition include French director Robert
Guediguian’s “Armenia”, “Primo Levi’s Journey” by Italy’s Davide
Ferrario, “A Casa Nostra” (At Our House) by Francesca Comencini, also
Italian, and Georgian filmmaker Otar Iosseliani’s “Gardens in Autumn”.
Three Asian films are in the running: “Nightmare Detective” by Shinya
Tsukamoto of Japan, “After This Our Exile” by Patrick Tam of Hong Kong,
and “The Go Master” by Tian Zhuangzhuang of China.
Another point of pride for the organizers is the amount of space
offered to the public: some 40,000 seats with affordable tickets
ranging from five to 10 euros (6.20 to 12.50 dollars) on sale at
kiosks.
This “democratization” will also see screenings both in the city
center and on Rome’s periphery.
What is more, the organizers have put together a unique jury made up
of 50 ordinary moviegoers, headed by Italian filmmaker Ettore Scola.
On October 21 they will bestow three awards: best picture (for 200,000
euros), best actress and best actor.
On Saturday Bellucci will offer “Napoleon and Me” alongside Frenchman
Daniel Auteuil, retracing Bonaparte’s life in exile on Elba.
Scorsese, the US director with Sicilian roots, will on Sunday present
“The Departed,” a drama from the Boston underworld teaming Di Caprio
with Jack Nicholson and Matt Damon.
The weekend will see Rome’s Via Veneto — setting of Rome’s iconic
“La Dolce Vita” — turned into “Business Street”, where films and
screenplays will be showcased for industry clients.

DISPUTES OVER ‘ARMENIAN’ BILL IN FRANCE
AZG Armenian Daily
12/10/2006
The French National Assembly will vote today on a bill that stipulates
that a denial of the Armenian Genocide can carry up to one year in
jail and an additional fine up to 45,000 euros. The bill is coming
to supplement the French law of 2001 recognizing the Genocide.
On the eve of the vote there was no unanimity even among the Socialist
Party members who had submitted the bill.
Le Figaro writes that Patrick Devejian, MP of the ruling Union for
a Popular Movement party (UMP), submitted an amendment proposal to
“exempt the studies of historians and scientists on this issue from
the scope of the bill.”
The bill has infuriated Turkey. On Tuesday prime minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan called on France to recall its own colonial past. Ankara
threatens to impose on France trade and political sanctions.

KARS-AKHALKALAKI RAILROAD PROJECT IS WASTE OF TIME, MONEY AND ENERGY: ARMENIAN FM
ARMINFO News Agency
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
The project to build Kars-Akhalkalaki railroad is waste of time,
money and energy, Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan says in
an interview to Hayastani Hanrapetoutyun daily.
US Congress has already expressed its opinion on the project.
However, they also said that the authors of the project may find
money for the project and then it will be just a parallel road. This
project will not contribute to confidence building in the region.
Armenia will not suffer from it, the country has already proved
that blockade and other obstacles can not prevent its economic
development. However, this project will have negative political
consequences for Turkey and Azerbaijan, says Oskanyan.

ARMENIA HAS SUFFICIENT RESOURCES FOR DEVELOPMENT: ARMENIAN FM
ARMINFO News Agency
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Having no Azeri oil and Georgian transit corridor, Armenia still
has a number of resources that allow it to successfully develop,
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan says in an interview to
Hayastani Hanarapetoutyun daily.
He says that Armenia has internal resources, which it does not yet
use in full. The first resource is developing democracy, conducting
political reforms, fighting corruption, restoring mutual confidence
between the state and the people, creating equal economic opportunities
for all. The second resource is Diaspora. Here too Armenia has much to
do yet, first of all, it must adopt a law on dual citizenship. Oskanyan
hopes that this problem will be resolved very soon. The third resource
is the international resource – investments.
The stabler Armenia the bigger foreign investing, says Oskanyan.

ARMENIAN FM PROMISES TO BE POLITICALLY ACTIVE DURING FORHTCOMING ELECTIONS
ARMINFO News Agency
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan promises to be politically
active during the forthcoming elections.
Asked by Hayastani Hanrapetoutyun daily if he may become an active
politician, Oskanyan says that he is Armenian citizen, he and his
family live here and he wants to see Armenia stable, developed
and democratic. “I think that an election, especially presidential
election, is a historic occasion to do something. It is a new chance
for us and if we miss it, we will lose the next 10 years. That’s why
I am going to be politically active for resolving our national tasks,”
says Oskanyan.
To note, during a press-conference Oct 10 the vice speaker of the
Armenian parliament, member of the ARF Dashnaktsoutyun party Vahan
Hovhannissyan said that ARFD may nominate Oskanyan for presidency
in 2008.

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENTARIAN CALLS OPPOSITION FOR UNIFICATION BEFORE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS
ARMINFO News Agency
October 11, 2006 Wednesday
Shavarsh Kocharyan, MP, Leader of the National- Democratic party
of Armenia, called the native opposition for unification before
parliamentary elections, Wednesday.
Speaking at a press conference, he said that the authorities will
try to hold the elections on their own scenario to achieve their
reelection. In this situation, the opposition must come out with
a united front at the elections. A single program and not a single
proportional ticket is in question. The opposition must take advantage
of this chance, otherwise it can be replaced by criminals who are
bored with serving the authorities, Shavarsh Kocharyan said.
He added that the National Democratic Party will come out as
an alternative to the authorities alone if the opposition does
not support its call. However, there is something indisputable:
Armenia has entered the phase of reforms and we should achieve a
final transition from dictatorship to democracy, he said.

FRENCH BILL ON TURKISH GENOCIDE WOULD BLOCK EADS FROM BIG COPTER SALE
AFX International Focus
October 11, 2006 Wednesday 9:32 AM GMT
PARIS (AFX) – EADS would see its chance to sell military helicopters
worth hundreds of millions of euros to Turkey reduced to virtually
nil if French legislators approve a bill making it a crime to deny
that Turkey committed genocide against Armenians during World War I,
a source close to the matter said.
Turkey, angry at the pending bill, has denied that the massacres
were genocide. Shunning EADS would be seen as retaliation for the
bill’s passage.
EADS unit Eurocopter is one of four companies competing to supply
Turkey with 52 military helicopters in a deal that is expected to be
decided by the end of this year.
The bill is scheduled to be debated in Parliament on Thursday. It calls
for a year in prison and a 45,000-eur fine for anyone who denies that
the massacres of Armenians constituted genocide.