FOUNDATION OF SHUSHI OUTLINED RECONSTRUCTION POLICY
Laura Grigorian
Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Oct 17 2006
On October 4 the board of trustees of Shushi Revival Foundation set
up in spring 2006 met at the Narekatsi Cultural Center in Shushi. The
chief executive of the foundation G. Hovanissian presented a report
on the work of the foundation over the past few months. The priority
of the foundation is to work out the strategy of reconstruction
of Shushi for 5-10 years. There are both short-term and long-term
projects. According to G. Hovanissian, it is estimated that the
population of Shushi will grow to 10 thousand by 2015. Yerevan Project
is already working out the project of the water supply system of the
city. According to the short-term policy, besides its contribution
during the upcoming six months the Shushi foundation will facilitate
the engagement of other investors. The investment and urban planning
projects will be presented to the government and investors, the
social and economic state of the population of Shushi must be made
sustainable, 100-150 jobs must be created, mostly in the spheres of
service and building, it is necessary to promote connections between
the settlements of NKR and Armenia by setting up infrastructures of
superior quality, upgrade the qualification of the local labor. Prime
Minister Anoushavan Danielian said since Shushi is growing, it is
necessary to have a policy of overall reconstruction and a coordinating
body. “The reconstruction of a town like Shushi is very complicated
and requires responsibility. We have to restore everything that
used to exist in Shushi,” said the prime minister. At the same time,
Anoushavan Danielian said the government will support the foundation
and added that the allocations from the state budget to the region
increase annually. The board of trustees decided to hold a Shushi –
Yerevan – Moscow – Paris telethon on May 7 on the 15th anniversary
of liberation of Shushi.

SERGEY LAVROV: BORDER ISSUES MUST BE RESOLVED ON THE BILATERAL BASIS
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 17 2006
RF Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov considers that regulation of border
issues on post-Soviet space must take place on the bilateral basis
rather than in the CIS format. The Foreign Minister said this in Minsk
today, summing up the results of the sitting of the CIS Council of
Foreign Ministers. In his words, the problems are of bilateral nature
and the Commonwealth is not eligible to resolve such problems.
IN this regard, Lavrov informed that in the near future Russia intends
to undertake demarcation of the borders with Ukraine.

PRESIDENT KOCHARYAN MET WITH TORBEN HOLTZE, HEAD OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION DELEGATION
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 17 2006
October 17 President Robert Kocharyan had a farewell meeting with
Head of the European Commission delegation to Armenia Torben Holtze.
The parties thanked each other for the productive joint work.
The President noted with appreciation that during Mr. Holtze’s tenure
in office serious progress was registered in Armenia-EU relations.
These turned more coordinated and entered a very important phase for
our country. Robert Kocharyan expressed confidence that the Action
Plan in the framework of the New Neighborhood Policy will provide
the opportunity to work more closely and effectively.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

“WE MUST LIVE UP TO THE EXPECTATIONS OF ARMENIANS”
Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Oct 17 2006
On October 7 the repaired building of Arevik Children’s Medical
Center was opened, the reconstruction of which started in 2003. At the
ceremony the president, the speaker and the prime minister, as well
as members of government, health workers and the benefactors were
present. In her speech Minister of Health Zoya Lazarian thanked the
French Aida for Armenia organization (President Stepan Berberian),
as well as everyone else, who had contributed to the reconstruction
and equipment of the hospital. The minister of health said the project
implemented for several years now was also supported by the ministry
of health, as well as several local businessmen.
Although part of the building was repaired, over 360 thousand euros
was spent on this project. Stepan Berberian said when six years ago he
first visited Artsakh and saw the state of the children’s hospital, he
decided to take up its reconstruction. He was helped by his parents
and uncle. Stepan Berberian, the president of Aida for Armenia,
thanked the NKR government, people living in France and Artsakh who
contributed to the project. President Arkady Ghukassian said in his
speech that hopefully the other part of the building will be repaired
too. “We must take care of the health of our people for them to feel
safe here and not have to leave for other cities to get treatment. We
must live up to the expectations of Armenians for them to be sure
that the money they donate for one purpose or another reaches its
destination,” said Arkady Ghukassian.

ARMENIAN BUSINESSWOMEN – 2006 SECOND EXHIBITION TO OPEN THURSDAY IN YEREVAN
Arka News Agency, Armenia
Oct 18 2006
YEREVAN, October 18. /ARKA/.Armenian Businesswomen – 2006, the second
exhibition, is to open on Thursday in Yerevan, press center of ASME,
the exhibition co-organizer, reports.
The other organizer is LOGOS EXPO Center.
The report says that about 60 Armenian businesswomen will expose
their works in various areas such as foods, textile, clothes, stone
and wood processing, carpets and others.
The aim of the exhibition is to present Armenian businesswomen
abilities and to help them expand their business ties in home and
world markets.
Round-table discussions are to be held as part of the event to help
them outline prospects for cooperation.
The exhibition will last until Saturday.
ASME, the program of market development of small and mid-scale
business, was launched on September 15, 2000, and to be completed on
December 31, 2007.
The program is funded by USAID and implemented by Development
Alternatives, Inc. (DAI).
The program’s aim is to create jobs in Armenia through developing
profitable and dynamically developing private companies.
LOGOS EXPO Center is the leading Armenian company in organizing
industrial, national and international exhibitions and congresses.
LOGOS EXPO Center started functioning in 1999. The center has organized
55 exhibitions in Armenia and the outside since then.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT GIVES HIGH MARK TO COOPERATION WITH WB
Arka News Agency, Armenia
Oct 18 2006
YEREVAN, October 18. /ARKA/. Armenian President Robert Kocharyan
made a high appraisal of Armenia’s cooperation with the World Bank
in developing the country’s economy.
Many years of cooperation with the WB have produced good results in
the development of Armenia’s economy, President Kocharyan stated at
his meeting with Director of the WB Yerevan office Roger Robinson,
who is completing his mission in Armenia.
Kocharyan stressed structural reforms in the state government system,
infrastructure development, poverty reduction programs as important
factors in ensuring the country’s progress.
In his turn, Robinson pointed out positive changes in Armenia and
the WB’s contribution to this process.
During the meeting President Robert Kocharyan wished Rogert Robinson
success in his further activities, expressing the confidence that
they will be as effective as in Armenia.

NKR MFA PRESS SERVICE INFORMS
Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Oct 17 2006
In the morning of October 5 the OSCE mission including NKR experts
started the monitoring of the area adjacent to the front line
between the armed forces of Azerbaijan and NKR. They started the
monitoring on the Azerbaijani side. Earlier the NKR government had
insisted on postponing the monitoring to include representatives
of NKR in the mission, and sent a note to the OSCE. “We are sorry
that the OSCE did not provide necessary conditions to include NKR
representatives in the OSCE mission set up to study the environment in
the areas which suffered from fires. However, this does not exclude
the possibility of including Karabakh experts in the OSCE mission,
therefore the mission was postponed to include NKR representatives,”
stated NKR Foreign Minister Georgy Petrossian in answer to the
question of news reporters on the action of official Stepanakert
connected with the visit of the OSCE experts. Georgy Petrossian
also informed that the NKR foreign ministry sent a note to the OSCE
stating clearly the stance of the government of the republic on the
participation of experts from Karabakh. “Part of the territories to
be monitored is under the jurisdiction of NKR, which is sufficient
reason for our participation in the mentoring on the opposite side,”
emphasized the minister. According to the reliable information that
the NKR authorities possess, a dramatic situation has occurred in
the Karabakh territories occupied by Azerbaijan: the forests in the
region of Shahumian are destroyed, the ecological balance of the east
of Martakert was broken, where the structure of land and microflora
were damaged.

NKR MOD REFUTES AZERI REPORTS ON SHOOTING IN THE DIRECTION OF AGHDAM
Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 17 2006
NKR Defense Ministry refuted Azeri media reports on mutual shooting
in the direction of Aghdam region. “The Karabakh side is loyal to the
maintenance of the cease-fire regime,” NKR MOD Press Secretary Senor
Asratyan told ArmInfo correspondent. At the same time he noted that
the Azerbaijani side is constantly trying to provoke the Karabakh
side by breaking the truce. “In response to that we try to maintain
the cease-fire regime and only in exceptional cases we undertake
similar steps,” he said.
Referring to the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan, Azeri media report
that the hooting took place last night at about 22:30.

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTED DRAFT CONSTITUTION ON FIRST READING
Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Oct 17 2006
On October 6 the National Assembly of NKR discussed the draft
Constitution. But before discussing the draft, some replacements were
made in the standing committees. Arayik Harutiunyan, the chair of the
finance and budget committee was replaced by Benik Bakhshiyan. Benik
Bakhshiyan, the chair of the committee on industries and industrial
infrastructures was replaced by Gagik Petrosyan, Azat Hayrenik. The
post of Gagik Petrosyan, who used to be the chair of the committee
of external relations, is vacant. The chair of the Task Force on
Constitution Armen Zalinian said all the proposals which were agreed
on during the previous debates were included in the draft. He said the
draft was revised and edited and proposed that the parliament adopt it
on the first reading. He also thanked the members of parliament and
parliament factions for effective efforts and close cooperation. The
draft was put to vote and was adopted almost unanimously; only one
members of parliament abstained.

PAMUK’S TASK
Selcuk Gultasli
Zaman, Turkey
Oct 18 2006
First of all, I want to put it on the record that I have followed Orhan
Pamuk with great pleasure and appreciation since the publication of
his “Black Book,” and that, asking for the forgiveness of literary
critics, I think he is the greatest author in Turkish literature’s
recent history.
I wholeheartedly congratulate him on winning the Nobel prize for
Literature.
However, the Nobel Prize for Literature having fallen on the same
day as France’s questionable draft law warns us that we have to be
sparing while showing our excitement and joy.
This Nobel award, for which we will always praise our great writer,
couldn’t have come at a worse time.
What should be done now? Can our Nobel author take a role in the
struggle against the injustice made against his own nation this time?
Let whoever wants to boycott do so; but 200l clearly showed that
stupid plans like bringing France to its knees through trade never
work. France has the world’s seventh largest economy, its per capita
income is almost 30 thousand dollars and its economic volume exceeds
2 trillion dollars annually.
Mistakes like trusting that Chirac will call Erdogan and say, “I’m
sorry,” expecting him to obstruct the bill, giving compromise after
compromise hoping he will, and buying plenty of Airbuses, shouldn’t
be repeated.
Both of Chirac’s probable successors, right-wing Nicolas Sarkozy and
leftist Segolene Royal have already made recognition of a “genocide”
a condition of Turkey’s EU membership just like the current “friend
of the Turks” president.
OK, let’s say that Chirac doesn’t sign this bill, won’t it be brought
back to life a few years later?
What should be done is to immediately make the bill a law. As soon as
it becomes a law, a serious struggle should be begun on the basis of
freedom of expression. Last week in Europe there were many decisions
indicating that Turkey would win such a struggle started on the basis
of freedom of expression. We can list them as follows:
The EU Commission took a stand against the bill; not only Expansion
Commissioner Olli Rehn, but also at the highest level, Chairman
Barroso.
France’s largest newspapers agreed that the French National Assembly
had acted unreasonably. In general, the European press supported
this stand.
There were official public statements from the European Parliament,
which is constantly giving Turkey a headache regarding the issue of
“genocide,” saying, “You’ve made Voltaire turn over in his grave,”
and, “If a law is being made for the Armenian genocide, why aren’t
you doing anything about other injustices?”
Even one of the genocide-accusing members of the EP, French Marie
Anne Isler Beguin, joined in on the protests, “Do you want to throw
Turkey into the lap of Iran and Russia?”
Without losing any time, France’s most expert historians called upon
Chirac to have the bill rescinded if it passes the Senate.
It can be said that an intellectual alliance is emerging throughout
Europe – even though it’s not strong – believing that France has gone
too far this time and exceeded its limits.
If the bill is not buried in France, it is just a matter of time
before it jumps to Belgium, Holland and other countries.
The best thing to do would be to pull the discussion toward a freedom
of expression platform and get the intellectual consensus emerging
in Europe behind us.
Then Orhan Pamuk’s going to Paris with Hrant Dink would be effective.
Pamuk’s going to Paris as a Nobel-winning author from a country that
has abolished or amended article 301 could turn into a visit that
would make France ashamed.
Actually, this is just the right time to amend Article 301!
In an interview with the BBC just after winning the award, Pamuk
did not mention freedom of expression in relation to questions about
France. This does not promise hope.
However, on the day he is to receive the award, if after criticizing
the genocide bill from top to bottom in the speech he makes in Sweden,
if the bill becomes law and he jumps on the first flight to Paris and,
as Hrant Dink promised to do, he proclaims that he doesn’t recognize
the “genocide” (even if he believes it happened), then the coldness
between him and the Turkish people would to a large extent disappear.