Capital FM, Kenya
June 9 2006
Armenian brothers deported after scuffle with police
Armenian brothers Artur Margaryan and Sargasyan, have been taken to
the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport ,where it is believed they
are to be deported from the country.
The Armenians, who were arrested this morning during a police raid at
their Runda residence, were whisked to the airport under tight
security of armed officers.
They were nabbed following a brush with security officials, after
they allegedly roughed up customs officials at JKIA last night, and
refused to allow officials to inspect their luggage.
One of them is said to have drawn a gun, and threatened the customs
officers, who insisted that they follow procedure to clear at the
airport.
They are however denying the allegations, and have told journalists
at JKIA, that they were not armed as claimed. They further claim to
have been denied access to their lawyers, adding that they have not
recorded statements with the police.
The Armenian brothers, who made headlines in March, after allegations
that they were mercenaries, say their arrest is a political frame-up,
blaming Langata MP Raila Odinga for the turn of events.
Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargasyan, were arrested early this
morning, along with 5 other people at their Runda residence.
Police found 11 top-of-the-range vehicles at the compound, some with
‘GK’ registration plates.
The raid sent panic among senior police officers due to what they are
terming as ‘interference from above’.
No senior police officer involved in the operation is willing to
comment on the matter reffering all questions to the Police
Commissioner himself.
A high powered security meeting was convened at Police Headquarters
over the late night operation.
Seven people, among them Artur Margaryan, his brother Sargasyan and
another man said to be their brother, are recording statements with
the police at Gigiri, Muthangari and Hardy police stations.
The Armenian brothers prominently featured in the media 3 months ago
when they were branded mercenaries by former Roads Minister Raila
Odinga.
Margaryan has since sued the Lang’ata legislator for maligning his
name.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
Azerbaijani MPs refutes speaker Ogtay Asadov’s congratulating
Armenian speaker
[ 09 Jun. 2006 19:02 ]
Azerbaijani parliamentarians Musa Guliyev and Asef Hajili held a
press conference dedicated to their participation in the 27th plenary
session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Organization of the Black
Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) in Yerevan (APA).
The parliamentarians said Azerbaijani media did not fairly covered
their visit to Armenia and even made false information about that.
They refuted the reports that Azerbaijani parliament speaker Oghtay
Asadov sent congratulations to the newly elected Armenian parliament
speaker Tigran Torosyan. Hajiyev accused some pro-opposition papers
of playing into Armenians’ hands.
`The pro-opposition papers exaggerated disinformation of Armenian
press. The authors of these stories have links with Armenians and
back them,’ the parliamentarian said.
Hajiyev said it was important to attend the event in Armenia related
to Azerbaijan’s taking over the presidency of the organization.
`Azerbaijan took over the presidency from Armenia in this event. If
we did not attend it they would have proclaimed to the world that
Azerbaijan boycotted the international organization’s work,’ he said.
He noted the next sitting of the organization will take place in
Azerbaijan in November this year, `We have invited the Assembly
participants to the meeting in Azerbaijan.’
Guliyev said some media outlets made false reports on their visit to
Yerevan./APA/

Windsor-Hights Herald, NJ
June 9 2006
Opening activism

By: Dick Brinster, Staff Writer 06/09/2006

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Her battle with Twin Rivers now playing to larger audience
EAST WINDSOR – Disputes over the color and style of front doors
opened the way to what is now Margaret Bar-Akiva’s battle against a
“Trojan horse.”
There might be no better way to begin chronicling a decade for an
activist that began with a term on the board of directors of the Twin
Rivers Homeowners Association and morphed into what she believes is a
war for democracy against those who control such associations.
“Although it began with a debate over rules governing such mundane
items as a storm door, no intelligent discussion can take place
without distinguishing between good rules, bad rules and benign
rules,” Ms. Bar-Akiva said. “Good rules are what day you take out the
garbage, keeping the community clean and healthy, and benign rules
are what color and style your door and mailbox can be.
“Bad rules are where they trample on your First Amendment rights.”
To Ms. Bar-Akiva, the latter is war. And a big battle in that
conflict will be decided by the state Supreme Court. It has agreed to
hear arguments over the board’s attempt to limit placement of
political signs, use of the Twin Rivers Community Room and access to
the development’s newsletter.
The action was filed by Frank Askin of the Rutgers Constitutional
Litigation Clinic on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union of
New Jersey.
A ruling in favor of the association’s board might affect more
than the Committee for a Better Twin Rivers, a plaintiff’s group that
includes Ms. Bar-Akiva’s husband, Haim. Ms. Bar-Akiva is looking
beyond the impact a negative ruling would have on the local community
of 10,000 residents, the state’s oldest planned-unit development,
begun in 1969.
She says 1.4 million people in New Jersey and 52 million
nationwide are living under rules of homeowners’ associations.
“It would be a blow not only to homeowners who live in these types
of communities but I think we need to be very concerned about what
the implications of living in dictatorial enclaves within a country
that holds itself up as a model of democracy,” she said.
That sort of belief carried Ms. Bar-Akiva from the Twin Rivers
board, on which she served from 1994 through 1996, to formation in
1997 of the Common-Interest Homeowners Coalition. Now, the depth of
the battle against homeowners’ associations (HOAs) has led to Ms.
Bar-Akiva leaving as founding president to become legislative liaison
to the C-IHC board.
She hopes the war can be won in Trenton, where Assembly bill A798
was approved March 2. Ms. Bar-Akiva calls that bill an attempt to
snuff out the rights of homeowners and wants to block implementation
of what’s known as the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act.
“It is the brainchild of the attorneys of the Community
Associations Institute,” she said. “CAI is a trade organization that
represents the interests of attorneys, property managers,
administrators, management companies, accountants, etc., all of whom
get paid from hardworking homeowners’ fees.”
But, she insists, this certainly is not done in the best interest
of the homeowners.
“Lawyers of CAI represented the board in the Twin Rivers case,
arguing that homeowners who live in HOAs have no constitutional
rights!” she said. “Those same attorneys want you to believe that a
bill they crafted could be good for homeowners.”
That’s exactly what Assemblyman Peter Biondi, R-Somerset, thinks
of A798, a bill he co-sponsored, because he says it will consolidate
a myriad of laws and regulations applying to HOAs.
“This bill, which is extensive in scope, will not only clarify the
powers of homeowners’ associations but will provide more homeowner
protections,” he told the Herald. “The fact that New Jersey has a
large number of residents living in common-interest residences makes
this bill necessary and will be effective in helping our residents
living in these homes.”
Ms. Bar-Akiva, a mother of three who works for the state Division
of Human Services, is concentrating on stopping S805, the Senate
counterpart of A798. If passed in the Senate and signed by the
governor, UCIOA would become law.
“We find UCIOA to be the Great Pretender, a Trojan horse, a pig in
a poke,” said Ms. Bar-Akiva. “Its 114 pages cement the rights of
developers and of boards, but do nothing to protect owners from
abusive boards.”
Ms. Bar-Akiva is working in support of another Senate bill, S1608,
introduced by Sen. Shirley Turner, D-Mercer.
“It is written in a clear and concise manner and is meant to do
exactly what its title implies: Owners’ Rights in Common Interest
Developments (ORCID),” she said.
Meanwhile, at stake in the state Supreme Court is the outcome of a
lawsuit filed in 2000. Twin Rivers board President Scott Pohl says
$750,000 has been spent in defense of an eight-count action brought
by Mr. Bar-Akiva and two other residents.
A Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the board, applying the
business judgment rule – which holds that a decision must be made in
good faith. But an appellate panel earlier in February sent the suit
back to the lower court that previously dismissed it, instructing it
to apply a constitutional standard to counts involving placement of
signs, the community room and newsletter.
The appellate court’s action did not approve of the residents’
demand for a one-person, one-vote system to elect board members. In
Twin Rivers’ system, votes are based on the value of one’s property.
Ms. Bar-Akiva says there are many problems involving HOAs in New
Jersey and throughout the country. For her, the bottom line is
democracy.
Her first major attempt to push that concept beyond Twin River
began reluctantly in January 1997, when an Assembly task force
conducted hearings on HOAs.
“I wanted nothing to do with it,” Ms. Bar-Akiva remembered. “My
husband insisted that he wanted to go and testify. When he returned
home that night he told me that scores of people from across New
Jersey had shown up on that bitterly cold night to testify about
their own horror stories in HOAs.”
Soon, the Bar-Akivas hosted a meeting at their home with several
of those who testified, and a group of 17 formed the C-IHC.
With Ms. Bar-Akiva’s background, it might be no surprise that
rights and freedom are top-priority items.
She says her Armenian grandparents and parents survived the
genocide committed by the Turks in 1915 and 1922. The forced
deportation from Turkey landed her ancestors in what is now Israel in
1923.
“I think when you grow up in an environment where you’re aware of
the Armenian genocide, the Jewish Holocaust, and the suffering of the
Palestinian people, you realize how easy it is for things to go wrong
when good people don’t speak up,” she said.
For the first 12 years she and her husband lived in Twin Rivers,
Ms. Bar-Akiva was hardly an activist. But in 1993 – six years after
buying a townhouse for her parents in Twin Rivers – that began to
change. She said she received a letter from the board saying the
brown front door on her parents’ home was in violation of the
community bylaws because it was the same color as the townhouse
itself.
“They gave us a deadline to change the color of the door, which we
did, but missed the deadline by 12 days,” she said. “We received a
fine of $1,200.”
Then she won a seat on the board. Shortly after she left, the
C-IHC was founded. The ink on the charter was barely dry when the
Bar-Akivas received a letter from the board saying the storm door on
their home was in violation of architectural standards.
She especially criticized the Twin Rivers board and its attorneys
for being wasteful in the 1997 storm-door suit. Ms. Bar-Akiva
contends it cost homeowners $100,000. Mr. Pohl, who was elected to
Ms. Bar-Akiva’s former seat on the board, disputes that, saying about
$30,000 was spent. He denied Ms. Bar-Akiva’s claim that attorneys for
Twin Rivers charged $400 an hour for depositions.
Today, Mr. Pohl insists the same storm door, minus grates but
including a second color on the hinges – both objectionable to rules
Ms. Bar-Akiva claims were never recorded – is on the front of the her
residence. Mr. Pohl does agree with the Bar-Akivas on one thing – the
ridiculousness of the fight – but blames them for most of the cost.
Ms. Bar-Akiva contests that.
“You have an in insignificant encounter which then opens your eyes
as to how bizarre it can get,” she said. “These attorneys deposed us
for seven hours . . . all over a storm door.”

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
I hope that Armenian government will analyze results of high-level
talks and look through its position – Azeri deputy FM

Source: Trend
Author: R.Abdullayev

09.06.2006

I hope that the Armenian government will analyze the results of the
talks at high level in Rambue and Bucharest, and review its position
in the direction of constructivism, Araz Azimov, the Azerbaijani
deputy foreign minister, made such a statement in his interview to
journalists on June 9, Trend reports.

According to Azimov, day-by-day Armenia becomes alone in its position
on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict because today there is no support for
the position of an aggressor-country. `In no country of the world,
Yerevan cannot receive any support in its occupation of Azerbaijani
lands. Several countries have already expressed their unwillingness
to establish normal relations with Armenia. Yerevan understands that
its current position will not bring desirable results,’ told Azimov.
Azimov stressed his confidence that the position of Armenia would
further weaken day-by-day.

`Half of the Armenian people have leaved the country. Therefore, the
current position should be looked through,’ added Azimov.
Touching on the upcoming meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign
ministers, Azimov ruled out that the meeting would focus on the
process of negotiations, in particular the issues that what steps can
be taken as a result of the meeting of presidents in Bucharest. We
have to find an answer to the question: in what direction does it
need to continue the peace talks to regulate the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict?

Besides, Azimov expressed his attitude towards the rotation of
co-chairs of OSCE Minsk group. `I don’t think that the diplomat who
will substitute Steven Mann will be less experienced in the process
of Azerbaijan-Armenian conflict. To my knowledge, the diplomat is
also experienced and principal,’ told Azimov.

Furthermore, Azimov spoke about the positive activity of Steven Mann
in the co-chair position. `From the conceptual point of view and
position of the talks process, Mann brought important advancement to
the dialogue process on the solution of Azerbaijani-Armenian
conflict,’ considers Azimov.

Daily Nation , Kenya
June 9 2006
Police arrest Armenian brothers in night raid
Story by OWINO OPONDO
Publication Date: 6/9/2006
Police are holding the two Armenian brothers at the heart of
mercenary claims.
Also arrested were three people found with them at their posh Runda
estate in Nairobi during the police swoop at 1am (2200hrs GMT).
Found at the palatial home were car registration plates for
government, diplomatic and civilian vehicles. Also parked at the
residence were 15 luxury cars, some bearing GK (government)
registration.
Military uniforms, hoods, and a gun bag were also found in the house.
About 50 police officers led by Gigiri police boss Patrick Lumumba
used a truck to pull down the gate when the Armenians refused to
open.
Police then flushed out the Armenians and bundled them into a waiting
saloon car. They were driven to the Gigiri police station and later
transferred to Kileleshwa police station this morning.
The two brothers who have been described as investors by the
Government had earlier caused a scene at the Jomo Kenyatta
International Airport when they refused to have their baggage
inspected by customs officers. It is still not clear where they were
arriving from.
It is understood that the two declined to have their bags inspected
by customs officers in keeping with practice.
photos of the arrests:
gcontententry.asp?category_id=39&newsid=74819

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
EU can undertake responsibility for maintenance of peace in
Nagorno-Karabakh – EU special rep for S Caucasus

Source: Trend
Author: A.Mammadova

09.06.2006

Exclusive interview of Trend with the European union (EU) special
representative for South Caucasus, Peter Semnebi
Question: How do you estimate the last visit to the South Caucasus
countries? Did you manage to achieve any accord during the talks?
Answer: The purpose of my first visits to the South Caucasus was not
to achieve accords but to see how the EU can later be useful in
supporting a settlement of the conflicts. I was encouraged by the
depth of discussion on conflict resolution among experts in
Azerbaijan and Armenia. But I was also discoraged by the harsh public
discourse. In Georgia, the conflicts have to be seen in the context
of the problematic relation between Russia and Georgia. There is much
more that could be done on the part of both countries to enhance
dialogue and resolve problems. But there have been some positive
signs recently of a mutual willingness to at least discuss the
problematic issues. The EU is prepared to engage where it can be
helpful. Russia has a special responsibility because of the
difference in size: any move on the part of Russia may be seen as an
existential threat in tiny Georgia, but the opposite is obviously not
true.
Ultimately, it has to be in Russia’s interest to help resolving the
conflicts in order to make sure that it has a stable and friendly
neighbour on its border.
Question: At which stage are the consultations on the preparations of
the Act Plan on the implementation of the EUs New Naborhood Policy?
Answer: The negotiations are almost finished with all three
countries, although there are some issues that are still open. The
European Neighbourhood Policy does not involve a membership
perspective, but if Azerbaijan and the other countries take the
Action Plans seriously, they will be able to move very close to the
EU and to European standards in most areas of society. This will not
be an easy path, but I am certain that the trip along this path will
ultimately be rewarding. The trip itself will be an important
learning experience for the individual countries as well as for the
EU. This learning experience will inevitably bring us closer
together. At the end of the road, I am convinced that there will be a
strong sense of common identity. The Neighborhood Policy is also
supposed to strengthen regional cooperation. I have seen from my
previous job in the Balkans how this became much easier within a
larger European framework based on certain common principles and
values.
Question: How is the mandate of the Special Deputy of EU on South
Caucasus countries practically enlarged?
Answer: The participation of the three countries in the European
Neighbourhood Policy means that the EU has a direct interest of
prosperity and stability in the region. As a result, the interest of
the EU for the conflicts is growing.
The EU marked this interest in a subtle way by reinforcing the
mandate of the EUSR when I was appointed. While my predecessor was
supposed to “assist” in conflict resolution, I am supposed to
“contribute” to conflict resolution. This change is particularly
important as a political signal.
Question: Are any recommendations on the issue on the settlement of
the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict on Nagorno Karabakh supposed to be
prepared to the governing body of EU?
Answer: The EU is not involved in the actual negotiations, which are
the responsibility of the OSCE, and more specifically of the OSCE
Minsk Group. But the EU supports and follows the work of the Minsk
Group, and one EU country is involved in it as co-chair. The main EU
role is likely to come after a settlement. The EU will, of course,
help to ensure that a settlement is implemented. In addition to a
strong sense of responsibility for two countries that have suffered
because of war and ethnic conflict, there is also a growing notion
that it is in the self-interest of the EU to support a settlement.
A settlement will create the conditions for stability and
prosperity in an important neighboring area of the EU, which is
becoming tied more closely to the EU and which is embracing the
fundamental values of the EU. After a settlement, it will be
self-evident for the EU to make a major contribution to the
reconstruction and rehabilitation of the war-torn areas. The EU may
also consider a peacekeeping engagement, but I have to mention that
there are other options for peace-keeping as well.
Question: Do you think that there is still a chance to settle
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in 2006?
Answer: I’m neither a pessimist nor an optimist. For too long the
pessimists have been proven right over and over again. I will stretch
so far as to say that I hope the optimists will be right this time. I
also hope that those who look upon the conflict in a rational way
will prevail in both countries. The advantages of a settlement for
both countries are obvious. The reopening of contacts between the two
countries and particularly in the conflict area will finally create
the conditions for long-term stability and prosperity. By contrast,
if the conflict continues, there will always be missed opportunities.
Societies that live on a war footing will always devote a large
amount of resources to purposes that could have been used in other
ways if there had been peace. A settlement will require bold and
statesmanlike decisions on the part of the political leaders of the
two countries. The fact that both countries have exceptionally
capable leaders gives me reason to hope that this is possible.
Question: What do you think about collaboration in the energy field
between Azerbaijan and the EU?
Answer: There is already collaboration in the energy field with EU
companies active in Azerbaijan. As the EU is continuing to diversify
its energy resources, not only in terms of types of energy, but also
in terms of suppliers and supply routes, Azerbaijan will have a
growing importance. But again, the full potential of this
collaboration will only be realized if there is lasting peace.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
Azeri, Armenian FMs to meet in short

Source: Trend
Author: À. Mammadov

09.06.2006

Armenian FM Vardan Oskanyan does not rule out the possibility of one
more meeting between Azeri and Armenian presidents during 2006.
`Talks at the level of foreign ministers will undoubtedly go on’, –
Oskanyan said in an interview to Armenian Kentron TV channel.
Trend reports with reference to ÀRÊÀ, Oskanyan said FMs may meet the
soonest. `Co-chairs already called the parties to define the date of
the meeting’, – Oskanyan said.
`The principles to be discussed are the same, status of
Nagorno-Karabakh, grounds, refugees, security’, – Oskanyan added,
claiming the parties having found contact for most of these issues.
`A few issues are still disputable and presidents shall try to reach
agreement on them’.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
Returning of controlled grounds to Azerbaijan shall be discussed in
line with other issues – Armenian FM

Source: Trend
Author: À. Mammadov

09.06.2006

Returning of controlled grounds to Azerbaijan shall be discussed in
line with other issues, said Armenian FM Vardan Oskanyan in an
interview to Armenian Kentron TV channel.
`The package to discuss consists of numerous elements and we shall
find a right balance for the issues we give and issues we receive’, –
he continued.
`While Nagorno-Karabakh’s right to self-determination is uncertain,
not registered and not recognized, I don’t want to show my hands and
say Armenia is ready to give back any areas’, – minister added.
Trend reports with reference to ÀRÊÀ, Oskanyan said that in response
to Azerbaijan’s recognition of Nagiorno-Karabakh’s right for
self-determination Armenia is ready to go for a compromise and
discuss grounds question with Azerbaijan.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
Azerbaijan rebuffs media reports on congratulatory message sent by
Azeri speaker to chair of Armenian parliament

Source: Trend
Author: R.Abdullayev

09.06.2006

Media reports on congratulatory message reportedly sent by the
Azerbaijani speaker Oktai Asadov to the chairman of the Armenian
National Assembly, Tigran Torosian are groundless and lying, Akif
Nasirov, the spokesman for the Milli Majlis [Azerbaijan parliament]
told Trend.
`It is wrong information, which is part of anti-Azerbaijani
propaganda held by Armenia,’ Nasirov stressed.
Spread of such reports is behind the ethic norms. `Azerbaijani
journalists should not fall under tricks of the Armenian intelligence
services,’ he underlined.
Earlier the Armenian media spread reports on congratulatory message
as though sent by the Azerbaijani Speaker to the chairman of the
Armenian National Assembly. In accordance with article, the message
was read by Azerbaijani MP Asef Hajiyev at the plenary session of the
Black Sea Economic Cooperation’s Parliamentary Assembly in Yerevan on
8 June.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 9 2006
Azeri FM to take diplomatic demarche against Lebanon president

Source: Trend
Author: E.Huseynov

09.06.2006

The Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs is going to take
diplomatic demarche steps in respect to Lebanon, Tahir Tagizade, the
head of the Press and Information Department of the Azerbaijani
Foreign Ministry, told Trend. He was commenting on the news article
placed the website of the President of Lebanon on 6 June.
President Lahoud is reported to have a meeting with a delegation of
the Armenian Tashnak Party headed by its secretary general Hovik
Makhtarian.
The meeting was also attended by a delegation of the Armenian
`Nagorno Karabakh’ region chaired by Georgi Pedrossian, former
minister Sebouh Hofnanian, Armenian Ambassador to Lebanon Serge
Amerkhanian, and Benjamin Butchakajian.
Tagizade said that the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry will take
relevant steps.