SYNDROME OF DEFEATED PEOPLE. HOMELAND IS THE SAFEST PLACE TO LIVE
Lragir.am
03 June 06
The reporter of Lragir.am asked Vahan Hovanisyan, ARF, to express his
view on the murder of two Armenian young men in Moscow.
According to him, we cannot see a determined anti-Armenian policy
behind what has happened because `representatives of other nations and
simply foreigners are murdered and undergo assaults.’ This teaches two
important lessons.
First, the `Russian society is sick. Only a nation suffering a loser’s
complex behaves so. Take, for example, Germany in the early 1930’s,
which started to repress ethnic minorities after a bitter defeat in
World War I.’ For Russia, it `was simply beaten in the cold war and
lost its domain called the Soviet Union.’ Then the Russian people
appeared in a situation when `the teaching of 70 years that the
Russian people are the most progressive, the best people, that
Mayakovsky’s poem saying that I would learn Russian only because Lenin
spoke it arouses laughter outside the borders of the Soviet Union. The
Germans defeated by them live better than they do. They are unable to
solve their economic problems even with the soaring price of oil. This
is the reason why the sick members of the society start behaving
so. The killers, the sick members of the society, shout `Glory to
Russia’, whereas those people, who could really bring glory to Russia,
remain silent.’
According to Vahan Hovanisyan, the Russian skinheads have no idea of
real fascism. `If the founders and political fathers of fascism
Mussolini, Franco, Salazar, who were southern Europeans and close to
the Armenian race, would become a target of skinheads on appearing at
one of the Russian markets.’
Therefore, Vahan Hovanisyan concludes that the actions of Russian
skinheads do not have an ideological ground. `Simply a set of
officials have turnedthis into a business.’
The second lesson is that `one can feel safe and secure in one’s
homeland only.’ Vahan Hovanisyan says though their murder is a deep
sorrow,they could nevertheless be useful. It is surprising that their
parents `living abroad for decades, should have realized that there is
always the danger of becoming victim in a foreign country. They saw it
in Baku but they did not learn anything and again preferred to go to
live in a foreign country. It is better to live a hard life in one’s
homeland than to be a well-off slave in a foreign country.’
The Russian law enforcement agencies say these killings do not have an
ethnic motive. `As the chairman of the Armenian-Russian Parliamentary
Committee, I always raise this issue. I think this issue will become
the key issue on the agenda of the next meeting.’ 2006 is declared an
Armenian year in Russia.
These murders allow Vahan Hovanisyan to conclude that `it is a
hypocritical, a Soviet-fashion false event, and this situation will no
way bring the societies and cultures closer.’
ARAM ZAKARYAN

VICTOR DALLAKYAN IS NOT GOING TO WORK AS BUTTON
Lragir.am
03 June 06
Member of Parliament Victor Dallakyan, Ardarutiun, assures that the
Security Council of Armenia has not been operating since 1997 and it
is hard to tell where the problems of security of Armenia are solved,
in `casinos or saunas’ .
Victor Dallakyan criticized the current policy on national security by
citations from the conception of national security of this
government. `Among internal threats the imperfection or failure of the
government system, corruption, public mistrust in the government are
mentioned. The government is to blame for these vices, and one of the
major threats for the Republic of Armenia is an illegitimate
government. This is a confession that there is no national security,’
says Victor Dallakyan.
He thinks that Armenia should have friendly and mutually beneficial
relations with its neighbors, and the three South Caucasian countries
musthave an integrated system of security. Two out of these three,
Georgia and Azerbaijan are craving for appearing in NATO, Armenia is
for a close and individual partnership with NATO. `95 percent of the
energy sector was given to another country. This is a problem related
with our security and independence,’ says Victor Dallakyan. He says in
the recent 15 days the citizens of Armenia have lost 26 million
dollars as a result of dram-dollar exchange games. Economists have
calculated that in the same game `the government annually robs people
of 300 million dollars.’ More figures: the minimum consumer basket is
28 thousand drams, whereas 530 thousand pensioners in Armenia get an
average retirement benefit of 10 thousand drams a month, and 170
thousand people receive an average monthly benefit of 7000 drams.
`80 percent of the population is poor, 40 percent is malnourished,60
percent do not see the doctor because they have no money, birth rate
has halved against 1991, 700 thousand young people are unemployed,
forests are destroyed ` under the auspices’ of officials and generals,
migration rates aresoaring, and Armenia is facing a demographic
disaster. The income of the poorest class is 26 percent times less
than the income of the poor class, and the richest class possesses 95
percent of the country’s wealth. There is a grave social polarization
in Armenia.’ It is not clear yet how Victor Dallakyanwill contribute
to the struggle against these problems, but after stating thesefigures
he announced, `I am not going to work as a button at the National
Assembly.’

TWO ROUNDS TO CHAMPIONSHIP
Lragir.am
03 June 06
The Armenian men’s chess team won another round in the World
ChessOlympiad in Torino. In the 11th round the Armenian chess players
defeated the Czech team 3:1, which had won all the previous
rounds. This was the tenth victory of the Armenian team. This victory
has strengthened even more the position ofa sole leader, and the
Armenian team now tops the chart with 32 points. France and China
sharing the second and third places fall behind by 3.5 points. There
are still two rounds to go, and if other teams do not give a surprise,
the Armenian team will become World Chess Olympiad Champion for the
first time.

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to meet in Bucharest

ArmRadio.am
03.06.2006 11:58
Preceding the meeting of Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, today
and tomorrow OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs will hold consultations in
Bucharest. The Presidents are scheduled to meet tomorrow, on June
4. It is expected that the meeting will feature Foreign Ministers of
the two countries, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Belgian Foreign
Minister Karel de Gucht, OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs and Personal
Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk. Later
the meeting of Presidents will continue tête-à-tête

`Mobilnie Telesistemi’ intends to buy 90 percent of “ArmenTel” shares

ArmRadio.am
03.06.2006 13:30
`Mobilnie Telesistemi,’ the largest cell operator in the CIS applied
the Greek OTE Company for purchasing 90 percent of `ArmenTel shares,
`Oreanda’ informs.
In 1997 OTE purchased 90 percent of `ArmenTel’ shares at an
international tender, at the same time gaining the right of monopoly
for providing telecommunication services for the period of 15
years. According to the data of ACM Consulting, as for the start of
2006 `ArmenTel’ had over 321 000 subscribers, about 300 000 people
used the services of the second cell operator of Armenia `VivaCell’
Company.

Parties have already agreed upon the major points of Karabakh
settlement, Azeri paper states

ArmRadio.am
03.06.2006 13:37
The parties have already agreed upon the major points of the
negotiations process over the settlement of the Karabakh conflict,
Baku based `Echo’ newspaper informs, referring to anonymous sources of
the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to the newspaper, there is an agreement on withdrawing from
the territories under Karabakh control. It notes that for some time
Armenia will be allowed to control the Lachin corridor, which will
link Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh. Besides, the source underlines that
the version of `provision of security of Kelbajar region by the
Armenian side’ is also discussed at the negotiations.

Child clothing made in China can cause cancer

ArmRadio.am
03.06.2006 14:55
It turns out that child clothing made in China can cause different
kinds of oncological diseases. The matter, which the clothes are made
of, can result in cancer in case of long contact with the
skin. Armenian market is also flooded with Chinese production.
`The Armenian Union of Consumers has received not complaints from
Chinese production,’ President of eth Union of Consumers of Armenia
Armmen Poghosyan told `Radiolur.’ In his words, there is no
laboratory in Armenia that will provide the opportunity to draw
technical conclusions about the quality and safety of clothes.

Armenian students to hold an act of protest in Moscow

ArmRadio.am
03.06.2006 16:10
At 20.00 Moscow time today about 200 Armenian students will organize an act
of protest in front of the Kremlin to express objection against the racist
outrage in Moscow. RA Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Russia
Armen Smbatyan told `Radiolur’ that the action is sanctioned and will feature
other nationals as well. Law-enforcement bodies of Moscow seem to ignore the
cases of murder of two Armenian young men in the recent months. No measures
are being undertaken by Moscow authorities, Armenian authorities are also
silent.

Armenian leader pins “modest hopes” on talks with Azeri president
Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
2 Jun 06
[Presenter] Armenian President Robert Kocharyan does not hope that
special changes will happen at the forthcoming meeting in
Bucharest. The Armenian president said today that he pinned modest
hopes on his forthcoming meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev.
Kocharyan also said that the framework of issues discussed currently
creates an opportunity to ensure a stable and lasting settlement of
the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict, but there is an impression that
Azerbaijan is in no mood to resolve the conflict peacefully, which is
proved by bellicose statements made in Baku.
[Correspondent] Asked by journalists whether he has expectations from
one more meeting with Aliyev in Bucharest, if we take into account
bellicose statements made by the Azerbaijani president who accuses
Armenia of taking a nonconstructive position, the Armenian president
said at a news conference in [Armenia’s] Vayots Dzor Region that he
pinned modest hopes on the forthcoming meeting.
[Kocharyan] I have modest hopes on the forthcoming meeting because of
bellicose statements and comments that have nothing to do with issues
under discussion. This creates the impression that the opposite side
is in no mood to resolve the conflict seriously.
[Correspondent] The president also noted that statements made by
Azerbaijani officials that the problem should be solved on the basis
of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity are surprising.
[Kocharyan] Since the establishment of the UN, there has not been any
nation that gained independence and then changed its mind and returned
to the state from which it had broken away.
[Correspondent] The Armenian president pointed out that when the UN
was established, it had 51 members, but there were about 70 countries
in the world.
Today the UN has 191 members, but the number of countries in the world
is about 200. The Armenian president believes that this progress
results from national liberation movements, the implementation of the
right to self-determination and the downfall of empires.
[Kocharyan] I do not understand why the Armenians – the Karabakh
people – should make a decision that they do not need independence and
think about returning somewhere. I am surprised why they are thinking
of us in this way.
[Correspondent] Kocharyan also spoke about the Orinats Yerkir
(Law-Governed Country) Party’s withdrawal from the ruling coalition
and the changes that have taken place in the coalition. The president
described as absurd the comments that the authorities have allegedly
sent Orinats Yerkir on a mission to the opposition. We are not so
skilled in politics, he said.
[Passage omitted: Kocharyan spoke about the role of the opposition and
ruling coalition; he said that relations between him and Orinats
Yerkir leader Artur Bagdasaryan worsened because of their different
views on foreign policy; he said that Bagdasaryan tried to offer his
personal approaches to issues that were directly related to Armenia’s
national security and that he disagreed with Bagdasaryan]

Armenian leader not to sign peace deal with Azerbaijan – paper
Aykakan Zhamanak, Yerevan
3 Jun 06
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan cannot sign the peace agreement
proposed by the OSCE Minsk Group because it suggests conditions that
cannot be compared even with the approaches proposed in 1997 by
Armenia’s former president, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, the Armenian
newspaper Aykakan Zhamanak has said.
The option currently proposed by the OSCE mediators is much more
disadvantageous to Armenia, the paper said. By signing this agreement,
Kocharyan will admit that predictions made by former President Levon
Ter-Petrosyan are now coming true and that “the regime change in 1998
was an ordinary coup”, the paper said.
It went on to say that Kocharyan’s only task at the moment is to
remain in power until his tenure expires in 2008.
In another article on Kocharyan’s forthcoming talks with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev in Bucharest, Aykakan Zhamanak said that
Kocharyan will not sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan because he
does not have public support. “He does not know what public support is
because in the eight years of his presidency, he has had everything
but public support,” the newspaper said. He would probably have the
courage to sign an agreement if he was motivated to do so, it
said. Aykakan Zhamanak stressed that Kocharyan could be motivated to
sign an agreement if it confirmed Karabakh’s independence or if the
United States and the international community promised that after
signing the agreement, the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan would
have confidence during the entire period of their rule. However, these
promises are absolutely worthless because Kocharyan might be deceived
in the end, Aykakan Zhamanak said.
At the same time, he needs titanic courage to refuse to sign the
agreement, the newspaper said.
For this reason, Kocharyan should be cunning and hold the talks in a
way that will not bring about the signing of any document, and at the
same time, make sure that no-one blames him for that, Aykakan Zhamanak
said.