LITHUANIAN PRESIDENT TO PAY OFFICIAL VISIT TO ARMENIA
Baltic News Service
April 24, 2006 Monday 3:06 PM EET
Vilnius
Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus is to leave for a two-day official
visit to Armenia on Tuesday.
During the visit, Adamkus is scheduled to meet with Armenian President
Robert Kocharian, Prime Minister Andranik Margarian.
According to a press release from the Lithuanian president’s press
service, the meetings are planned to focus on prospects of bilateral
relations, regional cooperation, Armenia’s reforms and determination
to achieve its Euro-Atlantic goals.
A bilateral agreement on the promotion of investments and mutual
protection will also be signed during the visit.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

BODY OF INDIAN STUDENT ARRIVES FROM ARMENIA
The Statesman (India)
April 24, 2006 Monday
Statesman News Service SILIGURI, April 23: Shell-shocked family
members received the body of Prashant Anchalia, who died on Thursday
after apparently falling from the sixth floor of the Yerevan State
Medical Universitys hostel in Armenia, at Bagdogra airport around
1.30 pm today. A pall of gloom descended on the town as Prashants
body reached his residence at Church Road here from Bagdogra airport.
A large number of people had gathered outside the residence of
the Anchalias to bid adieu to Prashant, whom they used to know as
a brilliant student, who he died in mysterious circumstances in
Armenia. Puja Goel, who too hails from Siliguri and studies at YSMU
in Armenia, and Abhishek, Prashants friend, accompanied the body as
it reached Siliguri from Armenia, via New Delhi.
The duo was so shocked with the death of their friend that they could
not even speak to the media. Later in the evening, they narrated
the entire incident, and the lackadaisical attitude of the YSMU
authorities, to the victims family members. The grief-stricken family
members of Prashant, after hearing the duo, alleged that Prashant was
murdered. We demand a high-level inquiry into the circumstances that
led to Prashants death, Mr Pankaj Anchalia, the victims elder brother,
said. Puja and Abhishek, eyewitnesses of the incident, alleged that
they wanted to give their friend first aid but policemen and the
medical department dean of YSMU, Ms Anna Sargsayn, didnt allow them,
saying that they must wait for an ambulance.
The ambulance arrived in 50 minutes without any doctor, the necessary
medicine and oxygen. The Indian students approached the YSMUs newly
appointed rector, Mr Gohar Kjalyan, but the latter insulted them,
instead of offering help. Mr Pankaj Anchalia said what they heard from
Puja and Abhishek was unfortunate. Either the CBI or the Interpol
should probe the incident, he demanded. Mr Anchalia also lashed
out at the Prime Ministers Office for not responding to their fax
message. The Government of India should have helped us bring the
body from Armenia. But they did not. Had the Lok Sabha Speaker, Mr
Somnath Chatterjee, not intervened, the body would not have reached
Siliguri today, he said. Mr Somnath Chatterjee had contacted the
Indian amabassador in Armenia, Mrs Reena Pandey, and instructed her
to extend all possible help to us. He also sent his condolences to us,
Mr Anchalia added.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

OSMAN EMPIRE, ITS SUCCESSOR FULLY RESPONSIBLE FOR 1915 GENOCIDE
by Tigran Liloyan
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 24, 2006 Monday 03:45 AM EST
The Osman Empire and its legal successor bear full responsibility for
the 1915 Armenian Genocide,” President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan
stated here on Monday. “The entire subsequent history of the Armenian
people, who had lived through the horrors of genocide, is scarred by
the grave consequences of the committed crime,” the leader of the
republic stressed in his address to the fellow-countrymen on the
occasion of the commemoration of the 1915 Genocide of Armenians in
the Osman Turkish Empire.
“We are even more pained by the fact that we have to strive for
the recognition and condemnation of this dark page of history,”
the president noted. “The Republic of Armenia, being as it is the
mouthpiece of the national interests of the Armenians, who are now
living in their native land or abroad, will continue these efforts,”
Kocharyan stressed.
The Armenian president expressed gratitude to the countries,
organisations and personalities, who sympathise with the Armenians.
In his opinion, “the realisation that this is a problem of the entire
humanity is growing from year to year”.
“The efforts of the Armenians have nothing to do with vengeance,”
Kocharyan stressed. “We are looking far ahead of us, knowing that
the best response to the non-recognition of the 1915 Genocide should
be our powerful statehood, prosperity and progress of Armenia,”
the president of the republic stressed.

COMMEMORATION OF 1915 GENOCIDE OF ARMENIANS
by Tigran Liloyan
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 24, 2006 Monday
Armenians all over the world are commemorating on Monday their
fellow-countrymen, who were massacred during the 1915 Genocide in
the Osman Turkish Empire.
According to tradition, thousands of people gather at the Memorial
to the Genocide Martyrs in the Yerevan park of “Tsitsernakaberd”. An
eternal fire is burning there in memory of the 1.5 million Armenians
who were massacred in 1915. Similar ceremonies are being held in
several other countries because an Armenian diaspora had appeared on
all the continents of the world after the genocide.
Efforts to get the genocide internationally affirmed and recognised
are among the priority tasks of Armenia’s foreign policy. The first
genocide of the 20th century was affirmed by several countries of the
world and by the European Parliament. It is worth noting that Greece
and France had adopted corresponding laws in this connection. The
Russian State Duma issued a statement in 1995, condemning the Genocide
of the Armenian People.
The Armenian President decreed to award special prizes to people,
known for their outstanding contributions to the cause of getting
the Armenian Genocide affirmed and recognised. The first to get such
prizes were historian Verjine Svaznyan for his book “Armenian Genocide
and Historical Memory of People” and German writer Edgar Hilszenrat
for his novel “The Death Tale”.

GENOCIDE IN RWANDA: COULD IT HAPPEN HERE?
By Lee Bycel
Special to The Aspen Times
Aspen Times, CO –
April 24, 2006
I recently returned from Kigali, where the people of Rwanda observed
the 12th commemoration of that nation’s haunting genocide. On April
7, 1994, the nightmare began. Eight hundred thousand Rwandans were
killed in 100 days. That event seems unfathomable now, but the pain
in Kigali is still raw. At various memorial ceremonies, adults and
children wailed at the loss of loved ones, devastated families and
man’s inhumanity to man. The agony of their mourning is palpable.
Kigali has been rebuilt; it is a beautiful city yet haunted by its
past. It is beyond my understanding how, just a short while ago,
neighbor killed neighbor, relative killed relative, friend killed
friend with machetes, guns and knives. The slaughter took place
while most of the world stood by as dispassionate observers. I came
to Kigali to learn more about the legacy of genocide and grapple with
why we have repeated it so frequently in the last century, including
Armenia, the Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda and now Darfur. Why is our
indifference so profound?
This week, Armenians, Jews and concerned human beings all over
the world commemorate the Armenian genocide and the Holocaust that
collectively took the lives of nearly 12 million people. For the
most part, the world stood by and watched or claimed we were not
aware of the situation. I know that we have advanced in so many
areas, but have we advanced in human terms – measured by compassion,
peace, ability to realize that every one in this world deserves to
be treated with dignity and protected by universal rights? I think of
the world in which these two horrific and incomprehensible genocidal
catastrophes took place. Why were we and why do still fundamentally
remain so indifferent? No longer can we claim lack of knowledge. Has
the modern world, complete with information overload and escapist
technology, led to our collective numbness to the growing storms of
trouble around the world? Are we incapable of learning from the past?
Indifference is like an untreated cancer, spreading through our hearts,
minds and souls. Indifference seriously affects all of us. As Martin
Luther King wrote, “The day we see the truth and cease to speak is
the day we begin to die.” We must fight indifference and cultivate
a society where people act courageously, speak out and pursue justice.
How do we do that? Rwanda offers a timely example. I met with the
dynamic president of Rwanda, Paul Kagami. He is fully committed to
building a society based on civility and justice – his vision and
energy are resolute. He has witnessed the devastating consequences
of a society where ethnic conflict and cruelty run rampant. He lives
with the pain of genocide, it continues on in the lives that have
been torn apart.
Kagami’s vision for his country’s future is based not on rebuilding
what was, but in shaping something that has not been. His vision will
become a reality based on forgiveness, reconciliation, understanding
and a deep resolve to creating a viable society out of the ashes of
ethnic hatred.
Could genocide happen here? I don’t know, but the question keeps
me up at night. I have great faith in our democratic processes and
the safeguards that mark our society. I have deep confidence in the
American people and the reasons we shaped and maintain the principles
of this country. Yet I wonder what moved the Rwandan people from living
together, often with difficulty and amidst the problems that affect
many African countries to murdering one another. I am troubled by our
intolerance of others, our inability to respect other viewpoints and
our willingness to silently witness the small but important injustices
that occur each day. I worry about a society where there are so many
social, educational, economic and health disparities. Yet I am certain
that we have the resources to resolve these issues.
The connection between indifference and genocide is significant.
Perhaps genocide cannot occur without societal or global
indifference. Rwanda reminds me of the importance of never taking
our rights and privileges for granted – and the need to make a deeper
personal commitment to shaping a society where all are protected.
This requires actively addressing our social problems and making a
commitment to civil and respectful discourse with each other.
I left Kigali wondering how to cure the plague of indifference that
has enveloped our world. I remain deeply hopeful about America and our
ability to wrestle with difficult issues. Rwanda informs us, troubles
us – and, hopefully, stirs us to reevaluate and strengthen the ethical
and social framework of our society. We must act: nurturing our own
humanity and taking responsibility. Our personal actions and our
collective deeds are the antidote to indifference.
Rabbi Lee Bycel is senior advisor, Global Strategy of International
Medical Corps and a senior moderator at the Aspen Institute.

ARMENIANS GATHER FOR ANNIVERSARY
Montreal Gazette, Canada
April 24, 2006 Monday
Members of Montreal’s Armenian community met yesterday to commemorate
the 91st anniversary of the Armenian genocide. More than 250 people
gathered at the Armenian Community Centre in the city’s north end
for the ceremony. A vigil also was held at nearby Marcelin-Wilson Park.
In 2004, the Canadian government voted to recognize as genocide
the mass murders of Armenians perpetrated by Ottoman troops between
1915 and 1923. Canada is home to more than 60,000 people of Armenian
descent.

ARMENIAN UNION LEADER URGES JOINT RESPONSE TO ETHNIC HATRED
Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS General Newswire
April 24, 2006 Monday 11:35 AM MSK
All public organizations and the government should unite to rebuff
the mounting Neo-Nazi threat in Russia, Union of Russian Armenians
leader Ara Abramian told Interfax on Monday.
“The recent cruel murders in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other Russian
cities show that, unfortunately, Nazis, fascists and skinheads of
various kinds are better organized and united than governmental and
law enforcement agencies,” he said.
“It is not just that my compatriot, a young man, has been killed.
The thing is that we do not feel protected in this country. A man gets
killed in the center of Moscow in broad daylight merely because of
his nationality and skin color. Yet somebody still call such crimes
hooliganism,” he said.
The increase in hate crimes shows that society is sick, Abramian said.
“If fascists and Nazis are not stopped, Russia will fall apart,”
he said.
“By coincidence, the crime coincided with the 91st anniversary of the
Armenian genocide, which is being marked in many countries,” he said.

NO END IN SIGHT TO FIGHTING IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH
National Public Radio (NPR)
SHOW: Weekend Edition Sunday 1200-1300
April 23, 2006 Sunday
Anchors: Jacki Lyden
Reporters: Ivan Watson
Jacki Lyden, Host:
A sputtering border conflict in the Caucasus continues to dog
relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There are daily skirmishes
around the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, and the leaders
of both sides have been ratcheting up the rhetoric. American and
Russian diplomats have tried to mediate between the two former Soviet
republics. Washington and Moscow agree the conflict is a major threat
to regional stability.
NPR’s Ivan Watson visited the frontlines on the Azerbaijani side and
filed this report.
IVAN WATSON reporting:
Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to a cease-fire over Nagorno-Karabakh
more than a decade ago. That’s hard to believe though, if you look at
the bullet holes that riddle the front gate of Nashaba Sakurava’s(ph)
farmhouse.
Ms. NASHABA SAKURAVA (Azerbaijani Resident): (Speaking foreign
language)
WATSON: Sakurava says Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers blast away at
each other every day here. The woman’s house sits on the front lines
next to the trenches and fields of land mines that divide Azerbaijani
soldiers from Armenian troops dug in just a few dozen yards away.
Sakurava’s family erected concrete barriers in front of the ground
floor windows of her house and evacuated the second floor to avoid
the gunfire.
Nearby, Azerbaijani soldiers march in formation in a muddy field.
(Soundbite of Azerbaijani soldiers)
WATSON: Five men from this garrison were killed during an intense
month of skirmishes here last year. These conscripts say they’re
ready to fight to take back land in Nagorno-Karabakh that they claim
Armenia stole from Azerbaijan.
Mr. ELMAR MAMMADYAROV (Foreign Minister, Azerbaijan): The clashes
on the line of contact, as we say, we can hear it every day. The
shootings, the casualties, wounds, unfortunately that’s happened.
WATSON: Elmar Mammadyarov is the foreign minister of Azerbaijan. Last
month, after the failure of yet another round of peace talks with
Armenia, Azerbaijan’s president announced his government would
dramatically increase defense spending to exceed what Armenia spends
on its entire national budget. What makes that possible is a big jump
in Azerbaijan’s oil revenues.
Again, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.
Mr. MAMMADYAROV: The issue of the military development or increasing
the capacity of the armed forces, it’s always been (unintelligible)
on the table.
WATSON: Until the 1994 cease-fire, the war over Nagorno-Karabakh
killed more than 30,000 people and left more than a million homeless.
A Western diplomat in Baku says that if full-fledged hostilities
resumed, the death toll would likely be much higher, due to the much
larger number of troops now deployed along the front lines.
Mr. MATT BRYZA (Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Caucasus Region):
Of course we’re worried about shooting across the line of contact
and we’re always worried about any belligerent rhetoric that could
come out of either capital.
WATSON: Matt Bryza is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
responsible for the Caucasus region. He says the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict also poses the largest potential threat to the security of a
new $4 billion U.S.-backed oil pipeline to the Mediterranean Sea, which
runs within a few dozen miles of the Nagorno-Karabakh front lines.
For years, Bryza says, the U.S. government has been working together
with Russia and France to broker a settlement.
Mr. BRYZA: And ultimately, it’s up to the two presidents, President
Aliyev of Azerbaijan, President Kocharian of Armenia, to make some
very tough political decisions, and again, prepare their populations
for compromise.
WATSON: Those most desperate for a solution are the hundreds of
thousands of displaced persons who still live in refugee camps more
than a decade after the war.
(Soundbite of people at refugee camp)
WATSON: At this camp several dozen miles east of Nagorno-Karabakh,
hundreds of Azerbaijani families live in clay houses, surviving on
food rations. The men are almost all unemployed and they say they
would prefer a peaceful solution, but add that they are ready to go
back to war with Armenia to get their homes back.
WATSON: Ivan Watson, NPR News.

UN COLLOQUE SUR LES MEMOIRES DE GENOCIDES
L’Humanite, France
24 avril 2006
Vendredi et samedi prochains, Lyon accueillera, a l’Ecole nationale
superieure, un colloque international sur le thème ” Memoires partagees
des genocides et crimes contre l’humanite, demarche preventive et
dynamique de paix “. Sous la presidence d’honneur de Mary Robinson,
haut-commissaire des Nations unies aux droits de l’homme, d’Abdoulaye
Wade, president du Senegal, et d’Aram Ier, dirigeant de l’Eglise
armenienne, ces deux jours de rencontres reuniront une vingtaine des
meilleurs specialistes mondiaux de ces questions : anthropologues,
juristes, philosophes, historiens, sociologues…
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APRèS LES PROFANATIONS, L’INAUGURATION
par Emilie Rive
L’Humanite, France
24 avril 2006
Histoire . Le memorial dedie aux victimes du genocide armenien et
de tous les genocides et autres crimes contre l’humanite doit etre
inaugure cet après-midi a Lyon.
Un million cinq cent mille morts. Tel est le bilan de l’extermination
des Armeniens par Ataturk entre 1915 et 1917. Ce fut le premier
genocide du XXe siècle, reconnu, en France, par la loi du 29 janvier
2001 et dont le 91e anniversaire doit etre celebre ce 24 avril. Le
contentieux entre Armeniens et Turcs reste très lourd, puisque
le gouvernement d’Ankara ne reconnaît que trois cent a cinq cent
mille morts pour cette periode et refuse toujours categoriquement
la qualification de genocide. Condition pourtant essentielle afin
de pouvoir mettre le pied, comme le desire la Turquie, dans l’Union
europeenne.
Un enjeu local C’est dans ce contexte que le maire de Lyon,
le socialiste Gerard Collomb, et la communaute armenienne ont
decide l’edification d’un memorial dedie, non seulement aux
victimes armeniennes, mais a celles de tous les genocides, en
plein centre-ville, sur la place Antonin-Poncet qui jouxte la place
Bellecour. Memorial qui doit etre inaugure cet après-midi a 16 h 30,
par le maire de Lyon et le president de l’association du memorial
lyonnais des victimes du genocide armenien, Jules Mardirossian.
Mais tout ne s’est pas passe aussi simplement que prevu.
Curieusement, ce n’est pas l’extreme droite turque qui est montee la
première au creneau, mais les riverains, epaules par Marie-Chantal
Debazeille, conseillère municipale UMP et ancien maire d’un autre
arrondissement de la ville. L’histoire de Lyon n’aurait rien a voir
avec l’histoire armenienne, le monument deparerait dans un site
classe au patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO… Tous les arguments ont
ete utilises, y compris les recours juridiques dont certains sont
encore en cours, pour faire de ce memorial un sujet de polemique
electorale au service du candidat UMP a la mairie de Lyon, l’actuel
ministre des Transports, Dominique Perben.
Deja profane L’extreme droite turque a pris le relais avec une
manifestation le 18 mars, curieusement autorisee par le prefet du
Rhône, et soutenue, sans ambiguïte, par le consul de Turquie. Il y a eu
egalement des profanations, le week-end dernier, dont les inscriptions
proclamaient, en francais et en turc, que le genocide n’existait pas.
Toutes actions qui ont souleve des protestations de la communaute
armenienne, des elus socialistes et communistes et, pour la dernière
en date, du ministre de l’Interieur, Nicolas Sarkozy. Guy Fischer,
vice-president communiste du Senat, et Maurice Charrier, maire de
Vaulx-en-Velin, ont, a cette occasion, precise que leur presence a
l’inauguration serait aussi une condamnation de ces profanations.
Le 18 mai prochain, le groupe parlementaire socialiste va proposer
de completer la loi du 29 janvier 2001, par un texte permettant de
sanctionner la negation du genocide armenien. La proposition emane
des deputes socialistes des Bouches-du-Rhône. Un autre memorial
est, en effet, inaugure aujourd’hui a Marseille, avec le prefet de
region, les presidents socialistes du conseil regional et du conseil
general, le maire de Marseille, Jean-Claude Gaudin, et le president
de l’Assemblee nationale d’Armenie.
Lire aussi en p. 18 le point de vue commun de deux communistes,
l’un d’origine turque, l’autre d’origine armenienne, sur ce genocide.
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress