ARMENIAN NAVY BAND AWARDED BBC PRIZE 2006
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.04.2006 20:29 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ April 7 at the award ceremony of Radio 3 Awards
for World music 2006 the Armenian Navy Band was recognized the Best
European Band. Being formed by percussionist Arto Tuncboyaciyan,
born in Istanbul, the band comprises 12 Armenian musicians.
The style Arto calls Armenian avant-garde is a mix of jazz and Armenian
folklore. The band uses instruments typical for jazz: saxophone,
grand piano, contrabass, as well as Armenian duduk, zurna and kanon,
BBC reports.

YEREVAN POLICE REPORT RISE IN GRAVE CRIMES
Armenpress
Apr 11 2006
YEREVAN, APRIL 11, ARMENPRESS: Colonel Nerses Nazarian, chief of
Yerevan’s police department, told reporters on April 11 that eight
murders were reported to police in the first quarter of this year,
up from 3 murders reported in the first quarter of 2005.
He said four of this year’s murders had been disclosed and
investigation into another was accomplished. Overall, he said, 1,098
crimes were reported in the first quarter, a 13 percent growth from a
year ago. He said the number of grave and very grave crimes went up,
coupled with rise in drug-related crimes. Nazarian said 40 items of
illegally possessed arms were confiscated in the reported period,
including 8 automatic guns, 4 rifles, 20 pistols, 30 grenades and
4,0000 ammunitions.

DEFENSE MINISTER DEFENDS DEAL WITH GAZPROM
Armenpress
Apr 11 2006
YEREVAN, APRIL 11, ARMENPRESS: Defense minister Serzh Sarkisian
joined today the country’s leadership to defend the government’s
decision to sell the incomplete fifth unit of the Hrazdan power plant
to Russia’s Gazprom in return for temporarily reducing the price of
Russian natural gas.
Talking to reporters Sarkisian said the government could not invest
$180 million to complete the construction of the fifth unit. “The
fifth unit of the plant can be compared with a house whose basement
was built only,’ Sarkisian said. The defense minister shrugged off
critics of the government who accuse it of selling out the country’s
major assets to a foreign country.
He argued that if Armenia had found money to make the unit operational
it would have felt the returns only in 2017. He said no one could
predict what the price of natural gas would be in a decade.

THE NA WORKS AGAIN WITH BREAKS
A1+
[01:04 pm] 11 April, 2006
Today the NA resumed its work with 103 deputies and held “rather
efficient” voting.
The bill on making changes in the “Law on energy” which aroused serious
disputes and was sent to the Parliament for further review was passed
with 86 “pros,” 6 “cons” and 3 “abstentions.” Then the deputies voted
the bill changes on “the list of products imported by individuals or
enterprises and exempt from excise-duty and having 0 percent customs
duty from which the value added tax is not levied.”
Only the fraction ND was against the bill and it took a 20 – minute
break “for lobbing,” the leader of the fraction Karen Karapetyan
informed “A1+” about it.
After the voting the above-mentioned bill was voted down with 60
“pros,” 0 “cons” and 0 “abstentions.”
Thus the fraction ND won and the bill was sent to the Government.

WHERE ARE THE 350 LOST SOLDIERS?
A1+
[02:04 pm] 11 April, 2006
“We are sure that your sons are alive and they will return by all
means. We beg you not to lose your last hope,” the high-rank officials
of the Defense Ministry have told the relatives of the missing soldiers
these words for 12 years in Erablur. The same words could be heard
today on the international day of Unknown Soldier and war prisoners.
The chairman of the “Unknown soldiers’ relatives’ council” Rima
Arakelyan spoke for the unknown soldiers’ mothers today, “We become
comforted when our sorrow and grief become universal.” This is a
quotation from Mrs. Arakelyan’s official speech. In fact the relatives
of missing soldiers have no comfort today. “We haven’t lost our
hopes. But it is already 14 years since my son lost, and I haven’t
heard from him all those years. We get information from non official
sources. We mustn’t betray our sons and we must confess; the country
does not take adequate measures to find our sons. We have nobody to
turn to and get a definite answer,” said Mrs. Arakelyan. They agree
that the country faces serious problems today but it mustn’t forget
the people who contributed to its victory.
According to the data of the “Unknown soldiers’ relatives’ council”
there are about 350 missing soldiers in our country the majority of
which got lost after the war while serving in the army. The efforts
of the relatives to find the missing soldiers haven’t had positive
results either. “The mothers of the Azeri lost soldiers also face the
same problem but they forget their grief when speaking of 20 percent
territory and demand it from us. This attitude is incomprehensible
for us,” assumed Rima Arakelyan.
Anyway, the Azeri women said during the meeting of Armenian and Azeri
lost soldiers’ mothers that there is at least one Armenian war prisoner
in Azeri homes in certain regions of the country. The question whether
this datum is warranted or not can’t be answered so far as Azerbaijan
declares that there are no war prisoners in their country. “The efforts
of finding missing soldiers are at a deadlock,” said the vice chairman
of “Community and Right” Suren Hovhannesyan. The missing soldiers’
mothers are sure that the measures of finding their sons will not have
their positive results unless there is a state approach to the matter.

THE SIGNATURE TAKING PROCESS WAS A FAILURE
A1+
[02:49 pm] 11 April, 2006
The deadline of taking signatures on the formation of a temporary
committee on the estrangement of the Hrazdan power station and the gas
price increase initiated by the party “Justice” expired at 12:30 today.
Only 20 deputies joint the signature taking process; the parties
“National Conciliation” and “Justice,” and 3 free deputies Emma
Khudabashyan, Manuk Gasparyan and Hmayak Hovhannesyan. “Being an
illegal body the Coalition avoids forming committees to control
the lawfulness of any deal. The Coalition is aimed at establishing
shadow activities,” said the secretary of the party “Justice” and
the initiator of signature taking Victor Dallakyan.

THE SITUATION IS THE SAME IN THE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP
A1+
[02:29 pm] 11 April, 2006
The central meetings of the 7th round of the Chess European individual
championship mainly ended in a draw. Ivanchuk, Zdenko and Predrag
have the top scores with 5.5 points in the fixture table. Armenian
grand master Ashot Anastasyan shares the 4th place with 8 other chess
players having 5 points.
Artashes Minasyan and Tigran Kotanjyan reached the places from 13 to
35 with 4.5 points. Arman Pashikyan and Tigran Petrosyan have bottom
places with 3.5 points.
The same can be said about women contest where 3 participants are
leading the table with top scores of 5.5 points. Elina Danielyan
reached 3 – 11 places with her 5 points. Lilit Lazarian has 4 points,
Siranush Andreasyan and Nelly Aghinyan have 3.5 points.

THE DEPUTY DID NOT ORGANISE AN ENCROACHMENT
A1+
[03:27 pm] 11 April, 2006
Today the Armavir deputy Nahapet Gevorgyan who rarely appears
in the Parliament was present in the session after a long
absence. According to the data of the mass media the latter is
suspected in the organization of encroachment on the Chairman of
the “Erkrapah-Kamavor Alliance” (“Alliance of Volunteer-Defenders”)
of Armavir Rustam Gasparyan.
Let us remind you that Rustam Gasparyan was taken to hospital
with serious bodily injuries. There are certain versions on their
hostility; some sources say that they had business affairs with
each other and their conflict is connected with the so-called market
“Sadakhlu.” Others say that Rustam Gasparyan is going to the Parliament
but their territory already has a deputy – Nahapet Gevorgyan.
Today answering the question of the correspondent of “A1+” Nahapet
Gevorgyan refuted the accusations addressed to him and said, “I have no
connection with the encroachment, and all the accusations are false.”
Asked why he doesn’t sue the people spreading such rumors he answered,
“I am not inclined to such things.
Everything is aspersion; I have nothing in common with it.”
While answering the question of “Aravot” newspaper whether he ever
had any problems with Rustam Gasparyan the deputy said, “No, never.”

PURPOSE OF HRAZDAN TPP 5th UNIT’S DEAL IS TO MITIGATE SOCIAL SITUATION UNTIL UPCOMING ELECTIONS, AAM BOARD STATES
Noyan Tapan
Apr 10 2006
YEREVAN, APRIL 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Under the name of measures aimed at
mitigating the gas price increase consequences, the ruling regime is
taking a next in turn step that seems to please the people, while
actually endangers the RA national security and has the purpose
of maintaining and reproducing its own power.” This is said in a
statement issued by the board of the Armenian All-National Movement
(AAM) in connection with alienation of the 5th power unit of the
Hrazdan Thermal Power Plant (TPP) to a Russian state company. It
is noted in the statement that conceding the whole energy sector of
the country to another state constitutes a loss of one of the most
importrant foundations of the country’s political independence and
pursues a “purely transient consumer” goal, as a result of which
the real loss incurred by the whole people will exceed multifold the
seeming economic benefit. The AAM board pointed out that no social
problem is solved by this deal, since the compensated sum will mainly
go to the well-off sections of the society – the owners of the gas
consuming production, the oligarchs making the entourage of the ruling
regime.”This shameful deal has one goal – to allay a possible social
indignation until the upcoming elections,” the statement reads. It
is notheworthy that the board of the Human Rights 96 Party also
expressed its concern over the 5th unit’s deal. According to it,
“since there is no information about the normative legal act, under
which this decision was made, it remains to hope that these are not
provisions of the RA Law on State Property Privatization as they were
completely violated by the coaltion ministers.”

NO HOUSE NO PROBLEMS
A1+
[04:19 pm] 11 April, 2006
There are no more dwelling houses in the adjacent part of Amiryan
and Buzand streets. Some of the former dwellers could get flats;
others found a shelter at their relatives’ and acquaintances’. And
what about the Buzand residents? They informed us that they are
waiting for the answer of the Constitutional Court.
“If they don’t start the trial next week we shall continue
our hunger-strike. But this time we shall do it in front of the
Constitutional Court instead of the Human Rights Protector’s Office. We
don’t organize strikes in front of the Government premises as we
find it senseless. Our matter can be solved only by the court,” says
the former inhabitant of Buzand Nuneh Varduni. Another inhabitant of
the same street Sedrak Baghdasaryan assumes that they will establish
justice due to the Constitutional Court, “And why not; one day our
country will become a country of law.”
The majority if the residents still continue their strikes and will
continue, as they say, “Our officials declare without pondering that
90% of the dwellers are interested in the compensation. But it is
not true.
Judging from their words one can say we are ready to sell the country
if we are given more money. Money is not vital, it is secondary. If
there is no law in the country and the law is only for ordinary people
that country is doomed to fall.”
Let us remind you that the Human Rights Protector Armen Harutyunyan
lodged a claim to the Constitutional Court on the issue of Northern
and Main Avenues inhabitants but so far his claim hasn’t been upheld.