GEORGIAN ORPHANAGE OF NINOTSMINDA RESTORED
Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Apr 19 2006
AKHALKALAK, APRIL 19, NOYAN TAPAN. ARMENIANS TODAY. The building
of the Georgian orphanage of the city of Ninotsminda, Javakhk,
is capitally restored. According to the “A-Info” agency, because
of the construction works, children of the orphanage were moved to
another place that is unknown to inhabiation of Ninotsminda. But
the directoriate of the orphanage informs that after finishing the
restoration works, children will return. Besides, improvement of
conditions will create possibility to bring here other few dozens
of orphans from different regions of Georgia. The agency considers
necessary to mention that the directoriate of the orphanage refused to
accept orphans from Ninotsminda who are Armenians in origin. Children
of exclusively Georgian origin come from other regions of Georgia
live in the orphanage founded in Ninotsminda a year ago.

KARABAKH HOLDS MILITARY MANOEUVRES – ARMENIAN TV
Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
19 Apr 06
[Presenter] The Nagornyy Karabakh defence army has started
large-scale military manoeuvres with the involvement of different
kinds of troops. Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan is also
attending the military manoeuvres. These are the first military
manoeuvres in Nagornyy Karabakh after incidents on the contact line
with Azerbaijan. The Karabakh defence minister, Seyran Oganyan,
told journalists about the main goal of the manoeuvres, the current
situation on the borders and new plans at a news conference yesterday.
[Correspondent] A balance of forces on the contact line between
Nagornyy Karabakh and Azerbaijan has been maintained for 12 years
already without the involvement of a third force. This shows that
the Artsakh [Karabakh] army is able to tackle its tasks, Oganyan
said. He also pointed out that the latest command-and-staff exercise
[on 14 April] had showed that the combat readiness of the Karabakh
army was at a high level.
[Oganyan] Today, it takes mobilized forces of the republic seven
hours to take their position on the front line, which shows that the
Karabakh army is capable of properly fulfilling its tasks.
[Correspondent] Measures taken on the front line are the main guarantee
of peace. Engineering facilities and military hardware ensure security
on the positions. The commander [Oganyan] is not worried about the
enemy’s [Azerbaijan’s] attempts to advance its positions.
[Oganyan] Even if they manage to occupy our trenches, they do not
know what awaits them in the depth of our defence.
[Correspondent] A programme for improving the social status of
servicemen is also aimed at ensuring peaceful service. Military
training and measures to reinforce the defence army are being continued
in Nagornyy Karabakh. The commander considers that the defence army
itself is a better peacekeeping force. Everything will be done to
reinforce the fighting efficiency of the defence army.
[Oganyan] We will do our best to overcome shortcomings in the army.
[Video showed news conference]

IRAN-ARMENIA MUST BE KEPT
Lragir.am
19 April 06
The Iran-Armenia gas pipeline cannot be given to another country,
think 71 percent of the readers of Lragir.am who took part in the
poll. They answered “no” to the question if Iran-Armenia should be
transferred to another country. During the online poll, which lasted a
week, only 2 per cent voted for transferring the pipeline to another
country. 22 percent find that the pipeline could be transferred to
another country if the controlling interest belonged to Armenia. 5
percent think that transferring the pipeline would be acceptable if
it would benefit the economy.

INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS ARE MERE PAPERS
Lragir.am
19 April 06
The demolition of Armenian khachkars in Nakhidjevan is cultural
genocide, announced MP Heghineh Bisharyan April 19, during the meeting
of the Commission on EU-Armenia Partnership. She mentioned that the
Armenian khachkars are part of the world cultural heritage. At the
same time Heghineh Bisharyan highly appreciated the role of the EU
and the European Parliament in the preservation of cultural values,
emphasizing the decision to send a fact-finding group of European
parliamentarians to the region. During the same meeting another
member of parliament Hranush Hakobyan announced that the European
parliamentarians should severely condemn the demolition of Armenian
cultural monuments and impose sanctions against Azerbaijan. Hranush
Hakobyan said doing nothing would inflict other similar crimes. Hranush
Hakobyan thinks that including the khachkars in the list of monuments
protected by Unesco would hardly prove effective. “The town of Ani is
one of these monuments, but the stones of the local Armenian churches
are freely removed,” stated Hranush Hakobyan. She finds that it is
impossible to return the lost monuments, and all Armenia can do is to
state facts, which means the international conventions and covenants
are mere papers, says Hranush Hakobyan.

57 SECTS REGISTERED IN ARMENIA
Lragir.am
19 April 06
On April 19 there was a meeting at the Hayeli Club to discuss the
problems of sects in Armenia. Sects have become rather active recently,
causing divide within families. The problem worries the Armenian
Apostolic Church, however the clergy refuse to discuss it with sects,
for according to father Mkhitar, “the issue of the millennium could
hardly be settled at the table of negotiations.” And the Apostolic
Church is not entitled to control the activity of sects which divide
the society. Which is the best way of struggle against sects then?
The head of the Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of the Destructive
Cult Alexander Amaryan suggests setting up an agency that would
control the activity of sects. Moreover, he says such an agency is
a requirements of the Council of Europe. Alexander Amaryan adds that
another stipulation of the Council of Europe is government sanctions
against sects which violate human rights.
Sects are funded from outside; “we are registering an organization
which is banned abroad,” says Alexander Amaryan. Presently there
are 350 thousand members of different sects in Armenia. 80 percent
are in Yerevan, they tend to grow in number in the adjacent rural
areas. Alexander Amaryan says it would take 2-5 years to convert
them back to the Armenian Apostolic Church. Father Mkhitar says it is
important to have a priest in each village to struggle sects. “Over
centuries Muslims have been unable to convert Armenians to Islam,
but in the past 10 years 10 per cent of Armenians deviated from the
Armenian Apostolic Church,” says Alexander Amaryan.

ENTREPRENEURS DISSATISFIED WITH THE BILL
Lragir.am
19 April 06
The bill on drugs introduced by the Health, Social and Environmental
Committee would help to solve the problems caused by the shortcomings
and gaps in the law in force since 1997, say the authors of the
bill. People engaged in drug business disagree. This dissent became
known during the April 19 hearing on the bill held by the committee
in the National Assembly.
The bill was passed on first reading, and the organizers of the hearing
said the hearing is aimed at further elaboration of the bill. In
the meantime, the importers of medicine shared their concerns, which
had been expressed before but were not accepted. Ghukas Ulikhanyan,
the director of Emergency Aid Ltd., it would be wrong not to allow
pharmacies sell medicines that are available on prescription only,
which is foreseen in the bill. “It means pharmacies will have 400 types
of medicine, compared with the present 2000, and will close down.”
Besides, businessmen suggest lifting the VAT on drugs. This tax is
imposed on drugs since January 2001. Academician Emil Gabrielyan
says in Georgia the VAT on drugs lasted for six months. “They saw
it had a bad effect and lifted it.” The approach is the same in all
the CIS countries. Either there is no VAT at all, or the tariff is
very small. In Armenia the VAT was imposed despite the experience of
Georgia. Member of Parliament Hranush Hakobyan, Chair of the Committee
of Education, Science and Culture, said the VAT first caused the
prices of drugs to go up, then brought a great profit to people in
the business of medicine.

ARMENIAN WOMEN BOUND FOR TURKEY THREATENED
Lragir.am
19 April 06
The Armenian prostitutes working in Turkey might be seen as
terrorists. It may happen after the Turkish parliament adopts
the law on struggle against terrorism, introduced by the Turkish
government. The Turkish government has included prostitution among
crimes defined as terrorism. It is a fact that a great number of
Armenian citizens practice this ancient profession in Turkey.

AS IT HAPPENED: THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
The Advertiser (Australia)
April 19, 2006 Wednesday
State Edition
A guarantee of rape, murder or theft. This was reality for the Armenian
population in Turkey, left, during World War I – a horror that spanned
decades as the government tried to obliterate a belief system and,
with that, millions of innocent lives.

OSCE AMBASSADORS EMPHASIZE UPCOMING ELECTIONS
Lragir.am
19 April 06
On April 19 Speaker Arthur Baghdasaryan met with the ambassadors of
OSCE members and representatives of international organizations to
Armenia, informs the Department of Public Relations of the National
Assembly of Armenia.
Noting that for the first time an agreement was reached among all
the political forces on the Electoral Code, the speaker of the
National Assembly presented all the major changes, informing that
the project had been extended to the Commission of Venice and the
OSCE. Answering the questions of ambassadors, Arthur Baghdasaryan
said the group of experts of the OSCE and the Commission of Venice
are visiting Armenia in June to discuss the renewed Electoral Code
and administrative problems. During the meeting advisory and technical
issues were discussed.
In their speeches U.S. Ambassador John Evans, the head of the OSCE
Yerevan Office Vladimir Pryakhin, Italian Ambassador Marco Clemente,
UN Resident Coordinator Consuelo Vidal pointed to the engagement
of proposals of international organizations in the Electoral Code,
emphasized the establishment of a legislative basis and political will
to conduct elections in 2007-2008 in compliance with international
standards, and asserted their willingness to support.
By the end of the meeting an arrangement was reached to carry on
discussions on the Electoral Code.

LIBRARIAN ACCUSED OF ‘SEXUAL HARASSMENT’ AFTER RECOMMENDING ‘MARKETING OF EVIL’
The Nutty Professors
WorldNetDaily.com ily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49809
Wednesda y, April 19, 2006
Book-banning ‘gay’ profs forced to drop allegations
After the entire faculty voted, with no dissenters, to brand their head
librarian as a sexual harasser because he recommended the bestselling
book “The Marketing of Evil” as required reading for freshmen, Ohio
State University has finally dropped its controversial charges in
the glare of national media attention.
But, warns the librarian’s attorney, who calls this one of the most
“astonishing” and “shameful” instances of campus persecution he’s
ever seen, the damage to his client’s reputation and career has been
done. They’ve already filed a complaint against three professors
for false accusations of harassment and are discussing a more
“substantial” response – including possible litigation – to “deter
any future tyranny or bullying of others.”
As WND first reported, Scott Savage, a devout Quaker, is head of
Reference and Instructional Services at the Bromfield Library on Ohio
State University’s Mansfield campus. As a member of the university’s
First Year Reading Experience Committee, Savage had suggested four
books be considered as required reading for incoming freshmen:
“The Marketing of Evil” by David Kupelian, “The Professors” by David
Horowitz, “Eurabia: The Euro-Arab Axis” by Bat Ye’or, and “It Takes
a Family” by Sen. Rick Santorum. Savage made the recommendations
after other committee members had suggested a series of books with
a left-wing perspective, by authors such as Jimmy Carter and Maria
Shriver.
However, three professors – two of them openly homosexual – filed
a complaint of discrimination and harassment, contending Kupelian’s
book was “hate literature” which “threatened” them and made them feel
“unsafe” on campus. After a 21-0 faculty vote (with 9 abstentions)
on March 13, the school’s Office of Human Resources put Savage under
“investigation.” The full-faculty vote was rescinded two days later
for legal reasons, and the three offended professors filed the
harassment complaint.
The professors who filed the complaint against Savage are Hannibal
Hamlin, Norman Jones and J.K. Buckley. Jones teaches courses in
lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature, and according to
his bio, “his current research focuses on sexuality and spirituality,
particularly exploring the phenomenon of the ‘post-secular queer’
in contemporary literature.” Buckley has written “The Social Critic:
The Rise of Queer Performance Within the Demise of Transcendentalism”
as well as “articles on sexual orientation in Hemingway and Melville.”
Stepping up to defend Savage has been the Arizona-based public-interest
law firm, the Alliance Defense Fund, which on March 28 filed a “Cease
and Desist” letter to OSU Mansfield officials.
Undeterred, the university pressed on in its “investigation” of Savage,
insisting it takes “any allegation of sexual harassment seriously.”
The ADF filing linked above includes, as evidentiary exhibits,
the condemnations of Savage and Kupelian made by OSU professors in
intra-faculty e-mails March 9. The professors’ comments include:
Hannibal Hamlin: “Re Kupelian’s book, would you advocate a book
that was racist or antisemitic, or are you arguing that homosexuals
are not in the same category and that homophobia is not therefore a
matter of discrimination but of rational argument? And what are we
supposed to make of the fact that Kupelian’s Armenian family died
in the holocaust? Does this mean that he then has the right to spout
bigotry about other minorities with impunity?”
Norman Jones: “The anti-gay book Scott Savage endorses falsely claims
that ‘the widely revered father of the “sexual revolution” has been
irrefutably exposed as a full-fledged sexual psychopath who encouraged
pedophilia.’ This is a factually untrue characterization of Dr. Kinsey
and his work on every point. … I am frankly embarrassed for you,
Scott, that you would endorse this kind of homophobic tripe.”
J.K. Buckley: “As a gay man I have long ago realized that the world
is full of homophobic, hate-mongers who, of course, say that they
are not. So I am not shocked, only deeply saddened – and THREATENED –
that such mindless folks are on this great campus. … You have made
me fearful and uneasy being a gay man on this campus. I am, in fact,
notifying the OSU-M campus, and Ohio State University in general,
that I no longer feel safe doing my job. I am being harassed.”
Finally, since WorldNetDaily, Sean Hannity, MSNBC, Fox News’ Brit Hume
and dozens of bloggers and talk show hosts have brought the case to
national attention over the last few days, Ohio State University has
reportedly reversed course. That is, the Mansfield campus’s dean and
director, Evelyn B. Freeman, has now notified the faculty that the
charges have been dropped, although – strangely – neither Savage nor
his ADF attorneys have been notified of that fact.
Here’s the e-mail the faculty received from Freeman:
Dear Faculty and Staff,
The Ohio State University is strongly committed to the free, open,
and civil exchange of views as part of the educational process. To
prepare our students for success, we must have an atmosphere where
students, staff and faculty are free to express opinions and where
different points of view are not only tolerated, but welcomed. I want
to affirm President Holbrook’s April 5 message to the campus community:
“Ohio State is a caring community that rejects racism, homophobia,
gender-bias, religious intolerance and other forms of prejudice,
exclusion, and disrespect.”
It is unfortunate that conflicting viewpoints on the Mansfield campus
escalated to charges of harassment.
After a thorough investigation of complaints raised by faculty members
against a reference librarian, the University has determined that
there were no findings of harassment. However, the news media has
now picked up on this incident and you will likely be seeing some
coverage in the state and national news.
I hope we can all learn from this incident. We recognize that in the
course of robust intellectual debate in and out of the classroom,
there exists the potential for conflict. But we have to handle that
conflict responsibly and with collegiality. We will be taking a number
of steps to help create a more welcoming atmosphere on the Mansfield
campus by offering additional training for faculty and staff. We also
will work to reinforce a better understanding of the principles of
academic rights and responsibilities, and to ensure the respect for
diversity of all kinds.
Sincerely,
Evie
Evelyn B. Freeman, Dean and Director The Ohio State University at
Mansfield
So is the case over?
Not by a long shot, says David French, Savage’s attorney and director
of ADF’s Center for Academic Freedom, who says the librarian is
carefully “weighing his options.”
“Scott’s exploring litigation – he has already filed an internal
complaint accusing the professors of a false allegation of
harassment. But he is definitely exploring possibilities of
litigation,” said the ADF attorney.
“While we’re glad there was no finding of harassment – that’s merely
common sense on the part of the university – we’re upset there hasn’t
been a direct communication of that fact to Scott or his attorneys.”
Much more importantly, said French, “the damage has been done” to
Scott’s career and reputation. “Ohio State University allowed its
resources to be used in a campaign of slander and defamation.” Saying
Savage “wants to do something substantial to deter any future tyranny
or bullying of others,” French concluded: “We’re certainly glad Scott
has been exonerated, but by no means is this over.”
One consequence of the case, surely unintended by the professors
condemning Kupelian’s book as “homophobic tripe” and “hate literature,”
is that “The Marketing of Evil” has shot up the nation’s bestsellers
lists, where it currently is ranked No. 1 on Amazon.com’s “Current
Events” bestseller chart.
The reason for the massive interest in Kupelian’s book? The following
letter, one of many sent in response to the column about the case by
Rebecca Hagelin, tells the story.
I hope you can forward the information to the faculty of OSU-M
that I, for one, had not yet heard of the book, “The Marketing of
Evil.” But because of their hysteria and hypocritical intolerance, I
have decided that it is something I should definitely read. I intend
to buy a copy, and perhaps an extra to pass. In spite of themselves,
these would-be thought controllers are serving as a beacon of light,
showing the way to valuable literature!
Released in August, “The Marketing of Evil” has become one of the
nation’s most talked-about books, widely praised by Dr. Laura,
David Limbaugh, Michelle Malkin, D. James Kennedy and many others
and garnering over 100 five-star reader reviews on Amazon.com.
In one final irony: “The Marketing of Evil” is readily available in
the Ohio State University bookstore.
____________
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