Hungary sees need for better integration as more refugees stay

Reuters AlertNet
28 July 2005

By Melita Sunjic, UNHCR Budapest

BUDAPEST, Hungary, July 28 (UNHCR) – “I know that I came by my own
decision. Hungary did not invite me to come. So I cannot ask for too
much, but a little kick would help our integration a lot,” says Arkan
Al-Hassani*, an Iraqi refugee in the reception centre in Bicske, 30 km
west of the Hungarian capital, Budapest.

Al-Hassani has a point. Asylum seekers in Hungary are well taken care
of. Asylum laws, reception facilities and asylum procedures are of a
high standard. But once they are recognised as refugees, they struggle
to get their feet on the ground.

Al-Hassani’s wife Armine* comes from Armenia. They met in Budapest in
2001, when they were both newly-arrived asylum seekers. Today they are a
young family with two little boys. With UNHCR’s assistance, they even
managed to bring Armine’s 12-year-old daughter from a previous marriage
to Hungary a month ago. The family is still occupying a single room in
the Bicske reception centre. They know they have to leave by the end of
the year.

“This centre serves primarily for asylum seekers and for persons with a
temporary humanitarian status,” explains Sandor Hoes, who manages the
centre-cum-camp. “The Al-Hassanis have already been recognised as
refugees. That means that they have permanent legal status and
permission to work. But they have to leave this centre. The Hungarian
government expects them to become independent and integrate in Hungarian
society.”

Al-Hassani understands this concept. He did what he could to prepare for
self-reliance. He found a steady job and learned Hungarian together with
his wife. But the finances do not work out. The young man is planning
and calculating – if he buys a house, he can have an interest-free loan
of 1.5 million forint (US$7,500). If he rents property, the government
will pay them subsidies of up to 40 percent of rental fees for a maximum
of two years. With his current salary, neither option will allow him to
cover all family expenses.

So he keeps looking for accommodation and searching for solutions, while
Armine is trying to master medical terminology in Hungarian. “I am a
qualified senior nurse for dermatology,” she says. “If I manage to do
the necessary exams, I should be able to have my qualifications
recognised and get a well-paid job. Then our situation will improve.”

“In the beginning it was very difficult for us too,” says Lucy Bajrami,
a recognised refugee from Kosovo. She works as a cleaner in a social
institution in Biscke. Coming from a Roma ethnic background, Bajrami had
to flee Kosovo on foot in 1999 together with her husband and her five
children. In Hungary, they finally reached safety.

When they were recognised as refugees a year ago, they also had to leave
Bicske centre and rent a house. “We were lucky that we both already had
jobs. We live and work in Bicske and we are very happy here.”

The children speak Hungarian to each other, and Bajrami sometimes has to
remind them to practise their Albanian language. “They are good pupils
and they will have good lives here in Hungary. It was the right decision
to stay here.”

Other asylum seekers would very much like to stay and integrate, but
they are still struggling for official status. The Turkovic* family is
one such example. Zoran Turkovic, a well-known public figure in the
northern Yugoslav region of Vojvodina, was a vocal critic of Slobodan
Milosevic’s regime. He fled his homeland for Budapest in 1999 with his
wife and teenage daughter.

A renowned expert in antiques and a trained tourism manager, Turkovic
hoped to find work immediately in Budapest. But he was never granted
asylum. “No papers, no legal employment. I did the odd job here and
there, but I could never have a real job.”

When the Turkovics’ application for asylum or at least a humanitarian
status was rejected a few months ago, they decided to give up and return
home. “We thought that things back home might have improved after all,”
says Turkovic.

But the situation soon spiralled out of control. The family received
death threats, their old house was vandalised and even their relatives
got anonymous calls. When Turkovic was physically assaulted in town in
broad daylight, they packed their things in panic and left for Hungary
once again.

“Now we have re-applied [for asylum] in the light of these new
developments. We hope so much that we will be allowed to stay. Many
other asylum seekers here move on to Western Europe, but for us Hungary
is a good country,” says Turkovic.

Not all refugees would agree with the Al-Hassanis, the Bajramis or the
Turkovics. Many asylum seekers see Hungary merely as a point of entry
into the European Union and move on soon.

“It depends very much on their nationality,” says camp manager Hoes.
African refugees usually stay. “They seek peace and quiet, a little
business to make a living and contacts with the African community. They
can have all of that in Budapest.”

The same is true for Ukrainian asylum seekers who prefer to settle in
Hungary, close to their home country. Georgians tend to wait until they
have refugee papers and then leave for Germany, where many of them have
friends and relatives, says Hoes. “Iraqis in most cases also prefer
moving on to staying in Hungary.”

Lloyd Dakin, UNHCR’s Regional Representative in Central Europe, notes
that in the past, the countries in the region have been countries of
transit rather than final destinations, in the mindset of both asylum
seekers and governments. “But now since they are members of the EU, we
expect that to change. Integration is after all a way of sharing
responsibilities within Europe.”

In Hungary, positive developments are already underway. “Integration is
a complex endeavour, touching upon education, employment, housing,
health care and many other issues,” says Dakin. “We are happy to see
that an inter-ministerial working group has been established to develop
a comprehensive integration policy.”

To that end, Hungary is being assisted by Greece in the framework of an
EU twinning project for new member states.

“Positive steps have been taken in Hungary and before long, it will have
a direct positive impact on refugee lives,” says Dakin. “Other Central
European countries will follow suit soon and then this region, which
itself has produced hundreds of thousands of refugees, will be a home
for those who need protecting now.”

* Not their real names

Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

The Moscow Times, Russia
July 29 2005

Golden Oldies

No longer a giant in recorded music, Melodiya is trying to make a
comeback by unearthing gems in its archive, such as forgotten Soviet
rock songs from the 1960s.

By Anna Malpas
Published: July 29, 2005

Janos Koos sounds a bit uncertain as he sings the words of Chuck
Berry: “My baby does the hanky panky, yeah.” The Hungarian vocalist
recorded the song at Melodiya in 1970, a year when the authorities
were cracking down on music that didn’t fit the official format.
After all, the country was about to celebrate Lenin’s 100th birthday.

Nevertheless, the song, recently re-released by Melodiya, is
definitive proof that rock ‘n’ roll existed in the Soviet Union. To
get this message across, Andrei Troshin, the record label’s chief
editor, has issued a series of compilation discs called “The True
History of Russian Light Music.”

Packaged in brightly colored sleeves, the albums are aimed at a young
audience. “We don’t want to do retro,” Troshin said during a recent
interview. He defined his ideal listener as someone who wouldn’t be
seen dead buying an album by current Russian pop acts, but who wants
to discover something to be proud of in the country’s musical past.

“It’s light music for intellectually developed people,” the editor
said. “That segment of the market is free at the moment.”

The albums are a chance to branch out for Melodiya, a label that is
world-famous for its classical output, but which also preserves a
unique archive of light, or estrada music. After losing almost all of
its premises and staff after the breakup of the Soviet Union, the
state-owned enterprise has experienced something of a renaissance
under new management.

Troshin gave the interview in the columned hall of Melodiya’s
headquarters on Tverskoi Bulvar, a building whose oldest part dates
back to before Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. The label’s most
valuable possession is housed elsewhere: an archive of around 60,000
items — no one knows the exact figure — including the master tapes
of popular music that was taken off the airwaves for ideological
reasons.

The golden age of Russian rock ‘n’ roll began in 1957, the editor
said. That was the year of the Moscow International Festival of Youth
and Students, when American bands arrived and played real rock ‘n’
roll — although for decency’s sake, it was called jazz. When they
left, it was usually without their instruments, which were snapped up
by Russian musicians.

“The professional level [of Russian bands] went up very rapidly,
because they had professional equipment for the first time,” Troshin
said. When compiling the latest disc in the Real History series,
titled “Love by Post,” he chose songs from the 1960s that were
“clearly pro-Western.” Along with the Chuck Berry track, there are
songs in Italian and French, and a Russian translation of The
Coasters’ 1959 hit “Charlie Brown.”

Only one of the songs on the album would be familiar to most Russian
listeners: “Black Cat” by Tamara Miansarova, a 1964 hit that still
gets a lot of airplay. In other cases, the artists might be famous,
but the material is not. On one track, the smooth-voiced crooner
Muslim Magomayev sings an Italian dance tune with Elektron — a band
that played electric instruments, which has been called Russia’s
answer to Britain’s Shadows.

“Magomayev used to do things that had nothing to do with his image,”
Troshin said. “He once sang [the Animals’ 1964 chart-topper] ‘House
of the Rising Sun’ with a rock group.”

Many of the tracks date back to the late 1960s. At the time, Melodiya
was in a rush to release material, as its staff sensed a change in
the political climate, with clubs being shut down and jazz bands
being evicted from restaurants. Sure enough, a 1969 resolution by the
Council of Ministers called for certain estrada groups to be broken
up and for some of Melodiya’s master tapes to be erased.

One of the victims of the freeze was an album called “From Palanga to
Gurzuf,” which was recently re-released by Melodiya in association
with the hip record label Lyogkiye. The feel-good, largely
instrumental numbers include tracks by Elektron and Rokoko, a band
founded by the composer Anatoly Bykanov, who now teaches at the
Moscow Conservatory.

Named after beach resorts in Lithuania and the Crimea, the album was
recorded in two versions: a lower-quality mono version for Russian
audiences and a high-quality stereo version for export, meant to be
released abroad in association with Intourist. But the summery tracks
were out of step with preparations for the 100th anniversary of
Lenin’s birth in April 1970, and the order went out to destroy the
master tape.

The album survived, however, thanks to quick-witted Melodiya staff
members. It was hidden in a box labeled “A concert by the
participants of the All-Russian Show of Rural Amateur Talents,” where
it lay undisturbed until last winter, when restorers transferring the
label’s archive onto digital tape listened to the album and realized
they had found something unique.

In a bid to increase awareness of the album, Melodiya teamed up with
Snegiri Muzyka, a small independent record company, to release the
album on Lyogkiye, a label that specializes in lounge and
electronica. The reason was simple: Melodiya is seen as “sovok,” or
Soviet in all the worst senses of the word, Troshin admitted.

The CD markets at a higher price than those in the “Real History”
series, and it has more sophisticated packaging and liner notes. It
was presented last month with a party at the Moscow club Keks.

“Of course we are trying to hook young people and, in a sense, those
with patriotic views,” Troshin said. “Because you can put this on,
listen to it and realize that there’s nothing embarrassing about it.
You don’t have to feel ashamed by these musicians.”

The media reaction to the releases has been largely favorable. “I
just can’t believe that in the mid-1960s people played and recorded
this kind of music in our country,” a critic wrote in Izvestia
earlier this month, referring to the “Real History” series. A music
journalist in Vremya Novostei was more circumspect about “From
Palanga.” It made him feel “childlike pleasure” the first time he
listened to it, but “maybe a single injection of nostalgia is
enough,” he wrote.

Founded in 1964, Melodiya held a monopoly on recorded music in the
Soviet Union, employing tens of thousands. It even had a
representative office in Samoa, Troshin commented, although “that was
connected with spying.” Now the factories and shops are gone, and the
label only has about 60 employees.

Yet Melodiya has undergone something of a revival in recent years,
the chief editor said, describing it as a “former corpse.” Still
owned by the state, the enterprise makes a small “kopek profit,” he
said, and last year it won an award in Belgium for a recording of
symphonic and vocal music by the 20th-century composer Boris Arapov.

Its main tasks now are to digitize the archive, which badly needs new
premises — it is currently housed in an apartment building — and to
find a replacement for the label’s recording studio, a church
building on Voznesensky Pereulok, which has been handed back to the
Anglican community, although Melodiya still intermittently records
there.

Troshin joined Melodiya two years ago. Previously, he edited a
magazine on Orthodox art and worked in the art business. He joined
the company along with a new general director, Kirill Bashirov. As a
non-classical music specialist, he is in charge of the estrada
releases, and it’s a job that fits his own tastes.

Among his personal favorites are the Armenian singer Lola Khomyants
and the Georgian Gyuli Chokheli. “I like women with low, sultry
voices,” he said. Khomyants died last December, just a week before
the first “Real History” album came out with one of her songs as the
first track.

“It was very sad and frustrating,” he recalled.
From: Baghdasarian

RIA Novosti, Russia
July 28 2005

Spokesman calls detention of Russian convoy on Georgian-Armenian
border misunderstanding

TBILISI, July 28 (RIA Novosti, Marina Kvaratskhelia) – The detention
of Russian military hardware at the Georgian-Armenian border was pure
misunderstanding, said Vladimir Kuparadze, the official spokesman for
Russian forces in Transcaucasia.

“The senior officer forgot the necessary papers,” he said. “The
convoy will continue moving as soon as these papers are delivered.”

Georgian border guards stopped a convoy of Russian military hardware
on the Armenian border Thursday.

The state borders department of the Georgian Interior Ministry said
the convoy, comprising four trucks and four armored vehicles, was
heading from Akhalkalaki (Georgia) to Armenia.

On inspection, Georgian border guards found five PKT machine guns and
five signaling pistols and detained the convoy, which lacked the
required documents.

I-Newswire.com (press release)
July 28 2005

New CD: The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide

Simon Maghakyan, a student from Colorado, has recently issued a CD
called `The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide.’ The CD
contains more than 400 photographs testifying to the destruction of
the Armenian cultural monuments in the Republic of Turkey.

(I-Newswire) – Simon Maghakyan, a student from Colorado, has recently
issued a CD called `The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural
Genocide.’ The CD contains more than 400 photographs testifying to
the destruction of the Armenian cultural monuments in the Republic of
Turkey.

The CD is a collection of old and new photographs taken in historic
Armenia, which is now part of Turkey. During the Armenian Genocide (
1915-1923 ), Armenian churches and cathedrals were set on fire,
converted to mosques, destroyed and desecrated. The Turkish
government still continues the policy of the cultural genocide.
Between 1915 and now, more than 2000 Armenian churches have been
destroyed in Turkey. Some of them, as old as 1700 years, have been
entirely wiped off ( such as the 7th century church of St. James in
Bagrevand ), others have been converted to mosques ( St. Apostles’ of
Kars, etc. ) and several churches have been converted to public
buildings ( sport centers, cultural centers, etc. ) The legendary
monastery of Mush known as St. Apostles ( founded in the 4th century
) has been ruined and desecrated. Armenia was the first country to
adopt Christianity as the state religion in 301 A.D.

The CD has been designated for educational purposes only and is not
on sale. Copies of the CD have been donated to educational
institutions throughout the world. The Armenian National Institute in
Washington D.C., Zoryan Institute of America and the Armenian Library
and Museum of America have copies of this work.

`The First Christian Civilization’s Cultural Genocide’ also contains
information about other forms of cultural genocide, including
distortion of geographical names and national songs.

To learn more about the project visit

Aram I, Patriarch Paoulos hold joint service

28.07.2005 16:17

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Cilicia Catholicos Aram I and Ethiopian Orthodox
Church Patriarch Paoulos, visiting Catholicosate of Cilicia in
Lebanon, presided over a special liturgy served on July 28 at the
Antelias Cathedral.

The services were conducted in Armenian and Ethiopian and dedicated to
the innocent victims of the Armenian Genocide. The Ethiopian patriarch
prayed for the restoration of the rights of the Armenian people and
promised to push for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the
Ethiopian government.

Yerkir Media’s policy receives an award

Yerkir/arm
July 22, 2005

By Hovhannes Yeranian

On July 10 the Yerevan Press Club celebrated its 10th
anniversary. During the celebration ceremony annual prizes were
awarded to journalists from different media.

Yerkir Media TV channel was awarded the prize for the best political
analytical programs. Committee for Protection of the Freedom of Speech
awarded Yerkir Media a prize in the same nomination. It is no doubt an
honor for a TV company to receive such an award especially that this
TV company is only one year old. We asked director of Yerkir Media
Gegham Manukian to share with our readers the future plans of the
company.

Q: Mr. Manukian, let me congratulate you for getting the two
prizes. These prizes are of special importance in the context of the
conventional opinionthat people expect only entertaining programs and
talk shows from the TV companies. A: The development of Yerkir Media
was our first priority from the very beginning. In our proposal we
paid much attention to cultural, scientific, analytical and news
programs. When our company started working we saw that we could air
interesting international political and analytical programs. There are
two trends of development in the Armenian TV market. The first one is
to adjustto the taste of the mainstream TV audience and air light
programs paying no attention to news, politics and analysis. The
second one, which became the main principle for our company, is to
avoid becoming hostage to such low-quality demand. Our principle is to
be objective. When presenting news we do our best to present the
positions of all parties concerned. The award we received todayis an
appreciation of our work in this direction.

Q: In other words, the prize you received was awarded not to a
specific program but to the overall policy of your TV company? A:
Yes. I should also add a couple of words about our news programs. It
has been important for us to be at the center of events and today our
reporters present information on developments in different parts of
the world.

Q: A professional team and a team of experts are necessary to have a
serious political analytical program. Are there such experts on our
television? Are there political analysts in our country that can bring
interesting and new approaches to the television? A: Very often we
lack such people. The scope of guests we can invite is rather
limited. Nevertheless, there are people, international relations
specialists, political analysts and political leaders that
professionally analyze various topics. In addition to them, we have
our experts. A professional team dealing with the region currently
works with Yerkir Media. They know different languages. Graduates of
international relations or oriental studies departments come to work
at our company and their skills and knowledge are very helpful for us.

Q: What are your future plans? Do the awards make you self-sufficient?
A: I don’t want to go into details now, but we are thinking of an
analytical program that will deal with domestic politics. A program
called European Diary will inform our audience of the developments in
Europe and the impact they have on our country. A new series of
programs dealing with the activities of NGOs has been recently aired
on our channel.

Q: There are two ways of expanding the audience of a TV channel. The
most important one is of course raising the quality of the
programs. The other one is increasing the area of broadcasting. Ever
since Yerkir Media was created it was said that it would be broadcast
all over the country. A: We are working in this direction. We hope it
will happen in near future. Our programs will be broadcast not only
all over Armenia but at a larger scope.

Q: What other new programs can we watch on Yerkir Media in the new
season? A: Even though the summer is very hot, we have recently aired
a new program. It is called `Ambassador’ and tells about the
embassies accredited to Armenia and their staff. There is another new
program called `Miashabti=80=9D. A new series of programs will be
aired that tell about the beautiful sites of Armenia that are not
mentioned in any tourist guidebooks. In September we will air several
other new programs.

AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383, x137
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:

PRESS RELEASE

Thursday, July 28, 2005

AGBU MANOOGIAN-DEMIRDJIAN SCHOOL DEDICATES ANNUAL PARADON DAY AND BOOK
OF REFLECTIONS TO GENOCIDE REMEMBRANCE

New York, NY – Armenian Genocide commemorative events and tributes by
AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School began in April 2005 and continued
into May culminating with the dedication of the School’s annual
Paradon Day on May 22 to remembering the Armenian Genocide.

Showcasing the talents and skills of the student body, Paradon 2005
was a daylong cultural celebration of life through dance, music and
creative works depicting the 90 year journey from the tragedy of 1915
to survival and rebirth. The event exemplified the commitment of a new
generation of Armenians who grapple with the issues of genocide and
recognition.

Additionally, under the auspices of the Paradon 2005 Steering
Committee, “Book of Reflections,” a collection of creative writings
and artwork on the Armenian Genocide by School students was unveiled
at the Los Angeles Public Library on May 7.

Founded in 1976, AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School is a
pre-kindergarten through 12th grade co-educational private school
located in Canoga Park, CA providing instruction to approximately 1000
students. For more information on AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School,
please visit For copies of “Book of Reflections,”
please contact the School at (818) 883-2428 or click
for the
electronic version (4MB).

For more information on AGBU Schools, please visit

“When I’m 64,” “Sevigne” “Guys & Balls,” and “Girl Play” Take Philadelphia
Gay Fest Accolades

Indiewire
July 28, 2005
by Brian Brooks

A scene from Sherry Horman’s “Guys & Balls,” which won the audience award
for best feature (gay male) at the recently concluded Philadelphia
International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. Image courtesy of the
Philadelphia Film Society.

The Philadelphia International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival concluded its
two-week run last week, with a screening of Craig Lucas’ “The Dying Gaul,”
preceded by the announcement of jury and audience competition winners.
British director Jon Jones’ “When I’m 64” won the jury prize for best
feature (gay male), while Spanish director Marta Balletbo-Coll’s “Sevigne”
won the best feature prize in the ‘lesbian’ category.

BBC-produced “64” is the story of a retiring Latin teacher, who meets a
similar aged former football (soccer) yob, and embarks on an intense
friendship that later morphs into more. “Sevigne,” meanwhile, is the story
of a screenwriter who attempts to get her story on French socialite Madame
de Sevigne off the ground with the help of a former actress turned theater
director. The festival’s jury prize for best documentary went to American
director Nicole Conn’s “little man,” the story of a lesbian couple’s
determination to see their surrogate newborn son’s survival, despite a
0.00004% chance of living.

In other jury awards, Canadian director Armen Kazazian’s “Gold” won best
short (gay male) and Jennie Livingston’s (“Paris is Burning”) “Who’s the
Top” took best short (lesbian), and American Eric Smith’s “Irene Williams:
Queen of Lincoln Road” took best short documentary.

German director Sherry Horman’s “Guys & Balls” took the fest’s audience
award for best feature (gay male). The film, which also took an audience
prize at Outfest, is the story of a closeted gay man who gets kicked off of
his homophobic soccer team and vows revenge by assembling a motley crew of
fellow gays determined to exact a sporting revenge on the field. “Girl
Play,” by Lee Friedlander (U.S.) won the audience award for lesbian film.
The feature, based on the original play “Real Girls,” revolves around two
actresses with opposite personalities, who are cast in an L.A. play.
Initially, their love scenes are difficult, but as the rehearsals continue
and the pressure increases, the acting becomes real. Finally, the audience
nod for best documentary went to Daniel Peddle’s “The Aggressives.” The film
follows six lesbians around New York City. The women each fall into a
category ranging from “bull dyke” to “pretty tomboys,” but their style is
not a temporary drag persona, rather its a lifestyle.

PIGLFF featured 59 features, 23 documentaries, 75 shorts and two special
screenings from 26 countries, with eight world premieres screening in the
line up. The festival, produced by the Philadelphia Film Society, which also
hosts the annual Philadelphia International Film Festival, took place July
7-19. Next year’s dates are slated for July 13-25.

With Neither Pay Nor Privileges, Honorary Consuls Serve Korea

[Diplomatic News]

Donga.com (Seoul, Korea)
JULY 29, 2005

by Ki-Hyun Kim ([email protected])

Last February, three Korean men who were studying in Saint Petersburg,
the second largest city in Russia, were seriously beaten by Russian
ultra-rightist skinheads. Even though this incident needed the prompt
action of the Korean embassy in Russia located in Moscow, diplomatic
officials who were in charge of this were not able to reach them. This
is Kim Gi-eum (Kim Alexander), a Korean living in Russia, who rushed to
the scene and handled the aftermath of the incident. Kim is an honorary
consul of Korea

Honorary consuls’ passion for their work is no less than that of
professional diplomats. There are a total of 122 who have been appointed
as honorary consuls by the Korean government. They have no pay and no
privilege as consuls because their positions are honorary. Despite this,
whenever incidents take place, honorary consuls rush to the scene first.
They don’t even hesitate to spend their own money and their own time.

We can say they play a spearheading role in diplomacy. As of September
of 2004, there are 186 countries which have diplomatic ties with Korea.
However, there are only 130 embassies and consulate generals in 95
countries due to financial pressures and a manpower shortage. Even
though nearby legations handle the work of areas that have no legations,
diplomatic activities often face difficulties, and nobody knows when
accidents related to Korea and its people take place. Because of this,
the Korean government has appointed honorary consuls to countries or
cities which have no legations.

Walking along Bachranyan Street in downtown Yerevan, the capital city of
Armenia, a two-story stone building hanging the national flag of Korea,
the Taegeukgi, is easily noticeable. The building has a board in front
of door bearing the words `Korean Consulate’ written in Korean,
Armenian, and English.

Armen Abramin, who was appointed as honorary consul last November, has
used this building as a legation without financial support from the
Korean government. He always hangs the Taegeukgi on his car, which has
made the Armenian people aware of Korea even though there are only four
Koreans living in Armenia.

Abramin’s passion for his work as an honorary consul was confirmed at
the opening ceremony of the legation, in which he invited famous figures
from Korea to Yerevan through a chartered plane flying from Moscow to
Yerevan. His elder brother, Ara Abramin, president of the Concorde Group
in Russia, who serves as the vice president of the association for
Korea-Russia friendship, is also active in enhancing friendship between
the two countries.

However, Abramin expressed regret at the little progress made in the
relationship between the two countries. He recently attempted to buy a
sport utility vehicle (SUV) made in Korea, but he was not able to find
it and bought a vehicle made in Japan. Saying, `I am an honorary consul
of Korea. Now, I am driving a Japanese car. I hate to do this,’ Abramin
called for Korean companies to make inroads into the Armenian market and
added, `I will do anything to help them do business here without
difficulties.’

On the other hand, in Azerbaijan, a neighboring country of Armenia,
which was recently hit by an oil field development boom in the Caspian
Sea, Suleyeman Ivrahimov, AB Standard vice-chairman, was appointed as an
honorary consul of Korea last May.

Suleyeman Ivrahimov, who once worked as a diplomat for the former Soviet
Union and is running businesses there, had no connection with Korea
before and has never been to Korea. What made him interested in Korea
was the persuasion of his friend, Emlar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign
Affairs of Azerbaijan, who visited Korea last January. Minister Emlar
Mammadyarov introduced him to the position of an honorary consul of
Korea for the first time.

Ivrahimov, who kept paying keen attention to the Far East Asian region
that was showing rapid progress, willingly accepted the suggestion
because he believed that the relationship between the two countries,
even though it remained at an embryonic stage, will make great strides
forward in the near future.

Despite his origins as a member of a Shiite Islamic family, Vrahimov
began studying Korea in order to understand a culture that he has never
been exposed to. Last month, he visited a Korean culture exhibition held
in Baku and received a strong impression on Korean fine arts. He said,
`I think I tend to feel more intimacy with the Korean people than
Western people,’ adding, `Let me schedule my first visit to Korea.’

AUTHORITIES VIOLATE SOME EUROPEAN CONVENTIONS WHEN CONSTRUCTING
NORTHERN AVENUE IN YEREVAN: LOCAL RESIDENTS STATE

YEREVAN, JULY 28. ARMINFO. Authorities have violated some provisions
of both Armenia’s Constitution and European conventions when
constructing the Northern Avenue in Yerevan, stated representatives of
“Victims of “state needs” public organization at today’s
press-conference.

They demanded to recognize invalid the government’s decisions on lands
as they contradict to country’s Constitution and provisions of the
European convention, as well as to consider objectively the cases
connected with the development of both Northern and Main
Avenues. “Some criminal “businessmen” and state officials suckled by
their bribes, under the ephemeral idea of state need possess the
property of hundreds of families redoubling social polarization of our
society”, the organization’s massage says.

Old buildings have been demolished with the aim to construct the
Northern Avenue and 600 residents lost their dwellings and were not
given an adequate compensation.