PRYAKHIN: ARMENIA HAS OPPORTUNITY OF DEMOCRATIC REFORMS WITHOUT VIOLENCE
PanArmenian News Network
Aug 6 2005
06.08.2005 03:14
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The OSCE hopes for the efforts of Armenian
authorities on constitutional reforms to succeed and Armenian
people to say “yes” to constitutional changes in the course of
the referendum scheduled in autumn. “OSCE hails the fact that the
Armenia party has accepted most of expert proposals of the Venice
commission and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights (ODIHR/OSCE),” – stated chief of the OSCE Office in Yerevan,
Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin. “This does not mean we are satisfied
with all changes. Not all proposals were taken into account,” the
diplomat noted, meaning specifically proposal over more transparent
and democratic activities of media regulating bodies. Today the
republic president appoints members of those structures. As of the
participation or non-participation of the opposition in the debate
over the constitutional changes, V. Pryakhin stated, “Opposition is
disconnected in Armenia. On the one hand Justice Bloc notes it would
be nice to take part in the debate over the constitutional reforms,
on the other hand Republic Party making part of the Bloc is against
it.” In Pryakhin’s words, the passing of constitutional reforms
will mean that Armenia “has registered progress in democracy.” “If
the opposition urges its supporters to vote against or boycott
the referendum, the changes will not be passed and we will have
the Constitution of 1995, which does not reflect the needs of
the society today. Thus, I call all parties to sensibly evaluate
the situation,” he noted. As of the opportunity of revolution and
change of authorities in Armenia, Mr. Pryakhin stated he is for
“evolutionary development” and is “against violence.” In his words,
revolution “provides for violence.” V. Pryakhin said he was sure that
today Armenia has opportunities of democratic reforms without violence.
“Most Armenians are not sure that the forces that will take power can
improve the situation,” V. Pryakhin noted. He added, “Thus, in Armenia
there is no revolution situation in the classical sense of the word,”
reported RFE/RL.

ARMENIAN OCCUPIED FOURTH POSITION AT MISS INTERCONTINENTAL – 2005
PanArmenian News Network
Aug 6 2005
06.08.2005 02:49
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Miss Intercontinental – 2005 contest was held in
Kangshan Chinese town. Winners and awardees of national contests
of 61 countries took part in it. Vice Miss Armenia – 2003 Anush
Grigoryan represented Armenia at the contest. She occupied the
fourth prize place, having fascinated everyone with her beauty,
intelligence and sociability. A Venezuela representative became
Miss Intercontinental. Armenian MP, entrepreneur Gurgen Arsenyan and
Austrian Airlines sponsored the participation of the Armenian beauty
in the contest, reported Armenpress.

Genozid kein Thema im Standerat
Schweiz
06.08.2005 — Tages-Anzeiger Online
Der Volkermord an den Armeniern wird im Standerat – anders als im
Nationalrat, der ihn anerkannt hat – nie ein Thema sein. Es sei nicht
Sache von anderen Landern, 90 Jahre spater mit dem Finger auf die
Turkei zu zeigen, sagt APK-Prasident Briner.
Die Aussenpolitische Kommission des Standerats (APK) sei im Gesprach
zum Schluss gekommen, uber den Genozid von 1915 nicht im Plenum zu
befinden, sagte APK-Prasident Peter Briner heute auf Anfrage der
Nachrichtenagentur SDA. Wie der Bundesrat sei sie der Meinung, das
ware nicht die Aufgabe des Parlaments.
Das ware vielmehr die Aufgabe der betroffenen Parteien, also der
Turkei und von Armenien. Eine gemischte Historikerkommission musste
die “schrecklichen Ereignisse aufarbeiten”, fuhrte Briner aus –
so wie die Schweiz ihre Geschichte wahrend des Zweiten Weltkriegs
aufgearbeitet habe.
Jetzt Ruckgrat zeigen
Zur Ausladung von Bundesrat Deiss sagte Briner in einem Interview in
mehreren Schweizer Tageszeitungen, die Schweiz durfe jetzt gegenuber
der Turkei nicht schwach werden. Sie durfe aber auch nicht mit gleicher
Munze zuruckzahlen.
“Wichtig ist, dass wir jetzt Ruckgrat zeigen”, sagte Briner. Und es
sei auch “gut, dass hierzulande hart darauf reagiert wird”. Dass
die Turkei die Absage des Besuchs von Bundesrat Joseph Deiss mit
Termingrunden erklare, entspreche sicher nicht der Wahrheit.
Sie sei eine der typischen diplomatischen Ausreden, wenn man keine
bessere Erklarung finde, erklarte Briner. “Man wird den Eindruck
nicht los, dass die turkische Regierung mit diesem Sabelrasseln das
Volk beruhigen will.”
Stimmung gegen Schweiz gemacht
Ganz offensichtlich hatten die turkischen Medien “wieder Stimmung gegen
die Schweiz gemacht”. Dies wegen des Verfahrens, dass die Schweizer
Justiz gegen den Vorsitzenden der Turkischen Arbeiterpartei und gegen
einen Historiker wegen Leugnung des Volkermordes an den Armeniern
1915 eingeleitet hat.
Die Turkei wisse aber auch sehr genau, dass sie – wenn sie das Land in
die EU fuhren wolle -, nicht darum herumkommen werde, die Armenierfrage
aufzuarbeiten. “Und das ist innenpolitisch heikel.”

GERMAN EXPERT: PROMISING UTOPIAN EU ACCESSION TO TURKEY DISHONEST
PanArmenian News Network
Aug 6 2005
06.08.2005 05:13
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The European community proceeds from the European
identity and 2 conditions are taken into account at the enlargement:
the contender state belonging to Europe and recognition of EU values
by it. Based on that 2 questions should be raised at the discussion of
Turkey’s accession to the EU. These are: whether Turkey is a European
state and part of the European identity, as well as whether she
respects European values. German Middle East expert Peter Scholl-Latour
considers that at Turkey’s accession to the EU the spread of Islam
unavoidable. Of course the EU can impose its orders and conditions to
candidate country, however from the moment of accession each country
is an equal member. Islam is today followed by 20 million people in
the European community and it would be the second religious community
in united Europe. The European community itself would have changed
radically resulting from that, while allegedly was “more European
lately, Europe will become “more Turkish” at its accession to the
EU.” At that Turkey has better chances of EU accession than typically
European states that were unfortunately under the Ottoman yoke –
Serbia, Albania, Bosnia, Macedonia. By Turkey’s accession the united
Europe would have acquired many foreign political hardships and if
the accession does not take place, it will be more proper and honest
towards Ankara. It is better to promise solid partnership instead of
utopian EU membership, reported Die Tagespos.

Carta d’Armenia – Armenian Burning Paper
Burning Paper
Famous throughout Europe, these amazing papers, which are exactly as
they were in the 16th century, remove odors from any space with their
frankincense and myrrh scent. Simply take one paper, fold into an
accordion shape and light one end, then, blow out flame. You will see
that the paper reacts like incense and because of the accordion fold
you should be able to stand it on its side. Burn for approximately
5 minutes to remove odors (staleness, dampness or mold, cooking
odors). You will smell the fragrance as well as a slight scent of
burning paper. Always place on a glass or ceramic surface (Plate or
bowl) to burn. Will cause ash which is easily washed off. Can also
be used as scented papers placed directly in drawers or closets. 25
scented papers per box.

Senate washes its hands of “genocide” question
Swissinfo, Switzerland
Aug 6 2005
swissinfo August 6, 2005 6:54 PM
Turkey’s massacre of Armenians in 1915 will never be an issue for
the Swiss Senate, according to the president of the Senate foreign
affairs committee.
Peter Briner said other countries had no business pointing the finger
at Turkey 90 years after the disputed events.
Briner said the committee had decided that the death or deportation
of 800,000-1.8 million Armenians between 1915 and 1919 would not be
the subject of a plenary session.
He said the committee agreed with the government that it was not
parliament’s job to decide on the whether the killings constituted
genocide. They have been recognised as such by the parliaments
of several countries, including the United States, France, Russia
and Italy.
The Swiss House of Representatives recognised the genocide in 2003.
The Swiss government however does not officially speak of “genocide”
but of “mass deportation” and “massacre”.
Briner said the committee believed that it was more for the parties
involved, namely Turkey and Armenia, to reach an agreement.
Disagree to disagree
Briner said a mixed commission of historians had to “work through the
terrible events” – just as Switzerland had reappraised its history
during the Second World War.
Attempts by international scholars to determine once and for all what
really happened between 1915 and 1919 have never got much further
than agreeing which two countries were involved.
In May a group of Turkish historians had to cancel a conference
debating the genocide after the Turkish justice minister accused them
of “stabbing Turkey in the back”.
In June Alev Kilic, the Turkish ambassador in Bern, told swissinfo
that during Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey’s visit to Turkey
in March, the Turkish foreign minister Abdullah Gul talked about
establishing a commission of historians from both sides and opening
all files and archives.
“But of course the proposal has also been made to the Armenian
government and we can’t establish anything without their agreement.
We have still not received a positive reply,” Kilic said.
Sabre-rattling
A week is a long time in Swiss-Turkish politics, but diplomatic
relations need some serious resuscitation after a miserable ten days
for the two countries.
At the end of July the Swiss ambassador in Ankara had to deflect
a barrage of diplomatic flak concerning the Swiss investigation of
a Turkish politician who had proffered revisionist views about the
Armenian genocide in 1915.
Then on August 5 the Turkish authorities postponed indefinitely a
visit to Turkey in September by Swiss Economics Minister Joseph Deiss,
citing agenda problems of his Turkish counterpart.
Few in Switzerland believe an inability to use a diary was the reason
for the cancellation.
“That’s a typical diplomatic excuse if you can’t think of a better
one,” said Briner diplomatically.
“The important thing is that we now show some guts,” he said. “I get
the impression that the Turkish government wants to placate its people
with this sabre-rattling.”

MINING ACTIVITIES TO START SOON
[August 06, 2005, 21:54:13]
AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Aug 6 2005
A press conference dealing with the Agreement on the exploration,
development and production sharing for perspective gold fields
Gedabey, Gosha, Ordubad guru (Piyazbashi, Agyurd, Shekerdere, Keleki),
Soyudlu, Gizilbulag and Vezhnali in the Azerbaijan Republic was held
at Hyatt-Regency Hotel in Baku.
Speaking at the press conference president of the Azerbaijan
International Mines Operating Company (AIMOC) Rza Veziri noted oil
was not the country’s only wealth, but it was quite rich in other
mineral resources. He mentioned that as early as 1920, the Siemens had
developed copper fields in Gedabey, and in late 19th century, French
archeologists had carried out exploration works in Nakhchivan adding
huge ironstone, gold, solver and copper resources were discovered by
soviet including local specialists in Nakhchivan, Kelbajar, Gedabey
and Dashkesan. Mr. Veziri announced that in the Agreement ratified
by Azerbaijan parliament in 1997, the share of Azerbaijan is 51%
and that of AIMOC is 49%. Noting the rise in gold price in October
2004 allowed to commence realization of the Agreement, he advised
the preparatory works had already been completed. “Drilling of two
wells in Liyazbashi area in Ordubad (Nakhchivan) would start in the
next month, and a processing plant will be constructed nearby in two
years,” he said. According to him, the first-phase investments will
make up $50 million, while on the next phases the amount will reach
$600 million. “Minimum workforce including engineers from the outside
will be involved in the project, at least 500-700 local residents
will be provided with jobs, Mr. Veziri said. He promised the finished
products would appear in the market in the 3rd Q of 2007.
Besides, he has made things clear concerning the earlier reports
on alleged drilling operations by Indian company in the territory
of Kalbajar, Azerbaijan (the area covered by the production sharing
Agreement). It was noted that influential law firms and lawyers in New
York had been involved in this case. “If the information is confirmed,
Armenia will account to the international court. No proofs of the
illegal actions have been provided so far,” he said.
In the end, the company’s managers spoke of measures to realize the
Agreement, and answered questions from journalists.

Blue Springs Examiner, Missouri
Aug 6 2005
Still going strong
Local diver winning medals into his 80s
By Bill Althaus
The Examiner
It’s not exactly Fort Knox, but it’s close.
Tom Hairabedian has enough gold in the office of his stylish
Independence townhouse to make Donald Trump jealous.
But it’s not the type of gold you store in a vault – it’s the type
you wear around your neck when you are a world class athlete.
Hairabedian – who could pass for a suave 60-year-old – is an
81-year-old Masters Diving Champion.
He just returned from the World Masters Games in Edmonton, Canada
where he swept the diving events – taking first place in the 1-meter,
3-meter, platform and synchronized diving (with partner Gordon Peak).
Five huge frames, filled with medals – mostly gold – adorn the walls
of his office. And he grasps his most recent prizes his thick right
hand as he proudly shows the engraved events on the back of each medal.
“I guess I’m running out of room in here,” the personable Hairabedian
said. “But the medals are nice. It’s nice to be rewarded for a job
well done. But I don’t dive for the medals. I used to dive for the
competition – now, I do it for the challenge, and for fun.”
Julie Scheidegger/The Examiner
Tom Hairabedian keeps winning diving medals
Hairabedian has been bringing home the golden hardware since the
inception of the Masters Games in 1985.
But his first three medals weren’t gold.
“No, they were platinum,” he said, proudly showing three huge discs
that look more like Christmas tree ornaments. “These are pretty heavy,
huh? I wouldn’t want to wear them around my neck too long.”
They might cause him to topple over.
Hairabedian’s story is something out of Ripley’s Believe It or Not.
His mother, a native of Armenia, escaped a Nazi death march and
miraculously found her way to Ellis Island, where she worked as
an interpreter.
His father was a captain in the Russian army who came to the United
States before World War II.
Kniza and Zepure Hairabedian had three boys – two of whom are in the
Who’s Who of Armenian Athletes. Tom’s younger brother, Ara, was a great
athlete who later became a swimming and diving coach at Fresno State.
Tom was a world class gymnast who soon became entranced by diving
while attending USC and middle brother Deron enjoyed a successful
business career.
Through his involvement with the Community of Christ Church, Tom moved
to Independence. He has been the head swimming and diving coach at
Central Missouri State University and the University of Missouri.
He keeps the leather-bound thesis he wrote on diving in his office,
along with enough diving awards to fill a Hall of Fame.
Speaking of the Hall of Fame, look for Tom to be inducted Masters
Division of the International Hall of Fame in 2006.
That seems like a fitting place of honor for a man who owns 140
national titles.
Today, Hairabedian in the diving coach at the newest area high school,
Lee’s Summit West. Success simply seems to follow this human dynamo
wherever he goes as he helped junior Ron Porter become the first
all-state diver in school history.
“Ron had a background in gymnastics, just like me,” Hairabedian
said, his eyes gleaming. “He compete in four meets and took second
at his first meet and won the others. He was so excited about being
an all-state diver in his first year at the school.
“I can’t wait to see what he does this year.”

Caucaz.com, Georgia
Aug 6 2005
Is there a place for Islam in Mikhael Saakashvili’s Christian Georgia? [INVESTIGATION]
By Bayram BALCI in Tbilisi, Batumi, Marneuli, Pankisi
(Translated by Sophie LANCASTER, Cristina PROIETTI and Victoria BRYAN)
Whatever their denomination, Georgian Muslims are finding it harder
and harder to recognise the new national ideology, put into place
by the Saakashvili regime. Over the coming years, their lack of
identification with a State which has clearly affirmed its attachment
to Christian values is likely to weaken further the understanding
between the strongly Muslim provinces and districts and the capital,
which has already had problems establishing itself.
A three-part investigation
© Bayram Balci
Should Islam in Georgia fear being marginalised? [ 1/3 ] At the
centre of the new national ideology in Georgia, whether in Tbilisi,
in the Kvemo Kartli region, where the majority of the population is
Shiite Azeri, and in Ajaria, despite the ‘Christianisation’ which
has taken place since independence, the Georgian Church has existed
alongside a Georgian variant of Islam that has been present in the
country since the start of the Muslim Conquest.
The day after his accession to power, Georgian President Mikhael
Saakashvili adopted a new national flag, clearly demonstrating the
commitment of the political regime to Christian values. The Five
Crosses (of King David) on this new flag are there to signify that
the country wants to resume links with its Christian past and that
it wants to put Christian spirituality in the centre of its national
construction. The crucial role of the Church in the history of Georgia,
which was one of the first States to adopt Christianity as an official
religion after Armenia, explains for the most part why, after 70 years
of militant atheism under the USSR, and since its independence, the
State has reintroduced Christianity. In the 19th century, after all
did not the Georgian nationalists centre themselves round the motto
“Language, fatherland and (Christian) faith”?
However, Islam is well-established in Georgia today. This Georgian
variety is also present in the Kvemo Kartli region, where the
population is mainly Shiite Azeri and also in Ajaria where Islam still
exists, despite the imposition of Christianity since independence.
Georgia also has other Muslim regions: a small minority in Abkhazia,
as well as 12,000 Kistins (related to the Chechens) in the Pankisi
valley, practice Georgian Islam, but their lack of numbers has not
allowed them any influence, as was true for the Meskhet Muslims, of
whom only a small minority could return the country after many years
of forced migrations between central Asia and the Russian federation.
The Islamisation of the country
Islam came to what is now known as Georgia at the start of the Arab
Conquest. From the 8th century the country became an Arab Emirate.
However, in 1122 things changed when King David IV seized Tbilisi to
make the capital into a Christian State.
The development of Islam in the country is the work of two regional
Muslim powers, the Safavid Empire of Iran and the Ottomans, which
established themselves somewhat successively, somewhat simultaneously,
on the current territory of Georgia. The Safavid domination caused
the migration of Turkish tribes in the region, leading to an in-depth
Islamisation of certain areas, in particular Kvemo Kartli and it’s
surrounding villages. The implementation of Islam in Ajaria was
carried out differently – it started later and was more superficial.
>>From the 19th century the obliteration of the two Muslim powers,
Safavid and Ottoman, in the face of Christian Russia of the Tsars
weakened Islam throughout Georgia without totally eradicating it.
Imperial Russian Politics in the Caucasus, as in other regions
populated with Muslims, oscillated between tolerance and orthodox
proselytism.
Perestroika and the winds of religious freedom
In the Soviet era, the ideological atheism of the national power
worked to crush all the religions present in the USSR, Islam in
particular. However, from 1944 onwards this anti-religious policy
was relaxed.
One of the four Departments for Spiritual Affairs for the Soviet
Union was founded at Baku. All of the Muslims of Georgia, both Sunni
and Shiite, depend on it. The perestroika allows greater religious
freedom which benefits not only the Church, but also all other
elements of Georgian Islam. Since the break-up of the Soviet Union,
links have developed between Islam at a local level and foreign
Islamic organisations, particularly those of Iran and Turkey.
In the absence of reliable statistics, it is difficult to give
accurate figures regarding the number of Muslims present in Georgia
today. However, a relatively impartial study suggests 640,000 were
present in 1989, equivalent to 12% of the total population. It would
seem that the trend is in decline due to a considerable migratory
phenomenon taking place among certain Muslim populations, above
all amongst the Azeris, candidates for expatriation to Russia for
financial reasons or to Azerbaijan for family reasons.
The Georgian Meskhets, an insignificant influence today
As well as the two main Muslim communities in Georgia – the Ajarians
and the Azeris – there are also other small Muslim ethnic groups. The
Meskhets, a group with hazy ethnic boundaries between ‘Turkism’ and
‘Georgianism’, constituted one of the essential elements of Islam
in Georgia up until World War II. Situated in the south-west of the
country, in the province of Meskhetia (Akhaltshikhe for the Ottomans),
this Turkist minority was subject to a massive deportation by Stalin
in 1944 (approximately 100,000 people) as he feared the possibility
that they would collaborate with the Germans or with the Turks,
their potential allies.
The Meskhets who define themselves as ‘Ahiska Turkleri’ (the Turks
from the province of Ahiska, Akhaltsia) have never stopped demanding
their re-entry to their native land from their places of deportation
(Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan). Since the perestroika, and
especially in the aftermath of ethnic confrontations between Uzbeks
and Meskhets in the town of Ferghana, the Meskhets have demanded
their right to return even more insistently.
The nationalist government of Zvia Ghamsakourdia, like that of Eduard
Shevardnadze, his successor, refused to satisfy these demands for
reasons that are, at the same time, political, nationalist and
geopolitical.
If a handful of families has been granted the right to return to
Georgia, fewer still have been authorised to reside in the historical
region of Meskhetia, whereas the great majority of these Sunni Meskhets
have been settled in Russia and in Azerbaijan. Fearing an excessively
violent reaction by the Georgians inhabiting the Meskhet villages
that were evacuated in 1944, the Georgian government has endeavoured
to block any efforts made by Meskhet associations, who are insisting
militantly on the repatriation of the historic land. It is because
of this that in Georgia the fraction of Meskhet Islam is virtually
insignificant, unlike the relatively dynamic form of Islam of the
Meskhets settled in Azerbaijan and Russia.
Abkhaz Islam hopes for a revival
Another minority Muslim group, the Abkhazians, live scattered
throughout the secessionist region of Abkhazia and in other Georgian
towns. They were in part converted to Islam throughout the 17th and
18th centuries under the Ottoman domination.
Starting in the 1860s with the Ottoman regression and faced with the
Russian progression in the Caucasus, a large part of the Abkhazian
Muslims (like Muslims from other minorities in the Caucasus) emigrated
south to the Ottoman towns.
During the Soviet period, Abkhazian Islam became weaker, but it would
seem that since the fall of the USSR, the establishment of links
between Abkhazians of Georgia and descendants of Abkhazian immigrants
in Turkey has somewhat favoured an Islamic revival.
When the Kistins of Pankisi suffer the disastrous effects of the war
in Chechnya
Another minority is Kistin Islam, an ethnic minority that belongs
to the Vainakh group and is therefore very close to the Chechens and
the Ingushetians.
Established in the Pankisi valley, in the North-East of Georgia,
for quite some time, this community of around 12,000 people has been
significantly shaped by Islamic brotherhoods, particularly that of
Qadiriyya (introduced by the famous Kunta Hadji in the 19th century)
and that of Nakshbandia (introduced into Kistin villages by an Azeri
mystic called Isa Efendi in 1909).
The Islam of the Kistins has been suffering for dozens of years from
the disastrous effects of the war which pits the Chechen freedom
fighters against the might of the Russian army. The worsening of
the Chechen conflict, which has radicalised Chechen Islam and led to
an influx of refugees into Pankisi has placed a lot of pressure on
the Kistins.
It is thought that it is this combination of factors that has led to
a new radicalisation taking root amongst the Kistins. This strain is
often wrongly referred to as ‘wahhabism’ but it is more complex than
many people realise.
Suspecting that certain Chechen freedom fighters have taken refuge
in the Kistin villages of the Pankisi valley, the Russian federal
government regularly threatens the Georgian government with intervening
on its soil to neutralise groups of fighters. Highly isolated in
its valley, Kistin Islam has very little contact with other forms
of Islam, such as those predominant forms that can be found amongst
Ajarians and Azeris in Georgia.
Madrasas in Georgia!
Throughout the whole of the Soviet era, Islam schooling for Muslims
across the Soviet Union was possible in two towns – Bukhara and
Tashkent, which are famous for their madrasas [Islamic schools].
Today, the majority of Islamic executives who are over 40 were
schooled there.
In Georgia, under the USSR, Muslims also went to Central Asia to
benefit from an Islamic schooling. However, in parallel to these
official (and therefore monitored) places, informal establishments
existed. These were smaller and were mainly found in places of
pilgrimage and small, undeclared mosques. In this way, some religious
elders had small circles of students, often no more than 10, who they
schooled in a unofficial fashion.
Following independence, in the countries where there is a grand
tradition of Muslim culture, such as Uzbekistan, Tadjekistan or
Azerbaijan, madrasas and Islamic universities began to spring up.
In Azerbaijan, a faculty of theology aimed at Turkish Sunnis and an
Islamic university with Iranian Shiite leanings were set up after the
country had gained independence. These establishments attract students
from all over the Caucasus, including from Georgia. But this does not
necessarily mean that it is impossible to receive an Islamic education
in Georgia. Although minor and not widespread, there are small madrasas
where it is possible to receive a good quality Islamic education.
Aside from Turkish movements and Iranian bases installed in
Azeri-speaking regions, which offer basic Islamic education, there is
a small faculty of theology in Tbilisi which was founded by a charity
foundation from Iran, linked to the Iman foundation. Similarly,
in the small village of Kosali, which is on the Azeri-Georgian
border 30km from Marneuli, a small Turkish madrasa has been set up
by Nakchibendi Turks, disciples of Osman Nuri Tobpa, who are mainly
active in Azerbaijan. This madrasa with Sunni leanings also welcomes
Shiite children who are not well informed on the Sunni-Shiite division
and who, because of this, become true Sunnis once they have graduated
from this madrasa.
Sunnis and Shiites living side-by-side but without ever integrating
Although all Islam in the country is regulated by the same
administration (the central mosque of Tbilisi which is the
responsibility of Hadji Ali, who has been designated by the Sheikh ul
Islam of Baku, Allahshukur Pachazadeh), two ‘Islams’ and therefore
two Muslim communities co-exist de facto in Georgia – Azeris, which
are mainly Shiite, and Ajarians, which are mainly Sunni. Links
between these two communities are virtually non-existent, with the
exception of a few devotees who occasionally pray together in the
central mosque in Tbilisi, which has been designed to allow two
denominations to practise.
This absence of a unified Islam in Georgia means that the two schools
do not have the same demands to make of the central state.
The demands of Shiite Azeris are more economic than religious,
particularly in light of the deterioration of their situation since
the country’s independence. Religious issues are directed to Baku and
the Department of Spiritual Affairs, which in turn delegates problems
from its Azeri Shiite minority to Tbilisi.
On the other hand, Ajarian Muslims, which are not an ethnic minority
like the Azeris, have a different relationship with the Georgian state.
Muslims, but Georgian, they are in a difficult position as the central
state encourages Ajarian Muslims to convert to Christianity, which
is promoted as the “true” religion of Georgians.
The state’s policies on education and identity are obviously aimed
at diffusing Christianity, but it does not get directly involved,
preferring instead proselytism and conversions to the Church.
In a general sense, the main problem today in Georgia, where the
ideology of the new state is based on the past and the country’s
Christian values, is the marginalisation of major parts of the
population that are not Christian.
–Boundary_(ID_x92ASPQ/ozuYtfdNfT3uRQ)–

The Economist
August 6, 2005
U.S. Edition
When history hurts; Turkish historians
ANKARA
A series of setbacks for open historical research in Turkey
Times are tough for outspoken scholars
IF TURKEY is ever to join the European Union, it will need to
acknowledge-and allow free discussion of-the mass slaughter of the
Ottoman empire’s Armenian subjects both during and after the first
world war. That, at least, is the opinion of some EU members-especially
France, where many Armenians live, and where objections to Turkish
entry run high.
In theory, Turkey’s rendezvous with the Union-entry talks are due
to start in October-should be good news for the Turkish scholars
who have risked prosecution by challenging the official line, which
holds that the mass deportation of Armenians in 1915 did not amount
to a conspiracy to kill them. And earlier this year, there were some
good signs.
After decades of denying that the killings-which Armenians round
the world regard as genocide-ever took place, Turkey in April called
on international scholars to determine once and for all what really
happened, saying they were free to examine the Ottoman archives. This
invitation from Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, won strong
praise from EU governments. But the few intrepid souls who took him
at his word have had nothing but trouble ever since.
In May, a group of Turkish historians (many of whom challenge the
official view that the main cause of death among deported Armenians
was exposure and disease) suffered a sharp setback. They had to cancel
a conference which was due to debate the Armenian tragedy after the
justice minister, Cemil Cicek, accused them of “stabbing Turkey in
the back”.
Another bad sign: Hrant Dink, the publisher of Agos, an Armenian
weekly in Istanbul, is facing up to three years in jail for telling
an audience in 2002 that he was “not Turkish” but “an Armenian of
Turkey”. In a separate case, also filed this year, Mr Dink is facing
up to six years for urging Armenians and Turks to stop hating one
another. In both instances, Mr Dink was said to have “insulted the
Turkish state”.
How do these prosecutions square with Mr Erdogan’s stated wish to take
the sting out of Turkish-Armenian relations by allowing some honest
research? “Easily,” insists Mr Dink. “There are forces in this country
who are working night and day to stop Turkey from joining the EU and
part of that is silencing people like me.”
But these days, the problems of liberal Turkish scholars-and advocates
of Turkish-Armenian reconciliation-are not all caused by their own
country. Take the case of Yektan Turkyilmaz, an internationally
acclaimed Turkish scholar who was arrested in Armenia on June
17th on charges of seeking to smuggle antique books out of the
country. Fluent in Armenian, Mr Turkyilmaz is among the few Turks
who say the Ottoman policy in 1915 did amount to deliberate killing.
The first Turkish academic to be granted access to Armenia’s national
archives, Mr Turkyilmaz is being held in a maximum security prison in
Yerevan. He will face trial next month for violating Article 215 of
the Armenian Criminal Code, which equates the smuggling of antiquities
with trafficking in weapons of mass destruction. He could incur a
jail sentence of up to eight years.
Mr Turkyilmaz insists he had no idea about the law, and that the
dealers who sold him some 100 volumes never said he would need
permission to take them out. In an open letter to Armenia’s president,
Robert Kocharian, some 200 academics, campaigning for the historian’s
freedom, said the arrest would “raise serious doubts as to whether
Armenia encourages independent scholarly research on its history.”
Whatever view you take of the Armenian tragedy, it can get you into
trouble-in unexpected places. Dogu Perincek, an eccentric Turkish
leftist, was briefly detained in Switzerland on July 23rd. The Swiss
authorities say he breached article 261 of their penal code, which
makes the denial or justification of genocide a punishable offence.
Mr Perincek had told a conference that to speak of Armenian genocide
was an “imperialist lie”. Oddly enough, the Turkish authorities
seem far more indignant about his minor travails than they are about
Mr Turkyilmaz.