Duke leader pleads for scholar
By SARAH OVASKA, Staff Writer
Researcher is being held because he tried to take
books out of Armenia
The News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina)
August 5, 2005
Duke University President Richard Brodhead wrote a letter to the
president of Armenia this week, joining other scholars in calling
for the release of a Duke researcher jailed for attempting to take
books out of the country.
Yektan Turkyilmaz, 33, a doctoral student in Duke’s cultural
anthropology department, was jailed June 17 by Armenian authorities
while trying to fly to Turkey, his native country. He had about a
hundred secondhand books with him and has been held in custody since.
In his letter, Brodhead appealed to Armenian President Robert Kocharian
to release Turkyilmaz.
“As the leader of a great country, you have the ability to intervene
in this matter and to determine the appropriateness of the actions of
your government and the Armenian prosecutors and police,” Brodhead
wrote in his Aug. 1 letter. “You also have the ability to release
Mr. Turkyilmaz.”
An open letter from more than 200 scholars from the United States,
Turkey and Armenia asking for Turkyilmaz’s release has also been sent
to Kocharian, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.
A Turk of Kurdish heritage, Turkyilmaz was in Armenia conducting
research at the country’s national archives, the first Turkish citizen
granted permission to do so.
Tensions between Turkey and Armenia stem from the killings of Armenians
between 1915 and 1923, which Armenians consider a genocide of 1.5
million people.
Turkyilmaz is the first person charged in Armenia under a little-known
customs law that requires permission to take books older than 50
years out of the country, Brodhead’s letter states.
If convicted, he faces four to eight years in prison.
Staff writer Sarah Ovaska can be reached at 829-4622 or
[email protected].

Russian troops start pullout from second base in Georgia
Agence France Presse — English
August 5, 2005 Friday
TBILISI Aug 5 — Russian troops began their withdrawal Friday from
a military base in southern Georgia near the border with Armenia,
one of the last two remaining bases left over from the Soviet era
that Russia has agreed to leave by the end of 2008, officials said.
The pullout from the base at Akhalkalaki began at dawn with a column
of nine military trucks carrying 60 soldiers that departed from the
installation and was expected to cross the border into Russia later
in the day, a spokesman for the Georgian defense ministry told AFP.
Russian troops began withdrawing from their other remaining base in
Georgia, outside the Black Sea port of Batumi, on July 30.
Most of the troops and hardware being removed from the bases were
being redeployed to the southern Russian city of Vladikavkaz, which
has a heavy military presence.
Under the terms of an agreement reached by Russia and Georgia on May
30, the last two remaining Russian bases on Georgian territory must
be closed by the end of 2008.
Completion of the withdrawal from the two bases will formally bring
to an end more than 200 years of Russian military presence in Georgia,
a presence that began when Georgian leaders sought Russian protection
from Turkish and Persian invaders in the last decades of the 18th
century.

Law requires genocide education in schools
By Maura Kelly Lannan
Associated Press
Saturday, August 6, 2005
CHICAGO — Illinois public schools are required to teach about
genocides around the world under a bill signed Friday by Gov. Rod
Blagojevich.
The measure, which took effect immediately, expanded the previous
requirement that elementary and high school students learn about
the Holocaust to include lessons on genocides in Armenia, Bosnia,
Cambodia, Rwanda, Sudan and Ukraine.
School districts have the entire academic year to meet the law’s
requirement, State Board of Education spokeswoman Becky Watts said.
“As we teach our kids the important lessons of history, we have
to be sure that they understand that racial, national, ethnic and
religious hatred can lead to horrible tragedies,” Blagojevich said
in a statement.
Glenn “Max” McGee, superintendent of schools in the Chicago suburb
of Wilmette and a former state schools superintendent, said learning
about genocide and other tragedies should be part of the curriculum.
“I think it is important for boys and girls to learn about these
tragic events so that maybe they can make contributions that will
truly change the course of history in the future,” he said.
But McGee worried the requirement could become an unfunded mandate
from the state.
“I hope and trust that the state Board of Education will provide
resources and some training in teaching these and it won’t fall in
the district’s lap to develop units,” McGee said.
The law says the State Board of Education may give instructional
materials to districts to help them develop classes. Local school
districts would set specifics on the classes for each grade level.
The state board’s curriculum and instruction division, which is
responsible for learning standards, was researching what curricula
exists and which ones would be most helpful to schools to teach about
genocides, Watts said.
No decision has been made yet about whether the board will recommend
a curriculum or help schools access parts of one by providing online
resources, she said.
Schools will teach a unit on genocide and the lessons can last for
different lengths of times, she said.
The genocides students will learn about include Rwanda, where about
500,000 people, most of them from the country’s Tutsi minority, were
killed in 100 days by a regime of extremists from its Hutu majority
in 1994. In July 1995, as many as 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys
in the U.N.-protected Bosnian enclave of Srebrenica were killed in
Europe’s worst massacre since World War II.
In the Darfur region of Sudan, war-induced hunger and disease have
killed more than 180,000 people and driven more than 2 million from
their homes since rebels from black African tribes took up arms in
February 2003, complaining of discrimination and oppression by Sudan’s
Arab-dominated government.
Richard Hirschhaut, project and executive director of the Illinois
Holocaust Museum and Education Center, praised the bill.
“The new law affirms the continuing relevance of applying the universal
lessons of the Holocaust to the tragedies of genocide in our world
today,” he said in a statement.
The measure was sponsored by state Rep. John Fritchey, D-Chicago,
and state Sen. Jacqueline Collins, D-Chicago.

Armenia rejects Azerbaijani charge of anti-government plot
Agence France Presse — English
August 5, 2005 Friday
YEREVAN Aug 5 — Armenia rejected Friday accusations from Azerbaijan
that its secret police were involved in an alleged plot to overthrow
the government in Baku.
“It is funny and bears no relation to reality,” Lieutenant-General
Gorik Akopyan, director of Armenia’s national security service,
told AFP.
He said the charge looked like an effort by security officials in
Baku to solve domestic political problems “with long-forgotten methods
used in the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 1930s.”
Azerbaijani prosecutors said Thursday that a youth opposition leader
had been arrested for planning to overthrow the government in a plot
allegedly hatched by a prominent US non-governmental organization,
Armenia’s secret police and local opposition groups.
The arrest of Ruslan Bashirli came after a member of the Yeni Fikir
youth movement that he leads informed authorities that Bashirli
had received 2,000 dollars (1,600 euros) in a secret meeting with
Armenian agents.
The arrest was denouced by opposition leaders as an attempt
by Azerbaijani authorities to smear their groups. It came amid
increasing government pressure on opposition political parties ahead
of parliamentary elections in November.

US democracy group distances self from alleged coup plot in Azerbaijan
Agence France Presse — English
August 5, 2005 Friday 2:43 PM GMT
BAKU Aug 5 — A prominent US non-governmental organization on Friday
vehemently denied allegations that it was linked to an alleged plot
to overthrow the Azerbaijani government.
Azeri prosecutors announced Thursday they had arrested the leader of
a youth group, saying he was plotting to launch a peaceful popular
revolution during parliamentary elections in November at the
instigation of the National Democratic Institute (NDI).
“The allegations that we are funding a revolution just aren’t true,”
NDI’s director for Azerbaijan, Christy Quirk told AFP.
In a statement the NDI said it cooperates with “all political parties”
to promote free and fair voting.
“All other allegations contradicting this position are not realistic,”
it said.
The organization, which has faced criticism from regimes in other
former Soviet republics accusing it of promoting revolutions that
swept Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan recently, did not mention any
specific allegations in its statement.
Prosecutors also alleged that Yeni Fikir youth opposition movement
leader Ruslan Bashirli allegedly accepted funds for a revolt from
operatives of Azerbaijan’s longtime foe Armenia.
Bashirli told the Armenians he represented forces “acting on the
instructions of the National Democratic Institute of the USA,” and
had received “specific instructions from representatives of this
organization to prepare a revolution in Azerbaijan,” according to a
prosecutors’ statement.
Yeni Fikir denies Bashirli is guilty of charges of attempting “to
take power by force,” adding that Bashirli made the comments about
NDI “because he was drunk and bragging,” according to Said Nuriyev,
a Bashirli deputy.
Yeni Fikir leaders claim the allegations are a government smear
campaign, and come amid increasing government pressure on opposition
political parties ahead of parliamentary elections in November.
Azerbijan fought and lost a bitter war with Armenia over the
ethinc-Armenian enclave of Nagorno Karabakh in the early 1990s and
emotions on both sides still run high.
Within Azerbaijan tensions between the opposition and the authorities
have been on the rise in Azerbaijan ahead of the parliamentary vote.
Azerbaijan’s previous national vote, which saw Ilham Aliyev take
the country’s top post from his ailing father Heydar Aliyev in 2003,
ended in two days of rioting and hundreds of arrests.
Arrests of the opposition continued throughout this year, notably
in May, when police arrested and beat dozens of protestors at an
unsanctioned rally in Baku.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azerbaijani youth group slams leader’s arrest as smear campaign
Agence France Presse — English
August 5, 2005 Friday 2:02 PM GMT
BAKU Aug 5 — An Azerbaijani youth movement slammed Friday the arrest
of its leader for allegedly orchestrating an Armenian-sponsored coup
plot as a government smear campaign ahead of elections.
“The authorities are trying to link the youth movement to Armenian
operatives in order to crush it,” said Fikret Farmazogly, the deputy
leader of Yeni Fikir. “This is slander.”
The arrest of Yeni Fikir leader Ruslan Bashirli has captured the
headlines in this oil-rich former Soviet Caucasus state since it was
announced by prosecutors on Thursday.
His group, modeled on movements that helped topple entrenched regimes
in Georgia and Ukraine over the last two years, has participated
in some of the most visible protests since a ban was lifted on
demonstrations this summer.
Prosecutors have accused Bashirli of attempting “to take power by
force,” after national television networks aired footage they said
showed the youth leader accepting money from Armenian secret police
posing as Armenian and Georgian democracy activists.
The video, allegedly shot in the Georgian capital Tbilisi in July,
showed Bashirli drinking with the men and discussing the possibility
of a velvet revolution in Azerbaijan.
“Those men were agents of (Azerbaijan’s) ministry of national security,
he did not know who they were,” Farmazogly said.
Azerbaijan and Armenia have held a fragile ceasefire since the two
republics fought a bloody war for the contested Nagorno Karabakh
enclave in the early 1990s.
They have yet to sign a peace agreement and the status of the mostly
Armenian enclave has yet to be determined.
Bashirli’s lawyer Elchin Gambarov said the authorities would not
allow him to meet his client.
“We don’t know where he’s being held, or if he is being physically
and mentally coerced into providing the evidence that the authorities
want,” Gambarov said.
Bashirli’s arrest comes amid increasing government pressure on
opposition political parties ahead of parliamentary elections in
November.

Associated Press Worldstream – German
Freitag, 5. August 2005
Nach Calmy-Rey auch Deiss von Türkei ausgeladen;
Offiziell aus Termingründen – Spannungen zwischen der Schweiz und der
Türkei wegen Armenier-Frage wieder aufgeflammt
Bern
Die für September geplante Türkei-Reise von Bundesrat Joseph Deiss
ist von türkischer Seite offiziell »aus Termingründen« wieder
abgesagt worden. Der wahre Grund für die bereits länger anhaltende
Verstimmung zwischen der Schweiz und der Türkei dürfte allerdings in
der Armenier-Frage liegen. Das EVD bedauert dies.
Am 2. August teilte das türkische Aussenministerium dem
schweizerischen Botschafter in Ankara mit, dass die für September
geplante Türkei-Reise von Wirtschaftsminister Deiss nicht stattfinden
könne, wie Deiss-Sprecher Christophe Hans am Freitag Berichte von
»Tages-Anzeiger und »Le Temps« bestätigte. Begründet wurde die Absage
mit Terminproblemen von Deiss’ türkischem Amtskollegen Kürsad Tüzmen.
Sollte der wahre Grund aber – wie allseits vermutet – mit der
Einvernahme des türkischen Staatsangehörigen Dogu Perincek durch die
Winterthurer Justiz zusammenhängen, würde dies das Eidgenössische
Volkswirtschaftsdepartement (EVD) bedauern, sagte Hans und verwies
auf die Gewaltentrennung in der Schweiz. Das EVD hofft nun, dass die
Türkei-Reise von Deiss zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt nachgeholt werden
kann.
Bereits vor zwei Jahren war Aussenministerin Micheline Calmy-Rey von
der Türkei ausgeladen worden. Erst anderthalb Jahre später konnte sie
die Reise nachholen. Schon damals gaben unterschiedliche
Einschätzungen zum türkischen Massaker an den Armeniern von 1915 den
Ausschlag für die Absage. Die Türkei stiess sich daran, dass der
Waadtländer Grosse Rat kurz zuvor eine Resolution verabschiedet
hatte, in der ausdrücklich von Völkermord die Rede war.
Gegen Perincek, den Vorsitzenden der türkischen Arbeiterpartei, läuft
bei der Winterthurer Staatsanwaltschaft ein Verfahren wegen
Verletzung der Rassismusstrafnorm, weil Perincek Ende Juli an einer
Veranstaltung in Opfikon-Glattbrugg den Genozid an den Armeniern als
»Lüge von Imperialisten« bezeichnet hatte. Die Staatsanwaltschaft
Winterthur führt zudem bereits ein anderes Verfahren im Zusammenhang
mit der Verleugnung des Genozids an den Armeniern. Es richtet sich
gegen den Professor und Präsidenten der Türkischen Historischen
Gesellschaft, Yusuf Halacoglu. Dem Historiker wird vorgeworfen, am 2.
Mai 2004 in einem Vortrag in Winterthur den Völkermord an den
Armeniern geleugnet zu haben.
Der türkische Botschafter in der Schweiz, Alev Kilic, bezeichnete die
laufenden Verfahren gegen Perincek und den Historiker Halacoglu
kürzlich als gravierendes Signal und schloss diplomatische
Konsequenzen nicht aus. Er könne nicht garantieren, dass die geplante
Reise von Bundesrat Deiss nicht noch verschoben oder gar abgesagt
werde, sagte er damals.
Jutzet: Mangelnde Reife der Türkei
Die Präsidenten der aussenpolitischen Kommissionen (APK) von
National- und Ständerat sind empört über die Ausladung. Der Türkei
mangle es offensichtlich an der Reife, um in die europäische
Staatengemeinschaft aufgenommen zu werden, sagte der Freiburger
SP-Nationalrat und Präsident der APK des Nationalrates, Erwin Jutzet,
auf Anfrage. Der Türkei würde kein Stein aus der Krone fallen, wenn
sie ihre Geschichte endlich aufarbeiten würde; dies müsse auch der
Bundesrat der Türkei deutlich machen, sagte Jutzet. Die APK des
Nationalrates wird die Angelegenheit voraussichtlich an ihrer
nächsten Sitzung vom 29./30. August traktandieren.
Andreas Dreisiebner, Leiter der Gesellschaft Schweiz-Armenien,
kritisierte im »Tages-Anzeiger«, dass der Bundesrat die Türkei-Reise
nicht selber abgesagt habe und ein »duckmäuserisches Verhalten« an
den Tag lege. Kurzfristige wirtschaftliche Interessen würden im Fall
der Türkei wieder einmal höher gewertet als politische Aspekte.
–Boundary_(ID_A1K6ybQMkkude/CCbq6rMg)–

US GOVERNMENT PINS HOPES ON PEACEFUL REGULATION OF CONFLICT
ArmenPress
Aug 5 2005
BAKU, AUGUST 5, ARMENPRESS: The OSCE Minsk Group US co-chairman
Steven Mann commented on the Azerbaijani Foreign Affairs Minister
Elmar Mamedyarov’s meetings in Washington saying the main theme of the
discussions was the negotiations over the Karabagh conflict regulation.
“My government pins hopes on the present pace of the negotiations
over peaceful regulation of the conflict. We really think the peaceful
regulation is possible basing on the serious dialogue which continues
between the conflicting sides for more than a year. The Armenian and
Azerbaijani leaders have made decision to regulate the conflict in
peaceful way, besides some progress is registered in the negotiation
process but for reaching a peaceful agreement it is necessary to
activate the process,” Steven Mann told AzerTaj news agency.

WATER DAM PUT INTO USAGE IN ZEITUN
ArmenPress
Aug 5 2005
YEREVAN, AUGUST 5, ARMENPRESS: Within the frameworks of a joint
“Community Development Credit Program” implemented by the Armenian
government and the World Bank a water dam was constructed in Yerevan
Nerkin Zeitun borough and put today into usage.
Head of the “Yerevan Water and Sewage” company Andranik Andreasian
expressed hope that the water dam constructed within the frameworks of
the first credit program with the World Bank will serve as a guarantor
for providing stabile water supply in this borough.
Director of the Kanaker-Zeitun branch Atom Simonian said the water
dam will give an opportunity to secure 24-hour water supply for 70
percent of the consumers. For the construction of the dam 277 million
drams were invested.

ARMENIAN SIDE FIRES AT AZERBAIJANI POSITIONS IN TARTAR REGION
Azerbaijan News Service
Aug 5 2005
2005-08-05 12:06
Armed forces of Armenia in occupied Chayli village of Tartar region
fired from machine and sub-machine guns at 8.30 AM at Azerbaijani
positions in opposite direction ANS Qarabaq bureau informs.
Azerbaijani army put down the opposite side with an answering fire.
There is no report of human loss.