WCC calls for recognition of Armenian Genocide

21.02.2005 17:19

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Meeting in Geneva, the Central Committee of the
World Council of Churches called for the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide.

The Public Issues committee of the WCC central committee recommended
to the organization’s general secretary “to propose to all member
churches to make Sunday April 24 a day of memory of the Armenian
Genocide and to consider further appropriate actions”. That day is the
90th anniversary of the tragic massacre of one-and-a-half-million
Armenians in Turkey and the deportation of another million from their
homeland.

“From the Christian perspective, the path towards justice and
reconciliation requires the recognition of the crime committed as a
sine qua non condition for the healing of memories and the possibility
of forgiveness”, stated the Public Issues committee.

ARAM I speaks of Armenian Genocide at WCC

21.02.2005 11:43

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – In his report to the Central Committee of the World
Council of Churches (WCC), which meets once a year, His Holiness Aram
I referring to the Armenian Genocide, said: “This year my church and
people will commemorate the 90th Anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide. During the First World War in 1915, one-and-a-half million
Armenians were massacred by the Ottoman-Turkish government according
to a well-devised and systematically executed plan.

Although my generation did not directly experience the tragic past,
the Armenian Genocide has had a strong impact on our spiritual and
intellectual formation. The past haunts the victims; we cannot free
ourselves from the past unless that past is duly recognized”.

This reference was made in the context of His Holiness’ analysis of
the question of forgiveness and reconciliation. He said: “The
acceptance of truth is the sine qua non condition for forgiveness. The
past must be confronted boldly and be challenged responsibly.

Neglecting the past with its wounds will not help to build a new
future. When the memories are not healed, they hold us hostage to the
past; when they are healed, through confession and forgiveness, they
empower us to rebuild relationships, promote mutual trust and
acceptance, and engage in a processof transformation. Unhealed
memories cause violence, hate and fragmentation.

Forgiveness, as a response to confession, is a determining factor in
the healing and reconciliation process. Through forgiveness, we accept
each other in truth and justice. Forgiveness is costly; only
confession must lead to forgiveness, which is a pre-condition for real
healing and reconciliation”.

ARTASHES GEGHAMIAN SET TO BREAK BOYCOTT OF PARLIAMENT WORK

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS: One of the two major Armenian
opposition parties indicated last Saturday it is set to backpedal on
its promises to continue the boycott of the parliament. The deputy
chairman of the NationalUnity of Artashes Geghamian told a meeting of
its activists the party will show up in the parliament when it starts
debates on a number of “vital” issues.

Geghamian for his part denounced the other major opposition
force,the Ardarutyun alliance, led by Stepan Demirchian, for being
jealous of its attempts to rally the people. Geghamian’s deputy argued
also there is no a force in Armenia that could assume the governance
of the country and went as far as to accuse other opposition forces of
“executing the orders of the authorities.”

CENN – FEBRUARY 21, 2005 Daily Digest Table of Contents:

1. Announcement — The Caspian Development Advisory Panel

2. BTC Hoped to Alleviate Dependence on Arabia, Russia

3. Georgia: Black Gold, Hard Times?

4. Japan’s Shimizu To Launch Warming Gas Emission Rights Business
in Armenia

5. annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment

6. Annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment

7. SoS, Help, We are Being Assassinated

8. EIA Reports

1. Announcement — The Caspian Development Advisory Panel

The Caspian Development Advisory Panel (CDAP) invites you to attend a
dial-in briefing on Wednesday, March 23 concerning its 2004 Report to BP
on the BTC pipeline and related BP-led investments in the Caspian
region. The Panel’s 2004 Report and BP’s Response were both released
earlier this week and are available on CDAP’s website, together with
copies of earlier CDAP reports and communications ().
The dial-in briefing will begin at 9:30 a.m. (Washington/Eastern
Standard Time); 14:30 (London); 17:30 (Tbilisi); 18:30 (Baku) on March
23.

As you may be aware, BP established CDAP at the beginning of 2003 as an
independent external panel focusing on the social, environmental and
economic impacts of the BTC pipeline project as well as BP’s related
activities in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The Panel visited all
three BTC countries in late October 2004, and its latest report to Lord
Browne, chief executive officer of BP, summarizes its findings and
recommendations. The Panel has benefited greatly from its extensive
interactions with interested NGOs and representatives of the SRI
community, and the Panel looks forward to a substantive discussion on
March 23.

If you are interested in participating in the March 23
briefing/discussion, please respond to this email and dial-in
instructions will be circulated. Interested parties are also invited to
attend the briefing in person at the Washington, D.C. offices of the
CDAP Secretariat, 1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW (11th Floor). Please also
RSVP if you plan to attend in person.

Please feel free to pass on this invitation to other groups or parties
with an interest in BP’s Caspian investments.

Thank you.

Caspian Development Advisory Panel Secretariat

c/o Covington & Burling

1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20004

[email protected]

2. BTC Hoped to Alleviate Dependence on Arabia, Russia

Source: The Messenger, February 18, 2005

One of the greatest hopes had been the former Soviet Union that now
produces more oil than Saudi Arabia, and especially it’s Caspian Basin,
whose fields are located in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. The
pipeline through Turkey starts in Baku and carries oil from Azeri
fields.

When the pipeline was being developed in 2001, “there was a lot of
excitement that non Middle Eastern oil, especially from the Soviet
Union, would be an alternative source of oil,” said Bulent Aliriza, an
analysts with the Washington based Center for Strategic and
International Studies. “The hype at the time was that the oil of the
Caspian would rival that of the Middle East.”

Oil Companies looked for a way of bringing the oil to Western markets
and US officials insisted that for political reasons a pipeline should
be built through Turkey, by passing the Middle East and Russia.

But many Caspian estimates proved to be unrealistic, at least in the
short term. Experts now say the Caspian should in coming years pump some
four million to five million barrels per day, on par with Iran.

3. GEORGIA: BLACK GOLD, HARD TIMES?

Source: Eurasianet, February 18, 2005

The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline could prove a vital source of revenue
for cash-strapped Georgia, pumping an estimated $50 million per year
into government coffers. Yet as construction on Georgia’s portion of the
1,760-kilometer-long pipeline winds down, residents affected by
construction are wondering whether the benefits of the project will
outweigh the costs to them.

“Look, we’re not against this pipeline. The only thing we would like to
know is the status of our compensation money,” said Zura, one of about a
dozen protestors taking part in a November 2004 picket at one of the
pipeline’s construction sites near the village of Agtakla in
southwestern Georgia.

With a completion date slotted for the second half of 2005, the litany
of complaints shows no sign of decreasing. Orchards have been damaged
and grazing meadows for cattle and sheep blocked by construction work,
Zura said. “The sums we were allotted by the local government and
British Petroleum [a leading member of the pipeline consortium] are a
joke, really,” he said. Compensation for landowners ranges from $1,500
to $5,000 – a hefty sum in a country where annual per capita income
hovers around $2,300. At the same time, many compensation recipients
remain frustrated.

Much of that frustration comes down to misguided expectations, said
Manana Kochladze, who leads the Tbilisi-based non-governmental
organization Green Alternative Georgia. With some 60 percent of the
population grappling with poverty, jobs in Georgia, whether for casual
laborers or university graduates, can be hard to come by. When local
authorities initially announced plans for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC)
pipeline, Kochladze said, “they made a big deal about employment, and
soon you had these rumors about up to 100,000 jobs that were going to be
created. Britsh Petroleum is not fully to blame for that.”

The rumors are in keeping with the project’s economic weight. Only 245
of the pipeline’s total 1,760 kilometers will pass through Georgia, but
related construction still accounted for most of the country’s 8.4
percent economic growth rate in 2004, according to the Georgian Economic
Trends, a quarterly report issued by the Tbilisi-based Georgian-European
Policy and Legal Advice Centre. Once the pipeline is complete, the
Georgian government will receive an estimated $50 million per year in
transit fees, about one percent of its gross national income for 2003.

Recently, the project, long dogged by controversy over its environmental
impact, cost and technical shortcomings, has made efforts to show that
it is giving more than transit fees back to Georgia’s economy. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. In late 2004, the BTC
consortium signed two protocols with the Georgian government that
envisage grant programs totaling more than $46 million to fund social
and economic projects in the pipeline area. British Petroleum has also
announced that it will invest $10 million in Georgia in a range of
projects, including education, healthcare, cultural heritage, energy
sector revitalization and the promotion of business and civil society
links between Georgia and the European Union. On February 1, the
Georgian government received the first $9 million of the BTC grant.

But in the Akhaltsikhe-Vale sector, the last Georgian portion of the
pipeline before it crosses into Turkey, little benefit is expected from
the BTC project once construction ends. In this impoverished, relatively
remote border area the pipeline has become a magnet for job seekers, who
otherwise depend on small-scale agriculture, animal husbandry,
remittances from migrant workers and limited border trade for their
cash. “Well, of course I’m glad to have this job. There’s not an
overload of alternatives around here,” said 23-year-old construction
worker Sergei, one of an estimated 250 locally hired temporary employees
on the project. “Our part of the job will soon be done, however. I have
no idea yet what will come for us after that.”

An employee of one international organization who asked not to be named
agreed that the pipeline “has not brought much sustainable employment”
to the region. The income derived from renting apartments and houses to
non-Georgian pipeline construction staff evaporated when the project
decided to relocate their staff to a trailer camp on the edge of town,
commented one Akhaltsikhe-based businessman who gave his name as Samuel.
At the same time, he said, the fact that fewer jobs were created than
expected – locals cite an initial figure of 1,000 – have caused many
residents to feel shortchanged.

The presence of about 300 foreign workers, mainly of South Asian origin,
in the Akhalkitskhe-Vale sector provide further cause for
dissatisfaction. Residents claim that the imported laborers performs
tasks that Georgians could do just as well. The BTC project’s Public
Affairs Office in Tbilisi did not respond to requests for comment about
hiring practices in Georgia, but, according to British Petroleum, a
total of 5,308 people worked on the pipeline in Georgia as of mid-2004.
About one-third of these workers were locally recruited, mainly as
manual workers, welders, machine operators, drivers, night watchmen and
cleaners. Once construction is completed, maintenance and operation of
the pipeline and related installations will require only 200 local
staff.

Potentially positive changes, however, have resulted from the project,
the international organization employee added. When the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ezurum natural gas pipeline comes online in 2006, local
residents hope to benefit from cheap natural gas for heating – an
environmentally friendly alternative to the firewood currently used.
British Petroleum has also repaired bridges and roads, and the amounts
landowners have received as compensation for property loss could be put
to good use as investment in local agriculture, observers say.

Samuel, the businessman, agreed. “[A] couple of hundred people hired is
not that bad, really. If they manage to save some money and invest it
well that will be good for the area. However, there’s no guarantee that
that is going to happen on a large scale. ”

“I’m indeed worried about what’s going to happen once we’re gone,” said
one foreign, Akhaltsikhe-based British Petroleum engineer who asked to
remain anonymous. “Once the pipeline is ready and operational, the
number of sustainable jobs will remain even more limited than they are
now. I can imagine that it will lead to more frustration.”

Editor’s Note: Bruno De Cordier is a research assistant at the
University of Ghent’s Conflict Research Group in Ghent, Belgium.

4. JAPAN’S SHIMIZU TO LAUNCH WARMING GAS EMISSION RIGHTS
BUSINESS IN ARMENIA

Source: Asia Pulse, February 16, 2005 Shimizu Corp. (TSE:1803) intends
to team up with Mitsui & Co. (TSE:8031) and Hokkaido Electric Power Co.
(TSE:9509) to start greenhouse gas emission rights business in Armenia.
The major construction company is hoping the joint operation will be
approved as a clean-development-mechanism (CDM) business, which allows
companies to gain emission rights in exchange for cooperating in efforts
to reduce emissions in developing countries. CDM is featured in the
Kyoto Protocol, which takes effect Wednesday. If the project is approved
as a CDM business, it will be the first such operation in Armenia. The
company expects to gain approval by the middle of this year. Under the
plan, Shimizu will build a power generation plant to produce electricity
from methane gas piped in from a waste material disposal site. The firm
intends to spend about 800 million yen on the project. Shimizu expects
the facility to eliminate about 135,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year,
which will enable the company to acquire emission rights.

5. PRESENTATION OF TAVUSH AND GEGHARKUNIK MARZES DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS
TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN ON FEBRUARY 21

Source: ARKA, February 18, 2005 Presentation of Tavush and Gegharkunik
Marzes development programs will be held in Yerevan on February 21.
According to the Public Relations and Press Department of RA Government,
the main objective of the programs is the assistance to administrations
of the regions and implementation of RA Government strategic poverty
reduction program. This event will be a final opportunity to discuss the
Regional Development Plans before they are submitted to the Cabinet for
approval. This should take place next month. The meeting will mark the
completion of the first phase of the Armenia Regional Development
Programme, funded by the Department for International Development (DFID)
and implemented by the British consultants Oxford Policy Management.
Hovik Abrahamyan, the Minister for Territorial Administration, and
Thorda Abbott-Watt, the British Ambassador, as well as RA NA Deputies,
representatives of RA President’s staff and central and regional
government agencies, the donor community, embassies, NGOs, contractors
and other potential development partners will take part. DFID provided
the funding to draw up the Regional Development Plans and has also set
aside ?2 million for their implementation in Tavush and Gegharkunik
regions of Armenia (?1 million for each). The main goal of the program
is to render assistance to the administrations of the regions,
development and implementation of the strategic program of the RA
government on poverty reduction. The program will last for 54 months, 18
of which will be spent on the development of the program. DFID has been
operating in Armenia since 1996. The main goal of DFID is to contribute
to the government of the republic in the issue of poverty reduction.

6. annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment

The US based Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ) is now accepting
submissions for its annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment. The
awards recognize the best environmental journalism in newspapers,
magazines, newsletters, television, radio and online. SEJ accepts
entries from anywhere in the world, as long as they include a complete
and accurate English translation.

The entry deadline is April 1. Each entry should be a story
predominantly on an environmental subject. The story must have been
published or broadcast between March 1, 2004, and February 28, 2005.

SEJ will hand out US$1,000 awards in nine categories. The organizers
emphasize that interested participants should choose the submission
category carefully, as only one may be selected per entry.

Entry form and details:

7. SoS, Help, We are Being Assassinated

Dear CENN Readers,

Norway has a new form to tourism; this is assassinate babies seals to
blow. Canada kills them too.

Is this a sport?

Please see the attached file.

8. EIA Reports

Source: “Sakartvelos Respublica” (“Republic of Georgia”), February 19,
2005

In accordance with the Georgian legislation, “Martoili” Ltd. submitted
EIA report to the Ministry of Environment of Georgia to obtain an
environmental permit for the activity of first category -Oil and Oil
Products Processing Mini Factory in Gardabani Region, Village Martkopi.

In accordance with the Georgian legislation, “Kapira” Ltd. submitted EIA
report to the Ministry of Environment of Georgia to obtain an
environmental permit for the activity of second category -Development
and Management of the Hunting Farm “Kapiar” in Ambrolauri Region.

In accordance with the Georgian legislation, “Mamuli MPT” Ltd. submitted
EIA report to the Ministry of Environment of Georgia to obtain an
environmental permit for the activity of first category -Oil Processing
Mini Enterprise of Periodical Activity in Senaki.

EIA reports are available at the Service of Environmental Permits and
Licensing of the Ministry of Environment of Georgia (15 A, Tamarashvili
Str., Tel: 39 91 81). Interested stakeholders can analyze the document
and present their comments and considerations until April 5, 2005.

Public hearing will be held on April 5, 2005 at 12:00, at the conference
hall of the Ministry of Environment. 68 A, Kostava str., VI Floor.

*******************************************
CENN INFO
Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN)

Tel: ++995 32 75 19 03/04
Fax: ++995 32 75 19 05
E-mail: [email protected]
URL:

Karabakh army guarantor of regional stability – NKR Defence ministry

Mediamax news agency
21 Feb 05

YEREVAN

“The Nagornyy Karabakh Republic [NKR] defence army is an important
guarantor of regional stability and carries out the role of a
deterrent while international peacekeeping forces are absent from the
conflict zone,” a statement of the NKR Defence Ministry to mark the
anniversary of Armenian Senior Lt Gurgen Markaryan’s murder
reads. Markaryan was hacked to death in his sleep by Azerbaijani
officer Ramil Safarov [at NATO English course in Budapest in 2004].

“Azerbaijan did not condemn this monstrous crime. On the contrary, the
murderer became a national hero and the Azerbaijani authorities did
not even think to apologize for this crime. The NKR Defence Ministry
regards the committed brutality and similar position of the
Azerbaijani authorities as a result of Azerbaijan’s consistent
anti-Armenian and militarist propaganda. A policy of this kind creates
an atmosphere of intolerance which undermines the peaceful settlement
of the Karabakh conflict and endangers regional peace and security,”
the statement said.

The document noted that “Azerbaijan’s this behaviour and its desire to
turn the murderer into a hero once again testifies to the fact that
Nagornyy Karabakh’s independence is not only an issue of people’s
self-determination but the NKR people’s existence as well”.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V. Rev. Fr. Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Armenian version:

WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
CALLS FOR THE RECOGNITION OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Meeting in Geneva, the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches
called for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. The statement says:

“Sunday April 24, 2005 will be the 90 years Commemoration of the Armenian
Genocide, the tragic massacre of one-and-a-half million Armenians in Turkey
and the deportation of another million from their homeland.

The world Council of Churches has on different occasions addressed the need
for public recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the necessity of Turkey
to deal with this dark part of its history. The importance of Turkey
evaluating its history has recently also been addressed by the Conference of
European Churches relating to Turkey’s relation to the European Union.

>From the Christian perspective, the path towards justice and reconciliation
requires the recognition of the crime committed as a sine qua non condition
for the healing of memories and the possibility of forgiveness. Forgiveness
does not mean forgetting but to look back with the intention to restore
justice, the respect for Human Rights and relationships between perpetrators
and victims.

The Public Committee recommends to the General Secretary and the staff, to
propose to all member churches to make Sunday April 24 a day of memorial of
the Armenian Genocide and to consider further appropriate actions related to
the 90 years Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide.

In a different statement on the International Criminal Court, the Central
Committee said:

“Human History is filled with examples of horrendous cruelties, aggressions
and inhumanities. In just 20th Century there are four recognized genocides –
90 years ago the Armenian genocide, 60 years ago the Holocaust, nearly 30
years ago the Khmer Rouge and the most recent genocide in Rwanda, a little
more than 10 years ago. There were very different ways of addressing these
horrific crimes: there was no consequence for the Armenian genocide, the
victors justice in the Nuremberg trail for the Nazi war criminals, a failed
local response with UN support to the Khmer Rouge and the ad-hoc
International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda”.

It also called to “address issues such as impunity and accountability” to
prevent future crimes against humanity.

164 voting members are participating in this meeting of the Central
Committee together with more than 100 advisors, consultants and
representatives from Vatican and International Organisations. His Holiness
Aram I Catholicos of Cilicia is the Moderator of the Central Committee since
1991.

##

The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician Catholicosate, the
administrative center of the church is located in Antelias, Lebanon.

Russian-Azeri transport cooperation against Armenian “interests” – agency

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan
21 Feb 05

Armenia’s attempts to achieve changes in Russia’s regional transport
policy have failed, the Armenian news agency Mediamax has suggested.
In its weekly analytical review, the news agency cast doubt on Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s promises during his recent visit to
Yerevan “to take into account Armenia’s interests” as Moscow will
unlikely quit the “promising” railway project linking Russia to Iran
via Azerbaijan. Indifference to Armenian transport “interests” in the
region does not mean that Russia will give up an idea of purchasing
Armenian energy facilities “to form a chain”, Mediamax added. The
following is an excerpt from report in English by Armenian news agency
Mediamax; subheadings have been inserted editorially:

The visit of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Yerevan last
week left double impression. If we speak about the political component
of the visit, the participants of the talks did not say anything new
having described the Armenian-Russian relations as “partnership and
alliance”.

As to the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict, in this case
Sergey Lavrov also did not go beyond stating official Moscow’s
position: “The solution of the problem should be found by Armenia and
Azerbaijan, Russia is ready to become a guarantor for the fulfillment
of the agreements.” The Russian and Armenian foreign ministers also
spoke about “practically full coincidence of positions” on the issues
of reforming the UN and the OSCE.

This could form an impression that the visit of the Russian foreign
minister to Armenia went off rather smoothly, especially in the light
of the scandal which burst out in Tbilisi in connection with Lavrov’s
refusal to visit in Tbilisi the memorial of the victims who died for
the restoration of Georgia’s territorial integrity during the
conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Lavrov’s diplomatic gestures

By the way, in this concern a question arose among several Armenia
media as to what prevented Lavrov from showing such “delicacy” and
refusing to visit the “Martyrs Avenue” in Azerbaijan where the people,
who have taken part in the anti-Armenian pogroms in Baku in 1990 and
killed as a result of the belated interference of the Soviet troops
into the conflict, were buried? When Lavrov was directly asked about
his attitude to those events in Baku, he behaved as a true diplomat
and not only avoided the answer but also used it to once more
indirectly mention about a complication in Russia’s relations with the
Baltic countries on the eve of celebrating the 60th anniversary of the
victory over Fascism.

This is Lavrov’s answer: “This question has long ago been answered
partly by the historians, though historical research and discussions
still continue. The emotions should not overshadow the necessity to
live together, to solve urgent problems. Any attempt to heat up
emotions around the historical facts, which has long ago been defined
in the relations between the states, only take us away from this. It
is not by accident that today talks are proceeding on the necessity
for the states to once more review their history, including the
history of the World War II. I regard such attempts to rewrite the
history as a desire not to allow the normal mutually beneficial
development of cooperation, partnership, which would be open for all
the European states. I prefer concentrating on topical problems. There
are a lot of them, I repeat. Life is actively going on: globalization,
mutual dependence. We have concrete affairs. Let’s leave all this to
the historians.”

However, today the point is not why the Russian leaders consider it
possible to honour the memory of the participants of anti-Armenian
pogroms and fear to visit the memorial of the Georgian victims in
Tbilisi. We would like to attach special attention to the report on
Sergey Lavrov’s meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Andranik
Markaryan, during which the latter did not hesitate to be a fly in the
ointment.

Lavrov pledges to take Armenian transport interests into account

The Armenian prime minister openly stated Yerevan’s concern about the
planned construction of the Qazvin-Rasht [Iran]-Astara [Azerbaijan]
railway bypassing Armenia within the framework of the North-South
international transport corridor.

[Passage omitted: background details]

In reply, Sergey Lavrov said that during the implementation of
regional transport projects Russia would take into account Armenia’s
interests and would not take steps that could harm them. He also
promised to inform Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin and the
head of the Russian Railways company, Gennadiy Fadeyev, about the
Armenian prime minister’s concern. Most likely, this can be understood
as follows: Russia takes Armenia’s concern with understanding but it
will not refuse taking part in the promising project.

[Passage omitted: reported details]

During his recent visit to Tehran, Armenian National Security Council
Secretary [and Defence Minister] Serzh Sarkisyan discussed the
prospects for the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway. Last
December, having met the Iranian ambassador in Yerevan, Serzh
Sarkisyan described the idea of the construction of the railway as
“brilliant” and noted that if the implementation of the project became
possible, it would have major importance for Armenia. To all
appearances, Russia does not share the optimism of the Armenian
side…[ellipsis as published]

Armenia unsuccessful to change situation in its favour

The fact that the Armenian side decided to make the media aware of its
discontent with Russia’s regional transport policy may testify to the
fact that the attempts to achieve changes in the situation by
diplomatic methods were not successful, and this, of course, cannot
make Yerevan happy.

Nevertheless, without showing desire to ease Armenia’s transport
problems, Russia does not hide its appetite for Armenian energy. Last
week, the Russian RAO UES company [Unified Energy System of Russia]
confirmed that it was holding talks with the Midland Group offshore
company on the purchase of the Armenian power grid.

[Passage omitted: background details]

We should assume that the head of the Russian RAO UES company,
Anatoliy Chubays, who put forward a scandalous idea of building a
“liberal empire” in 2003, wants to begin its implementation precisely
in Armenia. The interest towards the power grids, besides political
implication, has evident economic implication as well. Chubays has
repeatedly stated that Armenia was a leader among CIS countries for
the level of collection of payments for the consumed electricity.
Taking into account the fact that Armenia’s main power facilities are
already controlled by the RAO UES company, the possible purchase of
the power grids will allow to “form a chain” providing maximum
business efficiency.

The Midland Group company cannot sell the shares it possesses without
the Armenian government’s consent. If the RAO UES Company is really
interested in the purchase, it is very unlikely that Yerevan will
refuse. If this happens amid Russia’s indifference to Armenia’s
interests in the region, future protests by Armenia will be at least
strange as official Yerevan’s decision will formally be considered
voluntary.

The Jamestown Foundation
Eurasia Daily Monitor

ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT PRESSED TO REIN-IN LAWLESS OLIGARCHS
By Emil Danielyan

Friday, February 18, 2005

The Armenian authorities have been under domestic pressure in recent
weeks to end what many see as the virtual impunity enjoyed by the
country’s tiny class of millionaire businessmen with close government
ties. The Armenian version of post-Soviet “oligarchs” are widely hated
— and feared — for their utter disregard of laws and conspicuous
wealth that contrasts with the country’s widespread poverty.

The ruling regime has heavily relied on the oligarchs to manipulate
elections and bully its political opponents, making it doubtful that
any serious action will be taken to rein them in.

Still, the authorities had to do something after a late-night gunfight
in a Yerevan suburb on February 4 between two criminal groups left at
least one person dead and several others seriously wounded. It was the
most massive shootout reported in the Armenian capital in a decade,
involving, according to newspaper reports, hundreds of gunmen. Some of
them were said to be personal bodyguards of several of the oligarchs
who hold seats in parliament.

The incident reportedly stemmed from a dispute over control of a local
minibus service, a highly lucrative business activity that is the
exclusive domain of senior government officials, their cronies, and
loyal businessmen. It seems to have raised President Robert
Kocharian’s eyebrows, with police making dozens of arrests and
confiscating large quantities of weapons. Yet the key question of
whose business interests were behind the mafia-style clash remains
unanswered.

Local newspapers were quick to draw grim conclusions. “Much of the
political power in Armenia is concentrated in the hands of criminal
business . . . and illegal armed groups belonging to it,” the
pro-opposition daily Aravot wrote on February 9. Golos Armenii, a
paper that staunchly backed Kocharian during the last presidential
election two years ago, was even more outspoken: “The
semi-presidential form of governance in Armenia is coming to an end
and will be replaced by absolute oligarchy, the rule of a few
individuals . . . The executive and legislative branches are, in
essence, already intertwined with the oligarchs and controlled by the
latter.”

Armenian tycoons are typically individuals with a high school-level
education who made fast money during the turbulent 1990s and now have
extensive business interests dependent on government support. For
example, one of them, Samvel Aleksanian, enjoys a de facto monopoly on
imports of sugar and flour to Armenia, while Russian citizen Mikhail
Baghdasarov has the exclusive grip on fuel supplies. Both men are
believed to operate under the “tutelage” of Defense Minister Serge
Sarkisian, Kocharian’s most trusted lieutenant.

The oligarchs like to flaunt their wealth, living in ridiculously big
villas and roaming the streets in motorcades made up of several SUVs
with almost identical license plates. Many Armenians would agree that
traffic lights are essentially non-existent for them.

In fact, just one week before the infamous shootout, one such
behemoth, the hugely expensive civilian version of the U.S. army’s
Humvee vehicles, crashed into three other cars on a busy street
intersection near downtown Yerevan at a high speed, killing two
people, and injuring several others. The police have reported no
arrests so far and are reluctant to name the Hummer’s real owner.
There are only 11 such cars in Armenia.

What makes the oligarchs particularly important for the regime is the
fact that they usually hold sway in a particular area of the country
through their businesses and local quasi-criminal elements. They are
able to bribe and intimidate local voters and resort to other election
falsification techniques. Ballot box stuffing was commonplace during
the 2003 presidential election, which Western observers described as
undemocratic. But the criticism did not prevent many tycoons from
themselves getting “elected” during the equally disputed parliamentary
polls held a few months later.

Another common feature of the Armenian super-rich is the burly and
mostly unarmed “bodyguards” that accompany them at every turn. The
men’s most visible characteristic, a shaven head or a short haircut,
has brought a new political meaning to the word “skinhead” in Armenia.

The authorities needed their services last spring when the Armenian
opposition tried unsuccessfully to force Kocharian to resign with a
campaign of street protests. Scores of riot police stood by and
watched as two dozen well-built thugs smashed photojournalists’
cameras after trying to disrupt an opposition rally in Yerevan on
April 5, 2004. Opinion differed only on which powerful individual
employed them.

Two of the assailants subsequently received a slap on the wrist when a
Yerevan court fined them after a parody of a trial. One of the
defendants was also a key participant in the February 4 gunfight,
according to media reports. This man is now reportedly under arrest
pending trial. His possible imprisonment would touch only the tip of
the iceberg, however, as none of the big fish is likely to end up
behind bars.

“Everybody is scared,” Golos Armenii noted alarmingly. “The oligarchy
controls everything and as the [next] elections approach it will
increasingly tighten its stranglehold on political forces in order to
avoid surprise developments.”

(Golos Armenii, February 12; Haykakan Zhamanak, February 12; Aravot,
February 9).

—

ARMENIA PROPOSES EASING FREE EXPORT REGIME WITH RUSSIA

2005-02-20 17:47

YEREVAN, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – In 2005, Armenia plans to
introduce amendments to the agreement on free trade with Russia,
announced head of the department for trade and services under the
Armenian Ministry of Trade and Economic Development Gagik Kocharyan.

“We propose lifting the procedures of making lists of goods subject to
the free trade regime, and also lift the limitations on the re-export
of goods from Russia, as many CIS countries do,” Mr. Kocharyan stated.

In addition, he said that the changes would be made to an article in
the agreement that differentiates the regimes of bilateral trade for
state and private sectors. In accordance with the agreement signed in
1993, the state-controlled trade enjoys the most preferred status
compared with tradein the private sector. Mr. Kocharyan proposes
applying the same regime for both sectors.

He announced that all issues would be discussed during the next
meeting of the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental committee on
economic cooperation scheduled for the summer 2005.

“I think that our proposals will not cause a lot of discussions or
controversy, and will be passed without difficulties,” Mr. Kocharyan
believes.

According to the Armenian National Statistics Service, the volume of
trade turnover between Armenia and Russia in 2004 dropped by 10.6% to
$266.2 million.

LITTLE-KNOWN LOCAL WINS ARMENIAN MUSEM COMMISSION,
NOT COMPETITION
HOTSON BESTS HIMMELBLAU

ARCHITECTS NEWSPAPER
O2-16-2005
NEW YORK ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN

In September, the Cafesjian Museum Foundation announced that New
York-based architect David Hotson would design the $25 million
Cafesjian Museum of Contemporary Art in Yerevan, Armenia. Hotson’s
selection, however, has since raised accusations of impropriety on the
part of the foundation – namely that Hotson, who organized and
coordinated the competition, was never listed as a finalist for the
project, and that one of the finalists, Coop Himmelblau, was actually
named the winner of the competition before Hotson was awarded the
project.

“We won this competition,” said Wolf Prix, principal of Coop
Himmelblau, the Vienna-based firm that was recently selected to build
the European Central Bank headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. “We got
the so-called first prize.” The other two finalists, selected from 35
entrants, were Rotterdam-based MVRDV and Bernard Tschumi Architects of
New York.

John Waters, executive director of the Cafesjian Museum Foundation in
Minneapolis, defended the process, saying that despite Coop
Himmelblau’s selection, the foundation, which picked the finalists and
winner, was nonetheless unhappy with the firm’s proposal and decided
to start over. In the process, he said, Hotson presented several of
his own ideas. “Mr. Cafesjian made the decision to allow David to
pursue his ideas,” said Waters, “and ultimately he was awarded the
job.”
According to Waters, Hotson first came to Cafesjian’s attention after
the philanthropist read about his 2002 work on the competition for
Eyebeam Atelier in Chelsea.
The museum’s raison d’etre is to house the art collection of Gerald
Cafesjian, a wealthy Armenian-American who is also a major fundraiser
for the Armenian Genocide Museum and Memorial in Washington, DC.

In April 2003, the three finalists presented their proposals in a
meeting at the Armenian Benevolent Union in New York. Coop Himmelblau
was later named the winner at a ceremony in Vienna. However, Prix
said, his firm later learned indirectly that Hotson, not Coop
Himmelblau, would build the museum. “We were very, very surprised when
we got this message,” he said. “We wrote a letter to the client that
we found this astonishing.” Prix said he did not receive a reply from
the Cafesjian Museum Foundation.
Waters insisted that Coop Himmelblau had been duly notified, but
suggested that Prix did not see the correspondence because it had gone
through a subordinate. . “We had already started working with a
subteam at Coop Himmelblau, and whether that went to Wolf Prix or
someone else I don’t know. There was definitely notification and
correspondence,” he said.

Hotson’s selection does not violate the terms of the competition,
which explicitly state that “where it is in the intention of the
Sponsor to engage a finalist to undertake the commission for the new
museum, the Sponsor is under no absolute obligation to build a project
as an outcome of the design competition, or to appoint any competition
entrant as a result of this competition.” Hotson, who declined to
comment for this article, is also currently working on Cafesjian’s
apartment at 2 Columbus Circle.

Questions are also being raised regarding the competition for the
Armenian Genocide Museum and Memorial, which will be developed and
managed by the Armenian National Institute. Cafesjian has promised up
to $100 million for the museum and sits on its board of directors.

The museum, to be housed in the former National Bank of Washington
building, released a request for qualifications in October 2002,
according to The Armenian Reporter. Waters said that the board expects
to meet in February and will make a decision on how to proceed,
whether through an open competition or a direct selection of one the
entrants.

At the same time, however, Cafesjian is providing financial backing to
one of the entrants, New York-based architect Edgar Papazian. “I’ve
been retained by Cafesjian to provide a kind of vision and a
preschematic design of the museum proposal,” said Papazian.

Rouben Adalian, director of the Armenian National Institute, which is
overseeing the museum plans, explained that Papazian deserved the
support because he is young, solo architect. “Since he’s on his own,
it seemed he was at a disadvantage.” Adalian said he was unaware
whether any other architects have received similar support.

Given Cafesjian’s generous interest in the project, his support of
Papazian may call into question a future competition for the site,
should the board decide to pursue one.

“I would certainly understand someone saying that [the process was
rigged], but at the same time three’s no law that anyone’s breaking,”
said Waters.

CLAY RISEN

ARCHITECTS NEWSPAPER
O2-16-2005
NEW YORK ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN