SHORT BY DUTCH FILMMAKER DISAPPOINTS COMPATRIOTS
AzerTaj News Agency
January 11, 2005
A short documentary entitled “Hope Dies Last” made by Dutch filmmaker
Susanne Kroger has caused serious discontent among Azerbaijani community
of Holland.
According to the State Committee for Working with Azerbaijanis Living in
Foreign Countries, the film tells the story about 3 Armenian and 2
Azerbaijani soldiers missing in the battles for Karabakh during the
Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. After the film was first presented in
Amsterdam, over 100 members of the Society “Netherlands – Azerbaijan”
and organizations of Azerbaijan Diaspora exchanged views on what they
had seen with representatives of the Dutch National Council of Churches
and Red Cross, and Armenian community. The members of the Azerbaijani
Diaspora exasperated by the facts that the film allots 21 minutes to
Armenia against 8 minutes to Azerbaijan, presents the missing soldiers’
parents as well as cities of the countries in sharply different ways,
refers to towns and villages of Karabakh under Armenian names. They
resolutely condemned the work noting it does not represent the reality
but distorts the facts in favor of Armenians. The claims were supported
by Dutch specialists, as well.
;catid=&news_year=&news_month=&news_day=&newsid=88422&themes_viewing=&themes_page=&themeid=&news_page
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
01/11/2005
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1. Armenia Demands Corrections to Atkinson Report on Karabagh Conflict 2. Russia Ready to Act as Intermediary in South Caucasus Conflicts 3. Oskanian, Mammadyarov Meeting in Prague 4. Armenia Hails New Russian-Georgian Ferry Link 1. Armenia Demands Corrections to Atkinson Report on Karabagh Conflict In a letter to the President and Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, (PACE), Armenia has requested that several corrections be made to the January 26 PACE report on the Mountainous Karabagh conflict, reports the Trend news agency. In their letter to PACE president Peter Schieder and secretary general Terry Davis, Armenia's parliamentary leadership accuses the European Commission of one-sidedly supporting Azerbaijan's position [in the conflict], and demands the removal of the term "separatist forces," among others. Armenia also expresses serious concern that the report fails to reflect issues tied to the regions of Ketashen and Shahumian. Overall, the Armenian side requests changes in 14 articles of the report that deal with the status of Mountainous Karabagh, format of negotiations, and the history of that conflict. Authored by PACE rapporteur David Atkinson, the report will be reviewed on January 22 PACE's Political Committee during a Council of Europe leadership summit. 2. Russia Ready to Act as Intermediary in South Caucasus Conflicts MOSCOW (Combined Sources)--Russian president Vladimir Putin affirmed his readiness to act only as an intermediary in the settlement of the Karabagh conflict. "Russia will do everything possible to settle the conflicts remaining on post-Soviet space, including the long-lasting Karabagh conflict," Putin announced. "However, we will do it only as an intermediary and guarantor of agreements which are going to be reached by conflicting sides." Meeting with Turkish businessmen in Moscow, Putin said that although the Karabagh conflict was not discussed specifically, general issues of relations between countries in the region were on the agenda. Both sides, he stated, expressed the desire to establish friendly relations among neighbors. Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan again ruled out an unconditional reopening of his country's border with Armenia, saying that official Yerevan should first take unspecified "positive" steps. Putin, meanwhile, pledged to assist in the normalization of relations between the two historical foes. "If we see positive approaches from Armenia's government, we will open the border. But we don't see such approaches now," Erdogan said at a joint news conference with Putin during an official visit to Moscow. He did not elaborate. The Turkish premier's stance contrasted with Putin's positive assessment of the Armenian leadership's efforts to improve relations with Turkey. Putin said Moscow is holding "constant consultations" with Ankara on the normalization of Turkish-Armenian ties. "Armenia is looking for ways of improving relations with Turkey," he said. "Russia will assist in this process as much as possible." Putin was also pleased with the current state of Russian-Turkish relations, pointing in particular to the booming trade between the two nations seen as longtime geopolitical rivals. "Our most optimistic forecasts about economic cooperation have come true," he told Erdogan. According to Putin, Russia and Turkey need to "continue developing an effective infrastructure of bilateral trade." Erdogan, in his turn, promised to support Russia's admission to the World Trade Organization. "Turkey is expected to demonstrate its full support for Russia's membership in the WTO at a meeting of the working group on Russia's admission to the WTO in Geneva on January 24," he said. He highly commended the high level of trade and economic relations between the two countries. "We couldn't even dream about this 10-15 years ago," Erdogan said. Ways to broaden cooperation will be discussed by the Business Council on Wednesday, which will be attended by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov. Putin thanked the Turkish businessmen for their concrete proposals, assuring them that "all those proposals will be thoroughly studied by Russian experts and ministry officials." 3. Oskanian, Mammadyarov Meeting in Prague PRAGUE (RFE/RL)--After three-hour talks with his Azeri counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov, Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian revealed that no specific agreement for a resolution to the Mountainous Karabagh conflict had been reached. "I wish I could say that there is a full agreement on the principles [of the settlement]," he said. "But we are still not there. There is a general framework of issues [discussed by the parties], but as this meeting showed, they need to be further consolidated." The meeting took place in Prague on Tuesday, in the presence of French, Russian, and US mediators; it marked the start of the second stage of "the Prague process." Oskanian refused to go into details of the discussions, saying that much remains to be done for hammering out a compromise agreement acceptable to both parties. "This is a fairly difficult and complex process and it will continue to be like this during further meetings," he said. "On the whole, I consider the overall mood and the atmosphere positive. "It is still too early too disclose any details. Once we have agreements on concrete issues, I think we will be able to talk about them little by little." Asked about chances of a breakthrough in the peace process this year, Oskanian said, "We are working toward achieving that goal. But it is still too early to make definite statements to that effect." 4. Armenia Hails New Russian-Georgian Ferry Link YEREVAN (RFE/RL--Armenian government officials and businessmen said on Monday that they are looking forward to the impending launch of a Russian-Georgian ferry link that will effectively restore Armenia's rail communication with Russia disrupted more than a decade ago. A relevant agreement was due to be signed in Tbilisi by Russia's Transport Minister Igor Levitin and Georgia's Minister of Economic Development Alexi Alexishvili. The planned regular service between the Georgian Black Sea port of Poti and Russia's Port Kavkaz is designed for cargos shipped in train cars. It is expected to become operational by the end of this month. Senior officials from Armenia and Azerbaijan were also in the Georgian capital to discuss final preparations for the launch of the service. Transport and Communications Minister Andranik Manukian, who headed the Armenian delegation, was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as welcoming the Russian-Georgian agreement. Armenian businessmen involved in external trade were also confident about its positive impact on landlocked Armenia's economy. "It will have considerable effects on the cost of goods shipped from Armenia to Russia and vice versa," said Arsen Ghazarian, chairman of the Armenian Union of Entrepreneurs and Industrialists. He said the high transportation costs in Russian-Armenian trade could go down by 30 percent as a result. Ferries capable of carrying heavy train cars have until now operated between Poti and Ukrainian and Bulgarian ports. Armenia has relied on them heavily in its commercial exchange with the rest of the world. The Armenian government has long been pushing for the opening of the Poti-Kavkaz service and has financially contributed to the scheme. Among the costs involved was the purchase of a ferryboat that can carry up to 28 rails during a single journey. The service is expected to operate twice a week. "The volume of our cargo turnover [with Russia] is great," said Vladimir Badalian, co-chairman of the Armenian-Georgian Business Association. "According to our calculations, we need four or even more ferries." But Ghazarian disagreed. "I don't think there is a need for a second ferry right now," he said. "What we need is that the existing ferry operates at full capacity in both directions so that we have a reasonable transportation cost." Levitin's trip to Tbilisi, the second in two months, is also likely to have involved discussions on ways of reopening direct rail communication between Russia and Georgia that used to run through the breakaway region of Abkhazia. Speaking to reporters in Moscow on December 28, Levitin sounded upbeat about the possibility of doing that as early as this year. He said he believes that it is now possible to restore the rail link, once vital for the Armenian economy, before a full resolution of the Abkhaz conflict. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ZORYAN INSTITUTE OF CANADA, INC.
255 Duncan Mill Rd., Suite 310
Toronto, ON, Canada M3B 3H9
Tel: 416-250-9807 Fax: 416-512-1736 E-mail:
[email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
CONTACT:
George Shirinian
DATE: January 11, 2004
Tel:416-250-9807
Dr. Roger W. Smith Elected Academic Chair of Zoryan Institute
Dr. Roger W. Smith, internationally renowned genocide scholar, has
been elected chairman of the Zoryan Institute’s Academic Board of
Directors, namely, Professors Stephan Astourian, Yair Auron, Levon
Chorbajian, Vahakn Dadrian, Eliz Sanasarian, Lisa Siraganian, and
Khachig Tölölyan. Their responsibility is to recommend and approve
new scholarly projects, and to oversee and ensure the overall quality
of academic programs undertaken by the Zoryan Institute and its
subsidiary, the International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights
Studies.
New Chairman’s Vision
Regarding his election as chairman, Smith says, “I have very much
enjoyed working with the outstanding scholars on the Zoryan Board over
the years. It is a challenge and honor to assume the responsibilities
of Chair of the Academic Board of Directors. In the term ahead, I hope
to continue to encourage activities that Zoryan has excelled at for
many years — sponsorship of conferences and lectures on the Armenian
Genocide, support for research and publication on the Armenian
Genocide and Diaspora Studies, and, above all, the Genocide and Human
Rights University Program (GHRUP). But I also see Zoryan
collaborating more with our colleagues at universities in Europe and
North America to offer courses based on the GHRUP model, as we have
already done with the University of Minnesota. I wish to encourage
students of all nationalities to engage in the study of other
genocides in comparison with the Armenian Genocide as a point of
reference. In this respect, Zoryan is initiating in 2005 a program
providing dissertation fellowships to Ph.D candidates. I think it is
also very important that Zoryan continue to reach out to the Armenian
community at many levels with lectures and educational programs, and
also encourage all Armenian and non-Armenian organizations and
individuals to support the Zoryan Institute, morally and financially,
in its endeavors to fulfill its mission.”
Background
A pioneer and major authority on the subject of genocide, Smith has
written widely on its nature, history, and prevention, and, in
particular, on denial of the Armenian Genocide. Educated at Harvard
and the University of California, Berkeley, Roger W. Smith is
Professor Emeritus of Government at the College of William and Mary in
Virginia. There he taught political philosophy and the comparative
study of genocide for twenty years. Dr. Smith taught his first course
on genocide, entitled “Human Destructiveness and Politics” in 1982. To
his dismay, he found that material on the Armenian Genocide was
extremely scarce, and due to the Turkish government’s tremendous
efforts to deny the event, few people outside the Armenian community
had even heard of the Genocide.
Describing how he came to his field of specialization, he stated, “My
interest in genocide, the ultimate denial of equality, is rooted in my
childhood. A moral commitment to equality was entrenched in me while
growing up in Birmingham, Alabama. It came partly out of a love for my
parents, who were strong and inspiring, despite the hierarchies and
valuations imposed on them by society, and partly from witnessing the
various socially sanctioned indignities inflicted on black people in a
deeply segregated south.”
Early Involvement with Zoryan
Recalling how he first got involved with Zoryan, Smith related that he
had been invited to attend its one-day conference on “Genocide and
Denial” in May 1986. He gave a very well received talk on the
psychological roots of denial, which he subsequently expanded and
published in 1990 as “Genocide and Denial: The Armenian Case and its
Implications.” As a result, he was invited to participate in many
scholarly and memorial forums thereafter. He began to focus his
research and teaching on Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide. A
groundbreaking 1995 article co-authored by Smith, Robert Jay Lifton
and Eric Markusen, entitled “Professional Ethics and the Denial of the
Armenian Genocide,” exposed the secretive process by which the Turkish
government funds academics to discredit scholarship on the Armenian
Genocide. The article fueled a major protest by over one hundred
prominent scholars and intellectuals against the corruption of
American universities by the Turkish government.
Dr. Smith joined the Zoryan Board of Directors in 1988. “I was aware
of the institute’s Open University Program, Oral History Program,
research projects, and publications, including Hitler and the Armenian
Genocide, A Crime of Silence: The Armenian Genocide, and The Karabagh
File. As a non-Armenian, my understanding from the beginning was that
the Armenian Genocide was a crime committed not only against the
Armenian people, but also against all of humanity. I found the work on
the board that first year exciting, and my understanding of the
Armenian Genocide was confirmed, as the experience deepened my
knowledge, and perhaps made me even more of an activist on issues of
human rights and genocide.”
GHRUP
One of the experiences at Zoryan that has become exceptionally
engaging for Smith is the Genocide and Human Rights University
Program, run annually by the International Institute for Genocide and
Human Rights Studies (A Division of the Zoryan Institute). He believes
strongly that the form of education necessary to prevent further
occurrences of genocide is one that promotes “tolerance, respect for
individuals, and a more humanistic view of the world.” His vision made
him an ideal choice in 2003 for Director of the GHRUP, which explores
the major genocides of the 20th century from historical, political,
sociological, legal, and human rights perspectives.
Many graduates of the program cite Dr. Smith as an inspiring teacher
and mentor. Smith is equally impressed with the students’ drive and
motivation to make a difference in the world. “Twenty years ago, there
were only a handful of us interested in the subject,” he recalls. “The
success of the GHRUP has made me feel overwhelmingly optimistic for
the future of genocide studies. The course plants a seed of knowledge
in every student who attends. Whether they use this knowledge to
become a human rights activist, a genocide scholar, or simply a person
who can influence others through informed dialogue, each and every one
of them now has the tools needed to spread awareness about genocide,
the world’s worst violation of human rights.”
The Zoryan Institute is the first international center in the Diaspora
devoted to the research and documentation of contemporary issues
related to the history, politics, society, and culture of Armenia,
Armenians around the world, and the Armenian Genocide, and in
conceptualizing Armenia’s place within a universal context. It
maintains offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Toronto, Canada.

Bulgarian Education Minister Visits Armenia
Bulgaria in Brief
Sofia News Agency (Bulgaria)
8 January 2005, Saturday
Bulgaria’s Education and Science Minister Igor Damyanov is scheduled to
pay a visit to Armenia on January 10 and 11 at the invitation of his
Armenian counterpart Sergo Yeritzyan. The two officials will discuss
issues related to the bilateral programme for cooperation in science and
education in 2003-2006.

Post-tsunami stress, grief visible on online message boards
IndiaExpress.com
09th Jan 2005
By IndiaExpress Bureau
The impact of tsunami is being felt far and wide. A cyber storm is
brewing with messages of grief and sorrow which people all over the
world are feeling, distances notwithstanding.
“I am shocked and horrified about the thousands of deaths from the
tsunamis!… It is like unreal… The photos are wrenching my heart…
Little kids and all, oh God, it’s horrible… The pics are all too
vivid,” read some of the messages on online message boards.
The death count from tsunami is staggering, but health experts caution
on the mental problems the disaster cause all over the world.
“Intense studies of recent disasters – including 9/11, Hurricane Andrew
in Florida and the 1988 Armenian earthquake provide startling numbers. A
large proportion of survivors will suffer from major depression. Many
more will get stuck in the worst part of the grieving process, a
phenomenon known as complicated grief,” says Dr Randall D Marshall,
director, trauma studies, New York State Psychiatric Institute.
The scale of this mental health tsunami is difficult to imagine, says
Marshall in an online report. He says studies suggest that the mental
health consequences of a disaster are even more severe in developing
nations.
“Stress or trauma arises when you are exposed to death, accident,
disaster. It results in horror, helplessness and fear. And it is not
necessary that you have to be at the site of the accident to feel sorrow
or grief. Television has reduced distances and visuals tend to lot of
emotional arousal,” says Dr Sameer Parekh, a psychiatrist.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Colleagues, students mourn ex-U. professor
The Salt Lake Tribune
1/11/2005
By Jessica Ravitz ([email protected])
As word of the tragic fire spread Monday, past students and colleagues
mourned the loss of Leonardo “Nardo” Alishan, a poet and former
University of Utah professor.

“His untimely death has robbed us all of a wonderful person and
beautiful mind,” wrote Lucian Stone Jr. – once Alishan’s graduate
student, now a visiting professor at Ball State University in Indiana –
in a Monday e-mail that circulated across the country.

Alishan, who taught at the U. from 1978 to 1997, died early Sunday after
a three-alarm fire raged through his Salt Lake County duplex. He was 53.
The cause of the fire, which started around 2:30 a.m., is under
investigation.

“It’s a shocking thing,” Bernard Weiss, a professor of Arabic and
Islamic studies, said Monday. “He was a very gifted teacher. He lived
and breathed literature.”

After leaving the university, where he had earned awards of distinction,
Alishan focused on his poetry, for which he received great recognition.
His most recent book, Through a Dewdrop, was published in 2002.

Alishan was born to Armenian parents in Tehran, Iran. He came to the
United States in 1973 and earned a doctorate in comparative literature
from the University of Texas at Austin before moving to Utah to teach.
His family – his parents and a brother – left Iran after the Islamic
revolution of 1979, when Ayatollah Khomeini deposed the Shah. They later
joined Alishan in the Salt Lake Valley, where the three preceded him in
death. He is survived by three grown children, who live in California.
Service details are being determined.

Trans-Caucasus chamber orchestra to aim at better regional relations
.c The Associated Press
TBILISI, Georgia (AP) – A German conductor has announced plans to form
a chamber orchestra consisting of musicians from Georgia, Armenia and
Azerbaijan as an initiative to promote better relations in the
fractious Caucasus region.
“We hope that this unique collective will become a symbol of
stabilization in the Caucasus,” Uwe Berkhemer said Monday. “Music
will be an ambassador of peace and mutual understanding.”
The Caucasus region is fraught with tension between Armenia and
Azerbaijan centering on the unresolved conflict over the
Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, and Georgia is troubled by two separatist
regions that seek either independence or union with Russia.
Berkhemer said the orchestra’s first planned performance will be in
August in Batumi, the capital of the Adzharia region which had balked
at Georgian central government control until its strongman leader
Aslan Abashidze fled amid mass protests last year.
01/11/05 11:51 EST

Azeri education official fends off Karabakh diary questions from TV
ANS TV, Baku
10 Jan 05
[Presenter] The former Nagornyy Karabakh Autonomous Region has been
described as the former Nagornyy Karabakh area in over 1m diaries
published for the 2004-05 academic years. Even though the
[Azerbaijani] Education Ministry admits this was a mistake, it does
not hurry to withdraw the diaries from circulation.
[Correspondent over video of a sample of the diary] This is a diary
used in secondary schools. There is a note on the second page of the
diary which attracts attention. Xankandi [Stepanakert], Susa, Xocali,
Xocavand, Askaran and Agdara Districts were described there as
formerly Nagornyy Karabakh areas. This means that Nagornyy Karabakh is
already an area that belongs to the past. To recap, the diary endorsed
by the Education Ministry is being distributed among all schools in a
centralized manner. Let us also say that over 1m of such diaries have
been published for the 2004-05 academic years. The chief of the
Education Ministry department for education and pre-school education
in rural districts, Aydin Ahmadov, – [correspondent stops in
mid-sentence].
[Aydin Ahmadov in his office, captioned] When compiling the diary the
authors meant the abolition of the formal title, the Nagornyy Karabakh
Autonomous Region, in 1988 [as heard, in fact in 1990]. A question may
arise, for instance, about the elimination of the notion of autonomy
by the Supreme Council. The description – former Nagornyy Karabakh –
was used here in that sense. Let us admit that this was somehow a
result of inaccuracy as well. When they wrote this phrase they simply
did not refer to Karabakh as an area that belongs to the past. They
did not mean that it [Nagornyy Karabakh] was no longer part of
Azerbaijan.
[Correspondent over video] Ahmadov said that they do not intend to
take the diaries out of circulation since a large amount of money was
spent on their publication. But the mistake will be corrected in the
next publication of the diaries.
[Ahmadov] In the future publications, we will keep the notion of
Nagornyy Karabakh as it is.
[Indistinct question from correspondent]
[Ahmadov] We will render it just as Nagornyy Karabakh territory.
[Passage omitted: nobody to be punished for the mistake, no-one turned
to the ministry over the problem]
Rasad Isgandarov, Emil Babaxanov, ANS.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

OSCE monitors contact line between Karabakh and Azerbaijan
Arminfo, Yerevan
11 Jan 05
Stepanakert, 11 January: : An OSCE mission carried out routine
monitoring today along the contact line between the armed forces of
the Nagornyy Karabakh Republic [NKR] and Azerbaijan.
The monitoring was held in the region of Mazili settlement, the NKR
[Nagornyy Karabakh Republic] foreign ministry press service told
Arminfo.
On the Karabakh side, the monitoring group was headed by the
coordinator of the Tbilisi office of the OSCE, Col (?Imre Palatinus)
(Hungary). Aleksandr Samarskiy (Ukraine), assistant on the ground to
the personal representative of the OSCE chairman-in-office, [Andrzej
Kasprzyk], was part of the monitoring group. The monitoring went
according to schedule and no cease-fire violations were registered.
The Karabakh side was represented by officials from the NKR defence
and foreign ministries who accompanied the monitoring mission.

Land mines kill 10 in Karabakh in 2004 – TV
Artsakh State TV, Stepanakert
11 Jan 05
[Presenter over video of sappers defusing mines] Land mines still
remain a big problem in Nagornyy Karabakh.
The NKR [Nagornyy Karabakh Republic] state department for emergency
situations reports that 24 land mine explosions were registered in the
NKR last year. Forty-four people suffered from mines, of whom 10 died
and 31 were seriously injured. Explosions of antitank mines
constituted the majority of cases.
The situation has deteriorated since people do not take the problem
serious. The latest explosion was registered on 9 January 2005 in
Mardakert [Agdara] District when a T-75 tractor blew up when carrying
out agricultural activities. One person died.