Boston Globe, MA
Oct 7 2004

Introducing Armenia’s ready-to-wear
October 7, 2004

Contemporary Fashions from Armenia

National Heritage Museum,33 Marrett Road, LexingtonSunday, 5 to 10
p.m.Donation: $50, includes buffet of Armenian foodTel.: 781-862-0738

Yerevan is rarely included on the list of fashion capitals. In fact,
many Americans don’t even know that Yerevan is the capital of
Armenia. But that hasn’t fazed Eva Medzorian, who has made it her
goal to bring the fashion of Armenia to the United States, beginning
this Sunday at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington.

“This is the first [Armenian fashion show] that has been in the
United States,” said Medzorian, president of the Armenian
International Women’s Association, New England Affiliate.

The show was conceived during one of her 40 visits to Armenia, when
Medzorian stopped in the center of Yerevan to watch a student-run
fashion show.

“The clothing was so Western,” she said. “It was up to par with some
of the best things that we have here in America.”

Medzorian was even more impressed to learn that the school, the
Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts, did not even have access to
sewing machines. In hopes of raising money for the academy as well as
introducing the designs of Armenia to America, Medzorian organized
the fashion show.

The show will feature the designs of students, graduates, and faculty
members of the academy, along with a collection from ATEX, an
Armenian-based fashion house. The runway designs will feature a
variety of handcraft techniques, including beadwork, painting on
silk, and embroidering. All items on the runway will be available for
purchase, with prices from $60 to $350.

“There are no copycat designs,” said Medzorian. “The quality and the
styles are modern and yet so original.”

Three of the designers will attend the show. Nune Aghbalian, an
instructor in the design department of the Yerevan academy, is known
for her paintings on silk. She will also be displaying some of her
work at the Armenian Library Museum of America in Watertown.

Kevork Shadoyan, a recent graduate of the academy, will present a
20-minute segment on Armenian wedding fashions. The segment will
include bridesmaid dresses, men’s attire, as well as a wedding gown
customized with ancient Armenian motifs.

Another academy graduate, Anna Panosyan, will debut her line of
fashions featuring fabrics such as silks, chiffons, and sheers.

The program will begin at 5:30 p.m., when guests can view and
purchase items including hats, jewelry, scarves, and collectibles. At
6 p.m., there will be a buffet. The fashion show, beginning at 7
p.m., will be accompanied by Armenian music.

Medzorian found local residents who volunteered to help with the
fashion show, including serving as the models. It is with the help of
this community that Medzorian hopes to nurture these untapped
talents.

“Armenia is one of those endangered countries that seems to be on the
verge of extinction,” said Medzorian. “Through this fashion show,
people can become more aware of Armenian tradition and culture.

“People will want to help an academy like this that is producing such
talent and beautiful things to the world.”

CHRISTINA PEASLEE

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
Oct 7 2004

AZERBAIJANI DEPUTY ADDRESSED THE COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS
[October 07, 2004, 13:55:16]

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway Ian Peterson completing in
November the powers as Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the
Council of Europe has acted with a report on activity of structure
supervised by him for a relevant period.

As was reported by AzerTAj correspondent, in the report, Ian Peterson
has mentioned the moments concerning the Republic of Azerbaijan. He
has especially noted last Decree of President Ilham Aliyev on amnesty
and has noted that this decision of the head of Azerbaijan state is
serious step in the direction of even greater development of
relations between the Council of Europe and Azerbaijan. Speaking
about the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh conflict, chairman of
committee highly has estimated renewal between the heads of the
states of the negotiations directed on peace settlement of the
problem.

After completion of report, Mr. Ian Peterson, according to rules of
the Council of Europe, has answered fifteen questions, addressed to
him by deputies.

In the question of Azerbaijan deputy Rafael Huseynov, it is stated
that one of Ian Peterson’s main ideas during his activity as Chairman
was the problem concerning links between cultures and religions. The
question was: What contacts can adjust the Council of Europe with the
Organization of Islamic Conference for development of relations
between cultures and religions, achievements of real results and how
it is going to develop them?

Answering this question, I. Petersen has noted that relations between
the Organization of Islamic Conference and the Council of Europe are
available, and that there are serious prospects for cooperation in
this direction.

R. Huseynov, taking the opportunity to ask an additional question,
has addressed the Chairman of Committee with the second question:
What help of Azerbaijan, as the OIC member, you can shortly take
advantage during your visit to the countries of Southern Caucasus as
Chairman of Committee from the point of view of development of
intercultural and inter-religious links between the Organization of
Islamic Conference and the Council of Europe?

Ian Peterson has answered that the fact that Azerbaijan is a member
of the Organization of Islamic Conference, and a member of the
Council of Europe, is the factor which can render serious influence
on development of relations between these two organizations, and
during the visit to Azerbaijan he would carry on negotiations in this
direction, would apply maximum efforts for use of his potential
opportunities.

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
Oct 7 2004

AZERBAIJAN PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV AND PRESIDENT OF BULGARIA GEORGI
PARVANOV MEET IN PRIVATE
[October 07, 2004, 13:54:05]

Following the official welcoming ceremony, President of the Republic
of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of the Republic of Bulgaria
Georgi Parvanov have held a one-on-one meeting at the Presidential
Palace.

The Azerbaijani leader pointed out the importance of the Bulgarian
President’s visit and expressed confidence that it would give a
powerful impetus to development of political, economic and
humanitarian relations between the two countries. He appreciated the
OSCE-presiding Bulgaria’s effort to settle the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, and expressed hope for its
intensification in the future.

President Georgi Parvanov pointed to existence of a huge potential
for development of the bilateral relations, and expressed a desire
for close cooperation with Azerbaijan in process of integration into
Europe.

The parties also exchanged views on a number of other issues of
mutual interest.

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
Oct 7 2004

STATEMENT OF PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN ILHAM ALIYEV
[October 07, 2004, 13:51:20]

Dear Mr. President,

Dear guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Dear Mr. President, once again I welcome You in Azerbaijan.

Official visit of President of the Republic of Bulgaria Mr. Parvanov
represents great value to Azerbaijan. We with deep impatience waited
for this visit. And are very glad, that visit passes successfully.
The negotiations carried out by us once again testify that relations
between two countries develop and our links become stronger. I am
convinced that after the current visit, our cooperation in the field
of politics, economy, culture and all other spheres becomes even
stronger.

>From the political point of view, our countries are very close to
each other. We successfully integrate into the European and
Euro-Atlantic structures, and in this sense, our mutual relations
develop also in positive direction. Bulgaria as chairman of OSCE
plays extremely active role in settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan,
Nagorny Karabakh conflict, and we are very glad that as a result of
this activity during negotiations there can be new motions.

Great potential exists and in economic sphere, however, it is
involved not completely. But I hope, that after present visit
economic relations between our countries will develop.

Session of the intergovernmental joint commission has been carried
out, and the decision on creation of working group adopted. I hope
that due to activity of the Commission, and also negotiations of the
numerous Bulgarian businessmen who have arrived today in Azerbaijan
with the Azerbaijan colleagues, we can achieve great successes and in
the field of economy.

The economy of Bulgaria and Azerbaijan promptly and dynamically
develops. Certainly, the economic potential in process of
strengthening will allow us to achieve further acceleration of
economic relations between two countries and will bring big advantage
to both sides. I hope that activity of embassy of Azerbaijan, which
will shortly open in Bulgaria, also will bring in great contribution
to our common cause.

I want to note that our negotiations as in private, and in the
expanded structure, have passed in very warm conditions. We have
discussed wide enough spectrum of questions. And have discussed
mutual relations, questions of regional cooperation and, certainly,
had exchange of views on the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh
conflict. It is very glad, that fine relations developed between us,
sincerity will allow us to achieve a new level of relations between
our countries.

Dear Mr. President, once again I welcome You in Azerbaijan. I am
certain that the successfully begun present visit as successfully and
will end. Due to your visit, two countries become even closer to each
other.

PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

October 7, 2004

U.S. AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA MAKES VISIT TO PRELACY

John Evans, the new United States ambassador to Armenia, visited Archbishop
Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic
Church of America, on Friday, October 1, 2004.

Ambassador Evans, who took office in Armenia last month, exchanged
information and ideas with the Prelate on various areas of interest for the
Armenian American community.

“We especially spoke about the upcoming 90th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, education, and issues of emigration, ” said Archbishop Oshagan. “I
found the Ambassador to be very well informed about Armenian concerns and
history and was very satisfied with the scope of our conversation,” said the
Prelate.

The Ambassador visited the St. Nerses Shnorhali Library during his visit and
was impressed with the library’s collection, especially the extent of
important resources not readily accessible elsewhere.

di-ve.com, Malta
Oct 7 2004

Two Syrian nationals cause a 2-hour delay on an Air Malta flight
by Dorian Cassar, di-ve news ([email protected])

GUDJA, Malta (di-ve news)–October 07, 2004 — 1745CET– An Air Malta
flight from Vienna experienced a two-hour delay on Thursday due to
safety and security measures on the previous flight KM 512 from
Malta, according to a press statement. Two Syrian nationals onboard
were not allowed to disembark the aircraft by the Austrian
immigration police after landing in Vienna.

Austrian officials directed Air Malta to transport the two passengers
back to Malta on the return flight. For safety and security reasons,
the operating Captain refused to carry the passenger back to Malta
unless security officers accompany them.

Following consultations between the airline and the immigrations
authorities, the two Syrian passengers were allowed to disembark and
were handed over to the Austrian authorities.

The Syrians commenced their trip from Damascus to Cairo and then to
Malta. Their ticket itinerary showed that they had an onward
connection to Armenia and all documentations were properly checked
throughout their whole journey.

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 60; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

October 7, 2004
___________________

NORTH AMERICAN PRIMATES WORK ON COOPERATION

On Thursday, September 30, 2004, Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of
the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), joined the
Primates of the two other North American dioceses for the third meeting
of the three Diocesan leaders. They met at the Holy Trinity Armenian
Church of Toronto, Canada.

Archbishop Barsamian joined Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate of the
Diocese of Canada, and Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the
Western Diocese of America. The trio discussed various issues
concerning the role and the mission of the Armenian Church in North
America.

The primates agreed to further organize and cooperate in making the
mission of the Armenian Church more vibrant. Discussions focused on
Christian education, outreach to our youth, the upcoming 90th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, next year’s 1,600th anniversary of
the creation of Armenian Alphabet, pilgrimages to the Mother See of Holy
Etchmiadzin, and trips between the three North American dioceses.

“The more we work together, the stronger we are as a church,” Archbishop
Barsamian said. “We face many of the same opportunities in the coming
years, and to make our faith even more vibrant here in North America,
it’s best that we work as an extended family.”

— 10/07/04

E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News
and Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,

PHOTO CAPTION (1): From left, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Bishop
Bagrat Galstanian, and Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, meet in Toronto on
Thursday, September 30, 2004.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Associated Press
Oct 7 2004

Family will travel to Armenia in search of answers in killing of
Minnesotan

Five months after Joshua Haglund was stabbed to death in Armenia, his
family plans to travel there in search of answers.

No one has been arrested in the killing of Haglund, 33, who graduated
from high school in Mounds View and had traveled the world after
graduating from the University of Minnesota. His landlady found him
May 17 on the street outside his apartment in the Armenian capital,
Yerevan.

“We haven’t seen a police report, autopsy – basic information,” said
Haglund’s brother, James, who planned to leave for Armenia on
Thursday along with his mother and two other siblings. “We’re told
this is a highest priority to the Armenian officials, but we’ve had
no direct contact with them. I think it’s a lack of closure and
that’s a very important part of our healing process.”

Haglund was gay, and his family has wondered if his killing was a
hate crime.

The family plans to spend 10 days in Yerevan meeting with local court
officials and Joshua’s friends and colleagues.

Haglund was fluent in Japanese, Spanish and Hindi and taught English
courses in several countries. He moved to Yerevan last year to take a
job at the state-run Linguistics University through an exchange
program overseen by the U.S. State Department.

State Department spokeswoman Kelly Shannon said officials have issued
weekly reports to the family including all information available.
They also paid for the return of Haglund’s body and personal effects,
and helped arrange the family’s trip to Armenia. She stressed that
local police are handling the case.

“We can’t make the outcome of the investigation different,” Shannon
said. “Just like in the United States, some crimes remain unsolved
when police cannot go past a certain point.”

EurasiaNet Organization
Oct 7 2004

ARMENIAN PILOTS TRAPPED IN AFRICAN MERCENARY PLOT
Emil Danielyan 10/07/04

Difficult economic times have forced many Armenians to search for
work abroad. For most, especially the large number of Armenians in
Russia, a foreign job means leading a relatively Spartan
lifestyle – the main aim being saving enough to send money back to
loved ones at home. For the six-man crew of a charter cargo jet,
however, what appeared at first to be a routine assignment has turned
into an ordeal in which they stand accused of participating in a
failed coup attempt in the African nation of Equatorial Guinea.

Ashot Karapetian and his five-man crew departed in their heavy
Antonov-12 transport jet from Yerevan’s international airport in
January. They, along with dozens of other Armenian aviators, had
taken on many jobs in the past shuttling cargo across Africa, and had
no reason to believe that their current assignment would be any
different than others.

They were mistaken.

The six Armenians found themselves under arrest last March, accused
of participating in an international plot to overthrow Equatorial
Guinea’s longtime president, Teodoro Obiang Nguema. Their trial in
Equatorial-Guinea’s capital, Malabo, began August 23. The trial had
been slated to resume October 4, but was postponed with no new
resumption date set. If convicted, the six Armenians face long prison
terms.

The aviators vigorously deny involvement in coup preparations. They
enjoy the strong support of the Armenian government, which insists
that they are innocent and which has lobbied hard to secure their
release. President Robert Kocharian has personally appealed to Obiang
to release the Armenian detainees.

Obiang, whose regime is seen by the United States as one of the most
repressive in the world, has been in power ever since overthrowing
his uncle and predecessor Macias Nguema in a 1979 coup. The
impoverished former Spanish colony began to attract Western interest
in the mid-1990s with the discovery of substantial hydrocarbon
reserves off its Atlantic coast.

According to British news accounts, a group of South African and
London-based businessmen, including the son of former British Prime
Minister Margaret Thatcher, sought to grab their share of the oil
riches by plotting to topple Obiang and install an exiled opposition
leader in his place.

The reported conspiracy was uncovered in early March. The arrests of
the Armenians and other foreigners in Malabo were announced a few
days later. The accused ringleader is Nick du Toit, an apartheid-era
soldier who ran a mercenary firm in South Africa until it was banned
in 1999.

Prosecutors in Malabo have not provided details on the Armenian
aircrew’s supposed role in the coup. Their Soviet-made Antonov-12
aircraft belonging to the Yerevan-based firm Tiga Air was chartered
to carry out flights across the region by Central Asian Logistics
(CAL), a German airfreight company.

CAL’s representative to Equatorial Guinea, Gerhard Eugen Merz, was
also among the foreign detainees. Merz died, officially of cerebral
malaria, in Malabo’s notorious Black Beach prison just days after his
arrest. The human rights group Amnesty International said he was
tortured to death.

The director of Tiga Air, Boris Avagian, insists that his company’s
contract with the Germans only envisaged the transportation of
“civilian goods and equipment.” He also claims to have never known or
dealt with the reputed South African mercenary du Toit.

“The charges against our pilots are groundless,” Avagian said in a
recent interview. “They are honest professionals who went to
Equatorial Guinea to do their job.”

CAL chief executive, Thomas Rinnerd, speaking in a telephone
interview, denied any connection between his Frankfurt-based company
and the alleged coup conspirators. “The Armenian pilots are 200
percent innocent. So are Mr. Merz and our company,” he said. He added
that the Armenian cargo jet had been hired by CAL to ship various
supplies to oil companies operating in the African country

Officials in Malabo announced in early September that a team of
investigators would travel to Armenia to probe possible links between
the Armenian transport firm and the alleged coup plotters. Armenian
authorities have maintained that they have no information about such
a mission. But, a person close to the arrested aviators’ families
claims that a visit did take place, and that the Guineans told the
relatives not to talk to journalists.

The pilots, for their part, have testified at the trial that they
carried out only one flight from Equatorial Guinea, bound for the
Democratic Republic of Congo. They said the Congolese airport they
were bound for was closed and they returned to Malabo with nothing in
the hold.

Du Toit’s court testimony did not explicitly implicate the Armenians
in the coup preparations, a fact that the Armenian government says
proves their innocence. “These are quite serious ground for
optimism,” Sergei Manaserian, Armenia’s ambassador to Egypt who has
repeatedly visited Malabo since March, told the official Armenpress
news agency on September 7.

The saga of the Antonov-12 crew is somewhat symbolic of the overall
state of Armenia’s civil aviation sector. During the Soviet era, the
small South Caucasus republic operated 13 airports and a possessed a
fleet of commercial aircraft that employed more than a thousand
pilots and technicians. Today, 0nly Yerevan’s Zvartnots international
airport now functions at full capacity.

The post-Soviet economic decline coupled with government corruption
and mismanagement is taking a heavy toll on the sector. Last year’s
scandalous bankruptcy of Armenian Airlines, the state-run carrier
flagship, left more than 300 pilots and flight engineers out of work.
The luckiest few of them found new jobs with local small companies
like Tiga Air that carry out charter flights in Asia and Africa.

The Armenian aircrews are cheap labor for the foreign firms that pay
them a fraction of what they would spend on Western pilots. Aviation
experts say they also run additional health and safety risks in third
world countries. Two Armenian planes have already crashed in Iran and
Sudan under mysterious circumstances.

Editor’s Note: Emil Danielyan is a Yerevan-based journalist and
political analyst.

Armenian Communist leader appeals to Russia to open Georgian border
checkpoint

Arminfo
6 Oct 04

YEREVAN

First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of
Armenia Ruben Tovmasyan has sent a letter to the leader of the Russian
Communists, Gennadiy Zyuganov, in which he asks him to raise the issue
of the situation on the Russian-Georgian border with the leaders of
Russia.

Armenian Communists have asked their Russian colleagues to use every
opportunity available to the Communist Party of the Russian Federation
for this purpose, including the platform of the State Duma. “The
situation in Armenia has begun to deteriorate sharply, the
socioeconomic crisis is deepening and prices for basic goods are
growing. All this is giving rise to justified dissatisfaction among
broad sections of society,” says Ruben Tovmasyan’s letter to Gennadiy
Zyuganov.

The letter also spells out concern about the further development of
Armenian-Russian strategic cooperation. “Pro-western political forces
who are whipping up anti-Russian hysteria are trying to exploit the
current difficulties. Despite requests by the Armenian side at all
levels, the Russian leadership is still not doing anything to try to
resolve the situation and this is giving rise to increasing
incomprehension among Armenian society about such an attitude to its
sole strategic ally in the Caucasus,” the letter says.

We should note that after the tragic events in the North Ossetian town
of Beslan Russia closed the Verkhniy Lars checkpoint on the
Russian-Georgian border. As a result a large number of passenger and
other vehicles heading for Armenia has piled up at this section. The
Transcaucasus highway is the sole road linking Russia with the
Transcaucasus.