ATP Executive Director Addresses UN DPI NGO Conference

ARMENIA TREE PROJECT
65 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472
617-926-8733
[email protected]
www.armeniat ree.org

For Immediate Release
September 10, 2004

ATP Executive Director Addresses UN DPI NGO Conference

WATERTOWN, MA — Armenia Tree Project (ATP) Executive Director Jeff
Masarjian participated this week in a panel held as part of the 57th
annual United Nations Department of Public Information/Non-Governmental
Organization Conference at the UN headquarters in New York. The
conference, titled “Millennium Development Goals: Civil Society Takes
Action,” is taking place from September 8-10.

The focus of the conference is the role of NGOs as well as civil
society and governments for implementing the eight Millennium
Development Goals adopted by the UN in 2000. ATP was invited to
participate in the conference by the Armenian General Benevolent
Union in association with Rotary International, NGO Committee on
Human Rights, Peace Action, and the World Federation for Mental Health.

At the September 8 panel discussion with representatives of two other
NGOs, titled “Overcoming Obstacles to Economic Growth and Community
Development: The Role of Civil Society,” Mr. Masarjian outlined the
ways that ATP reforestation efforts are addressing many of the UN
Millennium Development Goals. The following is an abridged text of
Mr. Masarjian’s speech:

ATP Programs Contribute to Fulfillment of UN Millennium Goals in
Armenia By Jeff Masarjian, Armenia Tree Project Executive Director

Armenia Tree Project was founded in 1994 in response to the massive
felling of trees for fuel during the harsh winters of the early
1990s. The mission of Armenia Tree Project is to improve the human,
economic, and environmental conditions of Armenia through the planting
of trees, aiding those with the fewest resources first.

Forests and trees are important and necessary components for
maintaining the environmental and economic infrastructure of a
nation. They clean the atmosphere, absorbing carbon dioxide and
pollutants, while simultaneously releasing oxygen. They attract and
retain moisture, both in the air and the soil, helping to regulate
and stabilize the climate. They prevent erosion and landslides, while
retaining precious topsoil, which is otherwise washed away with the
rain, becoming silt in rivers, streams and lakes, choking plant and
animal life.

Forests also provide habitats for a diverse array of flora and fauna.
Armenia is home to over 3,600 species of flowering plants, many of
which are endangered and exist only in the ecosystems provided by
the dwindling forests.

>>From 1994 – 2002, Armenia Tree Project focused its activities on
creating jobs through re-greening public spaces, many of which were
littered with the stumps of sacrificed trees. ATP works closely with
the residents of local institutions, such as schools, senior centers,
hospitals, and orphanages, as well as neighborhoods.

Once accepted as an ATP site, residents receive the training and
tools they need to plant and tend the trees. The relationship is based
upon a contract between ATP and the recipient institution or group,
which agrees to replace the trees at its own expense if less than 70
percent survive.

By appealing to residents’ self interest, and using informal incentives
to promote compliance with the agreement, ATP is fostering a growing
respect for the environment through traditional value systems and
needs of the community. Residents–who had previously been plagued
with despair, while expecting the government or others to do something
for them to improve their lot–are now in a position of taking action
to make a direct impact on their immediate environment.

To date, ATP has assisted community residents in planting over 375,000
trees at 477 sites in every region of Armenia through our Community
Tree Planting program. ATP works closely with community schools to
develop environmental lessons, which are not typically part of the
standard curriculum.

The restoration of urban green spaces is the goal of ATP’s Coppicing
Program, which employs several hundred Armenians each year in seasonal
work. Coppicing is a forestry technique by which tree stumps with
intact root systems are trimmed of shoots, leaving the strongest one
to grow into an exact replica of the original tree.

To date, ATP staff has supervised the restoration of 760 acres of land
at several sites, including the Armenian Genocide Memorial, Botanical
Gardens, Victory Park, and Paros Hill, all located in Yerevan. Over
155,000 trees have been restored through ATP’s coppicing program
since 1999.

The trees ATP supplies to community sites are propagated from seeds
and cuttings in our two state-of-the-art nurseries, founded in 1996
and 1998 in the refugee villages of Karin and Khatchpar. The nursery
sites were chosen specifically to provide employment opportunities for
Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan who are supporting extended families,
and who would otherwise have no source of income. The nurseries’
29 employees are responsible for the production of 50,000 trees each
year for planting at community sites.

The 53 species of trees growing in our nurseries are all indigenous to
Armenia, and were chosen for their hardiness in surviving Armenia’s
harsh climate. With the opening of the new Michael and Virginia
Ohanian Environmental Education Center at ATP’s nursery in Karin
village, students from the State Agricultural Academy and elsewhere
will attend multi-media seminars and receive hands-on field practice
with our staff.

In 2001, in response to a growing body of evidence published in
documents by the UN, the World Bank, and other sources regarding
the immediate and critical state of Armenia’s deforestation and path
towards desertification, ATP initiated a series of strategic planning
sessions to devise new interventions that might have a greater impact
for the people and land of Armenia.

We realized that we needed to devise innovative new programs which
would not only plant considerably more trees, but also address
the widespread poverty and despair suffered by nearly half of all
Armenians. Many Armenians live in rural villages, and are forced to
strip the surrounding forests of trees for heating and cooking fuel,
as well as for sale to commercial interests.

In Fall 2002, ATP met with the leaders of Aygut, a small, slowly
dying Armenian refugee village, comprised of 290 families. Youth and
young adults would routinely leave seeking opportunities elsewhere,
and elders longed for their lost homes and villages in Azerbaijan.

The school principal spoke of a plot of land near the river which
she had hoped would someday be an orchard, supplying income to
purchase badly needed school supplies. ATP agreed to provide technical
assistance and 500 fruit and nut trees for the site, if residents could
collaborate together to clear the land, build irrigation channels and
a road to the site, and fence it in for protection from livestock. ATP
also developed an environmental curriculum for the school and trained
teachers in presenting it.

The members of the Aygut community succeeded in completing their part
of the contract within weeks of our initial meeting. By Spring 2003,
500 fruit and nut trees were planted by school children and adults,
assisted by the US Ambassador to Armenia, John Ordway, and other
invitees, who celebrated Earth Day at the new Aygut School orchard on
April 22. I’m very happy to report that I observed the first cherries
blossoming on the trees this summer.

Seventeen families also signed up to participate in a pilot project
whereby they would be trained to propagate several thousand tree seeds,
collected locally, in newly developed backyard nurseries. For each
surviving seedling that the participant will then plant in the forest,
ATP will provide a set payment.

Seven species of local tree seeds are currently being propagated,
and some have already reached a height of 12 inches and may be out
planted this fall. In this, the pilot phase of the project, 20,000
seedlings are being grown; we hope to increase this 10 fold over the
next two years by expanding this micro-enterprise opportunity to more
residents in Aygut and other villages.

This project can potentially increase the annual income of
participating families several times over, without negatively impacting
the amount of land needed for subsistence farming. In addition, because
the trees are grown using a short-term rotation cycle of 12-18 months,
the per-unit cost is less than in our traditional nurseries, creating
a win-win situation for everyone.

There are 13 villages in the river valley where Aygut is located,
comprising 6,000 people. ATP plans to replicate programming in three
new villages in 2005, using the same methodology to promote economic,
ecological, social, and cultural development. We expect that the
fruit produced in this valley will not only contribute to residents’
food security, but also attract the interest of businesses involved
in fruit juice production and export.

Early on in our involvement with the residents of Aygut, it became
clear that the humanitarian and development needs of this village were
far beyond ATP’s individual capacity. We took a very collaborative
approach to our work in the village, inviting other international aid
organizations and NGOs to visit the village and observe the progress
achieved over the past year.

Organizations such as UN World Food Program, UNDP, Heifer
International, Project Harmony, USDA, Peace Corps, Satsil, and
Jinishian Family Foundation, among others, have contributed expertise
and support in furthering the social and economic development of Aygut.

The Mayor recently reported that since ATP initiated programming there,
emigration from the village has halted, there has been a noticeable
improvement in the overall demeanor and perspective of villagers,
and there was even a record number of births, all indicators of a
growing sense of hope and optimism.

In addition to this innovative community development and reforestation
programming, ATP this year partnered with a local environmental NGO,
called Tsiatsan, in the city of Vanadzor, to build a six hectare
reforestation nursery that has the capacity to produce over one million
trees each year beginning in 2006. These trees will be used to reforest
the devastated hillsides around the city, which have become subject
to serious erosion and landslides over the past 13 years.

In conclusion, Armenia Tree Project is implementing its mission to
protect and restore Armenia’s forests through a unique combination of
programming that aims to plant a growing number of trees each year,
while providing opportunities for employment, sustainable economic
development, training and education.

Our goal is to empower residents to become stewards of their
environment while also enhancing their standard of living and hopes
for their children’s future. It is our hope that our decentralized
approach to developing an environmental ethic based on education,
action, and self-determination will eventually lead to a national and
even regional commitment to environmental protection and enforcement
of sustainable practice.

Beekeeping Center Opened In Armenia

BEEKEEPING CENTER OPENED IN ARMENIA

A1 Plus | 20:13:37 | 16-09-2004 | Social |

Multi Agro beekeeping center was opened Thursday in Armenia. The
center is working with 2,567 beekeepers. This year 14 tones of honey
were produced but half of honey haul was taken to feed bees.

The center director Roza Tsarukyan says honey is to be exported in
the future. She said not only honey but pollen and medicines are
planned to be exported overseas.

“Turkey Will Quit Cooperating With The US”, Gul Warns

“TURKEY WILL QUIT COOPERATING WITH THE US”, GUL WARNS

Tal Afar Incidents Are the Reason

Azg/am
16 Sept 04

The siege of Tal Afar, Iraq, begun on September 4, is still in
process. The American aviation keeps on bombing the town. According to
the latest news, 200 Turkmen are dead and more than 300 wounded. Tens
of thousands of Turkmen families had to leave their homes. The
American forces forbid the Turkmen to return to their homes, the
Kurds strive for inhabiting Tal Afar with the Syrian Kurds and the
Kurdish peshmerga guerrillas are fighting against the Turkmen side
by side with the Americans.

USAâ^À^Ùs cooperation with the Kurds in the issue of the Turkmen
is pregnant with a future change of the Northern Iraqâ^À^Ùs
map. America may have even farther-reaching plans for Iraq, for
instance, making a federation out of the country with Kurdish and
Arabian units. The Arabian part in its turn should be divided between
the Sunnis and the Shiites and the Turkmen will appear at the back
seat, with no status.

Turkey, perhaps would have agreed with Iraqâ^À^Ùs division if the
US had intended a piece of land for Turkmen either. If the Turkmen
factor was the main reason for Turkeyâ^À^Ùs participation in the
Iraq war, then in case this factor is ruled out, especially by means
of the Kurds, nothing will keep Turkey in Iraq. The fact that Turkey
is gradually being evicted from the processes in Iraq also makes
Turkey worry.

The Anatolu Turkish news agency cites the statement of Abdullah Gul,
foreign minister of Turkey, made on September 13. “I have talked with
the US State Secretary Collin Powel and told him that Turkey will cease
cooperating with the US in the Iraqi issue unless the latter changes
its policy (towards the Turkmen). I think the population of Tal Afar
should be spared the violence. I told him about this and will keep
on telling. But our words may soon turn into action”, Mr. Gul said.

By Hakob Chakrian

What Will Kond Residents Do?

WHAT WILL KOND RESIDENTS DO?

A1 Plus | 19:25:39 | 15-09-2004 | Politics |

Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan, Defense Minister Serj Sargssyan
and Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan didn’t partake in exchange of
questions and answers in Parliament.

Only “National Unity” MP Napoleon Azizyan from Opposition was
present. His question concerned the problem of 1500 residents of Kond
Commune of Yerevan and he criticized activity of Mayor.

“Mr. Zakharyan, you weren’t born in Yerevan and you can’t know
psychology of Kond people. They can treat guests but will put
ungrateful people in their place”, he addressed Yerevan Mayor.

Mr. Azizyan announced that Mayor had launched a campaign against
the old residents of Yerevan and wants to exile them to resettle the
old Yerevan with other people. “What will be the fate of 1500 Kond
people?”, Azizyan asked.

BAKU: Azeri experts take dim view of Russia’s Karabakh proposals

Azeri experts take dim view of Russia’s Karabakh proposals

Ekho, Baku
16 Sep 04

The meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents, Ilham Aliyev
and Robert Kocharyan, on the sidelines of the CIS summit in Astana
lasted for about two and a half hours, the Russian RIA Novosti
news agency reports. The sides focused on issues of the Karabakh
settlement. Also attending the meeting were the co-chairmen of the
OSCE Minsk Group – Steven Mann (USA), Yuriy Merzlyakov (Russia)
and Henry Jacolin (France). However, 20 minutes later the mediators
left the presidents alone. After the tete-a-tete meeting of the
two presidents, they were joined by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

[Passage omitted: reported details of the three presidents’ remarks
after the meeting]

Meanwhile, the influential newspaper Kommersant reports that the
Kremlin had put forward a formula which can bring about a breakthrough
in resolving the Nagornyy Karabakh problem. Moscow believes that Baku
and Yerevan are close to adopting this formula. The essence of the
“magic formula” is quite simple: the withdrawal of the Armenian troops
from the Azerbaijani territories surrounding Nagornyy Karabakh in
exchange for referenda on the status of Nagornyy Karabakh in Karabakh
itself and in Azerbaijan.

The newspaper says that Moscow certainly understands that the outcomes
of the two referenda would be diametrically opposite and that a miracle
won’t happen: Karabakh will vote for independence, while Baku will
want to re-establish control over it. But the start of a settlement
is likely to alleviate tension in the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.

At the same time, Moscow will secure the role of the main mediator
in the Karabakh settlement, which couldn’t happen at a more opportune
moment.

MP Bahar Muradova, commenting on the Kremlin’s formula, says the
Azerbaijani president is highly unlikely to fully approve of and
accept it.

“I don’t think our side will accept the suggestions on a Karabakh
settlement that call into question the territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan,” she said.

Muradova described as absurd the holding of a referendum in Karabakh
with no regard for the principle of Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity. The MP said that two referenda on the same issue cannot
be held in one state.

“I see this as an attempt to question Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity,” she added.

MP Gular Ahmadova describes Moscow’s formula as an attempt to ridicule
Azerbaijan.

“What referendum in Karabakh can we talk about when there is not a
single Azerbaijani there? If Moscow cannot ‘cope with’ the Chechens,
what suggestions can it make on Karabakh?”

Political analyst Rasim Musabayov says a referendum that would
determine the status of Nagornyy Karabakh is unacceptable for Baku.

“The results of a referendum cannot have a political effect because
the issue of altering the Azerbaijani borders is the prerogative of the
Azerbaijani people. The status of Nagornyy Karabakh can be established
only by a referendum on the entire territory of Azerbaijan,” he said.

The expert added that only the withdrawal of the Armenian troops
from the Azerbaijani territories surrounding Nagornyy Karabakh can
be discussed in this case.

The former foreign minister, Tofiq Zulfuqarov, believes that the
presence of the “Moscow formula” is certainly in Azerbaijan’s
interests. The analyst supports the idea of Armenia vacating the
territories surrounding Nagornyy Karabakh in exchange for security
guarantees for the Karabakh Armenians. The former minister added
that a referendum in the occupied territory would make it less likely
because it would determine the status of Nagornyy Karabakh.

[Passage to end omitted: comments by Russian officials]

Method Of Hemodialysis Used

METHOD OF HEMODIALYSIS USED

Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR)
15 Sept 04

The new service included in the NKR health care service can be
considered a victory, in fact. This was the evaluation of the minister
of health of the republic Zoya Lazarian she gave on the occasion of
installing the machine of hemodialysis at the republic hospital. Before
the acquirement of the equipment the patients were sent to Yerevan
which not everyone could afford. Doctor Ararat Ohanjanian working in
the department of reanimation and anesthetics, who will later on do
hemodialysis, said that he knew several patients whose families moved
to Germany or Yerevan for treatment. The thing is that such patients
need medical care through all their lives passing the procedure on
every other day. In other words, the lives of these patients are
dependent on the apparatus. Or they have to transplant a new kidney,
which is very expensive (for example, in Moscow transplantation
of kidney costs 70 thousand US dollars). Hemodialysis is very
expensive. According to doctor Ohanjanian, one time procedure
with disposable medical instruments costs 20 thousand drams which
annually totals 3 million drams. A. Ohanjanian said that on the day
of trying out the equipment with the participation of specialists
from Yerevan a patient who had moved to Yerevan for treatment passed
the first procedure. Learning that the apparatus is now available in
Stepanakert, he is willing to return to Karabakh. Another two patients
passed the procedure, and the results were excellent. NKR minister
of health Zoya Lazarian said that for about two years the Ministry
negotiated with the German firm â^À^ÜFreseniusâ^À^Ý on acquiring
the hemodialysis machine for Artsakh. A year ago the contract was
signed. The firm donated two hemodialysis machines, and the machine
of water filtration, also very expensive, which the ministry will
buy it from the firm in installments. Within the framework of the
program the firm prepared Ararat Ohanjanian in Moscow. The Ministry is
going to send another doctor for qualification to have two brigades
working in the hospital. As to the question how the patients who
cannot afford to pay for treatment, Zoya Lazarian mentioned that in
the world means are provided from the state budget for hemodialysis,
and the patients do not pay for treatment. The Ministry of Health will
apply to the government for providing means from the state budget in
the upcoming year.

SVETLANA KHACHATRIAN. 15-09-2004

ATDA/Armenia to participate in JATA World Tourism Congress and Trave

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Armenian Tourism Development Agency /ATDA/
Tel.: (+3741) 54 23 03/6
Fax: (+3741) 54 47 92
Email: [email protected]
<;

ATDA/Armenia to participate in
JATA World Tourism Congress and Travel Fair 2004

15 September, 2004 — The Armenian Tourism Development Agency (ATDA)
will be representing Armenia and the Armenian tourism industry at
the JATA (Japan Association of Travel Agents) World Tourism Congress
and Travel Fair 2004 in Tokyo from 23- 26 September, 2004. Armenia
participates in this prestigious event for the first time and is also
represented by Saberatours-Sevan, Tufenkian Hospitality and Armen Tour.

ATDA, working actively with many Armenian tour operators, agencies,
and other tourism representatives, has developed a winning program and
marketing strategy designed to further Armenia’s reputation as a “four
season destination” for world travelers and tourism professionals.
JATA World Tourism Congress and Travel Fair 2004 in Tokyo is another
opportunity to enlarge our target tourism population, specifically
in the Asian market.

With over 700 booths, the annual JATA World Travel Fair is Asia’s
largest travel trade and consumer travel exhibition. It provides
a unique opportunity for exhibitors to reach the three key targets
for travel promotion – travel trade, media, and consumers -together
at one show. Each year this show attracts over 100,000 visitors,
including 30,000 travel trade and media representatives.

JATA WTF with its comprehensive congress program, presentations
and supporting events represents the entire product spectrum of the
tourist industry. This event is a meeting ground for the development
of new ideas, global approaches and targeted marketing for local,
regional and international niche markets and their providers.

Armenia’s representation at such events is integral to securing maximal
benefits and growth for its burgeoning tourist trade and all its related
industry interests and economic ventures.

The JATA WTF
<
air.itb-berlin.de/en/Ausstellerhallen/Gelandeplan/index.html>
exhibition hall is organized for optimum exposure and is grouped
according to geographic destination. For those who may be in Japan
during this event, the ATDA/Armenia exhibit will be at #A-31 , making
it easy to find and accessible to all.

For further information about JATA World Tourism Congress and Travel
Fair 2004 or other industry exhibitions and events, please visit us
at 3 Nalbandian Street in Yerevan, or call us at 54-23-03 / 06. We
are more than happy to provide information on this and other Armenian
Tourism matters.

Armenian Tourism Development Agency Address: 3 Nalbandyan Street
Yerevan 375010, Armenia Tel: (3741) 542303, 542306 Fax: (3741)
544792 E-mail: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> URL:
<;

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

http://www.armeniainfo.am/&gt
http://vip8prod.messe-berlin.de/vip8_1/website/MesseBerlin/htdocs/www.f
http://www.armeniainfo.am/&gt
www.armeniainfo.am
www.armeniainfo.am

Armenia Prefers To Be The “Golden Mean”

ARMENIA PREFERS TO BE THE “GOLDEN MEAN”

A1 Plus | 16:00:33 | 15-09-2004 | Social |

Armenia is the 2nd among South Caucasus states in the rating list for
violence committed towards speech freedom and journalists. Speech
freedom is in the worst state in Azerbaijan. Freedom of speech in
Georgia is considered partly restricted.

Comparing legislation on Mass Media of the 3 states, Azerbaijan’s
Press Club, Armenia’s Committee for Speech Freedom Protection and
Georgia’s Association of Young Lawyers have published a two-language
joint manual in Russian and English.

South Caucasian laws on information spreading are described and
compared at the aspect of European standards in the book.

“Armenia has regressed since 2001-2002”, Mesrop Harutyunyan, expert
of Armenia’s Committee for Speech Freedom Protection, said during
the presentation of the book. The study showed that the recent law
on Mass Media approved in Armenia is much more liberal in the aspect
of the obligatory registration of Mass Media and the theoretical
independence of them.

It was also stated the other day Georgian Parliament has approved
Law on “Speech Freedom and Self-Expression” but President Saakashvili
hasn’t yet ratified it.

There Is No Money To Reconstruct Roads

THERE IS NO MONEY TO RECONSTRUCT ROADS

A1 Plus | 20:08:46 | 15-09-2004 | Politics |

The highways of republican importance are somehow reconstructed
whereas the roads out of main highways are impassable. This problem
alarmed MP Manvel Ghazaryan.

Communication and Transport Minister Andranik Manukyan announced that
the 1560 kilometer ways of interstate importance are reconstructed
and are up to international standards. According to him, only 30 %
of 1830 kilometer routes of republican importance is repaired, and
5900 kilometer-long regional and local roads are in a sad state.

Mr. Manukyan reminded that World Bank finances construction of the
roads of interstate and republican significance and the budget hasn’t
had enough sums for the local roads. But about 2 milliard and 300
million drams have been allotted for restoration of the local roads.

“Within “Millennium Challenges” Armenian Government together has
introduced a project of $ 137 million for reconstruction of 2989
kilometer-long routes. Armenian Government tries to get credit of $
20 million from the credit companies for that purpose. The problem
exists and it must be solved”.

Land of Law MP Vram Gyurzadyan posed Andranik Manukyan a question on
arbitrariness in the filed of inter-city taxi route. “After winning
the tenders the transporters or their owners increased the fare
without permission from 1000 drams to 1200”, he says.

Gyurzadyan’s question enraged Manukyan. He said Gyurzadyan could have
told him about the problem earlier instead of raising the question
in Parliament, and then promised those guilty of arbitrariness will
be punished.

Armenian president goes to Kazakhstan for CIS summit

Armenian president goes to Kazakhstan for CIS summit

Armenian Radio First Programme, Yerevan
15 Sep 04

The settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict will be discussed
today in Astana during a meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani
presidents, Robert Kocharyan and Ilham Aliyev.

The Armenian president is leaving for Astana today to take part in
a session of CIS leaders which starts tomorrow.