June 27, 2009 Issue

Mirror-Spectator to CloseFor Annual Vacation

WATERTOWN — The offices of the ArmenianMirror-Spectator will be closed for two weeks,Monday, June 29 through Friday, July 10.The current issue of the Mirror-Spectator is the

last one before the annual two-week summer holi-day. As a result, no newspapers will be published onJuly 4 or July 11.The next issue of the Mirror-Spectator will be

dated July 18.

Turkish Ambassador:No Changes in Turkish-

Armenian RelationsBAKU (RFE/RL) — The Turkish ambassador inAzerbaijan says “there is no progress in the imple-mentation of the road map signed between Turkeyand Armenia.”Hulusi Kilic said on June 16 that “Nothing is

being done, nothing has changed.”Last month Kilic said that Turkey will not reopen

its border with Armenia until the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict is resolved, echoing repeatedstatements by Turkish Prime Minister ReçepTayyip Erdogan, even after the Armenian andTurkish Foreign Ministries jointly announced the“road map” agreement in April.Meanwhile, US Assistant Secretary of State for

Europe and Eurasian Affairs Philip Gordon con-firmed on June 16 before a US congressional sub-committee that the Turkish-Armenian road mapenvisages the establishment of diplomatic relationsbetween the two countries and the reopening oftheir border.

Argentine Embassy toOpen in Armenia

YEREVAN (Armenpress) — Armenian ForeignMinister Eduard Nalbandian this week receivedthe charge d’affaires of Argentina in Armenia,Marcello Sebastie, who is in Armenia on the occa-sion of the opening ceremony of the ArgentineanEmbassy.The Foreign Ministry said Nalbandian had said

Armenia’s Foreign Ministry would provide sup-port during the implementation of its missionboth in the establishment of the embassy and itsopening.Sebastie brought a message from the Argentine

Foreign Minister Jorge Tayana that his countrysought to further expand relations with nations ofthe South Caucasus.

INDEXArmenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2, 3Arts and Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Community News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Mirror- SpectatorMirror- SpectatorTHE ARMENIAN

Volume LXXIX, NO. 50 Issue 4094

JUNE 2 7 , 2 0 0 9

$ 2.00

OskanianSpeaks

See page 3

INSIDE

The First English Language Armenian Weekly in the United States

NEWS IN BRIEF

AmbassadorTo ArmeniaDefends USPolicies

By Thomas C . NashMirror-Spectator Staff

BOSTON — US Ambassador toArmenia Marie Yovanovitch made sev-eral appearances in the Boston arealast week, answering pointed ques-tions from journalists and the commu-nity on Armenian Genocide recogni-tion and aid reduction to Armenia.Yovanovitch’s appearances, her first

in the Boston area since being namedambassador, included a breakfast withthe Armenian International Women’sAssociation (AIWA) at the ArmenianLibrary and Museum of America(ALMA) as well as a speech at theArmenian Cultural Foundation

see AMBASSADOR, page 12

By Hasmik Harutunyan

YEREVAN — The Armenian DemocraticLiberal Party (Ramgavar) has undergoneseveral phases in its history, beginning withthe Armenagan Party, which was founded inVan in 1885, as the first Armenian politicalparty. It later became the main tributarywith which several existing parties mergedin 1921 in Istanbul to give birth to theArmenian Democratic Liberal (ADL) party.The last decade was becoming a trying

period for the party in splintering it intoseveral factions.The original idea of creating an Armenia-

based party was realized when theArmenagan ADL Party held its foundingassembly in Yerevan on June 19. The recon-stituted party will become a focal point toattract worldwide chapters, under a newconstitution embodying its traditional polit-ical credo of democracy and liberalism.Chairman Armen Manvelian, opening the

convention, said: “The ArmenianDemocratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar) wentthrough several stages in its development.But recent years proved to be the most tur-bulent era, because the party was split notonly into two factions, but almost into eightfactions. This convention has one specificgoal: to create an Armenia-based center toattract all the factions, which adhere to thesame political philosophy and which oper-ate in the different diaspora countries.”Next, Manouk Topouzyan, President

Serge Sargisian’s advisor, read his message,which said in part, “All endeavors for national resurgence and gen-erating goodwill have always been valued in our country. You willbe assuming an awesome responsibility by naming the partyArmenagan. In fact, you will be assuming the values and the phi-losophy of the first political party by naming the new partyArmenagan. You will be adopting the political credo of the first tra-

ditional party in Armenian history. I do hope that you will be prac-ticing those values in life, always upholding the spirit of unity veryhigh.”Taking the podium, the editor of Azg daily Hagop Avedikian char-

acterized the group gathered in the hall as the “old contingent”see ARMENAGAN, page 2

Armenagan-ADL PartyReconstituted in Armenia

President Serge Sargisian CongratulatesArmenagan ADL Party on its Founding

TThhee ffoolllloowwiinngg mmeessssaaggee ffrroomm PPrreessiiddeenntt SSeerrggee SSaarrggiissiiaann wwaass rreeaadd bbyy hhiissaaddvviissoorr,, MMaannoouukk TTooppoouuzzyyaann,, oonn JJuunnee 1199,, aatt tthhee ffoouunnddiinngg ccoonnvveennttiioonn ooff tthheeAArrmmeennaaggaann--AADDLL ppaarrttyy iinn YYeerreevvaann::

II hheerreebbyy eexxtteenndd mmyy ggrreeeettiinnggss ttoo aallll tthhee ppaarrttiicciippaannttssooff tthhee AArrmmeennaaggaann--AADDLL ((RRaammggaavvaarr)) ppaarrttyy..EEnnddeeaavvoorrss ttoo eelleevvaattee oouurr nnaattiioonn aanndd ttoo ccoonnttrriibbuuttee

ttoo tthhee ggeenneerraall ggoooodd hhaavvee aallwwaayyss mmeett iinn oouurr ccoouunnttrryywwiitthh aapppprreecciiaattiioonn aanndd ccoommmmeennddaattiioonn.. TThhee ppoolliittiiccaallffoorrcceess uupphhoollddiinngg tthhoossee vvaalluueess hhaavvee bbeeeenn ssuucccceessssffuull iinnaaddddiinngg nneeww ccoolloorr ttoo tthhee ppoolliittiiccaall ssppeeccttrruumm..TTooddaayy,, yyoouu aassssuummee aann aawweessoommee rreessppoonnssiibbiilliittyy.. BByy

aaddooppttiinngg tthhee ““AArrmmeennaaggaann”” nnaammee,, tthhee nneewwllyy--ffoorrmmeeddppaarrttyy hhaass cchhoosseenn ttoo ttaakkee uupp tthhee vvaalluueess aanndd nnaattiioonnaall

ggooaallss ooff tthhee ffiirrsstt ppoolliittiiccaall ppaarrttyy iinn AArrmmeenniiaann lliiffee.. II aamm hhooppeeffuull tthhaatt yyoouu wwiillllbbee aabbllee ttoo pprroovvee yyoouurr ccoommmmiittmmeennttss wwiitthh ccoonnccrreettee aaccttiioonnss aanndd yyoouu wwiillll bbeessuuppppoorrttiinngg tthhee iiddeeaallss ooff nnaattiioonnaall uunniittyy,, oouurr vvaalluueess aanndd oouurr ssttaatteehhoooodd..MMoosstt oofftteenn wwee ffaaccee ddiissccoorrdd iinn tthhee ppoolliittiiccaall aarreennaa,, wwhheenn ppeeooppllee ooff tthhee ssaammee

pprriinncciipplleess ffaaiill ttoo ccoommmmuunniiccaattee aanndd eenntteerr iinnttoo aa pprroodduuccttiivvee ddiiaalloogguuee.. II aammhhooppeeffuull tthhaatt yyoouu wwiillll bbee gguuiiddeedd bbyy tthhee pprriinncciipplleess ooff uunniittyy aanndd wwiillll bbee aabbllee ttoommoobbiilliizzee yyoouurr ffoorrcceess ttoo bbeeccoommee aa ppoolliittiiccaall ffoorrccee ccoommppoosseedd ooff lliikkee--mmiinnddeeddppeeooppllee..WWee,, ttooggeetthheerr,, ffaaccee aa ddaauunnttiinngg ttaasskk ttoo bbeenneeff iitt oouurr hhoommeellaanndd aanndd oouurr ppeeoo--

ppllee iinn aa ssppiirriitt ooff uunniittyy..II wwiisshh pprroodduuccttiivvee rreessuullttss ttoo tthhee ccoonnvveennttiioonn pprrooggrraamm aanndd II wwiisshh tthhee bbeesstt ttoo

iittss ppaarrttiicciippaannttss..SSeerrggee SSaarrggiissiiaann

PPrreessiiddeennttYYeerreevvaann,, MMaayy 1188,, 22000099

US Ambassador to Armenia Marie Yovanovitch at a press conference at the Baikar head-quarters during her visit to Boston on June 19.

YEREVAN — The Armenian Ministerof Economy, Nerces Yeritzyan, joined bythe newly-appointed Minister ofAgriculture, Gerasim Alaverdyan, madea special working visit to the ArmenianTechnology Group Foundation (ATG)headquarters in the Armavir Region.Governor of Armavir Marz, Ashot

Ghahramanyan, and Ishkhan Karapetyan,executive director for the Small andMedium Entrepreneurship DevelopmentNational Center (SME-DNC) of Armenia,also participated in the field trip.The purpose of their visit was to

observe and familiarize themselves withATG’s latest development project — con-servation agriculture — and its long-term benefits for the country.The ministers, accompanied by their

senior staff members, visited the ATGwarehouses to learn about the new no-tillfarming equipment and methodologythat ATG has introduced to Armenianfarmers. The no-till system is widely usedin countries around the world at the fore-front of agriculture, including the US,Canada, Argentina and Brazil, wheremore than 95 million hectares of land arebeing cultivated annually with this con-servation technology.Conservation farming technology pro-

vides two major sustainable benefits tothe country: it allows farmers to savemoney and resources; and, it enhancesthe quality of the farmland and increas-es its productivity.Agriculture is a challenging and diffi-

cult occupation, especially in Armenia,where farmers use outdated farm equip-ment that is both inefficient and expen-sive to operate.Based on 20 years of working experi-

ence in the agricultural sector of Armeniaalong with its vast network of farmer-coop-

eratives, ATG’s focus for the immediatefuture is to transfer knowledge and tech-nology to farmers by conducting educa-tional seminars and field demonstrations,thus encouraging them to adopt conser-vation-farming technology and helpingthem lower their operating costs.Gagik Mkrchyan, ATGF country direc-

tor in Armenia, guided the visit. Heemphasized that the no-till system canreduce farm-operating costs between30-50,000 drams per hectare. Thisbecomes more significant when takinginto account the dry land and semi-mountainous areas that abound inArmenia, where profitable farming oper-ation requires much more effort andfocus. No-till farming technology shouldreduce fuel consumption by 37 percent,and farm labor and farm equipmentoperating costs by 50 percent.After studying the new equipment

that ATG had introduced, the ministerof economy stated, “Farm equipmenttechnologies have not been developedin Armenia. This new no-till plantercould provide a wonderful opportunityto start cooperation between the gov-ernment/public sector and private sec-tor. It is necessary to encourage farmersto adapt the use of this system. We mustpersuade the private sector to beengaged in small business develop-ment.” Yeritzyan further stated that weshould appreciate the possibilities andopportunities that this new system canprovide to the republic, adding thatArmenia’s grain production is notenough to satisfy its consumption.The current economic situation in

Armenia has created a very difficult sit-uation in the country: many farmers areno longer able to afford cultivating theirland. The inefficiency of the farm equip-

ment available to them, plus rising fueland irrigation water costs, makes italmost impossible for the small farmerto break even. As a result, thousands ofhectares of land have been left idle andare not being cultivated. In the longterm, this will have a devastating andnegative impact on local food supplies.“In these challenging economic times,

we believe it is essential to assist thefood producers in Armenia to reducetheir operating cost as much as possi-ble,” said Varoujan Der Simonian, exec-utive director of ATG. “It is not an acci-dent that the Scientific AmericanMagazine has devoted one of its coverstories to no-till farming practices,which it calls a ‘Quiet Revolution.’ Weare pleased by the positive evaluation ofthe Ministries of Economy andAgriculture, and will join forces withthem to find a solution in helping farm-ers reduce their operating costs andincrease their profit margins.”The ministers also observed the

immediate impact that the new systemwill have on the environment. It mini-mizes mechanical soil disturbance,which will reduce greenhouse gas emis-sions, soil compaction and the potentialfor soil erosion, and the disruption ofsoil biological cycles. The system willalso maintain moisture in the soil,reducing the amount of irrigation need-ed and thus allowing Armenia to con-serve its scarce water resources.ATG was established in 1989 in

Fresno, Calif. as a 501(c)3 non-profitpublic benefit corporation. For the past20 years, ATG has been focused on pro-viding technical assistance to ruralArmenia in establishing long-term, sus-tainable economic development projectsin Armenia and Artsakh.

S A T U R D A Y, J U N E 2 7 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R2

ARMENIA

AArrmmeenniiaa FFrreeeess OOppppoossiittiioonnOOffffiicciiaallss UUnnddeerr AAmmnneessttyy

YYEERREEVVAANN ((RReeuutteerrss)) —— AA ffoorrmmeerr AArrmmeenniiaann ffoorreeiiggnnmmiinniisstteerr aanndd tthhrreeee ootthheerr sseenniioorr ooppppoossiittiioonn ffiigguurreesswweerree ffrreeeedd oonn MMoonnddaayy uunnddeerr aann aammnneessttyy ffoorr tthhoosseecchhaarrggeedd oovveerr ddeeaaddllyy ccllaasshheess iinn MMaarrcchh 22000088 aafftteerr aaddiissppuutteedd eelleeccttiioonn..AArrmmeenniiaa ppaasssseedd aann aammnneessttyy bbiillll oonn FFrriiddaayy,, aafftteerr

aaccccuussaattiioonnss bbyy EEuurrooppeeaann rriigghhttss bbooddiieess ooff ppoolliittiiccaallllyymmoottiivvaatteedd aarrrreessttss.. EEiigghhtt ooppppoossiittiioonn pprrootteesstteerrss aannddttwwoo ppoolliiccee ooffffiicceerrss ddiieedd iinn tthhee ccllaasshheess..IInn sseeppaarraattee ttrriiaallss,, ffoorrmmeerr ffoorreeiiggnn mmiinniisstteerr

AAlleexxaannddeerr AArrzzuummaannyyaann aanndd tthhrreeee ootthheerrss wweerree ffoouunnddgguuiillttyy oonn FFrriiddaayy ooff oorrggaanniizziinngg mmaassss ddiissoorrddeerr,, aarrssoonnaanndd ppooggrroommss,, aanndd sseenntteenncceedd ttoo ffiivvee yyeeaarrss iinn jjaaiill.. BBuutt tthheeyy wwaallkkeedd ffrreeee uunnddeerr tthhee tteerrmmss ooff tthhee

aammnneessttyy.. AA ffiifftthh mmaann ddiidd nnoott qquuaalliiffyy ffoorr tthhee aammnneessttyyaanndd wwaass sseenntteenncceedd ttoo eeiigghhtt yyeeaarrss iinn jjaaiill..AArrzzuummaannyyaann wwaass ccaammppaaiiggnn cchhiieeff ffoorr ooppppoossiittiioonn

pprreessiiddeennttiiaall cchhaalllleennggeerr LLeevvoonn TTeerr--PPeettrroossiiaann,, wwhhoosseessuuppppoorrtteerrss ttooookk ttoo tthhee ssttrreeeettss iinn MMaarrcchh llaasstt yyeeaarr ttooddiissppuuttee tthhee rreessuullttss ooff aa pprreessiiddeennttiiaall eelleeccttiioonn wwoonn bbyyccuurrrreenntt hheeaadd ooff ssttaattee SSeerrggee SSaarrggiissiiaann..““FFrroomm ttoommoorrrrooww II rreenneeww mmyy ff iigghhtt,,”” ssaaiidd oonnee ooff tthhee

ffrreeeedd mmeenn,, SSuurreenn SSiirruunnyyaann.. ““WWee aarree aaggaaiinnsstt tthheeaammnneessttyy,, iinn ssoo mmuucchh aass wwee ddiidd nnoott ccoommmmiitt aannyy ccrriimmeeffoorr wwhhiicchh tthheeyy hhaavvee ffoorrggiivveenn uuss,,”” llooccaall mmeeddiiaa qquuootteeddhhiimm aass ssaayyiinngg..SSoommee 110000 ppeeooppllee wweerree aarrrreesstteedd dduurriinngg aa ssttaattee ooff

eemmeerrggeennccyy aafftteerr tthhee vviioolleennccee,, aanndd mmoorree tthhaann 5500rreecceeiivveedd jjaaiill tteerrmmss..

AArrmmeenniiaann PPrreessiiddeenntt VViissiittssUUKK EEmmbbaassssyy

YYEERREEVVAANN ((AArrmmeennpprreessss)) —— AArrmmeenniiaann PPrreessiiddeennttSSeerrggee SSaarrggiissiiaann tthhiiss ppaasstt wweeeekk vviissiitteedd tthhee UUKKEEmmbbaassssyy oonn QQuueeeenn EElliizzaabbeetthh’’ss bbiirrtthhddaayy..TThhee PPrreessiiddeennttiiaall PPrreessss OOffffiiccee ssaaiidd oonn hhiiss vviissiitt

SSaarrggiissiiaann aanndd tthhee UUKK ooffff iicciiaallss ddiissccuusssseedd tthheepprroossppeeccttss ooff ddeevveellooppmmeenntt ooff AArrmmeenniiaa--UUKK rreellaattiioonnss..

PPaann--AArrmmeenniiaann FFoorruumm ooffAArrmmeenniiaann LLaawwyyeerrss ttoo BBee

HHeelldd iinn YYeerreevvaannYYEERREEVVAANN ((AArrmmeennpprreessss)) —— IInn ccoollllaabboorraattiioonn wwiitthh tthheeAArrmmeenniiaann CCoonnssttiittuuttiioonnaall CCoouurrtt,, tthhee DDiiaassppoorraaMMiinniissttrryy wwiillll hhoosstt aa PPaann--AArrmmeenniiaann ffoorruumm ooffAArrmmeenniiaann llaawwyyeerrss SSeepptteemmbbeerr 1199--2200..TThhee ddrraafftt aaggeennddaa ooff tthhee ffoorruumm iinncclluuddeess iissssuueess ooff

eedduuccaattiioonn aanndd ttrraaiinniinngg ooff lleeggaall ppeerrssoonnnneell,, eetthhnniiccmmiinnoorriittiieess,, tthhee iissssuuee ooff iinntteerrnnaattiioonnaall rreeccooggnniittiioonn oofftthhee AArrmmeenniiaann GGeennoocciiddee aanndd lloobbbbyyiinngg..AA ppaann--AArrmmeenniiaann aassssoocciiaattiioonn ooff AArrmmeenniiaann llaawwyyeerrss

iiss eexxppeecctteedd ttoo bbee eessttaabblliisshheedd dduurriinngg tthhee ffoorruumm..

NNKKRR PPrreessiiddeenntt EEnnccoouurraaggeessEEccoonnoommiicc GGrroowwtthh

SSTTEEPPAANNAAKKEERRTT ((AARRKKAA)) —— KKaarraabbaagghh PPrreessiiddeennttBBaakkoo SSaahhaakkyyaann,, ssppeeaakkiinngg aatt tthhee ““BBrriiddggee KKaarraabbaagghh””eeccoonnoommiicc ffoorruumm llaauunncchheedd SSaattuurrddaayy,, ssaaiidd tthhee ccoouunnttrryyiiss wwoorrkkiinngg ttoo ccrreeaattee aa ffaavvoorraabbllee bbuussiinneessss aanndd iinnvveesstt--mmeenntt eennvviirroonnmmeenntt..SSaahhaakkyyaann ssttrreesssseedd tthhee ccoouunnttrryy’’ss nnaattuurraall rreessoouurrcceess

aanndd ssiinngglleedd oouutt aaggrriiccuullttuurree,, tthhee mmiinniinngg iinndduussttrryy,,eenneerrggyy aanndd ttoouurriissmm aass iittss mmoosstt pprroommiissiinngg aarreeaass..““BBuutt oouurr ccoouunnttrryy’’ss ggrreeaatteesstt ttrreeaassuurree iiss hhuummaann

rreessoouurrcceess —— iinntteelllleeccttuuaall ccaappaacciittyy,, ppeeooppllee’’ss wwoorrkkiinnggaabbiilliittyy,, rreessppeecctt ffoorr tthhee llaaww aanndd sseellff--iimmpprroovveemmeenntteeffffoorrttss,,”” hhee ssaaiidd.. SSaahhaakkyyaann ssaaiidd tthhee eeccoonnoommiicc ffoorruumm ggiivveess aann ooppppoorr--

ttuunniittyy ffoorr ccoommpprreehheennssiivvee ddiissccuussssiioonn ooff aa wwiiddee rraannggeeooff iissssuueess,, eexxpprreessssiinngg hhooppee tthhaatt nneeww iiddeeaass aanndd pprroo--ppoossaallss wwoouulldd bbee vvooiicceedd..

SSuuppppllyy ooff RRuussssiiaann GGaass ttooAArrmmeenniiaa VViiaa GGeeoorrggiiaa

RReessuummeessYYEERREEVVAANN ((AArrmmIInnffoo)) —— AA GGeeoorrggiiaann ssuuppppllyy lliinnee ooffRRuussssiiaann ggaass ttoo AArrmmeenniiaa wwaass rreessuummeedd tthhiiss wweeeekk ffooll--lloowwiinngg aa wweeeekk ooff ssuussppeennddeedd sseerrvviiccee.. DDuurriinngg tthhee ssuussppeennssiioonn,, aa nneeww 33..66 kkiilloommeetteerr sseeccttiioonn

wwaass iinnssttaalllleedd bbeettwweeeenn GGaazzaakkhh aanndd SSaagguurraammoo..

News From ArmeniaARMENAGAN, from page 1of the Ramgavar Party,which had introduced theprinciples of democracyand the rule of law inArmenia some 20 years agoas it was being done todayby reviving those principles.“That was the dream andthe goal of our foundingfathers,” he said. He alsomentioned that as a diaspo-ran member of the ADL, hehad personally felt the bit-ter results of the internal divisionsplaguing the party for the last six years.Avedikian and Armenia’s Tekeyan

Cultural Association Chairman RoupenMirzakhanian recently visited differentcountries to feel the pulse of party mem-bers. They returned to Armenia con-vinced that the majority of the traditionalmembership believes that the party’srevival can be achieved only when theheadquarters is based in the homeland.Avedikian also stated that most of

the controversies are based on per-sonal conflicts.

He added, “It has been our belief thatall the objectives of the party can be metby united action. We had long negotia-tions with Mike Kharabian, who failed tounderstand the potentials of the partyeven in its sorry state of division. Only onthe US East Coast the party has nineactive chapters, conducting fundraisingdrives, lobbying programs and sponsor-ing publications. The same applies to thestructure in Lebanon, where last weektwo of the candidates, supported by theADL, won their parliamentary seats.Unfortunately, all the conciliatory initia-

tives were met with stubborn resistanceby the Kharabian faction of the party.”Avedikian said that he is convinced

support will be forthcoming fromLebanon, Egypt, England and many tra-ditional groups in the US.Many of the delegates who took the

podium endorsed the chairmanship ofArmen Manvelian, who they said is amulti-talented leader. He is endowedwith an analytical mind and can guidethe party with confidence in complexsituations. He is courteous and respect-ful with members and has rightfullyearned the confidence of rank and file.It was Manvelian’s turn to submit the

slate of candidates for the CentralCommittee. The slate contained eightmembers who were voted in unani-mously. New members will join theCentral Committee during the nextGeneral Assembly.The Armenagan-ADL party plans to

launch a broad political platform inArmenia and will extend cooperationwith local as well as diasporan membersof the ADL.Plans are underway to hold a united

assembly next fall, which will be attend-ed by delegates from Armenia and thediaspora.

Armenagan-ADL Party Reconstituted in Armenia

Ministers of Economy and Agriculture and GovernorOf Armavir Marz Visit ATG Operations

Hagop Avedikian addressing the convention Chairman Armen Manvelian opening the convention

A partial view of the convention delegates

YEREVAN — Victory Park on June 2 waspacked with business people, activists, politi-cians and big name celebrities, volunteers andhundreds of others all gathered in support ofone common cause — child protection. The event, called The Best for Our Children,

which was held in honor of InternationalChildren’s Day, raised proceeds to support theFund for Armenian Relief’s HomelessChildren’s Center (HCC). It was only the second year, but participation

skyrocketed. More than 15,000 people attend-ed. The event was organized by a group of vol-unteers, led by First Lady Rita Sargisian andformer First Lady Bella Kocharian, who is alsothe head of the HCC’s Friends AdvocacyCouncil. Philanthropy is a relatively novel concept in

Armenia, and to strengthen its significanceorganizers coordinated meetings betweencelebrities, businesses and artists for their sup-port. By doing this HCC Director Dr. MiraAntonyan noted that the center has also helpedto establish and unify a broad charity culture inArmenia. “Almost all stakeholders in Armenia — public

celebrities, businessmen, art and show businessrepresentatives and specialists working with thechildren in difficult and risky conditions — gath-ered in one crossroad to promote child rightsprotection. I hope our benefactors from thediaspora are going to be encouraged to see thattheir peers in Armenia are stepping up too, andwill continue to support us — Armenia’s chil-dren are in dire need,” she said.The day was indeed a testimony to the

Armenian community’s commitment to help itschildren. It was not only a rare event when anation united in a grassroots effort, it was alsoa day when class boundaries were set aside. AllArmenians — rich, poor and middle class — wereunited and engaged in a single vision of hope to

improve the protection and education of theirchildren.Representatives from some of Armenia’s

largest companies, including Coca Cola, GrandCandy, Tamara and Noyan Juice, sold theirproducts at the event, raising more than 1.3 mil-lion drams ($4,000) for the center’s programs.Just five companies donated their time andproducts in 2008. This year 11 took a stand tobetter the lives of their nation’s children. For some, like dairy producer Ashtarak-Kat,

which has traditionally supported needy chil-dren in its own way, this was the first time thecompany had collaborated with others for thiscause. This newfound partnership will make

their impact even stronger. Nearly 70 art and culture representatives,

celebrities and government leaders also attend-ed. So did national assembly members and rep-resentatives from Yerevan government.Specialists who work with at-risk children werealso in attendance and media companies likeShoghakat TV, Ardzagank Radio and Radio Vanhelped to sponsor the event. Celebrities, including singers Arsen

Grigoryan, Alla Levonyan and GayaneHovhannisyan participated, as did comedianAshot Ghazaryan and actress NazeniHovhannisyan. Through the HCC, FAR’s work on child wel-

fare and protection has been exten-sive, and groundbreaking, and allmade possible through its support-ers. The center has provided home-less and abused children a safehaven since it opened in 2000.Initially started as a temporary shel-ter that offered crisis interventionand rehabilitation, the center is nowa full-service facility where abusedand abandoned children can accessshelter, counseling, outreach ser-vices, healthcare and legal assis-tance 24 hours a day. Since 2000,FAR has opened more branches ofthe center to serve even more ofArmenia’s families. More than 4,500have been helped through its ser-vices and the number of beneficia-ries increases each year. In 2008,the center served 924 children, thehighest number ever. While FAR’s work has expanded

in the last few years, the need is stillgreat and it has been compoundedby the global economic crisis.Thousands of Armenian children still

fall prey to abuse, neglect and abandonmentevery year. With more households stretchedthin, more parents are leaving their children inthe care of grossly under-resourced state insti-tutions. There, opportunity to better one’s life isslim. The number of institutionalized childrenin Armenia reached 12,000 in 2008 — a dra-matic increase from roughly 15 years beforewhen there were none. When they are forced toleave these orphanages, children are often leftwith no other option than to live on the streetssurrounded by drugs, begging and prostitution. For more information on FAR or to send

donations, contact us at 630 Second Ave., NewYork, NY 10016.

S A T U R D A Y, J U N E 2 7 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 3

ARMENIA

By Thomas C . Nash Mirror-Spectator Staff

WALTHAM, Mass. — At a talk given at BentleyUniversity last week, former Armenian ForeignMinister Vartan Oskanian offered a candidassessment of the political situation in Armeniaand its attempt at rapprochement with Turkey.Oskanian appeared at Bentley on June 17 to

promote a book of speeches given during histime as Armenia’s foreign minister, published inNorth America by the National Association ofArmenian Studies and Research (NAASR).Oskanian served in the Foreign Ministry

since 1992, serving as the head negotiator forArmenia in the Nagorno Karabagh peace talksfrom 1993 until his departure from governmentservice in 2008 after the election of PresidentSerge Sargisian. He served as foreign ministerfrom 1998 until June of last year.“These were truly a very interesting and chal-

lenging 10 years for me,” Oskanian said of hisdecision to publish the collection. “I was alwaysconcerned that we were living history. Thisbook is a small way of paying back.”Since leaving his position as foreign minister,

Oskanian started a think tank, the CivilitasFoundation, to work toward strengthening thegovernment’s commitment to democracy. Thefoundation published Oskanian’s book ofspeeches, titled Speaking to Be Heard, earlierthis year.Addressing an audience of around 200,

Oskanian focused on the lessons learned dur-ing his time as foreign minister — and how thecurrent administration would do well to heedthem. Among his strongest criticisms was thelack of perceived legitimacy in the Armeniangovernment and how that has hampered nego-tiations with Turkey, calling the efforts“extremely disappointing.” A major issue during his tenure as foreign

minister, Oskanian said, was the ministry’sefforts at complementarity when dealing theUS and Russia. He said the progress made isbecoming overshadowed by the current admin-

istration’s policies.“We had to be very clear that Armenia will

not choose one over the other,” Oskanian saidof his tenure. “[By] simply being attentive to theinterests of major players, we managed to rec-oncile their competing interests in Armenia.”“The current administration doesn’t seem to

be staying that course,” he added.“Complementarity today is more importantthan ever, and the administration needs to con-sider its position on the issue.”Oskanian also stressed that the lack of

democracy in Armenia continues to stunt thecountry’s growth, primarily because the gov-ernment has yet to establish legitimacy with thepublic.“Every time we go to elections, unfortunate-

ly we get reminded that despite the fact that inthese past 17 years Armenia has come a longway and achieved a lot in democracy and free-doms, still we have a long way to go,” he said.“We haven’t yet made deep and broad progressin the democratic process.”

“Sometimes we pretend that we are a demo-cratic country, but actually we are not,” headded. “With no natural resources, the onlypath we can take to prosperity is democracy.But we need to be frank with this; we cannotjust pretend.”He cautioned, however, that the movement

led by former President Levon Ter-Petrosianwas “petulant” in its displays of public protest.“It’s not power that can bring change, but

legitimacy,” Oskanian said, later adding, “Wecannot bring change through the streets. Wehave to bring change from within.” Tying in his views on Armenia’s domestic sit-

uation and its international standing, Oskaniansaid domestic troubles have weakened thecountry’s negotiating position.“I’ve felt over the past 10 years, that whenev-

er we had problems domestically, my effective-ness outside was limited. … The internationalcommunity looks to our domestic situation to

gauge the legitimacy of our demands.”Oskanian also lamented that the negotiation

process initiated by Turkish President AbdulahGul’s visit to Armenia last September has weak-ened Armenia’s position in the talks. He saidnegotiations had carried on in secret for yearsprior to the most recent attempts in an effort towin concessions without allowing Turkey toreap rewards from the US for going through themotions.“We always had the suspicion that Turkey

was more interested in process than the out-come,” he said. “The Turks wanted that processmade public, so that the Genocide recognitionprocess would get stopped.”He added that the recently-announced “road

map” between Turkey and Armenia representeda defeat for the country’s interests, saying,“Armenia got taken for a ride.” Oskanian’s promotional tour continued with

a speech at Fordham University the next day.

Vartan Oskanian (center) with friends from his time spent in Boston prior to becoming Armenian for-eign minister. (from left) Daniel Varujan Hejinian, Sarkis Antreasian, Vartan Oskanian, GeorgeMaserejian, Azniv Maserejian and Mihran Minassian

Ex-Foreign Minister Expresses Doubt in Armenian Government, ‘Road Map’

Vartan Oskanian speaking at Bentley University

Event in Yerevan Supports FAR’s Homeless Children’s Center

The crowd gathered for the event.


INTERNATIONAL

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International News

By Ken Silverstein

NEW YORK (Harper’s Magazine) —The indispensable Laura Rozenreported that Matthew Bryza, thedeputy assistant secretary of state forEurope and Eurasian affairs and theUS chair for the Organization forSecurity and Cooperation in Europe(OSCE) Minsk Group, “is being rec-ommended by supporters as USambassador to Azerbaijan.”The Minsk Group is tasked with resolv-

ing the Nagorno Karabagh conflict.Rozen describes Bryza as having

“liaised intensively with the Georgianleadership, including during theRussian-Georgian conflict last summer,and says that some are concerned thathis “appointment as Washington’s manin Baku [the Azeri capital] might poten-tially put a wrinkle in Obama’s effortsto ‘reset’ relations with Russia and sendmixed signals about the kind of rela-tionship he is trying to build.”But an associate close to Bryza says

it is inaccurate that Moscow would per-ceive him as hostile or too close toTbilisi, and noted that Bryza has strongand positive relationships with Russianofficials.Bryza was seen as having gone

“beyond what someone in his positionwould usually do” in showing support

for Mikhail Saakashvili in the run-upand during the Georgian-Russian con-flict last summer, a former seniorClinton administration official said.“Not so much by what he said,” butwith “frequent public demonstrationsthat he was” close to the Georgian pres-ident.But Bryza was also representing the

preferences of the administration hethen served, the former officialacknowledged. “A lot of people in theUS government have responsibility forthe aggressiveness of Georgia last sum-mer and the mistaken belief there thatthe US was going to come to their sup-port” more than it did, the former offi-cial said.Russia most definitely does have a

negative view of Bryza, but there’s a farmore direct reason for concern abouthis potential nomination: Bryza, andhis wife Zeyno Baran are totally in thetank for the Azeri dictatorship and hisappointment would be demoralizing fordemocrats (such as they are) inAzerbaijan. In 2007, the Azeri foreignminister reportedly attended the Brzya-Baran nuptials in Istanbul.Just as Bryza was the point person

for the relationship with Saakashvilileading up to the war, he had the samerole vis-à-vis the stolen parliamentaryelections of 2005 in Azerbaijan.President Ilham Aliyev (who inheritedpower from his KGB dad) promised the

US government (through Bryza) thathe was going to have free and fair elec-tions; the elections were a sham; andthere was no negative reaction from theUS government.Meanwhile, Baran periodically says

Azerbaijan should take steps towardsdemocracy but is effectively a mouth-piece for the regime. See, for example,this regime-friendly panel she moderat-ed at the Nixon Center:In her introductory remarks, Baran

observed that the elections representeda step forward, citing President IlhamAliyev’s decision to fire three regionalgovernors involved in election fraud asan unprecedented move. She cautionedthat there were equally significant prob-lems that remain to be addressed, andnoted that “more needs to be done”before Aliyev can establish his legitima-cy and prove to the West and to his ownpeople that he is committed to thedemocratic process.Her remarks about Aliyev firing three

governors as a positive sign are ridicu-lous. Aliyev wanted to look like he wastrying to do something, and was, I’vebeen told by a very well-placed source,going to fire these guys anyway.According to my source, fraud was nodifferent in those regions than in otherplaces, and in fact it was almost cer-tainly less fraudulent than in Baku,where the results were falsified in near-ly every district.

Matthew Bryza Reportedly to BeNamed Ambassador to Baku

Armenia-Iran VisitCancelled as ViolenceContinues in TehranTEHRAN (ArmeniaNow) — An official

visit by an Armenian delegation to Iranwas cancelled by the host country, asIran is in post-presidential election tur-moil.The Armenian delegation headed by

National Assembly Speaker HovikArbrahamyan was to leave for Iran onJune 20 on a two-day visit. The delega-tion included nine high ranking offi-cials from the Assembly and theGovernment of Armenia, as well asother officials. According to the NApress service, the visit was postponedindefinitely.Nairi Petrosyan, press secretary of

the speaker, said it would not be prop-er to publish the reasons for the visitdelay.But days of deadly rioting has sus-

pended routine life for Armenia’s south-ern neighbor. At least 19 people havebeen reported killed as civilians haveclashed with law enforcement.Unconfirmed reports put the numberof casualties at 150.In Tehran the Armenian delegation

was scheduled to have meetings withthe newly-elected President of IranMahmoud Ahmadinejad, Speaker of theIranian Parliament Ali Larigani andSecretary of Iran’s Supreme NationalSecurity Council Saeed Jalili.Richard Giragosian, director of the

Yerevan-based Armenian Center forNational and International Studies(www.acnis.am), says that the delay ofthe Armenian delegation’s visit to Iranwas appropriate.

“There is high inner anxiety inIran now. It is necessary to wait untilthe internal situation is stabilizedthere. Even the US authorities havenot strongly responded to the eventsin Iran, since it would be seen as anattempt of interference into thedomestic issues of Iran,” Giragosiansaid.

Armenian, Syrian PresidentsPleased with TalksYEREVAN (Mediamax) — Syria learned about Armenia’s steps to normalize

relations with Turkey with pleasure, Syrian President Bashar al-Asad statedthis week.Speaking at a joint news conference with the Armenian president, Bashar

al-Asad started Syria’s readiness to assist progress in the process of normal-izing Armenian-Turkish relations taking into account the good relations ofDamascus with both sides.Bashar al-Asad stated that he has become acquainted with the opinion of the

Armenian president on the Karabagh problem, which is especially important onthe eve of his upcoming visit to Azerbaijan. He expressed hope that they willmanage to avoid complications in the process of Karabagh conflict settlement.President Serge Sargisian described as “historic” the official visit of the

Syrian president and noted the many centuries’ history of Armenian-Syrianrelations. He high-lighted the factthat at the begin-ning of the 20thcentury, the Syrianpeople lent a help-ing hand to manyArmenians, whohad survived theA r m e n i a nGenocide.“Syria is the sec-

ond homeland ofA r m e n i a n s , ”Sargisian said,recalling the wordsof the late presidentof Syria, Hafez al-Asad, who had visit-ed Armenia 30years ago.The two presi-

dents held a one-to-one meeting, fol-lowing which ameeting in anexpanded formatwas held.A number of agreements were signed between the two countries on coop-

eration in economic and humanitarian spheres, aimed at expanding anddeveloping relations. The two presidents came to agreement on continuingpolitical discussions between the two countries based on the centuries-longfriendship between the Armenian and Syrian peoples.

Syrian President Basahr al-Asad, left, paid a visit to theCatholicos of All Armenians Karekin II at HolyEchmiadzin during his visit to Armenia.

NEW YORK — On Friday, June 19,Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of theDiocese of the Armenian Church of America(Eastern), hosted a luncheon in honor ofArchbishop Avak Asadourian, Primate of theDiocese of the Armenian Church of Iraq.Guests included Ambassador T. Hamid Al-Bayati,

permanent representative of Iraq to the UnitedNations; Ambassador Armen Martirossian, perma-nent representative of the Republic of Armenia tothe United Nations; the Very Rev. HaigazounNajarian, Vicar of the Eastern Diocese; and the VeryRev. Vahan Hovhanessian, pastor of Holy MartyrsArmenian Church in Bayside, NY.Barsamian welcomed Ambassador T. Hamid Al-

Bayati and Ambassador Armen Martirossian to theEastern Diocese. He said it is always a pleasure tosee Archbishop Asadourian, a dedicated servant ofthe Armenian Church who is well-respected in theArmenian community of Iraq and elsewhere. A cordial conversation was shared by the

ambassadors and clergy. Al-Bayati emphasizedthe important role of the Christian community of

Iraq, noting its centuries-old presence and manycontributions to the country. He said he washimself a graduate of a Christian school in Iraq. Discussion also focused on the Armenian

community of Iraq. Al-Bayati noted the chal-lenges of recent years but said the present situ-ation is improving and added that he was opti-mistic about the restoration of stability in Iraq.He thanked Barsamian for the opportunity to

meet with Asadourian. Al-Bayati also asked ques-tions about the Armenian-American community,and was particularly interested in learning moreabout Iraqi-Armenians living in the United States.The luncheon marked the ambassador’s first

visit to the Eastern Diocese. Barsamian offeredAl-Bayati a tour of St. Vartan Cathedral and theDiocesan Center. The ambassador expressed hisgratitude for the hospitality — a warm welcome,which he said made him feel at home.Martirossian stressed the importance of such

meetings in helping to strengthen ties betweenArmenia and Iraq.


NATIONAL NEWS

Key House PanelApproves $48M forArmenia, $10M For NKRRestores Military Parity,Strengthens Section 907 WASHINGTON — This week, a key House

panel approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 State,Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill. Armeniais slated to receive $48 million, $3 million inForeign Military Financing (FMF), and $450,000in International Military Education Training(IMET) while Nagorno Karabagh will receive $10million. Azerbaijan did not receive the fundingincrease proposed by the administration. “The Assembly commends Chairwoman Nita

Lowey (D-NY) and members of theSubcommittee for ensuring this positive out-come,” said Armenian Assembly of AmericaExecutive Director Bryan Ardouny. “US assis-tance to Armenia helps to offset the impact ofTurkey’s ongoing blockade of Armenia.” The administration proposed a sharp reduc-

tion in funding to Armenia from last year’s levelof $48 million to $30 million in FY 2010.Additionally, the budget request also increasedaid to Azerbaijan and overturned long-standingCongressional policy with respect to militaryparity between Armenian and Azerbaijan. “Today’s Subcommittee action sends the right

message to the people of Armenia and NagornoKarabagh, that America will continue to assistour friends in the region,” added Ardouny.“However, the Assembly remain concerned aboutthe overall level of assistance to Armenia, espe-cially the impact of the Millennium ChallengeCorporation’s (MCC) recent decision to holdfunding on a rural roads project. The Assemblywill continue to press for increased assistance tobenefit the people of Armenia.” In March of this year, Board of Trustees

Member Van Krikorian testified before theHouse Appropriations Subcommittee on StateForeign Operations and Related Programs, out-lining the Assembly’s priorities and urging noless than: $70 million for Armenia, $10 millionfor Nagorno Karabagh a well as $4 million inForeign FMF and $1 million in IMET for FiscalYear 2010. Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs FrankPallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) alsocalled for the funding levels noted above. The full Committee is expected to consider

the bill next week with a vote in the House ofRepresentatives anticipated before the AugustCongressional recess. As the Bill movesthrough the legislative process in the Houseand Senate, the Assembly will continue its advo-cacy and outreach efforts.

By Betty Apigian Kessel

CANTON, Mich. — Standing in front of a sup-portive gathering of 150 Hyes on the ArmenianRelief Society Centennial Celebration Cruise onLake St. Clair, Natalie Mosher’s remarks werebrief but garnered a hearty round of applausewhen she announced if elected as a DemocraticUS Representative, she would be 100 percentsupportive of Armenian issues. Thus the campaign of Mosher, 65, in the 11th

District to defeat Republican incumbentThaddeus McCotter currently in his fourth termis off and running.The former public school teacher is the

daughter of John and Rose Manoogian, activesupporters of the St. Sarkis Armenian Churchcommunity of Dearborn. She is the grand-daughter of Armenian Genocide survivors fromSivas and Marash, Turkey, proudly saying herfamily has been in this country 94 years.The life-long Democrat, although never hav-

ing held elective office, admits she was inspiredby President Barack Obama’s inauguration.She is a graduate of Michigan State University. She states she will get things done by work-

ing with members of all political parties. “I

enter this race to get solutions to the problemsof rising health care, job losses, falling homeprices and the credit crunch.” Her campaignvoice will stress that she believes voters disdainpolitical finger pointing to the solutions urgentto the issues facing our time.Mosher goes on to say, “I have always been a

go-to person whether it was working as a com-munity activist, a teacher, a non-profit develop-ment director, or a mother.” She says she is adoer that no job is too big or too small for herto get results. As an active member of theLeague of Women Voters, Mosher promoted K-12 higher education reform across America.She wants to empower teachers by transform-ing the No Child Left Behind initiative.She has worked as the executive director of

the American Cancer Society in Ohio andserved as Chief Development Officer of theDetroit Riverfront Conservancy to create, estab-lish, operate and maintain a series of parks andgreen spaces along the Detroit riverfront. Her family has a long history of connection to

the Michigan auto industry and she is runningto offer solutions that get Michigan back to theprosperity that was enjoyed in the past.She supports creating alternative energy pro-

duction and life science jobs in Michigan. Mosheris a proponent of pension protection, expanding

unemployment benefits and is against free tradedeals such as the North American Free TradeAgreement (NAFTA) and Central America FreeTrade Agreement (CAFTA). Being of Armenian heritage, Mosher indi-

cates she would make certain that theArmenian-American community has an activeand effective advocate working to collaboratewith Congress and the Obama administrationto properly recognize the Armenian Genocide.She plans on increasing the levels of technicalassistance for the Republic of Armenia, to sup-port Nagorno Karabagh’s self-rule and directrelations with the United States and advanceUS policies that promote open borders and sta-bility in the South Caucus region.“Additionally, I plan to partner with the co-

chairs of the Congressional Caucus onArmenian issues, Representatives FrankPallone and Mark Kirk, to normalize relationsbetween Armenia and Turkey.” Natalie Mosher is a woman of accomplish-

ment with an even greater ambition to put herwork ethic and passion for getting results intohelping the State of Michigan and this countrymove forward to better times.Mosher lives in Canton with her husband,

Bob, a retired Ford Motor Company engineer.They have two grown sons.

Natalie Mosher Announces Campaign for Congress

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian welcomes Ambassador T. Hamid Al-Bayati to the Eastern Diocese.Also pictured are Archbishop Avak Asadourian, Ambassador Armen Martirossian and Very Rev.Vahan Hovhanessian.

Eastern Diocese Welcomes Iraqi Ambassador and Primateof Diocese of Armenian Church of Iraq

Ambassador T. Hamid Al-Bayati expresses his gratitude to Archbishop Avak Asadourian.

6 S A T U R D A Y, J U N E 2 7 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

Community News

Celebrating 20 YearsOf Collaboration

Hagopian World of Rugs & the College for CreativeStudies 2009 Student Rug Design Competition

DETROIT — At the 2009 College for Creative Studies Student Exhibition, infront of the rug produced from the first-place design, Suzanne Hagopian present-ed awards to the four talented students who placed in this year’s competition.Sponsored by Hagopian World of Rugs and in collaboration with the College forCreative Studies, it was conceived to mentor students in the field of textile designand support the school. Students are given the opportunity to submit designsbased on specific criteria and compete for scholarship money. In addition,Hagopian has the first-place design made into a rug and displayed at the annualCCS Student Exhibition.Also present for the awards were the 2009 judges from the metro Detroit Design

Community who graciously volunteer their time and expertise to the project;Stanley Lecznar from The Teich Group, Shirley Maddalena, Maddalena Design andJohn Wohl, Tom Verwest Interiors.This years’ criteria according to SuzanneHagopian was to design a rug using “green

ideas and methods,” a concept she promotes personally and professionally. The ideawas embraced by the students and the results were innovative and spectacular.First Place was awarded to student Virginia Peckenpaugh, a sophomore whose

design was inspired by the rain forest. Second Place was awarded to senior MariaFilar for her design based on organic shapes; Third Place was awarded freshmanBridge Sullivan for her design inspired by nature and Honorable Mention wasawarded to senior Stephanie Kalb for her design based on earth’s resources. Allthe students received a commemorative plaque and scholarship money. In addi-tion, a gift was presented from Hagopian to the College for Creative Studies.Hagopian rugs is planning a special event in Fall 2009 for students, judges,

alumnae and staff to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this competition that exem-plifies their ideal of being a catalyst for progress in the communities they serve.

From left, Angela Hagopian Snow, John Wohl, Maria Filar, Suzanne Hagopian,Edgar Hagopian and Rick Rogers (CCS), in front of the winning rug

Armenia’sFledgling SocialWork ProgramGets BoostFrom CHA

By Daphne AbeelSpecial to the Mirror-Spectator

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — “One of our biggestproblems is malnutrition.” This statement,offered by one Armenian social worker, stood instark contrast to more nuanced problemsaddressed by the array of psychotherapeuticand counseling services described in an infor-mation session, hosted by the CambridgeHealth Alliance (CHA) at the CambridgeHospital, Wednesday, June 17.The session, part of a two-week visit spon-

sored by the Cambridge-Yerevan Sister CityAssociation (CYSCA), brought together 10Armenian social work professionals and staffmembers of the CHA social work program foran informational exchange.Judy Howe, director of outpatient psychiatric

services for children and moderator of the pro-gram, described the scope of the CHA program,which includes three hospitals in Cambridge,Somerville and Everett, neighborhood health clin-ics in seven cities and three school-based healthcenters. The CHA enjoys a teaching affiliationwith Harvard Medical School, Tufts MedicalSchool, the Harvard School of Dental Medicineand the Harvard School of Public Health. It alsosponsors training programs in medicine, psychia-try, social work and psychology.“Our mission,” said Howe, “is to improve the

health of the community. We work with thepublic health departments in the seven munici-

palities we serve...We are a large, sprawlingcommunity-based hospital complex.”CHA professionals and the Armenians were

communicating, with the help of ArmineMedzorian, translator, across a considerablegap in respect to experience, financial supportand professional standards. As Nina Masters,director of social work training at CHA, put itlate in the session, “Social work in the UnitedStates is a mature profession.” In contrast, theconcept of social work in Armenia is fledgling.It has received support and assistance from aprogram at the University of Connecticut,which sends a social work team to Armenia

see SOCIAL WORK, page 7

Detroit DaughtersOf Vartan Award$5,000 in MeritScholarshipsDETROIT — On Wednesday, June 10, the

Detroit Chapter of the Daughters of Vartanheld their eighth Annual Scholarship Awardsprogram. Five outstanding young men andwomen each were the recipients of $1,000.With Knights and Daughters of Vartan, the2009 scholars and their families present,Chairman Jane Hovsepian, a past GrandMatron, welcomed those present and gave abrief overview of their Merit ScholarshipProgram.To date, 22 scholarships have been awarded

totaling nearly $16,000. The following are thisyear’s recipients:• Dannielle Dakhlian is a graduate student at

the University of Michigan in the School ofPharmacy. She interned for two years at theUniversity of Michigan Health Management

Center, the Michigan Diabetes Center, and iscurrently working on a research project for pub-lication. She will earn her doctorate in pharma-cy in 2010. She plans to be a specialized clini-cal pharmacist. Dakhlian is a graduate of St.John’s Church School and a former SundaySchool teacher. She is the daughter of Stephenand Debbie Dakhlian, and granddaughter ofMarguerite and the late Andrew Dakhlian.• Matthew Rupas, an honors student

throughout high school, graduated magna cumlaude. A business marketing major at Michigan

State University, Rupas is a member of theHonors College and Phi Chi Theta BusinessFraternity. His goal is to head a marketing teamfor a major corporation. He is a graduate of

see SCHOLARSHIPS, page 9

BELMONT, Mass. — Dr. Gayane Novikova,founder and director of the Spectrum Centerfor Strategic Analysis in Yerevan, Armenia,and currently Fulbright Research Scholar atthe Davis Center for Russian and EurasianStudies, Harvard University, will give a lec-ture on “The 2008 Five-Day War and Shiftsin Security in the South Caucasus” onThursday, July 9, at 8 p.m., at the NationalAssociation for Armenian Studies andResearch (NAASR) Center, 395 Concord Ave.The South Caucasus has been character-

ized as one of the most unstable regions ofpost-Soviet space since the early 1990s. Theinsecurity reached its latest peak in August2008, when military actions on Georgianterritory caused drastic changes in the con-figuration of the security structure in theSouth Caucasus and illuminated the roleand importance of each regional and non-regional actor.The August 2008 war in Georgia has

excluded the possibility of the creation of anyacceptable format of regional cooperation inthe South Caucasus. Even more, the statusquo established after the Five-DayWar will bedetermined in the medium-term by the fol-

lowing factors: the final withdrawal ofAbkhazia and South Ossetia from the juris-diction of Georgia, Russia’s additional politi-cal and military leverage in the region,Azerbaijan’s continued policy of complemen-tarity, Turkey’s attempted use of this crisis toincrease its overall role in the region, andArmenia’s attempts to emphasize its pres-ence in international politics and increase itssignificance for external actors, trying there-by to balance Russian influence.Novikova is an experienced researcher in

the security and politics of Armenia and theSouth Caucasus. She has served at theDepartment of Arabic Studies of the Instituteof Oriental Studies of the National Academyof Sciences of the Republic of Armenia (1978-2000) and the Armenian Center for Nationaland International Studies (1994-2000). Theauthor of more than 60 articles and fourmonographs, she is also the editor of twelvecollections of articles published by theCenter for Strategic Analysis. She is current-ly carrying out research on the “SouthCaucasus Between Russia and the West.”Admission to the lecture at NAASR is free

(donations appreciated).

Fulbright Scholar to Discuss SecurityIn South Caucasus at NAASR

Artak Khachatryan, head of the Department ofSocial Work at Yerevan State University, asks aquestion.

Dannielle Dakhlian

Matthew Rupas

SOCIAL WORK, from page 6each year to conduct teaching and training ses-sions, but it is struggling to establish itself inArmenia, where the concept is new to a majori-ty of the population.Although the issues did not always come up

directly in the information session, in their bio-graphical descriptions the Armenians listed ahost of challenges to their work including lackof information, lack of financial support, lack ofunderstanding of social work’s role in the soci-ety, an inadequate legal system, lack of trainingand clear standards for the profession, lack ofcitizens’ awareness of their rights and a heavyworkload.Several CHA professionals outlined the scope

of their work. Goldie Eder, an independently-licensed social worker, stressed work with immi-grants, particularly undocumented immigrants,who need help with insurance, so that they areable to come to appointments and receive med-ications. She cited the high incidence of cardiacarrest and cancer as serious problems. ServicesCHA provides include transportation tochemotherapy appointments and supportgroups for people with cancer, multiple sclerosis.Jackie Bisbee, who works with the in-patient

aspect of social work, described the servicesoffered to patients while they are in the hospi-tal, and noted that an interpreter is on hand forpatients and their families..Anna Martirosyan, who works with children

with hearing disabilities at the Havat NGOCenter in Yerevan, asked if CHA provides aninterpreter for sign language and learned thatCHA has a hard-of-hearing clinic. Martirosyanalso queried Bisbee about whether hearing aidswere provided and was told that technical spe-cialists and speech therapists are available towork with the hard of hearing.Another question directed at Bisbee probed

whether a doctor or social worker informs apatient of an illness. The doctors discuss thespecific illness, said Bisbee, but social workersaccompany doctors to make sure patients are

being addressed in such a way that they under-stand what the doctor is saying.Lisa Satrin, supervisor of the child and adult

psychiatry outpatient department, stated thatcommon cases included children who were notfunctioning well at school, adolescents with sui-cidal or homicidal tendencies, and persons withdepression and anxiety. CHA works with school-based health centers and physicians and psy-chiatrists who treat these patients.Rachel Flynn, a licensed social worker with an

advanced degree in psychotherapy, described herwork with adult outpatients, which includes eval-uation, counseling and therapy.“We find out what makes a person depressed.

Whether there are psychological problems in thefamily, whether there is a history of trauma, deathor illness, what their immigration status is.”Jayme Shorin, clinical director of the CHA’s

Victims of Violence program, described the pro-

gram, which deals with victims of crime, suchas rape or domestic violence.“We work closely with community groups to

establish a connection between the medicalmodel and the community. We are very overt —we teach that violence is not OK; an act of vio-lence is wrong,” said ShorinMasters concluded the program, noting that

social work has evolved from being mainly case-work-based to being a service that provides psy-chotherapy and counseling. This has requiredthe development of new standards and degrees.“The National Association of Social Workers

is respected by the government and other inde-pendent agencies and the Council of SocialWork Educators sets standards for schools andfor social work. One of the reasons we startedto specialize in psychotherapy is that new lawswere passed and to get funds, you had to havea patient with a specific diagnosis.”Artak Khachatryan, head of the Department

of Social Work, at Yerevan State University,expressed a strong interest in the establishmentof standards for certification.The session ended with the presentation of a

gift from the Armenian professionals to thestaff of CHA.In addition to those mentioned above, the

group also included: Alina Avalyan, AstghatsolkNGO; Naira Avanesyan, head of the Division ofProtection of Children’s Rights in Kapan;Lusine Gasparayan; City of Yerevan, Children’sRights Protection Department; GretaGrigoryan, head of the Benefits Department ofthe Ministry of Labor and Social Issues; NairaKerkobyan, NGO Zangagatun; AvtandilMarkosyan, head of Children’s Rights inTavush; Asthik Minasyan, head of the SocialAssistance Department in the Ministry of Laborand Social Issues and Arusyak Safaryan, lec-turer at Yerevan State University in the Facultyof Social Work.Their visit to the CHA was followed by a trip

to a domestic violence program in Waltham.The group will return to Armenia on July 1.


COMMUNITY NEWS

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Nina Masters, director of social work training atCHA, addresses Armenian social workers. Atleft, CYSCA project manager Alisa Stepanian

Fledgling Social Work Program Gets Boost from CHA TCA ArshagDickranianSchool HostsGraduationBallLOS ANGELES — The TCA Arshag

Dickranian School held a graduationball to celebrate the graduation of itsstudents from high school and middleschool, on Saturday, June 20, at 7:30p.m. The ball took place at the school’sWalter and Laurel Karabian Hall,where the families and friends of thegraduating students gathered to enjoya night of dinner, dancing and cele-brating.After the first portion of the

evening, in which graduating studentshad their pictures taken, VatcheSemerdjian, who is the homeroomteacher of the eighth grade, intro-duced the graduates of middle schoolby recalling fond memories and thedistinctive traits of each student.Krikor Soukiassian, who is the home-room teacher of the 12th graders,invited all the graduates of highschool onto the stage of the hall andcongratulated them for their hardwork and for their acceptance to vari-ous well-respected universities. Atouching slideshow of the seniors’journey through the years at theschool followed; the students cheeredas they remembered their fond memo-ries at the Dickranian School. The most exciting part of the

evening came during the naming ofthe Prom King, Queen, Prince andPrincess. The Prom King and Queen ofclass of 2008, Hovig Najarian andMary Alexanian, were happy to crownRuben Khachadryan as the Prom Kingand Narine Sulian as the Prom Queenfor the Class of 2009. As for the crown-ing of the graduates of middle school,the Prom Prince and Princess of classof 2008, Harout Seropian and AliceHaytayan, were happy to be the firstones to congratulate RazmigGasparian as the Prom Prince andLucy Bambalyan as the Prom Princessof 2009. For more information on the school,

visit www.dickranianschool.org.

Check us out atmirrorspectator.com

RICHMOND, Va. — Parishioners gathered atSt. James Armenian Church here on Sunday,June 14, to celebrate the ordination of two altarservers and the consecration of a new crossthat will soon adorn the church dome.Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of

the Diocese of the Armenian Church ofAmerica (Eastern), celebrated the DivineLiturgy and ordained two young men — JohnnyChadoian and Kevork Ozbalik — to the rank ofsub-deacon.The two have been serving as acolytes for five

years and working hard to prepare for the sub-deaconate. “They are very dedicated to the church,” said

the Rev. Mesrob Hovsepyan, pastor of St. JamesChurch. “It is amazing to see how much theyhave grown in their faith and service.”In honor of the occasion, four new robes and

stoles for the altar servers were donated by

parishioners Jamie and Margaret Accashian,Steven and Dorian Barsamian, Murad andMelanie Kerneklian, Marni Pilafian and JoyceSoghoian. Harry and Liz Deloian donated newaltar covers to the church.Following the ordinations, Barsamian conse-

crated the church’s new cross, donated byHarut and Sevana Ayvazian.

The cross — 1.5 feet wide and 3.5 feet tall —will be installed on the dome of the church laterthis year to replace the existing stone cross,which was damaged by lightning.The church dome has never seen an

Armenian cross, Hovsepyan said, and the com-munity is looking forward to the addition. Handcrafted in Aleppo, Syria, the new aluminum

cross was made to capture both the simplicity andthe elegance of traditional Armenian design. It was created by Harut Ayvazian’s father,

Kevork Ayvazian, whose foundry in Aleppo isknown for the metalwork it supplies toArmenian churches worldwide, including theMother See of Holy Echmiadzin. Harut and Sevana Ayvazian were both

involved in the design process, which tookabout two months. The couple is active in the area’s Armenian

community. They have been members at the St.

James parish for some 10 years and run anArmenian store close to the church.Harut Ayvazian says he is proud of the fin-

ished product, and glad to be part of “theenrichment of the Armenian Church,” especial-ly in a small community where it’s particularlyimportant and challenging to preserve theArmenian identity.

“If you see that cross, you are going to knowthat this is an Armenian church,” he said.A luncheon was held after services. A number

of parishioners offered instrumental and vocalperformances and remarks were made byParish Council Chair Leiza Bouroujian.“It’s a blessing to see people in a parish com-

ing together, devoting their time and effort tobuild up the life of their church,” saidBarsamian. “That is what the dedicated parish-ioners in Richmond have done in the case oftheir two new sub-deacons, and in the case oftheir beautiful new cross. Our whole Diocese isproud of their accomplishment.”


Obituary

COMMUNITY NEWS

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PROVIDENCE — Gerald “Gerry” Ayrassian,54, of Providence, died on Tuesday, June 16, inthe Jane Brown Unit at Rhode Island Hospital.He was the husband for 24 years of Barbara

D. (Hamperian) Ayrassian.Born in Providence, he was the son of Agnes

(Ampagoomian) Ayrassian of Lincoln, RI andthe late Deacon Carl Ayrassian.Ayrassian received his Bachelor of Science

degree in accounting from Roger WilliamsCollege in 1976 and was vice president ofFreeway Liquors in Providence from 1980 to2005. He was past coach of the NorthProvidence Recreation Girls Softball Team andan active volunteer at Sts. Sahag & MesrobArmenian Apostolic Church.Besides his wife and mother, he leaves his

daughters, Amanda Ayrassian and ChristinaAyrassian, both of Providence, and two broth-ers, Robert Ayrassian of Lincoln and GregoryAyrassian of Cranston.The funeral was held on Saturday, June 20 at

Sts. Sahag & Mesrob Armenian ApostolicChurch, Providence. Interment followed inNorth Burial Ground Cemetery, Providence.Arrangements were made by the NardolilloFuneral Home. Online condolences may be leftat www.nardolillo.com.In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions

may be made to: Sts. Sahag & MesrobArmenian Apostolic Church, 70 Jefferson St.,Providence, RI 02908.

Gerald “Gerry” Ayrassian

Gerald ‘Gerry’ Ayrassian

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian consecrates a new cross at St. James Church in Richmond, Va.

A New Cross and Two New Sub-Deacons for Richmond Parish

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian ordains Johnny Chadoian and Kevork Ozbalik to the rank of sub-dea-con at St. James Church in Richmond, Va.

SCHOLARSHIPS, from page 6St. John’s Church School and served sevenyears on the altar first as Tibir and later elevat-ed to Khostoz. He is the son of Peter andBarbara Rupas, and grandson of Nina and thelate Albert Sarkisian.• Christopher Sarkesian attends Indiana

University in Bloomington. He is an honor stu-

dent majoring in business. He received theIndiana University Faculty Award Scholarship.He is active in the Sustainable Business Club,the Undergraduate Investment Club,Intramural Sports and Sigma Chi Fraternity.He is a graduate of St. John’s Church Schooland has been a member of the Junior andSenior ACYOA. His goal is to become an

Investment Banking Analyst and attendGraduate Business School. His parents arePeter and Marilyn Sarkesian, and he is thegrandson of George and Nevart Godoshian.• Lauren Sarkesian graduated from the

University of Michigan, with honors, majoringin English and political science. Through theAGBU, Sarkesian interned at the ManhattanDistrict Attorney’s Office and later withMichigan’s Sen. Carl Levin. This fall, she willenter law school at Loyola University inChicago. She is a graduate of St. John’s Church

School and an ACYOA member. In 2005 shereceived the Archbishop Tiran Nersoyan Awardand the Detroit Free Press Editorial Award.She is the president of the Armenian Students’Cultural Association at the University ofMichigan. She is the daughter of Peter andMarilyn Sarkesian and granddaughter ofGeorge and Nevart Godoshian.• Michael Stamboulian attends the College

for Creative Arts in Detroit majoring in metal-smithing and jewelry design. He served as his

instructor’s assistant at the BirminghamBloomfield Art Center. His artwork has beenshowcased while in high school and at college.He is a graduate of St. John’s Church Schooland is active in the ACYOA sports program. Hehas been a counselor at St. John’s Day Campworking with children in arts and crafts. Heplans on being a Studio Artist and to teach. Hisparents are Jimmy and Patricia Stamboulianand he is a grandson of Charles and AnabelleStamboulian.


COMMUNITY NEWS

Since its inception in 2001, TCA’s ‘Sponsor a Teacher’ program has raised over $350,000and reached out to 2,715 teachers and workers in Armenia and Karabagh.

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Detroit Daughters of Vartan Award $5,000 in Merit Scholarships

Christopher Sarkesian

Michael Stamboulian

Bing MakesHistory inForgoingManoogianDETROIT (Detroit Free Press) —

Mayor Dave Bing will be the first electedmayor of Detroit to not live in theManoogian Mansion since the 15-roomhouse was donated to the city to serveas the mayoral residence in 1966.Jerry Cavanagh, Roman Gribbs,

Coleman Young, Dennis Archer, KwameKilpatrick and their families all spenttime in the Manoogian Mansion, whichsits on the east riverfront across fromBelle Isle.The house gained an unwelcomed

notoriety during the Kilpatrick reign asthe supposed site of a much-ballyhooedwild party. Though the party was neverproven, rumors of it ignited the chain ofevents that led to Kilpatrick resigningand going to jail. Bing has said he wants to find a way to

make the home, a gift from industrialistAlex Manoogian, a resource for Detroit andto recoup the roughly $150,000 the cityspends for annual upkeep. Mayoral spokeswoman Meagan Pitts

said Monday the mansion is undergoingrepairs for plumbing and other prob-lems, and officials continue to plan touse it as a site for conferences, weddingsand other gatherings.Pitts said the repairs are being

financed by a nonprofit organization andthe city, but a price tag was not immedi-ately available.

Ara Kalaydjian’ s (former editor of theArmenian Mirror-Spectator)

Ore Orin (DailyReflections). 774 pagesbook in Armenian, articlesprinted in “ Baikar” dailyand weekly newspaper$30 including handlingand shipping

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Please make checks payable to: Tekeyan Cultural Association755 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown, MA 02472

RADNOR, Penn. — Sunday, June 7, was ahappy day for the students of the ArmenianSisters Academy (ASA). Not only was the end ofthe school year in sight, but it was also the dayof the school’s traditional year-end hantes.Mother Nature cooperated and delivered abeautiful spring day. As a result, audienceturnout was exceptional with many in the localcommunity joining the ASA families, alumniand out-of town guests. The 2009 hantes was high-energy and kept

getting better as the 75-minute program pro-gressed. What makes this performance specialis that the students genuinely want to be there.All the children, from Montessori to the 17-

member graduating eighth-grade class, wereproud of their accomplishments. Following tradition, the hantes began with

the graduating class leading the audience insinging the Hayr Mer and the American andArmenian national anthems. For those in atten-dance not familiar with the bond the communi-ty has with the school, it was evident immedi-ately as it didn’t take long before most of theaudience joined in. Graduating class spokesper-sons then officially welcomed — in Armenianand English — clergy, sisters, honored guests,family and friends who were in attendance forthis highly-anticipated event.Although this was the 42nd annual closing

hantes, for many young students, it was theirfirst on-stage experience. The first part of the

program began with the Montessori studentssinging Hoonis é yégél or “June Has Come.”This led into the youngest Montessori girlsdressed as angels singing and bouncing ontheir toes to the song Angel Band. Adorned inwhite costumes, wings and feathered halos,they looked truly angelic. The angels joinedtheir classmates and continued to sing HeighHo while Snow White led her colorful seven

dwarfs on a dance around the stage. Theyoungest Montessori children, adorably dressedas bumble bees, sang Meghoo or “The Bee.”While singing and “flying” with their arms, theysmelled the sweet flowers on either side of thestage. All the Montessori voices rang outtogether as they sang Mi Hay Badani (AnArmenian Child). Lastly, the “graduating”kindergartners, outfitted in traditional satinoutfits, got the audience clapping with anupdated version of Khel Pane (No Problem).The boys’ stood shoulder to shoulder andstomped their feet to the beat, while the girlscircled their arms daintily. The second part of the program featured first

through third graders in “Scenes from BoasterOpera” which had a nature theme. Each stu-dent was spectacularly costumed to resemblehis or her plant, and all grade levels sang allsongs. The boys were outfitted in green andbrown with leaves and “branches” seeming togrow from their head. Together they sangDzarer or “Trees,” mimicking the way treesgrow and sway in the wind. They were followedby second and third grade girls singing Gagachor “Tulip.” With realistic red-petaled costumesand hats and green stockings for the stem, wetruly felt the essence of the flower. They werefollowed by the third-grade girls singingManooshag or “Violet.” The girls brought thedance to life with their lavender- and lilac-col-ored costumes. Dressed in whites and pale yel-

lows, the first- and second-grade girls followeddancing and singing Shooshan or “Lily.” Lastly,the Markardadzaghig or “Daisy” dance fea-tured more first- and second-grade girls singingand swirling in their yellow scalloped costumes. The fourth- through eighth-graders partici-

pated in the third portion, which was made-up primarily of traditional Armenian songs.The fourth graders got the audience clapping

with the energetic music of Shalakho. Thegirls’ graceful sweeping movements werehighlighted by scarves on each wrist, whilethe boys were down on one knee and clap-ping along. When the children wove in andout of each other, the audience could fullyappreciate their traditional costumes. Guestscontinued to clap to the beat of Kedashenand the turquoise-and-lilac costumed fifthgraders. In two rows, they sang, circled,skipped and bounced their way through theexciting song. The sixth- and seventh-gradegirls slowed things down a bit for Cilicia.With traditional gold costumes and veiledheadbands, the girls sang and soulfullydanced while holding (electric) candles ineach hand. The effect was mesmerizing. Splitinto two groups, the sixth through eighthgrade boys acted out “Gindos” andShepherds. The slow-moving shepherds wereteased by the Gindos as the two groups triedto outdo each other with their dancing feats.Crab kicks, squat kicks, side-kicks, straddlejumps and jumping over sticks and bent legsall got the audience whistling and calling outencouragement.The last to perform in this portion were the

graduating eighth-grade girls in Dele Yaman.While exquisitely costumed in cream witheither red, blue or orange veils to their anklesand attached at the wrist, they brought manyaudience members to tears. The audienceseemed to clap extra long for them, and theirsmiles showed their pride. Someone in the audi-ence liked it so much, he called out “Noren!”(Again!) For the conclusion of the program,these young ladies began singingYerevan/Erebouni as their younger school-mates came back on stage and joined in.Imagine over 70 young voices singing this mov-ing song and you’ll see why the audience didnot want the program to end.

But end it did, as Principal Sister V. LouisaKassarjian thanked choreographers and danceinstructors Ovsanna Sadjonian, FranTorcomian, Lauren Yeremian and KarineShamlian. Excellent piano accompaniment wasprovided as always by music teacher MaroushPaneyan-Nigon. Special thanks were given toOvsanna Sadjonian and Therese Sajonian fortheir exceptional hand-made costumes. Theyespecially thanked the children for their hardwork and many practices to make this hantes areality. Guests were welcomed back to theschool grounds for a picnic.


COMMUNITY NEWS

Armenian Sisters Academy of Radnor Holds 42nd Annual Hantes

Young dancers complete their number.

Impressing the audience by leaps and bounds

Graceful dancing

A cute trio of dancers

Entertainment Fridaysand Saturdays

By Florence Avakian

NEW YORK — “It was a great feeling to helpmy people in Armenia. And it was thrilling thatI was able to work with my father on this veryimportant project,” said Dr. Levon Nazarian.Recently, Nazarian received an honoraryDoctor of Medicine degree from Yerevan StateMedical University, as well as its gold medal inrecognition of his dedicated work in setting upthe Ultrasound Training Centre of Armenia.On Saturday, July 4, the gala banquet of the

Armenian Medical World Congress at the NewYork Hilton Hotel, will honor the preeminentfather and son humanitarian and MedicalOutreach team of Nazar Nazarian and Dr.Levon Nazarian, as well as Great Britain’sHealth Minister Lord Dr. Ara Darzi for his worldfamous scientific achievements.In a telephone interview, Dr. Levon Nazarian

spoke of the crucial ultra-sound project which heestablished in Armenia. It was at the educationalarm of the Thomas Jefferson UniversityHospital’s Ultrasound Research and EducationInstitute that it was decided “to spread ultra-sound education throughout the world as a cost-effective procedure. Without side effects, it’s avery effective method to diagnose the heart, thy-roid, liver, gall bladder, pelvis, tendons, muscularskeletal system, male testicles and normal andabnormal pregnancies,” he explained. The World Health Organization (WHO) has

identified ultrasound as one of the best tools toimprove the population’s health in developingcountries, and many centers have been set upin different parts of the world.It was more than 10 years ago that an ultra-

sound specialist at Thomas Jefferson UniversityHospital said to Dr. Levon Nazarian, “You’reArmenian. How about setting up the procedurein Armenia? I had been thinking about it. OK,let’s do it,” Nazarian answered. The long andarduous process was put into motion. In 2000, Levon Nazarian attended the rib-

bon-cutting of the Ultrasound Training Centerof Armenia at the Yerevan State MedicalUniversity, established by the JeffersonUltrasound Research and Education Institute(JUREI). Also attending the ceremony was theCatholicos of All Armenians Karekin II andArmenia’s Minister of Health.The Center’s co-directors Dr. Andreas

Hampartsoumian and Dr. Hamayak Sisakyan“developed their own lecture and training pro-grams starting in 2000,” Nazarian continued.“Shortly after, four doctors from Armenia werechosen from 20 applicants to come to ThomasJefferson University Hospital to train for threemonths. Two years later, Hampartsoumian alsocame to Jefferson, taking back with him volu-minous training material. Professionals from all over Armenia, the

south Caucasus, Russia, and as far away asIndia and China came to Armenia’s UltrasoundCenter to learn. In Armenia, it performs a cru-cial diagnostic role as a low cost alternative tothe MRI.” (Armenia does not have the MRI).

Nazar Nazarian Makes Large Donation

The majority of the ultrasound equipment wasdonated by Nazar Nazarian, noted philanthropistand father of Dr. Levon Nazarian, through theauspices of the AGBU working in tandem withthe United Nations. “The hospitals in Armeniastarted with two ultrasound machines, then 27more were donated to different marzes(provinces) of Armenia, including Karabagh, andthe Javakhk province of Georgia.”In addition, through a joint donation by Nazar

Nazarian, and Philips Health Care, a subsidiaryof Philips Electronics, a CATscan machine hasalso been given to Yerevan State MedicalUniversity which has now begun publishing theNew Armenian Medical Journal, the officialpublication of the university. Dr. Levon Nazarianone of two doctors from the US is a member ofthe University’s Editorial Advisory Council.

“This ambitious and much-needed project,the Ultrasound Training Centre in Armenia, hassucceeded far beyond what we had hoped forthrough its two leaders, Dr. Hampartsoumianand Dr. Sisakyan,” stated Dr. Levon Nazarian,

in his typically humble manner.Dr. Levon Nazarian is currently Radiology

Residency program director, as well as professorof radiology and vice chairman for education atthe Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Hehas co-authored 69 peer-reviewed scientificpapers and 84 abstracts. His pioneering work inultrasound has received much acclaim in news-papers, magazines, as well as on television, theBBC and the Reuters news agency. He has beennamed editor-in-chief of the Journal ofUltrasound Medicine, a post he will assume inJanuary 2011. He is the recipient of numerousawards, including being listed in the 2007-2008Best Doctors in America. Following in hisfather’s footsteps, Dr. Nazarian recently joinedthe AGBU Board of Directors.Philanthropy has been the cornerstone of

Nazar Nazarian’s life. Longtime member of theAGBU Board of Directors, Nazar Nazarian, for-mer president of Royale Linens in New Jersey,with his wife, Artemis, has given generous dona-tions to many projects throughout the world,including the Nazarian School in Beirut, the

construction of AGBU facilities in various com-munities in North and South America and theMiddle East. In addition to their funding of the Ultrasound

Centre in Armenia, Nazar and Artemis Nazarianunderwrote the cost of the St. Trdat Chapel ofthe Yerevan Cathedral, as well as funded sever-al educational, medical and religious endeavorsin Armenia for which they were awarded the1,700th anniversary medal by the Catholicos ofAll Armenians Karekin II.

Darzi Makes His Mark

Appointed Minister of Health of GreatBritain, Lord Dr. Ara Darzi is head of theDepartment of Surgery at the Imperial CollegeLondon, and is chairman of Surgery there andat the Institute of Cancer Research in London.He is also an honorary consultant at St. Mary’sHospital and the Royal Marsden College. Hehas published seven books and more than 450peer-reviewed papers. Educated in Ireland, Darzi was born in Iraq

to a family that escaped the horrors of the

Armenian Genocide. Internationally acclaimedfor his scientific achievements, he is recognizedfor his work on surgical robots, for which heand his department received the Rector’sResearch Excellence Award. This is one of manyhonors he has received, which include aFellowship of the American College ofSurgeons and being the first surgeon to beinducted as an Honorary Fellow at the RoyalAcademy of Engineering. For his exemplary ser-vices to medicine, he was knighted in 2002 byQueen Elizabeth II, and was elevated to thepeerage in 2007. In addition to the banquet on July 4, the

Armenian Medical World Congress, which willconvene from July 1-4 at New York’s HiltonHotel, will feature four days of medical sym-posia and meetings, a dinner cruise on a luxuryyacht on Thursday evening, July 2, and a bustrip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to viewthe magnificent Armenian khachkar.Reservations must be made for the Congress.

Information on this event is available onwww.aahpo.org/amwc09.


MM EE TT RR OONewYork

GREENVILLE, N.Y. – The sixth annual Ararat CenterFestival, scheduled for Saturday, July 11, will focus cel-ebrations on the facility mortgage burning that tookplace earlier in the year.Over the past five years, hundreds of people have

attended this traditional Armenian-styled picnic held onthe scenic grounds of the Ararat Center. This year willbe no exception as more than 500 people are anticipat-ed to participate in this annual event which will featureArmenian music by a special assembled FestivalEnsemble, entertainment by the Sipan Dance Group ofthe Capital District, traditional Armenian meals andgames for young children. In addition, this year’s festi-val will once again showcase a variety of vendors sellingArmenian jewelry, photos, books, CDs, perfumes andmore.A brief program, presided over by Archbishop Khajag

Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the ArmenianChurch of America (Eastern), will be held in the mid-afternoon to thank all those who contributed towardsthe purchase and ongoing improvements of this facilitythat is now owned outright by the Diocese since themortgage payoff in January. More information will also be shared about the $1.5-million endowment fund campaign that is being initi-

ated by the Board of Directors so that the future of the Ararat Centercan be secured for generations to come.Admission and parking are free for this event, which will be held

rain or shine under the Sepastia pavilion. The festival is also anopportunity to tour this facility, which is located 30 miles south ofAlbany nestled on the edge of the Catskill Mountains. The variousbuildings and recreational areas of the Ararat Center have beennamed to represent historic Armenian regions. Individuals are wel-comed to sponsor a building of their choice to honor their familyancestry. More information on this will be available during the festi-val.To inquire about group transportation to the Ararat Center for this

event, contact a local parish.The Ararat Center, purchased by the Eastern Diocese in January

2004, is now the permanent home of the St. Vartan Camp program.For more information about the Ararat Center, visit

www.araratcenter.org or e-mail [email protected].

From left: Lord Dr. Ara Darzi, Dr. Levon Nazarian and Nazar Nazarian

Three Leaders to Be Honored at Armenian Medical World Congress in New York

The Ararat Center Festival is a perfect place for families to enjoy anafternoon of food, fun and activities.

Ararat Center Will Celebrate Burning of Mortgage

St. Vartan staff members enjoy food during the annual Ararat Center Festival.


AMBASSADOR, from page 1(ACF) on June 19. She also met withMassachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and stateRep. Peter Koutoujian.The events were part of a multi-city tour that

Yovanovitch said was aimed at creating a dia-logue with the Armenian-American community.Other cities on the tour included New York, LosAngeles and Washington. “The purpose of my trip is to share with peo-

ple the views that we have about what’s goingon in Armenia now, to share a little bit aboutthe US-Armenia relationship, as well as themany positive things that the US government isdoing in Armenia,” Yovanovitch said at a pressconference in Watertown at the Mirror-Spectator office in the Baikar building onFriday afternoon.Asked about the timing of the announcement

of a “road map” agreement between Armeniaand Turkey on April 22, which many in theArmenian-American community saw as suspect,Yovanovitch said the US was playing only a sup-porting — and supportive — role in the talks.“We can’t force either Armenia or Turkey to

do anything,” Yovanovitch said. “Opening theborder needs to be an agreement that bothcountries feel comfortable about.” Asked to clarify why the agreement was

announced on April 22, Yovanovitch remainedevasive. “Obviously I’m familiar with what you’re talk-

ing about,” she said, “but these discussionshave been ongoing for a while and I think that’swhen the parties decided to release the state-ment.”Yovanovitch also spoke about the May munic-

ipal elections in Yerevan, where she had servedas an observer and issued a report on June 7,describing widespread irregularities.

The elections were cited bythe Millennium ChallengeCorporation (MCC), a US gov-ernment program that fundsdeveloping nations, as evidencethat Armenia continued to notmeet fair government standardsafter its June 10 board meeting.A hold has been in place sincethe widely-criticized presidentialelections in 2008 on $67 millionin funds.

“The [May municipal] elec-tions were rather disappoint-ing,” Yovanovitch said. “We saw,frankly, an atmosphere of intim-idation. We saw people beingbussed in from other areas. Wesaw ballot stuffing. After thecounts in various precincts wesaw horse trading going on,where we saw different partiesgetting votes than what wasactually the case.”She stressed, however, that

the US is the single biggest con-tributor to the World Bank andthe International MonetaryFund, from which Armenia hasreceived loans to make up forthe lost MCC funding. She alsopointed out that the US Agency forInternational Development (USAID) continuesto manage several humanitarian programsthere. Yovanovitch spoke at the ACF in Arlington

on Friday night, to an audience of roughly 200,at an event billed as a “community meeting”about US-Armenian relations. Questions fromthe audience related mostly to US policy on the

Armenian Genocide and Nagorno Karabagh,with the interaction at times contentious.One questioner took Yovanovitch to task on

a recent statement by Assistant Secretary ofState Philip Gordon that the US would supporta joint Armenian-Turkish historical commission.

“I’m puzzled that we still talk about this com-mission,” the audience member said. “Do weneed a commission to prove whether we hadslavery in the US, whether the Holocaust hap-pened? Why do we need one for Armenians?”“The US has said we will support whatever

(Turkey and Armenia) agree to,” Yovanovitch said.“We are not advocating any particular way to go. Ithink that’s a question for the parties to decide.”Another audience member asked why

Armenia was singled out as having issues withdemocratic governance while the US ignoresissues in Azerbaijan and Georgia, which alsoreceives MCC funding.“I feel like there’s a double standard,” the

questioner said.Yovanovitch reiterated that the MCC funding

was contingent on the progress its board of

directors observes. Earlier, she said the MCChad noted Georgia passes benchmarks set ongovernment corruption, a requirement toreceive funding. “We certainly want to keep up our end of the

bargain,” she said, “but we need the Armenian

government to keep up its end of the bargain.”As the meeting concluded, Yovanovitch main-

tained that the US values its relationship withArmenia and looks forward to encouraging itsdevelopment and helping along the rapproche-ment with Turkey.“You won’t be surprised to hear I think our

policies are good policies,” she said.The next day, Yovanovitch attended the

Armenian Night at the Boston Pops. She alsovisited the Armenian Revolutionary Federation(ARF) headquarters and met Boston-area clergybefore attending a reception at the NationalAssociation of Armenian Studies and Research.On Sunday, she met with the board of direc-

tors of the Armenian Assembly of Americabefore attending mass at Holy Trinity ArmenianChurch of Cambridge.

Ambassador to Armenia Defends US Policies

Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch answers a question from David Boyajian at the Armenian Cultural Foundation onJune 19.

From left, state Rep. Peter Koutoujian, Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, Massachusetts Gov. DevalPatrick and James Kalustian in Patrick’s Beacon Hill office

Clergy of the Greater Boston area met with Ambassador Yovanovitch at the First Armenian Church inBelmont.

Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, left, and her aide at the press conference at the Mirror-Spectatoroffice.

Ambassador with Armenian Press editors at Baikar Building

13

Arts & LivingT H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O RS A T U R D A Y, J U N E 2 7 , 2 0 0 9

Bachik theBirthdayKiss ReleasedDETROIT — A new children’s book has been

released and the story behind its author is just asinteresting as the book itself. Author LoriWagner called upon her strong familial connec-tions to the Armenian relatives of her first mar-riage to create Bachik the Birthday Kiss, nowavailable in hard cover.Bachik the Birthday Kiss’s cover shows a

young boy with full lips and big brown eyes ten-derly receiving a birthday kiss on each cheek byadoring relatives. The opening page shows anArmenian grandmother on a sofa teaching thetoddler grandson “Dzapik, dzapik,” clap, clap.”English and transliterated Armenian appear oneach page like “Mek, yerku, yerek, one, two,three. The back of the book contains Armenianwords, pronunciations and meanings.So what does a girl raised in the insular atmo-

sphere of Paducah, Ky. know about Armeniansand why do several of her books have anArmenian theme? She married one, PeterKalajian, from the Boston area, when he was 42.He had come to Michigan to work for GeneralMotors, carving a very successful career design-ing automotive interiors. He also taught SundaySchool in Troy, Mich., where they met.Brought together by their spirituality, she says,

“He was a Godly, very talented man with a finecharacter. I am glad he waited for me. Hewhisked me off my feet, making me feel likeCinderella.” They honeymooned in Peru andtheir interest in different cultures blended.Together they traveled to Switzerland, St.Thomas and the Amazon. Their children, Noelleand Charles, were only 5 and 1, respectively,when Kalajian died of cancer.Wagner dedicated Bachik to his family and his

Armenian heritage. She said, “With theArmenian deep love of family I wanted to sharefrom a treasure chest of wonderful memories Icherish of my children playing games on grand-ma’s porch.”Maintaining the theme of family, Wagner’s

niece, Andrea Kalajian of West Bloomfield, Mich.,daughter of her husband Peter’s twin brother,has filled the pages with brilliant, vibrant illustra-tions. She is an award-winning artist pursuing aBachelor of Fine Arts degree from the CaliforniaCollege of Arts.

Bachik is dedicated to Wagner’s Armenianmother-in-law, whom she describes as a phenom-enal cook and also to the countless Armenianfamilies whom she says, “open their hearts andhomes to odars like me.”Wagner and her children still pay annual vis-

its to her in-laws at their summer camp home onCape Cod where her husband spent time growingup. Her now 17-year-old daughter is taughtArmenian recipes by her grandmother andWagner documents these events with photoshoots, then making a scrapbook so that thememory of the grandmother will always remainalive.Wagner recently shared a well-received Power

Point presentation of Bachik at the AGBU Alexand Marie Manoogian Day School in Southfield.Her next project is a middle-school chapter booktitled The Pirates of Castle Rock, about the grow-ing up exploits of her husband and his twinbrother during their times at a Cape Cod camp inMassachusetts.Portions of Bachik’s proceeds are designated

to support the Armenian Children’s Milk Fund.Founded in 1989, this charitable organizationprovides soy-based infant formula and powderedmilk to sick children and poor infants in Armenia.Wagner serves as the Detroit Metro Area

Coordinator for the National Day of Prayer andas a member of the Society of Children’s Bookwriters and Illustrators.Autographed copies of the full color 32-page

book, Bachik the Birthday Kiss, can be orderedfrom the publisher, Affirming Faith. For furtherinformation visit www.affirmingfaith.com.

Centennial ofWilliam Saroyan’sBirth CelebratedIn HollandTHE HAGUE — On May 23, the centennial

of Armenian-American writer WilliamSaroyan was marked at the American BookCenter here. The Abovian Armenian CulturalAssociation had organized the seminar.A complete picture of the remarkable

Saroyan was brought to life by lectures andaudiovisual presentations on his life andwork. There was an exhibition of his originalartwork and different publications of hisbooks, among which were seven in Dutchtranslation, as well as live music with songsby Saroyan and from his era.The event was specially marked by the

announcement of the results of the ShortStory Contest launched last year by theAbovian Association on the occasion of theSaroyan Centennial.Both recent publications and second-hand

books by Saroyan were available at the semi-nar and in the American Book Center.The program started with a lecture by Nairi

Hakhverdian, before a full audience in a halldecorated entirely in the Saroyan spirit by hisoriginal artwork, posters and books. Shegave a general introduction on the biographyand work of William Saroyan showing partic-ularly how the Armenian roots had inspiredhim, how the American literature and popu-lar culture had influenced him and how hefinally brought together these two elementsin his work. She illustrated her lecture withsplendid and unique images.Visual artist Krikor Momdjian presented

Saroyan the painter as a great artist. Heplaced the paintings by Saroyan (a number ofwhich was exhibited) within the framework offamous painters, among others, JacksonPollock and Mark Tobey. He referred to thestrength of the abstract expressionism andoriental penmanship as inspiration sources.Then Hans van Leeuwen went particularly

on the autobiographical component in thework of Saroyan using in particular the storyRock Wagram from 1951 for explanation ofhis approach.Hambartsoem Sahakian recited the

Armenian translation of Saroyan’s story “TheBarber Whose Uncle Had His Head Bitten Offby a Circus Tiger.”Excitement ran high as the chairman of the

Short Story Contest jury Prof. JosWeitenberg assisted by the jury member Dr.Bernard Bichakjian went to announce theresults of the Contest. The other jury mem-bers were Hasmik and Anahit Tcharents andProf. Theo Van Lint. The 22 entries receivedwere submitted to the jury anonymously. Thejury awarded the stories “Hrayr” by AnahitAvagyan (in Armenian) on a hidden love and“Shant, Life In Diaspora” by KrikorMomdjian (in Dutch), a reflection on migra-tion and migrants, with the shared secondand third prizes. The first prize went to thestory “My Best” by Eva Demirci (in Dutch),which is, according to the jury, a convincingstory in which unuttered, underlying tensionon the Armenian Genocide between youngTurkish and Armenian girlfriends living inthe Netherlands finds a satisfactory releaseand refinement.Singer Anahit Manoukian, accompanied by

Boris Rziankin, interpreted the songs bySaroyan and from his era, such as the famoussong Come On A My House and otherAmerican songs, followed by severalArmenian songs. The seminar was concludedwith a cocktail.Abovian Armenian Cultural Association

was founded in 1984 in The Hague, TheNetherlands. On the occasion of its 25thanniversary, Diaspora Minister Hranush

see SAROYAN, page 15

AGBU Young ProfessionalsGroup Hosts Successful

Kick-Off ConcertBURGAS, Bulgaria — The AGBU Young Professionals of Burgas (YP Burgas)

recently co-sponsored a Genocide commemorative concert with the city thatbrought in more than 200 people from the local Armenian and Bulgarian com-munity.The event took place at the Burgas Concert Hall and aired on a local public

television station, TV SKAT. YP Burgas chairman Levon Manukyan served asthe director of the show, which included a Genocide commemoration play andmusical performance written by Julia Manukyan. The concert began with a per-formance of the Armenian liturgy by the city’s Armenian Chamber Choir andwas followed with poetry readings, solo piano renditions and Armenian popsongs. The script and selected texts featured music, and video images, whichcreated a performance memorial for the Armenian Genocide of 1915. A dinnerreception followed the concert.The newly-established YP Burgas is headed by Manukyan and secretary Kevork

Tanielian under the guidance and encouragement of Roupen Chavoushian, AGBUPlovdiv chairman. With 15 current members, YP Burgas is the third AGBU YoungProfessionals group in Bulgaria.Following this initial concert, the group is planning music and poetry evenings,

an Armenian arts festival and sports competitions. On June 1, the group also host-ed a ceremony for 30 kids and parents for Children’s Day, which featured games,quizzes, a talent show and refreshments.“Our goal is to bring the young Armenian professionals in Burgas together as

often as possible,” said secretary Kevork Tanielian. “We also hope to popularizeArmenian culture to the Bulgarian community.”

From left, Petko Ganev-Kaval and Levon Manukyan entertain the audience inBurgas. Julia Manukian wrote the script for YP Burgas’ performance commemoratingthe Armenian Genocide.

The Armenian Chamber Choir performs at the YP Burgas concert.

By Karine Ionesyan

YERVAN (ArmeniaNow) — The new owners ofHayFilm Studio, after purchasing it four yearsago, promised that soon the studio would bebeyond recognition with the newly-constructedbuilding instead of an old shabby studio, newheating and air systems, elevators. In short, theysaid the film studio would be equipped up to thestandard of super modern Hollywood studios.Years have already passed, yet the distin-

guishing badge of the “Armenian Hollywood”remains the dilapidated buildings and desertedterritory, while not a single movie was producedduring that time. (The only use of the studio sofar has been as premises for shooting soapoperas.)Hamo Bek-Nazaryan HayFilm studio, the

country’s only film production studio, wasfounded in 1933 and produced more than 350full-length feature films, more than 150 cartoonsand dozens of short-length films.In 2005 it was sold for 350 million drams

(about $946,000) to Director of Armenia StudioCJSC Bagrat Sargsyan, who presented himselfin the name of Cafesjian Foundation (whosefounder is Gerard Cafesjian, also known inYerevan as the owner of the Cascade complex,one of the capital’s landmarks, which itself is farbehind in anticipated completion).Besides the fact that the new owners have not

started reconstruction yet, many employees offormer HayFilm stayed unemployed. (The nameof the studio was changed into CS Films, andthis year the old name of HayFilm was reinstat-ed.)

According to a government decision, after pri-vatization, the new owners should have signedworking contracts with the employees ofHayFilm for a year. However, soon after the pri-vatization some 100 people were fired.Cameraman Karlen Hovhannisyan was one ofthem.“There was no film production during the

period we were working. They managed todestroy the laboratory of film development — ahuge territory covering 40 hectares was trans-formed into warehouses; part of it became awarehouse for Osram Lamps (produced inGermany), another part — into greenhouses orhotbeds,” Hovhannisyan says.As he mentions, only film production areas

are being used in that territory, because theyprovide profit: soap operas are being shot there.“There was a time when specialists of the film

sphere were forced to work at an Osram Lampwarehouse. So they were putting lamps intoboxes and gluing the holographic film on them,”says a person who is knowledgeable about thework of HayFilm employees but askedArmeniaNow not to disclose his identity.Ruben Gevorgyants, Art Director of HayFilms,

said in an interview with ArmeniaNow that they(new owners) had already changed all the win-dows of the building; new equipment had beenbought, which they rent out. However, he can-not say what specifically was bought.“But we do not shoot films yet, because still

preparatory works are being conducted. And Iam not sure when exactly they will be over,” headds.As for Osram Lamps, Gevorgyants said that it

is the owners’ business; they can have whateverthey want to have. In accordance with the

Armenian Government’s decision N 727-A of2005, the winner of the open bid for the prop-erty of the Hayfilm Film-Studio State Non-Commercial Organization“must carry out filmmakingand other related activitiesat least for 50 years fromthe day of getting a stateregistration.”Nairi Harutyunyan, head

of staff of State PropertyManagement Departmentattached to the ArmenianGovernment, stated thatthis is a private business,and if CS Films fulfills itsobligations, it can do what-ever it wants concerningother issues. “They presentus regular reports, and weknow that they work. Forexample, they have alreadydigitized 160 films, and134 films have been recov-ered on their initiative.They were obliged to invest10 billion drams ($27mil-lion) within 10 years; theyhave already invested 900million drams (about $2.5million) within four years,four feature films arealready shot.”Gevorg Gevorgyan, direc-

tor of the ArmenianNational Cinema CenterState Non-CommercialOrganization, contends,however, that not a single movie has been shot.“What four films are they talking about?” he

says. “Films currently cannot be produced.Sometimes they give us equipment for rent. Upto now they have only participated in the pro-duction of Albert Mkrtchyan’s ‘The Dawn of SadStreet’ film. And as for the rest of the films, theyhad no participation there. We have allocatedmoney, about five million drams (over $13,500)to them during these four years, and they gaveus equipment instead,” he says.As for the digitized films, this process must be

monitored by the Ministry of Culture and YouthAffairs. According to agreement CS Films mustdigitize 396 films within three years and presenttwo sealed versions (with corresponding techni-

cal standards certificates) of each within twomonths.The Ministry of Culture has not assessed the

digitized films, while people specialized in filmdigitization, have a negative viewpoint, sincebecause of the bad quality of digitization the col-ors initially wanted by a film’s cameramen arespoiled. HayFilm cameraman Albert Yavuryansaid as much before his death a year ago.Currently only about 20 employees are left in

CS Films, half of which are security guards, whohave not received their salaries for severalmonths.Gevorgyants does not deny this fact, saying

that he is also included in the list of thoseemployees who have not received their salariesfor four months. “There are some problems con-nected with banks, and besides, the country isin an economic crisis,” he says.


ARTS & LIVING

‘According to Tip’ Wins Big inRegional Awards

BOSTON — New England theater professionals gathered at the Boston Center for theArts Cyclorama for the annual Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Awards.Paul Boghosian of Belmont, Mass., producer of “According to Tip,” a one-man play basedon the life and times of the legendary Speaker of the House, Thomas “Tip” O’Neill, wasthe winner, along with playwright Dick Flavin, of the award for Best New Play of 2008.“According to Tip” was presented in June and July 2008 at the NewRep Theater in

Watertown. During its one-month run, the play performed to 93 percent of capacity andgenerated positive reviews. The star of the play, Ken Howard, also received the IRNE Awardfor Best Solo Performance in a Play for 2008.At the IRNE Awards, Flavin said that “Paul Boghosian made it happen for all of us, and

the creative and producing team of Rick Lombardo, Artistic Director of NewRep and direc-tor of ‘According to Tip,’ Howard, Boghosian and myself worked in remarkable harmonyto produce a first class production of one of the most notable political figures of the lastcentury.”During fall 2008, “According to Tip” also played successfully at the Stuart Street

Playhouse in Boston.The next production is planned, Boghosian said, for a limited engagement at the

Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. If that goes well, the play will move to New York Cityfor a run for the Tony Award in 2010.

From left, Paul Boghosian and Dick Flavin

The current dilapidated state of HayFilm Studio

Dream Factory or Ghost Studio? Armenian ‘Hollywood’ Far from Glamour


ARTS & LIVING

AAUUGGUUSSTT 2233 —— AAnnnnuuaall PPiiccnniicc,, AArrmmeenniiaann CChhuurrcchh ooff tthheeHHoollyy RReessuurrrreeccttiioonn,, 1910 Stanley St., New Britain (Rte. 71).Armenian and American foods — shish kebab (lamb), loshkebab, khema, tabooleh, pilaf, hot dogs, salad, etc. LiveMiddle-Eastern music by the New England Ensemble: HagopGarabedian, Roger Derderian, Carnig Mikitarian and GaryHovhanessian. Free admission and parking on churchgrounds. 12-6 p.m. For more info., call the church at (860)223-7875.

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JJAANNUUAARRYY 1166--2233,, 22001100 —— JJooiinn AArrmmeenniiaannss wwoorrllddwwiiddee oonntthhee AArrmmeenniiaann HHeerriittaaggee CCrruuiissee XXIIIIII 22001100. Sailing onSaturday. To San Juan, PR, St. Thomas and Grand CaicosIslands on the Costa Atlantica. Prices start at $679 per per-son. Contact TravelGroup International 1-866-447-0750, ext102 or 108. Westcoast: Mary Papazian (818) 407-1401;Eastcoast: Antranik Boudakian (718) 575-0142.

JJUUNNEE 2277 —— AArrmmeenniiaann YYoouutthh FFoouunnddaattiioonn 3355tthh AAnnnniivveerrssaarryyDDiinnnneerr--DDaannccee,, featuring John Berberian Ensemble. CrownePlaza, 1360 Worcester St., Natick. Cocktails, 6:30 p.m.Dinner, 7:30 p.m. Donation, $100. Silent auction. For reser-vations, call Shooshan (508) 842-3562 or Susan (781) 449-1412.

JJUUNNEE 2277 —— AArrmmeenniiaann CChhuurrcchh aatt HHyyee PPooiinntt,, WWoommeenn’’ss GGuuiillddpresents a fashion show with original designs by FarrahDerderian and fellow graduates of Laselle College. Also fea-turing Vintage Wedding Gowns. Saturday, 1-4 p.m. at theRose Ballroom, Days Hotel, 159 Pelham St., (Exit 47 off Route93), Methuen. Refreshments will be served. Donation, $20.Contact Barbara (978) 685-4945 or Bea (978) 686-3715.

JJUULLYY 1133 —— AALLMMAA’’ss FFii fftthh AAnnnnuuaall SSppoorr ttss RRaaff ffllee HHoossttss ““FFiinnaallIInnnniinngg”” RReecceeppttiioonn. The Armenian Library and Museum ofAmerica (ALMA) will host a “Final Inning” Reception prior tothe prize drawing for the fifth annual sports raffle. Raffleparticipants will have the opportunity to meet Boston Globesportswriter Tony Massarotti, meet a surprise sports celebri-ty, enjoy ballpark snacks and beverages, purchase last-minute raffle tickets and watch the prize drawing, which willbe done by Massarotti and the surprise sports celebrity, 6:30to 7:30 p.m. in ALMA’s Contemporary Art Gallery. To pur-chase raffle tickets or to see a detailed list of the packagesthat are offered this year, visit www.almainc.org.

JJUULLYY 2200--2244 —— SStt.. JJaammeess AArrmmeenniiaann CChhuurrcchh VVaaccaattiioonn BBiibblleeSScchhooooll.. The Armenian Church Around the World. 10 a.m.-2p.m. Arts and crafts, music, activities, games and sports.Learn more about the Bible and the Armenian Church bytraveling with us around the world to Jerusalem, Armenia,New York and more. For children entering grades K-5.Deadline to register is July 1. Space is limited. For registra-tion forms or info., e-mail [email protected] or callYeretzgin Natasha Aljalian at (617) 923-8990.

JJUULLYY 99 —— ““TThhee 22000088 FFiivvee--DDaayy WWaarr aanndd SShhiiffttss iinn SSeeccuurriittyyiinn tthhee SSoouutthh CCaauuccaassuuss,,”” by Dr. Gayane Novikova, at theNational Association for Armenian Studies and Research(NAASR) Center, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont. For info., con-tact (617) 489-1610 or [email protected].

AAUUGGUUSSTT 88 —— SSaavvee tthhee DDaattee.. TThhee AArrmmeenniiaann CChhuurrcchh ooffCCaappee CCoodd presents their annual dinner and dance at St.George’s Greek Cultural Hall, Route 28, Centerville. Music byGeorge Righellis. For more info., call (508) 477-1725.

AAUUGGUUSSTT 2200--3311 —— SStt.. JJaammeess AArrmmeenniiaann CChhuurrcchh PPiillggrriimmaaggeettoo tthhee HHoollyy LLaanndd.. Itinerary will include visits to Biblical andHistorical Sites, including the Armenian Quarter, St. JamesArmenian Monastery, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Tombof Christ, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Garden of Gethsemane,

Mount of Olives, Galilee, Dead Sea, Jericho, Jordan Riverand Masada. For more information about the trip, call theSt. James church office at (617) 923-8860 or [email protected].

SSEEPPTTEEMMBBEERR 11--1155 —— AArrmmeenniiaann HHeerriittaaggee TToouurrss 22000099.. Fully-escorted tour to Armenia flying with Air France fromWashington, New York and Boston. Marriott ArmeniaHotel, from $2,890 plus tax per person based on doubleoccupancy. Visiting sites: Yerevan City tour, museums, KhorVirap, Noravank, Areni, Haghbat, Sanahin, Lake Sevan,Dilijan, Echmiadzin Cathedral, Sardarabad, Tsaghkadzor,Garni and Geghart and more. Optional excursion:Karabagh tour — three days and two nights. For info, contact Maro Asatoorian, ACAA representative at (301)340-1011, e-mail [email protected] visitwww.AcaaArmenianTours.com.

SSEEPPTTEEMMBBEERR 1188 —— SStt.. JJaammeess HHyyee CCaafféé.. Delicious Armenianfood and fellowship. Children’s activities will be provided.465 Mt. Auburn St., Watertown. Friday, 6:30 p.m. Parties ofsix or more are encouraged to make reservations by callingthe St. James church office at (617) 923-8860, no later than5 p.m. on September 17.

OOCCTTOOBBEERR 33 ——SSeeccoonndd SStt.. JJaammeess PPaarriisshh RReeuunniioonn aanndd kkeeff,,hosted by the St. James ACYOA Seniors. Saturday, 8 p.m.-1a.m. at St. James Armenian Church. Charles MosesianCultural and Youth Center, Keljik Hall. 465 Mt. Auburn St.,Watertown. Featuring Bob Raphalian (oud), Leon Janikian(clarinet), Harry Bedrossian (keyboard and vocals), KennyKalajian (guitar) and Leon Manoogian (dumbeg). $25 perperson. Tables of 10 may be reserved with advance pay-ment. For tickets, contact Melanie Khederian at (617) 694-1057 or at [email protected]. All proceeds to benefitthe 2010 ACYOA General Assembly and National SportsWeekend hosted by St. James ACYOA.

OOCCTTOOBBEERR 99,, 22001100 —— 3300tthh AAnnnniivveerrssaarryy cceelleebbrraattiioonn ooff tthheeAArrmmeenniiaann IInnddeeppeennddeenntt RRaaddiioo ooff BBoossttoonn.. Please markyour calendar. Details to follow.

SSEEPPTTEEMMBBEERR 2200 —— AAnn EEvveenniinngg HHoonnoorriinngg EEddggaarr HHaaggooppiiaann iinnrreeccooggnniittiioonn of his commitment to the Armenian-Americancommunity. 4-9 p.m., 4 p.m. cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, 5p.m. program, 5:30 p.m. dinner at the Royal Park Hotel, 600East University Dr., Rochester. Patron, $250; benefactor $125;friend, $75. For more info., call Pam at (248) 646-7847.

OOCCTTOOBBEERR 1100 —— TTeekkeeyyaann CCuullttuurraall AAssssoocciiaattiioonn —— MMhheerrMMeeggeerrddcchhiiaann TThheeaattrriiccaall GGrroouupp PPrreesseennttss ““WWhhoo KKiilllleeddTThhee EEaasstteerrnn DDeennttiisstt??”” A Masquerade Party in Baronian’s1860s Istanbul. A Murder Mystery Dinner Theater preparedby Harout Chatmajian. Assyrian Orthodox Church of theVirgin Mary, 644 Paramus Road, Paramus. Saturday, at 8p.m. Donation, $60; BYOB; dress code (optional); 1860sattire and mask. For tickets, call Marie Zokian (201) 745-8850, Noushig Atamian (718) 894-5878, Maro Hajakian(201) 934-3427 or Missak Boghosian (212) 819-0097.

NNOOVVEEMMBBEERR 77 aanndd 88 —— TTeekkeeyyaann CCuullttuurraall AAssssoocciiaattiioonn MMhheerrMMeeggeerrddcchhiiaann TThheeaattrriiccaall GGrroouupp pprreesseennttss WWiillll iiaammSSaarrooyyaann’’ss ““MMyy HHeeaarrtt’’ss iinn tthhee HHiigghhllaannddss..”” A Bilingual Play inThree Parts. Original direction by Tamar Hovanissian.Reenactment directed by Harout Chatmajian. Details to follow.

NEW JERSEY

The Mirror-Spectator has a new Calendar Policy:The Mirror-Spectator is now accepting all calendaritems for free. All items may be sent to [email protected]. Due to the anticipated shortage ofspace, items may be edited to fit the space.

FLORIDA

CC AA L E N D A RL E N D A R

MASSACHUSETTS

On July 13, the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA) will host a “Final Inning”reception prior to the prize drawing for the fifth annual sports raffle, featuring BostonGlobe sportswriter Tony Massarotti, pictured here (left), from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at ALMA, inWatertown, Mass. For more info, visit www.almainc.org.

CONNECTICUT

MICHIGAN

SAROYAN, from page 13

Hakobyan sent a congratulatory letter to theAssociation.In order to mark this anniversary, the asso-

ciation is organizing an Armenian Film

Festival in cooperation with the FilmhuisDen Haag in The Hague and the GoldenApricot Film Festival in Yerevan. The festivalwill present an overview of the Armenian cin-ema and will take place from October 22, fortwo weeks in the Filmhuis Den Haag.

The association also plans to publish somebooks this year, among others a Cookbook,which will include the favorite recipes ofmembers and friends of the Association. Bythis way the diversity of cooking culture ofArmenians from different countries of origin

will be brought together.The 25th anniversary of coincides with the

200th birthday of Armenian great writer andpedagogue Khachatur Abovian. An appropri-ate tribute will also be paid to this anniver-sary later this year.

Centennial of William Saroyan’s Birth Celebrated in Holland

16

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— All submissions should include the name of a contact person and a day-time telephone number.— Deadline for submission of all articles and advertising is 12 noon onMonday of the week of publication.— Photos will be publishedwithout charge at the discretion of the editors andart director. Photos will be returned only if a self-addressed and stampedenvelope is included.— TheM-Swill publish only one article about an upcoming organizationalevent. For major special events, exceptions may be made only by specialarrangement with the editors.— Telephone numbers, ticket prices and other details (at the discretion of the edi-tors)will not be included in press releases, but should be reserved for calendar list-ings and advertisements.

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NTHE ARMENIAN

Mirror-Spectator

By Edmond Y. Azadian

ost people believe in the adage of “honestyis the best policy.” But for the architects ofthe Turkish foreign policy the motto seemsto have a different spin: “duplicity is thebest policy.”

When it comes to the relations withArmenia, Turkish leaders resort to perfect-

ly-orchestrated scenarios, raising hopes on one hand and con-tradicting or neutralizing these same hopes on the other hand.Indeed, President Abdullah Gul makes a statement leading thediplomatic world to believe that Ankara’s relations withArmenia are on the verge of a breakthrough, but then, PrimeMinister Tayyip Erdogan flies to Baku and makes a contradic-tory statement. In the meantime, the gullibility machine is atwork enticing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to announcethat she is very encouraged to see the “progress” made inArmenian-Turkish negotiations.

There was widespread optimism in Yerevan about theimpending opening of the border soon after April 24. It seemedthat such assurances were given to Armenia’s Foreign MinisterEduard Nalbandian. The reason the border issue was delayeduntil after April 24, they said, because Ankara had some domes-tic concerns: they believed that President Obama would use theword genocide, and had Ankara by then opened the border,there would be a public backlash. But President Obama did notuse the scary “G” word. April 24 came and went, but the bor-der is still closed.

Now comes the second round of duplicity. The new foreignminister of Turkey, Ahmed Davoudoglu, who is characterizedmore as an academic than a politician, has brought a new phi-losophy to Turkey’s foreign policy thinking: he is clamoring toreduce to zero all the conflicts that his country has createdover the years, and which succeeding administrations havefailed to resolve them because of their intransigence.Davoudoglu made several positive statements about his coun-try’s relations with Armenia. For example, he announced thatthe “cold war with Armenia is over.” Very recently he spokeabout normalizing relations with Armenia because, he said, thecurrent state of affairs not only is complicating Turkey’s policyin the Caucasus, but also has a negative impact on Ankara’srelations with Washington. This is an indirect reference to thepressure Obama administration is exerting on Turkey to lift theblockade on Armenia. Lack of progress on Armenian-Turkishrelations have also been hampering Washington’s arm twistingin Europe in promoting Turkey’s admission into the EuropeanUnion (EU). When asked if the “Road Map” has been placed onthe back burner after Prime Minister Erdogan’s visit to Baku,Mr. Davoudoglu responded: “Of course not, we are persistent inour negotiations with Armenia, because we are located in thesame region and we wish to pursue a constructive policy andrefrain from any action that would hurt those negotiations.”

Now comes another duplicity; after having made all thosecautious and seemingly positive remarks, Mr. Davoudoglumakes a 180-degree turn answering in the positive a questionon whether Turkey would take up the Karabagh issue at theUN Security Council, now that his country has assumed thepresidency of the Security Council. We need to be remindedthat Azerbaijan had introduced the Karabagh issue on theagenda of the UN General Assembly, where a majority vote wasgarnered with the help of Islamic countries, along the “broth-erly” republics of Georgia and Ukraine. Unlike GeneralAssembly resolutions, the Security Council resolutions are

enforceable, especially against weak countries like Armenia.In the meantime, some serious developments in Russian-

Turkish relations have become a cause for concern. Indeed, themilitary commentator of RIA Novosti, Ilya Kraminik, hasrevealed that a Turkish military delegation has been visitingRussia to fill in some military hardware orders. Turkey is plan-ning to purchase 12 MI-28 attack helicopters. The Turkisharmy’s inventory already holds 23 Cobra helicopters, boughtfrom the US. It is said that this is not the first time that Russiahas been selling arms to Turkey. A few years ago Turkey boughtfrom Russia $100 million worth of military hardware.

This dangerous business raises two questions: Turkey hasone of the strongest standing armies within the NATO struc-ture and from that position has intimidated fellow NATO mem-ber Greece, has occupied 38 percent of Cyprus, has threatenedSyria and Armenia and has indiscriminately bombed NorthernIraq. Therefore, who will benefit by arming Turkey further?While Russia has been keeping a military base in Armenia, sup-posedly to defend the latter against a potential Turkish attack,where does rearming Turkey lead? Does this process render aswindow dressing the Russian military presence in Armenia?

Therefore, Armenia finds itself in a very precarious position,because not only are its relations with the US complicated bythe Turkish factor, but also now, its relations with Moscow.

Where do all these activities figure in the Road Map, whoseexistence was announced with so much optimism on the eve ofApril 24? Unfortunately, when we sort out the rhetoric fromfact, very little remains to count as progress.

Besides, in the absence of solid information from officialsources, most of the speculations are based on publishedreports in the Turkish news media, which is notoriously unre-liable.

According to the Turkish news media, the “Road Map” iscomposed of the following major components: Turkey will liftborder restrictions in stages, based on progress made in thenegotiations; formal diplomatic relations will be establishedbetween the two countries; a joint committee to study all theoutstanding issues, including the Genocide issue will beformed, and Armenia will recognize Turkey’s current borderand reaffirm its adherence to the Kars Treaty of 1921.

If this is truly the Road Map, it is certainly a non-starter forall the Armenians. If there is more in the Road Map than whatthe Turkish media presents, then what is it?

These are truly troubling questions.By flying all these balloons Turkey had some objectives to

achieve and probably it has already achieved them, without giv-ing in on any concrete issue. The EU observer, Peter Semneby,in the Southern Caucasus believes that Ankara has made a U-turn in its negotiations with Armenia. His announcement toTurkish Kanal-D states that domestic concerns and relationswith Azerbaijan have impacted Turkey’s negotiations withArmenia negatively.

In fact, Turkey benefited from those trial balloons by pro-moting its “stability and cooperation platform in theCaucasus,” by being elected as a non-permanent member of theUN Security Council, by convincing President Obama thatusing the “G” word by him would complicate negotiations withArmenia.

Unfortunately, Turkey won on all counts by fooling the inter-national community. After scoring victory on all these short-term goals, Ankara is emboldened to play its hand on long-termgoals as well. One of those goals remains its ambitions to jointhe European Union and Ankara believes the same tactics mayopen the gates of Europe too. Let’s wait and see.

In the meantime, the Road Map seems to have become aRoad Block.

Armenia-Turkey Relations:Road Map or Roadblock?

COMMENTARY

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COMMENTARY

By Baidzig Kalaydjian

Have you ever been fortunate enough to lis-ten to gypsy artists, who tell the story of theirlife in a unique style and interpret the song ofthe earth by lightly strumming their stringinstruments?

With deep feelings, I relished the supplica-tion of their enamored soul, which sometimeshad the velvety touch of love and, at othertimes, extolled the pain from the loss of pater-nal soil. That day, the old gypsy wasn’t part ofhis band. Alone, he was anxiously playing theguitar inherited from his father. He had exert-ed himself such that torment was visible on hisface, and the longing for his paternal soil wasevident in his soul.

That day, at that moment, he wished to per-form his best, to make it the best of all his per-formances to date. He knew that the days ofhis life were numbered. He knew that therewasn’t a musician among all the gypsies whowas worthy of replacing him. Those listeningto him, the pregnant young gypsy women, alsoshared his distress.

Therefore, the gypsies’ hope was on thosesoon to be born. While still in their mother’swomb, they had to hear the master’s music.Hear and be inspired by it. Hear it and comeinto the world. Hear and play it. Hear and takethe place of the old guitarist.

The gypsy believes in this.Forty years ago, we would have interpreted

this belief as naiveté and perhaps a benign yetsarcastic smile would have appeared on ourfaces. In our scheme of things, it would havebeen incomprehensible to logically accept afetus as an individual entity, as a being havingdeveloped into a being that could feel us.However, in these past 40 years, science cameforth and proved the gypsies correct in theirwisdom, albeit unformulated and unexplained,

accepted rather on the basis of deeply felt life’sexperience. Yes, even a fetus is an individualentity. Each medical, psychological and biolog-ical discovery emerged to prove this and revo-lutionize our perceptions about that being,which is a part of our body and which one daywill be born and become an individual.

Our relations with it start as early as the firstday of conception. We communicate with it. Itdevelops according to the quality of the rela-tionship we have with it. It feels us, it sharesour joy. Its little heart beats in harmony withour feelings.

Our communication is a transmission. Thetransmission is a responsibility, which will con-tinue anew and in a conscious manner afterbirth. Our responsibility is great, very great,and even definitive.

I won’t be exaggerating if I say that espe-cially during the first six or seven years of life,a child’s future destiny is conditioned by thequality of what we have transmitted.

From the vocabulary used by us, our feel-ings and sensations, our ability to judge, ourdisposition, our perception of the world and,finally, the most important thing being the sin-cerity shown by us toward love and thestrength to live our love.

No educational, instructional or pedagogicalinnovation has had as much decisive signifi-cance in the formation of a child as a personas what is achieved in the natural course ofparent-child interrelations.

This is the conviction arrived at even by sci-entists, who have devoted entire careers to thisfield.

As parents, what we transmit will prepareour children for life, the external world, alsoabroad. In this fast-moving, ever-changingworld, they must present themselves as distinctpersons. They must be ready to perceive notonly the world, but also the place of theArmenians and Armenia in that world.

As Armenians, they must give their own

peculiar and independent interpretation to life— without an inferiority complex and withoutan insular mentality.

Here is where our history, our past, our lifeexperience, with its inimitable richness, mustpresent itself before them, and be interpretedwith all its variety. That history, as a preciousfactor, must shape the personal character ofour children. Our life experience, without exag-geration, must shed light to create a moreaccurate perception of the realities of theworld.

Our past, whose experience still hasn’t beenfully evaluated, is not a series of past eventshaving become anachronistic. Our history is atreasury full of events leading to constructive,rich conclusions for all of mankind.

As an example of these generalizations, atthis time when the 94th anniversary of theArmenian Genocide is being commemorated, Ishall cite merely the example of the ingeniousPolish lawyer Raphael Lemkin. It was R.Lemkin who, in 1933, first used the word“genocide.” As you know, the word “genocide”is composed of the Greek word “gen” (race,nation) and the Latin word “cide” (to kill). Ona legal basis, he mentioned crimes that hadbeen committed above and beyond war crimes– crimes committed against a peaceful popula-tion; premeditated crimes; planned crimes;crimes committed by states, which were com-mitted against national groups and minorities.

For the definition of the word “genocide,”for his conceptions, Raphael Lemkin hadbefore him the case of the Armenian Genocide,having been carried out by the Union andProgress Party, which went unpunished.

The Nuremberg Trials, which punishedthose responsible for the Holocaust, took placeon the basis of his legal formula in 1945.During the course of these trials as well, therewas discussion of the Armenian Genocide,whose perpetrators went unpunished. It was atthese trials that sentences were handed down

on the Nazi war criminals that were principal-ly responsible for the genocide of the Jews,Gypsies and Slavs. The distinction “crimeagainst peace and humanity” also entered theformula of the understanding of “war crimi-nal.” The types of that crime were diverse,such as genocide, murder of culture, language,urbicide, verbicide, etc. Thus, the question ofgenocide not only entered the agenda of allphilanthropic organizations but also becamethe object of specialized studies of certain sci-ences and, with that, the formation of genocidescholarship proceeded rapidly.

Each April 24 comes to remind us of thathorrific day of crime, when hundreds of thetop Armenian intellectuals were taken awayfrom their homes and, with heads bowed, theysilently murmured the prayer deep in theirsoul. Today, after the passage of 94 years, whodoesn’t hear the voice of our martyrs of April24? The desert sands of Der Zor attest thattheir doleful eulogies still resound, as do the“Andoonies” [type of ancient popular melodi-ous song, largely about émigrés or weddings—tr.] of Komitas, and such monumental pieces ofliterature as Siamanto’s “I wish to die bysinging….” The prayers uttered by theArmenians still flutter in the burning desert;their echoes reach us and call us to them, tolight candles before the altars, in the sandsmixed with their remains, and in the depths ofour souls.

It is only in this way that we will be able totransport the remains of our martyrs to thesoft ancestral soil. Leaning over their burialmound, it is only then that we will whisper“May you rest in peace…”

Finally, our appeal to universal mankind isnot for mercy and justice. The Calvary experi-enced by our parents is man’s indifferencetoward man. Human indifference was commit-ted with regard to the crime. Furthermore,this indifference is man’s denial by man him-self.

These declarations of ours would be self-con-solation for the weak, if the 20th centuryhadn‘t been the most tragic one in world his-tory. The deaths of more than 100 million peo-ple were recorded in the 20th century.Horrible things happened and are continuingto happen practically everywhere in the world.The annals of the 20th century contain 35genocides and genocidal acts.

Today, 94 years later, we admit that wedeeply hear the soulful cries of our genocidemartyrs…then, with deep conviction and sub-lime awareness of responsibility, let us openour souls to the present imperative posed byour homeland and piously bow before the mil-lions of our 1915 martyrs. Otherwise we willhave condemned them to death for a secondtime. Furthermore, if we don’t take control ofour reborn homeland, if we don’t feel proud ofour Armenian identity, if the Armenian spiritdoesn’t flutter in Armenian homes, and ifArmenian songs and verses don’t resound inour souls, then we shall consciously destroythe relics of our martyrs’ remains on the sandyroad of exile.

It is the responsibility of our generation andthe ones to follow to spread the word, toexplain that the very destiny of mankind, aswell, depends on the respect to be showntoward the fate of the Armenian children killedin 1915 on the deportation route fromSebastia to Malatia, the Armenian grandmoth-ers who died of starvation under the scorchingsun in the deserts of Der Zor; on the properappreciation of that fate, and the restitution ofjustice.

We and the generations succeeding us shallshout this matter in the face of indifference.We shall remind mankind that the pursuit ofour cause has no connection whatsoever withrevenge. Our cause of humanizing man is astruggle being waged in the pursuit of justiceand for its triumph. Our cause of humanizingman is a struggle being waged for the triumphof the voice of conscience.

Our struggle is the struggle of reality.

(This article, translated by Aris G. Sevag,was first published in the April 24 issue of

the Beirut daily Zartonk.)


COMMENTARY

Silverglate Is Just Partof Turkish DenialMachination

To the Editor:The machinations on behalf of Turkey

to deny the Armenian Genocide, repre-sented by the lawsuit filed by HarveySilverglate, et. al., which sought to intro-duce Turkish propaganda into theMassachusetts Department of Educationcurriculum guidelines, is a shamelessattempt to cast doubt on a well-docu-mented tragedy that fits all of the defini-tions of genocide.

I’d have more respect for Mr.Silverglate’s sincerity if he were also outthere defending the free-speech rights ofHolocaust deniers. These people are takingadvantage of the fact that there isn’t visualevidence of this crime as there is for theholocaust. No allied armies came to uncov-er the killing fields of the Armenians. TheJewish people are granted feelings of uni-versal sympathy for the Holocaust, which isas it should be. But where is the same forthe Armenian people? The Armenian vic-tims had to wander aimlessly over long dis-tances while in danger of being hacked topieces by swords and axes or suffering aslow death by starvation.

The Armenian community of the worldnot only has to endure the pain of know-ing what happened to its forebears, butalso the denial of expiation from the per-petrator as well as that gratuitously addedby the likes of the Silverglates of theworld.

— Berge Tatian(This letter had been originally sent to

To the Editor:Your correspondent Edmund Azadian must

be applauded for the consistently balancedopinions on issues that face Armenians today.He has not been a member of the mob tolynch President Obama because he would notuse the “G” word while in Ankara this pastApril.

Azadian supported, as sufficient, his state-ment of his support for the Armenians whichhas not diminished. It seems that it might bemore productive to stop waving a red flag in theface of the Turkish bull. Certainly the results ofthis intransigent has brought nothing but doom

to Turkish-Armenian relations, and these rela-tionships, though apparently irrelevant to manyWestern Armenians, are vital to the well beingof the people in Armenia.

Armenia is not doing too well; part of theproblem is the level of poverty that much of thecountry is in. This can be made better by tradewith Turkey. Ask the Turks to apologize for themany hundreds of thousands of deaths, and goahead with the less than satisfying response,and then forge trade relationships. Frankly; I’dlike to see more soccer games.

–Prof. John A. C GreppinCleveland State University

Azadian Is Taking Prudent Stance toward Obama

To the Editor:At this point it should be blatantly obvious

to those of us in the Armenian communitythat politicians, businessmen — and yes evenself-proclaimed human rights activists —embrace expediency over morals and ethicsas their policy of choice. About four or fiveyears ago at an AAA [Armenian Assembly ofAmerica] briefing in New Jersey, as well as ina public letter, I proposed that a committee ofhigh-level businessmen be organized with thesole purpose of enticing big business toArmenia. I suggested that the benefits of thiswould be two-fold, the first being the obviouscreation of jobs. Since business requires sta-bility in the regions where it is established,not to mention the need to be looked uponwith favor by the host government, the sec-ond benefit would be that these companies,(with deep pockets), would lobby for ouragenda in Washington. (Wouldn’t it be in theinterest of businesses with a footprint inArmenia to get Turkey to lift the blockade?)Since Armenia doesn’t have natural resources

and since we can’t depend on the majority ofpoliticians taking the moral high road wehave to create the need. Of course this sug-gestion fell on deaf ears only to read in theJune 20 issue of the Mirror-Spectator that“Companies are lobbying (quietly) onArmenian Genocide Bill” (against Armenia).

Since 42 states officially recognize theArmenian Genocide, my second suggestion wasto concentrate on getting all 50 states to do so.If that happens, then the federal government,and especially the executive branch, which issupposed to represent all of the people, looksabsurd if it too doesn’t officially recognize theGenocide. We can’t continue to have tunnelvision with respect to the promotion ofGenocide recognition or other aspects ofArmenia’s agenda since these efforts haven’tworked. The organization of a “think tank”including non-Armenians dedicated to formulat-ing strategy is another thought. Thinking out ofthe box is long overdue.

— Adrienne AlexanianNew York City

Armenians Need to Think out of the BoxLETTERS

Transmit Our History to the Next Generations


COMMENTARY

By Vartkes Sinanian

I was a little boy living in Nicosia, the capital of the Island of Cyprus. Hagop Oshagan, thefamous Armenian novelist and literary critic, was a close friend of my father and was a fre-quent visitor to our house. At that time Oshagan was working on his novel Remnants, whichwas based on the Armenian deportations and massacres in the Ottoman Turkish Empire.Oshagan wanted to include my mother’s ordeal during the Smyrna holocaust but my moth-er tearfully resisted his pleas. At one point Oshagan, turning to my father, remarked that theenormity of the crime perpetrated by the Turks was so over-whelming that he doubted if ever anyone would have thecourage to attempt to depict that catastrophe of such mag-nitude with all its disastrous consequences.

Gregoris Balakian’s Armenian Golgotha, translatedfrom the original Armenian to English by his grand-nephew Peter Balakian, with Aris Sevag, comes as theclosest documentation of that darkest period in our peo-ple’s history. It opens a window into a disturbing countryduring World War I, when the world was oblivious to thetragedy unfolding in the Ottoman Turkish Empire. It isalso a strong reminder of a terribly frightening chapter ofour bloody history. The memoir is a comprehensiveaccount of the killing fields and the bloodbath that fol-lowed as well as the systematic ethnic cleansing of theArmenian population as seen and miraculously enduredby a victim who was arrested and exiled on that dreadfulnight of April 24, 1915, in Constantinople along withhundreds of intellectuals and clergy.

Among those well-known intellectuals who were arrestedthat fateful night were Krikor Zohrab, Vartkes, DanielVaroujan and Siamanto, who were later murdered .Hundreds of thousands of Armenians were wiped out —Anatolia became a nightmare landscape littered with humanskulls and limbs of men, women and children. This diaboli-cal plan was the work of the Interior Minister Talaat and hishenchmen Enver, Jemal and Behaeddin Shakir. The onceprosperous and vibrant Armenian population of the townsand villages were deported to Der Zor, “that graveyard with-out tombstones,” in the north of Syria. “The Ittihad gov-ernment had caught us in one net in a single night,” hewrites, “We move towards our graves, nameless andunknown to be buried forever.”

Gregoris Balakian was born in l876. He was one of theoutstanding clergymen of his generation. Educated atSanasarian College in Erzerum, he later went to Germanyfor higher studies. He was ordained a priest and served as an emissary of the Holy See inEurope. After surviving the Armenian Genocide, he was elected prelate of Marseilles in thesouth of France until his death in l934. His escape through the killing fields in disguise asa German is a suspenseful narrative, which he wrote as a fugitive in a vineyard in Cilicia .

Unfortunately the Armenian leadership considered the Ittihad government as their ideo-

logical comrades who had come with the ultimate aim of democratizing the entire country.They were unaware of the murderous plan which was unfolding around them. Writing aboutKhachadour Maloumian (Agnouni) the political leader who was one of the early victims, hewrites “The unfortunate Agnouni, being an idealistic and honorable man, could not com-prehend how Talaat could plot against him cynically — the same Talaat whom he had shel-tered in order to save Talaat’s life while risking his own during the counter revolution.”

Yet another incident, which comes to our mind, is the case of the prominent member ofthe Turkish parliament Krikor Zohrab who expressed disbelief about Talaat’s hand in hisarrest. Zohrab was at Talaat’s home the night before his arrest playing cards with him andto Zohrab’s astonishment, Talaat had kissed him goodnight before departing. Even when the

death’s shadow was chasing them they were naiveof the danger lurking around them. Talaat hadissued an order, which precisely said, “It is neces-sary to eradicate the Armenians. For if 1,000Armenians are left alive by some misfortune,before long they will become 100,000 and againthey will be trouble for the Turkish government.”Talaat had a mission to accomplish in a mostheinous way.

Balakian is witness to the hundreds of thou-sands of his countrymen sent by carts and by footto the scorching Syrian desert to be raped, decap-itated and die from hunger and thirst. He writes“Hundreds of chetes (irregulars) attacked from allsides, cutting and hacking off legs and arms withaxes and hatchets, ripping them off partly orentirely and crushing heads with rocks. Then thebodies were thrown half alive, or in the throes ofdeath into prepared ditches and covered withlime. Those were partly sticking out of the dirtand the lime made the heavenly arches resoundwith their cries of agony; more dirt was poured onthem until they were buried alive.” It is the hor-rific story of blood and tears, death and mourningall over. It is mind-numbing in its brutality andsavagery. It reminds us of Dante Alighieri’s classicInferno — the journey through different levels ofhell encountering all forms of chaos in each,which precisely reflects our people’s Golgotha. Inthe Inferno, though the sinner reaps what hesows while in our case the “open wound” is leftunhealed.

Armenian Golgotha is a memoir of horror andendurance. About a century later our grief andoutrage have not diminished and we are so trau-matized that the past is still very present in our

lives. It reveals the enduring power of the Armenian people and its faith in resurrection evenunder critical circumstances. It is also the ultimate rebuke to those who deny the ArmenianGenocide.

(Vartkes Sinanian lives in Montrose, Calif.)

Armenian Golgotha Captures True Horrors of the Genocide

The Pro-West Coalition’sNarrow Win in Beirut Isfirst Indication US presi-dent’s Middle EastMessage Being Heard

By Simon Tisdall

Foreign policy experts and commenta-tors have been trying to elucidate an“Obama doctrine” ever since the new USpresident took office. Lebanon’s surpriseelection result, in which a pro-westerncoalition narrowly triumphed, suggeststhese analysts have got things the wrongway round. Whatever the theory may be,the Beirut turnabout is the first, circum-stantial evidence of a tangible “Obamaeffect” in the Middle East. It could becatching.

It would be fanciful to claim that Obama’sbridge-building speech to the Muslim worldin Cairo last week, attractive though it was,crucially influenced Lebanese voters. But thecalmer, unconfrontational tone adopted byWashington on Middle East issues sinceGeorge Bush trudged home to Texas appears

to have struck a chord in a country that wasteetering on the brink of sectarian civil warone year ago.

Pre-election visits by Hillary Clinton, theUS secretary of state, and Joe Biden, theUS vice-president, underscored the impor-tance that Obama attached to the poll.Some resented these interventions asunwarranted interference. But manyLebanese, particularly the nearly 40% ofthe population that is Christian, seem tohave approved of Washington’s increasedengagement; and to have heard its implicitmessage that a vote for Hezbollah and itsallies would be a backwards step.

That refrain was underscored by exag-gerated claims that Hezbollah and itsTehran backers, if further empowered,would turn Lebanon into a second Gaza.And if that was not enough, an eve-of-polldemarche by Boutros Sfeir, spiritual leaderof the country’s Maronite Christians, mayhave done the trick. He warned the coun-try was in danger. It was clear from whomhe believed the danger emanated.

By giving the nod to Saad Hariri and his14 March bloc of Sunni Muslim, Druze andChristian parties, which won 71 parlia-mentary seats against 57 for the opposi-tion, Lebanon has provided Obama withhis first significant regional policy success.The result is a setback for Iran, which hassought enhanced influence via Hezbollah.

And it confirmed Lebanon’s 2005 rejectionof Syria as the master manipulator of itsaffairs, confounding suggestions thatDamascus was inching back.

The results are also a boost for western-leaning Arab regimes, such as Egypt andSaudi Arabia that helped prevent Lebanonfalling into the abyss after the assassina-tion of Hariri’s father, the former PrimeMinister Rafiq Hariri, and the subsequent,disastrous Hezbollah-Israel war of 2006.Saudi Arabia’s rapprochement with Syria,and a parallel warming of ties betweenSyria and the US, will be all the easier topursue as a result of Sunday’s election.

In contrast, the rightwing Israeli govern-ment of Binyamin Netanyahu may view thevote with ambivalence. The prospect of thenon-ideological Hariri as Lebanon’s primeminister, a likely though not yet certainoutcome, must be welcome in Tel Aviv. Butthis dash to moderation robs Israel’sfavorite contemporary narrative – the inex-orable, region-wide advance of an existen-tially threatening, nuclear armed Iran – ofsome of its power to alarm.

Peace suddenly breaking out is not partof the story as told by Netanyahu, notwhile the mullahs march unchecked. ThePalestinians know this only too well.

Visiting London earlier this year, Haririspoke of “four fateful years” that had fol-lowed his father’s murder culminating in

this month’s “historic” election. “We aredetermined to end the sectarian violence.We want to put the years of turmoil behindus,” he said. This could be achieved by con-tinuing the dialogue with Hezbollah andother opposition groups that produced aunity government last year. Notingincreased US engagement, he urged theEU to do more.

Hariri will need all the help he can get,for power-sharing is only one of manydaunting challenges. His ally, WalidJumblatt, the veteran Druze leader, saidthis week that Hezbollah should be includ-ed in a new unity government but that theveto power it gained in last year’s compro-mise should not be renewed. The Shiaparty will fiercely resist any attempt toreduce its influence, just as it continues toresist demands that it disarm.

Massive economic difficulties, the uncer-tain impact of the international tribunalinvestigating Rafiq Hariri’s murder, prob-lems with Palestinian factions and Sunnimilitants linked to al-Qaeda and border dis-putes with Israel and Syria also awaitLebanon’s new leaders. None of this will besorted out quickly if at all.

But Hariri has a powerful friend. Havinggot the result he wanted, Obama will help.And who knows? It’s possible that watch-ing Iranians will be encouraged in theirturn to go out and vote for reformist, west-friendly candidates in Friday’s presidentialelection. Lebanon may be just the begin-ning of the “Obama effect.”

(This article originally appeared in theGuardian on June 8.)

Lebanon Feels the Obama Effect

By Ilya Kramnik

A Turkish military delegation has come toRussia to discuss the possible acquisition of Mi-28 attack helicopters. This is not the first timethe two countries have discussed cooperation.

In the 1970s and the early 1980s, Turkeybought 32 used AH-1P/S Cobra attack heli-copters in the United States and later upgradedthem to the AH-1F specifications. The Turkisharmy still has 23 AH-1P/S Cobras.

However, Turkish military authorities startedthinking about replacing them in the mid-1990s.

During the subsequent tender they considered

several models of combat helicopters, including theKa-50-2 Erdogan, a version of the Russian Ka-50Black Shark developed by Russia and Israel forTurkey. Unlike the Ka-50 where the pilots sit side-by-side, the seats in the Erdogan are placed in tan-dem as in the US Cobra chopper.

However, Turkey did not choose the Kamovhelicopter for political reasons, such as growing

US influence in Turkey and, conversely, thelack of Russian influence. Also, Russia couldnot then guarantee the timely production ofthe required number of new helicopters or post-sale service. Lastly, the Ka-50 was not mass-pro-duced even for the Russian army at that time.

An updated Cobra with new weapons and equip-ment was the most probable winner in the Turkishtender, but the contract was eventually awarded toa European producer, the Anglo-ItalianAgustaWestland, which proudly proclaims to be “atotal rotorcraft capability provider.”

AgustaWestland, announced as the winning bid-der in March 2007, pledged to assemble 50 T129prototypes in Turkey. However, the first T129 willbe rolled out only in 2015, whereas Turkey needschoppers now to fight Kurdish militants.

The purchase of seven used AH-1WSuperCobras in 2008 has not solved the prob-lem either. Turkey needs modern attack heli-copters to fill the gap until 2015 and for sever-al more years while its pilots learn to fly theT129 choppers.

As a result, Turkey has decided to purchaseRussian machines. It has opted for the Mi-28NNight Hunter, which, unlike the Ka-50, hasbeen mass-produced since the 1990s and is sup-plied to the Russian Armed Forces.

Turkey may buy between 12 and 32 helicopterswithin two or three years. It is unclear if it wants thechoppers with or without top-mounted radar, whichis an extremely expensive option.

The Turkish military had once considered buyingthe Mi-24 Crocodile, which has several commonstructural elements with the Mi-28. The Mi-17 mul-tirole helicopter is currently used in Turkey for mil-itary, police and civilian purposes.

Significantly, the Mil helicopters have foryears been used in similar terrain in theCaucasus, Central Asia and the Middle East.Moreover, Russia’s influence and relations withTurkey have grown dramatically and many con-tradictions in bilateral ties have been smoothedover since the 1990s.

Therefore, Turkey could buy the Mi-28,whose track record over the past 20 years andthe initial results of its combat use show thatthis highly versatile helicopter could remain oncombat duty even after the T129 assemblystart-up in Turkey.

And the final touch: the protection and com-bat payload specifications of the T129 arebelow those of the Mi-28.

(This opinion piece by RIA Novosti military commentator Ilya Kramnik

was published in June.)


COMMENTARY

Israel’s New Ambassador to the USCalls Armenian Killings “Genocide”

Israel’s new ambassador to the United States, Michael B.Oren, is a firm believer in the veracity of the ArmenianGenocide, despite his government’s denialist position on thisissue.

Prior to his ambassadorial appointment, Oren repeatedlyconfirmed the facts of the Armenian Genocide in his writings.In the May 10, 2007 issue of the New York Review of Books,he wrote a highly positive review of Taner Akçam’s book: AShameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question ofTurkish Responsibility. The review was titled: “The MassMurder They Still Deny.”

In his most recent book, Power, Faith and Fantasy, Orenmade dozens of references to Armenia and Armenians, includ-ing lengthy heart-wrenching descriptions of the mass killingsbefore and during the Armenian Genocide. Here are some ofthe most striking quotations from his book:

“The buildup of Ottoman oppression and Armeniananger erupted finally in the spring of 1894, when Turkishtroops set out to crush a local rebellion, but then went onto raze entire villages and slaughter all of their inhabi-tants…. Some 200,000 Armenians died — 20 percent of thepopulation — and a million homes were ransacked.‘Armenian holocaust,’ cried a New York Times headline in

September 1895, employing the word that would laterbecome synonymous with genocide.”

Oren then went on to establish that more than a centuryago, similar to today’s acrimonious political tug-of-war over thegenocide recognition issue, the Armenian atrocities seriouslyaffected US-Turkish relations. He wrote: “Maintaining amica-bility with Turkey would prove complicated, however, becauseties between the United States and the Porte [Sultan] hadlong been frayed. The perennial source of friction was theoppression of Armenian Christians. Though a band of mod-ernizing Young Turks, many of them graduates of RobertsCollege, had achieved power in Istanbul in 1908 and promisedequal rights for all of the empire’s citizens, barely a yearpassed before the slaughter of Armenians resumed. Some thir-ty thousand of them were butchered by Turkish troops insouth-central Anatolia.”

In a section titled, “The most horrible crime in human his-tory,” Oren wrote: “The first reports, from December 1914,told of anti-Christian pogroms in Bitlis, in eastern Turkey, andthe hanging of hundreds of Armenians in the streets ofErzerum. Armenian men between the ages of twenty and sixtywere being conscripted into forced-labor battalions, buildingroads, and hauling supplies for the Turkish army. The follow-ing month, after their defeat by Russian forces in theCaucasus, Turkish troops salved their humiliation by pillagingArmenian towns and executing their Armenian laborers. In theearly spring, Turkish soldiers laid siege to the Armenian cityof Van in eastern Anatolia and began the first of innumerablemass deportations. The slaughter then raged westward toIstanbul, where, on April 24, security forces arrested andhanged some 250 Armenian leaders and torched Armenianneighborhoods. Interior Minister Talaat Pasha informed theArmenian Patriarch that ‘there was no room for Christians inTurkey’ and advised him and his parishioners ‘to clear out ofthe country.’”

Oren then exposed Turkey’s attempts to falsify history by

pointing out that: “Most contemporary observers agree thatthe massacres were scarcely connected to the war, but ratherrepresented a systematically planned and executed program toeliminate an entire people. Indeed, foreshadowing the Nazigenocide of the Jews twenty-five years later, Turkish soldiersherded entire Armenian villages into freezing rivers, incinerat-ed them in burning churches, or simply marched them into thedeserts and abandoned them to die of thirst…. By the end ofsummer, an estimated 800,000 Armenians had been killed andcountless others forcibly converted to Islam.”

After citing numerous eyewitness accounts of the masskillings, Oren concluded: “In all, as many as 1.5 millionArmenians were killed in a genocide that the Turkish govern-ment would never acknowledge, much less regret.”

While it is true that Michael Oren published this book beforehis assignment as Ambassador to Washington, his compellingposition on the Armenian Genocide would hopefully make himrefrain from following the footsteps of his predecessors whoshamefully lobbied against the congressional resolution onthis issue.

The appointment of a staunch supporter of the truth of theArmenian Genocide as Israel’s Ambassador to Washingtoncomes on the heels of a serious rift between Turkey and Israelfollowing the Gaza war earlier this year. On that occasion,there were major manifestations of anti-Semitic statementsand acts throughout Turkey, including anti-Israeli remarks byTurkish Prime Minister Reçep Erdogan. His insulting words toIsrael’s President Shimon Peres in Davos, Switzerland, antag-onized Israelis and Jews worldwide. Even though Israel down-played Erdogan’s offensive words, they did a lasting damage toIsraeli-Turkish relations.

The combination of an Israeli government that is less sym-pathetic of Turkey and the presence of Israel’s Ambassador inWashington who is a firm believer in the facts of the ArmenianGenocide may facilitate the passage of the pending congres-sional resolution on the Armenian Genocide.

My TurnBy Harut Sassounian

By Nubar Dorian

PRINCETON, N.J. — There was little public fanfare, upon the retire-ment of Dr. Avedis Khachadurian of Princeton. Hackensack Universityof Medicine and Dentistry had established a chair in his honor inOctober 2008. As a result, congratulations poured in from all acrossthe medical world. Among them was a letter dated October 28, 2008,signed by Doctors Michael S. Brown and Joseph L. Goldstein, ofSouthwestern Medical Center, Department of Molecular Genetics,who shared the Nobel Prize in 1985. It states in part, “Your insight-ful and groundbreaking studies in the genetics of homozygous famil-ial hypercholesterolemia (FH) in Lebanon were of primary importancein attracting us to this field.” They continue to tell him, “We are for-ever grateful that your genetic insights were correct, without [which]the complete defect in fibroblasts would never have been revealed.”

It is very interesting and should gladden all Armenians across theworld to know that an abstract was published on the “objectivity” ofleading scientists in light of their citation of other people’s work whenthey are presenting their own work. It goes on further to state “As anillustrative example of subjective citation, we show evidence thatKhachadurian was a major contributor to the discoveries which led tothe diagnosis and mechanism of FH.” The evidence indicates thatKhachadurian at least should have shared the Nobel Prize in 1985.

His remarkable and inspiring journey began in Beirut, Lebanon.After graduating from the American University of Beirut in 1957, hechose as his specialty biochemistry and metabolism and for two yearsattended Joslin Clinic and Harvard Medical School. Returning toBeirut, he was appointed assistant professor of biochemistry andinternal medicine; then, associate professor from 1959 through 1971,when he became professor of biochemistry. While burdened with allthe duties and responsibilities of his position, he was invited to lec-ture at medical schools and medical conferences in the Middle Eastand Europe.

Khachadurian’s fame and name in his field, and his passionatedesire to do research, finally landed him in the US. At the invitationof the Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago, he accept-ed the position of professor of pediatrics and director of the ClinicalCenter Northwestern University McGaw Medical Center andChildren’s Memorial Hospital. From 1972 through 1973 he becameconsultant, Atherosclerosis Program, University of Chicago’s Pritzker

School of Medicine. During all this time, Khachadurian was delugedwith invitations for lectures and conferences and traveled worldwideto impart his knowledge and results of his research.

As teaching and research had become his passion, he could not pass upthe opportunity offered to him and accepted to become a faculty member,graduate program in biochemistry, Rutgers University-University ofMedicine and Chief, Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Nutrition,Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ. AvedisKhachadurian and his charming wife, Lora, and their two daughters movedto Princeton, where they reside presently.

The medical world knows that grants come only to thoseresearchers who experience inevitable pain and suffering in solitude,know disappointment, despair and defeat but never quit. They want tofight sickness, suffering and pain. Khachadurian was such a distin-guished physician-researcher-teacher. The grant history of AvedisKhachadurian — more than $3,000,000 — as a principal investigator,lists among them such world-famous institutions and companies asJohnson and Johnson, Merck, Squibb, Warner Lambert, Bristol-MyersSquibb, Bayer and Novart along with the American Heart Association,National Institute of Health, Cardiovascular Research Institute,Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, just to name a few. As a co-principalinvestigator, he received more than $5,000,000 from all across themedical world in search of new and better ways to heal and help.

In addition to teaching and doing research, he miraculously foundtime to write hundreds of articles, monographs, abstracts and uponinvitation, submitted chapters for medical books used to this day. Hestill, even after his retirement, serves on the Board of AmericanDiabetes Association and continues to serve on many national andregional assignments such as the Governor’s Commission onDiabetes, Research Peer Review Committee, American HeartAssociation and serves on the editorial boards of Journal of BiologicalChemistry, Journal of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism.

Almost everything we do showcases us and that is how image is made.Avedis Khachadurian is not part of the culture of our times bound

by its conventional superficialities. For him, compromise is simply jus-tified only when what is to be gained is of greater importance thanwhat is lost in the compromising. All of his colleagues and friendsrespect and love him not only for his brilliant mind, but also for hisrefusal to be a slave to worldly praise, influence, power and fame.Khachadurian is truly the finest example for our children who wishto pursue the noble profession of healing the sick.

(Nubar Dorian resides in Cliffside Park, NJ.)

Dr. Avedis Khachadurian Should Have Shared Nobel Prize

Turkey to Buy Russian Night Hunter Helicopters

STEPANAKERT(Institute for War andPeace Reporting) —With no sign ofKarabagh stand-off being resolved, refugees willremain in legal and economic limbo, their livesfrozen by the frozen conflict.

Some 15 years have passed since a ceasefirewas signed in the Nagorno Karabagh conflict,yet the people forced out of their homes by thefighting have still not found peace. They stillsuffer from homesickness, poverty, discomfortand legal difficulties.

Refugees in Armenia, Azerbaijan andKarabagh “a majority-Armenian territory thatbroke free of Azeri control with the collapse ofthe Soviet Union, and unilaterally declared inde-pendence” have said they feel abandoned in thestudent hostels, old hotels, schools and officesthey now call home.

“Refugees today would like to forget that theyare refugees, but this does not happen. What welived through is unforgettable,” said SarasarSarian, an Armenian from Baku now living inKarabagh.

Ethnic tensions between Armenians andAzeris boiled over in the late 1980s, when theKarabagh Armenians petitioned Moscow todetach their region from Azerbaijan and cede itto Armenia. Reciprocal demonstrations in Bakuturned violent, leading to violence in Karabaghand Armenia. Riots between the two communi-ties forced hundreds of thousands of civilians toflee each others’ countries, although at thattime they were all citizens of the Soviet Union.

With independence in 1991 came war. At theceasefire in May 1994, Armenian forces wereoccupying 14 per cent of Azerbaijan proper. Atleast 800,000 Azeris had fled to Azerbaijanfrom Armenia and parts of their own countryseeking safety.

Since the war is not technically over, thesepeople are still desperately hoping one day theycan return to their homes.

“The problems of the forced migrants will beresolved when they return to their homes. The

government of Azerbaijan is already drawing upa plan of return,” said Sanan Huseynov, headspokesman for Azerbaijan’s State Committeefor the Affairs of Refuges and Forced Migrants.

He said the government was building accom-modation for the refugees, and had set upwhole villages in the Beylagan, Khajavend andGoranboy regions.

“Forced migrants live in some militarybases,” he said. “There are around 11,000middle schools, half of which are occupied byforced migrants. We also plan to resettle{them] by 2011. In Baku, there are also someplaces where forced migrants continue to livein terrible conditions. We are building newhouses.”

Before 1991, Baku was a city with a verylarge Armenian population, many of whomspoke only Russian between themselves, a lega-cy of the Russian language’s role as the linguafranca of the former Soviet Union. As a richcity, with a booming oil industry, it had attract-ed immigrants from all across the SouthCaucasus and beyond.

Fleeing Azerbaijan, these 500,000 Armeniansprimarily moved to Armenia proper, which is tothe west of Azerbaijan. Many of them settled inKarabagh, however, where they took the placeof Azeri refugees fleeing eastwards.

Since Karabagh’s independence has not beenrecognized by other countries, they are techni-cally not refugees, but internally displaced peo-ple, IDPs a source of considerable bitterness,since that cuts them off from much interna-tional aid.

“In this question, the international com-munity is guilty of double standards,” Sariansaid. “Because we live in an unrecognizedrepublic, international organizations like theDanish Refugee Council or the UnitedNations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) do not recognize us as refugees,

and we do nothave the right toreceive interna-tional humanitari-

an aid, which goes to refugees in Azerbaijan.”UNHCR, which has to help refugees while

negotiating the complex legal tangle of theSouth Caucasus’ frozen conflict, said such IDPswere the responsibility of the Azerbaijan gov-ernment.

“For the IDPs from Nagorno Karabagh, it isclear that they have the right to return to theirplaces of origin with safety and dignity,” saidArun Sala-Ngarm, UNHCR’s newly-appointedrepresentative in Azerbaijan.

Victoria Taliskhanova, UNHCR assistant pro-gram officer, said the agency was now focusedon trying to help refugees raise their standardof living and access to services available to ordi-nary citizens.

“The main aim of our donors is an improve-ment in forced migrants’ social conditions, thecreation of conditions for education and work,the prevention of sexual or gender-based vio-lence, the support of sport and education andso on,” she said.

On the Armenian side, the concerns are sim-ilar. Armenia and Azerbaijan still lack diplomat-ic ties. Since Azerbaijan has been supported byits ally Turkey, that has left Armenia in analmost total blockade, effectively only withaccess through Georgia to the outside world.

Some 360,000 of the half-million Armenianswho fled Azerbaijan ended up in Armenia, andmost of them are poor even by the standards oftheir impoverished country. A survey in 2007showed that less than 10 percent of them man-aged to take their wealth or property out ofAzerbaijan with them, most having fled justwith what they were carrying.

“The social problems of refugees are extreme-ly urgent. The housing problem is still notresolved, and added to that refugees can onlyfind work with great difficulty,” said NikolaiBabajanian, himself a Baku Armenian who livedin a hut for 14 years until he managed to obtaina one-room apartment.

The Yerevan government is steadily trying tobuild housing for refugees, but the process isslow, and refugees are often forced to find hous-ing by themselves. In the first years of theinflux, Armenian arrivals were able to exchangetheir houses with Azeris going in the oppositedirection, and most of them are now relativelywell-off.

“We have our own land, we farm livestock, wesow and we reap, and we live okay,” said AlbertDalakian, who fled Baku and has lived for 20years now in an Azeri’s house in the village ofRanchpar.

But they were the lucky ones. There are1,000 refugees in the village, and many of themdid not manage to exchange their houses beforethey left Baku.

Analysts see no signs that the Karabaghstand-off could be resolved any time soon,meaning that the refugees in both countriesand in the territory itself will remain in legaland economic limbo, their lives frozen by thefrozen conflict.


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YEREVAN (Armenpress) — The ExecutiveBoard of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)this week completed the first review of Armenia’seconomic performance under a Stand-ByArrangement (SBA) and approved an increase inthe IMF’s financial support to an amount equiv-alent to $822.7 million; or 580 percent ofArmenia’s quota. An official from the IMFArmenia office said that these decisions enablethe immediate release of about $158.3 million,bringing the total disbursed to $400 million. Theboard also granted a waiver of performance cri-teria on net banking system credit to the gov-ernment and the program’s fiscal balance.

The revised arrangement will support thegovernment’s economic program amid asharperthan-expected impact from the globalfinancial crisis. The 28-month SBA wasapproved on March 6.

The key objectives of the program are to helpArmenia adjust to the external shock, maintainconfidence in the currency and the financialsystem, and protect the poor. The sharp con-traction in economic activity, the fall in remit-tances, an increase in unemployment, and diffi-cult conditions in credit markets require an eas-ing of macroeconomic policies and the imple-mentation of several measures to stimulatedomestic demand and create new jobs.

Following the Executive Board’s discussionon Armenia, Murilo Portugal, deputy managingdirector and acting chair, stated: “Since theapproval of the stand-by arrangement in March2009, the external economic outlook has dete-riorated significantly for Armenia. Falling pri-vate transfers and capital inflows have aggra-vated external imbalances and affected house-hold incomes and investor confidence.Construction activity, the main driver of growth

in previous years, has collapsed, and the econo-my is experiencing a deep contraction.

“The additional financial assistance from theFund will help cover Armenia’s growing financ-ing needs, while the recalibration of the author-ities’ economic program will help them betterrespond to the deepening downturn. The pro-gram envisages an easing of monetary and fis-cal policy to mitigate the severity of the crisis,while laying the ground for future fiscal consol-idation primarily through one-off investmentexpenditures and measures to strengthen taxpolicy and administration. The authoritiesremain firmly committed to achieving the pro-gram’s objectives of adjusting to the changedexternal environment, supporting confidence inthe currency and the banking system, and pro-tecting the poor.

“Following the successful return to a flexibleexchange rate, monetary policy will focus onmaintaining low inflation. With the fall in infla-tion rates, the recent reductions of policy inter-est rates are appropriate. In addition, theauthorities are taking active measures to pro-vide liquidity to the banking system and helpresume lending. Fiscal policy will provide cru-cial support by accelerating growth-enhancinginvestment in infrastructure and strengtheningsocial safety nets.

“As external conditions improve in 2010,growth is expected to resume gradually. Theshort-term outlook remains, however, very chal-lenging. Continued reforms will be necessary toboost the medium-term growth potential of theeconomy, including efforts to improve the busi-ness climate, completion of the unfinished taxpolicy and tax administration reform agenda,and progress on financial sector reforms,”Portugal said.

IMF Approves Increase in Armenia’sFinancial Support to $822.7 Million

Lives Frozen by ConflictBy Karine Ohanian, Seymur Kyazimov Baku and Gegham Vardanian

June 27, 2009 Issue

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