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FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE?: FOREIGN MINISTER'S VISIT AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ASSESSMENT
By Aris Ghazinyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was on an official visit to
Yerevan the past two days. His first visit to Armenia fell on the
historical stage when pro-Western sentiments not traditional for the
overwhelming majority of Armenians are on the rise in the public and
political life of the republic.
The first time these sentiments made themselves felt as a special
internal political factor was during the latest presidential
elections in 2003. However, now there are a dozen political and public
organizations in the republic demonstratively stating the need for
Armenia's new orientation towards the West and NATO. Never before
have such sentiments made themselves felt so strongly in Armenia.
On the day of the Russian minister's arrival in Yerevan, the leader of
the Liberal-Progressive Party of Armenia (LPPA) Hovhannes Hovhannisyan
called a press conference during which he stated: "Armenia's security
is in NATO, since Armenia's strategic partner, Russia, proceeding
from its interests, may change its position towards Yerevan at any
moment. Revolutions in the post-Soviet space are unavoidable in the
next year or two. There will be a revolution in Armenia too."
Representatives of other opposition parties also speak about the need
to reorient Armenia's foreign policy towards the West.
"It is remarkable that while new pro-Western political structures
have already been formed in Armenia, no party openly propagandizing
the Russian vector of foreign policy has appeared in the country
yet," Vardan Mkhitaryan, a historian and researcher at the Chair of
the History of the Armenian People of the Yerevan State University,
said in this connection.
Meanwhile, the political structures traditionally inclined towards
boosted Armenian-Russian relations for their part accentuate attention
on the insufficient level of development of these ties. What is
particularly pointed out is Russia's neutral, at best, position
on Nagorno Karabakh, which, in the opinion of Armenian parties
cannot correspond to the officially declared level of strategic
relationship. According to political analysts, also symptomatic is
the fact that while 2005 is declared the Year of Russia in Armenia,
in Russia this year is determined as the Year of Azerbaijan. This
was stated in Moscow by President Vladimir Putin and President Ilham
Aliyev of Azerbaijan on the same day Lavrov arrived in Yerevan.
"What is striking in this connection is that the visits of high-ranking
Russian officials to Armenia, as a rule, are chronologically replaced
by equally 'high-level' meetings already on the plane of Russian-Azeri
ties," says Mkhitaryan. "The visit of the Russian Foreign Minister
to Yerevan is not an exception: on February 16-17 Putin and Aliyev
discussed the Karabakh settlement in Moscow."
The presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan met four times in 2004, while
Putin and Armenian President Robert Kocharyan had two meetings. A
total of 17 government delegation of the Russian Federation visited
Baku during last year, and the commodity turnover between Russia
and Azerbaijan increased by 60% and made $735 million. During the
same period, the commodity turnover between Russia and Armenia grew
by 12.9% and made $266.2 million.
But the greatest annoyance in Armenia is caused by the position
repeatedly voiced by the Kremlin about Russia's support for
Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. In August of last year Lavrov
himself told an AzerTaj's correspondent: "Russia has been supporting
consistently and in full measure the principle of territorial
integrity. This applies to Azerbaijan as well."
Nevertheless, the recent visit of Russia's foreign minister to
Baku deserves special attention. Answering on February 2 the
question of an Azeri journalist about Russia's priorities in the
principles of "territorial integrity" and "the right of nations
to self-determination", Lavrov said: "One should not set off these
two principles against each other, since both of them are stated in
the UN Charter and should not be applied to the detriment of each
other." Some Azeri mass media already then hurried to "interpret"
such a reply of the Russian diplomat in the context of his Armenian
origin, reminding that during last year's visit of Armenia's Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanian to Moscow, Lavrov said: "Yes, I have Armenian
blood in my veins. My father is an Armenian from Tbilisi."
That he has Armenian blood his veins Lavrov also repeated in Yerevan
during a meeting with students of the Russian- Armenian Slavonic
University yesterday.
However, at the same time he made it clear that his Baku statement was
not understood quite correctly. He made it clear that Russia supports
Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, for "Azerbaijan's territorial
integrity is recognized by the international community, including by
the UN and other international structures."
Thursday Lavrov met with Kocharyan, Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan
and Oskanian. Four main subjects were discussed during the meetings:
the Karabakh problem, bilateral cooperation, regional cooperation
and cooperation within international structures.
It is cooperation within international structures that is one of
the most delicate problems in Armenian-Russian relations. It is
commonly known that all initiatives of the Azeri delegation in the
PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe), including on
Nagorno Karabakh, as a rule find support of the Russian delegation,
while none of the initiatives of the Armenian delegation has yet been
supported by the Russian delegation. Does this state of affairs
correspond to the "strategic" level of relations between Armenia
and Russia? "The parliamentary delegation of Russia to the PACE,
just like other delegations, does not receive any instructions,"
said Lavrov on this account.
In his meeting with Lavrov, Margaryan expressed his concern over the
building of communications projected within the framework of the
"North-South" transit corridor, bypassing Armenia. In particular,
he pointed to the Russian-Azeri- Iranian consortium building a
railroad in the direction of Astara (Azerbaijan) - Resht (Iran) -
Kazvin (Iran). (See ArmeniaNow story ….)
In reply to this remark of the Armenian premier, Lavrov said that from
now on Russia would consider also Armenia's interests in developing
its transport strategy. He promised to notify Russia's Minister of
Transport about it. Last autumn Russia limited the use of the only
stable motorway connecting Armenia with Russia through Georgia at
Verin Lars checkpoint (North Ossetia, Russia) - Kazbek (see ArmeniaNow
story …) Thus, Lavrov's official visit to Yerevan also exposed flaws
in the officially declared policy of strategic partnership.
We will be able to judge as to how these flaws can be put right only
after Putin's visit to Armenia. The date of this visit has not been
set yet, but as the Russian minister said the sides will come to
agreement as to the terms of the visit within the coming weeks after
which the date will be declared.
THE MARGARYAN TRIAL: COURT SUSPENDED FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT AND
TRANSLATIONS
By Zhanna Alexanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The trial against Azeri Army officer Ramil Safarov, the accused
murderer of Armenian Army officer Gurgen Margaryan has again been
recessed in Budapest. Testimony was to be taken from Safarov, who
killed Margaryan ilast February while the two and others attended a
"Partnership for Peace" seminar in the Hungarian capital. The court
also expected to hear from a Lithuanian officer who is credited
from saving another Armenian officer, Hayk Makuchyan, from attack
by Safarov.
Neither Safarov nor the Lithuanian was present when court was to
begin last week. According to the Azerbaijan Ministry of Defense,
Safarov has a head injury and was in Turkey to receive treatment. And
attorneys for the Lithuanian have asked the court for a five-month wait
while court documents are translated from Hungarian into Lithuanian.
Nazeli Vardanyan, the Armenian attorney assigned to the case, and
Ministry of Defense representative Hayk Demoyan returned to Yerevan
and met journalists Wednesday with a briefing on the case.
According to them, Safarov pleads innocent by reason of temporary
insanity. A Hungarian psychologist assigned by the court to examine
Safarov has diagnosed him as healthy and sober minded, but described
him as "anti-social, disharmonic and unstable".
The court upheld an appeal by the Azeri side granting a second
examination, and will hear a doctor's report in a May 10 session.
"He is totally healthy both mentally and physically, has realized what
he was doing at the moment of the crime," Vardanyan told reporters. "He
has not regretted it and has been saying from the very first day he
will kill Armenians in a hundred years as well.
"If they prove he is mentally ill that can somehow mitigate the
sentence, but how will they substantiate mentally ill people serving in
their army, graduating from a military academy in Turkey and leaving
for Budapest for trainings?" Safarov has said he killed Margaryan in
retaliation for family members who were killed in Jabrail, Azerbaijan
during the Karabakh war. In a February 8 hearing, information about
the conflict was entered into testimony by the Azeris, angering the
judge, according to the Armenian lawyer.
"When it was publicized the judge got quite angry and banned
publicizing such documents, which steers the trial to politics,"
Vardanyan said.
Vardanyan and Demoyan say public opinion in Hungary may be swung
in Safarov's favor, because there is no Armenian Diaspora community
there to offset Azeri propaganda.
Demoyan says the Armenian side plans to counter with materials from
an English-language webpage about the trial and publications about
Karabakh printed in Hungarian.
Demoyan further said he is confident the Armenian side will prevail,
stating that the Hungarians are not interested in the politics of
the matter, and are amazed that Safarov has become a national hero
for whom a special pension has been provided. The trial is expected
to continue in May.
DEBT GIFT: UK AGREES TO PAY CUT OF ARMENIA'S WORLD BANK LOAN
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
The British Government hopes its offer to relieve Armenia's external
debt will help the country grapple more effectively with its domestic
problems. Under the offer confirmed earlier this week the Government
of the United Kingdom will repay 10% of Armenia's debt to the World
Bank until 2015 - a total of just under $20 million. After Tuesday's
meeting with Armenia's minister of finance and economy, British
Ambassador to Armenia Thorda Abbott- Watt expressed a hope that the
relief of Armenia's external debt will save funds for the country to
spend more on solving social problems.
"I am pleased that my Government has felt able to make this gesture,
which recognizes and rewards strong economic management," she
said. "The money which will be released will help Armenia increase
investment in spheres such as health, education and social support
and raise living standards more quickly." According to the British
Embassy's Public Relations Department, the British Government has
offered this financial assistance in recognition of the difficulties
that low income countries face in trying to reduce poverty while at
the same time service their international debts.
"The objective is to free additional resources to enable Armenia to
achieve its development goals," the Embassy said in a press release.
According to the British Embassy in Yerevan, Armenia is one of
five countries to benefit in this way along with Mongolia, Vietnam,
Nepal and Sri Lanka. The UK Government chose all in recognition of
their sound public expenditure policies, which will ensure that the
money saved will be targeted towards poverty reduction. After the
meeting with the British Ambassador Armenia's Minister of Economy
and Finance Vardan Khachatryan highly evaluated the initiative of
the British Government and pointed out its importance for Armenia.
"The released funds will be aimed at purposeful programs and the
implementation of measures fixed in the government program," the
minister assured. According to the data of the Ministry of Finance
and Economy, Armenia's current external debt totals $1.15 billion or
37.7 percent of its 2004 Gross Domestic Product.
The British Department for International Development (DFID) will
pay the money into a WB trust fund. The International Development
Association (the World Bank agency that allocates funds on concession
to the poorest developing countries), for its part, will reduce the
repayments that Armenia makes over the next 10 years. Armenia is
due to repay the World Bank $8 million, $11 million and $12 million
in 2005, 2006 and 2007 respectively. The UK contribution will be 10%
of these funds, i.e. $800,000, $1.1 million and $1.2 million for each
year respectively.
SEEKING RELATIONS: TURKISH BUSINESS LEADER CALLS FOR AN OPEN BORDER
WITH ARMENIA
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The Turkish co-chairman of the Turkish-Armenian Business Development
Council (TABDC) called for the opening of the border between the two
countries during a visit to Armenia this week.
Kaan Soyak, an import and export businessman from Ankara, also declared
that the people of Turkey should "know the truth" about the Armenian
Genocide. He invited the Dashnaktsutyun party, a member of Armenia's
governing coalition, to enter dialogue with Turkey, promising to
devote his energies to the facilitating talks if it agreed.
Soyak was in Yerevan this week for the launch of a new program proposed
by the Eurasia Foundation on the implications of the opening of the
Armenian-Turkish border. The project, initiated last year, studies
the potential effects on the economy, should borders between Armenia
and Turkey open.
He told a press conference that, although the organization had
not yet worked on issues related to the Genocide, he was aware
that preparations were underway in Armenia to commemorate the 90th
anniversary of the killings. "You know that those in Turkey know
about it and deny it. It was only during the last two or three years
that they began to speak about it in Turkey. We are working in the
direction of addressing and spreading this subject in Turkey on a
larger scale. The Turkish people must know the truth," Soyak said.
The Turkish co-chairman also said that the council had implemented
a program on the preservation of Armenian monuments in Turkey, which
resulted in an end to military control of the area around Ani in 2003.
Soyak said: "Turkey says that Armenia must recognize its territorial
integrity, Armenia says that the Genocide of Armenians must be
recognized. Armenia declares that it is ready to develop economic
relations without preconditions. Time can thus be dragged out
infinitely. And to achieve any result the two countries should mitigate
their policies." He reported that he had brought greetings from
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to Soyak,
it was time that Armenia and Turkey were viewed as one region, with
open borders like those between member states of the European Union.
Armenia has called consistently for Turkey to open its border and
to establish relations without preconditions. The authorities in
Ankara, however, have maintained a blockade of Armenia in support of
Azerbaijan's position in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, an issue
that Yerevan says should have no bearing on its relations with Turkey.
Soyak said that, with open borders, direct trade would expand and
the conditions would be created for cooperation between Armenian and
Turkish businessmen.
"I am sure that Azerbaijan's ambassador to Turkey will not like these
words, but I care little about that. I also think that Azerbaijan's
position should not be a factor in the opening of borders. They
consider Karabakh's position to be a precondition for that," he said.
He added that Azerbaijan is conducting large-scale propaganda in
Turkey in this regard and that its ambassador does not like the
development council because of its objections to Azeri meddling in
Turkey's foreign policies. The TABDC was established on May 3, 1997 in
Istanbul and Yerevan by Soyak and Arsen Ghazaryan, president of Union
of Businessmen and Industrialist of Armenia. The council's goal is to
develop and promote closer cooperation between the business circles
of Armenia and Turkey and to help the two countries' organizations
establish communication. Soyak said that in 1997 they were considered
"crazy" in Turkey, but now their prestige had risen quite a lot. Of
his invitation to Dashnaktsutyun, the party considered most hostile
to relations with Turkey, he said: "In Turkey, Dashnaktsutyun has
a negative image. But I have my own opinion that the party and its
members are serious and sensible people.
"I am ready to do that and I promise to organize and implement their
dialogue, of course if Dashnaktsutyun agrees. All this will only help
us make greater achievements."
Ashot Soghomonyan, a specialist in Turkish affairs and secretary
of the TABDC, said that the Armenian side was open to any type of
activities. It is not precisely known how many Armenian companies
operate in Turkey, but the number of Turkish companies operating in
Armenia has reached 30.
They have already had meetings about the agricultural sector, with
the Turkish partners being interested in purchasing potato seeds at
reasonable prices from Armenia.
Soghomonyan said that the Eurasia Foundation project would study
"to what extent the two countries' economies will benefit from
the opening of the border and what developments can be expected".
He added: "Eventually, the work will be presented to the two countries'
authorities. The commodity turnover between Armenia and Turkey is
currently worth $120 million and this figure will increase threefold
if the borders are opened."
LAW ON LAWYERS: LEGAL SPECIALISTS PRAISE/PAN LEGISLATION OF THEIR
PRACTICE
By Zhanna Alexanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
Members of Armenia's legal community met Tuesday to discuss the impact
of a new law, active since February 1, regulating their practice.
Led by the president of the International Union of Lawyers, Tigran
Janoyan, attorneys voiced both approval and disapproval of how their
profession will be conducted from here onward.
Much of the new law brings Armenia into form with European standards,
Janoyan said. Significantly, it calls for the establishment of a Law
Bar that will oversee licensing and monitor attorney performance.
Previously, many practiced law without appropriate licenses. Now
the law clarifies the necessary authorization. "Today the way of
those lawyers is open only through becoming (licensed) attorneys,"
Janoyan said. "The Chamber (Bar) will solve the question of their
qualification and licensing."
The Bar will supervise and initiate disciplinary means in respect to
those who do not fulfill their responsibilities. The new law also
establishes a single body of lawyers, whereas many unions existed
before, Janoyan said. Most attorneys are not satisfied, however,
with the Public Defender system as outlined in the "Law on Attorneys".
The public defender will provide a free legal service and will be
paid by the state. The law allows choosing from several licensed
practitioners who will provide the service.
But lawyers complain that the law does not stipulate how they will
be paid. "The state declares its democratic attitudes without showing
its poor resources," Janoyan complained. "And in case of failure,
the responsibility will fall on us - the attorneys."
President of the Republic of Armenia Union of Attorneys Misha
Piliposyan confirmed that the current budget does not include
a provision for financing the Public Defender's Office. He says,
however, that the Ministry of Justice will solve that problem and
reminds that this is a first attempt at addressing the need.
Janoyan warns that the way the new law sets up the Public Defender's
Office makes the office liable to government control, which could
hinder the judicial process.
The law provides electoral principle for the Public Defender but
Janoyan does not trust it. "Elections are conditioned with some
interference just like all kinds of elections in our country," says the
lawyer. The candidacies for the heads of the Bar and Public Defender's
Office are already being discussed, encouraged by the Ministry of
Justice and have gained the approval of the majority of judges.
"Can you imagine the scale of the tragedy in this case? This means,
these are custom-built jobs," concludes Janoyan. "The same will
be repeated. During the first days of the investigation a state
defense will be executed, because the cases are fabricated and the
'confessional evidences' are obtained during those very days."
POVERTY CALLING: PHONE CHECKS HELP TO IDENTIFY THOSE IN GREATEST NEED
AS AID PAYMENTS INCREASE
By Gayane Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The Government described the 2005 State budget as a "social budget"
when it put forward proposals late last year for significant increases
in spending on family allowances for the poor.
Those allowances took effect this month, raising monthly state payments
to 12,000 drams (approximately $25) from 9,200 drams (about $19)
in 2004. The state budget has allotted 20 billion drams, 4 billion
more than last year, for poverty allowances and one-off financial aid.
The cut-off point for receiving assistance has also been lowered,
from 35 to 34 points under a government formula for calculating who
is eligible for payments.
Astghik Minasyan, head of the Department for Social Assistance at
the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, says 139,000 families in
Armenia will receive poverty family allowances in 2005, of which 30,000
(7.4 percent) are considered to be in absolute poverty.
Family allowances are given to the poor, based on yearly estimations
of a "consumer basket", those with three or more children, unemployed
people, the disabled, and single pensioners without family to care for
them. (Anyone whose monthly income is less than $60 can be qualified
as "poor".) Social workers visit applicants at their homes as well
as taking documents supporting their status into consideration.
"We frequently hear the phrase: 'Visit us and then evaluate the
level of my poverty'," says Minasyan. She says it is very difficult
to evaluate the conditions of a family properly without visiting
their homes, because of hidden employment levels. The grading system
even takes account of spending on telephone calls and electricity.
Social worker Marine Sukiasyan believes that checking telephone and
electricity expenses are more than effective in establishing poverty.
"One can find out while asking questions that one of the family
members works without registration, but one can hardly find out about
the money they receive from abroad. That is why the only indicators
are the telephone calls and expenses for electricity," she says.
"If one can allow himself expenses that exceed the amount of
the allowance than he has also the resource to pay for them."
The department's poverty indicators state that electricity spending
per head should not exceed 158 kilowatts per month, which makes some
4000 drams (about $8).
The basic allowance is 6 000 drams, which goes to families with no
school-age children. Each child attracts an additional 3,000 drams in
allowance and an extra 4,000 drams is paid if the family is graded as
extremely poor. A family with four children will receive a monthly
allowance of 18 000 drams ($38), while the poor with children in
highland or borderland settlements qualify for an extra 2,000.
Families expecting a new arrival have additional support. In the past
four years, a one-time payment of 35 000 drams ($74) was made to the
family of a newborn child. The sum doubled this month to 70,000 drams
($148), provided the family applies to community social services
within three months of the birth.
Naira Sahakyan, of Yerevan, who receives welfare support, believes
it is still too low to meet even minimal needs, but she still draws
comfort from the increase (from 9,200 drams last year to 12,000 this
year) in the payments.
"I have three under-age children, my husband left for Russia seven
years ago as if to earn money and it's almost four years since I've
heard from him. How can I buy food and cloths and send my child to
school with 12 000 drams?" she says.
"It's not the allowance that should be increased; they should rather
open factories so that people can work." Diana Martirosova, the head
of the Department for Household Surveys at the National Statistical
Service, said that the level of poverty in 2003 was 42.9 percent,
the lowest for the last 10 years.
"The poverty indicator decreased for the first time in 2001, when it
was 50.9 per cent compared to 55.5 per centsin 1998-1999. In 2002 it
was 49.7 per cent," says Martirosova.
Today, 57.1 per cent of the population is considered not poor, 42.9 per
cent are poor, and those in absolute poverty represent 7.4 per cent.
"The numbers in absolute poverty decrease more quickly than that of
the poor; the allowances play a role here, but our priority is to
create jobs and to reduce the number of families receiving aid in a
natural way," said the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Aghvan
Vardanyan in a press conference last week.
CHILDHOOD PAINFULLY EXTENDED: MEASLES AFFLICTING OLDER ARMENIANS WHO
MISSED VACCINATION
By Arpi Harutyunyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
During the month of January, some 100 cases of measles were reported
in Yerevan's Nork Infections Hospital. Most required hospitalization.
It is unusual to contact measles this time of year, but the Ministry
of Health says there is no cause for alarm and that it is "absolutely
not" an epidemic.
There is concern, however, that the typical-childhood affliction has
struck young adults. Most of those reported to Nork were older than 18.
The reason is likely to be related not just to some recent exposure
to bacteria, but also a holdover from social hardships of a decade ago.
"The fact that more people above 18 get ill leads us to conclude
that they represent the part of the population that has not been
vaccinated and lacks immunity," explains the head physician at Nork,
Ara Asoyan. "Those responsible for health care in 1992-1996 may had
wished, but were unable to buy vaccine. And even after buying it,
it had to remain refrigerated. And during those years we didn't have
even electricity."
The result is that a group of the population aged about 18-25 may
now have a risk that should have been countered years ago.
Measles usually last for two weeks or more, causing high temperature,
weakness, rash and vomiting. Usually not a severe threat to children,
contamination of measles in adults can cause serious health problems.
Last July 400 cases of measles were registered, and nearly 90 percent
were over age 18. During that period a select group in the 18-25 age
group were chosen to receive vaccination. According to Sirak Sukiasyan,
director of the national program for immunization, "we have provided
for the age group".
However infections specialist at the Nor Arabkir medical center Narina
Sargsyants holds another opinion on the matter. "According to our
estimations only in one district there are nearly 5,000 people aged
18-25 and we have vaccinated 10 times less than that," she says. "It
was not only the fault of the people who were not interested in
addressing us, but also the doctors who did not provide population
with high level of awareness."
During July and August, the Ministry of Health issued 53,000
vaccinations. Now, however, it does not provide the service because it
does not vaccines to distribute. A measles vaccine costs about $20,
making it prohibitive for most of the population.
Whether there is an epidemic is of minor concern to those who have
been infected.
Eduard Davtyan, a student of the National Institute of Economics got
infected three weeks ago. Davtyan says the disease came from his class,
where four students also suffer measles. "If only from my class four
people get infected it means that the health officials should take
the necessary measures to fight the disease," he says. "They had to
provide free vaccine. And they should have paid more attention to
the risk-group students and schoolchildren."
Many students who are concerned with the threat of being infected
apply to their district clinics to be vaccinated, but have been told
that there is no vaccine, except at private clinics, which have the
$20 shots.
BOUNCING WITH EXPECTATION: CHINESE AND ARMENIANS HOPEFUL OVER RUBBER
PARTNERSHIP
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
A year after the project on the establishment of an Armenian-Chinese
rubber producing joint venture formally got underway, specialists are
optimistic about the success of the enterprise. The 30-month-long
project in which the Armenian side represented by Nairit-2 CJSC
provides technology and expertise was launched on February 19, 2004.
Nairit-2 and its Chinese partner, Shanxi Synthetic Rubber Group
Co. Ltd, are to build a plant, ChinArmenPren, with an annual production
capacity of 30,000 tons of rubber in north China's Shanxi Province.
The project is still at the stage of designing but some construction
work has already been carried out. The first group of Armenian
specialists this month returned from a 2.5-month business trip to
China where they helped their Chinese colleagues with projections.
Albert Sukiasyan, Director of Nairit-2 CJSC, which represents the
Armenian side in the project, is satisfied with the results of the
work done during the year.
He says that the initial stage of the project has proved the choice of
cooperation with China as the best for Armenia's chemical industry,
which was left without a sales market and raw material base after
the collapse of the Soviet Union.
"Armenia cooperated with China in the chemical industry still in the
1950s when it was part of the Soviet Union," says Sukiasyan. "Since
then we have greatly advanced in terms of our rubber production
technology and it is natural that China with its increased rubber
consumption chose us as its partner."
According to Sukiasyan, the Chinese consider the acetylene method of
producing chloroprene rubber developed by Armenian specialists to be
the safest in the world.
"They would cooperate with Dupont or Bayer if their technologies were
safer," says Sukiasyan.
The acetylene method uses natural gas and carbide as raw materials for
producing chloroprene rubber. Unlike Armenia, China has huge deposits
of coal and vast reserves of natural gas. The province where the plant
will be situated has the richest reserves of coal in the world. And
coal is the basis for obtaining carbide used in the production of
chloroprene rubber.
"They have vast resources, we don't. But we have the technology and
expertise that they need. So, our technology matches their potential,"
says Sukiasyan, who has worked in the chemical industry of Armenia
since 1957.
According to Sukiasyan, Nairit will also produce and supply the
necessary equipment for the plant in China. He says that the first
order will be executed in the middle of May.
The construction, according to him, is due for completion in 2006,
after which for 17 years ChinArmenPren plant will be operated by the
two sides and its profits will be divided according to the following
pattern: the Armenian side will get 40% of the profit and the Chinese
side will get 60%.
The authorized capital of the JV will amount to $35 million, with
$21 million contributed by the Chinese side and 14 million by the
Armenian side.
Sukiasyan says that the plant's management will also be shared -
Armenian specialists will direct the technical part, while the
financial matters will be managed by the Chinese side.
Under the contract, in 17 years either side gets the right to opt out
of the joint venture getting its share. But Sukiasyan says that given
all the favorable conditions for profitable cooperation neither side
considers this option at this stage yet and is unlikely to consider
it in the future.
"I think this will be a long-term cooperation that will last for
decades," he says. "Besides, our cooperation with the Chinese will go
far beyond rubber production. Thus, we also have plans to cooperate
in chemical production that will help the agricultural sector."
Mavrik Farsiyan is one of the three specialists who recently worked
in China helping local specialists do the projecting works. He says
that both sides have a lot to offer to each other.
"All conditions are created for our fruitful cooperation and we hope
that this will be a long-term cooperation that will also benefit the
chemical industry in Armenia," he says.
During Soviet times Nairit was a monopolist producer of chloroprene
rubber in the USSR. Now it is still one of the five plants in
the world producing synthetic rubber. After several unsuccessful
attempts of privatization Nairit now again belongs to the Armenian
government. There are about 2,000 workers registered on its
payroll. But the cooperation with the Chinese side is conducted through
Nairit-2, which was established in 2001 as a scientific-research
institute and also belongs to the government.
Nairit-2 has a staff of 105 workers, their average monthly wages
being 35,000 drams.
Currently, 22 specialists from China are on an exchange visit to
Armenia studying the experience of their Armenian colleagues at
Nairit-2.
According to the director of Nairit-2, up to 100 specialists are
going to be directly involved in the realization of the joint venture
establishment project from the Armenian side.
LAWTOON: YOUNG PEOPLE GET LEGAL LEARNING FROM ANIMATIONS
By Mariam Badalyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
Thursday the American Bar Association Central European and Eurasian Law
Initiative (ABA/CEELI) organized a presentation its "Alphabet of Law",
a series of cartoons to teach young people about law and human rights.
"The goal of the project was making law easy and teachable for the
general public," says Lisa Russo, ABA/CEELI Rule of Law Liaison. "With
the help of these cartoons people will remember their basic rights
without making much efforts on memorizing theories."
The cartoons are ideally meant for 8-10 form classes, but are designed
so that lower class students may also find them easy-to-understand.
The series were shot by Independent Film-Makers production team.
"The topics are serious and very important, but we have tried to
make them appealing to teenagers by adding some humor," said Ashot
Mkhitaryan president of Independent Film Makers, the production
company.
So far, three cartoons, each two to three minutes long, have been shot
on different topics - three branches of government, constitutional
rights, and equality of sexes. The next video will be on basic rights
and responsibilities of citizens.
"There are a few more topics that are under discussion, however we
actually take suggestions from the public," says Russo. The idea of
the project was taken from the American "Schoolhouse Rock" cartoon
series. Russo says she remembers extracts from the US constitution
from the TV show songs. The cartoons are currently used in Armenian
Young Lawyers Association Street Law project financed by the US
Embassy and ABA/CEELI.
The AYLA Street law project started in fall of 2003. The aim of the
project is acquainting the population with their fundamental human
and civil rights. Topics included: family law, labor law and labor
relations, trafficking, struggle against corruption, constitutional
rights. The classes were organized in AYLA Yerevan office as well as
AYLA regional offices in Gavar, Gyumri, Kapan, Goris, Ijevan, Vanadzor.
"The first stage of the project will be over this spring, says
Liana Harutiunyan, the Street Law coordinator of AYLA, "however,
other groups of students will be enrolled to similar classes
immediately afterwards." So far, 280 seminars were conducted with
224 participants. Among the participants were law students, young
lawyers and school teachers. All the participants have already
conducted trainings in 97 schools in Yerevan and marzes involving
4,832 schoolchildren.
AYLA volunteer Ruslan Avetisyan says that with the introduction
of cartoons the discussion became more lively. "Recently, we have
discussed equality for women with schoolchildren. The discussion was
very hot," says Aveitsyan, "In many Armenian families people still
do not accept that a woman may have a 'manly' job. Discussion help
a lot to see things from a different angle."
At present, the cartoons are being shown on "Yerkir Media" and "Shant
TV". During the event other TV companies were also provided with CDs
and videos to be used for broadcasting.
NATIONAL PRIDE: BROTHERS SAY HORSES SHOULD BE AN ARMENIAN TREASURE
By Vahan Ishkhanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
During 10 years the Mirzoyan brothers have created Armenia's largest
stable of sport horses. Their number is at 56 now (the second is the
hippodrome in Yerevan that was established during Soviet times and
now has 46 horses, of which a few are the property of individuals).
The stable is in their birthplace - in the village of Lernamerdz in
the Armavir region. The big stable situated in the unsightly rural
area catches the eye from the distance with its grove of young poplars.
"My brother brought the first horse from Echmiadzin," says stable
director Gevorg Mirzoyan. "Then horses were given to us as gifts. At
some point we began to attend to it seriously. A horse is a dream. My
dad was very much fond of horses too (his father is a well-known
patriot in the national circles, Janpolad Mirzoyan). The news that
we were setting up a horse-breeding farm pleased him very much."
Gevorg Mirzoyan, 56, graduated from the Philological Department of
the Yerevan State University. In 1987, together with Paruyr Hairikyan,
he founded the Union for Self-Determination, which was struggling for
Armenia's independence. He worked at the State TV and Radio Committee,
from which he was fired in 1988 by KGB for his political views. A court
later reinstated him. In 1994, he participated in the Karabakh war.
Mirzoyan considers horse-breeding to be the continuation of his
nationalistic activities: "I thought at that time that we should
fight for independence, then I fought in the war, now I consider
horse-breeding to be the right thing to do. In a country that has
no horses a horse becomes a national wealth."
He considers politics to be a damaging occupation and that it is the
scum of society that are engaged in it: "The war ended and I don't
know where they came from and became ministers. Those who sincerely
fought for Armenia saw the country in a different way." A piece of that
"different way" is the stable of Lernamerdz.
He considers even the place to be symbolic - it is in the center of
the triangle of three mountains - Aragats, Ararat and Ara.
Horse-breeding is not a business for the Mirzoyans. Gevorg's brother
is a businessman, who only spends on the horse- breeding farm from
his incomes without any profit expectations: "If I sold the horses,
I would drive a Jeep. But if it were so, I would be among the animals
who take 50,000 dollars out of the pocket. Not drams, but dollars. They
(officials) spend 12,000 dollars a day in casinos, and they pay a
pension of 12,000 drams a month to people. If someone gave (officials)
12,000 drams, their heart would break." Gevorg Mirzoyan says that
several times rich people and officials came to buy a horse from him,
but he didn't sell. He told them that they'd better spend the money
to build a school in the village.
During the Soviet years, there were farms breeding sport horses which
disappeared in the '90s, since during the crisis it was impossible
to maintain horses. The Mirzoyans once bought a few horses from those
horse-breeding farms, and they now gave offspring.
A worker at the stable, horse trainer Norik Sargsyan worked in the
horse-breeding farm of Ddmashen, which was the largest and had about
80 horses. He remembers how horses began to die there because of lack
of food: "So many horses died of hunger at that time. We could not
find food, they couldn't stand the winter cold. There was no water,
foals were born in heavy conditions. Once I came and saw that six of
them had died, then 10 of them had gone."
Sargsyan has worked as a horse trainer and jockey since 1972. He has
trained about 300 horses. He says that the best studs he had seen are
in Lernamerdz, built by the Mirzoyans from foundation to top. Here
he has already trained nine young horses to be ridden. Every day
except on Sunday the horses are trained by specialist trainers. Many
of the horses participated in championships organized in Armenia and
won prizes. One of their lot, "Clever" last year placed first in a
championship called "Call of the World", held here.
Twenty of the horses are thoroughbred English saddle-horses. The
Mirzoyans decided to create an Armenian breed that will be a mixture
of the local horse and the English one. They already got one such
horse and called the breed "taron".
"When we say local it is conventional, in reality there is no such
breed," says Gevorg Mirzoyan. "The locals are a mixture, during Soviet
times horses were brought from different places and they mixed up with
each other. Then, horses were not properly kept in villages, they were
fed with remains from other animals' food, and that's why they have
no good look, their bodies are small. My goal is to create a local
breed - a taron-horse. This horse-breeding farm will be called the
Taron-Horse Medical-Sports Complex to where people will later come to
ride horses. Sporting and healthcare arrangements will be held there.
However, the Mirzoyans already now consider that they have achieved
the result, which is not only theirs but also of Armenia: "During
those years horses were dying of hunger. Offspring of some of them
are now here, whom we have saved and won by that."
--Boundary_(ID_rqv6qjK01YkZwDMBkeTd7A)--
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE?: FOREIGN MINISTER'S VISIT AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ASSESSMENT
By Aris Ghazinyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was on an official visit to
Yerevan the past two days. His first visit to Armenia fell on the
historical stage when pro-Western sentiments not traditional for the
overwhelming majority of Armenians are on the rise in the public and
political life of the republic.
The first time these sentiments made themselves felt as a special
internal political factor was during the latest presidential
elections in 2003. However, now there are a dozen political and public
organizations in the republic demonstratively stating the need for
Armenia's new orientation towards the West and NATO. Never before
have such sentiments made themselves felt so strongly in Armenia.
On the day of the Russian minister's arrival in Yerevan, the leader of
the Liberal-Progressive Party of Armenia (LPPA) Hovhannes Hovhannisyan
called a press conference during which he stated: "Armenia's security
is in NATO, since Armenia's strategic partner, Russia, proceeding
from its interests, may change its position towards Yerevan at any
moment. Revolutions in the post-Soviet space are unavoidable in the
next year or two. There will be a revolution in Armenia too."
Representatives of other opposition parties also speak about the need
to reorient Armenia's foreign policy towards the West.
"It is remarkable that while new pro-Western political structures
have already been formed in Armenia, no party openly propagandizing
the Russian vector of foreign policy has appeared in the country
yet," Vardan Mkhitaryan, a historian and researcher at the Chair of
the History of the Armenian People of the Yerevan State University,
said in this connection.
Meanwhile, the political structures traditionally inclined towards
boosted Armenian-Russian relations for their part accentuate attention
on the insufficient level of development of these ties. What is
particularly pointed out is Russia's neutral, at best, position
on Nagorno Karabakh, which, in the opinion of Armenian parties
cannot correspond to the officially declared level of strategic
relationship. According to political analysts, also symptomatic is
the fact that while 2005 is declared the Year of Russia in Armenia,
in Russia this year is determined as the Year of Azerbaijan. This
was stated in Moscow by President Vladimir Putin and President Ilham
Aliyev of Azerbaijan on the same day Lavrov arrived in Yerevan.
"What is striking in this connection is that the visits of high-ranking
Russian officials to Armenia, as a rule, are chronologically replaced
by equally 'high-level' meetings already on the plane of Russian-Azeri
ties," says Mkhitaryan. "The visit of the Russian Foreign Minister
to Yerevan is not an exception: on February 16-17 Putin and Aliyev
discussed the Karabakh settlement in Moscow."
The presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan met four times in 2004, while
Putin and Armenian President Robert Kocharyan had two meetings. A
total of 17 government delegation of the Russian Federation visited
Baku during last year, and the commodity turnover between Russia
and Azerbaijan increased by 60% and made $735 million. During the
same period, the commodity turnover between Russia and Armenia grew
by 12.9% and made $266.2 million.
But the greatest annoyance in Armenia is caused by the position
repeatedly voiced by the Kremlin about Russia's support for
Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. In August of last year Lavrov
himself told an AzerTaj's correspondent: "Russia has been supporting
consistently and in full measure the principle of territorial
integrity. This applies to Azerbaijan as well."
Nevertheless, the recent visit of Russia's foreign minister to
Baku deserves special attention. Answering on February 2 the
question of an Azeri journalist about Russia's priorities in the
principles of "territorial integrity" and "the right of nations
to self-determination", Lavrov said: "One should not set off these
two principles against each other, since both of them are stated in
the UN Charter and should not be applied to the detriment of each
other." Some Azeri mass media already then hurried to "interpret"
such a reply of the Russian diplomat in the context of his Armenian
origin, reminding that during last year's visit of Armenia's Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanian to Moscow, Lavrov said: "Yes, I have Armenian
blood in my veins. My father is an Armenian from Tbilisi."
That he has Armenian blood his veins Lavrov also repeated in Yerevan
during a meeting with students of the Russian- Armenian Slavonic
University yesterday.
However, at the same time he made it clear that his Baku statement was
not understood quite correctly. He made it clear that Russia supports
Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, for "Azerbaijan's territorial
integrity is recognized by the international community, including by
the UN and other international structures."
Thursday Lavrov met with Kocharyan, Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan
and Oskanian. Four main subjects were discussed during the meetings:
the Karabakh problem, bilateral cooperation, regional cooperation
and cooperation within international structures.
It is cooperation within international structures that is one of
the most delicate problems in Armenian-Russian relations. It is
commonly known that all initiatives of the Azeri delegation in the
PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe), including on
Nagorno Karabakh, as a rule find support of the Russian delegation,
while none of the initiatives of the Armenian delegation has yet been
supported by the Russian delegation. Does this state of affairs
correspond to the "strategic" level of relations between Armenia
and Russia? "The parliamentary delegation of Russia to the PACE,
just like other delegations, does not receive any instructions,"
said Lavrov on this account.
In his meeting with Lavrov, Margaryan expressed his concern over the
building of communications projected within the framework of the
"North-South" transit corridor, bypassing Armenia. In particular,
he pointed to the Russian-Azeri- Iranian consortium building a
railroad in the direction of Astara (Azerbaijan) - Resht (Iran) -
Kazvin (Iran). (See ArmeniaNow story ….)
In reply to this remark of the Armenian premier, Lavrov said that from
now on Russia would consider also Armenia's interests in developing
its transport strategy. He promised to notify Russia's Minister of
Transport about it. Last autumn Russia limited the use of the only
stable motorway connecting Armenia with Russia through Georgia at
Verin Lars checkpoint (North Ossetia, Russia) - Kazbek (see ArmeniaNow
story …) Thus, Lavrov's official visit to Yerevan also exposed flaws
in the officially declared policy of strategic partnership.
We will be able to judge as to how these flaws can be put right only
after Putin's visit to Armenia. The date of this visit has not been
set yet, but as the Russian minister said the sides will come to
agreement as to the terms of the visit within the coming weeks after
which the date will be declared.
THE MARGARYAN TRIAL: COURT SUSPENDED FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT AND
TRANSLATIONS
By Zhanna Alexanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The trial against Azeri Army officer Ramil Safarov, the accused
murderer of Armenian Army officer Gurgen Margaryan has again been
recessed in Budapest. Testimony was to be taken from Safarov, who
killed Margaryan ilast February while the two and others attended a
"Partnership for Peace" seminar in the Hungarian capital. The court
also expected to hear from a Lithuanian officer who is credited
from saving another Armenian officer, Hayk Makuchyan, from attack
by Safarov.
Neither Safarov nor the Lithuanian was present when court was to
begin last week. According to the Azerbaijan Ministry of Defense,
Safarov has a head injury and was in Turkey to receive treatment. And
attorneys for the Lithuanian have asked the court for a five-month wait
while court documents are translated from Hungarian into Lithuanian.
Nazeli Vardanyan, the Armenian attorney assigned to the case, and
Ministry of Defense representative Hayk Demoyan returned to Yerevan
and met journalists Wednesday with a briefing on the case.
According to them, Safarov pleads innocent by reason of temporary
insanity. A Hungarian psychologist assigned by the court to examine
Safarov has diagnosed him as healthy and sober minded, but described
him as "anti-social, disharmonic and unstable".
The court upheld an appeal by the Azeri side granting a second
examination, and will hear a doctor's report in a May 10 session.
"He is totally healthy both mentally and physically, has realized what
he was doing at the moment of the crime," Vardanyan told reporters. "He
has not regretted it and has been saying from the very first day he
will kill Armenians in a hundred years as well.
"If they prove he is mentally ill that can somehow mitigate the
sentence, but how will they substantiate mentally ill people serving in
their army, graduating from a military academy in Turkey and leaving
for Budapest for trainings?" Safarov has said he killed Margaryan in
retaliation for family members who were killed in Jabrail, Azerbaijan
during the Karabakh war. In a February 8 hearing, information about
the conflict was entered into testimony by the Azeris, angering the
judge, according to the Armenian lawyer.
"When it was publicized the judge got quite angry and banned
publicizing such documents, which steers the trial to politics,"
Vardanyan said.
Vardanyan and Demoyan say public opinion in Hungary may be swung
in Safarov's favor, because there is no Armenian Diaspora community
there to offset Azeri propaganda.
Demoyan says the Armenian side plans to counter with materials from
an English-language webpage about the trial and publications about
Karabakh printed in Hungarian.
Demoyan further said he is confident the Armenian side will prevail,
stating that the Hungarians are not interested in the politics of
the matter, and are amazed that Safarov has become a national hero
for whom a special pension has been provided. The trial is expected
to continue in May.
DEBT GIFT: UK AGREES TO PAY CUT OF ARMENIA'S WORLD BANK LOAN
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
The British Government hopes its offer to relieve Armenia's external
debt will help the country grapple more effectively with its domestic
problems. Under the offer confirmed earlier this week the Government
of the United Kingdom will repay 10% of Armenia's debt to the World
Bank until 2015 - a total of just under $20 million. After Tuesday's
meeting with Armenia's minister of finance and economy, British
Ambassador to Armenia Thorda Abbott- Watt expressed a hope that the
relief of Armenia's external debt will save funds for the country to
spend more on solving social problems.
"I am pleased that my Government has felt able to make this gesture,
which recognizes and rewards strong economic management," she
said. "The money which will be released will help Armenia increase
investment in spheres such as health, education and social support
and raise living standards more quickly." According to the British
Embassy's Public Relations Department, the British Government has
offered this financial assistance in recognition of the difficulties
that low income countries face in trying to reduce poverty while at
the same time service their international debts.
"The objective is to free additional resources to enable Armenia to
achieve its development goals," the Embassy said in a press release.
According to the British Embassy in Yerevan, Armenia is one of
five countries to benefit in this way along with Mongolia, Vietnam,
Nepal and Sri Lanka. The UK Government chose all in recognition of
their sound public expenditure policies, which will ensure that the
money saved will be targeted towards poverty reduction. After the
meeting with the British Ambassador Armenia's Minister of Economy
and Finance Vardan Khachatryan highly evaluated the initiative of
the British Government and pointed out its importance for Armenia.
"The released funds will be aimed at purposeful programs and the
implementation of measures fixed in the government program," the
minister assured. According to the data of the Ministry of Finance
and Economy, Armenia's current external debt totals $1.15 billion or
37.7 percent of its 2004 Gross Domestic Product.
The British Department for International Development (DFID) will
pay the money into a WB trust fund. The International Development
Association (the World Bank agency that allocates funds on concession
to the poorest developing countries), for its part, will reduce the
repayments that Armenia makes over the next 10 years. Armenia is
due to repay the World Bank $8 million, $11 million and $12 million
in 2005, 2006 and 2007 respectively. The UK contribution will be 10%
of these funds, i.e. $800,000, $1.1 million and $1.2 million for each
year respectively.
SEEKING RELATIONS: TURKISH BUSINESS LEADER CALLS FOR AN OPEN BORDER
WITH ARMENIA
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The Turkish co-chairman of the Turkish-Armenian Business Development
Council (TABDC) called for the opening of the border between the two
countries during a visit to Armenia this week.
Kaan Soyak, an import and export businessman from Ankara, also declared
that the people of Turkey should "know the truth" about the Armenian
Genocide. He invited the Dashnaktsutyun party, a member of Armenia's
governing coalition, to enter dialogue with Turkey, promising to
devote his energies to the facilitating talks if it agreed.
Soyak was in Yerevan this week for the launch of a new program proposed
by the Eurasia Foundation on the implications of the opening of the
Armenian-Turkish border. The project, initiated last year, studies
the potential effects on the economy, should borders between Armenia
and Turkey open.
He told a press conference that, although the organization had
not yet worked on issues related to the Genocide, he was aware
that preparations were underway in Armenia to commemorate the 90th
anniversary of the killings. "You know that those in Turkey know
about it and deny it. It was only during the last two or three years
that they began to speak about it in Turkey. We are working in the
direction of addressing and spreading this subject in Turkey on a
larger scale. The Turkish people must know the truth," Soyak said.
The Turkish co-chairman also said that the council had implemented
a program on the preservation of Armenian monuments in Turkey, which
resulted in an end to military control of the area around Ani in 2003.
Soyak said: "Turkey says that Armenia must recognize its territorial
integrity, Armenia says that the Genocide of Armenians must be
recognized. Armenia declares that it is ready to develop economic
relations without preconditions. Time can thus be dragged out
infinitely. And to achieve any result the two countries should mitigate
their policies." He reported that he had brought greetings from
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to Soyak,
it was time that Armenia and Turkey were viewed as one region, with
open borders like those between member states of the European Union.
Armenia has called consistently for Turkey to open its border and
to establish relations without preconditions. The authorities in
Ankara, however, have maintained a blockade of Armenia in support of
Azerbaijan's position in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, an issue
that Yerevan says should have no bearing on its relations with Turkey.
Soyak said that, with open borders, direct trade would expand and
the conditions would be created for cooperation between Armenian and
Turkish businessmen.
"I am sure that Azerbaijan's ambassador to Turkey will not like these
words, but I care little about that. I also think that Azerbaijan's
position should not be a factor in the opening of borders. They
consider Karabakh's position to be a precondition for that," he said.
He added that Azerbaijan is conducting large-scale propaganda in
Turkey in this regard and that its ambassador does not like the
development council because of its objections to Azeri meddling in
Turkey's foreign policies. The TABDC was established on May 3, 1997 in
Istanbul and Yerevan by Soyak and Arsen Ghazaryan, president of Union
of Businessmen and Industrialist of Armenia. The council's goal is to
develop and promote closer cooperation between the business circles
of Armenia and Turkey and to help the two countries' organizations
establish communication. Soyak said that in 1997 they were considered
"crazy" in Turkey, but now their prestige had risen quite a lot. Of
his invitation to Dashnaktsutyun, the party considered most hostile
to relations with Turkey, he said: "In Turkey, Dashnaktsutyun has
a negative image. But I have my own opinion that the party and its
members are serious and sensible people.
"I am ready to do that and I promise to organize and implement their
dialogue, of course if Dashnaktsutyun agrees. All this will only help
us make greater achievements."
Ashot Soghomonyan, a specialist in Turkish affairs and secretary
of the TABDC, said that the Armenian side was open to any type of
activities. It is not precisely known how many Armenian companies
operate in Turkey, but the number of Turkish companies operating in
Armenia has reached 30.
They have already had meetings about the agricultural sector, with
the Turkish partners being interested in purchasing potato seeds at
reasonable prices from Armenia.
Soghomonyan said that the Eurasia Foundation project would study
"to what extent the two countries' economies will benefit from
the opening of the border and what developments can be expected".
He added: "Eventually, the work will be presented to the two countries'
authorities. The commodity turnover between Armenia and Turkey is
currently worth $120 million and this figure will increase threefold
if the borders are opened."
LAW ON LAWYERS: LEGAL SPECIALISTS PRAISE/PAN LEGISLATION OF THEIR
PRACTICE
By Zhanna Alexanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
Members of Armenia's legal community met Tuesday to discuss the impact
of a new law, active since February 1, regulating their practice.
Led by the president of the International Union of Lawyers, Tigran
Janoyan, attorneys voiced both approval and disapproval of how their
profession will be conducted from here onward.
Much of the new law brings Armenia into form with European standards,
Janoyan said. Significantly, it calls for the establishment of a Law
Bar that will oversee licensing and monitor attorney performance.
Previously, many practiced law without appropriate licenses. Now
the law clarifies the necessary authorization. "Today the way of
those lawyers is open only through becoming (licensed) attorneys,"
Janoyan said. "The Chamber (Bar) will solve the question of their
qualification and licensing."
The Bar will supervise and initiate disciplinary means in respect to
those who do not fulfill their responsibilities. The new law also
establishes a single body of lawyers, whereas many unions existed
before, Janoyan said. Most attorneys are not satisfied, however,
with the Public Defender system as outlined in the "Law on Attorneys".
The public defender will provide a free legal service and will be
paid by the state. The law allows choosing from several licensed
practitioners who will provide the service.
But lawyers complain that the law does not stipulate how they will
be paid. "The state declares its democratic attitudes without showing
its poor resources," Janoyan complained. "And in case of failure,
the responsibility will fall on us - the attorneys."
President of the Republic of Armenia Union of Attorneys Misha
Piliposyan confirmed that the current budget does not include
a provision for financing the Public Defender's Office. He says,
however, that the Ministry of Justice will solve that problem and
reminds that this is a first attempt at addressing the need.
Janoyan warns that the way the new law sets up the Public Defender's
Office makes the office liable to government control, which could
hinder the judicial process.
The law provides electoral principle for the Public Defender but
Janoyan does not trust it. "Elections are conditioned with some
interference just like all kinds of elections in our country," says the
lawyer. The candidacies for the heads of the Bar and Public Defender's
Office are already being discussed, encouraged by the Ministry of
Justice and have gained the approval of the majority of judges.
"Can you imagine the scale of the tragedy in this case? This means,
these are custom-built jobs," concludes Janoyan. "The same will
be repeated. During the first days of the investigation a state
defense will be executed, because the cases are fabricated and the
'confessional evidences' are obtained during those very days."
POVERTY CALLING: PHONE CHECKS HELP TO IDENTIFY THOSE IN GREATEST NEED
AS AID PAYMENTS INCREASE
By Gayane Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
The Government described the 2005 State budget as a "social budget"
when it put forward proposals late last year for significant increases
in spending on family allowances for the poor.
Those allowances took effect this month, raising monthly state payments
to 12,000 drams (approximately $25) from 9,200 drams (about $19)
in 2004. The state budget has allotted 20 billion drams, 4 billion
more than last year, for poverty allowances and one-off financial aid.
The cut-off point for receiving assistance has also been lowered,
from 35 to 34 points under a government formula for calculating who
is eligible for payments.
Astghik Minasyan, head of the Department for Social Assistance at
the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, says 139,000 families in
Armenia will receive poverty family allowances in 2005, of which 30,000
(7.4 percent) are considered to be in absolute poverty.
Family allowances are given to the poor, based on yearly estimations
of a "consumer basket", those with three or more children, unemployed
people, the disabled, and single pensioners without family to care for
them. (Anyone whose monthly income is less than $60 can be qualified
as "poor".) Social workers visit applicants at their homes as well
as taking documents supporting their status into consideration.
"We frequently hear the phrase: 'Visit us and then evaluate the
level of my poverty'," says Minasyan. She says it is very difficult
to evaluate the conditions of a family properly without visiting
their homes, because of hidden employment levels. The grading system
even takes account of spending on telephone calls and electricity.
Social worker Marine Sukiasyan believes that checking telephone and
electricity expenses are more than effective in establishing poverty.
"One can find out while asking questions that one of the family
members works without registration, but one can hardly find out about
the money they receive from abroad. That is why the only indicators
are the telephone calls and expenses for electricity," she says.
"If one can allow himself expenses that exceed the amount of
the allowance than he has also the resource to pay for them."
The department's poverty indicators state that electricity spending
per head should not exceed 158 kilowatts per month, which makes some
4000 drams (about $8).
The basic allowance is 6 000 drams, which goes to families with no
school-age children. Each child attracts an additional 3,000 drams in
allowance and an extra 4,000 drams is paid if the family is graded as
extremely poor. A family with four children will receive a monthly
allowance of 18 000 drams ($38), while the poor with children in
highland or borderland settlements qualify for an extra 2,000.
Families expecting a new arrival have additional support. In the past
four years, a one-time payment of 35 000 drams ($74) was made to the
family of a newborn child. The sum doubled this month to 70,000 drams
($148), provided the family applies to community social services
within three months of the birth.
Naira Sahakyan, of Yerevan, who receives welfare support, believes
it is still too low to meet even minimal needs, but she still draws
comfort from the increase (from 9,200 drams last year to 12,000 this
year) in the payments.
"I have three under-age children, my husband left for Russia seven
years ago as if to earn money and it's almost four years since I've
heard from him. How can I buy food and cloths and send my child to
school with 12 000 drams?" she says.
"It's not the allowance that should be increased; they should rather
open factories so that people can work." Diana Martirosova, the head
of the Department for Household Surveys at the National Statistical
Service, said that the level of poverty in 2003 was 42.9 percent,
the lowest for the last 10 years.
"The poverty indicator decreased for the first time in 2001, when it
was 50.9 per cent compared to 55.5 per centsin 1998-1999. In 2002 it
was 49.7 per cent," says Martirosova.
Today, 57.1 per cent of the population is considered not poor, 42.9 per
cent are poor, and those in absolute poverty represent 7.4 per cent.
"The numbers in absolute poverty decrease more quickly than that of
the poor; the allowances play a role here, but our priority is to
create jobs and to reduce the number of families receiving aid in a
natural way," said the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Aghvan
Vardanyan in a press conference last week.
CHILDHOOD PAINFULLY EXTENDED: MEASLES AFFLICTING OLDER ARMENIANS WHO
MISSED VACCINATION
By Arpi Harutyunyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
During the month of January, some 100 cases of measles were reported
in Yerevan's Nork Infections Hospital. Most required hospitalization.
It is unusual to contact measles this time of year, but the Ministry
of Health says there is no cause for alarm and that it is "absolutely
not" an epidemic.
There is concern, however, that the typical-childhood affliction has
struck young adults. Most of those reported to Nork were older than 18.
The reason is likely to be related not just to some recent exposure
to bacteria, but also a holdover from social hardships of a decade ago.
"The fact that more people above 18 get ill leads us to conclude
that they represent the part of the population that has not been
vaccinated and lacks immunity," explains the head physician at Nork,
Ara Asoyan. "Those responsible for health care in 1992-1996 may had
wished, but were unable to buy vaccine. And even after buying it,
it had to remain refrigerated. And during those years we didn't have
even electricity."
The result is that a group of the population aged about 18-25 may
now have a risk that should have been countered years ago.
Measles usually last for two weeks or more, causing high temperature,
weakness, rash and vomiting. Usually not a severe threat to children,
contamination of measles in adults can cause serious health problems.
Last July 400 cases of measles were registered, and nearly 90 percent
were over age 18. During that period a select group in the 18-25 age
group were chosen to receive vaccination. According to Sirak Sukiasyan,
director of the national program for immunization, "we have provided
for the age group".
However infections specialist at the Nor Arabkir medical center Narina
Sargsyants holds another opinion on the matter. "According to our
estimations only in one district there are nearly 5,000 people aged
18-25 and we have vaccinated 10 times less than that," she says. "It
was not only the fault of the people who were not interested in
addressing us, but also the doctors who did not provide population
with high level of awareness."
During July and August, the Ministry of Health issued 53,000
vaccinations. Now, however, it does not provide the service because it
does not vaccines to distribute. A measles vaccine costs about $20,
making it prohibitive for most of the population.
Whether there is an epidemic is of minor concern to those who have
been infected.
Eduard Davtyan, a student of the National Institute of Economics got
infected three weeks ago. Davtyan says the disease came from his class,
where four students also suffer measles. "If only from my class four
people get infected it means that the health officials should take
the necessary measures to fight the disease," he says. "They had to
provide free vaccine. And they should have paid more attention to
the risk-group students and schoolchildren."
Many students who are concerned with the threat of being infected
apply to their district clinics to be vaccinated, but have been told
that there is no vaccine, except at private clinics, which have the
$20 shots.
BOUNCING WITH EXPECTATION: CHINESE AND ARMENIANS HOPEFUL OVER RUBBER
PARTNERSHIP
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmenianNow Reporter
A year after the project on the establishment of an Armenian-Chinese
rubber producing joint venture formally got underway, specialists are
optimistic about the success of the enterprise. The 30-month-long
project in which the Armenian side represented by Nairit-2 CJSC
provides technology and expertise was launched on February 19, 2004.
Nairit-2 and its Chinese partner, Shanxi Synthetic Rubber Group
Co. Ltd, are to build a plant, ChinArmenPren, with an annual production
capacity of 30,000 tons of rubber in north China's Shanxi Province.
The project is still at the stage of designing but some construction
work has already been carried out. The first group of Armenian
specialists this month returned from a 2.5-month business trip to
China where they helped their Chinese colleagues with projections.
Albert Sukiasyan, Director of Nairit-2 CJSC, which represents the
Armenian side in the project, is satisfied with the results of the
work done during the year.
He says that the initial stage of the project has proved the choice of
cooperation with China as the best for Armenia's chemical industry,
which was left without a sales market and raw material base after
the collapse of the Soviet Union.
"Armenia cooperated with China in the chemical industry still in the
1950s when it was part of the Soviet Union," says Sukiasyan. "Since
then we have greatly advanced in terms of our rubber production
technology and it is natural that China with its increased rubber
consumption chose us as its partner."
According to Sukiasyan, the Chinese consider the acetylene method of
producing chloroprene rubber developed by Armenian specialists to be
the safest in the world.
"They would cooperate with Dupont or Bayer if their technologies were
safer," says Sukiasyan.
The acetylene method uses natural gas and carbide as raw materials for
producing chloroprene rubber. Unlike Armenia, China has huge deposits
of coal and vast reserves of natural gas. The province where the plant
will be situated has the richest reserves of coal in the world. And
coal is the basis for obtaining carbide used in the production of
chloroprene rubber.
"They have vast resources, we don't. But we have the technology and
expertise that they need. So, our technology matches their potential,"
says Sukiasyan, who has worked in the chemical industry of Armenia
since 1957.
According to Sukiasyan, Nairit will also produce and supply the
necessary equipment for the plant in China. He says that the first
order will be executed in the middle of May.
The construction, according to him, is due for completion in 2006,
after which for 17 years ChinArmenPren plant will be operated by the
two sides and its profits will be divided according to the following
pattern: the Armenian side will get 40% of the profit and the Chinese
side will get 60%.
The authorized capital of the JV will amount to $35 million, with
$21 million contributed by the Chinese side and 14 million by the
Armenian side.
Sukiasyan says that the plant's management will also be shared -
Armenian specialists will direct the technical part, while the
financial matters will be managed by the Chinese side.
Under the contract, in 17 years either side gets the right to opt out
of the joint venture getting its share. But Sukiasyan says that given
all the favorable conditions for profitable cooperation neither side
considers this option at this stage yet and is unlikely to consider
it in the future.
"I think this will be a long-term cooperation that will last for
decades," he says. "Besides, our cooperation with the Chinese will go
far beyond rubber production. Thus, we also have plans to cooperate
in chemical production that will help the agricultural sector."
Mavrik Farsiyan is one of the three specialists who recently worked
in China helping local specialists do the projecting works. He says
that both sides have a lot to offer to each other.
"All conditions are created for our fruitful cooperation and we hope
that this will be a long-term cooperation that will also benefit the
chemical industry in Armenia," he says.
During Soviet times Nairit was a monopolist producer of chloroprene
rubber in the USSR. Now it is still one of the five plants in
the world producing synthetic rubber. After several unsuccessful
attempts of privatization Nairit now again belongs to the Armenian
government. There are about 2,000 workers registered on its
payroll. But the cooperation with the Chinese side is conducted through
Nairit-2, which was established in 2001 as a scientific-research
institute and also belongs to the government.
Nairit-2 has a staff of 105 workers, their average monthly wages
being 35,000 drams.
Currently, 22 specialists from China are on an exchange visit to
Armenia studying the experience of their Armenian colleagues at
Nairit-2.
According to the director of Nairit-2, up to 100 specialists are
going to be directly involved in the realization of the joint venture
establishment project from the Armenian side.
LAWTOON: YOUNG PEOPLE GET LEGAL LEARNING FROM ANIMATIONS
By Mariam Badalyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
Thursday the American Bar Association Central European and Eurasian Law
Initiative (ABA/CEELI) organized a presentation its "Alphabet of Law",
a series of cartoons to teach young people about law and human rights.
"The goal of the project was making law easy and teachable for the
general public," says Lisa Russo, ABA/CEELI Rule of Law Liaison. "With
the help of these cartoons people will remember their basic rights
without making much efforts on memorizing theories."
The cartoons are ideally meant for 8-10 form classes, but are designed
so that lower class students may also find them easy-to-understand.
The series were shot by Independent Film-Makers production team.
"The topics are serious and very important, but we have tried to
make them appealing to teenagers by adding some humor," said Ashot
Mkhitaryan president of Independent Film Makers, the production
company.
So far, three cartoons, each two to three minutes long, have been shot
on different topics - three branches of government, constitutional
rights, and equality of sexes. The next video will be on basic rights
and responsibilities of citizens.
"There are a few more topics that are under discussion, however we
actually take suggestions from the public," says Russo. The idea of
the project was taken from the American "Schoolhouse Rock" cartoon
series. Russo says she remembers extracts from the US constitution
from the TV show songs. The cartoons are currently used in Armenian
Young Lawyers Association Street Law project financed by the US
Embassy and ABA/CEELI.
The AYLA Street law project started in fall of 2003. The aim of the
project is acquainting the population with their fundamental human
and civil rights. Topics included: family law, labor law and labor
relations, trafficking, struggle against corruption, constitutional
rights. The classes were organized in AYLA Yerevan office as well as
AYLA regional offices in Gavar, Gyumri, Kapan, Goris, Ijevan, Vanadzor.
"The first stage of the project will be over this spring, says
Liana Harutiunyan, the Street Law coordinator of AYLA, "however,
other groups of students will be enrolled to similar classes
immediately afterwards." So far, 280 seminars were conducted with
224 participants. Among the participants were law students, young
lawyers and school teachers. All the participants have already
conducted trainings in 97 schools in Yerevan and marzes involving
4,832 schoolchildren.
AYLA volunteer Ruslan Avetisyan says that with the introduction
of cartoons the discussion became more lively. "Recently, we have
discussed equality for women with schoolchildren. The discussion was
very hot," says Aveitsyan, "In many Armenian families people still
do not accept that a woman may have a 'manly' job. Discussion help
a lot to see things from a different angle."
At present, the cartoons are being shown on "Yerkir Media" and "Shant
TV". During the event other TV companies were also provided with CDs
and videos to be used for broadcasting.
NATIONAL PRIDE: BROTHERS SAY HORSES SHOULD BE AN ARMENIAN TREASURE
By Vahan Ishkhanyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
During 10 years the Mirzoyan brothers have created Armenia's largest
stable of sport horses. Their number is at 56 now (the second is the
hippodrome in Yerevan that was established during Soviet times and
now has 46 horses, of which a few are the property of individuals).
The stable is in their birthplace - in the village of Lernamerdz in
the Armavir region. The big stable situated in the unsightly rural
area catches the eye from the distance with its grove of young poplars.
"My brother brought the first horse from Echmiadzin," says stable
director Gevorg Mirzoyan. "Then horses were given to us as gifts. At
some point we began to attend to it seriously. A horse is a dream. My
dad was very much fond of horses too (his father is a well-known
patriot in the national circles, Janpolad Mirzoyan). The news that
we were setting up a horse-breeding farm pleased him very much."
Gevorg Mirzoyan, 56, graduated from the Philological Department of
the Yerevan State University. In 1987, together with Paruyr Hairikyan,
he founded the Union for Self-Determination, which was struggling for
Armenia's independence. He worked at the State TV and Radio Committee,
from which he was fired in 1988 by KGB for his political views. A court
later reinstated him. In 1994, he participated in the Karabakh war.
Mirzoyan considers horse-breeding to be the continuation of his
nationalistic activities: "I thought at that time that we should
fight for independence, then I fought in the war, now I consider
horse-breeding to be the right thing to do. In a country that has
no horses a horse becomes a national wealth."
He considers politics to be a damaging occupation and that it is the
scum of society that are engaged in it: "The war ended and I don't
know where they came from and became ministers. Those who sincerely
fought for Armenia saw the country in a different way." A piece of that
"different way" is the stable of Lernamerdz.
He considers even the place to be symbolic - it is in the center of
the triangle of three mountains - Aragats, Ararat and Ara.
Horse-breeding is not a business for the Mirzoyans. Gevorg's brother
is a businessman, who only spends on the horse- breeding farm from
his incomes without any profit expectations: "If I sold the horses,
I would drive a Jeep. But if it were so, I would be among the animals
who take 50,000 dollars out of the pocket. Not drams, but dollars. They
(officials) spend 12,000 dollars a day in casinos, and they pay a
pension of 12,000 drams a month to people. If someone gave (officials)
12,000 drams, their heart would break." Gevorg Mirzoyan says that
several times rich people and officials came to buy a horse from him,
but he didn't sell. He told them that they'd better spend the money
to build a school in the village.
During the Soviet years, there were farms breeding sport horses which
disappeared in the '90s, since during the crisis it was impossible
to maintain horses. The Mirzoyans once bought a few horses from those
horse-breeding farms, and they now gave offspring.
A worker at the stable, horse trainer Norik Sargsyan worked in the
horse-breeding farm of Ddmashen, which was the largest and had about
80 horses. He remembers how horses began to die there because of lack
of food: "So many horses died of hunger at that time. We could not
find food, they couldn't stand the winter cold. There was no water,
foals were born in heavy conditions. Once I came and saw that six of
them had died, then 10 of them had gone."
Sargsyan has worked as a horse trainer and jockey since 1972. He has
trained about 300 horses. He says that the best studs he had seen are
in Lernamerdz, built by the Mirzoyans from foundation to top. Here
he has already trained nine young horses to be ridden. Every day
except on Sunday the horses are trained by specialist trainers. Many
of the horses participated in championships organized in Armenia and
won prizes. One of their lot, "Clever" last year placed first in a
championship called "Call of the World", held here.
Twenty of the horses are thoroughbred English saddle-horses. The
Mirzoyans decided to create an Armenian breed that will be a mixture
of the local horse and the English one. They already got one such
horse and called the breed "taron".
"When we say local it is conventional, in reality there is no such
breed," says Gevorg Mirzoyan. "The locals are a mixture, during Soviet
times horses were brought from different places and they mixed up with
each other. Then, horses were not properly kept in villages, they were
fed with remains from other animals' food, and that's why they have
no good look, their bodies are small. My goal is to create a local
breed - a taron-horse. This horse-breeding farm will be called the
Taron-Horse Medical-Sports Complex to where people will later come to
ride horses. Sporting and healthcare arrangements will be held there.
However, the Mirzoyans already now consider that they have achieved
the result, which is not only theirs but also of Armenia: "During
those years horses were dying of hunger. Offspring of some of them
are now here, whom we have saved and won by that."
--Boundary_(ID_rqv6qjK01YkZwDMBkeTd7A)--
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress