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TELETHON TRENDS: SHIFT IN CHARITY PLEDGES INDICATIVE OF ARMENIA-DIASPORA RELATIONS
SOCIETY | 28.11.12 | 12:32
By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent
The results of the 15th annual telethon in support of the All-Armenian
Hayastan Fund have reaffirmed the final shift in cooperation between
Armenia and Karabakh, and the worldwide Armenian Diaspora.
While only a few years ago most of the donations to the Fund,
especially large ones, would come from Armenian Americans, then now
the major contributors are Russian Armenians.
The share of the pledges by Russian Armenians in 2012 made $12.1 of
the total amount of donations that stood at about $21.4 after last
Thursday's Thanksgiving Day Telethon broadcast from the United States.
The largest donations were pledged by President of the RESO-Garantia
company Sergei Sarkisov ($4 million plus $10,000 for school No. 1 of
Stepanakert), chairman of the Sobesednik publishing house Levon
Hayrapetyan ($2 million), president of the Tashir group of companies
Samvel Karapetyan ($1.5 million), president of the Afina Pallada group
of companies Hayk Magakelyan ($ 1 million), director-general of the
Luding company Armen Shahazizyan ($600,000), head of the Union of
Armenians of Russia Ara Abrahamyan ($500,000).
During the first ten telethons organized for the benefit of the
Hayastan Fund the main "competing" parties in terms of the donated
amounts were mainly prominent Armenian-American philanthropists, such
as Louise Manoogian Simone, Albert Boyajian, the Hovnanian family. But
now they mostly prefer staying away from the fundraiser. During the
2011 telethon a sum of $11 million was donated by Argentine-Armenian
magnate Eduardo Eurnekian, but this year he did not announce any
donation.
Experts link such changes to several factors. First of all, of course,
the growing distrust among the Western part of the Armenian Diaspora
to the authorities in Yerevan and Stepanakert that have ultimately
"oligarchized" and monopolized the economy. It has been said time and
again that the funds collected through such fundraisers are not used
effectively and that the share of so-called "kickbacks" is high, a
claim routinely discarded by the Fund management.
Secondly, after the election of Bako Sahakyan as president of Karabakh
ties between Stepanakert and the Western Diaspora almost came to a
halt, while there was a boost in relations with Armenian entrepreneurs
from Russia. With many of them Sahakyan is acquainted personally as
for several years he represented Armenia in the KGB of Russia.
President Sahakyan attended a Hayastan Fund charity dinner in Moscow
on November 8 during which he enumerated the projects that have been
implemented in Karabakh in the past several years and praised the
"brothers and sisters" in Russia for their investments and
contributions to the projects.
While Armenia has declared a policy of European integration and is
developing closer ties with Europe and the United States, Karabakh
still clearly remains pro-Russian. There is already a growing body of
opinion, however, that questions the possibility of Yerevan's European
integration without Karabakh. Perhaps this is what the recent visit to
Karabakh by a delegation of the Armenia-European Union parliamentary
committee led by its co-chairman Samvel Farmanyan was connected with.
During the visit the sides discussed the possibilities of establishing
relations between the NKR and Europe. At present, these links exist
only at the level of non-governmental organizations - it is already
two years that the EU has allocated funds for grants to civic
organizations in Karabakh.
SOCIETY | 28.11.12 | 12:32
By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent
The results of the 15th annual telethon in support of the All-Armenian
Hayastan Fund have reaffirmed the final shift in cooperation between
Armenia and Karabakh, and the worldwide Armenian Diaspora.
While only a few years ago most of the donations to the Fund,
especially large ones, would come from Armenian Americans, then now
the major contributors are Russian Armenians.
The share of the pledges by Russian Armenians in 2012 made $12.1 of
the total amount of donations that stood at about $21.4 after last
Thursday's Thanksgiving Day Telethon broadcast from the United States.
The largest donations were pledged by President of the RESO-Garantia
company Sergei Sarkisov ($4 million plus $10,000 for school No. 1 of
Stepanakert), chairman of the Sobesednik publishing house Levon
Hayrapetyan ($2 million), president of the Tashir group of companies
Samvel Karapetyan ($1.5 million), president of the Afina Pallada group
of companies Hayk Magakelyan ($ 1 million), director-general of the
Luding company Armen Shahazizyan ($600,000), head of the Union of
Armenians of Russia Ara Abrahamyan ($500,000).
During the first ten telethons organized for the benefit of the
Hayastan Fund the main "competing" parties in terms of the donated
amounts were mainly prominent Armenian-American philanthropists, such
as Louise Manoogian Simone, Albert Boyajian, the Hovnanian family. But
now they mostly prefer staying away from the fundraiser. During the
2011 telethon a sum of $11 million was donated by Argentine-Armenian
magnate Eduardo Eurnekian, but this year he did not announce any
donation.
Experts link such changes to several factors. First of all, of course,
the growing distrust among the Western part of the Armenian Diaspora
to the authorities in Yerevan and Stepanakert that have ultimately
"oligarchized" and monopolized the economy. It has been said time and
again that the funds collected through such fundraisers are not used
effectively and that the share of so-called "kickbacks" is high, a
claim routinely discarded by the Fund management.
Secondly, after the election of Bako Sahakyan as president of Karabakh
ties between Stepanakert and the Western Diaspora almost came to a
halt, while there was a boost in relations with Armenian entrepreneurs
from Russia. With many of them Sahakyan is acquainted personally as
for several years he represented Armenia in the KGB of Russia.
President Sahakyan attended a Hayastan Fund charity dinner in Moscow
on November 8 during which he enumerated the projects that have been
implemented in Karabakh in the past several years and praised the
"brothers and sisters" in Russia for their investments and
contributions to the projects.
While Armenia has declared a policy of European integration and is
developing closer ties with Europe and the United States, Karabakh
still clearly remains pro-Russian. There is already a growing body of
opinion, however, that questions the possibility of Yerevan's European
integration without Karabakh. Perhaps this is what the recent visit to
Karabakh by a delegation of the Armenia-European Union parliamentary
committee led by its co-chairman Samvel Farmanyan was connected with.
During the visit the sides discussed the possibilities of establishing
relations between the NKR and Europe. At present, these links exist
only at the level of non-governmental organizations - it is already
two years that the EU has allocated funds for grants to civic
organizations in Karabakh.