Armenian News... A Topalian...Electric Protests

Al-Jazeera:
The Stream - #ElectricYerevan: Bringing power to the people 

in Armenia 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGvE1_9lAck

[TV Interviewer had problems trying to get Armenians to talk one 

at a time!] 


armenianow.com
SILENT REVOLUTION?: 'ELECTRIC' PROTESTS IN YEREVAN 

FORCE POLITICAL LEADERSHIP TO TAKE 'EMERGENCY' STEPS
29.06.15 

By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN

While the current protests in Yerevan are dubbed "Electric", they are
more like a "silent revolution". Demonstrators in Baghramyan Avenue
are not setting any political demands, besides the "social demand" of
revoking the decision on the electricity price hike, they are silent,
they spend the day singing and dancing and gather in the evenings
for rallies.

However, the political leaderships of Armenia and Russia are forced
to take urgent steps.

In response to the protest blockading Baghramyan Avenue in Yerevan,
a meeting of the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental commission
was urgently held in the Armenian capital. Then, President Serzh
Sargsyan said that Russia decided to issue a loan of $200 million
for the purchase of modern weapons for the army and transfer the
investigation of the murders of the Avetisyan family in Gyumri, blamed
on a Russian soldier, to the Armenian side. Also Russian assistance
with the extension of the life of the Armenian nuclear power plant
was announced and the sides agreed on commissioning an audit of the
Armenian power grids owned by the Russian company Inter RAO UES.

The Armenian government, in its turn, decided to take upon itself
the subsidization of the increased part of the electricity tariff,
paying it from the state budget.

However, the fact that thousands of protesters remained in Baghramyan
Avenue means that these decisions do not satisfy the requirements of
the people. And although no one in the avenue presented new demands,
Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan overnight made what looked like a panic
statement, claiming that the demonstrators have passed from social to
"obscure political demands."

In the protest venue some individual participants put forward various
demands, up to the nationalization of Armenia's strategic assets that
were transferred to Russia and the resignation of the government.

However, these demands are made privately, and no one formulates
them officially.

The police force that yesterday promised to clear the demonstration
did not launch any operation eventually. According to political analyst
Andrias Ghukasyan, they were stopped by the large number of people who
gathered in the area. According to various estimates, they were up to
10,000. However, as experts say, the police realize that breaking up
the rally could lead to the downfall of today's government in Armenia,
where a movement of civil disobedience is gaining momentum.

The government is trying to "buy some time" in order to try, perhaps,
to resell the Armenian power grid. According to Russia's Kommersant
newspaper, Inter RAO UES is in talks with the owner of Tashir Group
Samvel Karapetyan and another Russian businessman of Armenian origin.

Minister-chief of government stuff David Harutyunyan yesterday said
that resale and nationalization of the company cannot be excluded,
but first an international audit needs to be conducted.

The minister said that within the framework of the Eurasian Economic
Union that can find solutions in the energy sector. But first of all
improvement of the system is needed.

In fact, to the silent rally in Yerevan political response is heard
at the highest level. And the power of the people who gathered in
Baghramyan Avenue is felt strongly in government offices.


PUTIN'S ARMENIA SHOCK
Wall Street Journal, NY
June 29 2015
Protests break out against a Russian ally in the Caucasus.
June 29, 2015 

Ten thousand protesters over the weekend poured into the streets of
Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, defying the government's crackdown.

Russian-media reactions suggest the Kremlin is nervous, as Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan is a close Moscow ally.

The so-called Electric Yerevan protests erupted this month after the
state utilities commission announced a 17% rise in electricity rates,
and they have steadily grown. At issue isn't merely the electricity
price-hike in a country with 17% unemployment but the Russian
domination of the local economy and the corruption and cronyism that
are hallmarks of the Kremlin business model.

The local electricity provider, the Armenian Electricity Network,
is a subsidiary of Russia's Inter RAO, whose chairman, Igor Sechin,
is a close friend of President Vladimir Putin. The protesters allege
the company is corrupt, and on Saturday Mr. Sargsyan conceded their
demand for an audit. He also suspended the price hike, which was set
to begin in August, until the audit is complete.

The Armenian leader and his Russian patrons seem to have grasped
the depth of national feeling. The Kremlin over the weekend lent
$200 million in military aid to Armenia, which has a long-standing
territorial dispute with neighboring Azerbaijan. Moscow also agreed
to move the trial of a Russian soldier suspected of murdering an
Armenian family in January to an Armenian court.

At stake for Mr. Putin are his military investments in Armenia. Home
to some 3,000 troops, the 102nd Military Base in Gyumri, Armenia,
is a crucial Russian beachhead in the South Caucasus corridor,
without which Moscow can't control the Caspian Sea and Central
Asia. Mr. Putin considers the Caucasus part of Russia's imperial
domain, and the Kremlin carved out bits of sovereign territory in the
region in its 2008 assault on Georgia. Mr. Putin also wants stability
in his Eurasian Economic Union, which Armenia joined this year.

The U.S. and Europe should aim to deny further Russian encroachments
by encouraging westward steps. But no such determination is in
evidence. The European Union last month diluted its commitment to
the Eastern Partnership countries, which include the South Caucasus
states of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. By denying such states a
clear path to association, Europe pushes them into Mr. Putin's sphere.

The U.S., meanwhile, took a stance on Twitter. TWTR -2.98 % "Concerned
by tense situation downtown," the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan tweeted
over the weekend. "Urge all sides to display peaceful, restrained
behavior befitting democratic values." That's nice.


Daily Sabah, Turkey

DISPUTE NOT OVER ON FATE OF HISTORIC ARMENIAN 

ORPHANAGE
June 29 2015
Just when everyone thought that the story of a historic Armenian
orphanage in Istanbul came to a happy ending after the current owner
agreed to donate it to the Armenian community, harsh remarks have
come from activists claiming the handover was not realized.

Camp Armen, a summer camp that served as an orphanage for Armenian
children for years before it was seized by the state, was the scene of
protests in May. Activists had stopped the demolition of the building,
which largely lies in ruins, by its current owner. The group had
camped out in the area for days and finally wrapped up the protest
after the owner announced he would donate the land where the building
is located to the Armenian Protestant Church foundation, its original
owner. However, protesters resumed their protest as they claimed no
handover took place for one month. The owner admitted that it would
be a lengthy legal process to hand over the land while activists
claim the process is being dragged down. Human Rights Association,
whose members joined the protest, announced they would take their
cause to an international platform by sending letters to the Council
of Europe and the European Parliament. Eren Keskin, a representative
of the association, said Turkey was responsible for complying with the
membership criteria of the European Union that included the returning
of properties to religious minorities.

Turkey recently started handing over properties seized from non-Muslim
communities in the past under oppressive state policies back to their
original owners. Those that are in possession of the Treasury are
easily cleared for handover but those in the ownership of individuals
often require a complicated legal process for the clearance for
a handover.

Activists last staged a protest in Istanbul on Saturday, calling for
the return of the property.

Camp Armen was confiscated after the Turkish Supreme Court of Appeals
ruled in 1974 that foundations set up by those who are not Turkish
cannot acquire properties, based on a controversial 1936 regulation
that paved the way for the seizure of properties from non-Muslim
communities. The title deed for the orphanage, where more than 1,500
Armenians spent their childhood before its closure, was canceled in
1979. It was returned to its former owner and changed hands several
times since then. Among the orphans raised in the historic building
was the late Hrant Dink, editor-in-chief of Agos daily and a renowned
figure from the Turkish-Armenian community, who was assassinated
in 2007.

 
tert.am 

NO ECONOMIC GROWTH IN ARMENIA IN 2015 - IMF
30.06.15

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts no - or insignificant
- economic growth in Armenia for this year, Masood Ahmed, Director,
Middle East and Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund
(IMF), told reporters on Tuesday.

The IMF forecasts 1% economic growth in Armenia for next year.

The economic situation in Russia and the declining oil prices influence
the regional countries. Specifically, the economic decline in Russia,
a 40% decrease in money remittances and a decline in exports affected
Armenia. Hardly any economic growth will be registered in Armenia
this year, but the IMF hopes its forecasts will not prove accurate,
Mr Ahmed said.

Armenia is suffering consequences of the 2009 crisis as it has used
up the financial buffers accumulated over the years.

In recent years, Armenia has borrowed funds thus increasing its foreign
debt. Armenia's international reserves are at an acceptable level,
but they cannot be used on a large scale now. It means Armenia is
faced with two major challenges now - short-term and mid-term ones.

In the first case, in the next 12-18 months, economy managers need
to find the golden mean. In the mid-term, they should make efforts
to raise the economic growth to a higher level than 3-3.5 percent.

The government should channel some of government expenditures to
economy as investments. The government must support the private sector
by improving the business environment, Mr Ahmed said.

The IMF official went on to elaborate on their role in the activities
outlined. He said that the Fund, which has been collaborating with
Armenia for two decades, has offered its best support to the country
over the period. He said added that their current project, proposed
Armenia's Government, is being successfully implemented but stressed
the importance of more efforts to adapt it to the new realities.

Asked whether he expects new shocks likely to impact the country's
economy, Mr Ahmed said he doesn't think that any new development
creating such an effect would be termed as a shock were predictable
in advance.

He said he outlines a "positive shock" for a country like Armenia in
light of the stabilization trends observed on the Russian market. The
IMF official added that a possible thaw between Iran, Armenia's
southern neighbor, and the international community, would inspire
more positive hopes. He said he expects a successful completion of
the debates and talks to increase the capital flows to Armenia.

Mr Ahmed further highlighted the importance of the observed
diversification in the sources of growth. He noted that unlike the
situation several years ago (when the economy developed largely
due to assets received from the development sector), there is now
progress in other areas as well, including the IT industries and
mining. He called for further efforts towards increasing the sources
of growth in order promote a higher competitiveness and better access
to different markets. 

mediamax.am
COLLABORATION WITH UK AND NATO DISCUSSED AT 

DEFENSE MINISTRY
July 1, 2015 

Armenian Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan has received today 

International Security Policy Director of UK Ministry
of Defense Nick Gurr.

Nick Gurr was accompanied by UK Ambassador to Armenia Katherine 

Leach, the press service of the Armenian Defense Ministry reports.

The meeting focused on issues related to Armenia-UK and Armenia-NATO
cooperation.

Seyran Ohanyan presented his vision of the development of the
cooperation.

The British side has noted that the UK will continue cooperating
with the Armenian Defense Ministry within current programs and new
initiatives, both in bilateral and multilateral formats.

RFE/RL Report
Planned Rise In Yerevan Water Price Abandoned
Tatevik Lazarian
01.07.2015

AFrench-run company managing Yerevan's water distribution network 

has abandoned attempts to slightly raise the price of its drinking water
following a much sharper rise in energy tariffs that sparked angry
protests in the Armenian capital.

Earlier this year, the Yerevan Jur operator asked Armenia's Public
Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) to approve a 1.4 percent 

rise in the cost of water supplied to households. It cited consumer price
inflation and a sizable depreciation late last year of the Armenian
dram.

A PSRC spokeswoman, Mariam Stepanian, told RFE/RL's Armenian service
(Azatutyun.am) on Wednesday that the company withdrew the request two
days ago. She said its director, Gor Grigorian, informed the
regulators in a letter that the Yerevan Jur has increased the
efficiency of its operations by significantly cutting back on the use
of electricity in water distribution.

Therefore, Grigorian wrote, the company now thinks that the water
tariff can remain unchanged at 170.3 drams (36 U.S. cents) per cubic
meter.

"They also took into account the need to ease the burden on their
consumers amid increases in the prices of public services," Stepanian
added in an apparent reference to the PSRC's controversial decision on
June 17 to raise the electricity prices by over 17 percent.

The decision prompted thousands of Armenians to take to the streets
and demand its annulment. Scores of mostly protesters have been camped
out on Yerevan's Marshal Bagramian avenue for the past ten
days. President Serzh Sarkisian failed to placate them with his
weekend announcement that the Armenian government will subsidize the
energy tariffs and thus ensure that they remain unchanged for
households for now.

No To Plunder, an Armenian youth movement which launched the protests,
linked Yerevan Jur's decision with the ongoing campaign against the
electricity price hike. "I'm sure that they would have made water more
expensive had there been no processes going on in the city," one of
its leaders, Maxim Sargsian, told RFE/RL's Armenian service
(Azatutyun.am).

Yerevan Jur is controlled by the French company Veolia Water in
accordance with a 10-year management contract signed with the Armenian
government in 2006. Veolia has since significantly improved water
supplies in the city by upgrading its obsolete water distribution and
sewerage networks, including with loans provided by the World Bank and
the French government.

Veolia's chief executive, Antoine Frerot, visited Armenia and met with
President Serzh Sarkisian as recently as on June 1. According to
Sarkisian's office, Frerot said his company wants to not only continue
managing water supplies in Yerevan but also extend its operations to
other parts of Armenia. 

armradio.am 

CONDUCTOR WAITING FOR ARMENIA-TURKEY TRAIN FOR 

22 YEARS
29 Jun 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
Hagop Kevorkian has been waiting for the same train for 22 years. He
used to work as a conductor on services crossing the Turkey-Armenia
border, but now he is the sole watchman at the decaying Akhuryan
Station, in northern Armenia, 2 kilometers from the border, according
to Al-Monitor.

"Trains came to the station loaded with all kinds of things. We would
do customs checks and then unload the goods. One hundred fifty people
used to work here. They were all from Akhuryan village. The trade
supported the whole village," Hagop said, sitting at his table in
the gloomy station office surrounded by yellowing technical diagrams
of train lines and wagons. "Now there's nothing. I just sit here
every day."

Service between Akhuryan and Dogu Kapi (East Gate) in Kars province
was halted in March 1993, after Turkey closed its border with Armenia
in solidarity with its ally Azerbaijan amid the Nagorno-Karabakh War.

It has not resumed. Today, Akhuryan Station, which sits outside
Armenia's second largest city, Gyumri, is a symbol of the human cost
of the bitter impasse in relations between Turkey and Armenia.

"I have been here for 33 years. For 22 of those years, I have had
nothing to do. There's nothing here anymore," Hagop said. Currently,
he spends his days sitting alone, waiting, wearing the same uniform
that he had worn during the Soviet era, smoking cigarettes and
occasionally watching an ancient black-and-white television perched
atop a filing cabinet.

Hope last came to Akhuryan Station in 2009, when the two countries
signed diplomatic accords. The comprehensive deal foresaw the opening
of the border and an exchange of ambassadors. With momentum building
after the ratification of the protocols, steps were taken to reopen the
station and resume cross-border rail links. Hagop said the station
building was partly renovated, the platform spruced up and a new
track laid. Then the agreement collapsed in 2010 after Turkey made
it conditional on an Armenian peace deal with Azerbaijan.