Kerakouyn Shaherou Hamuengnman Hramayagan-ue‏

ARTICLE BY DR. NOUBAR BERBERIAN

BOSTON, U. S. A.

RAG Ghegavaroutian Hantiboum-ue H. H. Kuelkhavor Hyoubadosin Hed‏

FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT IN

LOS ANGELES, U. S. A.

Update on Hye Tad Evening, Saturday, 3/7‏

Dear Friends ,

For those of you who would like to bring your young children with you to Hye Tad Evening, this Saturday, March 7th, childcare will be provided on site at the KZV Armenian Preschool, free of charge.

Our Special Guests this year include Paul Krekorian, Andrew Tarsy, and we'll be honoring Marilyn Burke. Read on for details. We hope to see you there!

SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2009
Saroyan Hall, 825 Brotherhood Way, San Francisco
$100 per person, $40 for students
6:30 pm - Cocktails / 7:30 pm - Dinner & Program
RSVP: (415) 387-3433 or mail@ancsf.org

ASSEMBLYMAN PAUL KREKORIAN was recently appointed Assistant Majority Floor Leader of the California State Assembly, the third-ranking leadership position in the Assembly after Speaker of the Assembly, leading all floor debates and providing policy and political guidance to the Speaker. In his first year in Sacramento, Paul achieved remarkable legislative success, with the highest number of bills passed and signed by the Governor of any freshman member. Assemblyman Krekorian has also been a strong voice for the Armenian-American community within California state government.

ANDREW TARSY came to prominence in his role as the New England Regional director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in 2008. At that time, he boldly defied ADL director Abe Foxman’s unethical stance on the Armenian Genocide, and advocated
for unequivocal affirmation of the Armenian Genocide. He was dismissed from his position, re-hired, and later resigned from the organization. Tarsy is currently the Chief Institutional Advancement Officer at Facing History and Ourselves, the national educational organization, and he will discuss his experience with the ADL and his thoughts on Armenian Genocide recognition.

Hye Tad Evening will also allow us to honor Bay Area resident MARILYN BURKE, who has made an extraordinary investment towards the removal of land mines in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabagh Republic).

The Bay Area Armenian National Committee is a grassroots public affairs organization serving to inform, educate, and act on a wide range of issues concerning Armenian-Americans throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The Bay Area ANC, or “Hye Tad” committee has been an important presence for Armenian-American political action in the Bay Area for decades. Our efforts span a wide range: meeting with political representatives and diplomats about issues affecting our community, participating in local campaigns, publicizing the Armenian Cause and educating the community, forging partnerships with other human rights organizations, fighting historical revisionism, and promoting recognition of the Armenian Genocide. The Bay Area ANC is working to make Armenian-American interests effectively part of the political dialogue of our governments and of our own community. The Bay Area ANC is one of many ANC chapters across the country and around the world, from Armenia to Moscow, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and South America. Together we can all be proud of the progress of “Hye Tad” here in the Bay Area. We plan to continue these efforts and more, and we encourage your participation in the process. Together, “Hye Tad” and YOU will meet the challenges before us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

R.A.G OPPOSITION

Յայտարարութիւն

7 Յունիս 2009-ի երեսփոխանական ընտրութիւնները, ինչպէս այլ համայնքներու ու քաղաքական կազմակերպութիւններու , նաեւ լիբանանահայութեան համար կենսական եւ անկիւնադարձային նշանակութիւն մը պիտի ունենան:

Ասկէ մեկնելով մենք՝ Ռամկավար Ազատական կուսակցութեան Լիբանանի շրջանակի մեծաթիւ անդամակցութիւնս, իբրեւ կառուցողական ընդդիմութիւն, նախանձախնդիր ու հետամուտ ենք , որ այս ընտրութիւններուն լիբանանահայութեան խորհրդարանական թեկնածուները հանդէս գան ՄԻԱՍՆԱԿԱՆ ճակատով, ՀԱՅԿԱԿԱՆ ԵՐԵՍՓՈԽԱՆԱԿԱՆ ԸՆԿԵՐԱԿՑՈՒԹԻՒՆ (ՊԼՈՔ) անունի տակ, որուն մէջ ներառուին բոլոր կողմերը, ԱՆԽՏԻՐ :

Ներկայ պայմաններու լոյսին տակ եւ ապագայի հեռանկարով, համոզուած ենք որ այս է ճիշդ ուղին , ծառայելու լիբանանեան հայրենիքին եւ ատոր ընդմէջէն՝ լիբանանահայութեան կարիքներուն, առանց դառնալու ուրիշներու ''զանազան քաղաքական խմբաւորումներու դրածոյ պատգամախօսը'', ինչպէս իրաւացիօրէն կը նշէր Ռ.Ա.Կ. կեդրոնական վարչութեան 24 Դեկտեմբեր 2008-ի ''Սրտագին կոչ''ը:

Այս անվիճելի ընտրանքը յաջողցնելու գերագոյն գրաւականը մեզմէ իւրաքանչիւրէն կը պահանջէ յանձնառու կեցուածքով ու պատրաստակամ ընդառաջումով այս տարազումը դարձնելու լիբանանահայութեան սեփականութիւնը:

Ռ.Ա.Կ. Լիբանանի Շրջանակի Անդամակցութիւն

Պէյրութ

27 Փետրուար 2009

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anniversary of Armenian Political Unrest News

‏

Reuters
March 1 2009
Armenian protesters mark year since deadly riots
Sun Mar 1, 2009 10:02am EST

* Rally to remember dead protesters
* Opposition leader demands early elections
* President lights candles in memory of dead

By Hasmik Mkrtchyan

YEREVAN, March 1 (Reuters) - At least 10,000 anti-government
protesters in Armenia on Sunday demanded early elections at a
demonstration to mark one year since deadly clashes between police and
opposition activists in the former Soviet republic.

Rights groups and the Armenian opposition accuse President Serzh
Sarksyan and his government of pursuing politically motivated trials
over the unrest and failing to investigate accusations the police used
excessive force.

The violence followed the election of Sarksyan in a vote the
opposition said was rigged. Ten people died, including two police
officers. More than 100 people were arrested during a state of
emergency imposed after the violence.

The crowd in Yerevan held a minute's silence and carried banners
calling for early elections and "Freedom for political prisoners."
Riot police looked on as protesters chanted "Victory!" and "Freedom!"

"The authorities have drawn no conclusions from these tragic events
and have done nothing to establish democracy in the country," said
opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosyan, Sarksyan's challenger in the
election.

"Despite constant pressure from the government, the people are
stronger, are not frightened and are ready to continue the struggle,"
Ter-Petrosyan told the crowd. He promised another demonstration in
May.

Yerevan's mayor had denied permission for demonstrators to gather in
the city centre, but the protest went ahead after talks with the
police.

Armenia's next parliamentary election is due in 2012 and the
presidential vote in 2013.

OPPOSITION FIGURES ON TRIAL

The country's leaders say they want to build a European-style
democracy and have won Western praise for allowing contested
elections. But opponents say it is a facade and the country is ruled
by a clique.

Armenia is considered Russia's closest ally in the volatile South
Caucasus, but it has also pursued ties with NATO.

"This is a chance to change something here," said protester Artush
Dazikyan, a 53-year-old worker.

Demonstrators marched through the capital and laid flowers at the spot
where the worst clashes took place.

More than 50 people received jail sentences for the violence. A number
have since been pardoned but several senior opposition figures,
including a former foreign minister, remain on trial. The authorities
accused the opposition of trying to overthrow the government.

Western election monitors said the vote was broadly in line with the
country's international commitments but that further improvements were
necessary.

The president's office said on Sunday Sarksyan had lit candles at a
church in Yerevan in memory of those killed.

New York-based Human Rights Watch on Wednesday accused Armenia of
conducting "politically motivated" trials while ignoring evidence of
excessive use of force and ill-treatment of detainees. (Writing by
Matt Robinson in Tbilisi; Editing by Matthew Jones)

March 1, 2008 victims commemorated in Yerevan
01.03.2009 19:51 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Some 15-20 thousand gathered at Matenadaran today to
commemorate the victims of March 1, 2008 disorders. Addressing the
action participants Levon Zurabyan, coordinator of the Armenian
National Congress, read out the names of those killed.

Taking the floor, head of the Armenian National Congress, Armenia's
first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan said that the opposition will
carry on legal struggle and called to exclude the terms 'revolution'
or 'rebel' form the opposition's plans.

At that, he did not rule out that the government will fail to cope
with the consequences of the global financial crisis and resign.

Noting that it's not the time for indefinite-term protest actions, he
informed that the next opposition rally will be held in May 1.

Then the action participants marched to the monument to Alexander
Miasnikian and laid flowers to commemorate those killed at the site in
last year's melee.

Armenian protesters defy ban with rally to mark anniversary of killings
Opposition members died as they demonstrated against allegedly rigged
elections

Duncan Campbell
guardian.co.uk,
Friday 27 February 2009 14.08 GMT

A year after 10 people were killed in an anti-government protest in
Armenia, members of the opposition are due to defy a ban and take to
the streets of the capital, Yerevan, on Sunday.

The protest comes as seven men, including a former foreign minister,
are on trial for "usurping state power" in connection with last year's
protest.

The Armenian National Congress (ANC), which consists of 18 parties and
a number of civic groups under the leadership of former president Levon
Ter-Petrossian, plans to hold a rally and march despite the
government's prohibition of such protests in the former Soviet republic.

An ANC spokesperson said the event was designed to mark the first
anniversary of the demonstration during which police opened fire and
eight demonstrators, a police officer and an army cadet were killed.
The protest had been going for 10 days, expressing anger about the
allegedly rigged elections that brought the current government to power.

"In violation of the Armenian constitution, the authorities have
illegally banned both the rally and the march," said the spokesperson
for the ANC, the country's major opposition grouping. "The ANC intends
to hold the rally and the march, in accordance with the law,
notwithstanding the government's unconstitutional prohibition."

The march will also be in protest against a series of trials of
demonstrators resulting from last year's events ` 58 people are in jail
as a result of the protests.

In the main trial after the protests, Alexander Arzoumanian, the former
foreign minister, and six others are in court in Yerevan charged with
usurping state power and organising a mass uprising, offences that
carry lengthy sentences.

John Prescott, the former British deputy prime minister, and Georges
Colombier, who are co-rapporteurs on Armenia for the parliamentary
assembly of the Council of Europe, have expressed concern about the
refusal of the authorities to allow the rally.

Human Rights Watch this week criticised the Armenian government over
the trials resulting from last year's protests. "The Armenian
authorities' response to the March 1 events has been one-sided," it
said in a report.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Azeri political initiatives in the UK

Today.Az, Azerbaijan
Feb 28 2009
Azerbaijani ambassador to Great Britain discusses bilateral relations
with members of House of Lords of the British parliament
28 February 2009 [11:07] - Today.Az

Azerbaijani ambassador to Great Britain Fahraddin Gurbanov held
meetings with members of the House of Lords of the British parliament
lord John Merewort and lord Laid, reports Day.Az with reference to the
press service for the Azerbaijani embassy to Great Britain.

The meeting participants discussed a wide specter of development and
opportunities for the further expansion of bilateral
Azerbaijani-British relations.

Gurbanov informed the participants about the processes ongoing in
Azerbaijan and projects implemented.

At the same time, the ambassador familiarized members of the House of
Lords with the history of appearance of the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict over Nagorno Karabakh which is a main obstacle for
restoration of peace and stability in the region and the situation
established today in the negotiation process on the peaceful
resolution of the problem with participation of the OSCE Minsk Group.

The sides highly evaluated the level of relations between Azerbaijan
and Great Britain in different spheres, stressing the need for the
further strengthening of the activity of the Azerbaijan-Britain
interparliamentary group and intensification of the interparliamentary
ties.

Gurbanov invited the members of the House of Lords of the British
parliament to join the aforementioned interparliamentary group.


Is your MP one of those who signed this Early Day Motion in the House of Commons?

Early Day Motion
EDM 893
ANNIVERSARY OF THE KHOJALY MASSACRE
25.02.2009

Hancock, Mike

That this House calls on the Government to recognise the 17th anniversary

of the Khojaly massacre and use it as an opportunity to launch a new international

peace effort to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict;

notes that the non-resolution of the conflict is a threat to the whole Caucasus

region, as well as to UK investment in Azerbaijan; believes that the failure in

reaching a peaceful resolution is largely due to the non-implementation by

Armenia of UN Security Council Resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884 which

call for the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the occupied territories of

Azerbaijan and for the return of the one million Azerbaijani refugees back to

their homes; supports the resolution of the conflict while assuring the territorial

integrity of Azerbaijan, with high autonomy for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh;

and highlights the fact that the UK is the largest foreign investor in Azerbaijan, with

5,000 expatriates and a 20 per cent. share in Azerbaijani oil.

Signatures
Flynn, Paul
Taylor, Dari
Russell, Bob
Wareing, Robert N
Bottomley, Peter
Cryer, Ann
Drew, David
Hemming, John
MacNeil, Angus
McDonnell, John
Durkan, Mark

If your MP is on this list, then you must write to them mentioning this conflict started

with deadly pogroms in Sumgait and Baku forcing Armenians to flee Azerbaijan,

that the overwhelming majority of the people of Karabagh rejected remaining part of

Azerbaijan ,and the Karabaghis had then to resist the military aggression taken against

them by the Azeri armed forces. The number of refugees quoted includes the

Armenians displaced by Azeri actions. It would be good if the UK government

encouraged the Azeri authorities to spend some of the proceeds of UK investment

to support those of their citizens affected by this conflict in preference to purchasing

vast quantities of military equipment that only exacerbates tensions in the region.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Armenian News

Agence France Presse
February 27, 2009 Friday 1:48 AM GMT
Armenia marks anniversary of deadliest post-Soviet clashes
Mariam Harutunian
YEREVAN, Feb 27 2009


Armenia's opposition on Sunday marks the first anniversary of the
country's deadliest political clashes since the break-up of the Soviet
Union, with analysts warning the threat of further turmoil remains.

The opposition, which plans to hold an unsanctioned rally Sunday to
mark the March 1 anniversary of clashes that left 10 dead, seems
marginalised and divided.

But analysts say that Armenia, which has suffered repeated bouts of
civil violence since gaining its independence from the Soviet Union in
1991, remains a political powder keg.

"If living standards worsen for a significant part of the population,
the public will lose faith and direct their anger at (President Serzh)
Sarkisian," Yerevan-based political analyst Manvel Sarkisian said.

"He can be forgiven many things, even repression, but not social
problems," he said.

Armen Martirosian, a member of parliament with the opposition Heritage
Party, added: "There is a huge mass of frustrated people within
society, not only the most vulnerable groups but also some in business
circles.

"The current internal political situation is like a volcano waiting to
erupt."

Protesters will call on Sunday for the release of dozens of opposition
supporters jailed following last year's clashes, including a former
foreign minister whose prosecution some observers fear is politically
motivated.

The street battles broke out last March 1 as police moved to disperse
thousands of supporters of former Armenian president Levon
Ter-Petrosian who had rallied for 11 days to denounce Sarkisian's win
in a February election.

Two police officers and eight civilians were killed and dozens more
were injured, many from gunshot wounds. Ter-Petrosian had finished
second in the vote.

The authorities said the protesters were preparing to launch a coup,
but opposition supporters insisted their intentions were peaceful.

In the year since, the opposition has failed to galvanise
anti-government sentiment and when a series of planned protests
flopped, announced a break in public demonstrations.

Sunday's rally will be the first serious attempt at renewing
protests. Analysts are predicting a large turnout but doubt the
protest will mark the beginning of a serious new challenge to the
government.

More worrying for the authorities are the potential losses of
thousands of jobs due to the global economic downturn, analysts said.

The country has already had to turn to close ally Russia for a
500-million-dollar (392-million-euro) stabilisation loan amid reports
of massive job cuts in Armenian industry.

Armenia's important mining sector has permanently or temporarily laid
off at least 2,500 people in recent months, local media have said. One
Yerevan-based chemical factory alone has laid off more than 1,400
workers.

In a country of just under 3 million people, the loss of a few
thousand jobs can have an enormous impact, analysts said.

Government supporters say the number of job cuts is being exaggerated
and that the authorities will manage to keep the economy strong.

"Major employers have said they are not planning mass firings and many
of them are already receiving loans from the government," said Naira
Zohrabian, a parliamentarian with the Prosperous Armenia party, a
member of the country's governing coalition.

But with no signs of a global recovery, analysts said the authorities
will only be able to prop up the economy for so long.

"If the crisis lasts for a longer period and there are major job cuts
this may lead to serious instability," said Alexander Iskandarian, the
director of the Caucasus Media Institute.

Agence France Presse
February 25, 2009 Wednesday 4:01 PM GMT
World Bank says to loan 85 mln dollars to Armenia
YEREVAN, Feb 25 2009

The World Bank will grant ex-Soviet republic Armenia 85 million
dollars (67 million euros) in loans to ease the effects of the global
financial crisis, the head of its Yerevan office said Wednesday.

The loans include 50 million dollars (39 million euros) for the
development of small- and medium-sized businesses, the World Bank's
director in Armenia, Aristomene Varoudakis, told journalists.

Others include 25 million dollars (19 million euros) to build 100
kilometres (62 miles) of motorways and eight million dollars (six
million euros) for social projects, he said.

The 50-million-dollar loan was given with a repayment period of 26.5
years, with a five-year grace period, at an annual interest rate of
four percent.

The other loans were given with 20-year repayment periods, 10-year
grace periods, and interest rates of 0.75 percent.

The World Bank has loaned about 1.1 billion dollars (860 million
euros) to Armenia since 1992.

Father sues Turkish Education Ministry over Armenian 'genocide' DVD
Suna Erdem in Istanbul

A father is suing the Turkish Education Ministry for forcing his
11-year-old daughter to watch a `racist' and `disturbing' film
countering claims that Ottoman Turks committed genocide against
Armenians in 1915 with graphic allegations of Armenian atrocities
against Turks.

The landmark case takes on what human rights activists have called the
State's militarist policy of brainwashing Turkey's schoolchildren to
the point of racist paranoia, aiming to preserve a nationalist status
quo criticised by the European Union, which Turkey is keen to join.

`My daughter was very disturbed and frightened by the documentary and
kept asking me if the Armenians had cut us up,' said Serdar Kaya, an
ethnic Turkish doctor, who is suing the ministry and the child's
school for inciting racial hatred.

`There are many mass graves, bones and skulls in the DVD. They have
interviewed old grandads who inspire confidence and compassion. When
they say things like 'They cut off his head' and 'They used it instead
of firewood', that is bound to stay with the children,' Serdar
Degirmencioglu, a psychologist, told the Armenian newspaper Agos when
news first broke that the documentary was being shown to primary
school children - including ethnic Armenian Turks.
Related Links

The Education Ministry says that it has stopped the distribution of
the documentary, Sari Gelin (Blonde Bride), named after an Armenian
folk song. But it has apparently not recalled it and critics say that
it remains part of the curriculum.

Some MPs are bringing up the case in Parliament. The education union
Egitim-Sen has condemned the film, and the History Foundation has
dismissed it as baseless propaganda.

Another lawsuit has been filed by a foundation set up in honour of the
murdered Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. The former editor of
Agos was murdered in 2007 by a young nationalist whose links to a
group of ultra-nationalists, codenamed Ergenekon, operating within the
security forces and state bureaucracy are now being investigated. `In
the whole of the documentary the word 'Armenian' has been used
thousands of times and only with negative connotations,' the
Foundation said.

Mr Dink had been one of several high-profile intellectuals, also
including Orhan Pamuk, the Nobel literature laureate, and Elif Shafak,
the bestselling author, who had been sued by nationalist lawyers over
comments and writings alluding to the mass Armenian deaths. `You can
see that all those cases were part of a project of manipulation ...
There is a sick, abnormal tissue of Turkish society that is poisoned
by a nationalist, racist virus,' said Ufuk Uras, an independent MP who
backs Mr Kaya's case.

Many historians class the 1915 events as genocide, but even those who
reject the term accept that hundreds of thousands of Armenians died
when the Ottoman Turks deported them from eastern Anatolia. According
to the International Association of Genocide Scholars, the death toll
was `more than a million'.

`You go and kill more than a million Armenians, wipe the traces of
Armenians from Anatolia, grab their property, and then show children
videos about 'What the Armenians did to us' ... We are cutting these
children off from the rest of the world,' said Ahmet Altan, editor of
the independent newspaper Taraf.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mer Nor Khalifan‏

ARTICLE BY HAGOP MARDIROSSIAN

LOS ANGELES, U. S. A.