LOUSSAPATZ-2013-972-2-23

ԹԻՒ 972 ՇԱԲԱԹ, 23 ՓԵՏՐՈՒԱՐ 2013

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PAINTER CHARLES GARABED ATAMIAN

Born 18 September 1872-Istanbul, Ottoman Empire Died 30 July 1947 Paris, France

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ՎԱՏԻԿԱՆԻ ՊԱՊԻՆ ՀՐԱԺԱՐԱԿԱՆԸ Մեթր Պարգեւ Դաւիթեան

Փետրուար 11-ին, Վատիկանի Պենետիքթոս ԺԶ. Պապը իր խորհրդատու խումբ մը քարտինալներուն տեղեկացուց, որ իր յառաջացած տարիքին պատճառաւ անկարող է լաւապէս շարունակել իր ծառայութիւնը որպէս Կաթողիկէ Եկեղեցւոյ պետ, եւ հետեւաբար ան յայտնեց որ Փետրուար 28-էն սկսեալ կը հրաժարի իր պաշտօնէն։

Արդի պատմութեան մէջ աննախընթաց դէպք է սա, որ գրեթէ վեց հարիւր տարիներէ ի վեր առաջին անգամ կը պատահի։ Պապին գահակալութիւնը, ինչպէս գիտենք, որեւէ կաթողիկոսի կամ պատրիարքի պէս, ցկեանս է եւ կ՚երկարի ընտրութենէն մինչեւ մահ։

Մէկ միլիառէ աւելի կաթողիկէներու գերագոյն պետին հրաժարականը սակայն կարելի է դաս նկատել բոլոր անոնց, որոնք «Ծանի՛ր Զքեզ» խորհուրդին պէտք ունին։

Դաս է ան մեր իւրաքանչիւրին` որ ընդունինք մեր տկարութիւնները, ըլլան անոնք մարմնային կամ ոչ-մարմնային, որպէսզի կարելիութիւն ընծայուի անոնց, որոնք մեզմէ աւելի կարող են ստանձնելու պարտականութիւն եւ պարտաւորութիւն։

Դաս է ան բոլոր անոնց, որոնք պաշտօնի եւ դիրքի ամուր կառչածութեամբ, եւ կամ իրաւունքներ վաստակածի հոգեբանութեամբ, անփոխարինելի ըլլալու խաբկանքը կ՚ապրին, եւ ցոյց կու տան անվերջ տիրելու եւ տիրապետելու մարմաջը։

Դաս է ան մեծ աթոռներուն վրայ պզտիկ երեւցողներուն, եւ փոքր թեւերով երկինք թռչիլ ուզողներուն, որ բնութեան օրէնքին ենթակայ ենք ամէնքս` մեր կազմով ու հասակով, պոյով ու պոսով, եւ մեր այլազան մտային եւ մարմնային կարողութիւններով։

Դաս է ան բոլոր մեծաւորներուն, աշխարհական եւ եկեղեցական, որ ճիշդ եւ ճշմարիտ որոշումներ առնելով փրկեն իրենց հաստատութիւններն ու եկեղեցիները դէպի տկարութիւն տանող ճամբաներէն։

«Ծանի՛ր Զքեզ» խորհուրդով տակաւին ինչե՜ր կարելի է ըսել։ Պիտի ուզենք ըսել որ այս նիւթապաշտ ներկայ ընկերային կեանքով ընթացող աշխարհէն թող հեռու մնան եկեղեցին եւ եկեղեցականները, որպէսզի ալեկոծ ճամբով ընթացող մեր մարդկութեան նաւը գոնէ տեղ մը ժայռ գտնելով չընկղմի...։

Պիտի ուզենք ըսել որ Հայ Եկեղեցին իր անցեալի հմայքն ու փրկարար դերը գործածելով գիտնայ ինքզինք նորոգել եւ բարեմշակել, որպէսզի իր կարող սպասարկուները քիչ մը հոս ու հոն չկարգալուծէ եւ չկորսնցնէ...։

Եւ վերջապէս, պիտի ուզենք ըսել որ պետութիւն եւ եկեղեցի, ձեռք-ձեռքի տուած, գործեն այնպէս, որ ոչ մի հայ, ի Հայաստան կամ ի սփիւռս աշխարհի, չյուսալքուի եւ չյուսահատի, ու գործեն այնպէս, որ հարուստ դասակարգը միայն չօգտուի ու չմեծարուի։

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Ú3ñ·»ÉÇ å3ñáÝ Ü3Ë3·3Ñ,

êñï3Ýó ßÝáñÑ3õáñáõÙ »Ýù Ò»1⁄2 ÐÐ Ý3Ë3·3ÑÇ ÁÝïñáõÃÇõÝÝ»ñáõÙ ï3ñ3Í Û3ÕÃ3Ý3ÏÇ 3éÃÇõ: ÐÝã3Ï»3Ý Îáõë3Ïóáõû3Ý Ý»ñÏ3Û3óáõóÇãÝ»ñÁ áõßÇ-áõßáí Ñ»ï»õáõÙ ¿ÇÝ ÁÝïñ3Ï3Ý ·áñÍÁÝÃ3óÇÝ »õ ýÇùë»É »Ý, áñ ãÝ3Û3Í áñáß Ù3Ýñ-ÙáõÝñ ÙÇç31¿å»ñÇ, ÁÝïñáõÃÇõÝÝ»ñÝ 3Ýó»É »Ý Ùñó3Ïó3ÛÇÝ å3ÛÙ3ÝÝ»ñáõÙ »õ 3ñï3óáÉ»É »Ý Ð3Û3ëï3ÝÇ ù3Õ3ù3óÇÝ»ñÇ Ï3Ù3ñï3Û3ÛïáõÃÇõÝÁ:

Ú3ñ·»ÉÇ å3ñáÝ Ü3Ë3·3Ñ, íëï3Ñ »Ýù, ë3Ï3ÛÝ, áñ 3Ûë ÁÝïñáõÃÇõÝÝ»ñÁ å¿ïù ¿ ëÏÇ1⁄2μ ÉÇÝ»Ý μ3ñ»÷áËáõÙÝ»ñÇ 3ÛÝ ·áñÍÁÝÃ3óÇÝ, áñ Û3Ûï3ñ3ñáõ»É ¿ Ò»ñ »õ Ð3Û3ëï3ÝÇ Ï3é3í3ñáõû3Ý ÏáÕÙÇóa »ñÏñÇ 3éç»õ Í3é3ó3Í Ù3ñï3Ññ3õ¿ñÝ»ñÇ ÉáõÍÙ3Ý 3éáõÙáí: Ø»Ýù å3ïñ3ëï »Ýù 3ç3ÏÇó ÉÇÝ»É Ò»1⁄2 ïÝï»ë3Ï3Ý Ù»Ý3ßÝáñÑÝ»ñÇ 1¿Ù å3Ûù3ñÇ, Ùñó3Ïóáõû3Ý »õ ëáóÇ3É3Ï3Ý 3ñ13ñáõû3Ý Ñ3ëï3ïÙ3Ý Ò»ñ å3Ûù3ñáõÙ: ìëï3Ñ »Ýù Ý3»õ, áñ 3é3çÇÏ3Û 5 ï3ñÇÝ»ñÁ å¿ïù ¿ μ»ÏáõÙÝ3ÛÇÝ ÉÇÝ»Ý ò»Õ3ëå3Ýáõû3Ý ÙÇç31⁄2·3ÛÇÝ ×3Ý3ãÙ3Ý »õ 2ñó3Ë»3Ý ÑÇÙÝ3ËÝ1ñÇ ÉáõÍÙ3Ý Ñ3Ù3ñ:  ̧áõù μ3ó3éÇÏ ÑÝ3ñ3õáñáõÃÇõÝ áõÝ¿ù 3Ûëûñ Û3õ»ñÅ3Ý3Éa 13éÝ3Éáí áÕç Ñ3Ûáõû3Ý Ý3Ë3·3ÑÁ:

êáóÇ3É  ̧»ÙáÏñ3ï ÐÝã3Ï»3Ý Îáõë3Ïóáõû3Ý Ð3Û3ëï3ÝÇ ì3ñãáõÃÇõÝ

ԶԱՒԷՆ Գ. ԳՐԻԳՈՐԵԱՆԻ «ՄԻՋԻՆ ԱՐԵՒԵԼՔԻ ՆՈՐ ՔԱՐՏԷՍԸ ԵՒ

ՍՈՒՐԻՈՅ ՔԱՆԴՈՒՄԻ ՈՒ ԲԱԺԱՆՈՒՄԻ ԾՐԱԳԻՐԸ»

ՅՕԴՈՒԱԾԱՇԱՐՔԸ՝ «ՆՈՐ ԿԵԱՆՔ» ՇԱԲԱԹԱԹԵՐԹԻՆ ՄԷՋ Ընդհանրապէս հայութեան եւ մասնաւորապէս սուրիահայութեան որդեգրած ԴՐԱԿԱՆ ՉԷԶՈՔՈՒԹԻՒՆ վարելու քաղաքանութեան խոտոր կը հանդիսանան վերոյիշեալ գրողի յօդուածաշարքերը, որոնք այնքա՜ն միակողմանի՝ բայց լուրջ եւ տքնաջան գործով եւ ուսումնասիրութեամբ տարուած են, որ ընթերցողին կու տան այն տպաւորութիւնը, թէ անոնք կարծես պատրաստուած են պետական նպաստ եւ հովանի վայելող եւ փրոփականտայի գործ տանող մասնագէտ խումբի մը կողմէ, որոնք թարգմանուելով՝ տարածելի դառնան տարբեր լեզուներով

կարդացող ընթերցասէրներու եւ ծառայեն անոնց միտքը լուալու (brainwash) նպատակին։ Յիշուած դէպքերն ու թուականները եւ ուշիմ վերլուծումները կը վկայեն յօդուածագիրին խորաթափանց միտքն ու քաղաքական հասունութիւնը, եւ սակայն նոյն ատեն ցոյց կու տան կողմնակցութիւն մը, որ անցեալի Պաղ Պատերազմի շրջանը յիշեցնող հոգեբանութիւն կը ցուցաբերէ, երբ մէկ կողմը Ստալինը կը պանծացնէր եւ միւս կողմն ալ ամէն անձ որ Ամերիկան քննադատէր՝ համայնավար եւ «կոմունիստ» կ՚անուանէր։ Յօդուածաշարքը կ՚ուզէ մեզի հաւատացնել, որ Միջին Արեւելքի մէջ ամէն ինչ ամերիկեան եւ իսրայէլեան կարգադրութեամբ եւ ծրագրով կ՚ընթանայ, եւ ուղղակի կամ անուղղակի բացատրութիւններով կ՚ուզէ ցոյց տալ թէ եղածը հոսկէ-հոնկէ եկած իսլամ ժիհատիստներու խումբեր են, որոնք կը գործեն Ամերիկեան Աճենտան յաջողցնելու. առաւել, կ՚ուզէ կարծեցնել տալ որ արաբ ժողովուրդները չունին ջիղ` ապստամբելու, կամ արժանապատուութիւն՝ յեղափոխական ապրումներ ունենալու։ Այսպիսի մտածելակերպ կը յիշեցնէ Իսրայէլի կողմէ ահաբեկիչ կամ տէռորիստ կոչուիլը պաղեստինցի ազատամարտիկին, եւ կ՚անգիտանայ ահռելի՝ ճնշող թաթը բռնապետ իշխանաւորին։ Այսպիսի մտածելակերպ նման է թուրքին կողմէ ատենօք հայ ազատագրական շարժումի նսեմացումին եւ զայն դուրսէն եկած քանի մը «չէթէ»ներով տարուող ահաբեկչութիւն նկատելուն։

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Վերաքաղ մը ընելով ազգերու եւ ժողովուրդներու անցեալի մէջ պատահած յեղափոխութիւններու եւ դէպի ազգային զարթօնք տանող պայքարներու պատմութեան, հոն պիտի գտնենք բազմաթիւ օրինակներ, որոնք յար եւ նման են այն խառնակ վիճակին որ այսօր կ՚ապրին արաբ ժողովուրդները։ Հոն պիտի տեսնենք նաեւ որ չկայ յեղափոխութիւն կամ ազգային վիճակի յեղաշրջում՝ առանց օտար եւ դուրսէն եկած թիկունքի եւ օգնութեան։

Ծայրայեղ իսլամիստներ անշուշտ որ ամէն առիթ կը շահագործեն Արաբ Աշխարհի «գարնան» հետ ծաղկող վարդն ու ծաղիկը յօշոտելու կամ քաղելու, եւ անոնք նման են այն քանի մը հոգինոց խուլիգաններուն, որոնք հանդէս կամ մարզախաղ կը խանգարեն՝ վնասելով հաճոյքին ու հանգիստին հանդիսատես մեծամասնութեան. սակայն բռնապետութեանց դէմ ժողովրդային պոռթկումներուն արդար չէ հագցնել ցնցոտիներ եւ կամ ամէն ձեւերով ցեխարձակել զանոնք. նման դիտումնաւոր արարք համազօր է մեղքի եւ ոճիրի՝ մարդկային խղճի եւ իմաստի գրքին մէջ։

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CEC: Serzh Sarkisian Wins Re-Election with 58.6% of the Vote

YEREVAN -- President Serzh Sarkisian on Tuesday claimed to have received a popular mandate to govern Armenia for another five years in what he called a democratic election and pledged to effect “serious changes” during his second term, after Armenia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) had finalized the counting of votes from all of 1988 polling stations.

The CEC said that with ballots counted in virtually all nationwide polling stations President Serzh Sarkisian garnered 58.6 percent of the vote in Monday’s presidential election.

Raffi Hovannisian came in second with 36.7 percent of the vote, followed by another opposition candidate, Hrant Bagratian. The latter got almost 2.2 percent, according to the CEC.

The CEC also said that the voter turnout exceeded 60 percent.

Sarkisian and his two main opposition challengers, Hovannisian and Hrant Bagratian, were among the early voters.

But with none of Sarkisian’s serious opposition rivals choosing to stand, election observers expressed concerns over the democratic credentials of the vote.

Officials from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) said they found apathy towards the vote and a lack of confidence about the electoral process among the public when they visited the country in January.

“I voted for Armenia’s future,” Sarkisian said after casting a ballot in central Yerevan. “I voted for a secure Armenia, for the security of our citizens and families.”

Hovannisian, meanwhile, voted at a polling station in Yervan’s Nor Nork district. “Today is the most fateful day in our modern history,” he told reporters. “For the first time in 20 years our people are going to celebrate not somebody’s victory and others’ defeat but the results of elections belonging to themselves.”

Bagratian likewise cited vote buying and other “numerous” irregularities reported by his campaign offices as he visited another polling station in the Armenian capital. He said he is already thinking about “post-election developments.”

During the first several hours of the election observers had reported a number of violations that have been typical for past national elections as well.

Violations connected with the early oxidation of ink stamps in the passports of voters, crowding at polling stations, interference by candidate proxies in the voting process were observed.

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Allegations of people being bussed to polling stations have also been made during the current vote. In some cases voters (most of whom are supposed to be residents of nearby buildings) are brought on taxis.

Hovannisian’s campaign spokesman, Hovsep Khurshudian, challenged the credibility of the CEC figures, saying that the opposition candidate won in dozens of constituencies across the country. “We have results from 42 precincts which strangely do not coincide with the CEC’s preliminary data from 21 or 22 precincts,” Khurshudian told journalists. Hovannisian got as much as 68 percent of the vote in those areas, he said.

Media reports likewise listed scores of precincts in Yerevan as well as central and northern Armenia where official results showed Hovannisian defeating the incumbent president.

Khurshudian accused the Armenian authorities of pressuring election officials not to publicize vote protocols certifying the opposition victory. He also alleged fraudulent ballot counting in some precincts.

The CEC did not immediately comment on these allegations. But the Sarkisian campaign was quick to respond to Hovannisian’s declaration of victory. In a written statement cited by Armenian news agencies, Davit Harutiunian, the incumbent’s deputy campaign manager, urged Hovannisian to “accept the results and move on.” “I am sure that this way we will jointly make history,” he said.

Hovannisian Rallies Thousands Against ‘Stolen Election’

YEREVAN -- Raffi Hovannisian, the main opposition candidate in the Armenian presidential election, rallied thousands of supporters in Yerevan on Wednesday to again reject the official vote results as fraudulent and demand President Serzh Sarkisian’s resignation.

The rally began in the city’s Liberty Square immediately after the expiry of a deadline that was set by Hovannisian for the reelected incumbent.

Hovannisian, who has declared himself the rightful election winner, demanded on Tuesday that Sarkisian meet and discuss with him “the transfer of power to the Armenian people.” He reiterated that demand as he addressed the crowd chanting “Victory!” and “President!” on Wednesday. He also repeatedly referred to Monday’s ballot as a “stolen election.”

Speaking earlier in the day, the presidential press secretary, Armen Arzumanian, said Sarkisian is ready to receive the U.S.-born opposition leader in the presidential palace “at any time.” “The president of the republic has always been ready to meet with the leaders of all political forces in every case of necessity,” Arzumanian said.

During the rally, Hovannisian signaled his intention to launch a campaign of street protests, urging supporters to brace themselves for a “prolonged struggle.”

“We will wait here until 2 p.m. tomorrow or as much as necessary to meet him and hold a ceremony of the transfer of power right here in Liberty Square,” Hovannisian said. “We must stay here until victory. This time it won’t be a moral victory. It will be a real victory.”

In his speech, Hovannisian also appealed to other opposition forces to join his movement. Some prominent opposition figures rushed to express support for his cause at the rally. Those included Nikol Pashinian, a parliament deputy who played a major role in the 2008 post-election protests staged by another opposition leader, Levon Ter-Petrosian.

“The triumph of the Armenian citizen is unstoppable and the victory of the people inevitable,” Pashinian told the enthusiastic crowd, calling Hovannisian the legitimate election winner.

But Pashinian cautioned that the success of the movement will depend on Hovannisian’s “determination” and ability to “address the people without puzzles.” “The people of Armenia cannot be led to a defeat or disappointment. Victory or northing! Victory and nothing else!” declared the outspoken oppositionist.

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Armenian Soldier Killed by Azerbaijani Sniper

STEPANAKERT -- An Armenian soldier was shot dead in fresh ceasefire violations that were reported from the Armenian-Azerbaijani “line of contact” around Nagorno-Karabakh on Wednesday.

Karabakh’s Defense Army said the 20-year-old conscript, Gor Ghazarian, was killed by a bullet fired from Azerbaijani army positions northeast of the disputed territory on Tuesday. “An investigation is underway to clarify details of the incident,” it said in a statement.

The Karabakh Armenian military reported “unprecedented activity” by Azerbaijani forces along the entire frontline on February 16-18. It said they fired over 1,500 shots from sniper rifles and automatic weapons at Armenian frontline positions during the three-day period that coincided with a presidential election in Armenia.

“In order to suppress the enemy activity, frontline units of the Defense Ministry resorted to retaliatory actions and established full control over the entire line of contact,” read a statement issued in Stepanakert earlier this week.

According to a presidential decree, Gor Ghazarian has been posthumously awarded with a Medal “For Service in Battle.”

Armenian Soldier Set Free in Syria

ALEPPO.- An Armenian soldier, who was taken hostage in mid January, has been set free, representative of Armenian community said.

Jirair Reisian of the National Primacy of Aleppo of the Armenian Apostolic Church told Armenian media that soldier Hakob Tudjian is currently in a safe place and has no health problems.

As reported earlier Tudjian was among soldiers captured in Syria by an armed group which issued a statement saying the prisoners will be questioned and based on their testimony, those guilty of committing crimes will be punished and the rest set free.

Blue Book Sent to Turkish Parliament by Post

ANKARA -- Blue Book, which contains eyewitness account of the Armenian Genocide, has been sent to the Turkish parliament by post, Agos reports.

The Turkish publisher Ragip Zarakolu reminded journalists of what happened four years ago. “Like school students, the MPs were protected from ‘dan-edom there [in Turkish parliament],” he

said.

The books, which were delivered four years ago, have been re-sent to the MPs - from Speaker Cemil Çiçek to Ertugrul Kürkçü, a member of the Human Right Committee.

Ara Sarafian, Director of the London-based Gomidas Institute, presented the book. He reminded the journalists that it was written in 1916 by the British Parliament on the basis of eyewitness accounts.

Karabakh Celebrates Anniversary of

National Movement

February 20th marks the 25th anniversary of the Nagorno Karabakh Liberation Movement. On February 20, 1988, reflecting the will of local population, Karabakh's legislature petitioned Soviet leadership bodies of Azerbaijan and Armenia to transfer the autonomy from Soviet Azerbaijan to Soviet Armenia, aiming to correct Stalin's self-willed decision of 1921.

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“Our nation's struggle against foreign yoke, nearly seven decades of persistent violence and oppression was at the very basis of the 1988 Movement”, said President of Artsakh Bako Sahakyan on this occasion.

25 years ago, Karabakh's aspirations were fiercely opposed by the central Soviet authorities, who tried to suppress the first truly democratic movement in the crumbling USSR. Moscow deployed Soviet troops along with Azerbaijani militia to instill fear and signaling crackdown.

In response to peaceful manifestations in Stepanakert, well-organized Azeri mobs attacked and murdered hundreds of ethnic Armenians in towns and villages throughout Azerbaijan, including Sumgait, Baku and Kirovabad (former Armenian Gandzak).

By 1991, Azerbaijan launched a full-scale military aggression against Nagorno Karabakh’s demand for freedom, killing thousands and destroying Armenian towns and villages. Resolution 128 by the US Senate (May, 1991) condemned “indiscriminate use of force” by Azerbaijan against “innocent children, women, and men in ... communities in and around Nagorno-Karabakh and in Armenia”. (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c102:S.+Res.+128:)

However, Armenians could defend their houses on the battlefield, and eventually forced the aggressor into a ceasefire, which was signed by Azerbaijan, Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh Republic in May of 1994.

Since then, NKR has been developing as an independent democracy, with effective government and well-functioning civil society.

“All of us, the whole nation will do everything possible for continuous strengthening of our independent statehood that has been reached at such a high price. It is an exclusive value without which it is impossible to think about the immortality and development of the Fatherland and the native people,” President said on the occasion.

Russian Military Chief Visits Armenia

YEREV AN -- Colonel- General V alery Gerasimov, the chief of staff of Russia’s armed forces, met with Armenia’s top military officials on Friday to discuss what the Defense Ministry in Yerevan called joint military activities planned by the two states.

Gerasimov also held separate talks with President Serzh Sarkisian during a two-day visit to his country’ s main regional ally. Sarkisian’ s press office said the two men reviewed bilateral military ties “in the

context of a further deepening and strengthening of Russian-Armenian strategic relations.” Gerasimov, who took over the Russian military’s General Staff in November, met his Armenian counterpart, Colonel-General Yuri Khachaturov, and Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian earlier in the day. He was due to visit the Gyumri headquarters of a Russian military base in Armenia before

returning to Moscow. A statement by the Armenian Defense Ministry said Gerasimov’s talks with Khachaturov and

Ohanian focused on regional security and Russian-Armenian “military and military-technical cooperation.” That included “planning the use of joint forces and means,” it said without elaborating.

The talks came just over two weeks after Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu’s official trip to Armenia. Shoygu announced in Yerevan that the two sides will work out in February “a program of our cooperation for the next five years.”

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Shoygu’s visit was apparently timed to coincide with Russian-Armenian security talks that took place in Yerevan within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russian-led alliance of six former Soviet republics. The talks focused on an agreement paving the way for joint arms production and repair. The agreement is expected to be signed soon.

Nikolay Bordyuzha, the CSTO secretary general, said on January 29 that Yerevan and Moscow are already preparing to open seven facilities in Armenia for maintenance and repair of military hardware. According to a Russian government daily, they will cater for tanks, armored personnel carriers, air- defense systems and even helicopter gunships.

Decision 2013: Raffi Hovannisian’s Phenomenon and Factor in

Post-Election Armenia

By Naira Hayrumyan ArmeniaNow.com

The February 18 presidential election in Armenia has proved to be unexpected not only for the “modest” level of Sargsyan’s score (about 59 percent) considering predictions of his landslide by a wide margin, but also by the number of votes polled by his main opposition challenger, Raffi Hovannisian (about 37 percent).

Many political analysts and experts say it is unprecedented given the uphill battle the opposition candidate has had to wage against electoral fraud as well as ‘administrative resource’ and power wielded by the authorities.

Allegations about the government plan to give Hovannisian an “honorable second place” were in the media long before the election. Even after the publication of the early results of the vote, another opposition candidate Hrant Bagratyan hinted at the fact that in the beginning the government may have even encouraged some people to vote for Hovannisian, but at one point had to interrupt his “winning march”, sensing danger to its candidate’s reelection.

The government indeed needed a decent “number two”, and it is not a coincidence that on Tuesday, referring to the 37 percent of the vote polled by Hovannisian, chief of presidential staff Vigen Sargsyan dismissed accusations from some international observers that the elections were not genuinely competitive. However, the authorities apparently did not expect so many people to go to the polls to cast their ballots for Hovannisian.

More than 500,000 votes in Armenia, where, according to official figures, there are about 2.5 million voters, but according to unofficial counts the number of eligible voters barely reaches 1.8 million, and with a 60-percent turnout should have brought Hovannisian a convincing victory. In fact, Hovannisian declared himself to be the rightful winner and president-elect, indicating that he was ready to fight to the end.

The phenomenon of Raffi stands out during the current political season in Armenia. The man whose election campaign was covered mostly in an ironic light – and President Sargsyan assessed it as a “campaign of handshakes” – suddenly proved to skeptics that not only the so-called protest mass in Armenia was ready for fair elections. Spin doctors will still have to properly evaluate this phenomenon, but it seems patently clear even now that a lot of the supporters of the opposition Armenian National Congress, Dashnaktsutyun and the “alternative” Prosperous Armenia Party, the three major political forces that did not take part in the election, also gave their votes to Hovannisian, as did a considerable part of the civil society.

The most obvious outcome of the ballot is that from now onward all will at least have to reckon with this fact. And despite the fact that Russian President Vladimir Putin has already congratulated Sargsyan on his reelection as president, post-election events are still likely to unfold in Armenia. Hundreds of people had turned out for a press conference that Hovannisian called in Liberty Square on Tuesday. Addressing media and them he suggested that Sargsyan should concede to “the people’s victory” and start transferring power to the people or face “adequate steps”. Thousands are also likely to turn out for another such gathering in Liberty Square that Hovannisian called for today, February 20.

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It is yet difficult to say what the phenomenon of Raffi will end in. It is quite possible that more rallies will be held, or that Hovannisian will be offered a high position in the Sargsyan government. Consolidation around him of other opposition forces is also possible. But one thing is clear now – the Raffi factor is strongly present in post-election Armenia and is likely to last.

A Cathedral on the Verge of Collapse: The Campaign to Save Mren

An Interview with Dr. Christina Maranci

By Lucine Kasbarian

MEDFORD, MA -- Dr. Christina Maranci, Arthur H. Dadian and Ara T. Oztemel Associate Professor of Armenian Art and Architecture at Tufts University in Medford, Mass., has issued a call to save the 7th century Mren Cathedral of Western Armenia, located in the Kars region of present-day Turkey. Prof. Maranci’s areas of expertise include Byzantine art and architecture, and the art and architecture of the Transcaucasus—principally Armenia. She is considered one of the world’s authorities on the Mren Cathedral.

According to Dr. Maranci, “the cathedral of Mren is now in danger of collapse. Constructed circa 638 AD, Mren is a masterpiece of world art and a product of the ‘Golden Age’ of Armenian architecture. Bearing an inscription naming the Roman emperor Heraclius, and a unique sculpted relief image of Heraclius returning Christendom’s greatest relic-—the True Cross—to Jerusalem, Mren preserves precious material evidence for one of the most dramatic and yet poorly documented moments in history. It is also the largest domed basilica surviving from the region, and a key example of the architectural

achievements of the seventh century.” Dr. Maranci stresses that Mren may not be standing much longer.

“Photographs from the 1990s to the first decade of the 21st century show the progressive collapse of the south façade. Now the entire south aisle lies in rubble on the ground, severely compromising the domed superstructure of the monument and opening the interior and its wall paintings to the elements,” she says. “The prospect of stabilizing what is left is at present doubtful, however, because of Mren’s position within a military zone in Eastern Turkey (Kars province) next to the closed Armenian-Turkish border. Visiting the site is forbidden.”

Dr. Maranci is campaigning to raise awareness about Mren’s precarious condition. “Mren has stood for over a millennium, bearing world history on its walls,” she says. Its collapse would represent a tragic loss to human knowledge.”

Following is an interview with Dr. Maranci.

Lucine Kasbarian: For years, scholars and travelers have been unable to obtain official permission to visit this site. When was the last time that architectural experts had access to Mren?

Christina Maranci: The last time anyone was able to do substantial scientific work there was in the 1960s when Nicole and Jean-Michel Thierry visited multiple times. I have never been there although I have tried to get permission.

LK: Observers say that Mren Cathedral seems to rival in size the Great Cathedral of Ani, and contains bas-reliefs and remnants of frescos not unlike those at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in

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Aghtamar. Is forbidden access the reason why Mren is not as well known as these other two monuments?

CM: Mren and Ani are comparable in size, and Mren probably served as a local model for Ani Cathedral in its domed basilica layout and form, although Ani exhibits typical features of the 10-11th century Armenian architectural tradition. Mren has sculpted bas-reliefs on its portals and over some windows, and preserves fragments of wall painting in the eastern end. However, it bears nothing like the program of figural reliefs at Aght’amar—something that makes this church anomalous even in the Armenian tradition. Aght’amar’s wall painting is also better preserved. But the inaccessibility of Mren surely shaped its scholarly reception and public awareness about it. Toros Toramanyan, known as the father of Armenian architectural historiography, tells us that he himself was only able to visit it for one day.

LK: The website VirtualAni.org describes Mren as being one of four structures similar in design and which were likely built around the same time, the other three being the St. Gayane Church—built between 630 and 641 AD at Etchmiadzin; the church of St. John at Bagavan—built between 632 - 639 AD and north of the Lake Van region but now destroyed; and the Odzun Basilica—probably built in the first half of the 7th century AD in the Odzun region of Armenia. How does Mren compare in historical importance to these other structures?

CM: Gayane is obviously important for its connections to the conversion to Christianity tradition and because of its connections to the Patriarch Ezr, who is thought to have built it. If the church of Bagavan were standing today, it would have been, by far, the largest domed basilica in the region. Odzun is difficult to discuss, because it has been renovated so many times. While it dates to the early medieval period, it is generally thought to have a 9th century phase and perhaps even later ones. Mren is the only one of these monuments that is linked to the broader global world via its epigraphy and sculpture. It speaks directly to the network of relationships between empire, frontier, and local Armenian nobility. There is much more to say but this is a start, one hopes.

LK: Even as Mren is on the brink of collapse, would you say that it is one of the more intact monuments still standing in the Kars/Ani region?

CM: Well, it is hard to say. So many are in danger, so many have collapsed, and so many have been lost to historical record. But it is remarkable in many ways that a 7th century monument, so isolated and in such a seismic area, has survived as well as it has—so far.

LK: How can readers of this interview help bring attention to Mren Cathedral so that scholars and restorers might conduct important inspection and preservation work and so that Mren may become a protected site?

CM: I am in the midst of contacting UNESCO and, of course, nominating the monument to the World Monuments Fund. I will also be organizing a global petition in the very near future. In the meantime, readers who would like to get involved in the campaign to save Mren Cathedral may signal their interest by contacting me at: Christina.Maranci@tufts.edu

98th Times Square Armenian Genocide Commemoration

NEW YORK, NY -- A large throng is expected to participate in the 98th Anniversary Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide to be held in Times Square (43rd St. & Broadway) on Sunday, April 21 from 2-4 pm. The organizers invite people of all backgrounds to join together to commemorate the Armenian Genocide and subsequent genocides during Genocide Awareness Month and to speak out against this horrendous crime against humanity.

The theme of the Armenian Genocide Commemoration is “Turkey is Guilty of Genocide: Denying the Undeniable is Criminal.” This historic event will pay tribute to the 1.5 million Armenians who were massacred by the Young Turk Government of the Ottoman Empire and to the millions of victims of subsequent genocides worldwide. Speakers will include civic, religious, humanitarian, educational, cultural leaders, and performing artists. This event is free and open to the public.

Dennis R. Papazian, PhD, immediate past National Grand Commander of Knights of Vartan and Founding Director of the Armenian Research Center at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, and Dr. Mary A. Papazian, President of Southern Connecticut State University, will preside over the ceremonies.

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Dr. Dennis Papazian comments, “Recent momentous events encourage me to believe that the long vigil of the Armenian people waiting for recognition of their genocide by the Turkish government may be coming to a positive conclusion. An influential Kurdish leader in Turkey, a member of Parliament and vice-president of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Congress, Ahmet Turk, admitted that the Kurdish people played a significant role in the “torture and massacre of Armenians, Assyrians and Yezidis” during the Armenian Genocide and apologized to the Armenian people.

Dr. Papazian continues, “A second momentous event was the publication of a book in Turkey entitled “The Armenian Genocide” by Hasan Cemal, the grandson of Cemal (Jamal) Pasha, one of the three main authors of the Armenian Genocide. Hasan Cemal, a member of the Turkish establishment and a newspaper columnist, began his inquiry into the Armenian Genocide following the killing of Turkish diplomats by a group of young Armenians who went by the name of ASALA. At first, Hasan Cemal supported the official government point of view, and as he became more knowledgeable, finally concluded that indeed there was a genocide of the Armenians perpetrated by the Young Turk party which controlled the Ottoman government in 1915-1923. The book has inspired many members of the Turkish elites to reevaluate their denial of the Armenian Genocide.”

The 98th Commemoration is organized by the Mid-Atlantic chapters of the Knights & Daughters of Vartan, an international Armenian fraternal organization headquartered in the United States, and co- sponsored by Armenian General Benevolent Union, Armenian Assembly of America, Armenian National Committee of America, Armenian Council of America and the Armenian Democratic League- Ramgavars.

Participating Organizations include the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America, Prelacy of the Armenian Church, Armenian Missionary Association of America, Armenian Catholic Eparchy for US and Canada, Mid- Atlantic ACYOA, AYF, Armenian youth organizations, Armenian university and college clubs.

Author Aris Janigian to Speak at NAASR on “Exile, Memory, and Assimilation”

BELMONT, MA -- Noted writer Aris Janigian, author of the acclaimed recent novel This Angelic Land, will give a lecture entitled “Exile, Memory, and Assimilation: The Armenian Experience as the Essential American Experience,” on Thursday, March 14, 2013, at 8:00 p.m. at the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR), 395 Concord Avenue, Belmont, MA. The lecture is co-sponsored by the AGBU-YP, Boston, and NAASR.

This lecture is given in recognition of Emmanuel P. Varandyan (1902-1988), novelist (The Well of Ararat, The Moon Sails), Professor of English Literature at Ohio State University, NAASR Board Member and benefactor, and tireless advocate for Armenian Studies.

Aris Janigian is considered one of the most important Armenian- American novelists working today. Each of his three critically acclaimed novels, Bloodvine, Riverbig, and This Angelic Land places ethnic Armenian characters against the backdrop of the American cultural landscape. The first two novels are set in the Central Valley of California in the early 1960s, and the third, This Angelic Land, published last May, is set during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. In tapping themes of exile, memory, and assimilation, Janigian uses the Armenian experience as a lens through which to explore the central American experience. In that context, critic D. J. Waldie of the Los Angeles Review of Books has called This Angelic Land,

“Today’s necessary book.” Holding a Ph.D. in psychology, from 1993 to 2005, Aris Janigian was senior professor of

Humanities at Southern California Institute of Architecture. He has published in genres as diverse as poetry, social psychology, and design criticism. Aside from his novels, he is co-author along with April Greiman of Something from Nothing, a book on the philosophy of graphic design.

Janigian was a contributing writer to West, the Los Angeles Times Sunday magazine, a finalist for the William Saroyan Fiction Prize, and the recipient of the Anahid Literary Award from Columbia University. He is a contributing writer for thenervousbreakdown.com, and lives in Los Angeles.

More information about Janigian’s lecture may be had by calling 617-489-1610, faxing 617-484-1759, e-mailing hq@naasr.org, or writing to NAASR, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA 02478.

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COVER PAGE

Garabed Atamian was the second of five children of Mıgırdiç Atamian, a goldsmith and musician, and Mary Afker. He completed his early education at the Mkhitaryan Armenian School in Pera, Istanbul. He then attended the local French school Lycée de Saint-Benoit. He continued his education at the Murad Rafaelian Armenian School in the San Lazzaro Island at Venice, Italy, where between 1887 and 1893 he took lessons Prof. Antonio Ermolao Paoletti and Pietra. For a time he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts, but returned to Istanbul without graduating and worked at the Yildiz Porcelain Factory from 1894 to 1896. He was appointed as the factory's chief designer. A number of his porcelain plates bearing his signature "Atam" are now exhibited at the Topkapi Palace. Plates which he created include portraits of Mahmud II, Selim and Abdul Mejid.

He opened his first exhibition prior to the events of 1895 (1) where Armenians in Istanbul were massacred en masse. As a result of the unfavorable political conditions of the period, his work failed to arouse interest and support. Due to the massacres against Armenians, Atamian sought refuge in Paris in 1897. In Paris he illustrated nearly 150 books, including novels by such famous writers as Anatole France, Guy de Maupassant, Henri Bordeaux, and Rene Bazin and the French translation of B. Litton's The Last Days of Pompei until World War I.

Atamian found success creating artwork for commercial purposes including books and magazines. He worked for leading French newspapers and magazines such as L'Illustration and Le Monde Illustre. He also created artwork for theatrical stage productions. His first oil painting was exhibited at Salon d'Automne in 1903.

From 1903 and onwards, he participated in various exhibitions with overwhelming success. Of particular note are his landscapes and portraits shown at the annual exhibitions of the National Society of Artists in Paris. In 1923, he went for the summer to Saint-Gilles-sur-Vie in Vendée. He returned regularly until 1939. Much of his work were developed at this summer residence and it is his paintings of its beach that are his works that consolidated his reputation as an artist. He became a permanent member of the society in 1927.

One-person exhibitions of his work were held in Paris at the Allard Gallery in 1921 and in the Georges Petit Galley in 1923 and 1935, in Brussels in 1925, in Strasbourg in 1926, at the Simonson Gallery in 1928 and 1930, and at the Rosentahl Gallery in 1936. His wife died in 1941. That year, feeling the first symptoms of a contracted disease, he stopped painting while continuing to exhibit. His last known work is a self-portrait dated 1941. He died in his workshop July 30, 1947. Many of his paintings exhibited in various cities of Europe, the United States, and Japan were reproduced as postcards. His granddaughter bequeathed 42 paintings of the artist to the municipality of Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie in 1995.

(1)The Great Powers (Britain, France, Russia) forced Hamid to sign a new reform package designed to curtail the powers of the Hamidiye in October 1895 which, like the Berlin treaty, was never implemented. On October 1, 1895, two thousand Armenians assembled in Constantinople to petition for the implementation of the reforms, but Ottoman police units converged on the rally and violently broke it up. Soon, massacres of Armenians broke out in Constantinople and then engulfed the rest of the Armenian- populated provinces of Bitlis, Diyarbekir, Erzerum, Harput, Sivas, Trabzon and Van

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The TORONTO STAR

Armenia and Azerbaijan still skirting war in Nagorno-Karabakh

Since the mid-1990s, the tiny territory of Nagorno-Karabakh with about 160,000 people has become a “frozen conflict” zone despite rounds of peace talks to settle its status.

Seventy-five-year-old Azerbaijani writer Akram Aylisli was burnt in effigy for a book he wrote to heal relations between ethnic Azerbaijanis and Armenians. (Feb. 13, 2013)

By:Olivia Ward

ethnic strife in Nagorno-Karabakh, a leading expert on the little known region says it could be next. “The risk may seem relatively low,” said Thomas de Waal of the Carnegie Endowment, “but the only thing that is stopping a war is the leaders’ own calculation.” Nagorno-Karabakh was shared for centuries by Muslim Azeris and Christian Armenians. But after the First World War, the newly-formed Soviet Union created a largely Armenian autonomous region of Nagorno-Karabakh

within the republic of Azerbaijan. In February 1988, the local Soviet parliament for Karabakh voted to join Armenia, touching off an inter-ethnic explosion. Some 30,000 people died in conflicts that left ethnic Armenians as victors, who occupied new territory in Azerbaijan to create a buffer zone and corridor linking Karabakh and Armenia. The enclave was declared an independent — but unrecognized — republic.

War broke out again, and pogroms of Armenians and Azeris forced both groups to flee their homes. A Russian-brokered ceasefire ended the fighting in 1994. But more than 1 million ethnic Azeris and Armenians still cannot return home. Since then, the tiny territory of about 160,000 people — one-fifth the area of Nova Scotia — has become a “frozen conflict” zone despite rounds of peace talks to settle its status.

Meanwhile, said de Waal, Azerbaijan has become an economic oil giant in the region, but with a democratic deficit. President Ilham Aliyev’s regime is using its new-found wealth to equip and expand the army. It is also ratcheting up tensions with anti-Armenian rhetoric. In one of the most extreme cases, 75-year-old writer Akram Aylisli was burnt in effigy for a book he wrote to heal relations between ethnic Azerbaijanis and Armenians, and a pro-government party offered a $13,000 bounty for cutting off his ear. “Azerbaijan doesn’t want a compromise with people who ‘stole our land,’ ” de Waal said last week at University of Toronto’s Munk Centre. “It spends $4 billion a year on its army.”

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Foreign Affairs Reporter, Published on Wed Feb 20 2013

In the 1990s, the aftershocks of the Soviet Union’s collapse kept on coming in the fractious southern Caucasus. Georgia fought two separatist wars. Russia battled Chechen rebels. And the tiny disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh exploded into conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In the 21st century, two out of the three — Georgia and Chechnya — went back to war. And this week — on the 25th anniversary of a vote that launched two decades of unresolved

As Karabakh Armenians see themselves losing the arms race, some favour a “knockout blow” against Azerbaijan before the point of no return is reached. “There’s also the possibility of an accidental war started along the ceasefire line — one day someone could lob a mortar shell across it,” said de Waal. In an uneasy neighbourhood that includes traditional foes Iran, Turkey and Russia, a renewed conflict could have a ripple effect.

Both sides routinely attend sporadic peace talks and say they want a peace deal. But with Azerbaijan demanding a return of Karabakh, with some autonomy, and Armenia insisting on independence, it’s unlikely to happen soon. “There are perfectly sensible plans for peace, but there have to be basic levels of trust,” de Waal said. “Now there’s a lack of both trust and interaction.”

Turkish Airlines starts free distribution of Armenian weekly

ISTANBUL - Doğan News Agency

DHA Photo

Turkish Airlines (THY) has officially started distributing the bilingual Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, several weeks after the announcement was first made, Doğan news agency reported. Passengers set to board international flights will be able to receive the publication for free after providing officials with their boarding tickets. Agos announced the deal on its website. The weekly’s deal with the airline will soon extend to on-flight publications for

international flights. February/20/2013

February 19 marks the 9th anniversary of Gurgen Margaryan’s murder

February 19 marks the 9th anniversary of the murder of Armenian Officer Gurgen Margaryan during NATO courses in Budapest.

Lieutenant of the Armenian Armed Forces Gurgen Margaryan was hacked to death, while asleep, by a fellow Azerbaijani participant, lieutenant Ramil Safarov, in Budapest during a three-month English language course in the framework of NATO-sponsored Partnership for Peace program.

In 2006, Safarov was sentenced to life imprisonment in Hungary with a minimum incarceration period of 30 years. He was extradited on August 31, 2012 to Azerbaijan where he was greeted as a hero, pardoned

by Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev despite contrary assurances made to Hungary, promoted to the rank of major and given an apartment and over eight years of back pay.

Following Safarov’s pardon, Armenia severed diplomatic relations with Hungary and immediate protests broke out in Yerevan.

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Azerbaijan’s Shocking Discovery:

Money Can’t Buy Everyone! By Harut Sassounian Publisher, The California Courier

Money may help solve some problems, but does not solve them all. And sometimes it backfires! Azerbaijan is the perfect example of a filthy rich country using its billions of petrodollars to win over foreign politicians and individuals in all walks of life in an attempt to improve its shoddy image around the world. In fact, the term "caviar diplomacy" was specially coined to describe the "goodies" that Azeri officials regularly and

generously distribute to achieve their sinister purposes. For example, Baku paid $5 million to Mexico City to renovate a park on condition that the statue of former

President Heydar Aliyev be displayed in that prominent location. After Mexican activists became aware of this unseemly deal, the dictator’s statue was dismantled and unceremoniously dumped in storage.

Azeri officials are finding out that not everyone can be bought and there still are some honorable people in this world who cannot be bribed! One such person with impeccable integrity is Peter Savodnik of the New York Times. Earlier this month, the American journalist was invited to Baku by Ibrahim Ibrahimov, an Azeri multi- billionaire, in order to get the New York Times to write a puff piece on his gargantuan construction project.

Unimpressed by the excesses of the nouveau riche Azeri oligarch, Savodnik wrote a scathing article ridiculing Ibrahimov’s grotesque vision. Here are brief excerpts from the reporter’s lengthy article:

Ibrahimov is planning to build "a sprawling, lobster-shaped development called Khazar Islands -- an archipelago of 55 artificial islands in the Caspian Sea with thousands of apartments, at least eight hotels, a Formula One racetrack, a yacht club, an airport and the tallest building on earth, Azerbaijan Tower, which will rise 3,445 feet. When the whole project is complete... 800,000 people will live at Khazar Islands, and there will be hotel rooms for another 200,000. ...It will cost about $100 billion."

Savodnik reports that the day before he arrived in Azerbaijan, Ibrahimov’s representative flew to Moscow to hand-deliver a book and DVD on the Khazar Islands project. Once in Baku, the journalist was struck by the oligarch’s lavish lifestyle -- "sitting in the back seat of a black Rolls-Royce as it tore across island No. 1 of his soon-to-be built archipelago. Nigar Huseynli, his 23-year-old assistant, was sitting up front in a black and white floral-print skirt, black tights and rectangular black sunglasses. She seemed to be vaguely worried, always. She wore a great deal of perfume that, she said, came from Italy. ‘When he's in Azerbaijan,’ Huseynli said, ‘Mr. Ibrahimov always drives in his black Rolls-Royce. In Dubai, he has a red one.’"

Sporting "blue Stefano Ricci crocodile-skin shoes that matched his blue Stefano Ricci jeans, blue Zilli jacket and blue Zilli button-down shirt," Ibrahimov told Savodnik that the Azerbaijan Tower would definitely be in Guinness World Records. If the Saudis or Emiratis or anyone anywhere tried to build a bigger building, Ibrahimov said he would then build an even bigger one!

Savodnik writes that the Azeri oligarch described Pres. Ilham Aliyev, the Boss of All Bosses, as "a great supporter, an ally, the son of the savior of the people of Azerbaijan." When the NY Times reporter asked Ibrahimov "about other features of his regime: the lack of transparency, the lack of civil liberties, the detention of opposition activists," his response was typical of all oligarchs: "I don't know anything about politics."

The American journalist boldly slammed both Ibrahimov and his country: Azerbaijan "builds nothing that the rest of the world wants and has no internationally recognized universities. It does, however, have oil." In a follow up article, Savodnik concluded: "Underneath all the glass and steel and neon lights, it [Azerbaijan] is still an authoritarian state."

This is not the first time The New York Times has published an exposé of Azerbaijan. In an October 27, 2003 editorial, the newspaper wrote: "Ilham Aliyev, businessman, playboy and novice politician, received a nice gift from his father -- the country of Azerbaijan. Heydar Aliyev had ruled Azerbaijan almost continuously for 34 years, first as an agent of the Soviet Politburo and then as an autocrat in his own right. When he became too ill to continue, he anointed his son to run for president in his place. Ilham Aliyev ran a rigged campaign, using all the powers of the state, and then celebrated his victory by arresting most of the opposition."

The New York Times concluded its scathing editorial by urging the United States to keep Pres. Aliyev "at arm's length and avoid repeating the unfortunate history of supporting autocrats who sit atop oil riches." Regrettably, this warning went unheeded by successive US administrations.

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