LOUSSAPATZ - The Dawn -- 2013-979-4-13.pdf‏

ԹԻՒ979 ՇԱԲԱԹ, 13 ԱՊՐԻԼ 2013

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Khachatur Avetisyan 1926–1996 Խաչատուր Ավետիսյան

An influential Armenian composer.

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ՀԱՅԱՍՏԱՆԻ ՀԱՆՐԱՊԵՏՈՒԹԵԱՆ ՍՓԻՒՌՔԻ ՆԱԽԱՐԱՐՈՒԹԻՒՆ

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ՄԱՄՈՒԼԻ ԵՒ ՀԱՍԱՐԱԿԱՅՆՈՒԹԵԱՆ ՀԵՏ ԿԱՊԵՐԻ ՎԱՐՉՈՒԹԻՒՆ 0010, Երեւան, Վազգէն Սարգսեան 26/1, 5-րդ յարկ Հեռ.: (+374.10) 58-56-01, ներքին 108, հեռապատճէն (ֆաքս) (+37410) 58-91-57 էլ. փոստ. press@mindiaspora.am 62-10.04.2013

Մամլոյ ասուլիս ՀՀ սփիւռքի նախարարութեան երիտասարդական ծրագիրներու վերաբերեալ

Ապրիլ 10-ին ՀՀ սփիւռքի նախարարութեան մէջ տեղի ունեցաւ նախարարի տեղակալ Վահէ Ջիլաւեանի եւ համահայկական ծրագիրներու վարչութեան պետ Ատոմ Մխիթարեանի մամլոյ ասուլիսը` 2013թ. նախարարութեան կողմէ իրականացուելիք երիտասարդական ծրագիրներու վերաբերեալ:

ՀՀ սփիւռքի նախարարի տեղակալ Վահէ Ջիլաւեան ներկայացուց երիտասարդական ծրագիրները: Ան նշեց, որ ապրիլ 22-24 կայանալիք Համահայկական երիտասարդական համաժողովը կարեւորագոյն ազդակ պիտի ըլլայ հայ երիտասարդութեան համար` սիրելու, արժեւորելու եւ տարածելու մայրենի լեզուն:

§Համաժողովի քննարկումները տեղի են ունենալու երեք թեմատիկ ուղղութիւններով. Հայոց ցեղասպանութեան 100-րդ տարելիցին ընդառաջ առկայ խնդիրները, լեզուամշակութային եւ երիտասարդութեան հիմնախնդիրները»- ըսաւ ՀՀ սփիւռքի նախարարի տեղակալը:

Համահայկական ծրագիրներու վարչութեան պետ Ա.Մխիթարեան հանգամանալից ներկայացուց ծրագիրը, ան նշեց, որ այդ համաժողովը ոչ միայն Սփիւռքի նախարարութեան, այլեւ ընդգրկուած է ՀՀ 2013թ. գերակայ խնդիրներու շարքին: Համաժողովին պիտի մասնակցին Հայաստանի, Սփիւռքի եւ Արցախի շուրջ 500 երիտասարդներ: Ապրիլ 24-ին համաժողովի մասնակիցները Ծիծեռնակաբերդ այցելելէ ետք պիտի մասնակցին նաեւ մեծ ծառատունկին: Ա. Մխիթարեան նշեց, որ Համաժողովի կազմակերպման համար սփիւռքի նախարարութիւնը կը համագործակցի աւելի քան 30 համահայկական երիտասարդական կառոյցներու հետ:

Ներկայացուեցան նաեւ նախարարութեան կողմէ իրականացուող միւս երիտասարդական ծրագիրները` §Արի տուն» եւ §Սփիւռք» ամառնային դպրոցը, անոնց մասնակցութեան պայմանները եւ յայտադիմումներու ներկայացման վերջնաժամկէտները:

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ԹՈՒՐՔ ԵՐԵՍՓՈԽԱՆԸ ՆԱԽԱՏԱԾ Է ՀԱՅԵՐԸ

Քիւրտերու հետ հաշտութեան ներկայ գործընթացին շրջագիծէն ներս, թրքական իշխանութիւնները իմաստուններու խորհուրդ մը կազմած են, որուն մէջ ընդգրկուած է նաեւ թրքական լրագրական աշխարհի ծանօթ անուն Էթիէն Մահչուպեան: Ան, որոշ շրջան մը նաեւ «Ակօս»ի խմբագրապետի պաշտօնը վարած է, Հրանդ Տինքի սպանութեան յաջորդած շրջանին:

Թուրքիոյ Ազգայնական շարժում կուսակցութեան երեսփոխան Ահմէտ Թուրան-Պուլութ անդրադառնալով նշեալ խորհուրդի կազմին մէջ անոր ներկայութեան, մաղձոտ արտայայտութիւններ ունեցած է։

“Ցանկին մէջ Հայեր կան, իբրեւ՝ խելացի մարդիկ։ Հայու խելքն ուտեմ։ Հայու խելքը ինծի պէտք չէ։ Ոեւէ հայ թուրք ժողովուրդի մասին ի՞նչ պիտի մտածէ։ Թուրքիոյ մէջ հայ քաղաքացիներ կան, զանոնք կը յարգեմ ու կը սիրեմ։ Բայց մինչեւ երէկ պետութեան դէմ դիրք բռնած, թուրք ժողովուրդէն վրէժ լուծելու ձգտող մարդիկ ընտրած են որպէս իմաստուն մարդ” ըսած է ան:

«Նոր Յառաջ» երկօրեայ թերթին քաղուածքը, Ապրիլ 11, թիւ 493

ՏԱՒՈՒԹՕՂԼՈՒ ԿԱՐԵՒՈՐ ԿԸ ՆԿԱՏԷ ՀԱՅԱՍՏԱՆԻ ՀԵՏ ՅԱՐԱԲԵՐՈՒԹԻՒՆՆԵՐԸ

ԱՄՆ-ու Արտաքին գործոց նախարար Ճոն Քերրի, Կիրակի, Ապրիլ 7էն՝ մերձաւոր արեւելեան բաւական լայնածիր շրջապտոյտի մը ձեռնարկած է: Նախապէս, Պոլսոյ մէջ, Թուրքիոյ վարչապետ Էրտողանի հետ հանդիպումին, ան Իսրայէլը եւ Թուրքիան աւելի արագ շարժելու հրաւիրած է իրենց յարաբերութիւնները բնականոնացնելու հոլովոյթին մէջ, քանի որ Անգարա կարեւոր դեր ունի կատարելիք Իսրայէլ-Պաղեստին խաղաղութեան գործընթացին մէջ: Այս յայտարարութիւնը անմիջական հակազդեցութեան արժանացած է Իսրայէլի, որ յայտարարած է, թէ ինք նման միջնորդութիւն

չընդունիր: Քերրի Անգարայի մէջ ալ տեսակցած է իր թուրք պաշտօնակից Տաւութօղլուի հետ: Անոնց

հանդիպումէն վերջ տեղի ունեցած միացեալ մամլոյ ասուլիսին, վերջինս յայտարարած է, թէ Հայաստանի եւ Թուրքիոյ միջեւ յարաբերութիւնները կարեւոր նշանակութիւն ունին: Աւելցուցած է, թէ Քերրիի հետ շօշափած են Կովկասի մէջ հաւասարակշռութեան վերաբերող հարցեր:

Տաւութօղլուի համաձայն՝ Լեռնային Ղարաբաղի հակամարտութեան կարգաւորման գործընթացին մէջ Մինսքի խումբը պէտք է զարկ տայ իր ջանքերուն:

«Նոր Յառաջ» երկօրեայ թերթին քաղուածքը, Ապրիլ 11, թիւ 493

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ԻՐԱՆԻ ՀԱԿԱԴԱՐՁՈՒԹԻՒՆԸ ԱԶԷՐՊԱՅՃԱՆԻՆ

Անցեալ շաբաթ, Իրանի եւ Ազէրպայճանի միջեւ նոր լարումի մը վկայ եղած էինք, Պաքուի մէջ, ազէրպայճանցի ազգայնականներու կողմէ կազմակերպուած ձեռնարկէ մը ետք, ուր Իրանի Ատրպատականին՝ Ազէրպայճանի Հանրապետութեան քարոզչութիւնը կը կատարուէր: Իրան այդ մասին բողոքագիր մըն ալ յանձնած էր Ազէրպայճանի: Այս վերջնոյն պատասխան նամակը, որ կը միտէր կիրքերը հանդարտեցնելու, ըստ երեւոյթին չէ գոհացուցած Իրանը, որ վճռած է առնուազն համազօր քայլերու դիմելու: Այսպէս, իրանցի խորհրդարանականներ սկսած են մշակել Թուրքմենչայի պայմանագիրը վերանայելու մասին օրինագիծ մը: Անոր վաւերացման պարագային՝ կրնայ որոշուիլ Ազէրպայճանի կըցումը՝ Իրանին: Արդէն Իրանի խորհրդարանի Արտաքին քաղաքականութեան եւ ազգային ապահովութեան հարցերու յանձնաժողովի նախագահ Ալաէտտին Պորուճերտի, անդրադառնալով իրանեան տարածքներուն նկատմամբ Պաքուի նկրտումներուն՝ յայտարարած էր, որ եթէ տարածքներու մի-աւորման հարց յառաջանայ, Ազէրպայճանի Հանրապետութիւնն է, որ պէտք է կցուի Իրանին եւ ոչ թէ հակառակը: «Նոր Յառաջ» երկօրեայ թերթին քաղուածքը, Ապրիլ 11, թիւ 493

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Istanbul Patriarchate Ignores Armenian Community’s Religious Needs

By Harut Sassounian Publisher, The California Courier

The Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul upset many Armenians in Turkey and around the world when it failed to send a clergyman to the recently renovated Saint Guiragos Church in Dikranagerd (Diyarbakir) to celebrate Divine Liturgy on Easter Sunday.

St. Guiragos is not just any Armenian church. With seven altars and a capacity for 3,000 worshipers, it is one of the largest Christian churches in the Middle East. The church’s belfry was destroyed on May 28, 1915, by Turkish artillery because it was much taller than the minarets of nearby mosques. Turkish soldiers forced the city’s Deputy Prelate, Mgrditch Vartabed Chlghadian, to watch the destruction of the belfry as he was dragged to his eventual martyrdom!

Amazingly, St. Guiragos remained a functioning church until the 1980’s with a local priest performing regular church services year round. As the few remaining descendants of Armenian Genocide survivors left the city, the church fell into disrepair and was abandoned.

In recent years, Dikranagerd Armenians who had resettled in Istanbul established the St. Guiragos Foundation which renovated the church at a cost of $3.2 million. Two thirds of the funds were donated by Armenians of Istanbul, Europe, and North America. The remaining one-third was provided by Diyarbekir’s Kurdish city government which has been highly supportive of many local Armenian initiatives.

To their great chagrin, St. Guiragos parishioners were deprived of liturgical services on Easter Sunday as the Armenian Patriarchate informed them that it could not spare a clergyman to perform Mass in their church. They were told that none of the Patriarchate’s 23 clergymen were available, as they had to officiate in Istanbul’s more than two dozen functioning churches, but were promised that a priest would arrive in Dikranagerd the Sunday after Easter.

St. Guiragos parishioners were terribly disappointed, since they had just installed new church bells procured from Moscow at great expense and effort. They had to ring the bells on Easter Sunday for the first time in almost 100 years, without a cleric’s presence to hold services! The worshipers, inspired by the majesty of the church, lit candles and recited prayers, assisted by local Armenian language teacher Kevork Fikri.

The Armenian Patriarchate does not seem to be the least bothered by its inexcusable failure to provide a clergyman to the Dikranagerd church on the joyous occasion of Easter Sunday, even though the embarrassing details of its unacceptable behavior were widely publicized in the pages of several Turkish newspapers, including Hurriyet and Radikal.

In the absence of Patriarch Mesrob Moutafian, who has been hospitalized for years with a terminal illness, the Deputy Patriarch Aram Ateshian has been running the Patriarchate’s affairs. He should have assigned a clergyman to serve in Dikranagerd not only on Easter Sunday but throughout the year. He should have also provided all possible assistance to the many Islamized and Turkified Armenians who have come forward asking to be baptized in the newly renovated church.

Even more disturbing is the fact that Aram Srpazan on several occasions has made critical remarks about Diaspora Armenians asking the Turkish government to return to the Armenian Patriarchate over 2,500 confiscated churches. He has repeatedly asserted that the Patriarchate has neither the funds nor the clergy to renovate and operate these churches. Srpazan Ateshian fails to understand that the first step is to secure the return of the church structures before worrying about renovating them. Whether the Patriarchate has the necessary funds or not, Armenians have the right to demand the return of these churches. Moreover, many of the confiscated Armenian churches owned adjacent lands and buildings that could provide the necessary income to renovate and operate these parishes.

Given Archbishop Ateshian’s lack of enthusiasm about the return of Armenian churches to the Patriarchate, it is not surprising that, even though he is a native of Dikranagerd, he has not made a sincere effort to provide a clergyman to St. Guiragos Church on Easter Sunday. One wonders if he is buckling under Turkish pressure to discourage the budding national and religious revival movement among Dikranagerd Armenians. Otherwise, making advance arrangements to send a clergyman from Istanbul, Armenia, Lebanon, Jerusalem, Europe or even the United States, would have been an easy task.

It is unfortunate that Islamized and Turkified Armenians have to confront the Patriarchate while battling the Turkish government in their quest to return to their ethnic and religious roots, and regain their usurped rights and properties.

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COVER PAGE

Avetisyan was born in Leninakan, Armenian SSR (now Gyumri, Armenia). He graduated from the Yerevan State Musical Conservatory where he studied composition with professor Edvard Mirzoyan. At age 25 he was the first Armenian composer honored with gold medals in the Berlin and Moscow international competitions. In addition to his studies in classical music, Avetisyan became an authority in Armenian folk music and traditional instruments, especially the kanun.[1] He composed the first Concerto for Kanun and Symphony Orchestra in 1954. Avetisyan dedicated his creative life to researching and developing the performance practice of the Armenian folk music.

Avetisyan founded the Folk Music Department of the Komitas National Conservatory in 1978 where, under his guidance, an entire generation of master instrumentalists were trained. He created numerous famous songs, ballet, oratorio, film and dance music, as well as a large number of works for various folk instruments. His brilliant melodic work reveal a refined lyricism. In 1958 he assumed the role of the artistic director of National Dance Ensemble, and later, the Tatoul Altunian Song and Dance Ensemble, where his new folk instrumental and vocal music became a staple of the repertory.

Raising awareness of Armenian

By Dr. Clint Curle Head of CMHR Stakeholder Relations

Last month, I travelled to Yerevan, Armenia to meet with people from the Armenian Genocide Museum- Institute (AGMI). (hyperlink to http://www.genocide-museum.am/eng/index.php) They're working to raise greater awareness of a horrific genocide that saw the murder of 1.5 million people during the final years of the Ottoman Empire around 1915. Ongoing denial of this historic atrocity, waged in the name of racial and religious homogeneity, makes it a contemporary human-rights concern.

When the CMHR opens next year, information about this atrocity will be included in its galleries. We are also working to establish formal ties of cooperation with the Museum in Yerevan that could help both institutions in our efforts to use awareness and dialogue as a way to promote enhanced human rights for Armenians and all of humanity.

On my trip, I was accompanied and assisted by members of the Toronto-based Zoryan Institute of Canada (hyperlink to http://www.zoryaninstitute.org/ ) , a group that supports scholarship and public awareness relating to issues of universal human rights, genocide, and diaspora-homeland relations.

The Museum in Yerevan holds the world's strongest collection of artefacts, images and documents as evidence and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. Built directly into the side of a hill so as not to detract from the imposing presence of the nearby Genocide Monument, the Museum overlooks the scenic Ararat Valley and majestic Mount Ararat.

Armenia has a tremendously rich cultural heritage. Everywhere you see ancient churches, fabulous museums and beautiful art, all of which point to the incredible contributions that Armenian culture has made to the world.

But the painful legacy of genocide also continues to reverberate.

The victims were primarily Armenians, but also included Greeks, Syrian Orthodox, Assyrian Orthodox and other Christian minorities. In the first stage, Armenian leaders and intellectuals were arrested, detained and executed by Ottoman authorities. Then, soldiers rounded up men, women, children and the elderly, and forced them on death marches through the desert. Many died of hunger, others were raped or murdered by Turk forces or marauding gangs.

In 1915, the governments of Great Britain, France and Russia issued a joint statement accusing the Ottoman government of committing a "crime against humanity" - the first time the term was officially used to the describe such atrocities perpetrated by a state. In April 2004, Canada's Parliament passed a resolution acknowledging the Armenian Genocide and condemning it as a crime against humanity

One of the things that really impressed me in Armenia was how many young people are involved in human rights promotion in Armenia. There is a new wave of youthful, committed human rights activists

in Armenia who have a vision for a more just, democratic and truthful society. I met many people involved with human rights promotion. They showed keen interest in the CMHR. People are hoping the CMHR will be able to raise awareness of the genocidal nature of this event and play an important role in promoting human rights around.

While in Yerevan, I met with a group called "Civilitas", which is working to promote human rights in Armenia today. They invited me to participate in an online interview. (hyperlink to http://barev.tv/civilnet-tv/31608-a-museum- for-human-rights-mardu-iravunqneri-tangaran)

Knowledge and information can be powerful tools in the struggle for human rights, especially when secrecy, silence and denial of atrocities - whether historic or contemporary -- continue to violate the rights of people living today.

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Serzh Sarkisian Takes Oath of Office

Raffi Hovannessian Holds “Inauguration of a New Armenia”

Police Clash with Protesters on Bagramian Street

YEREVAN -- President Serzh Sarkisian was sworn in for a second term on Tuesday, during an extraordinary session of the National Assembly of Armenia held at the Karen Demirjian Sport and Concert Complex, boycotted by leading opposition forces.

Speaking at his inauguration ceremony, Sarkisian pledged to establish the rule of law and democratize the country’s political system. He also promised faster economic development and reducing poverty in Armenia.

“For the forthcoming five years, I consider economic development the number one priority of our state and nation,” Sarkisian said in an ensuing speech. “A whole array of problems that Armenia is facing is in this very plane. Let me highlight the three main ones:

emigration, unemployment, and poverty.” Sarkisian seemed to acknowledge widespread popular discontent with the economic situation in

the country, which was exposed by his main challenger Raffi Hovannisian’s stronger-than-expected performance in the February 18 presidential election. He said Armenians who voted for Hovannisian and other opposition candidates are “demanding more efficient work” from the government. “Rest assured that all messages are duly received,” he said.

Sarkisian also mentioned the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in his speech, saying that Armenia will continue to strengthen its armed forces in the face of Azerbaijan’s growing threats to end the dispute by force. “We do not want war but at the same time we are ready to confront any challenge,” he said.

“We offered our neighbors dignified peace, anchored to universal human values,” added the Karabakh-born president. “But the experience of recent years has demonstrated that they are not ready to accept the offer. The tougher, in their own opinion, the conditions they create for us, the stronger we become. And this will be becoming increasingly visible.”

Some 2,000 invited guests were present at the inauguration ceremony, among them international delegations and diplomats representing around 60 countries, including Nagorno Karabakh led by president Bako Sahakian, Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, Russian president’s chief of staff Sergey Ivanov, FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, and others.

“Inauguration of a New Armenia”

While Sarkisian took the presidential oath, Raffi Hovhannisian, vowed to keep pressing for change. Herallyed thousands of supporters in Liberty Square for what he called “the inauguration of a new Armenia.” The rally began at noon, about the same time as President Sarkisian’s inauguration.

Addressing the crowd, Hovannisian again rejected Sarkisian’s reelection as fraudulent but, contrary to expectations, stopped short of declaring himself Armenia’s president. He instead took an oath to disobey “false laws” and “illegal orders,” and to continue fighting against the ruling regime. Many demonstrators repeated the oath word for word at his urging.

Hovannisian stated that he would keep working to return power to the people. But he left many attendees disappointed by not outlining next steps in the political struggle against Sarkisian’s administration.

After the Liberty Square festivities, Hovhannisian led thousands of his supporters on a march toward the presidential residence. Riot police blocked access to the residence, and, amid clashes, about 20 people were taken into custody.

Rows of security forces armed with shields and truncheons blocked a major street in the city center leading to Sarkisian’s residence to halt the unsanctioned march against the official results of the February 18 presidential election. They pushed back the crowd led by Hovannisian but did not disperse it despite scuffling with protesters for about 20 minutes. The former presidential candidate was knocked to the ground in the melee.

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One of Hovannisian’s close associates, Armen Martirosian, was detained on the spot. Video materials posted on the internet show a member of the “red berets” (special taskforce officer) hitting Martirosian on his nose and mouth, then a police officer takes him to a police car and transfers to the police station.

The police warned the crowd to turn back as it approached Marshal Bagramian Avenue from nearby Liberty Square. Hovannisian defied the warning, saying that he and his supporters only want to walk past the presidential offices to the Armenian Genocide Memorial on Tsitsernakabert Hill. “This is our street, our right, our constitution. I’m moving forward,” he said.

Eventually, several thousand of opposition protesters were allowed to march through Bagramian Avenue where the Presidential Palace is located .

After negotiations with Police Chief Vladimir Gasparian late on Tuesday Hovannisian told his supporters that the police had agreed to remove the cordons and let the demonstrators proceed through the thoroughfare to end their march in Liberty Square for a “good night”.

Hovannisian said that while passing the Presidential Headquarters opposition supporters were free to express themselves, but he suggested that they sing the national anthem as a means of voicing their protest against Sarkisian. Earlier, Hovhannisian had proceeded to the Tsitsernakaberd memorial, dedicated to victims of the 1915 Armenian Genocide. There, he prayed together with police chief Gasparian. “I pray for Serzh Sarkisian, for the Catholicos and for the police,” said Hovhannisian.

US State Department:

Use of Force Will Not Resolve Karabakh Conflict

WASHINGTON, DC -- The US remains deeply committed to working with the sides to achieve a peaceful settlement to the Karabakh conflict, State Department acting deputy spokesman Patrick Ventrell said at a daily briefing.

“As co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group the U.S. remains deeply committed to working with the sides to achieve a peaceful settlement of the conflict. We believe that the use of force will not resolve the conflict,” he said.

“We call upon all parties to refrain from the use or threat of use of force,” the spokesman added.

As for the Armenian-Turkish relations, Patrick Ventrell said “that’s something we consistently raise with our Turkish counterparts” and added that he possesses no further information.

Nalbandian Accuses Turkey for Undermining Nagorno Karabakh Conflict Resolution

YEREVAN -- Turkey tries to link the regulation of the Armenian-Turkish relations with the issue of Nagorno Karabakh conflict on purpose. Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Edward Nalbandian stated this during the press conference held after the meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Miroslav Lajcák on April 10. Minister Nalbandian reminded that the international community has expressed its principle position over the regulation of the Armenian-Turkish relations without preconditions for a number of times. Among other things Edward Nalbandian noted that linking the regulation of the Armenian- Turkish relations with the Karabakh issue can damage the procedure. Nalbandyan underscored: "There is an impression that Turkey tries to link the two processes on purpose hindering the joint efforts made by Armenia and international community aimed at the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict."

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Miroslav Lajcák arrived in Yerevan on April 9. It is planned that Miroslav Lajcák will have meetings with the President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sarkisian, the Chairman of National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Hovik Abrahamian, and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Tigran Sarkisian.

In another development, the Armenian military said on Wednesday that its forces opened fire to repel a dozen Azerbaijani soldiers who approached its frontline positions at a western section of Armenia’ s border with Azerbaijan.

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The Defense Ministry in Yerevan claimed that the soldiers were in an “inadequate condition” and had an “irregular appearance.”

“They ignored warning shots and continued to advance in a manner not characteristic of military servicemen,” read a ministry statement. “In order to prevent the provocation, Armenian border troops opened fire, as a result of which the enemy may have suffered casualties.”

“Full responsibility for the incident falls on the Azerbaijani side,” added the statement.

U.S., Russian and French mediators twice crossed the Karabakh frontline and monitored the conflicting parties’ adherence to the ceasefire as they ended their most recent tour of the Karabakh conflict zone late last week. In a joint statement issued in Vienna on Tuesday, the three co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group said they discussed “recent security incidents” there with Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders.

“The Co-Chairs noted the relative calm that prevailed on the Line of Contact during the period of Novruz and Easter, and expressed their hope that this would continue,” said the statement.

Armenian Solidarity Bloc Meets with Lebanon’s Prime Minister-Designate

BEIRUT -- Lebanon’ s Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam began a second day of consultations Wednesday by meeting with parliamentary blocs, including the Armenian Solidarity Bloc, over the formation of a new Cabinet.

Salam is expected to form a national unity government, a process that could take him a long time because of the sharp divisions among Lebanese politicians, which have increased during the past two years as a result of Syria’s crisis.

Representing the Armenian Solidarity Bloc, MP Sebouh Kalpakian, called for a technocrat government in charge of organizing the elections as scheduled, while seeking approval of an electoral law that would guarantee a healthy representation of the Lebanese people.

“We don’t want Armenians to be marginalized. We want key [Cabinet] portfolios that suit Armenian's role and sacrifices,” Kalpakian told reporters after the meeting.

Outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati resigned last month over a political deadlock between Lebanon’s two main political camps and infighting in his government. Mikati, who was prime minister since June 2011, headed a government that was dominated by the Shiite Muslim Hezbollah group and its allies.

Within the Lebanese Parliament, Lebanon’s ethnic Armenian population maintains six seats; four Armenian Parliamentarians; three SD Hunchakian Party parliamentarians along with the ADL (Ramgavar) parliamentarian constitute the Armenian Solidarity Bloc and are allied with the pro- western March 14 Forces. The two remaining Armenian parliamentarians are affiliated with the ARF (Tashnak) party and are allied with Hezbollah led “March 8” government.

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Turkish Banks Not Immune from Suit in U.S. Courts for Taking of Property of Armenian Genocide Victims

LOS ANGELES -- On March 26, 2013, a U.S. federal district court in Los Angeles sided with Armenian plaintiffs in a hard-fought case involving reparations for land seized from Armenians in Turkey during the Armenian Genocide. Nearly 15 months after the Turkish Central Bank and T.C. Ziraat Bankasi, a state- owned agricultural bank, asserted sovereign immunity and asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, the court in a landmark decision determined that the Banks can be held to answer for the alleged expropriation of property of Ottoman and Turkish nationals when the taking is incident to mass human rights abuses, including

genocide. The lawsuit, filed by three descendants of Armenian Genocide victims in December 2010 under

named plaintiff Alex Bakalian, Case Number 2:10-cv-09596, names as defendants the Republic of Turkey, the Central Bank of Turkey, and T.C. Ziraat Bankasi. The complaint accuses the defendants of stealing and then profiting from land that was illegally seized during the Armenian Genocide, when the Ottoman Turks drove Armenians from the Adana region of southern Turkey. The Republic of Turkey never appeared in the case despite being validly served with the complaint.

The recent decision also applies to a related case, styled as a purported class action under named class representative Garbis Davoyan, Case Number 2:10-cv-05636. The Banks filed similar motions to dismiss in both cases and the court issued a joint opinion focused on the facts alleged in Davoyan and the separate arguments developed by the two sets of plaintiffs.

Following long-established rules of immunity recognized by all nations, U.S. law abrogates the immunity from suit in U.S. courts that is traditionally afforded to foreign states and their agencies and instrumentalities in a few limited situations. The court was not persuaded by arguments that the Banks were not immune from suit because the allegations concerned commercial activity with a connection to the United States. The court also rejected an argument pursued by the Davoyan plaintiffs that the expropriation exception to the immunity rule applied because the plaintiffs’ ancestors had effectively been stripped of their Ottoman nationality at the time of the taking. Rather, the court adopted the Bakalian plaintiffs’ argument that focused on the well-developed body of human rights law that has emerged in recent decades and argued successfully that international law is violated even when a state expropriates the property of its own nationals, if the taking occurs in the context of massive human rights abuses. This decision is in line with those of other federal courts around the country, as well as human rights treaties that Turkey has signed and ratified.

Although the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case is now established, the court ultimately determined that both cases should be dismissed because they presented political questions. That issue is now subject to appeal before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Two Boys Killed in Shooting Range Blast

YEREVAN -- Two teenage boys were killed on Sunday in what officials believe was an explosion of a landmine at an outdoor shooting range used by Russian troops stationed in Armenia.

The boys aged 12 and 15 were residents of Vahramaberd village in the northwestern Shirak. The village is adjacent to the 1,000 hectare facility belonging to the Russian military base headquartered in the nearby city of Gyumri.

The incident occurred at about noon on Sunday. It is yet unclear who the two children entered the territory of the shooting range which is used by the Russian military unit stationed in Armenia. According to some unconfirmed reports, they were shepherding sheep when they found the explosive ammunition that caused their deaths.

The police and the National Security Service have been investigating the circumstances of the incident.

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Armenian law-enforcement officials as well Russian military investigators rushed to the scene shortly after the blast. They made no official statements about its likely causes as of Monday evening.

Aghvan Martirosian, the Vahramaberd mayor, suggested that the boys accidentally detonated a landmine. “They played with it, hit it against a stone, and that’s what probably caused the blast,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian service. “They probably thought that it’s a piece of aluminum.”

According to Martirosian, Russian troops warn Vahramaberd residents not to enter the shooting range before holding frequent exercises there involving live gunfire.

Armenian Genocide Exhibit Will be Included in Canadian Museum for Human Rights

\WINNIPEG -- Calling the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a genocide may hurt lucrative trade between Canada and Turkey but the Canadian Museum for Human Rights is not about to call the slaughter of an estimated 1.5 million people anything other than genocide, the Winnipeg Free Press writes.

When the museum opens in Winnipeg next year, information about the Armenian genocide will be included in its galleries, and it will be called “genocide,” the museum’s head of stakeholder relations said Sunday.

Clint Curle was responding to reports that Turkish Ambassador Tuncay Babali said the Harper government’s decision to brand the First World War-era

killing of Armenians as genocide may be hindering a potentially lucrative trading relationship with Turkey.

“I’m a true believer in the potential of our two nations,” Babali told The Canadian Press. “Canada has a lot to offer Turkey and Turkey in return has a lot to offer Canada,” said Babali in the interview, noting Canada’s internal Foreign Policy Plan has identified Turkey as a key country of focus.

“It cannot be business as usual while accusing a nation of genocide. It’s a serious allegation. It needs to be substantiated legally, historically.”

Babali said he suspects Canada is not engaging as quickly as Turkey would like because the genocide issue is still hanging over relations. The $2.5 billion in two-way trade between the countries “is far from the potential” of what Turkey predicts would result from deeper economic ties: $10 billion to $15 billion within five years, he said.

On the genocide question, Babali said Turkey would like to see a gesture from Canada that the government is “trying to leave this behind us.”

The Armenian genocide will not be left behind when the Canadian Museum for Human Rights opens, Curle said.

“Human rights lessons from the Armenian genocide will be explored in a number of ways in the CMHR, including in an exhibit exploring Raphael Lemkim’s work (he coined the term genocide), an exhibit examining the 1948 Genocide Convention, and in a gallery that will explore a cross-section of global mass atrocities, including the five atrocities that the Canadian Parliament has recognized as genocides,” said Curle.

“This gallery will include survivor testimony, primary-source evidence and an exhibit that explores the diaspora community struggles that led to the Parliamentary recognition of the Armenian genocide.”

In April 2004, Parliament passed a resolution acknowledging the Armenian genocide of 1915 and condemning it as a crime against humanity.

In a museum blog posted last week, Curle said it’s a timely human rights issue.

“Ongoing denial of this historic atrocity, waged in the name of ethnic homogeneity, makes it a contemporary human rights concern.” He recently visited Yerevan in Armenia to see the genocide

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museum there and will be working to develop links between it and the human rights museum in Winnipeg.

On Sunday, he said the museum doesn’t take a position on issues surrounding trade and diplomacy.

“Our role is to promote and advance education about the importance of human rights, and to encourage and facilitate dialogue and reflection about human rights.”

Conference on Prevention of Genocide at UN Headquarters

NEW YORK -- Scientific conference on the prevention of genocide was held at the UN headquarters in New York. The event sponsored by the Armenian Permanent Mission of Armenia to the UN and a number of NGOs featured representatives of UN member states, experts and foreign guests.

Armenian Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Karen Nazaryan noted in his opening remarks that the crime of genocide reoccurs in different parts of the world and emphasized the importance of international cooperation on the prevention of genocide and the punishment of the crime.

Speaking about the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the Ambassador said “Armenia continues the consistent steps in that direction and the Turkish authorities will have to recognize the

Genocide sooner or later, despite their policy of denial.” The Ambassador welcomed the position of all countries and international organizations that have

recognized the Armenian Genocide and hailed the stance of all Turkish intellectuals, students and citizens, who support the struggle for recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide aware of the importance of recognition and prevention of similar crimes in the future.

The event featured the screening of Michael Hakobian’s documentary “Voices from the Lake” dedicated to Kharberd massacres.

The winners of the composition contest on the Armenian genocide were presented diplomas and gifts.

Danielian Armenian Liturgical Music Library

NEW ROCHELLE, NY -- St. Nersess Armenian Seminary has recently been gifted a vast collection of recorded Armenian liturgical music now available to the public. The collection, believed to be the largest of its kind, contains over 150 albums (or playlists) of recorded Armenian sacred music from the 1950’s to the present day. The library contains over 12,000 minutes (eight days) of church music, digitized and archived from records, audio cassette, MP3s and CDs and stored on a single iPod. The entire collection is now conveniently available in a searchable, organized and indexed format for use by the general public, seminarians, scholars or researchers.

In addition to several recorded versions of familiar Yegmalian and Gomidas Divine Liturgies, the Danielian Library features hundreds of sharagans or hymns from seasonal and special services of the Armenian Church. Also included are tracks suitable for training clergy, altar servers, deacons and choirs serving parishes in the United States and abroad as well as live recording from around the world including Etchmiadzin, Antelias, Constantinople, Venice, Jerusalem, Europe and the Americas. Currently, over 2,000 songs comprise the music library.

“St. Nersess already stands out as a unique place of learning and scholarship within the Armenian Church, and with the addition of the Danielian Liturgical Music Library, the seminary has even more to offer its students and the public at large,” stated Saro Kalayjian speaking on behalf of the Kalayjian Family who donated the collection. “My father had started the collection decades ago. I was happy to continue the process and make it available to the general public in a format that any student, music lover or researcher can utilize in an edifying and enriching manner.”

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The collection aims to be exhaustive and will be expanded over the coming years as more music is released and as obscure albums of the past are acquired and digitized. Parishes and community members who have live recordings of sacred music are encouraged to contribute copies of the music for inclusion in the library. The Danielian Liturgical Music Library is available for exploration and listening by appointment at St. Nersess Seminary in New Rochelle, NY. Gradually, portions of the library will be available on-line.

A comprehensive discography will be made available on the St. Nersess website: www. stnersess.edu. For more information about the library please email sharagan@stnersess.edu.

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