Armenian Genocide News

Historical decision or historical mistake of the Knesset?

In their fight against the recognition of the Armenian Genocide the Israeli researchers have taken a rather improper role: they consider the Holocaust a unique phenomenon, incomparable with any genocide in the entire history of humanity.

27.03.2008 GMT+04:00

In the evening on March 26 something that the Armenians wouldn't even dream about happened; those who are for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide managed to have the first success in the Knesset. As the newspaper "Haaretz" writes, instead of the minister of foreign affairs Tsipi Livni ("Kadima"), the government's viewpoint was introduced by the minister of agriculture Shalom Simkhon ("Avod"). He delivered his objections regarding the reconsideration of the given issue at the plenary session, however he unexpectedly agreed with the initiative of the deputy Zeyev Elkin ("Kadima"), the chairman of the Parliamentary Association of the Israeli-Armenian friendship, who suggested bringing out the issue of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ As a result, the deputies unanimously voted for the discussion of this topic at the session of the Parliamentary Commission on Education. True, the deputy Iossif Shagal ("Our Home Israel"), the chairman of the Parliamentary Association of Israeli-Azerbaijani friendship expressed his fears that the discussion of the given issue "will negatively effect on Israeli relations with Turkey, as well as with Azerbaijan, where our compatriots live." However, Zeyev Elkin insisted on his viewpoint, saying: "Today's decision may be considered historical, after all for the first time Knesset included the issue of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide in its agenda. The French Parliament and the American Congress, as well as the Legislative Assembly of many other countries recognized the Genocide of the Armenian people, and it is time for the Israeli Knesset to at least start the discussions of this issue."

In this regard, it is timely to remind, that the history of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by Israel started already in the days of the first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion. Being in isolation in the Near East beginning of the 50's after the first Arab-Israeli war, Israel was extremely interested in finding allies in this region. However, Israel didn't have much choice; among all the Islamic countries, Turkey was the only one who recognized Israel's independence in 1949. Another important factor between these two countries is the military-technical cooperation and water problem. Israel suffers lack of water, and if Turkey forbids the access to the river Ephrat, Israel will simply dry up.

In their fight against the recognition of the Armenian Genocide the Israeli researchers have taken a rather improper role: they consider the Holocaust a unique phenomenon, incomparable with any genocide in the entire history of humanity. Tel-Aviv shares the same viewpoint. And it was best expressed by Shimon Peres, in April, 2001 before his visit to Turkey; then he was the minister of foreign affairs. He announced that "it makes no sense to assure that the Armenians, like the Jews, suffered Genocide. Regarding the Genocide issue, the Armenians and the Jews are incomparable." In fact the same was declared by Rivka Koen, who that time was the Ambassador of Armenia and Georgia to Israel: "the Holocaust a unique phenomenon, incomparable with any genocide in the entire history of humanity." Then these words became the reason of almost a diplomatic scandal between Armenia and Israel.

How the events will develop in future, is not hard to predict: Turkey has rolled mechanisms for this. Sometimes these mechanisms work, for instant with the USA; sometimes - they don't, like it happened with the case of Europe. But the fact that Israel will have to be under strong pressure from Ankara.

Meanwhile, according to the acting director of the Institute Holocaust and Genocide, the editor-in-chief of the Genocide Encyclopedia, professor of psychology Charni, the nation and society of Israel recognize the Armenian Genocide. "In our nation there are three people who openly speak about the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Turkey. They are professor Yair Auron, Iossi Sarid and I. All the others keep silent out of political reasons. Israel is in an Islamic environment and the most important thing is that it depends on Turkey in water issue. For this reason the government doesn't speak out about the event of 1915. True, the general rabbi of Israel Iona Metsger, who has visited the Genocide Memorial in Tsitsernakaberd and who has practically recognized the Armenian Genocide, was in Yerevan in 2006. I think this is a wonderful example. The senior rabbi of Israel has a very important role, but on the other hand doesn't represent the government,' emphasized professor Charni. The Israeli researcher emphasized that it doesn't matter when and against whom the crime was committed. "Genocide is genocide, be it the Holocaust, mass killings of the gypsies by Germany, Darfur or Rwanda. I always ask myself the question: why do people recognize the Holocaust but not the Armenian Genocide?" he said.

The day before the JCRC spoke for the official recognition of the Armenian Genocide in 1915. JCRC confirms the political announcement of 1989, with which the Council expressed its support for the resolution on the Armenian Genocide in the US Senate. According to the Senate Resolution 212, April 24 is announced the national day to honor the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide.

«PanARMENIAN.Net» analytical department.

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

Turkish Daily News, Turkey
April 5 2008
The SS is very angry with the EU on the 'naked king!'
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Orhan Kemal Cengiz


In Turkey, `the system' - because of the double 's' in the word, I
call it, `the SS' - is based on some tendencies that have not changed
over time. The SS, first of all, denies the very existence of some
fundamental problems. Since it denies the problem, it forbids
discussion about the problem and possible solutions for it. The third
and most interesting aspect of the SS in this regard is that its
demand from everyone, whether they are in Turkey or abroad, to see
and to evaluate its denied problem in the same way it does.You can
apply this formula to many different problems in Turkey. The Armenian
question, the Kurdish question, the Cyprus question and so on. In
practice it works like that: First of all there are no such problems
in Turkey; since we do not have these `so called problems' we should
not/cannot discuss them; and finally, the outside world has to see
and evaluate these `non existent' problems exactly like we do.
Interesting, isn't it?

Naked king syndrome:

The latest case in which we have experienced the operation of this
structure is the reaction of the SS against the reaction of the
spokesmen of the European Union to the closure case of the AKP
(Justice and Development Party), taken to the Constitutional Court by
the chief prosecutor of the Court of Cassation. One of the
well-known problems of Turkey is its highly politicized judiciary
system. From freedom of expression to torture, from minority problems
to religious freedom, you can see that the judiciary locates itself
as the last bastion of the SS in Turkey. When the `high interests of
the state are concerned' everything else turns into small details for
our judiciary. Since it acts to protect the `presupposed' interests
of the state, most of the time we come across surprisingly political
judgments and interpretations narrowing the scope of freedoms.
Visible signs of torture are denied, the possessions of minority
foundations are seized for unbelievably absurd reasons, freedom of
expression and speech are always being restricted for absolutely
unacceptable reasons and political parties are closed for nothing.
Our problem is that although we have a deeply rooted official
ideology in Turkey, we act as if the judiciary and other state organs
have no ideological preferences at all.

This official ideology is like some melted sugar in our mental
liquid. It is everywhere but its existence is so natural for us and
we cannot see it, we cannot realize that most of the time what is at
work is our official ideology, not law or rules as we think they are.
Look at the indictment prepared by the chief prosecutor against the
AKP. It is full of ideological assertions, but the judiciary expects
us to accept this `indictment' as a legal opinion, argument
whatsoever! As soon as the indictment was delivered to the
Constitutional Court, the spokespersons of the EU expressed their
concerns. EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn made quite
illuminating comments. "In a normal European democracy, political
issues are debated in parliament and decided in the ballot box, not
in the courtroom,' he reminded. `It is difficult to see that this
lawsuit respects the democratic principles of a normal European
society." What Olli Rehn said is basically that the king, whom we
think wears eloquent clothes, is actually naked. Of course the
spokespersons of the SS are very angry with Olli Rehn and they
protested his remarks strongly. They want the EU and the outside
world to see this indictment and trial process exactly as they see it.


Closing down the EU, too?:

We are talking about an indictment making references to the
`Greater Middle East Project' and `co-chairmanship Erdoðan' to this
`project'. We are talking about a Constitutional Court that has
closed down 24 political parties! The spokesperson of the SS wants
the world to see the case against the AKP as they want to present it.
They want the whole world see Turkey through the lenses of our
`official ideology.'The problem is that things do not work as they
used to work any more. The cold war ended a long time ago, and the
U.S. does not support dictatorial regimes in the Middle East anymore.
So the Western powers do not have to pretend that they respect our
half- democracy and official ideology for the `special circumstances'
we suppose exist in Turkey. So they have started to cry out, `the
king is naked!' What will the SS do now? Will they try to close down
the EU in the same way they are trying to close down the AKP? We are
all going to see together!

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

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MUSEUM TO BE BUILT IN WASHINGTON
ARMENPRESS
April 4, 2008

YEREVAN, APRIL 4, ARMENPRESS: Arpi Vardanian, the Armenian Assembly of
America (AAA) Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh Country Director, said at
a news conference today in Yerevan that construction of the Armenian
Genocide Museum in Washington will start soon.

She said the construction is expected to be over in 2010. The museum
will be in the National Bank building that was built in 1925. The
building is close to the White House.

"It will be not only Armenian Genocide Museum, but also a museum of
Armenian culture and history for foreigners to have better knowledge
of our nation," she said.

She said, " We had a protracted battle for having this museum in the
USA. It was opposed vehemently by the Turkish community."

She said the idea was welcomed also by Armenians of Washington during
public debates on March 27.

She said the museum will have on display documents, photographs,
other material evidence proving the fact of the Armenian genocide. It
will be closely cooperating with Genocide Museum in Yerevan.

She said the construction is funded by different organizations and
individuals.

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

ArmenianGenocide has launched a new online petiton to Recognise The Armenian Genocide of 1915.

Dear Seta,

Please let all your visitors know the following (please move this post to the front of the page) -

PRESS RELEASE:

www.iNFODUDE.net/ArmenianGenocide has launched a new online petiton to Recognise The Armenian Genocide of 1915.

Please go to www.iNFODUDE.net/ArmenianGenocide to sign the petition.

Thank you.

===END OF PRESS RELEASE====

Thanks a lot Seta!

Armenian News - Recognition Versus Brinksmanship?

Recognition Versus Brinksmanship?: Kocharyan leaving office amid Azerbaijan’s intensified saber-rattling By Aris Ghazinyan ArmeniaNow reporter Published: 04 April, 2008 In less than a week President Robert Kocharyan will leave his office having served two full consecutive five-year terms, leaving to his successor, among other things, a still unresolved dispute with Azerbaijan over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh that became a chief reason for his predecessor Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s early resignation in 1998. Kocharyan will leave the country’s number one post at a time when Armenia has had to intensify its “performance of containment” after a series of encroachments shown by Azerbaijan in the aftermath of the worst internal political crisis seen in Armenia in years. Unprecedented violations of the ceasefire regime by Azeri armed units along the Armenian-controlled border of Nagorno-Karabakh in the days following civil unrest in Yerevan as well as recent diplomatic efforts of Azerbaijan to change the format of negotiations, including a United Nations resolution on Nagorno-Karabakh, appear to have imperiled the further course of the negotiating process and have forced Armenian leaders to look for means to counterbalance Azerbaijan’s growing belligerence. Only nine days before leaving his office, on March 31, Kocharyan responded to the situation in a resolute way as he directly elaborated on Armenia’s possible actions in view of Azerbaijan’s recent attempts to thwart peace efforts. “There are two variants – either an immediate recognition of [Nagorno-Karabakh’s] independence, or, before final recognition, concluding an agreement between the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) and the Republic of Armenia on mutual assistance in the sphere of defense and thwarting possible aggression,” Kocharyan said, incidentally in Karabakh’s capital Stepanakert, his native town. And added: “Such an agreement, I think, will play a preemptive role in staving off bellicose statements.” Delivering the statement Kocharyan sounded like a man determined to work seriously till the last day of his presidency, which overall fit well with his healthy pragmatism. Even the fact that it wasn’t Kocharyan, but his successor Serzh Sargsyan who represented Armenia at this week’s NATO summit in Bucharest means little -- after all, Kocharyan was also absent from all the latest sessions of the UN General Assembly, and in general, has not made a habit of attending large diplomatic forums. Kocharyan’s important statement in Stepanakert is far from being accidental and should be viewed as baton his successor. Despite Armenia’s neighbor’s continuing war rhetoric, it can hardly be expected that the longstanding conflict will be solved under the new presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan (the latter will choose its president late this year, most likely reelecting Ilham Aliyev). The thing is that the Nagorno-Karabakh problem has been viewed by Azerbaijan and Turkey not strictly as a territorial dispute, but as a convenient mechanism of putting pressure on Armenian statehood, up to its total liquidation. This is what in part explains Baku’s well-known position on the readiness of Armenian authorities to serious territorial concessions. It appears that if this problem is solved, the Turkic tandem would have to think of a new mechanism of pressure that would hardly incorporate the whole broad spectrum of Karabakh tension. However, while the first president assumed a more conciliatory stance on this problem, Kocharyan never allowed a hint at Karabakh’s prospect of being a part of Azerbaijan. But even so, he never specified the issue of NKR’s territory – whether it corresponds to the area of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (NKAR) (4,400 square kilometers) or reflects new (or more precisely original) realities – about 13,000 square kilometers. April 2, official Baku made a surprising statement. “Azerbaijan is ready in the future to provide Armenia with the possibility of a joint use of the Lachin corridor, of course, on condition of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity being preserved,” Azerbaijan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said. “The republic’s official authorities are ready to make certain concessions, but the Lachin corridor must remain within Azerbaijan.” This proposal described by official Yerevan as Azerbaijan’s wishful thinking has already been sent to international negotiators represented by the cochairmen of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a structure whose neutral position at the latest session of the United Nations General Assembly provoked hysteria in Azerbaijan. “I really can’t understand who stands behind these attempts,” U.S. co-chair in the group Matthew Bryza said in an interview with Azerbaijan’s APA news agency. “I can’t understand people who present the discussions at the UN as an endurance test for American-Azerbaijani friendship. We view the resolution proposed by Azerbaijan as one-sided, and the OSCE Minsk Group had no choice other than saying ‘no’ to the document reflecting only Azerbaijan’s interests. Based on principles of neutrality we voted as cochairmen.” Meanwhile, Armenia’s outgoing president once again reassured the public that Karabakh’s status within Azerbaijan was never a subject for discussion during the negotiating process during his time in office. Speaking in Stepanakert, Kocharyan also said that in essence the document offered by the mediators is aimed at recognizing the right of the nation to self-determination. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eurasia Insight: ARMENIA: YEREVAN BRACES FOR PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION, PROTESTS Marianna Grigoryan: 4/04/08 This article was updated on 4/06/08 to correct a quote attribution and the state of health of opposition activist Suren Sureniants. With less than a week to go before Armeniais presidential inauguration, attention is riveted on whether a new administration will be able to foster a truce in the ongoing political battle between the countryis opposition and government. Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian is due to be sworn in as Armeniais next chief executive on April 9 inside Yerevan's Opera House, adjacent to Freedom Square, the central staging point for past opposition demonstrations. The square remains under tight police control following clashes with protestors on March 1. While authorities are busy preparing for the inauguration ceremony, opposition representatives from about two dozen political parties and other organizations -- those supporting Levon Ter-Petrosian, the second-place finisher in the bitterly disputed presidential election in February -- are looking for new ways to make their dissenting voices heard. On inauguration day itself, the opposition is preparing a public rally and a mourning march to commemorate the victims of the March 1 violence. On April 9, all the Armenian people will commemorate those who died for their freedom, marking it as a day of mourning and resistance, wearing black and with other symbols and ceremonies of mourning,i announced a statement from National Awakening, a union of non-governmental organizations supporting the opposition. While National Awakening pledges that the inauguration day protest will demonstrate votersi resolve to irecoveri the ivictory that was temporarily taken from them,i some analysts question how ready the opposition actually is to launch a fresh campaign against the government. Aside from a recent meeting with Council of Europe representatives, Ter-Petrosian has largely vanished from the public scene, keeping quiet in recent weeks. Most opposition leaders have been arrested or went into hiding after March 1, and subsequent amendments to the law on public meetings have put tough restrictions on public rallies. The amendments have done nothing to allay fears of a fresh crackdown, according to one pro-opposition political analyst. "In reality, such legislative changes banning public rallies and marches and other measures are designed to create an atmosphere of fear among the people, which is against the tenets of human rights," commented Aghasi Yenokian. "Creating an atmosphere of fear cannot solve any problem." To get around the law, other forms of protest have been found. A few days after the oppositionis March 21 march, the first since the March 1 crackdown, many Yerevan residents began to take part in so-called "popular or political walks" around town. The site for these impromptu strolls changed each day; other participants played chess on sidewalks, read books on benches or staged debates among themselves. Under the amendments, rallies can be banned if the police and National Security Service consider that they involve hate speech, agitation for violence, or calls to overthrow "the constitutional order" by force. While open-air book reading and chess playing do not fall under those categories, the unstructured protests still have drawn a police response. "They began to put people en masse into police cars and take them to police stations. Don't they have the right to walk?" commented Ruzan Khachatrian, a spokeswoman for the People's Party of Armenia, one of the parties that supported Ter-Petrosian's candidacy. "I have lived in the city center for more than 20 years and they [police] hamper my right to walk. I will go to court." Opposition journalist and publicist Tigran Paskevichian, who was also detained by police while on "a political stroll", says that he was released after spending some time in a police station answering questions. "I was asked what I was doing there, I said I was reading a book. They asked whether I couldn't find another place for reading a book," said Paskevichian. Governing Republican Party of Armenia spokesman Eduard Sharmazanov says that political motivations should not be sought in the application of the law. "There must be law and order in this country where there is an aspiration for democracy," Sharmazanov told EurasiaNet.org. "There is a court for complaints where rights are defended. We ourselves are advocates of a country where laws are respected." When adopting the amendments on the law on assembly, MPs included a special provision for it to come into effect the day after its official publication, rather than 10 days after that date, as is customary. A number of prominent local and international organizations have taken issue with the amendments, calling on authorities to respect the rights of opposition detainees. In a joint paper released April 2, the Council of Europe and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights criticized the Armenian government, saying that "they [the amendments] restrict further the right of assembly in a significant fashion." Meanwhile, a March 27 report issued by Human Rights Watch stated that the amendments "violate Armenia's obligation to respect peaceful assembly." It also noted that the changes "effectively punish peaceful demonstrators for the violence that took place on March 1." Arrests of walking protestors reportedly have decreased in the last four days, coinciding with a fact-finding visit by the AGO Group of the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers. The envoys, charged with monitoring Armeniais compliance with Council of Europe membership requirements, met both with government officials and with Ter-Petrosian. At a joint news conference on March 31 with Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian, AGO Group head Per Sjogren said that the envoys advocated a six-point proposal to return the situation in Armenia to a "democratic path." The AGO Group has proposed starting a national inquiry into the March 1 events with involvement by foreign experts. Revising the amendments restricting public rallies, releasing political prisoners, ensuring detainee's rights to see their family and embarking on a "national dialogue" between opposition and the government were among the additional points. "I think that the proposals are aimed at improving the situation," Oskanian said. "But only discussion will show what final results they will produce." As yet, no sign exists that such dialogue is imminent. On April 2, about three dozen detainees held in pre-trial detention for attempting to foster a revolution went on a hunger strike. Without an end to ithe torture of innocent peoplei and re-examination of their cases, the group pledged to stage an "open-ended" hunger strike as of April 9. One senior opposition member, Suren Sureniants of the Republic (Hanrapetutiun) Party, has been on a hunger strike since March 24; his condition is reported to be unstable. At his press conference, the Council of Europe's Sjogren told journalists that he had "received a positive answer" when he asked about the release of prisoners "kept in custody for political activities." Said Sjogren: "The answer implies that this problem will get a solution." After his inauguration, Sarkisian will come under pressure to restore a sense of political equilibrium in Yerevan. If reconciliation efforts stall, Armenia could suffer some serious financial consequences. In a March 11 letter, the head of the US-funded Millennium Challenge Corporation warned outgoing President Robert Kocharian that "recent events could have negative effects on Armeniais eligibility for MCC funding." The country is scheduled to receive $235.6 million in assistance funds through the program For now, US diplomats in Yerevan seem inclined to give president-elect Sarkisian the benefit of the doubt. "We think it is only fair to give the new administration time to turn the situation around," US Charge diAffairs Joseph Pennington said at a March 28 press conference. "So if we see those negative trends turn into a positive direction, obviously that will have a positive impact on the decisions of Millennium Challenge Corporation." Editoris Note: Marianna Grigoryan is a reporter for the ArmeniaNow.com weekly in Yerevan. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

IMF FORECASTS INFLATION IN ARMENIA TO EXCEED THE LEVEL TARGETED IN ARMENIA'S BUDGET IN 2008
arminfo
2008-04-03 17:46:00

ArmInfo. By the end of 2008, inflation in Armenia will exceed the
4%(+/-1,5%) level targeted by the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA),
International Monetary Fund's Resident Representative in Armenia
Ms. Nienke Oomes said in an interview with ArmInfo's correspondent.

She said that the reason for exceeding of the inflation targeted
in Armenia is mainly connected with the growth in international
food prices. "We are sure today that inflation will be higher than
targeted at the end of 2008 but it is still hard to say how much
higher it will be", she said. The IMF representative added that in
March 2008 inflation made up 9.6% as compared with March 2007, 7.5%
in February 2008 as compared with February 2007, and 6.6% in January
2008 as compared with January 2007.

Nienke Oomes noted that food expenditures in Armenia total 53,9%, of
which 14,9% - on bread and cereal products, and this characterizes
the high poverty level in the country. Nevertheless, according
to the results of 2007 the lowest inflation among CIS countries
was registered in Armenia, while, at the same time, comparatively
high import prices are observed in Armenia, she said. She partially
explained this situation by high monopolization at in the domestic
market, which constrains development of competitiveness in the country.

She added that the IMF does not recommend the CBA to change its
inflation target, because it is not in the CBA's power to restrain
the growth of prices in the republic resulting from external
factors. However, if the increase in food prices in Armenia causes
increases in other prices, for instance, in the sphere of public
catering. Armenia's authorities will have to decrease the influence
of this secondary effect, Oomes said.

First and foremost, inflation will affect the living standards of the
poor segments of the population, and as 26.5% are below the poverty
line in Armenia, the high growth in prices may cause social tension
in the country.

Furthermore, production costs may increase, and this will have a
negative effect on the state of the whole economy of Armenia. If
inflation begins to exceeds 10%, this may even slow down the GDP
growth rates, the IMF representative said.

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

Baghdasarian Says No Agreement Yet On Government
By Hovannes Shoghikian

Former parliament speaker Artur Baghdasarian said on Friday that he
still does not know which ministerial positions will be offered to his
Orinats Yerkir Party as part of its power-sharing agreement with Prime
Minister and President-elect Serzh Sarkisian.

Orinats Yerkir is one of four pro-establishment parties that are
expected to be represented in a new coalition government which Sarkisian
plans to form after his inauguration on April 9. In a joint communiqué,
they pledged to `deepen democratic reforms' in Armenia and speed up its
economic development.

However, it is still not clear who will head and make up the cabinet.
Hrant Markarian, a leader of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(Dashnaktsutyun), told RFE/RL on Wednesday that the four parties are
discussing its composition and have not reached agreement yet.

But according to Baghdasarian, such discussions have not even started.
`Immediately after the inauguration of the newly elected president we
will have an opportunity to discuss the format of the coalition
government and other issues,' he said.

Baghdasarian, who was a major opposition candidate in the February 19
presidential election, recognized Sarkisian's victory in the disputed
vote and agreed to join the new governing coalition even before the
announcement of the four-party agreement. Sarkisian promised to appoint
him as secretary of Armenia's National Security Council.

Speaking at a news conference, Baghdasarian insisted that his decision
to bring Orinats Yerkir back into government was not incompatible with
strong criticism of the Armenian authorities that was voiced in his
pre-election speeches. In particular, he alleged during the election
campaign that the authorities are deliberately keeping many Armenians
mired in poverty in order to be able to buy their votes.

`We have entered the government for the sake of reforms,' the Orinats
Yerkir leader argued on Friday. `Also, the essence of the government has
changed.'

`I have presented my political demands to the person who has assumed the
post of president of the republic and who has offered dignified
cooperation, taking into account the votes garnered by me,' he said.

Baghdasarian also expressed confidence that his decision to team up with
Sarkisian did not disappoint and alienate most of about 260,000
Armenians who, according to official election results, voted for him.
`There isn't much discontent [among them,]' he said. `The vast majority
of the people think very positively of our decision.'

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

Interfax News Agency, Russia
April 4 2008
Armenia expects to boost grape harvest 5%-10% in 2008
YEREVAN April 4


Armenia's grape harvest could amount to 230,000-240,000 tonnes in
2008, up 5%-10% from 2007, according to preliminary estimates, Garnik
Petrosian, head of the Armenian Agriculture Ministry's crops
department, told Interfax.

The favorable weather this season contributed to the larger harvest,
he said. "If vineyards perished somewhere, it was solely due to the
negligence of the winegrowers," he said.

Viticulture is developing rapidly in Armenia, as evidenced by the
annual growth in the land planted with vineyards, he said. The total
area of vineyards grew by 1,500 hectares to 19,800 hectares in 2007.

This growth is the result of an increase in demand for grapes by wine
and cognac producers, he said.

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

WHITEFISH POPULATION IN ARMENIA'S SEVAN REDUCES 40% IN 2007
ARKA
April 3, 2008

YEREVAN, April 3. /ARKA/. Whitefish (sig) population totaled 600 tons
in Armenia's Sevan Lake by the end of 2007, which is a 40% reduction
as compared with 2006, the Chief of Department for biological resources
of Armenian Environmental Ministry Karen Chenterechian said.

In 2006, whitefish population was 1,000 tons, whereas in 1998 it was
1,800 tons, he reported. The greatest population of whitefish was
recorded in 1970-1990ies - about 2,000 tons. Chenterechian also said
that the population reduced due to decreasing volume of plankton,
wrong fishing management and improper fishing instruments.

Sevan holds over 90% of the fish reserves of Armenia and particular
importance should be attached to maintain stable quantity of the
population in the lake, he said. Koghak, crucian carp, ishkhan
also inhabit in Sevan, yet the Ministry has not provided any exact
monitoring data on the quantity.

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

Update on Political Turmoil‏

ARMENIAN AUTHORITIES DON'T INTEND TO IMPOSE CURFEW
PanARMENIAN.Net
02.03.2008 01:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Curfew can cause great inconveniences for our
citizens, Armenian President Robert Kocharian told a news conference
in Yerevan.

"That is why restricted emergency rule to the provisions fixed in the
decree. We tried to cause minimum inconvenience to Yerevan residents,"
the President said.

Asked about further actions of the authorities, the President said,
"We are concerned not about the rallies as such. Some demonstrators
started looting shops. This perfectly proves what kind of people are
involved in this chaos. Of course, there are people who follow their
ideology, but there are also those who pursue their own interests."

131 INJURED IN YEREVAN MARCH 1
PanARMENIAN.Net
02.03.2008 14:21 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 131 people were taken to hospital after mass
disorders on March 1. According to the Public Health Ministry press
office, from 6 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. the number of the aggrieved made
42. 14 of them are military, 28 - civilians. No casualties were
fixed. From 9.30 p.m. to 1 a.m. the number of aggrieved made 89. 58
of them are military, 31 - civilians. 16 servicemen and 18 civilians
received bullet wounds. 8 people were killed. 41 were discharged from
hospital on March 2.

ARMENIAN PROSECUTORS DETAIN 15 PROTESTERS
ITAR-TASS
March 2 2008
Russia

YEREVAN, March 2 (Itar-Tass) -Armenian prosecutor general's office has
announced the detention of 15 opposition activists, the prosecutor's
press secretary Sonya Truzyan told Itar-Tass. The detainees are being
accused of violence against representatives of the authorities and
calls to disobey instructions to end unlawful actions.

In the meantime, army units have been moved to the key points in
Yerevan. After announcing the state of emergency, Armenian President
Robert Kocharyan said that the army would be used for restoring order.

According to police, the situation in the city is under control. The
square in front of the mayor's office in Yerevan has been cleared
from protesters.

EIGHT REPORTED KILLED IN ARMENIA AFTER CLASHES BETWEEN POLICE, PROTESTERS
EurasiaNet
March 2 2008
NY

Eight people are reported to have been killed in overnight clashes
between police and opposition protesters in the Armenian capital,
Yerevan.

The protesters, who have rallied for 12 straight days, accuse the
government of rigging last month's presidential election.

RFE/RL's Armenian Service reports that troops and armored vehicles
are patrolling the main streets of Yerevan today.

Armenian President Robert Kocharian declared a 20-day state of
emergency following similar clashes on March 1. Just hours after
Armenian police and Interior Ministry troops used truncheons, tear
gas, and electric stun guns to disperse opposition supporters from
a central Yerevan square, thousands who regrouped for a second rally
were again met with force by the authorities.

Riot police fired tracer bullets into the air and tear gas to disperse
the crowd of 15,000, and some demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov
cocktails at police. Several vehicles were set fire or otherwise
destroyed in the course of the day.

Human Rights Watch has charged the Armenian police with using
"excessive force and violence" to disperse demonstrators.

As part of the state of emergency, mass gatherings have been banned,
and media outlets are required to only use official information
when reporting on the domestic political situation. The movement of
citizens has been restricted and the authorities will be allowed to
search vehicles.

The Armenia parliament today voted to confirm the state of emergency.

Eighty-one of the 131 lawmakers present cast their votes in favor.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is sending
a special envoy to Yerevan to offer help in mediating the crisis.

Ambassador Heikki Talvitie is to meet with both President-elect Serzh
Sarkisian and opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian, the second-place
finisher in the February 19 election who has claimed victory.

Speaking today to RFE/RL, Arman Musinian, a spokesman for
Ter-Petrosian, said the opposition has three demands -- "to annul
the election, to punish those who rigged the elections, and to free
all political detainees."

House Arrest

Ter-Petrossian told RFE/RL after the initial early morning crackdown on
March 1 that he had been placed under house arrest, and that a number
of his followers were detained. Police were reportedly guarding the
entrance to his home.

Daily rallies following the contentious vote attracted tens of
thousands of protesters to Armenia's Liberty Square, where they
voiced their belief that the elections were marred by fraud. A tent
camp was set up and participants vowed to remain on the square until
their demands for a new election were met.

But after Sarkisian secured key support for the formation of a
coalition government on February 29, the authorities made good on
their earlier threats to break up the rallies.

Hundreds of police and Interior Ministry troops surrounded the square
at 7:00 a.m. local time on the morning of March 1, and moved in to
break up the crowd.

Police reportedly forced scores of protesters onto buses, taking them
to local police stations.

RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported that opposition figure and member
of parliament Armen Martirosian was hospitalized for injuries received
during the crackdown.

Former President Ter-Petrossian described the events that led to
the initial clash that resulted in 31 injuries during an interview
with RFE/RL.

"People were sleeping quietly. [Security forces] came in large numbers
with truncheons and started beating. At that time I was near the
microphone and I called on people to stay calm," he said.

"[Security forces] didn't start the beating immediately. First they
stood in front of people and I urged people not to get in contact
with them and to stay quiet to see what they want. But nobody told us
anything, nothing was negotiated. And they suddenly attacked people
with truncheons and electric stun guns."

Violence Condemned

Within hours of the morning police action, OSCE Chairman in
Office Ilkka Kanerva condemned the use of force against peaceful
demonstrators.

"I urge the authorities to use maximum restraint," Kanerva said. "I am
troubled that there are reports of casualties. I urge the authorities
to release those detained, and I again call on the government and
the opposition to engage in dialogue."

The police said in a statement issued on March 1 that they took action
to disperse the protesters after learning that they were waiting
to receive "large amounts of firearms, grenades, metal rods, and
truncheons," which they believed would be used "to stage provocations
and stir up mass disturbances."

The authorities said after the initial raid that police officers were
wounded and that weapons were found in the protestors' camp.

Police chased media away from the square as army trucks arrived to
take away the makeshift tent camp.

Protesters later regrouped in front of the French Embassy for a planned
rally as units of riot police arrived on the scene, setting the stage
for the violence later in the day.

Opposition supporters had been protesting daily in Liberty Square
since Prime Minister Sarkisian was elected to replace his ally, Robert
Kocharian, as president. Official results gave Sarkisian nearly 53
percent of the vote, with Ter-Petrossian getting 21.5 percent.

Ter-Petrossian is claiming that he is the rightful first-round winner,
and that Sarkisian used ballot stuffing and intimidation to steal
victory. Sarkisian has denied the charges.

In its initial assessment, the election-monitoring arm of the OSCE
declared the election "mostly in line" with Armenia's international
commitments, while also noting the need for "further improvements."

The elections have been endorsed by the European Union and the U.S.

State Department has congratulated the Armenian people on an "active"
and "competitive" election.

Calls For Restraint Ignored

Authorities had warned on February 29 that their patience with the
protests in Yerevan was running out, and alleged that those behind
the rallies plan to seize power illegally.

The Council of Europe and the OSCE had called on the Armenian
authorities to exercise restraint. The United States Mission to the
OSCE said Washington was "very concerned" about the post-election
arrests of opposition politicians, as well as reports that authorities
have forcibly closed opposition offices.

At least six prominent opposition figures close to Ter-Petrossian
have been placed in pretrial custody on a number of criminal charges,
including illegal arms possession and assault.

Sarkisian's efforts to gain acceptance for his victory received a
boost on February 29 when he reached a deal on the formation of a
coalition government with the third-place finisher in the elections.

Before agreeing to become Security Council secretary in the next
government, Orinats Yerkir party leader Artur Baghdasarian had decried
the election as deeply flawed. Baghdasarian also accused Ter-Petrossian
of trying to rig the election.

ARMENIAN MILITARY WARNS AGAINST MORE PROTESTS
Radio Liberty
March 2 2008
Czech Republic

The Armenian military urged Yerevan residents Sunday to comply with
a state of emergency imposed the previous night, warning that its
soldiers deployed in the city center would "strictly" counter any
attempts to stage more anti-governmenr rallies there.

"I would like to warn all citizens that any attempt to organize or
participate in events prohibited under the state of emergency would be
adequately and strictly countered by the Armed Forces of the Republic
of Armenia," Colonel-General Seyran Ohanian, chief of the army staff,
said in a televised address to the nation.

"I particular, I am asking you to refrain from attempting to assemble
in Yerevan even in small groups," said Ohanian. The army would step
in at the "slightest" sign of such attempts, he added.

Hundreds of troops backed by armored vehicles continued to patrol
key squares and street junctions in downtown Yerevan as of Sunday
evening. In particular, they cordoned off the sreet where riot police
fought pitched battles with angry supporters of former President
Levon Ter-Petrosian. Troop presence was also strong outside Prime
Minister Serzh Sarkisian's office and Liberty Square where thousands
of Ter-Petrosian supporters had been camped for 11 days.

President Robert Kocharian, meanwhile, visited the site of the
protest littered with stones and other traces of the late-night
violence. Television images showed him inspecting the charred hulk
of a police vehicle set ablaze by protesters outside the Yerevan
mayor's office.

Kocharian's office said the outgoing president also discussed the
post-election unrest in Armenia in a phone conversation with Javier
Solana, the European Union's foreign and security policy chief. It
said Solana expressed his "solidarity with the president and the
people of Armenia" and pledged to send a special envoy to Armenia.

ARMENIA: UNEASY QUIET SETTLES OVER YEREVAN, RESIDENTS IN SHOCK OVER USE OF FORCE BY KOCHARIAN ADMINISTRATION
EurasiaNet
March 2 2008
NY

Troops on March 2 began enforcing a state of emergency in the Armenian
capital Yerevan, where the streets and squares in the center city
were largely deserted of people, yet still strewn with the detritus
of the previous day's violent confrontation. At least eight people
died in the melee involving security forces and opposition protesters.

Some witnesses said the confrontation culminated with security forces
opening fire on demonstrators. Gunfire could be heard for over a
half-hour echoing throughout the center of the city. Officials put
the death toll at eight, but witnesses said the final count was
probably much higher. All of those killed, according to police,
died from gunshots.

The government likewise maintains that roughly 130 people suffered
wounds, but a doctor at one hospital said that so many wounded were
brought in so fast, that hospital staff had to place many of the
injured on the floor and in corridors. This would suggest that the
number of casualties was far higher than the official count.

Authorities said an official inquiry was underway into the
circumstances that led to the violence. Speaking on state television,
Health Minister Arutyun Kushkyan said over half of those wounded were
members of security forces.

The morning after, many Yerevan residents reported feeling in a state
of shock. Meanwhile, troops in full battle gear and armored vehicles
patrolled the city. Amid the March 1 confrontation, widespread looting
occurred. Many stores and supermarkets along one of Yerevan's main
shopping avenues, Mashtots, were emptied of goods.

Under the state of emergency, imposed late on March 1 by President
Robert Kocharian to quell anti-government protests, the government
is tightly controlling the dissemination of information. Armenian
news outlets face prosecution if they distribute news reports that
do not come from official sources.

The state of emergency succeeded in putting an end to the
protests carried out by supporters of presidential candidate Levon
Ter-Petroisian, who insists that the government rigged the February
19 vote to ensure victory for its chosen candidate, Prime Minister
Serzh Sarkisian. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Ter-Petrosian was kept under house arrest on March 1, but restrictions
were lifted late at night. He reportedly urged his supporters to
return to their homes and not engage in violence.

Earlier, representatives of Ter-Petrosian blamed authorities for
igniting the tragedy, pointing to security forces' use of violent
tactics to disperse what had been to that point a peaceful protest
during the early morning hours of March 1. After initially being
dispersed, opposition protesters regrouped and resisted the security
troops' use of force with force of their own. [For background see
the Eurasia Insight archive].

Kocharian, meanwhile, assailed Ter-Petrosian for refusing to recognize
his defeat in the presidential balloting, which, despite an initial
endorsement from international monitors, was found to have major
flaws that could have influenced the outcome. [For background see
the Eurasia Insight archive]. Ter-Petrosian, along "with a group
of adventure-seekers surrounding him, without acknowledging the
reality of their defeat, took to illegal actions," Kocharian insisted,
adding that the protests against the election results had caused the
"disruption of [Armenia's] international prestige."

"As the guarantor of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia,
I will not allow anyone to endanger the constitutional order of our
state," Kocharian said.

The state of emergency will be in effect for at least 20 days. During
that time, many basic civil liberties, including the right of peaceful
assembly, are suspended. Police will also enjoy expanded powers of
search and seizure, and officials will be able to control the flow
of information.

How developments in Armenia were presented in UK press‏

The Times

Violent clashes kill eight in Armenia, state of emergency declared

( Mkhitar Khachatryan/AP)

Opposition protesters in the Armenian capital Yerevan - the violence erupted when police tried to move them from a square

Tony Halpin in Moscow

Armenia was under a state of emergency today after eight people died in clashes between riot police and demonstrators protesting that its presidential election had been rigged.

Troops and tanks patrolled the capital Yerevan in a crackdown ordered by President Robert Kocharyan following a night of violence that left scores injured, stores looted and streets littered with burnt-out cars.

The foreign ministry said that seven civilians and one police officer had been killed. Another 33 police were hurt, including 17 with gunshot wounds.

There were an unknown number of casualties among demonstrators in the former Soviet republic. They had massed in huge numbers on the streets near foreign embassies after police broke up a protest camp in Yerevan's central Liberty Square early on Saturday morning.

The square had been the focus of 11 days of peaceful protests against the election of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan as President. Supporters of opposition leader Levon Ter Petrosyan insist that he won the vote and that the authorities engaged in massive fraud to hand victory to Mr Sargsyan, the President's close ally.

Violence erupted as hundreds of riot police moved in to try to clear the streets late on Saturday and protestors, who had erected barricades earlier in the day, retaliated with sticks and stones.

Police fired tear gas and live rounds into the air above the crowd of up to 15,000 after petrol bombs were thrown. Demonstrators finally abandoned the streets after an appeal for calm was read out from Mr Ter Petrosyan, who was independent Armenia's first president from 1991 to 1998.

Mr Ter Petrosyan said that he had been placed under house arrest. The Government denied this and claimed that security forces were protecting him as a former head of state.

An uneasy calm held in Yerevan on Sunday as a dozen armoured personnel carriers and about 100 soldiers guarded the main government building and foreign ministry. Several tanks were stationed at the scene of the clashes.

Mr Kocharyan imposed the state of emergency until March 20 in response to what he called a threat to constitutional order. Demonstrations, strikes and public gatherings are banned, while media in Armenia may only publish information provided by the government.

Political parties are barred from distributing "leaflets or other means of political propaganda". Police have also been given sweeping powers to restrict people's movements and to stop and search vehicles.

Prosecutors said that at least 55 people had been detained during the violence. Mr Ter Petrosyan's spokesman, Arman Musinyan, accused police of planting weapons near demonstrators in the square as a pretext for Saturday's clampdown.

The violence was the worst crisis in the Caucasus republic of 3.2 million since a massacre in parliament in October 1999, when extreme nationalists shot dead Armenia's prime minister and seven other senior politicians.

Official results of the election on February 19 gave Mr Sargsyan 52.9 per cent, just above the 50 per cent required to avoid a run-off against his nearest opponent Mr Ter Petrosyan, who had 21.5 per cent.

Mr Ter Petrosyan claims that he won two-thirds of the vote. Europe's main election watchdog described the vote as "mostly" in line with international standards, but said that counting had been bad or very bad in 16 per cent of polling stations.

The current chairman of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Finland's Foreign Minister Ilkka Kanerva, condemned the use of force against demonstrators. He announced that a special envoy would go to Armenia to encourage the two sides to negotiate a solution to the crisis.

The Vatican's second most senior figure, Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, postponed a visit to Armenia on Sunday after the state of emergency was declared.

Multimedia

• Pictures: Armenia protests

Eight killed in Armenia protest

This article appeared in the Guardian on Monday March 03 2008 on p22 of the International section. It was last updated at 00:06 on March 03 2008.

A 20-day state of emergency has been declared in Armenia after clashes between troops and protesters in the capital left eight dead and more than 100 injured.

Demonstrators had been gathering in Yerevan since the presidential election on February 19, protesting over alleged election fraud.

Police first raided a protest camp in the central Liberty Square, claiming the protesters, supporters of opposition presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian, had weapons and were plotting a coup.

About 15,000 demonstrators later returned to the square and police fired shots in the air and let off teargas to break up the gathering. Groups of demonstrators then marched around town, looting shops and setting cars ablaze.

Yesterday, hundreds of servicemen, wearing bullet-proof vests and wielding Kalashnikov assault rifles, patrolled the streets. Residents were warned by loudspeaker not to gather in groups.

Ter-Petrosian, who was the country's first post-Soviet president, finished a distant second to the prime minister, Serge Sarkisian, in the official results from the election. He appealed to the constitutional court last week to overturn the results. Independent observers have issued an overall positive assessment of the election, but noted flaws, especially during vote counting.

The outgoing president, Robert Kocharian, appealed for calm. "What's going on now is not a political process. It has gone over the edge," he said. "I appeal to the people of Armenia to show restraint and understanding."
Associated Press in Yerevan

Independent.co.uk

Riots over vote force state of emergency in Armenia

By Shaun Walker
Monday, 3 March 2008

A state of emergency was declared in Armenia yesterday after clashes between riot police and protesters left eight people dead and more than 30 policemen injured.

More than 15,000 people were protesting against the results of presidential elections held a fortnight ago, in which the Prime Minister, Serge Sarkisian, deafeated former president Levon Ter-Petrosian. The 19 February elections were described as mostly fair by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, but opposition supporters claim mass fraud in favour of Mr Sarkisian, a close ally of the outgoing president, Robert Kocharian. Mr Sarkisian won just enough votes to avoid a second-round run-off.

After 11 days of peaceful protests, the demonstrations became violent on Saturday, with rioters clashing with armed police and setting fire to cars in the capital, Yerevan. The city centre was deserted yesterday, but littered with burnt-out cars.

Mr Kocharian imposed a state of emergency until 20 March, with troops and armoured vehicles patrolling the streets and all protests banned. A media blackout has also been imposed.

Mr Ter-Petrosian, who stepped down in 1998, has accused the regime of cronyism and corruption, and says he is being held under house arrest. The government says he is being guarded for his own protection.

Eight killed in Armenia election clashes By Adrian Blomfield Last Updated: 2:24am GMT 03/03/2008 Armenia's government imposed a countrywide state of emergency yesterday after police killed eight demonstrators protesting against the triumph of a pro-Kremlin candidate. Outgoing President Robert Kocharian ordered a ban on all public rallies and imposed a communications blackout on the capital, Yerevan, where internet and satellite services were cut. Non-state television was also taken off the air. Violence flared after riot police broke up a tented camp pitched in a central square by opposition supporters intent on recreating Ukraine's Orange revolution of 2004. Levon Ter-Petrosian, the defeated opposition challenger, was placed under house arrest and several of his colleagues were detained. Mr Ter-Petrosian, a former president, received 21.5 per cent of the vote in a Feb 19 election won by President Kocharian's handpicked successor, Serzh Sargsyan. Although Western observers declared the poll relatively free, Mr Sargsyan benefited from heavily skewed television coverage. Information appearing on telegraph.co.uk is the copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited and must not be reproduced in any medium without licence.

Eight killed in Armenia clash

By Isabel Gorst

Published: March 3 2008 02:00 | Last updated: March 3 2008 02:00

Armenia imposed a state of emergency yesterday after authorities cracked down on thousands of protesters demanding the annulment of a presidential election they said was rigged.

Eight people were killed and 33 policemen injured during a violent clash with police on Saturday.

Isabel Gorst, Moscow

The Financial Times Limited 2008

IWPR - Armenia's Bloody Saturday‏

© Institute for War & Peace Reporting
48 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1X 8LT, UK
Tel: +44 (0)20 7831 1030 Fax: +44 (0)20 7831 1050

The opinions expressed in IWPR Online are those of the authors and do not
necessarily represent those of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting.

Registered as a charity in the United Kingdom (charity reg. no: 1027201, company reg. no: 2744185)

Amenia’s Bloody Saturday

Violence stuns the country, denting its image further after a controversial election.

By IWPR reporters in Yerevan (CRS No. 434, 03-Mar-08)

Armenia is counting the cost of what is already being called “Bloody Saturday,” after several people were killed in running battles between police and opposition demonstrators in the capital Yerevan.

After a day of violence on March 1 which stunned this normally peaceful city, outgoing president Robert Kocharian declared a state of emergency in Yerevan.

The protesters were calling for the cancellation of the February 19 election in which Kocharian’s ally and prime minister Serzh Sarkisian was voted in as president, when the security forces moved in with force to break up the demonstration.

The opposition says its supporters were engaged in lawful protests and were subjected to an unprovoked attack, despite calls from the international community for a peaceful resolution of the political crisis.

The authorities say they were forced to act after receiving information that weapons had been distributed among the demonstrators and that “mass riots” were planned for March 1.

The trouble began early on the morning of March 1, when police moved in on several hundred protestors sleeping in tents pitched on Freedom Square in central Yerevan.

According to an official statement, it was the protesters who started fighting the police.

“The demonstrators began to throw stones, branches from trees, metal bars and bottles of inflammable liquid at the police. There were calls to overthrow the authorities with violence, and the police were abused,” said the statement.

Not so, say opposition activists like Hovhanes, who told IWPR that the police made the first move, beating protestors and setting fire to their tents. Hovhanes said he heard them speaking Armenian with a distinct Karabakh accent, indicating that they came from that region.

One of the protesters who got beaten up, Haik Yeritsian, said the assault began at around 6.30 am. “Men armed to the teeth attacked without warning and began to beat people brutally,” he said.

At this point, Yeritsian said, Levon Ter-Petrosian, the former president who lost the election to Sarkisian, said, “Let’s wait and see what the military want to say.” He continued, “They said nothing and just attacked.”

Yeritsian concluded, “Now I am looking for my brother Soghoman - I’ve been looking for him for two hours.”

Many people were detained and taken away in police vehicles.

The clashes continued for several hours. By nine in the morning, Freedom Square and surrounding streets were completely occupied by armed security forces.

A cameraman told IWPR said he came to Freedom Square to film on hearing that protests were continuing there.

“The police had flooded the square,” he recalled. “The tents had already been pulled down. Suddenly a group of people began to chant ‘Levon! Levon!’ Police with electric stun-guns attacked them; the people began to run and the police chased them and began beating them.”

The cameraman said he shot footage of the incident but it was seized from him.

Opposition protestors continued to gather wherever they could. An IWPR reporter saw policemen with truncheons attacking and dispersing groups of people who had started collecting on Mashtots Avenue. Some were forced into cars and taken away.

Ter-Petrosian was escorted home and found himself effectively held under house arrest by the bodyguards the government had provided to protect him. Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian later said the opposition politician was not under arrest and was free to go out, as long as he made his own security arrangements.

At around 11 am, Ter-Petrosian held a press conference for those journalists whom the guards would let through – mainly foreigners.

“It all happened very quickly,” he told the reporters. “In ten or 15 minutes the square was cleared, there were no people left on it, and it was full of police engaged in this operation.”

Ter-Petrosian said that much of the violence committed against the police was the work of “provocateurs”, and that the police themselves had distributed improvised weapons.

He stressed that he enjoyed immunity because he had formally filed a protest with the constitutional court the day before challenging the results of the election.

In the meantime, thousands of opposition supporters converged on the French embassy in the centre of Yerevan – a place they considered relatively safe because of the proximity of western diplomats -- and continued their protests outside it.

Large groups of armed police units moved to the scene, and there were fears that further violence would break out.

After Armenia’s human rights ombudsman and members of parliament from the opposition Heritage Party arrived on the scene, the police withdrew.

The protestors built a barricade out of buses and armed themselves with metal spikes and stones. A rubbish truck tried to pass through but was stopped and pelted with clothes and shoes.

At around 3 pm, a police jeep drove into the crowd, and two people were injured. Furious protestors smashed and burned the vehicle. Not far away, a clash broke out near the mayor’s office and opposition parliamentarian Armen Martirosian was injured as he tried to calm things down.

Despite being urged to disperse, more protesters arrived on the scene for a rally which started at around 4 pm. The streets around the embassy filled up with armoured vehicles and armed men.

President Kocharian called a press conference for eight in the evening, but it was conducted in the end by foreign minister Oskanian, who warned that a state of emergency might be imposed and called on protestors to go home.

An hour later, shots were heard in the streets and a group of opposition protestors were dispersed with tear gas.

On Leo Street, a fight broke out between local residents and demonstrators, on the one hand, and armed police on the other. A supermarket had its windows smashed and the contents were stolen. The authorities said it was the work of looters, although one local resident said she saw goods being taken away in a police car.

Clashes continued into the evening, with dozens of wounded on both sides.

At around ten in the evening of March 1, President Kocharian imposed a state of emergency in Yerevan, restricting the rights of free assembly, media, parties and public organisations.

The protests continued until five the next morning.

The protestors finally dispersed when Ter-Petrosian urged them to go home and continue their fight by other means.

A special session of parliament was convened at six that morning, which approved a state of emergency for a 20-day period.

“If we hadn’t taken the appropriate measures we would simply have allowed supporters of Levon Ter-Petrosian to continue their rioting in our city,” said the speaker of parliament, Tigran Torosian.

“The decision to impose a state of emergency was not taken lightly; there was no other solution.”

An official police statement issued on March 2 said that an “uncontrollable crowd” of 7,000 had been looting and attacking cars and shops.

Official figures said eight people died – seven of them protestors and one a policeman. As of March 3, 59 people remained in hospital, 27 of them police.

One of those who died was opposition activist Gor Kloyan, a 29-year-old father of two, who was hit in the stomach by a bullet.

Gor had been in the crowd next to a statue near both the mayor’s office and the French embassy. He was taken to hospital but died early on March 2. His relatives were angry with medical staff, saying that they did not treat him swiftly enough.

Armen Soghoyan, head of the Health and Social Security Department at the mayor’s office in Yerevan, told IWPR that he was aware of four dead bodies being brought in to the hospitals controlled by his office.

“The health ministry has all the figures,” he said. “We sent our figures to them, but they do not share their figures with us.”

“Only ten per cent of hospitals are under the mayor’s office so I really cannot say anything about other hospitals in town”, he said, adding that, “whenever there is a state of emergency, a lot of different rumours go around.”

International bodies and politicians expressed alarm at the news from Yerevan, and the OSCE’s Finnish presidency dispatched Finnish diplomat Heikki Talvitie to Armenia to act as a mediator.

Many Armenians are still reeling at the sudden outbreak of violence in their capital.

“Whoever’s fault it is, this bloodshed will cost us all dearly,” said Aram Grigorian, a 56-year-old native of Yerevan, reflecting the shock felt by many. “It has set us back for several decades.”

The head of the Armenian church, Catholicos Garegin II, urged his compatriots to show restraint.

“Today the Armenian people are grieving for their dead sons. We never expected that the innate common sense of our people would give way to hatred and enmity,” he said.

“We are answerable to history and to future generations; we therefore cannot allow further irrational acts to take place which would threaten the stability of our country.”

Of major world leaders, the Russian and French presidents, Vladimir Putin and Nicolas Sarkozy, have congratulated Serzh Sarkisian on his victory but other western governments have not yet sent formal messages as they are waiting for a final observers’ report on the February 19 poll.

Photo Essay

Street Battles in Yerevan

On March 1 the Armenian authorities sent in police who used force to break up opposition rallies protesting against the result of the February 19 presidential election, in which prime minister Serzh Sarkisian was declared the winner. Eight people were reported killed and scores were injured. The authorities declared a state of emergency and imposed a news blackout.

(CRS No. 434, 03-Mar-08)

1. On the early morning of March 1 riot police gained control of most of central Yerevan after breaking up an opposition tent-city in the middle of the city.

2. On Saturday March 1 riot police move in on a crowd of opposition protestors who had remained defiantly near the French embassy. There were clashes before most of the crowd agreed to disperse.

3. A woman slightly hurt after violence near the French embassy.

4. A woman taken ill near the French embassy.

5. A soldier in central Yerevan near a burnt-out bus.

6. A state of emergency was declared on the evening of March 1. Riot police move onto the crossing of Leo and Paronian Streets in central Yerevan.

7. Opposition protestors seized a bus, slashed the tires and turned it into a barricade to try and hang on to the streets.

8. Cars were wrecked and shops smashed in an evening of clashes. At least seven protestors and one policemen were reported killed in the course of the day.

Eyewitnesses Tell of Violence, Shootings

Amidst a virtual media blackout, witnesses tell their own stories of street fighting in Yerevan.

By IWPR staff in Yerevan (CRS No. 434, 03-Mar-08)

Armenia is under a virtual news blackout because of the state of emergency imposed in Yerevan on March 1, which placed tight restrictions on local media.

As people struggle to form a clear picture of the violence that has shaken the Armenian capital, rumours are circulating rapidly.

Amid the rumour and half-truths, several direct witnesses have given accounts of what they saw to IWPR.

Yerevan residents have resorted to telephoning one another or coming out onto the streets to swap information. Taxi drivers, in particular, have become a good source of “alternative news”.

Internet providers have all but shut down access to two independent sources of information – the websites of Radio Liberty and A1+ television.

Much of the video footage shot during the protests was confiscated by police, but some is being released on the internet, as Armenians exchange information on sites such as Youtube and Facebook.

Rumours that the number of dead was not eight – as officials say - but 40 or even 100 have fuelled anger among opposition supporters already infuriated by official television reports that placed all the blame on the protestors.

Eyewitnesses who observed clashes at various points in the day on March have told IWPR of running battles and police violence.

When the trouble began early on March 1, as the opposition’s tent city on Freedom Square was broken up and protestors were rounded up., one young woman named Suzie managed to capture on film footage in which ten policemen attacked and kicked a man.

Later in the day, another clash took place close to the French embassy and the office of Yerevan’s mayor. A foreigner living in Yerevan, who asked not to be named, told IWPR he observed the ensuing confrontation, and alleged that men armed with rifles deliberately fired on civilians.

“I was on a balcony overlooking the epicentre of the battle last night. I was within 10 metres of the entire fight,” he said.

“There were special-forces snipers with black ski-masks mixed in with the young, scared policemen, who were not masked. While the police shot tracers into the air, these riflemen directly aimed at and shot protesters. I saw two men fall on the ground below me, one with a massive haemorrhage to his head. He was unconscious and carried off by other protesters.”

At the start of the police action against the crowd assembled near the embassy building, he said, “I saw a police captain and his lieutenants drinking in celebration as they sent the first attack of terrified, ill-trained riot police to the front.”

As the police moved in, they set fire to a barricade that protesters had erected near the embassy. “Protesters lobbed fire back onto the streets and counter-charged. The police then panicked, and some were wounded in the melee, mostly from their own [colleagues] also trying to get away from the fight. I saw several police limp back, but none were bloody,” said the eyewitness, adding, “This is when I saw masked soldiers take aim and fire directly at the protesters.”

The eyewitness said the demonstrators had only makeshift weapons - rocks and metal bars. “A few had Molotov cocktails, but most simply took tear gas canisters and whatever police used to send fire into the protesters [and threw them] back,” he said.

In the second police charge, he said, the police brought in water-cannon trucks, but used them “ineptly”, running out of water before they reached the protesters.

The security forces then retreated again. “This is when the protesters began to give chase, chasing riot police and the water-cannon trucks all the way to Proshian and the Hrazdan gorge,” said the eyewitness.

He gave his own account of the looting incidents that followed, which have been widely reported in the media. He said protestors seemed to target only the security forces and those businesses whose owners were seen as close to the current government.

“Some elements broke into supermarkets owned by oligarchs and deputies of parliament who are widely seen to be among the most corrupt officials in the country,” he said. “This is the remarkable thing that occurred – they targeted only two oligarch supermarkets, one candy store, one high-scale shoe shop and a few windows. That's it. They did not touch a single other shop on the street.”

The same applied to vehicles, he continued, claiming, “The only cars torched were military or police vehicles. Fighting went back and forth in front of me and there were five cars unfortunately parked on the street by people living in the building, but there was not a scratch on them.”

KARABAKH ISSUE COLOURS ARMENIA POLL

Return of former president breaks political consensus on resolving the conflict.

By Tatul Hakopian in Yerevan

The future of Nagorny Karabakh has not previously been a contentious issue in the domestic politics of Armenia in recent years, but now it is being bitterly debated in the presidential election campaign, thanks to the return of the stage of former president Levon Ter-Petrosian.

On the campaign trail, supporters of Ter-Petrosian and his rival, the official candidate Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian, are trading accusations of "sell-outs" in their respective negotiations with Azerbaijan to resolve the disputed territory's status.

Former president Ter-Petrosyan stepped down in 1998 after coming under pressure from a group of ministers including his successor as president, Robert Kocharian, and Sarkisian, who opposed his tactics for resolving the conflict with Azerbaijan.

There is normally an almost full consensus on the Karabakh issue in Armenian politics, and election campaigns focus instead on domestic issues such as the economy and corruption.

This campaign has proved to be the exception.

Vahan Hovannisian, who is running as a candidate for the nationalist Dashnaktsutiun party, diverges from the other eight contenders by asserting that there can be no negotiations with Azerbaijan until it signs a non-aggression pact with Armenia .

The main difference between the others is that Ter-Petrosian says that time is working against Armenia in the Karabakh dispute and settling it needs to be a priority.

Kocharian and Sarkisian have accused Ter-Petrosian of wanting to "surrender" Karabakh in 1998. These allegations have not been precisely worded, but the implication is that Ter-Petrosian was willing to compromise on the sovereignty claimed by Nagorny Karabakh.

Opposition member of parliament Shavarsh Kocharian (no relation of the president), a critic of Ter-Petrosian, said the former president's return to the political scene had rekindled the debate on Karabakh.

"The defeatist attitudes which were characteristic of the previous governing regime and which were the reason why it left office in 1998 have led to the issue of conflict resolution coming to the fore again, as this same administration is rearing its head again and is has not changed its position on Karabakh," he said.

Ter-Petrosian's supporters would vigorously deny that he has a "defeatist" attitude. At one rally, the candidate spoke in detail about the need to make a deal with Azerbaijan and change the status quo. He has said that time is not on Armenia's side in the dispute.

Political analyst Aghasi Yenokian said, "It's natural that with the return [of Ter-Petrosian] to politics, the issue is being raised again. It's only Ter-Petrosian who expresses a real readiness to settle the Karabakh conflict. All the other candidates would, if elected, continue the current policy and postpone a resolution."

On February 9, Ter-Petrosian raised the stakes with his opponents by directly linking the Karabakh issue with the most traumatic event in recent domestic political history, the murder of eight prominent politicians in parliament in October 1999.

At a rally on Yerevan's Freedom Square, Ter-Petrosian claimed that in autumn 1999, Kocharian, Sarkisian and current foreign minister Vardan Oskanian had been ready to sign a deal to exchange the southern Meghri region of Armenia for Nagorny Karabakh and the adjoining Lachin district.

Meghri stands between Azerbaijan to its exclave territory Nakhichevan, while Lachin connects Armenia and Karabakh. The idea of a swap has been dubbed the "Goble Plan" after the American scholar Paul Goble who first suggested it.

On the same day, the Haikakan Zhamanak newspaper which is supporting Ter-Petrosian's election bid published the text of an unofficial document produced by the American, French and Russian co-chairs of the Minsk Group - the mediators in the dispute - in autumn 1999, in which the first point states that Meghri should be exchanged for Lachin.

"I am making public a fact that has been hidden for ten years - a great conspiracy against Armenia - which Kocharian, Sarkisian and Oskanian have always denied," Ter-Petrosian told the crowd which listened in absolute silence. "This is the question of exchanging of Meghri for Lachin, through which Armenia would have lost its 35-kilometre border with Iran. Today this conspiracy has been exposed."

The candidate then went on to make an even more explosive allegation, linking this plan with the attack of October 27, 1999, in which eight leading politicians including the then prime minister Vazgen Sarkisian and speaker of parliament Karen Demirchian, were killed.

"This document will be the most important clue to solving the October 27 [murders]," said Ter-Petrosian.

"This conspiracy failed thanks to two people - Karen Demirchian and Vazgen Sarkisian, who exposed the plot at a session of the security council, and paid the highest price for it, their lives."

The Kocharian administration moved quickly to dismiss Ter-Petrosian's allegations, with presidential press secretary Viktor Soghomonian calling the claims "an electoral gambit".

"The radical opposition, having exhausted all attempts to discredit the authorities, has begun talking about this alleged peace plan," said Soghomonian. "This started in 2002. In actual fact we are talking about the so-called 'Goble Plan' which was never a topic for discussion in the negotiations over Karabakh. It's obvious that today's publication has the aim of heading off a new discussion about the very peculiar approach that ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosian took to resolving the conflict."

Following the shootings in parliament, Kocharian said he had rejected the idea of a territorial exchange. Speaking on television in February 2000, he said there had indeed been a plan to exchange land but "this was not accepted by me".

Foreign minister Oskanian angrily rejected Ter-Petrosian's statements on the Karabakh issue.

"What Ter-Petrosyan is doing is a cheap pre-election trick, this is immoral. And when he tries to relate his statements to the terrorist act in the Armenian parliament, it becomes clear to me that Ter-Petrosyan will stop at nothing," said the minister.

Tatul Hakopian is a commentator on Public Radio in Armenia and correspondent for the New York newspaper The Armenian Reporter.

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