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[RMItItlil ItIItRil[It0ilil. MtGlItilt March 2000, Volume I l, No.3
IIEPIRIMHUIS
12 tnom the Editon 13 lettens 16 AIM Uiew 18 N0teb00k
21 Bytc$ on tilG 24 Glo[al Pictune 26 Anmenia Bniels 28 Economic News & lndicatops 30 RegionalBriels 32 lliaspona Bniels 70 AlManketPlacc 73 ilow I Got that sh0t 74 taGc$ 76 UndGncxpo$ed 78 E$$ay G0t|tuEcTt0il$
50
Ncw 20th Gcntuny Media AGBU Newsletter and Ago.s provide new voices in Armenian media
ARIS
62 lllitness ol His lime Norikian, agony and suffering through art and color
GOUM $TORY
34 Weauing Wonilens Tufenkian's magic carpets fly from Yerevan to New York
Cover design by Patrick Azrdian
rOGU$
MIIN
HTWilM
22 Poml and Gincumstance The President's official visit to
42Tne f,etunn ol thc Eenenal
54 $caling Mountains
Lebanon
General Andranik's ashes are reburied in Armenia
AIM MARCH
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Armenia's disabled are challenged by physical and psychological barriers
Itcnd UD onil Be 0unteil Fill Out Your Census Form. Crrv or Los Axcprrs
CBNSUS 2000 Ournnecu
PnoJECT
G'.i
F-T
ff
E Three Big Reasons I('hy You Should Fill Out Your Census Form. Help Yourself and Your Family . Help Your Community Thrive . Get Help in Times of Need
Important Dates to Remember-
o*.,*3,IiL1
April
10
Last day to mail in Census form
Ilth
ls Your
\U7hen
Fill Out the Census Form You Receive it in the Mail
Itl(ffifdntid - not the President or the IRS or INS, not the Welfare office or the courts or credit companies NO ONE can obtain information about you or your family from the Census Bureau.
No one
Itt lnprtont Most programs that help our community are funded according to the number of people counted by the census.
Ittill llohlDifftrffir An accurate population count will increase funding for schools, health care, senior citizen centers, job training, rent subsidy, roads, sewers, and other vital programs
tutun
Dont lene lt Blonll!
t itt leod bpdise 'd""olwil!'!:lP viso in ftt.
/NNI
ANew Home When subscribers
or other
visitors
walk into our offices in Glendale, it takes them about two minutes to look around, before they ask where the main AIM
Founded in 1990
Founding Editor Vartan oskanian
Founding Publisher Michael I'lahabet Armsnian lntemalional Magazino
office is. We take that as a compliment. It does not cease to surprise us, even, that eight full and part-time staff, five computers. a few assorted printers, scanners, a dozen filing cabinets and hundreds of files, tens of thousands of photos, prints, slides all fit into five rooms (800 sq. ft). Not just flt, either. The staff remains pro-
207 Soulh Brand Boulevard, Suite 203 Glendale, Calilornia 91204 USA Phone 818 246 7979 Fax 818 246 0088
E-mail aimagazine@aol.com Editor-Publisher
Salpi Haroutinian Ghazarian Senior Editor
Hralch Tchilingirian Photo l\,lanager
Paril llazariaI
ductive, and the material accessible. Now that Hratch Tchilingirian has relocated to London, AIM has a small operation going there, too, focusing on coverage of the Caucasus region.
Arl Director
Pallick Azadian Associate Editors
A. H. Al8xandrian, Yerevan Tony Halpin, London Design Consultant
Ralli Tarplnlan
Since 1995, we've had permanent quarters in Yerevan, as well. First, we shared some space with other joumalists. Then, about three years ago, we moved into the office building (one of Yerevan's few such structures) near the Republic Square Metro
Associate Publisher
Teni ilGlidonian Subscriptions [ranager
Seta l(hodanian Adverlising Manager
Flml Melfiilarian Assistant to lhe Edilor
station. One of the owners of the buildings is Vartkes Barsam, an AIM Associate Trustee, an active member of the US Armenian community, and one of the first businessmen to invest in Armenia. This month, AIM Yerevan moved again. We had outgrown our space. Although we'll miss the hustle and bustle of Republic Square, AIM's new office on Yeznig Koghbatsi, close to the Opera, is still accessible. It will offer our staff a little more
working space, and also short-term lodging for AIM's visiting journalists. Check the masthead on this page for the address and phone number, and visit the office the next
Hrair Sarkis Sarlissian lntern
farina Avedissian. Talinc J. ilihra0ian Yolovan Eureau 67 Koghbatsi Slreet, No. PhonB
1
533699 Phonefax 151849
E-mail aimarm@arminco.com Coordinator
Anahil ilanirossian Assrslant
Anna Gevo]Iian Advertising [ilanager
time you're in Yerevan! Anahit and Anna will be happy to see you.
Gohar Sahakian
It's March 2000. Ten years ago, this month, the first, 'dummy' issue of AIM had already been sent to several hundred community notables, potential investors and donors, and potential writers. Everyone was amazed at the audacity and enterprising spirit behind such an undertaking. Ten years and77 issues later, AIM is still unusual. Although it's become an institution in the Diaspora, it's a new kind of institution still. The experiment is still unique. There have been no copycats. As the tenth year of AIM comes to a close later this year, subscription rates will go up for the first time since its inception. So, the push is on to get you, our subscribers, to renew early - and save. But, even more important, the challenge is to increase the subscriber base. Help spread the word and raise the numbers of those who count themselves among this Armenian Magazine's international, intelligent, independent, insightful readers.
Design and Production
Vahan Stepanian Conlribulinq Editors
John Hughes, Ronald Gdgol Suny, Talioe Vosledtchlan Contribulors
Arbshes Emir, Yereran; Susan Pattie, London; Edik Ealaian, Ara Chouliian, Los An0olas; J!r!l Samuslian, Palm Sprln0$ ilart Malkatian, Rhode lslend; Geo0e Boumoutian, Lol, Xoundakiian, ilow Y0*; Myilam Gaums, Paris; lrlalthou lGnlial, Moond tlooradian, Washinoton, DCi Vaftan Matiossian, Buelos AirE8. Photographers
ilkiihr Khachatrian, Zawn (hachikian, Routrn ilangasariar, ltnyan; Anloino Agoudllan, Armineh Joharnss, Alino ilanodian, Pads; Edmond Torakoplan, london; Xarine Amen, l(cv0* Dlanrozlan, BamElmetii, E]ic l{azadan, Ara orhagan, Los Angeles; Gam Lachlnian, lilassachmelb; Hary ltuundakiian, l{ow Yod(; Ber0c Ara Zobian, Bhodo lsland. Edilor Emerilus
Ciado8 flazarian lntomatlonal Slbscriptions and Adv6rtlsinC Brprssentatives
A.Cldlm
Colegio Mekhitarista, Virey del Pino 351 1 (1426) Buenos Aires, Phone 5411 4552 3590Ar.tElla Varooi lskenderian, 148 Xoola Ave. East Ki lara NSW 2071 Phone 02.9251 2882i Allred Markarian, P0. 8ox 370, Hatris Paik NSW 2 1 50 Phone 029897 1 e{6i Vahe Kateb P 0. Box 250, Poil ltlelbourne, Victoria 3207, Phone 03 9794 0000 Canada 8eni0 Hakimian, 3150 Sarlâ‚Źlon Streel, Sl. Laurent, ouebtr H4R1E3, Phone 514 339 2517 Hory l(ou Jack Maxiar, RM. 42, 11/F, Block A,26 Kai Cheung Rd., Kowloon Bay, Xowloon, Phone 852 795 9888 lt ly Pietre Balanian, Via Morlacca, 61 A4l5, Bome, Phone S95 1235 Llbanm Zartouhi (abakian, P0. Box 55669, Beirul, Lebanon, Phone (1) 510212 Unltad Am! Emintes GuliarJonian, P0. Bor 4456,4 Abu Dhabl, LIAE,
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write lo Aim! We welcome all communicalion. Although we read all letters and submissions, we are unable l0 aclnowledge everything we receive oue to limited stall'nq and
resources. Letlers l0 lhe Editor may be eoiled for publicati0n.
AIM MARCH
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available for many years. In addressing the upgrade of our church, our priorities were guided by our purpose which was articulated by our senior pastor in your article - "to propagate the Gospel of Christ and to do that ministry in the context of our Armenian heritage." In that regard, upgrades to our translation system, which serves our congregation, was a priority. Louis Kurkjian
Fullerton, California The Reference in AIM View was to the church's outside or back wall, which is seen from the Hollywood Freeway When I received my January issue, I imme-
diately sat at my kitchen table and read your cover story. I have to tell you that I was surprised to see the number of articles on Armenian Evangelicals, but
The Politics of Chemistry Your Believe It or Not column (January 2000) conflrms that Turkey has not changed
in 100 years. One hundred years ago Sultan Abdul Hamid II exhibited his legendary paranoia by deleting the formula for water - H20 from
a
chemistry book. The Sultan believed
the formula was a lethal code indicating Hamid the Second will be zero. Today the Education Ministry bans the equation P = 2K because it may symbolize the Kurdish rebel group PKK. Pierre V Haig Dana Point, California
A Challenge for the Future Congratulations to
AIM on the quality of
the article on Armenian
Evangelicals (Cover Story January 2000.) It was a thorough and well written article highlighting the
Evangelicals' commitment to the educational, humanitarian, and religious needs ofour peo-
ple around the world. It will reinforce their dedication to continue to serve in these endeavors.
As an American-born Armenian, raised in the Los Angeles Evangelical community, and as moderator of the United Armenian Congregational Church, I was happy to see photos of our upgraded sanctuary and the stained glass window on the cover and in your publication.
In response to some of the comments in AIM View let me point out that the name of our church, in English and in Armenian, has been visible for many years to all who drive by the front of our church. The simultane-
ous translation capability has also
been
I was also
highly populated with Armenians, in
the Greater Boston area. There are six Armenian
churches in the immediate area. Three of them are in Watertown, one in the adjoining town of Cambridge and two in adjoining Belmont. Many who live or have lived here are probably wondering how I came up with six churches. That precisely is the reason for this letter. Let me go back some years: Growing up
in Watertown as an Armenian. you were continually surrounded by your culture. The streets had many Armenian grocery stores and bakeries. Eastern Lamejune Bakers was started by my grandfather and his cousin. At
Watertown High School, Armenian was offered as a second language. We went to dances on weekends. Sundays, we started in church and continued throughout the day socializing with extended family. was always aware that there were three churches in town. We were members of the Armenian
I
Memorial Church. I had cousins who went to St. James Armenian Apostolic and Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic churches. My girlfriend across the street went to Holy
Cross Armenian Catholic Church in Cambridge (now in Belmont.) We weren't any different from each other. We were all the same. We were Armenian. We were kids. Unfortunately, perceptions change when you grow up. This reality became apparent
I
married and moved outside the
Boston area. I would meet many new people, and the conversation would usually lead
AIM MARCH
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people who grew up in the Greater Boston area or even in Watertown that I attended the Armenian Memorial Church in Watertown, they would cock their heads and say "Where is that?" You can imagine my shock when I was first asked that question. My reaction was: You grew up locally, even went to church in Watertown and didn't know there
was an Armenian Evangelical church one quarter mile from St. James Armenian Apostolic Church and 50 yards across the street from St. Stephen's Armenian Apostolic Church? I assure you that these Armenian adults my peers - have attended a wedding, baptism or funeral at one of these two neighbor-
ing Apostolic churches. But they were
saddened.
I refer to myself as Armenian Protestant, however I will maintain consistency with the AIM articles and use the word Evangelical. I grew up in Watertown, Massachusetts,
when
to "Where did you grow up? What church do you go to?" For those who don't live in a highly Armenian populated area, these questions are not uncommon. When I would tell
unaware of our existence. We are considered
by many to be "make-believe Armenians," "pretend Armenians," "not true Armenians." In your story, you state "While cordial relations were maintained on the formal
level, the Armenian Apostolic Church had always seen the Evangelical community as the "separated brethren," and along with the
Catholics, did not consider them "fully Armenian." What a shame that any Armenian would doubt our authenticity and ignore our presence. We are fully Armenian and our contributions to the Armenian culture and people have been significant. My little church at 32 Bigelow Avenue in Watertown may be small in membership, (approx. 140) but our hearts are large, our pockets go deep, and our self image is grand.
Reverend Dr. Vahan Tootikian who was quoted in the article, and is presently the Moderator of the AEUNA, was our minister for nine years during my childhood and adolescent years. Rev. Ron Tovmassian, who was also quoted, is minister of the largest
Armenian Evangelical Church in the US now. He was minister at my church for 13 years. We were his first church upon his graduation from seminary. After the horrific earthquake that devastated Armenia, the
Armenian Memorial Church raised $250,000 primarily from our members alone. At our annual church fair, l0 percent of our proceeds go to a different charity in Armenia every year.
My father, grandmother and mother
have
been active members of various organizations for decades. Does this sound Iike people who are "not
fully Armenian?" Or does this sound l3
The Fourth Millennium Society is an independently funded and administered public charity committed to the dissemination of infomation for the purpose of developing an informed public. Underpin.ing all our work is the firm conviction that the vitality of an independent press is fundamental to a democratic society in Almenia and democratic instilutions
like the lives of Armenians who are proud of their nationality, seek to preserve it and work hard to share its rich heritage with others? Until the editors of AIM and many Armenian Apostolics start acknowledging the presence of Armenian Evangelicals, they will be "the separated brethren." That is so sadly unnecessary. A few years ago when my son was in the third grade, he came home from his first day at school and said, "Mom, there's an 'ian'in my class. You know, Mom, someone with an 'ian' at the end of their name just like us." You should have seen the excitement on his face. He didn't know if his new friend was Apostolic, Evangelical or Catholic. All that
was important - all that was meaningful was that he identified and shared something very special. They shared a heritage. I hope that their perceptions aren't changed when they grow up. Donna Boole Yerganian M e dfie ld, M as sachus ett s
"Evangelicals Render a Century and a Half of Service" was outstanding. Needless say, I was deeply moved and pleasantly surprised to realize that people care enough to spend the time to do scholarly research and publish the results of such a study for the whole world to read, and for all posterity. I am grateful for AIM's editorial policy: "Going where no one has dared to go before" does indeed suggest a commitment to the
to
most cherished principles of joumalism for which I commend you. In my humble opinion, such an article accomplishes more than just making the Evangelicals feel good for their substantial contributions to the well-
of all Armenians. It also motivates them to outdo themselves in the future.
being
Thank you. Keep up the good work and may God bless you. H. A. Demirjian She rman Oaks, California
What's the Difference? We've been subscribing to AIM since its inception and pleased to see a renaissance. In publishing the photo of Yerevan Police by Ara Oshagan (How I Got That Shot. January 2000) are you catering to pubescent teenagers or a sexually retarded readership? I can find the same in Rolling Stone, Village Voice, etc. and to come across a tasteless feature in AIM certainly highlights the times and one wonders: What's the difference between AIM and the rest? Sona Kludjian Forest Hills, New York
in the
Diaspora. The Fourth Millennium Society publishes Armenian Intemational Magazine in its effort to contribute to the national dialogue. The directors are grateful to the Benefactors, Trustees, Patrons and Friends of the Fourth Millennium Sociely who are committed to the well-being, growth and devclopment of Armenians and Armenia through the promotion of open discussion and the free flow of information mong individuals ed orgmizations. Their finmcial conributions suppon the work of the Fourth Millennium Society and ensure the independence of AIM. Michael Nahabet, Raffi Zinzalian, Directors
DIRECTORS
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Shahen Hairapetian, Armen Hampar, Zaven Khanjian, Michael Nahabet,
Alex Sarkissian, Bob Shamlian, Raffi Zinzalian. BENEFACTORS Sarkis Acopian, Albert and Tove Boyajian, The Cafesjian Family Foundation, Inc. Hirair Hovnanian, The Lincy Foundation, Louise Manoogian Simone SENIOR TRUSTEES
AUSTRALIA Heros & Kate Dilanchian CANADA Razmig Hakimian, Kourken Sarkissian HONG KONG Jack Maxian USA CA Khachig Babayan, George & Flora Dunaians, Araxie M. Haroutinian, George & Grace Kay, Joe & Joyce Stein RI Papken Janjigian FOUNDING TRUSTEES AUSTRALIA Varoojan Iskenderian USA CA Garen Avedikian, Mardo Kaprielian, Edward Misserlian, Bob Movelt, Varoujan Nahabet, Norair Oskanian, Emmy Papazian, Zareh Sarkissian, Raffi Zinzalian FLHagop Koushakjian
PA Zarouhi Mardikian ASSOCIATE TRUSTEES USA CA Vartkes and Jean Barsam, Walter and Laurel Karabian, Gary and Sossi Kevorkian, Ralph and Savey Tufenkian NH Jeannette John
Commerce Casino Hasmik Mgrdichian, George Tumanjan
Law Office of Aris Artounians Aris and Karine Artounians NASA Services Inc Sam and Elizabeth Sarkisian, Nick and Kamelia Sarkisian, Arsen Sarkisian Pacffic Sales Jerry Turpanjian Remax of Glendale Vahe and Aida Yeghiazarian ISB Group Armen & Ketty Kazandjian PATRONS ARMENIA Khachatur and Rouzanna Soukiassian AUSTRALIA Aman and Nairi Derderyan
Ailin Etmekjian George and Vartouhi Tavoukjian Mack Vahanian
Anonymous CALIFORNIA USA Mihran and Elizabeth Agbabian
Gilabed Akpolar
Arpim and Hemine Janoyan Z. Greg Kahwajian Jack and Milo Kalaydjian Kevork and Satenig Kamjerjian Nishant and Sona Kuuian Kirk and Ann Kesapyan Joh. and Rose Ketchoyan Zaven and Sona Khanjian
CANADA
louise Aznavour
Migirdic and Ani Migirdicyan CONNECTICM USA Louis T. Hagopim CYPRUS
Gilo Keheye ISRAEL
Adrine K0ak6him ITALY
Krikor Krikorim
Krikor and Harout Istanbulian
Dora Sewiarian Kuhn
LEBANON Kevork Bouladian
Avik Mahdesiant
Amand and Nancy Arabian Harry md Alvail Bilseghian
MASSACHUSETTS
Stepan and Erdanik Makarian Htroui and Rita Mesrobian
Aram and Terez Bassenian Berj and Hera Boyajian Hagop and Violet Dakessian
MTCHIGAN USA George Chamchikian
Edwdd and Alice Navastrgiil Amand O. Norchad
Ardash and Mtrian Derderie Dimitri and Tam{a Dimitri Steve and Lucille Estephanian Manoushag Femanian Gagik and Knar Galstian Vahan and Audrey Oregor Piene and Alice Haig Amen and Gloria+ Hampe Shahen and Mmha Hdoutunim
Alex Man@giant Kirakos Vapurciym
Kenneth and Cindy Norian Rafi Ourfalian Michael and Hermine Piranian
NEVADA USA
Larry and Seda Bmes NEW JERSEY USA Nuu and Anemis NEW YORK USA Harry and Aida Koundakjian
Hratch and Helga Sakis Alex Sukissian Robert and Helen Shamlim Petros and Grine Taglyan Ara md Avedis Tavitian Gaidzag and Dzovig Zeitlian
FRIENDS
Nzaio
V
Vahe Nishaniant John and Lucille G. Sukissian UNITED KINGDOM Dirm and Suzi Chakelim
OFAIM
The Fourth Millennium S@iety is grareful to the following for contributing during the last month to ensure AIM's finmcial independence. USA DC Barry Zonhian, ND Artoosh and Helga Mddirosian NJ Rose Najaim-Kedeshian: Mr. md ME. Chdes Pinajim
AIM MARCH
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USA
Kevork Atinizim Richard Simonian
Calling the Temporarily Able Bodied Helping the Disabled So Long as One is Able Temporarily Able Bodied. That's what individuals with disabilities call the rest ofus. Just think about it: In our societies, there are unsafe home and work environments. There are birth defects. There are simple, everyday accidents. [n Armenia, there are all those and more. There was an earthquake whose devastation is still described with horrifying clich6s. There is also a war in Karabakh. Even with diminished fighting on Karabakh's borders, one fourth of the country is still landmine ridden, and landmines don't understand ceasefires. They explode. As a result, people lose arms, legs, eyes and other organs. These are the major causes of physical disabilities in Armenia and Karabakh where at least 100,000 people are identified as disabled (See page 54.) At least 100,000. Most of these were able-bodied at one time. Then tragedy or accident struck, and they realized the temporariness of that condition. And perhaps that realization is motivation enough for those still able-bodied to do something to help.
Armenians (in and out of Armenia) have a choice. These 100,000 human beings can be written off, dismissed, ignored. After all, there are so many problems to solve. Some would say putting the problems of the disabled at the top of anyone's list seems like a luxury at this time. But all the people who are clamoring and crying about huge emigration numbers, about a brain drain, about losing scarce human resources, can decide to utilize the hidden resources
ofthis
100,000.
a very straightforward 'to do' list. Take Western information programs and adapt them to Armenia; translate pub-
It requires
lic service messages that simply say that someone with a missing limb continues to have a head and heart of value. Identify, translate and broadcast documentaries about the accomplishments and determination of the disabled. Make a few documentaries that are Armenia based. A film about a couple of dozen disabled individuals climbing Mt. Aragats on independence day would certainly be inspirational. The life story of a young woman who lost a leg because of the earthquake, who was cared for very gently by an orthopedic surgeon and is today a pediatric orthopedic surgeon herself - now that would make for a pretty good story. Finding ways to finance the purchase, production and transportation of prosthetic devices and wheelchairs is the equivalent of giving people new leases on life. Eight thousand of Armenia's disabled are children. They need new artificial arms and legs more frequently than adults. Their bones grow faster. So do their minds. They need to see that the US had a paralyzed president. And the country didn't do poorly at all during Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration. Their hearts, too, need to be nurtured. If they are worthy members of society, they need to be told that they are. All of this can be done from the comfort of the Diaspora. At a price, surely. But a price far less than what it would cost to care for individuals who are not self-sufficient either psychologically or financially. It's another one of those huge projects that can be tackled piece by piece. Armenian NGOs are on their way to accomplishing this. The Diaspora needs to quit watching.
Pragmatic Patriotism Tufenkian's Success Depends on His Insistence, Consistence, Persistence The Diasporans who have gone to Armenia and remained to do business are those who are seeing positive results. And although the stories about all of Armenia's economic and social challenges (euphemism for problems) abound, there is a core of Diasporans
who went for the long-haul, and who are succeeding in their endeavors. Perhaps not surprisingly, most of those who have registered suc-
inArmenia were first successful in the Diaspora. ln other words, they have demonstrated that they are serious about doing business.
cess
Also not surprising is that the most successful, most visible Diasporan entrepreneurs are in traditionally Armenian trades - diamonds and carpets. More about the diamond craftsmen another time. This story is about a modem day rug dealer (see page 34) who went from New York to Yerevan expecting to work hard, and today finds himself at the head of the class. But this merchant is also an
artist and a persistent visionary. The result is that he is the kind of pragmatic patriot that Armenia needs. James Tufenkian's name has appeared in the pages of some of America's most prestigious publications as the New York designer who made ethnic carpets modern and trendy. Now Tufenkian's name is in the mainstream American media as an entrepreneur who went "home" and turned his acumen into a profitable business for himself, and into income and a stable life for a thousand compatriots. His success ought to be an example to those who complain that doing business in Armenia is not easy. Tufenkian doesn't say it's easy. But he demonstrates that it's possible. He's been
there for over five years. No one heard his name for the first four. He came face to face with corruption, and figured it's one more problem to deal with. True, his goods are not perishable.
AIM MARCH
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Still, they're a little hard to slip through a customs checkpoint. He's candid about rewarding his employees for their ingenuity while rejecting their counsel on marketing matters. In short, he takes the good with the bad, and doesn't find either one to be
a fatal. calamitous or dishonorable matter.
Does this sound like incorrigible pie-in-the-sky optimism? Tufenkian's Armenia-based operation is earthy and pragmatic. And it's successful. That's real patriotism.
No More On-the-Job Tlaining Armenia's Diplomatic Corps Must Punch Above Its Weight Nearly 10 years after independence, Armenia's diplomats have not only accumulated seniority, but also begun to rotate. Canada's Ambassador Levon Barkhudarian has for more than a year been Minister of Finance. The ambassador to Washington, Rouben Shugarian, completed a nearly seven-year-long tour ofduty to retum to Yerevan as Deputy Foreign Minister, where he now has a hand in developing the policies he was just a year ago responsible for implementing. Two senior diplomats have recently been moved: Edward Nalbandian from Egypt to France, Arman Kirakossian from Greece
to the US (see page 25.) Expectations of the new-sprung diplomats of a new country were unrealistically lofty seven, eight or nine years ago. Today, they are still high - but realistically so. Today, there is no reason to expect that an ambassador or a consul requires time for on-the-job training. Those days are over. A lot of learning should have taken place during this grueling decade. The Diaspora should have discovered that Armenia's ambassadors are emissaries to their countries' capitals, not to the communities of the Diaspora. The Diaspora should also have figured out that these embassies are more than worthy of support. After all, they do the Republic's work where it matters most - in foreign capitals. Now comes the other - more important - part. The embassies and ambassadors had to have leamed that they are not Armenia's envoys to Armenians around the world, but they are Armenia's envoys to the world. Countless press releases of an ambassador meeting with this or that community group is a good thing. But, communiques solely about community meetings are at best misleading, or, at worst. an indication of an ambassador who hasn't
Iigured out his duties. But there is something even more that Yerevan's men (all but two are men) in Washington, Berlin, Paris, Ottawa, Buenos Aires, Athens, London, Beirut, Moscow, Damascus and everywhere else must have leamed by now. Some have, some haven't. As Armenia's voices around the globe, they each must sing the same song. It's a simple song, really. Those who read and follow the news regularly have learned it. It goes something like this: Armenia is a peace-loving country with limited natural but able human resources. Armenia understands that it must use its geography, which has been both blessing and curse, to secure its place in regional development. Today, Armenia looks for friendly, cooperative relations with its neighbors, even as the Karabakh conflict remains unresolved. Armenia is committed to its search for a lasting resolution to that conflict, and is convinced that its stability, as well as the region's, depends on such a fair solution. Armenia seeks its rightful place on the international stage, as equal partners with the states of the East and the West. Armenia's commitment to the path of democracy and market reform is irreversible, and it will do everything it can to create and maintain the legislative and social environment to encourage and guarantee the development of civic and economic institutions. Towards this end, it invites, welcomes and backs foreign economic and institutional development assistance.
That's it. That's the whole speech. Some diplomats have learned it perfectly, and can sing several renditions in various octaves. And then there are those who haven't yet figured out that there is a song to be sung. They should go back to Yerevan and practice.
[llE$I0il$? $ulscl,iption Deliusry Rsmutlal tt|uuinu rall
1\INItul frns 1.800.738.$24$ AIM MARCH
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IrModern culture [in the Diasporal really doesn't offer [the Armenian youthl very much ol an identitY.
IIWe must not live beyond our means. tt -Robert Kocharian
ll
pri m ate
.,,n, ofl 3 l,?l'Xff.,Il l.'&1?. P Slt:ffi:
(ILet the president and the government members
go
to the airport and see how many people are leaving Armenia and how many are returning. And they will be persuaded that people are tired ol both this country and them. ,,
,-#,1l1lTyfllYIfll
President of Armenia, referring to the government's budget of $490 million for the year 2000
lI
Do not make me angry enough to overthrow this regime. t! -Colonel Rasim Akperov Commander of an Azerbaijani military regiment in Geranboi,
to a private TV channel in Baku. He was arrested the following day
IIWe
need to locus on creating more sites ol our own instead ol deslroying Armenian r,,.r.t1r,oar
MP and investigating energy imports to Armenia in 1992-95
Zeynarov Director, Azerbaijan's Human Rights Center, referring to the recent Armenian-Azerbaiiani information "war" on the lnternet.
I(A weak, but balanced and predictable president is prelerable to a weak, unbalanced and unpredictable President.
ll
*, rT,X[,t? Ii,',HiXl ((l am always glad to get advice from the ARF. ,, ,
o
,,,r, ,fl',$I;T,%tJ3il rIYes, we have a dictatorship. But this is not a totalilarian, but an authoritarian regime, which is rather better.
tt
IISupport from Moshe Dayan's daughter, members of the Knesset, and other Jewish friends of Turkey were secured in overcoming Armenian and Greek opposition to making this lilm. t,
-Hurriyet Daily in Turkey referring to a film project about Kemal Ataturk
ItWe D
I(l
IIEthnic Armenians... have enriched our art and literature, contributed to our scienlific and economic advancement, and helped to shape our public lile. r, -Bill Clinton, US President
i
rector or
Aze rbaijan
irr
rr. nE 1,13t i:XilSl,?X
am declaring a war 0n Heidar AIiyev. !! -Neymat Panahli Chairman of the opposition National Statehood Party of Azerbailan
Moil0n Ton0ue lllplomacy, President Robert Kocharian, during talks with his Lebanese counterpart Emil Lahoud in Beirut,
have to use a magnitying glass to lind oflicials representing the [Armenian] community [in the Lebanese governmentl -George Kassardji
lt
Member of Lebanon's Parliament, reiterating that the Armenians are the seventh largest communal entity in Lebanon's sectarian system
IIIIn
did not need a translator, reported the Lebanese newspaper,4/Nahar.They spoke in their "mother tongue." President Lahoud's mother and wife are Armenian.
Uodlta lOn Youn Gan? ffre Russian Federal Tax Police chief reported that confiscated illegal alcohol would be reprocessed into anti-freeze for motor vehicles and aircraft. Profits from the sale of the product will go to the federal and regional budgets.
SeCngt G0ld.Two high-ranking officials of Azerbaijan's gold company "Azerigizil" are charged with "divulging state secrets by misusing their posts." Allegedly, the two men gave "secret information about the whereabouts of Azerbaijan's natural gold resources and fields" to interested British and
19831 lwas inuited to the lsraeliArmy Radio program Conect Till Nowlo speak about the his-torical background ol Armenian tenorism. Against their usual custom, the editors insisted 0n taping the talk beforehand. Aftenrards, I undentood why. I was asked if the Armenian holocaust really occurred. I answered: 'There is no doubtthat genocide occuned. Forthousands ol yearc people liued on ih land, and suddenly it was no more. This is genocide,' ff words t0 that elfect. The lsraeliArmy radio refused t0 broadcast the talk. They were ready to do it only 0n Gondition that I should change the lerl, and say, 'There was a massaore, which perhaps approaches _yoav Karni
genocide.'ll
Source: Yoav KaJni, Dr. Shekel and Mr. Apartheid, Yedlot Ahranful March 13, 1 983.
Pakistani companies. l8
AIM MARCH
2OOO
Hard Working and Enterprising.
Iurkcy in the ilew In
September 1990,
Eunopc
Septemben 1000
AIM wrote: "Change in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union
made Turkey face a bitter irony played on
has
it by modern history. As the rest of
theworldrejoicesatthecollapseofdictatorshipsandthenew.]..,. spirit of freedom and peaceful coexistence, the republic
.=.:- ' lI
founded
almost 70 years ago by Mustafa Ataturk finds itself poised at a turning point that has evoked grim memories of the breakup of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey is not only grappling with major intemal policy challenges, but it is also struggling to find an identity in the new Europe. Situated at the center of the European, Asian, Middle Eastern, and African crossroads, it gained importance as an outpost of Western defense on the southeastem flank of NAIO during the cold war. Its importance increased even more under the concept of the flexible response adopted in NAIO in the late '60s, in the period of d6tente that followed the cold war. For nearly four decades successive Turkish governments fully used their bargaining lever in the assumption that, as a front-line country within the Alliance, Turkey was indispensable to the West. Now, as the Warsaw Pact is in tatters and the Soviet threat is waning, difficult questions loom as to Turkey's role in the new geopolitical configuration. The Council of Europe receives reports of human rights violations in
Turkey from such intemational groups as the Swiss Committee Against Torture, Amnesty International, Helsinki Watch and other prominent organi-
zations. Another stumbling block is the country's economic backwardness, with a per-capita GNP far below the level of even the poorest members of the EC. Furthermore, neighboring Greece has said it would oppose Turkish membership in the EC for as long as Turkey maintained 30,000 troops on Cyprus. The EC's polite rebuttal and being treated as a second-class citizen in the West are making Turks consider the Third World and the East bloc, especially the Balkan and Transcaucasian republics, as alternative partners.
AIM MARCH
2OOO
r
I :
.,
NOTEBOOK
A Mem[en ol thc tamily On
diplomats, deals with a range of issues on a daily basis, from peacekeeping to the environment. Abelian is cunently chairman of the UN's influential Main Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Issues. He also works closely with various UN agencies to ensure their help in sfengthening of democ-
What is Armenia's stance on global warming? peacekeepers in Kosovo? On environmental
restrictions? On human rights and economic devel-
opment? On social welfare and the rights of children? These issues and dozens more have confronted Armenia's representatives to the UN since Armenia became "a member of the global family of nations" nine years ago, in March 1992. First they worked out of offices provided by the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church of North America. Then, in 1993, a donation by Kevork and Sirvart Hovnanian made it possible for Armenia's Permanent Mission to the UN to acquire a four-story mid-town Manhattan brownstone.
ratic processes, as well as social and economic development in Armenia.
Membenhip at the UN provides unique access to intemational experts and experience, and helps a counry mainain and consolidate its presence in the global UN programs in Armenia Program, UN High including the UN Development Commissioner for Refugees, IINICEF, ttre World Food Program, the World Health Organization - and through active cooperation between govemment institutions and UN agencies -Armenia has leamed to target speciaJizrd assistance, improve program design, provide on-the-job training, and generally enhanceArmenia's position in the intemational community. arena. Through the various
Armenia's flrst representative to the UN, AlexanderArzoumanian, a
mathematician by training, served through 1996 when he became Minister of Foreign Affairs. Movses Abelian (above) also a mathematician, has held the position since 1996 and together with three junior
liuinU llappily [uen Atten Fairy tales are possible, even at the end of the 20th cenhry. The tale
(AIM, November-December 1D7) of truo soldien
-
one of the han-kaq
war and *re other, ofthe Karabakh conflict, could have ended another way.
When fuaik Arushanian came home from Karabakh, his face was completely blown off. He had no nose, one of his eyes was damaged,his right arm broken. Kids laughed at him as he walked the streets of Yerevan. His mother sought help from various agencies and individuals. Many promised. None delivered. Until George and Flora Dunaians of California bought his tickeq brought him to Los Angeles, handed him over to plastic surgeon Gregory Kirianoff, and Araik's new life began. Two years and half-a-dozen operations later, Araik is a happy man. Aida a dental assistant at the Kazazian Dental Clinic -Araik's teeth were damaged, too fell in love with the soldier, and they were married in January. Araik has a job, and is going to school to study some aspect of business. "What more do I want from life," he says.
-
The other soldier, Garo, was picked up off Glendale steets where he lived, as a homeless, young man. When Parik Nazarian found him in front of a grocery store, asking for handouts, he had no shelter, no access to medical help, and no language skills. Nazarian took him to a physician, found living quarters, and even tracked down his family in Tehran. They had no idea of his condition and wanted to come bring Garo home. But hanians do not easily receive US visas and Garo could not travel alone. [n Yerevan, the US embassy heard the details of the story and still refused Garo's brother a US visa. But Garo had come so close to bing reunited
with his mother, that Nazarian didn't stop. She got on a plane and accompanied Garo to Yerevan, where his brother met him and took him back home. Just in time for Christmas. And everyone lived happily ever after. Lelt lo
AIM MARCH
right Araik and
2OOO
Aida, Araik with mother and sister, Garo with mother.
NOTEBOOK
N
MissinU Irmes
Number of years since a Turkish foreign minisler had visited Greece, prior to Ismail Cem's visit this February 49 Number of languages, besides English and including Armenian, in which the US Census will print guides this year 5
Number of years that Bishop Krikor of Shirvan travellod *xtensively to raise funds to renovate the St. Garabed Monastery of Mush, damaged O,
*
in 1710
fnuake Number of years the same clergyman, (who had become Pahiarch of Jerusalem) wore a chain around his neck, vowing not to take it off until all of the Jerusalem Patriarchate's debts were paid 60 Percent of Jewish-Americans who attended youth camp, who married other Jews
Jewish-A*JL- who received formal Jewish education who married other Jews
Percent of
1,62 Average daily wage of an
Armenian immigrant worker in the 1890s
Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian, 59, left his position as Primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church Prelacy of the Eastern US to move to Ejmiatsin in May 1998. During his tenure as primate, he had been appointed Executive Secretary of the Committee planning and implementing the l700th anniversary of the Acceptance of Christianity as a State Religion in Armenia.
3.60 Average daily wage of a native-born Amsricar! workei in the 1890s 65,000
Archbishop Ashjian is known for his varied interests. He is the author of several volumes of memoirs and essays. He is an avid reader, and he says he misses being able to wake up in ttre moming to the The NewYorkTimes. Otherwise, his hectic schedule continues. He works with everyone from clergy to government officials to organize the dozens of projects in conjunction with the intemational celebration. The anniversary celebration will entail publications, pilgrimages, renovation of church buildings, exhibitions, conferences and many other events all of which require funding. The Archbishop is responsible for fundraising, too. When he's in Ejmiatsin, he lives in the Catholicosate's residential building which resembles a hotel with apartments. The staff takes care
of the cooking and cleaning. Ashjian handles the reading, writing, negotiating, convincing, implementing. And traveling. Although he doesn't travel as much as he used to, still last year, Ashjian found time
to accompany a tour group to Mush, in Eastern Turkey, to the Monastery of St. Garabed (above.) He also performed baptisms in Lake Van, and even a wedding. His New York parishioners want to know how life in Ejmiatsin compares to life in New York. Ashjian replies, "Sometimes it's contemporary, sometimes there is a discrepancy of 850 years."
Amount, in dollars, neednd to socure the release of refugee$ from Ellis Island, detained for fear 800 Number of years before Galileo that Anania Shirakatsi, a 7th century scientist, born inAni, suggested that the moon shone from the reflection of the sun, and the Milky Way was a concenffation of stars, and that the earth was round 500 Number of miles traveled by Armenian princes from the Anatolian plateau to the southwest to establish a new kingdom in Cilicia, in the llth contury
AIM MARCH
ktters to Uartat\ E. Shehirian; Re-exomining Intermarriage, B. Phillips, The Cmssing Place, P Manden" AIM Research
Sources:
2OOO
2t
OI THE MtlNTH
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-
resident Rohelt Kocharian paid an ollicial tl-rrcc-day visit to Lebanon in Fcbruary'. Hc u'as -ulectcrl at thc [Jcirut uir' port by Lcbanese Prcsident Eniil L.ahotrd. thc ('lrairnran of the Lehanese Parliament Nrbih Berrie . Prirrre N'linister Selim Hoss and othcl senior ofliciais. Thc 72 ltour-s ol' "Er,en thc r,isit o1'Plrsident P()nrp xn(l circunrstunce turned heads. gnLnd." Jacclues C'hirac was not so said one obscLr cL. Kochlrirn helcl rrrcelines uitli the prcsidcrrt. wl-rosc nrother ancl u'ife are Arnre rriiLn. thc- PlLdiamcnt Speakcr ancl thc Prirne \linister. as wcll as lirrmer Prcrnier Rafik Hariri untl a host ol'r'cortorric ancl business ollicials" .\ number o1' billLtcral agreernents rvcrc sigrtccl betwecn the tuo eountrics in the sphcres o1'ccononric coopenrtion..it,int intcrnrtional cargo transp()r'tation and tbrcign and cultural allairs. Kochalirn nrade it clear thatArnrcnia was lrxrking to Lebarron to be thc point rii cntry to thc Alab rvorld, while ;\rnrcnirr could scrr c as l.cbanon's ancl the N,lidille East's oatc\\rr) to the (llS. I)uring a state cerenlony. Presiclent Lahoutl awarclccl Kochalian u,ith lhe highcst L,ebancsc Medal lirr Special Serr iccs" rind in turrr Kocharian ar,vanled thc [-chanese presidcnt,\rnrcrria's N{csrol'r Mashtots \Icdal. I-ater. Kochanan u'us also rru,arded rrr honorurl doctoratc fionr tlrr- Lebanesc LJniversitv and givcn the Kcy to Beinrt. Arnrenians nrlke up about l0 percent ol l-ebanon's populltion. lvhc're the1, lrurr- sevc'r.r rlenrbers olPalliarncnt lrrrrl one nrirtister. Prc'sident Kociralian rnd his clclcgation. rvhich includecl his
u'i1b
Be
lla and scvcral nrinisters. nrct uilh cir ic anr-I LcligioLrs lisitcd the Catholicosate ol'Ciliciit in Antelias^ thc
leaders. 'l'he_v
,\r'rnenian Catholrc Prtriarchate antl lhe Arntcnian E,r'lngclical L nion o1'thc Near East. Kochalian opcned an Arnrorian lrrt L'xhibition in Antelias antl uas awarded thc Grand Cross ol thc Great House ol Cilicia h1 ('iitholicos Aram. At the conclusion ol.the oflicial l'isit. President LahoLrd e haractcrized tht r.'isit as "fluittul." He saicl it "strcngthened oliicial cooPeLation on a nLrnrl'rer of lcvcls." He Praised thc "positirc rnd usclirl role playcd by Arnreniarrs in Lebanon in nraintainiur: lirrks r,'ith Armenia. which have been leintbrccd tirroLrgh thc stcarllitstncss of their national L-ebanese identity and their llithfirlncss to tlreil heritagc and civilization." Since 1991. uhen Arrnenia cstul'rlirlrcr-l diplonri(ic relations rvith l,cbanon. l(r lrilatcral rgleerrents harc hecn signed. -By Hratch Tchilingirian From lop lefl clockwise: Kocharian receiving a meda from Lahoud. Kocharian. Hoss lead officials into the Cath0licosate o{ Antelias, Armenian
school children greet Kocharian; Lahoud with Kocharian upon the Armenian delegation's arrival in Beirut; Lahoud lrith Pres. and First Lady Kocharian.
US Ambassador to Armenia Michael Lemmon and Prime Minister Aram Sargsian discussed the implementation of a US-sponsored Internet project in Armenia. Lemmon informed Sargsian that based on the success of a pilot program connecting l2 schools to the Intemet last year, his embassy has presented Washington a proposal to enlarge the project with new funds. Ambassador Lemmon reiterated the US government's efforts in this direction during the opening of an Internet Training Center at a Yerevan school named after slain Member of Parliament Armenak Armenakian. Relatives of the victims of the October 27 parliamentary shootings attended the ceremony. Lemmon said the schools to be involved in the next phase of the project would be selected by the relatives of the assassinated leaders and the centers would be named after the slain officials.
The Armenia-Diaspora Commission will be working with the US Embassy to secure additional funds to wire all of Armenia's schools to the Internet. Gifts of money and equipment from Diasporans will be included in the Embassy program.
Gneek Technical
Assistance 0llened Greece's Ambassador in Yerevan Panaiyotis Zoghraphos visited Armenia's National Seismic Protection Service and held discussions with its
director Sergei Balasanian on minimizing seismic hazards in Armenia and particularly in Yerevan. The ambassador expressed willingness to help the agency within the framework of an Armenia-Greece-lran trilateral coopera-
tion agreement. Ambassador Zoghraphos also met with Defense Minister Vagharshak Harutiunian and discussed the cunent state of military cooperation between Armenia and Greece.
flnmenlan Gompanles Iraq and Armenia upgraded their diplomatic relations to the level of ambassadors. David Hovannisian, an ambassador-atJarge at the Armenian foreign ministry explained
in Iraq
construction company, have obtained UN authorization to do business in Iraq. He added, "The presence of Armenian specialists
in Iraq also
necessitates [41-.riu's] diplomatic presence," but agreed that development of relations will be affected by Iraq's international isolation. Armenian officials said "Armenia strictly observes the letter and spir-
it of
the UN Security Council resolutions."
The Armenian construction
company.
Prometevs, has won contracts to build gas and oil pipelines on lraqi territory.
and called for negotiations with creditors for debt relief. The LDCs also demanded market access for their products to developed countries. The European Union has already expressed commitment to duty-free and quota-free access for
essentially all products originating in LDCs and is encouraging other developed countries to adopt similar measures. Meanwhile, Britain has discussed the possibility of waiving all debt owed by LDCs. At the UN forum, Oskanian and Chshmaritian held working meetings with heads of international and economic institutions and representatives of various participating states.
Inaining at the Bonden
t00d-l0n-w0nI Pnognam Added to Humanitanian Assistance Armenia signed a $9.9 million food aid
agreement
with the UN World
Program. The UN
Food
will provide direct food
assistance to needy families identified by the
Armenian government. A "Food for Work" program
will also be implemented and ser-
vices provided by unemployed workers would be compensated with food allotments. The agreement covers assistance to 170,000 people, which includes 6,000 tons of sugar, flour and vegetable oil as direct assistance and 12,000 tons for the "Food for Work" program. An official of the international agency stated that since 1994, the UN has provided a total of $30 million worth of food to needy families in Armenia.
48 Nathn$ [$l( I0r Reliel in Banglrolr
llelt
Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, Industry and Trade Minister Karen
Chshmaritian and Deputy Foreign Minister Armen Martirossian participated in the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) held in Bangkok, Thailand. The Armenian delegation met with Thai Foreign
of the Conference Supachai Panitchpakdi and discussed a number of issues, including Armenia's pending membership in the World Trade Organization. At the UN conference,48 least-developed countries (LDCs) demanded real action from developed countries for faster debt relief and market access. "Many countries in this group Minister and chairman
Ullin GontnaGts
that the Armenian community
tinuing US sanctions against Iraq, there are economic incentives for Armenia to establish contacts with Baghdad. He stated that already two Armenian firms, a wine distillery and a
had
long wished for closer bilateral ties between the countries and that was the key reason for the establishment of diplomatic relations with Iraq. Hovannisian argued that despite the con-
have debt greater than their income," said Minister Supachai, adding, "It is impossible for them to run away from the debt burden," AIM MARCH
2OOO
Armenia's border guards will intem with Russian border troops stationed on Armenia's border with Iran (35 km, 20 miles) and
Turkey (268 km, 160 miles.) As part
of
a
cooperation agreement between the border
services of Armenia and Russia, the program
is designed to familiarize Armenian otficers with the service and living conditions of their Russian counterparts and help them leam how to detain transgressors. Eighteen Armenian officers will be trained as deputy commanders at frontier posts. Detachments of Russian border troops in Armenia are sta-
tioned
in Gumri. Armavir,
Artashat and
Meghri, as well as at checkpoints at Yerevan's Zvartnots International Airport. Armenian
troops guard the country's borders with Georgia and Azerbaijan under the command of Armenian's Ministry of Def-ense.
0fin0d0x Nation$ Gatnen lon Annual $ummit Armenia participated in the intemational of the European Interparliamentary Assembly of Orthodox Countries, held in the northern Serbian town of Novi Sad and hosted by Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. "Orthodox peoples have been cooperating over centuries. and it can be said that in these
summit
relations they always sent a message inherent
in relations among Christian Orthodox churches, a message which pertains to the equality
of
nations and people."
said
Milosevic in his address to parliamentary representatives from Belarus, Bulgaria, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Russia. Ukraine, Estonia, and Yugoslavia.
The 2O-member organization was found-
in
1994, and also includes Greece. Cyprus, and Romania. The Republic of Mountainous Karabakh received observer status in 1996. At its 1998 summit. the organization condemned Turkish-Cypriot plans to convert the St. Magar Armenian monastery (right) in Cyprus into a hotel. ed
Career diplomat Vladimir Karmirshalian was appointed ambassador to Denmark and Sweden. President Robert Kocharian also
{i.i-
r:1
, !;." P
'1.
"
Ii
.{".
IFilE
t*'i
{fitn hi
I
appointed Armenia's Ambassador to Syria. Levon Sargsian, as Ambassador to Jordan as
.l
well. This follows on the heels of
t
.l
Ambassador Edward Nalbandian's receiving
l:
a second assignment. Formerly Armenia's
i
-f'
,
:il
man in Egypt, he now represents Armenia in
in Israel. And Arman Kirakosian, who was ambassador in Greece for over five years, handed his credentials France. and
to US President Bill Clinton in
f
.t*
-19;F
February.
He follows Rouben Shugarian, who represented Armenia in Washington DC from 1993
to
1998.
AIM MARCH
2OOO
I
rl, a.
$lain leadens and Families Hononed
$ltowdown in Ycneuan President Robert Kocharian approved
new cabinet and govemment changes
on
February 28 and it appeared that things would
begin to move forward. But just a few days later, the tension resumed. Attomeys representing those arrested in connection with the October 27 assassinations held a press conference charging the prosecu-
tor with political motivations. The
defense
lawyers, who represent Kocharian's former aide Aleksan Harutunian and Harutiun Harutunian, Deputy Director of Armenian National Television, accused of complicity in toward the future (6 percent), families reuniting (12.2 percent) and an undesirable social and moral atmosphere (4.9 percent.) Most of the emigration is to Russia (75
President Robert Kocharian awarded national hero medals, posthumously, to those who were assassinated on October 27. During a ceremony at the presidential palace, the medals were presented to the family members of the eight deceased leaders: Chairman of
National Assembly Karen Demirchian and Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsian received the "National Hero" medal and the "Order of the Fatherland," Members of Parliament Armenak Armenakian, Yuri Bakhshian, Ruben Miroyan, Henrik Abrahamian,
Michael Kotanian and Minister Leonid Petrossian received other medals and honors. "Our comrades will be with us as long as
the Armenian people and the Republic of Armenia are here, the bearers of their sacred cause," Kocharian told the families. He partic-
ularly praised "the invaluable role of Vazgen Sargsian in the development of the country's
army" and Karen Demirchian "as a patriotic, constructive and experienced, wise statesman."
Gouennment Relea$G$ Emignation Num[en$
percent) and other CIS countries ( l0 percent). The study was conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and the European Union's statistical services between 1998 and 1999.
IUGW ftGdUGGd EOUENNMENT In an effort to defuse continuing internal tension and discord following the October 27 assassinations of Armenia's top leadership,
Prime Minister Aram Sargsian formed
a
"coalition" govemment of eight parties represented in the Parliament. In a joint statement, they expressed "deep concern" over the "current economic, moral and psychological crisis" in the country and "the population's serious situation." They pledged to work togeth-
the parliament shootings, stated that there is no
evidence to substantiate charges against their clients and called for the transfer of the investigation from the office of Military Prosecutor to the Prosecutor-General's office. Just a few days later, tlrc members of fie
UnityAlliance (in the presence of Prime Minister Aram Sargsian and Miliary Prosecutor Gagik Jahangirian) held a press conference oftheir own calling for t'wo resignations: Tigran Naghdalian, the head of Armenian State television (forbroad-
casting the press conference and ttrus, obstructing
the investigation and "misleading" public opinion) and the president's chief of staff, Serge Sargsian, for collusion with Naghdalian. And just for good measure, the Alliance said they would demand Kocharian's resignation, too, if he did not act to let his two aides go. In a nationally televised interview, hesident
Kocharian dismissed the calls as further
er and said "only combined efforts can lead the country along the way of advancement,
attempts to destabilize the country. He defended the right ofstate television to broadcast the press
attaching importance to economic revival and
conference, and chaqged that, on the contrary, they should have been blamed ifthey had not broadcast it. He called on the leadership of the political groups involved in the latest call for
job creation, ending emigration, establishing law and order, equal responsibility before the law and combating comrption." On February 22, Bime Minister Sargsian presented the new members ofhis reduced and restructured cabinet. The number of ministries was reduced from24 to 17. Five new ministers were added to the cabinet representing the par-
to
demonstrate maturity and sophistication and retum to the work of running the country. In a clear attempt to challenge the new prime minister and new cabinet and to put the onus of responsibility on them, he stressed
resignations
Between 1991-1998, 760,000 to 780,000 people left Armenia - over 600,000 of them Armenian citizens according to data released by Armenia's Ministry of Statistics. Little more than half (53.4 percent) Ieft to be united with their family members abroad, 41.9 percent for "business purposes," and 4.7 percent as "tourists." The Ministry's official bulletin explains
ties including, for the first time since independence, two from the Communist Party. The ministers of defense, interior, national securiry foreign affairs, justice and finance
the large emigration figures by the difficult economic conditions in the country. It provides several key variables, among them
several prime ministers. The Armenian
establishment which continues
Revolutionary Federation - Dashnaktsutiun said it had no representative in the new cabinet, although one of its members remained as Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth.
Prosecutor followed the president's by a few days, and it contained no major provocations.
-
unemployment (33.8 percent), inadequate liv-
ing standards ( 18.7 percent). pessimism
retained their posts in the new government. Two
veteran ministers and former prime ministers Khosrov Harutunian and Armen Darbinian lost their posts, as did Minister Shahen Harutunian, long time aide to Armenia's two presidents and
AIM MARCH
2OOO
that according to the constitution, they bear the responsibility to work their way out of the current economic stagnation. He gave the new leaders a few months to demonstrate their willingness to seriously tackle problems. The same day, as comrnander-in+hief of ttre armed forces, he issued a decree reaffirming his right to appoint high level militrry officen. This, too, was seen as a move challenging the miliary its objections against Kocharian's comrnand.
The press conference
of
the Military
Uulnenaile Enuinonment Environmentalists called attention to the growing deforestation of the country due to indiscriminate cutting of trees. Karine Danielian, Chairman of the Association for Stable Human Development, said six million cubic meters of wood have been cut in Armenia in the last six years within 30,000 hectares, almost l0 percent of Armenia's 334,100 hectares of forest land. "With the current pace of restoring the forests, it will take about 100 years to restore the woods," said Danielian, adding that Armenia's 1994 "Law on Forests," is not being adequately enforced to protect the environment. Her organization will be presenting a repon on
the problem to the Millennium Global Forum
of National
Councils for Stable to take place in
Development, scheduled New York in April.
flffF Gongress in Yencuan The Armenian Revolutionary Federation
- Dashnaktsutiun held its 28th World Congress in Armenia for the first time since 1919. The two-week long gathering, usually held every four years, was held in Tsaghkadsor, just outside Yerevan, with the participation of hundreds of delegates from Armenia and the Diaspora. President Robert Kocharian's message was read during the opening ceremonies which was attended by Prime Minister Aram Sargsian and others. The congress athrmed that'the socio-economic crisis in Armenia has reached unspeakable proportions" which "even threatens the security of Armenian statehood." In a statement adopted at the meeting, the party said, "An unfavorable settlement of the
Karabakh problem
will
threaten Armenia's
independence, as well as the ideal of a united
Armenia." As for relations with Turkey, the party said Armenia should make it conditional on the "official recognition of the Armenian Genocide as a historical fact," by the Turkish government," and insist on Turkish neutrality on the Karabakh conflict.
Following the Congress, party leaders announced that the ARF, which has for decades been based in the Middle East, is now
an "Armenia-centric" organization.
There
were no specifics about the actual logistical moves expected with such a change. The Congress also elected a new Bureau which is the highest executive body of the nearly I lO-year-old party. The Bureau elected an Armenian citizen, Hrand Markarian, as its "representative" or chairman.
Gnime
0[ me DeGlinG
Armenia's Interior Ministry indicates there were 10,056 serious crimes reported in 1999, an overall 6.6 percent decline of crime compared with 1998. Percentage Increase Compared with 1998-
Aggravated assaults
-14.0
Drug related crimes
-25.1
Economic crimes
+
Forcible rape & attempts
+ 4.0
Burglary (homes)
-
Murder attempts
+26.9
Premeditated murder
3.2
Property damage
+ +
Public property theft
-
5.1
Robbery
-11.1
Source: Interior Ministry of Armenia
AIM MARCH
2OOO
9.0
8.0
8.2
Tougn Monctany Pollcy to Gontinue This Yean at the Gentnal Banlr
toms administrations. At the same time, the debt accumulated by most enterprises has
Widening
also made them unattractive.
The government reported the average annual income of the richest 20 percent of the population is now 32 times higher than that of the poorest 20 percent. Three years ago it was 27 times greater. This does not take into con-
sideration Armenia's shadow economy and
the large linancial inflow from Armenians leaving abroad.
Minister of Economy Armen Darbinian blamed the government administration for low levels of tbreign investments. "To attract investments to Armenia, Armenian officials should be as open and transparent in their actions as possible," he said. Bureaucratic hurdles and unclear legislation continue to cause a hindrance to possible investors. "Unfbrtunately, today development of any business in Armenia depends on this or that official," Darbinian said, "We must get rid of this hurdle for fbreign or domestic investors." Meanwhile, at the fifth congress of the Armenian Bankers Association, Central Bank Chairman Tigran Sargsian explained that
"with the
presence
of ailing enterprises there
are no economic motives for investing heavi-
ly in the real sector." He pointed out investBased on a survey of 3,600 households conducted last year, the Ministry of Statistics reported that about 54 percent of households in Armenia - whose monthly income is below
ment yields in the real sector are quite high, but they are in the shadow economic sector. which makes it difficult for banks to make profits, especially when under tough monetary control to make investments.
the official "minimum consumer basket" of
35,000 Drams ($67) - were classifled as "poor" or "very poor." While cunently the average monthly salary in Armenia is about $35, the survey concurs with analysts'opinions that actual income is higher due to substantial receipts of cash from abroad which the government admits is difficult to track.
PnuatEathn Pnoce$$ 0I Foun Enengy Netwonks Gause Goneenn
National Assembly member Andranik To ensure the stability of Armenia's currency, the Dram, Central Bank Chairman Tigran Sargsian said, "the central bank will maintain a consinstently tough monetary policy. It is possible to say that there won't be any major changes in the financial sphere this year." He stated the Central Bank would let the currency float around 547 Drams to the dollar, as projected in the draft 2000 budget. and
would try to maintain inflation at about five percent. Sargsian noted that "We can lose one of the economy's main achievements macroeconomic stability - if we don't meet tough monetary demands," adding that now the focus should be on a move fiom macroeconomic stability to microeconomic development in Armenia. He reported the Central Bank's hard currency reserves at the beginning of this year were $332.37 million ($335
million in 1998) and that non-residents' stake in the charter capital of Armenian commercial banks rose three percent in 1999, totaling 45 percent.
Manukian, who is a member of parliamentary commission to investigate the dispensation of energy imports between 1992-95, charged widespread highJevel comrption. "lf govemment ministers would stop stealing fbr six months, the economy of the country would stabilize, and if they stopped for another six months, living standards would improve," he said.
Buneaucnaoy and Unattnactive Enterpnise$ Direct foreign investments in 1999 (about $100 million) were 2.5 times less than in 1998. Ministry of Trade and Industry's Victoria Ter-Nikogosian explained the decrease by
A government decision concerning international tenders fbr a controlling stake in Amenia's four energy distributing companies is expected in June. However there is increasing pressure on the govemment both from parliamentary factions and opposition
enterprises have already been sold and priva-
political groups question the "wisdom" of privatizing the country's "strategically important" sector. Meanwhile, in an unusual move, the World Bank urged the Armenian government to be transparent and ensure fairness in
is "not much to buy in
the ongoing bidding. In a letter to Prime
pointing out that the most profitable state
tized and there
Armenia." In addition,
Minister Aram Sargsian, WB Regional
with state officials, especially tax and cus-
Director Judy O'Connor (above) reminded him of the "principles of fair business competition" and called upon the government to
she pointed out the general absence of a favorable investment climate in the country coupled with problems
AIM MARCH
2OOO
$l million -
"remain committed to them." As Armenia's
gy sources, the country relies heavily on the
from $100,000 to
largest lender, the Bank supervises the country's energy privatization. Its statement on the ongoing bidding was a move to preempt the Armenian government's showing t'avoritism to Russia's Gazprom, which is a natural gas supplier, but not power generator. Citin_c the
nuclear power plant, which provides about 40 percent of the country's electricity. Energy Commission Chairrnan Vartan Movsisian told the Parliamentary Standing
medium size businesses at an annual interest rate of I 5 percent. This is less than half the rates generally charged by banks for commercial loans.
Russians' financial inadequacy, the World Bank has argued against granting them ownership rights. Analysts t'ear that political considerations, rather than economic logic, will play a role in the privatization process, which could hurt Armenia's energy sector and make the country even more dependent on Russia's ineffi cient energy enterprises.
Nemenhnil$ and Ilenmank Pnovide Enengy 0ptions Dutch and Danish companies are helping Armenia develop altemative energy sources through wind power engineering. A consortium made of the Dutch E-Connection company and the Rison Danish national laboratory is
a $225,000 program in Armenia known as "ArmNedWind." Already five modem wind-power monitoring systems from the Netherlands have been delivered to Armenia in the first of a two-phase project. Each of the 50-meter high monitoring masts will gather data on wind fbrce, temperature, precipitation and atmospheric pressure. The data will then be analyzed by Dutch and Armenian specialists to draw a feasibility study for the construction of wind power stations. The initial phase of the project is expected to be completed at the end of this year. implementing
Nuclean Plant
Postponed
Committee fbr Economic Affairs that in the next l0 years Armenia's energy sector will need $700 million in investments which could result in a 50 percent increase in electricity rates during the decade. Movsisian warned the parliament that any energy rate reduction would be a political decision rather than a sound economic decision. Meanwhile, scientists pointed out that Armenia's dilapidated Sovietera energy distribution system is contributing to inetficient use of Armenia's energy resources and called for greater attention to improvements clf the system.
Beleases $10 Million
The second $10 million tranche of the $100 million Lincy Foundation credit in sup-
port of small and medium-sized businesses has been released according to Bagrat Yengibarian, Executive Director of the Center on Foreign Financial Programs Management. The Lincy Foundation loans are granted interest free fi'rr six years to the Armenian govemment, which in tum loans the money to 14 Armenian commercial banks at a three percent annual interest rate. The banks provide loans -
to small
Armenian and Iranian energy officials con-
tinued negotiations for the proposed 140 km Iran-Armenia gas pipeline. Representatives of the Iranian National Gas and Armenia's ArmRosGasProm companies discussed the details of the $ I 20 million pipeline, 100 km of which will run through Iranian tenitory, extending from Kajaran to Meghri inArmenia's south. The original pipeline agreement was signed in 1992, but since 1995 the two sides had postponed negotiations due to disagreements over the price of gas. Currently, Armenia pays $70 per 1000 cubic meters of gas from Russia, while the Iranian company would charge $90100. The construction of the pipeline gained currency last year when China, France, Greece, Russia, Ukraine, and Georgia expressed interest in creating an intemational consortium to create an energy delivery network in the region. Indeed, China has expressed interest in funding the entire project. EBRD and the World Bank have also discussed the possibility of participation. In addition to economic benefits, the lranArmenia pipeline has strategic significance to Armenia as it connects the country with regional energy networks.
Ec0n0miclnilicemn$ 1995
1996 1997 1998 5.8 3.1 1 .2
19991
Real GDP Growtha
6.9
Industrial Growtha
2.4
1.2
0.9
-2.5
5.2
4gricgllcl4lq!.1{!h,
3.4
7.1
1.6
l3.l
1.1
3.0
State Budgetb as percent orGDp
8.6
Revenues
17.8
l5.l
t6.6
r
Expenditures
28.8
24.4
21.3
22.3
Delicit
11.0
9.3
4.7
l8.l 24.1
6.0
3.8
Current Account Balance
-37.5 -26.6 -26.1 26.7
Percent of GDP
Despite objections
by the
European
Union, the Armenian government stated the country's Nuclear Power Plant will operate until 2010, six years longer than the original date of closure which was part of an Armenia-
EU
agreement. The Arrnenian government
argues that, in the absence ofalternative ener-
lmport Growtha,c
71.1
26.9
4.4
Export Growtha.c
25.7
7.t
-19.8
Foreign Debl Stoqklqqe4t qJ GDry 29.0
32.5
39. I
1.0
-5.2
38.9
-14.2e
-
10.3
6.0 47.6
l. 1999 data are preliminary. a. Percent increase on corresponding period of previous year. b. Preliminary data for 1999 are for central budget only; other data are for consolidated budget. c. Growth in nominal dollar value of imports or exports. d. End-of-period stock value, or growth in end-of-period stock value. e. January to September. Sources: USAID Tax and Fiscal Refom Prcject: Amenia's Ministry of Statistics.
AIM NIARCH
2O(X)
and
National lnterc$ts 0utweigh Regional Benelits
Georgia has slowed down the implemen-
of the
While criticizing US policies in the region, the Iranian official affirmed the BakuCeyhan pipeline could possibly weaken his country's links with the Caspian energy resources and in intemational markets. Iran has proposed its own pipeline route for the region, which will pass through Thbriz and into Turkey. In another development, Turkmenistan refused to participate in a Trans-Caspian pipeline project with Azerbaijan. President Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan rejected a proposal to split natural gas exports equally with Azerbaijan through a planned US-backed gas pipeline. "We cannot make some sort of compromise which would be to the deffiment of our economic interests and which was proposed for political reasons," said Niyazov. However, in early March, after
$2.4 billion Baku-
talks with Azerbaijan's President Aliyev,
Ceyhan pipeline project by raising objections to some of the terms of the agreement signed last November in Istanbul between Turkey,
Niyazov told his cabinet ministers, "God willing, everything will be settled."
Azerbaijan and Georgia (with President
vigorously lobbying Turkmenistan
tation process
Clinton present, above.) According to the tentative accord, a final version ofthe agreement was to be ready by December 25, 1999.
For more than two years, the US has been and Azerbaijan to cooperate on the proposed $2.5
billion pipeline which will extend from
Iax Bneal($ Ion 0ccupied lennitonies President Aliyev sent a draft law to the Azerbaijani parliament on granting land tax exemptions to "physical and legal entities residing in territories once subject to Armenian aggression." The Cabinet of Ministers determines the affected territories and residential areas. The State Tax Inspectorate explained that among those exempt from the land tax are owners of individual farms and proprietors of land plots. The benefits of the draft law would amount 500 million Manats (about
to
$1 15,000 a year.
fl[
r0Fcrgn I0 Geongia's Militany The US has allocated $7 million for Georgia's Defense Ministry, according to the Georgian Parliament's Committee for Defense and Security. This sum does not include six helicopters that the US will deliver to Georgia, once Georgian experts
Turkmenistan across the Caspian Sea through Azerbaijan and Georgia to Turkey and markets in the West, bypassing lran and Russia. Earlier, President Bill Clinton had written to the Turkmen leader asking him to extend the mandate of a US company leading the consortium to build the gas pipeline. Clinton had also asked Niyazov to invite Azerbaijan to join the project and grant wider flexibility to the project sponsor, the US-based PSG company.
master the English language and are able to
October the negotiations have intensified. The 1,730 km (1,081 mile) pipeline will transport oil from Baku to Turkey's Ceyhan
Tunl(ey FFes T0r08
navy. More recently, a German Defense Ministry delegation visited Tbilisi and held a
oil terminals through Georgia pumping
first locally produced short-range
BP Amoco official Peter
Henshaw, expressed "frustration" over the progress of the project. "We cannot go further until the issues with regard to Georgian demands have been solved," he said, adding, "There is a logjam at the moment." The BPAmoco-led Azerbaijan Intemational Operating Consortium (AIOC) initially hesitated to get involved in the project question-
ing the pipeline's commercial
viability. However, since its announced support last
one
million barrels of Caspian crude per day. While Georgia's concerns for land expropriation, environmental standards, and security of the pipeline have been worked out, the
Turkey tested Toros 230-4 missile, its surface-
take place this summer. Meanwhile, the Turkish Defense Ministry has agreed to assist Georgia to form and equip a crack battalion. Great Britain has pledged $4 to $5 million towards rebuilding Georgia's
series
of consultations with Georgian mili-
tary, political and parliamentary officials.
miles (65 km) away
$25 million) than from the Georgian state budget, which has allocated about $21 mil-
in the Black
Sea.
of transit fees remains contentious. The final agreement, when reached
Another version of the Turkish missile, the Toros 260-A, has a range of 60 miles (100
among the parties, must be ratified by the parliaments of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, and only then a sponsor group can be formed to proceed with the project.
km) which also destroyed its target in the
Hosseini added.
will be allocating $10 million to implement the withdrawal of Russian military forces from Georgian bases, reportedly to and
to-surface missiles. The new weapon fired from a military base near the northwestern town of Sile, successfully hit its target 40
issue
Meanwhile, Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Mehdi Hosseini slammed the "US-inspired" pipeline project and stated that "the economic rationale for construction of the pipeline is currently questionable. The pipeline also passes through regions that are not very safe and this only adds to its economic costs,"
operate the helicopters' technical equipment. The Committee reported that in the last three years, the US has provided $50 million to develop Georgia's border system
Indeed,
in
received more
1999 the Georgian army in foreign assistance (some
lion for 20fi).
Black Sea. Designed to be fired from multi-
ple-launchers and developed
to reduce TUNK$N UTIGhI M BAIU
dependence on foreign arms suppliers, the new military system is expected to be in ser-
vice within two years according to Turkish television reports.
While on an official visit to Baku, Turkish Parliament Speaker Yildirim Akbulut (seen above right, with President Clinton during Clinton's visit to the Turkish Parliament in
"With Toros, Turkey has for the first time developed a main weapon system," said a Defense Ministry spokesman. "We
November) reiterated that ttre Karabakh conflict
want to export these missiles and earn for-
regional cooperation and threatening peace in the region. Addressing the Azerbaijani parlia-
eign currency."
AIM MARCH
2OOO
and Armenia's "occupation" of Azerbaijani
territories was blocking development of
developments.
which included the $42,300 which is all of its regular contribution for 2000, plus a little less than $450,000 for years past. The outstanding amount for Armenia is ten times less than Georgia's overall debt.
president. During his week-long visit to the US, Aliyev underwent medical tests, too. Last year, he had cardiac surgery in Cleveland, Ohio.
mcr[eiiiNn eililHomenia $ign Memonandum ol
two presidents also discussed the Karabakh conflict, as well as Caspian and regional
Aliyev also visited the Pentagon and Defense Secretary William Cohen (below) after the Secretary had hosted an armed forces honor cordon for the
Goopenation Geongian and ArmGnian ment Akbulut said, "Turkey's policy vis-a-vis Nagorno Karabakh has not changed," adding that "Armenia is breaking international law by occupying 20 percent ofAzerbaijan's territory." Echoing President Suleyman Demirel's words, he said Turkey and Azerbaijan were one nation but two states.
Missions Like many of their Armenian counterparts, Georgian diplomats abroad lack funds to pay rent and utility bills for the country's embassies. The Georgian Foreign Ministry stated that some embassies might be closed
because of the problem. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Irakly Menagharishvili
told journalists that Georgia is on the brink
of losing its voting right at the
United
Nations for failing to pay the $7 million it owes in membership dues for past years.
UN dues structures are complicated. They are based on a country's average per capita
income. For former soviet countries, this means they were assessed at a higher rate at
the beginning of this decade, than at the end, when the ruble lost value and local economies continued to suffer. As a result, a
country like Georgia would have to pay a minimum amount not to lose voting rights, but could continue to carry a debt for past years. Last month, Armenia paid $481,000,
US
The defense ministers of Azerbaijan and Romania signed a memorandum of coopera-
tion for joint military exercises, expansion of military and technical cooperation and education of military students. Romanian Defense Minister Victor Babiuc visited Baku at the
invitation
of his Azerbaijani counterpart
General Safar Abiyev. Two more bilateral defense agreements are expected to be signed by the end of the year covering the defense
industry, the protection of confldential military information and troop training. Meanwhile. more comrption cases were revealed in the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. A newspaper listed a number of comrption cases, including purchase of food supplies for the army with inflated prices from front companies, and misappropriation of large amounts of money from the Ministry's energy and electricity funds by dubious companies. Defense Minister Abiyev convened a special emergency meeting of his staff to discuss the claims of the newspaper. The revelations were based on information provided by the readers
through letters and phone calls and the newspaper's own research and archives.
lid to GIS Gountnies
As proposed by the Clinton Administration for the
I"f
2001
In million dollars
During
a
45-minute meeting with
President Bill Clinton at the White House, Azerbaijani President HaidarAliyev urged the US administration to repeal Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, the legislation passed in 1992 prohibiting direct US govemment assistance to Azerbaijan so long as it maintains a blockade that prevents the delivery of humanitarian aid to a neighbonng country. "The repeal of this resolution is very important to us," said Aliyev, accusing the Armenian American lobby of blocking the reversal. The
Ukraine
176
Russia
162
Georgia
85.7 (108.4 in 2000)
Armenia
74.9 (102.4 in 2000)
Azerbaijan Moldova Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan
54.5 (30.8 in 2000) 49.9
48.3 37.5
Uzbekistan
25
Tajikistan
12
AIM MARCH
2OOO
Chirac for their selective memory. He also contrasts the political and legal unacceptability of Holocaust denial, but the relative safety with which the Armenian genocide is rejected. At the same time, a genocide survivor and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, penned an article in the Intemational Herald Tribune on the occasion of the Stockholm Conference, entitled simply,
"When the Holocaust
is
Incomparable, It
Becomes Unworldly."
The author, Henry Siegman, maintains that so long as the Holocaust "establishment" seems to react with great anger at comparisons between the Jewish tragedy and other
ffiltt/
genocides, they then "paradoxically contribute to the Holocaust's detachment from history, and therefore to public indifference to
,[N
subsequent genocides."
The debate is not over.
$mall But Effectiue Azerbaijan's President Haidar Aliyev visited the US last month. to conduct his country's foreign policy, and to undergo medical checkups. In Washington, he was greeted by
a handful of
picketers. The Armenian
National Committee of America had organized the demonstration to call attention to Azerbaijan's intransigence on the Karabakh conflict. Two dozen marchers may not sound
like much, but they did the job.
The
Wshingtort Prr.sr and the New YorkTimes coyerage of the President's visit began with reference to the protestors, and the reason for their rally.
Busy Month lon Genocidc Recognition Etlorts
research, failed to remember the first genocide of the 20th century. No Armenians, and no representative from the government of Armenia, were invited to prulicipate along with the 46 other countries present. The Armenian Foreign Ministry wrote a letter of protest. Still, the focus remained on countries
where there was victimization during the Holocaust as well as countries where Holocaust survivors now live. Sweden appered motivated by the rise of neo-Nazism in Sweden, as well as their own history of helping rescue Jews in Denmark and Hungary. Its own readiness with a list of potential Jewish deportees, as well as allowing the Nazi German government to use Swedish railroads has been pushed into the background. In this context - Jews as the focus, and Turkey as Israel's best friend in the region came the Armenian exclusion fiom the offi-
It's been a busy month for those fbllowing
cial program. Swedish Prime Minister
the Armenian Genocide recognition and denial
Goran Persson on the one hand did not side with Armenian inclusion, on the other hand,
process. [n Februnry. the French Senate took up where the National Assembly had left off last year. Despite massive Turkish pressure, half the French legislature had passed a oneline affirmation of the Genocide. However. this year, the Senate declined to even include a discussion of the Armenian genocide in its agenda. An Assyrian news service noted that, ironically, the same body nearly unanimously accepted the installation of a permanent
Intemational Criminal Court which has the mission of guaranteeing international justice.
There was more irony. The Stockholm International forum on the Holocaust. subtitled a conference on education. remembrance and
mentioned Armenians, together with Cambodians and Rwandans in the context of
"bitter memories."
The Armenian Americans, a 90 minute documentary of the American Armenian experience, is being broadcast this month on
Public Television Channel in New York. to the program on WLIW will
Reactions
determine whether other large markets in the US pick up the program. More than a historic look at this 100-yearold community, The Armenian Americans
depicts the tightly knit communities from Worcester, Massachusetts to Fresno, California, and the generations of successful businessmen
and professionals which those communities have produced.
Other documentaries which have been broadcast on public television stations arcund the country have dealt with the genocide, the earthquake, and one has presented the experience of new immigrants. This is the first, lengthy look at the history of this old, varied
and productive community. The number of viewers, their responses, and the sale of video copies of the program will determine how wide an exposure this production will receive.
The president of Bulgaria and a German
minister, however, were more forthright in referring to Armenian genocide victims. So were several scholars fiom around the world. Even as scholars and officials continued to struggle over the politics of recognition
and denial, the respected journalist Robert Fisk, writing in London's The Independent, blasted those of short memory, and the followers of political expediency. Fisk chides Britain's Tony Blair and France's Jacques
AIM MARCH
2OOO
Anmenian $tuilie$ Minon Planned California State University at Northridge, part of a 23-campus state wide network, has 28,500 students. 1300 are Armenian, but only 103 are members of the Armenian Students Association. Yet, these 103 held a
successful evening entitled
A
Mosaic of
Armenian Arts, to raise funds for a perma-
nent Armenian Studies courses
at
the
University. Hermine Mahseredjian, who has been instructor of Armenian language and culture for more than two years, worked with the students and the administration to flnd a way to make the Armenian studies courses -at the undergraduate level -- permanent. Within the state, the University of California at Berkeley and at Los Angeles both have graduate level Armenian Studies programs. but except for the Califbrnia State University Fresno campus, no other American university offers core undergraduate courses leading to a minor or a major in Armenian Studies. The Armenian students at CSUN are working in this direction.
Genocide studies scholar and clinical psychologist Israel Charny (above), the Executive Director of the Institute on the Holocaust and Genocide in Jerusalem. is in
the US to promote the newly published Encyclopedia of Genocide, of which he is editor in chief. His circuit has included stops at the University of Toronto, Worcester State
College, Colgate University, and the US Historical Museum. The first installment of the book and lecture tour was hosted jointly by the Armenian Students Club of Columbia University and the Jewish Student Union. Charny's lecture fbcused on categories of genocide denial and denialists. Approximately 180 people were in attendance at the event. The two-volume encyclopedia is the first publication to chronicle the subject of genocide and off'er an exhaustive ovenview of the phenomenon in all of its fbrms and contexts. Heavy emphasis is placed upon the Armenian
Genocide and the Holocaust, although the Encyclopedia documents all known genocides and crimes against humanity. There is also a focus on genocide denial, as well as analyses of the detection, investigation, and prevention of genocide.
'Man and Eanth - A Dialogue' Exhitits in Galilornia
Poet and sculptor, priest and teacher, Father Dajad Yardemian is director of the Mekhitarian Educational Foundation, based in Glendale Califomia. The two day exhibition of his works -
A Dialogue took place at the Glendale Public Library in February. Yardemian's image of the exchange between man and earth takes place through wood, a natural medium that is tractable and yielding. More than 50 wooden sculptures in various realistic and abstract forms were accompanied by Yardemian's poems displayed on the walls of the library's auditorium. Utilizing various woods from walnut, acacia and redwood to mahogany and avocado, Yardemian's forms ranged from a metal-like sleekness to the fine, forged Iigures of his intellectual,cultural, spiritual universe. Like his fellow Mekhitarian priest, and brother artist Haroutiun Bzdikian. Yardemian uses the revenues from such exhibitions and sales to finance the work of the Foundation.
Man and Eanh,
AIM MARCH
-
2OOO
COYER STORY By J0HN HUGHES
he spirit of the work is as ancient as the need to create, and, as 2lst century-new as microbytes exchanged
from a Manhattan studio to a floppy disc in Yerevan. Intricately hand woven, meticulously dyed and processed, cautious to pay homage to heritage yet mindful of commercial appeal, these Armenian
carpets are a throwback to antiquity for a Diasporan compelled by tradition. And a leap into modern marketing for Armenian peasants who will never stand in a design showroom but who will reap a share of the $50 million business woven by James Tufenkian.
He is the great-great-grandson of men who travelled the carpet trade caravans between Yerevan and Istanbul, but James Tufenkian knew nothing about Oriental carpets while growing up in the '60s in Oregon. Nothing unusual about that, except that Tufenkian was surrounded by carpet dealers, including his father, Armand, who sold carpets for his uncle as a young man in California. But in later life, James' father took the stage name Armand Francis when he sang tenor for the San Francisco Opera. And it was the stage name that stuck on his sons James and older brother, David. David remembers growing up in a home with Armenian carpets, but by the time James was old enough to notice such things, their mother, Agnes, had stored the rugs in favor of
wall-to-wall carpeting.
When Armand moved the family to Oregon, he worked as a carpet salesman, but
the younger son's memory is not of artistic weaves that are a virtual signature of his ancestry but rather of the less impressive broadlooms.
Neither David nor James considered the carpet business as a career. David entered the mental health profession. James studied philosophy and experimental psychology at the University of Oregon, then got a law degree
from New York University Law School and took a position at a San Francisco law flrm. He says he "wasn't into materialistic things." The young James Francis, still not having taken back his Armenian name, had intentions of social activism rather than free market enterprise. But the threads of his distant family past soon wove their way into the plans of the young idealist.
Between college and law school, James worked for a carpet dealer in San Francisco. Meanwhile, his brother had left the mental
health field to begin the family rug business in Portland, Oregon and a relationship with Oriental carpets was slowly taking shape. During his last year of law school, he bought rugs in New York and sold them in Oregon. Also in that year, James Francis
began participating
in Armenian cultural
activities and soon returned to the name of his Tufenkian. a degree, a license, a job and plenty of potential ahead, the new lawyer reached an important crossroads: "I realized I didn't want to be a lawyer" roots
-
With
AIM MARCH
2OOO
James Tufenkian. still fueled with idealism and perhaps a bit of generational wanderlust wanted, instead, to be a traveller - to see the world's exotic places, to help people where he could, and to be in charge of his own life while doing so. At a 1985 trade show for home textiles and floor coverings, in Frankfurt, Tufenkian
saw his first Tibetan carpet. And
in it,
unknowingly, were blended the elements of his past and future.
Drawn by the craftsmanship of the Tibetan weave, but unimpressed by the bland35
COVER S'I'ORY ness of color. Tul'enkian went to Nepal that year with an idea kl combine the weave of the Himalayan design with colors that would be rnore appealing to a Western rnarket. In Katmandu. Tufenkian met a Tibetan who saw the ethcacy ol the idea. Together
they hired 100 employees and tiom one building started a corporation thal today employs 7.-500. When Tul'enkian began his business in 1986, he was a pioneer in the lield ol nrarketing high-end decorative carpets. Tut-enkian was, tirr exarnple, among the first to adveftise his line on the costly pages of home decorating mauazines. "The industrl al lhitt time wus very. very backward" Tuf-enkian says. ''lt was not optimizing its potential." Tut'enkian's production, ntarketing and advcrtising methods paid off. He joined the tradc. near the top. "Volume-wise. Armenians do not make up much of the market, but in terms of impact on innovation and high-end product. we are the dominant tbrce," he says. Tutenkian's naure soon enterged near the place it holds nou,. at the fbrefiont of successlul decorntive carpet producers.
"There really isn't anybody else in the industry who puts the whole package togethcr the way we do." says Tuf'enkian fiom his New York o{Iice. The whole package begins with wool selection and ends with careful rnarketing decisions and at both ends James Tuf'enkian has a hands-on role.
But the process also includes design. There, too, Tuf'enkian is the main ntan. Twice a year he devotes time to creating 60 or 70 designs tiom which will come the 20 or so new patterns fbr the next line. Designing, Tuf'enkian says. is his favorite part ol'the process. "l keep mysell immersed in the field of tashion and home fashion. I am aware of what is in the market and our lines. and what is ntx, and the two to-qether point me in the direction ot'what is needed." he says.
"l
am constantly collecting materials fbr
ideas." Tut'enkian continues. "lt might be tribal art, the textures on a sidewalk. or a photo of a pile of leaves."
And fionr that tribal art or sidewalk or photo or whatever other ref-erence, thc idea eventually ends up on a loom in Nepal or Armenia and linally back in a New York
\t\t \I.\tt( H t0(x)
COVER STORY showroom, completing a carpet-making trip around the world that makes the route travelled by Tufenkian's ancestors seem like a local jaunt. With nearly a decade of rug-making experience, Tufenkian made his first trip to Armenia. There, he found a chance to invigorate a disappearing craft. And, perhaps more
significantly,
a
chance
to help rebuild
a
nation. Consider the historical appropriateness of
the Armenian carpet: Lovingly, patiently crafted and valued by a world that knows little of the influences that shape it, it is a thing of beauty to be walked on by strangers. In 1993, James Tufenkian began a move-
ment to restore pride
in the folk art of
Armenian carpet weaving, to restore pride in a country. He went to Yerevan, alone, and although he doesn't speak Armenian, he looked for and hired a general manager who is still with him. Garik Chilingarian, 37, was among the graduating MBAs at the American University of Armenia. For as long as there has been an Armenia,
carpet making has been
a trademark of
Armenian culture. Generation begat generation of family history woven into distinct designs of bold colors and intricate pattems. The product and the craft were passed from age to age and the work was both art and income. But when Soviet order took over in 1 920, factories replaced the homespun industry, mass producing non-authentic copies that were functional but soul-less replicas. Beaten back by 70 years of communist rule that discouraged, if not prohibited, indi-
vidualism and do-it-yourselfism in every manner including art, traditional carpet makers were not exactly advertising themselves when Tufenkian went scouting for resources.
"I thought I'd be able to go out into the countryside and find weavers who might still be creating carpets in the old traditional way," Tufenkian told a trade magazine. After all, he'd done that in Nepal. "There, the industry was already developed and I only had to start up color and design, while making use of what were at that time standard materials and processes. In Armenia, everything had to start from scratch in a climate that was not oriented towards trade," he told AIM. But in villages, especially in the north, Tufenkian found weavers. and reversed the process instilled by the communists - he made home weavers of factory workers. And he used them to teach other villagers techAIM MARCH
2OOO
COVER STORY there was no shortage of counsel to the new carpet maker by those from the old school. "I had to be very careful how I handled it," Tufenkian says, "but one ofthe firstjobs in Armenia was to get people to follow me and quit giving me marketing advice. I aim
to make things that are first beautiful,
sec-
ond highly decorative, and third fashion for-
ward. In Armenia, they soon learned that I was not paying them for advice about color and design."
Enthusiasm for the craft combined with Armenian ingenuity to produce some unexpected payoffs for Tufenkian's investment in his ancestral homeland.
"After the workers overcame the Soviet mentality, they really threw themselves into the work and finding ways to constantly be
making improvements," Tufenkian "Every time
says.
I go over there, they show
me
some new innovation." A recent order to Tufenkian called for an
Armenian carpet 36 feet wide. The widest loom in Armenia is 20 feet. But when he went progress of the new order, Tufenkian found that the Armenian workers had devised a way to increase the width of the loom to 40 feet. "I've been doing carpets in Nepal for 15 years and I've never seen anything like that," Tufenkian says. After three years of training and building, the first Tufenkian-produced rugs, designed from old patterns, went to market in 1996 -
to inspect the
after one failed attempt that didn't meet Tufenkian's requirements. These years later, Tufenkian Carpets has more than 1,000 employees in Armenia, from
shepherds to business-degreed managers. The central facility in Yerevan is where the weaving, dyeing, designing and administration go on. They are waiting to finalize the opening of a weaving facility in Stepanakert, and budding operations several areas in the
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niques that preceded two generations of staterule methods. The throwback to old ways included hand weaving and dyeing, but even went so far as to require a specific wool, found only from the Balbas sheep - a breed peculiar to the Caucasus Mountains, valued for a strain of wool ideal for carpet making. To assure a future ofjust the right wool, Tufenkian provided his workers with 250 Balbas for breed-
ing stock. Farmers got ownership of
the
sheep; in exchange, Tufenkian gets the wool.
To boost the
renaissance, Tufenkian
brought two Tibetan yarn spinners to Armenia - handspinning was mostly a forgotten art to share their skills with a core group of spinners who then went into the villages to teach others. A special dyeing operation was set up to produce the traditional Armenian colors. And
-
AIM MARCH
2OOO
Armenian countryside. The company is producing 10,000 square feet of carpet a month, most of it eventually landing in homes of the wealthy (a 9xl2-foot carpet retails for about $5,000) in North America and Europe. But success has not come without conflict, including an early clash when the standard practice of handing out bribes to get
things done
in
Armenia collided with
Tufenkian's refu sal to participate. "Comrption is a very important issue to us," Tufenkian says. "We decided from the
COVER STORY Iies of people who are working in places where we need to get
beginning that we would not participate in any kind of comrption. We spent a lot of time fending off people who tried to create problems for us by trying to get money in their pockets." And, from the beginning, Tufenkian's resolve was tested. When his first carpets were ready to be exported, customs
things done." The sometimes-painful rebirth
of an art
has had considerable rewards for Tufenkian. The businessman still enjoys the social activist's pleasure in seeing the economic impact of his dream on struggling Armenians.
"The Number One thing is that people are just so happy to have an honest job," Tufenkian says. " It is a real relief to have this altemative to the old system, where if they made $50, they were given $10 and expected to
officials in Armenia did not
clear them for leaving the coun-
try, demanding that Tufenkian pay officials to release the carpets, even though there was no export tax. "I thought 'I've invested all
steal $40 from the state.
this money in Armenia and created jobs for all these people and now they want me to pay them to
"The biggest high when
let me export this?' I said we were going to have to play hardball and refused,"
His advice is to follow his method and hire a local general manager to deal with
Tufenkian says.
those intemal problems. And, to be prepared to find legal ways to satisfy illegal demands. "Westerners have to articulate some clear standards about what they'll do under what circumstances," Tufenkian says. "From time to time, we do nice things for the fami-
The carpets sat in a warehouse for about month, then finally were released.
Tufenkian says he
is frequently
a
asked
about Armenian corruption by other businessmen looking to do business there.
I
get
feelings they have for the work." Tufenkian has bought an apartment in the center of Yerevan, with a view of Ararat, and is renovating it fbr his quarterly visits. But feelings for his homeland are registered most notably in his philanthropy and social awareness.
In
1996, Tufenkian teamed up with the
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COVER STORY French-Armenian Chen organization to repopulate villages
in Karabakh. Tufenkian
provides the economic base, sheep and money for some dwellings and buildings for the sheep. Chen and the government work on schools and other institutions. He has built irrigation systems, schools and has made donations to orphanages. (In Nepal, Tufenkian built a hospital and a Montessori pre-school, a water-purification system and a solar powered dye processor.) Tufenkian says he tries to follow a simple motto: "Create beautiful things of lasting
value. Make lots of money doing so. And leave the places we touch a little better than we found them." Like the carpets themselves, Tufenkian says his career is "always a work in process." And, while he is still discovering the heritage untapped while his name was "Francis," Tufenkian is enjoying the challenges of the
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NATION
nfillrll ol lhs 0ensral Armenia Reburies General Andranik's Ashes By SALPI HAROUTINIAN GHAZARIAN
he remains of General Andranik Ozanian were transferred from the Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris to Yerevan's Yerablur. Sixty-three years after his death, the war hero finally reached his homeland.
Andranik, who had fought the Turks in his home town of Shabin Karahisar, in northeast Turkey, then in the Balkan Wars, then in
Zangezur, Karabakh and Nakhichevan, died in Fresno, California. He had always wanted
to be buried in
Armenia, but the Soviet authorities wouldn't allow it. A retuming hero
can be a dangerous lightning rod. So, Andranik's remains were interred in Paris in 1928. With the independence of Armenia, the of several Armenian heroes have been
ashes
rerurned to the homeland. Armenia's Ambassador Edward Nalbandian,
who was then in Egypt, oversaw the transfer of the ashes of Sose Mayrik, flghrer hailed in
her own right. Now ambassador to France, Nalbandian, last month supervised the transfer of the ashes of Andranik, arguably the rare
revolutionary hero who is (more or less) respected by all. That may be because Andranik was at one
time a member of the Social Democrat Hunchakian Party, and later a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation - Dashnaktsutiun. He was also very much his own man. Following the fall of the Sultan, the ARF-D showed willingness to work with the Young Turks. The General didn't. He packed up and went to Bulgaria, where he organized an Armenian volunteer detachment to fight alongside the Bulgarians against Turkey. After World War I broke out. he went to
AIM MARCH
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NATION
AEUNA Convention June
2l
-25
Shoping Our Vision For A New Millennium Hosted by: UACC ot 0ccidenlol College ond Glendole Hihon
Bonquet speoker: Dr.
[.
Everetl Koop, Former U.S. Surgeon Generol
Speokers include: Fronk Postore, former Cincinnoti Reds pikher,
Judge Stepon Vortobedion, Rev. Dr. Poul Hoidostion For reqistrotion informolion ond forms coll: United Armenion Congregotionol Church 323-B5l -5265
http:/ /www.oeuno.org The
l5th
Bienniol Generol Assembly of The Armenion Evongelicol Union of North Americo
NATION Tbilisi where he was asked to fbrrn
an
Armenian regiment to {ight against the Turks and Kurds in Eastern Anatolia. By 1918. as
Armenian refugees poured into Eastern Armenia. General Andranik's special fbrces
defended
the Armenians of
Zangezur,
Karabakh and Nakhichevan.
He left the region in 1919. discontent with the Republic's governance and with the West's treatment ol Armenia. and headed for the Diaspora where he did fundraising. He died in Fresno in 1921, at the age of62. His popularity grew as the years went by, as evidenced by the fact that more than
in Paris in nridFebruary to observe the removal and transf-er of hisremains tiom the cemetery to the St. John the Baptist Armenian Church a thousand people gathered
where a memorial service was conducted. Senior clergymen, government ofhcials and Ozanian's relatives attended.
He was met by a grand reception in Yerevan. too. In awtul winter rain and snow. the president, prime minister and cabinet -sreeted the returning hero. He lay in state in the huge Concert and Sport Complex, a memorial sen'ice was held at Holy Ejmiatsin
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CONNI.I(ITIO\,JS
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The AGBU Nevvsletter and Ago,s Provide New Voices in Arrneniatn Media By KRISTEN KIDD
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tltc I)ilispolart pless. Nonc ol thcnr hus rnore llrlrn -1.(XX) sLrl-rseribcrs. AIN1. thc onlv crccption. hus not bnrkcn thc 7.(XX) rrrurk. Srrrone is lLlso ctlitol ol tlrr' .1(iBL' ,\'t,rr i ,ll t t qt - i r t,. u g o:sr. eolor' 1fi- Plr rc pLrtrl rcll ion. Sirrronr' lrclicr cs this abscrrcc ol' nutnbcrs is tlLrc to tltc nlutr, othcr clistruetions pcoltlc harc irr jLrst ucttirrr: tlrrrrugh lili'. "1 thrnk u lot ol pcoplc hur c tlrcir e irrcL-r\. tlrcir lurnilte s. tntl rkrn'1 nccc\\lu.il\ llrr c lt lot ol tintc to gct i.rr
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CONNECTIONS The solution? In 1991, the AGBU decided to turn the traditional organizational
continue to bind them as long as that past is
newsletter into something else. The 94-yearold organization has always had local and even occasionally intemational newsletters
If Simone has anything to say about it, that tragic scenario will never come to pass. This is exactly the reason she and other members of the board of the international philanthropic organization - which fbr generations, had supported and encouraged literature and the arts - decided to go to the costly expense of creating a professional quarterly magazine. "After the independence of Armenia, we realized that there were so many Amenians who were not necessarily active, but would read a publication in the privacy of their homes. So we put together a mailing list," explained Simone. "We've developed it into
not forgotten.
covering organization news and activities. That, after all, is what a newsletter does. But no more. Today, the large folio size quafterly is called the AGBU Magazine fbr a reason. "The first half of the magazine has noth-
ing to do with the AGBU, it
covers
Armenians around the world." said Simone. "By covering the history of Armenians in a particular country we have a chance to have our perspective - the Armenian presence represented in literature on that country. "Then. we have the history section going back to the earliest days and it's very informative. I get very excited about the historical pictures," she says. Many of them come from the AGBU's various chapters worldwide, and with a presence in 23 countries that amounts to an impressive archive. An abundant collection of black and white historical photos are balanced by an extended family album of group shots gathered from AGBU programs around the globe. The combination, even to the non-Armenian browser, results in a clear-
75,000 addresses in the US, and we send another 5,000 copies out to our chapters around the world and they distribute them." Simone points out not all of those readers are AGBU members, although the intent to promote that organization through the magazine is clearly part t-ll'the mission. It has to be. Such a publication does not begin to pay fbr itselfthrough donations. "We send it automatically to all members
and we constantly get new donors so the mailing list keeps developing.
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- Lun$G ilhmouim er picture of the past, the present and perhaps even the future of the Diaspora. Without reading a single word surrounding those proud faces, one gains a sense of the vast expanse of Armenian communities and of their interconnectedness.
"In one of our recent issues we used some photographs from our library in Paris and it was interesting to read the letters we received afterward. One person recognized the name on a photo and said it's got to be a relative. Another one identified everyone in a photograph that we had no names for." In this way ties are made, history preserved and the education of younger readers expanded.
While there is an obvious diversity among these far-flung groups, there is yet a strong link based on a shared history that will
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won't care about our issues, so we send our publication out to Congress and government officials in Washington DC," Simone noted. While politicians are on the mailing list, politics is something the AGBU Magazine avoids covering, says Simone."We don't get into political issues at all. Whether it be in the Diaspora or Armenia. I just don't think it's a non-protit organization's business to do that." Instead the focus is on telling the stories ol how particular communities in the Diaspora developed, who the movers and shakers in those places have been, what makes those communities unique and interesting. Unlike the daily or weekly Armenian
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CONNECTIONS newspapers, the majority of the content in the AGBU Magazine is not found anywhere else. "We go out and get the articles, we commission the articles. Most of the newspapers do not, and that's why when you're reading Armenian newspapers you're reading the same subjects over and over again," stated Simone who is the major idea contributor for the publication. "Two or three of us come up with the subjects. We try to cover the
Armenian communities in every country. So far we have not repeated any city in these eight years! We're going to run out in a while and then we'll go back, but 98 percent of the material you see is original for the magazine."
That figure creates an overwhelming challenge. Even though there are just four deadlines per year, Simone says it can be dif-
ficult to meet them. "Part of
it is finding
enough writers to cover the stories we want.
Writers who write in the style that we promote. Most of the professional journalists have full-time careers and we can't call on them to go to another counffy. So it's dimcult to flnd writers." Hard to believe but Simone says there is a real shortage of skilled writers willing to travel the world and spend time gathering information for pieces.
"There's one
full time writer, David
Zenian, and then there's two part-timers who cover certain articles and graphics," explained Simone. In spite of the small staff, the cost to produce, print and disseminate the publication four times per year is well into the six-figures. "I have never really added it all up, but it's at least $400,000 a year." A major endowment as well as individual donations cover costs, but the magazine is nowhere near
self-sufficient.
Some have suggested the AGBU Magazine should be printed in Armenian in order to truly promote and preserve Armenian heritage and history. Simone disagrees. "First
of all, there's a whole generation that does not read Armenian. If you take Armenian language books as an example, they have never sold in the numbers that English or French language books sell. There was a poll taken in Montreal and even some of the young people who read Armenian didn't want to see more books in that language, they prefer French or English," explained Simone who understands the impulse, but feels the reality cannot be ignored. She is also proud of the magazine's commitment to promote other printed works. "What has grown quite a bit is our selling of
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A Reference Guide to IVlodern Armenian Literature, 15fi)-1.920 With an Introductory History
"This book will be the indispensable refercnce consulted by the next generation of anglophone students,
of
Armenian literature."
-Klwchig
New Publication, Old Community
In
Turkey, the
old and
entrenched
Armenian community of Istanbul had a different sort of problem. And the Turkish language weekly Agos set out to solve it.
"Our newspaper was especially welcomed by those who have a language limitation," says Hrant Dink, the editor, and one of
The Heritage of Armenian Llterafure, Volume I From the Aral Tiadition to the Galden Age Edited by Agop J. Hacikyan, Gabriel Basmajian, Edward S. Franchuk and Nourhan Ouzounian The Heritage of Armenian
Compiled and with an Introduction by Kevork B. Bardakjian
scholars, and general readers
books on Armenian topics. At the end of the magazine we advertise books by Armenian authors or on Armenian subjects. We probably sell 3-4,000 books a year." Simone hopes in the next decade more families will re-commit to maintaining their Armenian heritage in part through the support of the Armenian press, "I think people have to realize whether it's AIM or AGBU Magazine, it's a very expensive proposition. If people want better publications they have to pay for them and subscribe in larger numbers. It's very important that those publications which are bringing some new information to the general public continue and grow." Finally, she says very matter-of-factly, "If these new and professional publications don't succeed, no one else will attempt to go into this field and do something similar."
Tololyan,
Wesleyan University
608 pages hardcover: $49.95 Published with assistance from the Armenian General Benevolent Union.
literature, Volume l provides the first comprehensive English translation of Armenian literature from the oral tradition through the golden age of Armenian literature in the fifth century. In this engaging collection of songs, epics, folk tales, poetry and theological works, the editors place this literature in historical context and make it accessible to the general reader. 392 pages
hardcover: $34.95 Published with assistance from the
Cultural Sociery of Armenians from Istanbul.
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CONNECTIONS tion of 1,800 has now reached 5,000. The intent is to go much higher still. Agos's readers are not just Armenians, but nonArmenians. too. "We try to identify and explain our problems to the govemment and to Turkish society. Because of this, we sometimes have problems. There was a suit brought against us by the Court of State Security, but we were acquitted."
the founders. "Only a very small number of people were worried that publicly discussing the matters of a small, closed community like ours might result in inexplicable damages." The founders - two young lawyers: Diran Bakar (who is now the publisher) and Luiz Bakar, a businessman: Harutyun Sesetian, a public relations professional: Anna Turay, and a book shop owner: Dink established
-
the newspaper in April 1996. Since
then,
Their problems do not end with
Agos has been more or less financially selfsufficient. although sometimes with great difficulty. Istanbul has two well-established Armenian language dulies: Matmnru und Jamnnak. Yet Agos's audience and joumalistic style is very different from the other two. "We pub-
lish nine pages in Turkish and three in Armenian, and although there is an overlap in audience,
still we reach
readers
in
the
Armenian community who could not follow what was going on because of the language problem," Dink told AIM. The newspaper that started with a circula-
nity leadership. But the majority in the community has a positive attitude towards A6os and appreciates what they see as a courageous, reasonable and appropriate way of defending Armenian identity," say the editors. society where Marmara and Jamanak, managed, even in the hardest days,
In a
to straddle the interests of the Armenian community and the demands of Turkish society and government, Agos has both a prece-
indufing manufacturing,
hospitality and tourism, food process-
0r
ing, technology, transportation, public utilities, natural resources, medical services, etc.
Privatization legislation and public attitude support and encourage Diaspora and other forergn investors to provide ownership, capital, sfiategic investment and business know-how for enterprises and assets being privatized.
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Given the existence of the Republic of Armenia, and the frequent visitors between the two countries despite the absence of formal relations, Dink explains, "We think it's important not to base our future on hostility toward other nations. We eagerly support all efforts at establishing relations between the republics of Turkey and Armenia." They know they have a hard task ahead. "Eighty percent of our community is unable to speak their mother tongue, and it is very important for us to reach them. We don't have trained members of the press, so we're working with a very young team and training them." And they're convinced. "The fact that we publish in Turkish is not a step backward. On the contrary, it's a step bringing us
authorized agent of
Opportunities in all sectors of the economy,
the
Turkish community. "We sometimes criticize the system within the Armenian community, and so we aren't much liked by the commu-
dent to follow and a challenge to meet. "We are very much aware of our own history and without forgetting the past, we try to build our future without remaining exclusively attached to the past," explain members of Agos's editorial board.
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CONNECTIONS
$callng l||ollllhlns Armenia's Disabled Struggle Against Attitudes and Limitations By MAITHEW KARANIAN
lexander Tzdatian had just flnished an exhausting football match, and he was reflecting upon the disap-
pointing performance of his team. They had given up l0 goals in their loss to their opponents, making this a high scoring soccer (or football, as they call it) game. "No arms, no legs, and they still win," he says with a shrug of the shoulders and an amiable laugh.
the rights of the disabled and the handicapped by lobbying the govemment and by educating the public.
"Some people say Pyunic is a sports orga-
nization, but we are not," says Hagop Abrahamian, the president
of the organiza-
tion. "We merely use sport as a vehicle for rehabilitation." These sporting events are also good publicity, and this helps Pyunic in its advocacy on behalf ofthe handicapped.
Tzdatian was not using a sports metaphor. He meant exactly what he had said. Several members of the opposing team really did not have arms or legs. They ran up and down the field on crutches. And they used their heads. They really used their heads. "I'm always amazed," he says. And, judging from the way Tzdatian - an athletic young man from Yerevan raved about his disabled opponents, he was a bit inspired, too.
-
This inspiration is common among
Last summer, Pyunic began a lobbying
and publicity campaign designed to persuade the National Assembly to change Armenia's law regarding the disabled. The law, called "The Law on the Social Security
of the Disabled," was originally adopted in 1993, and it is an ambitiously drafted document. It is also substantively flawed, however, and it carries a legacy of ineffectiveness,
Abrahamian talks
with the zeal and
enthusiasm of a proselytizer. What he is preaching, howeveq is fairness. He wants Armenia's handicapped to be ffeated with dignity and respect, and not with pity and sympathy. He wants the disabled to have the
opportunity to work. He wants the handicapped to be able to leave their apartments and to live in the mainstream of society. This is a heavy agenda, butAbrahamian isn't overwhelmed, and he's not a reluctant advocate.
He's starting his efforts with legal reform. On a hot August afternoon, Abrahamian was sitting at the Pyunic offices in central Yerevan, on a site that overlooks dusty tennis courts, dry athletic fields, and the city's massive soccer stadium. This sprawling, 32,000 square foot office complex was a
gift to Pyunic from the Republic of
says Abrahamian.
Armenia in 1998, and Pyunic is trying to put it to good use.
the
people who meet these unlikely soccer players, each of whom is a member of an organization of young disabled Armenians called Pyunic. This lO-year-old non-governmental
The floors haven't been laid, windows are missing, and most of the facility is not wired for electricity or plumbing. This four-story building doesn't have an elevator, the stairwells don't have railings, and it's not accessible to the handicapped. You've got to hike up a dozen steps just to reach the ground floor. Local Pyunic volunteers (of whom there are more than a dozen) had managed to rig up a workable office in two large rooms on the main floor. An architect who toured the building in July estimated that it would cost $l million just to finish construction. No one at Pyunic appeared to be daunted by any of this. After all, the building's "sale price" was right and, as they say in the real estate business, it has potential. Besides, what building in Yerevan
organization sponsors summer and winter camps forArmenia's handicapped youth each
year. Pyunic
Inadequate Laws
is the Armenian word for
phoenix, the legendary bird that rises from its ashes, reborn with youth and vitality. Pyunic's winter camp is at Tsaghkadsor, a ski resort about 50km (30 miles) north of Yerevan. In the summer, the camp moves to the beach at Lake Sevan - a huge lake with clear, cold water and a watershed that covers 20 percent of the surface area ofArmenia. It was here last July, while Tzdatian was enjoy-
ing a private holiday of his own at Lake Sevan, that he met a group of Pyunic campers, and accepted their challenge to a
comes without stairs, or with working eleva-
soccer match.
tors wide enough to accommodate a wheel-
Rehabilitation and Advocacy
chair, or electricity and plumbing fixtures placed for easy access? These adaptations they'd have to make anywhere. "With help
Pyunic does much more than just operate a couple of camps and arrange athletic contests, however. This non-profit, non-govern-
from our friends in France and the US, we've
begun the renovation step-by-step," he
mental organization (NGO) also advocates 54
explained.
AIM MARCH
2OOO
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But Abrahamian didn't want to talk about
the building. Abrahamian wanted to talk about Pyunic's agenda. He wanted to talk about the law. He began to list the faults of the Armenian legislation that governs the rights of the disabled when he caught himself and stopped. Actually, "we don't have a law," he said with disdain. "We have only a vague collection of concepts." Abrahamian is
talking about legislation that is really closer to a statement of aspirations than it is to any code of regulations or set of statutes that might actually be implemented for the benefit of the disabled.
The problem is a recurring one
in
Armenia and also in the other countries of the former USSR. The state makes a vague,
sweeping guarantee, which it cannot implement because of a lack of resources, and which it fails to enforce because in the
of the back-up regulations, it is unclear what is supposed to be done, and by whom.
absence
The Armenian and Russian constitutions are good examples. Each guarantees to each of its citizens a job and a place to live. These guarantees arc not fulfilled. But politicians
can claim that they've done something because they passed a law or endorsed a con-
stitutional guarantee. Armenia's law on disabled people is just one more example. For example, the law makes several guarantees to disabled people: free medical service, free prescription drugs and free vocational education. But there is no express provision for implementing the law. And if medical services or drugs are in short supply, the disabled can expect to be the first to suffer, because health providers will be tempted to take care of their paying customers first. Armen Sargsian, a medical doctor who works in the Ministry of Health as the Head of the Specialized Care Department, opti-
"The law is very poor. It'sjust on papet" Sargsian says. "There's not enough money in the budget" to pay for the services that are supposedly guaranteed by the law. This lack of money isn't the only problem. Even provisions of the law that don't appear to require govemment outlays of cash are inadequate, because the law is not clearly defined, methods of compliance with the law have not been established, and there are no civil remedies or criminal sanctions for breaches. Looking for an example of a part of the
law on disabilities which doesn't provide
percent discount, says the law. Critics ask
just what is being discounted. There is
of the housing that the disabled
mistically says that the law that guarantees
and size
should obtain.
2OOO
no
guideline fbr establishing the market price of an apartment, or for determining the quality
free medical treatment is "maybe 70 percent true in real life." AIM MARCH
a
method for compliance? Here's one: apartments shall be provided to the disabled and to their families at a 50
Critics also worider who is supposed to
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CONNECTIONS
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pay for this discount. Does the state pay the landlord, or is the landlord obligated to provide this discount to the tenant, and then collect it from the state? Another provision of the law prohibits the construction ofnew buildings unless they are designed for disabled people. hesumably this means that the buildings should accommodate access by disabled people, but this isn't expressly made clear, and there is no reference to any building code. And there are no established remedies for violations, either. A related provision states that public construction of such projects as airports and train stations are also prohibited unless the rights of disabled people are taken into consideration. But the law doesn't elaborate on how taking rights into consideration is specifically carried out in practice by the architects, engineers and construction workers who are drafting, computing and laboring on each project. Setting Friorities The consequences of the lack of clarity in the law, and of the absence of remedies for their violation, is evident during a stroll down
just about any street in central
Yerevan. There's plenty of new construction in the cen-
58
tral district, on streets with fashionable names such as Abovian, Tumanian, Nalbandian, and Sayat Nova. But if you look for wheelchair ramps at these buildings, instead of flights of
stairs, you'Il be disappointed. This is not a small oversight in a population with over 100,000 disabled individuals, eight percent of them children.
There's more. Doorways and entrances are often too narrow for a wheelchair to f,t through, assuming that a wheelchair could even get past the stairs and obstacles to reach the front door. But, says Sargsian, the doctor who works at the Ministry of Health, this is nothing to be concerned about. "The places they are building now, ilre places the handicapped cannot afford to go. They won't need to reach the door."
Sargsian
is just being pragmatic.
carefully. Ramps for wheelchairs will have to wait. His thoughts are instead on food and medicine, on education and rehabilitation. In neighboring Karabakh, this pragmatism is expressed at even higher levels.
2OOO
requiring handicapped access to buildings. And there is no plan for such a law, according to Lenston Ghulian, Karabakh's Minister of
Social Security. Almost every street in Karabakh's capital city of Stepanakert has been paved during the past two years, thanks
largely
to funding from the
Diaspora.
Sidewalks and curbs have been installed, and
some new housing is being built. But high it an Olympian feat to get around in a wheelchair. Never mind the lack of handicapped access, Ghulian says. "We don't even know what to teach [the disabledl that would help them find a job," he told AIM. Even the brightest and most capable people in Karabakh can't find work. curbs and steep grades make
Yes,
he'd like all the doors to be open to the disabled. But he understands that the disabled have more pressing needs for survival. He understands that he has to choose his battles
AIM MARCH
Karabakh doesn't even pretend to be doing something. There simply is no law
Struggling Day to Day There are 108,000 handicapped people in
Armenia, according to government statistics. (These are just the physically handicapped, not the developmentally disabled.) Roughly 8,fi)0 of them are under the age of 16, and approximately 43,000 are older than age 45. There's no official data for Karabakh. The government of Armenia administers
CONNECTIONS to the needs of the disabled with a budget of $l million, and with whatever private donations and assistance it can get. Clearly, the resources are not adequate.
Until the last government reshuffle, Jemma Bagdasarian headed a department at Armenia's Ministry of Social Security that
works closely with veterans and the disabled. She delicately assesses the problem
faced
by the government regarding
the
affairs of the handicapped. "We have a problem with money," she says. This problem is pervasive throughout the ministries that deal
with the disabled. Handicapped pensioners receive only about $6 each month from the government. They each need about $60, however, just for food, according to an estimate by Sargsian. Many of them live on bread and water, and maybe some cheese, supplemented by inexpensive cucumbers and tomatoes in the summer, he says. Living each day is a struggle.
"But that's not the whole story" he
disabled children. Stepanian is a department
head
at the Ministry of Education
and
Science. He was expressionless for much
of
the discussion, but he smiled broadly when he talked about the new attitudes of the parents
after several weeks of school. "When they [the parents] saw the children, sorrow was awakened in them and they felt bad," says Stepanian. The parents invited the handicapped children to their homes, and friendships developed between the mentally handicapped children and the rest of the kindergartners. Later, when a teacher at another school protested that a handicapped student shouldn't be permitted to attend classes with the students who she described as "normal," Stepanian intervened and asked her to go and watch the kindergartners.
"The children don't mind. They don't is a problem of the grownups," says Stepanian. The teacher have a complex. This
relented, and her class was integrated.
says.
"There are some handicapped who don't have
electricity right now because they have no means to pay."
Then there are expenses for wheelchairs and prosthetics. The Ministry is usu-
ally able to provide wheelchairs free of charge, but this is because they receive donations from Armenians in the Diaspora, he says. The wheelchairs wear out after only four or five years, because of the poor condition of Yerevan's streets and side-
walks. And for children, wheelchairs and prostheses wear out more quickly - as the children grow, the devices become too small and must be replaced.
Integrating the Children Integrating those with physical or mental handicaps with other children is an objective of the special education program. Children in special schools can graduate to mainstream facilities, and teachers encourage them to develop the skills that they need in order to do this. Stepanian says this integration provides beneflts to both the handicapped and the ablebodied students. The handicapped children benefit psychologically because they are not isolated. The other children also benefit, because they leam not to fear those who are
Changes in Attitude For a barometer of this change, one must look no further than a special kindergarten class in the Zeitun district of Yerevan. Under the best circumstances, kindergarten can be a
time of great apprehension for parents,
as
well as for children. When parents in this neighborhood leamed that their children would be attending kindergarten with a group of mentally handicapped children, their anxiety exploded. Parents opposed the idea, and they met with school administrators to let them know The decision to integrate the students was
nearly reversed. But the parents ultimately agreed to give the idea a chance, and to tem-
porarily allow the handicapped students to attend the same kindergarten.
Robert Stepanian had been recounting of two years ago during a discussion about educational opportunities for these events
AIM MARCH
2OOO
different. "They teach the normal child to be more human," says Stepanian. Integration in Yerevan doesn't stop at kindergarten. School No. 5 was originally intended only for the mentally handicapped, but for the past four years it has also been open to mainstream children. And at School No. 114, children who have physical handicaps mix in with the able-bodied. "If a child can use a wheel chair, we encourage them to use a normal school," says Stepanian. The child is generally restricted to the ground
floor of the school building, which is
an
accommodation that is easily made. Nevertheless, there are still many separate education facilities, and educators say that the handicapped can never be fully integrated in the school system. Yerevan has 16 schools solely for the mentally handicapped. These
schools draw students from throughout Armenia, where special educational opportunities are sparse. The Ministry of Education and Science works with several private organizations in its quest to educate the public about the disabled, so that communities will accept this integration
as normal.
One of them, Bridge of Hope, is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization (NGO) that advertises on television, and sponsors
community discussions. The Mental Health Foundation is another NGO that performs these services. And Pyunic, of course, has been active, as well. In the early days of Pyunic, shortly after
the earthquake that struck Armenia in December, 1988, many people were critical
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unic's applcuch to rehabilitatins
thc
hantlicapped. "The attitude ol' socicty was that Pvunic * as tolturin-sl thenr. thlt wc
shoLrlcl
o.'#,
E
have lel't thenr rLlonc."
says Abrahanrian. the orsanizution's prcsitle nt. For rclls. this u as cxlctl\ thc u1-rproucl.r
that \\'as tlrkcn in ,\rnrcniu. clurinl thc Sol'ict era. Tl-tc' drslblcd ricre lockcrl uuar'. ouI o1 si-ght. "Aticr all. il thc LISSII rias \() -srcrt. then holr coukl thcrc lrc disab]cd pcoplc."
sl\s Abrahanriun. Toclar. houcrcr.
1-rcoplc Lrnclerstantl that teachin-u ir l)clson lo plar socccr. cvcn thoLl_glr hc is rnissrrrg an itrnr or a Jcg. i\ not tollure. 'tixlay, it is sccn us siurplr teachin-g ir person to
lcgs.
.rrrr.
"l "l
thousht nr1 lile uas finished." hc llt(rtlLItl I t,rlrlrl rtc\cr':\\ittt rrglritt
bccausc pcoplc uoulcl laugh at nie." But his cloctor encouragecl hinr to attend a sl.rccial canrp fbr the ciisablecl that hatl .jrrst bcgun to operate. NIanv ol'tl.tc' cr.rnrpcrs uelc victinrs of the earthclr.rakc that hrcl rcccntlv
in northcrn Annenia. This rras Huik's first contact with Py'unic. At Pyunic. Haik tirLrnil ncu liicnils uith rvl-torn hc coulcl shalc his gricl'. anrl uho rlitln't lar.rgh lt l'rinr. "Wc talk ancl it hclps. l1' I didn't fintl lnry l'r.ic:nds I Stas. Clar.ush. . .." Haik can't linish thc scntclrcc. strr,rck
Hrik. Stas unrl (iarush. tosethcr
cn.ioy Iilc. urrr.l to livc u ith the rest ol societ\'. srvs Abrahanrian. Intcglation is becoming nrorc uccclrtuble . ancl the si-ght o1'an allplltec nlilkins tlou,n the street is less shocking
u,ith Onnik. Nlhcr. Artur'. Arnrinc atrcl a dozen other\ urc rnorc thun lricnds. They're also Olrnrl-ric chanrl-rions. Par-ulyrnpians. Every t\\ () \'cars sincc I99(r. [)r'lrnic's rucntbers have
Irrrlur. suvs Abrrhamian. Ancl as socictr
IlarticiPxtc(l in thc Olrnrpic Ganrcs firr the
bccorrrcs nrore tolerant. he says. r-nore handi clppcd pcoplc uill slowlv bcconrc nrorc u'illinr: to adapt to their clisabilities lncl to enjov thcir' lir cs.
Adapting Haik Alrgarian knous all about arlaptinl. Tcn r cals aqo. u hr'n hc u as.just l0 vcals olcl. he u as criticallr in jurcd in a car accir,lcnt in Geolgil. He uas lrrousht to a hospital in \trevan. u he lc a rloctor rrrl.lrtatcrl onr' ol'his
I)isablcd hcld inrnrcdiatelv afier
the
lntcrnutional Ganres. From Atlanta
and
Nusano to Svclner. sailors. llrchers. skiers ancl pou,crliticrs hlr e represented Armenia underthc lcd. lrluc. oranqe 1'1a_c. Ancl the1,'le rkrne ver-v
to losc to il groLrll ol voung Ar-rtre nilrns u ho'cl nevcr sccn a sailbolt untrl a leu tears ago. It
wrrs rul cxhilalating experience. and
the
responsc ol'thc Arrncninn public u as ri'onderIirl." r'err rr'r rrlrcr'. Ahr lrlr:rrrrilrrr.
"Thc valuc o1'this kind of participation in iutcnrllti()r)xl conrpetitions is thnt our population hcgins to take these issr"res seriouslr'. Thc'r'no lonrer question the abilitrcs and potential ol'the disabled." he continucs. Er
en )iear on
Septernber I
Indepenclellce l)ay'.
l. Haik ancl Garr.rsh ancl anotlrcr
I5 or 20 phl sicalll' handicappccl y()r.rns l)co-
ple climb N'It. Aragats. the tallcst pcak in Arnrenia. The svrlbolisr.n docsn't g() Lrlnoticed.
And shortlr ltier last r'car's cxpcdition. Haik ancl his liiend Stas Nazariun \\erc t() have bccn dischargccl ihrnr thc Arnrcnian
artred lilrces.'l'hc leason: thc
sr-rcccsslirl
cor-nplction ol thcir t\\o-\car lcrrns ol dutv as nrilitarl, pol icc ol'licct.s. Haik and Stas ucrc not rchabilitated tiont thcir disabilitics cluicklv ol casilr'. Ancl thel'
sly thcy tlon't cxpcct to change the public alIiIurlc towu-rl the tlisablccl cpricklt'. erther.
u'cll.
"ln
Atlanta. in l9c)6. the bovs placctl ahcad of'the Britrsh teanr in nearlv cvcry Incet. betbre thev uere' clisclLralilicd ilue to u technical issue. Lna-uine. the British u ith their
ecttttt|tcs tll' rr'ulru iltg e\l)g1
1.'11.a
i\ll\l I\lr\lt('ll
1000
\\t't(
r,(rit).1
uill
Chunging the ncgativc attitLlcles ol societr' rcrluirc thc sarne perseverance that rras
rcrprilcd duling their physical rehabilitation. suvs Abrahanriiln. "We must hiive cnur.rgh puticncc to aclrieve progress step by step." r
CONNECTIONS
0ohgilmill Eud Pyunic Galvanizes a New Generation of Volunteers
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yunic's base of supporters extends from Finland to Canada. The Finnish Embassy in Iran provided $5,000 for a Fitness Center, and over $12,000 came from the Canadian Embassy in Moscow to buy computer equipment for training, as well as silkscreening equipment for Pyunic to use to generate income. Their assistance from the Armenian community comes from a diverse base, too. The organization's letterhead lists chapters in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. Atlanta's small Armenian community met the athletes at the Paralympic Games in 1996 and adopted them, sort of. They led the effort to raise approximately $20,000 which paid for the sailboat on which the sailors now train. In Chicago, John Wilhelm, who is also Deputy Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Health, leads the effort to galvanize support among Chicago's large Armenian medical community. Wilhelm, not Armenian, is a physician, who got involved after he met one of Pyunic's founders.
In Los Angeles, Pyunic's supporters are mostly young professionals. For many, this is a first-time involvement and, as one young woman said following a recent fundraising event, "I was looking for something that is worthwhile. I feel so good helping." She and her husband donated the costs (several thousand dollars) of printing Pyunic T-shirts as a fundraiser. He rode his bicycle along the full l5-mile route of the Los Angeles Marathon, in pouring rain. New York's team is multicultural: Armenians from Istanbul, Beirut and elsewhere raised $20,000 last year, and lined the route of the New York City Marathon with
tricolors.
AtM MARCH
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The Oppressed and the Rejected
Find Dignity with Norikian By HHATCH TCHltlNclRlAN
he different faces I paint have the same agony and suffering,"
says Krikor Norikian, 58 - popularly known as Norik * who is one of the Diaspora's most well-known painters. "I don't know
where that agony comes from. It's from nature, from human suffering. It's from my past, my family and my life experience. It might come from a specific source, but it is universal." Joseph Tarrab, who wrote the introduction for Norikian's latest book, says that even when the characters in Norikian's paintings "surround themselves with flowers and mandolins, they still belong, by their carriage, their peasant garb and a kind of pathetic awkwardness
...to those who, at each turning-point in history, let themselves be smashed, victims of the tyrannic, omnipotent f'ather, ever invisible but ever present in his very absence." Indeed, mankind or rather womankind in Norikian's paintings
@
are "meaningfully reduced to its most vulnerable members, women and children." At least two women were very significant in Norikian's life. "My mother was a woman to be worshipped," he says with awe. And. all these years later, he still feels the same about his grandmother with whorn he lived as a teenager because she lived near his school. "When I start painting, I don't have a specific thought or rheme in mind, I just start, like a title-less novel or story. When I sit before a white canvas, I feel in a vacuum, in an empty space, I'm transformed into another world. another reality." explains Norikian. "I feel that I don't know anything. Then my hand gestures start; inspiration comes, calm and intense, with complete taith anil dedication. by preserving my self * who I am. It is a battle between the canvas and myself- there is something that goes on between you and the canvas. There is a power, energy that directs you hands and brush," he continues. Born in Beirut's Bourj Hammoud neighborhood, Norikian received his primary education at a Jesuit school under the watchful eyes of Catholic friars. "In school, instead of paying attention to the class, I used to draw all the time and got punished for it," he remembers. He recalls being a "rebellious teenager" as well, playing ut theater and painting on walls with pieces of black coal. "I used to be reprimanded all the time," says Norikian, the son of a mason. Unlike others of his generation, Norikian was not involved with
ARTS
in Lebanon. It was only later as an accomplished artist that he the Armenian community
was somewhat drawn in. "For me. party and politics was my ar1. I am not interested in Armenian politics, neither right, nor left." he says as a matter-of-factly.
At 14, Norikian worked with his uncle in a printing shop to earn a living. He was still indecisive about a career. "I was very handy," he remembers, "I could leam quickly as long
as the base was provided." But, obviously, passion was painting. I wanted tcr
"My only
become a painter." Between 1959 and 1967. Norikian studied llne art in Lebanon, Italy and France. At 25. his first exhibit of prints was displayed at the L'Orient newspaper gallery in Beirut. His first introduction to the Armenian community came in 1971 when he won the first prize at the AGBU-sponsored "Armenian Painters of
AIM MARCH
2OOO
the Middle East" exhibition. Subsequently,
in
his works were exlribited Canada, Gerrnany, Argentina, France, and the US. ln 1994 a collection of his works of the last two decades was published under the title Norikian: Humanism of the Other Man. 19761994. Recently, the book was launched in California and Canada. "I paint to know to learn why am I living," says the reclusive artist. But, "I haven't
63
ARTS Ofcourse, there's a marketing concem here,
too. says Norikian laughingly. "Annenians don't buy nudes - the husband wants it, but the wife doesn't." Human suff'ering and devastation caused by the civit war in Lebanon are also central thernes in Norikian's paintings. In the context of the war, "I used to paint the imrnigrant," he says. but "l became an immigrant rnyself," ret'erring to his move to Paris in 1976 to escape the war.
"Any human disaster moves me, whether
the war in Lebanon, the earthquake in Armenia or Turkey. I feel the pain of the mother holding a broken child," he says, the melancholy obvious. "I paint to escape from the disaster of the past. I don't paint to amuse the public, not to be displayed in salons - I paint to find out why I live." Norikian wonderc, "Why am I bom Armenian? Bom not in my own homeland but in a distant lturd. This is the rnajor agony fbr me." Nevertheless, he insists that art doesn't have
national boundaries. it's universal. "When it comes to an and they speak aboutArrnenian iu-t, get angry. The irnportance is not that it is
I
reached a point where
I'ni painting
the way I want." Throu-th the canvas. '"1 want to express pain. injustice of humanity." he says.
And express he cloes. One o1' thc most strikin.s l'eatures of his paintings is the dominant depiction of women and children rvho seern mature bu1 ageless. Men are virtually absent l-rom his canvas. "I haven't figured out rvh,v I use women in my paintings.'' Norikian wonders himself.
"But, I
r"rse
the canvas to protest, to complain
to the viewer." There is a subtle, poetic sexuality in his paintings. He explains that unlike the desecrated sexuality in modern art, whose loots go back to the Renaissance, he prefers esthetic.
reserved sexuality. "The sexuality is in the mood of the painting rather than in the depiction," he explains. "Nudity says something, it's not literal."
AIM ]\IARCH
2OOO
Arrnenian, but it is human fieedom." Ultimately, "art cannot be explained, nature is God's creation, art is nran's creation."
Norikian's tans agree with the critic Tarab, that "Norikian is a witness of his time committed to the ethical-amistic struggle for the reinstatement and the respect of the Face and the nghts of the Otheq of women, children, the weak. the unloved, the oppressed and the
reiected."
l
ARr\4ENIAN
VbMEN oF THE Srncs By Alice Navasargian
This bilingual coffee-table book presents the life stories of more than sixty Armenian women of sound and
stage
in Armenia and Diaspora (circa 1840-1999). Siranoush, Lucine Amara, Gohar Gasparian, Siroon Mangurian, Zara Doloukhanian, Arlene Frances, Lili Chookasian, Lucy Ishkhanian, Cathy Berberian, LouiSa Bozabalian, Kallen Esperian and many more... with short biographies, and their dramatic personalities. The album contains 300 pages, including more than 280 photographs, both in sepia and full color. Hard cover 10.25" x 12.75"
I would like to
Naur
order
copy(ies) of "Armenian \fomen of the Stage" at $79 (US) each, including shipping and handling.
Checks payable to: Edith Navasargian P. O. Box 11535
Aonnrss Crrv/Sera/Zrp
Glendale, CA91206 Phone 818.957.8619 Fax 8r8.957.5372
TrmpuoNr
(
Email ednavas@aol.com
RELIGION
Anfiwu$ulnuPlnrnm St. Gregory Cathedral in Yerevan on the Way to Becoming a Reality
RELIGION By SALPI HAR0UTINIAN GHAZARIAN
t. Gregory the Illuminator
Cathedral
of Yerevan, being constructed according to a design selected through an
intemational competition organized during the reign of the late Catholicos, Vazgen I nearly a decade ago, goes against centuries of tradition - in some ways. The late Catholicos Karekin I used to say, only half in jest, you couldn't get more than a
couple
of hundred
people inside
all of
Armenia's dozens of churches and monasteries put together. St.Gregory is an ensemble of three churches which together will seat near-
ly 2000
churchgoers. The main church will seat 1700 - a symbolic reference to the l700th anniversary of the acceptance of
Christianity as a state religion, next year. The two chapels will have a capacity of 150 to 200 each, and will be named after Tiridates and Ashken, the Armenian king and queen who converted to Christianity in 301 ADand decreed Christianity as a state religion. The total area of the church (both floors) is 3,200 sq. meters (34,500 sq. ft.) In another departure from old custom, the building is made ofreinforced concrete. It has been designed to withstand an earthquake which registers a l0 on the old Soviet scale.
(TIle
1988
earthquake regi.
to-access places, off the beaten path. This large, new sanctuary, on the other hand, is prominently located on a hill, in the southeast
corner of the "green-belt" park sunounding central Yerevan. It is less than a l0 minute walk from Republic Square. But some traditions are not worth changing. Stepan Kurkchian, the architect who won the competition has maintained the key characteristics of Armenian church architecture: The facade and the interior walls of the ensemble, including the pitched roofs, will all be covered by a three inch thick layer of light beige tufa stone. The traditional Armenian porous stone whose color mellows with time
will be brought from
quarries
on
the
Armenian side of Ani, the ancient capital of Armenia, which lies just on the other side of
the Turkish border, according to Eduard Balassanian, construction manager. Balassanian says this stone facing is one of the most expensive parts of the construction. The overall design follows the cruciform (or diamond-shaped) contour of traditional Armenian churches. The floorplan r r is in the
shape
ofan
"equal-
il
.winged" cross.
At the entrance of the ensemble is the bell tower, which leads into the large entrance hall, where the faithful can light candles and enter either of the three churches. The two chapels also have independent outside enffances.
At the lower level of the main church there is a monument to St. Gregory the llluminator, around which there are spaces for church relat-
ed secular functions, receptions, exhibitions, and othergatherings. A special VIP entrance and parking lot has been provided from the side, since it is anticipated that this will be the site of many official services as well.
Although there
is
some eonstruction
Yerevan, this is the structure which is being watched. The deadline after all, is inflexible. I 700th celebrations are scheduled for June, 2001. However, even with the construction crew working two shifts per day, it's a tight timetable. Still, everyone in the government as well as Diaspora institutions and donors are very
ongoing
in and around
sympathetic towards
the project,
says
Balassanian. Even a mixup in the legislation which may have resulted in Value Added Tax assessment on the construction project has been resolved. The family of Alex Manoogian, the largest donoros, has already contributed $5 million. Balassanian estimates the mml eost ':'"t. of the building, including elect icityffiiiie&frh'' ing fixtures, furniture, decorative itern, carvings) at roughly $ l6 million. Four and a half million has already been spent. None of the
government's promised $3 million has been transfened thus far.
* I
?.Y
I* *I!
,.
t,V
%*:,'
OTHER PEOPLE'S MAIL
lhese ape real lettens Inom neal people. $end us yours.
Howdy-
Dear
Just a quick note to say I miss you. How you be? I be fine. Busy, but happy as hell not to be working where I was. Went to a baby shower on Sunday and found, much to my surprise, a whole hoard of Armenian women - actually, just l0 or so - but I NEVER hear the language around here, so it felt like I was back at one of those church picnics with all the women folk yakking in the kitchen, making pilaf and paklava. The older ones were even reading coffee cupsl!!! They thought I was Italian, but the hostess (the most exquis-
ite example of Armenian beauty
I
Y
I'm wondering what it's going to take for
me to finally decide to remove this "Armenian shirt" I wear. How much more has to happen? Listen to my week: Monday, M called. They'd had a parents'meeting at school. On the way out, she asked S, the accountant, if he didn't agree that it's about time to develop a set of stringent standa,rds for the Armenian part of this school's Armenian education. Why are we sending these
kids to this school, anyway? Don't we want them to come out
ever seen - other than us and our kids, of course) recalled that I was Armenian and she asked if I spoke, etc. Once the kitchen ladies figured out I wasn't a Piasan, they dragged me in to the back room for further inspection. God, I've forgotten so much; it was good to listen to the richness of the language in action. Most of the women were from France, but there was one from Lebanon, a few from Istanbul. I was the only one bom here and married to an odar; I almost felt guilty! I was in the odd position of literally straddling two worlds: the American world in the living room and the Armenian one in the kitchen, where else? I'm not sure I ever realized how the
For S, it's the security
and environment that's important. I
couldn't believe time
it. All
this
I thought we were all
on the same wavelength. That day, when I got home, I heard that the son of a high
school friend had died. Of AIDS. But no one is calling it AIDS.
,
It's
cancer, they say.
Even after the kid is dead, they
can't talk about what this means, what
decision to marry outside one's culture can so isolate you from it, especially when there are no other avenues to reconnect with it. Perhaps the isolation, in my case, is truly more a matter of geography. This town is not exactly a hot bed of cultural diversity. These people had a bond of friendship, but they also had a very obvious cultural bond. I felt a twinge of - can't put my finger on it. It was-
n't regret; it was more akin to feeling that I was missing a part of
myself. Am I being silly? I remember hating being Armenian: all the yelling and screaming at home, all the gossips and meddlers, the guilt, and, especially, all the FOB newcomers who thought they were better than the American-born. But here, in the kitchen, I felt oddly drawn to these strangers who so quickly embraced me simply because I spoke their language. And I felt sad. Love,
M
as
active, concerned Armenians? That's what M kept saying. S looked at him like he was nuts.
have
it might mean for
his friends and family, and everyone else. Amot, you know. Went to the funeral on Thursday. The priest had no clue what was going on. That was no surprise. No one else did either. A lot of his friends were there, obviously seriously affected. Yesterday, we went to a wedding. A beautiful, beautiful service, except that the bride's family wasn't there. The groom is from Armenia, and was wounded in the war. The girl's family figured she deserved better and didn't show up. I'm not even talking about all the times this week I picked up this or that newspaper and read about the newest blubberings from some Yerevan official about the president's resignation. So, there you have it. I want to change my ethnicity. Where do
I apply? Love, H
AIM FEBRUARY
2OOO
{rH{ etsd
*#' t#e
"glr,qr'1
.nir
!trfl d& a*+
trt'ii ,TF
E'E *at Hq 'is1 * ',t
rrtu-idt$ SUllEt
t@sira lffiit
Binthmanlr
The Ghallenge ol $tatehood
A Bilingual Anthology of Armenian-American Poetry
Armenian Political Thinking Since lndependence
Edited by Gourgen Arzoumanian
By Gerard
61 poems by Nancy Agabian, Ara Babaian, Sevana Bagdasarian, Sylva Dakessian, Tina Demirdjian, Alec Ekmekli & Shahe Mankerian, in original English and their translations to Eastern or Western Armenian. This anthology seeks t0 penetrate the depths of Armenian-
BIRTfi!{ART fu|'s*M5
Americans' creations. lt also grasps psychological and sociological issues and the methods of dealing with social and identity problems. Paperback - 210 pages $15.00 1pen Letter Glendale, California tsBN 0-684-80151-5
Wnitings lnom Pnison By Leyla Zana
ln 1994, Zana and five other Kurdish parliamentarians were stripped of their parliamentary immunity, anested and sentenced to 15 years in prison for statements made in support of a peaceful resolution to the Kurdish problem in Turkey. Since the arrests, a tremendous effort has been launched on her behalf by human rights organizations and the diplomatic community worldwide. This book is a collection of Zana's personal letters and statements written from Ankara prison since her arrests. Paperback
-
115 pages.
$15.00
J. Libaildian
An analysis of conflicting interpretations of history have nurtured competing policies and influenced the future of Armenia and its relations with its neighbors. The author challenges the ideologized views of war and diplomacy, of the Genocide and the politics of its recognition, and of national unity and political legitimization. He explores the Karabakh conflict, relations with Turkey, and the relationship between Homeland and Diaspora. Paperback
-
162 pages
$15.00 Blue Crane Books, Cambridge, MA lsBN 1-886434-10-7
Fnagile llneams Armenia Photography by Antoine Agoudjian More than 150 black and white photos
from '1989 to 1 998 depict various moments of loy and pain in the lives of Armenians after the earthquake. "The same things Antoine Agoudjian saw in Armenia, but he did it with a talented and watchful eye, as an artist devoting his sensibility to his art, with love. He took his time so he would not miss anything. Thanks to him, I went back, saw again and took a new measure of all that my eyes had only brushed past and skimmed through. Visiting in black and white this old colorful country." -Charles Aznavour Paperback
-
80 pages
$28.00
1999, Blue Crane Books, Cambridge, MA tsBN 1-8866434-08-5
1999, Actes Sud, France tsBN 2-7427-2316-1
Ghildnen's GonstnuGtion Gu[es
A Ulhll of $ilence
Made in the Republic ol Armenia
The Unspoken Fate of the Armenians
22 pieces of hand-cut and shaped wooden pieces embellished with Armenian manuscript designs make for a beautiful and satisfying first toy for the youngest child, as well as the budding architect. Older children will enjoy the special
Produced and Directed by Dorothee Forma Humanistic Broadcasting Fnd, The Netherlands
$45.00
An unprecedented documentary on the Armenian Genocide. The film presents the lives and scholarship of two historians - Turkish Scholar Taner Akcam and Armenian ,ir Vahakn Dadrian. "Turkey can never become a democracy if it does not face its history," says Akcam, "We have to research violence in our past in order to know and understand our present. Contemporary Turks are not guilty, but they have a responsibility toward history."
Available exclusively
Video Documentary
designs and the traditional motifs.
through AlM.
professor
$25.00
-
54 Minutes
-
VHS NTSC
The Gycle ol
lile on Gompact llisc
llut ol $tone
Songs for the Soul
Armenia
Performed by Parik J,lazarian
-
Artsakh
Photography and Text by
Robeil Kurkjian and Matthew Karanian
Each of these songs is a page of life, a mirror of a time, a link to our
history. lnherited from ordinary people who expressed their feelings and deeds through song, these bittersweet pieces sung with the occasional accompaniment of duduk, dhol and shvi, depict the disparity of bifth and death, the pain of loss and the joy of birth, yearning and sorrow, genocide and displacement followed by rebirth, love and joy and war and vengeance. ln these songs, the beauty of love is symbolized by the seed of a pomegranate, the vigor of life by a blade of wheat.
150 vivid full color images made during the years 1995 through 1999 capturing moments in time, peoples' expressions and beautiful landscapes. "Three thousand years ago, among rock-strewn steppes, an ancient people chiseled a homeland. They created a society, and built a nation. These Armenians carved an enduring civilization - out of stone," say Kurkjian & Karanian. Deluxe Hard Cover Edition
-
184 pages
1 CD, accompanied by a 2O-page full color booklet with Armenian text, English translations and related photos
$49.95
$15.00
1999, Stone Garden Productions, Washington DC tsBN 0-9672120-0-6
1999 Garni
flM 4th Millennium Mug Read your AIM while sipping your coffee or tea from this beautiful Armenian lnternational Magazine Fourth Millennium Society Mug.
$5.95 each. $10.00 for two.
youn onden ol S llManlePlace items, you'll lnom ilM/Founft Millennium $ocieU!
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/
u N I |ilIllil lllulil Dllllllnl
Moxmrv
BTEFrNGS oN CruucAL Issuus
Started in1999,AIM's monthly dinners, featuring distinguished speakers, have turned into the gathering place for the "new" Armenian. Dinner is followed by a short briefing by AIM on the news events and
a
presentation on a contemporary topic with significance in the new millennium. Presentations are followed by a dialogue with the audience.
developments of the month. The featured speaker makes
filtDlfl ASnnO BnnnOSSIAN
itonday
rril ] looo
rup rupecr or
GRooNc,
rHn AnurxrnN Nrws Nsrwom It was the heady days of the Democratic Movement and Perestroika, and everyone wanted news about Armenia. A computer scientist
at
USC decided to set up an electronic news bul-
letin board. Ten years later, Groong has changed the nature of Armenian news dissemination.
(UllURI JOUII HUCUES
ilonday lrlny
I 1000
rHs RErunN oF THE Nerrvn
]ohn Hughes lived in Armenia for a year, before returning to Southern California. As he prepares to return to Yerevan, he is living the life of the landless in limbo, between cultures and homes.
Bl|Ilffll &IRI JnUnS Ti,lfgnKIAN
ilondaylunel looo
Fnou MeNHeneN ro ynnsveN
James Tufenkian's designer carpets which evoke the best of Tibetan and
Central Asian tradition, are advertised in Architectural Digest and sold on Broadway, in New York. In 1994, Tufenkian started an operation in Armenia. Today, he controls the entire carpet making & exporting operation, from the sheep to export.
Ar BneNDvrEw CorrEcrron
Dinner 7:30 pm. Briefing 8:00 pm. Speaker 8:30 pm. Donation $28 for AIM subscribers, $32.00 for non-subscribers.
109 East Harvard Street
Glendale, California
For reservations and information catl
018,146.1}I,
ArcWfmrArs
By Matthew Karanian
The battaliOnS Of babUShk&S
that I saw sweeping the streers oryerevan had surprised me back in 1995, when I made my first trip to Armenia. Their brooms were hand-made from the branches of woody plants and trees, and their clothes appeared to have been handmade and hand-mended as well. On their heads they wore the kerchiefs from which Russian grandmothers had long ago taken their diminutive babushka nicknames. They were exotic to me. back then at least, so I started making photographs of them.
This soon became as tiresome as photographing a bricklayer laying a brick, or a police officer accepting a bribe. What I wanted was a shot police officer refusing a bribe. Or a bricklayer decorating a birthday cake. Or a babushka at the opera. You get the idea. I still don't have that shot of a cop or a bricklayer. But one day while I was walking past the art market near Yerevan's Opera Square I noticed two babushkas who appeared to be finished with their work. They were window-shopping for paintings, and they had critical eyes, roo. I usually avoided these art markets, but the street sweepers intrigued me. In this unlikely setting, these women had revealed themselves as real peo
of
a
ple, and not just as the faceless laborers I had always seen. I remember smiling and feeling really good about them. They seemed to be draped in cloaks of kindness. They could have been anyone's Moms. They could have been anyone's friends.
I reached into my camera bag and removed my Nikon. I framed them in the lens, and clicked off this candid shot. The noise from the shutter startled them and they turned toward me in surprise. Before I could speak, or advance the film, they had whipped offtheir babushkas and were fixing their hair. They were smiling broadly. They popped with a flurry of excitement and activity and they wanted me to take another photograph - one in which they were attractive, smiling, and staring directly into the lens. I took that extra photograph for them. But I thought they looked just fine and respectable in their work clothes and babushkas. And, each in her own way, beautiful. -Matthew Karanian, (right, in white) an attorney, recently released the photography book 1ut of Stone: Armenia-Artsakh with Robert Kurkjian.
AIM MARCH
2OOO
Manganet Mandinossian
Making Films lnom Beal lile appeal of the film is the story itseli told through a grandchild's eyes based on her grandmother's experiences of the Genocide. This film actually launched
Margaret Mardirossian of Alberta, Canada, is the film and television production company she incorporated in 1993 which creates family programming, arts documentaries, drama, comedy and entertainment specials. Currently, Mardirossian is co-producing two cable television programs: The Tburist. an enthusiastic and advennrrous blend of humor. travel and information which airs on the Life Network in Canada and the Travel Network in the US, and Mentor, a dramatic children's series created with co-producer Josh Miller, which airs on Msion TV in Canada. The Alberta
president of Anaid Productions, Inc., a
Motion Picture Industry Association (AMPIA) The Tourist for one. and Mentor for I I awards.
has
just nominated
"I am a hands-on producer," says Mardirossian, 40, who is actively involved in ttre budgeting, casting, hiring and erll business aspecs ofthe projecs. 'Tosh is more involved in the creative aspect." Mardirossian was bom in Montreal, Canada, to a father born in Lebanon and a mother born in Greece. Her first film, H_ve Em Yes, ahalf hour dramatic story about a young girl who tinds out about her Armenian heritage and the Genocide through her grandmother's stories, was her student project in 1990, prior to graduation from McGill University with a B.A. in English and Drama. The film was broadcast on Canada's national cable channel, Msion TY and won awards in Calgary for Best 30 Minute Drama and Best Music. Although it has not been shown since its debut, "lt is something that I would like to elaborate on some day," said Mardirossian. "The
my career." adds Mardirossian. After pursuing a career in the theater, "I came to Los Angeles and met with Howard Kazandjian, prodtcer of Return of the Jedi. He was the one who really tumed me around to film and television, since I was kind of a theater snob, thinking that a career in film and television would be selling out." said Mardirossian. "Mr. Kazandjian was so approachable and supportive that it really encouraged me." In addition to the two successful programs, Mardirossian is working on a third one, a weight loss documentary series, which may go into production by the end ofthe year. "l think we are very fortunate in Canada to have role models like Atom Egoyan, who have paved the road for other Armenians to follow in film and television," said Mardirossian. Mardirossian and her husband, Bradley Gifford, a stockbroker, have a nvo-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Natalie. Mardirossian is also the past president and current vice president of AMPIA. As for the future, "I actually have a project in mind that is very dear to my heart about my experiences living in Beirut, lrbanon for two years as a youth during the war. As a Canadian, I thought that I was immortal. I thought that the war could not touch me, until I saw another l3-year-old get shot in front of my eyes," remembers Mardirossian. "Although this is in concept mode at this time, I would like to eventually do it as a feature fi1m." -Hrair Sarkis Sarkissian
llavid Monti
Pantnenship with YMGA in Yerevan, Odsun, Vanadsor, Spitak and Gumri. Although the YMCAs in the US are mostly known as gyms with swimming pools, the ones in Armenia are more molded towards the needs of their communities and the focus is more on humanitarian needs. In addition to teaching English to the children, the Armenia YMCAs have programs in computer training, dance, art and other cultural pro. grams, "that are missing from government school curricula," said Monti.
Since 1991. the Intemational YMCA, in coopera-
tion with the United Nations, has provided 2,200 refugee families in Armenia with permanent homes and established the five branches of the Armenia National YI\4CA. David Monti, a paftner at the RDW Group, a Rhode Island advertising, marketing and public relations firm, is a volunteer board member at the YMCA of Greater Providence. He recently visited Armenia as parl of a delegation to choose one of the five branches of the National Armenia YMCAs to be hovidence's intemational partner. A partnership between the YMCA of Greater Providence and an Armenia branch would mean additional resources, technology and exchange of staff and volunteers. YMCAs of the US have been establishing such partnerships with YMCAs in the Newly Independent States "and Armenia was one of the few countries that did not have a partner," said Monti. Some of the countries have European partners as well. With Ashot Kocharian. director of the National Armenia YMCA as their guide, the delegation visited all five of the YMCAs in Armenia. "ln all the YMCAs we visited, the children were all well dressed, clean and well mannered," said Monti, "even though most live below the poverty line. Armenians are investing in their children. They believe their children are their future," he added. There are YMCA branches
The funding for the Armenia YMCAs
comes
from a combination of low membership fees, intemational grants and individual donations. "A family here in Rhode Island recently contributed to building a 20,000 square feet YMCA in Armenia," said Monti. After attending the annual YMCA conference in Florida, Ashot Kocharian recently went to Providence, Rhode Island, to finalize the partnership agreement. 'This is not a one way partnership," said Monti, "Armenia has a great deal of missionary spirit and great volunteer staff that we seem to be missing here in Providence." With the volunteer and staff exchange programs in place, "our counselors will see these volunteers and their spirit hopefully will rub off" said Monti. -Hrair Sarkis Sarkisian
AIM MARCH
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Every writer has a reason for putting words on paper. Poet Gregory Djanikian's motivation is to make a connection with the reader. ,,1 think it's one of the most intimate relationships," says Djanikian, a true believer in the power of poetry. "It's a very important and significant thing. What would the world be without any of these records? A wasteland I think."
Djanikian, 49, has just completed his fourth collection of poetry. Years lttter (Camegie-Mellon University Press) is a collection of poems mostly exploring relationships - "Love and the difficulties and
joys of sustaining it," he explains.
Two other books
-
About Distance and Falling Deeply into
America - showcase Djanikian's poetic expressions on other themes. His first collection Man in the Middle examines famous Bible stories. "I was really interested in how human beings confront strange miraculous events that they can't understand. Instead of making the stories up myself I went back to the stories I was familiar with, for example, Lot and his wife tuming into a pillar of salt. Lazarus rising from the dead, Samson and Delilah. I thought that was a good way of exploring how the human consciousness reacts to these events, and then in my own life exploring those high mysteries which I've experienced." Djanikian no longer attends church on a regular basis, but draws frequently from his upbringing in the Armenian Apostolic church in Alexandria, Egypt. Djanikian's parents Boghos and Sonia moved Gregory and his sister Tania ro America in 1957, settling in Williamsport, Pennsylvania where Boghos found work in the steel industry. Djanikian has wrirren poems of his childhood in Egypr, and of his grandfather who escaped Turkey in the early part of the century. In his writings, Djanikian recalls his grandfather's stories of murdered
family members, and the photographs of absent relatives. Genocide is a subject Djanikian expects to, one day, fully confront in his work. "I'm still trying to find the language for it. If you don,t
have the right language and spirit then what you're going to say is not going to be up to the subject matter," Djanikian explained, admitting an intimidation. "l will not treat the subject casually."
It's the kind of advice he gives students at the University of Pennsylvania where he is director of the Creative Writing program. Djanikian has been teaching in one form or another for nearly 25 years. In all that time, he cannot recall ever having an Armenian writing student. He supposes this has to do with parents guiding their children into more secure fields. Djanikian himself first majored in architecture, but by his second semester had fallen in love with poetry. In addition to his four books, Djanikian has published poems in numerous joumals and magazines including Ararat. He received the
Anahid Literary Award from the Armenian Center at Columbia University in New York in 1993, and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in 1987. Djanikian's wife Alysa is a painter and a great supporter of his work. They and their two teenage children Ariel and Zachary enjoy a peaceful life in suburban Narbeth, Pennsylvania. During the academic year, Djanikian concentrates on helping students; over the summer, he focuses on his own work, often attending a special three-week retreat in New York at the artists'colony Yaddo. To young Armenians considering a career in poetry or the arts, Djanikian says, "the desire to do the afi has to be strong, and it has to be a desire not for fame but for giving a form to those sacred or even ordinary feelings which we sometimes ignore and abandon. That has to be the primary urge." Persistence will also be necessary for success, he has found. "I remember when I was out of graduate school I was sending my poems out to joumals for publication and I received 38 rejections before someone took one poem. That's a lot of rejection. You have to steel yourself and you have to want to write very, very insistently to persevere."
AIM MARCH
-By Kristen Kidd 2OOO
txP0sEll
Just lon the Health ol lt 1200 runners (and several hundred walkers) fiom Glendale, California. are expected to participate in the Homenetmen Ararat Chapter's fourth annual Run/Walk on May 7. The Armenian General Athletic Association known for its scouting program and its annual Navasartian Games is making a conscious effort to integrate into the larger community. The 5k and 10k run and walk began in 1997 when a couple of Armenians who had gone through a drug rehabilitation program wanted to make other Armenians aware of this service. Most of those who participate in the run are not Armenians. Still the all-community event strives for a festival atmosphere, with local retailers' booths, city officials opening and participating in the run and awards to those
who make it to the tinish first.
Last yeal the 32-piece Hoover High School jazz band contributed to the gala atmosphere.
All in all. organizers say the a positive image of
Run/lValk presents
Armenians in a city that. tbr some. is quickly becoming the capital of the Diaspora.
AIM MARCH
2OOO
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Life in
C
ia
By J0HN HUGHES
aking a break in what has been the
unlit skies. Convinced that driving LA free-
- *rat is to say, having been back in the US awhile after a year in
ways poses no challenge after having survived
- the influence of considerably diverse worlds leaves me somewhere on
between Yerevan and Stepanakert
Alien Experiment Armenia
a planet of my own making. Which is where I have been the past few months should any ofyou have noticed my absence from this page. As if living in Southern California weren't weird enough just by the unnatural nature of things, I have found myself residing on some
in-between place that is not quite the Old Country and not quite this one. Somewhere between khash and local lobster, 250 Dram (50 cent) Kotayk beers and $8 sunset martinis: somewhere in a flat 10 times smaller (a view with a room) and four times more expensive than the one I rented in Yerevan, are the territorial markers of this limbo-land of mine: Califormenia. I have gone from a place where I didn't understand the language to a place where trying to explain why I did it is often like another language of its own. From a world of sparse acqui-
sition to the consumer capital of Capitalism. From two state TV channels with 1970s reruns dubbed in Russian, to Hollywood itsell with 273 channels and nothing on. From being the only natural blonde in Armenia to being... Well, wait, I may be the only natural blonde here as well. Anyway. Transition has come in fits. Examples: I am hypnotized by the Pacific, but my mind travels to fuarat. Mercury lights make night-time
walks safe, but
I
miss the asymmetric art of
shadows freed for reshaping under Yerevan's
the adventures
of
navigating
a
1993 Lada
(l named the
Razmik or"the warrior"), I now have no car. Which in my state is not just a matter of occasional inconvenience but is a condition that invites suspicion if not downright repulsion' Here, I use a bicycle, which I would never risk on the bumper-car streets of Yerevan. And when I went to buy a lock fbr it, the locksmith asked if I'd gotten a driving-under-the-influence citation (and lost my driving license), finding no reason why anyone in Southem California would choose to not have a car' Did living in Armenia change my life? No. But it changed the way I live it. I now re-use plastic bags and bottles and I am not beyond wonder at the sight of water flowing down a toilet bowl without having been poured from a bucket. Armenia taught me the great distinction between necessity and luxury. Still, I buy premium tea and colI'ee. Some things are unicar
versally essential. In my Califormenia, I have a friend whose theory is that there are only 12 Armenians, worldwide, who magically always are in the same place as each other. One knows the other or else knows somebody who knows somebody. This has been confirmed at cocktail parties and comes as a reprieve for my personal
if not in fact an apology fbr the "They all sound alike to me" excuse for for-
contusion,
getting unpronounceable names' Yet this notion recently reached an absurd level, when...
AIM MARCH
2OOO
"lnch pes es?" the man asked me. "lttv em," I said back, adding "Senor'" For he is, in fact, Guatemalan. A house painter, as am I some days.
Richard. whom
I
have since renamed
Tigran, was painting white window trim below which I was painting green side wall. The third man on our crew is Mexican. He was mixing plaster at the time when the Guatemalan said he'd heard I'd been to Armenia. That's what prompted the Armenian "How are you?" with a Spanish accent, leamed because Richard's neighbors are Armenian and sometimes have him over for holidays. We talked about dolma and pastries and "Oh, the bread!" and eggplant. bread
-
-
And Richard asked about the Armenian weather and whether summers are special and I told him about the vacation houses the State used to furnish for scientists and artists and certain other professions. And he began sentences with "In my country..." and it reminded me that I'd started sentences that way not so long ago. And the scene brought thoughts of my friends half a world away overhearing the conversation. And it brought a smile, and a longing. If Hayk and Arpi and Astghik and Anahit and Zaven turd Gayane ... Well, they'd smile too at a Guatema.lzm immigrant and an Alabama gringo painting an ocean-side house and discussing khorovats vs. carne asada alrrd whether vodka or tequila makes a more potent impression.
And perhaps they'd be just as amused as I r at life in Califormenia.
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