Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

ASBAREZ Online [11-02-2004]

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • ASBAREZ Online [11-02-2004]

    ASBAREZ ONLINE
    TOP STORIES
    11/02/2004
    TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
    WEBSITE AT <http://www.asbarez.com/>HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ.COM

    1) Karabagh, Russia, Minsk Group Say UN Discussion of Conflict Bad Idea
    2) South Caucasus Parliament Speakers Meeting in Paris
    3) Burjanadze Holds Talks with Top Russians
    4) Abkhazia Presidential Candidates in Moscow
    5) Second Social Services Complex Opens in Armenia
    6) Source Reveals Russian Minister Discussed Railway Link via Abkhazia
    7) Turkish Conference on Minority Rights' Ends in Chaos
    8) New Community Center Opens in Gyumri

    1) Karabagh, Russia, Minsk Group Say UN Discussion of Conflict Bad Idea

    STEPANAKERT (Interfax/Itar-Tass)--The foreign ministries of both Mountainous
    Karabagh Republic and Russia, as well as the OSCE Minsk Group (the group
    spearheads the OSCE effort to find a political solution to this conflict), all
    spoke out against including the Karabagh conflict on the UN General Assembly's
    agenda. The move, initiated by Azerbaijan, was backed by the UN General
    Committee which voted to recommend the inclusion of the issue on the agenda of
    the assembly's ongoing session.
    "The Azeri-initiated UN discussions on the territories controlled by
    Mountainous Karabagh has yet again shown Azerbaijan's disinclination to settle
    the entire range of problems between Azerbaijan and Mountainous Karabagh," MKR
    Deputy Foreign Minister Masis Mailian told Interfax.
    Azerbaijan alleges that the territory is used for drug manufacturing and
    terrorist training.
    "This step by Baku is purely propagandistic in its nature, which in no way
    facilitates the creation of a favorable atmosphere--essential for reaching a
    comprehensive solution to the Karabagh problem," Mailian said.
    Karabagh has repeatedly invited Azeri authorities to start implementing
    confidence building measures between the conflicting parties so as to resume
    full-scale negotiations, which are "the most efficient method for settling the
    conflict," Mailian said.
    The Russian cochairman of the OSCE Minsk Yury Merzlyakov said the action
    could
    harm efforts to bring about a just and lasting settlement
    Interviewed by Azerbaijan's ATV television, Merzlyakov said the UN General
    Assembly's session is not the proper forum to discuss the matter.
    Merzlyakov iterated the Minsk Group's statement on the move, that says,
    "Today, when we are all waiting for the sides to resume talks, there was no
    necessity to raise the issue."
    In its statement released on Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the
    suggestion to debate a Karabagh settlement at the UN General Assembly,
    parallel
    with OSCE efforts, "can hardly have a beneficial effect on the negotiating
    process."
    Russia, along with France and the US who represent the countries that make-up
    OCSE Minsk Group, abstained from the UN vote.
    "The group's format permits it to deal with any problems related to the
    conflict and to ensuring peace," the statement continued.


    2) South Caucasus Parliament Speakers Meeting in Paris

    PARIS (Armenpress)--At the initiation of French Senate Chairman Christian
    Poncelet, a meeting of Armenian, Azeri, and Georgian parliamentary leaders
    will
    take place in Paris on November 4. Armenian National Assembly chairman Arthur
    Baghdasarian arrived in Paris on Monday for a four-day visit, while his
    Georgian and Azeri counterparts, Nino Burjanadze and Murtuz Aleskerov, are
    scheduled to arrive on November 3.
    According to the Armenian embassy in France, the meeting's agenda includes
    talks on developing tourism and preservation of cultural heritage. No reports
    were made about whether the Karabagh conflict will be discussed. The three
    parliament speakers and Poncelet will also meet with UNESCO's Director
    General.


    3) Burjanadze Holds Talks with Top Russians

    MOSCOW (RBC/Civil Georgia)--The Chair of Georgian Parliament Nino Burjanadze,
    held separate meetings in Moscow on Monday with Secretary of the Russian
    Security Council Igor Ivanov and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
    Along with the bilateral ties, resolution of the South Ossetian and Abkhazian
    conflicts were discussed during talks between Burjanadze and Lavrov. In her
    talks with Ivanov, Burjanadze expressed readiness to develop "constructive
    dialogue" between the two countries, reported the Russian Foreign Ministry.
    "There are particular agreements; however, the difficulties in our relations
    still exist. I hope that further relations between our countries will proceed
    normally," Burjanadze told reporters, but stressed that double standards are
    applied to Georgia, in pointing to Russia's struggle with separatists in
    Chechnya and its backing of Abkhaz and South Ossetian authorities.


    4) Abkhazia Presidential Candidates in Moscow

    MOSCOW (Itar-Tass)--Abkhazian presidential candidates Sergei Bagapsh and Raul
    Khadzhimba are in Moscow, a source in the Moscow representative office of
    Abkhazia told Itar-Tass on Tuesday. The source did not announce, however,
    which
    Russian leaders the two men are scheduled to meet.
    Khadzhimba, who was contacted by phone, denied any comment, saying he was too
    busy. The standoff between Khadzhimba and Bagapsh has sparked a political
    crisis in the self-proclaimed republic.
    The current situation erupted after the unresolved October 3 presidential
    elections. The atmosphere was further clouded after the Supreme Court passed
    down two conflicting decisions about the election results. The first validated
    the Central Election Commission's results, which named Bagapsh the winner,
    while the second--released several hours later--invalidated the entire
    election
    and called for new elections.
    A decree of incumbent President Vladislav Ardzinba followed, ordering new
    elections on the grounds that the "Supreme Court of the Republic of Abkhazia
    has not passed a decision at a time stipulated by the Constitution on
    complaints addressed to it and on defense of constitutional rights of citizens
    and prevention of threats to the constitutional order of Abkhazia."
    Bagapsh stated that he did not intend to obey Ardzinba's order. "At present,
    the sole legal document is the decision of the Supreme Court rendering the
    elections in Abkhazia to be valid, and I have been elected president of the
    republic," he said in an interview with Itar-Tass.
    Supporters of Khadzhimba blocked the entrance to Abkhazian parliament
    building
    on Monday, when he and Bagapsh arrived in Moscow. Khadzhimba's chief
    campaigner
    Vasily Avidzba said the protesters prevented parliamentarians from entering
    the
    building because they "were going to pass a resolution on annulment of the
    order of President Vladislav Ardzinba on the repeated elections of the head of
    the republic and declare a vote of no-confidence in the president."


    5) Second Social Services Complex Opens in Armenia

    YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)--A new social service center opened in the Armenian city
    of Masis on November 2, to launch an experimental USAID program.
    The center, "One Stop Social Services," will house several local NGOs
    including, the Territorial Agency of Social Services, Territorial Center of
    Employment, Territorial Office of State Fund of Social Insurance, and the
    Commission of Medical-Social Expert Examination.
    Each NGO will take advantage of a networked computer system that will allow
    them to access larger databases. The technologically advanced system will
    centralize information and eliminate the need for multiple document
    submissions
    by those applying for services.
    Minister of Labor and Social Issues Aghvan Vardanian, announced that the
    specific database technology is being studied by Romanian, Albanian, and
    Georgian specialists, who are interested in introducing similar systems in
    their respective countries.
    At the opening of the center, US Ambassador to Armenia John Evans expressed
    hope that the new center would help alleviate the social and economic problems
    residents of Masis and its neighboring towns currently face.
    The town of Masis is currently home to 4,000 needy families, 1,500
    unemployed,
    and 3,000 pensioners and disabled persons.
    "One Stop Social Services" is the second center of its kind in the republic.
    The first was established in the city of Vanadzor.


    6) Source Reveals Russian Minister Discussed Railway Link via Abkhazia

    (RIA Novosti)--An unnamed source in the Georgian President's administration
    said that Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin, who visited Tbilisi on
    November 1, agreed with Georgian officials over setting up joint government
    groups to work on "technical aspects" of restoring the railway link between
    Russia and Armenia via Georgia, which lies through breakaway Abkhazia.
    On September 10, the railway link between Moscow and the capital of Georgia's
    breakaway Abkhazia was re-opened, triggering protests from Tbilisi, which
    insists that the process should be accompanied by the return of Georgia's
    internally displaced persons to Abkhazia.
    Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania told reporters after his talks with
    Levitin that the issue of railway connection was discussed during the meeting,
    but added that "until the normalization of the situation in Abkhazia occurs,
    talks over railway restoration make no sense."
    Georgian Economy Minister Kakha Bendukidze, however, downplayed Russia's
    unilateral decision to reopen its rail link with Abkhazia.
    Minister Levitin said at a news briefing after his talks with Zhvania and
    Bendukidze on November 1 that the Georgian officials showed an "understanding"
    towards Russia's decision to reopen its railway link with Abkhazia. He added
    that reopening of the route "should not lead to a worsening of relations"
    between the two countries.
    Armenia also insists on the reopening of the railway link via Abkhazia, which
    will enable it to restore its railway connection with Russia. President Robert
    Kocharian pressed this issue during recent talks with the Georgian leadership
    during his visit to Tbilisi in late October.
    On March 7, 2003, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Georgia's ex-President
    Eduard Shevardnadze signed an agreement in Sochi that envisioned
    "synchronization" of the two processes--the return of the internally displaced
    persons to Abkhazia's westernmost Gali region and the resumption of the
    railway
    connection. The two presidents also agreed to set up two separate bilateral
    government commissions to work out these issues; however, the commissions
    failed to complete the task.


    7) Turkish Conference on Minority Rights' Ends in Chaos

    ANKARA (AFX.COM)A debate over a report criticizing breaches of minority rights
    in aspiring European Union member Turkey collapsed when members of a
    government-sponsored human rights group, which authored the document, clashed
    in public.
    The incident is the latest in a series of rows within the Human Rights
    Advisory Boarda body attached to the office of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
    Erdoganwhich highlighted widespread hostility in Turkey to advanced cultural
    freedoms for the country's Kurdish and non-Muslim communities.
    Nationalist members of the board, which is comprised of government officials,
    academics, and civic groups, sabotaged a news conference called to formally
    release the report, which makes some controversial recommendations to the
    government and excerpts of which were last week leaked to the media.
    Shortly after the head of the board, Ibrahim Kaboglu, began speaking, a
    nationalist unionist grabbed the papers from his hands and tore them to
    pieces,
    yelling: "This report is a fabrication and should be torn apart."
    Kaboglu was forced to leave the hall, stating: "We cannot even hold a news
    conference. This is the state of freedom of thought in Turkey."
    The EU, which Turkey is seeking to join, has long pressed Ankara to grant
    equal cultural freedoms to its sizable Kurdish minority as well as smaller,
    non-Muslim communities such as Greeks, Armenians, and Jews.


    8) New Community Center Opens in Gyumri

    GYUMRI (Armenpress)--On November 2, a new three-building community center
    complex opened in Gyumri, financed by the Norwegian Refugee Council.
    Mission Armenia and Douleurs Sans Frontieres (DSF, Pain Without Borders) will
    be providing social services to the local population which include refugees,
    earthquake victims, and local residents. These services include various
    facilities for youth and elderly persons, including a soup kitchen, a clinic
    and trauma center, laundry services, library, conference room, counseling
    services, as well as a Kindergarten for around 20 children.
    The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is a non-governmental, humanitarian
    organization that has worked actively for more than 50 years to create a safer
    and more dignified life for refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs),
    regardless of their race, religion, nationality, or political convictions. The
    NRC's mission is to work for the rights of refugees and IDPs, assisting with
    food, shelter, and education, and offering counseling on repatriation.
    In Armenia, NRC has invested more that $10 million in refugee-targeted
    projects since 1995, including not only housing construction, but also
    building
    schools, and drinking and irrigation water pipelines. So far, NRC has provided
    new homes for over 600 refugee families in Armenia.
    Mission Armenia was registered in 1993, though its founding members started
    their activities since 1988, assisting those who suffered from the devastating
    earthquake.
    The organization's mission is to increase the quality of life for the
    elderly,
    refugees, and other vulnerable groups through its model of community-based
    assistance.
    Currently about 6,500 single older persons and 10,000 refugees residing at
    250
    temporary shelters benefit from Mission Armenia's community-based
    socio-healthcare and community development programs.
    Douleurs Sans Frontieres has advanced the mission of helping those in pain
    since 1995. Based in Europe, DSF is a non-governmental organization that has
    brought educational and clinical pain treatment programs to developing
    countries. Since November 2001, DSF has provided medico-psychological
    assistance for mothers and children from Gyumri and some from Yerevan.


    All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier
    and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and
    subscription requests.
    (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved.

    ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for
    academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through
    mass media outlets.
Working...
X