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ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
05/11/2006
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <http://www.asbarez.com/>HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM
1) Parliament Speaker Poised to Resign, Quit Armenian Coalition
2) Bulgarian Parliament Turned down Bill Recognizing Armenian Genocide
3) Hrant Dink Awarded Henri Nannen Prize for Promoting Press Freedom
4) Turkey's Envoys Return to France, Canada after Genocide Disagreement
5) Draft Law in Belgian Parliament Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial
6) French Experts Search for Black Boxes of Crashed Armenian Jet
7) Obituary
1) Parliament Speaker Poised to Resign, Quit Armenian Coalition
YEREVAN (RFE/RL/Armenpress)Artur Baghdasarian is prepared to resign as speaker
of Armenia's parliament and pull his Orinats Yerkir party out of the governing
coalition, said Heghine Bisharian, a senior Orinats Yerkir lawmaker.
As three more wealthy lawmakers defected from Orinats Yerkir late Wednesday
and early Thursday, the number of parliament seats controlled by
Baghdasarian's
party shrunk to 11. His party had 20 seats as recently as last month, boasting
the second largest faction in the 131-member Parliament.
According to Bisharian, a parliament member who remains loyal to
Baghdasarian,
the party's continued presence in government is becoming meaningless in such
circumstances. `I personally am in favor of his resignation and our departure
from the coalition,' she told a news conference.
`The entire Orinats Yerkir Party is of the same opinion,' said Bisharian.
Asked whether Baghdasarian shares that opinion, she replied: `I think he
will.'
Baghdasarian has declined to publicly comment on the situation.
Bisharian said Baghdasarian and the ruling board of the party will make the
final decision in a few days. She said the party is still uncertain about what
political force to cooperate with or which political landscape move to after
walking out from the ruling coalition.
She said the exodus of eight members of the party was unexpected and did not
rule out that their decision could have been prompted by a strong pressure on
part of top government officials.
Orinats Yerkir has now three ministers in the government. Its officials say
the party remains the largest political party in Armenia with about 62,000
members.
`I think the departure of a dozen [members] won't make any difference for the
party,' said Bisharian.
2) Bulgarian Parliament Turned down Bill Recognizing Armenian Genocide
Bulgarian lawmakers on Wednesday turned down a bill officially recognizing the
Armenian genocide, saying that this could endanger relations with neighboring
Turkey.
Legislators voted 81-56 with 33 abstentions against a draft resolution
proposed by the Ataka party, calling for "the recognition of the Armenian
genocide by the Turks."
The motion was rejected because of votes from the Socialist-led ruling
coalition that also includes a mainly ethnic Turkish party, the Movement for
Rights and Freedoms, the AP reports.
According to official statistics, Bulgaria--a tiny Balkan country of 7.8
million--has an 800,000-strong ethnic Turkish minority.
About 11,000 ethnic Armenians also live in Bulgaria, and most of them are
descendants of Armenian refugees who fled Ottoman Turkey during the Armenian
genocide.
3) Hrant Dink Awarded Henri Nannen Prize for Promoting Press Freedom
(PanArmenian)--Hrant Dink, editor of Istanbul's bilingual Armenian and Turkish
weekly Agos, was awarded the Henri Nannen Prize for promoting the freedom of
press and courage.
The award is sponsored by Gruner and Jahr Printing and Publishing and Stern
Weekly sponsor the award. Hrant Dink was awarded the prize for "breaking the
wall of silence and fear in Turkey, behind which Turkish Armenians live."
4) Turkey's Envoys Return to France, Canada after Genocide Disagreement
(AP/AFP)--Turkey's ambassadors to Canada and France have returned to their
posts after being been recalled to Ankara because of disagreements on whether
the massacres of Armenians during World War I constituted genocide, a Turkish
diplomat said on Thursday.
The ambassador to Paris, Osman Koruturk, and the ambassador to Ottawa,
Aydemir
Erman, "have returned" to their posts after talks with Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and foreign ministry officials, the diplomat told AFP on
condition of anonymity.
The foreign ministry said on Monday the two had been summoned to Ankara
"for a
short time" for consultations. Turkey has warned Paris that bilateral ties
will
suffer if the French parliament adopts a bill that would make it a punishable
offence to "deny the existence of the 1915 Armenian genocide."
A first reading of the French bill, proposed by the opposition Socialist
Party, is scheduled for May 18. It follows a 2001 French law officially
recognizing the Armenian genocide and, if approved, the new bill would provide
for a five-year sentence and a 45,000 Euro (57,000 Dollar) fine for any person
who denies that the 1915-17 massacres constitute genocide.
Turkish Lawmaker visiting France said they "relayed the Turkish people's
strong reaction to our French colleagues" and warned that there were calls for
a boycott of French goods in Turkey and that Turkish-French relations would be
severely harmed if the bill is passed, Turkey's Anatolia news agency
reported.
Turkey was also angered when Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper reaffirmed
the Armenian genocide during commemorations of the 91st anniversary of the
Genocide on April 24. The Turkish foreign ministry said at the time that
Harper's words were "appalling" and would "negatively affect" bilateral ties.
In protest, Turkey withdrew from a planned multi-nation military exercise
to be
held in Canada, officials in Ottawa said on Wednesday.
In 2002, the Canadian Senate recognized the Armenian genocide as the first
genocide of the 20th century and the House of Commons followed suit two years
later.
5) Draft Law in Belgian Parliament Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial
Belgium's Reformist Movement party proposed a draft law in Parliament, which
would expand the definition of genocide denial to the Armenian genocide. It is
already a crime to deny the Holocaust in Belgium, and the lawmakers who
proposed the bill want to extend the law to denial of the Armenian genocide as
well.
The Belgian Parliament failed to enact the same law two years ago, fearing
reprisals from Turkey.
6) French Experts Search for Black Boxes of Crashed Armenian Jet
SOCHI (Armenpress)--French experts have left the Black Sea port of Sochi in an
effort to pinpoint the location of the flight data recorders of an Armenian
airliner that crashed last week killing all 113 people abroad, Russian
emergency services said Thursday.
The black boxes are crucial in determining the cause of the accident, in
which
the Airbus plunged into the sea in stormy weather six kilometers (3.7 miles)
from the coast.
Vladimir Yerygin, who oversees technological support for the operation to
recover the recorders, said the specialists from Toulouse-based Airbus were
planning to use advanced hydroacoustic equipment to find the precise location
of the black boxes and recover them using a deep-sea vehicle.
7) Obituary
We are saddened to report the death of distinguished writer Jirair Attarian on
Tuesday, May 9, 2006 in New York. Attarian was born in Konia in 1914 and lived
in Syria and Lebanon before moving to the United States. His articles have
appeared in various publications and he has authored two novels. He
unfortunately did not live to see the publication of his latest work, a
collection of articles and stories, which will be published soon.
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) 2006 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.
TOP STORIES
05/11/2006
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <http://www.asbarez.com/>HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM
1) Parliament Speaker Poised to Resign, Quit Armenian Coalition
2) Bulgarian Parliament Turned down Bill Recognizing Armenian Genocide
3) Hrant Dink Awarded Henri Nannen Prize for Promoting Press Freedom
4) Turkey's Envoys Return to France, Canada after Genocide Disagreement
5) Draft Law in Belgian Parliament Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial
6) French Experts Search for Black Boxes of Crashed Armenian Jet
7) Obituary
1) Parliament Speaker Poised to Resign, Quit Armenian Coalition
YEREVAN (RFE/RL/Armenpress)Artur Baghdasarian is prepared to resign as speaker
of Armenia's parliament and pull his Orinats Yerkir party out of the governing
coalition, said Heghine Bisharian, a senior Orinats Yerkir lawmaker.
As three more wealthy lawmakers defected from Orinats Yerkir late Wednesday
and early Thursday, the number of parliament seats controlled by
Baghdasarian's
party shrunk to 11. His party had 20 seats as recently as last month, boasting
the second largest faction in the 131-member Parliament.
According to Bisharian, a parliament member who remains loyal to
Baghdasarian,
the party's continued presence in government is becoming meaningless in such
circumstances. `I personally am in favor of his resignation and our departure
from the coalition,' she told a news conference.
`The entire Orinats Yerkir Party is of the same opinion,' said Bisharian.
Asked whether Baghdasarian shares that opinion, she replied: `I think he
will.'
Baghdasarian has declined to publicly comment on the situation.
Bisharian said Baghdasarian and the ruling board of the party will make the
final decision in a few days. She said the party is still uncertain about what
political force to cooperate with or which political landscape move to after
walking out from the ruling coalition.
She said the exodus of eight members of the party was unexpected and did not
rule out that their decision could have been prompted by a strong pressure on
part of top government officials.
Orinats Yerkir has now three ministers in the government. Its officials say
the party remains the largest political party in Armenia with about 62,000
members.
`I think the departure of a dozen [members] won't make any difference for the
party,' said Bisharian.
2) Bulgarian Parliament Turned down Bill Recognizing Armenian Genocide
Bulgarian lawmakers on Wednesday turned down a bill officially recognizing the
Armenian genocide, saying that this could endanger relations with neighboring
Turkey.
Legislators voted 81-56 with 33 abstentions against a draft resolution
proposed by the Ataka party, calling for "the recognition of the Armenian
genocide by the Turks."
The motion was rejected because of votes from the Socialist-led ruling
coalition that also includes a mainly ethnic Turkish party, the Movement for
Rights and Freedoms, the AP reports.
According to official statistics, Bulgaria--a tiny Balkan country of 7.8
million--has an 800,000-strong ethnic Turkish minority.
About 11,000 ethnic Armenians also live in Bulgaria, and most of them are
descendants of Armenian refugees who fled Ottoman Turkey during the Armenian
genocide.
3) Hrant Dink Awarded Henri Nannen Prize for Promoting Press Freedom
(PanArmenian)--Hrant Dink, editor of Istanbul's bilingual Armenian and Turkish
weekly Agos, was awarded the Henri Nannen Prize for promoting the freedom of
press and courage.
The award is sponsored by Gruner and Jahr Printing and Publishing and Stern
Weekly sponsor the award. Hrant Dink was awarded the prize for "breaking the
wall of silence and fear in Turkey, behind which Turkish Armenians live."
4) Turkey's Envoys Return to France, Canada after Genocide Disagreement
(AP/AFP)--Turkey's ambassadors to Canada and France have returned to their
posts after being been recalled to Ankara because of disagreements on whether
the massacres of Armenians during World War I constituted genocide, a Turkish
diplomat said on Thursday.
The ambassador to Paris, Osman Koruturk, and the ambassador to Ottawa,
Aydemir
Erman, "have returned" to their posts after talks with Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and foreign ministry officials, the diplomat told AFP on
condition of anonymity.
The foreign ministry said on Monday the two had been summoned to Ankara
"for a
short time" for consultations. Turkey has warned Paris that bilateral ties
will
suffer if the French parliament adopts a bill that would make it a punishable
offence to "deny the existence of the 1915 Armenian genocide."
A first reading of the French bill, proposed by the opposition Socialist
Party, is scheduled for May 18. It follows a 2001 French law officially
recognizing the Armenian genocide and, if approved, the new bill would provide
for a five-year sentence and a 45,000 Euro (57,000 Dollar) fine for any person
who denies that the 1915-17 massacres constitute genocide.
Turkish Lawmaker visiting France said they "relayed the Turkish people's
strong reaction to our French colleagues" and warned that there were calls for
a boycott of French goods in Turkey and that Turkish-French relations would be
severely harmed if the bill is passed, Turkey's Anatolia news agency
reported.
Turkey was also angered when Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper reaffirmed
the Armenian genocide during commemorations of the 91st anniversary of the
Genocide on April 24. The Turkish foreign ministry said at the time that
Harper's words were "appalling" and would "negatively affect" bilateral ties.
In protest, Turkey withdrew from a planned multi-nation military exercise
to be
held in Canada, officials in Ottawa said on Wednesday.
In 2002, the Canadian Senate recognized the Armenian genocide as the first
genocide of the 20th century and the House of Commons followed suit two years
later.
5) Draft Law in Belgian Parliament Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial
Belgium's Reformist Movement party proposed a draft law in Parliament, which
would expand the definition of genocide denial to the Armenian genocide. It is
already a crime to deny the Holocaust in Belgium, and the lawmakers who
proposed the bill want to extend the law to denial of the Armenian genocide as
well.
The Belgian Parliament failed to enact the same law two years ago, fearing
reprisals from Turkey.
6) French Experts Search for Black Boxes of Crashed Armenian Jet
SOCHI (Armenpress)--French experts have left the Black Sea port of Sochi in an
effort to pinpoint the location of the flight data recorders of an Armenian
airliner that crashed last week killing all 113 people abroad, Russian
emergency services said Thursday.
The black boxes are crucial in determining the cause of the accident, in
which
the Airbus plunged into the sea in stormy weather six kilometers (3.7 miles)
from the coast.
Vladimir Yerygin, who oversees technological support for the operation to
recover the recorders, said the specialists from Toulouse-based Airbus were
planning to use advanced hydroacoustic equipment to find the precise location
of the black boxes and recover them using a deep-sea vehicle.
7) Obituary
We are saddened to report the death of distinguished writer Jirair Attarian on
Tuesday, May 9, 2006 in New York. Attarian was born in Konia in 1914 and lived
in Syria and Lebanon before moving to the United States. His articles have
appeared in various publications and he has authored two novels. He
unfortunately did not live to see the publication of his latest work, a
collection of articles and stories, which will be published soon.
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) 2006 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.