S EPT EMBER 1 2 , 2 0 0 9

THE ARMENIAN

Mirror-Spectator
Volume LXXX, NO. 8 Issue 41 02

The First English Language Armenian Weekly in the United States

$ 2. 00
NEWS IN BRIEF
Ambassador Yovanovitch
Patriarchate To Visit Turkey
YEREVAN (news.am) — US Ambassador to
Protests Armenia Marie Yovanovitch will visit Turkey, a US
Embassy representative said.
Yovanovitch is currently traveling in Georgia.
Seminarians’ Georgian media report Yovanovitch recently met
with Alexander Nalbandov, Georgian Deputy

Deportation Foreign Minister, discussing Armenian-Georgian

relationship.

Syria, Armenia Reach

By Arthur Hagopian
Early Trade Deals
JERUSALEM — The Armenian DAMASCUS, Syria (UPI) — The Syrian and
Patriarchate of Jerusalem has lodged a Armenian governments through a joint meeting in
protest against the Israeli Ministry of Interior Damascus reached a series of preliminary agree-
as a result of its decision to deport two sem- ments on energy and trade.
inarians involved in a fight with a Jewish A joint economic committee wrapped up a meet-
youth who had spat on a religious procession ing in Damascus, emerging with memorandums of
in which they were participating. Sara Bogosian, left, and Michael Lally hang “The Three Roses,” by Arshile Gorky. understanding in trade, petroleum and transport,
Patriarchate spokesperson Rev. Pakrad the official Syrian Arab News Agency reports.
Bourjekian noted that this was not the first The agreement comes on the heels of regional
time an unprovoked aggression against developments regarding simmering issues between
Armenian or Christian clergymen in Permanent Loan of Works by Gorky Turkey and Armenia.
Damascus hosted officials from Yerevan recently,
Jerusalem had occurred.
He said not only were the clergy singled out Makes Whistler Museum a Magnet including a June visit between Syrian President
Bashar Assad and his Armenian counterpart Serge
for this kind of treatment, but lay members of
the Armenian community who wore or dis- LOWELL, Mass. — The Whistler House Sargisian.
played crosses bore the brunt of such attacks. By Daphne Abeel Museum of Art has been a gem since its
founding in 1908, but it is to become a
The latest incident occurred on Sunday,
September 6 as Armenian seminarians
Special to the Mirror-Spectator
magnet as well. This small house museum Bryza’s Spouse Speaks on
(the birthplace of the American painter,
were returning to the Convent of St. James
after holding their weekly procession in the James McNeill Whistler) located on a quiet side street here, has become the recip-
NKR, Armenian-Turkish
Church of the Holy Sepulchre. ient of a collection of 28 works by the renowned Armenian-American painter,
Arshile Gorky. The works, to be on permanent loan, will be officially unveiled at
Negotiation Processes
As they neared the convent, they said a
a reception this weekend. WASHINGTON (Azg) — The re-opening of the
young Jew wearing a kipa spat on them. see GORKY, page 13 Armenian-Turkish border fully meets the West’s
One of the seminarians accosted the
interests, as it will make Armenia less dependent on
youth, who responded by spitting again,
Russia and Iran, that the US has failed to achieve
leading to a brawl which police stopped by
for many years despite the great financial assis-
arresting two of the Armenian seminarians
tance to Armenia, Zeyno Baran, director of the
and holding them for 24 hours.
That same evening, the police informed the
Armenian Patriarchate that the matter would
US Names New Karabagh Envoy Center for Eurasian Policy and a Senior Fellow at
the Hudson Institute, a research center located in
Washington, DC, said in an interview with the
be dealt with at court the next morning. WASHINGTON (RFE/RL) — The United The State Department said career diplo-
Turkish Turan news agency, news.am reports.
But when the Armenians presented States named its new top negotiator in the mat Robert Bradtke will replace Matthew
The possible reopening of the Armenian-Turkish
themselves at court, they were informed Nagorno-Karabagh peace process late Bryza as the US co-chair of the Organization
border will draw Armenia closer to the West, which
that the police had referred the matter to Monday, pledging to do “everything possi- for Security and Cooperation’s (OSCE)
will allow the country to have partners other than
the Israeli Ministry of the Interior, which ble” to broker a near-term solution to the Minsk Group on Karabagh. “Ambassador
Russia and Iran, she said.
had decided on the deportation of the two Armenian-Azerbaijani dispute. Bradtke brings to this position more than 36
According to her, Ankara has been and will be
seminarians, Bourjekian said. years of Foreign Service experience and
taking Azerbaijan’s interests into account in mak-
The Patriarchate complained that the extensive expertise in European security pol-
ing decisions on all the Caucasus-related issues,
ministry has ignored protests and remon- icy,” department spokesman Ian Kelly said in
including the Armenian-Turkish rapprochement.
strations, adding spitting on Christians by a statement.
Baran said she, as well as many in Turkey, under-
Jews is not a new issue, but has been prac- Bradtke was Washington’s ambassador in
stand Azerbaijan’s concern. However, she does not
ticed for several years without police taking Croatia until this July and had served as a
think Turkey will make a step detrimental to
any measures to stop it. deputy assistant secretary of state responsible
Azerbaijan’s interests. It is not only because of
Bourjekian also noted that in addition for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
strategic relations and growing exports of
to this “harassment by civilians,” the (NATO) and the OSCE from 2001-2004. His
Azerbaijani energy resources through Turkey, but
Interior Ministry intentionally delays professional career also includes a two-year
also because of the affinity between the two
renewing visas of Armenian monks and stint as executive secretary of the US National
nations, she said.
priests who have been born in Lebanon, Security Council during the final years of Bill
Syria and Jordan, “causing them undue Robert A. Bradtke Clinton’s presidency.
distress.” see ENVOY, page 5

INSIDE
California Insurance Case Plaintiffs Plan Appeal
LOS ANGELES — Lawyers representing US District Judge Christina A. Snyder month, attorney Brian Kabateck said the
Schmidt vs.
the descendents of Armenian Genocide vic-
tims who never received payment on their
life insurance policies planned to appeal a
had decided that a California law gave the
descendants the right to sue three German
insurance companies that had been selling
ruling could help secure a special hearing
in front of a panel of 20 federal judges
known as an “En Banc” hearing.
Krikorian
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling policies to Armenians in the waning days of Geragos estimated that out of 5,000 See page 5
against them on September 10. the Ottoman Empire. requests for an En Banc hearing in US
The insurance companies mentioned in Attorney Mark Geragos, one of three District Courts, perhaps 50 are approved
this case were Deutsche Bank and Armenian-American lawyers representing each year.
Dresdner Bank. the heirs, said the dissenting opinion in the “In some respects, the absurdity of the
A class-action suit, led by Glendale priest, 2-1 August 20 decision, written by Judge decision will be our best friend, because it
INDEX
Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,3
Vazken Movsesian, of St. Peter Armenian Harry Pregerson, would help make their could get the entire En Blanc case or get Arts and Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Church, and thousands of other Armenian case. the Supreme Court to review it,” he said. Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16, 17
Americans, descendents of some 1.5 million “There is no express federal policy for- “We’ll fight it anywhere and everywhere we Community News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Armenian victims of the Genocide, had won bidding California from using the term have to.” Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
a favorable ruling in 2007, which allowed ‘Armenian Genocide’ in the course of exer- Geragos said the appeal will ask for International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
descendents of Genocide victims who had cising its traditional authority to regulate either a re-hearing in front of three judges
bought insurance policies, to claim pay- the insurance industry,” Pregerson wrote. or an En Banc hearing.
ment for those policies. Just after the ruling was announced last — Thomas C. Nash
2 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

ARMENIA

News From Armenia French Mobile Operator to Launch Armenia Network

PARIS, YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — The the bidding came as a surprise given the said late last year that the French giant
Armenia to Borrow $30 French telecommunications operator
Orange remains on track to launch
small size of Armenia’s economy and
rapid growth of its wireless sector in
will put the emphasis on third-genera-
tion (3G) services such as video calls
Million in 2010 for Armenia’s third mobile phone network recent years. As of last January, an esti- and broadband Internet connection.
before the end of this year, a top com- mated 2.6 million of the country’s three The two other local mobile phone
Telecom Net work Debt pany executive said on September 2. million residents had mobile phones con- operators, meanwhile, said that they are
Y ER EVA N ( Pr ime-T ass) — A r menia plans to t ake out Bruno Duthoit, the chief executive of nected to two networks owned by the gearing up for tighter competition in
a $ 3 0 mi lli on l oan in 2 0 1 0 f r om t he Wor l d B ank to the newly registered Orange-Armenia subsidiaries of Russia’s two largest wire- the market. “Of course, we are very seri-
deve lop t he c ount r y’s main c ommunic at ions net- brand, also insisted that the France less operators, MTS and Beeline. ously preparing for the entry of the
wor k, Vache Kir akos yan, he ad of the infor mat ion and Telecom group’s mobile phone unit is Echoing statements by other Orange third operator,” said Anush Beghloyan,
hi gh te chnologi es depar t ment at A r meni a’s Mi nist r y undaunted by the near saturation of the executives, Duthoit said the company a spokeswoman for the national tele-
of E conomy, sai d September 3 . local market for wireless services. feels that there is still room for a new coms company ArmenTel owned by
A r me nia and t he Wor l d B an k are cur r ent ly in t alks Orange won last October an interna- operator’s entry into the market. Beeline. “But we are not afraid and
over t he ter ms of t he loan . tional contract for the right to launch and “Meeting many people and looking into don’t think that it will reflect negatively
T he loan i s the sec on d s tage of A r men ia’s pr ogr am operate the third Armenian wireless net- market studies, I get the impression that on the number of our mobile sub-
for t he devel op ment of tele communi c at i on s tec hnolo- work. It paid 50 million euros ($72 mil- many clients are awaiting an enlarge- scribers.”
gy in t he coun t r y, K ir akosy an said. T he Wor ld B ank lion) for the license, outbidding two other ment of their choice,” he said in an Ralph Yirikian, the executive director
h a s a l r e ad y f i n a n c e d a $ 1 m i l l i o n r e s e ar c h p r o j e c t i n European telecom firms short-listed in the interview. “In particular, there are peo- of the rival VivaCell-MTS network,
telec ommunic at ion s nec essar y to develop t he main government-administered contest. ple who still don’t use mobile phones or which boasts more than two million
c ommun ic at ions ne t wor k, he sai d. The company’s decision to take part in use the services provided by the other subscribers, also claimed to be ready for
operators but would like to have more “healthy competition” with Europe’s
choice in the terms of the quality of the second-largest mobile operator. Yirikian
Armenian President services.” also admitted that Orange-Armenia can

Receives Director of Debate Over Duthoit added that Orange-Armenia

does not plan drastic cuts in the existing
attract a sizable number of customers.
“Let us not forget that we Armenians,
Russian Federal Securit y Border Opening mobile phone fees and will instead seek
to woo Armenians with “a new
including myself, are a bit of show-offs
and want to have a number of different
Ser vice approach, a new perception, a new [cellphone] numbers with different

Y E R EVA N ( A r men p r e s s) — P r e s i de n t S e r ge
Becomes Even image and perhaps certain new ser-
vices.” An Orange spokesman in Paris
access code numbers,” he said. “So
there is room [for another operator.]”
Sargi sian r ec eived this wee k dir ec tor of the Russi an
Feder al Sec ur ity Ser vi ce A lexander Bor tn ikov, who More Diverse
ar r ive d in Yer evan to par t ic ipate i n j oint cons ult a-
t ions of heads of sec ur i ty se r vi ce s of A r me nia and YEREVAN (ArmeniaNow) — The
R ussi a. International Monetary Fund (IMF) rep-
resentative in Armenia stated on
Armenia’s Economic Rating Sinks One Notch
Pr esiden t ial pr ess s er v ic e told A r menpr ess that
Wednesday that the opening of the YEREVAN (Dow Jones Newswires) — Fitch Ratings downgraded Armenia
Sargsyan note d wi th pleasur e ab out t he A r meni an-
Armenian-Turkish border will have a further into junk territory as the country struggles to cope with the glob-
R ussi an st r ategic par tne r shi p, r egular cont ac ts i n dif -
positive influence upon the develop- al economic crisis.
fer en t spher es and high leve l of pol it i c al di alogue
ment of Armenia’s import and the rise “Despite a strong policy response supported by the international com-
whic h may be wi tne ssed by expan ding par tner ship
of its level of competitiveness. munity, the severity of the shock has materially weakened Armenia’s cred-
bet ween t he t wo count r ie s i n di f fer ent spher es.
“In case of opening the border it fundamentals and medium-term prospects,” said Fitch’s Andrew
T he head of t he c oun t r y under sc ore d t he c oop er a-
Armenia will get more competitive Colquhoun. “Unlocking Armenia’s economic potential and restoring strong
t ion and r egular c on tac ts be t ween t he sec ur ity bodies
resources, and it will become a good and sustained growth necessary to reduce poverty and raise incomes will
an d n oted t hat they pr omote t he devel op ment of steps
stimulus for the economy,” said the be much harder as a result of the crisis.”
towar d conf r ont in g exist i ng thre ats and chall enges
IMF’s Nienke Oomes. Armenia, a landlocked nation of 3 million in the Caucasus was fiscally
wit h mor e ef f ic ien cy.
Meanwhile, Armenian economists prudent and too isolated to be hit by early fallout from the credit crisis.
T he dir ec tor of t he R ussi an Fede r al Sec ur i ty
insist on the opposite, saying that the But the former Soviet republic has seen its economy get hit hard as
Ser v ic e said t hat he is sat i sf ied wi th t he cooper at ion
local production that is still in the phase Armenians who live abroad send less money home. Now, some expatriates
wit h A r meni an spec ial ser v ic es.
of development will not be able to stand are returning and looking for jobs, presenting new problems for the econ-
the competitiveness of Turkish goods. omy, which shrunk an estimated 16 percent in the first half of the year,
Armenia Is Ready to “Currently the domestic production according to Fitch.
goes through a serious decline in The rating agency downgraded Armenia one notch to BB-, three steps
Promote Cooperation with Armenia; and under such conditions from investment grade. The ratings outlook is stable, reflecting Fitch’s
when the volumes of import are seven view that “the near-term risks to macroeconomic and financial stability are
the World Bank times more than those of the export, relatively low given the policy response and support from the internation-
Y ER EVA N ( A r menpr ess ) — Nat ional A ssemb ly ( NA ) competition with Turkish producers al financial community.”
Speaker H ov ik A br ahamy an r ec eived t his week t he who have serious capital and market There is a stand-by agreement with the International Monetary Fund for
he ad of the Wor ld B ank A r me nian O f f ic e A r i stomene will simply be impossible,” said Prof. $820 million in aid and $1.2 billion from other sources.
Varoudakis. Tatul Manaseryan, adviser to the
A t t he meet ing t he t wo men disc uss ed t he gl obal Speaker of the National Assembly on
ec onomic c r isis and its impac t on t he economy of economic issues.
According to the data of the National
A r me nia.
A br ahamyan sai d t hat t he Nat ional A ssembly is Statistics Service, about 25 percent of Officer Charged with Using ‘Excessive
r eady to work cl osely wit h t he Wor ld Ban k. Armenia’s imports are from Turkey.
Meanwhile, economist
Mkrtchyan predicts if the border is
Narine Force’ in Post-election Clashes
Internet Development Plan open, the prices of the goods imported YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Investigators person. They all must be tried. They
from Turkey will decrease, and domestic in Armenia have moved to charge a know who participated in it. I was
Ready for Release production will not be competitive with senior police officer involved in the dis- attacked by five. If they don’t punish
Y ER EVA N ( A r menp re ss) — A developmen t p lan on Turkish goods. persal of last year’s post-election other policemen, why punish this one?”
in for mat ion tec hnology for t he A r me nian pr ov inc es Economist Ara Nranyan, a member of demonstration with using excessive said Hayotsian.
will soon be pr ese nted to Te r r itor ial A dmin ist r at ion the Armenian Revolutionary Federation force. David Arakelian, a police worker in
Mi nister A r me n G evor gyan. (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun parliamentary According to a report issued by the the past who like Hayotsian was arrest-
T he document wil l addr ess i ssue s on t he avai labi li- faction, said he believed that the open- Special Investigation Service (SIS) late ed and later tried and convicted for
ty and af f or dabi lit y of t he I nter net i n t he pr ov inc es ing of the border will have more nega- last week, Gegham Harutiunian, who is committing violence against a police
an d al so a s uggest i on on test pr ogr ams to be i mple- tive than positive effects on the econo- charged with the use of a rubber baton worker, says it is not difficult for inves-
men ted in one c ommunity of eac h provi nc e. my of Armenia. against a citizen in Yerevan’s Republic tigators to establish who had abused
A bout 8 0 per cen t of In ter net user s in A r menia ar e “The economy in Armenia is not Square on the morning of March 1, their authority while on duty.
in Yer evan and only 2 0 per c ent in t he pr ovinc es. ready yet, and it will not be able to con- 2008, has been confined within the city Meanwhile, the body in charge of the
front future possible problems,” limits pending further investigation investigation has appealed to all citi-
Nranyan adds. and trial. zens who were eyewitnesses or suffered
Several Arrests Made in Meanwhile, Vardan Ayvazyan, chair- “The search for the citizen against from police action on March 1-2, 2008
man of the Standing Committee on whom the police officer used violence is to turn to law-enforcement agencies and
Connect ion with Murder Economic Affairs of the National continuing,” the SIS said in its state- provide relevant information. Lusine
Of Deput y Chief of Police Assembly, says that “one should at least
be blind not to notice the economic
ment.
One of the March 1 protesters,
Sahakian, a lawyer for a number of
detainees in the March 1-related cases,
Y ER EVA N ( A r men pre ss) — Sever al people have b een prospective of the Armenian-Turkish Vahagn Hayotsian, who claims that vio- says, however, that the SIS would find
ar rested c onnec ted wit h t he mur der of D eputy Chief border opening, and the possibility of lence was used against him as well, says no crime in the action of police against
of Polic e G evor g Mhe r yan, who was shot to deat h economic growth.” he has not submitted a complaint several high-profile figures despite their
Febr uar y 3 . “Of course, there is the threat of against any of the policemen who he numerous applications to the body.
Chi ef of t he Poli ce A l ik Sar gisian s aid at t he meet- Turkish economic expansion, but it is says beat him on that day because he The lawyer sees the possibility of
in g wit h t he r epor ter s that t he in vest i gat ion is con- possible to neutralize them by means of “couldn’t recognize any.” amnestying the offenders in accordance
t inuing. legislation, the conditions of the World “During the clashes I never saw a with the bill approved by the legislature
Trade Organization, the implementa- police officer with an uncovered face. in June behind the greater willingness
tion of goods’ standardization and cus- They all wore riot gear. It is possible to of investigators to find offenders
toms duties,” Ayvazyan says. submit a complaint against a concrete among police officers.
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 3

ARMENIA

Armenia’s Yezidis Bemoan Lowly Status

ers, but other officials say Yezidis often do not want to go to
university, complicating the quest for a new class of special-
By Aghavni Harutyunian and Arpi Makhsudian ists.
Tamoian said Yezidis should be grateful that they live in
YEREVAN (Institute for War and Peace Reporting) — books for the higher years,” he said. Armenia, where their situation is better than elsewhere. “In
Most of the population of the Amo district in the Armenian But if he thought that was enough to please the Yezidis, northern Iraq, in the Yezidis’ homeland, there are no Yezidi
village of Zovuni are ethnic Yezidis, making it a rare place he was mistaken. The new textbooks are written in the newspapers, there is no radio, no cultural organization, and
even in the multi-ethnic Caucasus, but visitors can be forgiven Kurmanji dialect of Kurdish but printed in the Cyrillic script. in Armenia conditions are better than ever,” he said.
for not noticing. Their attention will be occupied by the loud “We do not know this language Kurmanji and we don’t He blamed the Yezidi view that they are discriminated
buzz coming from the high-voltage power cables overhead. want to know it. It is as if Armenians had to learn in Azeri against on the difficult economic conditions in the country,
For the visitor, the noise may cause a headache, but the or Georgian,” said Hasan Tamoian, the head of Yezidi pro- the proportionately poorer condition of Yezidi communities
residents have lived with it since the 1970s, when the deci- grams at Armenian public radio. and a tendency not to emphasize education in Yezidi fami-
sion to install the wires was first made. Armenia has no Yezidi schools, and never has had. Yezidi lies.
“When my father and uncle complained about it, they children study in normal Armenian schools with special lan- But this does not wash with Aziz Tamoian, chairman of
were told they would be given a house in a different place. guage lessons, but even that is under threat since teachers the Union of Yezidis, who was head of the village adminis-
Then the people went to the mountains for the summer, and of Yezidi are paid so poorly that the program may not last tration in Amo district in the 1960s and 1970s. He said the
when they got back, the lines had already been built,” said much longer. failure to remove the power lines as well as a consistent
Qyalash Avdalian, an ethnic Yezidi whose family is consid- Mamoian Asmar, for example, teaches in the village of Nor refusal to allow Yezidis to buy land, were proof of systemat-
ered the largest in the district. Geghi, which, like Zovuni, is in the Kotayk region, but wants ic discrimination against the community.
Many local residents claim their health has been affected to find a new job because there are few textbooks for her He said that the opposition of the villagers was ignored
by the wires and that the government’s failure “over four pupils and little money for her. when the power lines were built, and that now some 40
decades” to reroute the lines or rehouse the Yezidis is a She only has textbooks for the first three classes, and has houses are directly below the constant buzz of the cables.
result of endemic discrimination. no idea what books the older children will use if she agrees But he did not get much sympathy from Electric
The Yezidis are Armenia’s largest minority, with more to teach again. Networks of Armenia, which owns the lines.
than 40,000 people out of the country’s total population of “We are not going to teach the children the alphabet over “When these high-voltage electricity lines were put up,
3.2 million. That makes Armenia the second largest Yezidi again. Leaving that aside, the headmistress gave me extra there were no houses in the security zone. The village was
community in the world, a long way behind that in Iraq, teaching hours last year, but this year a teacher has demand- located away from the line. There were just a few plots of
which may be as large as half a million. ed her hours back. What can I do then? I can’t solve this land where sheep were kept,” said Shavarsh Avetisian of the
They speak their own language, Yezidi, which is related to problem on my own. I am not going to go to work for just security department, adding that the houses were built
Kurdish, and have their own religion called Yazdanism, four hours,” she said. under the lines in the 1980s, and that the Yezidi residents
which is often presented as “devil-worship,” but which in If young Yezidis leave teaching, the current deficit of spe- cannot blame the electricity company.
reality combines elements of all the Middle East’s faiths. cialists will become even more severe in the future, something “The national minority card is always being played here.
The government has tried to satisfy the Yezidis’ demands, the government has recognized as a major problem. The Amo district only appeared here after the electric lines
but is starting from almost nothing, since they have long “In Soviet times there were serious specialists, doctors, were built.”
been marginalized. Vardan Astsatrian, the head of the gov- academics who trained others. But now the specialists have
ernment’s department for national minorities and religions, died, or are too old,” said Astsatrian.
said the first job was to try to produce school books. He said the government was trying to prepare a program (Aghavni Harutyunian is a reporter with Azg daily. Arpi
“In the last year books have been published for the in which Yezidis could be allowed into university with lower Makhsudian is a reporter with Capital daily. Both are mem-
younger children, and now we are working on a set of text- marks than ethnic Armenians to help produce more teach- bers of IWPR’s Cross-Caucasus Journalism Network.)

Hundred Days in Office: Education Minister Shares Concerns and Expectations

ing to solve the existing problems in the sphere “Education must meet the expectations of ation of demand towards knowledge within
By Siranuysh Gevorgyan as he held a press conference on Wednesday the public concerning its system of values, society.
devoted to 100 days in office. because education is not only studying, but also “Unfortunately, knowledge and intellect are
“Education should first of all serve the econ- upbringing.” not considered to be guarantees for prosperous
YEREVAN (ArmeniaNow) — Armenia’s omy with its qualified specialists, and it should According to Ashotyan, a member of the gov- life in our society. The logic is that very often
Minister of Education and Science spoke of the fulfill the orders of the economy,” said Minister erning Republican Party, in order to achieve those who are clever and skillful are not as rich
need for serious legislative changes and fund- Armen Ashotyan. those goals, it is necessary to make reforms in as those who did not receive education,”
the legislative sphere, “which is far from being Ashotyan explained.
perfect.” Referring to school textbooks, the minister
“There are various shortcomings and dis- said that even though they are written by the
Opposition Tycoon Comes Out of Hiding crepancies in the legislation concerning educa-
tion and science, which hinder the process of
best specialists, however, most of them have not
connection with schools.
common development,” he said. “From the pedagogical point of view most
YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — In a surprise move, Armenia’s parliament arrested in the govern- The minister said that at the upcoming of the textbooks are incomplete, because
Khachatur Sukiasian, a fugitive businessman ment crackdown, he was charged with plotting autumn session of the National Assembly, some they do not correspond to the physical and
and opposition parliamentarian, surrendered to to “usurp the state authority” and organizing amendment packages will already be discussed, psychological development of those school-
Armenian law-enforcement authorities on “mass riots” that left ten people dead. State the rest will be ready next year, and they will be children for whom they are designed, I mean
September 2 to face trial for his alleged role in prosecutors dropped the coup charges against submitted during the spring session. they are very difficult. The Ministry has many
last year’s post-election violence in Yerevan. them in April this year. Ashotyan believes that the precondition for things to do in this sphere, too,” concluded
Sona Truzian, a spokeswoman for Armenia’s An amnesty bill approved by the National solving the problems of the sphere is the cre- Ashotyan.
Office of the Prosecutor-General, said Sukiasian Assembly on June 19 gave Sukiasian and other
was taken into custody immediately after arriv- fugitive oppositionists until July 31 to turn
ing at the headquarters of the Special themselves in and face trial. They will be set
Investigative Service (SIS), which has been free if found guilty and sentenced to up to five
investigating the deadly unrest.
Sukiasian was among several opposition fig-
ures who went into hiding in March 2008 to
years in prison.
Three of the fugitives surrendered to the police
before the deadline. Sukiasian, by contrast, chose
A Word of Caution
A recent breakthrough in Armenian-Turkish relations has triggered a flurry of activities
avoid prosecution in connection with vicious to stay in hiding after the SIS made clear that he worldwide. The protocols just released by the foreign ministries of Armenia, Turkey and
clashes between security forces and opposition would be placed under pre-trial arrest. Switzerland present only a road map to lead negotiations to a final settlement on issues
protesters sparked by a disputed presidential One of his lawyers, Artur Grigorian, gave no concerning Armenia and Turkey.
election. Like three other members of clear explanation as to why the prominent To prejudge the outcome of negotiations and to create a turmoil in the diaspora does
oppositionist, who is believed to have fled nothing but create confusion and division among Armenians.
Armenia last year, turned himself in now that The Dashnag party, trying to promote its own agenda, has been organizing public ral-
he no longer qualifies for amnesty.
Correction “It is not the prospect of an amnesty that
could motivate him to come out,” Grigorian
lies. To give the illusion that its actions enjoy community wide support. They have used
unauthorized tactics. Thus, the Toronto rally on September 4 and the Montreal rally on
September 9, in prelacy church halls, included the endorsement of the Social Democratic
In a piece titled “Hellenism or said. “He simply found it expedient to turn him- Hunchakian and Armenian Democratic Liberal (ADL) parties.
Ottomanism” in the August 22 issue, by self in now.” As far as the ADL is concerned, the legally-elected District Committee of Eastern US and
Prof. Christopher Walker, due to an edit- One of Armenia’s wealthiest men, Sukiasian Canada, under whose jurisdiction those two chapters fall, has never committed itself to the
ing error, Walker was named as the got in trouble with the authorities in late 2007 Dashnag agenda. The individuals participating in those rallies do not represent the organiza-
author of At History’s Crossroad: The after publicly voicing support for former tion; they are a minority, led by an expelled member Mike Kharabian, who seems to pursue
Making of the Armenian Nation. President Levon Ter-Petrosian’s bid to return to some personal interest in using and abusing the party’s good name and reputation.
Walker’s most recent book was the power. Many of his businesses were raided by
paperback edition of Visions of Ararat: tax authorities and fined for alleged tax eva- ADL DISTRICT COMMITTEE OF US AND CANADA
Writings about Armenia. sion. One of them, the Bjni mineral water com- September 7, 2009
We regret the error. pany, was effectively confiscated by the govern-
ment late last year.
4 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

INTERNATIONAL

International News Georgia ‘Open’ to Armenian Language Proposal

Armenian community.” It gave no that Georgian border guards are deny-
By Hovannes Shoghikian details. ing them access to more than 100
Ear thquake in Georgia According to the statement, hectares of agricultural land located
Felt i n Armenia YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Georgia is
Vashadze and Nalbandian also spoke
“in detail” about bilateral economic
in a disputed section of the frontier.
Armenia’s Shant television reported
T B I LISI , G eor gia ( News. am) — A n ear thquake mea- ready to consider President Serge matters such as the ongoing recon- on Thursday the villagers are now
sur ing 6 .2 on t he Ri chter sc ale oc cur r ed in t he nor t h- Sargisian’s calls for the official use of struction of a highway in southern doing agricultural work there under
eas ter n G eor gian town of Kut ai si on Wednesday, the Armenian language in its areas pre- Georgian that will substantially short- the armed protection of Armenian
September 9 . T he Re publ ic of A r men ia Sei smic dominantly populated by ethnic en travel between Armenia and border troops stationed in the area
Pr otec t ion A genc y’s pre ss of f ic es sai d t hat sever al Armenians, Georgian Foreign Minister Georgian Black Sea ports. close to Turkey.
af ter shoc ks wer e r egister ed. Grigol Vashadze said on September 4. Political and other non-governmen- The Georgian-Armenian border has
A cc or ding to p rel imin ar y dat a, houses c lose to t he Meeting with senior Armenian
epi cen te r wer e dest r oyed. No f at ali t ies wer e r epor ted. diplomats on Tuesday, Sarkisian list-
T he A r menian c it ie s of G umr i, Vanadzor an d ed measures which he said would
Noyemb er yan, e xper i enc ed small quakes measur ing help to integrate the sizable
3 -4 as a r esult. Armenian minority into Georgian
society “without assimilation.”
“I think that steps aimed at declar-
European Parl iament: ing Armenian a regional language in
Georgia, ensuring the registration of
A Conference to Struggle [the Georgian diocese of] the Holy
Against Genocide Denials Armenian Apostolic Church and pre-
serving Armenian monuments in
B RU SSELS — T he Eur opean A r men ian Fe de r at i on , Georgia would only contribute to the
t he J ewish Lai c Community Cen t re an d I BUK A - strengthening of Armenian-Georgian
Fr anc e have or ganize d a c onfer enc e on ge noci de friendship and deepening of the
deni al, whi ch wi ll take pl ace on T uesday, O c tober 6 , atmosphere of mutual trust,”
st ar t i ng at 9 : 30 a. m. in t he European Par liament. Sarkisian said. Yerevan should be
T his c on fer enc e is ab out t he sc ope of t he f uture “tactful but consistent and princi-
Pan-European pen ali zat ion of deni al: a de cis ion of pled” in raising these issues with
t he Eur op ean Union , whic h en forc es c r i minal pr ose- Tbilisi, he added.
c ut i on s again st de nier s must be passe d by t he 2 7 Sarkisian’s remarks reportedly
member st ates legisl at i on s be for e t he end of 2 0 1 0 . drew a scathing response from Foreign Ministers Eduard Nalbandian of Armenia (right) and Grigol Vashadze of
T he conf ere nc e, t i t le d “ D enial and D e moc r ac y in Georgia’s Deputy Prime Minister Georgia meet in Yerevan on September 4, 2009.
E ur op e , ” i s he l d un de r t he p at r o n age o f t he Temur Yakobashvili. “Let Armenia
E ur op e an D e p ut y El mar Brok ( G er man deal with the development of the
Conse r vat i ve) and aims at e xplai nin g to t he E ur opean Armenian language on its soil, and we tal organizations in Georgia’s largely still not been fully demarcated nearly
Union’s pol ic ymaker s how f ar the den ial c onst itutes a are very happy that Armenian is the Armenian-populated Javakheti have 18 years after the break-up of the
per ver sion of f re edom of expr essi on and a t hr eat f or only official language in Armenia,” for years pressed the authorities in Soviet Union. According to the
t he base s of de moc r at i c soci et ie s. Yakobashvili said, according to the Tbilisi to allow the regional adminis- Armenian Foreign Ministry, the bor-
Pol it ic ians, l awyer s an d histor ians wil l pr ese nt t he Russian daily Nezavisimaya Gazeta . tration and public institutions to use der demarcation was also on the
c ommon points bet ween de nial s of var i ous ge noci de s. Vashadze took a more conciliatory Armenian alongside the country’s agenda of Vashadze’s talks with
T hey wil l aim to con vinc e t he Europe an l eader s of line during a working visit to Yerevan official language. Earlier this year, Nalbandian.
t he need for ex te nding the penal pr ovisi ons against on Friday. “The parties treat with they appealed to Sargisian to raise Meanwhile, Georgia’s Deputy
al l c as es o f p r ove n de ni al s as al l owed by t he respect and attention all ideas floated the issue with Georgian President Foreign Minister Alexander
Europe an deci sion. in Armenia and Georgia,” he told Mikheil Saakashvili. Nalbandov met on Thursday with
journalists after talks with his Neither president mentioned it in Marie Yovanovitch, the US ambas-
Armenian counterpart, Eduard
A ir France and Armavia Nalbandian. “The president of
public statements made during
Saakashvili’s late-June visit to
sador to Armenia, in Tbilisi to discuss
the current state of the Georgian-
Sign Code Shari ng Pact Armenia did not say that the
Armenian language must be made a
Armenia. Sargisian instead praised Armenian relationship.
the Georgian government’s efforts to “In this context, the Georgian side
PA R IS ( D ow J one s) — A ir Fr anc e said on September regional one. What he said was that it ease socioeconomic hardship in emphasized the important positive
4 it had sig ned a commer c ial cooper at ion agr eement would be useful to discuss that idea.” Javakheti and bestowed a top dynamics outlined recently in the rela-
wit h t he Republi c of A r men ia’s n at ional air l ine “We are ready to discuss any ideas Armenian state award on Saakashvili. tions between Georgia and Armenia
A r m av i a. with our Armenian colleagues,” said It was also not clear whether that serves the interests of both coun-
A s of Monday, A i r Fr an ce an d A r mavi a wil l c om- Vashadze. “I want to emphasize that Vashadze and Nalbandian discussed tries,” the Georgian Foreign Ministry
mer c ial ize four weekly c ode-shar e f lights be t ween no matter what status the Armenian an intensifying border dispute said in a statement issued after the
Par is and Yere van in A r meni a an d f i ve be t ween language will have in Georgia, between the two neighboring states. meeting. “The sides agreed to keep in
Yer evan and Par is. Georgian citizens of Armenian Farmers in an Armenian border vil- active contact on the issues of
descent ... have all of their rights pro- lage have complained in recent weeks Georgian-Armenian relations.”
tected as well as those of other peo-
Transpor t Minister and ples living in Georgia. For us, they are
Italian A mbassador Meet an integral part of our history and

Y ER EVA N ( A r me npr ess) — A r me nian T r anspor t an d

culture.” Armenian, Croation Presidents Participate in
The two ministers refused to
Communi c at i on Mi nister G ur ge n Sar gi sian r ec ent ly answer more questions from journal- First Armenian-Croation Business Forum
r e c ei ved I t al i an A mb as sador to A r me ni a B r un o ists. An ensuing statement by the
Skappi ni, wi th t he pai r di sc ussi ng A r meni a’s hi ghway Armenian Foreign Ministry said that ZAGREB, Croatia (Armenpress) — Armenian President Serge Sargisian,
deve lopment pl ans. “at the initiative of the Armenian who was here on a two-day official visit, participated with the Croatian
A cc or ding to t he mi nister ’s p res s off ic e, the ambas- side” they discussed “a number of President Stepan Mesic in the first Armenian-Croatian business forum.
sador sai d a f ew I tal ian c ompani es have expr ess ed issues relating to the Georgia’s Over 100 Armenian and Croatian businessmen representing different
in ter est i n being a par t of t he pr oj ec ts, not ing he spheres participated in the forum. Within the framework of the visit a mem-
would do ever yt hin g he could to enc our age t hem to orandum of cooperation has been signed between Armenian Trade
make bi ds . Industrial and Croatian Economic Chambers.
Legrand, Garanyan to The presidential press service announced that Sargisian visited the Zagreb
observatory, got acquainted with the newest equipment there created with
France Extradites Suspect Perform in Krasnodar the support of Armenian specialists. The president also visited Zagreb’s
History Museum, got acquainted with the history of Croatia’s capital.
In Assault KRASNODAR, Russia
Sargisian met with the chairman of the Croatian Parliament, Luka Babic.
(PanARMENIAN.Net) — Well-known
MO SC OW ( Inter fa x) — I n r esponse to a r equest f r om Babic and Sargisian agreed to advance the two nations’ relations.
French composer, pianist, arranger and
t he R ussi an Pr ose cutor G e ner al’s O f f i ce, Fr an ce will Sargisian presented to Babic the latest developments regarding Armenian-
singer of Armenian origin, Michel
e x t r adit e A r me n i an n at i ve K ar en Mar gar i an to Turkish relations and the negotiations for Nagorno Karabagh.
Legrand will arrive here with his orches-
R ussi a to face assaul t c har ges . The delegation which Sargisian headed included Foreign Minister Eduard
tra in late September for a concert.
Margar i an is suspec ted of i nf l ic t i ng ser i ous har m Nalbandian, Economy Minister Nerses Yeritsyan, Chairman of the Armenian
According to the newspaper
t o a r e s i d e n t o f t h e A l t ai t e r r i t o r y i n 2 0 0 0 . Manufacturers and Businessmen Union Arsen Ghazaryan, Chairman of
Yerkramas, the joint concert of Trade-Industrial Chamber Martin Sargsyan and others.
T he invest igat ion has deter mined t hat Mar gar ian Legrand with the Krasnodar Big Band,
f ir ed an air r i f le at a man, an d wounded hi m, in a vil - After the official meeting ceremony, the face-to-face meeting of the two
will be conducted by George Garanyan.
lage in t he A lt ai ter r itor y i n D ec ember 2 0 00 , t he presidents took place.
Legrand composed the music for
Pr os ecutor G e ner al’s O f f i ce sai d. The presidents discussed the development of cooperation in the field of
many French classic films such as “The
Margar i an was placed on t he fe der al wan ted l ist in tourism. The parties also discussed prospects of joint programs in agriculture.
Umbrellas of Cherbourg” and “The
November 2 0 0 1 and on t he i nter nat ional wanted list Sargisian underscored the cooperation between the two countries within
Young Girls of Rochefort.” His mother,
in J uly 2 00 7 . H e was de tai ned in Fr anc e i n A ugust the frameworks of different formats and initiatives of EU.
Haykanush Ter-Mikaelian, was a pianist.
2007. During the second half of the day, Sargisian participated in the official
Her father, in turn, Sargis Ter-
dinner given by Mesic and visited an exhibition dedicated to the outstand-
Mikaelian, escaped from the Armenian
ing political figure, Josip Broz Tito.
Genocide in Ottoman Turkey, and
found refuge in France.
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 5

NATIONAL NEWS

Armenian Assembly Statement on Turkey-Armenia Protocols

WASHINGTON — On August 31, the for- offered to normalize relations with Turkey but also stated that Turkey would guard and Turkey to proceed expeditiously, accord-
eign ministries of Armenia, Turkey and without preconditions only to be rebuffed. Azerbaijan’s interests. ing to the agreed framework...” The protocols
Switzerland announced protocols to be Moreover, it is of particular concern that These pronouncements by Turkey’s set specific time limits and the international
signed within six weeks to establish diplo- on the same day as the joint statement Foreign Minister not only breach the spirit of community expects Turkey to fulfill its com-
matic relations between the Republic of released by the Armenian and Turkish for- framework just announced, but also directly mitments through measurable results and in
Armenia and the Republic of Turkey and to eign ministries regarding the start of consul- contradict US policy “that normalization good faith to normalize relations with the
open the border. tations to establish diplomatic relations that should take place without preconditions and Republic of Armenia. The protocols also call
This announcement is consistent with the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu within a reasonable timeframe.” for consultations and parliamentary debate,
US position that normalization of relations sent mixed signals. Foreign Minister Normalization of relations within a reason- which we expect, will be vigorous and emo-
between Armenia and Turkey proceed with- Davutoglu not only indicated that the open- able timeframe tional, while also conducted with respect and
out preconditions. Armenian authorities have ing of the border would be “a long process,” The US government has urged “Armenia dignity.
also made it clear that no preconditions
means just that - no linkage to progress on
the Nagorno Karabagh peace talks and no
conditions on affirmation of the Armenian
Genocide, or debating whether a genocide
occurred through a commission-style process.
Schmidt v. Krikorian Case Gets Heard, Delayed Until October
The incontestable fact of the Armenian stating Congress should not debate the issue. testimony on her knowledge of the influence
Genocide is internationally recognized, and By Thomas C . Nash The Ohio Elections Commission, an Turkey wields in Congress in person.
Turks and Armenians have previously com- appointed body consisting of seven voting Edmonds broke a Justice Department gag
Mirror-Spectator Staff
missioned in 2003 an independent analysis members, heard five false claims charges order imposed in 2002 in order to give a
through the International Center for from the Schmidt legal team, which includes deposition for the case in August.
Transitional Justice (ICTJ), which concluded COLUMBUS, Ohio — A long-awaited Ohio Washington heavyweight and resident schol- Kirkorian said also wants to call Schmidt’s
that the events of 1915 constituted genocide. Elections Commission hearing on September ar at the Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) chief of staff, Barry Bennett, to the stand.
The Armenian Assembly supports normal- 3 relating to charges of Armenian Genocide Bruce Fein. The witnesses, he said, will show that his
ization of relations between Armenia and denial by an Armenian American candidate Krikorian was defended by a legal team claims regarding the Turkish government’s
Turkey without preconditions. The United against an incumbent US House that includes Mark Geragos. Krikorian said influence on Schmidt are accurate.
States has spoken clearly about the need for Representative ended with no decision, leav- his team began the hearing by arguing that “For anyone to claims the Turkish PACs
Turkey to lift its blockade and establish diplo- ing the case continued to October 1. the commission did not have jurisdiction over are not sponsored by the Turkish government
matic relations with Armenia. Turkey’s lifting Republican Jean Schmidt, who represents the case because it involves a federal elec- is laughable,” Kirkorian said. “My hope is the
of its blockade against Armenia and opening Ohio’s second district, filed false claims tion. OEC has the intellectual ability to look at the
the border is not only long overdue but oblig- charges against 2008 independent challenger “There’s absolutely no authority from our facts.”
ated under international treaties. For this David Krikorian in April shortly after he perspective for [the OEC] to even be facilitat- Brey, however, said he was confident that
long-awaited effort to succeed, it is incum- announced he would run for the seat as a ing this complaint,” Krikorian said after the the commission would rule in favor of
bent that the United States require Turkey to Democrat in 2010. hearing. “It’s a clear first amendment issue” Schmidt.
adhere to its commitments with respect to In the 2008 election season, Krikorian In an interview, Brey responded that the “We hope that [Krikorian] will be found to
Armenia. accused Schmidt of taking “blood money” to Federal Elections Commission (FEC) only have made false statements and that the OEC
While the August 31st announcement rep- “deny the genocide of Christian Armenians has initial jurisdiction when federal law pre- will sanction him,” Brey said.
resents an important step, experience has by Muslim Turks” as a co-chair of the Caucus empts state law.
shown that reconciliation between Armenia on US Turkish Relations and Turkish “The FEC does not have a false statements
and Turkey requires Turkey to come to terms Americans. statute,” he said. “[Krikorian] can make the
with its past. President Barack Obama, Vice
President Joe Biden and Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton have all spoken eloquently on
In November, just before the election,
Krikorian wrote, “The people of Ohio’s sec-
argument, but it’s never been successful.”
During the nearly seven-hour hearing, US Names New
the need to recognize the Armenian
Genocide. We could not agree more and urge
ond district will, if they elect [Schmidt] on
November 4th, condone her denial of the
Genocide of 1.5 million Christians. And, in so
Krikorian said much of the back and forth
between the two camps related to where the
$30,000 Krikorian stated Schmidt took from
Karabagh Envoy
President Obama and the US Congress to doing, be guilty of a crime against humanity the Turkish government really came from. ENVOY, from page 1
unequivocally affirm the Armenian as the cover-up is just as bad as the crime … “[Schmidt’s] the one alleging we made false Bryza has represented the US in the Minsk
Genocide. In so doing, the United States will Jean Schmidt MUST GO and WE the people statements, but at the same time here’s the Group since June 2006, combining that role
honor a proud chapter in US history in help- must do it. Because you are Americans and ultimate problem: there is no canceled check with the duties of deputy assistant secretary of
ing to save the survivors of the first genocide because you are human beings and because from the government of Turkey in Jean state for European and Eurasian Affairs, of
of the twentieth century. you are Christians.” Schmidt’s campaign account,” Krikorian said. which he was also relieved last month. His
The Armenian Assembly views as encour- In an exchange with Krikorian in 2007, “If that’s the standard of truth, then we can’t replacement in that position, Tina Kaidanow, is
aging the commitments made by the govern- before he entered the race against her, a prevail. But everybody knows these [political also a career diplomat with extensive experi-
ment of Turkey to normalize relations with Schmidt staffer wrote that she was not com- action committees] are pushing the Turkish ence in the Balkans. Kaidanow served until
Armenia without preconditions. However, we fortable supporting the Armenian Genocide campaign of denial.” recently as the first US ambassador to Kosovo.
recall Turkey’s ample track record of unful- resolution. Schmidt has since maintained the When the hearing reconvenes on October Bryza has been tipped to move to another
filled promises. As such, many remain skepti- position, authoring a column that ran in 1, Krikorian said he hopes to have FBI post ever since the administration of President
cal as prior governments of Armenia had also April in the Turkish paper Today’s Zaman whistleblower Sibel Edmonds appear to give Barack Obama took office in January. Recent
media reports have said that he could be
appointed as US ambassador to Azerbaijan.
Neither Bryza, nor the State Department has
denied those reports.

Sponsor a Teacher in Armenia and Karabagh 2009 Bryza was reported to heap praise on his
Minsk Group successor on Tuesday. “Bradtke is
an excellent diplomat and good friend of mine,”
the Azerbaijani Trend news agency quoted the
former Bush administration official as saying.
Since its inception in 2001, TCA’s ‘Sponsor “We have informed the governments of
Armenia and Azerbaijan of Ambassador Bradtke’s
a Teacher’ program has raised over $350,000 appointment,” read the statement issued by Kelly.
“Ambassador Bradtke looks forward to his first
and reached out to 2,715 teachers and trip to the region in the coming weeks.”
The Minsk Group’s American, French and
workers in Armenia and Karabagh. Russian co-chairs are due to visit Baku and
Yerevan later this month to prepare for another
meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani presi-
✄
dents that could take place in early October.
They hope that the two leaders will overcome
❑ Yes, I want to sponsor teachers in Armenia and Karabagh to continue their remaining disagreements over a framework
helping them to educate the children, our future leaders. I would like to have peace accord drawn up by the mediating powers.
the teacher’s name and address.
❑ $160 ❑ $ 320 ❑ $ 480 ❑ other $—————————
Name
Address For Your Internal
City
Tel:
State Zip code
News of Armenia
Make check payable to: Tekeyan Cultural Association – Memo: Sponsor a Teacher 2009
Mail your check with this form to:
Log on to
TCA Sponsor a Teacher
5326 Valverde, Houston, TX 77056
Your donation is Tax Deductible.
www.AZG.am
In English, Armenian, Russian and Turkish
6 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

Community News
Armenian Assembly
Holds Program at Dr. Vartan
UC-San Diego on Gregorian to Be
Armenian Genocide Honored as
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — As part of the Armenian
Professional of
Assembly of America’s ongoing educational out-
reach regarding the Armenian Genocide, The Year by APS
Assembly Western Region Director Yeghig
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Dr. Vartan
Keshishian spoke to a class of freshman students
Gregorian, the 12th president of
at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD).
Carnegie Corporation of New York, will
Keshishian addressed the students at the
be honored by the Armenian
request of Prof. Fonna Forman-Barzilai who teach-
Professional Society (APS) as
es the course, “Becoming Evil: How Ordinary
Professional of the Year at a Gala event
People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing.” The
on November 7, at the Sheraton
course explores the psychological, cultural and
Universal Hotel, Universal City.
social constructions surrounding the genocides of
The Carnegie Corporation, a grant-mak-
the 20th century. Forman-Barzilai is a faculty
ing institution, was founded by Andrew
member at the Political Science Department and
Carnegie in 1911, its purpose being to
was a guest speaker at the 2009 Armenian
“promote the advancement and diffusion
Genocide Commemorative Vigil in San Diego.
of knowledge and understanding” by pro-
Keshishian discussed the genocide of minori-
viding grants to support programs of high-
ties, such as the Armenians in the Ottoman
er education. A Carnegie tradition is to
Empire, and provided the students with an
“prepare students of all backgrounds with
overview of the history of the Armenian
the knowledge and skills needed for eco-
Genocide in the context of James Waller’s book
nomic success and for participation in a
about perpetrators, titled: Becoming Evil: How Laurel Karabian encourages the students to keep the torch of Arshag Dickranian pluralistic democracy.”
Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass School always lit.
The APS has a similar mission to pro-
Killing. Keshishian also discussed Turkey’s
mote students in programs of higher edu-
ongoing campaign of genocide denial and how
cation, as it annually awards exceptional
it plays out in the United States.
“I appreciated this unique opportunity to dis-
cuss the Armenian Genocide with college stu-
TCA Arshag Dickranian School students with graduate scholarships, thus
benefiting the community.
The organization has awarded several hun-
dents,” stated Keshishian, adding, “The
Assembly appreciates Prof. Forman-Barzalia’s
Starts 2009-2010 Academic Year dred thousand dollars of scholarships and
grants to encourage students of Armenian
commitment to apprise students of past geno- LOS ANGELES — TCA Arshag Dickranian School re-opened its doors for the decent to pursue higher education.
cides and for her commitment to education as 29th successive year to its students with the pomp and circumstance of its tradi- Like Carnegie, the Armenian
an important medium for its humanizing effect tional Opening Ceremony on Tuesday, September 1. Professional Society was launched by a
on our collective humanity. California has The event took place at the open courtyard of the school, where students rang- group of illustrious and service-oriented
played a leading role in genocide education and ing from pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12 took their assigned places. professionals with foresight to promote
prevention and the Armenian Assembly is The Very Rev. Bared Yeretzian, representing Primate of the Diocese of the the arts, sciences and other academic
proud to play a positive role in this regard.” Armenian Church of America (Western) Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Rev. areas. The Armenian Professional Society
Keshishian closed with a brief discussion of Manoug Markarian of St. John Garabed Church, Benefactors Eleanor Dickranian, acknowledges the achievements of out-
the current state of relations between the Cynthia Norian, Laurel Karabian, Kevork Tashjian and Hmayak Baltayan, School standing individuals, encourages stu-
Republics of Armenia and Turkey, and noted Board Members George K. Mandossian, Angine Garibyan and Arpi Avanesian- dents who have attained university edu-
that Armenia has consistently offered to nor- Idolor were among the special guests attending the back-to-school ceremony along cation to proceed to post-graduate stud-
malize relations without preconditions. with the school Principal Vartkes Kourouyan. ies, and has awarded scholarships to
The Opening Ceremony was led by Yeretzian, who ended his prayers by adding graduate students in the US and grants
his blessings to the students and well wishes to all those who were present. to institutions of higher learning in
AIWA Board Holds Avanesian–Idolor greeted the students, teachers and parents on behalf of the
School Board of Trustees, reminding the students of the importance of learning
Armenia.
As president of the Carnegie
and the sacrifices being made by their parents, School Board of Trustees and
Summer Retreat teachers in helping them achieve their education at Arshag Dickranian School.
Laurel Karabian next took the podium to speak on behalf of the Dickranian
Corporation of New York, Gregorian
helps continue the traditions of higher
learning. Gregorian was appointed to his
WATERTOWN, Mass. — The Armenian Family. After welcoming the students and staff, Karabian urged the students to current position as president in June
International Women’s Association (AIWA) keep the fire in 1997. Prior to that time, Gregorian
Board of Directors met on Sunday, August 16, their spirits as well served for nine years as the president of
for a productive discussion of AIWA priorities, as the torch of Brown University.
organizational structure and future plans. Arshag Dickranian Gregorian attended Stanford University,
Paula Parnagian, AIWA member and president School always lit. where he majored in history and the
of World View Services, provided facilitation and The program humanities, graduating with honors in
will be assisting with follow-up. Specific topics was concluded by 1958. He was awarded a PhD in history
included the need to rebuild the AIWA website the remarks of and humanities from Stanford in 1964.
and to make better use of current social net- Principal Vartkes Gregorian has taught history at San
working tools such as Twitter and Facebook, Kourouyan who Francisco State College, the University of
especially as the organization reaches out more welcomed all the California at Los Angeles, the University of
to Armenian women worldwide. Governance new and returning Texas at Austin, and the University of
issues and mechanisms to support new leader- students alike. Pennsylvania where he became its 23rd
ship within the organization were discussed and Kourouyan high- provost until 1981.
referred to appropriate committees. lighted the posi- He was president of the New York
Present were AIWA board members Eva tive changes that Public Library and Brown University. He
Medzorian, Barbara Merguerian, Mariam were made at the is a Fellow of the American Academy of
Nigosian, Judy Norsigian, Olga Proudian, Joy school during Arts of Sciences. Gregorian is the author
Renjilian-Burgy and Alisa Stepanian, along with summer recess. The students listen to the speeches. of The Road To Home: My Life And
AIWA New England Chapter leaders Carolyn “We are happy to Times, Islam: A Mosaic, Not A Monolith,
Atinizian and Christine Garabedian. announce that 50 and The Emergence of Modern
The retreat took place in Hampton Beach, new students have enrolled at our school this year,” said Kourouyan and Afghanistan, 1880-1946.
NH, at the waterfront home of Christine added by informing the parents that the school will be concentrating on char- He has been honored by President
Garabedian, who offered to host the event. acter building and standardized tests. Kourouyan also mentioned that the Clinton, President Bush and most recently
Garabedian was bequeathed this summer home school will continue participating in interscholastic and national sports tour- appointed by President Obama to the
by her uncle, Charles P. Garabedian, who had naments this year. Kourouyan concluded his remarks by declaring the begin- President’s Commission on White House
been a beloved mentor and source of inspira- ning of the 2009-2010 scholastic year and asked for the cooperation of every- Fellowships. Previous notable recipients
tion for his niece since she was a young girl. one to achieve overall success. of the Professional Of the Year Awards
The next AIWA board meeting will be held in Located at 1200 North Cahuenga Blvd., Los Angeles, the TCA Arshag include Gov. George Deukemejian (1981),
late September. Dickranian Armenian School is a federally tax exempt, pre-K to 12th grade pri- Elizabeth Dole (2001), Jerry Tankian
Information about AIWA projects and pro- vate educational institution. For more information visit (2002) and George Avakian (2005) to
grams to increase the visibility of Armenian www.dickranianschool.org. name but a few.
women is available by contacting AIWA at 65
Main St., Watertown, MA 02472.
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 7

COMMUNITY NEWS

Even with Deep Armenian Roots, Watertown High Barely Saves Classes
millions more, between 1915 and 1918. choosing another foreign language in which to guage curriculum is deeply meaningful to the
By Erica Noonan For nearly four decades, the language program become proficient. community, and should not be abandoned.
at the high school was operated and taught For survivors of the Genocide who fled to the Ani Eskici, a 1986 Watertown High School
almost entirely by Yacoubian, a native Armenian Middle East, Europe and the United States, and graduate, took Armenian classes from Yacoubian,
WATERTOWN (Boston Globe) — With the who came to Watertown High in 1970. She was their descendents, keeping that culture alive is and today her 15-year-old son, Kevin, is a second-
third highest number of Armenian immigrants in the school’s Armenian heart and soul — organiz- considered the most sacred of obligations. generation student.
the United States, Watertown faces a formidable ing annual cultural festivals, bake sales and schol- Although it happened nearly a century ago, the Eskici’s great-grandparents perished in the
challenge — how to preserve what may be the arships for college-bound students. genocide is by no means ancient history. It con- Genocide, and she was raised in Turkey by par-
country’s last surviving Armenian-language pro- She still teaches adult Armenian language tinues to be a combustible international and polit- ents who were forbidden to speak Armenian
gram at a public high school. classes locally, and despite her retirement remains ical issue. In 2007, Anti-Defamation League pres- because of governmental regulation. Today, as a
Prospects for the program, on the eve of its a frequent sight in Watertown High’s Room 333, ident Abraham Foxman was blasted with interna- bank teller at Watertown Savings Bank, Eskici
40th anniversary, looked dim after the school where maps of Armenia and the former Soviet tional criticism after calling the Armenian mas- uses her Armenian skills daily to assist elderly
could not find a replacement for its founder, Union line the walls, and the classroom comput- sacres by the Turkish military “tantamount” to Armenian-speaking customers.
Anahid Yacoubian, who retired from full-time er is equipped with a hard-to-find Armenian font. genocide, in the context of the Jewish Holocaust. She hopes Kevin can use his language educa-
work in 2007 but taught the advanced-level The idea that the program could fade away hor- Earlier this year, the Armenian community tion to not only visit his homeland and relatives,
class to juniors and seniors until the end of rified her, Yacoubian said last week. pressured online search giant Google to ban ads but to work overseas in business or diplomacy.
school this spring. “The community has always been so support- from a Turkish genocide-denial group. And a con- “The program has been so important to us and
Watertown’s school administrators consid- ive of us, and that is what has helped us get that gressional resolution that would officially recog- I think it is so important for the community. I was
ered dropping the program for lack of teachers, far,” she said. “It is a struggle for Armenians to nize the Armenian Genocide, after pending for so disappointed to hear it could get cut. There are
but after a frantic search found an instructor keep their culture, but if we do this we have so many years, was quietly shelved yet again, advo- a lot of people who value it greatly,” Eskici said.
just two weeks before the start of classes on much to share with the rest of the world.” cates say, because of delicate US-Turkish diplo- Koufman-Frederick said the district wants to
September 8. Superintendent Ann Koufman- Armenian language classes in Arlington and matic relations. support the program, but admitted the future is
Frederick said officials were working out a one- Belmont public schools disappeared years ago. “Knowing our language is knowing our histo- anything but clear.
year contract last week. Most Armenian cultural and language classes in ry,” said teacher Sirhan Tamakian, who arrived at “We’re trying to be as smart as possible with
It appears the program at Watertown High is the area are now held privately — mostly in Watertown High five years ago and is able to what we offer,” said Koufman-Frederick, who
saved for this year but its future beyond that is Watertown, at either St. James Armenian teach only the freshman/sophomore Armenian noted that one of her goals as the system’s incom-
uncertain. Apostolic Church, St. Stephen’s Armenian class in addition to her English-as-a-second-lan- ing chief is to appoint a task force to overhaul and
“I would like Watertown High to continue Apostolic Church or the Armenian Library and guage course load. “If we don’t know our history, expand foreign language programming, especially
offering Armenian. We are looking for a way to Museum of America. One of the nation’s largest we can’t teach it to others or defend it.” in the elementary schools.
preserve the program, if possible, and are looking Armenian summer camps, Camp Haiastan, run by But the number of students interested in study- Perhaps a partnership with local Armenian cul-
for a way to make that happen,” said Koufman- the national Armenian Youth Federation, is less ing Armenian is dwindling, due to changing immi- tural organizations could be fostered to help sup-
Frederick, who is starting her first year as the dis- than 25 miles away in Franklin. From a practical gration patterns and assimilation. Today, non- port Watertown High’s offerings, she said.
trict’s superintendent. standpoint, keeping the program alive is difficult, native students moving into Watertown are more Houry Boyamian, principal of St. Stephen’s
The uncertainty was a painful reckoning for a Yacoubian acknowledged. The language is so likely to be from Pakistan or Brazil, in contrast to Armenian Elementary, which has students in
town known worldwide for its vibrant Armenian- obscure that there is no official state certification the immigrants of a generation ago arriving from preschool through fifth grade, said the loss of
American community, but where about 9 percent for its instructors. Many parents today prefer that Armenian-speaking households in Lebanon and Armenian at the high school would be devastating.
of the population claimed Armenian heritage on their children learn a more mainstream tongue. the former Soviet Union, school officials said. “It is very important that our students can con-
the 2000 Census. Some students have schedule conflicts because The school system has its own limitations, tinue learning at an advanced level in school,” she
In Watertown, Armenian is not like other tra- Armenian and some honors classes are taught at including shrinking budgets, teacher shortages said. St. Stephen’s already operates supplemen-
ditional high school language offerings. It repre- the same time. and dwindling enrollments, Koufman-Frederick tary Armenian classes for its young members on
sents a history and a legacy deeply imbedded in “I’m very concerned about the future, but I said. Between 6 and 15 students were lined up to Saturdays and Sundays, in addition to its day
the town’s makeup, one revered even more am optimistic they have a whole year to look for enroll in each Armenian class this fall, compared school and Armenian-language church services.
because the culture was nearly destroyed during someone now,” she said. Without the upper- with more than 20 pupils in each of the high Watertown should not take the language pro-
a genocide by the Ottoman Empire that killed 1.5 level class, few, if any, students are likely to school’s several Spanish classes. gram away, Boyamian said. “I think it should con-
million Armenians, and imprisoned and displaced enroll in the lower level one, she said, instead But local Armenian-Americans say the lan- tinue.”

D I G N I T Y T R U ST S E RV I C E

On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, the Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR) is proud
to honor and thank a lifetime benefactor to the global Armenian community

DR. EDGAR M. HOUSEPIAN

CO-FOUNDER & VICE CHAIRMAN OF FAR,
DOCTOR, PHILANTHROPIST, & VISIONARY
His Eminence Archbishop Khajag Barsamian
Primate, Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
President, Fund for Armenian Relief

is pleased to announce a Gala Tribute celebrating FAR’s 20 years of service

in Armenia and honoring Dr. Edgar M. Housepian

FRIDAY, JANUARY 15TH, 2010

RECEPTION AT 7 O’CLOCK IN THE EVENING
DINNER AND PROGRAM AT 8 O’CLOCK IN THE EVENING

CIPRIANI WALL STREET

55 WALL STREET (BETWEEN WILLIAM & HANOVER STREET)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10005

After the earthquake of 1988,

Dr. E. Housepian, Abp. T. Manoogian,
and Mr. K. Hovnanian traveled to Yerevan
to offer help to the Armenian people.
This moment marked not only the
birth of FAR but the beginning of an
extensive medical development program
under the leadership of Dr. Housepian.
8 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

COMMUNITY NEWS

Rev. Tateos Abdalian Honored on 25th Anniversary of Ordination

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — On Sunday, August Vladimir’s seminaries in 1977 after working in God’s flock?’” Barsamian said, “the answer is ness of the genocide in Darfur. He is a member
23, Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the bank sector and as the administrative direc- clear: It is a feeling of love, which issues from a of the Oriental Orthodox/Roman Catholic
the Diocese of the Armenian Church of tor of St. James Armenian Church of pure heart, a good conscience, and deep faith in Dialogue and the Standing Committee of
America (Eastern), presided over the celebra- Watertown, Mass. He continued his studies at the presence of Christ in his life.” Oriental Orthodox churches in America.
tion of the 25th anniversary of the Rev. Tateos the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin and at the Following his ordination, Abdalian was Abdalian said his family has been very sup-
Abdalian’s ordination to the priesthood. Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary in assigned to serve as the pastor of St. John the portive during his years of service to the
The event took place at Holy Trinity Boston. Baptist Church in Greenfield, Wis., where he Armenian Church. He is married to Yeretzgin
Armenian Church in Cambridge, Mass., where He says that serving the Armenian people worked with the community to build a new Margaret Meranian. They have a son, David, and
Abdalian was ordained in June 1984. and helping them become closer to God is what sanctuary for the church. a daughter, Alicia, and two grandchildren.
Abdalian celebrated the Divine Liturgy and drew him to the priesthood. After the 1988 earthquake in Armenia, Reflecting on his ministry, Abdalian said, “I
was presented with a Pontifical Encyclical con- “My reflections on the past have always cen- Abdalian worked with the office of the could ask: was I able to bring someone closer
gratulating him on his 25 years of service to the tered on the people I had been entrusted to Wisconsin National Guard to organize relief to God; strengthen a faith; have one see the
Armenian Church. efforts. value and joy of life measured by a word of
“The feeling of love that Der He has also served as pastor of thanks, a smile of appreciation, a humble ges-
Tateos brings to his ministry the St. Peter Armenian Church in ture? This is what a pastor has to do, and I cer-
has grown stronger with each Watervliet, NY, and the St. George tainly hope that in some measure I’ve been
passing year,” the Primate said. Armenian Church in Hartford, able to do this.”
“We have all felt, and benefited Conn.
from, his love. And today, as we While in Hartford, Abdalian was
observe this milestone in his an on-call chaplain at Hartford
ministry, it is our chance to let
Der Hayr know just how much
Hospital and a member of the hos-
pital’s Pastor Services Advisory
SOAR to Hold
we love him, in return.”
Following services, 150 peo-
Committee. He was also police
chaplain with the Hartford Police Reception
ple gathered for a reception in Department and a member of the
PHILADELPHIA — The Society for
Abdalian’s honor. department’s Crisis Intervention
Orphaned Armenian Relief (SOAR), Inc. is
“It was wonderful and hum- Team.
celebrating its fourth year of helping the
bling,” said Abdalian. “It was a His other involvement with the
orphans of Armenia. Established in
family affair and that’s what I police force includes the establish-
March 2006, SOAR is the only nonprofit
wanted.” ment of the police chaplain pro-
organization that focuses exclusively on
The celebration was orga- gram at the Cheltenham Police
providing humanitarian relief to
nized by a committee from the Department, as well as member-
orphaned children living in Armenia. The
Holy Trinity parish led by its ship of their SWAT Intervention
organization provided nearly $60,000 in
pastor, the Rev. Vasken Team and the International
assistance in 2006, more than $88,000 in
Kouzouian. Also serving on the Conference of Police Chaplains.
2007 and $100,000 in 2008.
committee were members of the Archbishop Khajag Barsamian presents the Rev. Tateos Abdalian with the In 1999, Abdalian became pastor
This year’s complimentary cocktail
St. James parish of Watertown — Pontifical Encyclical. of the Sts. Sahag and Mesrob
reception will be held at The Village Hall
where Abdalian was born and Armenian Church in Providence,
(Spread Eagle Village) in Wayne, Penn.,
raised. RI, and later served as pastor at the
on Saturday, October 3, from 5 to 10 p.m.
“The beautiful part was that the funds that minister, for as a priest, ministry is nothing Holy Trinity Armenian Church in Cheltenham,
The program will feature the Ararat
were collected [during the event] will benefit unless it is connected with people,” Abdalian Pa. Currently, he is the director of Mission
Dance Ensemble; Norik Y. Astvatsaturov
young people at the mission parishes, to send said. Parishes at the Eastern Diocese, where he over-
– Metal Repoussè; Vocalist Julie
them on scholarships to St. Nersess summer When Abdalian was ordained in 1984, sees about 15 mission parish communities. He
Hoplamazian; Vocalist Karinne
conferences. Two historical parishes came Kouzouian’s father, the Rev. Mampre visits each parish on a regular basis to celebrate
Hovnanian; Artist Mher Khachatryan;
together, and then the mission parishes directly Kouzouian, served as the sponsor. the Divine Liturgy and organizes programming
Roy Maloumian – Rugs; Manuel
benefited from it,” Kouzouian said. Abdalian says his ordination is particularly for parishioners. He also produces a weekly
Panossian – Armenian Antiques and
He added that the day was preceded by memorable because his father, who was under electronic publication for mission parishes
Artifacts and comedienne Lory Tatoulian.
acolyte ordinations held on Saturday evening. hospice care at the time, was able to witness titled “e-Tsayn.”
Those interested should RSVP by
“It was an overall beautiful picture,” Kouzouian this milestone in his son’s life. In addition, Abdalian is involved in ecumeni-
September 26, to George S. Yacoubian Jr.,
said. “When I ask myself, ‘What inspired Der cal activities. In 2006, he spoke at a gathering
at [email protected].
Abdalian enrolled at St. Nersess and St. Tateos to dedicate his life to the ministry of in Washington, DC, organized to raise aware-

Obituary
Boston-Armenian Community Mourns
Nardolillo Est.Funeral
1906
Home
Loss of Archpriest Torkom Hagopian John K. Najarian, Jr.
Rhode Island’s Only Licensed Armenian Funeral Director
WALTHAM, Mass. — Archpriest Torkom
Hagopian, pastor-emeritus of St. Stephen’s 1278 Park Ave. Cranston, RI 02910 (401) 942-1220
Armenian Church, died on September 3 at age 1111 Boston Neck Rd. Narragansett, RI 02882 (401) 789-6300

Giragosian
86. He had served as the church’s pastor for 33 www.nardolillo.com
years.
Hagopian began his service to St. Stephen’s
in August 1962. Ordained in 1956, he served in
Aleppo, Syria and Beirut, Lebanon before work-
ing with the four church communities in
upstate New York: St. John the Baptist of
Syracuse; Holy Cross of Troy; St. Hagop of
Niagara Falls and the community in
Binghamton. F U N E R A L H O M E
Hagopian served as the pastor of St.
Stephen’s until 1995, when he retired, remain-
James “Jack” Giragosian, CPC
ing an active member of St. Stephen’s church Funeral Counselor
and community. The Armenian Cultural and 576 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown, MA 02472, TEL: 617-924—0606
Educational Center (ACEC) was built during his w w w.giragosianfuneralhome.com
tenure, for which he worked to raise the neces-
sary funds.
His dream of having an Armenian day school Archpriest Torkom Hagopian
was realized in 1984 with the establishment of
the St. Stephen’s Armenian Elementary School. Telephone (617) 924-7400
The school today is a thriving center of edu- late Hagop Bozodjian, the late Sahag
cation that consistently receives accolades and
high marks from the state of Massachusetts.
Hagopian, and the late Mary Kasparian. He also
leaves several nieces, nephews and cousins.
Aram Bedrosian
Hagopian leaves his wife of 55 years,
Yeretzgin Zevart Hagopian; children Zovig
Kanarian; Noushig Hagopian and her husband
In a statement, Archbishop Oshagan
Choloyan said, “We express our heartfelt con-
dolences to Yeretzgin Zevart and their daugh-
Funeral Home, Inc.
Tim Enright; Sonya Hagopian and her husband ters, Dzovig, Noushig and Sonig. May he rest in
Continuous Service By The Bedrosian Family Since 1945
Leighton Wolffe, all of Lexington; grandchil- eternal bliss.” MARION BEDROSIAN
dren Tamar and Paul Kanarian, Alec, Kyle and The Funeral Mass took place at St. Stephen’s 558 MOUNT AUBURN STREET PAUL BEDROSIAN
Nairi Enright, and Lenna Wolffe. He was the on September 9, followed by burial at Mt. WATERTOWN, MA 02472 LARRY BEDROSIAN
brother of Hovsep Hagopian of Watertown, the Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge.
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 9

COMMUNITY NEWS

Toronto to Host Armenian Bar

Association’s Mid-Year Meeting
TORONTO — The Armenian Bar Association University of Paris II, Pantheon-Assas, France.
(ArmenBar) will return to Canada for its mid- Nersessian and Kessedjian have been involved
year meeting, on the weekend of October 2-4, in in extensive research on methods to achieve
Toronto. The meeting will be held at the Hilton redress for the Armenian Genocide in interna-
Hotel and will mark only the third time in the tional courts and tribunals. The panel will
group’s history that it has held a meeting in showcase new avenues for the Armenian com-
Canada. Vartkes Yeghiayan, respected attorney, munity in its efforts to achieve retribution from
author and the architect of the New York Life Turkey for a crime which remains unpunished
and other Genocide reparation cases, will be nearly a century after it was perpetrated.
the keynote luncheon speaker. Bobelian, an attorney and journalist, has
“We have a vibrant group of members in recently published his latest text titled Children
Canada who have made significant contribu- of Armenia, a Forgotten Genocide and the
tions to the Armenian legal community and the Century-Long Struggle for Justice. He will dis-
Armenian Bar Association, so we are thrilled to cuss the critically acclaimed book and research
be returning to visit our neighbors to the north which went into its publication. Chronicled in
for our mid-year meeting,” said Sonya the book is the story of Gourgen Yanikian, who
Nersessian, chair of ArmenBar. in 1973 murdered the Turkish Consul General
Toronto is Canada’s cultural, educational, and Vice Consul from Los Angeles. He stated
financial, high tech, commercial, industrial and that the purpose of the killings was to demand
entertainment center. It’s skyline boasts the CN justice for the Armenian Genocide. The act
Tower, the tallest structure in North America, sparked a wave of attacks against Turkish diplo-
and formerly the tallest structure in the world. mats throughout the world in the 1970s and
The meeting headquarters at the Hilton is walk- 1980s. Yeghiayan’s two-decade quest to bring
ing distance from the CN Tower, as well as the New York Life class-action lawsuit to light is
other popular attractions. also covered in the book.
As is customary, the event will draw numerous Desloges, Mouralian and Yardum-Hunter are
legal scholars, law professors, historians, judges, all experts in the area of immigration law.
lawyers, law students and politicians from Desloges is the founder of the immigration and
throughout the United States, Canada, France refugee law free advice clinic in Ontario.
and Armenia. The conference will be punctuated Mouralian has offices in Quebec and Lebanon,
by legal seminars, receptions and a meeting of the and has assisted hundreds of Armenians in the
Board of Governors. Attorneys attending the immigration process. Yardum-Hunter has been
meeting will receive continuing legal education an immigration specialist for 30 years. She has
credits for what promises to be an interesting and written and lectured extensively on the subject,
informative series of lectures, including and has been recognized as a “Super Lawyer.”
“Research on Genocide Reparations.” The lecture will deal with the hot topic issue of
In addition to Yeghiayan, the list of guest cross boarder immigration in North America.
speakers includes attorney and author Michael The meeting will be presided over by
Bobelian, immigration law specialists Chantal Armenbar Chair Sonya Nersessian from
Desloges, Caroline Mouralian and Alice Boston, Mass. “We are proud of our organiza-
Yardum-Hunter along with law professors tion, excited about the meeting, and believe it
Katherine Kessedjian and David Nersessian. will be an enriching experience for all who
The panel on Genocide Reparations will kick attend,” said Nersessian.
off the Saturday session, and will feature More information about the event can be

As the Mirror-Spectator
Harvard Law Prof. David Nersessian and obtained by visiting the ArmenBar website at:
Katherine Kessedjian, professor at the www.armenianbar.org.

celebrates 77 years of
Nor Serount Cultural Association to Hold 11th Annual

outstanding service to the

Armenian Independence Day Festival
GLENDALE, Calif. —The Nor Serount

Armenian community,
Cultural Association (NSCA) and its mem-
bers are gearing up for a commemoration of
the Independence of the Republic of
Armenia on Sunday, September 20, at

we recognize the many loyal

Verdugo Park here.
In this tradition of celebration, NSCA
plans a day of fun and activities.

original subscribers
Entertainment will be provided by a line-up
of well-known performers and dance groups
including Sako, Harout Hagopian, Samvel

who began their lifelong

Sahakian, Armen Aloyan, Hratch
Bogharian, Harout Khachoyan, Maggie,
Arman Baghjachian, the Lilia Dance group

support during the economic

and the Erebouni Dance Group. Armenian
businesses, artists and craftsmen will dis-
play their works and services. Traditional
Armenian food will be served. Youngsters

and social hardships

will enjoy the different carnival games set
up for their enjoyment. Dancers at last year’s Nor Serount program
Admission is free.

of the Great Depression

and together made this
anniversary possible
— from the family of
Victoria T. Karjian,
one of the loyal originals
 New York
10 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

M E T R O

Armenia Fund Declares 2010 ‘The Year of Shushi’

NEW YORK — In an effort to jumpstart socio- the best of intentions, the rebirth of Shushi was houses and apartments, local town
economic development in the legendary town a dream deferred. halls and health care hubs; parks and
of Shushi, Armenia Fund USA and its world- Today, the officials of the Shushi and water fountains, cultural and recre-
wide affiliates will launch a comprehensive pro- Karabagh government, along with leaders of ational centers. Water pipelines,
gram of infrastructure and business develop- Armenia Fund, have agreed to put Shushi on school heating systems, gymnasiums,
ment projects beginning in 2010. the economic map. To stimulate growth in school facilities, roads and street
The Armenia Fund “Save Shushi” campaign Shushi the government of Karabagh decided to repairs also will be underway.
will officially kick off on its annual move a number of state institutions such as the In addition, a brand new medical
Thanksgiving Day Telethon, in addition to pre- Supreme and Appeals Courts from the capital hospital is planned to provide village-
Telethon fundraising drives, such as direct mail of Stepanakert to Shushi. Constructing the wide access to emergency and critical
and phone campaigns, conducted by Armenia buildings to house these offices and paving health care, plus a state-of-the-art
Fund USA and other affiliates in the All- roads and streets to reach them, would imme- administrative center to help fast-track
Armenia Fund global network. diately generate local jobs; but that is only a economic growth and investment.
“In the 1990s, the Armenians won the pivotal small step toward the substantive change so Other business development efforts
battle for liberation in the hills and fields of desperately needed to save Shushi. include a Rug Manufacturers
Shushi. Today, they are fighting a very different Although the government of Karabagh is pre- Association and micro-loans for start-
battle: a war on poverty,” explained Armenia pared to subsidize all such infrastructure pro- up local enterprises. These projects
Fund USA Chairman Raffi Festekjian. jects, its limited budget cannot address all the will take place not only in Shushi prop-
“Too many residents, jobless and living in imperatives for revitalizing Shushi, within a er, but the seven villages within Shushi
unsafe ruins, have been forced to leave these small window of time. This is where the province, including: Karintak,
hard-won lands for which they or their compa- Armenian Diaspora becomes a critical factor in Map of Shushi Province Kirsavan, Hin-Shenk, Medz-Shenk,
triots sacrificed so much,” Festekjian added. determining the ultimate fate of this legendary Eghtsahogh and Lisagor.
“Somehow, the inspiration from military victo- region. “Obviously, this is a massive under-
ry has been slowly overtaken by economic “Without jobs, good schools and a place to With funds generated from fall fundraising taking. There is much catching up to do and so
paralysis and social apathy. And time is running call home, there is very little incentive to stay in efforts, culminating with the Thanksgiving Day little time left, before the people will give up on
out to win back the hearts and minds of those Shushi, which is of great strategic importance Telethon, Armenia Fund intends to answer in Shushi altogether” notes the mayor of Shushi.
residents remaining.” to the security of Karabagh,” states Irina the affirmative — breaking ground early in the “But with the will of Armenians everywhere,
The Armenia-Azeri war left Shushi almost Lazarian, executive director of Armenia Fund new year to build enough momentum to give who draw inspiration from what Shushi has
completely destroyed. The town center is a USA, Eastern Region. “This is why Shushi’s war the people of Shushi a fresh outlook on their come to symbolize in our story of national sur-
gloomy picture of half-destroyed houses built in on poverty must be fought on multiple fronts: future. vival, it will rise from the ashes once more. Not
the 18th and 19th centuries. With so many housing, health care, education, business and Among the many large and small infrastruc- only victorious, but prosperous, too.”
abandoned shelters, many of the jobless resi- cultural development, not to mention well-func- ture projects slated to begin in 2010, under the For more information about Armenia Fund’s
dents live as squatters, with no heat or electric- tioning institutions that can facilitate growth leadership of Armenia Fund USA and some of “Saving Shushi” campaign, send an e-mail to
ity. Provincial schools are also physically unsafe and progress.” its affiliates, are: construction and renovation of [email protected].
and unhygienic, leaving families little incentive
to remain in Shushi without hope for a better
future.
During the early 20th century, the
Armenians of Shushi boasted a population of
45,000, seven churches, 22 newspapers and a
public theatre. After the liberation of Shushi,
many presumed that this history-making
province would be reborn, attracting business
investment and tourists, generating jobs, and
building strong, robust communities. Despite

Armenia Fund USA Ramps

Up Fundraising Efforts
NEW YORK —Armenia Fund USA (AFUSA)
has hired fundraiser and marketer Rachel
Onanian Nadjarian to assist the organization in
expanding its development initiatives. She will
bring her over 15 years of experience working
with non-profits to help the Armenia Fund USA
to not only increase its core constituency but
also to increase the volunteer base and
AFUSA’s reach within the diaspora.
“Now that the Armenia Fund USA has start-
ed focusing on economic development and
micro-financing projects in Armenia and
Karabagh, it is essential that we bring more
people in touch with the Armenia Fund’s mis-
sion and the critical difference it is making in
the strength and well-being of our homeland,”
states AFUSA Board Chairman Raffi Festekjian.
“We are excited to have Rachel’s leadership and
talents to help us achieve our goals.”
An essential part of Nadjarian’s role will be
enhancing communication materials and chan-
nels, thereby creating greater awareness of the
Armenia Fund’s mission and its endeavors in
Armenia and Karabagh. “We have a lot of excit-
ing initiatives underway and many more things
we want to do,” comments Irina Lazarian, exec-
utive director of AFUSA. “It’s great to have
someone like Rachel on the team and we look
forward to working with her over the coming
year.”
Nadjarian has worked at and consulted to
several non-profits and profits in the areas of
fundraising, marketing and strategic planning,
including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the
Museum of Science, Boston University School
of Management, Bernard Hodes Advertising
and Crimson & Brown Associates. She received
a bachelor’s degree in economics and sociology
from Wellesley College and an MBA in non-prof-
it and public management from Boston
University. She and her husband, Paul, live in
Manhattan with their three children.
 New York
S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 11

M E T R O

Free Health Clinic Has Served More Than 40,000

came from many generous individual
By Florence Avakian donors. Fattal has been one of the
major donors.
Care, aftercare and medicines were
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Long before the cur- given to the patients without charge. In
rent discussion regarding the millions in the addition, when a patient was in need of
United States without health insurance, or the an operation, a sophisticated hospital
money to pay for expensive health care, there procedure, or further research on a
was a compassionate and dedicated individual case, the hospital did it for free. “This
who did something creative and constructive was an opportunity to tell a hospital
about this dilemma. CEO to help us,” he related.
In 1997, Dr. Garabed Fattal established a free Currently, still on the faculty of the
clinic, subsequently named after him, here. In medical school, Fattal is aware that
the last 12 years, 400 to 500 volunteer physi- other people will have to be groomed
cians, nurses, pharmacists, lab technicians and to carry on this crucial endeavor, and
office personnel have devoted their free time he’s hard at work doing so. “I’m not a
every Monday and Thursday evenings from 5 doctor who retires, goes to Florida
p.m. to late into the night, to service indigent and plays golf. And, I have no interest
people and those without health insurance. At in health care politics,” he said, point-
present, the weekly workload includes 100 to ing out that the clinic was named
after him only after the continued
insistence of his colleagues.
Deep Roots in Aleppo
Born in Aleppo, Syria in 1927,
Fattal comes from an Armenian family Dr. Garabed Fattal addresses a group of volunteers at a volunteers appreciation reception.
with roots in that community for more
than 500 years. He explained that
there has been an Armenian commu-
nity in Aleppo during these five centuries, many father became a judge, rising to the highest Binghamton General and Ideal Hospitals con-
emigrating from Cilicia over the years. “There is court in the country. solidated, he became chairman of the
a 500-year-old Armenian Church in Aleppo His mother, Mariam, was born in Aintab. Her Department of Pathology and director of
named Karasoon Mangantz Yegeghetzi dedicat- grandfather’s brother was a priest of the Clinical Laboratories (with 250 professionals),
ed to the 40 Armenian martyred children. It is Aleppo Armenian Church, and while still very retiring from active practice in November 1994.
a beautiful old church, big like a cathedral,” young, his mother was sent to Aleppo. Young Fattal who at 82-years old, has also been
Fattal recalled. Garabed was one of six children of deeply involved in the St. Gregory the
Following the Armenian Genocide, his father Asdvadzadour and Mariam Fattal, all of whom Illuminator Armenian Church in
Asdvadzadour, chaired a committee of the having become professionals in different fields. Binghamton, serving as its Parish Council
Salvation Army, which found homes and jobs Studying at the St. Joseph University Medical chairman for 12 years. He skis, plays tennis
for the Genocide survivors who settled in School in Beirut, Garabed Fattal graduated in and bikes long distance, but above all, prefers
Aleppo. “The local Muslim community wel- 1953, and emigrated to the United States in to talk about his pet project. “The people
comed the huge influx of Armenian survivors. 1954. Specializing in pathology, he went to who are the core of this voluntary medical
Dr. Garabed Fattal The Armenians felt safe there.” Manitoba, Canada in 1955, and for the next 10 program are so committed, so dedicated.
The Fattal family, going back centuries had years, was on the faculty of the University of Some of them work on the staff of the com-
120 patients, and climbing. There is also a been in the rug-making business (Fattal is Manitoba Medical School and Hospital. Due to munity hospital, but they approach this after-
Wednesday evening dental program serving the the Arabic word for weaver). From 1907 to a friend’s urging, he came to Binghamton, NY hours volunteer program with utmost devo-
clinic patients. 1908, his father who had studied law in where there was a great need for an experi- tion.” While he would like to pass the baton
“Since the time when we started this system Istanbul in the early years of the 20th centu- enced pathologist. in the near future to a younger individual,
in 1997, we have not even once interrupted our ry, returned to Aleppo when the Genocide At Binghamton General Hospital where he Fattal states without hesitation that this pro-
services because of lack of personnel,” Fattal started. Following World War I when Syria worked for the next 25 years, he became direc- gram is an “absolute joy” for him, and that he
said proudly, during an interview at the recent and Lebanon became French colonies, his tor of laboratories. When Wilson Memorial, intends to “stick around as long as possible.”
Armenian Medical World Congress held in New
York over the weekend of July 4.
In the last 12 years, the Dr. Garabed A. Fattal
Community Free Clinic has registered over
40,000 patient visits. Located in Broome,
Binghamton’s largest county with a population
of 250,000, the clinic also serves people from
Teen’s Sketch of St. Nersess Seminary
surrounding counties and neighboring upstate
Pennsylvania. “We don’t discriminate,” he stat-
ed with emphasis.
Fattal was 67 when he retired from a large
Auctioned Off to Benefit Youth Programs
consolidated hospital facility where he was the NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Alexa Chevian cessful, and in addition, is assisting the “Evening Under the Stars” reception on
chairman of a centralized Department of is a typical 16-year-old. In the summers she seminary through her time and talent. September 26. The bidding will begin at
Pathology. He is also a clinical professor at the enjoys sleeping in until noon, video games, The auction is now open for the original, $250. All proceeds generated from this
Upstate Medical University where he has been a texting, hanging out with friends, and stay- signed pencil sketch, which is double-mat- auction, and subsequent sales of reprints
30-year member of the Admissions Committee. ing up late watching movies. But unlike a
It was when he retired that he decided some- typical teenager, she loves to sketch, some-
thing must be done for those without health thing she has enjoyed since the age of 4.
insurance in the Binghamton area. “My head works in images,” explains Alexa
Stand Up and Be Counted Chevian. “When I get an idea, I draw it
What motivated him? “Many people are because I’m not good at writing.” This skill
unable to obtain and pay for health care. It was has earned her the cover of her high
unthinkable for me that this most advanced and school’s course catalog.
sophisticated society can’t take care of its own Her artistic talent continues with her
people. In America today, there are almost 50 most recent sketch of the facade of St.
million people with no health insurance and Nersess Armenian Seminary. She attended
another 20 to 25 million with inadequate cov- the youth conferences at the seminary for
erage.” He decided that “those of us who have the first time this summer, and as she
been in the health care professions should shares, this is her way of giving back to
stand up and be counted.” such a great program; a program that her
It took two years to convince other retired father and mother helped to build into a
doctors to open a clinic. It was not easy. He had popular summer curriculum among
to find a locale to practice, as well as to con- Armenian youth.
vince the local hospitals to treat the patients for Alexa is the daughter of Fr. Mardiros
free. “It was a very long and complex job. We and Yeretzgin Diane Chevian. Fr. Mardiros
finally ended up with a system in the County Chevian served as the dean of St. Nersess
Health Department pro bono with examination and the director of the summer programs
rooms. When the day workers leave, we come in for more than a decade in the 1980s, Sketch by Alexa Chevian of the seminary
after hours,” he explained. touching the lives of hundreds of
And then there was the all-important issue of teenagers throughout North America. Now
money. “We had to prod the county,” he noted. it’s an interesting twist that his own ted and glass-framed. This silent auction and cards, will benefit the Youth &
Half a million dollars were needed per year — all teenager has begun to attend these same format will culminate with the announce- Vocations programs of the seminary,
through donations. New York State, the coun- programs that he helped to make so suc- ment of the highest bidder during the including these summer youth programs.
ty, local charities all contributed, and the rest
12 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

Arts & Living

Sts. Sahag and
Mesrob Church
Director
Sponsors ‘Rising
Stars’ Concert
Tests His
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — On Saturday,
September 26 at 7 p.m., the Cultural
Committee of Sts. Sahag and Mesrob Church
Own
of Providence will present their annual
autumn concert titled, “Rising Stars,” featur-
ing Kate Norigian, John Norigian, Timothy
Aznavourian and David Griego.
Borders
Kate Norigian, soprano, has a bachelor of
music degree in vocal performance from
Atom Egoyan Ventures
Rhode Island College, where she studied Into New Territory with
voice under the instruction of Dr. Edward
Markward. While at Rhode Island College, An ‘Erotic Mystery’
Norigian participated in several opera work-
shop performances and also in Rhode Island
College musicals, including the “Pirates of
Penzance,” where she performed the title
By Katrina Onstad
role of Mabel. She continues to study voice
under the tutelage of Maria Spacagna. TORONTO (International Herald Tribune) —
Norigian was accepted to study in Rome this On a frosty March morning here the stars stood
summer at the Academia Di Santa Cecelia still while others orbited around them, as tends
where she studied with world-renowned to happen on a movie set. An assistant’s arms
soprano, Renata Scotto. wrapped Julianne Moore in a lime popsicle-col-
John Norigian graduated with a master’s ored parka; someone else crouched below
degree in piano performance from the Amanda Seyfried, lifting her blouse to hold a
Cleveland Institute of Music. He has won heating pad belt to her torso.
numerous competitions in Rhode Island, Inside a cavernous restaurant the director
A scene from “Who Killed the Eastern Dentist?” Atom Egoyan waited for a small correction in
the lighting to begin shooting a scene for his
new movie, “Chloe,” which will have its pre-
miere next month at the Toronto International

‘Eastern Dentist’ Staging Film Festival.

With the cameras rolling, the two actresses
sipped Chardonnay at the bar and began ver-

Combines Murder bally circling each other. Moore played a mar-

ried gynecologist; Seyfried was the prostitute
she enlisted to gauge the fealty of her husband

Mystery and Dancing (Liam Neeson). Sexual taboos; miscommunica-

tion; a shoot from the depths of an icy Toronto
winter — all of this looked very much like a typ-
ical Egoyan film, except it wasn’t.
PARAMUS, N.J. — The Greater New York Tekeyan Cultural Association (TCA) “Chloe” — which Egoyan describes as an
Mher Megerdchian Theatrical Group is going to stage the first Armenian murder “erotic mystery” — is a star-studded break from
Kate Norigian mystery theater, to be held on Saturday, October 10, at 8 p.m. at the Assyrian form for him, the first of his features for which
Orthodox Church of the Virgin Mary, 644 Paramus Road. he has not written the screenplay. He has spent
The mystery, Hagop Baronian’s comedic play titled, “Who Killed the Eastern more than two decades fashioning complicated
including first prize in the College Division Dentist?,” was written around the 1860s, about an Istanbul dentist who is having puzzles like “The Sweet Hereafter” and
of the MTNA Piano Competition in 2002 affairs with the wives of his patients, thus creating enemies who are out to get him. “Exotica,” in which characters misread one
and 2004. He also won the University of The murder takes place at a masquerade party. The audience will be invited to par- another and the world, cornered by sexual
Rhode Island Concerto Competition, sub- ticipate in catching the killer of the dentist. desire and technology. Now he was playing
sequently performing Mendelssohn The TCA is combining this theatrical affair with a dinner-dance with music from hired gun to Ivan Reitman, producer of a string
Concerto No. 1 with the URI Symphony a DJ. Food will be catered by Cornetta’s Restaurant of Blauvelt, NY and the mem- of top-grossing populist comedies like “Animal
Orchestra. bers of the audience can bring their own beverages. There will be dancing through- House” and “Ghostbusters” and director of
Aznavourian is a guitarist and vocalist, out the evening. As the setting is that of a masquerade party, attendees are invit- “Kindergarten Cop.” Reitman stood on the side-
specializing in classical and folk music. He ed to wear masks. lines, hands in pockets, surveying silently.
began learning guitar at the age of 12 by For reservations, call Maro Hajakian (201) 934-3427, Marie Zokian (201) 745- The odd pairing — they are even physical
teaching himself. At the age of 17 he began 8850, Noushig Atamian (718) 894-5878 or Missak Boghossian (212) 819-0097. opposites, with the bearlike Reitman towering
to take formal lessons and advanced his over the diminutive Egoyan — seems like a
music education at Rhode Island College. meeting of the mainstream and the margin. But
He is a member of the Sts. Sahag and besides Canadian citizenship, the two share
Mesrob Church Choir and is currently something else: a need to stretch.
studying to serve on the church altar. Reitman was interested in putting aside the
Griego began to study the flute at the guffaws and overseeing “a more delicate piece.”
age of 9, but gave it up as an early teen to And at 49, Egoyan exuded a youthful restless-
focus on his other major interest, chess. He ness. “There’s a definite ceiling for the type of
has won many championships and awards. films I’ve done,” he said over lunch during a
After leaving the competitive chess arena, break in filming. “And as an artist there is a
Griego resumed his music studies with the point where you’re trying to find and test how
eminent Philharmonic flutist, John Curran. wide your sensibility can go.”
He teaches flute in the Cultural It helped, he said, that the script in question
Committee’s Art Education Program. was by Erin Cressida Wilson, who has
In addition to the four performing artists, unpacked perversity in an Egoyan-like fashion
there will be a presentation of the art works with her screenplays for the S&M drama
of Dr. Ara Sadaniantz. Sadaniantz is pro- “Secretary” and the Diane Arbus fantasia
fessionally a well-known cardiologist. “Fur.” “She can write in this very linear fashion
However, as a child he was very interested that I couldn’t even if I tried,” Egoyan said. “It’s
in art and continues his passion whenever an extreme examination of how to re-eroticize a
he has the opportunity. He specializes in marriage.”
landscaping and beautiful scenery. He has In 2008 “Chloe” was blessed by that rare
had several successful art showings locally, alignment of casting and financing. (The film’s
including for the Rhode Island Medical budget is an estimated $20 million, with back-
A scene from “Who Killed the Eastern Dentist?”
Association. ers including Studio Canal and Montecito,
— Irene Eranosian Reitman’s company.
see EGOYAN, page 14
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 13

ARTS & LIVING

Permanent Loan of Gorky Works Makes Whistler Museum a Magnet

GORKY, from page 1 Said Lally, “It’s a great thing for the museum, the pieces needed cleaning and restora-
For many years, the museum has had in its the city of Lowell and really for the whole tion, and that involved expense. We
permanent collection a single, early painting by region.” Added Bogosian, “This is important for applied to the Theodore Edson Parker
Gorky, “Park Street,” done in 1924 during the the entire arts community. These works are Foundation for a grant to fund what
years he spent in Watertown. Now, it will display from a private collection and most of them have needed to be done.”
a significant portion of his oeuvre on permanent not been seen. It’s a big deal for the city and also The works were then sent to the
loan. for the Armenian community.” Williamstown Art Conservation Center
The collection, given by anonymous donors, Said Lally, “Having these pieces on perma- (connected with the Clark Museum). A
includes drawings and paintings that highlight nent loan means that the donors retain owner- contract negotiated through the donat-
the artistic accomplishment that have led Gorky ship but the museum has the right to display ed services of a local law firm, Gallagher
to be ranked in the roster of important abstract them publicly. We will have the only existing & Cavanagh, covered the arrangements
expressionists such as Willem de Kooning, stone sculpture by Gorky, in addition to the for restoration.
Stuart Davis and Jackson Pollack, who, in the drawings and paintings.” Bogosian, who has served on the
40s, 50s and 60s, changed the way we view the The varied works range from line drawings on museum’s board for 16 years, said, “I
world. paper of Mina Boehm Metzger, Gorky’s student, think my being on the board helped to
The process of making the loan final has patron and friend (for whom this collection is build trust with the donors. For me, this
taken five years, and museum director Michael named), to bold, colorful oil abstracts that show process has been a labor of love. Gorky,
Lally and Sara Bogosian, chair of the Arshile the influences on the artist of Cezanne, Picasso, after all, is the most famous survivor of
Gorky Committee, have been involved every step Leger, Miro, Matisse, Chirico and others. the Armenian Genocide. It has been a
of the way. As Hayden Herrera has very personal effort for me to promote
As they reviewed final proof of the catalogue, noted in her biography of the work of this artist.”
just a few days before the opening reception, Gorky (Arshile Gorky: Two other board members who have
they spoke nearly in unison about what it means His Life and Work, been especially supportive of the pro-
for the museum to have this collection. Farrar, Straus and cess of obtaining the collection are
Giroux, 2003), his phi- Anastasia Porter, who has been associ-
losophy of working as ated with the museum for 50 years, and
an artist was closer to Therese O’Connor.
that of the apprentice- Coincidentally, the Philadelphia
ships that many Museum of Art is mounting a traveling
European artists served “The Three Roses” by Arshile Gorky
show titled “Arshile Gorky: A
under master painters. Retrospective,” which will go to the
Gorky did not copy, but Tate Modern in London and then to the
he studied and that he was the only son of his Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. It
absorbed the influ- mother, Shushan’s second marriage opens on October 21 and includes 175 of
ences of other artists, to a well-off farmer and trader. Gorky’s works. Once it is over, the works will dis-
while developing his Arshile Gorky Sedrak Adoian. If there is one paint- perse to their owners, while the Whistler’s trove
own unique approach ing of Gorky’s with which the gen- will remain in place.
to the creation of art. eral public is acquainted, it is the The first event to mark the Whistler’s opening
Said Bogosian, “You can see him learn- iconic portrait of himself and his of “Drawings and Paintings by Arshile Gorky:
ing from the Cubists, the Impressionists, the Shushan. In the painting, the two seem to look Mina Boehm Metzger Collection” is the Private
Surrealists to establish his form of abstract in different directions, but the intense closeness Preview Party to take place, Sunday, September
Expressionism.” between them is clear. Before Gorky was born, 13, at 6 p.m. Gorky’s daughters, Maro and
Gorky was born Vosdanig Manoog Adoian, in his mother’s family had suffered death and Natasha and son-in-law Matthew Spender will
the small village of Khorkom, near Van. The date destruction at the hands of Kurds, who were attend the opening as will Gorky’s biographer,
A work from the Gorky Collection of his birth and many details of his early life urged on by the Turks to attack Armenian fam- Herrera. The event is sponsored by the Board of
have been difficult to document, but it is known ilies. Later, the Genocide killed more members Trustees of the Lowell Art Association, Inc. and
of his immediate family. These events would the museum itself. (For details, visit
weigh on Gorky for the rest of his life. www.whistlerhouse.org.)
With his sister, Vartoosh, he came to the Future events planned include a reception for
United States in 1920, settling first in the public, September 19 from 2 to 4 p.m. The
Providence, then moving to Watertown where official opening for the public is September 16,
he spent several years. He eventually moved to and the show will hang in the Parker Gallery
New York, where he soon became part of a until November 7, and then be moved to the
vibrant, bohemian community that included main museum building. On Saturday,
other artists, art critics and patrons. It was September 26, at 2 p.m., there will be a reading
sometime in the 1920s that he changed his from The Fogg by Alfred Bouchard, which
name from Vosdanig Adoian to Arshile Gorky, includes poems about Arshile Gorky and his
claiming that he was a cousin of the Russian works. On Saturday, October 10, at 6 p.m. there
writer, Maxim Gorky. will be a performance of an original play by
Gorky married twice, but it was his second Regina Eliot Ramsey, produced by the Image
marriage to Agnes Magruder, whom he called Theater about the relationship between Willem
Mougouch, that produced two daughters, and de Kooning and Arshile Gorky.
that sustained him through recurring bouts of The works by Gorky join the museum’s per-
depression and periods of economic difficulty. In manent collection that focuses on 19th- and
a tragic end to a brilliant career, at the culmina- 20th-century artists associated with New
tion of which Gorky was referred to as “the England, including William Morris Hunt, Frank
Father of American Abstract Expressionism,” Weston Benson and Aldo Hibbard amongst oth-
Gorky committed suicide in 1948, after the ers.
breakup of his marriage due to his increasing Gorky, of course belongs in this category,
mental illness and depression. thanks to his years in Providence, Watertown
The Whistler House Museum was chosen by and Boston. But his influence reaches far
the donors above four other museums that beyond the New England region, and this
sought the collection. unique collection can be expected to attract art
Said Lally, “One institution wanted the works lovers and admirers of Gorky from throughout
only for research rather than display. Many of the country and even from abroad.
14 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

ARTS & LIVING

Atom Egoyan Ventures into New Territory with an ‘Erotic Mystery’

EGOYAN, from page 12 James Cameron took me aside and said: ‘You for his kind of movies — what he called medium- cial obligations. Films involve hundreds of
After the cast signed on, two of the three leads know, in a way, we made the same movie. size films — to be seen. lives.” Egoyan described a flood of insurers and
appeared in surprise hits, increasing their celebri- They’re both about large metal objects crashing “There was a time when there was a real completion bonders on the set. He brought
ty currency: Seyfried with “Mamma Mia!” and through ice,”’ Egoyan said, grinning. anticipation of an independent film,” he said. together the principals, and they went over the
Neeson with “Taken.” “We’ve had incredibly Although he claimed to love “Titanic,” and “But the attention span has changed, and the script, altering sequences for Neeson’s absence.
good luck pulling this together,” Reitman said. financed his early films in part by directing ability of the critical community to read these But within days he quietly returned to
“It’s been a joyful experience so far.” trashy television shows like “Friday the 13th,” films. I think there’s a tremendous pressure on Toronto in a private plane, undetected by the
And then within a few days of my set visit, any trace of mass audience “pop” is virtually critics and film writers to concentrate on films news media. “He conducted himself in an
Neeson’s wife, the actress Natasha Richardson, absent from Egoyan’s oeuvre and, possibly, his that are perceived to be more popular, and I extraordinary manner,” Reitman recalled. “He
fell on a ski slope in Quebec. What had seemed life. He was born in Egypt to Armenian parents think it’s changed the landscape.” was under pressure from the sadness of what
a minor injury bloomed into something much who had been painters, and was raised in Before starting “Chloe,” Reitman became a had happened, and he channeled it into the per-
worse; Richardson was soon transferred to Victoria, British Columbia. student of Egoyan’s films. “I think for how good formance of those two days.”
Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, where she “Atom has no lowbrow side; he doesn’t even his movies are, a lot of them are hard to take,” Over the summer Egoyan attended test
died. After the news media descended on the have a middlebrow side,” said the novelist he said. “They’re tragedies and very indepen- screenings of “Chloe” with audiences in Los
city for a glimpse of tragedy, Egoyan was left in Douglas Cooper, who has known Egoyan since dent in spirit, so they’ve had somewhat a limit- Angeles and Toronto, reviewing the feedback
Toronto with an absent star and an interrupted they roomed near each other at the University ed audience.” The storytelling in “Chloe,” with Reitman. The response has been extreme-
change of course. of Toronto. Typical dorm-room activities includ- Reitman added, “is faster than his historical ly positive, Egoyan said; no clarity issues. But
Egoyan was first nominated for the Canadian ed conversations about Harold Pinter and how work. But it is an Egoyan film in that it’s a very strangely, a complex, Egoyan-esque meta-narra-
equivalent of the Oscar, the Genie, at 24. The to depict genocide in art. personal look at human psychology, with lots of tive has been imposed on the film that was sup-
film, “Next of Kin” (1984), is a black comedy Egoyan has also staged his own operas, as small moments told through nuance. It’s less posed to be his most direct. It’s now the tragic
about a lonely young man masquerading as an well as those by Strauss and Wagner. Neeson enigmatic.” movie about marriage during which one very
Armenian adoptee. Egoyan’s reputation built worked with him last summer on a Lincoln Moore was drawn to the story of a lived-in famous marriage ended so tragically.
slowly throughout the 1990s with critically Center Festival production of the Samuel marriage. She, Neeson and Egoyan were, at the Asked if the film read differently to him now
lauded independent films: “The Adjuster,” Beckett play “Eh Joe.” “I was very inspired by time, all in long-term relationships. (Egoyan is elicited a polite, conclusive answer from
“Exotica” and “The Sweet Hereafter.” “The Atom,” Neeson recently said on the phone from married to the actress Arsinée Khanjian, and Neeson: “I can’t go back there.”
Sweet Hereafter,” which Egoyan adapted from New York. “He’s incredibly bright, with a they have a 14-year-old son.) “In ordinary adult To the same question Egoyan gave a consid-
a Russell Banks novel, starred Ian Holm as a wicked sense of humor. He’s a renaissance man. life, sex has a different kind of currency than in ered response. “It will have interesting over-
lawyer trying to prey on a small town suspend- There’s no one like him in Hollywood.” most movies,” Moore said. “Atom’s films always tones because it is about how precious a mar-
ed in grief after a school bus accident. That And that’s intentional. After the success of understand that sexuality is meaningful.” riage is,” he said. “Maybe it will always be
1997 film earned him the “surprise” Oscar “Exotica,” Egoyan spent several months in Los As research before shooting, Egoyan traveled known as the film Liam was working on when
nominee slot for best director (and best screen- Angeles, a period he jokingly refers to as “my to New York and, through a friend’s recom- that happened. But ultimately we finished the
play adaptation), though he was crushed by lost year.” Meetings begat more meetings and mendation, found a bar in a prominent hotel film, and Liam is magnificent in it. Now all we
James Cameron’s “Titanic.” “At a luncheon finally he returned to Toronto to make movies rumored to host high-end sex workers. He can do is wait and see.”
on a smaller scale. The exception being the quickly noticed a young blond woman watching
2005 Kevin Bacon post-modern noir “Where him. The director approached and offered her
the Truth Lies,” a Canadian-British co-produc- money to explain how this retro form of prosti-
tion that still allowed Egoyan the creative free- tution worked. “It’s very much alive, and based
Third Bi-Annual dom he has cultivated — until now. on eye contact, all the things you’d normally do
“I never wanted my films to be tested because in a bar,” he said. “But there’s a different nego-
International Conference test screenings have to do with clarity, whether tiation, of course, and that’s fascinating. At
Of Armenian Writers to or not you feel confused or uncertain,” he said.
“Confusion and uncertainty are what the films
what point does something that might have
become a date become a business interaction?”
Take Place at UCLA I write are based on. But ‘Chloe’ is being He finished his break and went back to shoot
designed to go through that process. We shot a Moore and Seyfried, seated at the bar, enacting
LOS ANGELES — The third biannual confer- lot so we could have malleability to change exactly that negotiation.
ence of Armenian writers who write in a lan- things. I have no problem with it because that’s Several months later, in the searing heat of
guage other than Armenian (English, French, the intention of this film, to find a wider audi- July, Egoyan locked up his bicycle outside a cafe
Italian, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Farsi, etc.) will ence.” in the upscale Summerhill neighborhood of
be held at the University of California at Los This found audience would be new for Toronto, near his home. Over breakfast he
Angeles (UCLA) on November 6 and 7. Egoyan: “Where the Truth Lies,” budgeted at described the moment when Neeson pulled him
The two previous conferences were held in $25 million, took in $872,000, according to box- aside on the set and told him of Richardson’s
Yerevan (Tzaghkadzor), Armenia, in 2004 and officemojo.com. In May his most recent film, fall. “He just talked with her and everything
2006 with the participation of a large contin- “Adoration,” came and went swiftly to mixed seemed to be OK. But there was a feeling of:
gent of writers from various countries. reviews. ‘You should go.’ And it just changed the course
This international conference is organized by
the Writers Union of Armenia, with the cooper-
That he had slipped, somewhat, from the
good graces of the once-adoring cinephiles, was
of everything.”
Reitman and Egoyan were in immediate
Entertainment Fridays
ation of the UCLA Armenian Studies Chair, something Egoyan admitted he thought about. phone contact. “First you think, ‘Oh my God.’ and Saturdays
headed by Dr. Peter Cowe who is co-chair of the He credited good reviews with gaining him The human side takes over, and you try to pro-
organizing committee with Levon Ananyan, attention as a young filmmaker, and wondered ceed in a way that’s respectful and honorable,”
president of the Writers Union. if the changing film world had made it harder Reitman said. “But there are always one’s finan-
Preliminary topics for the symposium

WENTWORTH GALLERY
include:
• The Role of the Family as the Locus of

GEVORG
Roots and Source of Inspiration for Literary

Presents
Creation.
• The Mutual Interrelation between the
Writer and his/her Readership in non-
Armenian language Media (the interface
between a writer’s intended audience and read-
ers’ response).
• The Diverse Reflections of Homeland in

The Armenian Artist Who conquered the

Literature (different understandings of
Armenia, diasporic host societies, spiritual

Heart of Americans
homelands, etc.)
• Perspectives and Talking Points between
Writers in non-Armenian language Media and

Saturday, October 10, 2009

their Counterparts writing in Armenian and
also with Armenian communities of varied lan-

2:00-9:00 PM
guage heritage.
• Significant Current Literary Trends and
Future Expectations with Particular Focus on

Woodfield Shopping Center

the Younger Generation of Writers.
Other suggestions are also welcome. Send

5 Woodfield Shopping Center,

suggestions to Prof. Osheen Keshishian

Schaumburg, IL 60173
([email protected]) or Edmond Azadian
([email protected]).
A call for papers has been issued for the sym-

Phone: (847) 995-1190

posium and interested individuals should sub-
mit a 250-word abstract relating to the sympo-
sium topics, no later than September 30 to
either [email protected] or
[email protected]. Each panel will consist
of a major overview presentation of 20 minutes
to be followed by several more focused papers
of 10 minutes and general discussion.
The conference language will be in English.
S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 15

ARTS & LIVING

New York State PBS Station to Broadcast

‘We Drank the Same Water’
MONTREAL — On Sunday, September 13 at and we hope to repeat previous successes.”
7 p.m., the Mountain Lake PBS (Plattsburgh, The AGBU Scout volunteers and Attarian will
NY) will broadcast the Armenian documentary be present to assist in the membership pledge
“We Drank the Same Water” (“Nous Avons Bu drive during the broadcast. Also present will be
la Meme Eau”) by Serge Avedikian. the award-winning filmmaker of this unique
“We are excited that PBS has decided to film, Avedikian, who was especially invited from
broadcast this program,” said Armen Paris to participate in an on-air interview with
Bechakjian, chairman of Montreal AGBU. “This Attarian.
is a unique documentary about the discovery of Mountain Lake PBS has been bringing inno-
painful memories of genocide, but also of sur- vative Armenian programming to the Canadian
vival, redemption and developing human rela- and American public for close to a decade.
tions across new generations exploring a com- Armenians are urged to watch this film and to
mon past.” pledge their support to Mountain Lake PBS.
“We have cooperated for several months to The film will be broadcast simultaneously by
bring this film to the PBS audience,” said for- the Albany PBS and will be picked up later for
mer AGBU Chairman Viken L. Attarian, “and it broadcast by other stations. Coverage would go
will be simultaneously broadcast through other to almost two-thirds of New York state,
PBS stations as well. We are hoping that it gets Southern Quebec, Eastern Ontario (up to
the wide coverage it deserves. We have raised Kingston) and any cable grid that would pick
record sums for PBS through our partnership up the signal.

A poster for “We Drank the Same Water”

Exhibit of Photos by Haik

Kocharian at NYC Gallery
NEW YORK — 92YTribeca presents a new
exhibit by New York-based multimedia artist,
Haik Kocharian. The exhibition features pho-
tographs taken in and around the Indian sub-
continent, including the ancient city of
Varanasi, the coasts of Varkala and the Tar
Desert. The photographs trace a day’s cycle
from sunrise to sunset in three distinct stages
(the first two of which are on view in this
exhibition), exploring not only the spirit of
the region and its people, but also the nature
and complexities of personal transformation
that comes with renewal, loss and release.
The opening reception was on Friday,
September 11 at 6 p.m.; the exhibit runs
through September 30.
The first part of the exhibition, “New,”
depicts worshipers in the ancient city of
Varanasi performing their daily ablutions in
the Ganges River. Using water as a metaphor
for rebirth and renewal, these images suggest
the joy and gratitude that accompanies the
beginning of each new day. The second seg-
ment, “Relation,” evolves into a more emo- A woman bathes in the Ganges.
tional realm, exploring the nuances of love
and human relationships. Visions of veiled
female figures haunt these images, hovering Competition.
between reality and apparition, yet never But photography isn’t Kocharian’s only
revealing their faces to the viewer. medium. His rich, acoustic songs have been
Kocharian’s images can be found in numer- described as lyrical, heartfelt and often
ous private and corporate collections world- funny, but they can also be dark, angry and
wide including Bloomingdales, Ralph Lauren at times provocative. Kocharian has per-
and Paris W Hotels. His most recent shows formed concerts in New York, Los Angeles
include a solo exhibition at Robin Rice and throughout Europe. His first album,
Gallery in 2007 and Appel Gallery in “Heaven,” was released in 2007, and his sec-
Sacramento in 2009. His work has been pub- ond album, “Juice,” was released earlier this
lished in several US and European magazines year. He is currently working on his new
including Smithsonian, Elle and Madam album, “Overdose of Pleasure,” scheduled for
Figaro, and he was a finalist in the Positive release by mid 2010.
Focus Photo Competition and the For more information, visit
Smithsonian Magazine Annual Photo www.92YTribeca.org.
16 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

ARTS & LIVING

C A L E N D A R
Charles and Nevart Talanian Cultural Hall, Holy Trinity
CALIFORNIA Armenian Church, 145 Brattle St., Cambridge. Donation:
S E P T E M B E R 22 – O CT O B E R 27 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , $7.99 for delicious losh kebab dinner. Tickets on sale at
a u t h o r o f Ch i l d r e n o f A r m e n i a , published by Simon & door. Lottery drawing at 8 p.m. for regular monthly prizes
Schuster, will participate in a series of readings and book plus five additional cash prizes. “One-Time” numbers will be
signings. This groundbreaking book is the first to chronicle sold at the dinner. Special offer: Buy four numbers for the
the aftermath of the first genocide of the 20th century, night and get the fifth free. For more info., contact the Holy
recounting the Armenian struggle for justice in the face of Trinity Church Office at (617) 354-0632 or e-mail
silence and denial. For more info., [email protected].
www.childrenarmenia.com. S E P T E M B E R 26 — S m i t h s o n i a n M u s e u m D a y O f fe r s F r e e
• SEPTEMBER 22 — 6:30 p.m., at UC Berkeley, 223 Moses Hall, Ad m i ssi o n to A rm e ni an Li b rar y a nd Mu se u m o f
Berkeley, Calif. A m e r i ca , Watertown. Visit www.almainc.org. Select the
• SEPTEMBER 23 — 7:30 p.m., at the Skylight Bookstore, 1818 Calendar page and click on Smithsonian Museum Day to
N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, Calif. download your Museum Day Admission Card. Attendees
• SEPTEMBER 24 — 7:30 p.m. at the AGBU Alex Manoogian must present the Museum Day Admission Card to gain free
Center, 2495 E. Mountain St., Pasadena, Calif. entry. Each card provides museum access for two people.
• SEPTEMBER 29 — 7 p.m., at the Glendale Public Library, 222 The museum is open 1-5 p.m.
E. Harvard St., Glendale, Calif. S E P T E M B E R 28 — F i r s t A n n u a l S t s . Va r t a n a n t z G o l f
• OCTOBER 1 — 7 p.m., at the Fresno Public Library (Fig To u r n a m e n t and outing, Butter Brook Golf Club, Westford.
Garden Branch), 3071 West Bullard Ave., Fresno, Calif. $150, includes golf, cart, prizes, reception and awards din-
• OCTOBER 18 — 4 p.m., at the Ararat-Eskijian Museum, ner. 1 p.m., shotgun start. Dinner only, $35. Proceeds to
15105 Mission Hills Road, Mission Hills, Calif. benefit Sts. Vartanantz Youth Scholarship Fund. Contact Ara
• OCTOBER 27 — 7 p.m. at Chaucer’s Bookstore, 3321 State at (978) 251-4845, Steve at (978) 808-2820 or e-mail:
St., Santa Barbara, Calif. [email protected].
O CT O B E R 2 — J a z z N i gh t s @ A LM A w i t h A r m e n D o n e l i a n
N OV E M B E R 7 — A r m e n i a n P r o fe s s i o n a l S o ci e t y H o n o r s
T r i o at Armenian Library and Museum of America,
D r. Va r t a n Gr e g o r i a n as their Professional of the Year.
Watertown. Donelian (piano), David Clark (bass) and
Sheraton Universal, Los Angeles. Tickets: $150.
George Schuller (drums) will perform music from their latest
N OV E M B E R 8 — S a y a t N ov a D a n ce Co m p a ny o f B o s t o n
album “Oasis.” The concert begins at 8 p.m. in ALMA’s
t r av e l s t o Ca l i fo r n i a to present its dynamic “Power in
Contemporary Art Gallery; museum doors open at 7:30
Rhythm” performance at Glendale High School Auditorium, From September 13 – October 10, the
p.m. Tickets $15 (includes one complimentary glass of wine
1440 E. Broadway, Glendale. For tickets, contact Whistler House Museum celebrates for 21+). ALMA members, students and JazzBoston mem-
www.itmyseat.com. Arshile Gorky, with a preview party bers (with proper ID) pay $10. Visit www.almainc.org or call
on September 13; the exhibit featur- (617 926-2562 to preorder tickets/make table reservations.
CONNECTICUT ing works by Gorky, such as the one O CT O B E R 3 — B r a t t l e B o ut i q u e a n d S p a r k s S t . Ca fé — A
pictured above, starts on Wednesday, F a l l Fa i r featuring specialty gift and food items, sponsored
S E P T E M B E R 1 3 — A n n u a l F e s t i v a l o f S t . S t e p h e n ’s September 16. For more info., call by the Women’s Guild of Holy Trinity Armenian Church of
A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch , New Britain and Hartford at the Greater Boston, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Saturday. Charles and
(978) 452-7641 or e-mail jdy-
Quartette Club, 225 Wooster St., New Britain, at 12 p.m., Nevart Talanian Cultural Hall, 145 Brattle St., Cambridge.
[email protected].
rain or shine. Live music, Armenian food; free admission. This new event will feature a variety of specialty vendors sell-
SEPTEMBER 26 — Richard Hagopian, Hachig Kazarian, Jack ing gifts and gourmet food. There will also be a Children’s
Chalikian, Mal Barsamian, Ron Tutunjian and Paul Mooradian Corner with activities and items for children. Admission is
will play in West Har t ford, on Saturday. Details will follow. Dance free. For further info., contact the Holy Trinity Church Office
will start at 6 p.m. and end at midnight. The event has been moved the formal tensions between borders and interiors, literal at (617) 354-0632 or e-mail [email protected].
to a smaller venue. Make reservations. and perceived depth, and representation and abstraction. O CT O B E R 3 — A r m e n i a n A m e r i ca n P r o fe s s i o n a l s G a l a
The reception takes place from 2-4 p.m. and is free. B a n q u e t a n d D a n ce Honoring Massachusetts state Rep.
FLORIDA S E P T E M B E R 14 — P u b l i c R e ce p t i o n fo r A L M A’s Tr a v e l i n g
Peter Koutoujian of Waltham. 6 p.m., cocktail hour. Dinner
E x h i b i t “L e g i o n A r m e n i e n n e : T h e A r m e n i a n L e g i o n a n d
with music and dancing with DJ Eddie K. Hyatt Regency
JA N U A R Y 16-23, 2010 — J o i n A r m e n i a n s w o r l d w i d e o n I t s H e r o i s m i n t h e M i d d l e E a s t d u r i n g W o r l d Wa r I ,” 5-
Hotel, Cambridge. For information and tickets, contact Ara
t h e A r m e n i a n H e r i t a g e Cr u i s e X I I I 2010. Sailing on 7 p.m., Northbridge Town Hall (7 Main St., Whitinsville, Demirjian at (617) 974-8343. Sponsored by the following
Saturday. To San Juan, PR, St. Thomas and Grand Caicos Mass.) Exhibit continues until September 22. Hours: associations: Armenian American Medical Association,
Islands on the Costa Atlantica. Prices start at $679 per per- Mondays, 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m.; Tuesdays through Thursdays, Armenian American Dental Society, Armenian American
son. Contact TravelGroup International 1-866-447-0750, ext 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Friday, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Info.: (617) Nurses Association, Armenian American Bar Association
102 or 108. Westcoast: Mary Papazian (818) 407-1401; 926-2562 or [email protected]. (Law Society) and hosted by the Armenian American
Eastcoast: Antranik Boudakian (718) 575-0142. S E P T E M B E R 13-O CT O B E R 10 — W h i s t l e r H o u s e Mu s e u m
Pharmacists’ Association.
ce l e b ra t e s A r s h il e Go r k y . Preview Party, September 13,
O CT O B E R 3 — S e co n d S t . J a m e s P a r i s h R e u n i o n a n d ke f,
Parker Gallery, donation, $50 per person; $35 for members.
MASSACHUSETTS Event features a premiere of works by Gorky, as well as the
hosted by the St. James ACYOA Seniors. Saturday, 8 p.m.-1
a.m. at St. James Armenian Church. Charles Mosesian
S E P T E M B E R 13 — T r i n i t y F a m il y F e s t i v a l , 12-5 p .m ., H o l y cuisine and music of his Armenian homeland. For reserva-
Cultural and Youth Center, Keljik Hall. 465 Mt. Auburn St.,
Tr i n i t y A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch, 145 Brattle St., Cambridge. tions, contact Whistler House Museum of Art, 243
Watertown. Featuring Bob Raphalian (oud), Leon Janikian
Delicious shish, losh, chicken and doener kebab dinners, Worthern St., Lowell, call (978) 452-7641 or e-mail jdy-
(clarinet), Harry Bedrossian (keyboard and vocals), Kenny
take-out meals, pastries and beverages. Moonwalk for kids; [email protected]. Exhibit opens on Wednesday,
Kalajian (guitar) and Leon Manoogian (dumbeg). $25 per
family games and contests starting at 1:30 p.m. Armenian September 16, 11 a.m. Admission, $5, adults. Public recep-
person. Tables of 10 may be reserved with advance pay-
music by the Greg Krikorian Ensemble. Blessing of tion, Saturday, September 19, 2-4 p.m. On Saturday,
ment. For tickets, contact Melanie Khederian at (617) 694-
“Madagh,” 4 p.m. Raffle drawing for cash prizes, 4:30 p.m., October 10, at 6 p.m., an original play will be performed by
1057 or at [email protected]. All proceeds to benefit
with grand prize: $1,000; second prize, $300 and third Regina Eliot Ramsey about Willem De Kooning and Gorky.
the 2010 ACYOA General Assembly and National Sports
prize, $100. Tickets, $5 or six for $25. Winner need not be S EPT EMBE R 15 — 16t h Annual Golf Clas sic. $150 donation
Weekend hosted by St. James ACYOA.
present. Further details to follow. For info., contact Holy includes golf, cart, lunch, banquet, driving range, gifts, prizes
and a lot of laughs. A limited number of sponsorships are still O CT O B E R 4 — Ce l e b r a t i o n o f A r m e n i a n I n d e p e n d e n ce
Trinity Church Office, (617) 354-0632 or e-mail D a y ( N e w R e p u b l i c) by the Lowell ARF, 1 p.m., Sts.
[email protected]. available (banquet, lunch, cart, and hole). Save the date and
come and play at Cyprian Keyes Golf Club, Boylston. (35 minutes Vartanantz Armenian Church, 180 Westford Road, North
S E P T E M B E R 13 — A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch o f H o l y T ra n s l a t o r s – Chelmsford; complimentary dinner and program; David
A n n u a l p i cn i c. Sunday, 12-5 p.m. New England Laborers from Boston, 10 minutes from Worcester). 10 a.m. Shotgun
start. For more information, call the Armenian Church of Our Boyajian will be recognized for his years of dedicated service
Training Camp. 37 East St., Hopkinton. If it rains, go to to the No Place for Hate campaign and will offer an update.
Church Hall, 38 Franklin St., Framingham. For questions, call Saviour, 87 Salisbury St., Worcester, MA 01609. (508) 756-2931.
All proceeds are tax deductible. Credit cards honored. O CT O B E R 8 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , a u t ho r o f Ch i l d r e n o f
Robin Navoian Palombo at (508) 881-7922 or e-mail robin- A r m e n i a , will participate in a reading and book signing. 7
[email protected]. S E P T E M B E R 18 — S t . J a m e s H y e Ca fé . Delicious Armenian
food and fellowship. Children’s activities will be provided. p.m. at NAASR Bookstore, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont,
SEPTEMBER 13 — Picnic Festival at St. Gregor y Armenian Mass. This groundbreaking book is the first to chronicle the
Church, 158 Main St., North Andover. Armenian-American danc- 465 Mt. Auburn St., Watertown. Friday, 6:30 p.m. Parties of
six or more are encouraged to make reservations by calling aftermath of the first genocide of the 20th century, recount-
ing, food and other activities, 1-5 p.m., on church grounds. ing the Armenian struggle for justice in the face of silence
S E P T E M B E R 13 — 36t h A n n u a l H u s e n i g F o u n d a t i o n the St. James church office at (617) 923-8860, no later than
5 p.m. on September 17. and denial. For more info., www.childrenarmenia.com.
P i cn i c. Simmons St., Rehoboth, Mass. Live music by Gary
S E P T E M B E R 20 — Ce l e b r a t i n g 15 y e a r s o f G r e e n i n g OCTO B E R 15 — H uma n R ig ht s in Ar me n ia n Hi s to r y , a l e c-
Kashmanian’s NE All Star Band. Delicious shish kebab, losh
A r m e n i a Regional event honoring Armenia Tree Project. t ur e by P r o f. S i mon P ay a s li a n, at 7 p.m. at the Armenian
kebab, kheyma, chicken, pilaf, fresh corn and home baked
Sunday. Please save the date. Details to follow. Library and Museum of America, Watertown. Payaslian,
pastries. For more info., call Bob Janigian (401) 944-2218.
S E P T E M B E R 21 — S t . S t e p he n ’s A r m e n i a n S ch o o l /ACE C Kenosian Chair in Modern Armenian History and Literature at
S E P T E M B E R 13 — E x h i b i t O p e n i n g a n d R e ce p t i o n o f “ I n
14t h A n n u a l G o l f O ut i n g. Framingham Country Club. Boston University, discusses the development of human rights
t h e S h a d e o f P e a co ck : P a ra b l e s , P a i n t b ox e s a n d O t he r
$170 includes golf, lunch, dinner and contests. For info., in Armenia within a long historical perspective and contends
D i v e r s e M e d i a ” by Marsha Odabashian at the Armenian
contact Astor, (781) 326-5764. human rights values and customary practices require centuries
Library and Museum of America, Watertown. On display
S E P T E M B E R 24 — F r i e n d s o f H o l y Tr i n i t y 1000 Cl u b — 29t h of development. For more info., visit www.alamainc.org. The
through October 11, the exhibit features a range of paint-
A n n u a l F a l l D i n n e r a n d D r aw i n g, 6:30 p.m., Thursday, event is free and open to the public.
ings, acrylic and mixed-media assemblages, and addresses
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 17

ARTS & LIVING

O CT O B E R 23 & 25 — A r me n i a n F e s t i v a l , A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch O CT O B E R 9, 2010 — 30t h A n n i v e r s a r y ce l e b ra t i o n o f t h e the Armenian struggle for justice in the face of silence and
o f O ur S a v i o u r, offering the most delicious shish, losh and A r m e n i a n I n d e p e n d e n t R a d i o o f B o s to n . Please mark denial. For more info., www.childrenarmenia.com.
chicken kebab on char-broiled grills. Freshly-made kheyma, your calendar. Details to follow. O CT O B E R 24 — AG B U N e w Yo r k S p e c i a l E v e n t s
kids meals available, raffle/prizes, beer and wine. The best Co m m i t t e e ( N YS E C) presents — AGBU Performing Artists in
authentic Armenian baked goods, country store, music and MICHIGAN Concert. A benefit for the AGBU Performing Arts Fellowship
fun for the entire family. Friday, October 23, 5-9 p.m., and Program, showcasing the talents of 12 Armenian youth,
Sunday, October 25, 12-5 p.m. Save the date. Cultural S E P T E M B E R 12 — A D L /Te ke y a n Cu l t u ra l A s s o ci a t i o n p r e - under the artistic direction of Hrant and Kevork Parsamian,
Center, 34 Boynton St., Worcester. (508) 756-2931. s e n t s A n E v e n i n g a t t h e Mo v i e s. Join us as we screen the all of whom have benefited from AGBU’s scholarship assis-
N OV E M B E R 6 — W i n e Ta s t i n g , 7-9 p .m . S t s . Va r t a n a n t z award-winning film by the Taviani Brothers based on Antonia tance toward their studies in performing arts. Curtain time
A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch, 180 Old Westford Road, Chelmsford. Aslan’s nostalgic novel, Skylark Farm. Saturday, 7:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, 154 West 57th
Tickets: $30 per person (before October 24) $35 thereafter. AGBU Manoogian School Hall. Reception to follow. St., New York City. Tickets, $65. For tickets and info., call
Includes brief wine presentation, appetizers and wine. Admission is free. Donations encouraged. For more info., call (212) 319-6383, ext. 124 or visit www.carnegiehall.org.
Contact Carol Hildebrand (978) 618-6982 or e-mail stswine- Hagop Alexanian (248) 334-3636. A N U A R Y 5, 2010 — D i n n e r a n d p r o g ra m a t Ci p r i a n i W a l l
JA
[email protected]. O CT O B E R 10 — T h e AGB U A l e x a n d M a r i e M a n o o g i a n S t r e e t . On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, the Fund for
N O V E M B E R 6 — J a z z N i gh t s a t A L M A w i t h St e v e S ch o o l 40t h A n n i v e r s a r y Celebration Dinner Dance, fea- Armenian Relief is proud to honor and thank a lifetime bene-
Ta s h j i a n ’s Cl a s s i c G r o o v e at Armenian Library and turing the opening of the new High School Building factor to the global Armenian community, Dr. Edgar
Museum of America, Watertown. ClassicGroove returns to Expansion. 22001 Northwestern Highway, Southfield. Hors Houspian. For info., (212) 889-5150 and [email protected].
the stage, performing an exciting range of jazz favorites in d’oeuvres and school tours, 7-7:45 p.m. Ribbon-cutting cere-
ALMA’s Contemporary Art Gallery. The concert begins at 8 mony, 8 p.m. Strolling dinner and open bar to follow. Music PENNSYLVANIA
p.m.; museum doors open at 7:30 p.m. Tickets $15 (includes provided by Arthur Apkarian. Donation, $50. Advance tick-
ets only. Reservations by September 30: Linda Darian O CT O B E R 3 — T he S o ci e t y fo r O r p h a n e d A r me n i a n R e l i e f
one complimentary glass of wine for 21+). ALMA members,
Karibian (248) 932-5282 or school office (248) 569-2988. ( S OA R ) , I n c. F o u r t h A n n u a l Co m p l i m e n t a r y Co ck t a il
students and JazzBoston members (with proper ID) pay $10.
N OV E M B E R 19 — S o i r e é M u s i ca l , fe a t u r i n g v i o l i n i s t R e ce p t i o n . The Village Hall, (Spread Village) in Wayne. A
Visit www.almainc.org or call (617 926-2562 to preorder
H e n r i k K a r a p e t i a n a n d h i s q u a r t e t, 7 p.m. Bloomfield cultural evening featuring the Ararat Dance Ensemble; come-
your tickets/make table reservations.
Township Library Hall. Reception to follow. dienne Lory Tatoulian, vocalists, artists and rugs. 5-10 p.m.
N OV E M B E R 6 — “ T h e Go l d e n Vo i ce s o f O p e r a ,” featuring
For additional info., contact George S. Yacoubian, Jr. at
Yeghishe Manucharyan, Victoria Avetisyan and Yelena
(610) 213-3452 or [email protected].
Dudochkin with Tatyana Dudochkin, piano. Celebrate 2009 NEW JERSEY
Armenian Cultural Heritage Program. Sponsored by Holy
Trinity Armenian Church and Choir of Greater Boston. Friday, O CT O B E R 7 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , a u t h o r o f Ch i l d r e n o f RHODE ISLAND
8 p.m. Longy School of Music, Edward M. Pickman Concert A r me n i a , published by Simon & Schuster, will participate in S EP T E MB ER 14 — Se cond An nua l S a int s Sa ha g & Me s r ob
Hall, 27 Garden St., Cambridge. Tickets: $25 per person. The a reading and book signing. 7 p.m. at the Books and Ar men ia n Chur ch Gol f Out ing. Please join us for a wonderful
program will include favorite arias, duets and romances, Greetings Bookstore, 271 Livingston St., Northvale, NJ. This day of golf at the Pawtucket Country Club. 11:30 a.m. BBQ
including Verdi, Puccini, Rossini, Tigranyan, Abrahamyan, groundbreaking book is the first to chronicle the aftermath lunch, 1 p.m. Shotgun start and 6:30 p.m. Dinner and Awards,
Rimsky-Korsakov and others. For further info., contact the of the first genocide of the 20th century, recounting the Prizes and Raffles. For info., contact the church office at St.
Holy Trinity Church Office at (617) 354-0632 or e-mail Armenian struggle for justice in the face of silence and Sahag & Mesrob Armenian Church, (401) 272-7712.
[email protected]. denial. For more info., www.childrenarmenia.com. S E P T E M B E R 26 — A u t u m n Co n ce r t – “R i s i n g S t a r s ,” fea-
N O V E M B E R 7 — F i l m S c r e e n i n g o f “H o v e ” p r e s e n t e d b y O CT O B E R 10 — Te ke y a n Cu l t u r a l A s s o ci a t i o n — M h e r turing Kate Norigian (soprano), John Paul Norigian (piano),
t h e A r m e n i a n L i b r a r y a n d M u s e um o f A me r i ca, 65 Main M e g e r d ch i a n T he a t r i ca l Gr o u p P r e s e n t s “ W h o K il l e d Timothy Aznavourian (guitar/vocal) and David Griego (flute).
St., Watertown, at 2 p.m. Olympia Dukakis stars in this mov- T h e E a s t e r n D e n t i s t ?” A Masquerade Party in Baronian’s Presented by the Cultural Committee of the Sts. Sahag and
ing tale about two Armenian women whose friendship is 1860s Istanbul. A Murder Mystery Dinner Theater prepared Mesrob Armenian Church as part of its annual Classical and
deeply affected by an encounter with the past and the pow- by Harout Chatmajian. Assyrian Orthodox Church of the Armenian music; presentation of the art works of Dr. Ara
erful, unresolved legacy of the Armenian Genocide. Co-star Virgin Mary, 644 Paramus Road, Paramus. Saturday, at 8 Sadaniantz. Egavian Cultural Center, 70 Jefferson St.,
Shirleyann Kaladjian and Director Alex Webb will attend the p.m. Donation, $60; BYOB; dress code (optional); 1860s Providence. 7 p.m. Donations, $10. Refreshments.
screening. Admission is $8. ALMA members pay $5. Visit attire and mask. For tickets, call Marie Zokian (201) 745- N OV E M B E R 28 — P r o v i d e n ce AC YOA h o s t s t h e A n n u a l
almainc.org. 8850, Noushig Atamian (718) 894-5878, Maro Hajakian H o l i d ay K e f, featuring an All-Star Band. Jason Naroian, Leon
N OV E M B E R 21 — S ay a t N ov a D a n ce Co m p a ny o f B o s t o n (201) 934-3427 or Missak Boghosian (212) 819-0097. Janikian, Kenny Kalajian, David Hoplamazian, Joe
sponsors the popular and beloved singer Alla Levonyan of Kouyoumjian and more. For individual or table of 10 reser-
Armenia in a live concert. Save the date. Details to follow. NEW YORK vations, call Kevork Vartanian at (401) 419-1052 or Ara
D E CE M B E R 4 — J a z z N i g h t s a t A L M A w i t h Yu l i a Janigian at (401) 486-8495 or Sevan Janigian at (401) 533-
M u s a y e l y a n Q u a r t e t at Armenian Library and Museum of S E P T E M B E R 17 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , a ut h o r o f Ch i l d r e n o f 4147 or contact [email protected].
America, Watertown. Musayelyan (flute), Fernando Huergo A r me n i a , published by Simon & Schuster, will participate in
(bass), Franco Pinna (drums) and a pianist conclude the 2009 a reading and book signing. 7 p.m., at Barnes & Noble, 97 RHODE ISLAND
concert series with original compositions and arrangements Warren St., New York, NY. This groundbreaking book is the
that infuse folk rhythms from Argentina, Armenia and other first to chronicle the aftermath of the first genocide of the O CT O B E R 3 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , a u t h o r o f Ch i l d r e n o f
cultures. The concert begins at 8 p.m. in ALMA’s 20th century, recounting the Armenian struggle for justice in A r me n i a , published by Simon & Schuster, will participate in
Contemporary Art Gallery; museum doors open at 7: 30 the face of silence and denial. For more info., a reading and book signing. The Armenian Bar Association
p.m. Tickets, $15 (includes one complimentary glass of wine www.childrenarmenia.com. mid-year meeting in Toronto, Canada. This groundbreaking
for 21+). ALMA members, students and JazzBoston mem- S E P T E M B E R 26 — “ E v e n i n g u n d e r t h e S t a r s ” a t S t . N e r s e s s book is the first to chronicle the aftermath of the first geno-
bers (with proper ID) pay $10. Visit www.almainc.org or call S e m i n a r y – 150 Stratton Road, New Rochelle. Join in for cide of the 20th century, recounting the Armenian struggle
(617) 926-2562 to preorder tickets/make table reservations. this cocktail and hors d’oeuvres benefit reception at $100 for justice in the face of silence and denial. For more info.,
D E CE M B E R 4 a n d 5 — T r i n i t y Ch r i s t m a s B a z a a r, H o l y per person. A great opportunity to learn about and support www.childrenarmenia.com.
Tr i n i t y A r m e n i a n Ch u r ch , 145 Brattle St., Cambridge. the most important institution for the future of the
Friday, 3-9 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Save the date. Armenian Church in North America. RSVP at stnersess.edu
Details to follow. For info., contact Holy Trinity Church Office or call (914) 636-2003.
The Mirror-Spectator has a new Calendar Policy: The
at (617) 354-0632 or e-mail [email protected]. O CT O B E R 15 — M i ch a e l B o b e l i a n , a u t h o r o f Ch i l d r e n o f Mirror-Spectator is now accepting all calendar items for
F E B R U A RY 27-28, 2010 — A r s e n a l Ce n t e r fo r t he A r t s A r me n i a , will participate in a reading and book signing. 7 free. All items may be sent to [email protected]. Due to
s p o n s o r s t h e S a y a t N o v a D a n ce Co m p a n y o f B o s t o n . p.m. at the Zohrab Center, 630 Second Ave., New York, NY. the anticipated shortage of space, items may be edited
The production will be performed for two nights at the This groundbreaking book is the first to chronicle the after- to fit the space.
Charles Mosesian Theater, 321 Arsenal St., Watertown. math of the first genocide of the 20th century, recounting

ALMA Offers Free Admission on Smithsonian Magazine’s Fifth Annual Museum Day
WATERTOWN, Mass. — On Saturday, must present the Museum Day Admission Card Space, goSmithsonian, Smithsonian Publishing azine, has a circulation of more than two mil-
September 26, the Armenian Library and to gain free entry. Each card provides museum Digital Network, Smithsonian Books and adver- lion. This multimedia network is also affiliated
Museum of America (ALMA) will participate in the access for two people, and one admission card tising for Smithsonian Channel — allows the with the world’s most visited museum and
fifth annual Museum Day, presented by is permitted per household. intellectually curious to indulge and engage research complexes at the Smithsonian
Smithsonian magazine. During this day, ALMA Founded in 1970 with the launch of their passions for history, the arts, science, the Institution. For more information, visit
visitors with a Smithsonian Museum Day pass can Smithsonian magazine, Smithsonian Media — natural world, culture and travel. Smithsonian www.smithsonian.com, www.airspacemag.com
explore ALMA, the largest ethnic museum in comprising Smithsonian magazine, Air & Media’s flagship publication, Smithsonian mag- and www.gosmithsonian.com
Massachusetts and the largest Armenian museum
in the diaspora, free of charge from 1 to 5 p.m.
A celebration of culture, learning and the dis-
semination of knowledge, Smithsonian’s
Museum Day reflects the spirit of the magazine,
and emulates the free-admission policy of the
Smithsonian Institution’s Washington, DC-
based properties.
Last year, upwards of 200,000 people attend-
ed Museum Day, with all 50 states plus Puerto
Rico represented by over 900 participating
museums, including 84 Smithsonian affiliate
museums. This year, the magazine expects to
attract over 1,000 museums.
Those interested can visit On Saturday, September 26, the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA) will grant visitors with a Smithsonian Museum Day Admission Card
www.smithsonian.com/museumday to down- free admission to its Museum exhibit galleries.
load a Museum Day Admission Card. Attendees
 N
18 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

COMMENTARY

THE ARMENIAN
A
COMMENTARY
Mirror- Armenia Needs Support, Not Bashing
Spectator By Kevork Marashlian
We should have a minimum of trust and confidence in Armenia’s
leadership and not jump the gun accusing them of selling out our
homeland, our rights and our future. Everyone certainly has the
right to express opinions, concerns and criticisms, but crossing the

T
The announcement by the Armenian and line into judging, accusing and slandering is unacceptable.
Turkish foreign ministries of protocols as guide- About two years ago when Turkey’s president offered then
Established 1932 lines for establishing diplomatic relations and for Armenia’s President Robert Kocharian to form an international
developing relations in multiple spheres between panel of historians to discuss the historical veracity of the
An ADL Publication both countries has elicited a knee-jerk response of Armenian Genocide, Kocharian rightfully turned down the offer,
a doom-and-gloom scenario by many arm-chair but proposed to establish diplomatic relations and to open the bor-
EDITOR political pundits in the Armenian Diaspora and ders without any preconditions, and proposed the formation of a
Alin K. Gregorian mainly in the US, even before political circles in Armenia have number of intergovernmental commissions and sub-commissions
ASSISTANT EDITOR declared their positions for or against this new development. to examine all issues between the two countries. Turkey ignored
Numerous others are jumping on the bandwagon in a rush of Kocharian’s counterproposal. And now, more than two years later,
Thomas C. Nash bashing the government of Armenia. Turkey accepts precisely the same proposal in the form of nicely
ASSOCIATE EDITOR A case in point is George Aghjayan’s response in the Armenian written-up protocols. But at the time, Kocharian’s counterpropos-
Taleen Babayan Weekly to the ADL Eastern US and Canada District’s statement on al was not attacked vehemently by our pundits as it is being done
the protocols. The ARF leader from the Worcester area considers now.
ART DIRECTOR the announcement of the protocols “a disaster of Armenia’s foreign Instead of spending our energies to further press the overbur-
Marc Mgrditchian policy” and misinterprets the ADL statement when he says, “the dened leadership of Armenia, let us redouble our efforts to
PRODUCTION ADL seems satisfied that simply announcing diplomatic relations increase our political pressure on our own US government to
Dilani Yogaratnam …suffices ‘for a political victory for Armenia.’” Whereas the ADL shape its foreign policy of the Caucasus by reconciling US nation-
statement clearly indicates that if Turkey does not back down again al interests with historical justice. This is certainly an immense
COPY EDITOR task for the relatively small US Armenian community, but it is just
(as it did following the April 22 announcement of the road map for
Rose Muggeridge opening of the borders), eventually, the process may result in a polit- as immense a task for the relatively small country of Armenia and
ical victory of Armenia’s initiative of the football diplomacy. Artsakh to stand up indefinitely to the combined pressures of the
The first word of the protocol is, “Desiring to establish good West, the EU, Turkey, Azerbaijan and their allies, no matter how
neighborly relations …”. So it is an agreement to agree on a long just a cause Armenia stands for.
CONTRIBUTORS: list of propositions, not a done-deal, and there is no indication that If at the cost of reasonable concessions Armenia can achieve the
Elizabeth Aprahamian, Dr. Haroutiune
all items have to be agreed upon as a condition for establishing lifting of the blockade, opening of the borders and establishment
Arzoumanian, Edmond Azadian, Prof.
Vahakn N. Dadrian, Diana Der normal relations. of normal relations with Turkey, it will breathe easier and will
Hovanessian, Philip Ketchian, Kevork Armenia is under tremendous pressure by the West, mainly by secure its strengthening and development, which are its most
Keushkerian, Arsen Noubar Mamourian, the US, but so also is Turkey, to establish normal relations. Isn’t immediate and urgent needs.
Moorad Mooradian, Sonia Kailian- Azerbaijan also pressured not to rock the boat? And if this is all a
Placido, Harut Sassounian, Mary Terzian, set up of a game of agreements and broken agreements, then why (Kevork Marashlian is the executive secretary of ADL Eastern
Hagop Vartivarian, Naomi Zeytoonian should Armenia be denied to play by the same rules of the game? District of US and Canada.)

CORRESPONDENTS:
Armenia - Hagop Avedikian
Boston - Nancy Kalajian
Philadelphia - Lisa Manookian ADL District Committee of US and Irresponsible
Contributing Photographers: Sarkis Bahar,
George Bogosian, Jacob Demirdjian, Harry Canada Appeals to President Obama
Koundakjian.

The Armenian Mirror-Spectator is published

weekly, except two weeks in July, by:
Dear Mr. President,
Your election as the leader of world’s most powerful nation on earth restored
Implosion
America’s credibility among nations and placed the country on the path of its
Founding Father’s. When the high court of history sits in judgment at
Baikar Association, Inc. some future date and records the span of services ren-
755 Mt. Auburn St., Watertown, MA 02472-1509
We believe that your vision will be able to bring peace to the world and pros-
perity at home, because your policies match America’s moral authority to its mil- dered by the Armenian Democratic Liberal party (ADL)
Telephone: 617-924-4420 leadership of these past few years, there is no doubt
FAX: 617-924-2887
itary strength.
It was that vision which took all Americans by storm and gave a landslide man- that it will bring
w w w. m i r r o r s p e c t a t o r . c o m severe and harsh
date to your administration.
E-Mail: [email protected]
The one-million-strong American-Armenian community was also mobilized to By Nubar Dorian blame to its con-
For advertising: [email protected] join the movement, mostly inspired by your unswerving stand on issues that con- duct. The sad fact is
cern us. Your continued actions as a senator, and later your pledge as a presi- that ADL members,
New York/New J er sey O ff ice
560 Sylvan Ave., Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 dential candidate did not leave any doubt that this time around, moral fortitude who gave them their position of significance and influ-
(201) 800-1164 would prevail over political expediency. ence, are not only disappointed but permitted them-
Most reassuring was specially your statement made on April 12, 2007, which selves a certain turpitude, a lethargy to creep in to fur-
said in particular: “For those who aren’t aware, there was a genocide that did ther damage their beloved organization.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES: The perfect word that describes the present situation
take place against the Armenian people. It is one of these situations where we
U.S.A. have seen a constant denial on the part of the Turkish government and others of ADL is influenza, which ancients thought was
2nd Class $75 a year
1st Class $120 a year that this occurred.” brought about by the malign influence of the stars, to
Canada In April 2009, your statement about the Martyrs’ Day Commemoration, unfor- people who had gone off course and permitted natural
Air Mail $125 a year tunately fell short of your earlier pledges, allowing the Turkish government to life styles to influence their actions. They also believed
pretend a breakthrough in Armenian-Turkish relations and then retract. that the only remedy was to return to moderation, sac-
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Air Mail $190 a year However, we do believe that your other public and private relevant statements rifice and a healthy lifestyle — in present terms, “a
Display advertising rate: $7 per column inch in Ankara and your administration’s relentless political actions have brought sound mind and a sound body.” Unfortunately, the pre-
about a change in the Turkish government’s longstanding intransigence. We sent leadership of ADL is indeed suffering from severe
believe that those changes must not stand in your way to fulfill your pledge and but fortunately not fatal influenza-like sickness.
© 2009 The Armenian Mirror-Spectator moreover deny Turkish policymakers a way to find subterfuge in America’s hes- With extreme passion and resolve, all organizations
Periodical Class Postage Paid at Boston, MA itation. strive to insure the existence and continuity of our
and additional mailing offices. For many years, the premise that using the word “Genocide” may harm community here in the dispersion. Through editorials,
American-Turkish relations has proven wrong. Every time Turkey makes head- columns, church altars, conferences, assemblies and
ISSN 0004-234X especially political parties, we all work, plead, beg,
way in that direction, America’s moral paradigm is compromised. Hiding fester-
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The ing wounds will not help healing. insist and correctly shout from the roof tops that the
Armenian Mirror-Spectator, P.O. Box 302,
Thanks to your leadership, recent protocols were made public by the respec- only means to have a healthy and lasting Armenian
Watertown, MA 02471-0302 community here in America is to have our young
tive foreign ministries of Armenia, Turkey and Switzerland. Those advances must
Other than the editorial, views and opinions become involved in our affairs. This important advoca-
expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily not pre-empt America’s moral standing, nor the credibility of its foreign policy.
We urge you at this critical time for the entire Caucasus region to confront cy has been championed in the pages of the Mirror-
reflect the policies of the publisher.
Turkish leaders with the historic truth. That will help, in the first place, to heal Spectator time after time in editorials, columns, poems,
the deep wounds in the history of the Turkish people, thereby laying the foun- articles and views in spectacular and ideal fashion
dations of a true democracy, allowing that country to join the family of civilized through its decades of publication.
nations. Perfectly true. Youth is the main component to
Copying for other than personal use or internal We believe that will also be consonant with your conscience and with insure the tranquility, peace and vitality of the
reference is prohibited without express permis- Armenian community. In the case of the ADL; it is
sion of the copyright owner. Address requests for America’s global leadership and will help Armenia regain its place in the world.
reprints or back issues to: Sincerely, more so as the leaders and members are mostly in their
60s, 70s and beyond. Young blood, young minds,
B aik ar A ss o ci at io n , In c. Edmond Azadian Papken Megerian young enthusiasm, are necessary. It takes extraordi-
7 5 5 Mt. Aubur n St. , Wa t er t o w n, M A 0 2 4 7 2 -1 5 0 9 Co-chairman Co-chairman
ADL District Committee of US and Canada see IMPLOSION, page 20
 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R 19

COMMENTARY

the Karabagh conflict was settled to the satisfaction of and recognizing its territorial integrity — Ankara found a
Azerbaijan. Prime Minister Erdogan felt obligated to fly to clever solution for its third precondition. It made the opening
Baku in May to make the same pledge in his address to the of the border with Armenia contingent upon the resolution of
Azeri Parliament. the Artsakh conflict, without including a direct reference to
But as international pressure mounted on both Armenia this requirement in the Protocols.
My Turn and Turkey to go forward with the frozen “Roadmap,” Turkish
leaders were careful not to alienate Azerbaijan once again.
Since the ratification of the proposed agreement by the two
Parliaments does not have a particular deadline, the Turkish
By Harut Sassounian This time around, they fully briefed President Aliyev during government will probably apply its extensive diplomatic
every step of their discussions with Armenia, repeatedly assur- resources to pressure Armenia — via the OSCE Minsk Group
ing Azerbaijan that its interests would be protected and that of mediators on Artsakh, composed of France, Russia and the
Azerbaijan and Turkey Protect nothing would be agreed upon with Armenia, unless the United States — into making concessions acceptable to
Karabagh conflict was first settled. Just before the two Azerbaijan.
Armenia’s National Interest Protocols were announced on August 31, Prime Minister Turkey could therefore be expected to delay the ratification
Inadvertently Erdogan briefed President Aliyev by telephone and a high-level
Turkish delegation flew to Baku for follow-up talks.
of the Protocols by its Parliament until Azerbaijan’s conditions
are met on Artsakh. In recent days, several Turkish commen-
After reviewing hundreds of articles in regional and inter- A close reading of the lengthy text of the professionally craft- tators pointed out this gaping loophole in the Protocols, boast-
national media outlets and scores of statements by various ed two Protocols and the appended Timetable indicates that ing that Turkey would not open its border until Armenia
officials regarding the Protocols between Armenia and Turkey, the most critical detail —the date of their expected ratification makes territorial concessions on Artsakh. Turkey’s Foreign
it is clear that these agreements will not be ratified by the — is left out! The documents spell out in great precision the Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made that same pledge practically
Turkish Parliament, unless the Armenian government first terms of the agreements as well as the specific deadline for on a daily basis since the August 31 announcement.
makes concessions on Karabagh (Artsakh). each of “the steps to be undertaken.” Interestingly, President Aliyev has not said one critical word
As expected, there was great agitation against the Protocols For example, they state that as of August 31, Armenia and about this agreement, which calls for the opening of the border
last week among opposition political parties in both Armenia Turkey have six weeks to complete “internal political consul- with Armenia — something he vehemently opposes. The reason
and Turkey. Furthermore, some Azeri officials and analysts tations” before the Protocols are submitted to their respective is that he is assured by Ankara that nothing of that sort would
criticized Turkish leaders for appearing to go back on their Parliaments for ratification. The documents also specify the take place until Artsakh is delivered to him on a silver platter!
repeated promises of not opening Turkey’s border with exact timeline for the opening of the border and the formation Armenia’s president and foreign minister, on the other hand,
Armenia until the Karabagh conflict was resolved. of various committees. have been repeatedly stating that they would not accept any
On April 22, when Armenia and Turkey made public a However, all of these steps are contingent upon the crucial linkage between the Artsakh negotiations and the opening of
“Roadmap” to regulate their contentious relations and open prerequisite of ratification of the Protocols by the two the Turkish border. In order to preserve their own credibility
their mutual border, Azerbaijan strongly objected, threatening Parliaments, for which no date and no deadline is mandated. and safeguard the country’s national interests, Armenia’s lead-
to retaliate against Turkey by taking a number of steps, includ- The joint announcement issued on August 31 by Armenia and ers should not make even the smallest concession on Artsakh
ing cutting off oil supplies. Turkey, simply calls on both sides to “make their best efforts” and not ratify these Protocols, until the Turkish Parliament
Turkish leaders immediately stopped the implementation of for the “timely” ratification of the Protocols. The missing dead- ratifies them first. But, since Turkey refuses to ratify them
the “Roadmap” in order to appease their “junior brother,” line is certainly not the result of an oversight. without the settlement of the Artsakh conflict, the whole
Azerbaijan. Turkish officials repeatedly announced that they After securing Armenian officials’ agreement to Turkey’s agreement would collapse and the international community
would not open their country’s border with Armenia, unless two preconditions — the formation of a “historical” committee would then hold Turkey solely responsible for its failure.

Remembering LE T TERS

Senator Ted Armenian Studies in US Was Result of Effort by Many

Kennedy To the Editor:
I read with considerable interest in the
May 2 issue of the Mirror-Spectator
“ALMA Chairman Haig Der Manuelian
for a chair in Armenian Studies. I had
noted the emphasis Frye had placed on
the role of Armenia and in the Middle
East and had wondered at his interest in
Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern
Studies, who played a major supporting
role and acted as a go-between with the
Harvard administration. It would be
Speaks at Society for Armenian Studies the subject. We also discussed the issue impossible in a short letter to list all the
By Gregory Aftandilian 35th Anniversary Banquet,” which of the need for a permanent program in names, yet all deserve credit and recogni-
included some of Der Manuelian’s recol- Armenian Studies at a leading university. tion for doing their part to get the ball
lection of the early days of Armenian Soon after this conversation, on April rolling.
Much has been written and said about the life of Sen.
Studies in the US and, thus, early days of 29, 1954, I sent a long memo to Frye out- Still others contributed a great deal to
Ted Kennedy since his death a short time ago. For me,
the National Association for Armenian lining a possible course of action towards the establishment of NAASR and to the
his passing left me sad and reflective, for few people
Studies and Research (NAASR). the achievements of the goal establishing creation of the field of Armenian Studies
have touched me as profoundly as he did. I was fortu-
As one of the three original founders of a program in Armenian Studies at a lead- in the US even before NAASR’s estab-
nate to have worked for him for the entire year of 1999
NAASR, with Arra S. Avakian and ing university such as Harvard. lishment. A few must be noted, including
as a foreign policy fellow, an experience that not only
Thomas T. Amirian, I, too, remember It was decided that the next step would Rev. A. A. Bedikian who taught Armenian
was rewarding on a professional level but which left a
those times with clarity and vividness, be to approach the Armenian Students courses at Columbia as early as the 1930s
lasting impression on me as an example of how a per-
including the role of Der Manuelian, one Association (ASA) at their national con- and was a member of NAASR’s first
son who wielded so much influence and power could
of the first nine founders of NAASR. He vention to enlist them to spearhead the Board of Directors; Prof. Robert P. Blake
also render so much kindness and compassion.
is correct to identify the vital part played movement for the establishment of a of Harvard who introduced Armenian lan-
Growing up in Massachusetts and being interested
by Prof. Richard Frye, who was a catalyst chair or program in Armenian Studies. guage and history to Harvard in the
in history and politics naturally led me to take an
for NAASR and for the establishment of However, while endorsing the idea, the 1920s; Prof. Sirarpie Der Nersessian of
interest in Ted Kennedy and his policies. So when an
a chair (endowed professorship) in ASA chose not to take on the responsi- Wellesley College and Harvard’s
opportunity came knocking while I was a State
Armenian Studies at Harvard University. bility for such a large undertaking, which Dumbarton Oaks Center who appeared
Department analyst (I was selected as a Brookings
There are others whose important roles involved raising a minimum of $300,000. at so many NAASR events in the early
Congressional fellow in late 1998 to spend the follow-
must also be remembered. Thus, it was decided that a new entity days; and Prof. Giuliano Bonfante of
ing year working on Capitol Hill), I gravitated to the
In April 1954, when I was chairman of would have to be created. A group of nine Princeton, a philologist who did impor-
Kennedy office. Luckily, I was chosen by Kennedy’s
the Program Committee of the Boston began meeting and planning: Amirian, tant work on the Armenian language.
senior staff to work as a fellow on foreign policy issues
branch of the Armenian Students’ Avakian and I were joined by Richard These great scholars and a handful of oth-
even before my colleagues in the fellowship program
Association (ASA), I invited Professor Malkasian, Jack Guveyan, James ers laid an important foundation.
were able to obtain positions in other Congressional
Frye to address our group. I was taking a Etmekjian — all ASA members — along It is a fact, however, that before NAASR
offices. I felt very fortunate in having landed such a
class in Middle Eastern History with with Eghishe Chrakian, Haig Der was launched Armenian Studies in the
plum assignment.
Professor Frye at that time in the course Manuelian and Richard Frye. US only existed in isolated instances,
My first encounter with the senator was, naturally
of my graduate studies. His talk, before a Meetings and discussions took place including at Columbia University, and not
enough, at an Irish cultural event at the Kennedy
capacity audience, titled, “The Study of throughout 1954 and early 1955. By the on a permanent basis. The men and
Center along the Potomac River in Washington. As a
Armenian History, Language, and time of the public launch of NAASR in women who were the founders of NAASR
staffer, I was to hover around him as guests greeted him
Culture — It’s Need and Importance,” March 1955, a group of about 60 men understood the need for Armenian
and to jot down notes if someone asked him to do a
called for the establishment of Armenian and women had joined and became Studies to take its place as a permanent
favor. Walking with him into the famous center and see-
Studies on the same footing as Persian, founding members of the organization. part of academic studies in the US. I am
ing the large bust of his slain brother made the evening
Arabic and other regional studies and for Among them were prominent members of proud to have been one among them.
especially moving. Perhaps because the evening was
the elimination of Armenian-Americans’ the community such as James Ajemian, One day the history of Armenian
also an ethnic event I chatted with him about the
“ghetto mentality.” Rev. Arten Ashjian, Edna Bogosian, Studies in the US will be written. It is
Armenian community in Massachusetts as I walked him
In the weeks after Professor Frye’s Dikran Boyajian, K. Merton Bozoian, important — and not only important, but
to his car. I knew that a few years earlier he had host-
talk, I spoke with Arra Avakian, who had Hamasdegh-Gelenian, Dr. Elizabeth also only right — that the many who made
ed a wonderful reception for Catholicos Karekin I at the
taught Armenian History in Harvard’s Gregory, G. John Gregory, the Rev. Dr. such great efforts and sacrifices to
John F. Kennedy Library in Boston where the two lead-
Extension School, and Thomas Amirian, Yervant Hadidian, J. Mark Kolligian, Rev. achieve all we have today and to give
ers got along famously, and I told him the sad news that
who shared my enthusiasm for what Frye Papken Maksoudian, John Mirak, Dr. worldwide recognition to Armenian
the catholicos was suffering from cancer. Upon hearing
had said. As it happened, one day I Thomas Moranian, Zabelle Tahmizian, Studies are not forgotten.
this, Kennedy stopped in his tracks and told me to draft
encountered Van Aroian, who is today on Zareh Thomajan, Gen. Sarkis Zartanian
a get-well note from him to the catholicos the first thing
NAASR’s Board of Directors and who and notable members of the Harvard fac- — Manoog S. Young
in the morning. Later that year, when the catholicos
was also a student of Professor Frye’s, ulty such as Prof. Roman Jakobson, Prof. Chairman Emeritus
succumbed to cancer, Kennedy asked me to draft a
leaving the latter’s office. I learned that Michael Karpovich and Prof. William L. National Association for Armenian
statement on his behalf for the Congressional Record in
they had been conversing about the need Langer, at the time the director of Studies and Research (NAASR)
tribute to the life of Karekin I.
see REMEMBERING, page 20
20 S A T U R D A Y, S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 0 9 T H E A R M E N I A N M I R R O R - S P E C TAT O R

Remembering Senator Ted Kennedy

interest in all of his former staffers and would
invite them to his annual Christmas parties
where, after performing a hilarious skit in cos-
tume with his wife Vickie and making fun of
REMEMBERING, from page 19 ered that President John F. Kennedy, while a Outside of working on Armenian issues for himself, he would then move around the room
These early encounters impressed upon me freshman at Harvard in the 1930s, had tutored the senator, I worked closely with his foreign to greet everyone personally.
not only the senator’s compassion but also his a poor Armenian-American teenager in policy advisor on various topics and together Ted Kennedy never forgot his Irish ethnic
close ties to the Armenian community. That Cambridge, helped him graduate from high we briefed Kennedy for his meetings with a roots and even though he grew up in wealth
April, he spoke at the Armenian Genocide com- school and kept in touch with him until his own number of world leaders, including Egyptian and privilege, he understood, probably based on
memorative event on Capitol Hill, and I was tragic death in 1963. When I wrote an article President Mubarak, Jordan’s King Abdullah, his family’s background, that life was unfair at
proud to have drafted his speech, which was about this story, based on an interview I con- Irish Prime Minister Ahern and Georgian times, discrimination was a scourge that had to
later placed in the Congressional Record, and to ducted with the widow of the person who was President Shevardnadze. Kennedy always went be defeated and that public service meant
have accompanied him to the event. However, tutored, Senator Kennedy was so moved by it out of his way to introduce me to these leaders, championing the rights of all people. He
on the ride over from the Senate to the House that he directed me to send it to his sisters and even though aides usually operate in the back- worked assiduously and successfully for immi-
side, where the event was taking place, I saw his niece, Caroline Kennedy, and to the archives ground. It was this personal touch of his that I gration reform early in his career, overturning
that Kennedy, much to my chagrin, was not of the John F. Kennedy Library. always found so thoughtful and caring. When laws that discriminated against people from out-
going over my draft, but seemed to be thinking His commitment to the Armenian people my son was born that year, Kennedy sent him a side of Northern and Western Europe.
about something else. Only later did I realize extended to the political battle over Section 907 “warm Irish welcome” note that our family has Thousands of ethnic families today, including
that he was collecting his thoughts before arriv- of the Freedom Support Act, which restricted US treasured, as we have an inscribed print of one Armenian-American ones, owe their existence
ing at the event. There, he spoke from his heart aid to Azerbaijan because of its blockade of of his Cape Cod paintings. and opportunity in America to Kennedy’s immi-
and delivered a hard-hitting and moving speech, Armenia. In 1999, Kennedy went down to the As my fellowship was sadly coming to an end gration reform efforts. He similarly championed
much better than I could have ever composed. Senate floor and took part in the debate to pre- in late 1999, I heard of an opening on the staff health care reform, believing that no American
That same month, Kennedy also received in his serve Section 907 when opponents of Armenia of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and family should be denied health coverage for a
office the then president of Armenia, Robert were seeking its removal. It was typical of him to applied for it. Kennedy was legendary for being loved one in need of care. And he championed
Kocharian, another memorable event. Kennedy tell me that fellow supporters of Armenia, like helpful to his staffers in their career pursuits human rights around the world, believing that
opened the conversation with Kocharian by say- himself, would prevail in the fight when the out- and he did the same for me. If it were not for basic freedoms of free speech and assembly
ing how his family and the Armenian people come of that vote initially looked uncertain. His his personal intervention, I would have not got- should not be denied.
have had a long and enduring friendship, going participation in that debate helped keep Section ten the job, as competition for such positions It was this compassion, both at the personal
back many decades. Later that year, I discov- 907 unchanged over the next two years. was extremely stiff. Seven years later, Kennedy level and in the national and international are-
and his staff were again instrumental in helping nas that endeared him to so many people,
me obtain an international security affairs fel- including me. I was fortunate to have known
lowship at Harvard. him, even for a relatively short period of time,

Irresponsible Implosion Even after I left his office, Kennedy would

always treat me with the same warmth and
kindness as he did when I worked for him.
When I would run into him in the corridors of
and will always be grateful for his friendship
and the lessons he taught me.

(Gregory Aftandilian is currently a consul-

IMPLOSION, from page 18 of reward and praise. All these combined have the Senate, he would pat me on the back and tant and writer on Middle East affairs, having
nary courage and superhuman hope to assume created an untenable situation totally alien — ask me how I was doing. He took a genuine spent over 21 years in government service.)
that any young man or woman would like to this once much respected and loved political
join ADL ranks in being witness to the chaos, entity.
confusion, conspiracy and conflict that reigns Despite the iron grip of reality, the ADL mem-
within the leadership of this party. bers and supporters worldwide should try to
The Armenian

Mirror-Spectator
The provincially-inspired founders of this keep their dreams hopeful and alive. This pre-
organization witness from their heaven the sent situation is an aberration and only tempo-
shameful and ugly division, confusion, distor- rary. We all should amputate the recent past, as
tion and out-of-control situation that surrounds difficult as it may seem. The Armenian world
the so-called leadership of the ADL. Void of all must believe that the havoc, the chaos, the con-
principles, ideals and virtue, driven by self-inter- fusion and discord along with the bleak, the
est and personal gain they have created a poi- black and the bitter will soon disappear. An
sonous atmosphere and spread shame and dis- Arthurian Galahad with his army of knights will
belief among the once proud and dedicated soon emerge and bring back the passion, the
members. brawn, the courage and that person will spread YES , I would like a 1– year subscription to The Armenian Mirror-Spectator.
Needless to say, times change and bring with order, harmony, unity and purpose. The ADL USA /Second Class Mail $75.00 CANADA /Air Mail $125.00
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ADDRESS
animosities instead of love, punishment instead tion of his articles titled, Harvests of the
of gratitude, suspension and expulsion instead Heart. He lives in New Jersey.) CITY STATE ZIP

❏ THE SUBSCRIPTION IS A GIFT FOR:

NAME
Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Release ADDRESS

Statement on Armenia-Turkey Developments CITY STATE ZIP

WASHINGTON — US Representatives Frank of the protocols, which may include precondi- Please make check payable to: The Armenian Mirror-Spectator and mail to:
Pallone Jr. and Mark Steven Kirk, co-chairs of tions to opening the border between Armenia 755 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown, MA 02472-1509
the Congressional Caucus on Armenian and Turkey. Normalization of relations should
Issues, recently released the following state- take place without preconditions. Any attempt All payments must be drawn on US banks
ment on the recent Armenia-Turkey develop- to include a review of historical fact, such as
ments. the Armenian Genocide, or to include the

SUBSCRIBE
“As co-chairs of the Armenian Caucus, we ongoing Nagorno Karabagh peace process
support the aim of Monday’s development into these negotiations stands in direct oppo-
between Armenia and Turkey to move toward sition to the intent of these talks.
normalizing relations. We believe it is essential “We remain hopeful that Turkey, by lifting

TODAY!
that the two countries do so without precon- its illegal blockade, will open the door to nor-
ditions and in a timely manner. malized relations between Yerevan and
“While we are optimistic that efforts are Ankara, and a new era of Armenia-Turkey
being renewed to lift the Turkish blockade and relations based on truth, justice, peace and
establish relations between the two countries, cooperation. By coming to terms with the
we remain concerned with Turkey’s willing- past and reconciling any current conflicts,
ness to cooperate in the matter. Turkey and Armenia will help bring more sta-
“On July 30, along with 80 Members of bility to a volatile and strategic region of the
Congress, we sent a letter to President Obama world,” the statement of US congressmen
expressing our concern that the Turkish gov- reads.
ernment will once again stall progress on Late on August 31, the Swiss Federal
these efforts. Only weeks after announcing the Department of Foreign Affairs and Foreign
historical agreement to work towards normal- Ministries of Armenia and Turkey issued a
ization with Armenia, Turkish Prime Minister press release which said: “The Republic of
Erdogan steered his country away from the Armenia and the Republic of Turkey have
negotiations by placing preconditions on nor- agreed to start their internal political consul-
malization. Once again, we fear that Turkey tations on two protocols — the ‘protocol on
will use the recent developments as an excuse
to continue stall tactics, which prevent a truth-
the establishment of diplomatic relations’
and the ‘protocol on the development of bilat-
Check us out at
ful working relationship between the two
nations.
eral relations’ — which have been initiated in
the course of their efforts under Swiss medi-
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“We are concerned with certain provisions ation.”