Armenia - Russia Eurovision war

I watch Eurovision for the show, for the costumes, for songs, for its weirdness, ridiculousness, for occasional talent, for the ‘gay factor’, for all the comments exchanged (online or offline), especially on Twitter, for Eurovision parties. But one of my most favourite parts of the Eurovision is the voting announcement by countries. This is a show in itself. No less entertaining, than the actual show.

This is the best time when you can observe all the country alliances, people’s preferences, cultural ties, politics, and all the subtle or not so changes in relationships.

Traditionally, as “strategic partners”, Armenia and Russia exchange top marks, the likes of minimum “8”, but more like “10” or “12”. Up until recently, this has been a fair reflection of the situation on the ground, taking into account the Soviet legacy and ties, big Armenian Diaspora in Russia, and the influence of Russian pop culture in Armenia. However...

With Armenia moving closer towards Europe, effectively rejecting new post-Soviet Russia (Putin) sponsored economic/political alliance, and the recent hike in (Russian) gas price in Armenia, the impossible happened: ‏

@unzippedblog: Headline of the day. Only 7 points from #Armenia to #Russia #Eurovision #gas
@unzippedblog: Headline of the day (2). Only 2 points from #Russia to #Armenia #Eurovision #war 

Finita la “strategic alliance”, Eurovision way.

As for the Armenia entry Dorians, all I wanted to say I have already said in my previous post. Same applies to the final. In my opinion, they are the most talented Armenian entry so far. But they were robbed a chance of any high place or win because of the choice of song. Lack of PR added to the expected outcome. Just one last example. Only yesterday I found out that they have a Twitter account @dorians_am that was so not publicised that at a time of pushing the “follow” button, they had only 70+ followers (!). And this was on the day of Eurovision final. You got the picture.

I particularly want to praise the host Sweden for putting an excellent show and stage for the Eurovision. Plus, we had both gay women and gay men kisses during this Eurovision. Thumbs up to Sweden for spreading the message across. My “douze points” for you.

PR deceit: not real but ‘fake Gallup’ commissioned to conduct exit poll for Armenian parliamentary election

There was a big PR by government controlled Armenia TV channel that they have signed up with the Gallup to conduct exit poll for upcoming Armenian parliamentary election. All the main headlines implied that the world renowned US company will conduct exit poll in Armenia, thus putting behind it its reputation.

Even with the ‘real’ Gallup, I would have concerns re polling, as taking into account local circumstances, it is very important who conducts the polls in the field. If it’s one of discredited sociological groups in Armenia, then even with the best Gallup methodology, I would not trust their results.

7or.am revealed, however, that it’s not ‘real' Gallup that is going to conduct the exit poll and pre-election survey, but the ‘fake’ one.

This is a ‘real’ Gallup: http://www.gallup.com/corporate/115/About-Gallup.aspx

This is a ‘fake’ Gallup: former “Gallup International Association”. Kancho Stoychev who signed the agreement with the Armenia TV is their Vice-President (Bulgaria). [http://www.gallup-international.com/en/who_we_are/the_board] Despite name change [“Worldwide Independent Network of Market Research”], they still contain references to “Gallup” within their website.

According to one Wikipedia reference, [US-based] Gallup Inc. and [Switzerland-based] Gallup International Association (GIA) were involved in a legal dispute over the use of “Gallup” name. In 2010, GIA merged with the market research company WIN (Worldwide Independent Network). They are currently called “Worldwide Independent Network of Market Research”.

It’s the US-based company, not the Swiss one, that is famous for Gallup Poll.

This is not what we will be getting for Armenian parliamentary election.

The Duke (Prince Andrew) and The Despot (Azerbaijan president Aliyev)

Killing headline in today's Daily Mail following revelations in British media of dodgy connections of Prince Andrew as Britain’s “trade ambassador”. The Independent calls this “dangerous liaisons” “damaging him and the country” that turn “royal asset to national liability”.

AZERBAIJAN
Ilham Aliyev: Hardline President of oil-rich Azerbaijan, who in 2009 met Andrew with a view to establishing economic ties with Britain. Aliyev is accused by his opponents of electoral fraud, and has blocked media organisations including the BBC from broadcasting from his country. The Duke met Aliyev again at the Davos economic forum this year, while the Duke is also said to be friendly with his daughters, Leila and Arzu.

But Daily Mail’s headline nails it.

The Duke and The Despot


Revealed: Prince Andrew’s ‘close friendship’ with brutal billionaire dictator accused of torture and corruption

This is despite big oil related British interests in Azerbaijan.

And this is against the backdrop of reports coming from Baku re targeted detentions and torture of youth activists ahead of planned ‘Day of Protest’ in Azerbaijan on 11 March 2011.

*picture via Sky News

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: (then) Deputy Finance Minister David Avetissian attacks president Sargsyan’s “empty gestures at reform” and “empowering thuggish elements in and out of government”

This is a very interesting extract from the US embassy cables and a clear indication of disillusionment and divisions post- 1 March within the ruling regime.

[By: Charge d'Affaires Joseph Pennington]

Polchief recently met with Deputy Finance Minister David Avetissian, a leading young

reformer in the government, who expressed profound cynicism about the direction in which the government is headed. He predicted a severe political and economic crisis by the end of this year, and is convinced that President Sargsian is making nothing more than empty gestures at reform to satisfy international and domestic audiences. He said that behind the scenes, however, the new president is centralizing control, marginalizing reformist voices, and empowering thuggish elements in and out of government. As a result, Avetissian said he will probably resign from government service this summer, and is headed to Washington in May to look into employment opportunities with the World Bank.

*US embassy cables in full.
**source of picture

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: Prominent opposition members approached the US embassy about asylum (pre/post- 1 March)

[By: Charge d'Affaires Joseph Pennington]

Prominent members of the opposition have contacted us about asylum and/or the issuance of tourist visas to ride out the crisis in the United States. One of these is Tigran Ter-Petrossian, LTP’s nephew, who LTP lieutenants say is hiding out in the United Arab Emirates fearful for his life. LTP's confidants have asked the Embassy to help with a tourist visa, and insist that Tigran has no intention of applying for political asylum once in the United States. (NOTE: We've explained to LTP's representatives that since we cannot establish the bona fides of Tigran's case, we cannot intervene to issue a visa, and that he would have to apply at our consulate general in Dubai like everyone else.) LTP's son David went to Los Angeles before the election at the urging of his father, again presumably out of concern for his son's life. To our knowledge he has yet to return. (NOTE: While it's difficult to ascertain the validity of these allegations, it is undeniable that violence has plagued the development of Armenia's post-independence political culture.)

*US embassy cables in full.

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: Post- 1 March middle class exodus

Below are selected extracts. US embassy cables in full.

ARMENIA'S POLITICAL CRISIS SPURS EMIGRATION

SUBJECT
For those Armenians who have long considered emigrating abroad to pursue a brighter economic future, the current political crisis appears to have finally moved some to action. Besides the twenty or so asylum seekers who approached the Embassy after the fatal March 1 clashes and state of emergency, an increasing number of intending immigrants from Armenia's middle class have also come to our attention, including one of the Embassy's GSO staff who abruptly ended 12 years of USG service to emigrate to the Czech Republic. These successful, middle class citizens tell us that the crisis has played a consequential role in spurring them to finally emigrate, saying it has dashed any remaining hopes they had for a stable, post-independence Armenia. Many say the political instability from the crisis has added yet one more disturbing element to their long list of concerns that include economic uncertainties and a worsening environment in which to raise their kids. Some also say they see an ongoing moral decay in society, where rich, well-connected, law-breaking elites run roughshod over ordinary Armenians' rights. In addition to these voices from the middle class, we have also begun to hear disenchanted officials contemplate emigration.

COMMENT
Emigration from Armenia is nothing new. It has been estimated that since its independence from the USSR, Armenia has lost 1,000,000 of its citizens to emigration -- almost one third of its 3.5 million pre-independence population. What appears to be a new development, however, is the hemorrhaging of successful middle-class citizens who decided to stick out post-independence growing pains only to see that their wait has been for naught. The loss of these individuals is significant: they would stay if they thought the country was headed in the right direction. But their decision to pull up their tent stakes now, after one of modern Armenia's gravest political crises to date, suggests that a serious malaise has taken deep root in society. Disillusioned, the once-committed appear to have lost faith that their government cares about improving their welfare or moving the country forward.

[By: Charge d'Affaires Joseph Pennington]

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: High profile crime and Ukrainian ambassador's allegation

Most of the criminal incidents of October 2008 reflected in the US embassy cable below have been widely reported and nothing new. The most surprising and unknown to me was the allegation by the Ukrainian ambassador that his apartment in Yerevan was broken into for “politically-motivated” reasons related to his staging of Ukraine famine remembrance event the same day that Russian president Medvedev arrived for his first state visit in Armenia. However, even the US ambassador Yovanovitch specifically mentions about US embassy’s “doubt” re Ukrainian ambassador’s “assumption”.

Below are selected extracts. US embassy cables in full.

SUMMARY
A recent string of unconnected violent attacks around Armenia has prompted the opposition to decry the emergence of a "criminal state." Over the October 24-26 weekend, one person was killed in Yerevan, four were killed in the northern city of Spitak, and the recently re-elected mayor of the northern town of Stepanavan was almost knifed to death by his opponent's supporters. About a dozen other people were injured in these attacks, some critically. The motives of each attack remain unclear, with various media speculating on the causes while police launch investigations. In separate, recent attacks in Yerevan, a foreign businessman and the Ukrainian Ambassador were targeted by unknown assailants, apparently as a result of their business and diplomatic engagements.

YEREVAN'S VENDETTA MURDER AND DISCOTHEQUE VIOLENCE. President Sargsyan's nephew implicated
On October 26 in broad daylight in one of Yerevan's central neighborhoods, two young men shot and killed one man, while wounding his companion. After the voluntary surrender of one of the perpetrators, Armenia's Prosecutor General described the attack as a revenge murder for the November 2007 killing of the perpetrator's uncle, who was the chairman of the Armenian Association of Hunters and a senior member of the pro-government Prosperous Armenia party. The perpetrator of that crime was never prosecuted, but media reports alleged that law enforcement authorities suspected the victim of the October 26 attack could have been its perpetrator.

Also over the same weekend, violence broke out in two separate Yerevan discotheques, where a shootout in one of them reportedly left one person wounded. In another night spot, a mass brawl broke out, allegedly prompted by a nephew to President Sargsian. Press reports allege that Sargsian's nephew and companions initiated the brawl that reportedly resulted in serious injuries and the loss of an eye by one of the persons involved in the melee.

UKRAINIAN AMBASSADOR'S APARTMENT RANSACKED
Ukraine's Ambassador to Armenia recently shared with the Ambassador that his apartment was broken into on Sunday, October 19. He believed the crime was related to his defying the GOAM's heavy-handed attempts to persuade him to cancel the Holodomyr remembrance event (the 1932 famine that Ukrainians believe was genocide) which he held on Monday, October 20 -- the same day that Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev arrived for his first state visit to Armenia. On the preceding Saturday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had called in the Ukrainian Ambassador where he was told in no uncertain terms that the event had to be cancelled. He refused. On October 19, while he was out, his apartment was broken into, and his personal possessions smashed, and very little was stolen. It took the police over an hour and a half to respond. He told the Ambassador that he believed the crime was an effort to intimidate him before the remembrance event. No GOAM official attended the event and Armenia's Public Television (Channel H1) described the memorial event in its evening coverage as "terrible" and "only fit for a circus."

COMMENT
Armenia and the city of Yerevan have traditionally been quite safe cities for average citizens and for visiting foreigners. Lawlessness is nothing new in Armenia, particularly in the political, financial and criminal arenas. In recent times, officials from the tax and customs services have been assassinated for unclear reasons. There have also been too-frequent incidents of powerful persons -- oligarchs, generals, and their children, relatives, or bodyguards -- getting involved in sometimes violent confrontations with those who may cross their paths, whether on the highway or in a night club setting, typically with impunity. Such people have been shown most often to be above the law, in their confrontations with average passersby.

The various incidents grouped together in this cable have in common their recent timing and the fact they were incidents of violence, but in other respects differ. Purposefully targeted attacks of a foreign businessman or a possibly-targeted home invasion of a foreign diplomat (if that is truly what these events were) seem an entirely new factor in Armenia. The Hans Boon [Unzipped: the Dutch director of HayPost] attacks seem particularly suspicious. Given that foreigners are very rarely assaulted in Armenia, for the same man to be attacked twice in four months suggests either strikingly bad security judgment on his part or deliberate targeting. We have more doubt about the Ukrainian Ambassador,s assumption that the burglary of his home was politically-motivated. Economically-motivated burglaries are not too uncommon for expatriates, homes that may be less well-protected than are U.S. Embassy housing, while a government-sponsored raid on an ambassador,s home is far outside the bounds of what we have seen in Armenia before. We plan to look further into these issues in the upcoming weeks, and hope to refine our understanding of whether there is a new pattern of increased lawlessness and politically-motivated violence, or whether this was simply a particularly striking confluence of unrelated events.

[Yovanovitch]

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: Minister of Nature Protection allegedly asked for $3 million bribe

Below are selected extracts. US embassy cables in full.

GLOBAL GOLD MINING: A YEAR OF CLAIMS OF CORRUPTION AND ATTEMPTED EXPROPRIATION
Global Gold Corporation (GGC) is an international gold mining company with operations in Armenia and principal offices in Connecticut. For the past few years, GGC has been involved in an at-times hostile dispute with the GOAM and more specifically with the Armenian Minister of Nature Protection over licenses to its mines in Hankavan, Toukhmanuk, Getik and Marjan. GGC brought these disputes and an allegation that the Minister had requested a $3 million bribe to our attention in April 2006.

MINISTER OF NATURE PROTECTION ASKS FOR A $3 MILLION BRIBE
On July 25, 2005, according to GGC, the Armenian Minister of Nature Protection Vartan Aivazian had asked GGC's local attorney Ashot Boghossian to pay a $3 million bribe to Aivazian's close associate and Member of Parliament Mourad Gouloyan, claiming that the payment was necessary to complete the December 2003 sale. We first became aware of the alleged bribe request on April 19, 2006, when the GGC's AmCit Chairman/CEO and Boghossian raised the matter with then U.S. Ambassador Evans. GGC claimed that, as a result of its refusal to pay the bribe, the Minister was unwilling to issue licenses to which GGC was entitled, granted duplicate licenses to other companies for mining sites owned and operated by GGC and generally obstructed GGC's business operations.

We were extremely concerned about these allegations and Ambassador Evans raised them as a "hypothetical" at the U.S.-Armenia Task Force Meeting on May 2, 2006. The Finance Minister's response referred to a mining company, a detail we had not included in our hypothetical, which suggested that other members of the GOAM were also aware of the allegations. The Finance Minister recommended that the company appeal to the Prosecutor General. Due to the poor reputation of the Armenian court system, however, GGC was unwilling to initiate a case locally. The Prosecutor General's office had the authority to begin its own investigation based on the allegations, but failed to do so.

COMMENT: A MESSY SITUATION WITH NO CLEAN FACES
There is no question that GGC has been getting the run around from the Ministry of Nature Protection. While it is continuing its operations in Armenia, the company legitimately feels vulnerable and exposed to potential short-fuse attempts to expropriate its mining properties. Adding to GGC's concern are recent actions taken by the GOAM to force another, Indian-owned, gold mining company out of the local market. Global Gold, however, has at times been less than entirely forthcoming with us. They did not report Minister Aivazian's alleged bribe solicitation until almost a year after it happened, were cagey about the timing of events, and for a number of months appeared reluctant to take the matter to court. We strongly support GGC's decision to file for international arbitration and recommend that future U.S. engagement on this issue focus on the need for a full and complete hearing of the facts rather than a political agreement which might resolve GGC's immediate problems but will do little to advance rule of law in Armenia.

[Godfrey]

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: Vanadzor emerges as Armenia’s commercial sex capital

Below are selected extracts. US embassy cables in full.

A PROSTITUTE'S STORY: SEX AND TRAFFICKING IN VANADZOR

A DIFFERENT KIND OF TRAFFICKING
We went to Vanadzor expecting to hear stories of illicit smuggling across borders and of girls lured into prostitution under false pretenses. What we heard was significantly more pedestrian. According to Aida and Suzy, very few Vanadzor women are tricked into working in Dubai or Istanbul brothels these days. They go knowingly, on legal passports, with legal visas, and for the most part without having to bribe border guards to let them through. They share buses and airplanes with underwear salesgirls traveling to buy more inventory and the odd middle-class family going on holiday. Pre-teenage girls ride buses to Turkey carrying permission letters signed by their parents, who for the most part have dispatched their daughters themselves, and who understand exactly how young Anahit or Armine will earn the several hundred dollars she will send home each month. And while the prostitutes and the NGO employees we met said sometimes women are abused in the brothels, or aren't paid in full, they said the greater part of women generally understand what they are getting themselves into, and may already have worked as prostitutes for years. Far from being the pursuit of violent smuggling rings who kidnap women and sell them into slavery, trafficking in Armenia is largely a result of the poor economy, they said, and has mostly to do with opportunistic pimps taking advantage of women who are already willing to prostitute themselves.

And there are a lot of willing women in Vanadzor. Hope and Help's Satik Grigoryan told us the NGO has registered more than 200 prostitutes. Aida estimated that 70 percent of women in Vanadzor are prostitutes, drawing laughs from the Hope and Help employees. While her figure was inflated, the statement outlined how pervasive prostitution is in Vanadzor. Prostitutes come to the clinic for regular check-ups and to replenish their condom stocks. Grigoryan told us that most of the prostitutes had never seen or heard of such contraceptives before they came to Hope and Help. She gave Aida and Suzy a couple of chocolates and a fistful of condoms each before they went home.

POLICE role questioned
Rudik Varosyan, head of the department on minors in the Vanadzor police department, told us trafficking in minors is an emerging problem in Vanadzor. He said most Vanadzor women -- and girls -- who go to Turkey to engage in prostitution are not being lured under false pretenses. More and more underage girls are being sent by their families to go and earn a little money, Varosyan said, adding that he has never heard of a case in which a minor went without parental permission. "Some parents are proud that their kids are there making money," he told us. He said the women and girls who went to Turkey usually were not held prisoner, and they were usually paid, though not necessarily in full. After the women were deported, Varosyan said, they often became recruiters for the pimps in Turkey. Varosyan said it was hard to fight the trafficking organizations because the pimps usually operate through intermediaries who never actually meet them. When police bring a case to court, the intermediary gets nailed, and the pimp continues her business, having suffered only minor inconvenience.

Though Varosyan clearly took to heart the plight of pre-teen and teenage prostitutes, local NGO staff told us that the police actually help facilitate prostitution. Artur Sakunts of the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly told us his organization wanted to look into allegations by locals that the Vanadzor police protected pimps and threatened prostitutes who wanted to quit their jobs. (Note: Aida told us police hindered her work by forcing her to undergo annual medical check-ups. End Note.) Other NGO staff told us about cases of police patronizing the prostitutes. Sakunts corroborated Varosyan's story about parents forcing their daughters to become prostitutes. Sakunts also noted that the domik village was a prostitution hub: home to a large percentage of the Vanadzor sex trade workforce while also serving as their workplace. Aida told us prostitutes there often work for a bag of rice or a few pieces of bread.

COMMENT: “... two Armenias: Yerevan, and the rest of the country”
Many visitors to Armenia who see only Yerevan -- with its pretty main square and shiny Hummers and BMW X5s -- and leave thinking the country is doing well economically. Armenians and seasoned expats often tell these visitors that there are two Armenias: Yerevan, and the rest of the country. Our trip to Vanadzor was like a spin on the focus dial of a pair of binoculars; afterwards, the distinction was clear to us, and in sharp relief. It is easy, sitting in the relatively well-to-do capital city, to put the problem squarely in the laps of lawmakers and law enforcement, and to bang our fists on the government's coffee tables to demand that they work harder to stop the crimes. But fist-banging won't change the fact that many prostitutes work simply to get food on the table, and that they believe they will be paid better in Turkey or the UAE. The Armenian government cannot improve a bad economy with stricter laws and harsher sentencing. While both are needed here, Armenia has to offer these women an alternative to turning tricks if it is to eradicate trafficking.

[By: Amb. John M. Evans]

The WikiLeaks files - Armenia: Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan recalls ‘old Armenian saying’, blames victims, and asks to investigate the NGO that aided them. Alleged corruption and abuse in PG’s office

Below are selected extracts. US embassy cables in full.

AMBASSADOR PUSHES PROSECUTOR GENERAL ON TRAFFICKING CORRUPTION ALLEGATIONS

SUMMARY
Ambassador, DCM and Poloff met with Armenian Prosecutor General (PG) Aghvan Hovsepyan August 8 about allegations of investigative misconduct and abuse in connection with a human trafficking case. The underlying case involves three prostitutes who allege they were trafficked from Armenia to Turkey via Georgia with fraudulent documents, and coerced and deprived of payment under threat of arrest. Hovsepyan began by saying he was familiar with the case and rejecting the allegations out of hand; however, he eventually committed to investigating the allegations. The PG first defamed the victims, and volunteered that he had asked the National Security Service (NSS) to investigate the NGO that had aided them. After a long discussion, he came around to a more responsive approach. End Summary.

PROSTITUTES ALLEGE CORRUPTION IN PG'S OFFICE
On July 28, three alleged trafficking victims from Gyumri, Armenia's second-largest city, were interviewed by investigators from the PG's office. After their interview, they stormed fuming into the Yerevan branch of "Hope and Help," an NGO that assists prostitutes and trafficking victims, to complain about the conduct of investigators Armen Gasparyan and Aristakes Yeremyan. (COMMENT: Yeremyan has been accused of complicity with traffickers before. The PG's office opened what we believe was a cursory investigation into those allegations in February.)

[two of the three prostitutes] Mkrtchyan and Madoyan claimed PG office investigators Gasparyan and Yeremyan told them to recant the testimonies they had given to the police. Madoyan also claimed Yeremyan struck her in the face during a July 31 meeting. Among their complaints were that the investigators told them to say the trafficker owed them less money than she actually did, and accused them of filing police statements in order to blackmail the alleged trafficker. (NOTE: Under the Armenian system, criminal investigators are an arm of the PG's office, and thus of the judicial branch. Police services are separate, and fall under the purview of the executive branch.)

COMMENT: There were some discrepancies in the victims' stories. We also have some questions about the mental competence of one of the victims. The complete circumstances of the matter are therefore legitimately open to some question. We are persuaded, however, that the basic facts of the case are accurate. Investigating authorities must take such allegations seriously, and not dismiss them out of hand because they find the victims distasteful.

THERE IS AN OLD ARMENIAN SAYING
Ambassador, DCM and Poloff met together with the PG to underline the seriousness of the case, both in its own right and as a bellwether for Armenian authorities' handling of TIP cases. The Ambassador discussed in detail several of the allegations, and stressed that they presented an opportunity for the PG's office to demonstrate its commitment to anti-TIP efforts.

Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan was aware of the reason for our call. He smirked unmistakeably as the Ambassador raised our points. Hovsepyan spent a few minutes listing the GOAM's achievements on trafficking, before addressing the case at hand. He then told us he had heard about these allegations a week earlier from the National Security Service (NSS), adding that he had then asked the NSS to investigate both the victims and the NGO that had reported the allegations to the government. (NOTE: The Ambassador did not mention the NGO specifically, but when the prosecutor did so, he confirmed that an NGO had been involved.)

Hovsepyan said he had personally investigated the allegations, and said that the case notes made it clear that the prostitutes had been lying. He characterized them as "unconscientious and non-compliant," saying derisively that they were "governed by different interests in their daily lives." He kept repeating that the prostitutes were angry that the investigators were not helping them recover their unpaid salaries from the pimp, and that money had motivated the allegations. He robustly defended Yeremyan. (NOTE: This is not surprising, given information we have received from Anti-TIP Unit Senior Prosecutor Armen Boshnaghyan (please protect) that the investigator has Hovsepyan's full support) During his impassioned defense of Yeremyan, Hovsepyan cited an Armenian proverb which, roughly translated, means "May God keep us from the evil that comes from prostitutes."

PG AGREES TO INVESTIGATE
The Ambassador said he disagreed with the proverb, and that the shared Christian heritage of our countries compelled us to "hate the crime, but love the victim." He told Hovsepyan that he was troubled to hear that the prosecutor general had asked the NSS to investigate the prostitutes and the NGO, rather than investigate the allegations. Hovsepyan said there must have been a translation error, and that he actually had said that he asked the NSS to investigate the allegations, since it would not do to have the PG's office investigate itself. (NOTE: There was no translation error.) A few minutes later, Hovsepyan said his office had in fact been investigating the complaints for a week, and that it would continue to do so.

Finally, Hovsepyan agreed to launch an internal investigation of the allegations. He said he would solicit the NGO's input. But he continued to sing Yeremyan's praises and to accuse the prostitutes of lying. He also mentioned that Yeremyan had asked repeatedly to be moved out of the Anti-TIP Unit, and that he would consider granting that request.

COMMENT: MUCH CAUSE FOR CONCERN, BUT ALL IS NOT LOST
Hovsepyan's performance was in character and betrayed the PG's apparent personal attitude toward trafficking victims and cases. We think we have at least ensured a more serious investigation of this case. We intend to pursue this matter further, and are optimistic that bringing pressure to bear on the MFA will achieve results, given President Kocharian's interest in Armenia's TIP rating. We will make the point that the next Interim Assessment is coming up.

[By: Amb. John M. Evans]

Intrigue of the Day: Luzhkov's wife Baturina vs. Ashot Eghiazaryan

City Spy

More bad news for Russia's reputed richest woman, construction mogul Yelena Baturina, wife of the ex-Mayor of Moscow.

Following hubby Yury Luzhkov's departure as Mayor - during his tenure, she managed to win many lucrative tenders for city construction projects - the couple announced that they would in future school their teenage daughters Aleona and Olga in London. No sooner had Yelena touched down here than she was reportedly quizzed by British officials at the airport.

Now Baturina, Luzhkov and potash billionaire Suleyman Kerimov are embroiled in a court case in London. They're accused of involvement in a conspiracy against Russian parliament member and businessman Ashot Egiazaryan that saw a hostile takeover of his shares in the redevelopment of the landmark Moskva Hotel in Moscow.

Already, many of Kerimov's assets have been frozen under the £1.5 billion lawsuit filed by rival Egiazaryan in London's arbitration court. Kerimov is battling the freezing order. Watch this space.

*source: London's Evening Standard

London - Yerevan direct flight: bmi out, Armavia in?

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been hearing rumours that bmi will stop operating its direct London-Yerevan-London flights from September or so. Instead, Armenian national air carrier Armavia will launch its first ever Yerevan-London-Yerevan direct flights from around early autumn.

I asked bmi to clarify this info: whether it's true or not, and if yes, what were the reasons for such decision. Allegedly, bmi flights to Yerevan direction were not profitable enough, and bmi decided to keep only Tbilisi route. There have been some, however, who pointed out to me that this cannot be the case, as many Diaspora Armenians and others use bmi’s London-Yerevan-London to fly from /to the USA and other destinations. And this must be profitable, they insisted.

bmi representative denied the rumours and came back to me with the following statement: “there are no plans to remove this route from the bmi network”.

However, when I shared bmi’s response with knowledgable sources in London, the reaction was that despite bmi’s denial, 'the rumours are true and the plans are progressing'. There might be few pleasant surprises for passengers when new Yerevan-London-Yerevan route launches this autumn, I learned.

When I checked bmi’s website today, before posting this entry, it was possible to make bookings for London-Yerevan-London return flight up until a year in advance, 25 July 2011. As of today, there are no formal indications of London route on Armavia's website.

Armenia - Turkey protocols: ‘happy ending’... for now

I will be very brief this time. Almost like a Hollywood movie, with a ‘happy ending’, of course. For now. Look, my take is that this decision makes everyone ‘happy’. All sides. Even International Crisis Group.

Wait for a sequel to come.

Armenia - Turkey: a breakthrough?

Intrigue of The Day

Here we are. Could be a sign of a breakthrough in Armenia-Turkey relations. All the main international and local news agencies now report re breaking news on protocols signed by foreign ministries of Armenia and Turkey on establishing diplomatic relations, opening the border, and general normalisation of relations between countries.

In 6 weeks, just in time for a football match (talking about 2nd round of ‘football diplomacy‘) between Turkey and Armenia, political consultations should end and the protocols sent to the parliaments for ratification.

I now read the original protocols in full. Of course, I anticipate that one of the main problems will be the so called 'historical sub-commission'. I personally do not mind joint commission to investigate archives as long as it does not aim to define whether the genocide happened or not. In the protocol, the language is very diplomatic without any clear specifications.

On the other hand, I am glad that there is no (officially stated and signed) connection of Armenia-Turkey with other conflicts' settlement, namely Karabakh. This is a positive sign. Of course, we do not know what is going on backstage, which could lead to other breaking news to come.

Obama's home state becomes 42nd to recognise Armenian Genocide

The home state of US president Barack Obama - Hawaii, becomes 42nd (out of total 50 US states) to recognise the Armenian Genocide.

The Armenian National Committee of America reports that "The measure, which was adopted unanimously on the day of the President’s trip to Turkey, declares April 24th as a "Day of Remembrance in Recognition of and Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide of 1915." The "Aloha State" proclamation makes Hawaii the 42nd state to recognize the Armenian Genocide." (Full text of the Hawaii proclamation is available here.)

Heritage will not participate in Yerevan municipal election

Heritage will not participate in Yerevan municipal election. According to A1+, this decision would be formally announced soon. Today at 6pm is a deadline to submit party lists to the electoral commission.

I am not surprised with the decision and could see this coming. Failing to agree re the united list of candidates with the ANC, this is the right decision to make. I am saddened that we won’t see Heritage party’s representatives directly contesting the election as part of the opposition alliance. However, this will diminish the damage to the reputation of Heritage party being heavily criticised from the pro-opposition side and 'supported' by pro-government forces (nothing could be more damaging to the reputation of opposition party than the latter, and the authorities know this perfectly). This will also do less harm to the opposition chances compared with Heritage’s separate participation, as the authorities won’t be able to use them (without their consent, of course) to ‘picture’ free and fair election.

Heritage have representatives in local electoral commissions, and will be important in monitoring the fairness of the process, as this issue should be above all sorts of personal and inter-party quarrels. Having relatively free and fair election in Yerevan would set an important precedent for future elections to come. Armenia needs such precedent.

*photo - via A1+ blog

Ter-Petrosyan – Yerevan mayor? Clever move by Armenian opposition, and good news for democracy in Armenia

Armenia’s first president and opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosyan will head the list of opposition Armenian National Congress candidates in Yerevan municipal election (= Yerevan mayor election). No. 2 in the list is Stepan Demirchyan. (I do not know if Ter-Petrosyan would step down after winning the election, to make Demirchyan a mayor, but this is not important right now) They will now continue formal consultations with the parliamentary opposition Heritage party for joint participation in election. I do hope that cool heads in the opposition (parliamentary + extra-parliamentary) will prevail to contest the election united.

“This is almost like presidential election, it’s a political election, and winning Yerevan municipal election will amount to regime change and restoration of constitutional order in Armenia” – this would be the main message by opposition directed at electorate. Not quite the regime change, but they have a point.

No one should underestimate the importance of capital Yerevan, where almost half of Armenian population lives. Having elected by free and fair election, Yerevan mayor would become a significant political figure in Armenia to rival president.

This decision puts the spotlight towards Yerevan mayoral election to the highest possible level and importance. This would encourage Yerevan residents to take it seriously and participate in election.

If won by the opposition, this would give us hope that future parliamentary and presidential elections would be freer and fairer, at least in Yerevan, and hopefully in the country as a whole.

I cannot imagine ruling party candidate Gagik Beglaryan (nicknamed Chorni (Black) Gago) winning this election vs Ter-Petrosyan, unless election is falsified. Not only Armenians’, but also the attention of international community would be on Yerevan, and hopefully with Ter-Petrosyan contesting the election, it would be harder, much harder to falsify it again.

This would be THE test for the authorities, and the most practical chance for them to assure Armenian citizens that they want to heal the wounds of 1 March and move forward (along with the release of political prisoners, of course). This would give a chance for real dialogue between opposition and the authorities to take place in Armenia. This could be a good news for democracy in Armenia.

Photos of allegedly corrupt university lecturers 'greeted' Yerevan residents this morning

UPDATE (!): OK, apparently, it's pro-government Miasin youth group behind this. Call me biased, but I do not trust them. Although I like the idea behind this action, I cannot trust the organisers, as they are not independent in their actions. You may no longer pay attention to my initially put "Student rebellion?" sub-heading.

Student rebellion?

Tert.am reports that this morning photos of allegedly corrupt university officials, lecturers etc. appeared at Yerevan bus stops, metro stations, universities, other busy spots. There is brief ‘bio’ of those pictured provided there. Captions of photos read “Bribe-taker”.

Police and university officials are now busy with the ‘cleaning up’.



«Կաշառակերների» նկարները փակցված են Երևանի փողոցներում

Tert.am

Այսօր առավոտյան Երևանի կանգառներում, բուհերի պատերին և այլ մարդաշատ վայրերում փակցված էին տասնյակից ավելի հայրենի մանկավարժների լուսանկարները «Կաշառակերներ» վերնագրով։

Բացի մանկավարժների դեմքերից, պաստառները կարճ ծանոթացնում էին «մատաղ սերնդի դաստիարակների» անցած ուղու հետ։

Ամենուր «կաշառակերների» մոտ մարդկանց բազմություն է կուտակվում։ Ոստիկանությունը, իր հերթին, հասկանալով, թե ինչ է կատարվում, շրջափակել է «Երիտասարդական» մետրոյի մոտակա կանգառը և ստորգետնյա անցումը և ակտիվորեն պայքարում է «կաշառակերության» դեմ՝ պոկելով պաստառները։

Իսկ Երևանի մանկավարժական համալսարանի ղեկավարությունը արդեն վաղ առավոտյան հասցրել է հանձնարարել լվանալ պատերը ուսանողների՝ մեծ հետաքրքրությունը վայելող դասախոսների նկարներից։ Բուհի պատերն այժմ «անվտանգ են»։ «Կաշառակերներից» միայն թաց տեղ է մնացել։

*photo and video - via Tert.am

Armenian TV in Turkey?

Turkish Sabah newspaper reports that 'Armenian TV' is to start broadcasting at the end of 2009:

"TRT is now in preparation for the new Armenian TV station, which will begin broadcasts at the end of 2009. An affirmative outlook has been given by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the upcoming Armenian TV channel. The start of radio broadcasts in Armenian and an official website in February will prove as a test for the new television station. The television broadcasts will include famous Armenian musicians, such as Ara Gevorgian, Tata, Nune Yesayan, Andre and Sirusho as well as Kardeş Türküler and other Turkish groups that sing Armenian songs. Categorized as a family channel, Armenian TV will provide top headlines of developments in Turkey and Armenia on their newsreel. The new satellite channel, which will employ Armenian staff members, will also focus on those living in Armenia as well as on Armenians living in Turkey."

Not sure about Nune Yesayan but sounds like yet another positive news in recent development of Armenia - Turkey relations. I wonder what type of information policy this newly formed TV channel will be 'allowed' to embrace? Will it become Agos-like TV channel? Or will it become a mere state propaganda tool?

Did Obama’s victory in the US elections make opening borders with Armenia a priority for Turkey?

Following recent statements on expected “extraordinary decisions”, “new climate” and “new developments” between Turkey and Armenia, some Turkish reports suggest that Obama’s victory in the US presidential election made opening borders with Armenia a mater of priority and strategic importance.

Today’s Zaman reports:

Democrat Barack Obama's landslide victory in the US election is a dream come true for most ordinary Turks, but it could mean more pressure on the government to speed up reforms for a better state of human rights in the country.

It is also likely to spell a definite end for the long-held Turkish policy of dealing with Armenian claims of genocide through counter-measures to suppress pro-genocide resolutions in Congress. [...]

Turkey has managed for decades to block Armenian efforts to win US recognition for genocide claims, but with the White House readying for an Obama era, it is high time for Ankara to promote a more comprehensive policy that goes far beyond addressing immediate challenges at the US Congress, experts say. Many fear that Obama’s use of the G-word in his next message for April 24 -- a traditional occasion when US presidents commemorate Armenians who perished in Anatolia in the last century -- could shatter Turkey-US ties and that following up on a recent drive for dialogue with Armenia might be the only way to save relations from a catastrophe.

“There is nothing to be afraid of; Turkey should trust itself. What needs to be done is further improving the relations with Yerevan and marginalizing the Armenian diaspora in the United States,” said Ömer Taşpınar, an expert on Turkey with the Washington-based Brookings Institution and a Today’s Zaman columnist. “By opening borders with Armenia and taking other appropriate steps, Turkey will have the trump card in its hands.”

President Abdullah Gül paid a landmark visit to Armenia in September, and officials of the two countries, which currently have no formal ties, have been having talks since then on normalizing relations.

Marc Grossman, a former US ambassador to Turkey, advised the Turkish government to keep improving ties with Armenia during a teleconference at the US Embassy in Ankara early on Wednesday. Dialogue and open borders with Armenia will give Turkey an advantage in discussing the issue with the Obama administration, he said.