While Azerbaijan continues writing about "destruction" of Azerbaijani monuments in Armenia (perhaps to balance the world media reports on the destruction of Armenian khachkars in Azerbaijan), Peter Nicolaus, another foreigner, has published an article at Reuters about "Artistic appreciation and tolerance in an Armenian village."

It talks about Azeri and Jewish holy sites preserved in the old Armenian village. I wish Azerbaijanis were the same way to Armenian monuments.

YEGHEGIS, Armenia, July 17 (UNHCR) – Nestled in a valley surrounded by towering mountains, this village in southern Armenia's Vayots Dzor province is an oasis of artistic appreciation and tolerance in the fractious Caucasus.

Yeghegis is desperately poor – the main income comes from walnuts, said to be the finest in the country – but it houses a wealth of artistic, architectural and religious treasures. The villagers are proud and protective of this heritage, even works created by ethnic Azeris whose descendants fled the region during the 1988-1994 conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Thousands were killed and more than a million people displaced by the fighting.

"These wall paintings are part of the history of our village and they are part of our life. We do not want to destroy beautiful things which were made by others, whether they are Armenians, Azeri or Jews," said Yeghegis's Armenian mayor, Melik Babagulyan, as he showed awed visitors around his office lobby.

The brightly coloured designs, incorporating eastern motifs and covering the walls, pillars and ceiling, were commissioned by his predecessor – an Azeri – but Babagulyan saw no reason to replace them with something typically Armenian.

Yeghegis has seen better days. Located on the road linking southern Armenia to the north, it had great strategic and economic importance in the Middle Ages. Silk Road traders passed through after crossing the nearby Selim Pass, while southern Armenian royalty lived in the area.

The Orbelian family built a castle on a mountain overlooking the valley and buried their dead in local cemeteries, which still stand. The village of just 500 people, mostly naturalised former refugees, is also served by five historic churches and one basilica – all reasonably well preserved.

Although under the suzerainty of the Seljuks, and later the Mongol-Tatars, Yeghegis remained an Armenian stronghold until the 14th Century, when Turkmen tribes took control over this part of the country. Not trusting their new subjects and aware of the strategic importance of Yeghegis, the Turkmens encouraged the ethnically related Azeris to settle in the area.

By the middle of the last century, with the area now under Soviet control, all the Armenians had left. But the tide turned from 1989, when the tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh enclave reached the valley. This time the Azeris fled and were replaced by Armenian refugees from Sumgait in Azerbaijan and people from surrounding villages.

But rather than destroying the legacy of rival communities – as seen in conflict zones elsewhere in the world – the people of Yeghegis decided to preserve the heritage of previous generations, regardless of their race or creed.

Mayor Babagulyan took his guests to the shabby public library, whose shelves held books in Armenian, Russian and Azeri. "Almost nobody in the village can understand and read the Azerbaijan language, but the books have been here before and they shall stay," he said. "One day the Azeri may visit us, and what would they say when they learn that we have thrown away their books."

His sentiments are shared by others in the village, such as shepherd Kochar Kocharyan, an ethnic Armenian born and bred in a neighbouring Azeri-majority village. "We have to overcome the hatred and to enjoy life in peace. The first step towards peace is understanding and tolerance," said the 80-year-old, who hopes to promote understanding by publishing his translations of Azeri poetry.

On a tour of the village, one passes the ancient churches and a cemetery full of Armenian khachkars, or stone crosses, that were used as tombstones or memorials and reached their peak in the 12-13th centuries. Next door, another surprise – an undamaged Muslim prayer house. "They did not touch our churches – they even maintained them. Why would we not care for their holy place," reasoned Babagulyan.

There are also Jewish and Azeri cemeteries, protected and tended by the locals in contrast to many other villages where such places have been destroyed in recent years. "I care for the graves of the Azeri, because I hope that an Azeri will do the same with the tombs of my ancestors in Azerbaijan," said former refugee Sergey Alkamyan, who found a new home here with UNHCR help.

The 13th-Century Jewish cemetery is evidence that there was once a thriving and literate Jewish community in this former pit stop on the Silk Road. A team from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has worked on the site.

Protection is one thing, but preservation is also needed if future generations are to appreciate the multicultural treasures of Yeghegis. That might be a pipe dream because the local authorities have no funds and the central government has other priorities. But the visitors believe that the village deserves help, possibly from overseas donors.

"I believe that in the spirit of reconciliation this village could serve as an extraordinary example of how people overcome hatred and depart from official positions," said one.

By Peter Nicolaus
In Yeghegis, Armenia

I had seen this title the day it was printed, but did not take the time to read it. After I got it again through some e-mails, I realized it was a good one. READ THIS.

Los Angeles Times
EDITORIAL
July 16, 2006

Speak no evil?

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU refer to Turkey's 1915-1923 genocide of Armenians, accurately, as "genocide"? In Turkey, you face a possible three-year jail term, even if it wasn't you using the term but a character in your novel. In the United States, you just lose your job as ambassador to Armenia.

The novelist is Elif Shafak, who learned last week she will go on trial for defamation of the Turkish Republic. The former ambassador is John M. Evans, who was recalled from Yerevan in May after referring to the "Armenian genocide" in a speech before a group of Armenian Americans in February 2005. As one State Department bigwig told an Armenian newspaper: "Ambassadors serve the president, and they are obliged to follow his policy. President Bush's policy as regards the mass killings of Armenians is precise."

Precisely what purpose this policy serves is clear: avoid using the most truthful word in the English language to describe an eight-decade-old atrocity for fear of offending a crucial NATO ally. As Bush's proposed replacement for Evans, Richard Hoagland, put it last month during his confirmation hearing, "Instead of getting stuck in the past and vocabulary, I would like to see what we can do to bring different sides together."

Vocabulary may not be the president's best subject — Bush himself has poked fun at his frequent malapropisms — but he's shown he knows the meaning of the word "genocide." Campaigning for the White House in 2000, Bush told Armenian American groups that "the 20th century was marred by wars of unimaginable brutality, mass murder and genocide" and that "history records that the Armenians were the first people of the last century to have endured these cruelties … If elected president, I would ensure that our nation properly recognizes the tragic suffering of the Armenian people."

It's one of the more blatant of Bush's broken campaign promises. Luckily, the Senate is showing signs of giving this rhetorical appeasement the rebuke it deserves. Half of the senators on the Foreign Relations Committee have demanded that the State Department give an official explanation for Evans' premature recall, and some have hinted that Hoagland's appointment could hang in the balance. They should block the nomination altogether until the ambassador-to-be dares to utter the g-word.

And the Bush administration should have the courage of its lack of conviction and explain forthrightly — not just to Armenian Americans but too all Americans who believe in calling evil by its proper name — why U.S. policy is being dictated by Ankara nationalists.

I will only give one reason why Israel and Hamas should stop the fight right now. The picture below from this week:

The first shocking news for the day: a Russian teenager has used fake Armenian ID (passport) to enter the United Arab Emirates. Shocking, because reports by Hetq (Investigative Journalists of Armenia) have proclaimed Armenian teenagers given fake Russian passports to enter UAE. But this case shows that the opposite happens too.

Second shocking news: this information was published in a UAE publication. Shocking, because UAE newspapers never write about negative things or problems in their country: they cannot do so (for this reason, www.hetq.am is banned in UAE). Indeed the article never uses the word “trafficking,” “slavery” or “sex slaves.” But if you read the article, you don’t need too much feedback in human slavery to understand what’s going on (check http://hetq.am/eng/society/trafficking.html for more information).

The girl, who is most likely much younger than 19, did not have documents to enter UEA and become a sex slave. According to her, she got it from an Armenian girl, but I don’t think so. Perhaps she got it from a person who owns an Armenian girl as a sex slave. Do I sound rude or something? Welcome to the 21st century, ladies and gentlemen.

You cannot find a people in the world that will not say they have lost lands. Perhaps, this is true. So in what context does Armenia's right to be united is valid against others' claims?

This question may seem rhetoric to some, especially to non-Armenians. Perhaps I have a romantic, yet accurate answer.

Armenians lived in Armenia for at least (even most Azerbaijani liars admit this fact) 2,500 years. They lost it many times to foreign invaders, regained again, lost again. One thing that Armenians did not lose was the culture and the Armenian identity: this until 1915, when the Genocide started.

As a result of the Armenian genocide, the Armenian identity of what is now eastern Turkey was wiped off the Earth: identity, traditions, material and non-material culture of over 2000 years.

I don't know how foreigners feel by thinking about the above, but it really hurts me. It hurts to see an old civilization wiped off, it hurts to see west Armenia destroyed.

Some people will still argue that Native Americans have faced the same. But I will tell to this some that Native Americans have about 5000 local governments in America, they are exempt from taxes and even if they chose to leave the reservoirs and go to school, they will get 100% financial aid for higher education. This is not the same for the few Armenians left in Turkey. Moreover, many of them have to hide their Armenian identity, as BBC reported lately.

Others will ask, who will return to west Armenia if the land is returned? Who will go there? Two hundred people?

I really don't want a war. The last thing that I want for my children (to come) and for myself. But I still believe in Armenia's right to be united. I still and will always believe that Ararat belongs to the Armenians, that we are the owners. And I will always dream of Armenia's unification.

These random and unorganized thoughts came after reading Appo Jabarian's latest "Foreign Minister Oskanyan May Avert Resignation By Heeding His People’s Advice" (received via e-mail). It appears Armenia's Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan has said to agree to return Karvachar (Kelbajar) to Azerbaijan, and the locals of Karvachar are not happy.

I don't really know what to say. All the lands that Armenia has taken from Azerbaijan are Armenian. This is not the dispute. But where is the border? Do we really want a war? Is Jabarian going to fight for Karvachar if the war starts? Why did so few Diasporan Armenians participate in the Artsakh (Karabakh) war? Fifty people out of six million Diaspora? Is this the Armenian "pride"? Is this the Armenian "unity"?

I am not blaming anyone. Just some thoughts.

Foreign Minister Oskanyan May Avert Resignation By
Heeding His People’s Advice

July 14, 2006

By APPO K. JABARIAN
Executive Publisher & Managing Editor
USA Armenian Life Magazine
Hye Kiank Armenian Weekly

According to Lragir.am, recently, Armenia's Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanyan stated that he would give
Karvachar in Northern Artsakh (Karabagh) to Azerbaijan
after the OSCE Minsk Group-proposed referendum.

Lragir.am also reported: "People in Karabakh have a
very negative attitude towards proposals involving
return of territories. They were deeply shocked to
hear the foreign minister of Armenia Vardan Oskanyan's
(proposal)."

Apparently Mr. Oskanyan has forgotten that Mr.
Elchibey, the former President of Azerbaijan, had
boasted during the initial stages (late 1980's-early
1990's) of the Artsakh Liberation War, that he would
"soon bathe in Lake Sevan" (Armenia proper).
Politically speaking, to his dismay, Mr. Elchibey
couldn't even cross the Kura River. He "drowned" in
military-political chaos.

Mr. Oskanyan has also forgotten that his former chief,
Mr. Levon Ter Petrossyan, the first President of
Armenia, lost his job in early 1998 for his eagerness
to return Artsakh. Mr. Ter Petrossyan had authored an
infamous article titled "War or Peace?" in September
of 1997. He had also declared that the national
ideology is a false category.

Is Mr. Oskanyan receiving advice from the same
elements that misguided Mr. Ter Petrossyan? It would
be wise if Mr. Oskanyan heeded the advice emanating
from the only legitimate source of advice on Armenian
state affairs: the Armenian people. He could also do a
major service to himself and his people by
comprehending that advice coming from the very
Armenian citizens of Artsakh as reported by Lragir.am
correspondent:

– G. Sahakyan, 73: Apparently, the minister did not
study the map properly. How does he imagine life in
Karabakh without Karvachar? Would he live in Karabakh
without Karvachar?

– Svetlana, 43: Perhaps they are hopeful that Baku
will reject the idea of referendum and Karvachar will
remain ours. But what if they agree?

– Andrey Ghulyan, pensioner: Most inhabitants of
Shahumyan, who remained in Karabakh, live in
Karvachar. What will their fate be? Frankly speaking,
I am surprised at Oskanyan. Who gave him the right to
speak on our behalf? He has never lived and will never
live in Karabakh, will he?

By heeding his people’s advice, Mr. Oskanyan may avert
the same fate that befell his former boss, Mr. Ter
Petrossyan: resignation. He may avoid facing
widespread demands for his resignation.

World Armenians Determined Not To Lose, But Liberate
Turkish-Occupied Lands

During the last few months, the worldwide public
discussion of legitimate Armenian demands for complete
restitution from Turkey has regained momentum.
Contrary to the denialist Turkey’s anticipation, the
dwindling number of the survivors of Armenian Genocide
at the hands of Turkey in 1915-23 has not caused the
weakening of the Armenian Cause. But the opposite has
been taking place. The new generation of Armenian
activists and friends are at the helm of a
still-growing movement to recover what ancestral land
was lost as a direct result of their parents and
grandparents’ annihilation and deportations during the
1915 genocide.

Even the first president of the newly independent
Republic of Armenia, Mr. Levon Ter Petrossyan has lost
his position because, 1) his weak foreign policy
vis-à-vis Turkey regarding the Armenian Genocide; and
2) his mishandling of the territorial issue with
Azerbaijan, the Turkic neighbor from the East.

In April of this year, an unprecedented number of
Armenians worldwide took their demands to the streets.
In Armenia, over one million Armenians flocked to the
Armenian Genocide Monument. In Tehran, over 200,000
Armenians overwhelmed the central square of the
Iranian capital. In Middle East and West Europe more
than 500,000 mobilized. In Los Angeles alone nearly
75,000 demonstrators presented their just demands.

On April 4, Armenpress news agency reported: "A survey
conducted by Sociometer polling center among 1000
young Armenians revealed that the overwhelming
majority was against normalization of relations with
Turkey if this is to be done by ignoring Armenians'
territorial claims to Turkey and without its
acknowledgement of the 1915 genocide."

Millions of Armenians in Armenia, Artsakh and around
the world followed the news, and moved on with
contentment. Can the reader guess as to who tried to
discredit not only the news but also the survey
itself? Several denialist Turks and their cronies!
Some of them even claimed that only the Dashnaktsutiun
party "in the Diaspora makes such claims." These
denialists are setting themselves up for a major
disappointment. The followers of Dashnaktsutiun party
are not alone in their quest for justice. Several
Armenian political and civic organizations and
individual leaders in Armenia-Artsakh and the Diaspora
are firm believers in their just demands for
reparations, and return of Turkish-occupied ancestral
lands in Western Armenia. Here’s a partial list:

* His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All
Armenians;
* His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great
House of Cilicia;
* Armenian National Committee of America and
around the world;
* Federation of Armenian Organization of Europe;
* Nakhichevan Compatriotic Union, Armenia,
Artsakh, the CIS, and elsewhere
* Armenian Youth Federation in USA and around the
world;
* Armenian Students United;
* Armenian Student Associations (on university
campuses around the world);
* Armenian Popular Movement (Europe);
* Dashnaktsutiun Party;
* Ramgavar Azadagan Party;
* Hunchakian Party;
* Association of Armenian Veterans of Artsakh
Liberation War;
* A.B.B.A. Int’l.

Despite denialist Turkey’s desperate attempts to
divide and conquer, the world Armenians are determined
not to lose, but liberate Turkish-occupied lands.

"A Better Middle East," according to retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Ralph Peters, would be Armenia getting Mt. Ararat and Georgia's Javakhk (Javakheti) Armenian region.

Peters' "Blood borders: How a better Middle East would look" article, published at Armed Forces Journal, provides a map of "better Middle East," that makes new countries in the region.

According to Peters, the new countries would be based on current ethnic populations. This doesn't answer the questions why, in that case, Armenia gets Mt. Ararat (where no Armenian lives now) and does not get Nagorno Karabakh (where only Armenians live).

It is also surprising to see that Azerbaijan would be "united" with Northern Iran, where many ethnic Turks (Azernbaijanis) live. Why wouldn't they qualify to join Turkey?

Peters article is provocational, interesting and somewhat uninformed. There are more ethnic groups in the region than he discusses and many more details to the conflicts.

Peters admits that, although Armenia would not lose anything, it would not get justice either: "And one haunting wrong can never be redressed with a reward of territory: the genocide perpetrated against the Armenians by the dying Ottoman Empire," writes the former Lt. Col.

Thank you to Harut Sassounian for the information.

p.s. a technical error. Georgia also loses territory, although the map doesn't indicate Georgia as a "loser."

I thought making "animals that pray in Armenian" was pretty crazy!

There is more to come.

Armenians are going crazy this summer. Gibrahayer, Cyprus-based news publication, has published an ass in its newest issue with the title Welcome to “34 the Shop."

What is this about?

Do you know Animals That Pray In Armenian?

Well, I have not known any until this point. I Googled "Armenian," and found an advertisement on the right informing of "Plush Animals That Pray In Armenian. First Ever Armenian Praying Animals."

The newly-lunched http://www.hyemedznank.com/pages/home.asp (Hye Medznank – Let's Grow Up as Armenians) wants to teach kids Armenian through talking toys.

Perhaps Colorado's Armenian community should buy one (it's only $20), if it indeed prays. Then there will be no need to bring priests from California.

Hippo that prays in Armenian