Usually I try to avoid quoting news articles ad commenting on them since that's done by several bloggers out there attempting to be politically correct but lately I haven't been able to resist.
Last Thursday a leader of the ruling Republican party, which has several ignoramuses in its ranks judging from statements I have read in the past, compared the events of March 1, 2008 to wartime Europe, trying to make the point that it had no right to teach "values" and "democracy" to Armenians. In Razmik Zohrabian's remarks he refers to the fact that the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) refrained from imposing sanctions on Armenia on January 26 and taking away its right to vote.
He was quoted in an RFE/RL article that:
Let's take the first paragraph that I quoted. Who is this guy to criticize PACE in any terms, strong or not? Why would you want to challenge a European organization that could have easily ignored Armenia in the first place to include it as a member? The very fact that Armenia is an active party in PACE is something that should be commended and revered. Seems that this guy and even others in the party think it’s not very important. Yet it is a privilege to have voting rights there, since Armenia is not technically Europe, and having that power stripped would have been extremely embarrassing.
Then he goes on about Europe having no right to criticize Armenia about its dismal human rights record and its failure to implement a transparent, functioning system of democracy. Reason being is because countries spread across the continent were resisting against living in a broken Europe while a crazy dictator was hell-bent in taking it over, not to mention eradicating millions of people in the process. But Zohrabian is failing to take one thing in consideration--the events of March 1 were not an act of war. They were a response to pain and rejection, met by a clash that was initiated by an impulsive, careless leader who didn't think twice about using force against a crowd of people struggling for justice and change in their society. Violation of human rights unfortunately does not really apply to wartime crises where you have to do whatever is necessary to stay alive, and to protect others around you. More importantly, during war you are fighting in defense of your country against foreign aggressors. The only aggressors on March 1 were those few who were inciting violence. As a result of those events dozens of people who had no connection to the violence were arrested, many of whom are still detained even though no tangible evidence can be presented by the authorities to legitimize the arrests. So we are not talking about war crimes, we are indeed talking about people who are being detained or convicted for mainly political reasons. You're not going to find much arguing on the street refuting this. People don't like living in fear that they can be arrested because they said hello to someone speculated of being tied to the opposition. His comparison of the events of World War II with politically motivated arrests and blatant human rights violations are thus, irrelevant. People still don't know the whole truth about March 1 because the government-led investigations are slow going, and are altogether inadequate. Besides, they won't turn up anything especially revealing. Despite all this, Zohrabian believes that Europe has no right to voice concern about the way the authorities are treating the very people they are supposed to serve because Armenians don't need to be lectured about values by a group of nations that were once at war with one another. Absurd.
Next he goes on to state that human rights violations in Armenia are no big deal since Europe was struggling through war for several years, and on two occasions in the 20th century (he makes no reference to World War I or to civil wars throughout Europe; Spain comes immediately to mind where peasant oppositionists resisted against an oppressive fascist regime). So people being arrested under mere suspicion is not something to be concerned about? There civil liberties freedom of expression are systematically being stripped from them, again with no proof that they incited violence. At least one of the oppositionists, Alexander Arzoumanian, supposedly was plotting a coup on the phone as the authorities had tapped his phone and was listening in. OK, great, where are the phone records? Alas, they haven’t been made public (as far as I know, there’s no reason why they should have been since human rights violations are apparently meaningless).
The ironic thing is that this guy was in jail for 10 years as a political dissident during the 1970s, so he single-handedly experienced a violation of human rights for his beliefs, more or less the same that thousands here are powerlessly trying to defend, declared oppositionists or not--namely freedom, justice, and proper governance in compliance with democratic norms. Why not hold everyone accountable then for wanting change, why stop with 60 people? It’s irrelevant. Europe was at war, and PACE cannot criticize Armenia because of that reason. An obtuse, misguided mentality.
People like this moron have no right to serve in office. Nevertheless, people endure, and I don’t know how long they can possibly stand it.
Last Thursday a leader of the ruling Republican party, which has several ignoramuses in its ranks judging from statements I have read in the past, compared the events of March 1, 2008 to wartime Europe, trying to make the point that it had no right to teach "values" and "democracy" to Armenians. In Razmik Zohrabian's remarks he refers to the fact that the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) refrained from imposing sanctions on Armenia on January 26 and taking away its right to vote.
He was quoted in an RFE/RL article that:
“Because Armenia was not stripped of its [PACE] vote, I don’t want to criticize the assembly in strong terms now,” Zohrabian told RFE/RL in an interview. “But we must not forget that when they teach us lessons on human rights and freedoms and cite European values, we can recall what happened during the World War II in Europe. People were even burned and buried alive there. Was that also part of the European values or it is not part of the history?”I am wondering whether any one of the journalists in attendance at the press conference he held had the audacity to question his motives for making such an absurd comparison. Probably not since Armenian journalists don't really do their job properly. But let's dissect his words a bit.
“So when there were events here [in March 2008] that resulted in casualties, in terms of human rights, that is not as great a tragedy as a world war waged under European values,” he charged. “This is just one example. I can bring up more of them.”
Let's take the first paragraph that I quoted. Who is this guy to criticize PACE in any terms, strong or not? Why would you want to challenge a European organization that could have easily ignored Armenia in the first place to include it as a member? The very fact that Armenia is an active party in PACE is something that should be commended and revered. Seems that this guy and even others in the party think it’s not very important. Yet it is a privilege to have voting rights there, since Armenia is not technically Europe, and having that power stripped would have been extremely embarrassing.
Then he goes on about Europe having no right to criticize Armenia about its dismal human rights record and its failure to implement a transparent, functioning system of democracy. Reason being is because countries spread across the continent were resisting against living in a broken Europe while a crazy dictator was hell-bent in taking it over, not to mention eradicating millions of people in the process. But Zohrabian is failing to take one thing in consideration--the events of March 1 were not an act of war. They were a response to pain and rejection, met by a clash that was initiated by an impulsive, careless leader who didn't think twice about using force against a crowd of people struggling for justice and change in their society. Violation of human rights unfortunately does not really apply to wartime crises where you have to do whatever is necessary to stay alive, and to protect others around you. More importantly, during war you are fighting in defense of your country against foreign aggressors. The only aggressors on March 1 were those few who were inciting violence. As a result of those events dozens of people who had no connection to the violence were arrested, many of whom are still detained even though no tangible evidence can be presented by the authorities to legitimize the arrests. So we are not talking about war crimes, we are indeed talking about people who are being detained or convicted for mainly political reasons. You're not going to find much arguing on the street refuting this. People don't like living in fear that they can be arrested because they said hello to someone speculated of being tied to the opposition. His comparison of the events of World War II with politically motivated arrests and blatant human rights violations are thus, irrelevant. People still don't know the whole truth about March 1 because the government-led investigations are slow going, and are altogether inadequate. Besides, they won't turn up anything especially revealing. Despite all this, Zohrabian believes that Europe has no right to voice concern about the way the authorities are treating the very people they are supposed to serve because Armenians don't need to be lectured about values by a group of nations that were once at war with one another. Absurd.
Next he goes on to state that human rights violations in Armenia are no big deal since Europe was struggling through war for several years, and on two occasions in the 20th century (he makes no reference to World War I or to civil wars throughout Europe; Spain comes immediately to mind where peasant oppositionists resisted against an oppressive fascist regime). So people being arrested under mere suspicion is not something to be concerned about? There civil liberties freedom of expression are systematically being stripped from them, again with no proof that they incited violence. At least one of the oppositionists, Alexander Arzoumanian, supposedly was plotting a coup on the phone as the authorities had tapped his phone and was listening in. OK, great, where are the phone records? Alas, they haven’t been made public (as far as I know, there’s no reason why they should have been since human rights violations are apparently meaningless).
The ironic thing is that this guy was in jail for 10 years as a political dissident during the 1970s, so he single-handedly experienced a violation of human rights for his beliefs, more or less the same that thousands here are powerlessly trying to defend, declared oppositionists or not--namely freedom, justice, and proper governance in compliance with democratic norms. Why not hold everyone accountable then for wanting change, why stop with 60 people? It’s irrelevant. Europe was at war, and PACE cannot criticize Armenia because of that reason. An obtuse, misguided mentality.
People like this moron have no right to serve in office. Nevertheless, people endure, and I don’t know how long they can possibly stand it.
Labels: Politics, Social and Cultural
ArmeniaLiberty.org reported yesterday that Presidents Sarge Sarkisian and Ilham Aliev are to meet again to find a solution to the Karabagh conflict. The meeting will take place on the sidelines of the Davos world economic summit to be held from January 28 to February 1. Apparently the mediators are hoping that a deal can be signed by the summer.
Matthew Bryza, who is the OSCE Minsk Group US co-chair, as usual enthusiastically told reporters what he thought would be accomplished at the meeting. One statement that really surprised me was the following regarding the likelihood of a deal being reached:
It depends on, number one, whether the presidents have found a way or can find a way to build on mutual understanding and positive feelings they have about each other and turn that into concrete steps.
I am guessing based on this quote that Bryza is hoping the two presidents will finally announce they are madly in love with each other. Otherwise, finding a solution to the Karabagh conflict will continue to be problematic, unless they come to terms with their true feelings for one another. Makes perfect sense.
Bryza went on to say that:
It also depends on whether the society is understanding what’s being proposed.... Because if they do understand it they will support it. So we’ve got some work to do.
Armenian society certainly will not accept losing control of Karabagh, and Azerbaijan has been threatening the renewal of war to take it back. So what the hell is he talking about regarding the "proposed," whatever that may be finally revealed to be?
These two statements clearly demonstrate how incompetent Bryza has been during his term as a Minsk Group mediator. He seems to be out of touch with reality although he is supposedly directly engaged with both sides as a mediator. When he voices such opinions, he is conveying a profound sense of aloofness, a lack of comprehension about what is and has always been at stake since the very start of the conflict, that is the self-determination of the Armenian people of Karabagh, free from Azerbaijani rule and influence. To put it mildly, he's evidently clueless.
This may be Bryza's last chance at helping to broker a peace deal. It's likely that he will fail. Judging from the silly comments he has made before the press during the last couple of years, like once stating that a "gentlemen's agreement" had been met between the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents for the framework to end the conflict, it's high time that he be replaced by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. I for one am looking forward to it.
UPDATE: The meeting between Presidents Sarkisian and Aliev took place on January 28. What actually was discussed between the two leaders is not clear judging from the report I read, which appears in full below. We know that they met for an hour and could have talked about anything during that time--the weather, the fresh Swiss mountain air, their admiration for the city of Moscow... even their true feelings for one another, as Bryza hoped they would confess.
ALIEV-SARKISIAN MEETING ‘POSITIVE’
The talks began in the presence of the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers and the American, French and Russian diplomats co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group. According to Sarkisian’s office, the two presidents then spoke one-on-one for an hour before being again joined by their top diplomats and the mediators. They made no public statement after the meeting.
“The Armenian side assessed the results of the Zurich meeting as constructive and positive,” the office said in a statement. It said Aliev and Sarkisian instructed their foreign ministers, who met in the Swiss city on Tuesday, to continue the negotiating process.
It was also agreed that the Minsk Group co-chairs will again visit Baku and Yerevan soon in an attempt to help the conflicting parties overcome their remaining disagreements on the basic principles of a Karabakh settlement proposed by the mediators, added the statement.
The mediators already toured the conflict zone last week. They said they hope to broker a framework peace accord on Karabakh in the first half of this year.
Aliev’s office and Azerbaijani diplomats did not immediately comment on the Zurich talks. (RFE/RL)
Labels: Nagorno-Karabagh, Politics
I haven't spoken to one person so far who is not excited about Barack Obama taking office today. For the most part everyone believes something good will come out of his presidency. They can't predict when necessarily and may not know in what sphere will the changes be obvious per say, but they do think that he will restore good relations with the rest of the world. I for one am hoping he will put increased pressure on the Armenian government to enact democratic reform and in the process drastically reduce corruption. He will surely repair damaged relations with Russia which will be beneficial in the long run to the entire region. Hopefully a reasonable, viable solution to the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict will be found, too during his presidency, one in which all parties will agree to despite having to accept compromises that may be hurtful to some extent.
Armenians not only in the US but worldwide are also banking on his campaign promise to recognize the Armenian Genocide. The Turkish foreign minister Ali Babacan is already warning against that, which means Turkey is treating his words very seriously. It's a dream for many Armenian-Americans, especially those few survivors who are still alive, to hear their leader acknowledge one of the most poignant tragedies of the 20th century as what it exactly is--genocide. I don't know exactly what will change as a result but here's hoping on April 24 he'll say what most everyone--excluding the Turkish government--wants to here.
There are some bizarre theories about what may happen during Obama's term. One friend of mine for instance believes that the United States of America as a union will collapse and as a result each state will become its own separate, sovereign republic. I've heard something similar from another friend. Although I naturally think it's an absurd, meritless notion I wasn't about to tell him, since that's his belief and I don't want to lambaste him for having it.
But I know one thing. I am relieved that Barack Obama is going to put the US once again at the forefront to demonstrate the nation as a beacon of hope, liberty and democracy that it is known for but was demoted, even mocked, by much of the world during the last eight years. Quoting former president Gerald Ford, the long national (and hopefully soon, international) nightmare is over. Time to start anew.
Labels: Armenian Genocide, Politics
President Serge Sarkisian is continuing to give amnesty to political prisoners arrested in connection to the events of March 1, 2008, seemingly on a whim. Yesterday nine people who had been arrested and sentenced for up to four years were released from prison. Apparently the president took pity on them for one reason or another and let them out. Before the New Year some other prisoners who conveyed remorse for something they did or didn't in fact do were also released. Seems if you apologize to the president for looting or plotting a revolution no matter if you are indeed not guilty you will be pardoned if he has nothing against you. It's almost like admitting you're sorry to your mom for eating cookies you weren't supposed to touch until after dinner so you wouldn't spoil your appetite.
The pardon brings the total count of jailed oppositionists or accused rascals in connection with March 1 to 60. Four guys on trial, among them former prime minister Alexander Arzumanian, remain defiant however, refusing to acknowledge the judge presiding over their case by standing up when he enters the courtroom. Each time they try to start proceedings the judge almost immediately ends the session since the defendants won't rise before the court, believing that it is a sham and that they won't receive justice. They are right. There is no independent judicial system; it's controlled by the executive branch of power or other, suspected powers that be.
Until every single one of these prisoners is released as people and even politicians have been hoping for months, I can't expect anything good coming from this society in the interim. The PACE (Parliament Assembly of the Council of Europe) is fed up and has been threatening sanctions against Armenia for repeatedly refusing to release political prisoners. Now Armenia's voting power in PACE is in jeopardy. Even pro-government parties are worried. It's not a comforting feeling to know that you can be convicted on mere suspicion without ample, credible evidence against you. Strange that for a country which is doing everything it can to seem European, as least cosmetically, Armenia is light years away from comprehending the social values that Europe is elevated by. This country has a long way to go in bringing its judicial system up to par with the rest of the free world. And the current administration is wittingly holding it back.
Labels: Politics
Now that the week of reveling is over it's back to the grind. But not for everyone. I noticed that the Gomidas market is not bustling as it normally is with many vendors absent. Even some shops in the area are still closed oddly enough. Some people apparently party until the old New Year date which is January 13. But for most people including myself it was business as usual on January 7, the day after Armenian Christmas.
Since Yerevan was blanketed with snow and subsequently ice when I arrived from the States on December 29, and anticipating several days of drinking and gorging, not to mention laziness, I decided to leave my Niva where it still is--parked in my landlord's garage. He doesn't mind one bit, which is great as I hate driving this time of year in the city, since the streets are like sandy glass. Although the price of gasoline has dipped from 410 only a few months ago to now 250 dram (about 80 cents) for a liter--the lowest it's been since I moved here in 2004--I've been favoring public transportation lately.
As I have written several times on this blog, although the Yerevan transportation system is fairly reliable in terms of availability and covers the main streets and back roads of the entire city for the most part, there are both positive and negative aspects of inner city travel. You can choose from two main modes of public transportation--the single-line metro and an intricate web of minibuses. The subway system is officially not to mention monotonously called the City of Yerevan's Karen Demirchian Metropolitan of Yerevan's City Hall. Metro trains arrive at stations on average every five minutes. Both the stations and trains are spotless, free of litter. Sometimes water leaks into the stations and as a result there is a light stench of mold and must, but other than that they are clean. The only complaint I have about the trains however is that the florescent bulbs which light the train cabins seem to burn out often, and they go unchanged for long periods of time. So riders basically sit mostly in the dark as a result as was the case this morning. I don't know what the problem is exactly since the metro system seems to be generating high revenue from advertising. My guess is that inferior bulbs are being purchased from places like Iran rather than from those which produce more reputable, reliable products that cost more. The money left over from the allocated budget is then probably pocketed by the buyer. However, I cannot prove this, but that's the way things generally work here. The same form of corruption arguably occurs everywhere in the world.
A major problem with the above-ground transport system is lack of maintenance. The minibuses, which are mostly Russian-made Gazelles, are not properly maintained, both mechanically and aesthetically. The seats are often worn out and the interior lighting is poor. The vans physically are unfit, with some of them having broken suspensions, thus being lopsided and barely able to move. Then there are issues with faulty radiators, untuned engines, and things basically falling off from underneath these mechanical beasts. Full-size buses are also in use, which are faster because they run on diesel and are able to outrun the natural gas-fueled minibuses. However, you encounter similar mechanical problems, such as loud, squeaky brakes, a clear signal that they are worn out, and faulty suspensions. I favor the buses because they are much more roomy and pass the tortoise-paced vans without difficulty, even though they may have a hard time stopping.
The other night after waiting for a bus for over 20 minutes I jumped into the front seat of a Gazelle, which turned out to be a bad mistake. Although I vowed long ago never to ride in these things any longer because I have had bad experiences and they are usually overcrowded with passengers, I couldn't stand the cold. The thing was crawling down Gomidas Avenue and the engine wasn't exactly purring. I was suspecting that it wasn't running properly, as the driver didn't seem too confident while he clutched the wheel. Sure enough, five minutes later something snapped and was being dragged behind. The driver pulled over to the side of the road, I paid him, and then found a Lada 2107 taxi parked nearby to take me home. I didn't bother to find out what was wrong since it didn't interest me. I wanted to get home as soon as possible, and I wasn't about to get into another minibus after a 30 second wait at the bus stop regardless.
I can't understand why the owners of these routes continually endanger the safety of their passengers by failing to properly maintain their transport vehicles. Some of them when overloaded even tip over. I realize that it's a great way to make a fruitful income, but at the expense of people's lives? Also, the drivers tend to drive too fast and recklessly at that because they want to complete as many route loops as possible during the day, since they are partly paid by commission. The more fares they have, the more money they make, and it's not much. They work long, gruelling hours with short lunch breaks, and they're all miserable. But it's been this way for as long as I've been in Armenia, and the situation isn't about to change. Greed is winning out because people need to get around as cheaply as possible. The goal is to get where you want to go without worrying about your bus breaking down or worse, crashing.
Labels: Personal Experiences, Social and Cultural
It has been snowing slowly but steadily in Yerevan during the past few days, casting a shroud of wintry magnificence throughout the city. It’s perfect weather for the New Year season I think. For once the city is tranquil, as most drivers tend not to drive in this slippery stuff since they can barely drive in the first place. Not to mention everyone is too busy drinking.
Indeed the continuous revelry has already begun. One week of merriment is upon us, to consume all you can manage to eat and drink to your heart’s content, with the usual assorted salads laden with sour cream and mayonnaise, dolma, and New Year’s ham (Armenians are big on ham for some reason). I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the coming of 2009. It’s the first time I’ve enjoyed the holidays in Armenia in four years, too long a wait.
Last night I watched the clock strike twelve at Anush’s parents’ home surrounded by food and drink before heading to her friend Ripa’s house, where I drank seven-year old Armenian brandy with her dad, Seyran (who incidentally works for Armenia Tree Project). He is a fantastic guy who loves to drink and laugh. But despite having drunk several shots after having a half-bottle of vodka during the last hours of 2008 I wasn’t very drunk, which impressed my host very much. Anush and I walked home shuffling through the snow and avoiding an all-too-common drunken fistfight that erupted on the corner of Sayat Nova and Khanjian. The snowflakes were very light, gently caressing our cheeks as if to comfort us with the hope of a prosperous new year.
Once again wishing all the best to everyone for 2009.
Labels: Nature, Photography
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