Asbarez.com nwes room 07-28-2000

[Guest]

1. Foreign Minister and Senior NATO Official Discuss Regional Issues

 

YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Armenia's foreign minister Vartan Oskanian met with Klaus Peter Kleiber, a North Atlantic Treaty

Organization deputy secretary general for political issues, who arrived in Yerevan on a two-day working visit Wednesday.

 

According to the Armenian foreign ministry, Vartan Oskanian presented the current level of the Artsax conflict regulation and possible

developments. The sides also spoke about the regional conflicts and the factors influencing them.

 

Kleiber spoke about the process of the Balkan conflict regulation and generalizing the gained experience, noted that every conflict or

opposition may be solved only on the basis of good will on behalf of the involved sides and their readiness to reach a compromise.

 

The two also discussed some questions concerning NATO general secretary Lord George Robertson's visit to Armenia scheduled for

September. Armenia-NATO cooperation within Partnership for Peace program was also discussed in full detail.

 

The minister and Kleiber expressed their ideas on the possible system of regional stability and security. Oskanian explained Armenia's

position on this issue. They also referred to Armenia-Turkey and Armenia-Russia relations.

 

 

 

 

 

2. Number of HIV Cases in Armenia Exceeds Official Data

 

YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)--The AIDS situation in Armenia is not so favorable. According to official data, the number of HIV-infected

persons and AIDS patients in Armenia is 124, but in fact the real number is several hundred people, the National AIDS Prevention

Center claims.

 

"We have no finances for diagnosing the disease, and if the situation does not change, we'll stop at the number 124, while the real threat

of an epidemic will keep growing," Director of the AIDS Prevention Center Samvel Grigorian said. To substantiate his words he

presented the results of a situation analysis that was conducted in Armenia for the first time as part of the national anti-AIDS program.

The program is being implemented with the assistance of the UNAIDS and UNDP.

 

To assess the situation in Armenia, the Center conducted selective studies among the risk groups, drug addicts, prostitutes, homo***uals

in places of confinement, as well as people suffering from venereal diseases and those recommended to pass medical tests for HIV.

 

The calculations show that in the group of drug addicts sharing needles, the number of HIV-infected people may reach 300 to 350. The

data is based on the number of drug addicts in Yerevan whose numbers range from 19,000 to 24,000, 10 percent of them being drug

addicts using syringes. It was this particular group that showed an HIV-positive reaction. All these people were not registered at the

AIDS Prevention Center before.

 

An alarming situation may be observed in another risk group: prostitutes. From 0.5 percent to 6 percent of them (around 240 prostitutes)

may be HIV-infected. The threat of the spread of the disease grows, as only 32 percent of the drug addicts and 70 percent of prostitutes

use means of protection. All the circumstances considered, it can be forecast that at least among the drug addicts using injections, the

number of HIV-infected people will reach 40 percent to 60 percent within the next 2-3 years.

 

Grigorian said that exact diagnoses may only be made by means of special test-systems which the Center has not received from the

government for a long time. The Center is still using the rest of the test-systems which were supplied by the Armenicum enterprise for joint

research.

 

Grigorian also commented on the research of British scientists who announced the discovery of a new AIDS vaccine. First, he said, the

test of the effectiveness of the vaccine will take a long time. Secondly, the vaccine is not a treatment, it is used by healthy people to

prevent being infected. AIDS patients cannot be vaccinated, they will remain HIV-carriers. Grigorian expressed optimism that a national

anti-AIDS plan will be adopted by the end of the year with the participation of all the organizations concerned, and the government will

finally take a serious approach to the problem.

 

 

 

 

 

3. Students Win Silver, Bronze Medals at Math Competition

 

YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)--Students from Armenia won two silver and three bronze medals at the international mathematics

competition held in South Korea from July 13 to 25.

 

Sevak Mkrtichian and David Harutiunian, students of the school with science and mathematics concentration, won silver medals. The

Armenian team also included Tigran Grigorian, Aram Khachatrian, Aram Kalantarian from the same school, as well as a student from the

Quant School Areg Meliksetian.

 

In the team competition the Armenian students placed fourth among the CIS countries. The Georgian team won a silver medal, but the

competing student was Armenia. The Azeri team did not win any medals.

 

Armenia has participated in such competitions since 1993, but the results have been the best this year.

 

It should be noted that according to the rules of admission to high schools, prize-winners of international competitions may be admitted to

high school without taking entrance examinations.

 

 

 

 

 

4. Energy Vote Precludes Russian Ownership of Grid

 

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--The Armenian parliament on Wednesday put the final brakes on Russian companies' efforts to expand their

already strong presence in Armenia's energy sector when it gave its go-ahead to the last phase of the ongoing international bidding for the

domestic electricity distributing networks. The National Assembly upheld the Armenian government's earlier decision to shortlist four

Western firms from scores of bidders.

 

For much of this year, the authorities in Yerevan were under pressure to give the tender to Russia's Gazprom monopoly and other energy

giants. The World Bank and other international lending agencies, on the other hand, firmly opposed such a development, linking the

release of fresh loans to a fair handling of the bidding.

 

The parliament's decision essentially goes along the lines of those recommendations. Local observers note that by agreeing to a move that

might upset the Russians, Armenia highlighted its growing dependence on the West for vital loans and trade. Despite its close military ties

with Moscow and the reputation of Russia's sole ally in the south Caucasus, they say, Yerevan is keen to gravitate toward Europe and the

United States.

 

Some politicians claim that the decision to bar the Russian companies from what will likely become the largest yet sell-off of Armenian

state assets to foreign investors is a bitter pill for Moscow to swallow. But government officials stressed this week that Gazprom, RAO

UES and the Rosenergoatom nuclear consortium have accepted their defeat and have instead been promised a stake in the future

privatization of Armenia's power generating facilities.

 

Addressing the parliament session on Monday, Energy Minister Karen Galustian said: "There have been quite serious negotiations with

those Russian companies that were interested in taking part in this process. And I must say that we don't see any problems [stemming

from their exclusion]." "We are working with RAO UES, Rosenergoatom and [Gazprom subsidiary] ITERA to see if there are

possibilities of setting up joint ventures of finding other ways of jointly producing energy," Galustian told RFE/RL on Wednesday.

 

None of the three Russian companies passed the official "pre-qualification" last April of bidders vying for a 51 percent stake in Armenia's

four state-owned electricity companies. Only the four following firms were selected: Electricite de France, the Swiss-Swedish group

ABB, Spain's Union Fenosa and US operator AES Silk Road.

 

Gazprom and Rosatomenergo accused the Armenian authorities of bias, while some Russian officials warned that economic ties between

the two countries could suffer as a result. But local energy officials and World Bank experts have argued that the Russian companies lack

the appropriate track record and financial strength to develop the sector, which urgently needs large-scale investments. Vahan

Hovannisian, a Yerevan-based economic analyst, agrees with this view, saying that "the Russians would hardly spend large sums of

money on upgrading the distributing networks and have no experience to run them."

 

A behind-the-scene lobbying campaign, reportedly conducted by the Russian companies, has failed to change the Armenian government's

position. The fair and transparent privatization of the national power grid is the main condition for the release of some $50 million in fresh

World Bank loans that are supposed to cover about half of the government's budget deficit for this year. The International Monetary

Fund has also made its further loan programs for Armenia conditional on the sell-off.

 

But pro-Russian opposition groups take the view that the issue is a "geopolitical" one, with the West seeking to undermine Russia's

positions in the region through controlling a key sector of the Armenian economy. Artashes Geghamian, leader of the nationalist Right and

Accord bloc, said the process is part of attempts to "cut us off from our military ally." "This is a clearly political issue. At issue is

Armenia's future orientation and not just privatization or economic liberalization," Geghamian said.

 

Energy Minister Galustian at least partially confirmed political implications of the privatization when he told lawmakers that a

"diversification" of Armenia's partners is important for "our energy security." He was apparently alluding to the fact that Gazprom is

currently the sole supplier of natural gas to Armenia and owns a 55 percent interest in its entire has infrastructure. Besides, the Metsamor

nuclear plant, which accounts for 40 percent of power generated in Armenia, is partly owned by the Russian government.

 

According to political scientist Aghasi Yenokian, this means that the Russians still have strong levers of influence in the Armenian energy

sector. He says the fact that Yerevan has made some promises to them suggests that the privatization fiasco did not come as a "shock" for

them. Yenokian also thinks that political considerations did play a role in the Armenian government's decision to stick to the World Bank

prescriptions. He says: "This was really a choice between Russia and the West. This time it was in the West's favor. This has also been a

sort of test, which has demonstrated that Russian influence is not unlimited here."

 

 

 

 

 

5. Armenian Defense Minister Visits US

 

YEREVAN (Armenpress)—Armenia's Defense Minister Serj Sarkisian returned home Wednesday from a two-day visit to the US.

Sarkisian arrived in the US upon the invitation of his US Defense Secretary William Cohen.

 

"I am satisfied with my meetings with William Cohen and other senior military officials," Sarkisian told reporters upon his arrival at

Zvartnots airport.

 

He said that Armenia will receive $300,000 worth of US equipment and training for improved border control as part of an agreement on

limiting the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

 

The equipment will include nuclear and contraband detection kits to help Armenian authorities stop unauthorized movement of nuclear,

chemical and biological weapons and components.

 

Sarkisian said that issues related to Artsax conflict regulation were also discussed in Washington.

 

 

 

 

 

6. Samvel Babayan Stops Hunger Strike

 

YEREVAN (Armenpress)—Former defense minister of Artsax Samvel Babayan has stopped the hunger strike he had started July 17

as a protest against violation of his rights. Babayan was arrested in the wake of an assassination attempt on Artsax president

Ghoukassian's life March 22 and accused of plotting to overthrow Ghoukassian and seize power.

 

Babayan's counselor Judex Shakarian said his client thought there was no sense to continue the hunger strike because on July 17 not a

single representative of the investigative team visited Babayan and none of the demands put forward by him were met. Shakarian said he

was surprised by this indifferent attitude of the investigation.

 

Shakarian said Babayan was exhausted. He also noted that no forensic examination has been conducted to reveal whether Babayan's

claims that he had been subjected to physical abuse were true.

 

Shakarian continued to insist that Babayan's trial should be given to the Armenian court. He dismissed the Artsax prosecutor's

statement which said that a group of activists from Armenian human rights organizations had visited Babayan in the confinement cell to see

what his physical condition was and that they reported no sign of physical abuse.

 

Shakarian said that not a single human rights activist has visited his client so far. He said that Babayan is still refused a one-hour walk in

the jail's courtyard.

 

Under a ruling passed by the city court of Stepanakert, Babayan's sister, Anush, has been evicted from her flat along with her family,

Chairman of the Human Rights Commission of the Constitutional Right Union Armen Javadian told a Noyan Tapan reporter. He also

added that by issuing the ruling, the court in fact sustained a claim of a citizen who said he was illegally evicted from his flat ten years ago

for Anush Babayan to move in. The court's ruling also stipulates that Anush Babayan be provided with housing, but she and her family

currently have no residence pending the enforcement of this part of the ruling.

 

Anush Babayan is set to apply to foreign diplomatic missions in Armenia to be granted political asylum. Other relatives of Samvel

Babayan are going to follow the example. Samvel Babayan, who is charged with masterminding the attempt on the life of Artsax's

president, has ended his hunger-strike in custody.

 

"We qualify the latest step of the Nagorno Artsax Republic's judicial power as a new tide of political persecution in the country,"

Javadian said.

 

 

 

 

 

7. Women's Immigration On the Rise

 

YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)—There is no reliable information on the number of immigrants from Armenia, which is said to fluctuate

between 600,000 and 1,200,000 people. This information was announced during the presentation of the book entitled "Problems of

Disorderly Migration of Women in Armenia". The presentation of the book took place in Yerevan Wednesday. The book was published

by the "Business Woman" and "Zartonk-89" organizations within the framework of the "Problems of Women's Movements During

Sporadic Immigration" with the financing of the International Migration Organization.

 

The book is based on sociological polls conducted among 300 women who left the republic for the purpose of finding jobs abroad but

later returned to Armenia. 37 percent of the respondents attributed their desire to immigrate to financial hardship, 25.7 percent to

unemployment, 15.9 percent to the unstable socio-economic situation and the rest advanced other reasons.

 

Only 15.5 percent of the respondents left the country with labor contracts on hand; 40.5 percent through travel agencies; 27 percent at

individual invitations and the rest did it through other means. Those who left the country with the aid of tour agencies said that only in 27

percent of cases the jobs abroad promised by the agencies were actually provided; in 34.6 percent of cases the promises were not kept,

and in 30.7 percent of cases the major provisions of contracts were breached. According to the surveys, most of women who leave the

country range from ages 26 to 45, and 46.8 percent of those are underemployed.

 

Despite all the difficulties, 51.7 percent of women who leave the country and return to Armenia view their trips as successful. Of the

women who returned, 23.5 percent of emigrants have been observed to improve their welfare and 3.7 percent have been observed living

in worse conditions. The members of the organizations that conducted the polls concluded that the disorderly migration of women in

Armenia will be growing in the next five to 10 years.

 

Attending the presentation ceremony were Director of the Armenian Office of the International Migration Organization Nilim Barua,

representatives of the Presidential Human Rights Commission, public organizations and travel agencies.

 

 

 

 

 

8. Delegation From Odessa Arrives in Yerevan

 

YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)—A delegation from Odessa, Ukraine, headed by Mayor of Odessa Ruslan Bodelan arrived in Yerevan

Thursday. The delegation includes officials of the Odessa Mayor's Office, member of the city legislative body, intellectuals, and

businessmen. The delegation is also accompanied by Armenian Ambassador to Ukraine Hrach Silvanian and Leader of the Ukrainian

diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Bishop Nathan Hovhannissian.

 

The cooperation agreement between Yerevan and Odessa was signed as far back as 1995, but no practical steps have since been made

to turn the agreement into reality. The Odessa delegation's current visit is aimed at changing the situation and establishing business

relations between the two cities.

 

The delegation visited the Yerevan Municipality where they met with Yerevan Mayor Albert Bazeyan. The guests pointed out the

importance of cooperation between the two cities in economic, cultural and health protection spheres. Bazeyan stressed the importance of

establishing mutually advantageous ties between producers and businessmen from Yerevan and Odessa. The meeting in the Yerevan

Municipality ended in an exchange of souvenirs with symbols of the two cities.

 

Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Margarian also held a meeting with the delegation from Odessa lead by Mayor of Odessa Ruslan

Bodelan. The prime minister hailed the intention of the leadership and business community of Odessa to strengthen the relations with

Yerevan.

 

Attending the meeting was president of the Armenian National Academy of Sciences, head of the Kotayk regional administration.

 

The Armenian prime minister reminded the guests about the agreements on cooperation in different spheres. Recently, agreements were

reached with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuschenko at the CIS Summit in Moscow. Mayor of Odessa Ruslan Bodelan pointed out that his

country's leadership is willing to cooperate with Armenia.

 

Prospects of cooperation will also be discussed during another meeting with the delegation. The delegation will also visit St. Echmiadzin,

the memorial to the victims of the 1915 Genocide, Matenadaran, Garni, and Geghard.

 

 

 

 

 

9. Family of Babayan's Lawyer Threatened with Reprisals

 

YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)—An anonymous man threatened lawyer Judex Shakarian's family with reprisals unless he stopped defending

the former commander-in-chief of the Artsax Army Samvel Babayan, the lawyer's wife Zvart Karoyan told a Noyan Tapan reporter.

 

According to Karoyan, there was a telephone call and a man's voice asked: "Does your husband defend Samvel Babayan?" When the

man heard an affirmative answer, he added: "We will square accounts with your daughter and her kid unless your husband discontinues

defense."

 

Shakarian's daughter lives in France and her daughter is staying in Yerevan now at her grandmother's.

 

Zvart Karoyan phoned her husband, who is now in Stepanakert. He advised her to report the incident to the police and she did so. Police

officials drew up an file and promised to take control of the apartment. Zhudex Shakarian is going to return to Yerevan Thursday.

 

The Human Rights Commission of the Constitutional Right Union is taking extra measures to protect the Shakarians.

 

Earlier, two lawyers refused to continue defending Samvel Babayan, explaining that physical pressure had been put on them.

 

Samvel Babayan is currently kept in custody in Stepanakert on charges of masterminding the March 22 assassination attempt on the

Artsax president.