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UC Irvine Students Counter Disinformation at Azeri Lecture

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uci-azer

IRVINE, Calif.—The Azeri Consul attempted to present a distorted view of history during a presentation at University of California, Irvine, hosted by the pro-Azeri Council on International Affairs as part of Azerbaijan’s ongoing revisionist propaganda in the West. At least two thirds of the audience in the small hall was Armenian, primarily students and community members, who made sure the truth was known.

UCI Armenian Students Association passed out pamphlets to attendees describing the real Azerbaijan, including their policies of jailing journalists, rewarding murderers such as Safarov, massacring Armenians in Sumgait, Baku, Kirovabad, and the ongoing human rights violations of the Aliyev regime against its own people. After the Consul’s skewed presentation where, among other things, he stated that Armenians massacred Azeris and that the historic Armenian church in Gandzasar was Albanian, the moderator opened the floor for questions.

A preplanned pro-Azeri group asked prewritten pro-Azeri questions with canned responses by the Consulate. Finally, Armenian students had a chance and clarified the record, exposed the truth and asked about Azerbaijan’s organized massacres of Armenians in Sumgait, Baku and Kirovabad. The Azeri Consul avoided the questions and abruptly ended the Q and A session short. The organizers then asked everyone to leave. The Consul and organizers remained in hiding in another room while campus Police blocked off the corridor.

Armenia: Tzaghkadzor Hosts First Pan-Armenian Winter Games

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Artsakh athlete to compete in Sochi Paralympic Games

Pan-Armenian-Winter-Games-MEDIUMTSAGHKADZOR, Armenia—The opening ceremony of the first Pan-Armenian Winter Games took place in Tsaghkadzor, Armenia, on Tuesday, Feb. 25, reported Public Radio of Armenia.

In attendance was President Serzh Sarkisian, who welcomed athletes, participants and guests to the Pan-Armenian Winter Games, noting that after 15 years, the Pan-Armenian Games’ expanding geography and continually increasing number of participants are a sign of its popularity.

The President expressed gratitude to all those people whose hard work helped establish the Games 15 years ago and whose hard work continues to make the Games a reality.

“The Pan-Armenian Games are of great importance for us. It is obvious that the Games strengthen bonds between the Homeland and the Diaspora and that they give thousands of young Armenian athletes and people seeking a healthy lifestyle an opportunity to establish new contacts abroad and in their homeland, which is vital in today’s world,” President Sarkisian said. Wishing everyone fun and successes, the President declared the first Pan-Armenian Winter Games open.

Participants from the Nagorno Karabakh Republic expressed their excitement for the first Pan-Armenian Winter Games and said they are happy for the latest Pan-Armenian sports event, Armenpress reported.

“We have so many expectations from the Games,” said Tigran Durgaryan, the coach of Artsakh’s only representative athlete Mher Avanesian, an athlete with physical disabilities who will also compete at the Sochi Paralympic Games, set to start March 4th.

“First, the most important thing is that I see so many Armenians here united. This is a big event. The Games provide the youth with the opportunity to shine and show their talents and skills,” Durganyan said. “I hope that other athletes, seeing our Mher, will be inspired.”

Armenpress reports that Mher Avanesyan will represent Armenia at the Sochi Paralympic Games starting on March 4.

“These [Pan-Armenian] Games are quite important for Mher. For him it is also a ‘test.’ We can learn a lot competing here while we get ready for the Sochi Games,” concluded Durganyan.

Armenian violinist gives concert aspiring Guinness recognition

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February 21, 2014 | 13:06


YEREVAN. – The video recording of Thursday’s concert by renowned Armenian violinist Nikolay Madoyan will be sent to London, where it will become clear whether or not a record has been set, concert coordinator Susanna Zoranyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

At the concert, together with the Symphony Orchestra of Alexander Spendiarian Opera and Ballet National Academic Theatre in Armenian capital city Yerevan, Madoyan performed all six violin concertos of famous Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer Niccolò Paganini without the use of notes; a feat which solely Paganini himself was able to achieve.

Vardan Tovmasyan, who is the Guinness World Commission representative in Armenia, told Armenian News-NEWS.am that a professional commission had followed the concert, which was recorded on video to be sent to London.

In Tovmasyan’s words, the record-approval process may take several months.

Thousands to commemorate Armenian Genocide 99th anniv. 2014 in NY

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February 22, 2014 – 12:48 AMT

On Sunday, April 27, 2014, thousands of devoted Armenian-Americans and their friends and supporters will gather in Times Square, New York, to commemorate the first genocide of the 20th century, The Armenian Genocide (Medz Yeghern), 176156Massis Post reports.

In recognition of Genocide Awareness Month (April), Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) will also be commemorated, as well as other genocides that have occurred since then.

The theme of the Armenian Genocide Commemoration is “Turkey is Guilty of Genocide: Denying the Undeniable is a Crime.” This historic event will pay tribute to the 1.5 million Armenians who were annihilated by the Young Turk Government of the Ottoman Empire and to the millions of victims of subsequent genocides worldwide. Speakers will include civic, religious, humanitarian, educational, cultural leaders, as well as performing artists. This event is free and open to the public. Dr. Mary A. Papazian, President of Southern Connecticut State University and Attorney R. Armen McOmber will preside over the ceremonies.

Dennis R. Papazian, PhD, past National Grand Commander of Knights of Vartan and Founding Director of the Armenian Research Center at the University of Michigan-Dearborn discusses the Armenian Genocide. “These killings, which were labeled crimes against humanity and civilization at the time, exactly fit the definition of the word genocide, which was coined by Raphael Lemkin, a Polish-Jewish lawyer in 1943,” comments Papazian. “It is only proper to bring the terminology up to date and apply the international laws for genocide to the Armenian case.”

Papazian headed the Armenian Assembly of America in 1975, when a non-binding resolution recognizing the mass killings as genocide, passed through Congress. On April 22, 1981, then-President Ronald Reagan issued Proclamation #4838 that summoned Americans to commemorate the anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camps. The proclamation stated, “Like the genocide of the Armenians before it, and the genocide of the Cambodians which followed it—and like too many other persecutions of too many other peoples—the lessons of the Holocaust must never be forgotten.”

Papazian further discusses that President Barack Obama used the Armenian phrase Medz Yeghern, which is the equivalent of the phrase genocide in the Armenian language, in a statement issued to commemorate Armenian Remembrance Day on April 24, 2013. “But still the U.S. position is still kept ambiguous about using the word genocide because our country fears alienating Turkey, an important country in the Middle East,” he adds.

“In the long run, Turkish recognition of the Armenian Genocide is critical, since Turkey is the responsible successive government of the Ottoman Empire,” stresses Papazian. “In recent years there have been some positive developments among progressive Turkish intellectuals, including the grandson of one of the chief perpetrators; therefore, it is within the realm of possibility that Turkey itself will recognize the Armenian Genocide on the one hundredth anniversary of its beginning,” he concludes.

The 99th Commemoration is organized by the Mid-Atlantic chapters of the Knights & Daughters of Vartan, an international Armenian fraternal organization headquartered in the United States, and co-sponsored by the Armenian General Benevolent Union, the Armenian Assembly of America, the Armenian National Committee of America, the Armenian Council of America and the Armenian Democratic League (Ramgavar Party).

Participating organizations include the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America, Prelacy of the Armenian Church of America, Armenian Missionary Association of America, Armenian Catholic Eparchy for U.S. and Canada, the Armenian Church Youth Organization of America (ACYOA), the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF-YOARF), several Armenian youth organizations, and university and college Armenian clubs.

American Jewish University to Host Conference on Genocide Centennial

By

AJU

LOS ANGELES (ArmRadio)—Recognizing the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, and in conjunction with the 44th Annual Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches, a special program, “Armenia, Auschwitz and Beyond”, will be presented Monday evening, March 9, at the Familian Campus of the American Jewish University, Massis Post reports.

The Program will be held at the Gindi Auditorium in the Main Building (Ziegler Administration Building) and is open to the public with required reservation.

The Program’s featured speakers are Professor Richard Hovannisian, University of California, Los Angeles, Stephen Smith, University of Southern California, and Professor Michael Berenbaum, American Jewish University.

Dr. Richard Hovannisian is Professor of Modern Armenian History, a past holder of the Armenian Educational Foundation Chair at UCLA and currently Chancellor’s Fellow at Chapman University in Orange County. The recent recipient of the UCLA Alumni Association’s “Most Inspiring Teacher” award, he is internationally acclaimed for his advancement of Armenian Studies. His extensive scholarly publications have placed the Armenian Genocide into broader Near Eastern, Europeans and Russian contexts.

Dr. Stephen Smith, is the Executive Director of the USC Shoah Foundation – The Institute for Visual History and Education, as well as the UNESCO Chair on Genocide Education. A theologian by training, he continues to be involved in memorial projects around the world and lectures widely on issues relating to the history and collective response to the Holocaust, genocide and crimes against humanity. He recently presented the keynote speech at the United Nations on Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Michael Berenbaum, a world authority on the History of the Holocaust, is Professor of Jewish Studies at the American Jewish University and Executive Director of the Sigi Zering Institute, a think tank exploring the ethical and religious implications of the Holocaust. He was involved with the creation of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. and, as Project Director, played a major role in its permanent exhibit; he has subsequently consulted on and designed museums on three continents. He is also an award-winning producer and historical consultant for numerous acclaimed films on the Holocaust.

Founded by Franklin H. Littell and Hubert G. Locke in 1970, The Annual Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches is an interdisciplinary, international, interfaith, intergenerational conference. It provides a forum for scholars to report the latest findings in Holocaust research, ensuring the valuable lessons of the Holocaust remain relevant for today’s world.

The Conference is hosted by different educational institutions around the country. This year, the American Jewish University is the Host Institution, with President Robert Wexler serving as the Honorary Chairman. Dr. Berenbaum is the 2014 Conference Chairman.

The Annual Scholars’ Conference is supported in part by individual donors, along with grants from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany and Verbe et Lumière.

Armenian duduk to sound at Sochi Olympics

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Armenian music will sound at Sochi Olympics. Famed Armenian duduk player Gevorg Dabaghyan has been invited to participate in the seventh Winter International Arts Festival of music, drama and ballet in the Olympic city of Sochi, chelovek-Armenian dodokonline.ru reports.

February 6 saw the first concert of the art festival. The festival’s organizer is Russian conductor and viola maestro Yuri Bashmet. The concerts, performances, exhibitions, film showings and other events in the context of the art festival will be held in Sochi until February 20.

It is the first time when Armenian duduk will sound at the World Olympic Games. The program includes works by V. Sharafyan and Komitas.

Charles Aznavour to celebrate 90th birthday in Germany

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February 6, 2014 – 16:18 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Legendary chansonnier Charles Aznavour will celebrate his 90th birthday in Germany. On his birthday – May 22, the singer will perform a concert, The Legend Returns, at Berlin’s O2 World arena, Deutsche Welle reported quoting dpa.

175634The singer’s second concert is scheduled for May 24 in Frankfurt am Main.

Aznavour’s farewell concert will take place on June 1m 2014 in London.

Shahnour Vaghenag Aznavourian better known by his stage name Charles Aznavour (born 22 May 1924) is a French-Armenian singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France’s most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world. Aznavour is known for his unique tenor. He has appeared in more than sixty movies, composed about a thousand songs (including at least 150 in English, 100 in Italian, 70 in Spanish, and 50 in German), and sold well over 100 million records.

In 1998, Aznavour was named Entertainer of the Century by CNN and users of Time Online from around the globe. He was recognized as the century’s outstanding performer, with nearly 18% of the total vote, edging out Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. He has sung for presidents, popes and royalty, as well as at humanitarian events, and is the founder of the charitable organization Aznavour for Armenia along with his long-time friend impresario Levon Sayan.

In 2009, he was appointed ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland, as well as Armenia’s permanent delegate to the United Nations at Geneva. He started his new Aznavour en Toute Intimité tour in 2011.