LA Archives

ANCA and LAX hold discussion about establishing Los Angeles to Yerevan direct flights

May 6, 2017 by administrator

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) met Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) officials about launching direct flights between the United States and Armenia, an ANCA policy priority that will – in addition to saving travelers time and inconvenience – substantially boost tourism, increase business travel, expand cargo traffic, and strengthen U.S.-Armenia bilateral economic relations, reports ANCA.

The discussions with LAWA Chief Executive Officer Deborah Flint and Deputy Executive Director and Chief of External Affairs Trevor Daley provided an opportunity for a positive and constructive exchange of views about the practical steps needed to establish direct air service between LAX and Zvartnots Airport (EVN) in Yerevan. The ANCA was represented by Chairman Raffi Hamparian and long-time community leader Zanku Armenian, who has extensive experience in the commercial aviation industry, having worked with each of the major U.S. airlines on bilateral aviation agreements and a range of aviation-related regulatory and policy issues.

“We welcome our constructive engagement with the senior leadership of LAWA and value their willingness to facilitate discussions among a diverse set of U.S. and Armenian public and private stakeholders to realize our goal of direct LAX to Yerevan flights,” said Raffi Hamparian.

The ANCA is calling on the U.S. Department of Transportation to support a public-private partnership regarding establishing U.S. to Armenia flights, involving U.S. airlines and relevant government agencies, among them the Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, and Transportation Security Administration. These direct flights would serve the purpose of both passenger and cargo traffic.

“Establishing a direct Los Angeles to Armenia route aligns well with LAWA’s vision for the future – involving a far-ranging $5 billion upgrade that will both solidify its position as a world class global travel hub and expand its reach to new locations around the world. We look forward to continuing our discussions and to working with the LAWA team on this mutually beneficial initiative for Southern California,” said Zanku Armenian.

In addition to direct flights, the ANCA is pursuing an array of economic initiatives to grow the U.S.-Armenia bilateral commercial relationship. Since the 2015 signing of historic U.S.-Armenia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement – a longstanding ANCA priority – U.S. commercial activity in Armenia, has increased dramatically, with $500,000,000 in new American investments. The ANCA is working to remove barriers to bilateral cooperation, including through a long overdue U.S.-Armenia Double Tax Treaty that will eliminate the threat of double taxation of firms operating in both countries. At a more fundamental level, the ANCA is working with U.S. and Armenian stakeholders in support of a new Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) compact focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) programs in public schools.

Los Angeles County: declares April as ‘Armenian History Month’

March 29, 2017 by administrator

A motion by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Janice Hahn, and unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors, proclaims the month of April as “Armenian History Mont,” SCVTV reports.

“With this proclamation, the Board of Supervisors recognizes the vast contribution of the Armenian community to our county’s economy and culture,” Supervisor Barger said. “The month of April holds significant meaning for our Armenian friends and neighbors and this resolution acknowledges the challenges and accomplishments of their rich history.”

“During Armenian History Month, L.A. County will celebrate the rich culture and heritage of the Armenian people worldwide and their contributions to our society as well as recognize the dark days of the Armenian Genocide,” said Supervisor Hahn.

Supervisor Barger will honor a distinguished leader of the Armenian community at each meeting of the Board until April 18 when the Board of Supervisors will proclaim the “Day of Remembrance” for the Armenian Genocide.

Armenian Americans discuss Bundestag’s resolution at German consulate in LA

June 11, 2016 by administrator

Leaders representing a cross-section of Armenian-American community organizations on Friday met with officials at the German Consulate General in Los Angeles to discuss last week’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the German legislature–the Bundestag, Asbarez reported.

The community delegation was comprised of Daron Der Khachatourian (ARF-Dashnaktsutiune), Gabriel Moloyan (Social Democratic Hunchakian Party), Dr. Raffi Balian (Armenian Democratic Liberal Party–Ramkavar), Very Rev. Muron Aznikian (Western Prelacy), Father Pakrad Berjekian (Western Diocese), Rev. Berdj Djambazian (Armenian Evangelical Church), Talin Yacoubian (AGBU) and Maro Papapzian (ARS).

The meeting was held with Stefan Biedermann, the acting Consul General who was accompanied by Kai-Uwe Spicher, the Consulate’s head of administration) and Peter Schmitt, the Consulate’s Deputy Cultural Attaché.

The discussion centered on the June 2 Bundestag resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide, with the Armenian delegation highlighting that the comprehensive resolution not only included language about Germany’s recognition of the Genocide, but went further to accept Germany’s complicity in the crime press for reparations and the return of Armenian assets, such as churches.

The delegation also discussed German President Joachim Gauck’s April 2015 speech during a centennial commemoration mass at Berlin’s Oberpfarr and Dom Church recognizing the Armenian Genocide and urging Turkey to follow suit.

The German representatives told the delegation that it was Germany’s historic responsibility to recognize the Genocide and set the historical record straight, through which it hopes to advance the world’s responsibility for justice and human rights.

Los Angeles: Armenians, Kurds protest against human rights situation in Turkey

December 24, 2015 by administrator

202912 Dozens of local activists and community members gathered at the Turkish Consulate in Los Angeles to protest the recent assassination of human rights activist and lawyer Tahir Elçi, the Armenian Weekly reports.

Elçi was the president of the Diyarbakir Bar Association and one of the most prominent Kurdish lawyers and human rights defenders in Turkey. He was shot dead with a single bullet to the back of his head on November 28. Elçi died moments after delivering a speech calling for an end to the ongoing military siege of Kurdish cities in southeastern Turkey.

Protesters demanded accountability from the Turkish government, namely, the AK Party and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Members of various communities affected by Turkey’s atmosphere of racism, intimidation, and fear came together in solidarity to honor Elçi and other victims of Turkish oppression. Kurdish, Armenian, and various Middle Eastern community members were in attendance along with human rights organizations and community coalitions.

The protest, organized by the Rojava Solidarity Committee of Los Angeles and the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF), called for a fair and independent investigation of the murders of Elçi, Hrant Dink, and Sevag Balikci, and all other minority hate crimes in Turkey, as well as an end to government-sanctioned massacres of minorities, including lifting the siege on Kurdish cities, stopping the bombing of guerrilla camps, and stopping support of terror groups in Syria.

They also demanded that the U.S. government stop its support of the Turkish government, banning all arms sales to the AKP government, and suspending Turkey from NATO.

Chalk-outlines of human figures, symbolizing the bodies of Elçi and Dink, were drawn outside the Turkish Consulate’s front steps, turning the protest into the scene of a crime.

Photo. Reuters

LA city council bill urges Obama to recognize Armenian Genocide

March 28, 2015 by administrator

Los Angeles City Councilmembers introduced a measure urging US President Obama to recognize the Armenian Genocide and voicing LA’s support for H-Res 154, the Armenian Genocide Truth and Justice resolution introduced in Congress last week, reported Asbarez.

“Los Angeles is home to one of the largest Armenian populations in the world, including a tremendous number of Genocide survivors and their descendants,” said Councilmember Paul Krekorian.

LOS ANGELES: City of LA Severs Ties with Genocide Denier Firm Dick Gephardt; ANCA-WR Leads Effort

February 23, 2015 by administrator

Former Congressman Dick Gephardt’s contract was terminated

Former Democratic House Majority Leader Turned Lobbyist Dick Gephardt Pivoted from Fully Supporting Armenian Genocide Legislation to Taking Turkish Government Money to Block U.S. Recognition Of  Armenian Genocide

LOS ANGELES—The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region is encouraged that Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is terminating a contract worth over $845,000 with Gephardt Government Relations, a firm which serves as a registered foreign agent for Turkey and a major tool in efforts to deny the Armenian Genocide. Late last year, the ANCA-WR called upon Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti to end any ties between the City of Los Angeles and Dick Gephardt, a known genocide denier, including a contract he had with LAWA. A seven-member Board of Airport Commissioners, six of whom were appointed last year by Mayor Eric Garcetti and approved by the Los Angeles City Council, governs LAWA.

“Since leaving Congress where he worked hard to pass Armenian Genocide resolutions, and now becoming a paid lobbyist, Dick Gephardt has gotten rich earning huge sums of money from the Turkish Government to lobby his former colleagues to deny justice for the Armenian Genocide in a complete reversal of his position on the issue. As a Genocide denier, he doesn’t deserve a single dollar from the citizens of Los Angeles, and should have no association with our great city,” said ANCA-WR Chair Nora Hovsepian. “We applaud LAWA and City of Los Angeles officials for their principled stand enforcing a zero-tolerance policy against deniers of genocide. LAWA’s action reflects the highest standards of good governance and reinforces the proud standing of Los Angeles as a leader – nationally and internationally – on issues of genocide-prevention and human rights.”

According to U.S. Government documents obtained by the ANCA-WR and cited in support of its request, Gephardt Government Relations had a contract worth over $845,000 with LAWA, which was agreed to in 2012 during the term of former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Meanwhile, since the approval of the contract with LAWA, Gephardt Government Affairs has been drawing over $23,000 a month for its work for the airport while simultaneously representing the interests of the Turkish Government against the interests of the Armenian-American community. Gephardt has made a name for himself on Capitol Hill by trading on his congressional connections for his work on behalf of the Republic of Turkey. As documents filed with the U.S. Department of Justice under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (which regulates the lobbying activity of those who advocate on behalf of foreign interests in the United States) reveal, Gephardt himself has had to disclose the fact that he acts on Turkey’s behalf as an ardent opponent of legislative efforts to fully recognize the Armenian Genocide.

New York Times writer and author of “This Town” Mark Leibovich outed Gephardt in 2013 for his hypocrisy on the Armenian Genocide. In a television interview later that year, Bill Moyers asked Leibovich about Gephardt’s stand on the Armenian Genocide. “In the House [of Representatives] he [Gephardt] had supported a resolution condemning the Armenian Genocide of 1915. When he left Congress he was paid about $75,000 a month to oppose the resolution,” Moyers commented. Leibovich responded by sharing, “Yes. I guess the word genocide goes down a little easier at those rates.” Also in 2013, Christopher Buckley, the son of William F. Buckley, wrote a review of “This Town” in The New York Times in which he cited Gephardt’s genocide denial efforts. “There are a number of sanctimonious standout “formers” in Leibovich’s Congressional hall of shame, but just to name a few exemplars who gleefully inhabit ethical no-worry zones and execute brisk 180-¬degree switcheroos on any issue, including the Armenian genocide, so long as it pays: Dick Gephardt…”

In his most recent anti-Armenian actions on Capitol Hill, Dick Gephardt aggresively lobbied against H.R. 4347 in the 113th Congress, a House measure to return Christian churches in Turkey to their rightful owners. Last year he also did the bidding of his lucrative Turkish Government client by fighting against a U.S. Senate resolution on the Armenian Genocide authored by U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ). Despite Gephardt’s opposition, the Armenian Genocide bill advanced by Senator Menendez in April of last year was ultimately adopted by the full Senate Foreign Relations Committee by a vote of 12 to 5.

The move by the ANCA-WR to seek termination of LAWA’s contract with Gephardt coincided with the launch of a nationwide campaign by a coalition of Armenian American groups, including the ANCA, to pressure Gephardt, former House Speaker Dennis Hastert (Dickstein Shapiro, LLC), Greenberg Traurig,  Alpaytac, and LB International to stop advancing the Turkish  Government’s Armenian Genocide denial agenda or face public scrutiny  and protest. The effort was launched on January 29th, with over 200  letters sent to Turkey’s lobbying firms and the top businesses, universities, and NGOs who use their services, giving them until February 28th to drop their association with Turkey’s genocide denial or end their relationships with these public relations firms. Among those receiving letters were PepsiCo, TIME Inc., Amazon, and the Chrysler Corporation, in addition to many others.

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the  largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination  with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

LOS ANGELES, NCAA Certifies Navasartian Games

May 22, 2014 by administrator

LOS ANGELES—Already the largest amateur athletic tournament in the state of California, the Navasartian Games just received a massive boost from non-other than the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

Known as the nation’s college sports authority, the NCAA issued Homenetmen certification allowing athletes that play college sports under its umbrella to participate in the 39th Navasartian Games. This would allow Armenian athletes that play Division 1 College sports the right to participate in this year’s Navasartian Games, hence, raising the standard of the competition in the games.

Homenetmen Western US Regional Athletic Council Program Coordinator, Sevag Garabetian, stressed the importance of this landmark achievement by saying, “It’s a proud moment!”

“This pretty much elevates the level of competition and heightens the expectations at this year’s Navasartian Games, and it definitely accentuates the many positives that this tournament has had for the past 39 years,” added Garebetian.

Homenetmen Western US Regional Executive Chairperson, Garnik Abrahamian, proudly stated, “This confirms what we’ve always known about the games. That a venerable organization like Homenetmen possesses the innate ability to put together a tournament like the Navasartian Games, is something that was always bound happen, and for it to scale new heights and be recognized in a way it was always destined to.”

“This is a massive public relations boost for Homenetmen and its centerpiece event, the Navasartian Games. I never had any doubt that this day would come,” said the Navasartian Organizing Committee’s public relations director, Aram Chobanian,

“This raises the bar!” said the 33rd. Honorary President of the games and Navasartian Organizing Committee Member, Vahagn Thomasian.

The NCAA’s certification of the Navasartian Games comes at a time when the tournament officially began its games last Saturday at Birmingham High School. With 220 teams destined to partake in this year’s tournament, basketball was the first sport that was scheduled to start the games officially. The other sports competitions will follow suit in the coming weeks and as we get deeper into the tournament.

To keep you connected, the Navasartian Organizing Committee encourages everyone to follow the games on social media outlets including Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, the Homenetmen mobile app., as well as the Navasartian Games webpage.

Be a reporter: Write and send your article to www.gagrule.net

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City of LA to Donate Hose for Stepanakert-Bound Fire Truck

May 20, 2014 by administrator

Councilman Paul Krekorian’s motion will equip fire truck being donated by Montebello.

LOS ANGELES—The Los Angeles City Council on Friday passed a motion approving a donation of a 1,600-foot fire hose, which will be used on a fire truck that is being donated to Stepanakert, the capital of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic by the Montebello City Council.

LA City Councilman Paul Krekorian introduced the measure, which passed the City Council on Friday. The motion provided an extensive history of the damage endured by Stepanakert as a result of Azeri attacks on the city from Shushi during the Karabakh war in the early 1990’s.

The motion also emphasized the “friendship city” status Los Angeles shares with the city of Shushi in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and calls on the city to make the fire hose available for transport to Stepanakert.

“I’m so happy that my City Council colleagues unanimously joined me in donating surplus equipment to the City of Stepanakert,” said Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Krekorian, District 2. “Los Angeles has a long history of providing humanitarian aid to our friends in need, and I hope this contribution will help Stepanakert’s fire department. We wish the people of Stepanakert nothing but peace and prosperity in the days ahead.”

“We are grateful to the Los Angeles City Council for the donation of surplus fire hoses to Stepanakert and particularly Councilmember Paul Krekorian for working with us and spearheading this effort. We know it will go a long way for the people of Artsakh and look forward to helping facilitate the transportation of the donation along with the fire truck donated by City of Montebello through our local chapters,” said Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region Executive Director Elen Asatryan

Through the efforts of the ANCA San Gabriel Valley and the current Mayor Pro-Tem of Montebello, Jack Hadjinian, the Montebello Fire Department donate a fire truck valued at $150,000, that is to be sent to Stepanakert.

Since 2005, the city of Montebello has established a sister city association with Stepanakert. The city and its institutions have been committed to creating and strengthening a partnership between the communities.

The fire truck donation from Montebello was part of the recognition of the sister-city relationship with Stepanakert.

“This generous donation is a testament to the commitment that the city of Montebello has invested into this municipal partnership and its efforts to encourage community development in Stepanakert,” said the ANCA of San Gabriel Valley when it first publicized the fire truck donation in February.