Armenialiberty.org reports on the plight of the 3 Armenian army conscripts accused last year of murdering two fellow soldiers in Karabagh. Whilst the military prosecutors charged the soldiers with murder,one of the conscripts claimed he was forced into confession through torture, and subsequently withdrew his “confession”

Human rights groups have been criticising the trial for a long time, and many believe it was a cover up and the soldiers were infact murdered by Captain Ivan Grigorian, the commander of their unit, and a war veteran. The conscripts were believed to be “scapegoats” for a military cover up.

The soldiers have staged hunger strikes, and protests, and are in very poor health. But it seems justice has been done, and the appeals court ordered the verdict as invalid and the soldiers are free.

This shocked me to a degree, as we are so used to perverted justice in Armenia. I wonder is this a genuine ruling against the military prosectors ( the first in Armenia’s history) or does it have deeper meaning? Perhaps a pre election publicity stunt, although I believe this would be an unlikely explanation.

Any comments?

I was in Armenia when this happened, it truly shocked me. I think we need to pay attention to these issues. I

A 17-year old girl by the name of Araz was with some friends that night at a dance club in Yerevan.

On their way home, they had to stop off at a friend’s home to pick up some of their belongings. They were in a taxi, which they got out of on Baghramyan Street, and when Araz and her sister were crossing the street, Araz was hit by a reckless driver. This was a split-second after she let go of her sister’s hand.

They tried calling an ambulance, but there was no phone connection. They tried stopping passing cars, but nobody stopped. Her brother (who was with them) carried Araz and ran to a car that drove them to the hospital, but it was too late. Araz wasn’t breathing anymore.

A 3-month long trial was held to punish the driver, and in the end the man received 2 years of probation, not allowed to leave the country and drive for 2 years. Not even 6 months after the incident, the man’s sentence was annulled since it was his first such crime.

Araz was just about to turn 18, and had just graduated from high school, and looking forward to university.

There is NOTHING being done in Armenia to prevent dangerous driving. The majority of police seem to care less about preventing such accidents. Anyone who has been to Armenia knows how bad the situation is.

PLEASE sign the following petition so that this VERY IMPORTANT issue can be brought to the attention of the Armenian government.

www.petitionspot.com/petitions/araz

Glendale, CA: Local Armenian-Diasporian (community firebrand) morning-talk-show host Stepan Partamian ceased his long time running “Pari Louse” program today, as he will be working on other pressing endeavors.

Since 2000, the Armenian Arts organization has been a pioneer in introducing open dialogue through the airwaves. The Armenian Arts program, airing on local Armenian television in Los Angeles, is a talk show with a twist. Featuring host Stepan Partamian, the show continues to raise eyebrows by tackling difficult, often taboo topics relating to Armenian identity, culture, politics, history and religion. Not surprisingly, the show has made an enormous number of enemies – always a good sign – even if most have grown fond of the program and now count themselves among its most avid supporters, even encouraging their families to watch the program. The show has also won accolades from the get-go: thanks to its brutal honesty and genuine dedication to positive change, it has found resonance with an Armenian public thirsting for frank, no-nonsense discussion of current affairs. These programs aired live on Horizon TV

From what I comprehend, during the next couple years, Stepan will be on a self-styled “Armenian Identity” journey. He will be traveling across the United States, Europe and subsequently conclude in the Republic of Armenia in 2008, searching, exploring and confronting Armenian issues, places, and people that influence this “Armenian Identity” inquiry. I guess Stepan is going to somehow bring these identities together and present them to us. It will be very interesting journey to follow to say the least, as he is an particularly controversial media personality. Personally, I feel somewhat poignant that this show ended, as Stepan is probably the most sincere yet intellectually progressive local Armenian-Diaspora public figure out there (or at least in Sunny Southern California).

Hayk Newspaper reports, that the Forbs - Armenian service soon to be launched in Armenia, will publish the following list of ten richest people in Armenia in the first issue of the magazine. Hayk draws readers attention to the fact, that 6 of the 10 people in the list are high ranking state officials. more…

Garbage lying around next to the garbage cans and bins is such a common site in Armenia these days, that nobody seems to pay any attention to it. Still, today I just couldn’t let it go…

I try to understand people, who throw something in the street, because then can’t find a garbage can. I said - I try! But what do I call those, who have put these plastic bags full of garbage right next to the empty garbage can? Why, people? Why?

PS: After writing this post I understood, that I’m the biggest pig of all! After taking the photo, I spared the effort and didn’t pick up the plastic bags to put them in the empty garbage can! I just left it there as it was! Maybe it has something to do with my Armenian Genetics???

Minibuses are stopping only at the allocated bus-stops these days. At least in the center of Yerevan, when there’s some police patrol around. The first couple of times I tried stopping a minibus where I usually would on the Mashtots avenue, (which is definitely not at a bus-stop), the minibuses didn’t pay any attention. I was frustrated at first. Than I felt really happy - thinking: so that’s why the Municipality was updating the bus-stops, because strangely enough everybody was standing at the bus-stop nearby - instead of crowding around the Mashtots-Pushkin crossroad as they usually would. more…