So what is the big news in Raffi's life he logged about in the diaspora log a few days ago? And why is he logging about it here, in the repatriate log? Well if you put two and two together, you might have guessed that I am heading back to Armenia this month. I got a job offer in Armenia, and while some things are still in the works, I have accepted and I feel like I am back there already! This means that as the two year anniversary of the repatriate log approaches, we will have a 100% retention rate. Everyone who has logged will still be in Armenia, from different backgrounds, working on all kinds of projects. I think that says something about Armenia, and the life there. I will tell you about this job when everything is finalized, but I will say it is cool and right up my alley.

I am not sure of my departure date, but I am already scanning store merchandise with a "can I get this there?" once over. I have also decided that since I will be likely leaving around Easter time, I will not be able to gorge on the American foods I will miss while I am there unless I break my bak, (Armenian vegan lent). I have not cheated once so far, but decided to stop in order to enjoy some of the American stuff in general and New York foods in particular. I know, I know, it is pretty weak on my part, but I don't care! :-) Already before I go, I know I am going to miss having DSL (broadband) internet access the most. I want to take some cool seeds and plants with me so that when the summer house purchase I started last year finally goes through, I will be able to have some fun stuff growing there that is hard if not impossible to find in Armenia. Sweet potatoes, broccoli (for Lena), sweet corn, blueberries, alstroemerias, pardancanda, kiwis, Armenian cucumbers and more hopefully. I have been searching the web hard core for cool plant varieties that will grow in Armenia's winters, since I am used to plants that grow in the more forgiving California climate. That's all I have for now, but I think that it is enough! :-) I also hope that some of the diaspora loggers write more often now that I am not going to be there logging a few times a week... (hint, hint)

let me give you a sign that repatriation is really starting to get popular. we were five minutes late to seeing the english version of chicago last night... only to find out it was sold out. our friends who made it in said it was full of repatriates. SOLD OUT! i love it. i think they will do a reshowing because arthur and i were not the only ones to be left out. there were many more repatriates.

i have been miserably sick for a week now. this is ridiculous. it is almost april and we are still in the minus weather block. i loved winter... i faired better than last winter. i am getting used to four seasons... but DONT PUSH IT.

i want to start posting pictures like all you cool loggers. i have been inspired to save up for a digital camera. hopefully i will be able to post pictures of the more hip summer season. hopefully it will come to us sooner than later.

signed, a very frustrated four layer wool wearer on march 31 (almost april).

It is damn cold out! I went to the Armenia vs Northern Ireland soccer game dressed like an Eskimo and still became completely numb only minutes into the game. The stadium was packed and the fans were going nuts chanting Hayer-Hayer (Armenians-Armenians) and Hayastan-Hayastan (Armenia-Armenia)!

I couldn't get any decent pictures, especially with the snow blowing in my face, but here is one of a group hug after the ONE goal Armenia scored to win the game.

I've been here for quite a few months already, and at times I still have to pinch myself to see if it's all for real. Growing up and living in Canada my entire life and thinking about living in Armenia seemed like a risky endeavor at first, but now that I am actually here I don't think of it as being such an exhausting effort.

A few weeks ago I turned on the TV and I heard Armenian and got all excited, forgetting (only for a split second) that I am actually in Armenia, a country where the majority speaks the language.

Being in the midst of thousands of Armenians at yesterday's game, hearing them chant Armenia-Armenia was quite overwhelming.

Currently, there is a lot of construction taking place around the city. Plus, many proposed projects are in the works. The construction of North Avenue is continuing (which is going to be a long and wide pedestrian walkway with shops and restaurants in the middle of downtown Yerevan). The opening of the first restaurant on the walkway took place over a week ago. It is the newly rebuilt popular Armenian restaurant Hin Erivan (Old Yerevan).

There are also a few new hotels under construction, lots of new shops all over the city, and numerous residential buildings. The infamous Paplavok/Arakast restaurant is being completely renovated. The Lincy Foundation, which is funding the repaving of all the major streets of Yerevan, the installation of new street lights, as well as the renovations of all the museums, playhouses, and the Opera House, has just resumed (after pausing for a winter break). Japan has just offered $300,000 to install a new sound system in the Opera House. The Cascade project continues. The Americans are building their new embassy. The U.K. embassy has just moved into a newly erected building.

Yerevan is progressing really fast at this moment. It's awesome to witness all this.

Pictures of the week


The comet-ball with some major dust-trace.


Victory, fans on the field and a minor police chase.


Episode - Victory, fans on the field and a minor police chase.

It was pretty eventful day yesterday. First of all as a follow up to my previous log� we went to the game between N. Ireland fans playing with �Zatik� kids. It was so nice to see so much care provided to those kids by their tutors and staff.
Later on, after warm English tea with a nice English hospitality, we headed back to the stadium to watch the Armenia v N. Ireland game. The first half and half of the 2nd one were sluggish. Most of the phrases shouted by the Armenian fans weren�t praises but the opposite with great Armenian creativity and humour as well. Here are some examples that I could memorize from the tons that I�ve heard.
�Move your crutches, Anoushik�, �What�s this? Are you from the Lusagerdi Trchnabutsaran (Lusakert Chicken Farm)�, �If you don�t play well I want my money back� and when an Armenian player was injured and carried out one from behind shouted, �The deceased was a good man�.
At a point some of the Armenian fans started even supporting the N. Ireland squad hoping for a goal no matter from which side.
The game started heating up only at the end of the 2nd half and Armenia won 1-0. The mood was high and I am sure nobody asked their money back, probably only the Irish.
Currently Armenia is on the 3rd place on the Euro 2004 Qualifying Group 6 with 4 points, after Spain and Ukraine. Next game is with Spain on April 2nd, our team being the guest.
Armenian will be the host only on Sept 6th playing with Greece. It will be an interesting game for me, since I haven�t heard the Greek football songs and cheers for 4 years already, and ArmenTel still being here I guess there will be lots of �Greek�.

Believe it or not, this picture was taken on March 28th and the snow you see accumulated in a matter of a few hours.

Believe it or not, even with the bad and very cold weather, I�ve been working and have not yet found the time to �hibernate� this winter, as I usually do to avoid the cold so I wont get sick.

Believe it or not, the cold does not seem to bother me anymore, nor have I got sick this year (knock on wood).

Believe it or not, I have been so busy with work that I have not had the time or desire to follow the war in Iraq. Everything I know about it comes from the natives, who have reported to me that the war seems to not be going to well and America is having some technical difficulties and paying a heavy price.

Tonight I checked out Chicago at Nairi (the theatre). Great film, especially since my girlfriend Catherine was in it, but these two guys behind me wouldn't stop talking. One guy knew English and the other didn't. So for 2 hours straight the English speaking guy was translating the ENTIRE movie to the other guy.

Yesterday night I came across the Irish soccer players singing out on the streets of Mashtots. They were also chanting Ar-men-ia, Ar-men-ia!.

By the way, it is FREEZING! It's been snowing for the past 2 or 3 days. I thought spring arrives early in Armenia?

Yesterday it snowed heavily and my planned trip to Northern Armenia has been postponed again. The visibility was very poor and I am sure many cars had problems in Abaran, Syunik or other mountainous regions.
As most, if not all, of our readers and fellow loggers I also follow the war in Iraq. I am fortunate enough not to have an Evil Box at my place by default and I am not going to purchase one. Finally I have driven myself away from that �disease�. I can read the international news online, even watch some clips, and for the local ones it can be known by just interacting with people around or from the newspapers. Armenia is a small country, barley with a population of 1.5 million. If you ask people you will find out that at least half of their families are not in Armenia. Kocharian and CEC improvised a lot and have been very �very creative to lure 1.5 million voters out of their houses. We need a government that pays more attention on repatriation. Republic of Ireland can be a very good example.
Coming to Ireland, this Saturday at 18:00, there is a match between N. Ireland and Armenian football (soccer) squads. It has been previously canceled by the Irish side, because of the war in Iraq. I have been taken care of and offered a complimentary ticket. I will try to get some gear (at least a flag) for supporting our team.
There is also the following to which I will do my best to attend;
� British Council Armenia is holding an
Orphans Football Fun Day on 29 March 2003, to coincide with the
Armenia - Northern Ireland 2004 European Championship qualifier:
young Armenian orphans will play a friendly match with Northern
Ireland Supporters' Club members, as well as present Northern Ireland
and Armenia players with flowers, take pictures, and have their
shirts and footballs signed. The aim is to foster social inclusion
of an underprivileged part of the population. The British Council
Press Service informed ARMINFO. �

Article relevant to repatriating to Armenia from AFP (discuss)

Home Is Where Heart Is For Hardy Band Of U.S.-Raised Armenians

Agence France-Presse
March 26, 2003

YEREVAN, ARMENIA -- Jirair Avanian used to cut a familiar figure in New York's bohemian East Village. In the 1970s he had been a record company executive who worked on hit rock'n'roll albums, and more recently he owned a gallery and ran a business dealing in modern German expressionist art.

But 11 years ago he turned his back on that life and moved to Armenia. At the time, the former Soviet republic was at war with neighboring Azerbaijan, there was no electricity and the country was under blockade.

"It was a shock," Avanian said as he sipped wine in the successful restaurant he now runs in Armenia's capital, Yerevan.

"When I came in 1992 people were cooking on the street. They would tear up the books from their library because that was the only fuel they had and they would cook their meals like that. That was what made me realize that I could be useful here. I think if there had been really nice conditions I would not have come here. It was a desire to be needed. I was more useful here."

Avanian is part of a trickle of people from the United States and western Europe -- so far numbering only about 100 families -- who have traded in comfortable Western lifestyles for life in Armenia. Each has their own reasons for coming but they have a common bond -- they are part of the Armenian Diaspora whose parents and grandparents fled the Ottoman Empire's massacre of Armenians in 1915.

In the 1990s, as at least a third of Armenia's population emigrated for a better life in the West, these returnees traveled in the opposition direction and are now doing charitable works or running thriving businesses. Raffi Hovannisian is the most prominent member of this tiny group. Born in Fresno, California, he was a high-flying commercial lawyer.

When Armenia was devastated by an earthquake in 1988, he went there to help with the relief effort and when the country became independent from the Soviet Union three years later, he served for a while as its first foreign minister. He went as far as to give up his US passport so that he could take Armenian citizenship.

"I grew up in a family where my grandparents were survivors of the genocide and made their way to the United States," he said. "In my family there was an abiding belief not only in terms of commemorating the tragedy of the past but translating that into a personal contribution to the republic of Armenia."

"When we come across people here from the Diaspora, they talk about the sacrifices (we have made) but for me the sacrifice would have been staying in Los Angeles. We are doing what we want to do."

Shakeh Havan-Garapetian has a different story. She moved from Boston, Massachusetts, to Armenia with her two young children when her husband died and she decided she wanted to make a new start. Though she says she too is proud of her Armenian roots, she stays in Armenia because she enjoys the lifestyle. "When I was in the US my kids had to ... play in front of the kitchen window so I could see them."

"Here, the safety is unbelievable. My son, the 10-year-old, walks around town on his own and then comes home without any problems," she said at a table in the busy Yerevan coffee shop and bookshop she owns.

She added: "When I am asked what do I miss from the US, I have to think hard and say it's my garbage disposal... Armenia gives you whatever you want it to be. It is a growing country and that gives you a lot of opportunity."

Restaurant proprietor Avanian's parents fled Turkey for Soviet Armenia and from there emigrated to the US in 1970, when he was 18. Living in New York as a young man, he was only vaguely aware of his Armenian heritage.

But he said: "Eventually it touches you. It is like a spring. Eventually it pulls you back and maybe it pulls you back with more vigor than if you had stayed here the whole time."

He has stayed because the simple, unpressured lifestyle suits him. "I love the US (but) not for one minute have I ever thought that I want to go back."

I've not logged in more than a couple of weeks, and primarily because I've had a mental block. Since before the elections, I could not get myself to write anything that I thought would be worthy of the readership's time, and then after the elections, I could not get myself out of a mental state where I could be rational about things and not go off on an emotional tangent. And then just as I was getting away from the negativity of the elections in Armenia, President Bush decided that it was time to make good on his promise!

As an information-a-holic, I've been glued to my TV set whenever I'm not working, and I cannot believe that in this day and age, a war for nothing can rage on without any serious backlash against the perpetrators. And quite frankly, having just read the Diaspora in Diaspora logs and responses, I find the merit of the pro-war movement waning really quickly. Just as I was walking out of the house this morning, I caught a glimpse of the CNN news ticker, which announced, Haliburton has been awarded a multi-million dollar contract to fix the burning oil wells in the south of Iraq! Haliburton is the oil services giant Dick Cheney left to become Vice President of the United States! Any more questions on why this war is being fought?!

I'm finding myself faced with a peculiar situation when working with NGO's and civil society in Armenia (that's what I do as part of my job here). When speaking about democratic norms and practices, I find myself not being able to make a strong argument, because the leaders of my country have compromised all of the principles which we are attempting to export to such degree that it is quickly losing all credibility.

March, as you know, is a crazy weather month. Just as an example, we had a snow storm this afternoon, after several hours of continuous rain.

peace!

It's been a couple of weeks since I logged, but I've been preoccupied following the "War In Iraq".

You know, I've been thinking, accidentally dropping bombs on Iranian territory and Syrian buses, and American spy planes (from Georgia) flying around the Russian border, sounds a little more than just a "War In Iraq" to me.

Today on CNN they showed some Armenians who had fled areas of Iraq that were being bombed and are temporarily living in the Christian village of Mangesh. A woman in her 90's mentioned how she escaped the Armenian Genocide and head south into Iraq, and now she is escaping again, and this time up north (back towards Turkey).

There hasn't been too much excitement in my life lately, just trying to find the drive to get back to work, and although there is a lot of inspiration here, Hayastan can really make a person lazy, or rather too relaxed. And once the weather starts getting warmer, I have a feeling I won't want to work anyway, but instead go out on trips throughout the country and Artsakh.

UGH! And house shopping really sucks.

Sorry for not logging for the last few days, but I�ve been out of town on business and just got home.

I wont even get into what I�ve been doing for the last few days, as it�s very boring stuff, and unless your in the stone business, it would not even make sense to you.

The weather is the same (unpredictable). Will this be another long wet season, which ends in June? I hope not, but if it is, so be it.

The war in Iraq is something I�ve been following and just want to say that all the dead Iraqi�s they have shown on television here have not been in military uniforms. Does this mean that the Iraqi army is really poor, or are most of the casualties civilians? The one I found interesting was the guy that surrendered to the invading force (the US) and asked were the aid was, as he had hungry children at home.

One thing I learned today about America�s great fighter aircraft, particularly the type which is �stealth� is that it seems that it�s not all that stealth and that radars can be modified to a different frequency to detect them. I only learned this after hearing talk of aircraft being downed in Iraq and talking to this about with an engineer here, who said that Russia already has such technology to trace and down such aircraft. Well all I can say is that I hope this war ends soon and not too many people loose their lives in the process.

Anyway, I really glad to be home and now that the woodstove is burning and my room is nice and warm, I'm off to take a nice long HOT shower.

Yesterday we went to the African-American film week at Kino Moskva. As Madlene has mentioned the film of the day was �The Ghosts of Mississippi�. It�s a nice film; however I will not go on and tell the story. I will just talk about my opinion that why we had this type of film week sponsored by US Embassy to Armenia. First of all I am against to the whole idea, in Armenia we don�t have this specific type of problem and people rather not be introduced to such things because it might cause the opposite effect. I had a similar argument with my American English Composition teacher while studying in Cyprus. The whole teaching was based on racial discrimination and segregations, we had to write papers and read articles etc for a semester. It really got too annoying because the students, aggravated from the subject, might have easily taken the unwanted direction.
As usual the good prevailed and it was funny reminder for me to see the commercially happy faces at the end.
After the film we were in the main lobby when a young man fell from the stairs and lost his consciousness. I have tried to show first medical assistance by getting water, lifting his legs that the blood would flow to his head and rubbing his finger joints. Others were slapping his face and holding his tongue that he wouldn�t swallow it. He came back to his senses few times but switched back to unconscious. I realized that the people around has absolutely no basic medical readiness and my suggestion is that instead of learning military drills and that how to shoot other humans, it�s better to learn how to save lives. The medical help that came after our call was in total shambles, the paramedic instead of giving the first assistance on the spot, even after learning that the ill tumbled down from the stairs, ordered the people to take the body to the nearest sofa. I hope that he had no broken bones and especially his spine hasn�t been damaged, otherwise the carrying and the soft sofa would have intensified the possible injury.
Another issue is the identification of the injured, I am totally against the practice of identifying people as mere numbers, however it�s good to have some kind of ID that in such cases the person could be identified and the close relatives informed.
Today is a cold sunny day. I will probably stay at home and continue my work on one of my projects. I was at the housing material supply bazaar yesterday browsing, talking to and bargaining with various kinds of people. I am going to do this in weekly bases. It�s an important part of the life here to interact with people coming from different paths of life.
Ara, I just remembered, I have seen an ad for Antifreez for concrete (� Betoni Antifreeze�) on one of the shop windows, and it reminded me your log about your driveway. I am not sure about the product specifications but I can check it out.

it is african-american culture week here. the cultural awareness is provided by the us embassy in the form of a movie marathon. on monday arthur and i went to malcolm x, and on tuesday we went to beloved. we missed wednesday and thursday which was remember the titans, and the jackie robinson story respectively, and tonight we will attend the last of the movie series... ghosts of mississippi. this was a great idea and i am happy that this week took place here... as judging from the audience... i think we sure do need more awareness in this country. i think that more of these marathons are necessary and i am happy that we got to experience this along with the locals, reminding us of the plight of our african-american brothers and sisters...

speaking of our brothers and sisters around the world i just have to say i am sick to my stomach. i have been watching cnn, and bbc and russian sources which seem to be a bit different and in my opinion more informative (although i speak russian like i am one and a half years old)... watching this war... is hurting and scarring and damaging to my understanding of right/wrong, peace and international policy/affairs. we attended a peace vigil... a group of caring and interested citizens of the world got together last week to light candles and pray for peace. we will light candles again this sunday for peace. many people are telling me it will not make a difference... but i feel i need to show my compassion for humanity, for an alternative to the bloodshed which has destoroyed our civilization for many a millenium.

i have a house guest staying with me from los angeles. she was on her way here for the meeting and while in the air she learned her meeting had been cancelled because of the war. she decided to come anyways and visit arthur and i. yesterday we went to the beautiful saghmosavank, as narineh and i worked together on the vank in 1998 and because we had never seen it in the snow. there was soo much snow we could not get to it... but it looked beautiful from afar... and we cherished it from a distance.

yesterday arthur had a tv interview and he said one of the most romantic things i have ever heard. i thought i would share it with you because it is soo cute. the show is called RENGEN, which in russian means x-ray. it was shot at the hospital where they placed arthur on the x-ray machine... lighted up a different part of his body and asked questions. first they lighted his forehead and asked about his thoughts... then his ears and asked what he likes to listen to... you get the point.
well they finally got to his eyes and they said... what is the most beautiful thing your eyes have ever seen... and he said... ELI ACHKER (another set of eyes)... and he was talking about me and it was sooo beautiful. a few minutes later we burst into laughter when they asked if they could show his stomach and asks what he likes to eat. since his belly has gotten quite big he got on the defense... and said... why dont you tape something else and ask me where i like to sit...

there is another demonstration today, it is sunny, and so people are mobbing by me through the window... looks like it will be a big turnout. as for me, i will catch up with my work and emails... then go to russian class, ghosts of mississippi and then dancing with friends.

I was going to log today about this incredible dream I had last night which had Madlene and Harut (Der Hova) in it, but unfortunately something more interesting happened this morning that I felt a need to log about. Maybe I�ll log about the dream later, as it really is worth sharing.

I spent the night in Stepanagert and this morning I went to the Artsakh Central Bank to exchange $100.

The woman at the exchange window looked at the $100 bill I handed her and told me that it had a small hole in it and was discolored. She said that its value would be lower than the normal exchange rate.

I asked her what she was talking about and said that a dollars value is not based on its appearance, but based on the serial number and the amount noted on it.

She told me that it was the policy of the bank to pay a lower amount to worn and damaged dollars and there was nothing she can do about it.

I asked to see the bank manager and found that he was coming late. I saw one of the assistants, who looked at my $100 bill and told me that it really qualifies as worn and damaged, but for me being from the Diaspora, he would exchange it for the full rate.

I asked him what difference it made to the bank if the bill was worn or not and he said that he buys dollars and turns around and sells them to other people and if there is any damage, no one is willing to buy them. He said the same thing is in Armenia.

I told him that this was absurd and I could understand if it was a private party who was buying and selling dollars, but the main central bank for all of Artsakh should at very least be a place that one can turn in worn money as a normal banks function is to get worn money out of circulation.

I added that if this is the way he is doing business, then he is not in the business of buying and selling dollars for their value, but he is selling pictures and in that case, appearance is the only thing that matter.

Though the picture I have posted is hard to read, you will notice on March 20, 2003, the bank was buying dollars at 590 dram to $1, selling at 593 dram to $1 and if the dollar is worn or damaged, buys at 566 dram to $1, a loss of 24 dram or in my case would have been 2,400 dram (over $4).

One thing that should be noted is that today, the greater share of Artsakh bank is owned by Diaspora Armenians and I would think that if those individuals were conscious that such an unfair practice is taking place in their bank, they would put an immediate stop to it (I would hope so). I think a letter to them would not be too difficult to write (which I have done) and certainly in will be sent (as soon as I can get their mailing address).

I join Ara to say that the weather is crazy up here in Yerevan, too. It was very warm during the weekend, however yesterday we had a mixture of snow and rain.
I have highlighted the word �up� because it has a totally different meaning in Armenia than it has in Indianapolis, IN. Here up means up the slop or up to the mountains. On the other hand, in Indiana where there is no such thing as a hill and I am not even talking about a mountain, up means up to the North. In that sense I will correct myself and leave the Indiana or US Mid-West map reading techniques and say �Down here in Yerevan�.

The presidential elections and the wave of demonstrations are almost burned down and in some sense literally. The Helsinki Human Rights Office in Vanadzor has been set on fire at night of March 15th and Dr. A. Sakunts, the head of the same office, has been arrested after he talked against the irregularities that took place during the presidential elections. As a conclusion I can say that the people of Armenia lost. I am not sure who would have been elected as a president if the elections were conducted fairly, however I can say that the rights of thousands of dead and alive people have been violated. Dead in the sense that names of many dead people appeared on the voting lists and they have� voted� for Mr. R. Kocharyan. Ara has logged about this in more details.

Probably many of our readers didn�t understand that what�s the relevance of �the hotdog picture�, posted by me few days ago, to this logs. I will elaborate on this and say that the colour of the water turned into red only after the hotdogs were boiled.

March is known as a crazy month and I can see why. Yesterday it was warm and the sun was out and today, it was snowing. This kind of weather makes it difficult to plan anything.

Today I took the puppies to be vaccinated and on the way to Stepanagert, they seemed very uncomfortable and vomited all over the floor in my car.

In Askeran, I got a package of napkins and a bottle of Jermuk, which I used to clean up the car and puppies a bit, who by this that time had climbed all over each other after stepping in the vomit. Yuk!!!

Well they got their shots, which they didn�t care for too much and then hanged out with me for most of the day, while I ran around with my engineer and machinist, as we finished putting together a stone polishing machine and planed tomorrows work.

I finished and drove back to Martuni and on the way, when nature called, I pulled over and took the puppies out of the car, who by this time were now use to driving around in my car and were asleep when I had pulled over.

It was very cute when the puppies watched as I relieved myself and caught on that they too should do the same. The smarter of the two looked up at me and after I encouraged her to do her business, she did, which the other saw what was going on and joined in.

I got to Martuni and I have to tell you that though it�s always great to open my door and make my way to my nice warm room, the mud that wet weather brings is really not fun at all.

One thing is for sure, we will only have another month of this kind of weather and then things will get really nice.

Last night, as I was driving home from Stepanagert and passing Aghdam, I was thinking to myself why I am here and not in America?

It was not one of those �I�m tired of this place� kind of thought, but just a reflection of life here and life in America.

First let me tell a little bit about what has been going on here and then I�ll tell you what my thoughts on the above question to myself were.

So I found myself in Stepanagert for a couple of days, working on some new equipment for the stone factory. It has been quite a challenge to get machinists, engineers and parts suppliers motivated to work at a speed that meet my needs.

On top of this, I�m working with a couple of electrical engineers to manufacture electronic products for markets here, Armenia and the former CIS. For that project, I�m also working with a plastics company for the packaging of the products we have already built and future manufacturing of plastic parts we are presently getting from Armenia and Russia. I�m facing the same challenges with this project, as I am for the stone factory equipment.

Then there is the �disgruntled and eminent departure� of the Prime Minster of Armenia, who I understand could be replaced with the president of Grand Candy.

We add to this my purchasing a professional electric hair clipper from the only store I could find in Stepanagert that had one.

The store is owned by the head prosecutor, Mavrik Goulkasyan. This store is in a building that is near the main bus-station in Stepanagert that was once the center of a controversy of where did Mavrik get the money to build said building and when asked �with what was his building built with�, he answered �building materials.�

The issue was dropped when Mavrik published in an opposition paper an example of the President�s violation of the law and stated that he had some 60+ other such documented crimes committed by President Goulkasyan in his office. I think that�s called blackmail.

So I made my purchase at 5 PM and asked for a receipt. The woman who made the sale is the eldest daughter of the former chief of police in the Martuni region and who is now the director of one of Serg Sarkissyan�s (Minister of Defense of RA) wine factories that he owns in Artsakh. She asked if I could wait for a minute, as she had not turned on the receipt machine today. Once it was turned on, she asked me if the date made a difference? I told her no. Mind you this store is very busy and that machine is suppose to register all sales so that the store pays to the government VAT and income tax.

I get to Martuni and learn that a family that I take care of, who live in my neighborhood is being told that the water project which USAID if funding for the city of Martuni has cut their old pipe which as supplying water to their house and now they have to cut a trench 40cm deep and over 100 meters long and supply a new pipe, so they will have water. Being on the water committee, I remember something about no one resident having to run more than 50 meters of pipe.

So this is a sample of what I encounter in a 2 days period.

Now what were my thoughts of the question I asked myself about why I�m here and not in America?

Well, it seems that in America, when I lived there, things were very stable and life�s program was somewhat fixed. In short, in America, you live to one day die.

What I mean by this is that the common person (this included me), does his or her job day in and day out. We get old one day and retire. Then one day comes that we die. Everything in-between our birth and death in America is somewhat insignificant if you consider what is really going in the world outside of America.

Then you come to place like Armenia or Artsakh. This is a place that is hanging on a thread, and like so many places in the world, its survival and future is impacted in a positive and negative way, based on what a few people do.

It�s a country that is gradually being enslaved by western powers and Russia, not to mention it�s facing that same threat from Muslim neighbor�s, who for over a thousand years have been trying to (and at time has) rule over the people who live here.

So what is my role here? Well for one thing, I�m doing the same thing here that I was doing in America. I�m doing business. The difference is that the business I do here has a greater impact and is a counter force on everything I have written in this log.

My life here has so much more meaning, as by me being here and doing what I was doing in America, I am indirectly fighting against my brothers and sisters from being enslaved by not only foreign powers, but also by some very bad native powers, who if we turn a blind eye to, will do what they please with our people and our nation.

And while �Bush braces Americans for war�, you should think about if your life in the west is what you want it to be and if just maybe now is the time to make life really meaningful?

No Comments!


Two sticks of hotdog and the pot (water) where they have been boiled for a quick meal.

Agricultural store on Terian Street.
NOTE: The hotdogs were not bought from this store!

If any of our readers happen to be in London during the week of March 17th, you may want to attended a series of events that will be discussing the Karabagh conflict.

It would probably be best to just sit and listen, as I get the feeling that this going to be a �search and gather information and see reactions� event.

I say this as one of the main speakers is none other than Azerbaijan�s propagandists and revisionist, Dr. Brenda Shaffer.

I had the opportunity to attend one of Brenda�s early lectures back in 1999 which was held at Hebrew University in Israel. Her lecture was called �Azerbaijan and its Neighbors�.

For her, the Karabagh conflict started on �Black January�, which is when Russian troops moved in and put a stop to the Azeri ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population of Baku. Of course for Brenda, talking about what took place before �Black January� was not relevant, as her goal is to get Azerbaijan recognition of being the victim of the conflict.

During that 1999 lecture, Brenda was not at all comfortable that I had brought with me a video camera and asked that I did not video tape her. I respected her wishes and instead, kept the camera in my lap and recorded the audio. Until now, I have not had time to sit down and prepare a transcript, but if I do one day, I�ll be sure to post it on my forum.

Her lecture was very one sided and during the questions and answers portion, she concluded that we should not let history guide us, as history has only hindered Israel from ascertaining what we need today, which is peace.

Her idea of resolving the Karabagh conflict was that we should allow everyone to go back to their homes and get along. Sounds simple to me, but I think we should let Israel do that first and if we see it works, then maybe we can consider doing the same thing. Oh, I guess right after that lecture, Israel did try that and well, we saw where that got them.

Anyway, if your in London at that time, please do attend and take with you a video camera or tape recorder, as I would be interested to see in the last 4 years of Brenda�s song and dance has changed at all?


________________




The Caspian Studies Program [Harvard University] will participate in a
series of events in London next week. Please see event listings below
for details. All events are free and open to public.

***************************************************************************

The Vatan Society, working in partnership with the London School of
Economics Hayek Society and the Eurasian International Development
Association, presents a series of events covering various issues affecting
Azerbaijan and the wider Caspian region.

Karabagh Conflict: Public Discussion
17 March 2003
18.00-20.00
Committee Room 3
House of Lords, London SW1A
Speakers: Dr. Brenda Shaffer, Director, Caspian Studies Program, Harvard
University; David Barchard, author and journalist; Murad Gassanly, Chair,
Vatan Society
Email vatan@post.com for more information

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan: Eurasian Energy Corridor
in partnership with LSE Hayek Society
18 March 2003
18.00-20.00
Old Theatre
LSE, Houghton Street, London, WC2A
Speakers: Thomas Goltz, Oil Odyssey; Dr. Brenda Shaffer, Director, Caspian
Studies Program, Harvard University; Barry Halton, Regional Affaires
Director, BP/BTC; Caner Toksoz, Legal Councillor, BOTAS
Email vatan@post.com for more information

Borders and Brethren: Iran and the Challenge of Azerbaijani Identity
by Brenda Shaffer, MIT Press, November 2002
This new book by Brenda Shaffer explores various issues concerning modern
Azerbaijani identity, both in Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan,
reflecting on ethnic politics in the region. Special presentation of the
publication and opportunity to meet the author.
21 March 2003
17.00
Economist's Bookshop (within LSE campus)
Clare Market, Portugal Street
London WC2A
The presentation will be followed by the event below at LSE at 18.00pm
Email vatan@post.com for more information

Azerbaijan Movement: New Challenge in Iranian Politics
in partnership with the World Azerbaijani Congress
21 March 2003
18.00-20.00
Room D302
LSE, Clement House, Aldwych, WC2A
Speakers: Dr. Brenda Shaffer, Director, Caspian Studies Program, Harvard
University; Sharokh Mazhari, Official Representative, World Azerbaijani
Congress (UK)
Email vatan@post.com for more information

Have you ever been at the right place and the right time? What I mean is when your in need of something and your wondering how you will get what you need, that thing just falls in your lap? Well it seems for most of my life, this kind of thing happens all the time.

People sometimes think that I go looking for information or "trouble", but like what I said above, information comes looking for me and being a good listener, I�m always ready to hear the latest.

The other day, I was really bothered by the elections and all the fraudulent methods used by the candidates to get as many votes as possible. Though I had seen during the Artsakh election many of them, the following I had never imagined possible.

The other day I was in the presence of a guest from the Sisian region who happened to be an official at a poling station (one of the 1,800+ stations). This visit was over a meal.

Before I learned his position, I asked him what he thought of the elections, thinking this was a common person just trying to make a living.

He told me that the elections went well and what fraudulent methods was I talking about? He said this with a somewhat evil smile on his face.

He went on to tell me that for them, it was very important that Kocharian get re-elected, as he takes very good care of Artsakh, which is a big market for the products and harvest they produce in their region.

After a little bit of Vodka in his system, he volunteered a little more information of how they increased Kocharian�s votes.

He said for their polling stations, they went to the archives and got the names and passport numbers of 50 people who were dead and registered them with votes for Kocharian.

I asked him if he thought that was okay to do and he said that Kocharian is much better than Demichian.

I then tossed out my �why is it we were not given a real alternative to Kocharian� and my �Kocharian worked for over a year to make sure there would be no alternative to him�.

He didn�t argue and then I asked him if in the last 5 years has their been an increase or a decrease in the number of people leaving for Russia for work?

He said that the economic situation has gotten a little bit better in the last few year and with that, people have been able to save enough money to get a one-way ticket out of this place, thus, their has been a increase, especially among the young people. He said that in his village, more than half the young people have left for Russia.

Incidentally, when we had our elections last year here in Artsakh, there were many people who were not here, but votes were made in their names for Goulkasian.

So the opposition is crying foul and with everything I can see, they probably have a right to.

In my very rough estimate, I would say that Kocharian at least got 90,000 votes from dead people and would say it would be fair that at least 300,000 votes from people who are alive but have left the country for work or didn�t bother to go and vote.

It would not be that difficult a task to go to a couple of villages where there was suspected election fraud and do a physical count of how many people could vote, how many people did vote and also compare the registered voters to the list of dead people.

From what I�m hearing on the ground in Yerevan, things have not settled down and I�m just guessing that it�s going to get worse, before it gets better.

i have a russian test today, so i cannot write long. i cannot believe how much russian i have learned and it has not even been one month. yipee. i am proud to report i can read and write... (i only have like 5 letters to go before i learn the entire alphabet)... by next week we should be done with our first grade textbook... so i guess we will have a little graduation party for learning the alphabet.

i have a few friends in town right now, coincidentally all named shant so i am happy to have tourists and am planning fun activities. i am happy to have tourists because this is the first storm this year. talk to me again in a few months.

i have not had to study for a test in a while. it is a weird feeling, having a test. i had almost forgotten it. i cannot wait till i am fluent. ya lublu ruski yazik (i love the russian language). wish me luck.

by the way ara jan, congrats on the beauty salon. i promise when i am your tourist this summer i will come in for a complete do-over martuni style.

What a great piece of work the television station put together about the Sylva Beauty Salon!!!

I was fortunate to be at the Mayor�s house when it aired and we were able to record it on video. I�ve watched it 5 times already and I think I can watch it another 50 times, it�s so good (I hope I don�t sound like I�m bragging, but the story they give, gives one a warm fuzzy feeling).

It�s not the same piece they ran yesterday, but if I spoke as well on what they aired yesterday as they did today, then the lesson of being a good communicator has been learned and until seeing myself on video, I was not aware how well I can articulate myself in a way that the natives can understand everything I say.

Yesterdays piece got business hopping today to the point that we had to turn people away to come later. Well today�s 5 minutes piece of very valuable advertising should cause a flood of people to storm our salon tomorrow and besides cutting hair, my manager should be pulling out her hair, trying to figure out how to manage things so everyone is taken care of.

On top of this, we have now had dozens of requests from men who want to have their hair cut at our salon and as they put it, it is worth paying 150% more for a haircut at a woman�s salon, as they also want to look good. So from that, we decided we will also cut men�s hair.

Well, as far as I can figure, the Sylva Beauty Salon is going to do very well for itself and the women working there who were out of work for quite some time will now be able to provide a real income for their families (3 more real jobs created and another warm fuzzy feeling for everyone!!!).

The life is continuing here in Yerevan. This city is impressive, so tiny and at the same time full of diversity.

I will stop on one of the characters of Yerevan that I think has never found it�s place in those logs. I am talking no other than about the kick-off of the Classical Music Season .

Today we hardly got tickets for the National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia performance, Conductor Aram Gharabekian. It was great to see the 500 sit �Moscow� Theater full of audience. It was also wonderful to see so many young and talented musicians. The city definitely has change within last 5 years, when I was here last time.

The city not only changed in positive terms. I can feel the breath of ruthless capitalism. On my way back there was a homeless person sleeping on the cold and wet stones. It reminded me of America.

Thanks Haig and everyone that has sent me congratulatory messages on the opening of the salon.

I didn�t make it home in time for the news tonight and that should have been a strong indication that the salon opening would be on today instead of tomorrow as they told me.

The phone has been ringing off the hook with people calling to congratulate me on the opening and to report that I spoke very well on television.

I wonder if they will show it again or if I�m going to have to get a copy from the television station so I can see what they reported. Regardless of what they showed, it's great exposure for the sake of bringing us business.

As for things around here, the weather has been great and later this week, construction on my house and the new factory will start.

i had a sociology prof. in college who decided what to do with test cheaters depending on their place of origin. an american who cheated was instantly sent on academic probabation or expelled. there were no exceptions, if you grew up in the USA you were absolutely punished for cheating. the russians, armenians, ukranians and other post soviet countries who had a mass exodus of people of whom mostly attended my college in los angeles... were just slapped on the hand. they were given a long lecture by my dear soc. prof mrs. allen, but they were never reported to higher authority. the explanation was as follows: the americans were taught that cheating was a moral flaw, it was a question of values. you knew you were wronging by cheating. in the soviet union, it was part of common culture to work together, together against the system, always lending out a hand to your comrade. cheating was not a moral issue. it would have been more a moral issue at the time to not unite against the system... this case mrs. allen was the system. mrs. allen is a very wise woman, who understood the difference in the approach to cheating... and while she punished the americans for doing something they knew was wrong, she attempted to lecture the new immigrants on the new sets of values they would have to accept to make it in their new home.

i am writing all of this because i was an observer. it has taken me a long time to post this log, because i really did not know what approach to take when describing my experience. i am not making any accusations, the story above is not a comparison... it is meant to give you an understanding of differences in culture. the thing that shook me most, and what i want to focus on is that the people here, as amazingly warm and beautiful as they are... have been affected by the reign of the soviet union... and the backlash it had on society to work against things such as believing in honesty and justice. with a total lack of faith in governement, the people were divided into groups of, those who received money for their vote, those who remained indifferent and did not vote, those who were doing anything to make their candidate come on top for either a bribe or a promised position, and a grip of people who were really dedicated to the idea of elections and came to vote... and vote honestly. my heart hurt for the last group. my heart was broken by the people on election day. the president can be joe, jim, or jack... there is an engrained lack of trust in the people... and the way that people solve problems and take care of situations has a lot of evolving to do before it can stop causing a skipped heart beat in me.

it is going to take me a while to swallow this. it will take me a while to think like mrs. allen, to take off my glasses and put local glasses on and see with those... see the same things i saw... and by looking through those glasses try to make sense of it all. my upbringing is so different and i have to learn to take the good things from my upbringing and the good things from this society and mix them... live by them and be a good example to others.

arthur returned last night. we stayed up all night talking, laughing and just catching up. he had jet lag so he did not sleep... and i stayed up with him to keep him company. at 6 in the morning we decided to go to khash... we went in search of a khash location and came across this place that is both a restaurant and hotel... i think i am the first woman in history brought there by her own husband... everyone was staring at me... apparently thinking i must be a girlfriend or a lover to say the least. arthur kept repeating that i was his wife. the people seemed a bit jolted, i am sure some people really did not believe us... but we set a precedent... we wanted to eat khash together at 6 am... husband and wife... and we did not let social norms dictate to us that we could not. the waitress recognized me as arthur's wife and she told us at the end that she thought it was "cool" (kayf) that we came to khash together... usually she serves a gripload of men who make numerous toasts and eat a horses portion.

at long last the movie attendant at kino nairi is a disaster. i wanted to reprimend her last time at 8 mile... and she started to cry and arthur felt sorry for her and asked me to leave it alone. i had already called the manager... but since she was crying i calmed down and let it go. i shouldn't have. perhaps if i had pursued the situation her attitude problem would have been adjusted. perhaps at our next movie night if she causes a scence... i will go ahead with the original plan... to get her hand slapped for being so cold, uncaring and mean.

Today a few of us decided to go to see "Catch Me If You Can" at Nairi Cinema. We called the theatre yesterday to see what time the movie was going to play and they told us 6pm. So we went by there early this afternoon and they told us that the time had been changed to 8:30pm. We bought our tickets anyway.

So later on in the evening we got there around 8:20pm and what did they tell us at the box office? "We decided to start the movie at 8 instead." Of course our tickets said 8:30 on them, but we didn't even get an apology. When we got to the door, another employee approached us and asked us for our tickets. We told her, as well, what happened and she rudely responded in Armenian "Don't tell me, it's not my problem, tell them at the box office". (Madlene definitely knows which employee I'm talking about cause we had a problem with her before when we went to see "8 Mile" a few weeks back.) This story will be added to my other "lack of customer service" encounters (Pizza di Roma and SFC).

The weather was great today. Most of the snow has melted and the green grass is visible again. In the meantime, the US vs Iraq war is said to start next week. Here, the opposition rallies are continuing and the fabricated stories of observers being kicked around and their hairs being pulled on election day are circulating. Why can't we all just get along?

Peace.

Congratulations Ara!!!

March 8th-- women�s day --a wonderful early spring day in Yerevan. The streets full of field flowers and warmth.


Around 4:30 - on Baghramian street (where the Presidential palace and the Parliament building are located among various embassies), the scene changes, thousands of angry women, some with their children, with flowers and banners marching and chanting � Go away Kocharian� , �Shame on you�.
I have been told that while passing by the French and Italian embassies the Embassies� staff has accepted the protesters� �Thank Yous� with warmth and speech. On the other hand the protestors shouted � Shame !!! � in front of the Russian embassy, because Russian President Putin�s haste to congratulate Mr. Kocharian as a winner in the presidential elections. The diplomacy has lost it�s sense in Armenia now days.

I was impressed by the magnitude and readiness of the women protestors. Everything went without any disturbances. No road blocks, no police intimidation, no insults from both sides� everybody knows that we are the same nation: being an angry protester, a policemen, or a soldier waiting for the orders.

In couple of hours there is going to be another demonstration I have been informed.

March 8, 2003

We celebrated the Beauty day, i.e. Women's International Day.
It was very special, because the organization I volunteer with had invited thirty widows and mothers of freedom fighters.
Some of the mothers came wearing black from head to toe.
We had prepared an Armenian table: cake, pastry, torts, fruit, sandwiches, candies, champagne, and soft drinks.
A lady had invited a poet living in the area, and she read some of her own poetry; the women spoke, raised some issues to us and to two journalists covering the event. The widows sang and wept, drank, and always remembered the departed ones, whose blood ensured the independence and sovereignty of this country.
Life is hard. But we are Armenian, and as one of the elderly mothers quoted poetry, from another late freedom fighter, Tatul, life continues. We survive and we prevail.

I'd like to congratulate to all women readers in Armenian, 'Tzer Mardi 8-u shnorhavor'.

On a different note, tomorrow I am leaving for Canada for two months.

This picture of the Tashangs marching towards Kocharian's rally is specially dedicated to the Tashnags of Toronto (where I'm originally from, and where there is an active Tashnagtsootyun community).

I haven't logged in a week 'cause after witnessing the infamous Demirchian vs Kocharian debate I figured it would be better for me not to say anything. I mean, I wouldn't have to say anything anyway. On numerous occasions we were told that Demirchian would not participate in a debate with Kocharian (just like his father did 5 years earlier, when Kocharian ended up debating solo). The debate was supposed to air at 9:30pm, and after a slight delay, the showdown began and Demirchian did actually show up. I have to say that I give the man enough credit for his participation.

Prior to this weeks election, I had attended Kocharian's rally. Tens of thousands attended with lots of flags and banners representing various political organizations and businesses. After the rally we drove by Demirchian's rally at Republic Square and you can clearly see the contrast in supporters between the two candidates. Kocharian's rally seemed like a get together for a different class society of Armenia, compared to Demirchian's. (Generally, they give the impression that they are employed and obviously, and naturally, seem happier.)

It's been 3 days since the election and Demirchian has already had two rallies and is planning at least another one this weekend. He made a comment a couple of days ago telling his supporters "not to give up" and "we will win in any case". His supporter Aram Sarkisian said "Kocharian, your victory sucks" and "with our unity and consolidation, we will achieve the resignation of the current authorities in two or three days". (Basically, stimulating more hysteria and tension in an already fragile state.)

Russia and Ukraine have already congratulated Kocharian on his re-election, while the U.S. has only expressed their regret that the elections were not fair (I suppose since Bush's victory was legit they have a right to speak). I'm guessing they were hoping that Kocharian (with his pro European and Russian attitude) would not get re-elected. Maybe even expecting a weaker president they can kick around a little bit.

Hopefully, this endless matter will move on soon and we can go on with our lives. Oh no, I forgot about the other elections in May. Anyway, I've already started working, got many exciting things on my agenda, but also dealing with the annoying house shopping process.

Having in mind that politics is only part of the Armenian life and that not all our readers are interested in it, I will try to do my best to write about other things and events that surround us.

Yesterday after the walk down to Baghramian street I felt hunger in my belly and wanted to figure out that how to make it (my belly) happy. There are plenty of restaurants and cafes around for different tastes and budgets, but I prefer homemade food. My fridge, to whom I gave the name �the Stalin fridge� since I believe it comes from that era was totally empty, therefore we had the choice to either get something from the store which, is right on the ground floor of the building where I live or try to force myself to enter to one of those food establishments. When we were walking down towards Hanrapetutyan square and it started raining the agony of choice start killing us. We could go to Monte Cristo and have a delicious dinner or go and cook at home. We decided to do the second and pop-in to a liquor store right next to HSBC bank for a bottle of red wine. On the door of the store there was a direction sign showing us to walk 70M down the street. I am sure we walked more than that and ended up next to an Indian restaurant. The Indian looking guy (Armenian) with a mole on his forehead (I am sure it was natural, and probably he was given the job thanks to it) opened the door and gave a positive answer to my question whether the chief is an Indian. The dinner that my companion and me enjoyed was pretty nice, even though I could feel that the kitchen was lacking a number of important spices. It was important that the food was served to both of us at the same time so none of us had to stay hungry and stare to the other persons food. They had draft Kilikia and since I thought that only Kotayk comes in drafts it was suspicious but it went down smoothly. The other thing that was very suspicious was the size of chicken tikkas (each one of them had a size of a medium bird) a very vivid characteristic of Armenian cousin. My guess is that the chief either is not an Indian or he/she adopted the traits of his/her new home. I was too full to storm to the kitchen to find it out. Next time perhaps.

Yesterday was a demonstration day, we will have one today and tomorrow, too.
There weren�t many people, at least I expected more. I was going to say that �it was very poorly organized� but instead I will say �It was NOT organized at all� comparing it to the 1988 Karabakh movement demonstrations and any that I have seen so far. There were no banners and a core within the standing people who could lead them.
After taking some photos and listening a little bit I headed to Baghramian Street, there were 6-7 big busses full of soldiers waiting. Of course nothing happened because I doubt that any of the �demonstration� organizers have the guts for an action, even for a non-violent one. We have a Milosevic situation , but not the people who can take over the Presidential palace and through the pre-filled ballots from the windows.
I overheard the police talking and they were saying that the whole �election thingy� was a show.

The observers declared that, the elections were disaster, but they are not loosing the hope. I.e. either Kocharian has to step down or people have to defend their rights. This means that the West does not recognize the current Armenian government. This is not about who gets elected, it�s about loosing our place in the world politics.

Hopefully till Sunday the democracy will be restored otherwise we will have a dictatorship, since the current regime will know that there is absolutely no opposing power.
go to www.a1plus.am for more.

This Tigran Naghdalian murder case is really bothering me and not the black and white part of it (Tigran Naghdalian being killed and by who), but all the underlying details that could be intentionally ignored or covered up.

It seems that 5 of the suspects are from Martuni and one from Hadrut.

I saw the news tonight and all they are saying is that the suspects have been detained and there are more who are in hiding, but are being sought.

As for the underlying details I think will maybe be ignored or covered up are about the weapon and where it came from and also the legal system if it worked as it should, would have had at least one of the suspects and his father sitting in jail log ago?

The weapon came from the bank in Martuni. One of the suspects had stolen the weapon during the war.

At some point (I can�t remember when), the suspect had the weapon confiscated from him by the police and it was register as being confiscated and in the custody of the police.

Then at some point, the chief of police secretly gave it back to the suspect.

I really think this little detail will be overlooked and the chief will pay some big bribe to someone to make sure this happens and he retains his job or retires and in both cases does not face any charges.

If you are scratching your head wondering what to make of all this, then your not alone, as I�ve been doing this for the whole day and from my thinking about this, I�ve got a splitting headache.

I guess if what I think will happen, happens, I�m going to have to make sure that this log falls in the hands of journalists and a huge stink is made about it.

Welcome to the logs Haig.

I was wondering when they were going to finally announce the arrests? The people here in Martuni have been waiting to hear the news that many got on the 3rd and in my case last night (since I was busy in Stepanagert and out of the Martuni information circle for a few days).

It seems that a couple of our local boys were arrested on the 3rd or 4th in connection with the Tigran Naghdarlian assassination. What the details are, I don�t know yet and if it was the starting point of the arrests and those arrests lead to other arrests, that too I don�t know.

I guess without all the facts, we can�t really say that this is a diversionary move to draw attention away from election fraud. I would think that it could in fact be turned around and add to Kocharian�s problems, being that the people that are maybe tied to Tigran�s assassination are from Artsakh and with the suspicion of Kocharian�s being behind the October 27th assassination that Tigran was possibly going to provide incriminating evidence, someone from Artsakh might have been called in to shut him up.

Anyway, I don�t know what to say but will say that Haig is right about them waiting to announce arrests a couple days after the fact (though even in the states, that�s not uncommon if they have not arrested everyone). The timing is just a little strange.

Welcome Haig. As you reported the police caught 6 people responsible for the killing of Tigran Naghdalian last night. Why was it announced on election day, who knows how long they have known about it? I have a bad feeling about this.

Again so many reports of misrepresentations but this time some were on the news. One incident where a Demirchian representative stated that voting cards had run out at 1pm? So instead of waiting for the organizers to get more cards from their safe he sends a fax in to the Central Electorate Committee casting his vote.

Another incident where a guy tried to stuff the ballot box with Demirchian votes and was caught in the process. The feeling is that this round was more corrupt than the first. I wonder if there�s going to be problems or what OSCE will announce regarding the fairness of these elections. Kocharian was 67.5% and Demirchian 32.5% at 8am.

I�m going to Berlin for the weekend.

Good day everybody,

I am a new logger and here is a short intro about me.

I have arrived to Armenia about a month ago and I have the good intentions to stay here for good. I have finally passed the phase of geographic adaptation, which was not only accompanied by a jetlag but also with horrible headaches for 4-5 days and muscle aches for about 10 days, followed by a digestive system failure. I link it to the idea of walking upside down with a 45 degree tilt