MARCH 14, 2020 Mirror-SpeTHE ARMENIAN ctator Volume LXXXX, NO. 34, Issue 4627 $ 2.00 NEWS The First English Language Armenian Weekly in the United States Since 1932 INBRIEF Karabakh Still Freer Than Azerbaijan, Says US Watchdog Group NEW YORK (RFE/RL) — Nagorno-Karabakh remains a “partly free” territory with a more demo- cratic and pluralistic political system than in Azerbaijan, Freedom House said in an annual sur- vey released on Wednesday, March 4. The US human rights group also said that the 2018 “Velvet Revolution” in Armenia has con- Ruins of Ani Puts History in Perspective tributed to greater respect for “political rights” and “civil liberties” in Karabakh. BELMONT, Mass. — Prof. Peter Balakian and Aram Arkun, in their latest collaboration, the “The political opening in Armenia that began translation of a manuscript by Bishop Krikor Balakian, The Ruins of Ani: A journey to with [Nikol] Pashinyan’s long-shot rise to the pre- Armenia’s Medieval Capital and Its Legacy, are using miership in 2018 had a positive effect on the dis- Armenians’ sentimental attachment to the ancient capital puted territory of Nagorno-Karabakh during 2019,” By Alin K. Gregorian to shine a light on why indeed the city deserves to be reads the latest “Freedom In the World” survey of Mirror-Spectator Staff viewed with awe and reverence. more than 200 countries and territories rated on a On Thursday, February 27, the two discussed their 100-point scale. new book at the National Association for Armenian “There was an increase in competition and civil Studies and Research to a packed audience. Peter Balakian (Photos by Jirair society activity surrounding local elections in see ANI, page 20 Hovsepian) September, and the stage was set for further changes in the [March] 2020 elections for Nagorno- Karabakh’s president and parliament,” it says. As a result, Freedom House gave 34 points to Karabakh, up from 31 in 2019. Azeri Incursion Armenia received 53 points. It is one of the three “partly free” ex-Soviet states showing “some posi- Attempt Reported Tekeyan of US and Canada tive signs” in the past year. The other two are Ukraine and Moldova. YEREVAN (RFE/RL, Armenpress) — The Renovates Berdzor Classroom By contrast, Azerbaijan was again rated “not Armenian military claimed to have thwart- free,” with Freedom House lowering its score from ed early on Friday, March 6, an Azerbaijani BERDZOR, Artsakh — The Tekeyan 11 to 10. commando raid on one of its positions Cultural Association of the United “Power in Azerbaijan’s authoritarian regime along the border with Azerbaijan. States and Canada (TCA) has undertak- remains heavily concentrated in the hands of The government reported attacks en the renovation of the Tekeyan Ilham Aliyev, who has served as president since almost every day. One soldier, Zohrab School in Berdzor, Artsakh, in parallel 2003, and his extended family,” says the report. Sianosyan, 36, was killed by Azerbaijani to the TCA Sponsor a Teacher Program, “Corruption is rampant, and the formal political fire on March 10 in the south-western which supports this school and four opposition has been weakened by years of perse- section of the border. others in Armenia. This renovation pro- cution. The authorities have carried out an exten- According to the Defense Ministry, an gram shows that individuals really can sive crackdown on civil liberties in recent years, Azerbaijani “sabotage” unit attacked the make a difference for life in Artsakh and leaving little room for independent expression or outpost on March 6, but was repelled by Armenia. activism.” Armenian soldiers deployed there, “suffer- Berdzor is strategically located on ing losses” as a result. the Kashatagh (Lachin) passageway The ministry published photographs of a that links Armenia President Signs Bill German-manufactured mine detector and to Artsakh. Its Banning Smoking combat ammunition which it said were left school was in poor by the enemy at the scene. condition due to YEREVAN (Armenpress) — President Armen “One soldier was lightly wounded as a the exigencies of Sarkissian on March 6 signed into law a smoking result of the actions,” the ministry added in the Artsakh War. ban bill. The law bans smoking in indoor public a statement on the pre-dawn incident which The old classrooms spaces, including in all restaurants. it said occurred in Armenia’s northern that children had The same “Do the law really have greater impact than the Tavush province bordering the Gazakh dis- to use had mold classroom at calls and advice we hear from parents, friends, the the Berdzor trict in western Azerbaijan. and broken floors, stories about health hazards from smoking we read Tekeyan Azerbaijan’s State Border Guard Service, walls often ready nearly every day? whose troops protect that section of the School after to collapse, and The math classroom before renovations renovation “It’s never late to quit, and this shouldn’t require border, denied the attempted incursion. It see TCA, page 3 the need of any governmental body. I don’t think said that Armenian troops opened “inten- that an area which first of all requires sober think- sive” fire on some of its positions from ing needs a legislative regulation. Certainly, the law heavy machine-guns and sniper rifles early draws some boundaries which should be adhered in the morning. to,” Sarkissian said. “The Azerbaijani provocations are con- tinuing,” the ministry spokesman, Artsrun Life in Armenia Seems Back to Normal Hovannisyan, said on Friday. Tensions at the Tavush-Gazakh border As Government Advocates End to Travel have been on the rise in recent weeks INSIDE despite an overall decrease in truce viola- YEREVAN (Combined Sources) suspension of all flights from Yerevan to tions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict — Armenian citizens who are currently in Italy and back until April 8. observed since October 2018. Italy have been urged to “urgently suspend The whole of Italy, a country of some 60 “During the same period our soldiers their trips and return to Armenia” because million people, has been placed under quar- Armenia’s State have been wounded as a result of enemy of the spread of the new coronavirus antine, as the Italian authorities have actions,” Hovannisyan said. “It is only nat- (COVID-19) in this part of Europe. stepped up efforts to tackle the coronavirus Symphony Rises ural that we retaliated adequately for our In a statement issued on Tuesday, March outbreak that has affected more than 9,000 wounded soldiers, which may have had 10, Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs people and left 463 dead in the country. [fatal] consequences.” also urged Armenian citizens to strictly Earlier, authorities in Armenia also urged Page 12 In addition, Public Radio of Armenia report- refrain from visiting Italy “given the mea- citizens to temporarily avoid visiting Iran, ed on March 9 that Azerbaijani forces have sures being taken by the Italian authorities China, South Korea, Japan and EU coun- been firing in the direction of Tavush Province. aimed at preventing the spread of COVID- tries over coronavirus risks, except in “There has been shooting in the direc- 19.” urgent cases. INDEX tion of Voskepar this morning, but the vil- Authorities in Yerevan also called upon In addition, government announced that Arts and Living . 12 lage has not been directly targeted,” head citizens who are currently in Italy to remain it is cancelling an Armenian delegation’s Armenia . 2,3 of Voskepar community Serob Makhsudyan in constant contact with Armenia’s scheduled participation at the AI & Big Community News. 5 told Public Radio of Armenia. embassy in Rome. data EXPO in London March 17-18. Editorial . 18 Firing in the direction of the village start- Later on Tuesday the Irish budget airline Armenia reported its first and as yet only International . 4 ed at about 3 pm on March 8. Several hous- Ryanair, which entered Armenia’s civil avia- coronavirus case on March 1. A 29-year-old es and a vehicle were damaged. tion market earlier this year, announced see VIRUS, page 4 (See related editorial on Page 18.) 2 S ATURDAY, M ARCH 1 4 , 2 0 2 0 T HE A RMENIAN M IRROR -S PECTATOR ARMENIA News From Armenia Armenian Parliament Approves Asset Seizures YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Armenia’s “Nobody beyond this circle can fall have challenged the legality of the parliament passed in the first reading under the jurisdiction of this law except government plans for asset seizures. Archaeologists Have on Thursday, March 5, a government bill in cases where assets were artificially They also claim that Prime Minister Discovered Children’s allowing authorities to confiscate pri- registered in a particular person’s Nikol Pashinyan is intent on a far- vate properties and other assets name,” Badasyan told lawmakers. reaching “redistribution of property” Skeletons at Artanish deemed to have been acquired illegally. The minister thus sought to allay in the country. Under the package of legal amend- fears that many well-to-do Armenians Pashinyan has denied having such Excavation Site ments drafted by the Armenian govern- will now risk losing their properties. He plans. He insisted in December that the ment late last year, prosecutors will be specifically ruled out the confiscation of planned asset forfeiture is essential for YEREVAN (Panorama.am) — Human remains were able to investigate individuals in case of assets acquired with remittances rooting out corruption and will not be unearthed in June 2019 at Artanish archaeological having “sufficient grounds to suspect” received from abroad. arbitrary. site and are kept at the storage site of the Armenian that the market value of their assets The bill was tentatively backed by 100 Deputy Prime Minister Mher “Service for the protection of historical environment exceeds their “legal incomes” by more members of the 132-seat National Grigoryan openly objected to the bill at and cultural museum-reservations” organization, the than 25 million drams ($52,400).