JUNE 27, 2020 Mirror-SpeTHE ARMENIAN ctator Volume LXXXX, NO. 49, Issue 4642 $ 2.00 NEWS The First English Language Armenian Weekly in the United States Since 1932 IN BRIEF Mirror-Spectator NASA’s Sarah Hovsepian Brings Out-of-This- Annual Summer Break WATERTOWN — The Armenian Mirror-Spectator World Ideas to Help COVID-19 Patients will close for two weeks for its annual summer break at the end of June. The last issue before the By Alin K. Gregorian IRVINE, Calif. — Talking She recently made news break will be that of June 27. The first issue back Mirror-Spectator Staff with Sarah Hovsepian can because her division came up will be that of July 18. give one whiplash — in the with blueprints for ventilators Our offices have been closed due to the COVID- best possible sense of the word. After all, here is a woman whose that could be built quickly 19 pandemic; our staff has been working from their ideas and scientific learning weave together space design, origami, and inexpensively for COVID- homes and will continue to do so. ants and ventilators. 19 patients.Titled Project Emails and messages will be checked regularly. Hovsepian is a project manager at the National Aerospace and Vital, Hovsepian and her team Science Administration’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. built the prototype in 37 days, all while work- UN Human Rights ing from home. According to Council Adopts the KRQE Armenia-Sponsored story, the prototype is made of about 80 parts and was designed to deliver more oxygen at higher pressure, Resolution on Genocide something doctors say is needed for many COVID-19 patients. Testing at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York Prevention has so far proven the project a success. NEW YORK (Arka) — The United Nations Human In the past month since the group made the news, Rights Council adopted by consensus a Resolution Hovsepian said that her group’s two designs got the on Prevention of Genocide, sponsored by Armenia, approval of the Food and Drug Administration, one the press office of the Armenian foreign ministry at the end of April and another more recently. reported on Monday, June 22. The document, which The next step, she said, is manufacturing them. is traditionally presented by Armenia, is based on Hovsepian said that more than 330 companies had the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment Hovsepian and colleagues with a prototype of their ventilator reached out, of which 24 were handpicked to receive of the Crime of Genocide and confirms its position see HOVSEPIAN, page 10 that genocide has caused great losses to humanity at all times. The resolution draws the attention of the world Instagram Memes community to the threat of genocide and to the idea How Has COVID-19 Changed of eliminating the recurrence of this crime in the Find the Funny Side modern world, emphasizing the need for joint efforts by states to eliminate this terrible crime. The Non-Profit Landscape? The resolution, introduced in 2020 by Armenia, Of Being Armenian reaffirms the idea that the justification of past geno- BOSTON — Diasporan-Armenian By Anaïs DerSimonian cides or their denial can lead to new violence. organizations — like their counter- By Serena Hajjar Special to the Mirror-Spectator The updated text of the document includes many parts the world over during the Special to the Mirror-Spectator new provisions: it emphasizes that the threat of COVID-19 era — have been forced to radically alter their practices to meet genocide looms in countries where fundamental social distancing guidelines and travel restrictions. To continue operating BOSTON — “See if the race will human rights and freedoms are massively violated, at a limited capacity over the last few months, Armenian organizations not live again when two of them including ethnic, racial, national or religious minori- have moved the majority of their in-person meet in a beer ties. In this context, attention is drawn to early events and meetings to online Zoom video parlor, twenty signs of genocide, such as the spread of the word of calls, and due to funding cuts in most years after, and hatred by politicians towards these groups and the cases, have been forced to reevaluate laugh, and speak distortion of their real image. The importance of which programs are worth pursuing. in their tongue.” preserving the spiritual heritage and historical mon- see NON-PROFIT, page 11 When William Saroyan penned uments of national, religious and ethnic minorities these famous was also noted. Birthright participant Ani Bournazian words in 1936, he The resolution confirms that the main elements working on her internship online was writing for an of the prevention of genocide are the study of past analog world, one genocides and respect for the memory of victims. unaware of the The need for preserving evidence and archival evi- massive techno- dence related to past genocides is also indicated. logical revolution Armenia is an elected member of the UN Human which would tran- Rights Council for 2020–2022 and, as a member of spire over the the Council, noted among its priorities that it will course of the next contribute to international efforts to prevent geno- century. Yet, the cides and other mass crimes by strengthening advent of the internet and the explosion of social national and international mechanisms. media have done nothing if not reinforce his mes- sage and proven its endurance. Nestled within the infinite universe of these ubiq- uitous online platforms is a budding Armenian com- munity, one whose membership transcends bor- INSIDE ders, dialects and politics. see INSTAGRAM, page 7 Beirut’s Vahan Tekeyan Sarkissian School Faces a Crisis Interview Page 3 TCA of US and Canada Allocates $60,000 WATERTOWN — The one-time flourishing Lebanese- Armenian community today faces a serious crisis of sur- INDEX vival. Our communities are duty-bound to help the Armenia . 2-4 Lebanese-Armenians, based on the principle of mutual Arts and Living . 12 assistance of Armenian diasporan communities, espe- Community News. 6 cially since the latter for decades provided intellectual Editorial . 18 and educational sustenance and leadership to the com- International . 5 munities of the West facing assimilation. see SCHOOL, page 11 Vahan Tekeyan School’s new building to which students moved in 1965 2 S ATURDAY J UNE 2 7 , 2 0 2 0 T HE A RMENIAN M IRROR -S PECTATOR ARMENIA News From Armenia Court Rejects Arrest Warrant Request PM Tours Streets of For Armenian Opposition Leader Yerevan, Distributes Face YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — A court in Masks Yerevan on Sunday, June 21, refused to allow law-enforcement authorities YEREVAN (Armenpress) — Prime Minister Nikol to arrest Gagik Tsarukyan, a wealthy Pashinyan toured the streets of Yerevan on June 18 businessman leading the main opposi- and thanked to the citizens for wearing face masks tion Prosperous Armenia Party to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (BHK), on charges strongly denied by (COVID-19). him. The PM also distributed face masks to the citizens The National Security Service for free. (NSS) charged Tsarukyan with vote During the tour the PM visited the Armenian buying and moved to arrest him after state institute of physical culture to see how the the Armenian parliament lifted his anti-coronavirus rules are maintained in the edu- immunity from prosecution on June cational facility. 16. Reporting by Lilit Demuryan; Editing and The NSS says that Tsarukyan “cre- Translating by Aneta ated and led an organized group” that “We have 665 new cases of coronavirus. We con- bought more than 17,000 votes for tinue not wearing face masks in a massive way. What the BHK during parliamentary elec- do we do wrong that our dear compatriots treat tions held in 2017. It claims to have themselves and the health of the others with such an collected documents and testimony ignorance? Should our government, which was showing that the vote bribes were formed through a dialogue with the citizen, talk to handed out to residents of the its citizen in the language of enforcement for increas- Gegharkunik province. ing his own responsibility to keep his health?” the Tsarukyan and his political allies PM said. reject the accusations as politically On June 12 Armenia extended the coronavirus- motivated. They say that Prime related state of emergency for another month, until Minister Nikol Pashinyan ordered the July 13. criminal proceedings in response to the BHK leader’s recent calls for the Armenian government’s resignation. Pashinyan flatly denied that and Gagik Tsarukyan New Group of French any other political motives when he Doctors Arrive spoke in the parliament controlled by his My Step bloc on June 17. “We YEREVAN (Armenpress) — A second group of don’t need to turn criminal cases into day hearings that ended on Friday. It ting in his car. French doctors arrived in Armenia on June 24 subjects of political horse-trading so did not immediately publicize its rea- “I am happy that the court proved together with the representatives of the Armenian that they make fewer [anti-govern- sons for the decision. strong enough to stay away from polit- Diaspora, Head of the French medical team ment] statements or watch their lan- Tsarukyan refused to talk to jour- ical processes,” said one of the Alexandre Mignon said at an online briefing in guage,” he said. nalists when he came out of the court lawyers, Yerem Sargsyan. He suggest- Yerevan. The district court in the Armenian building in Yerevan moments after ed that during the hearings the court “It was a great honor to be hosted in Armenia and capital rejected the arrest warrant the announcement of the decision. found his and his colleagues’ argu- be able to assist Armenia in the context of the coro- request for Tsarukyan following three- “Ask my lawyers,” he said before get- ments against Tsarukyan’s arrest con- navirus pandemic.