National Suicide in Progress

Dec 222011
 
 December 22, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 2:46 am No Responses »

(Հայերեն տարբերակը՝ «Ազգային ինքնասպանությունը՝ ընթացքի մեջ»)

 

Charles Aznavour vs. Serj Tankian

Charles Aznavour vs. Serj Tankian

I asked a provocative question at the Armenian National Committee (ANC)  Grassroots conference, on November 25, 2011, regarding the catastrophic proportions of emigration from Armenia, calling it “the white genocide of 2011”. I made sure to emphasize the controversy of the wording, over which the members of the Diaspora community appear to be divided. I wanted to get more opinions.

“White genocide”, as defined in Wikipedia, is the term Western Armenians use to describe assimilation in the West. Until the first years of Armenia’s independence, it has been referred exclusively to the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923. However, the mass emigration that followed Armenia’s independence was often associated with ‘white genocide’ by the public at large. What Eastern Armenians are going to face in the future outside their homeland is most probably gradual assimilation. The reality is that today about half of the Armenian citizens prefer the prospect of non-violent assimilation over a life doomed to poverty, humiliation, and injustice in their homeland at the hands of their own government.

Of all panelists, I directed my question first and foremost to Serj Tankian, who has been outspoken about the Genocide of 1915. Below is Tankian’s answer: Continue reading »

How to Renovate Already Renovated Retirement Home (NEW DETAILS)

Nov 222011
 
 November 22, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 3:29 am No Responses »

(Հայերեն տարբերակ)

 

A few days ago the cost of the “Stepanakert Elderly House Reconstruction,” an ongoing project of “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund (HAAF), increased by 265%. This dramatic increase from about $400 thousand as of October 2011 to about $1 million as of November 2011 was accompanied by the addition of the Artsakh government as a co-sponsor of the project. Thus, the allegedly cash-strapped Artsakh government has committed to investing $600,000 to an already overvalued project.

Over a month ago I published How to Renovate Already Renovated Retirement Home, an article about the redundancy of certain aspects of that project and the cost exaggeration. I had also pinpointed the indecency of the HAAF for providing false information about the history of the retirement home. At that time they claimed the building in question had not undergone major reconstruction since 1988, whereas it is a fact that Louise Manoogian Simone funded a major makeover in 1999, costing about $400 thousand. Continue reading »

When Seyran Ohanyan Gave Green Light To Army Violence

Sep 282010
 
 September 28, 2010  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 9:02 pm 1 Response »
Seyran Ohanyan and Pavel Manukyan

Seyran Ohanyan and Pavel Manukyan

The tradition for not punishing military personnel for violence has been set by none other than Colonel-General Seyran Ohanyan, Defense Minister of Armenia, on June 19, 2005. That day Seyran Ohanyan, then the Defense Minister of Artsakh, together with a number of high-ranking military officials—Samvel Karapetyan, Vardan Balayan, Artur Harutiunyan, Vladik Khachatryan, as well as current Defense Minister of Artsakh, Movses Hakobyan—subjected Artsakh war veteran Pavel Manukyan to a severe gang beating within the walls of the Defense Ministry. The incident became a scandal both on TV, and in media, however, it didn’t get as much public attention as it would today thanks to the social networks. Numerous articles were written about the violence committed by High-Ranking Generals, the Armenian authorities called on the their counterparts in Artsakh to conduct an impartial investigation of the matter.  The former Artsakh President, Arkady Ghukasyan, promised to guarantee unbiased administration of justice.  The tradition for not punishing military personnel for violence has been set by none other than Colonel-General Seyran Ohanyan, Defense Minister of Armenia, on June 19, 2005. That day Seyran Ohanyan, then the Defense Minister of Artsakh, together with a number of high-ranking military officials—Samvel Karapetyan, Vardan Balayan, Artur Harutiunyan, Vladik Khachatryan, as well as current Defense Minister of Artsakh, Movses Hakobyan—subjected Artsakh war veteran Pavel Manukyan to a severe gang beating within the walls of the Defense Ministry. The incident became a scandal both on TV, and in media, however, it didn’t get as much public attention as it would today thanks to the social networks. Numerous articles were written about the violence committed by High-Ranking Generals, the Armenian authorities called on the their counterparts in Artsakh to conduct an impartial investigation of the matter.  The former Artsakh President, Arkady Ghukasyan, promised to guarantee unbiased administration of justice.  Continue reading »

“Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund Cover-Up Foiled

Jul 082011
 
 July 8, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 3:18 am No Responses »

Appendix to “To Donate or Not to Donate,”
a white paper on “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund

By Ara K. Manoogian

 

Sarkis Kotanjian giving an interview to Horizon TV

Sarkis Kotanjian giving an interview to Horizon TV

As I was working on the final part of the white paper, Part III was attracting more and more attention from people both pleased and displeased with activities of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund (hereafter, HAAF or the Fund). As belated as it was, for the first time, Ara Vardanyan, the Executive Director of the Fund, reacted to the white paper in the form of a lengthy comment. He wrote: “As the present Executive Director of “Hayastan” All Armenian Fund I hereby state that articles published by Ara Manoogian are purely slanderous.”

Expressed through a number of comments, Ara Vardanyan’s main message was nothing new: “Is it possible to fail to notice the hundreds of schools, residential buildings, water mains, hospitals, gas pipe lines, and kindergartens, which “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund has built in Armenia and Artsakh” (comment #6). With slight paraphrasing, this statement is voiced by nearly all Fund representatives and staunch supporters (Ara Vardanyan, Sarkis Kotanjian, Vardan Partamyan, Stepan Partamian and others) in response to accusations of corruption or low quality. Such response translates into a well-known saying: “Never look a gift horse in the mouth.” Continue reading »

Bedros Terzian Saw the Elephant

Oct 072011
 
 October 7, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 11:39 pm No Responses »

 (The Armenian version)

This is a response to a letter of resentment, titled “Correction: About ‘Hayastan’ All-Armenian Fund,” by Bedros Terzian, President of “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund in France and a member of its Board of Trustees. “Correction” was published in issue #200 of Nor Haratch, a Paris-based Armenian language newspaper, on April 5, 2011, as a response to the coverage of “To Donate Or Not to Donate?”, a white paper on “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund in four consecutive issues of Nor Haratch, which published its own response to Mr. Terzian’s letter in the same issue: “Armenian Journalism Targeted: Answer to ‘Correction.’”

Continue reading »

How to Renovate Already Renovated Retirement Home

Oct 082011
 
 October 8, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 6:59 am No Responses »

(the Armenian version)

“Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund made an announcement in the summer of 2011 about launching a new project, which appeared controversial to me. The target was the Stepanakert Retirement Home, which was scheduled to undergo an extensive renovation thanks to a generous donation of $400 thousand from Armen Shakhazizyan, a Moscow-based industrialist, as reported by the Fund’s blog. With the Artsakh government co-financing the project, the cost of that proposed major facelift is probably over a half a million dollars.

Nursing Home of Stepanakert

Nursing Home of Stepanakert

One statement in the press release raised question marks over the Fund’s trustworthiness and the expediency of the project: “The two wings of the Stepanakert Retirement Home were last upgraded in 1988.” This is an outright false statement. The retirement home had been extensively remodeled in 1999 by the AGBU.

The official website of the AGBU lists all the projects implemented by the Union in Armenia; among them is the following: “Renovation of the Stepanakert house for elderly people, with 55 permanent residents and 150 aged people under custody.” The retirement home was remodeled with the remaining funds, initially allocated for the renovation of Alex Manoogian Street in Stepanakert. I have firsthand information from Louise Manoogian Simone that about $400 thousand from the street renovation was reallocated for the reconstruction of the retirement home, thanks to the recommendation of the Artsakh Government to the donor. Continue reading »

Response to Benon Sevan’s Call to Shut Up

Oct 122011
 
 October 12, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 9:30 am 2 Responses »

This is a response to “Excessive Negativism and Constant Attacks Jeopardize Armenia’s Development,” a commentary by Benon Sevan, published in California Courier on October 13, 2011
(Read the original commentary)

Benon Sevan (©Thompson Reuters)

Benon Sevan (©Thompson Reuters)

Benon Sevan, former Head of the United Nations Oil-for-Food Program, has provided well intended recommendations for Armenia’s development, with a side effect of prolonging and strengthening the tenure of the incumbent corrupt Armenian government. His good intentions are laid out in an article, “Excessive Negativism and Constant Attacks Jeopardize Armenia’s Development,” published in the California Courier on October 13, 2011:

Regardless of our impatience and desire to witness a truly democratic state of Armenia, we have no alternative to being patient, because it takes time to develop democracy, economic and social development, and civil society, as well as true democratic reforms.

Continue reading »

What “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund Does Not Want You to Know

Nov 182011
 
 November 18, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 10:10 pm No Responses »

(The French version, հայերեն տարբերակ)

To Donate Or Not to Donate to "Hayastan" All-Armenian Fund

To Donate Or Not to Donate to "Hayastan" All-Armenian Fund

It has been a year since Sarkis Kotanjian, Executive Director of “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund (HAAF) Western U.S. region, gave a TV interview, during which he made so many untrue statements about the Fund that I could no longer put up with the lies. I started working on a detailed report about the true face of the Fund, based on both my personal experience and ample evidence from eyewitness accounts and press. The white paper was titled “To Donate Or Not to Donate?” (Click here for the Armenian version), which covered a wide range of issues related to the HAAF and the Armenian government.

I had a meeting with Sarkis Kotanjian shortly after the interview to understand why he was drawing such an inaccurate picture of the Fund on TV. It became obvious that he was misleading thousands of viewers knowingly.

Continue reading »

Artsakh ALMOST Corrupt

Dec 082011
 
 December 8, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 12:35 am No Responses »

Robert Avetisyan, Special representative of Artsakh in the U.S., speaks at ANC Grassroots about army abuses, liberated territories, “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund and youth.

Remembering Monte Melkonian – Major-général Vardan Balayan (1998)

Dec 022011
 
 December 2, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 1:56 am No Responses »

Remembering Monte Melkonian – Major-General Nelson Soghomonyan (1998)

Dec 022011
 
 December 2, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 1:34 am No Responses »

Official Artsakh Reaction to “To Donate Or Not to Donate?”

Dec 022011
 
 December 2, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 1:20 am No Responses »

“Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund a Religion?

Dec 022011
 
 December 2, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 1:05 am No Responses »

“Hayastan” All-Armenia Fund’s Ara Vardanyan LIVE call-in Interview

Nov 262011
 
 November 26, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 12:46 am No Responses »

Ara Manoogian and The Truth Must Be Told Pledges $1,000 to HAAF

Nov 252011
 
 November 25, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 1:34 am No Responses »

Ara Manoogian, the creator of The Truth Must Be Told, pledges $1,000 to the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund 2011 telethon and encourages others to do the same.

“As a donor to the Fund, I will be demanding that my $1,000 is used for bringing drinking water 24/7 to the people of Artsakh, as the Armenia Fund is promising to do, and will encourage other to do the same,” said Ara Manoogian.

A hostess of the All-Armenian Fund telethon 2011 has declared that 88% of all illnesses in Artsakh could be water-related. If this is true, then anyone who does not donate is truly turning their backs on the people of Artsakh. For this reason, Manoogian chose to donate generously.

The Truth Must Be Told strongly encourages everyone to look beyond all the problems that plague the All-Armenian Fund and donate. We are not saying that we should forget or ignore the problems, but instead donate and then demand that the money is properly used.

Ara K. Manoogian is a human rights activist representing the Shahan Natalie Family Foundation in Artsakh and Armenia; a Fellow of the Washington-based Policy Forum Armenia (PFA); creator of www.thetruthmustbetold.com and author of the white paper “To Donate Or Not to Donate”, an in-depth study on the activities of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund

What “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund Means by 24/7 Water in Artsakh

Nov 252011
 
 November 25, 2011  Posted by Ara K. Manoogian at 12:54 am No Responses »

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