Global Voices » Onnik Krikorian

Azerbaijan: Rewriting The Geopolitical Narrative

Onnik Krikorian — Sat, 26 May 2012 06:51:27 +0000

Following concern expressed in some quarters with how the international media has covered the Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, East of Center looks at the geopolitical issues behind Western engagement of the oil-rich former Soviet republic, arguing that policy towards Azerbaijan might not solely be confined to energy interests.

Azerbaijan: More Arrests Despite ‘Eurovision Effect'

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 25 May 2012 20:35:35 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

On the eve of the final of the Eurovision Song Contest, held this year in Azerbaijan, police in Baku, the capital, have arrested dozens of pro-democracy activists protesting against human rights violations in the oil-rich former Soviet republic. Some reports put the number of those detained at over 30 with others as high as 60-70.

Whatever the number, one thing is clear. If Eurovision has been considered as politically charged in the past, with bloc voting and regional rivalries tainting the intended good spirit of the competition, this year's event has taken controversy to new and higher levels.

Freedom of Speech in Azerbaijan! Baku 24 may 2012! Eurovision gəlsin! Photo by Mehman Huseynov

Freedom of speech in Azerbaijan. Let Eurovision come!

Baxın necə biz Eurovisiona hazırlaşdıq! Polsilərin Qadınla bü cür rəftarı! Ayıb olsun sizə! Bakı 24 may 2012 Photo by Mehman Huseynov

Look how we got ready for eurovision! This is the police's treatment of women! Shame on you!

Foto Azərbaycandaki durumu əks etdirir! Baku 25 may 2012 Photo by Mehman Huseynov

This photo reflects the situation in Azerbaijan!

@leylanajafli: who are these plainclothes?? when will this stop?? #azerbaijan brutal force used on peaceful activists http://on.fb.me/JBSCWN #eurovision

@adnanhajizada: @leylanajafli they are frm ministry of internal affairs

@sakitoglu: 60 #activists were detained today. They are still in custody. #Azerbaijan #Eurovision

@newint: #Armenia has pulled out, #HumanRights campaigners are angry… #Eurovision is as political as ever! http://ow.ly/b92lc #Azerbaijan

With the international media full of stories about Azerbaijan's human rights record, Glennmcmahon470 comments on increased attention this year.

Eurovision has long been subject to ridicule by much of western Europe with its trashy and manufactured pop considered far below our musical tastes with audiences consisting of largely excitable teenage girls and members of the gay community.

But as this year’s competition in Azerbaijan is used as a platform by human rights and pro-democracy campaigners to highlight abuses largely ignored by the western media until now, should the conscientious among us be taking it a little more seriously as a tool for change?

[…]

Previously the competition has been used by other former soviet states to promote themselves to a western Europe who barely knew they were there.

[…]

Azerbaijan is also clearly taking it very seriously, spending more than a billion dollars on the event – the most expensive contest ever, and equally hoping to put themselves on the map, bolster tourism and prove they are capable of putting on prestigious international events.

But the government clearly didn’t bargain on the attention given to its human rights record with activists getting almost as much attention as the 56-year-old event.

[…]

Whether you love it or hate it, he said, the Eurovision has at least created a dialogue on the issues facing Azerbaijan. However it remains to be seen whether once the Eurovision road-show moves on, the media circus moves with it.

However, not everyone is happy with how foreign journalists have covered the event.

@MahirZeynalov: Dear international media, please let us enjoy Eurovision. Yes, yes we get it, Azerbaijan is the worst dictatorship on Earth. Enough bashing.

@nhacizade: by now we have a pretty solid prototype of the western-publication article on #Azerbaijan and #Eurovision. thanks for never surprising.

‏@onewmphoto: @nhacizade True, the reports are predictable and almost overload, but let's face it. Official Baku is giving the media plenty to write about

@nhacizade: @onewmphoto yeah, not unleashing the police everytime 20 people get together for a protest walk would have saved them a lot.

@nhacizade: @onewmphoto but the nature of the coverage also comes from the fact that when media says “country you've never heard of before”..

@nhacizade: @onewmphoto what they mean is “country we never cover and dont know much about”. same for almost all post-soc states that aren't Russia.

Dubbed the ‘Eurovision Effect,' some like AmnestyBrum, an Amnesty International group in the U.K. explains why it considers the spotlight important.

Tomorrow it’s Eurovision time and there are number of concerns we’ve got on the human right situation in the host country Azerbaijan. The song contest is a rare opportunity for Amnesty International to shine a spotlight on the country. In just the last few weeks there have been a whole series of horrific incidents.

[…]

So when everyone else is curling up to watch Eurovision there couldn’t be a better time to turn the spotlight on the real big issues in Azerbaijan. And of course there is the bitter irony that the British entry for Eurovision by Engelbert Humperdink is entitled Love Will Set You Free.

Others, however, are concerned with what will happen when the foreign journalists up and leave Azerbaijan. One of them is Khadija Ismayil, the investigative journalist who was recently blackmailed because of her work and who voiced such concerns in a live RFE/RL Facebook event.

Marion Kipiani There is quite a bit of talk about how the ESC created an opening for independent journalists and HR defenders to speak to an international public. But what is your view on how to keep attention alive after world attention moves on, e.g. to Euro-2012? Do those who were brave enough to speak out now have to fear reprisals?

[…]

Khadija Ismayil […] we are going to have hot summer. Azerbaijani government will retaliate and punish those who spoiled their party. So people active in Sing for Democracy campaign will need more support further. We also expect more pressure on critical journalists and especially investigative journalists. My colleagues from RFE/RL and Bizim Yol newspapers found out how much money had been spent on ESC and that the government diverted money from water supply projects and pension increase to build a concert hall for ESC. Unfortunately, our government is tend to break mirror instead of brushing it's hair to look better.

RFE/RL's Transmission blog also reports that the organizers inside Azerbaijan have been attempting to control press conferences for the event, especially those involving one of the few contestants to show an interest in the internal human rights situation.

Following the second semifinal of the Eurovision Song Contest on May 24 in Baku, Swedish finals contestant Loreen was asked by a Reuters journalist about her meeting with Azerbaijan's political opposition.

She answered simply: “What I can say, there is two parts of me. One that is private and one that is my work that I'm doing here, and just today I want to keep the focus on this energy that we created right now.”

But Azerbaijani Public TV, which is broadcasting Eurovision, immediately had its moderator jump in to keep any more questions “relevant,” prompting howls of protest from the journalists in the room. What's more, its voiced-over translation of the reporter's question into Azeri on its domestic broadcast came through as only “How did you feel on stage?”

Meanwhile, as Azerbaijan prepares to host the final of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, new security measures controlling admission for the audience have been announced at the last minute, perhaps indicating that the unprecedented controversy surrounding the musical event is far from over.

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Thanks to Global Voices Azerbaijan authors Leyla Najafli and Pervin Muradli for the translations from Azerbaijani into English.

Armenia: US Embassy Condemns Attack on Gay-Friendly Bar

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 25 May 2012 05:17:36 +0000

Ararat has more on the firebombing of D.I.Y., a gay-friendly bar in Yerevan, in a post by Global Voices' Caucasus Regional Editor while Unzipped: Gay Armenia publishes a statement from the U.S. Embassy in Armenia condemning the ultra-nationalist attack.

Azerbaijan: Live Eurovision Human Rights Discussion on Facebook

Onnik Krikorian — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:59:09 +0000

On the eve of this year's Eurovision Song Contest final in Baku, Azerbaijan, RFE/RL is planning a live Facebook chat with Elisa Munoz, Acting Executive Director of the International Women's Media Foundation, and Khadija Ismayilova, investigative reporter and talk show host for RFE/RL's Azerbaijan Service, at 13.00 EDT (17.00 GMT) on Friday 25 May.

Armenia: Fascist Rubo (Hayrapetyan)

Onnik Krikorian — Thu, 24 May 2012 07:21:46 +0000

With anti-gay hysteria breaking out in nationalist and official circles, Unzipped: Gay Armenia now reports that Ruben Hayrapetyan, a ruling Republican Party MP and President of the Armenian Football Association, has joined in by declaring that homosexuals should be ‘punished.' One of Armenia's notorious oligarchs also known as ‘Nemetz (German) Rubo,' the blog says that one social media user has suggested he change his nickname to ‘Fascist Rubo.'

Azerbaijan: Is Eurovision A Rare Opportunity For Change?

Onnik Krikorian — Tue, 22 May 2012 10:25:05 +0000

With increased media attention on the country during this week's Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan, former prisoner of conscience Emin Milli argues that the international music competition offers a rare opportunity to raise concerns with human rights abuses and the lack of democratic freedoms in the oil-rich former Soviet republic on the world stage.

Armenia: Nationalists Disrupt Cultural Diversity March

Onnik Krikorian — Tue, 22 May 2012 04:58:14 +0000

As was the case in 2009 during a rally to mark International Women's Day, nationalists in Armenia infiltrated and disrupted a march in Yerevan on 21 May to commemorate World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.

The counter-action was also followed by reports of new attacks on D.I.Y., a gay friendly bar in Armenia's capital that was firebombed on 8 May. With some officials and politicians justifying the attack, liberal bloggers are concerned.

Unzipped: Gay Armenia likens the 21 May disruption to fascism.

To mark United Nation's World Day of Cultural Diversity, PINK Armenia and Women's Resource Centre announced a variety of events as part of the Diversity Week. The week should have kicked off with the Diversity march on 21 May to call for respect of… yes, diversity in Armenia.

But the notion of diversity was once again attacked in Armenia in an organised provocation by neo-nazi elements and their supporters. To gain a wider support among masses, they dubbed Diversity march a “gay pride” and fuelled aggression towards marchers by intentionally spreading misleading information.

[…]

Neo-nazi elements attacked marchers encouraged by endorsement of homophobic hysteria and anti-gay violence on a very high state level that followed firebombing of DIY bar. […]

Watch these reports. Look at these pictures. Faces of fascism in Armenia.

Diversity march in Yerevan © PanARMENIAN Photo / Tigran Mehrabyan

Global Chaos also posts an extensive account, drawing a comparison with recent clashes in neighboring Georgia. While also stressing the Yerevan march was not a gay parade, the blog notes the presence of Armenian priests.

[…] due to PINK Armenia's previous campaigns against homophobia, somehow the Diversity March was distorted in the public mind and presented as a “gay parade” by certain ultranationalist (for the sake of avoiding the “neo-Nazi” term) elements and groupings, who showed up to the event. Their numbers far exceeded those of the actual Diversity marchers and with their aggression and noise they did manage to hijack and distort not only the objective, but also the intended meaning of the event.

[…]

This event, along with all that's been going on with D.I.Y. is becoming a growing trend in Armenia. The blind worship of Garegin Nzhdeh (who, despite his patriotic work, was, let's not forget, a Nazi-cooperator and a supporter of “Aryanism”, having successfully established with Berlin that the Armenians were an “Aryan race”, too) and the increasing influence of the Armenian Apostolic [Echmiadzin] Church encouraged by Armenia's ruling Republican Party is not only worrisome but dangerous. Their ideology, as well as the activities undertaken by its various bodies and supporters, are too similar of Nazism; while their talk about the protection of Armenia's “genetic pool” is dangerously reminiscent of eugenics.

[…]

The fact that aggression against minorities, especially sexual minorities, is encouraged by a range of political forces within the country (including those that are in the supposed opposition), makes this state-supported neo-Nazism. Given Armenia's membership in the UN and the Council of Europe - and therefore, its commitment to such documents as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights, and especially, the PACE's Resolution 1728 (on “Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity”) - the Armenian political leadership should be held accountable not only for allowing such developments in the country, but, especially, for actively supporting them.

One priest in particular made a point of referring to Sodom and Gomorrah, as well as praising the “patriotic youth” who had gathered there to demonstrate their devotion to God and their nation […].

Another Armenian blog, Le Retour in 3 Parts, comments on the policing of the event.

[…] we were no longer in control. Because from this point on it was the cops telling us how to move, where to go, where to stand. We were being controlled by the state apparatus. I don’t believe for a minute that the police actually cared about our safety (in fact, a couple of marchers and supporters told me afterwards the remarks they heard by police officers — remarks that sanctioned the hate rhetoric chanted by protestors). Police follow orders from above — not from activists (and least of all not by activists they perceive as gay or gay allies).

[…]

[…] And yet I felt more like an animal lured into its cage. Because now we were barricaded in, while counter-demonstrators were outside, continuing to chant, sing and proclaim themselves as defenders of the nation and “national values”.

As has been customary for similar actions in Armenia, liberal values were condemned by the nationalists who infiltrated the march with chants such as “Gays go to Baku [Azerbaijan]” and “No to Perversion” reported.

Armenia: State Sponsored Fascism

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:44:59 +0000

Following support from government officials and representatives of the nationalist Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashanktsutyun (ARF-D) for two Neo-Nazis accused of firebombing a gay-friendly bar in Yerevan, Unzipped: Gay Armenia asks if the country is moving towards a form of state sponsored fascism that threatens the rights and well-being of its own citizens.

Armenia: Blogger Calls for Resignation of Homophobic Dashnak MP

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:43:09 +0000

Unzipped: Gay Armenia comments on the continuing controversy surrounding Artsvik Minasyan, an MP from the nationalist Armenian Revolutionary Federation–Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D). The blog says that in addition to bailing out a Neo-Nazi arsonist in police custody, Minasyan continues to make homophobic statements in the media following the 8 May firebombing of a gay-friendly bar in the Armenian capital by labeling homosexuality a threat to the country's national security. Elected under the proportional system in Armenia, and thus lacking a specific mandate in the majoritarian system, Unzipped: Gay Armenia calls on the ARF-D to remove Minasyan from their ranks immediately.

Armenia: Homophobic Firebombing Controversy Continues as Officials, MPs Promote Hate Crime

Onnik Krikorian — Thu, 17 May 2012 22:29:09 +0000

Controversy continues to surround the 8 May firebombing of D.I.Y., a gay friendly bar in Yerevan. At the beginning of the week, two MPs of the nationalist-leaning Armenian Revolutionary Federation — Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D) not only surprised many by bailing the two suspected arsonists out of jail, but also by justifying the attack in what some consider to be little more than incitement to further violence against members of Armenia's LGBT community.

The move has been criticized widely, and not least among other members of the ARF-D, most notably in or countries outside Armenia, who believe the MPs contradict the socialist nature of the party. Some ARF-D supporters on Facebook, for example, even created and changed their profile pictures in support of those targeted.

Another voiced their opinion as a Facebook status update.

[…] the statements made by our Parliament member are unfortunate, and the acts of those two idiots are deplorable. […] I hope [the MP] will be removed from the party, simply because he clearly does not uphold the values of the ARF and therefore should not represent us in a position that should be held for our highest standard of leaders.

http://globalvoicesonline.org/2012/05/16/armenia-concerns-and-fears-after-nationalist-firebombers-released/

Several articles and editorials in Armenian-American newspapers affiliated with the ARF-D agreed. Unzipped: Gay Armenia, for example, re-posts a comment left under one such opinion piece criticizing the actions of the two ARF-D MPs.

There are won’t be any marches in Yerevan. No candle lights, no straight folks walking hand in hand with gays or bi’s in the streets of Yerevan claiming the governments disapproval of such hate crime.

What are they waiting for? Do they need some dead bodies? A sensational crime scene decorated by bloodshed … what the hell the Armenian people are waiting for? Go out! Shout out, people! Say “we don’t want bigotery in this country! We had enough of it!

What? This issue doesn’t concern you? What if you will be the next target and nobody will come out to stand up for you?

Think about it!

Even so, in its latest post, Unzipped: Gay Armenia comments on a video interview with two self-proclaimed fascists who say it was the ARF-D's own television channel that encouraged them to target sexual minorities in the country.

In an interview with ARF Dashnaktsutyun affiliated Yerkir Media TV station, these underage “fascists” mentioned that they started targeting DIY after the report by Yerkir Media on DIY owner Tsomak participation in Istanbul Gay Pride. Interestingly, Yerkir Media didn't air this interview tonight.

Nevertheless, while one small opposition party leader has come out in support of D.I.Y., senior government officials have now shocked liberal Armenians by also speaking out in support of those responsible for the firebombing.

@unzippedblog: Exposed: Chief of staff of Public Council of #Armenia supports neo-nazi firebombers http://goo.gl/HbbYr #neonazi #hatecrime #scandal

@unzippedblog: Disgusting! #Armenia ruling Republican party spokesman MP explicitly supports anti #gay #neonazi firebombers

@HimaKaren: The spokesman of the rulling regime of #Armenia and the vice-speaker of the parliament Eduard Sharmazanov has spreaded a statement encouraging the individuals who has attacked the gay friendly DIY club, and blaming the people who condemn the #homophobic attacks. This means that the current regime is officially encouraging and supports the homophobic attacks and Armenia in-spite of the official #humanrights conventions it has sign[ed]

Indeed, reports Unzipped: Gay Armenia, one government official even set up a homophobic Facebook page, now deleted, praising the arsonists.

Hakob Barkhudaryan, chief of staff of Public Council of Republic of Armenia, a consultative body at Armenia president, created a Facebook page in praise of neo-nazi attackers on DIY bar: “In support of firebombers of DIY club”, calling for attackers to be freed of persecution.

[…]

This is truly Scandal of the Day. We all know that this council is pretty much a formality, and there are quite a few openly homophobic members there. But support for terrorists? Unbelievable.

What is the position of the president of Public Council re this matter? What is the position of Armenia president?

We need urgent answers as the consequences of this could be enormously damaging for the reputation of Armenia, suggesting support for neo-nazi and firebombers in the very heart of state structures.

Meanwhile, Le Retour in 3 Parts says that officials should instead be condemning the attack and not supporting it.

If there was ever a time for state officials and public figures to speak out, it is now. And again, I say, you may consider us mentally ill (despite the fact that homosexuality is no longer considered a mental disorder […]), you may despise us, you may wish we never existed, but you must stand up and condemn such acts. I believe the authorities are obliged to respond — not by creating a page on Facebook praising the neo-nazi attackers on DIY bar, as one state official did, but by publicly stating that it is acceptable neither to take the law into your hands nor to terrorize, intimidate, vilify or otherwise harass another person or group for ANY reason. Period.

Nevertheless, while some officials and politicians condone the attack, a discussion about the rights of the LGBT community in Armenia has at least started. And with the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) this week ranking Armenia as one of the most homophobic countries in Europe, that discussion is needed more than ever.

Georgia: No Sex and the City

Onnik Krikorian — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:37:51 +0000

No Sex and the City — Georgian Liberal (an oxymoron) blog comments on the physical confrontation between priests accompanying religious parents and LGBT activists marching in Tbilisi, Georgia. The blog details events as they happened, including the alleged inaction of the Georgian police when they were asked to intervene to defuse tensions.

Armenia: Fears After Nationalist Firebombers Released on Bail

Onnik Krikorian — Wed, 16 May 2012 05:08:56 +0000

Following the 8 May firebombing of D.I.Y., a gay-friendly bar in Yerevan, the Armenian capital, events have taken an unexpected turn with the release of the suspected arsonists, Iranian-Armenian brothers Hampig and Mgrdich (Arame) Khapazyan. Believed part of a local Neo-Nazi group and caught on camera, one was released on bail of 1 million Armenian Drams (less than $2,600) and the other on guarantee that he will not leave the country.

Of concern to some observers, however, was that bail was posted by Artsvik Minasyan and Hrayr Karapetyan, two MPs from the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D). Moreover, fuelling worries about the rise of nationalism in the country, Minasyan was quoted by the local media as saying that the two brothers were “normal people,” had acted “in the right way in the context of societal & national ideology,” and that one of the bar owners, Tsomak Oganesova, “destroys Armenian society.”

@unzippedblog: One of the arsonists in #neonazi attack towards DIY bar was bailed out by… Dashnak MPs… #Yerevan #Armenia #hatecrime

@unzippedblog: Re bailing out #neonazi attacker on DIY bar: #Armenia Dashnak party must explain what's going on or else I conclude they support terrorism

@Lara_Aha: Tashnak MP Ardzvik Minasyan who just bailed out the 2 suspects in #hate crime and said”people like tsomak(gay) destroying #Armenia” #armLGBT

@KevorkO: A ‘national ideology' that deems thuggery and terrorism more ‘normal' than homosexuality is nothing less than degenerate. #Armenia #DIY

Unzipped: Gay Armenia was shocked:

Basically, Armenian MP of ARF Dashnaktsutyun party Artsvik Minasyan supports and encourages terrorism in Armenia. With such statement, he acted as a pure criminal. ARF Dashnaktsutyun party must explain what's going on or else I'll conclude they support terrorism too.

[…]

If ARF Dashnaktsutyun won't make clear statements distancing itself from its own MP, then truly this is a death of ARF Dashnaktsutyun as a political party and its transformation into a neo-nazi group that supports and encourages terrorism in Armenia. Needless to say, utterly homophobic too.

[…]

If ARF-affiliated groups and party members worldwide care about the reputation of their party, and - more importantly - the future of Armenia, they should speak up against homophobia. They should demand that ARF makes statement clearly disassociated from their MP’s statement. They should demand that disgraced MP Artsvik Minasyan resign.

The blog also notes that a second attack occurred on 15 May and quotes one of its Facebook contacts.

Hate crime, no public condemnation by authorities, more encouragement by an MP and now repetition of hate crime, do you see the cycle?

Nazi swastika graffiti over D.I.Y. anarchy symbol, from gayarmenia.blogspot.com

Le Retour in 3 Parts is also concerned.

For the first time since moving to Armenia, I am afraid. Queer women are in the spotlight — an unfamiliar and not at all good place to be in. We perhaps have become used to being invisible here: we can hold hands in public and generally be more affectionate than men without experiencing stares and suspicious glances from passers-by. But now more than ever, it seems, we elicit the same contempt that has traditionally been reserved for gay men.

[…]

And, I hate myself for thinking this, but at times like these I can’t help but wonder why some of the more outspoken LGBT activists and queer allies had to raise their voices, draw attention to themselves/ourselves, wishing now that they lay low and not provoke other possible acts of violence. And I know I’m not the only one thinking this. Because now we’re in the spotlight and the wayward glances I get every day any way have taken on a whole new meaning.

Ianyan updates its readers, examining motives:

DIY, which bills itself as a bar for alternative thinkers, was frequented by many in Armenia’s gay community, a place considered a safe haven, free of judgment or discrimination. The violent act, which caused around $4,000 of damage according to well-informed sources, is being said to have been motivated by nationalistic and fascist ideology – the bar’s gay-friendly atmosphere as well as owner Tsomak Oganesova’s attendance at Istanbul’s Gay Pride Parade in neighboring Turkey have been cited as two key factors that have categorized the attack as a hate crime.

[…]

Nationalistic sentiments are common in the South Caucasus country, which is almost mono-ethnic and still reeling from the psychological effects of genocide and war. Its isolation, where borders with both Turkey and Azerbaijan are closed and distrust of much of what falls outside the realm of the status quo have been discussed as underlying reasons as to the rise of hate groups whose violent actions have left many fearful.

Following the attack on D.I.Y. as well as on a local activist engaged in peace building initiatives in the region, others are disturbed by recent events as well. Some NGOs, for example, have released a statement [en, ar].

Meanwhile, in response to the firebombing, online civil society news site Civil.Net posts an open discussion on nationalism, xenophobia and human rights violations in Armenia. In Armenian with English subtitles, Ianyan summarized and quoted parts:

Fascism has reached our door and is now saying I’m here,” [Lala] Aslikyan said in Armenian. She regretfully emphasized that the stifling of freedom of expression in the country is growing, while [Karen] Hakobyan pointed out that the groups, mostly consisting of young men in their late teens and early 20s define their “Armenian-ness” by spreading hate towards groups that perceive as threats to national interest. […].

Nagorno Karabakh: Cultural Destruction and Preservation in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 14 May 2012 07:40:51 +0000

During the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, hundreds of thousands of ethnic Azeris and Armenians were displaced. With hundreds of settlements also razed, and thousands of monuments destroyed, Conflict Voices looks at the issue of cemeteries, some of which were destroyed, but also preserved during the war as well as in the 18 years since the 1994 ceasefire.

Armenia: LGBT Community Fears After Yerevan Bar Firebombed

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 14 May 2012 01:24:24 +0000

Le Retour in 3 Parts comments on last week's firebombing of D.I.Y., a gay-friendly bar in Yerevan, the Armenian capital. Believed to be the work of Neo-Nazis, the blog says fears are running high in the LGBT community that hate crime is on the increase.

Georgia: Five Dead in Flash Flood

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 14 May 2012 01:07:15 +0000

The Young Georgians posts video of this weekend's flash flood in Tbilisi, Georgia. Five people, including two children, are reported dead.