Stories about Armenia from September, 2012
Armenia: Government Pressure on NGO
The Washington Post blog features an entry by David Ignatius detailing pressure on an Armenian NGO particularly active online. Founded by former Foreign Minister of Armenia Vartan Oskanian, government pressure on Civilitas is believed linked to his involvement with a former party of power now actively challenging the incumbent president...
Armenia: A New Response to Hate Crime?
Unzipped: Gay Armenia comments on news of an attack on transsexual sex workers in Yerevan, the Armenian capital. The blog notes that not only did the victims report the crime, but that the police formerly accepted it as such while also using ‘acceptable non-discriminatory wording.’ The blog implies that if...
Armenia: Reflections on Homosexuality and Fascism
Unzipped: Gay Armenia reflects on Brotherhood, a 2009 Danish film about homosexuality and fascism, in the context of the neo-Nazi firebombing of D.I.Y., a gay friendly bar in Yerevan, earlier this year.
Armenia-Azerbaijan: Hatred in the Caucasus
Murad Gassanly, an activist in exile, comments on the case of Ramil Safarov, a soldier convicted of murder in Hungary and recently pardoned in Azerbaijan, by examining how and why ethnic hatred has come to define society in both Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan: Political Forces United on Pardoned Axe Murderer
In Mutatione Fortitudo says that the two main opposition parties in Azerbaijan have united behind the government in its criticism of a European Parliament ruling condemning the 31 August pardon, release, and promotion of an Azerbaijani soldier who axed to death a sleeping Armenian counterpart on a NATO Partnership for...
Armenia: Homophobic Editor On Air
Unzipped: Gay Armenia says that it is glad the pro-opposition A1+ TV, a station deprived of its broadcasting frequency in 2002, now has a program aired on another channel. However, the blog also notes that it is disappointed to see that a homophobic newspaper editor is involved in its production.
Armenia: Chess Olympiad Triumph
The Armenian Observer posts photographs of celebrations following Armenia's victory in the 2012 Chess Olympiad held in Istanbul, Turkey.
Armenia: A New Transit Route?
The Armenian Observer reports that construction has started on upgrading Armenia's highways. Effectively connecting Iran with Georgia via Armenia more efficiently, the blog notes the Armenian government's hopes that the road will make the landlocked country an important transit route between Europe and Asia.
Armenia-Azerbaijan: International Day of Peace
Following an increase in tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, locked as they are in a bitter stalemate over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, Mountains of Peace looks ahead to the International Day of Peace. […] enough is enough. It is time to make a stance, time to speak out,...
Hungary: Armenian Singer Condemns Diplomatic Failure
It seems that to some politicians money means more than the honour of their own country or their relations with other countries. This case could affect the stability of the whole region. Lángoló Gitárok, a Hungarian music blog, has published an interview [hu] with Gaya Arutyunyan, a Hungary-based singer of...
Armenia: Students Pen Letter to Hungarian Prime Minister
The blog, An Armenian Journalist Notes, posts about a letter from a collective group of Armenian students addressing their frustration and disappointment about recent events involving the extradition of Ramil Safarov, an Azerbaijani military officer serving a life sentence for killing Armenian military officer Gurgen Margaryan in 2004 while both...
Azerbaijan: Nationalism, Extradition, and an Axe Murderer
Scary Azeri comments on the extradition to Azerbaijan of Ramil Safarov, an Azerbaijani soldier who murdered an Armenian counterpart on a NATO training course in Budapest, Hungary, with an axe. The blogger criticizes the presidential pardon and honoring of the killer in her native Azerbaijan while also abhorring the celebration...
Hungary: Government Criticized for Its Handling of Ramil Safarov's Case
The extradition of Ramil Safarov to Azerbaijan was based on the belief that he would continue to serve his life sentence there. After Azerbaijan gave amnesty to the convicted murderer, however, Armenia suspended its diplomatic relations with Hungary.