Ադրբեջանցին չի ցանկանում վերադառնալ

Hayq reports that the Azeri POW Samir Mamedov does not want to return to Azerbaijan. He does not want to be transferred to a third country either as he fears the long arm of the Azeri security services. he instead wants to stay and work in Armenia.

Since the independence, there have been numerous cases of Azeri spies being caught in Yerevan and elsewhere in Armenia. They were mainly Russian nationals with a few Armenians sprinkled amongst them. The most notorious crime they were involved in was an attempted bombing of Yerevan Hotel in 1993. Fortunately they failed.

Although Mr. Mamedov is a military person, I would have little fear that he indeed is a mole being planted in Armenia by the Azeri security services. I do not want to underestimate the professionalism and creativity of the Azeri intelligence agencies, but Mr. Mamedov would have a difficult time gathering intelligence. Unless, of course, the Armenian side hires him to work for the Armenian military. But, again, I do not want to underestimate the professionalism of the Armenian side either.

So what should Armenia do? It is a very positive sign that the Azeri soldiers are willing to come to Armenia. That will have a great deal of demoralizing effect on the Azeri Army, especially if Azerbaijan continues to send these kids to jail for treason once they are returned to Azerbaijan. If Armenia respects the wishes of these soldiers and not send them back if they don't want to, we may see an increase in this flow; I have read reports that the conditions in the Azeri Army are not compatible with ones health if one is not from the lower classes of the society.

My opinion is that Mr. Mamedov should be allowed to stay in Armenia if he wishes to do so. But there has to be a massive marketing campaign by the Armenian authorities and every bit of useful publicity should be squeezed out of this event. The more Azeris know about this, the better. It will encourage more future defections, and a harsh response by the authorities which in turn will have a negative impact on the morale. As for Mr. Mamedov, he should be let alone but monitored so that he doesn't misbehave.

Anyway, here is the Hayq article (I like posting Unicode Armenia texts):

Մարդու իրավունքների պաշտպանի գրասենյակից հաղորդում են, որ ադրբեջանցի ռազմագերի Սամիր Մամեդովը, որ պահվում է Կենտրոն քրեակատարողական հիմնարկում, ՄԻՊ գրասենյակի աշխատակիցներին հայտնել է, թե չի դժգոհում պայմաններից եւ չի ուզում վերադառնալ Ադրբեջան:
Մամեդովը նաեւ պատմել է, թե մեծացել է մանկատանը, կամավոր գնացել է բանակ եւ բանակից էլ փախչելով` հանձնվել հայկական կողմին: Վերջերս Մամեդովը նամակ է ստացել Բաքվից, որում ինչ-որ մարդիկ ներկայացել են որպես նրա ծնողներ եւ խնդրել վերադառնալ: Մամեդովը, վախենալով հատուցումից, չի ուզում նույնիսկ երրորդ երկիր մեկնել, այլ ցանկանում է ապրել եւ աշխատել Հայաստանում: Նշենք, որ Սամիր Մամեդովը գերի է հանձնվել 2006թ. դեկտեմբերին:

Improving Yerevan skyline.

Raffi Kojian, from Cilicia.com, has posted a nice picture of the area surrounding the Swan Lake in Yerevan. Only a few years ago there was nothing much to look at in the area. There was a half finished building from the 70-s and a few run down structures. Now it looks good.

Exit strategy.

Israel Hakobkokhian has stopped his hunger strike after a brief talk with Serj Sargsian. His initial exit strategy was the cancellation of the election results in his district. Since that was not going to happen, he demanded to see Mr. Sargsian last Friday.

Thankfully, he is going to be OK. I a quite confident that the results are not going to be cancelled. I am eager to see what his next steps are going to be. He does not need to destroy his credibility.

Monkey or Trump?

David Letterman used to have a quiz some time ago where there were two pictures and only the top of the hair was exposed. The contestant had to decide which one was the picture of Donald Trump in order to win a plate of deli meats. The other picture was of an orangutan. I always found it funny. Anyway.

Now it seems that Mr. Trump's TV show Apprentice is going to be cancelled by NBC. I am surprised that it had such a long run. I watched a few of the initial episodes a few years back. There were some insights into the business world that are taught in business 101 type courses at colleges. But it was mostly self-aggrandizing Mr. Trump showing off. You can only watch so much of it before you switch the channel.

Hopefully NBC will replace it with something less garbage-y.

Is Tony Blankley ill?

I was watching the McLaughlin group for this week, and neo-conservative columnist for Washington Times Tony Blankley looked ill. He has that yellow color distinctive of liver problems and he has lost a lot of weight.

Is it possible that the recent Bush administration scandals are taking their toll on him? If the poor man is indeed affected by these events, he should go on Prozac. I do not foresee any easing of the scandal flow in the near future. It will be a shame if Mr. Blankley withered away.

Pat Buchanan, my favorite conservative, seems unaffected by the Bush troubles and is quite upbeat.

Gohar Gasparian has passed away.

Gohar Gasparian, the famous opera singer, has passed away in Yerevan.

Photo for May 18, 2007.

Pink sand, originally uploaded by nazarian

I think it's time for a more cheerful post.

This was the view from my balcony a couple of weeks ago in Barbados; I would sip rum and listen to the sound of waves crashing on the shore. For a hillbilly from the mountains of Armenia, and for a hick from the Midwest corn fields, being next to a sea is something cherished.

The photo and colors haven't been altered in any way.

+1

+1

Alexandr Arzumanian has not yet testified

Alexander Arzumanian, who is detained in the basment of the Armenian KGB building, has not yet testified, Radio Liberty reports. He is innocent and the charges are a form of political prosecution, his lawyer has said.

Not giving testimony, and especially not confessing to the charges brought upon you, can have deadly consequences for Armenian citizens in the hands of the law enforcement (see the post below about Levon Gulian). Fortunately for Arzumanian, his wife is a US citizen and the Armenian authorities will not have the courage to seriously beat him up. I don't think that him being a former foreign minister would have stopped them.

Israel Hakobkokhian goes on a hunger strike.

Israel Hakobkokhian, a world boxing champion, has gone on a hunger strike to protest the irregularities observed at district 11 during the elections. Hakobkokhian was a candidate there.



Here is the Radio Liberty news item.