Armenia – UAE relations a raw model for international cooperation

AZAD-HYE (Dubai, 24 September 2005): The Armenian – UAE relations witnessed
a great stride forward owing to the successful 3 days official visit of His
Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the UAE Supreme
Council and Ruler of the Emirates of Sharjah to Armenia, during which he
inaugurated the Sharjah Cultural Week (Yerevan, 19-22 September 2005) in the
National Art Gallery of Armenia.

Activities of the cultural week included an exhibition of modern arts
(paintings of 22 UAE artists courtesy of the Sharjah Museum of Arab Modern
Art); exhibition of antiquities excavated in the area surrounding Sharjah;
exhibition of heritage items displaying way of life in the desert
environment (handcraft items, costumes, traditional medicine), exhibition of
award winning samples of Arab calligraphy. During the opening ceremony a
Sharjah folkloric group of 10 performers greeted the guests and the public.
The second day of the exhibition included theatrical performance by the
group of Sharjah National Theatre.

The program of the UAE cultural and official delegations was very extensive.
Besides the official meetings with the head of the State, the Prime Minister
and several Ministers, the delegates visited many remarkable places,
including the Armenian Natural History Museum, the National Museum,
University of Yerevan, National Academy of Sciences, Saryan Museum, Yerevan
Museum, Children's Art Museum. Members of the cultural delegation were
invited to a morning program on the Armenian public TV. It is worth
mentioning that the Cultural Week is part of a bilateral protocol that has
been signed during the visit of Armenia's Minister of Culture and Youth to
Sharjah last December.

Before the arrival of Sheikh Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi, the Armenian Minister of
Culture Hovik Hoveyan had the chance to meet with the General Director of
the Sharjah Department of Culture and Information Abdullah Mohammed Al
Oueis, who had arrived Yerevan few days earlier, in order to arrange for the
opening ceremony.

Heading the UAE cultural delegation Al Oueis visited the Marz (Province) of
Armavir, some 50 kilometers away from the capital Yerevan, where the Mayor
welcomed the delegation and expressed gratitude to the Arab people who
supported the Armenians during the difficult period of 1915-1923 (Armenian
Genocide) and he said: "The Armenian - Arab relations have a history going
back thousands of years. There are many common elements in our cultures, in
music, arts, traditions etc. We have achieved in Armavir splendid relations
with the Arab World and we intend to build on our friendship and to further
develop these ties". Mr. Al Oueis was given a painting representing Mount
Ararat, the symbolic mount of the Armenians.

In the evening of the same day Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi inaugurated the Sharjah
Cultural Week in Armenia. The program is part of Sharjah's plan to establish
cultural interaction with peoples of the World, especially with countries
that have long lasting relationship with the Arab World. The aim of these
activities is to reflect the image of Sharjah as a cultural hub and a
capital of the Arab culture.

During the opening ceremony of the Sharjah Cultural Week, Sheikh Dr. Sultan
Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah congratulated the Armenian people for the
Independence Day. He pronounced that it is highly symbolic that the
conduction of the UAE cultural days coincides with this dear occasion. He
expressed the wish that Armenia overcomes the existing difficulties and
takes the path towards full economic development. He highly appreciated the
initiative of the Armenian Government to organize the Armenian Cultural Days
in Sharjah (December 2004), which resulted in achieving even closer
relations between the two sides and introduced Armenia to the general public
in his country. He stressed that the Sharjah authorities did not want to
miss the opportunity of arranging these cultural days in Yerevan, although
parallel exhibitions are taking place in Germany and Spain, which needed
also some attention. He promised to organize a larger exhibition in the
future and said that the coming months will witness more extensive
cooperation in cultural and other fields between Sharjah and Armenia.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by the Armenian Deputy Prime Minister
Hovik Abrahamian, Deputy Foreign Minister Kegam Gharibjanian (former
Ambassador of Armenia to Iran and Qatar), Minister of Culture and Youth
Affairs Hovik Hoveyan (who has attended the Armenian Cultural Week in
December 2004 in Sharjah) and a number of UAE officials and press
representatives.

The highlight of the day was the meeting of Sheikh Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi with
President Robert Kocharian. The President decorated the precious guest with
the "Saint Mesrob Mashtots" Order, one of the highest orders in Armenia, in
recognition of his contribution to the UAE-Armenian relations, in addition
to his role in the fields of education and culture. They discussed ways of
promoting bilateral relations between the two countries.

During the second day of his visit to Armenia, on 20th September 2005,
Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi met with Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Markarian,
who stressed that Sheikh Sultan's visit to Armenia is a significant move
towards strengthening the bilateral ties. The meeting was attended by the
Chief of the Sheikh's Office (Isam bin Saqr Al Qasimi), the Director of the
Emiri Court (Rashid Ahmed Al Sheikh), Director of Sharjah Islamic Endowment
Authority / Awqaf (Jamal Salim Al Taraifi) and UAE non-resident Ambassador
to Armenia (Khalifa Shaheen Al Merri).

In a separate meeting in the Armenian Academy of Sciences, the President of
the Academy Fadey Sarkissian praised Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi for his
contribution to the development of science and culture in the UAE and in the
Arab World in general. It should be mentioned that UNSESCO had chosen
Sharjah as the Arab Cultural Capital for the year 1998. Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi
was awarded honorary doctorate from the National Academy of Sciences in
Armenia in recognition of his contributions to the cultural and intellectual
activities across the world. This honorary title has been conferred so far
to a limited number of 60 personalities worldwide. Ambassador of Armenia in
the UAE Dr. Arshak Poladian praised the Sheikh for his efforts to turn
Sharjah into a center of cultural and scientific advancement in the Arab
World. Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi, who is also the Chancellor of the American
University of Sharjah and the Sharjah University, thanked the Academy and
stressed that Sharjah will continue to attract institutions of higher
education and Universities of worldwide fame.

On the same day Yerevan State University awarded its Golden Medal to Sheikh
Dr. Al Qasimi. Speaking at the awarding ceremony University's Rector Radik
Martirosyan said that Sheikh Al Qasimi is a great friend of the University.
Sheikh Dr. Al Qasimi granted a seat for Arab studies in the Faculty of
Oriental Studies. He expressed his happiness that the Department of the Arab
Studies within this Faculty has more than 300 students. (Click Read More)

On the same day he visited the Genocide Monument and planted a tree of
UAE-Arab friendship. He visited the Museum and witnessed the sorrow and
grief that war has cause to the Armenians. He placed flowers on the monument
of the victims and ended his visit to the museum wishing that love and peace
would prevail in the world.

Sheikh Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi found time to visit also lake Sevan, one of the
highest lakes in the world, from where Hrazdan river is originated, a main
source of irrigation in Armenia. The Mayor of Tavoush Marz (Province)
welcomed the guest and soon after the official lunch they headed to Dilijan,
one of the finest resorts in Armenia, where some of the houses date to
centuries back. He also visited the Municipality of Dilijan.

Back in Yerevan His Highness attended in the equestrian club of Hovig
Hairapetian a live show of the four horses that he presented as a gift to
the Government of Armenia. He expressed satisfaction that the horses are in
safe hands and under the care of people who adore horses.

The third day was full of local cultural activities. Sheikh Al Qasimi did
not miss the chance to visit the famous Matenadaran (the depository of
ancient Armenian manuscript). He was impressed by the huge number of
manuscripts in the Matenadaran (total number 17.000 manuscripts, 700 of them
in Arabic). The Director of Matenadaran Sen Arevshatian presented him a book
on horse breeding.

During his visit to Matendaran Dr. Sheikh Sultan Al Qasimi declared that a
UAE delegation will visit Armenia next week. He stressed that, issues of
deepening bilateral cooperation in economy, science and culture will be
discussed during this upcoming visit of the delegation.

On Tuesday evening 21st September 2005 Sheikh Al Qasimi returned home at the
end of his official visit to Armenia

Photo at www.azad-hye.com:
Sheikh Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi plants the UAE-Armenia friendship tree just next
to the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

The URL for this story is:
www.azad-hye.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=197

Ottoman Turkey and the troubled legacy of Kemal Ataturk

Khaleej Times, United Arab Emirates
Sept 22 2005

Ottoman Turkey and the troubled legacy of Kemal Ataturk
BY MATEIN KHALID

HIS memory still haunts the Dolma Bache Palace in Istanbul where hedied, the
magnificent mausoleum in Ankara where he is buried. His portraits and busts
are prominent in Turkish embassies worldwide. The founder of the first
secular state in Islamic history is a hero to reformers and anathema to
mullahs from the Maghreb to Pakistan.

Mustafa Kemal Pasha was unquestionably an iconic statesman and nation
builder, the Washington, de Gaulle, Cavour and Jinnah of the Turkish
Republic. Yet what is the relevance and legacy of the Ataturk legend in out
time? Is the ideology of Kemalism still the dominant theme in Turkish
history?

Kemalist ideology exalted Turkish nationalism as the core value of the new
Republic. Mustafa Kemal, after all, lived during the pathological death
rattle of the Ottoman Empire when Greek, Arab, Armenian, Bulgarian and
Serbian nationalists collided in their revolt against the decrepit state of
the sultans for the past two generations.

As the Ottoman regime imploded, Ataturk faced the Allied invasion of
Gallipolli, Tsarist Russia's depredations in the Balkans, the British and
French occupation of Istanbul and secessionist revolts everywhere from
Bulgaria to Kurdistan to the Hijaz. As a heroic general hailed as Gazi
(victor) for his military exploits at Gallipolli and Smyrna,
Ataturk had to create an instant national consciousness in the Anatolian
rump of the sultan's defunct empire.

In Ottoman times, "Turk" was a slightly derogatory term for Anatolian
peasants in the cosmopolitan salons and palaces of Istanbul. It was the
genius of Ataturk that he created a new national myth at a time when the
Treaty of Sevres threatened the very existence of Turkey on the world's
political map.

Yet Turkish nationalism in its Kemalist incarnation was exclusivist and
unwilling to accommodate demographic realities of the new Republic. It
acquiesced in the mass migration of Greeks and Armenians. It isolated Turkey
from the Arab world the Ottoman sultans had ruled for four centuries. Above
all, it created the nightmare of Kurdish secessionism since the genesis of
the Republic in the 1920's.

Kemalist ideology inflicted linguistic genocide on the Kurds - the Kurdish
language was banned, Kurds were declared "mountain Turks" and resettled in
the ghettos of Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir. The Turkish Army generals who
acted as the guardians and enforcers of Kemalist ideology, plunged eastern
Anatolia into a generation of war after General Evren's military coup in
September 1980.

The PKK under Abdullah Ocalan declared war on the Kemalist state in the
1990's and the subsequent civil war claimed 30,000 lives. The
uber-nationalism of Ataturk and the Turkish General Staff bought only
tragedy and war to the mountains of Kurdistan, as well as led to successive
Turkish invasions of northern Iraq and threat of war with
Syria.

Ataturk is hailed by the West and the Turkish secular elite for his
revolutionary transformation of an ancient, traditional Muslim society with
good reason. After all, he abolished the Caliphate, replaced the Sharia with
the Swiss Legal Code, banned the ancient Turkic dervish brotherhoods and the
Ottoman fez, emancipated women and abolished the veil, replaced the Arabic
script with Latin and even replaced the Islamic with the Gregorian Calendar.

Yet the general who had used Islam in his war against the invading Greeks
and enjoyed the same title of Gazi as Mehmet Fatih, the Ottoman sultan who
conquered Constantinople for Islam from the Byzantines in 1453, jettisoned
it as an instrument of national integration after the establishment of the
Republic.

This act of theological lobotomy created an existential confrontation
between successive military regimes and Islamist politicians for six decades
after his death. The aggressively secular ethos implicit in the Kemalist
message also made it impossible for Ankara to become the natural leader in
the Muslim world. Yet not even Presidential edicts
could change the ancient religious and spiritual heritage of the Turkish
people.

In 2005, a moderate Islamist party controls two thirds of the seat in the
Ankara Parliament founded by Ataturk. The Kemalist version of state
intervention, magnified by hyperinflation, currency collapse and the ruinous
costs of the Kurdistan wars, has also been discredited by time, the IMF and
Wall Street.

Time heals all wounds in the lives of human beings and history of great
empires. It is so ironic that the scenes of the Ottoman twilight are once
again theatres of the Great Game and East-West conflict - Bosnia, Central
Asia, Kurdistan the Levant, Palestine, Hijaz, the Balkans, Armenia. The
Turkish Republic Kemal Pasha founded still straddles the global geopolitical
axis, the vectors of war and peace in the Middle East.

The pageant of Turkish history still resonates to the power and passions of
the ancient faith which even a legendary colossus like Kemal Ataturk could
not destroy.

Matein Khalid is a Dubai-based investment banker. He can be reached at
matein@emirates.net.ae

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2005/September/opinion_September55.xml&section=opinion&col=

AZAD-HYE sent the following letter to the author:

Dear Mr. Matein Khalid,

We would like to thank you for the time you devoted to analyze the period
related to the creation of the present day Turkey and the cost that has been
paid to sustain it.

Turkey, who is aspiring to be part of the EU, needs to take substantial
steps in this direction.

As symbolic as it may seem, there is no European country that can keep a
photo of a leader for 80 years in all governmental buildings. The cult of
Ataturk is far from being a modern European trend. It has more to do with
the era between the two World Wars. Turks may be offended if we do such
comparisons, but they have to see that it bears some reality in it.

You mentioned the linguistic genocide of the Kurds in Turkey, but we are
sure that you are also aware about the physical genocide of the Armenians in
Turkey.

Once again we would like to thank you for dealing with a troubled period of
Ottoman history, that has many modern day implications on national and
individual levels.

Best Regards,

www.azad-hye.com
Dubai

''The Caravan from Yerevan''

The following article appeared in the 9th September 2005 (weekend
supplement) of the Dubai English daily "Khaleej Times".

The Armenian diaspora in the UAE is a few thousand strong. SHALAKA PARADKAR
talks to Liza Saghtejian who describes her people as hardworking, creative,
inventive and resilient.

My first brush with Armenian culture started innocuously enough in downtown
Mumbai. Trying to locate a sharebroker firm, I stumbled upon a little gem of
a building, nestling in the shadow of the stock exchange tower — the
Armenian Church.

There was something heartwarming about how Mumbai’s Armenians (a grand total
of four, including two octagenarians) had defied logistics and economics to
maintain their beautiful church, with its gilded dome, polished hardwood
pews and crystal chandeliers. Faith shone bright here, as also some
sentimentalism. The adjacent ghastly grey apartment block, also owned by the
church, was called Ararat — after the mountain where Noah’s ark was believed
to have landed. Another sweet touch was the grapevine trailing over the
backyard, transplanted from Armenia and struggling to establish its identity
in Mumbai’s less-than-salubrious Fort precinct.

Thankfully the Armenian community in India has had a happier fate than that
vine. They are believed to have landed sometime in the 17th century in the
then-capital, Calcutta. Armenian contributions to the city’s culture and
cuisine include a ferocious rugby team, many fine buildings and the
delicious dolma, a dish which Bengalis believe is as much of their soil as
rossogolla and Satyajit Ray, little knowing its roots stretch all the way
back to the Caucasus mountains.

How did the dolma make its journey from a tiny landlocked nation bordered by
Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan and Georgia to across the Middle East, Syria,
Lebanon, Iraq, and even as farther afield as the USA and France? Once a
cradle of civilisation and now a republic that gained its independence from
the Soviet Union in 1991, Armenia has been witness to ethnic strife, bloodsh
ed and genocides in the intervening millennia. Armenia’s history is an
almost linear progression of foreign rule under the Persian, Macedonian,
Seleucid, Roman, Byzantine, Egyptian Mamluk, and Ottoman Turk empires before
accession to the Soviet Union. Waves of emigration resulted in Armenians
finding refuge in countries such as the UAE, where they have made valuable
contributions as a hardworking community of businesspersons and young
professionals.

In the UAE, the Armenian diaspora is a few thousand strong. Much of
community life revolves around the church, Al Yarmook, built eight years ago
in Sharjah. Curious to know more about this remarkable community and its
flavoured cuisine, I met Liza Saghtejian. A 33-year old schoolteacher,
church volunteer and mother of one, Liza is fiercely proud of her Armenian
heritage even though home is Aleppo in Syria where she was born and Sharjah
where she has lived for the past eight years.

Thanks to improved flight connections, a favourable exchange rate and visas
on arrival, many more of the diaspora are winging their way to Armenia. Liza
recently holidayed in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, where her son Jack
attended an art camp for children. It was as much a holiday as a homecoming,
as she still has family in Yerevan. Says Liza of her culturally gifted
people, “Nearly everyone I met in Yerevan wrote poetry or played musical
instruments or sang or painted — everyone has some creative interest.” Liza
herself plays the duduk, a reed instrument which has to be wetted before
playing. She also embroiders intricate antabi designs on velvet, a hobby
that needs plenty of patience and skill. Settling down for our chat over
coffee and baklava, she says, “If I were to describe my people in brief, I’d
say they are hardworking, creative, inventive and resilient. Despite all the
emigrations, we thrived and have been well-liked in the countries of our
residence. I am proud to be Armenian.”

Armenian cuisine reflects much of their history. There is a significant
Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influence in the recipes and ingredients.
Geography too plays its part in what people eat. Thanks to the fertile,
well-watered soil and the warmth of its sheltered valleys, Armenia produces
an abundance of fruit: plums, figs, apricots, apples, cherries, oranges and
grapes. (A bumper harvest this year resulted in Yerevan’s major cultural
event being rechristened The Golden Apricot Film Festival.) (Click Read
More)

For Ara Keusseyan, current president of the Armenian Community Council, the
memory of Armenian fruits still linger from his visit there. “The absence of
chemicals and fertilisers in farming render the fruits quite extraordinary
in taste and smell. You could find your way blindfolded to a peach being
eaten 15 metres away, so powerful is the fragrance.”

Keusseyan moved to the UAE from Beirut in 1983 to join his family which has
been here for the past 40 years, and even though his dinner table sports an
international look, traditional Armenian dishes do make a frequent
appearance. Two of his favourites are mante, a lamb pie, and nivik, spinach
and chickpea appetiser.

The colour and flavour of Armenian produce is incredible, which lifts the
dishes way above the ordinary. The cuisine is also quite healthy, with its
emphasis on grilling and steaming, and consuming choice seasonal fruits,
salads, yoghurt, spices and herbs. (The pattern of consumption is less
healthy with the evening meal being the heaviest one, stretching into
several courses, while breakfasts are light — usually coffee, cheese, jam
and bread.)

Having said that, Armenians do like it hot! Garlic is a firm favourite, and
their love of the barbie would do an Aussie proud.

“Beef, chicken and vegetable barbecues are a distinct feature of Armenian
cuisine. It is the men who are involved in grilling meat, as we really don’t
like our ladies to smell of barbecue!” says Ara. Spices used for meat rubs
and marinades include cinnamon, cumin, cloves, sumac and fiery peppers from
Liza’s home town of Alleppo. Meat is also air dried and spiced to make
soujukh — an extremely popular dish.

Yoghurt is usually set at home, and eaten for breakfast or as the salty
summer drink tan. The Armenian bread lavash is a staple at all meals, for
breakfast with cheese, or scooped with vegetables and salad, or broken into
bits over soup. A thin oval flatbread, it is baked in earthen ovens called
tonirs, very similar to tandoors. Lavash can be left to dry and moistened
before eating by placing it under a damp cloth.

Showing us pictures of Yerevan — lots of fine statuary, lovely old churches,
some dating back to the 5th century, and scenic beauty — Liza reminisces
about the memorable meal she had at the Heen Yerevan restaurant. “It’s done
up like an old country house, the walls are decorated with hanging clusters
of peppers, onions and garlic. We had a tahini and eggplant appetiser, and
the entree was my favourite — kufta made with bulghur and minced beef.”

Some 60 kilometers from Yerevan is Sevan Lich, a gigantic lake that is home
to the endangered ishkhan trout, known locally as the king of fish, and
unavailable elsewhere.

Freshwater fish makes a frequent appearance on Liza’s dinner table in many
avatars: grilled with garlic and spices, stuffed, steamed or served as soup.

Traditional harvest time specialities include preserves made from fresh
green walnuts; eggplant jam (which Liza assures us is indeed very tasty and
also has walnuts) and fruit sujoukh, a type of walnut candy. These are not
available in the UAE, but you can sample them at the Annual Armenian Bazar
in Sharjah, usually held in December, just before Christmas.

Armenians are staunch Christians who fast during the 40 days of Lent when
delicious vegetarian versions of dolma, or stuffed vegetables, and ghapama,
or pumpkin stew, are eaten. Dolma is made by stuffing grape leaves, cabbage
leaves, Swiss chard, eggplant slices or even firm vegetables like zucchini,
courgettes, tomatoes and bell peppers that have been hollowed out.
Accompanying sauces are simple tomato or yoghurt based.

Explaining that a typical Armenian meal is served in courses, Liza
elaborates, “Every meal starts off with appetisers: garden salad made from
fresh vegetables like tomatoes, radishes and cucumbers, panir, a salty
cottage cheese, sujukh, pickles and olives. The main course is usually
barbecued meat or fish, and the meal is rounded off with desserts, fresh
fruit that is sliced at the table and Armenian coffee.”

Liza also shows us her collection of pomegranate curios, yes, you read that
right. Of all the fruits available in luscious plenty, the pomegranate
(noor) holds a special place in Armenian culture.

“The noor is symbolic of the cycle of life and renewal, each one of its
translucent red seeds is a metaphor for a day in your life and one fruit is
believed to contain 365. If you eat a seed a day, it brings you good luck!”

Pomegranates are a recurrent motif in Armenian art and craft; they appear on
incense burners, cruet sets, souvenir plates and various touristy
tchotchkes. Why pomegranates? Possibly because they are coloured red which
is also an auspicious hue for Armenians, it is one of three colours on the
national flag and represents all the blood that has been shed over centuries
(the other two being blue and orange, for Armenia’s land and skies).

A toast to Armenia then, Genatsit! May its skies and lands be forever free.
And of course to open minds and happy tables groaning with good food. The
recipes below, courtesy Liza, serve four. Use your imagination to adapt and
improvise, for that is the Armenian way.

DOLMA

Ingredients
4 large firm tomatoes or 4 medium bell
peppers
For stuffing
Cooked rice 2 cups
Minced lamb 250 gm
Minced beef 250 gm
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup canned tomato
1 tsp lime juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Mix all the ingredients for stuffing together. Prepare the vegetables for
stuffing by carefully cutting off the top and removing the core and seeds.
Fill the vegetables loosely with the stuffing, leaving room for it to expand
during cooking. Arrange the vegetables in a pan. Cover and simmer with water
and tomatoes, to cook the vegetables until just tender. Season and add lime
juice. Add more water as needed during the cooking process .

KUFTA

Ingredients
For filling
minced lamb or beef 500 gm
2 large yellow onions, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
3 tbsp chopped parsley
1/2 tsp chopped mint leaves
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted and chopped
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil
Salt to taste
For outer cover
minced lamb or beef 750 gm
3/4 cup fine bulgur
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 tbsp chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
Brown the ground meat for the filling. Add onions and cook for 30 mins. Add
peppers and parsley, cook further for 10 mins. Add remaining ingredients.
Cool. Mix all the ingredients for the outer cover together. Pulse in a food
procssor until light and fluffy. Take a little of this mixture and flatten
it in your palm. Fill it with a walnut-sized ball of the stuffing. Cover and
shape into a round meatball. Make all the meatballs this way.
Heat 1 litre of chicken stock until boiling. Drop the kofta into the stock
and let them cook for 10 minutes.

MAAMOUL or EASTER COOKIES

Ingredients
2 cups semolina
11/2 cups shortening or ghee
1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 cups roughly ground walnuts or almonds or pistachios
1 tsp powdered cinnamon
1/4 cup icing sugar
Method
Place the flour in a bowl, and cut in the shortening using a fork. Pour the
boiling water and knead to a solid dough. Turn the dough onto a floured work
area and knead some more. Cover and let stand for an hour or even overnight.
Mix together sugar, walnuts and cinnamon. Set aside.
Preheat the over to 350 F/ 175 C.
Knead the dough again and roll into walnut-sized balls. Shape a hollow and
fill it with the nut mixture. Seal the dough over. Place the balls on a
cooking sheet, using a fork to gently make a pattern on the top. Bake for
10-12 minutes, or until ight brown. Dust with icing sugar when warm.

The URL for this story is:
www.azad-hye.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=196

Turkish military tribunal 1918-1921 (research in Arabic language)

Ara Sarkis Ashjian, the Armenian researcher from Baghdad, has enriched the Arabic library with a research on the Turkish military tribunal and the confessions on the Armenian Genocide during the years 1918-1921.

 

Below is the link to the highly valued research:

http://www.azad-hye.com/media/g1/araashjian2.htm

 

It is worth mentioning that the EU countries will look into the admission request of Turkey on 3rd October 2005. The official Turkey is still denying the Armenian Genocide, though aspiring to be part of the European Union.

 

Researches such as the one made by Ara Ashjian certainly enlighten the public on the highly important issue of Genocide. Researching the Genocide helps creating awareness and prevents future disasters.

New premises of Armenian Embassy will be inaugurated in Abu Dhabi

AZAD-HYE (Dubai, 14 September 2005): Marking an important development in the
Armenian-UAE relations, Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian visits the UAE to
attend the ceremony of laying the foundation of the new premises of the
Embassy of Armenia, which will take place in the diplomatic quarter of the
capital Abu Dhabi on Saturday 1st October 2005.

The plot has been donated by late President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin
Sultan Al Nahyan, during Kocharian's visit to the UAE (April 2002).

This event will mark the beginning of a donation campaign within the
Armenian Communities in the Gulf countries, aimed at concentrating the
required amount for erecting the building (which happens to be exactly next
to the new futuristic building of the US Embassy).

It is worth mentioning that the Armenian Community of the UAE supported
economically the opening of the Armenian Embassy in the UAE and had covered
most of the expenses during the period 2000-2002

The Embassy was officially opened with a flag hoisting ceremony on 24th
September 2000, at its temporary premises opposite Hamdan Post Office on
Khalifa Street in Abu Dhabi. The flag was raised by visiting Armenian
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vardan Oskanian, and the first Charge
d'Affaires, Dr Arshak Poladian, flanked by young Armenians in traditional
attire.

The ceremony was attended by UAE Foreign Ministry Undersecretary, several
diplomats, UAE officials and Armenians in the country.

Photo at www.azad-hye.com : UAE non-resident Ambassador to Armenia Khalifa
Shaheen Al-Mareeh presents copies of his credentials to Foreign Minister
Oskanian on 23 January 2003 in Yerevan.

The URL for this story is:
www.azad-hye.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=195

Ruler of Sharjah visits Armenia

AZAD-HYE (Dubai, 14 September 2005): His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan bin
Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the United Arab Emirate's (UAE) Supreme
Council and Ruler of Sharjah is expected to pay an official visit to Armenia
from 19-21 September 2005. This is the highest ranking official from the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to visit Armenia. His Highness has been the
Ruler of Sharjah since 1972 and is educated at the Universities of Cairo and
Exeter (England), having a PhD degree from the later. In Armenia he will be
bestowed with honorary doctorate from prestigious Armenian university, as a
token of appreciation for his contribution to the well being of the
Armenians in his Emirate and his continuous attentiveness to develop the
relations between Armenia and the UAE, on cultural and other levels.

Dr Sheikh Al Qasimi will attend the opening ceremony of the Sharjah Cultural
Week in Armenia (19-23 September 2005), an event that will further develop
the existing warm relations between the two sides. A delegation of 20
artists from Sharjah will introduce to the Armenian public the traditions
and recent cultural achievements of Sharjah. It is worth mentioning that
Sharjah is considered as one of the most culturally oriented cities in the
Arab World. In 1998 it was designated by UNESCO as the cultural capital of
the Arab World. Sharjah International Art Biennial is a well known event
worldwide.

The Sharjah Cultural Week is taking place within the framework of cultural
exchanges between Armenia and Sharjah. The details of this cooperation has
been discussed in December 2004 during the visit of the Minister of Culture
of Armenian Hovig Hoveyan to Sharjah, who attended, together with Dr. Sheikh
Al Qasimi and Dr. Arshak Poladian, Ambassador of Armenian to the UAE, the
opening ceremony of the Armenian Cultural Week in Sharjah (11-17 December
2004).

During the above visit to Sharjah the Minister of Culture Hovik Hoveyan was
awarded two rare breed horses. Both Arab horses contributed to the
development of horse-breeding in Armenia. Dr. Sheikh Al Qasimi will take
with him this time two more horses, thus enabling to enlarge the circle of
rare horse breeding in Armenia. (Click Read More).

Dr. Sheikh Al Qasimi will meet also the President of Armenia, whom he hosted
in Sharjah previously on 21 April 2002, during Kocharian's official visit to
the UAE. His Highness will be congratulating Armenia on its independence day
(21 September).

The only Armenian church in the UAE has been constructed on land donated by
Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi. The permission to build the church
was granted in 1997. The project began at the end of the same year and was
completed in one year time. It was was officially consecrated in the Al
Yarmook district of the city of Sharjah in November 1998 by His Holiness
Aram I Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia. The built-up area of the
church is 400 square metres, while the whole project (together with adjacent
parts, including the Community Hall) covers a total area of 1200 square
metres. The church has been large enough to serve the 3000 Armenians who
live in the Northern Emirates (Dubai, Sharjah and other emirates except Abu
Dhabi which is located relatively far). This one million dollar project has
been financed by the members of the Armenian community in the country.

Photo at www.azad-hye.com: Dr. Sheikh Sultan Al Qasimi, Minister Hovig
Hoveyan, Ambassador Dr. Arshak Poladian at the opening ceremony of the
Armenian Cultural Week in Sharjah (December 2004).

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