[encoded data, 309115 characters]\" /></p><p class=\"bodytext\"><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\">On Saturday, March 5, 2011, Policy Forum Armenia held an evening honoring the memory of a prominent Soviet-era dissident, a member of the &ldquo;7 patriots&rdquo;, Vigen Babayan. The event&rsquo;s featured guests were:&nbsp;&nbsp;</font></p><ul><li><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\"><strong>Azat Gasparyan</strong>, renown actor and narrator (evening&rsquo;s moderator);</font></li><li><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\"><strong>Paruyr Hayrikyan</strong>, prominent Soviet-era dissident and the leader of the National Self-Determination Union (AIM);</font></li><li><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\"><strong>Shahen Harutyunyan</strong>, a founder of the Soviet-era underground United National Party (AMK).</font></li></ul><p class=\"bodytext\"><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\">Jailed in early-1960s for underground activities aimed at proclaiming independent Armenia and recognizing the Genocide, the &ldquo;7 patriots&rdquo;&mdash;as the group became known in Armenia following their trial and imprisonment&mdash;laid the foundations for independence and pro-democracy movement in Armenia and elsewhere in the USSR. Years spent in Siberian gulags and countless KGB interrogations could not break Vigen Babayan&rsquo;s iron will and lessen his commitment to what he stood for. The volumes of poetry that he left behind are live testaments of his sufferings, but also of limitless love for his motherland and freedom. To the young generation of Armenians, who fought for country&rsquo;s independence and for the freedom of Artsakh, Vigen Babayan is known as the voice behind the &ldquo;Voice of America&rdquo; Armenian service reporting during the late-1980s and early-1990s. </font></p><p class=\"bodytext\"><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\">Celebrating the legacy of Vigen Babayan and others, who put their lives on the line for free and independent Armenia, at times when there seemed no hope on the horizon, is of particular importance now given the events unfolding in Armenia. This epic story is as much about the past as it is about today and tomorrow. </font></p><p class=\"bodytext\"><font color=\"black\" face=\"verdana\" size=\"2\">The event was held at the Cosmos Club in Washington D.C.<font size=\"2\">&nbsp;and was </font>co-sponsored by members of the Washington&#39;s Armenian community. </font></p><p class=\"bodytext\">Pictures from the event are available from the&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/media-gallery/evening-memory-vigen-babayan\"><strong>Photo Gallery</strong></a>.</p>', '', 'full_html');
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('node', 'site_page', 0, 273, 429, 'und', 0, '<div align=\"center\"><p><img alt=\"\" height=\"189\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Forum_Poster_sm.jpg\" width=\"143\" /></p><p><strong>2nd Annual PFA Forum on Armenia-Diaspora Relations</strong></p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">Armenia-Diaspora relations have never been more strained in the 20 years since independence. To provide an opportunity for academics, policy practitioners, and the public to discuss perspectives on, and approaches to, the present-day challenges facing the Armenian nation Policy Forum Armenia held its 2<sup>nd</sup> Annual Forum in Washington, DC on February 28-March 2, 2010.</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">In it&#39;s first high level Economic Forum, PFA brought together an unprecedented line-up of academics and policymakers from Armenia, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, and UAE, including Armenia&rsquo;s five former Prime Ministers, to discuss the implications of the crisis for Armenia and help devise policy prescriptions to mitigate them.</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">As in the 1<sup>st</sup> Forum, the 2<sup>nd</sup> (Armenia-Diaspora) Forum gathered a large number of intellectuals&mdash;academic and public policy practitioners&mdash;to discuss challenges and help devise new modes of engagement between Armenia and its Diaspora.</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">Day 1 of the Forum (February 28) was held at the Cosmos Club, Washington&rsquo;s premier venue for social and policy events, and featured the presentation of PFA&rsquo;s Report on &ldquo;Armenia-Diaspora Relations: 20 Years Since Independence.&rdquo;</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">Day 2 of the Forum was held at Georgetown University.&nbsp; This part of the Forum was open to the public.&nbsp; Mr. Raffi Hovannisian, Armenia&rsquo;s First Foreign Minister, delivered the keynote luncheon address on Day 2 (March 1).</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">The program for Day 3 (March 2) was limited to only young professionals and included thematic meetings with various international agencies and public and private organizations in order to continue the discussion on Armenia-Diaspora relations and offer young professionals opportunities to network in Washington.</p><p style=\"text-align: left;\">The presentations and themes covered during this forum are shown below, with presenters slides and papers available for you to download.</p></div><h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>---------------------- Day 1 ----------------------</strong></h3><div align=\"center\"><strong>Keynote Opening Address </strong></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"484\"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><div><a href=\"http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2010/0302_governance_disaster_kaufmann.aspx?p=1\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/link_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></td><td><p>Dr. Daniel Kaufmann<br /> Senior Fellow, Global Economy and Development<br /> Brookings Institute</p></td></tr></tbody></table><h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>---------------------- Day 2 ----------------------</strong></h3><div align=\"center\"><strong>Young Professionals Session I</strong></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"492\"><tbody><tr><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/DeMucci_ArmeniaTurkish_Protocols.ppt\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/De_Mucci_PFA_Forum.pdf\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><p>Jennifer de Mucci, Fordham University<br /> <em>Pouring Salt on Old Wounds: Psychological Impact of the Protocol</em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Palandjian-Interest_Analysis.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Palandjian-PFA_forum.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><p>Tamar Palandjian, George Mason University<br /> <em>Interest-based Analysis of the Protocol-related Armenia-Diaspora Rift</em></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Dumanian--PFArmeniaPresentation.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Dumanian-PFA_forum_paper.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p>Henry Dumanian, City University of New York<br /> <em>The Diaspora and Democracy in the Homeland</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><p align=\"center\"><strong>Young Professionals Session II</strong></p><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"492\"><tbody><tr><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Derderian-Democracy_Armenia.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Derderian-Democracy_Armenia.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p>Dzovinar Derderian, University of Michigan<br /><em>Democracy in Armenia and Diaspora-Armenia Relation</em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Sarksyan_PFA.ppt\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></td><td><p>&nbsp;</p></td><td><p>Hayk Sargsyan, Johns Hopkins University<br /><em>Arnenia&#39;s Investment Climate and Diaspora&#39;s participation in development policies </em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Heboyan-PFA_Present.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></div></td><td><p>&nbsp;</p></td><td><p>Vahe Heboyan, University of Georgia<br /> <em>20 Years of Economic Engagement: Rethinking Values and Approaches</em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Tourian-Accountability.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></div></td><td><div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Tourian-PFA.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></div></td><td><p>Ted Tourian, Burgh, Balian &amp; Bergstein, LLP and PFA<br /> <em>The Accountability of Diaspora Organizations to Armenians</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><div align=\"center\"><p><strong>Keynote Address </strong></p><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"484\"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><div><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Raffi_H_PFA_Forum.pdf\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></div></td><td><p>Raffi Hovhannisian<br /><em>Heritage Party</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Senior Professionals Session I</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"492\"><tbody><tr><td><p>&nbsp;</p></td><td><div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Sanjian-Diaspora_Armenia.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></div></td><td><p>Professor Ara Sanjian, University of Michigan<br /> <em>How Are Diasporans Informed About Contemporary Armenia?</em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Attarian-Moving_Forward_Aside.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></td><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Attarian-Moving_Forward_Aside.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><p>Viken Attarian, Executive Vice President, Policy Commission (Quebec), Liberal Party of Canada<br /> <em>Moving Forward or Aside? Last Chance for Directionless Diasporas </em></p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Papian-PFA.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></div></td><td><p>Ara Papian, Former Ambassador of Armenia in Canada, Modus Vivendi Center<br /> <em>Pan-national Idea as a Basis for the State Power and National Unity </em></p></td></tr><tr><td><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/LA-Forum_Washington.ppt\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/ppt_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></td><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/LA-Forum_Washington.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><p>Larisa Alaverdyan, MP, National Assembly, Heritage Faction<br /> <em>Shattered Dreams and an Uncertain Outlook</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><div align=\"center\"><strong>Senior Professionals Session II</strong></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"484\"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Minasyan-PFA.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></div></td><td><p>Artsvik Minasyan, MP, National Assembly, ARF Faction<br /> <em>Social and Economic Problems of Armenia: Ways Out and Diaspora&rsquo;s Role</em></p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Muradyan_PFA.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p>Igor Muradian, Institute of Geopolitics and Geoeconomics, ARMENIA<br /> <em>Problems and the Purpose of the Armenian Diaspora</em></p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p>&nbsp;</p></td><td><p>Professor Khachig Tololyan, Wesleyan University</p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p>&nbsp;</p></td><td><p>Professor Onnig Beylerian, Université du Québec à Montréal<br /> <em>On the Mechanisms of Diaspora Consolidation</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table><h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">----------------------<strong>Day 3 ----------------------</strong></h3><div align=\"center\"><strong>Thematic Discussions for Young Professionals</strong></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"484\"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Intern%20Relations%20and%20Geopolitics.pdf\"><img alt=\" \" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p>International Relations and Geopolitics</p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Journalism%20and%20freedom%20of%20expression.pdf\"><img alt=\" \" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></p></td><td><p>Journalism and Freedom of Expression</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><div align=\"center\"><strong>Special Correspondence from Armenia</strong></div><table align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"484\"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Jirayr_Sefilian.pdf\" target=\"_top\"><img alt=\"\" border=\"0\" height=\"32\" src=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/pdf_icon.png\" width=\"32\" /></a></div></td><td><p>Jirayr Sefilian address to the Forum</p></td></tr><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td>&nbsp;</td><td><p>Regret letter from the Minister of Diaspora</p></td></tr></tbody></table><hr /><p>&nbsp;</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 274, 430, 'und', 0, '<div align=\"center\"><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Second_Annual_Forum_Agenda.pdf\">Agenda of the Forum</a>&nbsp;</strong>&nbsp; <strong><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/ForumSpeakersBios.pdf\">Bios of Speakers</a>&nbsp; &nbsp;</strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/media-gallery/pfa-forum-armenia-diaspora-relations\"><strong>Photo Gallery</strong></a><strong></strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/media-gallery/pfa-forum-armenia-diaspora-relations\"><strong>&nbsp; &nbsp;</strong></a><strong><a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/user/pfarmenia#p/a/u/1/BMrrKIzZnOo\">Keynote Speech&nbsp;by Raffi Hovannisian</a>&nbsp;</strong><strong>(video) &nbsp;</strong><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Sponsors_of_Diaspora_Forum.pdf\"><strong>Sponsors of the Forum</strong></a></p><p style=\"text-align: left; \">Despite the official rhetoric on both sides, Armenia-Diaspora relations remain strained after 20 years since independence. To provide an opportunity for academics, policy practitioners, and the public to discuss perspectives on, and approaches to, the present-day challenges facing the Armenian nation, Policy Forum Armenia organized its 2<sup>nd</sup>&nbsp;Annual Forum in Washington, DC on February 28-March 2, 2010.</p><div align=\"center\"><p style=\"text-align: left; \">Day 1 of the Forum (February 28) was held at the Cosmos Club, Washington&rsquo;s premier venue for social and policy events, and featured the presentation of PFA&rsquo;s Report on &ldquo;Armenia-Diaspora Relations: 20 Years Since Independence.&rdquo;</p><p style=\"text-align: left; \">Day 2 of the Forum (March 1) was held at Georgetown University. This part of the Forum was open to the public. Mr. Raffi Hovannisian, Armenia&rsquo;s First Foreign Minister, delivered the keynote luncheon address.</p><p style=\"text-align: left; \">The program for Day 3 (March 2) was designed for young professionals and included thematic meetings with to continue the discussion on Armenia-Diaspora relations and offer young professionals opportunities to network in Washington.</p><p style=\"text-align: left; \"><strong>Below are some presentation made during the Forum.</strong></p><h4><strong>Keynote Opening Address</strong></h4><div>Dr. Daniel Kufmann, Senior Fellow</div><div><em><a href=\"http://thekaufmannpost.net/national-disasters-today-provide-governance-lessons/\"> Global Economy and Development, Brookings Institute</a></em></div><div>&nbsp;</div><h4><strong>Young Professionals Session I</strong></h4><div>Jennifer De Mucci, Fordham University</div><div><em><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/De_Mucci_PFA_Forum.pdf\">Pouring Salt on Old Wounds: Psychological Reactions to the Protocols</a></em></div><div>&nbsp;</div><div><div>Tamar Palandjian George Mason University</div><div><em><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Palandjian-PFA_forum.pdf\">Interest-based Analysis of the Protocol-Related Armenia-Diaspora Rift</a></em></div><div>&nbsp;</div><div>Henry Dumanian, the City University of New York</div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Dumanian-PFA_forum_paper.pdf\"><em>Diaspora and Democracy: The Diaspora&rsquo;s Response to National Movements in Armenia</em></a></div><div>&nbsp;</div><div><h4><strong>Young Professionals Session II</strong></h4><div>Dzovinar Derderian, Georgetown University</div><div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Derderian-Democracy_Armenia.pdf\"><em>Democracy in Armenia and Diaspora-Armenia relations</em></a></div><div>&nbsp;</div><div><div>Ted Tourian, Burgh, Balian &amp; Bergstein, LLP</div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Tourian-PFA.pdf\"><em>The Accountability of Diaspora Organizations to Armenians: The reason why the creation of more Diaspora organizations are necessar</em></a></div><div>&nbsp;</div><h4><strong>Keynote Luncheon Address</strong></h4><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Raffi_H_PFA_Forum.pdf\">Raffi K. Hovannisian, Heritage Party</a></div><div><div>&nbsp;</div><div><h4><strong>Senior Professionals Session II</strong></h4><div>Artsvik Minasyan, Member of Parliament, ARF Faction</div><div><a href=\"../sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum/Minasyan-PFA.pdf\"><em>The Ways to Overcome the Social-Economic and Public-Political Issues in Armenia&nbsp;</em></a></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 276, 433, 'und', 0, '<p>On March 5, 2011, Policy Forum Armenia held an evening honoring the memory of a prominent Soviet-era dissident, a member of the &ldquo;7 patriots&rdquo;, Vigen Babayan. The event&rsquo;s featured guests were: &nbsp;</p><ul><li>Azat Gasparyan, renown actor and narrator (evening&rsquo;s moderator);</li><li>Paruyr Hayrikyan, prominent Soviet-era dissident and the leader of the National Self-Determination Union (AIM); and</li><li>Shahen Harutyunyan, a founder of the Soviet-era underground United National Party (AMK).</li></ul><p>Jailed in early-1960s for underground activities aimed at proclaiming independent Armenia and recognizing the Genocide, the &ldquo;7 patriots&rdquo;&mdash;as the group became known in Armenia following their trial and imprisonment&mdash;laid the foundations for independence and pro-democracy movement in Armenia and elsewhere in the USSR. Years spent in Siberian gulags and countless KGB interrogations could not break Vigen Babayan&rsquo;s iron will and lessen his commitment to what he stood for. The volumes of poetry that he left behind are live testaments of his sufferings, but also of limitless love for his motherland and freedom. To the young generation of Armenians, who fought for country&rsquo;s independence and for the freedom of Artsakh, Vigen Babayan is known as the voice behind the &ldquo;Voice of America&rdquo; Armenian service reporting during the late-1980s and early-1990s.</p><p>&quot;Celebrating the legacy of Vigen Babayan and others, who put their lives on the line for free and independent Armenia, at times when there seemed no hope on the horizon, is of particular importance now given the events unfolding in Armenia. This epic story is as much about the past as it is about today and tomorrow,&quot; said a member of the community who attended the event. &nbsp; &nbsp;</p><p>The event was held at <strong><a href=\"https://www.cosmosclub.org/default.aspx\">the Cosmos Club</a>&nbsp;</strong>and&nbsp;was&nbsp;co-sponsored by members of the Washington&#39;s Armenian community.</p><p>Additional pictures from the event are available in&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com/media-gallery/evening-memory-vigen-babayan\">Photo Gallery</a>.&nbsp;</strong></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 277, 446, 'und', 0, '<address>Left to right: Former Prime Ministers of Armenia Aram Sargsyan, Khosrov Harutyunyan, Gagik Harutyunyan, Hrant Bagratyan, Vazgen Manukyan, and former Minister of Finance Levon Barkhudaryan at PFA&rsquo;s First Annual Forum on Economic Crisis (Yerevan, May 2009)</address><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Armenia--Weathering_the_Global_Storm--05-24.pdf\"><u><strong>Forum&#39;s Agenda</strong></u></a><strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </strong><u><strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/site-page/guest-speakers-background\">Guest Speakers</a></strong></u><strong>&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong><u><strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/media-gallery/high-level-economic-forum-yerevan-0\">Photo Gallery</a></strong></u></p><p><strong>Weathering the Global Storm: Forum in Armenia brings together current and former economic policymakers</strong></p><p>A high-level economic forum held in Armenian capital Yerevan on Monday brought together former and current economy policy makers to discuss the implications of the continuing global economic crisis for Armenia and help devise policy prescriptions to mitigate them.&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;Armenia: Weathering the Global Storm&rdquo;, an event held by independent think tank Policy Forum Armenia, was attended by representatives of international organizations, major policymakers from regional economic powerhouses, and an unprecedented line-up of Armenia&rsquo;s key economic policymakers since independence.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />With the deepening effects of the global financial and economic crisis already fully felt in Armenia, the country&rsquo;s government is seeking new ways to stop and reverse the continuing economic decline. But some analysts say government action is belated, and others believe the measures being taken are still insufficient.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />These and other evaluations were heard at the forum in Yerevan held for the purpose of outlining actions to alleviate the negative impact of the crisis.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />In his opening remarks, Abel Aghanbegian, an academician from the Russian Federation, predicted that the crisis would last for another three or 3 &frac12; years and stressed that it was important to come out of this crisis with increased strength.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />&ldquo;The crisis holds out a number of opportunities, such as a decreased inflation, &lsquo;cheap money&rsquo;, opportunities for developing small and medium-sized enterprises. When imports fall in conditions of the crisis, a country like Armenia should diversify its exports, since in conditions of the depreciating national currency, favorable conditions are created for producers,&rdquo; the academician said.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />Meanwhile, former chairman of the Central Bank Bagrat Asatryan sees an opportunity for a slow increase in exports only in 2010-2011, whereas in 2009, according to the economist, exports will be falling in parallel to imports.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />&ldquo;Moreover, a decline in cash remittances and losses of jobs that have started in Russia this spring and are likely to continue for the next few years will lead to an 11 percent economic decline [in Armenia] in 2009,&rdquo; said Asatryan, explaining that indices posted by the Central Bank have been used for the purpose of making this forecast.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />Asatryan, as well as many other participants in the forum, stressed in their speeches that system changes were required for meeting the challenges of the current crisis.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />Former first deputy chairman of the Russian Central Bank Sergey Aleksashenko, presenting the current situation in Russia, underlined the importance of institutional reforms, including for Armenia.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />&ldquo;It is incumbent on the government to fight corruption and monopolistic practices, so that small and medium-sized businesses can develop [even] in conditions of the crisis,&rdquo; said Aleksashenko.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />David Grigorian, the co-founder of Policy Forum Armenia and an economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, told ArmeniaNow that the purpose of the event was to combine together Armenian and outside experience.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />&ldquo;The purpose of this forum is to bring together the expertise not only that has been accumulated in Armenia since independence in terms of economic policy making, but also distinguished guests from outside that have very relevant experience in terms of crisis management.&nbsp;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />From that point of view we have achieved something already. It remains to be seen whether any of the findings or deliberations of the forum will reach its intended audience, of which the government is a part,&rdquo; Grigorian said.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />&ldquo;It is difficult to say whether or not the government is tuned to this and will be listening to this. But we certainly hope so&hellip; However, it is an unprecedented occasion to have current and former economic policy makers together discussing issues of importance.&rdquo;</p><div>By Sara Khojoyan</div><div><a href=\"http://www.armenianow.com/news/9886/weathering_the_global_storm_forum\">ArmeniaNow&nbsp;</a></div><div>&nbsp;</div>', 'To discuss the implications of the world economic crisis for Armenia and help devise policy prescriptions to mitigate them, Policy Forum Armenia held a high level Economic Forum that will brought together representatives of international organizations, major policymakers from regional economic powerhouses, and an unprecedented line-up of Armenia’s key economic policymakers since independence.', 'full_html'),
('node', 'home_page_feature', 0, 278, 1080, 'und', 0, 'To discuss the implications of the crisis for Armenia and help devise policy prescriptions to mitigate them, Policy Forum Armenia will hold a high level Economic Forum that will bring together representatives of international organizations, major policymakers from regional economic powerhouses, and an unprecedented line-up of Armenia’s key economic policymakers since independence.', '', NULL),
('node', 'profile', 0, 281, 450, 'und', 0, 'Tigran is a theoretical physicist working at the cutting edge of problems in cold atoms, superconductivity, mesoscopics and nanotechnology, and also quantum dynamical systems. After receiving his Ph.D. degree from Yerevan Physics Institute, Tigran has spent his time working at various top level European and US institutions including  the International Center for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy, Laboratory LAPTH in Annecy, France, the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, Denmark, University of Utah, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the Joint Quantum Institute and Condensed Matter Theory Center, University of Maryland at College Park. Currently he works at the Fine Theoretical Physics Institute, University of Minnesota.', '', 'filtered_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 282, 451, 'und', 0, 'On December 10, 2010, Policy Forum Armenia held a roundtable entitled “5,000 Dram, Voting Roulette, and AK-74: How to Reform the Election System in Armenia” featuring Armenia’s former Prime Minister, Aram Sargsyan, and former Deputy Minister of Health and attorney, Artak Zeynalyan, who visited Washington at the invitation of the State Department.\r\n\r\nParticipants discussed the political developments in Armenia since the 2008 presidential election and March 1-2, 2008 events, as well as possible ways out of the current gridlock. The speakers offered their views about the potential for, and factors behind, political change in Armenia ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections scheduled in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Given the length that the current administration is willing to go to maintain its grip on power, they expressed skepticism about the role the regular elections can play in delivering any meaningful change. Speaking about the election fraud and wide-spread irregularities observed in 2008 and 2009, the participants discussed potential mechanisms for independent election monitoring to help make national elections in Armenia less fraudulent and more transparent. A spirited question-and-answer session followed the initial presentations.\r\n\r\nAram Sargsyan served as Armenia\'s Prime Minister between November 1999 and May 2000, following the assassination of his brother, PM Vazgen Sargsyan, in the Armenian parliament building in October 1999. He has since been actively involved in the opposition movement, as leader of the Republic party and as a prominent member of the Armenian National Congress.\r\n\r\nAs part of his duties as a member of the Republic party, Artak Zeynalyan was in charge of filing claims of procedural violations and fraud in the 2007 parliamentary election. He was actively involved in 2008 and 2009 as part of a team of legal experts charged with collection and processing of evidence related to election fraud, and he has represented the victims of the March 1-2, 2008 post-election massacre in Armenian courts.\r\n', '', 'filtered_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 284, 453, 'und', 0, '<p>On April 30, 2010, Policy Forum Armenia held a roundtable discussion on Karabakh hosted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC.&nbsp; The speakers were Igor Muradyan, an independent analyst and one of the main initiators of independence movement in Karabakh in 1980s&mdash;who is visiting Washington at the invitation of PFA&mdash;and Thomas de Waal, Senior Associate in the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment.</p><p>Moderator Dr. David Grigorian thanked the Carnegie Endowment for hosting the discussion, the panelists for agreeing to share their views, and the attendees for joining.&nbsp; The following is the summary of the points made by speakers:</p><p><strong>Thomas de Waal</strong></p><ul><li>Minsk Group negotiations process is almost dead, but there appears to be no alternative to it;</li><li>The confidential nature of negotiations (where only a few people know the details) is not helping. This results in asymmetry between the true content of the talks and what is shared&nbsp;with the public and creates room for manipulations;</li><li>Karabakh is excluded from the negotiations and ends up playing an obstructionist role in the process;</li><li>The Madrid formula appears to be&nbsp;mutually beneficial;</li><li>Bellicose rhetoric, present on both sides (albeit in different degrees), is not conducive to normalization and progress in talks;</li><li>Path for resolution: Armenia should declare that it has no claims on territories beyond the borders of former NKR, which should then trigger Baku&rsquo;s granting Karakakh a very high level of autonomy with some attributes of independence.</li></ul><p><strong>Igor Muradyan</strong></p><ul><li>The August 2008 operation in Ossetia expedited the Karabakh talks on a bilateral basis;</li><li>Russia-Turkish rapprochement too contributed to the process and created a fertile ground for&nbsp; &ldquo;football diplomacy&rdquo;;</li><li>The value of Armenia-Turkey protocols is not in the establishment of diplomatic relations or the potential economic gains but in creating&nbsp;security in the region.&nbsp; This has failed, however, as the environment is much more tense now than it was before the start of the &ldquo;football diplomacy&rdquo;;</li><li>Events that unfolded recently have on the balance reduced the interest of parties in the resolution of the Karabakh problem;</li><li>War on the Karabakh front remains unlikely as long as Azerbaijan is on its own, but triggers for&nbsp;a new war on that front could come from Turkey;</li><li>The negotiating sides should keep in mind that had the Armenian side lost the war in 1994, there would have not been any international pressures on Azerbaijan to allow for the return of the Armenian refugees or to make any territorial concessions for that matter;</li><li>It is unlikely that politicians in Baku will ever forget that Turkey &ldquo;went behind their backs&rdquo; to negotiate with Armenia on border opening. Turkey&rsquo;s backtracking in the recent weeks was a result of formidable pressures from Azerbaijan.</li></ul><p>A lively&nbsp;discussion followed after the presentations that touched upon&nbsp;the costs and benefits of any concessions on the Armenian side; the ability of official Yerevan to handle complex negotiations on&nbsp;multiple fronts; the economic and developmental dimension of the conflict; as well as incentives (or lack thereof)&nbsp;of world powers in achieving normalization in the region.</p><p>The roundtable ended on a note that no political solution of conflicts in the modern history has ever changed the prevailing military outcome.</p><div>Additional pictures are available in&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com/media-gallery/nkr-roundtable-carnegie-endowment\">Photo Gallery</a></strong>.</div>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 285, 454, 'und', 0, '<p>On August 28, 2010, Policy Forum Armenia (PFA) presented its State of the Nation Report on &ldquo;Armenia-Diaspora Relations: 20 Years since Independence&rdquo; in Glendale. Inaugurated at a high-profile event in Washington, DC on February 28, 2010, the Report came a few weeks after the signing of the Armenian-Turkish protocols on October 10, 2009. It offers a critical assessment of the 20 or so years of engagement between Armenia and the Diaspora and provides recommendations for the future.</p><p>Presenting in Glendale Public Library were&nbsp;Dr. David Grigorian, a Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund, and <a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com/profile/asbed-kotchikian\"><strong>Professor Asbed Kotchikian</strong></a>, a Political Science Lecturer at Bentley University, both Senior Fellows at Policy Forum Armenia. The event also featured commentaries on the Report from Dr. Seta Melkonian, president of the Monte Melkonian foundation; Sara Anjargolian, Esq., LA-based attorney and photographer; &nbsp;and Dr. Joseph Kechichian, editor of the Journal of the Society for Armenian Studies. Presentations and subsequent question and answer session were moderated by Mrs. Sylva Natalie Manoogian, an International library consultant and President of the Shahan Natalie Family Foundation. See&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/Glendale%20presentation%20bios\">biographies of panelists</a>.</strong></p><p>Presenters started off by providing a historical excurse into Diaspora&rsquo;s formation and a background of the relationship between Armenia and the Diaspora. They then discussed the developments in bilateral relations between the two halves of the nation since Armenia&rsquo;s independence and conjectured that a drift in relations may have started as early as the inception of Armenia&rsquo;s independent movement in 1988. Having set the stage, the presenters then offered an overview of Diaspora&rsquo;s engagement in Armenia on three critical dimensions: economic development, governance and public sector reform, and civil society strengthening. While acknowledging the enormous effort required and the sacrifices made to support Armenia during early years of independence, presenters echoed the Report&rsquo;s criticism of what has been achieved on these important dimensions and provided reasons behind this outcome.</p><p>On the direct economic assistance measure, presenters noted that general lack of political will and the state capture in Armenia have prevented a true economic integration between the Diaspora and the republic. Diaspora&rsquo;s development agenda in Armenia remains weak or non-existent; it has largely ignored the realm of developing independent and credible public policy advice; and its inability to set up institutional vehicles for investment in Armenia is most unfortunate. Presenters went on to argue that not only has the Diaspora not been able to raise any sizable amount of development-intensive money itself to channel to Armenia, it is yet to play a catalytic role in attracting other, non-Diaspora, investments to Armenia.</p><p>On indirect economic assistance, presenters <a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads/Diaspora_Forum_LA/Chart_of_indirect_assistance.pdf\"><strong>produced a chart</strong></a> depicting a declining US government assistance to Armenia on the backdrop of an increasing assistance to Azerbaijan until 2006. They conjectured that while this trend reflects the overall shift in Washington&rsquo;s attitude away from Armenia and its prioritization of foreign aid, it may also reflect: (1) the preferences of Diaspora lobbying groups, which appear to place more emphasis on Genocide recognition than assistance to Armenia, (2) the perceived need for that assistance on the ground in Armenia, given the Armenian budget&rsquo;s improved capacity to provide goods and services, and (3) the declining influence of Diaspora lobbying groups.</p><p>Presenters then tackled issues related to governance and civil service reform, as key ingredients for development and growth, as well as issues related to strengthening civil society. They found that on these two important dimensions the Diaspora has failed the test by neglecting the importance of these factors for progress and development. The Report&rsquo;s assessment of the failure on the global scale to bring the two halves of the nation together was perhaps best described in the following statement:</p><p>&quot;The successive administrations in Armenia since independence have effectively stripped the nation of the rewards for its victories: the modern-day examples of audacity, perseverance, and success of unseen proportions. Something that could have empowered and served the foundation for the &ldquo;new history,&rdquo; has been turned into a liability of major proportions. The Diaspora did not seem to mind that: the &ldquo;old history&rdquo; was still too strong in their minds and hearts and they were not about to let that be replaced by something else. An opportunity given to the nation by its best&mdash;the Leonids, Montes, Shahens, and Tatouls of the world and countless others, who still carry the wounds of the Karabakh war and the memories of the short but epic reconstruction that followed&mdash;was effectively allowed to be lost by politicians in Armenia and largely unsuspecting-but-effectively-complicit Diaspora.&quot;</p><p>In their closing remarks,&nbsp;presenters discussed the concept of collective action outlined in detail in the Report and what specific application it can have in the context of Armenia-Diaspora relations. They drew a roadmap for formation of a trans-Armenian institution capacble of internalizing problems described throughout the Report and outlined the basic principles and structure for such an organization.</p><p>The three discussants whose remarks followed next commented on specific aspects of the report but also offered general observation on the topic form their own experience. Whether it was Anjargolian, showing the poverty facing residents of Armenia; Dr. Kechichian, describing the diversity of the Diaspora as a source of development and prosperity for Armenia; or Dr. Melkonian discussing the deteriorating relations between residents of Armenia and ordinary Diasporans, they all found the Report useful and constructive in its criticism and recommendations. The discussants agreed that while the Diaspora acted as a backbone to the Armenian statehood during the earthquake in 1989 and the Artsakh&rsquo;s war of Independence, it has subsequently turned a blind-eye on corruption and poor governance practices in Armenia.</p><p>Discussants conferred that many in the Diaspora remain committed to building stronger ties between the Diaspora and Armenia. Going forward, political, economic, and cultural ties with the country would strengthen Diaspora Armenians&rsquo; sense of identity and belonging.&nbsp;And while true integration requires trust and years of meticulous work, it is time for the nation to take steps in this direction to avoid new dividing lines with potentially devastating and irreversible consequences.&nbsp;As Anjargolian stated, the existing disconnect between Armenia and the Diaspora is preventing the latter from shaping Armenia&rsquo;s future. Overcoming Armenia&rsquo;s challenges would require strong efforts by both the state and the Diaspora and the time to act is now.</p><p>Question and answer session followed all five presentations and focused <em>inter alia</em> on issues of human rights abuses in Armenia, challenges of economic development, Diaspora leadership problems, the capacity of Diaspora organizations to innovate and promote change, poverty and migration, etc. The discussions continued at a reception at Abril bookstore. Over 80 participants attended the presentation.</p><p>The Report&rsquo;s&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com/sites/default/files/uploads/pfa_uploads//Diaspora_Forum_LA/PP_presentation_in_Glendale.pdf\">presentation</a></strong>&nbsp;was sponsored by ARKA International, Ecumenos Design Studios, Fortune Vodka, Shahan Natalie Family Foundation, Veratarts TV, and Abril Books.</p><p>Additional pictures are available from the <strong><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/media-gallery/diaspora-report-presentation-glendale\">Photo Gallery</a>.</strong></p>', '', 'full_html');

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('node', 'press_release', 0, 373, 1005, 'und', 0, '<p><strong>STATEMENT</strong></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>The decision of the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) to return to a <em>de facto</em> free floating exchange rate regime, announced on March 3, 2009, has led to a swift reaction from economic agents.</strong>Within minutes of the announcement, some stores in Yerevan were closed, prices across a wide range of products were adjusted, and the buy-sell margins for dollar trading by banks ballooned. Following the initial reaction, at present the risk of escalation appears to have been contained.</font></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>In its <a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/sites/default/files/documents/files/CRISIS_REPORT--FINAL.pdf\">December 2008 Report</a>, Policy Forum Armenia (PFA) warned about the serious build-up of external economic/financial pressures and proposed a gradual depreciation of the Dram as a key element of government&rsquo;s response strategy. </strong>While adopting measures along the lines of some recommendations, this and other key elements contained in the proposal were not followed or countered by alternative measures. What may have been a judgment call regarding the depth and the duration of the global crisis (and by extension also of the factors influencing Armenia&rsquo;s economy), should have been weighed carefully against the potential impact of the delayed response and should have been reversed early on.</font></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>Further attempts to use administrative measures to control either exchange rate or prices (or both) amid continued external pressures will prove ineffective and should be avoided given the potential for overshooting of the uncontrolled variable.</strong>Expectations of further devaluation (and/or inflation) could reduce the demand for real money balances beyond the decline in the real supply of money being observed at the moment. Depending on the stance of the CBA, this may either result in further loss of reserves or in further devaluation of the Dram. This could have devastating consequences for the domestic economy but also for Armenia&rsquo;s already embattled current account.</font></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>Under these circumstances, re-gaining policy credibility and properly managing public&rsquo;s expectations should be the cornerstones of the strategy going forward.</strong>To this end, CBA should be candid about the policy trade-off it was facing since the Fall of 2008 and about any errors of judgment that may have made the current outcome inevitable. It may not be easy to build trust now, but to continue to lose it at this juncture may prove dangerous. It is in every sensible citizen&rsquo;s interest to stabilize the situation in Armenia and the authorities should capitalize on this premise and come off as transparent and forward-looking as possible. This will help rebuild confidence and trust in policy management. <strong>Only with mutual trust, and if united in their effort, will the government and society overcome this and future turbulence and move toward stability.</strong></font></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>Included in these confidence-building measures are some structural policy initiatives outlined in PFA&rsquo;s December 2008 Report. </strong>Chief among them were: (1) the establishment of a crisis management team consisting of experienced economists and finance experts independent of their political affiliations and views; (2) undertaking credible measures to reduce the monopoly price-setting powers of key import companies; and (3) taking swift measures to reduce some well-known barriers to doing business.</font></p><p><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><strong>Without credibility, the traditional policy instruments will have a limited impact on the situation and some are likely to come at higher-than-expected costs.</strong>A monetary tightening could reduce the pressure on reserves and help dampen inflationary expectations. However, if not accompanied with sufficient public buy-in, this will not have the desired effect on the public&rsquo;s willingness to hold local currency, and in the meantime will suppress economic activity. Credibility will also be important for the effectiveness of the fiscal policy response, where targeted social spending will be critical for reducing the negative consequences of the devaluation on low income families and of the level of discontent and potential for political instability.</font></p><p><strong><font class=\"Apple-style-span\" face=\"Arial, Helvetica\"><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/fileadmin/pfa_uploads/Statement_on_Devaluation--Armenian--FINAL.pdf\">See the statement in Armenian.</a></font></strong></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'press_release', 0, 374, 638, 'und', 0, '<p style=\"text-align: center; \"><strong>Statement</strong></p><p>Policy Forum Armenia strongly condemns the November 17 attack on Edik Baghdasarian qualifying it as an assault on free speech. It calls upon the Armenian authorities to demonstrate political will and take immediate measures to bring the criminals involved to justice. We note that this act constitutes the seventh registered case of violence against journalists in Armenia this year.</p><p>We are confident that a nation endowed with millennia of written speech and such critical thinkers as Khorenatsi, Frik, Narekatsi, among others, will reject violent retaliation against proponents of free speech and media. Those who do not condemn such acts indirectly condone such activities and gravely damage our nation&rsquo;s collective image.</p><p>Dear Mr. Baghdasaryan and our colleagues at Hetq:</p><p>We deeply regret that your productive work and unbiased coverage of the difficulties facing the homeland have resulted in violence and harassment. Your tireless efforts and honest civic stance are commendable and exemplary. Policy Forum Armenia expresses its solidarity and readiness to fight for free speech and other principles of human rights. We encourage you to continue the struggle for these values and continue to light the flame that was lit by our literary masters thousand years ago to illuminate the future of our nation.</p><p><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/fileadmin/pfa_uploads/Statement_Edik_Baghdasaryan--Armenian.pdf\"><strong>See the statement in Armenian.&nbsp;</strong></a></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'press_release', 0, 377, 618, 'und', 0, '<p style=\"text-align: center; \"><br /><strong>PFA responds to the Events in Armenia</strong></p><p>The membership of the Policy Forum Armenia is deeply alarmed with the recent events unfolding in Armenia. We condemn, in the strongest terms, any use of violence and brutality against peaceful and unarmed civilian demonstrators, such as that which occurred in the early hours of March 1 and throughout the day. We mourn the loss of life, and we place the ultimate responsibility for such loss with those who ordered force against peaceful demonstrators in their sleep in Liberty Square, Armenia&rsquo;s symbol of freedom.</p><p>Having the best interest of the people of Armenia in mind, and taking into account the unprecedented nature of the events, we&mdash;Armenian professionals from around the world in joining other people of good will&mdash;urge the Armenian authorities to:</p><ul><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Cease arrests of opposition political leaders and activists;</li><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Assure the release of all arrested demonstrators, or provide them with access to legal &nbsp; counsel as stipulated by law;</li><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Provide adequate medical treatment to injured and wounded civilians;</li><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Ensure objective, full, and accurate media coverage of the events;</li><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Lift the state of emergency, thereby restoring constitutional order in the country; and</li><li style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; \">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Secure the free and unimpeded exercise of citizens&rsquo; constitutional rights to free speech and assembly.</li></ul><p>We call upon the international community to make every diplomatic effort to help restore the conditions in Armenia for a free, fair, and transparent vote, pursuant to Armenia&rsquo;s international commitments and obligations.</p><p>We encourage Armenian civil society to continue its struggle in securing adherence to democratic norms and principles in Armenia, including the conduct of free, fair, and transparent elections.</p><p>We urge all stakeholders in Armenia&rsquo;s stability and well-being to make every effort to avoid future escalation of violence and loss of life.</p><p><a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/fileadmin/pfa_uploads/PFAPressreleaseARM.pdf\"><strong>See the response in Armenian.</strong></a></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'profile', 0, 378, 629, 'und', 0, 'Susan Karamanian is the Associate Dean for International and Comparative Legal Studies Program at the George Washington University Law School. She has received her J.D. from University of Texas, a B.A. from Oxford University and a B.S. from Auburn University. A former Rhodes Scholar, Dean Karamanian is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a fellow of the American Bar Foundation. She is also an active member of the American Society of International Law. In 2009, she was elected President of the Washington Foreign Law Society. Dean Karamanian joined GWU law school after a fourteen-year career at Locke Liddell & Sapp, LLP in Dallas, Texas where she has represented foreign and domestic clients in litigation matters.', '', 'filtered_html'),
('node', 'profile', 0, 380, 631, 'und', 0, 'Levon Barkhudaryan was the Minister of Finance of Armenia in 1993–97 and again in 1999–2000, when he had actively participated in the introduction of the Armenian national currency (dram) and in the design and implementation of the fiscal policy reforms. Since 2010, he has served as the Vice Rector of the Armenian State Economic University. He also served as a Board Member of the BTA Bank (2008–09) and as a Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Armimpexbank (2001–07). Mr. Barkhudaryan holds a post-graduate degree in Economics from the Central Economic and Mathematical Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences.', '', 'filtered_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 381, 1544, 'und', 0, '<h1 class=\"title\" id=\"page-title\" style=\"margin: 17px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 24px; line-height: 31.2px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(65, 68, 72); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><strong>Panel Discussion on &quot;Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Armenia: Police Brutality, Political Prisoners, and (Potential) International Response&quot;</strong></h1><p>October 13, 2016, Washington, DC</p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><strong style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit;\">Documentary</strong>&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFRLryDWuOQ&amp;feature=youtu.be\" style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; color: rgb(0, 67, 111); text-decoration: none;\" target=\"_blank\">&quot;2008-2016: Bloody Power&quot;</a></strong></p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><strong style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit;\">Presentations by</strong>:</p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\">&nbsp; &nbsp;Avetik Ishkhanyan (Armenia Helsinki Committee; in Armenian) and Varuzhan Hoktanyan (Transparency International) (<strong><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auQgcPcH61U&amp;feature=youtu.be\">segments of the audio recording</a></strong>)</p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><strong><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vph5w_4vDW4\" style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; color: rgb(0, 67, 111); text-decoration: none;\" target=\"_blank\">&nbsp; &nbsp;Jane Buchanan </a></strong><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vph5w_4vDW4\" style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; color: rgb(0, 67, 111); text-decoration: none;\" target=\"_blank\">(Human Rights Watch)</a></p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkLfHfMDfEE&amp;feature=youtu.be\" style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; color: rgb(0, 67, 111); text-decoration: none;\" target=\"_blank\">&nbsp; &nbsp;<strong>Miriam Lanskoy</strong> (National Endowment for Democracy)</a></p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nxIgUS4VRo&amp;feature=youtu.be\" style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; color: rgb(0, 67, 111); text-decoration: none;\" target=\"_blank\">&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;Hasmik Hakobyan</strong> (American Bar Association&#39;s Rule of Law Initiative)</a></p><p style=\"margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"><strong>Voice of America&#39;s <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/amerikayidzayn/videos/1294536637265189/\">video report</a> on the discussion</strong></p><hr /><p>Please visit <strong><a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/user/pfarmenia\">PFA&#39;s YouTube Channel</a></strong>, while we remodel.</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 382, 954, 'und', 0, '<br /><p><strong><em>Coming Soon...</em></strong></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 383, 1086, 'und', 0, '<p><strong>PFA Watch List brings to public&rsquo;s attention controversial legislative initiatives, government decisions, legal proceedings, and behavior of public officials with implications for developmental policy design and implementation in Armenia. PFA&rsquo;s commentary will be limited only to how these controversial actions are likely to impact the policy design and conduct. This tool is intended to generate awareness to help formulate alternative views and shape public opinion.</strong></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 384, 709, 'und', 0, '<p><strong><a href=\"http://armenianow.com/news/politics/41758/armenia_parliament_anti_monopoly_bill_rejected  \">ANC&rsquo;s anti-monopoly package rejected in parliament</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.tert.am/en/news/2012/11/14/aj-ashkhatavarc-merjum/\">Armenia&rsquo;s parliament rejects ARF-D-submitted bill&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://hetq.am/eng/opinion/20973/call-for-urgent-measures-for-ensuring-the-legitimacy-of-electoral-processes-in-armenia.html\">Call for Urgent Measures for Ensuring the Legitimacy of Electoral Processes in Armenia</a></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'event', 0, 385, 687, 'und', 0, '<p>Consistent with its mission to promote a better understanding of developmental challenges facing Armenia, Policy Forum Armenia invited a reknown environemntal activist Yeghia Nersesian to visit the&nbsp;United States for a series of presentations on environmental issues and a grassroots movement that is gaining a strong momentum in Armenia.</p><p>The main event of the series&mdash;held on December 16 and titled &quot;Averting Environmental Disaster: Solutions to Irresponsible Minign in Armenia&quot;&mdash;was co-organized by Policy Forum Armenia, Armenian Bar Association, ARF Shant Student Association, ARPA Institute, Armenian Tree Project, Armenian Environmental Network, Armenian Engineers and Scientists of America, Birthright Armenia, HaikProject, and Save Teghut Group.&nbsp;</p><p>Yeghia&#39;s talk, which was devoetd to the dangers of mining policy and practices currently in place in Armenia, was followed by the screening of a documentary &quot;Mining in Armenia&quot; by director Robert Davidian and a short performance by singer and songwriter Gor Mkhitarian.&nbsp;</p><p>You can read more about the event on the&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://pfarmenia.wordpress.com/2012/12/18/global-coalition-of-armenian-environmental-activists-held-its-first-event-la/\">PFA Blog</a></strong>.</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 386, 1263, 'und', 0, '<p><a href=\"http://www.armenianweekly.com/2013/02/19/sarkisian-ahead-with-58-percent-hovannisian-declares-victory-for-the-people/\"><strong>Sarkisian ahead with 58%, Hovannisian Declares Victory for the People</strong></a></p><p><a href=\"http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/02/19/289812/fraud-mars-armenia-pres-election/\"><strong>Fraud mars Armenia&rsquo;s presidential election: Ex-foreign minister</strong></a></p><p><a href=\"http://news.am/eng/news/140854.html\"><strong>Voter left us his fake passport and escaped&ndash; Heritage</strong></a></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://hetq.am/eng/news/23565/citizen-activist-to-osce-observers-stop-legitimizing-fraudulent-elections-in-armenia.html\">Citizen Activist to OSCE Observers: &quot;Stop Legitimizing Fraudulent Elections in Armenia&quot;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.armenianow.com/commentary/opinion/37906/parliamentary_elections_presidential_republican_prosperous_party_opposition\">Opinion: After May 6, is a presidential election redundant?</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/economy/view/26453\">Evolutionary Fight Against Corruption&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/country26494.html3\">Corruption Council Has Done Nothing Serious</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://hetq.am/eng/articles/21004/government-advice-to-scientists---leave-this-country.html\">Government Advice to Scientists - &#39;Leave this country&#39;</a>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.lragir.am/index.php/eng/0/comments/view/28340\">Troika of Oligarchs Vs. Alternative Oligarch</a></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'site_page', 0, 387, 1265, 'und', 0, '<p><strong><a href=\"http://hetq.am/eng/news/23565/citizen-activist-to-osce-observers-stop-legitimizing-fraudulent-elections-in-armenia.html\">Citizen Activist to OSCE Observers: &quot;Stop Legitimizing Fraudulent Elections in Armenia&quot;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.georgiatimes.info/en/analysis/70992.html\">One Sargsyan, two Sargsyan, three Sargsyan&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.armenianlife.com/2011/03/11/armenias-national-security-threat-soviet-era-corruption-nepotism/\">Armenia&rsquo;s national security threat: Soviet-Era corruption, nepotism&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/02/21/save-teghut-redefines-environmental-activism-in-armenia/  \">&lsquo;Save Teghut&rsquo; Redefines Environmental Activism in Armenia&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://armenianow.com/social/environment/32552/armenia_environment_protest_sevan_trchkan\">SOS for Trchkan, SOS for Sevan: Environmentalists concerned about industrial impact on Armenia&rsquo;s water resources</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://www.tert.am/en/news/2012/11/29/khosrovi-antar-haghtanak/\">Armenia&#39;s environmentalists gain victory</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://news.am/eng/news/113969.html  \">Mothers of dead soldiers break into Armenian government building&nbsp;</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"http://hetq.am/eng/news/20984/hayastan-himnadrami-amenamya-herustamaratony-karucoxakan-qnnadatutyun.html\">The Hayastan Fund Annual Telethon: A Constructive Critique</a></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'news', 0, 390, 720, 'und', 0, '<p>Source: <a href=\"http://www.armtown.com/news/en/pan/20090525/32145/\">ArmTown</a></p><p>On the initiative of Policy Forum Armenia, an economic forum kicked off in Yerevan today with a goal to find ways to alleviate consequences of the global financial crisis. The events brought together member of Russian Academy of Sciences Abel Aghanbegyan, former president of Russia&rsquo;s Central Bank Sergei Sleksashenko, former president of Turkey&rsquo;s Central Bank Fatih Ozatay and other prominent economists.</p><p>&ldquo;We should be optimistic. We have overcome many crises. This will not be an exception,&rdquo; academician Abel Aghanbegyan said. &ldquo;Crises come and go. We have overcome many crises. This will not be an exception. It will last 3-3.5 more years. We should just be stronger and learn lessons.&rdquo; &ldquo;Each month, the governments reconsider forecasts. There is no light at the end of the tunnel but there signs that the crisis will fade gradually. Many in Russia though that the crisis will end in 2009, however, the latest projections showed 2010 will be tensed as well. The GDP will be even lower than in 2009. Only the strongest will survive,&rdquo; he said. According to him, the crisis helps reduce inflation, what is for general benefit. &ldquo;Cheap money is another advantage of the crisis,&rdquo; he said. In respect to CIS countries, the main leverage of crisis management, in Dr. Aghanbekian&#39;s opinion, is a small and medium business, which will help to reduce the unemployment rate, improve population&#39;s well-being, to grow turnover.</p><p>The small business is linked to introduction of innovation technologies. &quot;Other leverage is a residential construction and usage of hypothec with cheap loans, which has a multiplicative effect, since every invested rouble brings 5 rubles,&quot; Dr. Aghanbegyan said. According to him, devaluation of national currencies occurred in many countries (reached 40 per cent in some countries) has resulted in a sharp decline in imports, up to 45 per cent in Russia, in particular. &quot;Import has left many industries and opened new niches for domestic producers,&quot; he said. In Dr Aghabegyan&#39;s opinion, import replacement is one of the leverages of crisis management, however import replacement needs to be supported by investments, in order not to surpass exports after crisis is overcome. Besides, export needs to be diversified, and instead of only raw material to export end products. Simultaneously, in Dr Aghabegyan&#39;s opinion, innovations and investments into human brains should be encouraged. &quot;We are dealing with reforms in education sphere in Russia, and a part of anti-crisis program is devoted to preparing highly qualified people,&quot; he said. &quot;It is very important to remain optimistic during the crisis. We have undergone several crises and will survive in this one&quot; concluded Abel Aghanbegyan.</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'news', 0, 392, 820, 'und', 0, '<p>Source: <a href=\"http://www.armtown.com/news/en/anw/20090515/3731/\">ArmTown</a></p><p>Policy Forum Armenia has announced a &ldquo;high level&rdquo; economic forum to be held May 25 in Yerevan that will bring together present and past prime ministers for a panel discussion, as well as representatives of international financial organizations. The day-long event &ndash; &ldquo;Armenia: Weathering the Global Storm&rdquo; &ndash; will focus on key issues facing Armenia&rsquo;s challenge to overcome the world financial crisis. &ldquo;International financial organizations and most economists predict a deep and lengthy recession for a wide range of developed and developing countries. As many of these states, Armenia will face the consequences of adverse global trends, and in some ways is likely to be even more affected owing to a dramatic economic slowdown in some of its main trading partner countries,&rdquo; says the PF-A announcement. Policy Forum Armenia is an independent professional non-profit association aimed at strengthening discourse on Armenia&#39;s economic development and national security and through that helping to shape public policy in Armenia.&nbsp;</p>', '', 'full_html');
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('node', 'news', 0, 393, 723, 'und', 0, '<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Source:&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/11/05/breaking_the_grip_of_the_oligarchs\">Foreign Policy</a></p><div>By Liana Aghajanian</div><div>November 5, 2012</div><p>On a summer evening in late June, three military doctors ventured into a lavish restaurant on the outskirts of Yerevan, Armenia&#39;s capital, to have dinner. With its marbled beige floors and crystal chandeliers, the restaurant, known as Harsnakar, is a favorite for weddings, anniversaries, and friendly get-togethers.</p><p>The public outrage was unprecedented. It isn&#39;t uncommon for the employees of business tycoons to engage in violence. But this was the first time that someone like Avetyan -- a married father of two whose job involved caring for Armenia&#39;s highly respected armed forces -- had inadvertently felt their wrath, and paid for it with his life. But things didn&#39;t go according to plan for 35-year-old Major Vahe Avetyan, one of the army doctors accompanying his colleagues on a night out. The man allegedly got into an argument over inappropriate dress code with security staff from the restaurant, which is owned by Ruben Hayrapetyan (pictured above), a business tycoon and then-member of parliament. Avetyan was brutally beaten and&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.tert.am/en/news/2012/06/23/hospital/\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">hospitalized</a>&nbsp;with severe head injuries. Soon, grim photos of the doctor emerged on social networks. Bandaged and unconscious, he lay on a bed in the same hospital where he had worked, in critical condition.&nbsp;Twelve days later, he died.&nbsp;</p><p>The death of Avetyan at the hands of bodyguards employed by Hayrapetyan has become a catalyzing event. Shocked Armenians mobilized in large numbers throughout the summer. The frustrations with a culture of bodyguards whose brutish behavior had become notoriously violent over the years spilled onto the streets and social networks. Legislation to regulate the private use of bodyguards has been&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.armenianow.com/news/33270/armenian_national_assembly_bodyguards\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">introduced</a>&nbsp;in parliament: The draft law stipulates that private security personnel will be required to don uniforms, to apply for weapons permits, and to register their weapons with law enforcement.</p><p>The ongoing trial of those involved in Avetyan&#39;s murder has opened a window onto the excesses of a tiny ruling class that until now has felt largely untouched by the law. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Armenians -- like many other inhabitants of the old USSR -- have watched as the lion&#39;s share of the country&#39;s wealth has fallen under the control of a privileged elite. The leading Armenian oligarchs, a group numbering around 40, dominate industries ranging from banking to mining, and that economic edge has translated into privileged political status as well. Just as in Russia and Ukraine, tycoons here have parlayed their wealth into public office -- to an extent that it&#39;s often hard to tell where business ends and politics begins.&nbsp;</p><p>Though political apathy is widespread in Armenia, the Avetyan case has fueled resentment and anger towards the men who have accumulated vast wealth and influence while much of the country&#39;s population remains in dire poverty. But now, thanks to the criminal case surrounding the death of the army doctor, something seems to be changing. After months of public pressure, Hayrapetyan finally<a href=\"http://www.panorama.am/en/politics/2012/09/28/hayrapetyan-abrahamyan/\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">submitted</a>&nbsp;his resignation from the legislature in early September, ending his foray into politics. Six of his bodyguards have been arrested in connection with the murder.</p><p>After two postponements, the trial formally got underway last month. The defendants, who initially faced lesser charges, have been formally accused on three counts of assault that could result in lengthier prison sentences than the five to ten years of imprisonment they previously faced. Hayrapetyan, known by the nickname &quot;Nemets Rubo,&quot; has repeatedly denied responsibility for the actions of his employees. Calls for Hayrapetyan to face trial in the case have&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24689702.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">gone nowhere</a>.</p><p>Armenia&#39;s search for stability and democracy since the collapse of the Soviet Union has been difficult. The country achieved its independence just three years after a 1988&nbsp;<a href=\"http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1988_12_07.php\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">earthquake</a>&nbsp;that left upwards of 25,000 dead. No sooner had Armenians embarked upon statehood than they found themselves locked in a debilitating war with neighboring Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. That war resulted in the closing of the country&#39;s borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey, cutting Armenia off from normal trade. These straitened circumstances brought hardship to most Armenians, but to those sufficiently ruthless and well-connected to take advantage, the war economy meant a path toward instant riches. It was then that many of today&#39;s tycoons began to build their fortunes.</p><p>The culture of oligarch immunity is certainly nothing new. The Avetyan murder has struck a sensitive chord owing to its chilling resemblance to the&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/news/4455/\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">2001 incident</a>&nbsp;in which a bodyguard of then-President Robert Kocharyan attacked and killed a man in a bathroom for making a disrespectful remark to the leader. But even then, most Armenians -- whether too apathetic, too scared, or too willing to emigrate -- refrained from mounting an open challenge to the tycoon establishment.</p><p>Now, in dramatic contrast, broad swathes of society have shown the will to stand up and resist. In the months following Avetyan&#39;s murder, the anti-oligarch protests began to attract attendance from regular citizens who are rarely seen at demonstrations. A candlelight vigil honoring the late doctor saw over 600 people surround the restaurant, which has come to symbolize the broad web of impunity shared by Armenia&#39;s tycoons. Police cordoned off the restaurant and clashed with protestors, breaking up&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVXBW-S8tfw\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">demonstrations</a>&nbsp;by force. &quot;I only had one bruise, but some people were beaten,&quot; said Tsovinar Nazaryan, an activist and journalist who attended the rally.</p><p>But the demonstrators kept coming back. They marched to the Prosecutor&#39;s General Office after Avetyan&#39;s funeral, chanting &quot;Nemets is a murderer&quot; and &quot;I am Vahe Avetyan.&quot; Then a montage of video clips from two press conferences Hayrapetyan gave last year surfaced on&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnkg82tYZBg\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">YouTube</a>&nbsp;(with English subtitles), showing the tycoon threatening reporters, claiming responsibility for beatings, and confessing to tampering with ballots in an election. &quot;I wouldn&#39;t advise people to try to punish me,&quot; he says at one point in the video. &quot;Whoever tried it, something terrible happened to them.&quot;</p><p>Anti-oligarch activism spread outside the country&#39;s borders, where the far-flung Armenian diaspora held protests in front of consulates.&nbsp;<a href=\"https://www.change.org/petitions/nemets-rubo-prosecution\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">Online petitions</a>&nbsp;were organized.&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.armeniapedia.org/wiki/File:Nemets_rubo_9800_sm.jpg\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">Street art</a>&nbsp;around the capital demanded that Hayrapetyan be tried in court.</p><p>&quot;Many people are sick and tired of their power,&quot; said activist Nazaryan. &quot;You can see how violent they are, in their business, in their everyday actions. They&#39;re violent to our journalists. They&#39;re really dangerous. They don&#39;t care. They know they won&#39;t be punished, and this is the problem.&quot;</p><p>This latest series of events represents the first small challenges to the seemingly impregnable edifice of oligarch power that has dominated this country since the collapse of the USSR. Functioning like early twentieth-century robber barons, Armenia&#39;s tycoons prefer to be called &quot;businessmen&quot; (though most Armenians tend to refer to them with cartoonish nicknames). The oligarchs drive fleets of flashy vehicles; their Hummers and Rolls Royce&#39;s are fitted with custom license plate numbers to simultaneously identify their families and close associates and deter harassment from traffic police.</p><p>Their ostentatious mansions multiply, and their business assets grow as they hold the Armenian economy hostage by eliminating competitive markets for everything from mineral water and asphalt to soft drinks. The economic elite flex their power in the political sphere despite a constitutional ban on members of parliament being involved in owning or running businesses. The political parties that have dominated recent&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17973353\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">elections</a>&nbsp;in the country are closely associated with leading oligarchs who enjoy parliamentary immunity and remain virtually untouchable. According to a recent&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/europe/south-caucasus/armenia/217-armenia-an-opportunity-for-statesmanship.aspx\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">report</a>&nbsp;by the International Crisis Group, for example, the ruling Republican Party had two dozen wealthy businessmen elected to the ranks of parliament in 2007. The same report notes that oligarchs routinely use their charitable foundations to sponsor concerts or hand out free potatoes in order to secure voter support, though the businessmen deny using charity for the purposes of political leverage.</p><p>Take Samvel &quot;Lfik Samo&quot; Aleksanyan, a millionaire with strong ties to the government. A 2003 U.S. State Department cable&nbsp;<a href=\"http://wikileaks.org/cable/2003/12/03YEREVAN2975.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">referred</a>&nbsp;to him as a &quot;semi-criminal&quot; oligarch who &quot;maintains an army of bodyguards&quot; and controls the import of sugar, wheat, and butter into the country.</p><p>Dubbed &quot;the Sugar Baron&quot; in local media, Aleksanyan&#39;s domination of the industry and ownership in a chain of supermarkets has created the conditions for a series of sugar crises in which prices unpredictably skyrocket. Aleksanyan recently bought and partially destroyed the famed, almost century-old bazaar-style indoor market and national treasure, &quot;<a href=\"http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/09/10/yerevans-pak-shuka-an-iconic-markets-uncertain-future/\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">Pak Shuka</a>,&quot; amid widespread speculation that he intends to turn it into part of his supermarket empire.</p><p>Other oligarchs play prominent roles in the lucrative mining industry. Armenia is rich in molybdenum and gold, and that has led to considerable competition among the oligarchs to grab their shares of the resulting profits. National Assembly Chairman Hovik Abrahamyan and member of parliament Tigran Arzakantsyan are both shareholders in one leading mining company. One of the most prominent tycoons linked with mining is former Minister of Environmental Protection Vardan Ayvazyan, who was in charge of regulating large parts of the industry during his stint in government. In September, a U.S. court&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24711408.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">ordered</a>&nbsp;Ayvazyan to pay $37.5 million in damages to a U.S. mining company that accuses him of corruption relating to his own business interest in the sector. (Ayvazyan has&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24723350.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">denied</a>&nbsp;all the allegations and rejects the American court&#39;s jurisdiction over him.)</p><p>Oligarchs are also accused of tampering with elections. Armenian elections have long been plagued by&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/05/07/armenia-votes-amid-reports-of-widespread-irregularities/\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">irregularities</a>, reportedly ranging from intimidation to ballot stuffing.<strong>&nbsp;<a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com/profile/garo-yegnukian\">Garo Yegnukian</a></strong>, an executive board member at&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"http://pfa-dr.ectostarpark.com\">Policy Forum Armenia</a></strong>, a U.S.-based think tank, says that oligarchs play an outsized role in elections: &quot;They&#39;re the ones who distribute election bribes, who intimidate, who break people&#39;s knees, if they have to.&quot;</p><p>A U.S. embassy cable leaked in 2009&nbsp;<a href=\"http://wikileaks.org/cable/2009/11/09YEREVAN798.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">described</a>&nbsp;business elites as &quot;deeply intertwined with political power and vice versa,&quot; each having an incentive to preserve the status quo out of the fear that a regime change could mean an economic redistribution at the &quot;expense of today&#39;s oligarchs.</p><p>Reports have&nbsp;<a href=\"http://wikileaks.org/cable/2006/10/06YEREVAN1457.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">linked</a>&nbsp;oligarchs to assaults and murders. But their activities have other pernicious effects as well.</p><p>The International Crisis Group report&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/europe/south-caucasus/armenia/217-armenia-an-opportunity-for-statesmanship.aspx\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">pinpointed&nbsp;</a>oligarch benefits from tax and customs advantages as a reason why the government collects only about 19.3 percent of GDP in taxes, compared to a 40 percent average in the European Union. A 2007 International Monetary Fund&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2007/wp07106.pdf\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">study&nbsp;</a>reflected this, arguing that despite double digit growth since the beginning of the millennium, Armenia&#39;s tax to GDP ratio remains very low.</p><p>Prime Minister Tigran Sarsgyan who has previously criticized several ministries within the government for corruption, recently announced that he will head an anti-corruption council, and extended a rare invitation to opposition parties to participate.</p><p>&quot;We are not satisfied with the state of the fight against corruption,&quot; Sargsyan&nbsp;<a href=\"http://news.am/eng/news/126883.html\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">said</a>, according to local press reports. But graft in Armenia doesn&#39;t seem to have seen any significant decline. Over the last five years, Armenia has&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.transparency.org/news/pressrelease/20110504_south_caucasus_must_do_more_to_fight_corruption\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">sharply fallen</a>&nbsp;on Transparency International&#39;s Corruption Index for Armenia by 30 places, from a ranking of 99 in 2007 to 129 in 2011.</p><p>Analysts&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/index.php?id=46&amp;tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=398&amp;tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=8\" style=\"border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 51, 102); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 14px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; font-weight: bold; \" target=\"_blank\">predict</a>&nbsp;that the path to economic success in Armenia means eliminating monopolies and minimizing the interference of oligarchs in policymaking; poverty and a high emigration rate (some 70,000 people leave the country every year) compound the problem. As the fallout from the death of an innocent army doctor continues, the Armenian government faces critical choices when it comes to its future and how it chooses to act, if at all, toward those enjoying immunity from the law. But it&#39;s clear that, even in the best of cases, reducing the power of the country&#39;s tycoons will be a long and arduous process.</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'news', 0, 394, 725, 'und', 0, '<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \"><a href=\"http://www.reporter.am/go/article/2012-02-19-group-of-experts-warns-of-financial-crisis-in-armenia-\"><strong>The Armenian Reporter</strong></a></div><div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">February 19, 2012</div><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \"><span class=\"location\" style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; \">WASHINGTON</span>&nbsp;- Policy Forum Armenia (PFA) announces the publication of a Special Report on &quot;Armenia: Averting an Economic Catastrophe.&quot;<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />The Report is the loudest warning to date issued to people of Armenia, the Diaspora, and other stakeholders about the economic disaster in the making in the country. Its objective is to provide an assessment of policies that have driven Armenia to where it is now and point out the signs of more trouble to come.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">The report warns that unless drastic changes in the economic policy direction and political-economy landscape are carried out, within the next 3 years, Armenia will be forced to undergo a large and painful devaluation of its currency, the dram, and/or an external sovereign debt restructuring or default.<br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" /><br style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; \" />The Report states that: &quot;The country&#39;s political leadership needs to fully internalize these problems and related risks and address them expeditiously. So far it appears that the lessons of 2009 have largely been wasted and no significant change in policy direction was pursued, which may have better prepared Armenia for what is likely to come next. Instead, the elements of the same crony capitalist practices-where a select few have used their disproportionate access to power and influence over economic decision-making for their personal gain-have been reinforced, at the expense of growth, public health, education, and national security. This is not only immoral but in many ways also illegal and needs to change. Armenia&#39;s window of opportunity to build a viable economy and address its severe social and demographic problems is closing rapidly.&quot;</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">The Report offers a detailed set of recommendations to help overcome the severe short- and medium-term problems faced by the economy. Important among them is the formation of a legitimate authority to oversee the new policy course on behalf of the people of Armenia. The report states that the situation requires a true government of national unity that would lay out a workable agenda and reach out to all constructive forces in Armenia and the Diaspora to help accomplish that. These efforts would require adequate professional skills but also the support of a truly national and clean political leadership to be successful.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">This report is a joint product of a team of PFA members and outside experts. The views expressed in the report do not necessarily represent those of every PFA member. Neither the authors nor the reviewers of this report have received any compensation for their contributions.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">Policy Forum Armenia is an independent professional non-profit association aimed at strengthening discourse on Armenia&#39;s economic development and national security and through that helping to shape public policy in Armenia. This and other PFA reports, which provide assessments of critical developments taking place in Armenia and the Diaspora, are available at&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/reports\" style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; text-decoration: underline; cursor: pointer; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; \">www.pf-armenia.org/reports</a><span style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; background-color: white; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; \">.</span></p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'profile', 0, 395, 727, 'und', 0, 'Gregory Aftandilian is a Senior Fellow for the Middle East at the Center for National Policy in Washington, D.C. He is specialist on Middle East affairs and U.S. foreign policy, having spent over 21 years in government service, most recently on Capitol Hill. Mr. Aftandilian was foreign policy advisor to Congressman Chris Van Hollen (2007-08), professional staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and foreign policy adviser to Senator Paul Sarbanes (2000-04), and foreign policy fellow to Senator Edward Kennedy (1999). Prior to these positions, Mr. Aftandilian worked for 13 years as a Middle East analyst at the U.S. Department of State where he was a recipient of the Department\'s Superior Honor Award for his analyses on Egypt. His other government experiences include analytic work on Middle East affairs for the U.S. Department of Defense and the Library of Congress. Mr. Aftandilian was a research fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University (2006-07) and an International Affairs Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York (1991-92). Mr. Aftandilian worked as a consultant on Egyptian affairs for the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (2005-2006) and was a counter-terrorism consultant for an academic project at Boston University. Mr. Aftandilian holds a B.A. in History from Dartmouth College, an M.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Chicago, and an M.Sc. in International Relations from the London School of Economics. \r\n \r\n \r\n ', '', 'filtered_html'),
('node', 'news', 0, 396, 730, 'und', 0, '<h3><a href=\"http://massispost.com/archives/5663\"><strong>Masis Post</strong></a></h3><h5>February 15, 2012</h5><p>&nbsp;</p><p>WASHINGTON, DC &mdash; Armenia will have trouble servicing its increased external debt in the next few years unless its government changes the existing &ldquo;crony capitalist&rdquo; system and embarks on genuine democratic reforms, Washington-based&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.pf-armenia.org/\" style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(205, 23, 19); background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; \">Policy Forum Armenia</a>&nbsp;(PFA) said on Monday.<br />&ldquo;Unless drastic changes in the economic policy direction and political-economy landscape are carried out, we estimate the likelihood of a large devaluation of the dram and/or debt default within the next 3 years to be very high,&rdquo; (PFA) claimed in a special report.<br />PFA also accused the authorities in Yerevan of failing to learn lessons from the 2008-2009 global financial crisis that hit the Armenian economy hard. &ldquo;The elements of the same crony capitalist practices &mdash; where a select few have used their disproportionate access to power and influence over economic decision-making for their personal gain &mdash; have been reinforced, at the expense of growth, public health, education, and national security,&rdquo; it charged.<br />A dramatic fall in construction was the main reason why the Armenian economy contracted by over 14 percent in 2009 after a decade of rapid growth. The Armenian government and Central Bank scrambled to cushion the impact of the recession with large-scale emergency loans from multilateral institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank as well as Russia. The anti-crisis borrowing enabled the government to avoid major spending cuts.<br />But it has also caused Armenia&rsquo;s external debt to more than double to $3.8 billion since late 2008. The overall public debt was projected to reach $4.3 billion at the end of last year. The figure is equivalent to 41.3 percent of Gross Domestic Product.<br />PFA, which comprises more than 50 Armenian-born and Diaspora Armenian professionals mostly working in the United States, said that the deteriorating external environment may well plunge the Armenian economy into renewed recession that would reflect negatively on the country&rsquo;s balance of payments.<br />&ldquo;According to our simulations, a moderate decline in GDP in 2012 may drive debt-to-GDP ratio above 50 percent,&rdquo; reads the PFA report. &ldquo;Given the fact that almost 90 percent of Armenia&rsquo;s debt is in foreign currency, the outlook will be much worse if the dram is abruptly devalued.&rdquo;<br />&ldquo;In the case of 30 percent devaluation, Armenia&rsquo;s debt-to-GDP ratio will reach 60 percent. A combined shock &mdash; with GDP decline and devaluation taken together &mdash; will drive the debt-to-GDP ratio well over 70 percent,&rdquo; it claims, accusing the authorities of keeping the dram&rsquo;s value artificially high with hard currency injections into the local banking sector.<br />PFA said the authorities should radically improve tax administration, create a level playing field for all businesses, strengthen the rule of law and crack down on widespread government corruption in earnest. The Diaspora organization also stressed the importance of Armenia&rsquo;s democratization and the proper conduct of the May parliamentary elections in particular.<br />&ldquo;Allowing people to exercise their free will and creating a sense of moral justice would enhance the public buy-in and &mdash; all other things being equal &mdash; would make policy measures more effective,&rdquo; says the PFA report. &ldquo;On the contrary, yet another fraudulent election will undoubtedly lead to more political tension, social upheavals, and more challenges to be tackled down the road.&rdquo;</p>', '', 'full_html'),
('node', 'news', 0, 397, 733, 'und', 0, '<p><strong><a href=\"http://www.reporter.am/go/article/2010-02-26-washington-forum-focuses-on-armenia-diaspora-relations\">The Armenian Reporter</a></strong></p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">February 26, 2010</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \"><span class=\"location\" style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; \">WASHINGTON</span>&nbsp;- Armenia-Diaspora relations have never been more strained in the 20 years since independence. To provide an opportunity for academics, policy practitioners, and the public to discuss perspectives on, and approaches to, the present-day challenges facing the Armenian nation Policy Forum Armenia will hold its 2nd Annual Forum in Washington, DC on February 28-March 2, 2010.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">For its 1st high-level Forum on the global economic crisis, held in Yerevan on May 25, 2009, PFA brought together an unprecedented line-up of academics and policymakers from Armenia, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, and UAE, including Armenia&#39;s five former Prime Ministers, to discuss the implications of the crisis for Armenia and help devise policy prescriptions to mitigate them.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">As in the 1st Forum, the 2nd (Armenia-Diaspora) Forum will gather a large number of intellectuals-academic and public policy practitioners-to discuss challenges and help devise new modes of engagement between Armenia and its Diaspora.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">Day 1 of the Forum (February 28) will be held at the Cosmos Club, Washington&#39;s premier venue for social and policy events, and will feature the presentation of PFA&#39;s Report on &quot;Armenia-Diaspora Relations: 20 Years Since Independence.&quot;</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">Day 2 of the Forum will be held at Georgetown University. This part of the Forum is open to the public, and we invite you to join us in Washington for a full day of deliberations on this important issue. We are very pleased to inform you that Mr. Raffi Hovannisian, Armenia&#39;s First Foreign Minister, will deliver the keynote luncheon address on Day 2 (March 1).</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">The program for Day 3 (March 2) is limited to only young professionals and will include thematic meetings with various international agencies and public and private organizations in order to continue the discussion on Armenia-Diaspora relations and offer young professionals opportunities to network in Washington.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">A detailed agenda follows. For comments or questions related to the 2nd Forum and to RSVP for Days 2 and 3, please email forum@pf-armenia.org. To register media presence, please email exrelations@pf-armenia.org.</p><p style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.7em; font-family: Georgia, \'Times New Roman\', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; \">See the full article and the agenda <a href=\"http://www.reporter.am/go/article/2010-02-26-washington-forum-focuses-on-armenia-diaspora-relations\">here</a>.</p>', '', 'full_html');
