Armenia: Fighting for Survival

by David Zenian Washington -- It is often said that no news is good news, and that bad news travels fast, but both seem to be nothing but perceptions when it comes to news from Armenia. While the world is bombarded daily with every detail of the situation in Somalia, Bosnia and the other regions of fragmented Yugoslavia, sometimes months go by without any mention of Armenia.

by Genine Babakian When Natasha Gevorkian began her journalism career, she operated under a completely different system - with a censor at every newspaper. But that did not deter her from pursuing a beat that made the censors jumpy at best. Since 1988, Natasha has covered the KGB and other "repressive" agencies for the Moscow News, earning a reputation that led to the publication of her first book, "The KGB Still Lives," by a German publisher last fall.

by David Zenian Yerevan - For a nation that has survived the darkest days of post-World War II communism, independent Armenia today is fighting for its life with a degree of stoicism seldom seen in a country under siege. That is the view of resident foreign relief agency officials braving the sub-zero temperatures to help a land-locked country the size of Belgium now on the brink of total economic collapse and famine.

by Roman Rollnick YEREVAN - Not long after dawn Jean-Paul Elmassian of the French Red Cross was standing knee-deep in snow staring sadly at the monument to 1.5 million Armenians massacred by the Turks in 1915. For the first time in over 70 years, the "eternal" flame was no longer burning. After a breakfast of black tea and stale bread in the freezing dining room of Yerevan's once stately Hotel Armenia, a place without running water or electricity where he has lived for weeks, his day started with a visit to the memorial park.

by Genine Babakian Just opposite Moscow's well-publicized McDonalds lies the Akhtamar Cafe, a quiet, cozy contrast to the glare of the golden arches. Tucked away on the inner side of the tree-lined Tverskoi Boulevard with an understated sign that simply reads "Kafe," the Akhtamar is frequently overlooked. But those who venture upstairs to taste the dolma, garlicky madzoon and Armenian cognac are always back for more.

by Genine Babakian As a mathematics professor, Mikit Kazarian may not have been the most obvious candidate for Chief of Staff at the Armenian Embassy in Moscow, but upon assuming the post two years ago he quickly rose to the task. "It's a lot like learning how to swim," says Kazarian of his transition to the diplomatic service. "If you come across a man who can't swim - throw him in the water. He'll learn."

by Louise Manoogian Simone Benon Sevan, born in Nicosia, Cyprus, graduated from the AGBU Melkonian Educational Institute in Cyprus, obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History and Philosophy at Columbia College, New York, and a graduate degree from the School of International and Public Affairs of Columbia University.

by David Zenian Washington - Any media campaign is often as good as its continuity, and getting the Armenia story across is not an exception to the rule. And with this need for continuity in mind, the Washington office of the Armenian Information Service of the AGBU sponsored an Armenian television journalist to train at the Atlanta headquarters of Cable News Network, CNN. The journalist, Gayané Grigorian, spent six weeks in January and February this year at CNN, not only learning, but also reporting for the network's World Report program on developments in Armenia.

by David Zenian Yerevan - Few people have been involved in disaster relief work as much as Stuart Willcuts, and what he has seen in Armenia is enough to sound the alarm. "If the situation in this country is not dealt with, if peace is not brought, if the (Azerbaijani) blockade is not reduced, then the whole population is on a very slippery slope," he said in a recent interview. Willcuts, in Armenia on mission for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said a large segment of the population was not far from starvation.

by Christine Simone The prevailing view among Armenians is that media attention about Armenia is generally sparse. There is widespread frustration that the world is largely unaware of what is happening in Armenia. In the last two months the media coverage has been exceptional, but this has been due to the extremely grave conditions in Armenia. AGBU's New York office of the Armenian Information Service conducted an analysis of the 1992 media coverage of Armenia, Somalia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Israel, and Estonia. The results are surprising.

by Genine Babakian To Nazim Ragimov, it is easy to differentiate between Armenians and Azeris in Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan. "Look into their eyes," Ragimov says. "In the Armenians' eyes you see fear." Ragimov, himself a product of an Azeri-Armenian marriage, decided several years ago that, for the sake of his family, he had to bury his Armenian roots. To protect his mother, an Armenian, his wife, who is half Armenian, half Russian, and his baby daughter, he could show no fear.

by Genine Babakian All was quiet at the Torzhkovsky Marketplace, where farmers come from the southern regions of the former Soviet Union to sell their produce. Only the boarded up windows and a few lingering splinters of glass give any indication of the previous week's pogrom against the merchants. Outside, two old women, one of whom a witness to the violence, stood telling me about the incident.

by David Zenian A grass-roots movement is spreading across the United States. Organized under the heading of The American Committee to Lift the Blockade of Armenia or ACLBA, the movement is politicizing Armenians of all ages and professions.

by Roman Rollnick The Diocesan Fund for Armenia's Recovery (DFAR), in cooperation with the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) sent a medical team of 17 surgeons and nurses to Yerevan, Armenia, to perform complex surgical procedures and train local physicians. The team left New York for Yerevan on January 5, 1993.

by David Zenian

by Genine Babakian Joseph Antonian has cut some of the most important heads in Moscow, from coup plotters' wives to visiting dignitaries' relatives. But even as the city government claims to be stepping up its move towards privatization, this pioneering hairdresser to the stars often finds himself splitting hairs instead of styling them.

by Genine Babakian Sitting behind the desk of his modest office in a t-shirt and jeans, 53 year old Valery Simonjan does not exactly fit the image of the slick new breed of Soviet businessman. But the younger, ostentatious crowd of entrepreneurs could learn a thing or two from the way this editor-in-chief conducts business.

by David Zenian