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The Armenian Reporter | January 31, 2009InternationalGeorgian-Armenians charge “intimidation”After arrests,calls for restraint,Armenia’sinvolvementby Emil SanamyanWASHINGTON – Two Armeniancommunity leaders from Georgia’sSamtskhe-Javakheti province havebeen arrested on espionage, weapons,and conspiracy charges, thecountry’s Interior Ministry said ina brief statement on January 23,Civil.ge and others reported.The arrests come amid Georgia’scontinued standoff with Russiaand the opposition’s increasinglyvocal calls on Mikheil Saakashvilito resign.The arrested Armenians, GrigorMinasian and Sarkis Hakobjanian,are a youth club director and alocal representative of Aznavour pourl’Arménie, respectively, in the townof Akhaltsikhe. Both men are membersof the Armenian RevolutionaryFederation (Dashnaktsutiun).There has been no public reactionto the arrests from the ARF, whichis a member of Armenia’s governingcoalition, or from Armeniangovernment officials.Sergei Minasian of the YerevanbasedCaucasus Institute, an experton Georgia, called the arrests “unprecedented.”“This is the first time that Georgiaarrests ARF members and accusesthem of espionage,” Mr. Minasiantold the Armenian Reporter. In effect“Georgia is raising the stakes,once again trying to dominate inrelations with Armenia.”Latest in simmeringtensionsSurb Nshan (also known as Surb Vardanants) Church in Akhaltsikhe. Photo froma book by Samvel Karapetian.After being arrested the two menwere brought to Tbilisi, where acourt granted prosecutors’ petitionfor two months’ pretrial detention.It was not immediately clear fromthe charges which country the twoare accused of spying for.Spokesperson for the InteriorMinistry Shota Khizanishvilitold Civil.ge on January 23 that“further statements on the matterwill be made later.” Accordingto Armenian Public Radio, thosestatements were expected on January26. No statements were madeas of press time.Interethnic relations in Georgia,particularly in Armenian-populatedSamtskhe-Javakheti and Azerbaijani-populatedKvemo Kartli,have frequently been tense.Following the separation of Abkhaziaand South Ossetia, manyGeorgians have suspected the country’sother ethnic minorities – currentlycomprising about 15 percentof the population and living outsidethe Georgian mainstream – of harboringseparatist intentions. Ethnicminority groups, in turn, chargeTbilisi with discrimination and seekingto encourage their emigration.According to official statistics,there are about 100,000 ethnic Armeniansin Samtskhe-Javakheti,over half its total population, withArmenians making up large majoritiesin the Akhalkalaki and Ninotsmindaareas. Another 100,000 ormore Armenians live in Tbilisi andelsewhere in Georgia.Armenia, which relies on Georgia’stransportation infrastructure,has long worked to smooth overtensions in the Armenian-populatedSamtskhe-Javakheti province.Warnings ofconsequencesSergey Hakobjanyan.In the absence of any Armenian governmentreaction, there have beenvocal protests by individual parliamentmembers and by nongovernmentalorganizations, all of whichprotested the arrests as “baseless”and “politically motivated.”Shirak Torosian is a parliamentmember from the governingRepublican Party and leader of theJavakhk Compatriotic Union. Hevisited Akhhaltsikhe this week. OnJanuary 27 he argued the arrestswere intended to “intimidate” thelocal population, Regnum newsagency and others reported.Mr. Torosian, who is known asproponent of Georgian-Armeniancooperation, warned that “Javakhkwould not become another Nakhichevan,”referring to the Azerbaijani-controlledregion from whichall ethnic Armenians were expelledin the 19th century, www.Bagin.info reported.He instead identified two alternatives:either Javakheti’s issuesare addressed through Armenian-Georgiancooperation, or thecurrent tensions could lead to anoutright war. Mr. Torosian urgedimmediate involvement of the Armeniangovernment.Another parliament member,Larisa Alaverdian of the oppositionHeritage Party, said the arrestswere a reflection of democratic reversalsin Georgia. “This is a radical step,a scare tactic against activists,” Ms.Alaverdian said on January 23. “Andit undermines Georgian statehood.”The arrests were intended to“cement” Tbilisi’s control in Armenian-populatedterritories in theaftermath of Georgian reversalsin South Ossetia and Abkhazia lastAugust, Vahe Sargsian of the Yerevan-basedMitq analytical center(www.mitq.org) suggested on January26.Mr. Sargsian also linked the arreststo the recent flare-up in thelong-running Armenian-Georgiandispute over the building of SurbNshan church in Akhaltsikhe. Similarchurch disputes have been underwayin Tbilisi (see stories in theArmenian Reporter for December 20).Support for arrestedand calls for restraintGrigor Minasyan.Vahagn Chakhalian.According to Mr. Sargsian ofMitq, the Akhaltsikhe youth clubwas founded in 2006, with fundingfrom ARF-affiliated ArmenianRelief Society (ARS), whe CharlesAznavour Charitable Union wasfounded in 1990. The organizationis named after the French-Armeniansinger Charles Aznavour,whose parents are originally fromAkhaltsikhe.The ARF-affiliated Council ofArmenian Public Organizationsof Samtskhe-Javakheti issued astatement urging local Armeniansto “remain calm and not to react toprovocations.”And Yerkir Union, www.yerkir.org, which works to promote repatriationand strengthening Armeniancommunities in border areas,also called for restraint.Speaking in Yerevan on January26, Sevak Artsruni and RobertTatoyan of Yerkir Union counseledagainst “extremist politicalstatements,” in the wake of arrests,while also calling on Armenian organizationsworldwide to work toencourage Georgia to respect its internationalobligations with respectto due process and minority rights.The union also criticized the trialof Vahagn Chakhalian, leader ofthe Akhalkalaki-based United JavakhkAlliance, as politically motivated.Last July, Mr. Chakhalian,together with his father and brother,was imprisoned on weaponsand conspiracy charges after his associateGurgen Shirinian evadedarrest in an altercation that left apolice officer dead. Mr. Shirinian’sfather and aunt were also arrested.Reporting from Javakhetilast summer hetq.am connectedChakhalian’s arrest to his conflictwith Akhalkalaki police chief SamvelPetrosian, which began at thetime of local elections in 2006.This week Mr. Chakhalian issueda statement carried by Regnumnews agency on January 28, inwhich he called the fresh arrests a“new provocation by the Georgiangovernment.”fWashington briefing n Continued from page In another part of the world,Russia and Ukraine agreed to theirown “cease-fire,” allowing for resumptionof natural-gas suppliesto Ukraine and from there on toEurope, also on eve of PresidentObama’s inauguration. And thisweek, Georgia resumed transit ofRussian natural gas to South Ossetia,which it halted after the warlast August.World optimistic aboutObama presidencyA majority of more than 17,000 respondentsqueried in 17 countriesaround the world believe that theirnations will enjoy better ties withthe United States under PresidentBarack Obama, according to aBBC World Service study releasedon January 20.Fifty-one percent of Turks and 47percent of Russians – groups thathave in recent years been especiallysuspicious of U.S. intentions – wereoptimistic about positive changeunder President Obama.Respondents were also askedabout what they thought shouldbe the top priority of the new U.S.administration, with most identifying“dealing with global financialcrisis.” See www.worldpublicopinion.org.Russia expands GeorgiasanctionsThe Russian government could slapsanctions on countries and companiessupplying the Georgian military,according to President DmitryMedvedev’s executive orderissued on January 19.The order “On measures banningsupplies of military and dual usetechnology to Georgia” threatenscurtailment of military cooperationbetween Russia and countriesproviding Georgia with militarysupport and would be in effectthrough the end of 2011.Prior to the war in South Ossetialast August, Ukraine, Israel, Turkey,and the United States were the largestsuppliers of weapons systemsto Georgia. Israel reportedly haltedmilitary cooperation with Georgiashortly before the war. f