· October, 2008

Stories about Armenia from October, 2008

Armenia: Welcome To Georgia

  30 October 2008

Dispatches from Armenia travels to the neighboring Republic of Georgia and finds the journey to be quite unlike any other — the local and experienced driver hired to take the blogger and his wife to the border in a dilapidated Russian car did not know where it was and broke...

Armenia: Madrid Principles

  27 October 2008

Unzipped posts details of the “Madrid Principles,” a proposed framework for future resolution of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. The post also compares the principles with that believed to have been agreed in the late 1990s.

Armenia: Independent Inquiry

  23 October 2008

Unzipped has already speculated that the recent decision by the opposition to halt demonstrations and rallies might have been part of some deal with the government. Now, following demands for an independent inquiry into the post-election 1 March clashes that left at least 10 people dead, the blogger is encouraged...

Caucasus: U.S. Presidential Election Preferences

  23 October 2008

Social Science in the Caucasus examines the findings of a poll for The Economist which indicates that support for Republican presidential candidate John McCain is stronger than for his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, in the Republic of Georgia. With the poll also showing that support for Obama is stronger in...

Caucasus: New Media Blog

  23 October 2008

Azerbaijani new media specialist Emin Huseynzade (interviewed by Global Voices Online here) has launched a new English-language blog. Caucasus New Media will detail the growth of blogs, as well as video-sharing and social networking sites, in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. In the first post, the blog looks at the impact...

Nagorno Karabakh: More on Mass Wedding

  20 October 2008

Pigh [RU] also comments on last week's mass wedding in the self-declared Republic of Nagorno Karabakh. The blog says that 537 couples were married in the disputed town of Shushi while 138 tied the knot in the Gandzasar monastery. Each couple received $2,500 from the godfather of the wedding, businessman...

Armenia: Fingernails

  20 October 2008

Elizabeth's Armenia Journal, a Peace Corps Blog, post photographs and comments on the obsession most local women have with having their fingernails painted.

Nagorno Karabakh: Mass Wedding

  19 October 2008

517 Design [RU] posts photographs of a mass wedding which took place in the disputed mainly Armenian-populated territory of Nagorno Karabakh during which as many as 700 couples tied the knot. The blogger's English-language site also carries more information on the cash incentives ranging from $2,000-100,000 offered to the young...

Armenia: Peace Corps Volunteer Blogs

  11 October 2008

While the number of blogs on or based in the South Caucasus is often put in the tens of thousands, the actual number of bloggers is significantly lower. Moreover, the vast majority based on the ground are usually situated in the capital cities of the three republics making up the...

Armenia: Diasporan War Veteran Faces Deportation

  10 October 2008

Unzipped comments on the case of Sargis Hatspanian, a French-Armenian veteran of the war with Azerbaijan who came out in support of the radical opposition during February's disputed presidential election. The blog challenges the official line that Hatspanian is an illegal alien in Armenia and questions the legality of his...

Azerbaijan: The Forgotten War

  9 October 2008

In an extended post accompanied by photographs, Michael J. Totten introduces his readers to the unresolved conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. The blog compares the mood in Azerbaijan with that in neighboring Georgia, another country in the region with its own territorial conflicts...

Azerbaijan: Bullying and Violence in the Army

  8 October 2008

Unzipped posts a video from YouTube allegedly showing new conscripts in the Azerbaijani army being beaten and kicked by other soldiers. The blog warns the Armenian army that videos of similar scenes might also be uploaded and disseminated online unless steps are taken to stop similar violence against conscripts.

Armenia: Secular State?

  7 October 2008

Unzipped comments on an idea from a parliamentary deputy to build a church to bring the Armenian Apostolic Church closer to the country's legislature. Mentioning the situation in neighboring Georgia, where concerns have already been raised about the involvement of the church in local politics, the blog says that such...

Armenia: Intrigues and Scandal

  1 October 2008

Unzipped comments on the latest intrigues and recent scandal to hit Armenia. They include allegations from a senior member of Armenian Public TV that the bodyguards of a prominent government parliamentarian were responsible for an attack on a cafe which left one dead, and speculation that a regional energy project...