World Press Photo question and answer he said "...The culture I grew up in is Armenian, I speak Armenian with my family. I identify with that. Labeling myself as an Armenian photographer now makes the Armenian community proud and, the country of Armenia proud." World Press Photo is a non-profit. independent organization founded in the Netherlands in 1955.Their annual press photography contest is one of the most prestigious in the world.The exhibition will be jointly organized by the Caucuses Media Institute, funded by the Swiss
Agency for Development and Cooperation which among other things runs vocational training centers for joumalists in the republics of the former Soviet Union, and Patker Photo Agency based in Yerevan whose photographers cover the South Caucasus and Central Asia. r 0pposite Page: Photographer Eric Grigorian with the shol which made him an international name in pholoiournalism. Above: World Press Photo ol the Year 2002.
Anmcnia'$ New $eat In the United Nations f,learly three years ago, Armenia was elected a member of the llUnited Nations Commission on Human Rights (See AIM. May 2001) It was a surprise then that a small country without much to leverage could garner the votes necessary to gain a seat in that body. The Human Rights Commission is one of the UN's three main bodies.
In November of 2003, Armenia did it again. This time, 127 countries voted for Armenia to become a member of the UN's Economic and Social Council. 'Armenia was elected on the flrst vote and that's quite an accom-
plishment," says Armenia's Ambassador
to the UN,
Armen
Martirossian. For months before the vote, Armenia's ambassadors were mobilized. Martirossian, who was assigned to his post in June 2003, says he used each of his get acquainted calls to urge his colleagues to vote for
Armenia. Just over two-thirds listened to him. What does this mean forArmenia? "It means we will be able to participate in some of the UN's most important tasks: developing policy recommendations for the UN system, promoting economic and social progresE identilying solutions to international economic, social and health problems," says Minister of Foreign Affairs Vartan Oskanian. Although the Minister doesn't say it, this also means Armenia now has one more vote to trade. By its mere presence on the Human Rights Commission and now in the Economic and Social Council, Armenia will be sought after by other member states, for its vote. This means Armenia is a member of two of the UN's three main bodies. The third one is the Security Council, with five permanent members and 10 non-permanent members. r
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