Latest news with #AuroraHumanitarianInitiative
Fox News
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
My dad has been in prison for more than 550 days simply for being Christian
Imagine entire communities forced to abandon homes, churches, and graves of ancestors in just 24 hours. Elderly neighbors collapsing on mountain roads while fleeing, children crying from hunger, and families separated forever. This nightmare became a reality for 120,000 Armenian Christians when Azerbaijan ethnically cleansed Nagorno-Karabakh, otherwise known as Artsakh. Among those paying the price is Ruben Vardanyan, who now sits in a prison cell for trying to help. The last time this happened to Armenians, America responded heroically. When Ottoman Turks slaughtered 1.5 million Armenian Christians in the first genocide of the 20th century, ordinary Americans launched the Near East Relief Foundation, raising over $117 million (equivalent to $2.7 billion today) to save Armenian orphans and refugees, America's first major international humanitarian effort. President Wilson championed their cause, calling it "the starving Armenians" in a phrase that entered national vocabulary. Those rescued Armenians became part of America's fabric. Every time Americans enjoy Cher's music, watch Kim Kardashian's shows, or remember Andre Agassi's tennis victories, they're witnessing the legacy of Armenian Genocide survivors who found safety in America. Today, however, my father, Ruben Vardanyan, has no voice to tell his story. For more than 550 days, he has been a political prisoner for simply advocating for the rights of Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh to live in their ancestral homelands. He is not alone. Today, there are at least 23 other Armenian Christian prisoners illegally detained in Baku. Even more concerning, civil society organizations estimate that Azerbaijan also now holds more than 300 political prisoners, a group that has swollen in recent months to include more Armenian and Azeri human rights defenders, journalists, and activists. My father's imprisonment stems not from a life of political activism, but from his unwavering support for those facing adversity around the world, including in Nagorno-Karabakh. Before he became a political prisoner, he was known as a businessman and humanitarian. Over the last 10 years, his life's purpose has been focused on philanthropy, especially in his native Armenia. As part of this work, he also co-founded the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, a global humanitarian movement which honors humanitarians who risk their lives to help others in places such as Rwanda, Iran, and Afghanistan. As was the case 110 years ago, we remain hopeful that the United States will once again come to the aid of Armenians prosecuted for their nationality and faith today. Personally, I am alive because my great-grandfather was saved by an American orphanage organized by Christian missionaries in Etchmiadzin, Armenia. Today, we see signs that Armenians are again not alone. Most importantly, President Trump has vowed to protect persecuted Armenian Christians in Azerbaijan and beyond. His National Security Advisor, Michael Waltz, has also called for the release of the Armenian political prisoners. It is this kind of support and pressure that will ultimately prevail. My family and I look to the leadership of President Donald Trump to fulfill his commitment as a President of Peace. He can do this by making the regime in Baku understand that it must adhere to international rules and show its commitment to peace in the Caucuses by releasing my father and the other Armenian prisoners.
Washington Post
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Trump promised peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. He can start here.
With so much suffering in the world, individual cases can get lost. But I want to explain the plight of a man named Ruben Vardanyan, who is a political prisoner on trial in Azerbaijan and is facing a life sentence — and whose case deserves greater attention. Vardanyan's crime, if you can call it that, is that he championed Armenian resistance in Nagorno-Karabakh, a remote region in the Caucasus that is legally part of Azerbaijan but whose population was once largely Armenian and self-governing. Not anymore: The region's 120,000 Armenians fled in September 2023 when Azerbaijani troops invaded. Vardanyan was arrested as he tried to cross the border into Armenia. Vardanyan is an unlikely martyr. He is a businessman who made money as an investment banker in the wild early days of post-Soviet Russia — and then began giving it away to good causes. In 2014, he founded an international school in Dilijan, Armenia, to connect his small and fragile country with the world. And in 2015, he co-founded a human rights group called the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, whose supporters include such luminaries as George Clooney. Aurora's motto is 'Gratitude in action.' Vardanyan's idea was to honor people around the world who are selflessly helping others in our time — just as decent people had saved his great-grandfather Hamayak Vardanyan during the Armenian genocide in 1915. Rather than looking back in anger on that terrible event, Vardanyan wanted to look forward in hope, by celebrating what's best in the human spirit. I should make clear that I'm not a neutral observer of Vardanyan's case. He has been my friend for a decade, and I've served as unpaid master of ceremonies for Aurora's annual awards ceremony since 2016. It's personal: My father's family is Armenian and, by helping Aurora, I wanted to share my own gratitude for those who saved my ancestors in Ottoman times. To give you a sense of Aurora's work, here's a quick sketch of the people it has honored since 2016: a Tutsi woman in Burundi who rescued Hutu victims there; an American physician in the Nuba mountains in Sudan who treated patients in that remote killing ground; a Rohingya Muslim lawyer who protected his people during the slaughter in Myanmar; a Yazidi activist who rescued kinsmen being murdered by the Islamic State; two Somali women who saved victims of sexual violence in Mogadishu, and a woman activist and a doctor, both Congolese, who saved rape victims. I can remember each of these people as they took the stage at the Aurora awards ceremony. They were often awkward, with little experience speaking in public, unaccustomed to taking credit for their work. Each year, I would come away from these ceremonies grateful for the enduring, inexplicable goodness in the human spirit that produces heroes like these. Vardanyan and the other two Aurora co-founders, the late Carnegie Corp. president Vartan Gregorian and Moderna co-founder Noubar Afeyan, were always humble in the presence of these humanitarians. Vardanyan's trial began a week ago in Baku. Azerbaijan has brought 46 charges against him, ranging from terrorism to organized crime. But his troubles really stem from his decision to move to Karabakh in 2022 and become a senior minister in the breakaway government there, as well as an outspoken defender of the Armenian population. Throwing himself into this vortex was dangerous. But Vardanyan told his daughter that he couldn't live with himself if he didn't try to help fellow Armenians who have suffered so many tragedies in their history. It was gratitude in action. Disaster followed. Azerbaijan imposed a blockade in December 2022, starving Karabakh of medicine, fuel and other essentials. Armenians tried to protect their homes, families and churches. But when Azerbaijan's military invaded in September 2023 they fled, leaving the region ethnically 'cleansed.' Vardanyan has been in an Azerbaijani prison cell ever since, along with three former presidents of Karabakh. 'Ruben was obsessed about saving Karabakh's Armenian character, and he paid with his freedom for that dedication,' says his friend Vahan Zanoyan, an Armenian American energy consultant who now lives in Armenia. Ten days before Azerbaijan's invasion, Zanoyan phoned and urged Vardanyan to leave. He refused. Zanoyan texted him again as troops entered Karabakh's capital. By then, it was too late. An Amnesty International official said last month that Vardanyan's case 'has raised serious allegations of human rights violations which include ill-treatment in detention, being coerced to sign falsified case materials and denied the opportunity to prepare his defense.' The statement by Marie Struthers, the group's director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, urged: 'The international community must closely monitor this high-profile case, to ensure Ruben Vardanyan's fair trial rights and justice.' Jared Genser, a prominent American human rights lawyer who is representing Vardanyan, hasn't been allowed to visit his client in prison. 'This is a political show trial,' he told me. 'It's a result of his advocacy for the political rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.' Most Americans don't know much about Armenia, let alone the Karabakh conflict. But here's a central fact: Armenia was the first nation in the world to adopt Christianity, and it has paid dearly for its faith in a predominantly Muslim region. Vardanyan himself is a faithful Armenian Orthodox Christian, but he has always been ecumenical in spirit. Indeed, many of the humanitarians who received the Aurora prize have been Muslims. As Vardanyan's trial moves forward, perhaps he will have a friend in Washington. President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on Oct. 23: 'When I am President, I will protect persecuted Christians, I will work to stop the violence and ethnic cleansing, and we will restore PEACE between Armenia and Azerbaijan.' Here's your chance to deliver on that promise, Mr. President, by helping a decent man escape persecution.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Colin Thomas-Jensen Joins Aurora as Director of Communications, Advocacy, and Impact
Former Senior USAID official to advance the organization's global humanitarian outreach WASHINGTON, Jan. 30, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative today announced the appointment of Colin Thomas-Jensen as director of communications, advocacy, and impact. Thomas-Jensen will lead efforts to support the initiative's growing network of local humanitarians, including advocating for more effective, sustainable funding for individuals and local organizations that offer assistance and protection in communities with the greatest need. Thomas-Jensen joins Aurora from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), where he was the National Security Advisor to the USAID Administrator. "I am thrilled with the opportunity to advance Aurora's efforts on behalf of brave local humanitarians on the front lines of the world's most acute crises," Thomas-Jensen said. "With governments and armed groups increasingly emboldened to restrict humanitarian access for international relief efforts, it has never been more important to strengthen the global network of local responders and advocate for innovative and sustainable initiatives to support their life-saving work." Thomas-Jensen began his career as a humanitarian responder with USAID in Sudan during the Darfur Genocide. Through his work with the International Crisis Group and the Enough Project, Thomas-Jensen has developed and led impactful advocacy efforts for more effective international responses to genocide and mass atrocities. From 2010 to 2017, he worked in senior policymaking roles with the Department of State and the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. "We are delighted to welcome Colin Thomas-Jensen to the Aurora team. Colin's strong belief in our collective responsibility to address the world's most pressing challenges echoes the very core of Aurora's mission," said Armine Afeyan, CEO of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative. "His experience advancing humanitarian and human rights efforts will undoubtedly help us achieve even greater impact in this pivotal phase of our journey." Founded on behalf of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide and in gratitude to their saviors, the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative seeks to address on-the-ground humanitarian challenges around the world. To date, Aurora has already changed the lives of more than 3.4 million people across 58 countries and territories, deploying funding toward 449 projects that support emergency response, food, water, education, medical care, psychosocial support and more for underserved communities. Aurora will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year with a series of landmark events, including the Human Rights and Humanitarian Forum in Los Angeles in May, the announcement of the 2025 Aurora Humanitarians in New York in September, and the selection of the 2025 Aurora Prize Laureate during the Prize Ceremony at Ellis Island in November. About the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative seeks to address on-the-ground humanitarian challenges around the world with a focus on helping the most destitute. Uniquely dedicated to discovering and supporting the world's unsung humanitarian heroes in order to enable and raise awareness of their courageous work, Aurora has made a significant impact on the lives of those in greatest need. For more information, please visit Media Contact: media@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Aurora Humanitarian Initiative
