REMEMBERING ARMENIAN, GREEK, SERBIAN, JEWISH AND ROMA (GYPSY) VICTIMS OF
GENOCIDE ON 22-24 APRIL 2005
FUND FOR GENOCIDE RESEARCH
Yugoslavia, Belgrade
27 marta 24/I
tel/fax (381-11) 3238-790, (381-11) 334–7758
E-Mail [email protected]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
13 December 2004
BELGRADE — Genocide is the most severe crime against Humanity and
International Law. It is frequently a consequence of the crime against
peace which occurs at times when great world powers attempt to achieve
world domination.
Twentieth century is marked by Genocide. In 1915, Turkey committed
Genocide on Armenian and Greek populations. During World War II Croatian
Nazis known as Ustasha committed a Genocide in the system of
Concentration Camps of Jasenovac. Literally hundreds of thousands of
Eastern Orthodox Serbs, as well as Jews, Roma people and some Croatian
anti-fascists were bestially murdered.
On 22 April 1945 a few surviving inmates made a heroic break through and
liberated themselves from Jasenovac. The day of April 22 is declared
Victims of Genocide Remembrance Day. The Council of the Serbian Eastern
Orthodox Church decided that every year on that day a holy liturgy will
be held and we will pray for the souls of the victims of Genocide.
At the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century, from 1894 to 1923,
the Ottoman Empire committed a Genocide on Christian population of the
Near East, in Asia Minor between Black Sea and Meditteranean. The
estimate is that some 3.5 million Christians were murdered during that
period. Sultan Abud Hamid started a state Genocide against Armenian
people in 1893. By 1896 some 300,000 Armenians were brutally murdered.
In a repeated massacre in 1909 some two hundred Armenian villages were
pillaged. Only in Adan, district of Cilicia, between 20 and 30 thousand
Christian Armenians perished.
During World War One, the Ottoman Empire, in alliance with Germany and
Austria-Hungary, was resolute to fulfill the plan of “Turkey to the
Turks.” This plan of building “Greater Turkey” (so called “Turan”)
included complete elimination of all Christians – the Greeks, Armenians,
Syrians and Nestorians – who constituted some 10% of the population of
the country. The pogrom started on 24 April 1915. The Turkish Government
deported 1,800,000 Armenians; some two thirds of the entire Armenian
population. They were send to a March of Death, Southwards through
Syrian desert and to East Anadolia, the Asian part of Turkey. The desert
was the scene of massacre, rape, starvation and dehydration, which is
how most of these poor people perished. Over 1.5 million Christian
Armenians were thus murdered. This includes some four thousand priests
and bishops. The Turks tried to forcefully convert Armenian children.
Those who reneged on their Christian roots and became Muslims were
allowed to live, but now under new, Muslim names. This is but repetition
of what the Ottoman Turks did, over centuries, to the Serbian population
as they forcefully converted kidnapped Serbian children into Janissaries.
After they cleansed the Armenians, the Turks turned their attention
toward the Greeks. In the town of Smyrna the Turkish conquerors went
from house to house. There they raped and murdered the Greek owners and
then pillaged and burned their houses. French, British and American
ships were at bay and witnessed the carnage but were sure not to
interfere. The American Consul, though, compared the destiny of Smyrna
to the Roman destruction of Carthagina.
To this day the Turkish Government did not acknowledge its
responsibility for the crime of Genocide perpetrated on Greek and
Armenian population. This behavior enabled even Hitler to try to excuse
his own act of Genocide and Holocaust by saying: “Who ever mentions
Armenians today?”
On 18 June 1987, the European Parliament issued a decision to bind
acceptance of Turkey to the Union on the condition that Turkish
Government should acknowledge its Genocide perpetrated on the Armenians.
Mr. Roberto Kalderoli, the Italian Minister for Reform, went so far as
to say in December 2004 that eventual acceptance of Turkey into European
Union “would be a crime against our History and against our Christian
heritage.”
Today, 60 years after Genocide perpetrated on the Orthodox Serbs in Nazi
Croatia, there is no recognition of that fact. Without this basic fact
it is impossible to understand the roots and the cause of the events of
the last few years of the 20th century as they happened on the grounds
of former Yugoslavia. Unluckily, in the trials conducted in Croatian
capital of Zagreb in 1986 and 1999, both Dr Anrija Artukovif, who was
Minister of Interior of Ustasha (the Croat Nazi) Government and Mr.
Dinko akif, who was a commander of Jasenovac Concentration Camp, were
sentenced only for common acts of murder and not for the crimes of Genocide.
All of this explains how it was possible that the Serbian people were
target to a genocide once again, at the end of the same century. In
1990’s the Serbs were victims of jihad as Mujahedin pored into Bosnia
and Herzegovina. The Croatian Government fulfilled its World War II
genocidal plan as almost entire Serbian population, who lived for
centuries as majority in Krajina and Western Bosnia was cleansed by
Croat armed forces in 1995. The last census in Croatia conducted in
2001, shows that only 4.2% of Serbs are still citizens of that country!
In Kosovo and Metohija the Serbian population is again a target. In that
Province, under UN supervision, the Albanian terrorists are cleansing
all Christian Orthodox as well as all non-Albanian population. The
Albanian terrorists already dare threaten integrity of the remaining
parts of Serbia as well as question the integrity of neighboring
Macedonia and Greece.
Neither President of Croatia Franjo Tudjman nor the President of Muslim
part of Bosnia Alija Izetbegovic were charged with Genocide. On the
other hand, the entire political leadership of the Serbian people – all
the Presidents of Serbia, Yugoslavia, Republic of Srpska Krajina,
Republika Srpska – as well as the entire military leadership of the
Serbian people – all were charged with nothing less but Genocide! This
was done by the self-declared “International Community” as the Western
Governments like to be call themselves.
The Muslim controlled Bosnian Government is charging the remaining
Serbian lands of Serbia and Montenegro with Genocide! In the law suit
submitted to the International Court they demand a compensation worth
between 200 and 300 billion dollars!!! Croatians who cleansed Serbian
population from large swaths of Historicaly Serb-populated Krajina,
dared charge the Serbian people with the same.
The complete truth about the Genocide perpetrated in 20th century is not
fully known. The responsibility is not acknowledged. The perpetrators
are not yet charged and brought to justice for their crime. This
situation enabled a climate in which it was possible that someone like
Mr. Ramu Haradinaj, an ethnic-Albanian who committed crimes of Genocide
against non-Albanian population was declared a Prime Minister of Kosovo.
This in the very place where he perpetrated his crime. The self-declared
“International Community” refused to intervene. In 2004 alone, the same
“International Community” issued 59 (fifty-nine) orders in NATO-occupied
Bosnia, with express purpose to enslave the surviving Serbian population
that fell under their control. The orders were to single-handedly depose
the entire leadership the Serbian people elected in Republika Srpska,
the remaining Serbian entity in Bosnia. All Ministers as well as
generals of the entity were deposed in this dictatorial fashion.
From Serbia, the “International Community” demands surrender of the
Yugoslav general who was in charge of suppressing Albanian terrorism in
Kosovo and Metohia. This is but another attack on the sovereignty of the
Serbian people.
This, 21st century started with mass Genocide in Darfur, Sudan. The
“International Community” did nothing to protect the victims. They did
not even use harsh words to describe this Genocide on non-Arab population.
On 22 April 2005, it will be 60th anniversary of the day when surviving
few charged to liberate themselves from Jasenovac.
On 24 April 2005 it will be 90th anniversary of the Turkish Genocide
perpetrated on Armenians, Greeks and other people.
The Days of 22-24 April 2005 we declare the Days of Remembrance of the
Armenian, Greek, Serbian, Jewish and Roma Victims of Genocide.
We ask you for help to commemorate those events.
We plan to organize an International Symposium as well as an Exhibition
which would present to the public – here and abroad – the historical
roots as well as causes for continued Genocide.
Please respond as soon as possible.
Respectfully,
SERBIAN-ARMENIAN SOCIETY
Boda Markovif, President
ARMENIAN SOCIETY OF BELGRADE (SERBIA)
Miodrag Vartabedijan, Honorary President
SOCIETY OF GREEKS OF SERBIA ;RIGA OD FERE+
Jannis Savas, President
SERBIAN-GREEK FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY
Prof. Dr. Miodrag Stojanovif, President
JEWISH-SERBIAN FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY
Academitian Ljubomir Tadif, President
ROMA WORLD PARLIAMENT
Dragoljub Ackovif, Vice-President
SOCIETY OF JASENOVAC SURVIVORS
Smilja Tima, President
COMMITTEE FOR JASENOVAC, SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH
Archbishop Atanasije Jeftif, President
FUND FOR GENOCIDE RESEARCH
Dr Milan Bulajif, President