OTTAWA TO SOOTHE TURKS ANGRY OVER ‘GENOCIDE’ TAG
Brian Laghi – Ottawa Bureau Chief
Globe and Mail, Canada
Oct 25 2006
The federal government has moved to mend fences with Turkey by
qualifying its support for a controversial declaration that the Turks
perpetrated a genocide against Armenians during the First World War.
The move comes just months after Turkey agreed to take in thousands
of Canadians stranded in strife-torn Lebanon and after the Turks
protested diplomatically by temporarily removing their ambassador
and then pulling out of air exercises taking place in Alberta earlier
this summer.
Canada and Turkey are both members of NATO and each are contributing
soldiers to the war in Afghanistan.
In a brief address at the home of the Turkish ambassador last week,
Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay thanked Turkey for taking in
the Canadians and then added that Canada supports a Turkish plan to
convene an academic panel to study the events of 1915.
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World section The government is in the position of apparently both
recognizing the events as a genocide and of calling for a study to
examine the issue.
Backing the idea for a panel runs counter to the adoption of a
resolution by Prime Minister Stephen Harper earlier this year when it
affirmed a two-year-old House of Commons vote to condemn the brutal
treatment of the Armenians. That move was championed by Mr. Harper’s
parliamentary secretary, Jason Kenney, and earned the government
plaudits within the Armenian community.
"The Canadian government supports the Turkish government’s practical
proposal to establish a joint committee comprised of Turkish and
Armenian historians as well as historians from a third country to look
into the events of 1915, and encourages the Government of Armenia
to participate in this committee," said Mr. MacKay, according to a
transcript provided to The Globe and Mail.
It is unclear what prompted the shift, although Canada and Turkey are
traditional allies and Turkey’s proximity to the Middle East is seen
as strategically important to the West.
An official speaking on behalf of Mr. MacKay confirmed that the
minister supports the idea of a panel. "Minister MacKay endorses
an independent study of the events of 1915, with third-party
participation, in order for all possible facts to be looked at,"
Dan Dugas said.
About two dozen other countries have recognized the deaths of 1.5
million Armenians during the First World War as a genocide, while
Turkey maintains the deaths were caused by civil strife, diseases
and famine. At the time, Armenia was under Turkish Ottoman control.
An official with the Turkish embassy said the move is a welcome
development. "Genocide is a very serious accusation," Yonet Tezel said.
"Turkey’s proposal aims to narrow the gap between the two sides
by allowing historians and experts to work together and, more
importantly, reach conclusions based on their research in all the
relevant archives."
However, an official with the Armenian embassy said the Canadian
issue is settled, as far as Armenia is concerned.
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