ANCA CRITICIZES TURKEY FOR BLOCKING U.N. EXHIBIT ON THE RWANDA GENOCIDE
DeFacto Agency, Armenia
April 11 2007
The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has sharply condemned
the Turkish government for blocking the opening of a United Nations
exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide due to an indirect mention of the
Armenian Genocide in one of the exhibit’s display panels.
"Sadly, this is only the most recent example of how Turkey’s campaign
to deny the Armenian Genocide perpetuates the cycle of genocide,
making the world a more dangerous place and future genocides more
likely," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian.
The Associate Press reported earlier that the United Nations,
bowing to Turkish protests, had delayed the opening of the exhibit,
organized by the Aegis Trust, in the international organization’s
highly trafficked visitor’s lobby. The Turkish mission specifically
registered its objections to a reference in the exhibit concerning the
origin of the word "genocide," which mentioned that Raphael Lemkin,
the international lawyer and human rights activist, who coined this
term, had been influenced by the crimes committed against the Armenians
and other mass killings.
Commenting on the exhibit’s postponement James Smith, the chief
executive of the British-based Aegis Trust, said that, "If we can’t
get this right, it undermines all the values of the U.N. It undermines
everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in terms of preventing
(genocide). . . You can’t learn the lessons from history if you’re
going to sweep all of that history under the carpet. What about
accountability? What about ending impunity if you’re going to hide
a part of the truth? It makes a mockery of all of this."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
