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The Armenian Weekly; Volume 73, No. 35; Sept. 1, 2007
Commentary and Analysis:
1. Turkey: the `Pinocchio’ of Anatolia (with apologies to the memory
of Carlo Collodi)
By Michael G. Mensoian
2. The Armenians, the Turks and the Jews
By Khajag Mgrdichian
3. Never Before
By Garen Yegparian
4. What Earthquakes Can’t Shake
By Raffi Wartanian
5. Letter to the Editor
***
1. Turkey: the `Pinocchio’ of Anatolia (with apologies to the memory
of Carlo Collodi)
By Michael G. Mensoian
Turkey and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) seem to be relying on the
same tactic from their respective playbooks. The play is called
`parsing’ the truth. Unfortunately, parsing the truth to accommodate
spurious ends can never be a winning play. Turkey has been doing just
that ever since the Ottoman Turkish government began what was to be
the `Final Solution of the Armenian Question’ on April 24, 1915.
During the past several weeks, the ADL has been caught in the
crossfire between acknowledging the truth and parsing the truth. They
have gone from not recognizing the Armenian genocide to almost, but
not quite recognizing the Armenian genocide, to the here and now when
they may have to come out `four-square’ and fully recognize the
Armenian genocide. Their vacillation has been a public relations
fiasco. Their action is remindful of the Yiddish proverb that `a half
truth is a whole lie.’ Only under pressure from responsible leaders in
the Jewish community did the national ADL change its position. But
even with their qualified recognition of the Armenian genocide, the
ADL immediately sought to placate Turkey by assuring Ankara that it
viewed the proposed House and Senate Resolutions recognizing the
Armenian genocide as `counterproductive.’
The ADL’s almost, but not quite recognition of the Armenian genocide
was more than sufficient to have the Turkish Foreign Ministry
immediately condemn the ADL for attempting to rewrite history. The
Ministry stated that `¦there is no consensus among the historians
on how to qualify the events¦’ Based on that contrived assumption,
which has been refuted by eminent independent scholars throughout the
world, the Turkish government maintains that the planned systematic
killing of over 1,500,000 Armenian men, women and children by the
Ottoman-Turkish government cannot be called genocide because it is
`¦historically and legally baseless.’
In light of Turkey’s position, which their Foreign Ministry maintains
is a `¦very clear’ expression of Turkey’s position, how can the ADL
actually believe that its `¦efforts to bring together Turkey and
Armenia to resolve differences over their shared history’ is a
realistic proposal? It is ridiculous on its face. How naive must the
leadership of the ADL be to expect Turkey to reconcile the
overwhelming evidence that the genocide occurred with the lies and
obfuscatory statements that its government has propagated since that
fateful day on April 24, 1915? How can Turkish leaders admit to their
citizens and to the world that Turkey has lived a lie for all of these
years? Turkey is in a catch 22 situation. Name a country that would
want to acknowledge perpetrating such a horrendous crime against
humanity.
To further illustrate the dilemma the ADL faces in trying to serve two
masters, they acknowledge that while `¦independent scholars may
have reached a consensus about the genocide, in an effort to help
accomplish the reconciliation, there is room for further dispassionate
scholarly examination¦’ If independent scholars have reached
consensus on the genocide, who are the historians that the Turkish
Foreign Ministry maintains have not reached consensus?
Answer: those historians on the Turkish government’s payroll. The
ineptitude of its leadership has seriously eroded the ADL’s relevance
and credibility.
In a further indication of its desperation, the Turkish Foreign
Ministry has taken up a new tack in hopes of influencing Israel and
the Jewish diaspora. In an appeal to the human emotion, the Foreign
Ministry suggests that recognition of the Armenian genocide by the ADL
would do `¦an injustice to the unique character of the Holocaust as
well as to the memories of its victims [and] we expect it to be
rectified.’ Is Turkey implying that recognition of the Armenian
genocide would overshadow the Holocaust? In any event, the ADL has
only almost, but not quite recognized the Armenian genocide. One would
hope that this Turkish appeal does not tap a valid concern for the
ADL.
Then to allay any fears that the ADL or the Jewish nation worldwide
might have for their compatriots in Turkey, the Foreign Ministry
sought to preempt any such worries. According to the Turkish Foreign
Ministry, `[t]he Jewish community in Turkey is part of our society and
there is no reason for them to worry.’ This seems to beg the question:
Why should the Jewish minority have any reason to be concerned about
their well-being? Could this concern be related to the dismal record
Turkey has in the area of human rights? In remarks to the Jerusalem
Post, the Turkish Ambassador to Israel, Namik Tan, said that Turkey’s
relationship is not with Israel alone, but with the whole Jewish
world. The Turkish people `¦cannot make that differentiation.’ How
does that square with the Foreign Ministry’s assertion that there is
no reason for the Jewish minority to worry?
For the ADL or Israel or any other organization or government to
advance the simplistic notion that Armenia and Turkey should reconcile
their differences surely misunderstands what these differences are. As
long as Turkey maintains its intransigent stance, its government must
expect that its credibility will be challenged and exposed in every
venue available for as long as it may take. The passage of time has
not diminished the Armenian demand for justice. Unfortunately for
Turkey, the Armenian Cause lives and only strengthens in its intensity
as it passes from generation to generation.
Reconciliation can only occur when Turkey realizes that the
ever-increasing weight of global opinion will no longer tolerate its
refusal to accept the evidence stored in government archives in
London, Paris, Germany, Washington and Ankara itself that provides
incontrovertible proof that the Armenian genocide was planned and
carried out by the Ottoman-Turkish government from 1915 to 1918.
Numerous eye-witness accounts add further evidence to support the
Armenian position as well as an ever increasing number of independent
scholars who continue to shed more light on this dark and tragic
period in modern history.
Every page, every hideous photograph, every first-hand account and
every document supporting the Ottoman-Turkish government’s plan to
effectively and efficiently carry out the `Final Solution to the
Armenian Question’ is well known to the Turkish government and its
paid `revisionists.’ It is unfortunate that this same information is
as well known to those governments that are pliant accomplices to a
Turkish government that has long been morally bankrupt.
Let us pray that the members of Congress who support House Resolution
106 and Senate Resolution 106 will continue to let truth to be their
only guide as they work to pass these nonbinding resolutions
recognizing the Armenian genocide. Their passage will represent a
symbolic affirmation by the United States Congress in recognizing the
Armenian genocide that will create seismic reverberations within the
Turkish government. It is time for the United States to realize that
Turkey is not the keystone to a world order as perceived in
Washington. Passage of these resolutions would be one more step toward
achieving the justice that will allow the martyrs of the Armenian
genocide to finally rest in peace.
——————————————- ————————–
2. The Armenians, the Turks and the Jews
By Khajag Mgrdichian
My intention is not to plagiarize a title. On Aug. 21, the Jerusalem
Post published an article with this same title, written by the
executive head of the American Jewish Committee (AJC), David
Harris. The article examined the outrage created after the head of the
Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Abraham Foxman, denied the Armenian
genocide’an issue that has received much attention from the American
media.
The ADL, headed by Abraham Foxman, officially changed its position on
Aug. 21 and recognized the genocide. But the organization still
insists that the current Armenian Genocide Resolution, which has
garnered the support of 226 Congressmen and Congresswomen, is not
constructive or needed, and harms U.S.-Turkey-Israel relations.
After this change of heart by Foxman, and keeping in mind Harris’
article, it is clear that these two powerful Jewish-American
organizations share the same position’one that is agreeable to the
current authorities in the U.S. and Ankara.
For Armenians, Turkey’s position is at least understandable. For
decades, the inheritors of the genocide legacy in Turkey have used
political, economic and diplomatic means to wash the blood off their
hands and to deny Armenians their fair and just compensation.
The stance of the American government is closely linked to that of the
aforementioned Jewish organizations.
What angers Armenians is the position of some Jewish organizations and
the Israeli government. Harris seems to understand this when he
writes, `The Armenian position has been straightforward. As victims of
the Holocaust, who can better understand the Armenian ordeal and
anguish than the Jews? Fearful of the danger of Holocaust denial,
aren’t the Jews most aware of the slippery slope of distorting
historical truth? And wasn’t it Adolf Hitler who reportedly asked `Who
still talks nowadays of the Armenians?’ In effect, paving the way for
the Final Solution?’
He further analyzes Turkey’s approach and sensitivities. He mentions
that the Ottoman Empire, in the 15th century, accepted Jews that were
expelled from Spain. `Moreover, Turkish leaders have also at times
taken a tougher line, suggesting, in barely veiled language, that a
Jewish acceptance of the Armenian version of history could have
negative consequences for other Jewish interests, whether in Turkey or
beyond.’
`And it is in this vise that many Jews have lived for years,
essentially pitting principle against pragmatism. For armchair
observers, that may look like an easy choice, but, in the world of
policy, where actions can have real-life consequences, it’s anything
but,’ he writes.
`Look at successive governments of the United States, whether under
Democratic or Republican leaders. All have reached the same
conclusion: Turkey is of vital importance to U.S. geo-strategic
interests, straddling as it does two continents, Europe and Asia,
bordering key countries’from the former Soviet Union to Iran, Iraq and
Syria’and serving as the southeastern flank of NATO. Each
administration has essentially punted when asked about the Armenian
question, seeking to discourage the United States Congress from
recognizing the events of 1915 as genocide, while arguing that a
third-party parliamentary body isn’t the right venue to settle a
heated historical dispute.’
Despite the fact that Harris asserts that the events of 1915 were
`genocide, which occurred 30 years prior to the invention of the
term,’ he also seems to rank pragmatism above principle when he adds:
`I have a strong connection to Turkey, a country I have visited on
numerous occasions and to which I feel very close. Few countries have
a more critically important role to play in the sphere of
international relations. I remain grateful to this day for the refuge
that the Ottoman Empire gave to Jews fleeing the inquisition. I am
intimately connected to the Turkish Jewish community and admire their
patriotism and enormous contribution to their homeland. I deeply
appreciate the link between Turkey and Israel, which served the best
interests of both democratic nations in a tough region. And I value
Turkey’s role as an anchor of NATO and friend of the United States.’
He then echoes the Turkish line that says Armenian historians must sit
down and discuss the issue with other historians. Yet, Harris greatly
contradicts himself when he quotes from a book published by the AJC,
offering this as the official line of the organization: `To say that
the Armenian Genocide is an issue up for debate, or that it belongs to
ancient history, is not congruent with attempts to put an end to
Holocaust Denial.’
We completely agree, and over the last few days have witnessed the
truth behind those words as Jewish intellectuals, political and
religious leaders, and even many members of the ADL and AJC expressed
their passionate opposition to statements made by a leadership that
ranks pragmatism above principle.
On Aug. 21, David Cohen, the Jewish mayor of Newton, Mass., which has
a large Jewish population, convened a meeting in the town hall. He
welcomed the latest changes in the ADL’s position, saying they were `a
start, but not enough.’ As an example of this dissatisfaction, the
mayor claimed that by substituting the words Armenian and Genocide
with Jews and Holocaust, the statement would not have been acceptable
to him or presumably to other Jewish activists.
As we see, the statements by Foxman and Harris surprised mostly those
who are not familiar with placing pragmatism above principle. These
organizations, which run programs with humanistic names such as `No
Place for Hate,’ clearly don’t inform their members of this policy’one
created and fostered on the basis of Harris’ good friend Turkey and
Ottoman hospitality for six centuries. Of course, ignored is the fact
that Turkey’s threats are not only addressed to outsiders but to the
20,000 Jews still living in Turkey.
On thing should be clear: The Armenian-American community and its
leaders will not be blinded by pragmatism, and with the help of those
who oppose the denial of the Holocaust, will show the ugly pragmatism
of individuals and groups hiding behind presumably anti-hate projects.
Translated by Simon Beugekian.
————————————— ———————————–
3. Never Before
By Garen Yegparian
`1915 Never Again,’ we chant at our genocide-related actions. It’s my
recollection that the Jewish community had invented that notion
regarding genocide. We’ve lifted it and used it extensively and
appropriately. But it looks like we’ve been scooped again, at least by
some sectors of the Jewish community who seem to have adopted the
concept of `Never Before.’ They appear to suffer from a `the Holocaust
is unique’ complex. After all, no one but the Germans and Jews could
have been locked in such a murderous relationship, right?
I’m convinced this foolishness is partially driving the show that’s
now playing. It began with the scrutiny given to Watertown’s
affiliation with the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) No Place for Hate
(NPFH) program. In fact, if the ADL, its national director Abraham
Foxman and `uniquists’ within the U.S.-Jewish community keep up their
unconscionable mindset and actions, they’re in line for a SpitRain
Award.
Not only the Watertown Tab, but the Boston Globe and even the Los
Angeles Times have reported on this mess. The Globe has even
editorialized and run op-ed pieces about it. We now have a scandal of
countrywide proportions. Besides the obvious benefits to our cause,
this case is an excellent example of why it’s important to have
Armenians with a committed, activist bent in places and positions that
matter.
In April, Foxman had been quoted in the LA Times article covering the
Genocide Resolution in Congress, essentially toeing Turkey’s
denialist line. (Remember, this was the same `replacement article’
which filled in for the Mark Arax piece killed by the Turkophile
editor Doug Frantz.) The ANC in Watertown noticed the disconnect
between Foxman’s shenanigans and that city’s partnering with the
ADL’s NPFH program. Watertown pulled out of the program, but not
before the ADL’s New England regional director Andrew H. Tarsy first
defended the national ADL’s position. However, Tarsy’s conscience
prevailed and he spoke out in favor of the ADL adopting an
unequivocal recognition of the Armenian genocide. That cost him his
job. In response to Tarsy’s firing by Foxman, two ADL regional board
members resigned in protest. Finally, Foxman `after consulting’ with
people he trusts, as if that’s what it ought to take to do something
this basic and decent, has put the ADL on record recognizing the
genocide. But¦
Of course, in politics nothing is that clear cut, simple and
decent. Foxman still opposes passage of a Congressional resolution on
the Armenian genocide, deeming it counterproductive to improved
relations between Armenians and Turks. He fears for the well being of
Turkey’s Jewish community. Here, he’s joined by David Harris,
executive director of the American Jewish Committee (AJC). Harris
issued a lengthy statement about this situation and Armeno-Turkish
relations, even offering to mediate. Along with Foxman, he sheds
crocodile tears over the state of relations between the two
nations. Both note the importance of Israel’s relationship with
Turkey. Clearly, these two factors’Jews in Turkey and Israeli-Turkish
relations’are what’s driving this mess, since a broad spectrum of
Jews, be they elected officials, organizational representatives or
average people, support Armenian concerns. They do so from a place of
conscience and a place of realism, recognizing that Holocaust denial
is but a generation away should Turkish efforts at erasing history
succeed.
At this point, it’s tempting to ooze sarcasm directed at these
American-Jewish-realpolitik players, but that would be
counterproductive. More appropriate might be an example from Armenia’s
international relations. It is on good terms with both the U.S. and
Iran, something that is no mean feat considering the levels of
antipathy and distrust that poison Iranian-American relations. Armenia
could easily have found itself stuck in the middle. But both the
U.S. and Iran are reasonably mature, civilized states, unlike
Turkey. So the folks in the U.S.-Jewish community and Israel’s
political elites who have been cowering and kowtowing to Turkey’s
whims and tantrums must come to realize that they’re playing the role
of Neville Chamberlain appeasing the Nazis.
The double standard being applied by the Foxmans of the Jewish
community is unsustainable, immoral and ultimately dangerous even to
Jewish interests. This scandal provides an opportunity for the Jewish
community to rid itself of the notions of exclusiveness some apply to
the Holocaust. Once and for all the stain that sullies the moral high
ground Jews can otherwise claim as survivors will be consolidated. The
same applies to the concern about the fate of Jews in Turkey. Once the
Turks see that threatening their own Jewish community gets no results,
and in fact backfires, they will stop. Remember, Turkey’s behavior is
much akin to that of a schoolyard bully. Once challenged, confronted,
meekness prevails.
It may be a more difficult step for Israel and its most ardent
D.C. lobbyists to shed their double standard since the relationship
with Turkey is what drives their policy and actions. But this very
relationship is what provides the opportunity to shake the moral
blemishes that have begun to accrue to Israel’s reputation. Pushing
Turkey in the right direction will only enhance Israel’s stature and
undercut criticism directed at it.
The NPFH/ADL scandal must not be allowed to fade into oblivion. We
must push until Jewish organizations in the U.S. unreservedly do the
right thing. The time is right and attention is focused. If it takes
advocating more cities’ withdrawal from the NPFH program, so be it,
whether Philadelphia or Santa Barabara is next. Let’s do what it takes
to get Foxman and his ilk to stop fighting the Genocide Resolution and
start supporting it. Perhaps we should be advocating Foxman’s
dismissal. This is an excellent opportunity to consolidate our
position in the U.S. and deny Turkey its occasional ally in
denial. And, it all started with someone in our community being
politically alert and of an activist mindset.
—————————————– ———————–
4. What Earthquakes Can’t Shake
By Raffi Wartanian
Hope lives here. These kids have a chance. The Gyumri Social Childcare
Centre (GSCC) offers a haven for the children of Gyumri. They share an
unfortunate similarity: They are classified as `at-risk youth’ mainly
because of exposure to their parent’s hobbies, namely, alcoholism,
drug abuse, prostitution, unemployment and begging. In very hard
conditions, the children ask for food or money. For some, school is
not an option since getting an education requires time and resources
(shoes, school supplies, warm clothing) the family cannot provide.
But who can blame the parents? On Dec. 7, 1988, an earthquake rocked
Gyumri, Armenia’s second largest city. Unspeakable change. An
unimaginable mission: rebuild a city once flourishing and
prospering. Things look different now. Unemployment, potholes and
stray dogs run rampant here. It rains almost every night. You can
still feel the earthquake. It’s a tough life in Gyumri, and one can
see why parents here search for easy ways out of a hard life, exposing
their kids to their mistakes.
Fortunately, the GSCC fights to counter these trends, both with the
children and the parents. The GSCC’s activities display a
comprehensive approach to reversing the social issues plaguing
Gyumri’s struggling families.
First, they find the kids. Every month, GSCC social workers search
sections of the city for youth and families showing clear signs of
need. These workers have encountered many symptoms of social struggle:
begging, child labor and families searching trash cans for bottles
they can sell for five drams a piece (roughly a penny).
The GSCC’s approach is unique. They don’t separate the child from
their family like many social services in the U.S. They help
both. Seminars for adults teach better parenting, sculpting an
understanding of how to care for a child. They also suggest ways to
better listen to, speak with, and motivate one’s child, and when the
opportunity arises, the GSCC provides families with warm clothes,
boots for the punishing winters, school supplies, and help with
medical and dental care.
The GSCC doesn’t neglect the families, but they focus on the kids. The
center’s staff works to establish a sense of normalcy in the
children’s lives. Teachers, cooks, a doctor and nurse, social workers,
psychologists, lawyers and volunteers comprise its staff. The teachers
play an invaluable role for a portion of the kids’some as old as
12’who have never attended school. Other kids lack the parental
encouragement and discipline that the teachers instill into the kids
to edify, consolidate, and accelerate their education. In the summers,
the kids get snacks and one meal per day. The doctor heals bumps and
burns and teaches them the fundamental principles in health: exercise,
nutrition, first aid, washing hands, brushing teeth and what to do
during an earthquake. In her daily examinations, the doctor checks the
children’s hair, skin and clothes. If she finds a problem, she speaks
with the children and their families about proper hygiene, and the
next day the kids come in sparkling. Talent teems from these children
who could become the next Aram Khatchadourian, Arshile Gorky, or
William Saroyan. They need a chance. The center’s gifted staff does
its best to facilitate a child’s development, but its financial
limitations hinder the scope and impact of their help. The staff helps
to the best of its ability, but cannot solve every problem facing
these kids and their families.
While the GSCC makes a big impact, Gyumri’s social problems multiply
and the center struggles to keep up with the growing need. Several
poor families tied to the center still live in temporary housing
intended to provide short-term relief for those who lost their homes
in the earthquake. Today, those homes are almost 20 years old and are
in desperate need of repair. When I asked one grandmother what she did
to fix the hole in the roof over her bed when it rained late at night,
she said that she just covered herself with plastic bags to stay dry.
I have seen the sections of Gyumri where these kids come from. When
one walks into the GSCC and sees these kids, it’s hard to believe the
severe conditions that they must endure on a daily basis. Growing up
in America, I expected food, a warm bed and someone to love me. That’s
not always the case here. Nothing is guaranteed. Without the GSCC,
these kids wouldn’t have a chance. Yet, the chance they have now is
limited to what the center can provide.
The GSCC has huge potential. They occupy a plot of land 35×28
sq. kilometers, and the actual center only covers half that space;
shrubs cover the rest. Visions for the center accumulate as the shrubs
keep growing’a playground, youth center, sports complex, a wall to
protect the center. For the new school year, the center wants its kids
to have all the necessary school supplies, from pencils to boots.
To learn more about the center or to make a donation, e-mail Hripsime
Mouradian, coordinator of external affairs, at ripkin82@yahoo.com.
—————————— ———————————–
5. Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
In the past couple of weeks we have all witnessed the ADL/genocide
controversy both locally in our town halls and in the national and
local medias. When the dust finally settled all sides came out with
official statements, most notably the ADL and the Turkish government.
After consulting with historians and experts, the ADL changed its
policy of genocide denial to the recognition of the Armenian genocide,
yet urged others not to do so; their reasoning, the threat of security
to the Jewish minority in Turkey.
The official statement of the Turkish government given by Burak
Akcapar, first counselor of the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C.,
was quick to dismiss the threat of security reasons by pointing out
that the ADL’s statement was `an injustice to the unique character of
the Holocaust, as well as the memories of its victims.’
Just as it is legitimate for Armenians to ask the ADL, `How can my
misery sustain your security?’ it is equally appropriate for the
Jewish community to ask the Turkish government, `How dare you question
the validity of the Holocaust?’
RGZ
Boston, Mass.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress