ic Wales, United Kingdom
Nov 3 2007
Protests fail to halt memorial
Nov 3 2007 by David Williamson, Western Mail
A MEMORIAL commemorating the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman
Turks in the early 20th century is being unveiled today in the Welsh
capital.
The Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales, Lord
Elis-Thomas, will take part in the ceremony outside the Temple of
Peace in Cardiff , and will attribute the deaths to `one of the
biggest genocides the world has ever seen when’.
Armenians claim 1.5 million people were either murdered or died
through starvation. Turkey insists there was no policy of genocide and
claims 300,000 Armenians died in inter-ethnic violence.
The announcement that the memorial was due to be unveiled provoked
angry protests from the Turkish community last month.
More than 200 messages protesting against the monument’s erection have
been sent by members of the Turkish community in Wales, elsewhere in
Britain and from Turkey itself over the decision to erect the pillar
of pink stone and Welsh slate.
The controversial topic also hit the headlines when Democrats in the
US Congress agreed to delay a vote on a Bill which censured the
Ottoman Empire for the killings. President Bush had warned the vote
could permanently damage US relations with Turkey.
Lord Elis-Thomas said, `Wales’ relationship with one of the oldest
states and the oldest Christian Church in the world goes back
centuries and the fact that the funds for this fine memorial have been
raised entirely by the Armenians who live in Wales, and that it will
occupy a special place here in the Temple of Peace, reflects the
vibrant Welsh interest in the history of Armenia.’
In March 2000, a majority of Assembly Members voted in support of a
motion by Rhodri Glyn Thomas acknowledging the genocide. It also
called on the UK Government to block Turkey’s admission to the EU
until it acknowledged the crime.
cs-news/2007/11/03/protests-fail-to-halt-memorial- 91466-20054144/