LEVON EFFENDI AND THE RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Armen Tsaturyan

Hayots Ashkharh Daily
Dec 11 2007
Armenia

Trying to completely devaluate the achievement of our country in the
issue of the recognition of Genocide in the last 10 years, during
December 8 demonstration Levon Ter-Petrosyan came out with different
anti-national statements and conclusions.

The principle chosen by Levon Effendi in the evaluation of Armenian
authorities in their policy regarding the recognition of Armenian
Genocide derives from his practical interests. Which he formulates
in the following way: "Politics is not words but first of all
actions and only actions." Based on this principle the ex-president
states that, by including the issue of the recognition of Armenian
Genocide in Armenia’s foreign policy agenda the government in power:
" can’t differentiate practical politics from making announcements
and swaggering" and periodically reach a deadlock.

It is indisputable that during his years of power Levon Ter-Petrosyan
didn’t even try "to put pressure" on Turkey and the issue of the
recognition of Armenian genocide has never been included in the
Foreign policy agenda.

Turkey didn’t give way to Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s friendly gestures
and has always imposed new and new pre-conditions for eliminating the
blockade. As a consequence the process of the international recognition
of Armenian Genocide marches on the same spot, and it was during
the power of this very government that this issue recorded decisive
success. Those who have any knowledge about arithmetic can count the
results and conclude that if in the first sphere the achievements of
the former authorities are the same, in the second the present ones
have definitely recorded indisputable and apparent results in the
issue of the recognition of Armenian Genocide.

Trying to devaluate the achievements in this sphere as well, in his
speech delivered in December 8 demonstration Levon Ter-Petrosyan
advanced the idea, that by raising the issue of the recognition of
Armenian Genocide from the UN tribune the government in power, in
reality was trying to make heroes from themselves: " Had Kocharyan
and Oskanyan had more serious intentions, they must have started a
concrete process aimed at the recognition of the Genocide, by the
protocol established under the UN charter, the result of which should
have been the relevant resolution passed by that organization."

A question arises here – what do they call the policy of regulating
the process of the world recognition of Armenian Genocide, if not
increasing the votes in support of this issue, given in the UN and
only after that making the issue a matter of discussion in the United
Nations Organization?

Is it a secret for anyone that, to settle any issue in UN, you must
first of all get the approval of pivotal countries such as the USA,
France, Russia and other countries of the Security Council? The fact
that the issue of the recognition of Armenian Genocide that has been
adopted by Russia and has even obtained a force of all law by France
is knocking at the doors of the US Congress and House of Commons of
Great Britain, can’t be refuted even by Levon Effendi.

What did we get from the parade of the international recognition of
Armenian Genocide that has been recorded due to the consistent policy
pursued by the government in power?

First: we obtained and in future will obtain new and new guarantees
for security from the superpowers and separate countries that have
already recognized and will recognize Armenian Genocide.

Second: It was during the recent ten years that the world really
came to know our country and our people, and learning about our past,
not only did they show interest and sympathy towards Armenia but also
made the issue of reinstating the violated rights the components of
international politics.

Third: The "power of right" achieved by Armenia in the international
arena, became one of those factors that made our "use of force in"
Nagorno Karabakh comprehensible for the international community."

Though even now Levon Ter-Petrosyan is trying to "naively" state
that only if we establish "kind-friendly relations and atmosphere
of trust" with our neighbors, will Turkey definitely recognize
Armenian Genocide. A question arises here how is Levon Effendi going
to establish the "kind-friendly relations and atmosphere of trust"
with our neighbors, when for Turkey the pre-condition of friendly
relations is our giving up the "Genocide allegations".

This means either the ex-President is so naive that he didn’t manage
to learn lessons from the failure of his policy towards Turkey,
or most probably he is trying to mislead himself and us.