"WHAT HAPPENED ON APRIL 24" DISCUSSION IN ISTANBUL
By H. Chaqrian
AZG Armenian Daily
23/04/2008
Genocide
Head of "Komitas" institute, London, taking part in the event
Each year on April 21 the Armenian people commemorate the victims of
the Genocide in Ottoman Turkey.
Mourning events are being organized in the US, France, Russia, Italy,
Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, the Arabic and Latin American states
and Iran. Poland, Georgia and, according to "Milliet" columnist Semihj
Idiz, Israel.
In short, each year the number of the states remembering the victims of
the Armenian Genocide is growing. More and more statesmen, political
and social figures from different countries are taking part in events
dedicated to the one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century.
Expert of the Armenian Researches Institute of Ankara Yildiz Deveci
invites the public attention to this fact in the Institute’s April 21
bulletin and notes that the week-long events in Moscow are organized
by the Union of Armenian Russians, and the events in California are
announced by Governor Schwarzenegger himself.
Yildiz Deveci also makes comments about the "What Happened on April 24"
discussion, organized on the same day in Istanbul. Before analyzing the
comments of Deveci, let us inform that the discussion is organized by
the Istanbul branch of the Human Rights Union. Head of the "Komitas"
institute Ara Sarafian (London) was invited and took part in the
event. He is to make a report about the reason why the Armenians
consider April 24 the beginning of the massacres.
Although the number of the attendants of the discussion is rather
small, Human Rights Defender Ragip Zarakolu is included among the
rapporteurs. His report is entitled "April 24 – the Beginning of
Elimination of the Intellectuals". Another Rapporteur, ex-director
of the Human Rights Union Ereb Keskin is entitled "April 24, 1915 in
Human Rights Aspect".
More information shall still be provided about the discussion in
Istanbul. In conclusion let us mark that Armenian Researches Institute
Yildiz Deveci is sure that Turkey, having organized such a discussion,
is unconsciously joining the long list of states, which commemorate
the Armenian Genocide. Deveci concludes that such events may result in
growing support in Turkey for the "Armenians’ claims about genocide" .