>From "Il Giornale"
12th December 2008, 07:00

Rosselli’s book (Armenian Holocaust) on front pages around the world-
by Rino di Stefano

Are several days that the phone of Alberto Rosselli, author of the book
‘The Armenian Holocaust "(Edited by Solfanelli) does not stop ringing.
Following the publication of the review of his book on the newspaper "Il
Giornale -Liguria edition", half of European medias have begun to learn
more about death threats he
has received and continues to receive, only to have told how in the
early twentieth century one and a half million Christian Armenians were
murdered by Islamic
Turkish-Kurdish troops. Men, women, children and old: the entire
population of Anatolia, guilty only of being Christians in a land
surrounded by a Muslim majority, was brutally exterminated in the most
cruel ways. Rosselli, who in his work meticulously described what
happened in those years, from 2007 is under attack for alleged extremist
Turks who at any time of day or night, wherever he is, call at home and
on the mobile phone, threatening to cut his and his wife’s throat.
This "story" began to circle the world. "In these days I have been
called by BBC in London, by the French newspaper Le Figaro, by the
national editor of Sky, by Radio Vatican and by the newspaper Foglio" ,
says Rosselli . "Monday, December 8, for example, the Armenian
Television, a State broadcaster, aired a service on my case, citing your
article. All it started after the publication. For about a week I was
contacted only by few friends and acquaintances. Then, suddenly, the
news was taken up by numerous Internet websites which published the
entire review. It was a chain. Precisely in these days, Wednesday Dec.
3, the European Federation of Armenians, submitted to the European
Parliament in Brussels a report which, citing what you have written,
approached my name to that of the Turkish journalist Dogan Ozguden and
to that of Professor Ronald Monsch, they too threatened by Turkish
extremists, for speaking publicly on the Armenian genocide.I know that
the article was translated into English, Turkish and Armenian. For
example, there was a publication on the online newspaper ‘The
Italo-European’, a culture and deepening journal in Italian and English,
circulated in all European countries. In Canada was published on
"Corriere Italo-Canadian", and in the United States appeared in English
on an Armenian newspaper. Shortly, this story had a circulation that I
do not really expecting. " says Rosselli. According to Rosselli, the
Armenian Community of Rome acted giving a great interest to news edited
by "Il Giornale" newspaper and immediately released texts in all its
media channels. One of the first to bring the news was the site of Zatik
Italo-Armenian Friendship, immediately followed by Wikipedia, Thema
News, History Libera, Rarika-Root Blogspot and many others.
To remember the various publications, daily and periodical, which
somehow have reported the news everywhere, just as did the British BBC.
"Perhaps – says Rosselli – was the Saviano’s effect to start just this
interest. Although, I must say, the key is a problem of international
politics as the entry of Turkey into Europe. The European Union has put
in Ankara, as a precondition for the integration of Turkey, the
recognition of the genocide by the part of Ankara. Recognizing that, by
the way, has not yet happened. Not later than Tuesday, December 2, the
Dutch MEP Ria Oomen-Ruijten, the European People’s Party, presented the
provisional version of its 2008 report on Turkey to the Commission of
Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament. And it is a fact objectively
significant that this presentation was made too late and before a small
audience of MEPs, known for their unconditional support to Turkey, in
addition to some journalist of Anatolia. The interest, I mean, it is not
at the highest level. And they do not want to recognize the Armenian
Holocaust, doing nothing Turkey worsens its position towards Europe. "
In this regard, there is also the question of Human Rights and freedom
of expression that, while they are considered of primary importance in
Europe, not as much they are considered in Turkey. In fact, according to
EU sources, "the freedom of expression and press freedom are not always
fully protected in Turkey", partly because there are many journalists
who are persecuted for their ideas (as, indeed, Dogan Ozguden) .
Moreover, often uncomfortable Internet sites are blocked at the
discretion of the Turkish government.
The case of the Genoese writer Alberto Rosselli is to fit in this
context; he continues regularly to receive death threats. "The most
annoying are in the night – he admits – towards the two or three in the
night, the phone rings and on the other side someone tells me that he
will kill me. Sometimes, the caller does not speak a good Italian, he
has also difficulty to understand the words. It is certain that the
voices are always different. I do not know how seriously I should take
these so frequent episodes, but I have no doubts that among many foolish
there may be some dangerous extremist. And I am worried especially for
my wife. "

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Translated by Ari Armen (apologies for possible errors)