The Virginian-Pilot(Norfolk, VA.)
April 25, 2009 Saturday
The Virginian-Pilot Edition
Armenians call for Turkey to say slayings were genocide
Tens of thousands of Armenians marched through the capital Friday to
commemorate the 94th anniversary of the start of mass killings by
Ottoman Turks, many calling on Turkey to recognize the slayings as
genocide.
Armenia and Turkey said Thursday that they are close to restoring full
relations and reopening their border after 15 years. But neither side
has indicated how they might resolve the dispute over the killings
that President Barack Obama on Friday referred to as one of the 20th
century’s "greatest atrocities."
Throngs marched through the Armenian capital, Yerevan, with torches
and candles to mark the anniversary of the rounding-up of a few
hundred Armenian intellectuals in what was then known as
Constantinople – present-day Istanbul – by Ottoman authorities. Their
arrest was swiftly followed by the military’s forced evacuation of
ordinary Armenians from their homes in actions that spiraled into the
mass slaughter of the Armenian population.
Scholars widely view the event as the first genocide of the 20th
century. Obama, who had referred to the "Armenian genocide" during his
presidential campaign, on Friday omitted the term, referring instead
to the event as the "one of the greatest atrocities of the 20th
century." He also refrained from using the term "genocide" during a
recent visit to Turkey, saying only that his views were on the record.
The United States is known to be cautious on the issue while the two
countries repair their relations.
Friday’s procession began with a burning of Turkish flags, and many
carried placards blaming Turkey for spilling the "blood of millions"
and calling on Ankara to acknowledge the killings as genocide. It
ended in central Yerevan at a monument to the victims of the killings,
and a liturgy was served at churches throughout the country.