This tour was an honour and privilege that neither the State Department
nor the ambassador deserved

Lucine Kasbarian
New Jersey, USA

Gibrahayer – Nicosia
June 29, 2009

Like many Armenian Americans, I am unhappy that our
organizations hosted the recent public tour by the U.S. Ambassador to
Armenia, Marie Yovanovitch.
Nevertheless, trying to make the most of the situation, I
attended her presentation at the Armenian Cultural Foundation in
Massachusetts.
As expected, Yovanovitch largely evaded the audience’s pointed
questions and comments.
From having spoken to Armenians who attended Yovanovitch’s
public presentations elsewhere, such as in New York City, I know that
similar scenarios unfolded there.
Even worse, the Armenian American press failed to critically and
frankly assess Yovanovitch’s opening remarks, questions from the
audience, and her replies. Such press outlets include Armenia Now, the
Armenian Weekly, the Armenian Reporter, the Armenian Mirror-Spectator
as well as the email newsletters of the Eastern U.S.A. Diocese and
Prelacy.
Unfortunately, even HETQ, the investigative journalism website
in Armenia, merely republished an article from the Glendale News-Press
about Yovanovitch’s visit to Southern California.
& nbsp; What separated HETQ from some of the outlets mentioned
above, however, is
that it didn’t censor critical reader comments
posted under their online articles. While most of us recognise that
Armenia suffers from a democracy and free-speech deficit, few of us
have said publicly that our Diaspora media and organizations suffer
from the same ailment.
I am forwarding HETQ’s reader comments about Yovanovitch to our
Diaspora organizations, media, and clergy because there are many
questions they need to answer. Among the very first is: why did
American Armenian organizations agree last year to the U.S. Senate’s
confirming Yovanovitch even though she and the State Department were as
evasive on the genocide issue as John Hoagland, the previous failed
nominee, had been?
Given Yovanovitch’s and the U.S.’s dishonesty about the
genocide, and the obvious fact that she was going to give evasive
replies regarding a host of issues on her present tour, why did
Armenian organizations even agree to host her? If their reasoning was
that she needed to hear what we had to say, she undoubtedly already
knew that from reading the Armenian press and news releases since
assuming her ambassadorship.
Frankly, this tour was an honour and privilege that neither the
State Department nor the ambassador deserved.
Armenian organizations held private meetings with Yovanovitch.
What, may we ask, was the outcome of these meetings, or are our=2
0
organizations once again practising the same lack of transparency for
which they criticise the Armenian government? They are accountable to
the communities they claim to represent and serve, or haven’t they
noticed?
Ultimately, we must reject the vassal mentality that has been
ingrained in us after centuries of Ottoman occupation. If we don’t take
a harder line in defence of Armenian rights in the post-genocide age,
we have only ourselves to blame — and not the Turkish government —
for jeopardising our survival as a nation, on or off our native lands.
I direct you to HETQ, where outspoken Armenians have their say: