ZURICH CEREMONY BAFFLES ARMENIANS
By Seda Muradyan in Yerevan
Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Oct 15 2009
UK
Live TV feed interrupted by Armenia v Spain football game, as last
minute hitches delay signing of historic deal with Turkey.
At 7.30 pm, on October 10, thousands of Armenians sat in front of
their televisions as a live feed from Zurich showed the room where
the future of their country was to be decided.
An excited presenter, speaking from the studio, told his audience
the ceremony of signing the peace deal between Turkey and Armenia
was just about to begin.
His excitement was understandable. The deal would end a century of
animosity, which started with the genocide of Armenians in Ottoman
Turkey in 1915, and continued more recently with Armenians’ control
over Nagorny Karabakh, which is internationally considered to be part
of Azerbaijan, home to Turkey’s ethnic kin.
The hall, in the history faculty of the University of Zurich, was an
appropriate venue for such a historic event, but the presenter began
to run out of things to say. No one entered the room, and no one spoke,
leaving him with the task of explaining why nothing was going on.
"10 October, 2009, the signing of the protocols between the Republic
of Armenia and the Turkish Republic," said the banner on the screen,
although that was clearly not happening.
After 15 minutes, the live feed was interrupted, apparently for
technical reasons, with viewers none the wiser. Speculation was
frantic. Had the two sides pulled out at the last minute?
The Associated Press reported that the two sides had disagreed on
statements their foreign ministers would make after the ceremony.
Officials later said it took three hours to persuade the two foreign
ministers not to make speeches about their respective grievances after
the signing ceremony, and to let the "protocols speak for themselves".
Armenian public television viewers knew none of the fraught negotiating
process, in which American, French, Swiss and Russian officials
shuttled back and forth between the two camps, since TV bosses decided
to show a live feed of Armenia playing Spain at football in a World
Cup qualifying match in Yerevan.
After the first half, by which time Spain were beating their hosts
1-0, the live feed of the empty hall resumed, and viewers were left
listening to the same announcer promising that the signing ceremony
would start soon. Suddenly, the voice told viewers Armenian foreign
minister Eduard Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmed Davutoglu
were about to enter the room.
But then half-time ended, and coverage returned to the football at
the Yerevan stadium. The match ended at last, Armenia losing 1-2
and the two ministers finally appeared on the screen. At 11.15 pm,
four hours later than planned, a close-up showed their hands signing
the documents laying out the future ties between their two countries.
It was clear from Facebook that thousands of Armenians had stayed
awake to watch the ceremony. Status messages on the networking site
reflected the new reality of their country having diplomatic relations
with its giant neighbour, despite the fact that Turkey still refuses
to recognise that its mass slaughter of Armenians was genocide, and
Armenia refuses to pull its forces from territories internationally
considered to belong to Azerbaijan.
"How did his hand not shake?" asked one user.
"Why was Nalbandian so pale?" asked another.
"The protocols are signed, Turkey is rejoicing," was the conclusion
of a third who reflected the doubts of the whole country after this
strange, unsatisfying evening.
Seda Muradyan is IWPR’s Armenia country director.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
