ARMENIANS OPPOSE TURKEY THAW, SUPPORT OPEN BORDER: POLL

Agence France Presse
Oct 19 2009

Most Armenians oppose a deal to establish ties with longtime
foe Turkey, according to a poll released Monday, but nearly half
nonetheless want to see the border between the two countries opened.

The survey of 1,000 people carried out by the Armenian Sociological
Association found that 52 percent opposed deals signed between
Armenia and Turkey this month to establish diplomatic ties and open
the border. About 39 percent supported the deals.

But 48 percent of respondents also said they wanted the border to open,
compared with only 41 percent who wanted it to remain closed.

The association’s director, Gevorg Poghosian, said the apparent
contradiction reflected longstanding distrust of Turkey in Armenia.

"Our society considers Turkey an enemy state…. Breaking that
stereotype is very difficult," he said. "There is a lack of trust
that this is a positive process that will have a positive result."

The survey was carried out on September 21-25, before the Turkish
and Armenian foreign ministers signed the landmark deals, in an
internationally hailed step towards ending a century of hostility
over World War I-era massacres of Armenians by Ottoman Turks.

The protocols still need parliamentary ratification to take effect
and the process is expected to take time amid nationalist ire in
both countries.

The two nations have been estranged since World War I. Armenians say
the death of 1.5 million of their kin under the old Ottoman Empire
was genocide. Turkey fiercely rejects the "genocide" label.