SAME ARMENIAN GENES, SAME BLOOD AND SAME DETERMINATION
by Tavit Asdvadzadourian
/2010-03-22-same-armenian-genes-same-blood-and-sam e-determination
Monday March 22, 2010
Montreal – Turkey’s quest for Armenians to forget what happened 95
years ago and their manipulative suggestion to let this touchy subject
to a handful of historians to discuss the matter in the next 95 years
in dark libraries or museums does not sit well with any Armenian
whose parents or grand parents survived the Genocide.
Armenians one day may forget the fact that Armenians had to pay extra
heavy taxes compared to a Muslim Turk just for being Armenian in the
Ottoman Empire, just to live on their own ancestral land that they have
lived for the last four centuries. Armenians may forget the fact that
they had to bow and look down when a Turk was facing them on a street,
in their own neighborhood in front of heir own house or a church.
Armenians may forget that they had to remove their holy crosses from
their churches that were build more than a thousand years ago when the
name or the notion of a Turk or a Muslim did not even exist. Armenians
may forget that Turks would come and rob them of their farm animals
and their hard earned wealth, but today’s Armenian will never forget
the intentional brutal mass murders and the killings of 1.5 million
of their innocent men, women and children.
Individuals sometimes pretend that they do not remember an incident
or an issue for the sake of convenience, they even call it a memory
blackout. Friends try to jog their memory with providing details
and circumstances.
Same behavior apparently is true for countries, or may be only one
particular country: Turkey, when it comes to not remembering the
Ottomans horrific crimes, the 20th century’s first genocide that was
committed 95 years ago. Other friendly countries, more than 20 now,
have continuously reminded Turkey and the world that there are more
than enough proof and information out there, staring from British,
US and European archives and yet modern Turkey s says ‘I do not
remember…’.
Turkey itself conducted its own investigation subsequent to intentional
killings and mass deportations of the Armenians from the Ottoman Empire
and found large number of its government members including Talaat
Minister of the Interior, Enver Pasha Minister of War and Djemal Pasha
a high ranking Minister guilty of the above crimes in Turkish court and
yet after 95 years Turkey does not remember, total memory black out.
Armenians all over the world will never abandon their efforts to
finally one day attain the genocide recognition from Turley for the
brutal killings of 1.5 millions Armenians from the Anatolia. They
will never forget their ancestors who walked without water and food
in the Der Zhor desert, day and night, in the extreme desert heat,
carrying their children, they will never forget that they did not
abandon their hope, did not abandon the will to live and died only
when their weakened bodies gave up.
More and more countries are recognizing the mass deportations and
the brutal killings of the Armenians in 1915 by the Ottoman Empire as
genocide. Armenians are extremely grateful to all those countries ,
organizations and people . However, the end of the road for this
difficult and painful path comes only when Turkey recognizes the
events of the 1915 as Genocide.
While seniors member of Turkish government say that they are upset,
they are angry and they have been dishonored by even a mere discussions
of the Armenian Genocide in US, one wonders, what the Armenians who
died at the hand of the Ottomans would have said when they were shot
dead in groups, or when women were raped and murdered, or when young
kids were snatched away from their parents and forced to live as Turks,
or when young girls were taken as slave brides to Turkish men five
times their age , or when pregnant women were stabbed with knives
by Turks to check the sex of the unborn for the sake of a bet or a
gamble, or when women saw their whole family being executed brutally
in front of their eyes .
‘Leave the genocide history for the historians ‘ we keep hearing and
reading about this for a long time now. What does that means exactly?
It sound to me it means sweep it under the carpet and let it stay
there for another 100 years. The history of the Armenian Genocide
was already removed from the history books in Turkey, Turkish people
cannot find anything in their history books and keep asking for proof.
No wonder these poor Turkish people are surprised, shocked, stunned,
and even offended. All they need to do is look outside Turkey,
anywhere, in any country for historic information or look into the
Ottoman Empire Archives.
‘Turkey is a regional player, Turkey can not be pushed around’ we
keep hearing that too whenever the genocide recognition issue comes up.
Does that mean they can get away for crimes against humanity in this
civilized world? To have zero problems with neighbors Turkey have
to solve its problems, because problems do not die of natural causes
after 95 years.
It is time for Turkey to stop playing games, recalling its ambassadors
from Sweden, from USA while knowing very well that they are going
back. It is time now for Turkey to grow up, to look into the mirror,
accept that dark past and look forward to make things right. Armenians
may sound so stubborn in their quest for the recognition of the
genocide, but the world can be surprised how easily Armenians will
forgive the Turks if Turkey finally admits that what the Ottomans
did amounts to genocide.
Turkey is angry that the Genocide issue is coming up, year after year
all over the world and especially in the US, their close ally and
supporter. This perseverance characteristic of the Diaspora comes from
the survival instinct of the Armenians. Turkey should not forget that
the Diaspora who is bringing the Genocide issue to the international
community constantly, are mostly the direct off springs of those
who walked the Der Zhor desert day and night, in the extreme heat,
hungry, thirsty, beaten and wounded. The have the same Armenian genes,
same blood and same determination.