SHOULD US FIX HISTORY?
C. Gopinath
Sify, India
Oct 29 2007
The Foreign Affairs Committee of the US House of Representatives (lower
house), on October 10, bravely passed a resolution that, among other
things, a systematic campaign had been undertaken to kill Armenians
in Turkey between 1915 and 1923, and called upon the US President
to "ensure that the foreign policy of the US reflects appropriate
understanding and sensitivity concerning issues related to human
rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented in the US record
relating to the Armenian Genocide". It is a non-binding resolution
and is scheduled to be presented to the full House for a vote.
Should the US Congress take on itself the responsibility of fixing
problems of historical record? Perhaps being a super-power gives
it that right. It takes courage, integrity and a total lack of
rationality. That is right. The Congress tried and failed to pass
a resolution to make its own President end the current war in Iraq,
but was not even able to pass a time-line for withdrawal of troops
from there, and has been continuing to pass Bills authorising the
billions that are being spent in fighting the war in Iraq.
This Congress is unable to impact current events, so it has decided
to go back to history, so to speak. For the US politicians, it was
easier to assuage their conscience by dealing with an issue that took
place 92 years ago and 8,400 km away.
‘Genocide’ against Armenians?
Turkey is very upset about it, which is somewhat surprising. The
perpetrators were the Ottomans and the current Turkish government,
successors to a country salvaged from the Ottoman Empire, could have
merrily joined in the condemnation.
But, of course, they felt that the nation was being slighted and the
Turks have not forgotten the efforts of the western powers of that time
to carve up the Ottoman Empire. Nobody can sit quiet today about that!
The Turks agree with the Armenians that several people died at that
time. Estimates range from 800,000 to 1.5 million. The sticking point
is whether it was ‘genocide’ against Armenians, for that term has
all kinds of issues related to intent of action and ethnic cleansing
connotations attached to it.
>From Turkey’s point of view, it was nasty business that took place
in the last days of the Ottoman empire, full of confusion and change.
Fighting the labelling battle
Turkey is an ally of the US, and is realising that in the rough and
tumble of US politics, with power fractured between the Presidency
and the Legislature, when different parties control them, friends
and foes get treated equally badly. National identities are built on
interpretations of history, and Turkey has its own version of what
happened. The Turks are now fighting the battle about the labelling
in the US on many fronts. The government has protested officially
and withdrawn its ambassador from Washington.
Turkish generals have been issuing dark warnings that they would end
cooperation with the US war in Iraq. The government released full-page
advertisements in US newspapers and even hired lobbyists in the US to
work behind the scenes and prevent any resolution from being passed
in the full House. Anti-US demonstrations have taken place in Ankara.
US history
I have a suggestion. The right move in this game of shadow-boxing
is for Turkey to take commensurate action by poking its finger in US
history. I have at least two resolutions that the Turkish parliament
can pass:
The indigenous peoples of North America (also referred to as Native
Americans and as Indians) faced the waves of European immigration
between the 16th and 19th centuries and lost their lands. Some tribes
were wiped out in the ensuing conflicts, and the new diseases that
came also took their toll.
When many tribes entered into agreements with the US government,
these were often ignored, violated through military actions, and
the natives continued to lose territory and rights. Why not pass a
resolution calling it a genocide by the US government against the
natives and ask the UN to look into it? Non-binding, of course.
Slavery was official in the US from the 16th century till 1865.
Slaves contributed significantly to the economy of the country and
helped make it the power that it is. A movement in the US has been
advocating that the US Government apologise to the descendants of
the slaves for the inhuman practice, and to pay compensation. Why
not the Turkish Parliament pass a resolution condemning the practice
of slavery, and urge the US Government to apologise to all those
countries from whom it imported slaves?
Touchy about past
These two resolutions will continue this fascinating pursuit of
name-calling and keep the dispute at the level of distraction that
we all need in our lives!
Unfortunately, countries are touchy about their past and every
country on this planet has its own interpretation of events. These
interpretations often change when governments’ change and history
books get re-written.
The US is so touchy about how it presents its treatment of the
indigenous peoples and slavery that these subjects are generally
white-washed in the approved textbooks used in the schools. Read
James Loewen’s Lies my teacher told me (New Press, New York, 1995)
for a fascinating analysis of this.
Driving force behind resolution
Ironically, even those in the US Government who opposed the resolution
that was passed did so not because they thought it was silly and
unnecessary mischief, but because they felt that Turkey is a key
gateway to moving men and materials for the Iraq war now and the
resolution will disturb that arrangement.
The driving force for the resolution is said to be the pressure from
Armenians settled in California on their elected representatives.
The Armenians have brought such resolutions through the Committee
in the past too, although they have all failed to reach the stage of
voting in the full House.
This resolution falls into a time-honoured US tradition of foreign
policy positions taken to satisfy domestic pressure points of the day.
The classic example of that is the continuing influence in shaping US
foreign policy towards Cuba by the big constituency of refugees and
other immigrants from Cuba who are settled in Florida and continue
to rabidly hate Castro.
It’s all in the game
In the game of international gamesmanship, it might all work out in
Turkey’s favour. Turkey has been wanting to attack Kurdish bases in
Iraq from which terrorists are alleged to regularly launch attacks
inside Turkey.
Turkish soldiers have been killed and they are itching for a fight
that would take them well into northern Iraq. The US has warned it
not to, but the US leverage is getting weakened.
Slowly, many of those who originally supported the resolution in the
US Congress are having second thoughts and it might well come to pass
that wisdom would dawn on the Speaker of the House (who counts many
Armenian-Americans among her constituents) and the resolution may
not be brought for a vote this time also.
Turkey, smelling that, may capitalise on its ‘hurt’ and quickly
launch a few attacks on Iraq to establish its ‘right’. And, thus,
the grown-ups play.
The simple lesson coming out of the misadventure of the US Congress
is that it is important to poke your nose into the affairs of other
nations if you can help them when they are killing each other;
otherwise, keep your nose to yourself.
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