THE EIFFEL TOWER WELCOMES TURKEY
EuropeNews
918
GalliaWatch
Sept 2 2009
They’re all talking about this – the Eiffel Tower will be ablaze
in red and white to honor Turkey starting in October. It’s all part
of a nine-month-long celebration of Turkey, called "La Saison de la
Turquie", offered by France to the country Nicolas Sarkozy most wants
to see in the European Union, despite his protests to the contrary. The
celebration, about which I have already posted one article, began on
June 30 and goes on until the end of March 2010. Bivouac-Id reports:
Launched on June 30 at the Ministry of Culture and Communication in the
presence of Frederic Mitterand and Ertugrul Gunay, ministers of Culture
of France and Turkey respectively, La Saison de la Turquie is off and
running. A foretaste of what France is predictably in store for if the
actual accession of Turkey to the European Union becomes reality. How
else can we explain the profusion of grandiose programs dedicated to
Turkish culture, if not as an overt acquiescence to Turkish membership?
And it is on the occasion of this celebration of Turkey that the
Eiffel Tower will be lit up with the colors of the Turkish flag in
October. That’s right. The Eiffel Tower will be adorned with the
white star and crescent on a red background. Turkey will have, in
fact, one foot in Europe. And the mayor of Paris will roll out the
red carpet. Frederic Mitterand, Minister of Culture, acknowledges
this and has given his blessing to such a sacrilege.
The question of Turkey’s accession to the EU has not been
decided. However, that of Turkey in France is off to a good start:
until March 31, 2010, no fewer than 400 cultural events are programmed,
under the aegis of the Foreign Ministry and the French and Turkish
Ministries of Culture.
However, some voices can be heard here and there in protest against the
desecration of the Eiffel Tower by Islamo-Turkish symbols. First, an
action from SITA, that we urge you to participate in. Second, there is
the initiative by Armenian militants who have also launched their own
campaign "against the colors of the Turkish flag on the Eiffel Tower."
At this point the author provides a link to a French-language Armenian
website, Armennews, that has posted a sample letter to the mayor of
Paris. Those French readers who are interested can copy the letter,
or write one of their own. The middle section of the letter reads:
(…) In truth, Turkey denies its responsibility in the perpetration
and execution of several crimes against humanity – the Armenian
Genocide (1,500,000 deaths), the Aramaean Genocide (1,000,000 deaths),
the Greek Genocide (500,000 deaths), and the Assyro-Chaldean Genocide
(250,000 deaths) – and adapts its foreign policy through negationist
rhetoric on a planetary scale and through threats of diplomatic
and economic reprisals against any State that debates the issue of
recognition of one of these genocides. Moreover, Turkey refuses to
recognize Cyprus, a member State of the EU that has been occupied by
Turkey since 1974, in flagrant violation of International Law. Finally,
I cannot hide from you the fact that the illumination in the colors
of the Turkish flag of the most symbolic of all French monuments has
aroused strong reactions both in France and abroad. (…)
Note: The Aramaean Genocide, also called the Assyrian Genocide, is a
complicated story unto itself. Wikipedia has this page of information,
but the topic warrants much research. The Assyro-Chaldean Genocide,
referred to in the letter above, does not appear to be separate from
the larger topic of the Assyrian Genocide, except possibly from
a geographical point of view. Time does not permit me to research
these important points right now. Here is another Wikipedia page on
Genocides In History, where the definition of what actually constitutes
a genocide is discussed, though the question is hardly resolved.
Finally, it’s interesting to note that even though Serge Sarkisian,
president of Armenia, insists on the importance of Turkish recognition
of the genocide, he is realistic enough to acknowledge that it may
not happen:
"(…) We say, yes, there was a genocide and it matters very little
whether or not Turkey admits it. It is a fact recognized by all the
experts on genocide in the world; it is recognized by many countries
throughout the world."
If you are interested in the SITA action against the Eiffel Tower
display, there is another sample letter posted here, which is very
similar to the letter posted at Armennews, EXCEPT that it is addressed
to Frederic Mitterand instead of to the mayor of Paris, AND the figures
on the number of deaths in the various genocides are different. Since
I cannot sort this out, I recommend you simplify the letter and omit
the figures, or use the figures you feel most comfortable with.
On several occasions in the past I have conveyed to readers the
general rules for a SITA action. The ground rules (in English) can
be reviewed here.