ARMENIANS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES REACT TO TURKEY-ARMENIA PROTOCOLS 10,000 GATHER TO PROTEST IN GLENDALE
Armenian Reporter
-01-armenians-across-the-united-states-react-to-tu rkey-armenia-protocols
Thursday October 01, 2009
Some 10,000 Armenian-Americans came together in Glendale, Calif.,
on September 27 to protest the terms of the agreement negotiated
between Armenia and Turkey on the normalization of relations. The
rally was organized jointly by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation,
the Social Democratic Hunchakian Party, the Armenian Democratic Liberal
(Ramgavar) Party, and the Unified Young Armenians. Representatives of
all the parties made speeches stating that the terms of the agreement
were "unacceptable" to the Armenian people.
Meanwhile, in New York, representatives of the Armenian General
Benevolent Union, the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church, and
the Armenian Assembly of America met with Armenia’s foreign minister,
Edward Nalbandian, who was in New York to address the United Nations
General Assembly. According to the press office of the Foreign
Ministry, Mr. Nalbandian and the representatives of the organizations
discussed the Armenia-Turkey talks in some detail.
After a dinner for Mr. Nalbandian at the Diocesan Center, Sarkis
Jebejian, a member of the AGBU’s Central Board of Directors, said,
"The AGBU stands ready to assist the government in any way necessary,
and calls upon the entire diaspora to unite in support of this complex
and important mission."
Meanwhile, Armenia’s President Serge Sargsian prepared to leave for
a tour of major diaspora communities. The president was expected to
arrive in the United States on October 3 where he would meet with
representatives of Armenian-American organizations in New York and
Los Angeles. No public events had been announced.
On September 24 in Washington, former U.S. Ambassador to Armenia John
Evans took part in a town hall meeting, "Turkey-Armenia Protocols:
The Facts and the Long-term Implications," organized by the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA). Ambassador Evans made several
comments throughout the program, using the terms "flawed" and
"shoddy work" to refer to the protocols negotiated between Turkey and
Armenia. Mr. Evans said that while he welcomed the proposed opening
of the borders and establishment of diplomatic relations between
Armenia and Turkey, he felt that the protocols did not contain the
proper diplomatic language. He added that any diplomatic agreement
could be altered or reversed.
At the rally in Glendale on September 27, the protestors shouted,
"No Concessions to Turkey" and "No to Protocols." The speakers,
which included Aroutin Haroutunyan of the United Young Armenians,
Minas Kojayan of the Ramgavar party, Harout Der Tavidian of the
Hunchakian Party, and Avedik Izmirlian of the ARF, found that the
protocols granted Turkey almost everything it had sought in vain from
Armenia for the last 17 years in exchange for ending its blockade,
and stated that conceding to Turkish blackmail was unacceptable.
The keynote speaker at the rally, columnist and USArmenia TV
personality Harut Sassounian outlined what he considered to be the
dangers contained in the protocols.
In concluding remarks, Hovan Tashjian of the ARF read out a resolution
that called for an immediate suspension of Armenia-Turkey talks under
the current terms. With applause and cheers, the protest participants
demonstrated their support for the resolution.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
