Author: Andres-Papazian

CFK MEETS ARMENIAN LEADERS AFTER POPE-TURKEY ‘GENOCIDE’ CONTROVERSY

Buenos Aires Herald, Argentina
April 14 2015

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner today received the Prelate
of the Armenian Apostolic Church and other leading representatives
of the community, following pope Francis’ recognition of the Armenian
genocide at the hands of Turkey on the centenary of the event.

The head of state’s encounter with leaders of the Argentine-Armenian
community took place in the midst of strong criticism from Turkey
against the pope and the Argentine government, due to the nation’s
refusal to admit to genocide in 1915.

Archbishop Kissag Mouradian headed the delegation that met with CFK in
Olivos today, in order to express her solidarity with the community
on the 100th anniversary of the massacre which took at least 1.5
million Armenian lives, according to historical studies.

Argentina is one of 22 states which recognises that attack as genocide
and on Sunday the Catholic Church, through the pope’s declarations,
also used that description – a statement which provoked a stinging
rebuke from the Turkish government against the Pontiff and the CFK
administration.

Along with strong words from president Tayyip Erdogan, one of the
fiercest criticisms came from European Union minister Volkan Bozkir.

The politician stated that Francis was from Argentina “a country that
welcomed the nazis who were the main authors of the Jewish Holocaust.”

“Regretfully, in Argentina the Armenian diaspora dominate the media
and businesses,” Bozkir added.

From: A. Papazian

THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AND THE ETHICS OF REMEMBRANCE

FrontPage Magazine
April 15 2015

April 15, 2015 by Vladimir Tismaneanu and Marius Stan

“To conceal or deny Evil is the same as allowing a wound to bleed
without bandaging it.”

This statement by Pope Francis in April 2015 was linked to the first
official Vatican use of the word genocide to deplore and condemn
the state-sponsored mass murders perpetrated against a huge civilian
population a hundred years ago in what used to be the Ottoman Empire.

The Pope is right: Forgetfulness, denial, and silence cannot but
perpetuate a culture of complicity with Evil.

The massacre of a million and a half Armenians (men, women, elderly
people, and children) initiated in April 1915 and appallingly
completed by 1923, was the first genocidal experience of what an
American historian called the age of social catastrophes. That
exterminist cataclysm was the Armenians’ Holocaust. We use the term
exterminist in the sense put forward by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen in
his book “Hitler’s Willing Executioners.” The purpose was not just
exclusion and elimination, but complete annihilation of the targeted
collectivity, in this case the Armenians, later the Jews, the Gypsies,
the Tutsis and so on. It was not a spontaneous explosion of murderous
hatred, but a meticulously designed and methodically executed plan
to physically destroy those labeled as sub-humans or even non-humans.

Killing an Armenian–or later a Jew, a Kulak, a Bosnian, any member of
a community stigmatized as superfluous (a term introduced by Hannah
Arendt)–was the same as getting rid of a pernicious insect. The
hateful genocidal propaganda always referred to the “obnoxious
vermin.” Symbolic dehumanization made way for physical termination.

Ideology precedes and legitimizes the hecatomb. The ultimate goal is
the ethnically or socially pure (and purified) community.

For Hitler, who openly admired Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and saw himself
as a “Father of the Nation,”, the Armenian massacre (the term genocide
had not been coined yet) was proof that humankind is quick to forget,
that one should not be held back by moral reservations.

Totalitarianism bets everything on opportunism, cowardice, and
amnesia. And, most obviously, on sadism–be it social or racial.

In conversations with his minions, Hitler used to mention the following
when explaining the “necessity” to exterminate the European Jews:
“Who even remembers the Armenian annihilation nowadays?” What is truly
terrifying is that many of those who committed these mass murders
seemed normal people, persons who “wouldn’t hurt a fly” (a point made
by Croatian writer Slavenka DrakuliÄ~G in her book “They Would Never
Hurt a Fly” ). They wouldn’t harm an ant, but mercilessly massacred
women and children. And even took pictures of it…

Here is a copy of a famous painting by Arshile Gorky, born Vosdanig
Adoian. Alongside creations by Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock,
Gorky’s work was American Abstract Expressionism’s moment of supreme
glory. The artist was himself a genocide survivor, his mother died
of starvation in 1918.

It is admirable that Pope Francis urges humanity not to forget
Evil and we agree with his stance. In the spirit of Albert Camus,
Nadezhda Mandelstam, and Monica Lovinescu, we advocate the ethics of
unforgetfulness. Because remembrance is always the result of a will
not to forget Evil. The democratic ethos is rooted in this need to
acknowledge the tragedies of the past. Forgiveness cannot be granted
in the absence of repentance. Yet we dare to wonder whether the term
“Stalinism” used by Pope Francis in his speech (together with Nazism)
is clear enough to help understand that it comprises the communist
crimes of the last century, including those perpetrated by Maoism.

Just between 1958 and 1961, during the so-called “Great Leap Forward”,
45 millions of Chinese citizens died.

These crimes against humanity have been genocidal. They should be
called by name, known, condemned, and commemorated with sorrow and
empathy, regardless of what the various chancelleries specialized in
the diplomatic concealing of the truth might say. Regardless of what
the self-proclaimed experts in “linguistic hygiene” might say.

To conclude, we recommend here Charles Aznavour’s moving song “Ils
sont tombés.”

Vladimir Tismaneanu is a professor of politics at the University of
Maryland (College Park) and author of numerous books, including most
recently “The Devil in History: Communism, Fascism, and Some Lessons of
the Twentieth Century.” Marius Stan is a Romanian political scientist,
author of books in Romanian and Polish, and currently a postdoctoral
fellow at the University of Bucharest. This essay was translated from
Romanian into English by Monica Got.

From: A. Papazian

PM DAVUTOGLU CRITICIZES POPE’S REMARKS ON 1915 INCIDENTS

Turkish Government News
April 13, 2015 Monday

Ankara

The Turkish Government has issued the following press release:

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu criticized Pope Francis’s description
of 1915 incidents as genocide.

Davutoglu spoke to journalists in Istanbul, before an event to
commemorate Prophet Mohammad’s birth. He said that Pope’s statement
was “unfortunate,” “incorrect” and “inconsistent.”

Davutoglu said the remarks were not just about reading the history
wrong, but also “lend credence to the growing racism in Europe,”
as well as accusing Turks and Muslims of a collective crime.

“It is unbecoming of Pope and his authority to read the 1915 incidents
unilaterally and to cover the pains of others by owning the pains of
only a part of mankind,” Davutoglu said.

He said that without the external factors, “The painful events of
1915 would probably not have been experienced.”

Pope Francis said Sunday that “the first ‘genocide’ of the 20th
century” struck Armenians, a statement that led Turkey to recall its
ambassador in Vatican for consultations and also summon Vatican’s
envoy in Ankara.

Pope made these remarks during a Mass in the Armenian Catholic rite
at the St. Peter’s Basilica, which Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan
also attended.

Armenians are preparing to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the
1915 incidents on April 24.

Davutoglu said that “when pains, especially those experienced in war
time, are shared and mutually owned, an environment of peace emerges.”

The Turkish prime minister said that the primary duty of the religion
leaders is not to create new environments of conflict and hate from
historic debates, but to invite people to make peace and live together.

Davutoglu recalled President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statements in
2014 and onwards, calling them “open-hearted” toward the pains of
Armenians. Davutoglu cited Ankara’s stance toward Yerevan and issued
a call to open a new era in relations between the two countries.

“Let’s open the archives,” Davutoglu said, regarding the 1915
events, in reference to Turkey’s long-standing offer on creating an
international board of historians to investigate the issue.

Davutoglu said he hoped the pontiff “will consider his position.”

– 1915 events

The 1915 events took place during World War I when a portion of
the Armenian population living in the Ottoman Empire sided with the
invading Russians and revolted against the empire.

The Ottoman Empire relocated Armenians in eastern Anatolia following
the revolts and there were Armenian casualties during the relocation
process.

Armenia has demanded an apology and compensation, while Turkey has
officially refuted Armenian allegations over the incidents saying that,
although Armenians died during the relocations, many Turks also lost
their lives in attacks carried out by Armenian gangs in Anatolia.

The Turkish government has repeatedly called on historians to study
Ottoman archives pertaining to the era in order to uncover what
actually happened between the Ottoman government and its Armenian
citizens.

The debate on “genocide” and the differing opinions between the
present day Turkish government and the Armenian diaspora, along with
the current administration in Yerevan, still generates political
tension between Turks and Armenians.

Turkey’s official position against allegations of “genocide” is that
it acknowledges the past experiences were a great tragedy and that both
parties suffered heavy casualties, including hundreds of Muslim Turks.

Ankara agrees that there were certainly Armenian casualties during
World War I, but says that it is impossible to define these incidents
as “genocide.”

In 2014, then Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed
his condolences for the first time to all Ottoman citizens who lost
their lives in the events of 1915.

“May Armenians who lost their lives in the events in the early
twentieth century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to
their grandchildren,” Erdogan said.

From: A. Papazian

TURKISH PM SAYS POPE JOINED ‘EVIL FRONT’ AGAINST TURKEY

Muscatine Journal
April 15 2015

By DESMOND BUTLER

ISTANBUL (AP) — Adding to angry comments about the Pope Francis’
description of the Ottoman-era killing of Armenians as genocide,
Turkey’s prime minister said Wednesday that the pontiff has joined
“an evil front” plotting against Turkey.

Ahmet Davutoglu made the comments at an event in Ankara outlining
the ruling party’s platform for June parliamentary elections and
presenting its candidates. He called the pope’s description of the
killings of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians as “the first genocide
of the 20th century” unjust. Turkey responded to the pope’s words
Sunday by recalling its ambassador to the Vatican.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely viewed
by scholars as genocide.

Turkey, however, has insisted that the toll has been inflated, and
that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest, not genocide.

It has fiercely lobbied to prevent countries from officially
recognizing the massacres as genocide.

“An evil front is being formed before us…Now the pope has joined
it and these plots,” Davutoglu said.

He said Turkey was willing to confront its history, but added:
“We won’t allow our nation to be insulted through history, we won’t
allow Turkey to be blackmailed through historic disputes.”

Late Wednesday, the European parliament approved a resolution that
officially commemorates “the centenary of the Armenian genocide.”

The non-binding resolution in Brussels was approved by a show of
hands of a large majority and included an amendment that commended
Pope Francis for his statement.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the decision
threatens to harm bilateral relations between the EU and Turkey and
would not help Turksih Armenian reconciliation.

Asked about the resolution earlier in the day, Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan defended Turkey’s present-day treatment of Armenians.

“There are 100,000 Armenians who are either Turkish citizens or not
citizens in my country. Have they been submitted to any different
treatment?” he said. “They benefit from all kinds of opportunities. We
could deport them, but we don’t. They are guests in our country.”

He said that the European parliament resolution would be irrelevant,
because Turkey could not accept that its history included genocide.

“Whatever decision they take it will go in one ear and go out the
other,” he said. “It is not possible for the Turkish Republic to
accept such a sin, such a crime.”

___

Nicole Winfield from Rome and Raf Casert from Brussels contributed

From: A. Papazian

RA OMBUDSMAN’S REPORT: NATURE PROTECTION MINISTRY INSPECTED 120 OBJECTS INSTEAD OF 2332 OBJECTS

13:21 April 11, 2015

EcoLur

Within its competences Nature Protection Ministry didn’t take effective
measures to prevent violations in nature protection sector, as well as
it didn’t carry out a sufficient number of environmental inspections
to detect and prevent possible violations, as the Ombudsman’s report
“On Human Rights Defender’s Activities and Violation of Human Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms in Armenia for 2014” says.

“In 2014 the Ministry planned to conduct inspections in 2332 objects,
but factually it inspected 120 ones. As compared with the indicators
for 2013, the inspections in 120 objects resulted in the increase of
detecting violations, caused damage and, consequently, administrative
damages,” the report says.

From: A. Papazian

LE PARLEMENT EUROPEEN APPELLE LA TURQUIE A RECONNAITRE LE GENOCIDE ARMENIEN

UE-parlement-génocide-histoire-Turquie-Arménie

Le Parlement européen a “encouragé” mercredi la Turquie a
reconnaître le génocide arménien, trois jours après la déclaration
du pape Francois et a l’occasion du centenaire des massacres.

“Mon propre peuple a commis des génocides”, a lancé l’eurodéputé
allemand Elmar Brok (PPE/droite), évoquant “une obligation morale” de
reconnaître de tels crimes. “Des centaines de milliers d’Arméniens
ont trouvé la mort sous la main des sbires de l’Empire ottoman”
entre 1915 et 1917, a-t-il asséné avant le vote.

“Quel que soit le mot utilisé (…), il ne peut y avoir de déni
de cette affreuse réalité”, a estimé la vice-présidente de
la Commission européenne, Kristalina Georgieva, soulignant “les
divergences de vues” entre l’Arménie et la Turquie, pays candidat
a l’adhésion a l’UE.

L’exécutif européen refuse de parler de “génocide” car ce
terme n’est pas utilisé par tous les 28 Etats membres de l’Union
européenne.

Le Parlement européen avait qualifié ces massacres de “génocide”
dès 1987.

Sa reconnaissance par le pape Francois dimanche a provoqué la fureur
d’Ankara.

Elle a au contraire été “saluée” par les eurodéputés.

Mme Georgieva a espéré que les cérémonies pour le centenaire, le
24 avril, seront “une occasion pour avancer vers la réconciliation,
qui est au coeur du projet européen”.

Les eurodéputés rendent hommage a la mémoire des 1 500 000
victimes arméniennes “qui ont perdu la vie dans l’Empire ottoman”
il y a un siècle.

Dans leur résolution votée a une très large majorité, les
eurodéputés invitent l’Arménie et la Turquie a “prendre exemple
sur la réconciliation des nations européennes”, en ratifiant et en
mettant en Ã…”uvre, sans conditions préalables, les protocoles sur
l’établissement de relations diplomatiques, en ouvrant la frontière,
et en améliorant de manière active leurs relations, notamment en
ce qui concerne la coopération transfrontalière et l’intégration
économique.

De plus, les parlementaires saluent le message du pape Francois en
date du 12 avril 2015, dans lequel “il commémore le centenaire du
génocide arménien dans un esprit de paix et de réconciliation”.

Ils se félicitent des déclarations du Président et du Premier
ministre de la Turquie, qui ont adressé leurs condoléances
aux Arméniens ottomans et reconnu les atrocités commises a leur
égard. Ils encouragent la Turquie a “saisir l’occasion propice offerte
par la commémoration du centenaire du génocide arménien” pour ouvrir
ses archives, pour “poursuivre ses efforts de réconciliation avec son
passé”, pour reconnaître le génocide et pour poser ainsi les jalons
d’une “véritable réconciliation entre les peuples turc et arménien”.

Par ailleurs, ils invitent la Turquie a effectuer “en toute bonne foi”
un inventaire du patrimoine culturel arménien détruit ou endommagé
au cours du siècle dernier sur son territoire.

Les députés rendent hommage a la mémoire des 1 500 000 victimes
arméniennes “qui ont perdu la vie dans l’Empire ottoman” il y a
un siècle.

Finalement, ils proposent d’instaurer une “journée internationale de
commémoration des génocides afin de réaffirmer le droit de tous les
peuples et de toutes les nations du monde a la paix et a la dignité”.

En 2014, M. Erdogan, alors Premier ministre, avait présenté pour
la première fois des condoléances aux Arméniens, sans pour autant
cesser de contester tout génocide.

Il a pris les devants mercredi matin, avant même le vote a Bruxelles.

“Le vote (…) entrera dans une de mes oreilles et ressortira aussitôt
par l’autre parce que la Turquie ne peut reconnaître un tel péché
ou un tel crime”, a-t-il commenté.

Résolution du Parlement européen sur le centenaire du génocide
arménien

(2015/2590(RSP) / RC8-0342/2015)

(adopté le 15 avril 2015, a Bruxelles)

Le Parlement européen,

vu la convention des Nations unies pour la prévention et la
répression du crime de génocide de 1948,

vu sa résolution du 18 juin 1987 sur une solution politique de la
question arménienne1,

vu sa résolution du 12 mars 2015 concernant le rapport annuel 2013 sur
les droits de l’homme et la démocratie dans le monde et la politique
de l’Union européenne en la matière2,

vu le protocole sur l’établissement de relations diplomatiques entre
la République d’Arménie et la République de Turquie, ainsi que le
protocole sur le développement des relations entre la République
d’Arménie et la République de Turquie signés a Zurich le 10
octobre 2009,

vu la déclaration prononcée le 12 avril 2015 par le pape Francois,

vu l’article 123, paragraphes 2 et 4, de son règlement,

A. considérant que l’année 2015 marque le centenaire du génocide
arménien perpétré dans l’Empire ottoman ;

B. considérant qu’un nombre croissant d’Ã~Itats membres et de
parlements nationaux reconnaissent le génocide arménien perpétré
dans l’Empire ottoman ;

C. considérant que l’une des principales motivations du mouvement
d’unification européen est la volonté d’empêcher que des guerres
et des crimes contre l’humanité ne se reproduisent en Europe ;

D. considérant que la Turquie et l’Arménie se sont engagées dans un
processus de normalisation diplomatique en signant, en 2009, a Zurich,
des protocoles sur l’établissement et le développement de relations ;

E. considérant qu’il est d’une grande importance d’entretenir le
souvenir du passé, puisqu’il ne peut y avoir de réconciliation sans
vérité ni Ã…”uvre de mémoire ;

1. rend hommage, en cette veille du centenaire, a la mémoire des
victimes innocentes arméniennes, au nombre d’un million et demi, qui
ont perdu la vie dans l’Empire ottoman ; participe a la commémoration
du centenaire du génocide arménien dans un esprit de solidarité
et de justice européennes ; invite la Commission et le Conseil a se
joindre a la commémoration ;

2. rappelle que, dans sa résolution du 18 juin 1987, il reconnaissait
entre autres que les actes tragiques perpétrés entre 1915 et
1917 contre les Arméniens sur le territoire de l’Empire ottoman
constituaient un génocide au sens de la convention pour la prévention
et la répression du crime de génocide de 1948 ; condamne tout
crime contre l’humanité et tout génocide et déplore vivement toute
tentative de dénégation de ces actes ;

3. rend hommage a la mémoire des victimes innocentes de tous les
génocides et crimes contre l’humanité ; propose d’instaurer une
journée internationale de commémoration des génocides afin de
réaffirmer le droit de tous les peuples et de toutes les nations du
monde a la paix et a la dignité ;

4. souligne que la prévention en temps utile et la condamnation
effective des génocides et des crimes contre l’humanité devraient
figurer parmi les priorités principales de la communauté
internationale et de l’Union européenne ;

5. se félicite des déclarations de Recep Tayyip Erdogan, président
de la République de Turquie, et d’Ahmet Davutoglu, Premier ministre
de la République de Turquie, qui ont adressé leurs condoléances aux
Arméniens ottomans et reconnu les atrocités commises a leur égard,
et les considère comme un pas dans la bonne direction ; encourage
la Turquie a saisir l’occasion propice offerte par la commémoration
du centenaire du génocide arménien pour poursuivre ses efforts de
réconciliation avec son passé, notamment par l’ouverture de ses
archives, pour reconnaître le génocide arménien et pour poser
ainsi les jalons d’une véritable réconciliation entre les peuples
turc et arménien ;

6. Se félicite du message du pape Francois en date du 12 avril 2015,
dans lequel il commémore le centenaire du génocide arménien dans
un esprit de paix et de réconciliation ;

7. invite la Turquie a respecter et a remplir pleinement les
obligations qu’elle a contractées pour la protection du patrimoine
culturel et, en particulier, a effectuer en toute bonne foi un
inventaire complet du patrimoine culturel arménien et autre détruit
ou endommagé au cours du siècle dernier sur son territoire ;

8. encourage l’Arménie et la Turquie a prendre exemple sur la
réconciliation des nations européennes et a privilégier une
stratégie mettant au premier plan la coopération entre les peuples ;
ne doute pas que cela contribuera a une réconciliation historique des
peuples arménien et turc dans un esprit de vérité et de respect
; appuie les initiatives de la société civile entre la Turquie
et l’Arménie destinées a normaliser les relations ; exhorte la
Turquie et l’Arménie a normaliser leurs relations en ratifiant et
en mettant en Ã…”uvre, sans conditions préalables, les protocoles sur
l’établissement de relations diplomatiques, en ouvrant la frontière
et en s’efforcant d’améliorer leurs relations eu égard notamment
a la coopération transfrontalière et a l’intégration économique ;

9. charge son Président de transmettre la présente résolution
au Conseil, a la Commission, a la viceâ~@~Qprésidente de la
Commission/haute représentante de l’Union pour les affaires
étrangères et la politique de sécurité, aux gouvernements et aux
parlements des Ã~Itats membres, au gouvernement et au parlement de
la République d’Arménie et au gouvernement et au parlement de la
République de Turquie.

jeudi 16 avril 2015, Stéphane ©armenews.com

From: A. Papazian

VATICAN WEBSITE HACKED OVER POPE’S ‘ARMENIAN GENOCIDE’ REMARKS

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 15 2015

April 15, 2015, Wednesday/ 12:48:49/ TODAYSZAMAN.COM / ISTANBUL

A member of a Turkish hacking team briefly blocked access to the
Vatican’s official website on Tuesday night, in response to Pope
Francis’ describing the 1915 mass killing of Armenians by the Ottoman
Empire as the “first genocide of the 20th century” on Sunday.

Pope Francis made the controversial remark as he honored the 100th
anniversary of the World War I massacre of Armenians in the Ottoman
Empire on Sunday. Turkey’s Foreign Ministry summoned the Vatican’s
ambassador in Ankara on the same day. Turkish officials reportedly
told the ambassador that they were “deeply sorry and disappointed”,
adding that the pope’s comments had caused a “problem of trust.”

Turkey recalled its ambassador to Vatican City, Mehmet Pacacı, who
arrived in Ä°stanbul on Monday. A Turkish hacker, who uses the Twitter
account “Herakles” (@THTHerakles) shut down vatican.va, the official
website of the Vatican, late on Tuesday. The news was first reported
by the Italian media. Turkey’s Dogan news agency reported that the
website was inaccessible up until the early hours of Wednesday.

The Vatican’s website is currently working by rerouting visitors to
the address w2.vatican.va/content/vatican/it.html.

The hacker, who is reportedly a member of “Turkhackteam,” a nationalist
group of Turkish hackers, posted messages on Twitter ahead of the
cyber-attack, accusing the Turkish media of remaining silent in the
face of Pope Francis’ Armenian genocide remark.

He also wrote messages prior to the attack saying: “Tonight I am going
to pay a visit to Catholics. Let’s give a message to Mr. Pope.” He
continued in another message by saying that “Armenians should know
that we exist. This is not the first and will not be the last, even
though our own media remains silent.”

The hacker, speaking to the website hackread.com, said, “We want
the pope to apologize for his words or we will make sure the website
remains offline.” He told the website that the pope’s comments are
unacceptable and that he is a religious figure — which the hacker
respects — however, biased comments and calling what happened with
Armenians during World War I genocide is not true.

Turkey, a majority of whose population is Muslim, accepts that many
Christian Armenians died in clashes with Ottoman soldiers beginning
in 1915, when Armenia was part of the empire ruled from Ä°stanbul,
but denies hundreds of thousands were killed and that this amounted
to genocide.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely viewed
by genocide scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey
claims that the death toll has been inflated and that those killed
were victims of civil war and unrest.

From: A. Papazian

COSTA COMMENDS POPE’S ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Congressional Documents and Publications
April 13, 2015

Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA) News Release

“With the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide upon us, I cannot
express the extent of my gratitude for the Pope’s formal recognition
of the devastating violence committed against the Armenian people. His
dedication to defending those who have faced great injustice brings
hope and inspiration to us all.

“The Pope’s actions show that it is high time for the Armenian
Genocide to be acknowledged worldwide. As such, I appreciate the
Pope’s leadership and will continue to take an active role in urging
Congress and the President to go on record recognizing this atrocity
once and for all.”

Read this original document at:

From: A. Papazian

AKP’S STANCE ON ARMENIANS WORRIES CHRISTIANS

Al Monitor
April 14 2015

Author: Fehim TaÃ…~_tekin
Posted April 14, 2015

Early in its rule, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government
raised expectations that Turkey was willing to face its past. But
now, as the 100th anniversary of Armenian genocide approaches,
the government, let alone facing up to the past, has indulged in
a frenzy of casting shadows on the genocide observances and moved
Turkey’s traditional Gallipoli celebrations, normally held March 18,
to April 22-24.

How do Christians in Turkey and the Middle East judge the AKP
government’s course of action?

The effect of Turkey’s refusal to confront the historic tragedy on
relations with countries that received the Armenians is not usually
discussed. The much-vaunted Turkish model had lost some of its glitter
because of Turkey’s reluctance to take steps to face the past and
develop solutions to the questions of its own Christian minorities.

Sure, the AKP’s initial attempts to normalize with Armenia melted
some of the frost with the region’s Christians. But when — in the
course of Arab uprisings — Christians were targeted by radical groups
supported by Turkey, that positive atmosphere was shattered. With
Christians once again forced to abandon their homes in Iraq and Syria,
their co-religionists in Turkey began to dread a return to their
fearful days.

“The AKP government is a major disappointment”

When I asked a Christian entrepreneur from Aleppo trying to make
a new start in Istanbul his views about Turkey before and after
the Arab Spring, he said, “For us, the AKP government is a major
disappointment. Just as Syrian Christians were beginning to feel
sympathy for Turkey before the Arab Spring, Turkey did everything
possible to turn this sympathy into animosity. Your officials actually
worked hard to make Christians remember their old grievances. Believe
me, we don’t trust them. We don’t know what is going to happen to us.”

Syrian Armenian author Hrach Kalsahakian told Al-Monitor, “Since the
Arab Spring, life has been tough for Christians. Their numbers have
dwindled even more in Syria and Iraq. Sure, Muslims are feeling the
pain also. The Syria situation is enormously complicated. AKP policies
have not helped in solving these problems. The Turkish government did
not prevent extremist fighters from entering the peaceful Armenian
town of Kassab. These extremists could not have entered Syria with
their guns unless the AKP government allowed them.”

“Christians were delighted” — at first

Journalist-producer Harout Ekmanian, who left Aleppo and moved to
the Armenian capital, Yerevan, explained how the Christian attitude
toward the AKP has changed: “At the beginning, like other groups
in the Middle East, the Christians were also delighted. But after
the Arab Spring, the AKP government exposed its sectarian-religious
colors and forgot about its aspiration for regional peace. With the
AKP government’s overt and direct support of the Muslim Brotherhood
and other fanatical Islamic movements, Christians were marginalized.”

Can Turkey inspire its neighbors without first accounting for the past?

“Never,” Ekmanian replied. “Following the political and social
upheavals in the Middle East, Turkey adopted a sectarian and
provocative approach and revived historic negativities. This
shows how halfway measures and flimsy displays of goodwill are not
enough to establish lasting good relations. In the Middle East to
build dependable, good neighborliness one needs to face the past,
recognize it and bear its physical, social, political and financial
consequences.”

Armenians worried again

Journalist Serdar Korucu said the AKP government first promised a new
era for Christian minorities in Turkey and secured the support of the
Istanbul Greek Orthodox Patriarchate. But then there was a reversion
to an old Turkish pattern, and the reopening of the Theological School
of Halki at Heybeliada was disallowed.

Korucu drew a disturbing picture of the Armenian community for
Al-Monitor: “Armenians, because of their painful past, are fluttering
like pigeons. History has taught Armenians that on this soil steps
forward may easily be followed by steps backward. At the beginning
of the 20th century, Armenians were the most ardent supporters of the
revolutionary Committee of Union and Progress [CUP]. They paid for it
with the Adana massacre of 1909 engineered by partisans of the sultan.

Six years later Armenians became the targets of the CUP genocide.

Armenians lived through similar steps backward in the 2000s also.

Although there have been some positive steps in restoring properties
of religious foundations, there are many issues that shake Armenian
confidence, such as the claims that the forces that attacked Kassab
were supported by Ankara, the targeting of the ancient church of
Deir ez-Zor by the [Islamic State] said to be supported by Turkey
and changing the date of the Gallipoli observances to overshadow the
Armenian genocide anniversary.”

In short, Turkey has been unable to develop a new approach to the
Armenian tragedy. Rekindling the pains of the past, and adding
to them, have been Armenian journalist Hrant Dink’s murder (still
unsolved after eight years), the use of Turkish territory by jihadist
groups that captured the Armenian town of Kassab last year, Ankara
still ignoring Christians’ basic demands, neglecting to act on the
normalization with Armenia because of Turkey’s demand that Armenia
evacuate Nagorno-Karabakh and the conviction of many that jihadists
in Syria who have been targeting Christian communities are supported
by Turkey.

From: A. Papazian

TURKEY’S GRAND MUFTI ATTACKS POPE FRANCIS FOR ARMENIAN ‘GENOCIDE’ REMARKS

Adnkronos International, Rome
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency
April 13, 2015 Monday

April 13–Turkey’s Grand Mufti Mehmet Gormez, on Monday criticised
Pope Francis for calling the World War I mass killings of Armenians
‘genocide’, comments that sparked a diplomatic row.

“It is upsetting that political lobbies and PR firms around the
world have extended [their activities] to religious institutions’
rites and prayers,” the Anadolu news quoted Gormez as saying.

“If societies start to interrogate each other over past sorrows,
the Vatican will suffer more than anyone else,” continued Gormez,
who heads the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), the main
Sunni Muslim religious authority.

Gormez expressed his “sorrow” over the Pope’s remarks, which he
described as “baseless claims,” Andalou reported.

Turkey recalled its ambassador to the Holy see after Francis said
during a mass on Sunday at St Peter’s basilica attended by Armenian
leaders that Armenians had suffered “the first genocide of the 20th
Century”.

Ankara has called Francis’ remarks as “one-sided”, “unacceptable”
and “far from accurate,” with Turkish Parliament speaker Cemil Cicek
condemning them as “slander” and “discrimination”.

Armenia says up to 1.5 million people died in 1915-16 as the Ottoman
Empire was disintegrating. Turkey has said the number of deaths was
much smaller and says ethnic Turks also suffered in the conflict.

Most non-Turkish scholars of the events regard them as genocide.

From: A. Papazian