Azg Armenian Daily
Aug 28 2004
GERMAN AMBASSADOR’S STATEMENT TO STIR UP OPPOSITION
THE MUSA DAGH TRAGEDY ON THE CNN
ARMENIAN-CHINESE MILITARY COOPERATION
ARTSAKH FACING A NEW ACADEMIC YEAR
MASONRY IS A BROTHERHOOD
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GERMAN AMBASSADOR’S STATEMENT TO STIR UP OPPOSITION
Turkish Ruling “Justice and Progress” Party to Respond
At his meeting with Kars deputy mayor Israfil Chakaz on August 24 the
German ambassador Wolf Ruthard Born declared: “As far as I know the
Armenian constitution views Kars and the surrounding territories as
Armenian. The border-gate opening presupposes a resolution in
Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict. If Azerbaijan gives up Karabakh then
the border-gate will open.”
The August 25 publication of Turkish Dyunden Bugyue Terjuman
newspaper was the source of this information. The Azg Daily’s
yesterday’s online edition informed readers that the Turkish
newspaper’s information was not checked out. In other words, no other
Turkish newspaper referred to the ambassador’s statement made in
Kars.
But another Turkish newspaper, the Nethaber, touches upon the issue
in its August 26 issue. The paper writes that Eyup Fatsan, deputy of
the Turkish Grand National Assembly, the Mejlis, fiercely opposed to
Mr. Born’s statement. Eyup Fatsan is a deputy president of the ruling
“Justice and Progress” party.
According to the online edition of the Nethaber, the deputy stopped
in Samsun on his way from Ankara to his birthplace Ordu. Here the
deputy responded to Mr. Born’s words that “Armenian constitution
views Kars as Armenian” by calling them “nonsense”. Mr. Fatsan
emphasized that the Republic of Turkey will not allow anyone to
manipulate with the Turkish territories.
Mr. Fatsan goes on saying: “The issues of Turkey’s territorial
wholeness are being often used by France and the USA to reach some
goals in Turkey itself. The Armenians of Turkey belong to the upper
class. Therefore they refute any statement of this kind and any
groundless claim. No matter to whom these words belong, to a German
ambassador or to someone else, they are of no value”.
The Turkish deputy rounds off alluding to Nazi Germany: “I think the
ambassador’s statement expresses his longing for the past. His view
has nothing to do with the views of today’s Germany”.
By Hakob Chakrian
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THE MUSA DAGH TRAGEDY ON THE CNN
“There Were 2 Million Armenians in Turkey but After War They Reduced
to 100 Thousand”
“Most of the Armenians living in Ottoman Turkey were deported and
killed during the World War I. There was only one village that didn’t
share the destiny of all others”. With these words the CNN’s Inside
the Middle East heading opened its “Armenian’s are back to Turkey”
program.
“The head of the village Perch Kartun don’t know those who he is
kissing but they all are Armenian Christians and came to the village
of Vakf from all over the world”, while the journalist was telling
the story of the only Turkish village spared by the Genocide the
views of Musa Dagh (the Mount of Moses), the church of the village
and the Holy Liturgy were on the screen.
“My name is Betty, I came from Paris”, says the young Armenian whose
parents fled the massacres and found refuge in Paris.
“I am from Los Angeles, my surname is Karapetian”, an old Armenian
says.
“My grandfathers lived in this land. I came to see this land”,
another Armenian says. “They came to pay tribute to thousands of
Armenians who were deported from Turkey at the beginning of the last
century”, the CNN reporter says.
Mesrop Mutafian is the Armenian patriarch of Turkey. “When this
region became a part of Turkey, population here changed. Many Turks
and Muslims came to Hatay and many Armenians left Hatay for Syria and
Lebanon”, the patriarch explains.
“There were 2 million Armenians in Ottoman Turkey, and after the WW I
was over there remained only 100 of them”, the CNN reporter adds to
the words of patriarch.
The population of six villages of Musa Dagh took refuge in the
mountains in 1915 and was throwing back the Turks’ attacks for 53
days till the French navy came to help. The French and British ships
saved the lives of more than 4.000 Armenians and took them to Port
Said, Egypt. After the war the Musa Dagh and Hatay (Alexandret)
became a part of French-ruled Syria. In 1939 Hatay was returned to
Turkey. The Armenians of Egypt had by the year of 1939 been back to
their homeland. But when the region became a part of Turkey Armenians
from 5 Musa Dagh villages, 5.000 overall, again left their houses
this time for Aynchar, Lebanon.
The Armenian Vakf village, Turkish Vakifl Koyu, is on the Southern
slope of the Musa Dagh looking at the Mediterranean and the Syrian
coast. There are 150 Armenians living in the village. There is a
mosque not far from the village. “This mosque once was a church and
the village was a Christian one”, tells the CNN reporter and adds,
“Armenian culture here is in danger. The last 150 Armenians of the
village are old, the youth departs for city”.
By Tatoul Hakobian
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ARMENIAN-CHINESE MILITARY COOPERATION
On August 26 the Defense Minister of Armenia Serzh Sargisian hosted
the delegation headed by General Major Zian Lichua, deputy chairman
of the Administration for Foreign Relations of the Defense Ministry
of China and the Chinese ambassador to Armenia Tzo Syuelyan.
Underscoring one more time that Armenia and China are sister
countries, the sides discussed issues of military cooperation.
Relations in this field between the two countries are developing.
Today Armenia has 10 graduates of Chinese military educational
centers, the Chinese government is ready to discuss the issue of
providing more places to Armenian servicemen in their educational
establishments.
The Defense Minister of Armenia said that the Armenian-Chinese
relations have reached a point where more bilateral meetings are
needed. The Armenian president’s September visit to Peking will be a
new impulse for these relations.
By the end of the meeting Serzh Sargisian congratulated the Chinese
delegation for the national teams brilliant performance at the
Olympic games in Athens.
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ARTSAKH FACING A NEW ACADEMIC YEAR
Slava Asrian, of the Nagorno Karabakh Education, Culture and Sport
Ministry, assures that Artsakh is ready for the new academical year.
Many schools were repaired and textbooks acquired.
By the efforts of the pan-Armenian “Hayastan” fund, the US
Establishment for Armenian Education and a French NGO many schools in
Martakert, Hadrut, Askeran and Martuni have been repaired. Another
school is being repaired in Stepanakert by the support of Luis Simon
Manukian.
Mr. Asrian says that there are still many schools in ruins in the
country. The Ministry is working on a project of school repairing and
preserving.
The government of Karabakh allocated 57 million AMD for school
property last year but the schools are still in need. The schools
feel acute shortage of desks, and the Ministry takes steps to fill up
the gap.
In comparison with past years the schools are more equipped with PCs.
Mr. Asrian noted that all schools of the republic have PCs and that
they look forward to connecting to the Internet.
Concerning the textbooks, we were said that all the necessary
textbooks published by the Republic of Armenia are acquired.
Teacher shortage is only noticeable in the bordering areas.
The new academical year will bring a new subject to Karabakh schools,
the history of Armenian Church. The Artsakh Diocese is to provide the
schools with appropriate textbooks.
By Kim Gabrielian from Stepanakert
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MASONRY IS A BROTHERHOOD
In response to the article titled “Hidden Secrets of Masonry” posted
on August 26 edition, Azg Daily received Tim Bryce’s, editor of the
FREEMASONRY, letter. Below we present Mr. Bryce’s letter.
“I just finished reading your article on “Hidden Secrets of Masonry”
by Dr. Cathy Burns. This is, of course a sham, and does not
accurately portray Freemasonry.
The Masons are neither a religion nor a cult. Yes, we ask men if they
believe in a Supreme Being, but this is more or less a litmus test to
see if the person is of good moral character (an atheist cannot
become a Mason). You will find men of all religious denominations in
Masonry.
In my Lodge alone I know Christians, Jews, and Muslims, all
peacefully getting along and enjoying Brotherhood. Under no
circumstances do we try to force our religious beliefs on another. It
is just not what Freemasonry is about. It is just Brotherhood.
If more people practiced Freemasonry it would lead to world peace,
something our zealot opponents simply do not understand.
Sincerely, Tim Bryce, Editor, FREEMASONRY for The Next Generation
Palm Harbor, FL, USA”