The California Courier Online, June 22, 2017
1 – Commentary
Turkey spends $2.6 Million to Hire
Two New Lobbying and PR Firms
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher,
The California
Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2 – Armenian Community of China
Newsletter
Now Available at UCLA
3 – Armenian
Atlas Fetches $37,500
At
Swann Galleries Auction
4 – Kickboxer Attacked by Angry Fans
After
Brutal KO in Frightening Scene
5 – French-Armenian
Candidates Lead in First
Round
of French Parliamentary Elections
6 – Fresno
Doctor Leading
Medical
Mission to Armenia
7 – Federal
Charges Filed Against at Least 10
Members
of Pres. Erdogan's Security Detail
8 – Commentary
When
‘Yes’ Means ‘No’ or Failure,
Success:
Azerbaijan
and Fake News
By
Christopher Atamian
And
Haykaram Nahapetyan
9 – A Community Conversation to be Held
In Fresno on the Film ‘The
Promise’
10- ANCA-WR Praises Multi-Million Funding
for Armenian
American Museum and Statewide Genocide Education
11- ANCA
Urges Trump Administration to
Ensure
Erdogan’s Bodyguards Stand Trial
12- Four
Things You Didn’t Know About
Beirut-born
NBA Coach Steve Kerr
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1 – Commentary
Turkey
spends $2.6 Million to Hire
Two New Lobbying and PR Firms
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
Last week, I wrote about a
dozen public relations and lobbying companies the Turkish government had
already hired. In recent weeks, the Republic
of Turkey added two new
such firms: Ballard Partners and Burson-Marsteller.
Turkish officials don’t seem
to realize that having more than a dozen lobbying firms not only is a waste of
money due to unnecessary duplication, it is also a waste of the valuable time
of several Turkish Embassy officials in Washington, D.C., spending a lot of
their time on a daily basis to give detailed instructions to these lobbying
firms, read their reports, comment on them, meet with them, forward their
reports to the Foreign Ministry with lengthy explanations, and take corrective
action based on Ankara's reaction. Unless such an intense and elaborate effort
is made in working with so many lobbying firms, Turkish officials are simply
wasting their country’s money!
I am happy that the Turkish
government has decided to waste more of its money by agreeing to pay Brian
Ballard’s firm, Ballard Partners, $1.5 million from May 15, 2017 to May 14,
2018. According to Ballard’s registration with the Justice Department, the firm
will provide the Turkish government “with advocacy services relative to
US-Turkey bilateral relations.” The lobbying activities include “advising,
counseling, and assisting [Turkey]
in communications with US Government officials. Maintaining US relations with
this important NATO partner.”
Brian Ballard is the longtime
lobbyist for Pres. Donald Trump as the representative of the Trump Organization
in Tallahassee, Florida. He raised $16 million for Trump’s
presidential campaign while serving as his state finance chairman and later as
vice chairman of the President’s inaugural committee. Ballard issued a
statement asserting that he “still speaks to Trump on occasion.” Susie Wiles,
who was introduced by Ballard to Trump during the campaign, served as Trump’s Florida campaign
manager. She is now working for Ballard Partners. Ballard also hired former
Congressman Robert Wexler (Democrat-Florida) to be in charge of the Turkish
lobbying account. As co-chair of the Congressional Turkey Caucus, Cong. Wexler
actively lobbied and voted against a proposed House Armenian Genocide
resolution on Oct. 10, 2007. His new job is his reward for staunchly supporting
Turkey
in Congress for years!
According to the Tampa Bay
Times, Ballard’s first interaction with Trump occurred several years ago when
he wrote a letter to Trump after reading his book, Art of the Deal, and Trump
answered. Ballard wrote back stating: “if you ever have any issues in Florida, please don’t
hesitate to call." Trump called him after purchasing Mar-a-Largo in 1985,
and paid Ballard at least $460,000 from 2013 to 2015 for lobbying work. Trump
personally called Ballard asking for his help when he launched his presidential
campaign. Ballard is now organizing a fundraising banquet for Trump on June 28.
The cost is $35,000 per person and $100,000 to join the host committee.
Ballard makes no secret of
his special connections with Pres. Trump. “I would imagine if Hillary Clinton
were elected I wouldn’t be here,” he told the Tampa Bay Times. Ballard said “he
doesn’t discuss how he works or his contacts with the president. He’s been
spotted at the White House, however, and Trump maintains phone relationships
with allies.”
In addition, the Turkish
Embassy in Washington D.C., signed a contract with
Burson-Marsteller for $1.1 million for the period May 1-Dec. 31, 2017.
Ironically, from 2012 to 2015, Burson-Marsteller was doing lobbying work for
the Alliance for Shared Values, a group tied to the Turkish Muslim cleric
Fethullah Gulen whom Erdogan opposes and seeks his extradition from the US to
Turkey. The Turkish government reportedly threatened Burson-Marsteller’s
operations in Turkey
if the firm continued to lobby for Gulen.
Burson-Marsteller is supposed
to provide “integrated public relations services to support the [Turkish]
Embassy’s communications objectives in the United States. Activities include
media outreach, monitoring and analysis; event support; stakeholder engagement;
social media counsel; and support for Turkish consulates in Boston,
Chicago, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami
and New York."
It is noteworthy that despite
the millions of dollars spent by Turkey on more than a dozen high-powered
lobbying and public relations firms, they could not counter the large number of
news articles and TV coverage critical of the Turkish government for the attack
on peaceful protesters by Pres. Erdogan’s bodyguards in front of the Turkish Ambassador’s
residence in Washington, D.C., on May 16. This fact reinforces my firm belief
that Turkey is wasting
millions of dollars annually trying to cleanse its image in the U.S.,
which is further tarnished by the Turkish government's brutal policies both at
home and abroad!
*******************************************************************************************************
2 – Armenian Community of China
Newsletter
Now Available at UCLA
HONG KONG – The
main aim of the “ChinaHAY” newsletter is to present the history and internal
life of the Armenian Community of China. This newsletter is published by the
Armenian Community of China. “ChinaHAY” is the only bilingual Armenian
(Armenian and English) newsletter in the Far East.
UCLA is one of the best universities in the US.
UCLA has the Narekatsi Chair in Armenian studies and the Chair in Modern
Armenian History.
Thanks to a new agreement, the “ChinaHAY”
newsletter is now available at UCLA. From now on it will provide opportunities
to the academic community of UCLA for research about the Armenian Community of
China in the USA
as well.
David Hirsch, Middle Eastern and Central Asian
Studies Librarian at UCLA, noted: “I am pleased to report that the newsletters
have been cataloged and are available for the use of the UCLA scholarly
community, including students, faculty and other researchers. UCLA’s Charles E.
Young Research Library includes over 12 million items. Among them are over
25,000 Armenian books, journals, newspapers, manuscripts, etc.”
Anahit Parzyan, the chief editor of the
“ChinaHAY” newsletter, remarked that “the main aim of our newsletter is to
introduce the history of the Armenian Community of China to international
society. We are very glad that the “ChinaHAY” newsletter is already available
in such an authoritative university as UCLA. It will give added impetus to
academics to research the history of the Armenian Community of China, which is
totally in line with the main aim of “ChinaHAY newsletter.”
****************************************************************************************************
3 – Armenian
Atlas Fetches $37,500 at Swann Galleries Auction
NEW YORK (Fine Books & Collection Magazine) – On June 7, Swann Galleries’ held its
biannual auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate
Books. Approximately two thirds of the lots offered fell into the category of
maps and atlases, with strong results in both subheadings. Of the 265 lots, 86%
percent found buyers, exceeding the low estimate for the section by more than
$100,000.
The first world atlas in the Armenian language
topped the sale, reaching more than five times its $6,000 high estimate to sell
for $37,500, a record for the work.
Hovhannes Amira Dadian created the atlas in the
Armenian monastery on the Venetian island
of San Lazzaro in 1849 in
an effort to bring Western knowledge to his home country. The atlas boasts ten
hand-colored double-page maps, including one of the solar system, all of which
were printed in Paris
and based primarily on contemporary French models.
*******************************************************************************************************
4 – Kickboxer
Attacked by Angry Fans
After
Brutal KO in Frightening Scene
By Darren Hartwell
PARIS
(nsan) – If you’re going to a kickboxing match, you’re going to witness
violence. But Saturday’s bout between Murthel Groenhart and Harut
Grigorian took that to a new scary level.
The chaos began in the second round of the Glory
42 kickboxing event in Paris,
when Groenhart landed a knee to Grigorian’s face. For some inexplicable reason,
the Armenian middleweight turned his back to Groenhart and walked in the other
direction. Seeing his opportunity, the Dutch fighter knocked Grigorian cold
with a vicious right hook.
While brutal and unexpected, Groenhart’s
knockout punch was completely legal. But the fight dissolved into absolute
madness from there, as a pair of spectators stormed the ring and started
attacking Groenhart.
One of the fans landed a pretty vicious shot on
Groenhart before security pulled them away.
Fortunately, both fighters were OK after the
bizarre sequence. Groenhart even shared
an Instagram post thanking Grigorian for the fight and adding
that the two are “sportsmen and we respect each other,” per The Washington
Post. (Groenhart’s Instagram is private.)
Still, there’s a good chance Groenhart’s
attackers could be facing legal trouble for their actions.
**********************************************************************************************
5 – French-Armenian
Candidates Lead in First
Round
of French Parliamentary Elections
YEREVAN (Armenpress) -The En Marche! (On the Move) party of French
President Emmanuel Macron sets for big win in the first round of parliamentary
elections.
The election results were also quite positive for candidates with Armenian
origin who are mainly nominated by En Marche!
and the center-right Republicans.
Pascal Chamassian (En Marche!) is leading in first electoral district of
Bouches-du-Rhône community of Marseille with 29.43% of votes, and the second
candidate is Valérie Boyer(Republican) with 24.68%. Danielle Cazarian (En Marche!) leads in
Bouches-du-Rhône’s 13 electoral district, 33.99%, and Philippe Meunier
(Republican) with 20.81% of votes.
Coming to d’Eure-et-Loir first electoral district, again candidate of Armenian
origin Guillaume Kasbarian is leading with 37.12% of votes, and the second is
Republican candidate Franck Masselus with 22.15% of votes.
Jacques Marilossian from En Marche!-received
most of the votes (48.48%) in 7th electoral district of Hauts-de-Seine Rueil,
and Republican Eric Berdoati received 27.91% of the votes.
****************************************************************************************************
6 – Fresno Doctor Leading
Medical
Mission to Armenia
By Gene Haagenson
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) – A Fresno
doctor is heading to Armenia
with several others medical professionals to help people in need of health
services.
The 37 doctors and medical professionals will be providing routine and
emergency level care to rural areas of the country.
For Dr. John Garry, it's a chance to serve and return to Armenia nearly 30 years after a
devastating earthquake and to revisit his families roots.
Armenia, then part of the Soviet Union, was rocked by a devastating earthquake in
1988. Emergency medical personnel from around the world rushed in to help,
including Garry of Fresno.
"In 1988, during the Armenian earthquake, I was lucky enough to be among
the first group of rescue people allowed into Armenia
by the Soviet Union," he said.
Dr. Garry volunteered not only because he wanted to help, but because he felt
an obligation to his ancestors. His grandparents came from Armenia.
"You have to remember from whence you came," he said.
Dr. Garry is a surgeon, and in the aftermath of the quake, he performed emergency
procedures on those who sustained trauma from the quake and illness in its
aftermath. This trip the treatments will be different.
"Just about everything but mainly there's a lot of diabetes there's a lot
of hypertension, people smoke a lot in this part of the world, drink a lot, and
so there's a lot of related diseases. Almost anything is there."
Dr. Garry notes the people in rural Armenia do not have access to regular
medical care, and these annual trips by doctors from the Armenian Medical
Mission are the only times they see a doctor.
"There is a big shortage of medical personnel and facilities and so
whatever we can do to give back to an underserved area is important and for me
personally drives me to want to help my own heritage to help improve their lot,"
he said.
Among the patients he expects to see are Syrian refugees of Armenian heritage
who fled from Isis in Syria.
The medical mission will be for 10 days. The team left from LA on June 14.
***************************************************************************************************
7 – Federal
Charges Filed Against at Least 10
Members
of Pres. Erdogan's Security Detail
By Dion Nissenbaum
WASHINGTON, DC (The Wall Street Journal) –
Federal prosecutors have filed charges against at least 10 members of Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s security detail who are accused of having
played a role in last month’s beatings of demonstrators protesting the Turkish
leader’s visit to the U.S. capital, officials said on June 14.
The charges, which one official said include
felony assault against some of Mr. Erdogan’s guards, are likely to inflame
existing tensions between Turkey
and the U.S.,
which now will have to decide whether to seek extradition of the suspects, or
to bar them from returning.
In addition, according to The Daily Caller’s
Chuck Ross, Turkish Americans Eyup Yildirim, an owner of a construction company
in New Jersey, is charged with assault with
significant bodily injury and aggravated assault while Sinan Narin, a Virginia resident faces
an aggravated assault charge.
“These two arrests are a good start, but this is
about far more than crime enforcement. It's about our U.S. government standing up against
foreign attempts to silence dissent by American citizens. In light of the major
media attention devoted to this outrage and given the intense Congressional
concern about its consequences – it is unacceptable that the White House and
State Department have demonstrated such weakness, adopting, basically, a
business-as-usual approach in the face of a brazen, angry, and arrogant foreign
attack on peaceful protesters on American soil," concluded ANCA Executive
Director Aram Hamparian.
The clash, which District of Columbia Police
Chief Peter Newsham characterized as an unprovoked and “brutal attack on
peaceful protesters,” triggered widespread condemnation from U.S. lawmakers and unanimous
approval for a House resolution denouncing the assaults. Some lawmakers urged
the U.S. to take the
dramatic step of expelling Turkey’s
ambassador.
Nine people were hospitalized after members of
Mr. Erdogan’s security detail took part in beatings of demonstrators gathered
outside the ambassador’s residence to protest the Turkish leader’s visit. One
police officer and two members of the U.S. Secret Service also were injured.
VIdeo images of the attacks were captured by
news crews and by people using cellphones, which provided prosecutors with
evidence to pursue charges.
The Turkish embassy didn’t immediately respond
to a request for comment.
*****************************************************************************************************
8 – Commentary
When
‘Yes’ Means ‘No’ or Failure,
Success:
Azerbaijan
and Fake News
By Christopher Atamian
And Haykaram Nahapetyan
Huffingtonpost – Perhaps taking its cue from our
own President Trump, Azeri dictator Ilham Aliyev and his government have made a
science out of fake news. Even failures at manipulating the U.S. government somehow get twisted around by
Aliyev’s crew and are touted as successes, turning the proud people of Azerbaijan
into something of an Absurdistan.
Take State Resolution SJR 15-006, titled “Azerbaijan
United States Partnership,” aimed at gaining U.S support in Azerbaijan’s quest to diplomatically win back
Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) after losing the region militarily to Armenia
some 25 years ago. This Colorado Senate Joint Resolution was introduced on
January 23rd, 2015 by Senator Larry Crowder (R, District 35). It passed in
neither the Senate nor the House and was never signed into law. In fact it was
never even officially discussed. Anyone who reads the political press can
verify this. Check out openstates.org, for
example. Why after all let the truth of all things interfere with your
political agenda, for heaven’s sake?
If one checks Azeri reports (such as the one
posted at azeriamericannews.com on
January 20th, 2015) one finds the exact
opposite, in fact: “Colorado State Senate voices strong
support for Azerbaijan,
embarrassing Armenian lobby’s fiasco”. If ending up in the Colorado senators’
recycling bins shows strong support for a resolution, I’d hate to see what the
Senators would do if they actually opposed a resolution…
The local Armenian community, including those
who fled Azerbaijan
during the anti-Armenian pogroms in the early 1990’s, worked heartily to block
the document’s passage. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenians
in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) voted to secede from Azerbajian, leading to
massacres of Armenians in major Azeri cities, including Sumgait. The following massive exodus of the
Christian Armenians from this majority Muslim country follows in the wake of
the almost complete de-christianization of the Middle East in countries such as
Iraq, Syria and Turkey, which began over a century ago during the Medz Yeghern or Armenian Genocide, called
Seyfo by the Assyrian
Christians who were also massacred in 1915 by the Ottoman Turkish government.
One of the passages in SJR 15-006 had the
temerity to refer to Azerbaijan
as a “country with a long-lasting tradition of peaceful co-existence between
various ethnic and religious groups.” Ignoring the resolution’s ignominious
death upon arrival, the Azeri lobbies simply re-wrote a shorter and
lighter version of the trashed document, from the podium of the Senate
(check it out on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gxc7jdIasQg ) and
passed Crowder’s initiative on to Baku as an example “of the great support”
here in the U.S. for Azerbaijan.
The Colorado
case follows in a long line of similar incidents which seek to manipulate
American politicians and the American public in general. In 2014, for example,
lawmakers from Hawaii
introduced two pro-Azeri resolutions. Armenian and non-Armenian community
members and the local press raised concern. Why should the Aloha state of all
places care about Azerbaijan,
a country exactly 8,042 miles away, and barely known in Hawaii? As It turns out both legislators who
presented these resolutions, Rida Cabanilla and Mark Takai, had previously
traveled to Azerbaijan
on all-cost paid trips.
Cabanilla later admitted that “the resolutions
came from Azerbaijan’s
ambassador to the US.”
Imagine that. Then, as if presaging the wacky world of Trumpist media
statements, Cabanilla later confessed on Honolulu’s
Civilbeat portal:
“Maybe (the resolution) is not 100 percent accurate — I don’t know if it
is or not.” Perhaps that’s what happens when proposed legislation is
drafted by a foreign state official rather than an American legislator himself.
Blogger and journalist Casey Michael recently
concurred: “Slathered in hydrocarbon profits, the autocratic government of
Ilham Aliyev has unleashed
spin-doctors, duped
reporters, and led one of the most brazen
pushes to abuse American lobbying loopholes of any
foreign government.” The Azeri government had paid for dozens of American
policy makers and their staffers to visit their country and showered them with
expensive gifts, including beautiful Azeri rugs, as the Office of Ethics of the
Congress later found out. Many of them, like the two legislators from Hawaii, would then try
to push the favorable pro-Azeri documents. The US Office of Congressional
Ethics published an almost 1000 page-long report which plainly stated:
“much of the cost of travel and funding for the Convention was paid for
by undisclosed entities, including the Republic
of Azerbaijan, through its national
oil company, the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic
(“SOCAR”).
Another unfortunate Azeri manipulation relates
to the Khojaly tragedy. The Azeris claim Armenians killed hundreds of
Azerbaijani civilians in this town in Artsakh in 1992, while Armenians claim
that the Azeris fleeing this town were caught in internecine Azeri shooting at
a time that the country’s two main factions were in conflict—geography and
eyewitness reports seem to argue in favor of the Armenian account. Most agree
that the video released by Armenian documentary filmmakers and http://xocali.net show
images that were in fact not shot in the town of Khojaly itself, but rather about seven miles
away in a territory under Azeri control at the time. Many of the photo-images
that presented were apparently from places as far off as the Middle East, Turkey and Afghanistan, even the images of the Jewish Holocaust have been
exploited. It is difficult to square Azeri and Armenian accounts of what
happened in or around Khojaly in the heat of war, though Azeri government
claims that 20 US
states have already condemned the Khojaly’s tragedy seem spurious. Given the
Azeri government’s track record of manipulating or simply inventing information
to suit its own ends—a record Donald Trump would be proud of—it’s hard to take
anything they say happened as having actually happened—fake news non
withstanding.
*****************************************************************************************************
9 – A Community
Conversation to be Held
In Fresno on the Film ‘The
Promise’
FRESNO
– The Armenian Cultural Conservancy in partnership with St. Paul Armenian Church
is hosting a community conversation on the film The Promise, following a featured panel presentation.
The event is slated for June 27, at 7:00 p.m. at
St. Paul’s Haig
Berberian Hall, 3767 N. First St.,
Fresno.
The
Promise premiered in 2,251 theaters across the country on April 21 and
grossed over four million dollars during its opening weekend. Thousands of Americans from all different
backgrounds, including large numbers of Armenian-Americans, rushed to theaters
to see the first major motion Hollywood film that depicts the events of the
Armenian Genocide of 1915.
A panel of distinguished individuals will discuss
the impact and significance of The
Promise: Carla Garabedian, Ph.D., Associate Director of The Promise, Film-maker, Director, and
Writer; Jack Geiger, Professor of Theatre Arts, West Hills Community College; Matthew Ari Jendian, Ph.D., Professor & Chair of
the Sociology Department, Fresno State; and the Judge of the Superior Court,
Fresno County. Houry Sanderson.
Marshall D. Moushigian, Esq., a community activist,
will serve as moderator.
Following the panel discussion, community
members will have an opportunity to participate in a Q and A session. Refreshments will be served. The event is open and free with prior reservations. Please RSVP by calling St. Paul Church
(559) 226-6343 or ACC (559) 226-1984.
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10- ANCA-WR
Praises Multi-Million Funding for Armenian
American Museum and Statewide Genocide Education
GLENDALE– On June 15, the California State
Legislature adopted a budget with considerable attention given to the
Armenian-American community. The ANCA-WR is very grateful to each and every
California State Assemblymember and Senator who worked so hard to negotiate and
to pass the State budget which includes significant funding of $10 million for
the implementation of the Genocide education curriculum framework and a total
of $4 million for the Armenian
American Museum.
The ANCA-WR is especially thankful to
Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian for initiating the process and remaining
committed to it for more than two years, to Senator Anthony Portantino for
continuing it to fruition since his recent election, and to Senate Pro Tem
Kevin de Leon and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon for their leadership and
genuine consideration of the needs of the vast Armenian-American constituency
in California.
Legislation of this magnitude requires long term
planning and implementation by legislators and an engaged citizenry. The
ANCA-WR has been at the forefront of these issues, and more, by tirelessly
advocating for initiatives important to the Armenian American community. This
has truly been a collective effort between the public and private sectors.
“Our grassroots heeded our Action Alerts over
the last two years, our Board and Staff had frequent meetings in Sacramento with our
elected officials, and our Chief Legislative Consultant Haig Baghdassarian
testified multiple times in committee hearings, all of which culminated in this
important budget commitment from the State,” the ANCA-WR statement noted.
The June 15 vote clearly demonstrates the
political strength of the community and the importance of remaining civically
engaged, and the ANCA-WR will remain committed to representing the interests of
Armenian-American community in the halls of government in California and beyond.
********************************************************************************************************
11 – ANCA Urges Trump Administration to
Ensure
Erdogan’s Bodyguards Stand Trial
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee
of America (ANCA) welcomed, as a meaningful step toward justice, Washington, DC
Mayor Muriel Bowser’s and Police Chief Peter Newsham’s in-depth investigation
that led to 18 arrest warrants – including a dozen against Turkish President
Recep Erdogan’s bodyguards — in connection to the May 16th attacks on peaceful
protesters outside the Turkish Ambassador's residence.
“We commend the efforts of Mayor Bowser, Chief Newsham
and all the law enforcement agencies involved in taking this step toward
bringing the perpetrators to justice, and look forward to continuing to work
with the relevant authorities to identify all involved,” said ANCA Exective
Director Aram Hamparian. “Law enforcement is doing its part; now it’s
time for the Trump Administration to take action and demand that Turkey
lift any claims to diplomatic immunity for those involved in this crime, so
that criminal proceedings can move forward and justice can be served.”
During a June 15 press conference, Mayor Bowser
stated “I condemn this attack. It was an affront to our values as
Washingtonians and as Americans and it was a clear assault on the first
amendment.”
DC Police Chief Peter Newsham announced the names
of the dozen members of Turkish President Erdogan’s security detail who have
been charged with the attacks. Two Turkish-Americans have already been arrested
for assault, and two Turkish Canadians have also been charged.
“We have dignitaries that are in and out of this
city on a daily basis. Rarely have I seen, in my almost 28 years of
policing, the type of thing that I saw on Sheridan Circle on that particular day,”
said Chief Newsham. “You had peaceful demonstrators that were physically
assaulted and the message to folks who are going to come to our city either
from another state or from another country is that’s not going to be tolerated
in Washington, DC.”
In response to a question from The Armenian
Weekly, Chief Newsham acknowledged that investigators are looking into the role
of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the attack, but indicated that,
despite the available video and other evidence, there is not yet sufficient
probable cause to seek his arrest.
The complete press conference can be viewed on
the ANCA YouTube Channel at: https://youtu.be/obv1-eENygM
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed
Royce (R-CA) commended DC police on issuing the arrest warrants, and called on
the State Department to “double down on efforts to help bring these individuals
to justice.”
House Intelligence Committee Ranking Democrat
Adam Schiff (D-CA) applauded the DC Police decision to follow up with the
filing of criminal charges. “This sends an important message that while
violence and repression have become the norm in Erdogan’s Turkey, they remain unacceptable
here. Bringing these thugs to justice will ultimately require the State
Department to prioritize this issue with Turkey, and I will be urging them
to ensure that those charged today face justice,” Schiff said in a statement.”
House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) tweeted
that he is “encouraged that Turkish security who violated the rights of
peaceful protesters in DC will face justice.”
According to the Associated Press, Secretary of
State Rex Tillerson said the charges "send a clear message that the United States
does not tolerate individuals who use intimidation and violence to stifle
freedom of speech and legitimate political _expression_." Secretary
Tillerson did not specify what further action the Trump Administration would
take in the matter. The US
could seek extradition of Erdogan’s security detail or bar their return to the United States.
Hours after the arrest warrants were issued, the
Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned U.S. Ambassador to Turkey John Bass and,
according to a press statement, “emphasized that the decision, which clearly
was not taken as a result of an impartial and independent investigation, is
unacceptable.”
President Erdogan later reacted to the news,
asking “What kind of a law is this? … If they [bodyguards] are not going to
protect me, why would I bring them with me to America?" Erdogan vowed
to fight the charges leveled against his bodyguards.
“Erdogan is doubling down on denial,” said the
ANCA’s Hamparian. “Drawing on the same playbook Ankara
has used in Washington
since the time of the Armenian Genocide, he is – against all evidence – blaming
the victim and trying to bully everyone else into silence.”
The Sunday, June 4 edition of The New York Times
featured a two-page center-spread investigative report on the May 16th attack,
with online version of the coverage translated to Turkish and shared widely on
social media.
The New York Times coverage is available here:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/05/26/us/turkey-protesters-attack-video-analysis.html?_r=0
********************************************************************************************************
12 – Four
Things You Didn’t Know About
Beirut-born
NBA Coach Steve Kerr
BEIRUT
(Lebanese Examiner) Legendary NBA coach Steve Kerr has not had an
easy life. He’ll be the first to tell you.
The Beirut-born six-time NBA champion spent most
of his childhood in Lebanon
until his father was shot and killed in 1984. He was devastated.
As millions watch Game 4 of the NBA finals, most
fans will be thinking of Steve Kerr as the former professional basketball
player and the current head coach of the Golden State Warriors. Little do they
know, Kerr’s life story starts in Beirut.
Steve was born in Beirut “Stephen Douglas Kerr” to proud
parents Dr. Malcolm and Ann Kerr. His father — also Beirut-born — was an
American academic who specialized in the Middle East.
Steve attended Cairo
American College
in Egypt, the American Community
School in Beirut
and Palisades High
School in Los Angeles.
His father was the former president of
AUB.
Dr. Malcolm Kerr spent much of his
childhood in Lebanon, on and
near the campus of the American University of Beirut,
where his parents taught for over 40 years.
Following his doctorate work at John Hopkins
University in Washington
D.C., Dr. Kerr returned to Beirut to teach at the American
University of Beirut’s Department of Political Science.
He became president of the university in 1982.
He served as president for 17 months.
His grandfather volunteered with the
Near East Relief.
Steve’s grandfather, Stanley Kerr, was a
well-respected American humanitarian, who spent many years volunteering with
the Near East Relief after the Armenian Genocide.
Stanley and his wife Elsa Reckman Kerr met while
rescuing women and orphans in Marash.
They later joined the staff of a Near East
Relief orphanage in Nahr Ibrahim,
Lebanon.
Stanley earned
his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania, and returned to Beirut
where he became chairman of the Department of Biochemistry at the American University
of Beirut.
Steve’s father was shot and killed on January
18, 1984 by two gunmen outside of Beirut
office. He was 52.
A possible motive regarding his
assassin are still unclear, although The New York Times
reports a male caller telephoned the Beirut office of
Agence France-Presse shortly after his murder and said the slaying was the work
of Islamic Holy War.
At the time, former President Ronald Reagan
issued a statement saying in part, “Dr. Kerr’s untimely and tragic death at the
hands of these despicable assassins must strengthen our resolve not to give in
to the acts of terrorists. Terrorism must not be allowed to take control of the
lives, actions, or future of ourselves and our friends.”
Steve said his father’s unlikely assassination
left him speechless. The Kerr family later sued the Iranian government under
the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.
While warming up for a game at Arizona State
in 1988, Kerr had to deal with a number of fans in the crowd chanting “PLO” and
“your father’s history.”
Kerr said his difficult life has made him a
stronger person, and a stronger coach.
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