AGBU to Hold 83rd World Conference in Armenia

AGBU PRESS OFFICE
55 East 59th Street, New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone (212) 319-6383
Fax (212) 319-6507
Email [email protected]
Webpage

PRESS RELEASE
Monday, August 30, 2004

AGBU TO HOLD 83rd WORLD CONFERENCE IN ARMENIA
PLANS AMBITIOUS AGENDA

New York, NY – AGBU leaders, members and friends worldwide will come
together this October in their ancestral homeland on the occasion of
AGBU’s 83rd Biennial General Assembly to review current programs,
exchange ideas and discuss new initiatives.

Beginning with a welcoming dinner on October 1st, AGBU members and
guests can expect a full agenda with meetings and site visits
throughout the week. Conference sessions will include an opening
ceremony with government officials; the General Assembly;
Chapter-specific meetings; and panel discussions. A unique program and
a series of events are planned for AGBU Young Professionals, who will
also be in attendance.

In addition, conference participants will have the opportunity to
visit AGBU-funded projects, such as the Children’s Centers, the Soup
Kitchens, the American University of Armenia, the Ultrasound Center,
the Vaskenian Seminary, as well as enjoy performances of the Armenian
Philharmonic Orchestra and a production of Armenia State Opera’s
“Anush” sponsored by the AGBU. A two-day visit to Nagorno Karabakh is
also scheduled.

“As we approach our centennial anniversary, it is with great
enthusiasm that I look forward to welcoming our membership to our 83rd
General Assembly and World Conference in Armenia,” said AGBU President
Berge Setrakian. “It is only fitting that we convene in Yerevan to
review our programs and activities across the globe as we look to the
future,” Setrakian continued.

The conference will take place in Yerevan, Armenia from October
1-7. The Karabakh trip is scheduled for October 7-9. With over 250
people registered, hotels and flights are filling up fast. For more
information or to register, please call the AGBU Central Office at
(212) 319-6383 or contact Maral Achian at [email protected].

AGBU () is the largest international, non-profit Armenian
organization in the world, and is dedicated to preserving and
promoting the Armenian heritage and culture through humanitarian,
educational, cultural and social programs that serve some 400,000
Armenians annually.

www.agbu.org
www.agbu.org

Adding More Masala…

Patna Daily, India
Aug 25 2004

Adding More Masala…
by Avishek Suman

I must thank Mr. Rakesh Chaubey for his recent article titled
“Politically Speaking… Thoughts to Mull Over” wherein he presented
a snapshot of American politics in the wake of coming election in US.

This article of mine will try to add more spice to the American
election.

A peep into Dick Cheney’s antecedent tells us that before assuming
the post of Vice president of US, he was the CEO of a company called
Halliburton. He served Halliburton from 1995 to 2000. Halliburton is
a company that has always been in controversy. The company was first
criticized for doing business with Libya, Azerbaijan and Burma
despite the fact that US government had banned any trade with these
countries. (US ban on Libya was for bombing a German disco in 1986
wherein two US soldiers died, Azerbaijan for ‘ethnic cleansing’ of
Armenians and Burma for curbing democracy).

Cheney’s tenure in Halliburton also witnessed several unethical
practices by the company. As a matter of fact unethical practices
peaked during his time. The company allegedly altered its accounting
policy in 1998 for which it is still investigated by SEC (US
counterpart of SEBI). When Cheney left Halliburton to join the Vice
president office he was awarded with the compensation package of $20
million.

Then as we all know in March 2003, Iraq war II happened. For all
logistic support for the war US government awarded several contracts
to Halliburton. The work involved erecting camps for soldiers,
feeding US army, extinguishing oil wells in Iraq and supplying Iraq
with the required oil. There were two interesting features of the
contracts. Firstly, these were “no bid contracts”, that is government
had awarded Halliburton without considering any other company.
Secondly, these were “cost plus contracts” that is whatever the cost
the company incurs plus its margin will be paid by the government to
the company. A lot of people started raising their voices that
Halliburton was a corrupt company and contracts were given to it only
because of its ties with Cheney.

In August, 2003 Pentagon complained that the meals that the company
was serving to the troops were unhygienic, as they were prepared in
most dirty conditions with blood all around. Pentagon asked the
company to “clean up”. But the company failed to do so.

In December 2003 Pentagon alleged that the company had overcharged to
the extent of $61 million for oil it imported from Iraq and charged
$186 millions for food that was never delivered. This brought the
company under sever criticism. The strongest voice of course came
from the Democrats.

To make the matter worse for Halliburton and Cheney, two employees of
the company met Henry Waxman (a Democrat from California) and told
him that the company had wasted millions of dollars of US tax-payers
because the company did not mind the cost (the contracts were all
cost plus!). They gave many examples of wasteful activities, which
included abandoning of trucks worth $85,000 because of flat tires and
minor problems.

Mr. Kerry now says “Halliburton is guilty of shameful
war-profiteering, and they need to be held accountable” whereas the
company says it has become the target of “Political profiteering” and
Cheney has been keeping mum.

While Pentagon investigates the “over-billing issue”, democrats have
got enough masala for the election campaign.

ASBAREZ Online [08-25-2004]

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TOP STORIES
08/25/2004
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1) Armenian-Americans Deliver United Message to US House Leadership
2) Territorial Integrity Should Be Respected, Stresses Saakashvili
3) Aliyev Holds Private Meeting With German President

1) Armenian-Americans Deliver United Message to US House Leadership

Grassroots Organizations Protest Congressional Opposition to Genocide
Legislation

WASHINGTON, DCMore than a dozen national grassroots Armenian-American
organizations came together this week to communicate the “extraordinary
disappointment” of the Armenian-American community over the Congressional
leadership’s opposition to legislation recognizing the Armenian genocide,
reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
“We have seen, in recent weeks, a tremendous groundswell of opposition from
across the Armenian-American community to the Congressional leadership’s
attack
on the Schiff Amendment, and their stubborn refusaldespite the strong,
bipartisan support enjoyed by the Genocide Resolutionto schedule a vote on
this
human rights initiative,” said ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian.
The letter, written on behalf of the collective leadership of the
Armenian-American community to House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, gives voice to
the community’s unequivocal opposition to the House leadership’s efforts to
reverse the Schiff Amendment to the fiscal year 2005 Foreign Operations bill,
H.R. 4818, and expresses the community’s “great dismay with your public
statement against holding a vote on the Genocide Resolution, H.Res.193.”
The letter comes in the wake of the adoption by the US House, last month, of
the Schiff Amendment, which seeks to block the use by Turkey of US foreign aid
to lobby against the Genocide Resolution. It was adopted by voice vote,
without
any opposition, on July 15. Within hours of its passage, the Schiff Amendment
came under intense attack by the Congressional leadership, with the Speaker of
the House and his top deputies issuing a statementposted prominently on the
first page of the Speaker of the House’s websitethat they would use their
influence to block its adoption as part of the final foreign aid bill.
The organizations that signed the community-wide letter were the ANCA, the
Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic ChurchEastern and Western US, the Prelacy of
the Armenian Apostolic ChurchEastern and Western US, the Armenian Missionary
Association of America, and the Apostolic Exarchate for Armenian Catholics, as
well as the Armenian General Benevolent Union, Armenian Democratic Liberal
(Ramgavar) Party, United Armenian Fund, Armenian Relief Society, Armenian Bar
Association, National Organization of Republican Armenians, Armenian Youth
Federation, HomenetmenArmenian General Athletic Union, and Hamazkayin Armenian
Cultural and Educational Association.
The signatories to the letter stressed that the Schiff Amendment, which was
adopted by the US House on July 15, “simply underscores the importance of
protecting American people from having their tax dollars used by the
government
of Turkey for a purpose they find patently offensivethe denial of the Armenian
Genocide.” They also noted that the adoption of the Amendment “reflected the
breadth of the bipartisan opposition to Turkey’s shameful campaign against
H.Res.193, and, just as importantly, demonstrated the clear and overwhelming
support of a majority of Members enjoyed by the underlying legislation.”
The Genocide Resolution, H.Res.193, was introduced last year by Congressmen
George Radanovich (R-CA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Congressional Caucus on
Armenian Issues Co-Chairmen Joe Knollenberg and Frank Pallone. It has been
cosponsored by 110 US Representatives and was approved, without opposition, in
May of last year, by the Judiciary Committee. This genocide prevention measure
is supported by a diverse coalition of over one hundred religious, civic,
ethnic and human rights organizations, including American Values, Union of
Orthodox Rabbis, NAACP, Sons of Italy, and the National Council of La Raza.

The full text of the Armenian American community letter to the Speaker of the
House is provided below.

Text of Community Letter to Speaker Dennis Hastert

Dear Speaker Hastert:

We are writing, as the collective leadership of the Armenian-American
community, to voice our extraordinary disappointment with your opposition to
the Schiff Amendment to the fiscal year 2005 Foreign Operations bill,
H.R.4818,
and to express our great dismay with your public statement against holding a
vote on the Genocide Resolution, H.Res.193.
The Schiff Amendment simply underscores the importance of protecting American
people from having their tax dollars used by the government of Turkey for a
purpose they find patently offensivethe denial of the Armenian Genocide. The
adoption of this measure on July 15th by the full US House of Representatives
reflected the breadth of the bipartisan opposition to Turkey’s shameful
campaign against H.Res.193, and, just as importantly, demonstrated the clear
and overwhelming support of a majority of Members enjoyed by the underlying
legislation.
As you know, H.Res.193, which was introduced by Congressmen George Radanovich
and Adam Schiff, and Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues Co-Chairmen Joe
Knollenberg and Frank Pallone, has been cosponsored by 110 of your colleagues
and was approved, without opposition, in May of last year, by the Judiciary
Committee. This genocide-prevention measure is supported by a diverse
coalition
of over one hundred religious, civic, ethnic and human rights organizations,
including American Values, Union of Orthodox Rabbis, NAACP, Sons of Italy, and
the National Council of La Raza.
We respectfully call upon you to reconsider your opposition to the Schiff
Amendment and to immediately schedule a vote of the full US House of
Representatives on the Genocide Resolution, H.Res.193. We make this request on
several levels. First is that the adoption of such a resolution represents a
moral imperative that we, as Americans, must take to defend human rights and
protect human lives against the crime of genocide. Secondly, we should not
allow a foreign nation, particularly one that so brazenly flaunts basic
American values and which blocked the US-led coalition from opening a northern
front in the Iraq War, to impose its dictates on the US Congress. Thirdly, the
clear majority of Members who support this resolution should not be denied the
opportunity to take part in an up-or-down vote on this human rights measure.
Finally, by bringing this measure to the floor, you would be honoring your
public pledge to our community on this subject made in October of 2000.
Thank you for your consideration of our concerns. We would be pleased to meet
with you personally to discuss this matter further.

Sincerely,

2) Territorial Integrity Should Be Respected, Stresses Saakashvili

TBILISI (Combined Sources)–Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said that
relations between Georgia and Russia should be based on mutual respect for
each
country’s territorial integrity.
“I demand that officials of the Georgian government compare Georgia with
Chechnya, as we respect Russia’s territorial integrity and want Russia to
respect our territorial integrity,” Saakashvili told a briefing on Tuesday.
Saakashvili said that Russia is in fact a participant in the conflict in
Tskhinvali region. “The fact that Russia is taking part in the conflict has
been known to us for a long time,” he said.
Russian troops are gathering near South Ossetia, he said. “Our special
services have had information about Russian troops and military vehicles
gathering near the entrance to the Roki tunnel for a long time,” Saakashvili
said.
Thanks to measures taken by the Georgian authorities, “large-scale military
activity” was avoided, Saakashvili said.
“The country has to be ready to defend itself at any moment,” the president
said. “We would like to negotiate with Russia, but it is not making any steps
to help this,” he said.
The Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday dismissed as “inventions” and
“unfounded statements” allegations by Georgian politicians that Russia has
moved more troops to the vicinity of the Georgian border.
A current Russian army exercise, which has been interpreted in Georgia as
preparations for an invasion of the country’s breakaway region of South
Ossetia, is a routine operation that was planned in 2003 and “has nothing
to do
with current events around Tskhinvali,” ministry spokesman Col. Vyacheslav
Sedov told Interfax.
The exercise is being held at a training ground in North Ossetia, a Russian
region bordering South Ossetia, he said.
“Maybe it is seen in Georgia as a large-scale exercise, but for Russia it is
part of daily routine,” he said.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the Defense and National Security Committee of the
Georgian parliament, Givi Targamadze, urged his country to prepare for a
Russian attack.
“It appears that we cannot avoid Russian aggression, and so we must stop it,
which is by no means an unfeasible task if one takes into account the Chechen
experience,” Targamadze told a news conference in Tbilisi.
Three hours before Georgia withdrew its forces from the Georgian-South
Ossetian conflict zone last week, “Russian troops in North Ossetia were
readied
for march and were to enter the territory of South Ossetia via the Roki
Tunnel,” he said.
“Airborne troops and up to 40 combat helicopters were moved to a military
airfield near the village of Upper Gizel, in the immediate vicinity of the
Roki
Tunnel,” he said.
There were still up to 80 armored vehicles at a Russian military base near
Oktyabrskoye village that “are intended to be moved into South Ossetia,” he
said.
Peacekeepers monitoring South Ossetia have located trip wires and US-made
mines in the area, Irina Gagloyeva, head of the South Ossetian press and
information committee, told Interfax by telephone on Tuesday.
“More than ten trip wires were discovered in the area of the Tskhinvali
bypass
road, from where Georgian servicemen were withdrawn. Twenty-five US-made mines
were found in Georgian villages.
Apart from peacekeeping units, the monitoring operation in the area involves
representatives of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
she
said.
The situation in the region is generally calm. No shelling has been reported
so far. But people are waiting for what might happen with concern,” she said.
Referring to South Ossetian security agencies, Gagloyeva said that Georgian
servicemen are continuing to dig trenches and to build other fortification
facilities near the villages of Tamarasheni, Kekhli and Kheit.

3) Aliyev Holds Private Meeting With German President

GERMANY (Azertag)–Following an official welcoming ceremony, a private meeting
was held between Azeri President Ilham Aliyev and President of Germany Horst
Koehler on August 25, AzerTag personal correspondent reports.
During the conversation, President Koehler highly valued the Azeri leader’s
first official visit to Germany, stressing it would have a positive impact on
the development of bilateral relations and promote economic cooperation
between
the two countries.
Expressing satisfaction with the hospitality shown to him during the visit,
Aliyev pointed out the importance of expanding cooperation between Azerbaijan
and Germany, particularly in regards to international organizations and
integration of Azerbaijan into European structures.
Regarding the Karabagh conflict, Koehler stated that Germany completely
supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and will adhere to this
position in the future. Germany as an OSCE member will intensify its efforts
concerning the problem, he said.

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Sydney: Armenians seek home

Northern District Times (Australia)
August 25, 2004 Wednesday

Armenians seek home

A DEMAND for more facilities to cater for Ryde’s 10,000-strong
Armenian community has emerged as the council considers whether it
should demolish a derelict clubhouse at Burrow Park.

The Ryde-based Armenian Association of Australia’s 85 members are
lobbying Ryde Council to keep the unoccupied facility in Princes St,
Ryde, for their cultural activities.

The council has said they could carry out their traditions at nearby
Santa Rosa Park’s scout hall, which is used by another Armenian group
but an association spokesman said their cultures differed
significantly.

“Irrespective of them being another Armenian group, we’re like chalk
and cheese,” association vice president Toros Boyadjian said.

“There are big cultural and traditional differences. There’s a
different language and different dialect.”

Burrow Park members are predominantly Christian Orthodox while Santa
Rosa members are a mix of religions, some with Iranian heritage.

Mr Boyadjian dismissed the idea of cultural conflict dividing the
groups.

The association expressed interest in occupying the clubhouse when
the Italian group San Giorgio Martire Di Sydney left the premises in
2001, finding it inadequate on car parking and safety issues because
of its secluded site.

The council said the building was structurally unsound and
dilapidated and would cost $300,000 to restore.

Ryde councillor Sarkis Yedelian said Armenians still needed a
facility of their own.

He said Ryde Civic Centre was available only up to four times a year
while most locals had to travel to the Willoughby Armenian Cultural
Centre for traditional activities. The Armenian Youth Federation,
Armenian Cultural Association, Armenian Sports Association and
Armenian Relief Society use the Ryde Civic Centre.

The recommendation to demolish the clubhouse went before the council
again last night (Tuesday).

State Budget Allots 978 Mln Drams For Repairs in Yerevan Schools

ARMENIA’S STATE BUDGET ALLOTS 978 MLN DRAMS FOR REPAIR WORKS IN
SCHOOLS OF YEREVAN

YEREVAN, AUGUST 23. ARMINFO. This year the state budget of Armenia has
allotted 978 mln drams for repair works in the schools of the
capital. Last year the volume of repair works totaled approximately
570 mln drams. Head of the department of education of Yerevan’s
municipality Onik Vatian told journalists today.

According to him, capital repair has been implemented in 33 schools,
and in 19 schools the works are being continued. Speaking about the
preparation of the schools for the new school year and for winter,
Vatian mentioned that according tie the program of social development
for 2004-2007, elaborated by the municipality of Yerevan, 9 local
boiler-houses will be put into operation in Jan or Feb of the current
year. Thus, till the end of this year 27 schools will be heated by
local boiler-houses, 4 schools – by the heating system of Yerevan
thermal power station.

Government Approves Armenian-Russian Ministerial Coop Agreement

RA GOVERNMENT APPROVES ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN MINISTERIAL COOPERATION AGREEMENT

YEREVAN, AUGUST 19. ARMINFO. The RA Government has approved of the signing of
a cooperation agreement between the RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs
and the RF Ministry of Health and Social Development.

The RA Government’s press service reports that the Government approved the
signing of a protocol on amendments to the order of allotting and using
land-plots for stationing the Russian military base in the Republic of Armenia. The
decision specifies the list of points of stationing of the Russian military base
in Armenia, as well as provides legal grounds for the transfer of four
cantonments to the Armenian side. The RA Government approved the expenses on railway
transportation of cargoes addressed to the Russian troops stationed in
Armenia, etc..

If the Armenians wish, they can conquer Azerbaijan

AZG Marmenian Daily, Armenia
Aug 20 2004

“IF THE ARMENIANS WISH, THEY CAN CONQUER AZERBAIJAN”

While in Baku They Are Hopeful That “in the Coming 25-30 Years There
Will Be No State Called Armenia in the Southern Caucasus”

“‘How to liberate the occupied territories?’ This question is likely
to be put forward in each family of Azerbaijan. It is impossible to
liberate the Nagorno Karabagh and the neighboring regions without
military actions. There has been no case in the military history when
the conquered territories were voluntarily liberated,” the recent
issue of Baku’s Zerkalo wrote. Ramiz Melikov, Press Speaker of Azeri
Defense Minister, stated recently that “there will be no state called
Armenia in the South Caucasus in the coming 25-30 years, as today’s
Armenia was founded on the Azeri historical territories and in near
future these lands will be controlled by Azerbaijan.” Melikov didn’t
specify how they are going to conquer Armenia.

President Ilham Aliyev and the supreme military officials state in
public that the Azeri army is more efficient than the Armenian one
and if the peaceful negotiations yield no results, Azerbaijan will
have to solve the issue of Nagorno Karabagh and the neighboring
territories under Armenia’s control through military actions. It’s
worth mentioning that Baku has been consistently trying to solve the
issue through military actions since 1998, when the new stage of
Karabagh struggle began.

Vladimir Kazimirov, Former Special Russian Ambassador of OSCE Minsk
Group, wrote in one of his recent articles that the sides in conflict
had many opportunities to stop the war, to set up ceasefire even in
1992. He states in his article that the Azeri side was violating the
ceasefire mainly, hoping to solve the conflict through war, making
all the Armenians leave the territory.

Kazimirov said that in June of 1992, there appeared an opportunity to
stop the military actions on the front line and open the OSCE Minsk
conference, but Abulfaz Elchibey put forward a precondition, i.e. the
Armenians should leave Shushi and Lachin. On May 8 and 18 the
Karabagh forces liberated Shushi and took control over Lachin
corridor, securing land connection between Armenia and Karabagh.

Kazimirov, who implemented a mediator’s mission in the region for 47
times, recollects that in July, 1992 the Karabagh side agreed to
signing ceasefire, but Elchibey was stubborn, and only in the spring
of 1993, when the Karabagh forces took the control over Kelbajar, the
pro-Turkish Baku government gave consent for ceasefire.

One shouldn’t forget that Elchibey once promised to wash his feet in
the Sevan waters. It’s worth mentioning that the Azeri armed forces
conquered almost the half of Karabakh’s territory in the summer of
1992.

In June of 1993, the Azeris and the Karabagh people began direct
negotiations that helped make a ceasefire for a while. But Heydar
Aliyev, who came to power in Baku through military revolution, wanted
to regain the lost through military action. Again the Azeris began
refusing the settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict through
negotiations. On July 23 the Karabagh forces took the control over
Aghdam, the neighboring dwelling places, a number of hills of
military meaning. Only after all these steps the Azeris stopped
bombing Stepanakert.

Notwithstanding the obvious military benefits, the Karabagh side
through the Russians’ mediatorial efforts again gave the consent to
stop military actions and set up a ceasefire on July 24, the very
next day after conquering Aghdam. Azerbaijan secured the ceasefire
for several days, but it broke the agreement afterwards. As a result,
the Karabagh forces took control over Fizuli, Jebrail and Kubatlun in
the August of 1993.

Two secret meetings took place between Heydar Aliyev and Robert
Kocharian in Moscow in the autumn of 1993. In this period Aliyev was
engaged in settling the problems of inner character, he made legal
the results of the military-state revolution that took place several
months ago and occupied the post of Azerbaijan’s leader. Few days
after the inauguration the Azeri armed forces began the military
actions again. Hundreds of the Armenian soldiers were killed as a
result of the large-scale attack in Kelbajar’s direction in winter.
But the failure didn’t last long. The Karabagh forces began a
large-scale attack and Azerbaijan lost at least 2000 soldiers in few
days.

In the April of 1994, the Karabagh forces were ready to conquer
Tartar, Bardan and Gianjan and reach Georgia’s border. The Azeri were
made to set a ceasefire. It took place in Bishkek, May. This
ceasefire is being secured till now with some violations.

By the way, the American Boston Globe daily dedicated a publication
to the Nagorno Karabagh Issue. The reporter of the daily cites the
words of Mamedov, Azeri Major, who was dwelling on the situation in
Azerbaijan fighting against Armenia and Azerbaijan. He says:” If the
Armenians wish, they can conquer the whole Azerbaijan.”

The militant statements made by the Baku officials should be paid
attention. As soon as Azerbaijan becomes certain about the
possibility of settling the issue through applying arms, the war will
begin. Anyway, the events of 1991-94 testify to this.

By Tatoul Hakobian

The German Exodus

The German Exodus

DEBATE OVER COMMEMORATION OF MILLIONS EXPELLED FROM LOST TERRITORIES

Le Monde diplomatique
March 2004

By Brigitte Pätzold

Should there be a centre to commemorate the Germans expelled from
Czechoslovakia and Poland after the second world war? And if this
buried collective memory is to be revived, where should the centre be
located – in Berlin, Wroclaw, Geneva, Strasbourg or Stockholm? There
is nothing accidental about this debate, which has been the focus of
German public opinion for some time now; 60 years on, Germany wants to
normalise its relations, particu larly with its East European
neighbours who will join the European Union in May.

For years Germans seemed paralysed by their sufferings under
bombardment and during the exodus towards the end of the war and
after. Now, with the third and fourth generations to be born since
then and with the deaths of so many witnesses to the events, the
silence has been broken. Writers have taken the lead in the
debate. Günter Grass, winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, was
the first to break the taboo. He is a native of Danzig, a keen Social
Democrat and close companion of Willy Brandt, and unlikely to minimise
Nazi crimes (1). He dealt with the exodus in Crabwalk (2), the story
of the vessel Wilhelm Gustloff, which was torpedoed by a Soviet
submarine on 30 January 1945; 9,000 refugees fleeing the Red Army died
in the icy Baltic.

Does this book mark a change of heart by Grass, who has always been
convinced that the lost territories were the price Germany had to pay
for starting two world wars? Not really. Grass blames himself for not
tackling German sufferings earlier and says: “We should never have let
the right make the subject its own. People of my generation had a duty
to speak out.” The book has sold 400,000 copies in weeks.

Jörg Friedrich’s The Fire (3), which has had a similar shock effect,
is about the bombing of Hamburg, Dresden and Cologne 1943-45, the
Allies’ war of fire in which 161 towns were razed and some 600,000
people killed. Friedrich, a historian who has written about German
army crimes in Russia, now brings to the public a subject previously
covered only in specialist publications. This story of the sufferings
of ordinary people produced an amazing response from readers.

Young writers are also interested in the past and its last surviving
witnesses. Tanja Dückers, 36, unwittingly chose the same subject as
Grass for a novel (4). The discovery of old letters in an attic led
her to question her uncle and aunt, who narrowly escaped the Wilhelm
Gustloff disaster. Other young authors – Christoph Amend, Stephan
Wackwitz, Reinhard Jirgl and Olaf Müller – seek their material in the
German past, their grand parents’ experiences during the war, the
exodus and the lost territories.

Hilke Lorenz, 41, interviewed war children (5). “The people I knew
didn’t talk about the war. It wasn’t the done thing. Pity was out.” So
she decided to get survivors to talk about air-raids, their fears in
underground shelters, the rape of mothers or sisters (which sometimes
they witnessed helplessly), the loss of their parents. It is hard to
talk about these things: what are their sufferings compared with those
inflicted by the “nation of butchers”?

This is the background to the debate about a centre to commemorate the
Germans expelled at the end of the war. Its location has caused
controversy. A proposal for a German centre in Berlin was made by
Erika Steinbach, joint president, with Social Democrat Peter Glotz, of
the Expellees’ Union and author of a history of her native Sudetenland
and the exodus.

Another proposal, for a European centre in Wroclaw in Poland, came
from Markus Meckel, Social Democrat member of the Bundestag and
foreign minister in the last government of the German Democratic
Republic. Supporters of this project, launched in July 2003, include
the Nobel Prize winners Grass and Imre Kertesz.

Steinbach launched her project in February 2000, when she had just
been elected president of the Union. She set up a foundation for a
centre against expulsion, to collect funds to build a centre in the
capital. At first all went well. The president, Johannes Rau, and the
minister of the interior, Otto Schily, whose parents had been
expelled, appeared to support it, and Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and
foreign minister Joschka Fischer were not against it.

It was officially adopted for debate but there were many hostile
reactions, particularly in Poland and the Czech Republic. A caricature
photomontage appeared in the Polish magazine, Wprost, showing
Steinbach in SS uniform, astride Chancellor Schröder, who was depicted
as a sheep. The commentary read: “The Germans owe the Poles a billion
dollars in compensation for the crimes committed during the second
world war.” This made it seem as if the Poles still feared German
revanchism, as though the good relations based on post-war
reconciliation might collapse. Politicians criticised the
project. “Chauvinism is now the order of the day in Germany,” said
former foreign minister Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, and his contemporary
counterpart, Bronislaw Geremek, considered that the Berlin project
would not contribute to reconciliation but foment hatred.

In the Czech Republic the Sudeten question still poisons the political
atmosphere. History has left painful memories here. As Prime Minister
Milos Zeman pointed out, the first expulsion was that of the Czechs by
Germans after the Nazi invasion of the Sudetenland in October 1938 and
Bohemia and Moravia in March 1939; he has described the Sudeten
Germans as Hitler’s fifth column. The violence is well-remembered,
too, from the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich on 27 May 1942 and
the reprisal massacre at the village of Lidice on 10 June 1942, to the
expulsion of most Germans from the region in 1945-46.

In 1991 President Vaclav Havel apologised, on behalf of his people,
for massacres of Germans during the expulsion, and even suggested that
former inhabitants of the Sudetenland might apply for Czech
nationality to reclaim their lost properties. This gesture of
reconciliation seems to belong to another age. The present Czech
government will not repeal Edvard Benes’s 1945 decrees, which provided
the legal basis for the expulsion of three million Germans accused of
collective collaboration with the Nazi regime and the confiscation of
their property. Surveys suggest that public opinion is against any
such move. In this context it is not surprising that the plan for a
centre in Berlin has been opposed on the initiative of academics Hans
Henning and Eva Hahn, who have collected Czech, Polish and German
signatures.

Faced with the obvious distrust of Germany’s eastern neighbours,
Marcus Meckel launched his resolutely European project in July
2003. He has the support of the Polish president, Aleksander
Kwasniewski, son of an expatriate, the former Czech president, Vaclav
Havel, two Polish politicians Bartoszewski and Geremek, and Czech
politicians, including former prime minister and current president of
the senate, Petr Pithart, deputy prime minister Petr Mares, and Tomas
Kafka, co-director of the Joint Czech-German fund.

Adam Michnik, editor-in-chief of the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza, is
among the strongest advocates of Wroclaw as the location; it is at the
junction of two expulsions, of the Germans and of the Poles from Lvov
in Ukraine. Former Czech president Havel may be in favour of
establishing the centre at Wroclaw but his successor, Vaclav Klaus,
would prefer neutral Stockholm.

For Meckel the location is not important. What he wants is to set it
in a European context and persuade the future members of Europe to
regard expulsion, forced migration and deportation as a violation of
human rights. Democrats such as Winston Churchill and Franklin
Roosevelt may have thought it acceptable to uproot whole peoples to
establish ethnically homogenous communities and achieve a stable
peace, but the sufferings of civilian populations and the rise of
nationalist movements since prove that they were wrong.

In this context, the Germans are entitled to recognition of their
sufferings. This in no way lessens their responsibility for the war
and for genocide. The object is not to record of the number of victims
on either side but to alert nations to their duty of transnational,
non-selective commemor ation, with due respect to their
differences. As Otto Schily suggests, the centre against expulsion
should not be a museum or a court of law but a living history workshop
for future Europeans.

According to Peter Glotz, to offset one crime against another, even in
the name of collective responsibility, is to return to the law of an
eye for an eye. He is prepared to give way on the question of
location, as long as work on the centre starts: “If we have to give up
the idea of Berlin so be it. But we don’t need to go to Srebrenica or
Stockholm.” For him the most urgent task is education, starting with
an exhibition in 2005 in the historical museum in Bonn on the 20th
century, the century of expulsion, from the exile of the Armenians all
the way to Kosovo in 1999, taking in the Sudeten Germans. Meckel is in
a hurry. He does not want to wait for governments, or Europe, to
decide on a centre whose location and funding are problematic; he
wants to set up a European network against expulsion, with seminars,
conferences, history workshops, competitions and bursaries.

So the debate is still open. The Polish writer Stefan Chwin points out
that there is a difference between his mother, who was expelled by the
Nazis, and the Germans expelled from Danzig/ Gdansk by the Poles: the
difference between the aggressor and the victim of aggression. (Günter
Grass has never forgotten this.) But it does not alter for either the
pain of being exiled from home.

Brigitte Pätzold is a journalist

NOTES

(1) Der Brand, Propyläen-Verlag, Berlin, 2002.

(2) Himmelskörper, Aufbau-Verlag, Berlin, 2003.

(3) Kriegskinder, List Verlag, Munich, 2003.

(4) Die Vertreibung. Böhmen als Lehrstück, Ullstein Verlag, 2003.

(5) Reproduced in Der Spiegel, Berlin, 22 September 2003.

Translated by Barbara Wilson

http://mondediplo.com/2004/03/14germany

Construction Works Totaling $1.2 Mln To Start in Syunik Region

CONSTRUCTION WORKS WORTH A TOTAL OF $1.2 MLN TO BE STARTED IN SYUNIK
REGION OF ARMENIA

YEREVAN, AUGUST 4. ARMINFO. At the beginning of 2005 the Fund of
social investments of Armenia will begin implementation of
construction works in Syunik region of the republic worth a total of
$1.2 mln. Head of State Town-Planning Inspection of Armenia Sevada
Hayrapetian informed ARMINFO.

According to him, the package of necessary documents will be ready in
the last quarter of the current year. This fund will be directed to
construction of schools, engineering networks and buildings in the
region, as well as to repair of houses of culture. Besides, this year
Armenian government has allocated 13.5 bln drams for construction of
schools and social-economic projects in different regions of the
republic. Ministry of Town-Planning of Armenia is the owner of works
worth a total of 1.5 bln drams in 24 establishments.

Factory Nairit CJSC Shares to be sold to Russia’s Volgaburmach 10/08

AGREEMENT FOR SELLING OF SHARES OF “FACTORY NAIRIT” cjsc TO RUSSIAN
HOLDING “VOLGABURMACH”TO BE SIGNED ON AUGUST 10

YEREVAN, AUGUST 6. ARMINFO. Agreement for selling of the 100% of the
shares of “Factory Nairit” cjsc to Russian holding “Volgaburmach”will
be signed till August 10 of the current year, Minister of trade and
Economic Development of Armenia Karen Chshmaritian informed
journalists today.

According to him, there are no financial and technical disagreements
between the sides. He mentioned that he had talked with Chairman of
the Central Bank of Armenia Tigran Sargsian on Thursday, who is
optimist in this aspect. The minister added that the Armenian side has
fulfilled all its obligations to the Russian side.